Old But Gold 60s Cartoons Everyone Grew Up Watching

Premiered on September 23, 1962

With humans beginning to explore space in the mid-20th century, the influence of this topic on culture and entertainment was inevitable. It came to be known as the Space Age and encompassed literature, cinema, cartoons, and other forms of entertainment. Created as a part of this culture, the Jetsons are a family who live in Orbit City some time in the future. Their daily life might be full of futuristic gadgets and appliances, but it is also full of comic, sitcom-style situations.

Premiered on October 11, 1960

What’s up, doc? After this phrase, you didn’t even have to read the title to know exactly who this post is about. This show about a human-like bunny, his friends and adversaries, changed its format and even its name several times, but the main characters, all with their own distinct personal traits, never failed to entertain you. After all, it takes a very special show to stay on air for forty long years.

Premiered on September 30, 1960

Your textbook might be historically correct in representing the Stone Age, but The Flintstones are so much more fun to watch. Two families, the Flintstones and the Rubbles, might be living in the prehistoric era, but they have all the conveniences of the modern American family. While a lot of the plot was deliberately written in the style of the 60s sitcoms, some of the humor is also derived from the anachronisms this cartoon series is full of.

Premiered on September 6, 1969

Hard to believe it, but yes, Pink Panther is that old. Centered around the adventures of a somewhat goofy, yet sly anthropomorphic panther, throughout the years it was followed up by various formats, including feature-length cartoons and live-action movies. And of course, everybody knows the Pink Panther theme music which has become an iconic depiction of a situation where the protagonist is required to be stealthy.    

Premiered on September 13, 1969
I bet you are already singing the theme song of this TV show in your head or even humming it out loud. Four teenagers, Fred, Daphne, Velma, and Shaggy, together with their talking dog Scooby-Doo are expert detectives who can solve any mystery. Very often, they debunk a supernatural occurrence to find out it had a very practical explanation, and the perpetrator only used the supernatural to scare off everyone.

Premiered on January 30, 1961

Yogi is an anthropomorphic bear who lives in Jellystone Park. His main goal in life is to steal as many picnic baskets as possible while avoiding being caught by the park ranger Smith. Besides his goofy personality, Yogi is well-known for his very distinct manner of speaking and a number of catchphrases. The similarity of Yogi’s name to the baseball player Yogi Berra who was extremely popular at the time caused some controversy in the industry. 

Premiered on November 19, 1959

This show aired under different variations of its original name and was structured as a variety show. It revolves around the adventures of a flying squirrel and a moose. Their nemeses were, however, human spies Boris and Natasha who worked for the Fearless Leader. The Bullwinkle Show was well-known for its quality writing and humor that appealed to kids and adults alike.

Premiered on September 1, 1958

Huckleberry, or Huck for short, is a hound, and that’s pretty normal. But he is also blue, and that’s slightly unusual for a dog. He can also speak, specifically in a North Carolina Southern drawl. Huck has various career ambitions in life, and he tries them all, though not particularly succeeding in any. This TV series was one of the six TV shows in 1960 and the first animation in history to win an Emmy for Outstanding Achievement in the Field of Children's Programming. 

Premiered on June 10, 1960

Popeye first appeared on the silver screen in 1960, but his character was created 30 years earlier for a comic strip. The TV version kept his appearance and most character traits, and of course his incredible strength powered by consumption of spinach. Many of the episodes were taken directly from the comic strip and not the previous theatrical releases of the animation. 

Premiered on September 14, 1968

Inspired by the 1965 comedy The Great Race, this cartoon show was all about racing around North America for the title of the World’s Wackiest Racer. Competing in the race, there were eleven drivers who are very different from each other, so you have plenty of choice who to root for. All of them are allowed to use the weirdest contraptions to help them win or at least make their opponents fail. The series were very popular and later developed into several spinoffs focusing on individual drivers.  

Premiered on November 7, 1960

You would probably think that a cartoon about an elderly retiree would be of no interest to kids. Well, Mr. Magoo proved this wrong. Time and time again, he would find himself in comical situations due to his extreme poor eyesight and absolute refusal to address the problem, and people around him would often consider him a lunatic. But as luck would have it, he always managed to make things work out for him.

Premiered on September 27, 1961

Though it initially failed ratings in prime time, as a Saturday morning show, Top Cat became increasingly popular. The titular protagonist and his gang of street cats live in an alley and constantly come up with unrealistic plots to become rich overnight, though none of them usually work. Their main antagonist is policeman Charlie Dibble who keeps trying to evict them from the alley or at least to clean it up and stop using the police phone box.  

