The Flintstones

DVD release date for the sixth season has yet to be announced, but is expected to arrive in 2006. With the help of a psychic medium, he contacts his wife and learns the truth. Original release or broadcast dates are listed in parentheses. In popular 1990 academy award winning film Ghost, the ghost of a murdered man (played by Patrick Swayze) returns to earth to find out more about his murder and seek revenge on his killer. All titles and information listed below are based on Region 1 DVD releases. Despite their unrealistic and outlandish nature, these gimmicks are very popular and have led to many championship runs for both men. Original broadcast or release dates and episode titles (where applicable) are listed in parentheses. They are The Undertaker and Kane.

Most of these titles are out of print. WWE features two wrestlers, who portray men that have died and come back from the dead several times. The Flintstones remains the first cartoon to have original programming aired in prime time. The recent Japanese movie The Ring and the Hong Kong movie The Eye are both inspired by old wives' tales about haunting spirits. However, it was a repeat of cartoons that had aired on Sunday afternoons in 1956. In Asia horror cinema, the ghost stories often include adaptations of old oriental folklore set in a present day city. This half-hour show ran for a few months on Friday nights on CBS in 1958. One way to make the phantom appear on stage is Pepper's ghost technique.

While The Flintstones is generally considered the first cartoon to air in prime time, it was preceded by The Gerald McBoing-Boing Show, a cartoon based on an Academy Award-winning animated short. Theatre productions sometimes feature ghosts. "Weird Al" Yankovic released a single and video entitled "Bedrock Anthem" from his album Alapalooza featuring many clips of The Flintstones animated TV show on the video. Benson. The England cricketer Andrew Flintoff is nicknamed "Freddie" after Fred Flintstone, on account of both his similar surname and his "larger-than-life" character. F. The Flintstones' car was removed to make room for Betty. Wakefield, and E.

However, since 1996, Betty has been in the bottle also. R. The answer, at one time, was Betty Rubble. Sheridan Le Fanu, H. There has been a "Did You Know?" quiz circulating on the Internet for a number of years that asks which of the four main characters is not in Flintstone Vitamins. James, J. An enduring license has been a line of children's multivitamins called "Flintstones Complete" (more popularly known as Flintstones Vitamins); the first seasons of the series were, in part, sponsored by One-a-Day Vitamins. R.

Early ads used the closing tagline, "Yabba-dabba-delicious!", but the phrase was removed during the 1990s. Other authors in the field include Oscar Wilde (The Canterville Ghost, 1887), M. Eventually, Fred catches on and gives chase after Barney as the ad ends. Algernon Blackwood was a British writer who is well known for writing ghost stories. Commercials for these cereals featured a gimmick in the form of Barney (who seems much smarter in the commercials than in the show itself) tricking Fred out of his cereal, usually by way of disguising himself as something completely different. Boag-Munroe is the fictional ghosthunter from A Haunted Man by horror writer Stuart Neild. The series spawned three breakfast cereals: the popular Fruity Pebbles and Cocoa Pebbles, and the discontinued Dino Pebbles. Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn visit a haunted house in Mark Twain's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.

The later series, The Simpsons, carries on a number of Flintstones traditions, including the incorporation of music into its storylines. Other famous ghosts in fiction include the Headless Horseman, who appears in Washington Irving's The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. In 1996, Rhino Records released The Flintstones: Modern Stone Age Melodies, an album containing a number of musical selections taken from the series.[1] Missing from the collection are the two Ann-Margret songs, which have been released on the Bear Family Records label of Germany. In the controversial BBC film Ghostwatch, a ghost invades the world of the living. One of these songs, "Meet the Flintstones", was later adopted as the series' theme song beginning with the third season. In Ghost in the Shell, ghost is a word used to describe a person's inner being, similar to the concept of a soul. During 1961, the cast members recorded an album of songs, in character, aimed at children. In the Ghostbusters film and television cartoon, the protagonists use special technology of their own design to hunt and capture/exile the ghosts they encounter.

