''Space Stars'' is a 60-minute Saturday morning animated program block produced 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 ...

and broadcast on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

from September 12, 1981, to January 8, 1982. ''Space Stars'' was narrated by

Keene Curtis Keene Holbrook Curtis (February 15, 1923 – October 13, 2002) was an American character actor. Early life Curtis was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, to Polley Francella (née Holbrook), a teacher, and Ira Charles Curtis, a railway and civil ...

and featured five cartoon segments each week: * ''

Space Ghost Space Ghost (Tad Ghostal) is a fictional superhero created by Hanna-Barbera Productions in the 1960s for TV network CBS. He was designed by Alex Toth. In his original incarnation, he was a superhero who, with his teen sidekicks, Jan and Ja ...

'' (2 segments, 6 minutes each) * ''

The Herculoids ''The Herculoids'' is an American Saturday-morning animated-cartoon television series, created and designed by Alex Toth, that was produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions. The show debuted on September 9, 1967, on CBS. Hanna-Barbera produced one sea ...

'' (1 segment, 10 minutes) * ''Teen Force'' (1 segment, 7 minutes) * ''Astro and the Space Mutts'' (1 segment, 7 minutes) * ''Space Stars Finale'' (1 segment, 7 minutes) The cartoons would occasionally cross over into one another. ''Space Ghost'' and ''The Herculoids'' both had their own respective series in the 1960s. ''Teen Force'' and ''Astro and the Space Mutts'' were both new segments, although the Astro character was the family dog from ''

The Jetsons ''The Jetsons'' is an American animated sitcom produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions. It originally aired in prime time from September 23, 1962, to March 17, 1963, on ABC, then later aired in reruns via syndication, with new episodes produced ...

''.

Opening title narration

The opening title narration was provided by

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 ...

and consisted of the following:

Voice cast

* Michael Bell – Space Ace, Mario Magnetti (in "Menace of the Magnet Maniac"), the Scavenger (in "Wonder Dog") *

– Narrator *

Richard Erdman Richard Erdman ( John Richard Erdmann; June 1, 1925 – March 16, 2019) was an American character actor and occasional film and television director. He appeared in more than 160 films and television productions between 1944 and 2017, mostly i ...

– *

June Foray June Foray (born June Lucille Forer; September 18, 1917 – July 26, 2017) was an American voice actress. She was best known as the voice of such animated characters as Rocky the Flying Squirrel, Natasha Fatale, Nell Fenwick, Lucifer from Disney' ...

- The Mindwitch (in "Mindwitch") *

Kathy Garver Kathleen Marie Garver is an American actress most remembered for having portrayed the teenaged orphan, Catherine "Cissy" Davis, on the popular 1960s CBS sitcom, ''Family Affair''. Before that, she was cast by Cecil B. DeMille in the film ''T ...

- Krisa (in "Prison Planet") *

Virginia Gregg Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are ...

– Tara *

Darryl Hickman Darryl Gerard Hickman (born July 28, 1931) is an American former actor, screenwriter, television executive, and acting coach. He started his career as a child actor in the Golden Age of Hollywood and appeared in numerous TV serials as an adult. ...

– Kid Comet *

Casey Kasem Kemal Amin "Casey" Kasem (April 27, 1932 – June 15, 2014) was an American disc jockey, actor, and radio personality, who created and hosted several radio countdown programs, notably ''American Top 40''. He was the first actor to voice No ...

– The Announcer * Allan Lurie – Uglor *

Sparky Marcus Sparky Marcus (born Marcus Issoglio; December 6, 1967) is an American former actor. Early life Marcus was born in Hollywood, California. Career Marcus was well known for playing the role of the precocious child but also worked extensively as a ...

– Dorno * Chuck McCann – * Don Messick – Astro, Gloop, Gleep, the Director (in "The Education of Puglor"), Reverso (in "Reverso") *

Gary Owens Gary Owens (born Gary Bernard Altman; May 10, 1934 – February 12, 2015) was an American radio announcer, personality, disc jockey and voice actor. His polished baritone speaking voice generally offered deadpan recitations of total nonsense, wh ...

