''Shirt Tales'' are characters that were created in 1980 by greeting card designer Janet Elizabeth Manco and were featured on

Hallmark Cards Hallmark Cards, Inc. is a private, family-owned American company based in Kansas City, Missouri. Founded in 1910 by Joyce Hall, Hallmark is the oldest and largest manufacturer of greeting cards in the United States. In 1985, the company was award ...

greeting cards. The characters were adapted into a 1982-1985

animated series An animated series is a set of animated works with a common series title, usually related to one another. These episodes should typically share the same main characters, some different secondary characters and a basic theme. Series can have either ...

for television, by

Hanna-Barbera Productions Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. ( ) was an American animation studio and production company which was active from 1957 to 2001. It was founded on July 7, 1957, by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera following the decision of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to c ...

, which aired on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

Cards

released the homonymous line of

greeting card A greeting card is a piece of card stock, usually with an illustration or photo, made of high quality paper featuring an expression of friendship or other sentiment. Although greeting cards are usually given on special occasions such as birthday ...

s with animal characters wearing T-shirts upon which was a message. Those cards were among Hallmark's best sellers at that time, which led the company to team with

to adapt the ''Shirt Tales'' into a

Saturday morning cartoon "Saturday-morning cartoon" is a colloquial term for the original animated series programming that was typically scheduled on Saturday and Sunday mornings in the United States on the "Big Three" television networks. The genre's popularity had a br ...

, which premiered on

on September 18, 1982. The card line remained, but it faded shortly after the show left

broadcast television Broadcast television systems (or terrestrial television systems outside the US and Canada) are the encoding or formatting systems for the transmission and reception of terrestrial television signals. Analog television systems were standardized b ...

in 1985.

TV series

The animated ''Shirt Tales'' cartoon featured Tyg Tiger (in orange), Pammy Panda (in pink), Digger Mole (in light blue), Rick Raccoon (in red), and Bogey Orangutan (in green) (so-called because he spoke using a

Humphrey Bogart Humphrey DeForest Bogart (; December 25, 1899 – January 14, 1957), nicknamed Bogie, was an American film and stage actor. His performances in Classical Hollywood cinema films made him an American cultural icon. In 1999, the American Film In ...

-style voice). They lived in Oak Tree Park and wore shirts that flashed various brightly lit messages reflecting the characters' thoughts. They spent their time teasing the park custodian, Mr. Dinkel, and battling crime in and out of their hometown of Mid City. They zipped around the world in a vehicle known as the STSST (Shirt Tales'

SuperSonic Transport A supersonic transport (SST) or a supersonic airliner is a civilian supersonic aircraft designed to transport passengers at speeds greater than the speed of sound. To date, the only SSTs to see regular service have been Concorde and the Tupol ...

) which could operate as a car, jet, boat, submarine, and other forms of transportation. Though most law enforcement agencies like the unnamed Commissioner knew of the Shirt Tales as crime fighters by reputation, few people seemed aware that they were talking animals—including Mr. Dinkel, whom the group often had to trick to keep their secret safe. Each episode was divided into two 11–minute segments. After the success of the thirteen episodes in Season 1, ten episodes were created for Season 2. However, the show was semi-rebooted and Kip Kangaroo (in light yellow) was added to the cast of characters without context for her joining the Shirt Tales. There is also a difference in leadership among the Shirt Tales, in which for the first season Rick appeared to be the de facto leader, but in the second season is instead Tyg. Several stories in Season 2 either omit Rick altogether or give him a minor role in the story. The second season also added some superhero elements to the dynamic of the group as well, most notably the color of all their T-shirts changing to a bright red color when "Shirt Tale Time" is called for. Buck Beaver (in whitish-blue) helped the Shirt Tales use a tree as a bridge in "The Big Foot Incident" and helped them build an ark in "Dinkel's Ark". In "Moving Time", four cousins from out west were introduced for this episode only: Prairie Dog Pete (in red, with a black vest), Filmore Coyote (in light green), Violette Skunk (in yellow) and Hoozit Owl (in lavender). In "Back to Nature", Cubby Bear (in red) helped the Shirt Tales when a wild bear had Mr. Dinkel chased up a tree. Following the initial run on