The aforementioned "Littlest Lamb" also became a popular lullaby. by a millionaire, see plot summary. Two other songs became standards on their own and are not always identified as originating with the Flintstones -- the seemingly endless singalong "Happy Anniversary" which is often performed at anniversary parties, and the spiritual "Open Up Your Heart and Let the Sunshine In", the latter song being adopted as the series closing theme during the final season. In the film The Ghost Goes West (1935), actor Robert Donat plays a ghost in a Scottish castle which is bought, dismantled and shipped to the U.S. One of the most fondly remembered songs of the series was "The Bedrock Twitch", performed by staff voice actor Daws Butler and later performed in one of the first live-action Flintstones film by The B-52s. In the film The Sixth Sense, actor Bruce Willis plays a child psychologist working with a young boy (Haley Joel Osment) who believes he can see the spirits of the dead among the living. In the final season, space-rockers, The Wayouts appeared. There are ghost superheroes who fight for justice, such as DC Comics' The Spectre and Deadman, as well as Nickelodeon's Danny Phantom.

James Darren, appearing as "Jimmy Darrock" performed "The Surfin' Craze", while The Beau Brummels performed "Laugh Laugh" which was a real-life hit for the group. Despite his ghostliness, the good-natured Casper tries to befriend people rather than scare them. Ann-Margret, appearing in a fourth season episode, performed her single "I Ain't Goin' to Be Your Fool No More" and the lullaby "The Littlest Lamb". Casper the Friendly Ghost is a cartoon character from Harvey Comics. Hoagy Carmichael was the one of the first, introducing the original song "Yabba Dabba Doo!" in the second season premiere episode, "The Hit Songwriters" (in the same episode, Fred - on one of his tone deaf days - mangles Carmichael's "Stardust"). Finally, in the play Richard III, the title character is visited by the angry ghosts of those he has killed, foretelling his doom and blessing his opponent, Richmond, later to become Henry VII. Many musical moments were provided by celebrity voice artists who lent both their vocal talents and their likenesses to characters. In Shakespeare's Macbeth, the title character believes he sees the "blood-bolter'd" ghost of his former friend Banquo sitting in his chair during a feast.

Many of the original songs in the series were composed by Hoyt Curtin. Julius Caesar's ghost appears to Brutus in Shakespeare's Julius Caesar to warn Brutus of his impending defeat. Mel Blanc also performed a few vocals, including a version of "Old Folks at Home", while Jean Van Der Pyl and Bea Benadaret sang two versions of "The Car Hop Song," one performing as a pair of young girls auditioning for a job with Fred and Barney's new hamburger stand, and a second version in character as Wilma and Betty. When Hamlet sees the ghost, he is not sure if it is in fact his father's spirit or a demon whose aim is to deceive him. Alan Reed himself sang several tunes in his loud tone in the coming years, including "Christmas is My Favorite Time of Year" and "Dino the Dinosaur" in the series' often-replayed Christmas episode. The ghost exhorts Hamlet to take revenge on Claudius. Fred was from then on depicted as being tone deaf, but a couple times sang a few tunes that had limited vocal range. The ghost says that he was in fact murdered by his brother Claudius, who now (by virtue of having married Hamlet's mother Gertrude) occupies the throne.

In the second season, Fred was stripped of his singing ability (in the season premiere for season 2 "Hit Song Writers" Fred could not carry a tune when he attempted to sing "Stardust"). In Shakespeare's play Hamlet, a ghost taking the form of Hamlet's recently deceased father appears to Prince Hamlet one night. Also in the first season while Alan mostly created Fred's speaking voice in an unnaturally loud tone, on occasion he used his natural tone to voice Fred (episode 5 "Split Personality" for example). Ghosts in the novel are also keen on having a Deathday Party on the anniversaries of their deaths. Again, Fred's voice sounds so much like Torme's that it was speculated the singer provided the voice, although it is actually Reed singing these two songs. In the fictional Harry Potter, there are a number of ghosts including Nearly Headless Nick, The Bloody Baron, The Fat Friar and the Grey Lady, who might be based on Lady Jane Grey. A later episode, in which Fred takes on the persona of teen idol "Hye Fye" sees him performing "Listen to the Rockin' Bird" - a rewrite of the standard "Listen to the Mockingbird". In many stories, ghosts are often depicted as haunting the living until a certain desire is met or some grievance was settled by the haunted.

