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Hong Kong Phooey

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"Hong Kong Fuey" redirects here. For the snooker player with this nickname, see Marco Fu.

Hong Kong Phooey
GenreComedy
Martial arts
Superhero
Created byHanna-Barbera
Directed byCharles A. Nichols
Wally Burr (Recording Director)
StarringHong Kong Phooey (designed by a Playboy cartoonist Marty Murphy (1933–2009))
Voices ofScatman Crothers
Joe E. Ross
Kathy Gori
Don Messick
Theme music composerHoyt Curtin
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes16 (31 sub-episodes)
Production
ProducersWilliam Hanna
Joseph Barbera
Iwao Takamoto
Running time30 Minutes (Approx.)
Production companyHanna-Barbera Productions
Original release
NetworkABC
ReleaseSeptember 7 (1974-09-07) –
December 21, 1974 (1974-12-21)
Related
Laff-A-Lympics
CB Bears

Hong Kong Phooey is a 16-episode (31 shorts) Hanna-Barbera animated series that first aired on ABC Saturday morning from September 7, 1974 (1974-09-07) to December 21, 1974 (1974-12-21). It was a parody of kung fu shows and movies of the time.

The main character Hong Kong Phooey is a clownishly clumsy secret alter ego of Penrod "Henry" Pooch,[1] working at a police station as a "mild-mannered" janitor under the glare of Sergeant Flint ("Sarge"). He transforms himself into Hong Kong Phooey upon running into a magic filing cabinet despite always getting stuck - and unstuck by his cat Spot - and once transformed, gets equipped with the "Phooeymobile" vehicle that transforms itself into a boat, a plane, or a telephone booth depending on the circumstances. He fights crime relying on his copy of The Hong Kong Book of Kung Fu,[2] but he succeeds only thanks to his cat Spot who provides a solution to the challenges or they are solved by himself as result of a comically unintended side effect of his conscious efforts. Background was designed by Lorraine Andrina and Richard Khim.

Synopsis

Each episode begins with Rosemary, the telephone operator, getting a call (and routinely saying "Hallo, hallo, this is Rosemary the telephone operator, the lovely lassie with the classy chassis") and explaining the crime to the Sergeant Flint, upon which Penry does the routine of transforming himself into the superhero whom Rosemary has a crush on. Despite this, even when he crashes into, harms, or otherwise inconveniences a civilian, the passer-by feels honored as opposed to annoyed or embarrassed, such as when he drove the Phooeymobile through wet cement, splattering the workers, who responded that it was an honor to have a whole day's work ruined by "the great Hong Kong Phooey."

Production

Hong Kong Phooey was voiced by Scatman Crothers. Sergeant Flint was voiced by Joe E. Ross, best known as Officer Gunther Toody in the early '60s television series Car 54, Where Are You?. As Flint, Ross revived Toody's famous "Ooh! Ooh!" exclamation. Sergeant Flint was very similar both in voice and appearance to Botch, assistant zoo-keeper at the Wonderland Zoo on Help! It's the Hair Bear Bunch that Ross also voiced.

In the episode "Comedy Cowboys", several new cartoon characters (Honcho, The Mystery Maverick, and Posse Impossible) appeared and helped to clear Hong Kong Phooey of a crime he did not commit. This episode was a pilot for the characters, and Posse Impossible later appeared in their own continuing segment on The CB Bears Show.

Like many animated series created by Hanna-Barbera in the 1970s, the show used the limited Hanna-Barbera laugh track.

Theme song

The show’s theme song, entitled "Hong Kong Phooey", was written by Chester Stover, Watts Biggers, Treadwell Covington, and Joseph Harris and was sung by Scatman Crothers.

A cover of the show’s theme song, performed by Sublime, is included on the 1995 tribute album Saturday Morning: Cartoons' Greatest Hits, produced by Ralph Sall for MCA Records.

Episode guide

Episode number Title/production number Airdate Synopsis
HKP-1 Car Thieves (prod. #74–1 Act 1) / Zoo Story (prod. #74–1 Act 2) September 7, 1974
HKP-2 Iron Head the Robot (prod. #74–2 Act 1) / Cotton Pickin' Pocket Picker (prod. #74–2 Act 2) September 14, 1974
HKP-3 Grandma Goody (Cat Burglar) (prod. #74–3 Act 1) / Candle Power (prod. #74–3 Act 2) September 21, 1974
HKP-4 The Penthouse Burglaries (prod. #74–4 Act 1) / Batty Bank Mob (prod. #74–4 Act 2) September 28, 1974
HKP-5 The Voltage Villain (prod. #74–5 Act 1) / The Giggler (prod. #74–5 Act 2) October 5, 1974
HKP-6 The Gumdrop Kid (prod. #74–6 Act 1) / Professor Presto (The Malevolent Magician) (prod. #74–6 Act 2) October 12, 1974
HKP-7 TV or Not TV (prod. #74–7 Act 1) / Stop Horsing Around (prod. #74–7 Act 2) October 19, 1974
HKP-8 Mirror, Mirror on the Wall (prod. #74–8 Act 1) / Great Movie Mystery (prod. #74–8 Act 2) October 26, 1974
HKP-9 The Claw (prod. #74–9 Act 1) / Hong Kong Phooey vs. Hong Kong Phooey (prod. #74–9 Act 2) November 2, 1974
HKP-10 The Abominable Snowman (prod. #74–10 Act 1) / Professor Crosshatch (prod. #74–10 Act 2) November 9, 1974
HKP-11 Goldfisher (prod. #74–11 Act 1) / Green Thumb (prod. #74–11 Act 2) November 16, 1974
HKP-12 From Bad to Verse (Rotten Rhymer) (prod. #74–12 Act 1) / Kong and the Counterfeiters (prod. #74–12 Act 2) November 23, 1974
HKP-13 The Great Choo Choo Robbery (prod. #74–13 Act 1) / Patty Cake, Patty Cake, Bakery Man (prod. #74–13 Act 2) November 30, 1974
HKP-14 Mr. Tornado (prod. #74–14 Act 1) / The Little Crook Who Wasn't There (prod. #74–14 Act 2) December 7, 1974
HKP-15 Dr. Disguiso (prod. #74–15 Act 1) / The Incredible Mr. Shrink (prod. #74–15 Act 2) December 14, 1974
HKP-16 Comedy Cowboys (prod. #74–16) December 21, 1974

