The Beatles (TV series)

The Beatles
(left to right) John, Ringo, George, and Paul as animated characters.
GenreComedy
Musical
Created byAl Brodax
Written byAl Brodax
Bruce Howard
Heywood Kling
Dennis Marks
Jack Mendelsohn
Directed byJack Stokes
Graham Sharpe
Ron Campbell
Jim Hiltz
Ray Leach
John Dunn
Bob Godfrey
Tony Gearty
Tom McDonald
Frank Andrina
Barry Helmer
Mike Jones
Voices of
Theme music composerLennon–McCartney
Opening theme
Ending theme"The Beatles End Theme" (1964)
ComposerThe Beatles (songs)
Country of origin
  • United States
  • United Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons3
No. of episodes39
Production
Executive producerAl Brodax
ProducersAl Brodax
Mary Ellen Stewart
George Dunning
Leon Becker
Jack Gettles
Running time18 min (UK Version)
30 Min (Full Version)
Production companies
Original release
Network
Release25 September 1965 (1965-09-25) –
21 October 1967 (1967-10-21)
Related
Yellow Submarine
(1968)
Infobox instructions (only shown in preview)

The Beatles, also referred to as The Beatles Cartoon, is an animated television series featuring representations of the popular English rock band of the same name.[1] It was originally broadcast from 1965 to 1967 on ABC in the United States, with reruns airing until 1969.

The series debuted on 25 September 1965, with new episodes airing until 21 October 1967.[2] A total of 39 episodes were produced. The series was shown on Saturdays at 10:30 AM EST until the third season in 1967, when it was moved to 12:00 PM EST. Reruns aired from 1968 to 1969 at 9:30 AM EST on Sundays.[3] Each episode is named after a Beatles song, with a plot based on its lyrics, and it is also played in the episode. The series was rerun on MTV in 1986 and 1987 and on The Disney Channel beginning in 1989 on Fridays at 5 PM.[3][4]

The series was a historical milestone, as it was the first weekly television series to feature animated versions of real, living people.[5]

  1. ^ Perlmutter, David (2018). The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 69. ISBN 978-1538103739.
  2. ^ Woolery, George W. (1983). Children's Television: The First Thirty-Five Years, 1946-1981. Scarecrow Press. pp. 43–44. ISBN 0-8108-1557-5. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
  3. ^ a b "TV.com". Archived from the original on 23 September 2020. Retrieved 24 December 2020.
  4. ^ Boca Raton News, July 21, 1989, page 9C.
  5. ^ Animators & Creators. Archived 23 September 2015 at the Wayback Machine