The Alvin Show
Encyclopedia
The Alvin Show is an American
animated television series. It was the first to feature the singing characters Alvin and the Chipmunks
, although a series with a similar concept The Nutty Squirrels Present
had aired a year earlier. It lasted for one season in prime time (October 4, 1961 – September 12, 1962) on CBS
[Wednesdays, 7:30-8pm Eastern], originally sponsored by General Foods
(Jell-O
, Post cereals), and initially telecast in black and white (color prints of the episodes were not seen until the series entered syndication in the fall of 1965).
The series rode the momentum of creator Ross Bagdasarian's original hit musical gimmick and developed the singing Chipmunk trio as rambunctious kids–particularly the show's namesake star–whose mischief contrasted to his tall, brainy brother Simon and his chubby, gluttonous brother Theodore, as well as their long-suffering, perpetually put-upon manager-father figure, David Seville. The animation was produced by Herbert Klynn
's Format Films
.
(voiced by Shepard Menken
impersonating Richard Haydn
's Edwin Carp character).
Clyde was an inventor who essentially re-invented various items and took credit for dreaming it up in the first place. His "creations" often backfired on him until his silent, level-headed lab assistant, Leonardo (diminutive, balding, and perpetually whispering in Crashcup's ear) saved him from any further self-destruction.
reran the series on Saturday mornings for a few years after the show's prime time run ended, and segments from the show were syndicated in the mid and late 1960s under the package title Alvin and the Chipmunks (this first syndicated package consisted of the individual show segments only, including the Alvin and Clyde Crashcup cartoons, and Chipmunk musical segments, not in the form of half-hour shows). The series later was revived on NBC-TV, again promoted under the title Alvin and the Chipmunks (with the introductory Alvin Show title card cut off the beginning of the show opening) Saturday mornings between March 10, 1979 and September 1, 1979.
Ross Bagdasarian had died of a heart attack in January 1972, precluding any future Chipmunk activity. Years later, his son Ross, Jr.
picked up on a disc jockey's joke and produced the hit Chipmunk Punk
album in 1980, which spurred new interest for a brand new animated series with an updated look to The Chipmunks and David Seville (now voiced by Ross Bagdasarian, Jr.
). In fall 1983, coinciding with the launch of Ruby-Spears' newly-produced Alvin and the Chipmunks series on NBC, The Alvin Show was again syndicated, this time by Viacom Enterprises.
In 1990, The Alvin Show versions of the Chipmunks and Clyde Crashcup reappeared in an episode of The Chipmunks Go To the Movies entitled "Back to Our Future" (a spoof of the 1985 movie, Back to the Future
).
Nickelodeon
picked up US
broadcast rights to The Alvin Show sometime in 1994 and ran the episodes daily until early 1995. During this time, as well as for sometime after, the individual cartoons and musical segments were inserted into episodes of Weinerville
. By the end of that year, however, Nickelodeon stopped showing The Alvin Show altogether and it has not been seen anywhere in the United States since then.
and Clyde Crashcup
segments, along with 52 musical segments.
General Foods
was the show's main sponsor; as such, Dave Seville and The Chipmunks appeared in several humorous half-minute commercials for Jell-O
and Post Cereals
.
released the "first" episode of the show (actually the Chipmunks short from episode 8, the Crashcup short from episode 6, and the musical segments from episode 3), along with two "modern" specials. Future "Complete Series" DVD sets of the series are not yet planned.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
animated television series. It was the first to feature the singing characters Alvin and the Chipmunks
Alvin and the Chipmunks
Alvin and the Chipmunks is an American animated music group created by Ross Bagdasarian, Sr. in 1958. The group consists of three singing animated anthropomorphic chipmunks: Alvin, the mischievous troublemaker, who quickly became the star of the group; Simon, the tall, bespectacled intellectual;...
