Here we see some promo art for Calvin and the Colonel, the 1961-1962 prime-time animated series. Yesterday afternoon, I went to an A.S.I.F.A. screening of three episodes of the largely-forgotten cartoon show, followed by a panel with some of the folks who worked on it. Like a lot of things from my childhood, it was fun to revisit but I wouldn't want to live there, if you follow me. This was not that great a show, and it's easy to see why it never caught on. First off, it was all talk, no action. Devotees of full animation have often insulted TV animation by calling it "illustrated radio" but Calvin and the Colonel really was. Moreover, the characters weren't all that appealing, falling uncomfortably between between good guys you enjoy seeing win and bad guys you enjoy seeing lose, plus there was a laugh track that makes you want to get up and smack somebody.
There were some clever moments and a jazzy theme song but, like I said, it's not surprising that it didn't make it.
One correction: Earlier, I accidentally wrote that Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll had created Calvin and the Colonel, when I knew full well that the show was created with them in mind by producer-writers Bob Mosher and Joe Connelly. Several folks wrote in so I corrected the record…and then yesterday, watching those episodes, I saw the title card: "Created by Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll." So even though I was wrong the first time, I was right the first time…or something like that.