Milton the Monster
| The Milton the Monster Show | |
|---|---|
 Milton, although he's a monster, he's just a big kid. | |
| Genre | Animated Cartoon |
| Created by | Hal Seeger |
| Directed by | Hal Seeger |
| Voices of |
Bob McFadden Beverly Arnold |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 26 |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Hal Seeger |
| Running time | 30 min. |
| Production company(s) | Hal Seeger Productions, in association with the ABC Television Network |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | ABC |
| Picture format | Color |
| Original run | October 9, 1965 – September 8, 1968 |
Milton the Monster, also called The Milton the Monster Show is an American animated cartoon TV series that ran on ABC from October 9, 1965, to September 8, 1968. It was produced and directed by Hal Seeger.
Overview
The series starred Milton the Monster, a Frankenstein-looking monster with a flat-topped, seemingly hollow head which emitted various quantities of white steam or smoke based on his mood or situation. He was created by mad scientist Professor Montgomery Weirdo and his assistant Count Kook, who lived in a haunted house on Horror Hill. Milton is a smiling, good-natured fellow, thanks to the Professor using too much "tincture of tenderness" as explained in the opening theme of each individual Milton the Monster segment. Milton was created not of individual body parts, but rather in a mold from such liquids as "essence of terror" and "sinister sauce." Out of fear of his creation destroying him, Professor Weirdo intended to add just a few drops of the aforementioned tincture of tenderness to the mold, but Count Kook bumped the Professor's elbow, resulting in too much of the tincture being added to the mix. Milton's voice, which owed much to Grady Sutton's Og Ogglby character from the W. C. Fields' feature film The Bank Dick, was provided by Bob McFadden who also provided voices for Professor Weirdo's resident monsters:
- Heebie - a skull-faced, top hat-wearing zombie with a Peter Lorre voice
- Jeebie - a slow-witted, cyclopian, hairy green creature with a single sharp tooth that was often used to open soda cans
Professor Weirdo's nemesis was Professor Fruitcake, another mad scientist who lived in a castle on an opposite hill. Professor Fruitcake's major creation was Zelda the Zombie. Other characters in the series included Fangenstein, a biker monster apparently inspired by Marlon Brando, his sidekick, Abercrombie the Zombie and Professor Weirdo's aunt, the witchy Aunt Hagatha.
Other features
Other features on the show included:
- "Fearless Fly", starring an insect superhero similar to Hanna-Barbera's Atom Ant. One of the most popular segments of the Milton the Monster Show, Fearless Fly was in reality Hirem, an ordinary housefly who, when danger threatens, ducks into a nearby matchbox, dons a red sweater and, in a reversal of Clark Kent, changes into the superhero Fearless Fly by putting on a pair of super high-powered glasses that "provides millions of mega-tons of energy through the sensitive muscles in his head." FF, according to the opening, is more powerful than a speeding rocket and faster than a beam of light. No flypaper can hold him and no insecticide can stop him. Fearless Fly's only weakness is losing his glasses, which happens in just about every episode. To bring the point home, Hirem bemoans his fate by telling the audience, "Without my super high-powered glasses I'm helpless!" His chief nemesis is the 900-year-old Fu Manchu-inspired Dr. Goo Fee and his sidekick Gung Ho. Occasionally, Milton the Monster's Professor Weirdo makes an appearance to threaten Fearless Fly. Specifically, the episodes "Fearless Fly meets the Monsters" and "The Spider Spiter." The "Fearless Fly meets the Monsters" episode appears to be an early pilot for Milton the Monster. We see Professor Weirdo creating a monster similar to Milton. The same tincture of tenderness mishap occurs, but this creature's name is George. He basically looks like Milton, but with the Frankenstein Monster's hairstyle, has a deeper voice that sounds nothing like Jim Nabors, and a scar across his forehead. Heebie and Jeebie are present, but have different voices. Heebie's voice sounds more like Jeebie's, while Jeebie's design is basically unchanged, except he has a full set of fangs instead of just a single sharp tooth and sounds like Peter Lorre. Also present is a robot that appears to be an early version of Mechanical Mike, a character that appears in the Milton the Monster episode, "Monster-Sitter." The actual Milton the Monster makes a brief cameo in the episode, "Ferocious Fly" as a mirage Hirem hallucinates while lost in the desert. When Fearless Fly is in the guise of Hirem, he hangs out at the Sugar Bowl with his girlfriend Flory (not Flora, as cited in other reference sources). Hirem's chief antagonist at the bistro is the bullying Horsey the Horsefly. Flory's voice was provided by the un-credited Beverly Arnold. Bob McFadden usually provided all of the voices, including the female ones, such as the seductive Lady Deflyah.
- "Flukey Luke", with a cowboy detective and his Irish-accented Native American companion Two Feathers. Flukey Luke was so named because of his dumb luck that allowed him to get the upper hand despite being incredibly inept.
