The Super Globetrotters
| The Super Globetrotters | |
|---|---|
| File:SuperGlobetrotters.jpg The Super Globetrotters | |
| Created by | William Hanna and Joseph Barbera |
| Starring | Michael Rye (Announcer), Nancy Wible (Granny) |
| Country of origin |  United States |
| No. of episodes | 13 |
| Production | |
| Running time | approx. 0:30 (per episode) |
| Original release | |
| Network | NBC |
| Release | 1979 – 1979 |
The Super Globetrotters was an American Saturday morning cartoon produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions for NBC in 1979. It premiered on September 22, 1979, and ran for 13 episodes.
The show featured superhero versions of players from the basketball team Harlem Globetrotters.
Following the success of Hanna-Barbera's previous animated series, Harlem Globetrotters, this series featured the Harlem Globetrotters (now including new squad members James "Twiggy" Sanders, Nate Branch and Louis "Sweet Lou" Dunbar) as undercover superheroes, who would transform from their regular forms by entering magic portable lockers carried in Globetrotter "Sweet Lou" Dunbar's Afro, or in a basketball-shaped medallion.
Characters
The Super Globetrotters
Three of the team's super-heroic identities were taken from the characters of the 1966 Hanna-Barbera cartoon The Impossibles. As Liquidman, Nate Branch (Scatman Crothers) has the same water-based powers as Fluidman. (Liquidman also borrows his costume -- complete with "F" insignia -- from Fluidman) As Sphereman, Curly (Stu Gilliam) would retract his limbs into his head to bounce, smash, even grow. As Spaghetti-man, Twiggy's (Buster Jones) powers are a bit different from Coilman, but can use his body like a ladder or a rope. As Gizmoman, Lou's (Adam Wade) giant afro holds an unlimited supply of gadgets. And finally, as Multiman, Geese's (Johnny Williams) cloning powers and costume are similar to the Impossibles' own Multiman, even down to carrying a (rarely-used) shield. Overall, the group can fly. The Globetrotters receive their missions from a basketball-styled talking satellite called the Crimeglobe (voice by Frank Welker). Most episodes culminate in the Super Globetrotters challenging the villain and his henchmen to a basketball game for whatever treasure or device they sought, the civilian Globetrotters being trounced by the villains' super-powers in the first half, and then using their own super-powers (often at the admonition of the Crimeglobe) to save the game in the second half. Meadowlark Lemon is not in the group.
Team Members
- Nate Branch as Liquidman (voiced by Scatman Crothers):
- Curly as Sphereman (voiced by Stu Gilliam)
- James Sanders as Spaghetti-man (voiced by Buster Jones)
- Louis Dunbar as Gizmoman (voiced by Adam Wade)
- Geese as Multiman (voiced by Johnny Williams)
Villains
- Museum Man - a disgruntled history museum janitor who can bring fossils and statues to life.
- Tattoo Man - an alien who can animate the tattoos on his body (similar to an enemy of Green Lantern).
- Bullmoose - an extremely bizarre villain who wore fake antlers and was assisted by a gang of livestock-themed henchmen (Ham, Wool Woman, Ponytail, etc.).
External links
The Super Globetrotters at IMDb