Yogi's Ark Lark
Encyclopedia
Yogi’s Ark Lark is an animated Hanna-Barbera
television movie
, intended to raise ecological awareness. Broadcast in 1972
, it was part of The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie
and served as the pilot for Yogi's Gang
.
Noah Smitty helps them build a flying ship (which looks like Noah’s Ark with a propeller
on top) for their journey, and they decide to name it after him; because “Smitty’s Houseboat” is too long to paint on the bow, they name it “Noah’s Ark.” With Noah at the helm, they travel to places around the world searching for “the perfect place.” They start by driving down the highway into the ocean, where they soon end up on the back of a sleeping Moby Dick. Huckleberry Hound is sent down to wake him. They then end up in the Sahara
Desert
which they originally mistake for a beach. The desert sun causes Yogi to hallucinate and believe he’s King Tut, until Boo Boo and Noah Smitty arrive. Some moments later, So So spots an oasis
. As Yogi and crew settle down to make themselves at home, Lambsy spots a “dragon” which turns out to be a construction vehicle developing a new city. Yogi and the crew then take their leave of the area.
They soon arrive in antarctic
territory and settle down there... until it ends up like the oasis. Next, Yogi and the crew wind up in outer space upon going up too far. It isn’t long before Earth ejects its “junk” — missiles, satellites, et cetera — into space. With the ark back on earth and sailing the sea, tensions arise between the animals. Huckleberry Hound throws water down a pipe which causes Dum Dum to emerge and throw water at him. Quick Draw McGraw insults Snagglepuss’ slicing of salami. Peter Potamus insults Magilla Gorilla by telling him he looks like a gorilla. Lippy the Lion grows tired of Hardy Har Har's complaining. Yogi Bear becomes aware of this just as So So spots a typhoon coming; the animals struggle to survive the typhoon. The typhoon lands them on top of a mountain
, and the animals almost believe that they’ve found what they’ve been looking for… only to be disappointed again when Yakky Doodle returns with an empty tin can and the animals notice a deforestation occurring.
At this point, the younger animals (Augie Doggie, Boo Boo, Baba Looey, Lambsy, Shag Rugg) come to a decision of their own: that they should all simply go back home and clean up the messes that they were trying to get away from. This decision is met with unanimous approval, and the animals all head for home so that they can start turning it into “the perfect place.” During the credits, Wally Gator and Squiddly Diddly are cleaning the rivers, Paw and Shag Rugg are picking up garbage around their house, and Yogi Bear picks up a recently discarded hamburger wrapping.
NOTE #1: Choo Choo, Spook, Fancy Fancy, The Brain, Secret Squirrel, Hokey Wolf, Ding-A-Ling Wolf, Chopper, Ruff and Reddy, Dum Dum, Shag Rugg, and Sawtooth the Beaver appear, but have no dialogue.
NOTE #2: Hardy Har Har, Squiddly Diddly, Top Cat, Benny the Ball, and Yakky Doodle are voiced by John Stephenson
, Don Messick
, Daws Butler
, and Walker Edmiston
here. It was presumed that Mel Blanc
, Paul Frees
, Arnold Stang
, and Jimmy Weldon
weren't available to voice them for this TV movie while Benny's voice actor Maurice Gosfield
had died in 1964. Though Arnold Stang continued to voice Top Cat after this, John Stephenson and Don Messick voiced Hardy Har Har and Squiddly Diddly in Yogi's Gang and other appearances.
NOTE #3: Don Messick began voicing Touché Turtle here after the death of Bill Thompson
. John Stephenson began voicing Doggie Daddy here because Doug Young
was caring for his ailing wife at the time.
.
Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. was an American animation studio that dominated North American television animation during the second half of the 20th century...
television movie
Television movie
A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
, intended to raise ecological awareness. Broadcast in 1972
1972 in television
The year 1972 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 1972.For the American TV schedule, see: 1972-73 American network television schedule.-Events:...
, it was part of The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie
The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie
The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie — renamed The New Saturday Superstar Movie in its second season — is a series of one-hour animated TV-movies , broadcast on the ABC television network on Saturday mornings from September 9, 1972, to November 17, 1973.Intended as a "Movie of the Week" for kids, this...
and served as the pilot for Yogi's Gang
Yogi's Gang
Yogi's Gang is a 30-minute animated series produced by Hanna-Barbera which aired 16 half-hour episodes on ABC from , to . The show began as Yogi's Ark Lark, a special TV movie on The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie in 1972...
