THE PERILS OF PENELOPE PITSTOP
(CBS, September 13, 1969-January 17, 1970)
Hanna-Barbera Productions
MAIN CAST:
Janet Waldo
– Penelope Pitstop
Paul Lynde – The
Hooded Claw/Sylvester Sneakly
Paul
Winchell – Clyde, Softie
Mel Blanc – Bully
Brothers, Yak Yak, Chug-a-Boom
Don Messick
– Dum Dum, Snoozy, Pockets, Zippy
Gary Owens -
Narrator
Although Wacky Races only ran for a season, it still did fairly well in the ratings and
a few of its stars stood out from the pack with the audience. As a result, two
spin-offs were produced to air in the following television season on CBS. One of them was The Perils of Penelope Pitstop.
 |
| Penelope at the mercy of The Hooded Claw. |
Perils was designed as a send-up of silent movie era melodrama serials; in
particular, The Perils of Pauline. Penelope (Janet Waldo), the lone
female racer from the prior series, was reimagined as the heiress to a vast
fortune. However, her guardian, Sylvester Sneakly (Paul Lynde), wanted that
fortune for himself and the only way to get it was to get rid of her. So, he
adopted the masked guise of The Hooded Claw by donning a hat, cape and mask,
and hired the identical Bully Brothers (Mel Blanc in unison) to help him get
rid of her. Initially, Dick Dastardly (Paul Winchell) and his dog sidekick,
Muttley (Don Messick), were going to be the villains of the series, but they
were given their own show: Dastardly & Muttley in their Flying
Machines. As in the serials, Claw and the
Brothers would capture Penelope while she was going about her business and
place her in an elaborate death trap, leaving her to her fate.
 |
| Penelope inside Chug-a-Boom with the Ant Hill Mob line-up. |
Assigned as
Penelope’s guardians were the seven pint-sized members of the Ant Hill Mob. The
Ant Hill Mob had also previously appeared in Wacky Races, but while they shared the same name, leader and
general appearances, the two mobs were actually meant to be different. The Mob
was led by Clyde (Winchell), who was comparatively the smartest of the group
(although with that group, it wasn’t saying much). The other members included
Dum Dum, who lived up to his name; Pockets, who had just about anything in his
various and seemingly bottomless pockets; Snoozy, who was somehow functional
despite being always asleep; Zippy (all Messick), who could move at incredible
speeds and spoke quickly; Softy (Winchell), who was constantly crying; and Yak
Yak (Blanc), who was constantly chuckling. They drove around in a semi-sentient
1920s-style car named Chug-A-Boom (Blanc, doing a variation of his Maxwell from his time on
The Jack
Benny Program to simulate the car’s talking). Exactly how The Mob, who
were declared on the show to be wanted felons, ended up as Penelope’s guardians
was never explained. As well-meaning as they were, they often tended to bungle
their rescue attempts to the point that they would end up in peril themselves.
Penelope, despite being the damsel in distress, was atypical in that most of
the time she freed herself from the elaborate death trap and proceeded to
rescue her would-be rescuers.
The Perils of Penelope Pitstop debuted on CBS on September 13, 1969. In keeping
with its serial inspiration, the show’s settings and character designs were
heavily influenced by the early 20th Century and a piano-heavy score
directed by Ted
Nichols. An alternate theme was also produced that was more in line with
the soundtrack provided to a silent film (Japan, however, had their own
completely original theme for their broadcasts). Narration by Gary Owens would
begin each episode with “When we last left Penelope…”, making it seem like the
next chapter in an ongoing saga. Joe
Ruby and Ken
Spears served as the show’s head writers, with Michael Maltese
writing the actual scripts. Originally, each episode was going to feature an
introduction to the story before Owens’ narration began, but these were cut out
by the time the series was broadcast.