–

* David Raynr – Moleculad (credited as David Hubbard) *

Mike Road Mike Road (born Milton Brustin;The Boston Advertiser, June 29, 1958 March 18, 1918 – April 14, 2013) was an American voice actor and Warner Bros. television series contract player whose television career dates back to the 1950s and in f ...

– Zandor, Tundro, Zok, Igoo * Stanley Ralph Ross – The Buccaneer (in "The Buccaneer") *

- Opening Narration *

Steve J. Spears Steven John Peter Spears (22 January 1951 – 16 October 2007) was an Australian playwright, actor, writer and singer. His most famous work was '' The Elocution of Benjamin Franklin'' (1976). He was cited as "one of Australia's most celebrated p ...

– Jace * John Stephenson – Space Spectre (in "Space Spectre"), the Elder (in "City in Space"), Jev (in "City in Space") * Alexandra Stoddart – Jan * B.J. Ward – Elektra *

Lennie Weinrib Leonard Weinrib (April 29, 1935 – June 28, 2006) was an American actor, comedian and writer. He is best known for playing the title role in the children's television show '' H.R. Pufnstuf'', Grimace in McDonaldland commercials, the title role in ...

– Dipper, Brucie (in "Wonder Dog"), Puglor (in "The Education of Puglor") * Frank Welker – Cosmo, Blip, the Wizard (in "Web of the Wizard," "Devilship"), the Computer (in "City in Space"), the Crab (in "The Night of the Crab"), Cubus (in "Spacecube of Doom"), the Destroyer (in "Nomads"), Feron (in "The Big Freeze"), Galactic Vac (in "Galactic Vac is Back"), Lord Raider (in "Wonder Dog"), Noxie (in "Nomads"), Repto (in "The Space Dragons"), Rock Punk (in "Rock Punk"), the Shadow Creature (in "The Shadow People"), the Starfly (in "The Starfly"), the Starbeast (in "The Starfly") *

Michael Winslow Michael Leslie Winslow (born September 6, 1958) is an American actor, comedian and beatboxer billed as The Man of 10,000 Sound Effects for his ability to make realistic sounds using only his voice. He is best known for his roles in all seven '' ...

– Glax, Plutem

Segments

''Space Ghost''

A total of 22 episodes were produced for ''Space Ghost'' (two segments aired each week), featuring a new assortment of villains, including an evil version of Space Ghost called Space Spectre (who came from an alternate universe). The Phantom Cruiser and its Scout Ship were also given sleeker and more modernized looks. Space Ghost often came to the aid of the Herculoids and vice versa (as in the original ''

'' series' "Council of Doom" storyline, where they teamed up for the first time). They also frequently crossed paths with the Teen Force, and it appeared that Jan and Teen Force member Kid Comet were dating as well.

reprised his role as Space Ghost, but

Tim Matheson Tim Matheson (born Timothy Lewis Matthieson; December 31, 1947) is an American actor and director. Some of his best-known acting roles include the title character of the 1960s animated '' Jonny Quest'' TV series, Eric "Otter" Stratton in the 19 ...

was replaced by Steve Spears as the voice of Jace,

Ginny Tyler Merrie Virginia Eggers (née Erlandson; August 8, 1925 – July 13, 2012), known professionally as Ginny Tyler, was an American voice actress who performed on dozens of cartoons and animated films from 1957 to 1993. In 2006, she was named a Disn ...

was replaced by Alexandra Stoddart as the voice of Jan, and Don Messick was replaced by Frank Welker as the vocal effects for Blip.

Episodes

''The Herculoids''

As a departure from the original series, this incarnation of ''The Herculoids'' had story direction and content similar to ''

Jonny Quest ''Jonny Quest'' is a science fiction-adventure media franchise that revolves around the titular boy named Jonny Quest, who accompanies his scientist father on extraordinary adventures. The franchise started with a 1964–1965 television serie ...

'' and ''

''. This series takes place on a far-away planet named Quasar in the land of Amzot (the planet was only named as such in this series, though Amzot was first mentioned by name in "The Time Creatures", an episode of the original series). Eleven episodes were produced.

and

reprised their roles as Zandor and Tara, respectively.