Premiered on September 18, 1964

If you love a good action-adventure story, you are going to love Jonny Quest. This classic cartoon that later developed into an entire franchise, revolves around an 11-year-old boy who is not particularly fond of school but is rather intelligent and trained in various athletic disciplines. Together with his bodyguard, his best friend, and his dog, he accompanies his scientist father on many adventures, often ending up in various perilous situations they have to find their way out of.

Premiered on  October 3, 1964

Superheroes come in all shapes. And one of them is an anthropomorphic dog. Known to everyone around him as a shy Shoeshine Boy, he hides his secret alter ego of Underdog for the time when his sweetheart Sweet Polly Purebred (or sometimes, the rest of the world) is in trouble and needs rescue from numerous villains. Whenever he is in his superhero cape, Underdog speaks in rhyming couplets.

Premiered on January 30, 1961

What was it with large felines and the color pink in the 60s? Not only Pink Panther, but also Snagglepuss are bright pink, and in addition to that, Snagglepuss wears a collar, a bowtie, shirt cuffs– but no shirt! His love for theater often affects the way he speaks, using dramatic catchphrases, soliloquies, and regularly breaking the fourth wall.  

Premiered on April 27, 1969

Dudley’s adventures were developed as a parody on the melodrama and silent films dating to the beginning of the 20th century. He is a not very smart but cheerful member of the Canadian Mountain Police. His main occupation is to chase Snidely Whiplash and rescue Nell Fenwick, the daughter of his inspector. Funnily enough, though Dudley seems to have a huge crush on Nell, she gives more attention to his horse (very aptly named Horse).

Premiered on April 2, 1967
Automobile racing was a popular topic in the 60s not only in the US but in Japan as well. Following the original manga, this series focuses on the race driver Go Mifune and his adventures in the world of racing. The story and the style was inspired by two movies that were popular in Japan at the time: Viva Las Vegas with Elvis Presley and Goldfinger from the Bond franchise.

Premiered on January 14, 1964

How many people would be willing to have a gorilla as a pet? Presumably, not many. That’s why Magilla spends most of his days eating bananas in the window of the pet shop he lives in. Mr. Peebles, the owner of the pet shop, tries reducing his price as the way to finally sell Magilla, but it only works temporarily, for example, when thieves need a gorilla to assist them in the bank robbery. After that he is inevitably returned to the pet shop. Magilla remains very optimistic though and is pretty happy with his life.

Premiered on September 9, 1967

There are tons of Spider-Man adaptations but this one was his first appearance on TV. It followed the classic storyline from the comic books quite closely, from Peter Parker’s origins as Spider-Man to the radioactive bite and subsequent decision to become a superhero and fight evil. 

Premiered on January 1, 1960

Deputy Dawg was first designed as a character for a different show but half-way through the production became the protagonist of his own series. He lives in a community with various animals and spends most of his day establishing law and order and trying to please the Sheriff. When he is not on duty, Deputy goes fishing with his friends. 

Premiered on September 9, 1965

While having two independent plots, these two programs aired separately from each other  in the fall 1965 but after several months of broadcasting were combined into one program. The first part was dedicated to the adventures of a superhero ant, while the second followed a secret agent squirrel and his loyal assistant mole.

Premiered on September 9, 1967

Loosely inspired by Tarzan and American bodybuilder George Eiferman, this TV series is set in the African jungle. Protagonist George might not be very smart but has a heart of gold and a lot of physical strength, that’s why the District Commissioner always calls upon him when jungle dwellers are about to face some danger. Naturally, his most frequent enemies are two typical hunters but he also often fights Dr. Chicago.  

Premiered on September 13, 1969

Despite being the villains of the Wacky Races, Dick Dastardly and his dog Muttley were also one of the most popular couples. So naturally, they got a spinoff of their own. The main plotline revolved around Dastardly and Muttley trying to stop messenger pigeon Yankee Doodle from delivering top secret messages to their opponents. This chase resulted in many hilarious situations. 

Premiered on September 13, 1969

Another character from the Wacky Races, in her own show Penelope Pitstop is often attacked by her guardian in disguise who hopes to get rid of her and lay hands on her inheritance. The Ant Hill Mob, who previously were the antagonists, are presented here as the good guys, often trying to come to Penelope’s rescue. The only thing is, it is them who need to be saved by her at the end of the day.

Premiered on April 3, 1952

One very interesting fact about Astro Boy is that it was the first Japanese animated TV series produced in the aesthetic that would later become popular worldwide as anime. Created by a scientist to replace his deceased son, Astro is a powerful android who fights evil of all shapes. In three different remakes characters are shown to have different motivations that influence the storyline but the underlying message remains the same.

