Comments on: The themes of "The Marvel Super Heroes"

The themes of "The Marvel Super Heroes"

Trurl — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:04:23 -0800

When Captain America throws his mighty shield, all those who chose to oppose his shield must yield. Doc Bruce Banner, pelted by gamma rays, turns into The Hulk; ain't he unglamorous? Tony Stark makes you feel; he's a cool exec with a heart of steel. Cross the Rainbow Bridge of Asgard, where the booming heavens roar, you'll behold in breathless wonder the god of Thunder, mighty Thor. Stronger than a whale, he can swim anywhere; he can breathe underwater and go flying through the air.

Produced by Grantray-Lawrence Animation, headed by Grant Simmons, Ray Patterson and Robert Lawrence, [The Marvel Super Heroes] was an umbrella series of five segments, each approximately seven minutes long, broadcast on local television stations that aired the show at different times. The series ran initially as a half-hour program made up of three seven-minute segments of a single superhero, separated by a short description of one of the other four heroes. It has also been broadcast as a mixture of various heroes in a half-hour timeslot, and as individual segments as filler or within a children's TV program. This mid-60s were a golden age for Marvel cartoon themes - including The Fantastic Four and Spider-Man - the latter the subject of this excellent post. For further research: Mike's Classic Cartoon Themes. (previously)

By: painquale

painquale — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:07:18 -0800

Gamma rays/unglamorous will always be my favorite rhyme.

By: tzikeh

tzikeh — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:10:59 -0800

When I saw Thor, and one of the characters said to Thor "Where are you from?" I started singing "Cross the rainbow bridge of Asgaaaaaard..." and my friend had to kick me in the shin. I hadn't even realized I'd done it. (And yes, painquale - Gamma rays/unglamorous makes me laugh with "Seriously, That's so awesome" every time.)

By: KokuRyu

KokuRyu — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:15:52 -0800

Marvel characters are way cooler than their DC counterparts.

By: painquale

painquale — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:18:05 -0800

The followup 'of a bull/lovable' rhyme isn't too shabby either.

By: griphus

griphus — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:19:33 -0800

These didn't air on American TV while I was growing up -- although plenty of stuff from that era did -- and I had never heard of it before a trip to Montreal when I was 19. They were showing marathon sessions of these cartoons at like 3 AM. I've had the Hulk theme stuck in my head for almost ten years now.

By: griphus

griphus — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:20:20 -0800

♪ Doc-tor Ban-ner... ♪

By: Trurl

Trurl — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:25:50 -0800

♪ Doc-tor Ban-ner... ♪ I've heard it my way for 35 years. It's too late to change now.

By: elizardbits

elizardbits — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:26:39 -0800

headed by Grant Simmons, Ray Patterson and Robert Lawrence I read that as "by Gene Simmons and Robert Pattinson" and I am not sure I will ever recover from that brief shining moment of glee.

By: jason_steakums

jason_steakums — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:29:10 -0800

When ~~Captain America~~ HAWKEYE throws his mighty ~~shield~~ ARROW

By: crossoverman

crossoverman — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:29:51 -0800

For some reason, I always thought that Spider-Man song was the theme to the live-action series. It was not.

By: painquale

painquale — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:32:34 -0800

♪ Doc-tor Ban-ner... ♪ I've heard it my way for 35 years. It's too late to change now. Wait, I also thought it was 'Doc Bruce Banner'. Is it not? It sounds that way to me. (But unlike Trurl, I hear 'belted by gamma rays', not 'pelted'.)

By: tzikeh

tzikeh — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:33:53 -0800

It's "Doctor Banner."

By: fifteen schnitzengruben is my limit

fifteen schnitzengruben is my limit — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:34:34 -0800

I cannot see Stan Lee in any media without immediately thinking of the 80s Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends and the Hulk Cartoon, where I could bet my greenest gamma-rays on something. The 80s Spider-Man theme was pretty rockin. Got a whole CHiPs vibe goin on.

By: griphus

griphus — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:35:38 -0800

"Hey, here's the audio masters for the Hulk theme." "Hey, wanna fuck with everyone in the future?" "Sure." "Okay, hand me that magnet." ♪ Dofhght Banner hghfed by gamma rays... ♪

By: painquale

painquale — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:40:34 -0800

It's "Doctor Banner." I'm gonna need some independent evidence to believe this. It sounds just like 'Doc Bruce Banner'!

By: ChurchHatesTucker

ChurchHatesTucker — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:40:48 -0800

'60s Spider-Man makes me long for IMG tags.

By: The Whelk

The Whelk — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:41:21 -0800

Dogfight Banner is an alternate universe spitfire pilot who gains his power via helpful gamma rayfish

By: tzikeh

tzikeh — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:45:21 -0800

Hmmm... you know what? I take it back. I think it is "Doc Bruce Banner" after all.