.
Plot
Concerned about the terrible state of the environment, dozens of animals gather for a meeting in Jellystone Park, chaired by Yogi Bear. They decide to leave their homes and search for “the perfect place”; i.e., a place free of pollution, deforestation, and other forms of mankind’s despoilment. Jellystone handymanHandyman
A handyman is a person skilled at a wide range of repairs, typically around the home. These tasks include trade skills, repair work, maintenance work, both interior and exterior, and are sometimes described as "odd jobs", "fix-up tasks", and include light plumbing jobs such as fixing a leaky toilet...
Noah Smitty helps them build a flying ship (which looks like Noah’s Ark with a propeller
Propeller
A propeller is a type of fan that transmits power by converting rotational motion into thrust. A pressure difference is produced between the forward and rear surfaces of the airfoil-shaped blade, and a fluid is accelerated behind the blade. Propeller dynamics can be modeled by both Bernoulli's...
on top) for their journey, and they decide to name it after him; because “Smitty’s Houseboat” is too long to paint on the bow, they name it “Noah’s Ark.” With Noah at the helm, they travel to places around the world searching for “the perfect place.” They start by driving down the highway into the ocean, where they soon end up on the back of a sleeping Moby Dick. Huckleberry Hound is sent down to wake him. They then end up in the Sahara
Sahara
The Sahara is the world's second largest desert, after Antarctica. At over , it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as Europe or the United States. The Sahara stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean coasts, to the outskirts of the Atlantic Ocean...
Desert
Desert
A desert is a landscape or region that receives an extremely low amount of precipitation, less than enough to support growth of most plants. Most deserts have an average annual precipitation of less than...
which they originally mistake for a beach. The desert sun causes Yogi to hallucinate and believe he’s King Tut, until Boo Boo and Noah Smitty arrive. Some moments later, So So spots an oasis
Oasis
In geography, an oasis or cienega is an isolated area of vegetation in a desert, typically surrounding a spring or similar water source...
. As Yogi and crew settle down to make themselves at home, Lambsy spots a “dragon” which turns out to be a construction vehicle developing a new city. Yogi and the crew then take their leave of the area.
They soon arrive in antarctic
Antarctic
The Antarctic is the region around the Earth's South Pole, opposite the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antarctic comprises the continent of Antarctica and the ice shelves, waters and island territories in the Southern Ocean situated south of the Antarctic Convergence...
territory and settle down there... until it ends up like the oasis. Next, Yogi and the crew wind up in outer space upon going up too far. It isn’t long before Earth ejects its “junk” — missiles, satellites, et cetera — into space. With the ark back on earth and sailing the sea, tensions arise between the animals. Huckleberry Hound throws water down a pipe which causes Dum Dum to emerge and throw water at him. Quick Draw McGraw insults Snagglepuss’ slicing of salami. Peter Potamus insults Magilla Gorilla by telling him he looks like a gorilla. Lippy the Lion grows tired of Hardy Har Har's complaining. Yogi Bear becomes aware of this just as So So spots a typhoon coming; the animals struggle to survive the typhoon. The typhoon lands them on top of a mountain
Mountain
Image:Himalaya_annotated.jpg|thumb|right|The Himalayan mountain range with Mount Everestrect 58 14 160 49 Chomo Lonzorect 200 28 335 52 Makalurect 378 24 566 45 Mount Everestrect 188 581 920 656 Tibetan Plateaurect 250 406 340 427 Rong River...
, and the animals almost believe that they’ve found what they’ve been looking for… only to be disappointed again when Yakky Doodle returns with an empty tin can and the animals notice a deforestation occurring.
At this point, the younger animals (Augie Doggie, Boo Boo, Baba Looey, Lambsy, Shag Rugg) come to a decision of their own: that they should all simply go back home and clean up the messes that they were trying to get away from. This decision is met with unanimous approval, and the animals all head for home so that they can start turning it into “the perfect place.” During the credits, Wally Gator and Squiddly Diddly are cleaning the rivers, Paw and Shag Rugg are picking up garbage around their house, and Yogi Bear picks up a recently discarded hamburger wrapping.
List of characters
The following Hanna-Barbera characters appeared in this movie (not all of whom appeared on Yogi’s Gang) in alphabetical order:- Atom AntAtom AntAtom Ant is a cartoon ant and superhero, created by Hanna-Barbera in 1965. Atom costarred in The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show...