, although a series with a similar concept The Nutty Squirrels Present
The Nutty Squirrels Present
The Nutty Squirrels Present was an animated television series that was inspired by characters from The Nutty Squirrels. The television series was produced by Transfilm-Wylde Animation, and aired for one season on first-run syndication in the United States with over 150 five-minute episodes in 30...
had aired a year earlier. It lasted for one season in prime time (October 4, 1961 – September 12, 1962) on CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
[Wednesdays, 7:30-8pm Eastern], originally sponsored by General Foods
General Foods
General Foods Corporation was a company whose direct predecessor was established in the USA by Charles William Post as the Postum Cereal Company in 1895. The name General Foods was adopted in 1929, after several corporate acquisitions...
(Jell-O
Jell-O
Jell-O is a brand name belonging to U.S.-based Kraft Foods for a number of gelatin desserts, including fruit gels, puddings and no-bake cream pies. The brand's popularity has led to it being used as a generic term for gelatin dessert across the U.S. and Canada....
, Post cereals), and initially telecast in black and white (color prints of the episodes were not seen until the series entered syndication in the fall of 1965).
The series rode the momentum of creator Ross Bagdasarian's original hit musical gimmick and developed the singing Chipmunk trio as rambunctious kids–particularly the show's namesake star–whose mischief contrasted to his tall, brainy brother Simon and his chubby, gluttonous brother Theodore, as well as their long-suffering, perpetually put-upon manager-father figure, David Seville. The animation was produced by Herbert Klynn
Herbert Klynn
Herbert Klynn was an American animator who worked with UPA Studios.In 1959 he founded the television animation studio Format Films, best-known for producing The Alvin Show, The Lone Ranger, and other films and series in animation mostly during the 1960s.Format Productions also provided several...
's Format Films
Format Films
Format Films was a television animation studio which was founded by Herbert Klynn in 1959 with Jules Engel as vice president, Herb McIntosh and Joseph Mugnaini. It was most active during the 1960s, producing episodes of The Alvin Show, Popeye, and The Lone Ranger...
.
Clyde Crashcup
Aside from the seven-minute Chipmunk segments, in which Bagdasarian's David Seville was portrayed as a hapless bachelor who managed and mentored the three singing rodents, the show also had segments featuring a character called Clyde CrashcupClyde Crashcup
Clyde Crashcup is a fictional character from the early-1960s animated television series The Alvin Show.-Fictional character biography:Clyde Crashcup is a scientist in a white coat whose experiments invariably failed...
(voiced by Shepard Menken
Shepard Menken
Shepard Menken was an American voice actor and character actor.Menken began his career at the age of 11, when he started appearing on children's radio programs...
impersonating Richard Haydn
Richard Haydn
Richard Haydn was an English comic actor in radio, films and television.-Early life and career:Born George Richard Haydon in London, he was known for playing eccentric characters, such as Edwin Carp, Claud Curdle, Richard Rancyd and Stanley Stayle. Much of his stage delivery was done in a...
's Edwin Carp character).
Clyde was an inventor who essentially re-invented various items and took credit for dreaming it up in the first place. His "creations" often backfired on him until his silent, level-headed lab assistant, Leonardo (diminutive, balding, and perpetually whispering in Crashcup's ear) saved him from any further self-destruction.
Afterlife
CBSCBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
reran the series on Saturday mornings for a few years after the show's prime time run ended, and segments from the show were syndicated in the mid and late 1960s under the package title Alvin and the Chipmunks (this first syndicated package consisted of the individual show segments only, including the Alvin and Clyde Crashcup cartoons, and Chipmunk musical segments, not in the form of half-hour shows). The series later was revived on NBC-TV, again promoted under the title Alvin and the Chipmunks (with the introductory Alvin Show title card cut off the beginning of the show opening) Saturday mornings between March 10, 1979 and September 1, 1979.
Ross Bagdasarian had died of a heart attack in January 1972, precluding any future Chipmunk activity. Years later, his son Ross, Jr.
Ross Bagdasarian, Jr.
