# ID this Hannah-Barbera cartoon from the 60's
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-this-hannah-barbera-cartoon-from-the-60s/1030213
**Category:** Cafe Society
**Tags:** cartoons-animation
**Created:** [May 19, 2026, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-this-hannah-barbera-cartoon-from-the-60s/1030213 "2026-05-19T17:16:24Z")
**Posts on this page:** 8
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)
#### Post date: [May 19, 2026, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-this-hannah-barbera-cartoon-from-the-60s/1030213/1 "2026-05-19T17:16:24Z")
I remember a scene from what I thought was a Hanna-Barbera cartoon from the 60’s. It may have been a secondary feature of another cartoon, like Jonny Quest.
The theme was Arabic, and the scene involved a party of adventurers trying to get past a locked door. There was a genie (possibly not the rub-the-lantern kind, but a human wizard) who turned each of the adventurers into smoke to flow through the gaps around the door. He’d proclaim “Shazam Smokarr!” with a flourish, and the adventurer would turn to smoke. He went through 5-6 other people, each time getting a little more exhausted with his spell. The last participant got a weakly-intoned “shazam smokarr.” Then, the genie looked at his fingertips, saying “My goodness! I am almost out of magic!”
He pondered his dilemma for a few seconds, and said “Ah hah! I got it! Shazam Watarr!” He then turned into a puddle of water and seeped under the door.
I googled. It’s not [Shazzan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shazzan). Shazzan was a giant who held the hero kids in the palm of his hand. This genie was a normal-sized portly man with a turban, curly-toed boots, and Van Dyke mustache.
The voice actor was in a lot of other cartoons, usually as a pompous scholarly figure, but not in any major roles that I can remember.
This scene keeps haunting me. Maybe it was a HB knockoff, or I’m conflating it with another cartoon. I’m asking you, my SDMB scholars of completely useless information, to please help a brother out!
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### Author:  [@Dorjan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dorjan)
#### Post date: [May 19, 2026, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-this-hannah-barbera-cartoon-from-the-60s/1030213/2 "2026-05-19T17:23:22Z")
Sounds like _ **Arabian Knights** _, the Hanna-Barbera segment from _ **The Banana Splits Adventure Hour** _
Edited to add:
According to Chat GPT, it was specifically the following episode:
The specific scene is from **“The Royal Visitor”** , the final _Arabian Knights_ episode. In the episode summary, **Fariik the Magician** turns the others into smoke using **“Rosan Smokar”** so they can enter a pyramid, becomes exhausted, says he is almost out of magic, then uses **“Rosan Watar”** to turn himself into liquid and seep inside. That lines up almost perfectly with your memory of “Shazam Smokarr” and “Shazam Watarr.”
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### Author:  [@Dorjan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dorjan)
#### Post date: [May 19, 2026, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-this-hannah-barbera-cartoon-from-the-60s/1030213/3 "2026-05-19T17:27:23Z")
Wiki article on the show:
> **[Arabian Knights](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabian_Knights)**
>
> Arabian Knights is an animated segment of The Banana Splits Adventure Hour, created by Hanna-Barbera Productions. The series is based on the Arabian Nights, a classic work of Middle Eastern literature. The cast includes Jay North, Shari Lewis, Henry Corden, Paul Frees, Frank Gerstle, and John Stephenson.
> Once a peaceful country, Persia was overrun by the powerful forces of the evil conqueror Bakaar the Black Sultan. When all the states of Persia were overthrown, Bakaar invaded the capital city...
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### Author:  [@MrAtoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrAtoz)
#### Post date: [May 19, 2026, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-this-hannah-barbera-cartoon-from-the-60s/1030213/4 "2026-05-19T17:28:29Z")
It’s almost certainly The Arabian Knights, which as **Dorjan** says was a segment on _The Banana Splits Adventure Hour_. The magic word was not “Shazam” but “Rosan.”
The premise was a team of adventurers in ancient Persia, each with some special power or talent. According to wikipedia, the magician character (“Fariik the Magician”) was voiced by John Stephenson, who was indeed a prolific voice actor. Perhaps best known as the original voice of Dr. Quest on Jonny Quest, before the role was taken over by the more familiar voice of Don Messick.
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### Author:  [@ricepad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ricepad)
#### Post date: [May 19, 2026, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-this-hannah-barbera-cartoon-from-the-60s/1030213/5 "2026-05-19T17:31:03Z")
I remember it as “Rosan Kobar!”
And one of the other Knights could turn himself into any animal by proclaiming, “Size of a (animal)!”, clap his hands, and turn into that animal.
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### Author:  [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)
#### Post date: [May 19, 2026, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-this-hannah-barbera-cartoon-from-the-60s/1030213/6 "2026-05-19T17:36:21Z")
Here’s the scene (which includes **ricepad’s** “size of” memory.
[ ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJ5o8I6IImM&t=230)
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### Author:  [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)
#### Post date: [May 19, 2026, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-this-hannah-barbera-cartoon-from-the-60s/1030213/7 "2026-05-19T19:22:28Z")
Wow! Thanks for the immediate response! Dopers rule!
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### Author:  [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)
#### Post date: [May 20, 2026, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-this-hannah-barbera-cartoon-from-the-60s/1030213/8 "2026-05-20T01:36:22Z")
> [@TroutMan](#):
>
> Here’s the scene (which includes **ricepad’s** “size of” memory
For somebody who was out of magic, he sure seemed to have a lot left.