- Augie Doggie and Doggie DaddyAugie Doggie and Doggie DaddyAugie Doggie and Doggie Daddy are Hanna-Barbera cartoon characters who debuted on The Quick Draw McGraw Show and appeared in their own segment of that show.-Summary:The segments centered around the misadventures of a dachshund father-and-son team...
- The Hillbilly BearsThe Hillbilly BearsThe Hillbilly Bears is an animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions. It aired as a segment on The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show for two seasons, from 1965 to 1967. During the first half of the 1966-67 television season, The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show was split into two...
- Hokey WolfHokey WolfHokey Wolf is a Hanna-Barbera cartoon about the adventures of a con-artist wolf who is always trying to cheat his way into the simple life...
and Ding-A-Ling - Huckleberry HoundHuckleberry HoundThe Huckleberry Hound Show is a 1958 syndicated animated series and the second from Hanna-Barbera following The Ruff & Reddy Show, sponsored by Kellogg's. Three segments were included in the program: one featuring Huckleberry Hound; another starring Yogi Bear and his sidekick Boo Boo; and a third...
- LambsyCattanooga CatsCattanooga Cats is an animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera for ABC. It aired from September 6, 1969 until September 4, 1971.-Segments:...
- Lippy the Lion & Hardy Har Har
- Magilla GorillaMagilla GorillaThe Magilla Gorilla Show is an animated series for television produced by Hanna-Barbera for Screen Gems between 1963 and 1967, and originally sponsored in syndication by Ideal Toys from 1963 through 1966. The show also had other recurring characters, including Punkin' Puss & Mushmouse, and Ricochet...
- Peter PotamusPeter PotamusPeter Potamus is an animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera and first broadcast on September 16, 1964. -Premise:Peter Potamus was a syndicated series divided into three segments; one of Peter Potamus and So-So, one of...
and So-So - Pixie and DixiePixie and Dixie and Mr. JinksPixie & Dixie and Mr. Jinks is a Hanna-Barbera cartoon that featured as a regular segment of the television series The Huckleberry Hound Show from 1958 to 1962.-History:...
- Quick Draw McGrawQuick Draw McGrawThe Quick Draw McGraw Show is the third cartoon television production created by Hanna-Barbera starring an anthropomorphic cartoon horse named Quick Draw McGraw following their success with The Ruff & Reddy Show and The Huckleberry Hound Show. The show debuted in syndication in the fall of 1959,...
and Baba Looey - Ruff and ReddyThe Ruff & Reddy ShowThe Ruff & Reddy Show is a Hanna-Barbera animated series starring Ruff, a straight and smart cat voiced by Don Messick, and Reddy, a dumb and stupid dog voiced by Daws Butler...
- Sawtooth (Rufus Ruffcut's pet beaver on Wacky RacesWacky RacesWacky Races is an animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera. The series features 11 different cars racing against each other in various road rallies throughout North America, with each driver hoping to win the title of the "World's Wackiest Racer." Wacky Races ran on CBS from September...
) - Secret SquirrelSecret SquirrelSecret Squirrel is a cartoon created by Hanna-Barbera. Secret Squirrel was one of two co-stars of The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show, which debuted in 1965. He was given his own show in 1966, but was reunited with Atom Ant for one more season in 1967...
- SnagglepussSnagglepussSnagglepuss is a Hanna-Barbera cartoon character created in 1959, a pink anthropomorphic mountain lion voiced by Daws Butler. He is best known for his famous catchphrase, "Heavens to Murgatroyd!", along with phrases such as "Exit, stage left!" Snagglepuss was originally known as "Snaggletooth"...
- Squiddly DiddlySquiddly DiddlySquiddly Diddly is an anthropomorphic animated squid created by Hanna-Barbera, who was featured in his own cartoon segment on The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show beginning in 1965.-Fictional character biography:...
- Top CatTop CatTop Cat is a Hanna-Barbera prime time animated television series which ran from September 27, 1961 to April 18, 1962 for a run of 30 episodes on the ABC network. Reruns are played on Cartoon Network's classic animation network Boomerang.-History:...
and his gang (Benny the Ball, Spook, Choo Choo, Fancy Fancy, and the Brain) - Touché Turtle and Dum DumTouché Turtle and Dum DumTouché Turtle and Dum Dum is one of the segments from The New Hanna-Barbera Cartoon Series, produced by Hanna-Barbera in 1962.This show was originally on the The New Hanna-Barbera Cartoon Series along with Wally Gator and Lippy the Lion & Hardy Har Har.-History:Touché Turtle and Dum Dum were a...