Ross Bagdasarian, Jr. is an Armenian-American film producer, record producer, singer, and voice artist and the son of the Alvin and the Chipmunks creator Ross Bagdasarian, Sr.-Life and career:...
picked up on a disc jockey's joke and produced the hit Chipmunk Punk
Chipmunk Punk
Chipmunk Punk is a New Wave music album by The Chipmunks, as well as being the first album released by Ross Bagdasarian, Jr., after he took over due to his father's passing. Despite the title of the CD, none of the songs listed were considered to be in the age of real punk rock music. It was...
album in 1980, which spurred new interest for a brand new animated series with an updated look to The Chipmunks and David Seville (now voiced by Ross Bagdasarian, Jr.
Ross Bagdasarian, Jr.
Ross Bagdasarian, Jr. is an Armenian-American film producer, record producer, singer, and voice artist and the son of the Alvin and the Chipmunks creator Ross Bagdasarian, Sr.-Life and career:...
). In fall 1983, coinciding with the launch of Ruby-Spears' newly-produced Alvin and the Chipmunks series on NBC, The Alvin Show was again syndicated, this time by Viacom Enterprises.
In 1990, The Alvin Show versions of the Chipmunks and Clyde Crashcup reappeared in an episode of The Chipmunks Go To the Movies entitled "Back to Our Future" (a spoof of the 1985 movie, Back to the Future
Back to the Future
Back to the Future is a 1985 American science-fiction adventure film. It was directed by Robert Zemeckis, written by Zemeckis and Bob Gale, produced by Steven Spielberg, and starred Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Crispin Glover and Thomas F. Wilson. The film tells the story of...
).
Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (TV channel)
Nickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...
picked up US
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
broadcast rights to The Alvin Show sometime in 1994 and ran the episodes daily until early 1995. During this time, as well as for sometime after, the individual cartoons and musical segments were inserted into episodes of Weinerville
Weinerville
Nickelodeon Weinerville is an American television program on Nickelodeon that was produced in 1993 and 1994, aired in re-runs until 1997. The show was based around a giant puppet stage which was designed to look like a city, called Weinerville...
. By the end of that year, however, Nickelodeon stopped showing The Alvin Show altogether and it has not been seen anywhere in the United States since then.
Voice cast
- Ross Bagdasarian, Sr. - Alvin, Simon, Theodore, David Seville, Sam Valiant
- Shepard MenkenShepard MenkenShepard Menken was an American voice actor and character actor.Menken began his career at the age of 11, when he started appearing on children's radio programs...
- Clyde Crashcup - June ForayJune ForayJune Foray is an American voice actress, best known as the voice of many animated characters...
- Additional voices - Johnny MannJohnny MannJohnny Mann is an American arranger, composer, conductor, entertainer, and recording artist.-Career:...
- Additional voices - Lee PatrickLee Patrick (actress)Lee Patrick was an American theater and film actress.-Early life and education:Born in New York City, Patrick began acting on Broadway in 1924. For more than a decade, she was constantly employed and established herself as a popular actress. She appeared in the original 1929 production of June...
- Mrs. Frumpington; additional voices - 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....
- Various voices - Joe BesserJoe BesserJoe Besser was an American comedian, known for his impish humor and wimpy characters, and is now best remembered for his brief stint as a member of the Three Stooges in movie short subjects of 1957-59...
- Various voices
Episodes
26 episodes each were produced for the Alvin and the ChipmunksAlvin and the Chipmunks
Alvin and the Chipmunks is an American animated music group created by Ross Bagdasarian, Sr. in 1958. The group consists of three singing animated anthropomorphic chipmunks: Alvin, the mischievous troublemaker, who quickly became the star of the group; Simon, the tall, bespectacled intellectual;...
and Clyde Crashcup
Clyde Crashcup
Clyde Crashcup is a fictional character from the early-1960s animated television series The Alvin Show.-Fictional character biography:Clyde Crashcup is a scientist in a white coat whose experiments invariably failed...
segments, along with 52 musical segments.
