Observations on the Flintstones

[Markxxx]

1) Betty is the most evolved. She has a waist, a neck and whites in her eyes. Fred has whites but no neck or waist, Wilma has no whites but a waist and a neck. Barney has none so he is the most "Neanderthal" of the group

2) I hate it when the Flintstones get disproportional to each other. The Ann Margrock episode was the worst. Often Pebbles is 3/4 the size of Fred.

3) Barney seems he would be better in bed than Fred so why did he adopt?

4) The Flintstones have churches and Fred prays so they have some sort of religion.

5) Wilma's mother has been married twice but in the series is single. What happened to her husbands. Either that or she was married once and Wilma was illegitmate. Wilma's maiden name is Pebble. Her mother is Slaghoople (sp??)

6) After Gazoo was introduced the series became too unrealistic.

7) Bea Benaderet (sp?) was the only good voice of Betty.

8) I have way too much time on my hands.

[the first supraliminal]

Fred Flintstone was the greatest pool player on earth. Ever seen his "follow the leader" shot?



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One beer is less than two beers.

[Kamino Neko]

Wait.....a cartoon about people who live alongside dinosaurs, and have TVs but not photographic cameras didn't get too unrealistic until the alien genie showed up?



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'They couldn't hit an Elephant from this dist...!'

Last words of General John Sedgwick

[Markxxx]

I don't remember the follow the leader shot. What was that?

[the first supraliminal]

The "follow the leader" shot was when Fred hits a group of balls, and they all line up and loop around (sort of like a centipede) and follow each other into a pocket.

I think he was showing it to his mother-in-law.



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One beer is less than two beers.

[Guy Propski]

Bea Benederet is correct; she died in 1968 of lung cancer. She also played Kate on "Petticoat Junction", if you're curious what she looked liked.

Let's fill out the list:
Alan Reed--Fred Flintstone
Jean vander Pyl--Wilma
Mel Blanc--Barney Rubble and about 1000 other voices.

[BurnMeUp]

I dunno I'd have to say Fred's bowling skills are pretty much the best I have ever seen. Hell if REAL bowlers played like that I'd watch it on TV.

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To deal with men by force is as impractical as to deal with nature by persuasion.

[Shadowfox]

My question always has been...What does Barney do for a living? In a couple of episodes, it appears as though he works with Fred at the quarry, but in other episodes it shows Fred dropping Barney off at his job before going to the quarry. I vaguely remember an episode in which Betty stated that he was a secret agent, but I assumed she was joking.

Shadowfox

Wait a minute--Mary Jane Croft, who just died last weelk, was listed in her obits as the voice of Betty Rubble! Most of us know her from Lucy's various shows, where she played Carolyn Appleby and some other neighbor in the later shows.

Gee, another "three deaths," this time in sitcoms: Sandra Gould (Bewitched's Gladys Kravitz No. 2) and Ross Elliott, who played several notable roles on I Love Lucy!

[Guy Propski]

She was Betty Ramsey on "I Love Lucy", but the IMDB doesn't show her as supplying the voice of Betty Rubble. Perhaps it was a typo in the obit.

[dougie_monty]

I notice that the Flintstones are very similar to the Jeffersons--except that, like Archie and Edith Bunker, they have a daughter. Fred is loud and blustery, like George (or Archie): he is, however, almost never a match for his level-headed wife Wilma--who must see something in Fred we viewers could never see, like Louise Jefferson did in George. (What Edith saw in Archie is another story.)
It's clear, anyway, that although he must weigh 150 pounds more than Wilma, and has a louder voice, he is no match for her. So she is sort of a sounding-board for him--and they are quite compatible.

Actually, The Flintstones were loosely based on The Honeymooners.

Didn't Mary Jane Croft play both Betty Ramsey AND Carolyn Appleby on I Love Lucy? I can see her now, saying in that snippy way of hers, "Oh, Lucy, can Little Ricky come to Stevie's birthday party?"

[dougie_monty]

Yeah...for all his blustery nature Ralph would tell his wife, "Alice..you're the greatest!"