, ''Shirt Tales'' aired on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

during the 1984–1985 Saturday morning season, replacing ''

The Biskitts ''The Biskitts'' is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions from 1983 to 1984 and aired on CBS. The series lasted for only one season; only 13 episodes were produced. ''Shirt Tales'' replaced the show in its t ...

'' in their time slot. CBS aired selected episodes from its two-season NBC run until March 23, 1985, when ''The Biskitts'' were returned to the time slot for the rest of the 1984–1985 season. On March 23, 1985, ''Shirt Tales'' was pulled from broadcast television for good, and the Hallmark franchise faded not long after as well. The show continued for a number of years as part of

USA Network USA Network (simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. It was originally launched in 1977 as Madison ...

's '' Cartoon Express'' block and on

Cartoon Network Cartoon Network (often abbreviated as CN) is an American cable television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. It is a part of The Cartoon Network, Inc., a division that also has the broadcasting and production activities of Boomerang, Car ...

, but also continues to be broadcast in selected countries around the world on various networks, including

Boomerang A boomerang () is a thrown tool, typically constructed with aerofoil sections and designed to spin about an axis perpendicular to the direction of its flight. A returning boomerang is designed to return to the thrower, while a non-returning b ...

Voice cast

Main

Nancy Cartwright Nancy Cartwright (born October 25, 1957) is an American actress. She is the long-time voice of Bart Simpson on the animated television series ''The Simpsons'', for which she has received a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Voice-Over Perform ...

– Kip Kangaroo (Season 2 only) * Robert Allen Ogle – Digger Mole *

Patricia Parris Patricia Parris (also professionally credited as Pat Parris, Patty Parris, Patti Parris and Patricia E. Parris) is an American actress who provided voice-overs for several animated television series for such studios as Hanna-Barbera, The Walt Di ...

– Pammy Panda *

Steve Schatzberg Steve Schatzberg (February 18, 1943 – August 30, 2008) was an American voice actor, best known as the singing voice of Piglet in the ''Winnie the Pooh'' franchise from the 1990s until his death, Tyg Tiger in '' Shirt Tales'', Matt in '' The G ...

– Tyg Tiger, Rick Raccoon (Episode 4 only) *

Ronnie Schell Ronald Ralph Schell (born December 23, 1931) is an American actor and stand-up comedian. He appeared on the May 28, 1959, episode of the TV quiz ''You Bet Your Life'', hosted by Groucho Marx. Schell demonstrated a comic barrage of beatnik jive t ...

– Rick Raccoon *

Fred Travalena Frederick Albert Travalena III (October 6, 1942 – June 28, 2009) was a U.S. entertainer, specializing in comedy and impressions. Early life Bronx, New York-born and Long Island-raised, Travalena moved to Los Angeles and developed a multi ...

– Bogey Orangutan *

Herb Vigran Herbert Vigran (June 5, 1910 – November 29, 1986) was an American character actor in Hollywood from the 1930s to the 1980s. Over his 50-year career, he made over 350 television and film appearances. Early years Vigran was a native of Cin ...

– Mr. Dinkel *

William Woodson William T. Woodson (July 16, 1917 – February 22, 2017) was an American film, stage, radio and voice actor, best known for his narration of the radio series ''This is Your FBI'', the animated series ''Super Friends'' and all its spin-offs, and t ...

– Commissioner (Season 1 only)

Additional Voices

* Richard Balin (Season 1) *

Joe Besser Joe Besser (August 12, 1907 – March 1, 1988) was an American actor, comedian and musician, known for his impish humor and wimpy characters. He is best known for his brief stint as a member of The Three Stooges in movie short subjects of 1957� ...