One of the first song performances in the series was the old spiritual "When the Saints Go Marching In" performed by Fred in the first season episode "Hot Lips Hannigan" in a vocal style strongly reminiscent of jazz crooner Mel Torme. (See Horror fiction for more on the haunted/ghost-driven fiction.). In the first season Fred knew how to sing. After Edgar Allan Poe, the "ghost story" began an independent generic history, and today the genre of Horror continues the use of ghosts as villains in fiction. The Flintstones was one of the more musical animated TV series, with many episodes featuring original, slightly rewritten, or actual popular recordings of the day, performed either by Fred, Barney, or a special guest star. Horace Walpole's 1764 The Castle of Otranto was among the first to set up the rational but malign actions of a ghost to create an atmosphere of foreboding, mystery, and fear. One episode's couch gag even featured the Simpsons running in and finding The Flintstones (as they were originally animated) sitting on the Simpsons' couch. However, the haunting and mystery/adversarial acts of the ghost appears later in the "ghost story." Hauntings feature in Eyrbyggja Saga for a section of the work, but the "Gothic novel" and later "Gothic fiction" introduced the use of ghosts for fear to literature.

Burns gives him a box of chocolates. In the Elizabethan and Jacobean stage, the vengeful ghost is a commonplace who sets plots in motion. Homer subsequently says "Yabba Dabba Doo!" when Mr. The malign ghost whose intent is either to set right an injustice or to be avenged upon the living, either in general or on a specific person, features in many fictions. Burns greeting Homer, Marge and Maggie as Fred, Wilma and Pebbles. Such gnomic or oracular statements reward the reader with knowledge greater than the fiction's participants. Another episode ("Lady Bouvier's Lover") has Mr. Such a ghost in disguise usually, in fiction, offers statements or visions that are relevant to the plot, but not in a way comprehensible to the characters.

In addition, the character Barney Gumble from The Simpsons is based on Barney Rubble. Additionally, some urban legends, such as the "Hitchhiking ghost," turn upon an anonymous stranger (or Elvis Presley in a common variant) who is revealed to be a ghost in the clinch of the story. the Monorail") the starting sequence parodies the opening and theme song of The Flintstones, and in another episode ("Treehouse of Horror XII") Homer and Marge Simpson dress as Fred and Wilma Flintstone in the opening. In folk music, there are songs featuring lovers and objects of affection who must leave before dawn (a variant on the Cupid and Psyche story) because they are ghosts. A number of episodes of The Simpsons made explicit or implicit references to The Flintstones---for example, in one episode of The Simpsons ("Marge vs. A character otherwise regarded as living turns out, in the fiction's denouement, to be a supernatural agent. And it was The Simpsons in 1997 that ultimately broke The Flintstones' record as the longest-running prime time animated series. Finally, the ghost messenger features in fiction as a ghost in disguise.

Only the advent of The Simpsons decades later brought cartoons back to American prime time network television with the kind of success The Flintstones enjoyed. Such ghosts can either act as a deus ex machina by resolving plot points with supernatural power or as a mentor who offers sagacity to the characters with a limited point of view. The original show also was adapted into two feature non-animated films, in 1994 and 2000. In some fictions, a departed relative (usually) or friend guides the living to either a moral or material benefit. The show was revived in the 1970s with Pebbles and Bamm Bamm having grown into teenagers, and several different series and made-for-TV movies—including a series depicting Fred and Barney as police officers, another depicting the characters as children, and yet others featuring Fred and Barney encountering Marvel Comics superhero The Thing and comic strip character The Shmoo have appeared over the years. However, the ghost messenger can also act as a way reminiscent of the guardian angel in fiction. The movie was released on DVD in North America in March 2005. In each of these cases, the fictional ghost offers counsel to the living and thus acts as a messenger from the implicitly greater world beyond.

