by Moe Zilla

Created on: March 02, 2008

"The Banana Splits" was a fun and colorful TV show during the late 1960s. Each Saturday morning it introduced short cartoons and live-action adventure shows using four wacky animal costumes.

Droopy, Snorky, Fleagle, and Bingo were the four "Banana Splits." They lived in a clubhouse, drove dune buggies, and had their own rock band - but mostly they just told jokes. An enthusiastic announcer called out their names as they entered, and they were also teased by other colorful characters - like a cuckoo clock's afro-wearing bird, and a cross-eyed moose head that would talk from the wall. The bumbling animals were always slipping, falling, and bumping into each other - accompanied by funny sound effects and a laugh track. To make sure children weren't frightened, some episodes even showed the giant animals were afraid of the children in a rival club called "The Sour Grapes Bunch." (A knock on the door would invariably reveal their "messenger," Charlie, dressed entirely in a purple outfit...)

"Order!" demanded Bingo the dog, as he pounded a gavel until it bounced out of his hands. But it was mostly silly chaos, delivered in short doses between the show's other segments. "Danger Island" showed a trio of explorers fleeing from pirates and aided by a native named Chongo. (The Splits introduced this segment with the catch-phrase "Uh oh, Chongo!") "The Three Musketeers" found the famous swashbucklers in animated adventures in courtly France, while another animated segment imagined the new adventures of "The Arabian Knights," whose magical powers allowed them to outwit thieves and other evil-doers. When the show was released in syndication, other Hanna-Barbera cartoons were inserted into the show, including the cartoon "Adventures of Gulliver" and the live-action/cartoon hybrid, "The New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn." Sometimes the "Banana Splits" would even appear in a rock music video, as surprisingly funky 60s tunes accompanied fast-cutting footage of the characters playing together in a band.

The show's playful tone was clear from the moment kids saw its opening theme song (which later turned up in Bob Marley's song "Buffalo Soldier.") "The Banana Splits presents... The Banana Splits!" Bingo would say in a voice-over at the end - and the show was underway. While the music played, the characters were shown enjoying the rides at Six Flags Over Texas. Its lyrics didn't explain much - just that the characters had Banana buggies, and fell down a lot. But everything kids needed to know was in its happy melody.

"Tra la la, la-la la la.
Tra la la, la-la la la...."

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