(Season 1) – Elmo the Elephant (in "Elephant on the Loose") *

Joey Camen Joey Camen (born January 16, 1957) is an American voice actor, comedian and writer who has performed voice over work in various movies, TV shows and video games. Early life Camen is of Russian and Romanian Jewish ancestry. His father, Hyman C ...

(Season 2) *

Victoria Carroll Victoria Carroll (or Victoria Carrol-Bell; born Mary Carol Lee Ford on January 21, 1941) is an American actress and artist. Best known as Marie Massey in '' Alice'' (1978-1984). Early life Born Mary Carol Lee Ford on January 21, 1941 in Los Angel ...

(Season 2) *

Brian Cummings Brian Douglas Cummings (born March 4, 1948) is an American voice actor, known for his work in radio and television commercials, television and motion picture promos, cartoons and as the announcer on '' The All-New Let's Make a Deal'' from 1984 to ...

Walker Edmiston Walker Edmiston (February 6, 1926 – February 15, 2007) was an American radio, television and voice actor. Early years Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Edmiston participated in local theater productions during his high school years. He later stud ...

(Season 1) *

Marshall Efron Marshall Efron (February 3, 1938 – September 30, 2019) was an American actor and humorist originally known for his work on the listener-sponsored Pacifica radio stations WBAI New York and KPFK Los Angeles, and later for the PBS television sho ...

(Season 1) *

Bernard Erhard Bernard Erhard (February 6, 1934 – November 1, 2000) was an American actor. Career Early in his career, Erhard worked as a music teacher at the University of Southwestern Louisiana (USL), and directed numerous theater productions there. ...

(Season 2) * Ernest Harada (Season 2) * Bob Holt (Season 2) *

Buster Jones Edward L. Jones (December 12, 1943 – September 16, 2014) was an American voice actor and television host. He is probably best known from his roles as Black Vulcan in ''Super Friends'', Blaster in '' The Transformers'', Doc in '' G.I. Joe: A ...

(Season 2) * Stanley Jones (Season 1) *

Sherry Lynn Sherry Lynn is an American voice actress who has played roles in anime, animated television series and video games. She portrayed Sasami Jurai in the ''Tenchi Muyo!'' franchise. In January 2010, in terms of total film gross, she was the Highest ...

(Season 1) *

Tress MacNeille Teressa Claire MacNeille (née Payne; born June 20, 1951) is an American voice actress, whose credits include voicing Dot Warner on the animated television series ''Animaniacs'', Babs Bunny on ''Tiny Toon Adventures'', Chip and Gadget Hackwrench ...

(Season 1) *

Kenneth Mars Kenneth Mars (April 4, 1935 – February 12, 2011) was an American actor. He appeared in two Mel Brooks films: as the deranged Nazi playwright Franz Liebkind in '' The Producers'' (1967) and Police Inspector Hans Wilhelm Friedrich Kemp in ''Young ...

(Season 1) * Joseph Medalis (Season 1) *

Howard Morris Howard Jerome Morris (September 4, 1919 – May 21, 2005) was an American actor, comedian, and director. He was best known for his role in ''The Andy Griffith Show'' as Ernest T. Bass, and as "Uncle Goopy" in a celebrated comedy sketch on Sid Cae ...

(Season 2) – Shutter McBugg (in "Double Exposure") *

Henry Polic II Henry Albert Polic II (February 20, 1945 – August 11, 2013) was an American stage, screen, and voice actor, best known as Jerry Silver on '' Webster''. He earned his Master of Fine Arts degree from Florida State University and later served i ...

(Season 1) *

Tony Pope Anthony J. Pope (March 22, 1947 – February 11, 2004), also known as "Anthony Mozdy", was an American voice actor. He is best remembered for voicing Goofy for eleven years. He also worked on the first two DVDs of LeapFrog Enterprises, LeapFrog, ...

