{"title":"The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie","dateDebut":"1972","dateEnd":"1974","description":"The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie \u0097 renamed The New Saturday Superstar Movie in its second season \u0097 was a series of one-hour animated TV-movies (some of which also contained live action), broadcast on the ABC television network on Saturday mornings from September 9, 1972, to November 17, 1973.\r\n\r\nIntended as a \u0093movie of the week\u0094 for kids, this series was produced by several production companies \u0097 including Hanna-Barbera, Filmation, and Rankin\/Bass \u0097 and mostly contained features based on popular cartoon characters and TV shows of the time, such as Yogi Bear, The Brady Bunch, and Lost in Space. Some of the features served as pilots for new TV shows.\r\n\r\nThe Brady Kids on Mysterious Island (Filmation; September 9, 1972): Based on the characters from The Brady Bunch, this was the pilot for The Brady Kids. \r\n\r\nYogi\u0092s Ark Lark (Hanna-Barbera; September 16, 1972): In this ecologically-minded feature, dozens of Hanna-Barbera animal characters \u0097 led by Yogi Bear, of course \u0097 travel around the world, and even into outer space, in a flying version of Noah\u0092s Ark in search of \u0093the perfect place\u0094 (i.e., a land free of pollution, deforestation, and other forms of mankind\u0092s despoilment). Pilot for Yogi\u0092s Gang. \r\n\r\nThe Mad, Mad, Mad Monsters (Rankin\/Bass; September 23, 1972): An animated feature in the same vein as Mad Monster Party. \r\n\r\nNanny and the Professor (Fred Calvert Productions; September 30, 1972): In this animated feature, the cast of Nanny and the Professor get caught up in a mystery involving a microdot. \r\nPopeye Meets the Man Who Hated Laughter (King Features; October 7, 1972): Fourteen years before Defenders of the Earth, this feature united a wide range of newspaper comic strip characters \u0097 including Popeye, Blondie, Hi and Lois, Snuffy Smith, Beetle Bailey, Jiggs and Maggie, Steve Canyon, The Phantom, Flash Gordon, Mandrake the Magician, The Little King, and The Katzenjammer Kids \u0097 against a common enemy. \r\n\r\nWillie Mays and the Say-Hey Kid (Rankin\/Bass; October 14, 1972): This animated feature stars the famous baseball player Willie Mays, who voices his own character. \r\n\r\nOliver and the Artful Dodger: Part 1 (Hanna-Barbera; October 21, 1972): An animated reworking of the story of \u0093Oliver Twist\u0094. \r\n\r\nOliver and the Artful Dodger: Part 2 (Hanna-Barbera; October 28, 1972) \r\n\r\nThe Adventures of Robin Hoodnik (Hanna-Barbera; November 4, 1972): A retelling of the legend of Robin Hood, with a cast of all animal characters. Broadcast one year before the release of Disney\u0092s Robin Hood. \r\n\r\nLassie and the Spirit of Thunder Mountain (Filmation; November 11, 1972): Based on the tremendously popular Lassie character, this was the pilot for the animated series Lassie's Rescue Rangers. \r\n\r\nGidget Makes the Wrong Connection (Hanna-Barbera; November 18, 1972): Animated feature in which the characters from Gidget run afoul of seagoing gold smugglers. \r\n\r\nThe Banana Splits in Hocus Pocus Park (Hanna-Barbera; November 25, 1972): An animated\/live-action special starring The Banana Splits. \r\n\r\nTabitha and Adam and the Clown Family (Hanna-Barbera; December 2, 1972): Animated feature in which the children from Bewitched (depicted as teenagers) use their magical powers to save a circus; intended pilot for a series that never materialized. \r\n\r\nThe Red Baron (Rankin\/Bass; December 9, 1972): This animated feature casts the Red Baron as a hero, in a world of heroic dogs and villainous cats (all anthropomorphic, of course). \r\n\r\nDaffy Duck and Porky Pig Meet the Groovie Goolies (Filmation; December 16, 1972): In this unusual cartoon crossover, for which Filmation obtained the right to use Warner Bros.\u0092 Looney Tunes characters, the Groovie Goolies help Daffy, Porky, and the other Looneys to solve a spooky mystery (in the style of Scooby-Doo). Mostly animated, but includes a live-action segment, which can be seen here. \r\n\r\nLuvcast U.S.A. (Depatie-Freleng; January 6, 1973): A mini-anthology, loosely based on Love, American Style. \r\n\r\nThat Girl in Wonderland (Rankin\/Bass; January 13, 1973): In this animated feature, the main character from That Girl imagines herself in the stories \u0093Alice in Wonderland\u0094, \u0093Goldilocks\u0094, \u0093The Wizard of Oz\u0094, and \u0093Cinderella\u0094. \r\n\r\nLost in Space (Hanna-Barbera; September 8, 1973): Based on the series Lost in Space, this was meant to be the pilot for an animated version of the show, but it didn't take off. \r\nThe Mini-Munsters (Fred Calvert Productions; October 27, 1973): Animated feature based on The Munsters, involving a car that's \u0093fueled\u0094 by music. \r\n\r\nNanny and the Professor and the Phantom of the Circus (Fred Calvert Productions; November 17, 1973): Animated feature in which the cast of Nanny and the Professor get involved in a mystery about a traveling circus.\r\n\r\n\r\n","leadImageMedUrl":"http:\/\/distro-1.retrojunk.com\/secure\/0214d26bafa247336531e67994715698eeffb5157f19b358cbd9a546549fea6133de04\/image\/593_598dae119b.jpg"}