The Man Called Flintstone was a musical spy caper that parodied James Bond and other secret agents. Further, he finds that the ancestors of many great lords and ladies of his day were stable boys, servants, etc. Following the show's cancellation in 1966, a theatrical film based upon the series was released. Jonathan Swift satirized the genre in the third book of Gulliver's Travels by having Gulliver summon the ghosts of former kings and great conquerors and finding, instead of nobility, petty, childish, and stupid people who possessed no wisdom and who accomplished their great deeds for mean and selfish reasons. The remaining two seasons are expected to be released in 2006. The genre was most popular in the 18th century, and examples were written by many. The first season of the original series, with the original opening credits, as well as "Rise and Shine" restored but not the cigarette ads, was released on DVD in late 2003; season 2 was released in December 2004; season 3 in March 2005; and season 4 in November 2005. These "ghosts" were under control of a great sorcerer or otherwise compelled to speak.

Nonetheless, a number of later Flintstones episodes in syndication used an alternate version of the closing credits in which Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm are shown singing "Open Up Your Heart and Let the Sunshine In". In the Dialogues of the Dead genre, authors would somehow contrive a device for summoning the dead to a character who would then speak with them and ask them questions about philosophy or current events. According to information provided on the DVD release of the second season, this decision was made because at the time syndicated programs were often aired out of their original broadcast order, and it was felt having the show jump between the different opening credits sequences would confuse audiences. In Odyssey, Odysseus travels to Hades and sees the shades of his former colleagues, including some he did not know were dead, and pours out fresh blood, which the dead hunger for, until he can find Tiresias and get guidance on his voyages. New syndicated versions of the episodes in the 1990s restored the original first season credits and theme, albeit with cigarette and other advertising matter omitted. These were based upon the Witch of Endor story and the visions of Hades found in both Homer's Odyssey and Virgil's Aeneid. As a result, the closing credits for all first season episodes in syndication were incorrect for many years. A popular genre of literature from the early Renaissance to the early twentieth century was the Dialogues of the Dead.

The theme used for the first and second seasons, an instrumental called "Rise and Shine", was removed from all first and second season episodes in syndication from the 1960s through the early 1990s and replaced with the "Meet the Flintstones" opening, while a closing credits sequence taken from a later episode was substituted at the end. New Orleans' ghosts include pirates from the 18th century, through 20th century spectres. The famous theme song "Meet the Flintstones" was not actually introduced until the third season (1962–1963), although early versions of the melody can be heard as background music in many episodes. The city of New Orleans is sometimes called 'America's most haunted city' with numerous ghost reports, especially in the French Quarter which remained largely undamaged by Hurricane Katrina. The series was initially aimed at adult audiences as the first season was sponsored by the cigarette company Winston and the characters appeared in several commercials for Winstons. The former prison island of Alcatraz off the coast of San Francisco is said to be home to a number of ghosts of prisoners that died there. Another story arc, occurring in the final season, centered on Fred and Barney's dealings with The Great Gazoo. The prophet's spirit gives the king no assistance, but rebukes him and foretells his doom instead.

A postscript to the arc occurred in the third episode of the fourth season, in which the Rubbles, depressed over being unable to have children of their own (making The Flintstones the first animated series in history to address the issue of infertility, though subtly), adopt Bamm-Bamm. In the Biblical account of the Witch of Endor, King Saul of Israel has the witch conjure up the ghost of the prophet Samuel to consult him on his precarious situation. Beginning with the episode "The Surprise", aired midway through the third season, in which Wilma reveals her pregnancy to Fred, the arc continued through the trials and tribulations leading up to Pebbles' birth, and then continued with several episodes showing Fred and Wilma adjusting to the world of parenthood. The ghost of the Roman Emperor Caligula was said to haunt the Lamian Gardens of Rome, where his body had been hastily and unceremoniously buried after his assassination. The most notable example was a series of episodes surrounding the birth of Pebbles. The White House in Washington, D.C., is said to be haunted by the ghost of Abraham Lincoln and by several lesser spectres. Although most Flintstones episodes are standalone storylines, the series was significant in being the first American animated series to feature story arcs. Indeed, the presence of many centuries-old buildings has given England the reputation of the most haunted country in the world.

