Harvey Birdman is a super hero on the
Hanna-BarberaHanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. was an American animation studio that dominated North American television animation during the second half of the 20th century...
show
Birdman and the Galaxy TrioBirdman and the Galaxy Trio is an animated science fiction TV series created by Alex Toth and produced by Hanna-Barbera. It debuted on NBC on September 9, 1967, and ran on Saturday mornings until September 6, 1969...
, a depressed guy on
Space Ghost Coast to CoastSpace Ghost Coast to Coast is an American animated parody talk show hosted by the 60s Hanna-Barbera cartoon character Space Ghost. The show premiered on April 15, 1994 on Cartoon Network...
, and an attorney on
Harvey Birdman, Attorney at LawHarvey Birdman, Attorney at Law is an American animated television series comedy created by Williams Street and produced by Cartoon Network Studios that aired on Cartoon Network during its Adult Swim late night programming block. The series' pilot first aired in 2000, and later became a series in...
.
Birdman and the Galaxy Trio
On the 1960s show
Birdman and the Galaxy TrioBirdman and the Galaxy Trio is an animated science fiction TV series created by Alex Toth and produced by Hanna-Barbera. It debuted on NBC on September 9, 1967, and ran on Saturday mornings until September 6, 1969...
Birdman was the main character of two out of three of the show's segments. This incarnation of Birdman was voiced by Keith Andies and did not use the name Harvey (Birdman's actual name was given in the show as Ray Randall). The original Birdman was a regular, non-comedic superhero with an eagle sidekick named Avenger. His powers came from the energy of the sun's rays, and he was able to fly using his wings.
Space Ghost Coast to Coast
Birdman and the Galaxy Trio ended, and the character did not appear on television until the mid-1990s, when he appeared on four episodes of
Space Ghost Coast to CoastSpace Ghost Coast to Coast is an American animated parody talk show hosted by the 60s Hanna-Barbera cartoon character Space Ghost. The show premiered on April 15, 1994 on Cartoon Network...
, this time voiced by Scott Fineall. On the show he was portrayed comically, and was out-of-work and desperate for money. Birdman hosted the show in the episodes Pilot and Sequel, and was fired on both occasions. It was here revealed, contradicting the original
Birdman show, that his first name was Harvey.
Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law
Birdman later got his own show,
Harvey Birdman, Attorney at LawHarvey Birdman, Attorney at Law is an American animated television series comedy created by Williams Street and produced by Cartoon Network Studios that aired on Cartoon Network during its Adult Swim late night programming block. The series' pilot first aired in 2000, and later became a series in...
, now voiced by
Gary ColeGary Michael Cole is an American actor. Cole is known for his supporting roles in numerous film and television productions since the 1990s.-Early life:...
. In the show, Harvey is a defense attorney, and his clients are generally classic Hanna-Barbera characters given new roles (
Fred FlintstoneFrederick Joseph “Fred” Flintstone, also known as Fred W. Flintstone or Frederick J. Flintstone, is the protagonist of the animated sitcom The Flintstones, which aired during prime-time on ABC during the original series' run from 1960-66. He is the husband of Wilma Flintstone and father of Pebbles...
appears, for example, as a mafia don, and Boo-Boo Bear is accused in one episode of being a mad bomber). Many of Birdman's former associates and enemies appear on the show in supporting roles (the character Reducto, now given the first name Myron, regularly appears as a prosecuting attorney, and Mentok The Mind-Taker judges cases from late Season One onward). Instead of being a clever superhero, this version of Birdman is portrayed as a semi-competent, bungling lawyer, although among the show's increasingly outlandish cast of characters, he is often the straight man.
Inspirations
Birdman is based on the DC Comics super hero
HawkmanHawkman is a fictional superhero who appears in comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Dennis Neville, the original Hawkman first appeared in Flash Comics #1, published by All-American Publications in 1940....
, specifically the design of his costume.