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January 1964 - December 1965,
syndicated
January 1966 - September 1967,
ABC
Hanna-Barbera Productions
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agilla Gorilla was the feature
segment on the half-hour, Magilla Gorilla Show. Backup
segments included Punkin' Puss & Mushmouse and
Ricochet Rabbit &
Droop-a-Long. In the show's second season the Ricochet
Rabbit segment was swapped with Breezly & Sneezly from
The Peter Potamus Show
to help bolster ratings for Peter Potamus.
Magilla was a loveable but
bumbling gorilla who just couldn't be sold by Mr. Peebles, the
owner of Peebles Pet Shop. Not only did the cost of feeding
Magilla considerably drain Mr. Peebles profits, but the
happy-go-lucky simian was prone to breaking things, mostly while
zipping around the store on toys (roller skates, unicycle, small
motor car, etc.). Mr. Peebles failure to get rid of Magilla was
not for lack of trying; he gave Magilla a permanent place in the
display window, almost always accompanied by one or more 'On
Sale' signs, or with prices marked down until Magilla was
practically free. But in truth, selling the gorilla wasn't Mr.
Peebles real problem, it was his return policy.
Magilla
was purchased on a number of occasions, he just never stayed
sold. The people that bought Magilla usually had an ulterior
motive, like needing an ape for a part in a movie, or as a
promotional figure for an advertising agency, or to help pull
the vault door off its hinges in a bank heist. Whatever the
circumstances, Magilla naively but inevitably managed to
frustrate his new owner into returning him to the pet store, or
at other times just came back on his own when he decided he
didn't like the new arrangement. The overwhelming joy that Mr.
Peebles felt every time he sold Magilla was replaced by an equal
measure of dismay upon his return. About the only customer who
actually wanted Magilla for a pet was a little girl named Ogee.
Unfortunately for her (and Mr. Peebles), Ogee's parents didn't
approve of having a gorilla around the house. |
