The Linus the Lionhearted Show was on CBS Saturday mornings from September 26, 1964 to December 11, 1965 and then it moved over to ABC for a few years. It took that long for folks to realize that the program, which starred the characters appearing on boxes of Post cereals, was not a cartoon show but a half-hour commercial for its sponsor. That was when it went away, never to be seen again.
This was good in some ways. Sponsors should not have that much control of content, especially content aimed at getting children to eat more sugar. But it was a shame because it was, despite its Raison d'être, a pretty clever, funny program. And it had a really great voice cast…
In this commercial and on the series, Linus was voiced by Sheldon Leonard and Billie Bird was Carl Reiner. Lovable Truly (the mailman), So-Hi and Rory Raccoon were voiced by Bob McFadden, and Sugar Bear was voiced by Gerry Matthews. But the series also employed at times, Ruth Buzzi, Jonathan Winters, Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara, Jesse White and other actors then appearing on TV sitcoms and variety shows. Here's a little taste…