- Wally GatorWally GatorWally Gator is one of the segments from The Hanna-Barbera New Cartoon Series. The other segments that compose this trilogy are Lippy the Lion & Hardy Har Har and Touché Turtle and Dum Dum. The segment consisted of 52 episodes over two seasons....
- Yakky DoodleYakky DoodleYakky Doodle is a fictional character created by Hanna-Barbera Productions. Yakky's name is an obvious takeoff of Yankee Doodle.-History:...
& Chopper - Yogi BearYogi BearYogi Bear is a fictional bear who appears in animated cartoons created by Hanna-Barbera Productions. He made his debut in 1958 as a supporting character in The Huckleberry Hound Show. Yogi Bear was the first breakout character created by Hanna-Barbera, and was eventually more popular than...
and Boo BooBoo Boo (Yogi Bear)Boo-Boo Bear is a Hanna-Barbera cartoon character on The Yogi Bear Show. Boo-Boo is an anthropomorphic bear cub in a bow tie, who is a friend to Yogi Bear. Boo-Boo often acts as Yogi Bear's conscience. He tries to keep Yogi from doing things he should not do, and also to keep Yogi from getting... - An unknown dinosaur character
Cast
- Daws ButlerDaws ButlerCharles Dawson "Daws" Butler was a voice actor originally from Toledo, Ohio. He worked mostly for Hanna-Barbera and originated the voices of many famous animated cartoon characters, including Yogi Bear, Quick Draw McGraw, Snagglepuss, and Huckleberry Hound.Daws Butler trained many working actors...
- Yogi Bear, Huckleberry Hound, Quick Draw McGraw, Snagglepuss, Wally Gator, Peter Potamus, Augie Doggie, Lippy the Lion, Dixie, Baba Looey, Lambsy, Top Cat - Henry CordenHenry CordenHenry Corden was a Canadian-born American actor and voice artist best-known for taking over the role of Fred Flintstone after Alan Reed died in 1977. His official debut as Fred's new voice was on the 1977 syndicated weekday series Fred Flintstone and Friends for which he provided voice-overs on...
- Paw Rugg, Truck Driver #1 - Walker EdmistonWalker Edmiston-Career:Walker Edmiston was an American character actor and voice-over artist who was born in St. Louis, Missouri. Edmiston appeared on various television programs in character roles during the 1950s – 1970s, such as Gunsmoke, Mission: Impossible, Knots Landing, and The Dukes of Hazzard, all...
- Yakky Doodle - Allan MelvinAllan MelvinAllan Melvin was an American character actor who appeared in several television shows, including the roles of Corporal Henshaw on The Phil Silvers Show; Alice's boyfriend Sam the Butcher on The Brady Bunch; and Archie Bunker's friend Barney Hefner on All in the Family and Archie Bunker's...
- Magilla Gorilla, Truck Driver #2, Man - Don MessickDon MessickDonald Earl "Don" Messick was an American voice actor best known for his work for Hanna-Barbera. Perhaps his most well-known voice creations include Scooby-Doo, Papa Smurf, and Dr. Benton Quest....
- Boo Boo, Atom Ant, Squiddly Diddly, Touché Turtle, Pixie, So So, Moby Dick - John StephensonJohn Stephenson (actor)John Stephenson is an American actor and voice actor. He has also been credited as John Stevenson...
- Benny the Ball, Doggie Daddy, Hardy Har Har - Jean Vander PylJean Vander PylJean Vander Pyl was an American actress on radio, television and movies. Although her career spanned many decades, she is best remembered as the voice of Wilma Flintstone from the Hanna-Barbera cartoon The Flintstones...
- Flo Rugg, Maw Rugg, Woman - Lennie WeinribLennie WeinribLennie Weinrib was an American actor, voice actor and writer. He is best known for playing the title role in the children's television show H.R...
- Cap'n Noah Smitty
NOTE #1: Choo Choo, Spook, Fancy Fancy, The Brain, Secret Squirrel, Hokey Wolf, Ding-A-Ling Wolf, Chopper, Ruff and Reddy, Dum Dum, Shag Rugg, and Sawtooth the Beaver appear, but have no dialogue.
NOTE #2: Hardy Har Har, Squiddly Diddly, Top Cat, Benny the Ball, and Yakky Doodle are voiced by John Stephenson
John Stephenson (actor)
John Stephenson is an American actor and voice actor. He has also been credited as John Stevenson...