By: The Deej

The Deej — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:46:20 -0800

GOOGLEFIGHT!!! I always thought it was Bruce and belted.

By: boo_radley

boo_radley — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:49:57 -0800

How strong was surfer culture in the 60s and 70s that we had aquaman and namor? Just amazing.

By: The Whelk

The Whelk — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:55:14 -0800

And one who was silver.

By: The Whelk

The Whelk — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:57:14 -0800

Also Namor dates from the 30s

By: griphus

griphus — Thu, 17 May 2012 19:07:25 -0800

And one who was silver. Dude Silver Samurai didn't debut until 1974. Geez

By: rahnefan

rahnefan — Thu, 17 May 2012 19:08:21 -0800

Is there a word for stuff you find so offensively corny that it makes you cringe, that it makes a real shiver go down your spine, that it makes you sorry you ever heard it and you hope no one else ever hears it because they might develop a hatred of Marvel - or comics - or even of humankind, intense enough to burn the whole world away??? These loathsome themes are proof of the devil. Or maybe of Dread Cthulhu, since he feeds on sanity.

By: benzenedream

benzenedream — Thu, 17 May 2012 19:12:16 -0800

Howard the Duck? .... no one gives a fuck.

By: Trurl

Trurl — Thu, 17 May 2012 19:12:31 -0800

Mrs. Trurl affirms both "Doc Bruce" and "pelted". I knew I married her for a reason.

By: 445supermag

445supermag — Thu, 17 May 2012 19:13:01 -0800

How strong was surfer culture in the 60s and 70s that we had aquaman and namor? Just amazing. posted by boo_radley I guess Marine Boy doesn't count.

By: the_bone

the_bone — Thu, 17 May 2012 19:15:17 -0800

Double, kinda.

By: Trurl

Trurl — Thu, 17 May 2012 19:19:52 -0800

Double, kinda. That post occurred in the Multiverse, so it doesn't count.

By: The Whelk

The Whelk — Thu, 17 May 2012 19:22:49 -0800

It's from the planet with the man eating owls.

By: eriko

eriko — Thu, 17 May 2012 19:34:00 -0800

I've followed exactly zero links in this post, but AWESOME POST!

By: Kevin Street

Kevin Street — Thu, 17 May 2012 19:40:17 -0800

Howard the Duck? .... no one gives a fuck. Waugh! 1970s Howard The Duck would have made the greatest cartoon ever! With villains like Spanker and Doctor Bong there's just no way it could go wrong.

By: Sing Or Swim

Sing Or Swim — Thu, 17 May 2012 19:49:14 -0800

Doc BRUCE Banner. If it sounds like anything else now, it's because George Lucas changed it.

By: Marisa Stole the Precious Thing

Marisa Stole the Precious Thing — Thu, 17 May 2012 19:54:41 -0800

Is there a word for stuff you find so offensively corny that it makes you cringe, that it makes a real shiver go down your spine, that it makes you sorry you ever heard it and you hope no one else ever hears it In Icelandic, the word for this particular feeling is "kjánahröll"; literally "fool shivers". Usually used in the context of being embarrassed for someone. Might also apply to Marvel superhero themes.

By: boo_radley

boo_radley — Thu, 17 May 2012 20:16:41 -0800

The Whelk: "Also Namor dates from the 30s" But he's like, 80. Who in her right mind would do that?

By: Kevin Street

Kevin Street — Thu, 17 May 2012 20:23:34 -0800

Salt water is a great preservative.

By: Artw

Artw — Thu, 17 May 2012 20:27:05 -0800

The Thrills and Chills of Jack Kirby's Next Issue Teasers in 'Captain America'

By: The Card Cheat

The Card Cheat — Thu, 17 May 2012 20:48:51 -0800

> Marvel characters are way cooler than their DC counterparts. Yeah, but Batman and Robin inspired an entire album by Sun Ra and The Blues Project!

By: doctor_negative

doctor_negative — Thu, 17 May 2012 20:58:59 -0800

There are about 12 sounds in the FF theme that are in every Hanna-Barbara adventure/super hero cartoon from that era.

By: vrakatar

vrakatar — Thu, 17 May 2012 21:09:38 -0800

Doo-wop of Infinite Earths!

By: w0mbat

w0mbat — Thu, 17 May 2012 21:15:38 -0800

Edgar Wright is currently in pre-production on "Ant-Man", so Marvel are finally getting around to the one founding Avenger who was left out of the Avengers movie.

By: Rangeboy

Rangeboy — Thu, 17 May 2012 21:22:26 -0800

Edgar Wright is currently in pre-production on "Ant-Man", so Marvel are finally getting around to the one founding Avenger who was left out of the Avengers movie. I think you mean two founding Avengers not in the movie.