Premiered on September 28, 1963

A penguin and a walrus might be very unlikely friends in real life (in the very least because they don’t live in the same areas) but in this 60s cartoon, Tennessee Tuxedo and Chumley are the best of pals. They live in the Megapolis Zoo alongside other animals and spend their days annoying the zoo keeper and trying to escape. Each time they succeed, it is only to find trouble in the world beyond the zoo walls.

Premiered on September 14, 1968

Adapted from a comic book, The Archie Show, or The Archies, tells the story of five high school students who have a band. Their music, featured in every episode, belonged to the then popular genre of bubblegum pop. This TV series was the first Saturday morning cartoon show (that is, not targeted at adults, like The Flintstones or The Jetsons) to use a laugh track.    

Premiered on October 15, 1960

Leonardo is a lion. He is also the king of a fictional African country. And while kind-hearted and well-meaning, he is often inept and has to rely on the skills of his competent assistant Odie Cologne the skunk. As any king, he also has a rival, Biggie Rat, who plots to overthrow him and rule the country. However, every time Leonardo and Odie manage to avert the crisis and put the criminal in jail. 

Premiered on October 4, 1961

Well before Alvin and the Chipmunks became a 2007 movie, it was a virtual animated band created by actor Ross Bagdassarian Sr., that was later turned into an animated TV show. Three chipmunk brothers – Alvin, Simon, and Theodore – behave like normal kids but they are also brilliant singers. Together with their human adoptive father Dave, who also performs the duties of their manager, they go through many adventures.

Premiered on September 25, 1965

With the craze the Liverpool quartet created after they arrived on the music scene in the 60s, it was only natural that they had a whole animated show dedicated to them. Titled very simply The Beatles, these short animated stories were planned to illustrate the Fab Four’s songs. Each episode even included a sing-along segment. One might think that the British musicians voiced their own characters, but that’s not what happened, as two American voice over actors were tasked with this job.

Premiered on September 9, 1967

On a distant planet called Amzot, a family of space barbarians that consists of three people, fights all sorts of invaders who want to conquer their planet. Fighting alongside them are their giant pets, collectively known as the Herculoids. A mixture of science fiction and fantasy, this TV show stayed on air for two consecutive years, and was later revived in the early 80s. 

Premiered on October 6, 1965

Kimba The White Lion was the first color anime created in Japan. Born in captivity on a ship that was headed to a zoo, Kimba is the son of a great lion who protected all jungle animals against humans. Kimba’s mother teaches him his father’s principles and helps him escape the ship. When Kimba makes it to the land, he is found by kind people who care for him. Kimba learns the positive sides of human culture, and when he returns to the land of his ancestors, he tries to bring animals and people together.

Premiered on September 16, 1964

As you might have guessed from the name of the show, Peter is a hippopotamus. What you don’t know about him if you haven’t seen the show is that he is purple, very friendly, wears a safari outfit, has a sidekick monkey named So-So, and travels around the world and in time on his hot air balloon. Sounds like an ideal premise? That’s what the creators thought too. They even ended the closing song with the phrase “And there he goes Peter Potamus, our ideal”.

Premiered on September 10, 1966

You can’t have too many superheroes, as each of them will find their own ways of fighting injustice. Space Ghost is an intergalactic hero who battles crime together with his sidekicks Jan and Jace and their pet monkey Blip. Coming from the Ghost Planet, he has lots of useful powers, such as the ability to fly, survive in space, and become invisible.

Premiered on September 12, 1964

Hoppity Hooper the frog, Waldo P. Wigglesworth the charlatan fox, and Fillmore the bear who poorly plays the bugle, spend their days trying to come into fortune. But as none of them really knows how, most of the time they end up encountering various misadventures. An interesting device employed in the series was the characters interacting with the narrator and breaking the fourth wall.

Premiered in October 1965

Long before animated cartoons came to television, The Three Stooges were popular characters of an American vaudeville. They are best remembered for almost 200 short films depicting their adventures. Later in the mid-60s, the animated versions of the characters came on TV screens with new adventures, depicted in the same slapstick comedy style as the original.

Premiered on September 9, 1967

Birdman used to be an ordinary human, but after he acquired the ability to shoot solar rays from his feasts and avian powers (including wings), he was recruited by a top secret agency to fight evil around the world. His archnemesis is a nefarious organization FEAR but he has also fought a long list of other villains. In the second, unrelated part of the program, the Galaxy Trio that consists of Vapor Man, Meteor Man, and Gravity Girl, patrols outer space to keep it safe. 

Premiered on September 9, 1967

Aquaman is one of the DC Comics’ well-known superheroes who rules the underwater world. In this series he is accompanied by his sidekick Aqualad who helps him fight injustice and keep the sea world safe. The series continued for three years.