Aside from the animation and fantasy setting, the show's scripts and format are typical of a 1950s American situation comedy, with the usual family issues resolved with a laugh at the end of each episode. The cities of York and Derby in England are also reputed to be a center of ghostly manifestations; consequently, they both thrive on hugely successful ghost tour industries. After spending a brief period in development as The Gladstones, Hanna-Barbera settled upon The Flintstones. Several other ghosts are said to make the Tower their home; phantom troops of soldiers reportedly appear there, as well as a lady in mourning with no face. When the series itself was commissioned, the title was changed, possibly to avoid confusion with the Flagstons, characters in the popular comic strip, Hi and Lois. It seems likely that the building with the most distinguished ghosts as rumored tenants is the Tower of London, which is reported to be haunted by:. Originally, the series was to have been titled The Flagstones, and a brief demonstration film was created to sell the idea of a "modern stone age family" to sponsors and the network. The earliest literature to rationally discuss the issue comes from the Chinese philosopher, Mo Tzu (470-391 BC).

He also (as does Fred in this series) cries out for his wife, by asking her to stop the mechanism with the line, "Jane! Stop this crazy thing!". Certain images such as paintings and movies might "program" a person to automatically associate a certain structure or area as haunted because of what he has seen in the movies. This running gag of having the lead character of the series ending up being helpless during the end credits in every episode due to the hijinks of a family pet would later be repeated by Hanna-Barbera in the series The Jetsons in which George Jetson ends up being caught on a treadmill that ends up spinning out of control. Many people exaggerate their interpretation of their own perceptions, either when visiting a place they believe to be haunted, or when visiting a site which they know has seen unpleasant historical events. In the show's closing credits, Fred tries to "put the cat out for the night" but winds up getting locked out and yelling for his wife to come open the door: "Wilma! Come on, Wilma, open this door! Willllll-ma!" By the time the theme song "Meet the Flintstones" was used, Fred cut the yelling to: "Willllll-ma!" Although the cat, Baby Puss, was seen in the closing credits of every episode, it was rarely actually seen in any of the storylines. Psychological factors may also relate to ghost sightings. The similarities with The Honeymooners included the fact that Reed based Fred's voice upon Jackie Gleason's interpretation of Ralph Kramden, while Blanc, after a season of using a nasal, high-pitched voice for Barney, eventually adopted a style of voice similar to that used by Art Carney in his portrayal of Ed Norton. Often, videos of paranormal investigators will show them using E-field or B-field detectors and finding "ghostly" results near wall outlets and electrical appliances.

The voice of Barney was provided by legendary voice actor Mel Blanc, though five episodes in the second season used actor Daws Butler while Blanc was recovering from a near-fatal car accident. Sometimes ghosts are associated with electromagnetic disturbances, which suggests that they might be attributable to the electromagnetic field and not to a presently dead person. It has been noted that Fred Flintstone physically resembled voice actor Alan Reed. Also, sound waves with frequencies lower than 20 hertz are called infrasound; they are formally inaudible, but British scientists Richard Lord and Richard Wiseman have concluded that infrasound can cause humans to feel a "presence" in the room, or unexplained feelings of anxiety or dread.[1]. In later seasons, the Flintstones cast expanded to include The Gruesomes, their strange next-door neighbors (inspired by the then-popular monster sitcoms The Addams Family and The Munsters), and The Great Gazoo, an alien exiled to Earth who helps Fred and Barney, usually against their will. Any random motion outside the focused view can create a strong illusion of an eerie figure. Slate. Also, the peripheral vision is very sensitive to motion, but does not contain much color or focused shapes.