[Louie]

Shadowfox:

My question always has been...What does Barney do for a living?

From www.answers.com. :

In the Flintstones, where did Barney go to work after Fred dropped him off?

Barney originally worked for the Pebble Rock and Gravel Company. When he was laid off Fred got him a job with his company, the Slaterock Gravel Company (but also seen as the Rockhead Quarry Construction Company, the Bedrock Quarry Gravel Company, the Bedrock Gravel Company, and the Rockhead and Quarry Cove Construction Company).

Hope that helps.

[Kat]

You can also take a look at http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a3_398a.html In "The Flintstones," what was Barney Rubble's job?

[Jophiel]

Actually, The Flintstones were loosely based on The Honeymooners.

You know, when I was a wee little one, I remember watching an episode of the Honeymooners where Ralph gets a job as Superintendent of the building and has to live in the basement with Alice. The next day on the Flintstones, Fred got a job as super for some joint and had to live in the basement with Alic-- erm.. Wilma. I felt really cheated. Come to think of it, not long after I saw an episode of M*A*S*H where Col. Potter complains about his hemmeroids not knowing the PA system is on and the next day in the old comic 'Boner's Ark', the Cpt. complains that he's sea sick without knowing the PA system is on. Not realizing the lag time between making a comic strip and it appearing in the paper, I thought the artist was a real rip-off.

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"I guess it is possible for one person to make a difference, although most of the time they probably shouldn't."

[Markxxx]

Doris Singleton played Lillian Appleby. (Later renamed Carolyn Appleby)

She aslo was Chip's Mother in Law on My Three Sons.

So sad to hear about Mary Jane Croft.

[NicePete]

Re: the Bea Benadaret/Mary Jane Croft issue -- Betty Rubble was voiced by more than one person. I can place one version of Betty as definitely Bea. Perhaps the other was Mary Jane.

Now here's one for you. Was the Great Gazoo based upon the character created by Frank Nelson?

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"Owls will deafen us with their incessant hooting!" W. Smithers

Oh, I LOVE Frank Nelson! "EEeeyesss?" Even The Simpsons recently did a parody of him, as a headwaiter. One of the great unsung character comics! I recently saw a rerun of The Jack Benny Show, with Frank as a floorwalker. Jack pointed to the rose in his lapel and said, "excuse me, do you work here?" and Frank anwered (in that VOICE of his," Nooo--I'm a float at the Rose Bowl Parade!"

[NicePete]

Flora, I just knew you would recognize Frank Nelson.

YYYYYEEEEEEEESSSSSS!!!

check this out: www.uptonogood.com

Frankd6, you're not Ukelele Ike with a mask on, are you?

[Guy Propski]

Frank--The only other credit I can find for voice of Betty Rubble is Gerry Johnson (1964-66). Betty's not even included in the cast listing for "The Flintstones Comedy Hour" or any of the animated films. I sense more anti-Betty-ites at work.

[NicePete]

Sorry, Ike I ain't. But I'm flattered by the comparison.

Well, I guess the IMDB shoots my Croft/Rubble theory all to hell.

Back to the Great Gazoo -- I recall a Simpson's episode (probably one of the clips shows) where Troy McClure said that the next season would hold some surprises, including an obviously Gazoo-like character. Could this have been the episode which broke The Flintstone's record for longest running animated series?

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"Owls will deafen us with their incessant hooting!" W. Smithers

[NicePete]

Arrrrggghhhh!!! that's Simpsons episode, not Simpson's episode. Nothing worse than violating one of my own pet peeves.

[Markxxx]

Well Harvey Korman (sp??) was the Great Gazoo, Lyle Wagner was also in a lot of episodes too.

There were a lot of other Betty voices on reincarnations of later Flintstones, but at least Gerry Johnson sounded something like Bea.

[ChiefScott]

Was anyone disturbed about the length of the Flintstone residence? The number of windows? Dozens of identical potted plants and end tables? This is best illustrated when Fred is running through the house.

I know why it occurred... but it's always bothered me just the same.