- "Stuffy Durma", starring a nouveau-riche hobo who resisted the attempts of valet Bradley Brinkley to get some culture and breeding.
- "Muggy-Doo", featuring a sly boy fox who often gets into trouble with his get-rich-quick schemes.
- "Penny Penguin", starring a bratty aquatic bird.
Episode list
Episode 1
- Fearless Fly: Trick or Treatment
- Flukey Luke: Loot Pursuit
- Milton the Monster: Zelda the Zombie
Episode 2
- Fearless Fly: Horse Shoo Fly
- Muggy Doo: Gogh Van Gogh
- Milton the Monster: Boy Meet Ghoul
Episode 3
- Fearless Fly: Fatty Karate
- Muggy Doo: You Auto Be in Pictures
- Milton the Monster: Monsters for Hire
Episode 4
- Fearless Fly: Captain Fligh
- Muggy Doo: Doo Or Die
- Milton the Monster: Who Do Voodoo?
Episode 5
- Fearless Fly: The Goofy Dr. Goo Fee
- Muggy Doo: From Riches To Rags
- Milton the Monster: The Pot Thickens
Episode 6
- Fearless Fly: Sly Fly
- Stuffy Derma: From Wrecks to Riches
- Milton the Monster: Medium Undone
Episode 7
- Fearless Fly: Throne For A Loss
- Flukey Luke: Missin' Masters
- Milton the Monster: Monster Mutiny
Episode 8
- Fearless Fly: The Bomb's Rush
- Penny Penguin: There Auto Be A Law
- Milton the Monster: Ghoul School
Episode 9
- Fearless Fly: Fly Hijack
- Flukey Luke: Tired Gun
- Milton the Monster: Hector the Protector
Episode 10
- Fearless Fly: Si Si Fly
- Flukey Luke: Palace Malice
- Milton the Monster: Horrorbaloo
Episode 11
- Fearless Fly: The House-Fly Guest
- Muggy Doo: Fortune Kooky
- Milton the Monster: Goon Platoon
Episode 12
- Fearless Fly: Invincible Vs. Invisible
- Stuffy Derma: Suit Yourself
- Milton the Monster: The Dummy Talks
Episode 13
- Fearless Fly: Fly By Might
- Stuffy Derma: Hobo Hootenanny
- Milton the Monster: A Pie In The Sky
Episode 14
- Fearless Fly: The Sphinx Jinx
- Penny Penguin: Penny Ante
- Milton the Monster: Monsterous Escape
Episode 15
- Fearless Fly: The Spider Spiter
- Penny Penguin: Sickened Honeymoon
- Milton the Monster: Abercrombie the Zombie
Episode 16
- Fearless Fly: Fearless Fly Meets The Monsters (Pilot)
- Muggy Doo: Crumb-Bumming
- Milton the Monster: V for Vampire
Episode 17
- Milton the Monster: Monster Vs. Mobster
- Fearless Fly: Martians Meet Their Match (Pilot)[citation needed]
- Milton the Monster: Witch Crafty
Episode 18
- Milton the Monster: Camp Gitchy Gloomy
- Fearless Fly: Lets Phase It
- Milton the Monster: The Hearse Thief
Episode 19
- Milton the Monster: Boo To You
- Fearless Fly: Under Waterloo
- Milton the Monster: Kid Stuff
Episode 20
- Milton the Monster: Horror Scope
- Fearless Fly: Lady Deflyah
- Milton the Monster: The Flying Cup & Saucer
Episode 21
- Milton the Monster: Monster-Sitter
- Fearless Fly: Robinson Shoesole
- Milton the Monster: The Moon Goons
Episode 22
- Milton the Monster: Think Shrink
- Fearless Fly: Private Fly
- Milton the Monster: Skullgaria Forever!
Episode 23
- Milton the Monster: Crumby Mummy
- Fearless Fly: Stage Plight
- Milton the Monster: Fort Fangenstein
Episode 24
- Fearless Fly: Safari Harry
- Stuffy Derma: Nuggets To You
- Milton the Monster: Batnap
Episode 25
- Milton the Monster: Dunkin' Treasure
- Fearless Fly: Ferocious Fly
- Milton the Monster: Monsterous Monster
Episode 26
- Fearless Fly: Napoleon Bonafly
- Flukey Luke: Violin Violence
- Milton the Monster: The Mummy's Thumb
DVD release
On March 20, 2007, Shout! Factory released the complete series on a 4-DVD set.
References
- Milton the Monster at the Internet Movie Database
- Milton the Monster at TV.com
- Cartoon-O-Rama Spotlight on: The Milton the Monster Show
- Milton the Monster at Nostalgia Central
- Ron Kurer's Toontracker: Milton the Monster
- Milton the Monster at Shout! Factory