Ted Eccles Theodore Edward Eccles (born June 9, 1955) is an American actor. Career Eccles performed much of his best known roles as a child actor. He appeared in several television series and feature films in the 1960s and 1970s. Eccles may be best known ...

was replaced by

as Dorno. Mike Road and Don Messick also reprised their roles as the voices of the Herculoids.

Episodes

''Teen Force''

''Teen Force'' focused on three superhumanly gifted young students who hail from an unknown alternate universe which is located beyond the confines of the mysterious Black Hole X, which serves as a gateway into the universe in which the other main characters from ''Space Stars'' exist. The Teen Force consists of Kid Comet, who possesses tremendous levels of superhuman speed, enabling him move at speeds exceeding the speed of light, and can even move quickly enough to travel through time; Moleculad, who can control his molecular structure for various effects; and Elektra, who possesses the psionic disciplines of telepathy, telekenesis, and

teleportation Teleportation is the hypothetical transfer of matter or energy from one point to another without traversing the physical space between them. It is a common subject in science fiction literature and in other popular culture. Teleportation is oft ...

. Accompanying them are a pair of diminutive blue-skinned aliens named Plutem and Glax, also known as the Astromites. Their principal enemy in the series is Uglor, a mutant native and tyrannical ruler of the planet Uris (whose inhabitants are a race of evolved simians) in Galaxy Q-2. Uglor's mutation granted him bird-like wings and the ability to generate destructive energy blasts from his bionic eyes, which allowed him to see through Space Ghost's Inviso-Power and Elektra's telepathic illusions.

Episodes

''Astro and the Space Mutts''

''Astro and the Space Mutts'' features Astro, the family dog from ''

''. He teams up with two other dogs named Cosmo and Dipper, led by their human leader Space Ace. Together, the trio act as galactic

police officer A police officer (also called a policeman and, less commonly, a policewoman) is a warranted law employee of a police force. In most countries, "police officer" is a generic term not specifying a particular rank. In some, the use of the ...

s and travel through outer space. Don Messick reprised his role as Astro.

Episodes

''Space Stars Finale''

''Space Stars Finale'' was the last segment where Space Ghost, the Herculoids, the Teen Force, and Astro and the Space Mutts team up to battle the scourges of the universe.

Episodes

Syndication

syndication Syndication may refer to: * Broadcast syndication, where individual stations buy programs outside the network system * Print syndication, where individual newspapers or magazines license news articles, columns, or comic strips * Web syndication, ...

as a 30-minute series,

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 ...

had one segment each of ''Space Ghost'', ''Teen Force'' and ''The Herculoids'', but the ''Astro and the Space Mutts'' segments were never shown. The ''Space Ghost'', ''The Herculoids'' and ''Astro and the Space Mutts'' segments have been seen on Cartoon Network and

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 ...

, but not the ''Teen Force'' segments. Furthermore, the series has never been shown in its entirety on Cartoon Network or Boomerang. These shorts were only broadcast on occasion as an interstitial segment between shows on Boomerang until the mid-2010s. ''Astro and the Space Mutts'' was formerly available on

Tubi Tubi is an American over-the-top content platform and ad-supported streaming service owned by Fox Corporation. The service was launched on April 1, 2014, and is based in Los Angeles, California. In January 2021, Tubi reached 33 million monthly ...

Home video

On October 8, 2013,

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 ''Space Stars: The Complete Series'' on

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...

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 ...

. This is a Manufacture-on-Demand (MOD) release, available exclusively through Warner's online store and Amazon.com.

References

External links

* * {{Toonami Cartoon Network 1981 American television series debuts 1982 American television series endings 1980s American animated television series 1980s American anthology television series 1980s American science fiction television series NBC original programming The Jetsons Space Ghost television series Television series by Hanna-Barbera English-language television shows American animated television spin-offs American children's animated action television series American children's animated anthology television series American children's animated space adventure television series American children's animated science fantasy television series American children's animated superhero television series Animated television series about extraterrestrial life Television series set on fictional planets