Robert Ridgely Robert Ridgely (December 24, 1931 – February 8, 1997) was an American actor, known for both on-camera roles and extensive voice-over work. Biography Born in Teaneck, New Jersey, Ridgely worked as a cabaret entertainer.Staff"Robert Ridgely, 65 ...

(Season 1) *

Michael Rye Michael Rye (born John Michael Riorden Billsbury; March 2, 1918 – September 20, 2012) was an American actor. His decades-long career spanned radio, television, animated cartoons and video games. Aside from his voice over work, Rye also acted in ...

(Season 1) *

Marilyn Schreffler Marilyn Sue Schreffler (June 14, 1945 – January 7, 1988) was an American voice actress who provided voice-overs for several animated television series, mostly for Hanna-Barbera Productions. Biography Marilyn Schreffler was born in Wichita, Ka ...

Rick Segall Richard Robert Segal III (born March 10, 1969) is an American film and television actor. He is perhaps best known for playing the singer "Ricky Stevens" in the American sitcom television series ''The Partridge Family''. Life and career Segal ...

(Season 1) * Michael Sheehan (Season 1) * Hal Smith * John Stephenson (Season 1) – Game Master (in "The Game Masters"), Museum Tour Guide (in "The Humboldt Ghost"), The Humboldt Ghost (in "The Humboldt Ghost"), Ebenezer Creepling (in "The Humboldt Ghost") *

Andre Stojka Andre Stojka is an American voice actor. He is best known for his role as the voice of Owl in the Winnie-the-Pooh franchises starting with ''Pooh’s Grand Adventure: The Search for Christopher Robin'' inheriting the role from Hal Smith after hi ...

(Season 1) *

Jimmy Weldon Jimmy Weldon (born Ivy Laverne Shinn, September 23, 1923) is an American retired voice actor, ventriloquist, and former television host. He is best known as the voice of the Hanna-Barbera cartoon character Yakky Doodle and the host and ventrilo ...

(Season 2) *

Frank Welker Franklin Wendell Welker (born March 12, 1946) is an American voice actor. He began his career in the 1960s, and holds over 860 film, television, and video game credits as of 2022, making him one of the most prolific voice actors of all time. With ...

(Season 1) – Figby the Cat (in "Figby, the Spoiled Brat Cat") * Ted Zeigler (Season 1)

Episodes

Season 1 (1982–83)

Season 2 (1983–84)

Other media

There were also two musical book-and-record sets released by

K-tel International K-tel International Ltd is a Canadian company which formerly specialized in selling consumer products through infomercials and live demonstration. Its products include compilation music albums, including ''The Super Hits'' series, ''The Dynami ...

under the "Castle Rock" imprint: ''A Song Saves the Park'', and ''Sunrise Surprise''. However, both sets use sound-alikes for the voices, and are presented differently from typical read-alongs.

Home media

In 1986, a VHS release of the series was issued by Worldvision Home Video and Kids Klassics, it contained the first full-length episode from Season 2 and the first segment of another episode from that season. On September 16, 2014,

Warner Archive The Warner Archive Collection is a home video division for releasing classic and cult films from Warner Bros.' library. It started as a manufactured-on-demand (MOD) DVD series by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on March 23, 2009, with the inte ...

released ''Shirt Tales: The Complete Series'' on DVD in Region 1 as part of their

Hanna–Barbera Classics Collection Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. ( ) was an American animation studio and production company which was active from 1957 to 2001. It was founded on July 7, 1957, by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera following the decision of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to ...

References

External links

* {{Children's programming on CBS in the 1980s 1982 American television series debuts 1984 American television series endings 1980s American animated television series English-language television shows NBC original programming Television series by Hanna-Barbera Animated television series about apes Television series about kangaroos and wallabies Television series about pandas Television series about raccoons Television series about tigers CBS original programming Hallmark Cards American children's animated adventure television series American children's animated fantasy television series