 |
| The Bully Brothers prepare to drop anchor. |
Like its parent show,
Perils only ran for a single season
of 17 episodes; however, it remained on the network until 1971. In 1976, it
entered into syndicated reruns as part of the package show The Fun World of Hanna-Barbera (not to be confused with The FunTASTIC World), and was later seen on Cartoon Network and Boomerang. It would return to television on
July 25, 2024 as part of the line-up for retro animation network MeTV Toons in rotation with Wacky Races
and Dastardly & Muttley. In 1970, the series was adapted into comic
form by Gold Key Comics
for Golden Comics Digest issues 7 and 11, and as a starring
feature of the anthology title Fun-in for the first
four issues. In 1986, Worldvision Home
Video released three VHS
collections containing a number of episodes in North America and in the UK
as part of their Kaleidoscope
label. First International handled additional
UK releases. In 2006, Warner
Archive released the complete
series to DVD as part of their Hanna-Barbera
Classics Collection, and re-released
it in 2017 as part of their Hanna-Barbera
Diamond Collection.
 |
| The long-awaited series finale. |
While Penelope had
made additional appearances in the following years as part of the Wacky Races franchise, her solo series
wasn’t revisited until 2018’s Scooby-Doo Team-Up #41 by Sholly Fisch,
Scott Jeralds, Silvana Brys and Saida Temofonte. The issue played
out in a typical Perils fashion; however,
it served as a “series finale” of sorts by having the Mystery, Inc. gang
unmask The Hooded Claw once and for all.
EPISODE GUIDE:
“Jungle
Jeopardy” (9/13/69) – Penelope is about to complete an around-the-world flight
when The Hooded Claw’s sabotage of her plane causes her to crash in the jungle.
“The Terrible
Trolley Trap” (9/20/69) – Failing to have Penelope run over by a trolley, The
Hooded Claw takes her out to sea on her ship to get rid of her.
“The Boardwalk
Booby Trap” (9/27/69) – Having failed to finish her on the beach, the Bully
Brothers capture Penelope during a scavenger hunt and take her to a fishing
village.
“Wild West
Peril” (10/4/69) – When Penelope doesn’t go splat off a canyon, she’s strapped
into a miner’s car filled with explosives.
“Carnival
Calamity” (10/11/69) – Unbeknownst to Penelope, her trip to the carnival has
been booby trapped by The Hooded Claw.
“The
Treacherous Movie Lot Plot” (10/18/69) – The Hooded Claw takes over directorial
duties of the movie Penelope is set to star in to ensure she gets cut out of
showbiz permanently.
“Arabian Desert
Danger” (10/25/69) – Penelope is bringing a rare baby camel from Egypt to the
children’s zoo but The Hooded Claw is set to ensure she doesn’t get there.
“The Diabolical
Department Store Danger” (11/1/69) – Penelope heads to her department store to
usher in the new Paris fashions, while The Hooded Claw waits to spring his
traps for her.
“Hair Raising
Harness Race” (11/8/69) – The Hooded Claw looks to sabotage Penelope during her
big harness race.
“North Pole
Peril” (11/15/69) – Penelope kayaks her way to the North Pole while The Hooded
Claw pursues her in a lethal paddlewheel.
“Tall Timber
Treachery” (11/22/69) – Penelope heads to the Pitstop Lumber Camp for their
Indian Summer Festival but The Hooded Claw is determined to make sure she
doesn’t get there.
“Cross Country
Double Cross” (11/29/69) – Penelope is set to do a sunt for a statue unveiling,
but The Hooded Claw is determined to make sure it’s a lethal one.
“Big Bagdad
Danger” (12/6/69) – The Hooded Claw is there to disrupt Penelope’s plans to
find Ali Baba’s cave.
“Bad Fortune in
a Chinese Fortune Cookie” (12/13/69) – Claw uses the cover of the San Francisco
Chinese New Year parade to capture Penelope in the mouth of a giant dragon.
“Big Top Trap”
(12/20/69) – With Penelope performing in a circus, the Ant Hill Mob take jobs
as clowns to ensure her safety.
“Game of Peril”
(1/10/70) – Sylvester Sneakly sends Penelope on a scavenger hunt she’s sure not
to complete.
“London Town
Treachery” (1/17/70) – Penelope goes to London to deliver a painting, but The
Hooded Claw intercepts her delivery.
Originally posted in 2020. Updated in 2024.
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