The Greatest Adventure: Stories from the Bible
| The Greatest Adventure: Stories from the Bible | |
|---|---|
|
From the episode "The Creation". (Left to right): Seph, Storyteller, Moki, Margo, Derek, Nod's children, Seph's father (distance, far right). | |
| Genre |
Action Adventure Drama History Religion |
| Directed by |
Don Lusk Ray Patterson (supervising director) |
| Voices of |
Darleen Carr Darryl Hickman Terry McGovern Rob Paulsen |
| Narrated by | Michael Rye |
| Theme music composer | Hoyt Curtin |
| Composer(s) | Hoyt Curtin |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of episodes | 13 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) |
William Hanna Joseph Barbera |
| Producer(s) | Kay Wright |
| Editor(s) | Gil Iverson |
| Running time | 25–30 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Hanna-Barbera Productions |
| Release | |
| Original release | 1985 – 1993 |
The Greatest Adventure: Stories from the Bible is a direct-to-video series produced by Hanna-Barbera that tells of three young adventurers who travel back in time to watch biblical events take place. The series ran from 1985 to 1993 for 13 episodes.
Overview
Derek and Margo, two young archaeologists, are on a dig accompanied by "their nomad friend", a boy named Moki. They come across a door in an ancient ruin that turns out to be a portal through time. Though the introduction is the same in all videos, each episode sends the trio into a different story from the Bible. They often interact with characters from the story, but rarely have any significant effect upon the plot.
Production and distribution
The series was initially conceived by Hanna-Barbera co-founder Joseph Barbera some seventeen years before it was produced, but he had difficulty in procuring support for the project. Eventually, however, Hanna-Barbera's parent company Taft Broadcasting agreed to provide funding, and the first video was released in 1985, then Turner Home Entertainment continued production after they bought Hanna-Barbera in 1991. Sparrow-Star Song assisted with distribution, releasing all thirteen episodes on VHS, one episode per tape. Five of these episodes ("The Miracles of Jesus", "David and Goliath", "Noah's Ark", "The Easter Story", and "Moses") were released on DVD in 2006.[1][2][3]
Episodes
| # | Title | Story by | Year of release |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "The Creation" | Dennis Marks | 1988 |
| The three protagonists listen to a storyteller recount the creation. At the same time, they learn their own lessons in honesty after tricking a gardener into giving them fruit for free. Voices: Marc Singer as Adam, Stephanie Zimbalist as Eve, Tim Curry as the Serpent, Les Tremayne as the storyteller/God. | |||
| 2 | "Noah's Ark" | Harvey Bullock | 1986 |
| The protagonists find themselves aboard Noah's Ark. Voices: Lorne Greene as Noah, Charlotte Rae as Noah's wife, Peter Cullen as Japheth. | |||
| 3 | "Joseph and His Brothers" | Dennis Marks and Karran Eccles Wright | 1990 |
| The trio befriend Joseph and learn about his coat of many colors. Voices: Barry Bostwick as Joseph. | |||
| 4 | "Moses" | Harvey Bullock | 1986 |
| The trio witnesses the ten plagues of Egypt and follow Moses through the parting of the Red Sea. Voices: James Whitmore as Moses, James Earl Jones as the Pharaoh. | |||
| 5 | "Joshua and the Battle of Jericho" | Harvey Bullock | 1986 |
| The trio find themselves ensnared in the Battle of Jericho. Voices: Ed Asner as Joshua, Michael Bell as an Israelite soldier. | |||
| 6 | "Samson and Delilah" | Harvey Bullock | 1986 |
| The protagonists find themselves witnessing the story of Samson and Delilah. Voices: Perry King as Samson, Linda Purl as Delilah. | |||
| 7 | "David and Goliath" | Harvey Bullock | August 25, 1998 |
| The three meet David and eventually see him defeat Goliath. Voices: Robby Benson as David, Herschel Bernardi as Goliath, Bernard Erhard as Saul. | |||
| 8 | "Daniel and the Lions' Den" | Dennis Marks | 1986 |
| The trio find themselves in Babylon, where they witness the miracle of Daniel in the lions' den. Voices: Gavin MacLeod as Daniel | |||
| 9 | "Queen Esther" | Karran Eccles Wright | 1992 |
| Esther and Mordecai expose the duplicity of Haman. Voices: Helen Slater as Esther, Dean Jones as King Ahasuerus, Werner Klemperer as Haman, Ron Rifkin as Mordecai. | |||
| 10 | "Jonah" | Karran Eccles Wright | 1993 |
| Jonah recounts the story of his journey to Nineveh and being swallowed by a whale. Voices: Alan Oppenheimer as Jonah. | |||
| 11 | "The Nativity" | Bruce D. Johnson and Harvey Bullock, with Dennis Marks (teleplay) | 1987 |
|
The trio witnesses the birth of Jesus. Voices: Helen Hunt as Mary, Gregory Harrison as (Joseph), Vincent Price as King Herod.
| |||
| 12 | "The Miracles of Jesus" | Karran Eccles Wright | 1991 |
| The time travelers encounter an elderly version of the young man raised from the dead in the city of Nain, who recounts the various miracles of Jesus. Voices: David Ackroyd as Jesus, Harold Gould as Benjamin | |||
| 13 | "The Easter Story" | Dennis Marks | 1989 |
| Mark describes the last days of Jesus' life, leading up to the crucifixion and resurrection. Voices: Joe Spano as Jesus, Richard Thomas as Mark, Adrienne Barbeau as Mary Magdalene, Keene Curtis as Pontius Pilate, Jeffrey Tambor as Peter, Tony Jay as Caiaphas | |||
Principal cast (in alphabetical order)
- Darleen Carr - Margo
- Terry McGovern - Derek (1985–1989)
- Darryl Hickman - Derek (1989–1993)
- Rob Paulsen - Moki
- Michael Rye - Narrator (main titles)
References
- ↑ Barbera, Joseph (1994). My Life in "Toons": From Flatbush to Bedrock in Under a Century. Atlanta, GA: Turner Publishing. pp. 210–215. ISBN 1-57036-042-1.
- ↑ Alasdair, Steven (2001-03-28). "William Hanna, animator and cartoon creator". The Scotsman. p. 16.
- ↑ Natale, Richard; Phil Gallo (2001-03-21). "William Hanna". Variety. p. 151.
External links
- The Creation at the Internet Movie Database
- Noah's Ark at the Internet Movie Database
- Joseph and His Brothers at the Internet Movie Database
- Moses at the Internet Movie Database
- Joshua and the Battle of Jericho at the Internet Movie Database
- Samson and Delilah at the Internet Movie Database
- David and Goliath at the Internet Movie Database
- Daniel and the Lion's Den at the Internet Movie Database
- Queen Esther at the Internet Movie Database
- The Nativity at the Internet Movie Database
- The Miracles of Jesus at the Internet Movie Database
- The Easter Story at the Internet Movie Database
- DVDVerdict Review of David and Goliath
- The Greatest Adventure: Stories from the Bible at CEGAnMo.com
- DVDVerdict Review of Moses
- Clips from the series