Fred Flintstone worked at a stone quarry and worked for several different bosses, the best known of which was the bald Mr. Ghosts are often associated with a chilling sensation, but a natural animal response to fear is hair raising, which can be mistaken for chill. The Flintstones had a pet dinosaur named Dino (pronounced DEE-no, and which barked like a dog), and the Rubbles had a kangaroo-like animal named Hoppy. Human physiology may make us more susceptible to ghost sightings. Later additions to the cast included the Flintstones' infant daughter Pebbles Flintstone and the Rubbles' abnormally strong adopted son Bamm Bamm Rubble. A society could have elaborate setups with members of that community playing ghosts. The series directly drew from The Honeymooners for its main quartet of characters: the blustering Fred Flintstone and his ever-patient wife Wilma Flintstone (née Slaghoople, though Pebble was also given on occasion) modeled after the Kramdens, and their friendly neighbors Barney Rubble and wife Betty Rubble (née Betty Jean McBricker) modeled after the Nortons. It can also discourage new tenants from living in an apparently abandoned house.

Being set in the Stone Age allowed for endless gags and puns that involved rocks in one way or another, including the names of the various characters being "rock" puns; some such names included celebrities such as "Cary Granite", "Stony Curtis", and "Ann-Margrock.". For example, the telling of ghost stories might be a way for secluded communities to scare off intruders. Another commonly seen gadget in the series was a baby woolly mammoth being used as a vacuum cleaner. Again, the reasons could be popularity and income; but fear might also factor into the motive. In a running gag, the animals powering such technology would look directly into the camera at the audience, shrug, and remark, "It's a living," or some similar phrase. A hoax or con might also be getting played on the reporting person themselves. For example, when the characters took photographs with an instant camera, the inside of the camera box would be shown to contain a bird carving the picture on a stone tablet with its bill. Also, a person might claim a haunting for personal popularity and income.

One source of the show's humor was the ways animals were used for technology. Ascribing such motives and powers to dead people could be interpreted as a scare tactic. Although the characters were set in the Stone Age, that never stopped the show's creators from producing a Christmas episode during the original series' run as well as several more Christmas specials in the decades that followed. For example, lingering of ghosts is typically associated with seeking justice or revenge. The characters drive automobiles made out of stone or wood and animal skins and powered by gasoline, although foot power is required to start the vehicles. They might make up a haunting for a personal reason. The show is set in a town called Bedrock in the Stone Age era, but with a society identical to that of the United States in the mid-to-late 20th century; in the Flintstones' fantasy version of the prehistoric past, dinosaurs, saber-toothed tigers, woolly mammoths and other long extinct animals coexist with cavemen, who use technology equivalent to that of the 20th century, largely through the use of various animals. Occasionally, the sincerity and motive of the claimant will be questioned.

. They are also keen to note that most ghost sightings happen when our senses are impaired, and that the evidence is unreliable because it doesn't occur when we have full use of our faculties. The Flintstones, an American animated television series created by Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, is one of the most successful animated television series of all time, originally running in American prime time for six seasons, from 1960 to 1966, on the ABC network. They may suggest that, since few to none of us have ever had an interpersonal relationship with a ghost, but most or all of us have had an experience of self-delusion or have attributed a false cause to an event, that these options should be preferred in the absence of a great abundance of evidence. The Man Called Flintstone (1966): Released in Canada April 2005 (US release canceled/postponed due to Columbia Pictures claiming ownership of the film). Skeptics often explain ghost sightings with the principle of Occam's razor, which argues that explanations should maximize parsimony with the rest of our knowledge. The Flintstones: The Complete Fifth Season (1964): Scheduled for release March 7, 2006. For example, the vast majority of the scientific community believes that ghosts, as well as other supernatural and paranormal entities, do not exist.

The Flintstones: The Complete Fourth Season (1963): Released November 2005. While some accept ghosts as a reality, many others are skeptical of the existence of ghosts. Note: All episodes are in their original length except for "The Big Move," which is the syndicated version. Asuras are also referred to as "fighting ghosts". The Flintstones: The Complete Third Season (1962): Released March 2005