Premiered on April 21, 1966

Batman might be cool, but Batfink is even cooler because he is an actual bat! And not just any regular bat but an anthropomorphic cyborg bat that fights villains. Paired with his aide Karate, Batfink uses his superpowers to fight crime and restore justice in his city. A very interesting feature about his powers is that they take the shape of the word “BEEP” and can move around, feel emotions, and capture the bad guys.

Premiered on September 10, 1966

This TV program consisted of two segments with unrelated plots. Frankenstein, Jr. followed the adventures of a boy named Buzz Conroy who, despite his young age, is a gifted scientist. He created a powerful superhero robot Frankenstein, also known as Frankie. Together they fight supervillains who threaten their hometown of Civic City. The Impossibles were an undercover superhero trio who posed as a rock band in everyday life. Multi-Man, Fluid-Man, and Coil-Man were named after the power each of them possessed.

Premiered on September 10, 1966

Set in the Wild West, this show includes all the staples of the genre. There are the leaders of the local fort, both coyotes, who try to secure the town. To achieve that, they have to eliminate the last two surviving natives, who are gophers. But as destiny would have it, gophers turn out to be very intelligent while the colonel coyote is pretty incompetent, so every time he comes up with a new plan to get rid of them, they outsmart him. 

Premiered on September 6, 1969

Unlike most of the entries on this list, this TV series was a live-action animation with puppets. It told the story of 11-year-old Jimmy who found himself on an island after a shipwreck. There he met a talking flute Freddy and an anthropomorphic dragon named H.R. Pufnstuf. Together they fought the evil schemes of the local witch. 

Premiered on November 7, 1963

Japan has always been known for creating some of the best cartoons. Called anime, they are either original stories or based on manga. 8th Man tells the story of a detective who was killed in the line of duty, later his mind was transferred into the body of an android robot. The scientist who performed this experiment had previously failed seven attempts, but attempt number eight was successful, hence the superhero name the protagonist acquires after resurrection. He hides the fact that he is an android now and continues to fight crime with his new powers. The series was so popular in the 60s that it was brought to the US and adapted for the local audience.

Premiered on September 10, 1966

This animated TV series falls under the genre of Weird Western, where the action takes place in the Wild West and has a lot of characteristics of the genre, like cowboys, Native Americans, a lot of shootouts and horseback riding, but also includes elements of horror, science fiction, or even steampunk. The Lone Ranger and his friend Tonto fight a wide variety of most bizarre villains preventing them from achieving their evil goals.

Premiered on September 10, 1966

This superhero requires no introduction. No matter what era you come from, there are tons of comic books, TV shows, animations, and live action movies with Superman as their protagonist. This particular series stayed true to the source material in many ways and included some of the most iconic Superman moments and villains. It gained a lot of success and ran for four seasons from 1966 to 1970.

Premiered on September 6, 1969

This TV series depicted the adventures of four anthropomorphic hillbilly cats who formed their own rock band and traveled in a van. In the development stage, there was another member of the band, a mouse, but it was later cut out of the story. While there were story segments as well, the Cattanooga Cats were mostly loved and remembered for their music.  

Premiered on September 1, 1963

Based on Greek mythology, The Mighty Hercules tells the story of the ancient Greek hero of the same name. Even though the premise often played fast and loose with the original legend (for example, making Daedalus the chief villain of the story) and gave Hercules comic book superhero-like powers, the series were fun to watch and stayed on air for three years.

Premiered on September 14, 1960

If the protagonist of this show and his sidekick remind you of Batman and Robin, that’s because they were largely created as a spoof of those characters by the same person. Together, they fight crime in the Empire City. While there are many villains who would like to establish their reign upon the Empire City, the archnemesis of the duo and their most powerful adversary is Chauncey "Flat-Face" Frog who they have to face in almost every episode.

Premiered on September 11, 1965

Sinbad Jr., the son of the legendary sailor Sinbad, may be just a teenager but he is a brave adventurer and explorer just like his father. Traveling the world in his single-masted sailboat, he looks for injustice that needs to be fought. As any captain, he has a first mate, a parrot called Salty. Sinbad’s main secret is his magic belt that gives him the power of fifty men whenever he tightens it. This belt helps him fight every villain that comes his way.

Premiered on September 10, 1966

Also known as The King Kong Show, this TV series was produced in Japan specifically for an American company. In this version of the story about a giant ape, Kong saves a young boy Bobby Bond from being eaten by a Tyrannosaurus rex. Bobby’s family adopts Kong and takes him on multiple adventures. Together, Kong and Bobby fight various villains and help protect humanity.