Drugs Are Bad, M’Kay, But the Banana Splits and Their Amphicats Are Far Out

https://www.youtube.com/embed/t2JEH9nBjlo

When you’re seven years old, this was Saturday morning gold.

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YAAASSSSSSS!

When I first got to college in 1982 I judged friendship potential by asking everyone I met who their favorite Banana Split was, and how much of the theme song they could sing.  It was a pretty reliable predictor.

Someone who lived a couple of miles away from me in the '70s (I grew up in a moderately rural area) had an Amphicat, and I thought that thing was just the coolest.  Occasionally I would see them drive it past my house, and every time I rode my little Honda dirtbike past theirs, I saw the 'Cat in their shed and just ached to drive it.

Thank you. My brother and I watched them as well. Favorite one? Hmmmm. I might go with Snorky. 

Man I miss all the weird shows of my childhood.  Banana Splits, HR PufnStuf, The Bugaloos, SIgmond the Sea Monster.....

-Rob

rob_lewis said:

Man I miss all the weird shows of my childhood.  Banana Splits, HR PufnStuf, The Bugaloos, SIgmond the Sea Monster.....

-Rob

Copy that!  Great shows.  I swear the creator of HR Puffnstuff had to be doing a line when he dreamed it up however.  

In reply to racerdave600 :

I think it was LSD.  You know, talking trees and all that.  

one banana, two banana, three banana four.  four bananas make a bunch and so do many more.

Never heard of it.  

Scott

As the token young guy in the room, what the berkeley are you guys talking about?

I live my life one Banana Split at a time, nothing else matters. Not HR Puffinstuff, not Sigmund and the Seamonster, not the Bugaloos and all of their bullE36 M3. For those 30 minutes or so, I'm free. 

Too far back for this guy.

But hey, there's an Amphicat on eBay right now https://www.ebay.com/itm/Amphicat/163996601195?hash=item262ef58b6b:g:QDsAAOSw9shd-6uh

"Over hill and highway the Banana Buggies go, comin' on to bring you the Banana Splits Show..." 

racerdave600 said:

rob_lewis said:

Man I miss all the weird shows of my childhood.  Banana Splits, HR PufnStuf, The Bugaloos, SIgmond the Sea Monster.....

-Rob

Copy that!  Great shows.  I swear the creator of HR Puffnstuff had to be doing a line when he dreamed it up however.  

DUUUUDE.  They didn't call it H R Pufnstuff for nothing...  And don't forget Lidsville.  Sid and Marty Kroft should never have been allowed anywhere near children.

I think Fleegle, or maybe Drooper, was my favorite Split.  I also admit to carrying a prepubescent torch for the Sour Grapes Bunch.

Nick:

More here.

"... flippin' like a pancake, poppin' like a cork..."

also never made the connection to Lidsville before, so thanks for that!  

I've never heard of this, what decade was it from?  Looks mid 70s-ish?

Edit: Duke had a link above that says 68-70..  So I was off a bit on my guess.

In reply to WonkoTheSane (Forum Supporter) :

1968-'70

David S. Wallens said:

In reply to WonkoTheSane (Forum Supporter) :

1968-'70

Umm. Groovy, man.  Far out.

:)

We got re-runs of the Banana Splits in the UK on Saturday mornings.  Loved the bits with Amphicats in, loved the cartoons, but hated the rest of it with the splits in their club house and the music.  Sorry.

In reply to David S. Wallens :

I always dug this version of their theme song. And pretty much every other track off this album for that matter. 
 

In reply to Pete Gossett (Forum Supporter) :

Cool--thanks for sharing.

I admit, I was looking for something else when I stumbled upon that video. Then it was Saturday morning all over again. 

Thank God we're not talk talking about last years movie reboot.....

jimbob_racing said:

Thank God we're not talk talking about last years movie reboot.....

Um, yeah, what's that about? I just watched the trailer. Call it research. 

From the comments: 

80's cartoon characters, where are they now?

https://youtu.be/VlVeoPXFHEA

Caution, language.

I barely remember this show. I was maybe 3 or 4 when it ended. But the theme music stuck with me.  The la-la-la part.  I  find myself whistling it absent-mindedly during strange moments throughout my life.  It's like an unconscious security blanket carried from childhood. 

About 8 years ago, I was walking out of a Sacramento lawyers' office whistling this tune on a bright breezy early Spring afternoon, a bounce in my step, the weight of the world off my shoulders. Bliss.  Intent on damaging my calm, the freshly minted ex-wife barked at me that I was whistling a happy tune upon exiting a dozen years of marriage.  The tramp.  She got the 2 year old Toyota Highlander hybrid, blech.  I hopped into my high mile 12 y/o Audi A8 , and thought of that one-liner, "Why is divorce so expensive?  Because its so effing worth it."  Still whistling, I drove away.

More importantly, Martin Landau rocked a yellow Amphicat in Space:1999.  Nothing near the hijinks of these Hanna-Barbera clowns though...more slooow motion because we're on the moon.  But even in her 40's Barbara Bain was easier on the eyes than the Banana Splits. 

 Whatever you do, don't go here:  http://www.6x6world.com/forums/content/section/128-amphicat-amphibious-atv.html   and then off to ebay in search of one of these surprisingly cheap buggies. 

NickD said:

As the token young guy in the room, what the berkeley are you guys talking about?

Childrens' television was lysergically weird in the 70s.

I had a buddy that used to bring weird stuff out to our local off-road area (Gamma Goat anyone?) but the only thing everyone wanted to take a turn driving was an Amphicat. Go figure.

rob_lewis said:

Man I miss all the weird shows of my childhood.  Banana Splits, HR PufnStuf, The Bugaloos, SIgmond the Sea Monster.....

-Rob

I used to watch Sigmond the Sea Monster, Great Space Coaster, and Fraggle Rock