By: Trochanter

Trochanter — Thu, 17 May 2012 22:45:04 -0800

I thought I heard Ralph Bakshi was involved with these. I think I remember him talking about it on the Wizards DVD commentary track. Also, in the Hulk one, I'm pretty sure that second line goes: Doc Bruce Banner Belted by gamma rays Turns into the Hulk "Ain't he unglamoray" Which, don't ask me what it means, but that's what I heard as a kid (puzzled the heck out of me) and I still hear it that way now on yer yew tewb.

By: The Tensor

The Tensor — Thu, 17 May 2012 22:51:18 -0800

As long as we're on the subject of Marvel animation, I'd like to take this opportunity to post this, my favorite joke from Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends. Go Iceman!

By: straight

straight — Thu, 17 May 2012 23:17:21 -0800

There are about 12 sounds in the FF theme that are in every Hanna-Barbara adventure/super hero cartoon from that era. Yeah, I love how Susan Storm and Space Ghost both make the same sound when they turn invisible. And wow. I'd forgotten how much I adored Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends as a kid, but judging from the warm glow I'm getting from hearing some of those sound effects and cheesy incidental music ("do do do de do, da da da do da, di di di da dee"), it must've been a whole lot.

By: KingEdRa

KingEdRa — Thu, 17 May 2012 23:50:29 -0800

My cousin and I would watch these on WPIX in NYC when we were kids. To this day, nearly 30 years later we make family functions weird by challenging each other to a sing off of these songs. Let me tell ya, that Sub-Mariner one is tougher than you think.

By: Mezentian

Mezentian — Fri, 18 May 2012 00:53:57 -0800

God, I love these songs so much. I wish I had more to contribute other than the haze of cel-coloured memories, but these: Did Stan Lee write the lyrics to the Spider-Man theme? That Time Captain America Fought Christopher Lee (the whole of Captain America 2: Death Too Soon). And, to finish: The Ramones. Because every threat can be improved by The Ramones.

By: mephron

mephron — Fri, 18 May 2012 01:05:56 -0800

...I think I'm KingEdRa. Or he's my clone. Except my cousins were in California, but I watched them on WPIX...

By: ursus_comiter

ursus_comiter — Fri, 18 May 2012 02:24:52 -0800

Totally "Doc Bruce Banner". And over the years an inside joke among friends has forever shifted Captain America's theme song in my head to: When Mr. Potato Head throws his mighty peel, all those who chose to oppose his peel must yield!

By: MartinWisse

MartinWisse — Fri, 18 May 2012 03:15:49 -0800

Also Namor dates from the 30s And Aquaman from the forties.

By: Mezentian

Mezentian — Fri, 18 May 2012 03:20:00 -0800

And Aquaman didn't get a name (Arthur Curry) until the '60s. Now that's what I call teasing a mystery. (Or a complete lack of character).

By: Paul Slade

Paul Slade — Fri, 18 May 2012 04:08:22 -0800

"Gamma rays/unglamorous will always be my favorite rhyme." I've never heard these themes, and it it didn't occur to me that was even supposed to be a rhyme when I read the original post. I never thought I's hear anything that beat the legendary "listen bud / radioactive blood" pairing in Spidey's cartoon theme, but this wins hands-down.

By: jquinby

jquinby — Fri, 18 May 2012 05:07:58 -0800

The poetic translation of the Ramayana that I started last night (thanks to this thread) scans uncomfortably close to some of these theme songs.

By: yerfatma

yerfatma — Fri, 18 May 2012 05:09:36 -0800

I thought I heard Ralph Bakshi was involved with these. Fairly certain that was only Spider-Man.

By: tommasz

tommasz — Fri, 18 May 2012 05:33:42 -0800

I am sad to say these cartoons were my first introduction to all of these comic characters. My parents forbade any comics but Archie so I was pretty naive about the whole thing. And I still can't forget any of the theme songs, of course.

By: Aquaman

Aquaman — Fri, 18 May 2012 07:18:35 -0800

And Aquaman from the forties. You kids get out of my octopus's garden.

By: KingEdRa

KingEdRa — Fri, 18 May 2012 07:53:18 -0800

...I think I'm KingEdRa. Or he's my clone. Never speak of this again, for both our sakes. The Clone Saga was teh suck and drove people into a murderous rage. For the record, I'm the original, he's The Scarlet KingEdRa.

By: straight

straight — Fri, 18 May 2012 09:43:06 -0800

For some reason, I always thought that Spider-Man song was the theme to the live-action series. It was not. "Dad? What's the difference between '60s music and '70s music?"

By: Trochanter

Trochanter — Fri, 18 May 2012 09:49:36 -0800

Softness in his eyes; Iron in his thighs

By: obloquy

obloquy — Fri, 18 May 2012 11:26:40 -0800

Quite a departure from the loneliness of the Bixbian Banner end theme, which I will now listen to all day.

By: chavenet

chavenet — Fri, 18 May 2012 15:31:20 -0800

I'm pretty sure this is the wrong place to note that there is already a porn parody of The Avengers.