DVD release

On August 15, 2006, Warner Home Video released the complete series on 2-disc DVD in Region 1. The shorts "Car Thieves" and "Zoo Story" were also released on a 1970s Saturday morning cartoon compilation.

DVD name Ep No. Release date Additional information
Hong Kong Phooey- The Complete Series 16 August 15, 2006 Hong Kong Phooey- volume 1
  • Commentary on select episodes
  • Documentary of the show from its development through its legacy. Includes production designs and never before seen original artwork as well as new interviews
  • "Hong Kong Phooey – The Batty Bank Gang: The Complete Storyboard"

The series is also available in the UK as a Region 2 2-disc set, and 2 separate volumes And R4 also got 2 separate volumes

Although the episodes are listed in airing order, there is a slight error on the disc one/volume one menu and cover. Mirror Mirror, On the Wall/Great Movie Mystery is placed BEFORE The Gumdrop Kid/Professor Presto, thus causing a mix-up with the selection on the menu.

Voices

Other media

With a copyright of 2001, Alan Lau in conjunction with Wildbrain.com produced a flash animation webshow cartoon that was prominently featured on CartoonNetwork.com, and can still be found there. While Penry appears identical to the original incarnation, Hong Kong Phooey is a much larger, cut, and highly competent and skilled fighter without Spot the cat.

Hong Kong Phooey faces off against and easily defeats evil anthropomorphic animals: a trio of rabbits, what appears to be a crane, and a reptilianoid. At the end he morphs back to Penry with a smile and sparkle in his eye.

Film

On July 12, 2009, it was announced that David A. Goodman had been hired to pen a Hong Kong Phooey film.[3] Alex Zamm is set to direct and Broderick Johnson, Andrew Kosove, Brett Ratner, and Jay Stern are producing.[4] Alcon Entertainment will back the film.[5] It was announced August 10, 2011, that Eddie Murphy will be voicing Penry/Hong Kong Phooey in the film.[5] On December 28, 2012, test footage of the film with live action CG was leaked.[6] The film is likely to be released around 2014.

Music

The Moldy Peaches song "Nothing Came Out" mentions Hong Kong Phooey among other cartoons: "I want you to watch cartoons with me. He-Man, Voltron and Hong-Kong-Phooey".

The song "Sugarcane" by The Space Monkeys mentions the side-effect of drugs as being "Quicker than the human eye or Hong Kong Phooey".

The song "Old School Rules" by Danger Doom, features a few classic cartoon mentions. One of which is a mention of Phooey by rapper MF Doom in the line "Ooh Wee, like a Hong Kong Phooey Kick," reminiscing about his childhood.[7]

Literature

The short children's novel Hong Kong Phooey and The Fortune Cookie Caper by Jean Lewis, illustrated by Phil Ostapczuk, was published in 1975 by Rand McNally and Company, as well as Hong Kong Phooey and the Bird Nest Snatchers (1976).

See also

References

  1. ^ "IMDB:Hong Kong Phooey-Plot Summary". IMDb. Retrieved November 11, 2009.
  2. ^ CD liner notes: Saturday Morning: Cartoons' Greatest Hits, 1995 MCA Records
  3. ^ "'Hong Kong Phooey' lands Goodman". Hollywood Reporter. July 12, 2009. Retrieved November 11, 2009.[dead link]
  4. ^ McNary, Dave (July 12, 2009). "'Phooey' kicks into high gear". Variety (magazine). Retrieved November 11, 2009.
  5. ^ a b Fleming, M. "Eddie Murphy Lends Voice To 'Hong Kong Phooey' Feature" Deadline.com (August 10, 2011).
  6. ^ "'Hong Kong Phooey' Movie Test Footage Revealed; 'Marvin The Martian' As Well (VIDEO)". Huffington Post. December 28, 2012. Retrieved December 28, 2012.
  7. ^ Danger Doom. "Old School Rules". Epitaph Records. Retrieved May 28, 2013. Ooh wee, like a Hong Kong Phooey Kick. {{cite web}}: More than one of |author= and |last= specified (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
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