A 'Toon from the Distant Past
You will surely give away your age if you admit to having watched Tom Terrific when you were growing up. I recently found myself singing the TT song around the time in the morning before school when I would have been glued to the television set at about age 9. On more than one occasion my mother had to drive me to school so I wouldn’t be late.
This cartoon was produced by Terrytoons (CBS) between 1957 and 1959 in 5-minute episodes to be shown on the Captain Kangaroo show. The episodes were re-run for quite a few years after that. I always thought of the Captain as sort of an idiot. His sidekick Mr. Greenjeans (who was the cousin of someone in my small town) was a notch up. But Tom Terrific was definitely the best part of the show.
Tom Terrific was this great little guy with a funnel-shaped thinking cap that allowed him to morph into anything he wanted to be in order to carry out the feat of the day. His sidekick Mighty Manfred the Wonder Dog was always along on any adventure. His arch-foe was Crabby Appleton, whose motto was “Rotten to the core!”
For those of you who were fans, here’s the song in case you are having trouble remembering all the words:
TEE-RIF-FIC-
I'm Tom Terrific,
Greatest hero ever,
Terrific is the name for me,
'Cause I'm so clever;
I can be what I want to be and,
If you'd like to see,
Follow, come follow me;
If you see a plane on high,
A Diesel train go roaring by;
A bumble bee, or a tree,
THAT'S ME!
When there is trouble,
I'm there on the double;
From Atlantic to Pacific,
They know Tom Terrific!
Following that last line, you would hear the big dog say “I’m Mighty Manfred, the wonder dog, Tom's ever faithful companion” in a dead-pan voice.
Here is how every episode began.
At age 9, the idea that anyone could instantly change his life just by using his head was a great way to start any school day, even at the risk of being late to school.
So who among you was out there watching Tom Terrific with me?
posted by Barbara at 10:17 AM
9 Comments:
Barbara, I have to say, I've never heard of Tom Terrific. I guess by the time I was watching Captain Kangaroo and Mr. Greenjeans in the early '70s he had faded from the scene! Catchy little intro tune, though...
Steve -- This means you are YOUNG, or at least YOUNGER! It's amazing how much animation has improved since those days.
Beany and Cecil! Now we are talking mesmerizing!
:)
I don't remember ever seeing Tom Terrific. I do remember being stuck watching Captain Kangaroo because my brother liked him. I thought CK was kind of a dipwad, and Mr. Greenjeans was much smarter.
As a child, I never understood how people as dumb as Captain Kangaroo could have their own TV shows. I was a little jaded I guess.
I did like Rocky and Bullwinkle and the Fractured Fairy Tales. Those were funny!
despite my age I never saw Tom Terrific - I do remember the Freddie Freihofer song though. we didn't get a television until I was 14 and then our time in front of it was limited to an hour a day. I remember rushing home to watch American Bandstand. Mama would come and dance with me and together we learned all the current dance steps, the two of us laughing and being silly - an unexpected happy memory!
I think I would have enjoyed it. I must have seen it - I used to watch Captain Kangaroo, idiotic as he might have been.
I love the idea of getting someplace by using your head. I think that's what I did as a child - through books - and later as an adult - still with books plus figuring out where I wanted to go, what I wanted to do by working hard, saving money and taking advantage of the opportunities afforded me. Now if only I did more to save the world.
I'm starting to think I was the only one watching this cartoon! Maybe that's why there were only 26 episodes (although they were repeated many times). If you want to know more, check out this Wikipedia article.
Sure I remember tom terrific and every time i hear the name manfred I think of the dog.
But the cartoon that made a big impression on me was Lariat Sam and his Horse....Tippytoes!
Don't remember Tom Terrific, but I do remember CK and Mr. Greenjeans.
I thought Mr. Greenjeans was Mr. Greenbeans, and he really wanted me to eat up my greenbeans for supper. My Mama really went for that-- whose Mama wouldn't?? Crazy the things that kids think? Tina
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