| # | The Chipmunks | Musical Segment 1 | Clyde Crashcup | Musical Segment 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Good Neighbor | Buffalo Gals | Invents Jokes | America The Beautiful |
| 2 | Ostrich | Mexico-the Brave Chipmunks | Invents Self-Preservation | Yankee Doodle |
| 3 | Squares | Italy-Oh, Gondaliero! | Invents Glass | I Wish I Could Speak French |
| 4 | Sam Valiant, Private Nose | August Dear | Invents the Chair | Working on the Railroad |
| 5 | Overworked Alvin | When Johnny Comes Marching Home | Invents the West | Swanee River |
| 6 | Alvin's Curse | Old MacDonald-Cha, Cha, Cha | Invents the Baseball | Switzerland-the Magic Mountain |
| 7 | Alvin's Alter-Ego | Japanese Banana | Invents the Bathtub | The Pidgin English Hula |
| 8 | Stanley the Eagle | Stuck in Arabia | Invents the Wife | I Wish I Had A Horse |
| 9 | Fancy | Chipmunk Fun | Invents Flight | Good Morning Song |
| 10 | Sam Valiant: Real Estate | Alvin for President | Invents the Baby | Home on the Range |
| 11 | Dude Ranch | Witch Doctor | Invents the Stove | Lilly of Laguna |
| 12 | Camping Trip | Spain | Invents Music | Row, Row, Row Your Boat |
| 13 | Bentley Van Rolls | Swing Low, Sweet Chariot | Invents First Aid | Comin' Thru' The Rye |
| 14 | The Whistler | Coming Around the Mountain | Invents Electricity | Pop Goes the Weasel |
| 15 | Love Sick Dave | If You Love Me (Alouette) | Invents Egypt | Maria from Madrid |
| 16 | Jungle Rhythm | Alvin's Orchestra | Invents the Bed | The Little Dog |
| 17 | Theodore's Dog | The Chipmunk Song | Invents the Telephone | Alvin's Harmonica |
| 18 | Hillbilly Son | Three Blind Mice | Invents Do-it-Yourself | Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star |
| 19 | Little League | Clementine | Invents the Time Machine | Sing A Goofy Song |
| 20 | Eagle in Love | Bicycle Built For Two | Invents the Shoe | On Top of Old Smokey |
| 21 | Alvin's Studio | Whistle While You Work | Invents Physical Fitness | Ragtime Cowboy Joe |
| 22 | Haunted House | My Wild Irish Rose | Invents the Ship | The Band Played On |
| 23 | Sir Alvin | Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair | This is Your Life, Clyde Crashcup! | Funiculi-Funicula |
| 24 | Good Manners | Git Along, Little Doggies | Invents the Birthday Party | The Man on the Flying Trapeze |
| 25 | Eagle Music | Polly Wolly Doodle | Invents Self Defense | Down in the Valley |
| 26 | Disc Jockey | The Alvin Twist | Invents Crashcupland | While Strolling in the Park |
General Foods
General Foods
General Foods Corporation was a company whose direct predecessor was established in the USA by Charles William Post as the Postum Cereal Company in 1895. The name General Foods was adopted in 1929, after several corporate acquisitions...
was the show's main sponsor; as such, Dave Seville and The Chipmunks appeared in several humorous half-minute commercials for Jell-O
Jell-O
Jell-O is a brand name belonging to U.S.-based Kraft Foods for a number of gelatin desserts, including fruit gels, puddings and no-bake cream pies. The brand's popularity has led to it being used as a generic term for gelatin dessert across the U.S. and Canada....
and Post Cereals
Post Cereals
Post Foods, LLC, also known as Post Cereals is a food company that was founded by C.W. Post in 1895 with the first Postum, a "cereal beverage," developed by Post in Battle Creek, Michigan. The first cereal, Grape-Nuts, was developed in 1897. Post has its headquarters in the Bank of America Plaza...
.
Home Media Releases
Other than the two 1994 VHS releases from Buena Vista Home Video, both of which featured 11 songs from The Alvin Show, up until recently, the show has never been released on DVD. However, on September 8, 2009, Paramount Home EntertainmentParamount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
released the "first" episode of the show (actually the Chipmunks short from episode 8, the Crashcup short from episode 6, and the musical segments from episode 3), along with two "modern" specials. Future "Complete Series" DVD sets of the series are not yet planned.