Lancelot Link, Secret Chimp

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Lancelot Link: Secret Chimp
Image:Lltitle.gif
Genre Action/Adventure/Family/Comedy
Running time 60 min (1970 - 1971)

30 min (1971 - 1972)
Creator(s) Stan Burns and Michael Marmer
Starring
Country of origin Flag of United States United States
Original run September 12, 1970–September 2, 1972
IMDb profile

Created by Stan Burns and Michael Marmer, Lancelot Link, Secret Chimp was an American television show on ABC from Sept. 12, 1970 to Sept. 2, 1972 that featured a cast of chimpanzees who were given apparent speaking roles by overdubbing them with human voices. The show appeared in both half-hour and hour-long editions. The first season, was an hour-long, and it included some cartoons from Warner Bros. Pictures. The second season, trimmed to a half-hour, consisted of repeats from the first season, minus the cartoons.

The plot was focused around Lancelot Link, Secret Chimp, and his female colleague Mata Hairi, in secret agent and spy scenarios. Link worked for APE (Agency to Prevent Evil), who were engaged in a long conflict with evil organization CHUMP (Criminal Headquarters for Underworld Master Plan). There were musical interludes by an all-chimp band, "The Evolution Revolution." An LP of these songs, recorded by studio musicians, was released on the Dunhill record label. There was also a Lancelot Link comic book and other merchandise, including Halloween costumes.

The show was later played on the Nickelodeon cable television channel during the 1980's.

In June 2006, the entire series was released on a 2 DVD set by Image Entertainment.

In Andrew Boyd and Ryan Yount's independent comic Scurvy Dogs, the character of Jefe blames his hatred of monkeys on Lancelot Link.

Contents

[edit] Characters

Characters included:

  • Good guys
    • Lancelot Link (played by Tonga, voiced by Dayton Allen)
    • Mata Hairi (played by Debbie, voiced by Joan Gerber)
    • Commander Darwin
  • Bad guys
    • Baron von Butcher
    • Dragon Lady
    • Creto
    • Wang Fu
    • The Duchess
    • Ali Assa Seen
    • Dr. Strangemind
  • Additional Characters
    • Marty Mandrill (former songwriter for The Evolution Revolution turned CHUMP spy)
    • The Orang-Utan (appears every now and then, often referred to by Lance as "that weird lookin' guy")

Voice acting for various parts was also provided by Steve Hoffman, Bernie Kopell, and Malachi Throne. Malachi Throne also was the narrator's voice. Other Chimp actors included Blackie (drummer in The Evolution Revolution, has since suffered a stroke).

[edit] The Evolution Revolution

This all ape band featuring Lance Link (played by Tonga) on Guitar, Mata Hairi (played by Debbie) on Tamborine, 'Blackie' on Drums and ??? on Keyboards (name never mentioned on the show and creators Burns and Marmer couldn't recall his name when interviewed recently). A self titled album was released as well as a single titled 'Sh La La La Love You'. The musical style was leaning towards bubblegum pop, but with some great vocal harmonies similar to that of The Eagles. Some songs also contained heavy guitar riffs, reflecting the growth of hard rock and heavy metal at the time. While some of the songs do seem rather cheesy when listened to today ('Yummy Love' for example), some of them have stood the test of time and would fit in nicely on any classic rock radio station ('Teaser', 'The Evolution Revolution' and 'Live' for example). For the performances on the show, they played the songs to the chimps and they were able to pick up the rhythm quite easily. Obviously they couldn't really play but if you watch them (especailly Blackie) you'll see that while they may not be anywhere near the right chords, as far as the rhythm goes, they seem to be pretty much spot on most of the time.

[edit] Episodes

According to TV.com, episodes include:

  1. There's No Business Like Snow Business
  2. The Lone A.P.E. / Missile Beach Party
  3. The Mysterious Motorcycle Menace / The Great Beauty Contest
  4. C.H.U.M.P. Takes a Holiday / To Tell the Tooth
  5. The Great Brain Drain / The Great Double Double Cross
  6. Lance of Arabia / The Doctor Goes A.P.E.
  7. The Surfin' Spy / The Missing Link
  8. Bonana / The Greatest Chase in the World
  9. The Reluctant Robot / The Royal Foil
  10. The Great Great Race / The Great Plane Plot
  11. Landlubber Lance / The Temporary Thanksgiving Turkey Truce
  12. The Dreaded Hong Kong Sneeze / The Great Bank Robbery
  13. The Sour Taste of Success / The Baron's Birthday Ball
  14. The Golden Sword / The Chilling Chump Chase
  15. The Spy Who Went Out in the Cold / Too Many Chumps
  16. The Chump Code Caper / Weather or Not
  17. The Evolution Revolution / The Great Water Robbery

[edit] External links

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org../../../l/a/n/Lancelot_Link%2C_Secret_Chimp_d421.html"