, Don Messick
Don Messick
Donald Earl "Don" Messick was an American voice actor best known for his work for Hanna-Barbera. Perhaps his most well-known voice creations include Scooby-Doo, Papa Smurf, and Dr. Benton Quest....
, Daws Butler
Daws Butler
Charles Dawson "Daws" Butler was a voice actor originally from Toledo, Ohio. He worked mostly for Hanna-Barbera and originated the voices of many famous animated cartoon characters, including Yogi Bear, Quick Draw McGraw, Snagglepuss, and Huckleberry Hound.Daws Butler trained many working actors...
, and Walker Edmiston
Walker Edmiston
-Career:Walker Edmiston was an American character actor and voice-over artist who was born in St. Louis, Missouri. Edmiston appeared on various television programs in character roles during the 1950s – 1970s, such as Gunsmoke, Mission: Impossible, Knots Landing, and The Dukes of Hazzard, all...
here. It was presumed that Mel Blanc
Mel Blanc
Melvin Jerome "Mel" Blanc was an American voice actor and comedian. Although he began his nearly six-decade-long career performing in radio commercials, Blanc is best remembered for his work with Warner Bros...
, Paul Frees
Paul Frees
Paul Frees was an American voice actor and character actor.-Biography:He was born Solomon Hersh Frees in Chicago...
, Arnold Stang
Arnold Stang
Arnold Stang was an American comic actor who played a small and bespectacled, yet brash and knowing big-city type.-Career:...
, and Jimmy Weldon
Jimmy Weldon
Jimmy Weldon is an American voice actor, ventriloquist, and former television host.He is best known as the voice of the Hanna-Barbera cartoon character Yakky Doodle Duck and the host and ventriloquist in the locally-produced television series, "The Webster Webfoot Show".-History:Born James Weldon...
weren't available to voice them for this TV movie while Benny's voice actor Maurice Gosfield
Maurice Gosfield
Maurice Lionel Gosfield was an American comic actor, most famous for his portrayal of Private Duane Doberman on the 1950s sitcom You'll Never Get Rich .'Maury' Gosfield was born in New York in 1913, but was raised in Philadelphia and later in Evanston, Illinois...
had died in 1964. Though Arnold Stang continued to voice Top Cat after this, John Stephenson and Don Messick voiced Hardy Har Har and Squiddly Diddly in Yogi's Gang and other appearances.
NOTE #3: Don Messick began voicing Touché Turtle here after the death of Bill Thompson
Bill Thompson (voice actor)
Bill Thompson was an American radio actor and voice actor whose career stretched from the 1930s until his death.-Early career:...
. John Stephenson began voicing Doggie Daddy here because Doug Young
Doug Young (voice actor)
Douglas "Doug" Young is an American voice actor who has worked on radio programs and in animated cartoons.-Career:Early in his career, Young appeared in classic radio shows including The Cisco Kid, The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, Red Ryder, and The Whistler...
was caring for his ailing wife at the time.
Home Media Availability
, the televised movie has not been released on either VHS or DVD from Warner Home VideoWarner Home Video
Warner Home Video is the home video unit of Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., itself part of Time Warner. It was founded in 1978 as WCI Home Video . The company launched in the United States with twenty films on VHS and Betamax videocassettes in late 1979...
.
See also
- List of works produced by Hanna-Barbera
- The Yogi Bear ShowThe Yogi Bear ShowThe Yogi Bear Show is an animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions about a fast-talking picnic basket stealing bear named Yogi. The show debuted in syndication on January 30 and ran for 33 episodes until December 30 in 1961 and included two segments, Snagglepuss and Yakky...
- The New Yogi Bear ShowThe New Yogi Bear ShowThe New Yogi Bear Show is a 30-minute weekday animated series which aired on syndication in 1988 and featured one of Hanna-Barbera's most well-known classic characters, Yogi Bear...
- Yogi's Treasure HuntYogi's Treasure HuntYogi's Treasure Hunt is a segment that kicked-off in 1985 as the first of the programming block, The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera. It also ran as a regular series in syndication from 1985 to 1988.-Plot:...
- Yogi's GangYogi's GangYogi's Gang is a 30-minute animated series produced by Hanna-Barbera which aired 16 half-hour episodes on ABC from , to . The show began as Yogi's Ark Lark, a special TV movie on The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie in 1972...