Lancelot Link, Secret Chimp
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''Lancelot Link, Secret Chimp'' is an American
action Action may refer to: * Action (philosophy), something which is done by a person * Action principles the heart of fundamental physics * Action (narrative), a literary mode * Action fiction, a type of genre fiction * Action game, a genre of video gam ...
/
adventure An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme spo ...
comedy Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...
television series originally aired Saturday mornings on ABC from September 12, 1970, to January 2, 1971, and rebroadcast the following season. The live-action film series featured a cast of
chimpanzee The chimpanzee (; ''Pan troglodytes''), also simply known as the chimp, is a species of Hominidae, great ape native to the forests and savannahs of tropical Africa. It has four confirmed subspecies and a fifth proposed one. When its close rel ...
s given apparent speaking roles by overdubbing with human voices.


Production

''Lancelot Link, Secret Chimp'' had a "seven-figure budget" with location filming, props and costumes, and the laborious staging and training of the animals. The filmmakers made the most of the budget, staging multiple episodes with the same settings and wardrobe, occasionally reusing the more elaborate chase footage. Lance Link drove a 1970
Datsun Datsun (, ) was a Japanese automobile manufacturer brand owned by Nissan. Datsun's original production run began in 1931. From 1958 to 1986, only vehicles exported by Nissan were identified as Datsun. Nissan phased out the Datsun brand in Marc ...
Sports 2000 Sports 2000 is a restricted-rules class of two-seat, mid-engined, open-cockpit, full-bodied sports-prototype racecar used largely in amateur road racing. Sometimes known as S2000 or S2, the class was developed by John Webb, then of the Brands Ha ...
while villain Baron Von Butcher (and his chauffeur Creto) used a late-'50s Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud. The primates themselves rode Kawasaki MB-1 Coyote minibikes in a number of episodes. Two of the three producers/creators were Stan Burns and Mike Marmer, former writers for ''
Get Smart ''Get Smart'' is an American comedy television series parodying the Spy fiction, secret agent genre that had become widely popular in the first half of the 1960s with the release of the ''James Bond'' films. It was created by Mel Brooks and Bu ...
!'' Both resigned from their jobs as head writers on ''
The Carol Burnett Show ''The Carol Burnett Show'' is an American variety/sketch comedy television show that originally ran on CBS from September 11, 1967, to March 29, 1978, for 279 episodes, and again with nine episodes in fall 1991. It starred Carol Burnett, Harv ...
'' to work on ''Lancelot Link, Secret Chimp.'' According to '' The Believer,'' "to make the dialogue fit the chimps’ lip action, Burns and Marmer went to ridiculous lengths. Voiceovers were ad-libbed on the set, giving birth to beautifully absurd moments of the chimps breaking into songs at the end of sentences or spontaneously reciting
Mother Goose Mother Goose is a character that originated in children's fiction, as the imaginary author of a collection of French fairy tales and later of English nursery rhymes. She also appeared in a song, the first stanza of which often functions now as ...
rhymes just so it would look right." Co-producer Allan Sandler explained that the writers studied the silent film footage of the chimps, and counted the syllables as the chimps' mouths moved. The writers would then shorten or lengthen the scripted lines according to the syllable count.


Plot construction

Owing considerable lineage to ''
Get Smart ''Get Smart'' is an American comedy television series parodying the Spy fiction, secret agent genre that had become widely popular in the first half of the 1960s with the release of the ''James Bond'' films. It was created by Mel Brooks and Bu ...
'', the plot was always played for laughs and featured Lancelot Link and his female colleague, "Mata Hairi," whose own name in turn was a play on
Mata Hari Margaretha Geertruida MacLeod (, ; 7 August 187615 October 1917), better known by the stage name Mata Hari ( , ; , ), was a Dutch Stripper, exotic dancer and courtesan who was convicted of being a spy for German Empire, Germany during World War ...
, in secret agent and spy satires. Link and Hairi worked for A.P.E., the Agency to Prevent Evil, in an ongoing conflict with the evil organization C.H.U.M.P., the Criminal Headquarters for Underworld Master Plan (sic). APE's chief Darwin gave Link and Hairi their orders after explaining his "theory" about each crime-in-progress, a play on the Darwin theory of ape-to-human evolution. CHUMP's
monocle A monocle is a type of corrective lens used to correct or enhance the visual perception in only one eye. It consists of a circular lens placed in front of the eye and held in place by the eye socket itself. Often, to avoid losing the monoc ...
d chief Baron von Butcher inevitably hatched the latest plan to endanger the world. The Baron's network of international bad guys included his shifty chauffeur Creto, mad scientist Dr. Strangemind, imperious Dragon Woman, drowsy Wang Fu, singing
sheikh Sheikh ( , , , , ''shuyūkh'' ) is an honorific title in the Arabic language, literally meaning "elder (administrative title), elder". It commonly designates a tribal chief or a Muslim ulama, scholar. Though this title generally refers to me ...
Ali Assa Seen, and the cultured Duchess. One or more of these bad guys would appear in each episode. A regular weekly feature, during the intermission between spy stories, was chimpanzee TV host "Ed Simian" (styled as an impersonation of
Ed Sullivan Edward Vincent Sullivan (September 28, 1901 – October 13, 1974) was an American television host, impresario, sports and entertainment reporter, and syndicated columnist for the ''New York Daily News'' and the Chicago Tribune New York News ...
of the popular ''
Ed Sullivan Show ''The Ed Sullivan Show'' is an American television variety show that ran on CBS from June 20, 1948, to March 28, 1971, and was hosted by New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan. It was replaced in September 1971 by the '' CBS Sunday Nig ...
'') introducing a musical number by an all-chimpanzee band, "The Evolution Revolution." The second intermission feature was "Chimpies", a short series of comedy blackouts similar to the "Crazy Shots" gags that writers Stan Burns and Mike Marmer had created for
Steve Allen Stephen Valentine Patrick William Allen (December 26, 1921 – October 30, 2000) was an American television and radio personality, comedian, musician, composer, writer, and actor. In 1954, he achieved national fame as the co-creator and ...
's TV show. The Chimpies repertoire: ''Freddie and Joe'', two chimps in loud suits as
burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.
comedians, telling riddles; ''Monk the Magician'', a chimp producing streams of handkerchiefs and other objects from his coat; ''Herman and Sherman'', a chimp and a miniature-chimp
ventriloquist Ventriloquism or ventriloquy is an act of stagecraft in which a person (a ventriloquist) speaks in such a way that it seems like their voice is coming from a different location, usually through a puppet known as a "dummy". The act of ventrilo ...
dummy; and ''Sneezes'', showing a chimp sneezing and other chimps reacting to it.


The characters


A.P.E.

* Lancelot Link (played by Tonga, voiced by
Dayton Allen Dayton Allen (born Dayton Allen Bolke; September 24, 1919 – November 11, 2004) was an American comedian and voice actor. He was one of the "men in the street" on ''The Steve Allen Show''. His catchphrase was "Why not, Bubbe?" (pronounced "whooo ...
imitating
Humphrey Bogart Humphrey DeForest Bogart ( ; December 25, 1899 – January 14, 1957), nicknamed Bogie, was an American actor. His performances in classic Hollywood cinema made him an American cultural icon. In 1999, the American Film Institute selected Bogart ...
). His surname is a play on ' The Missing Link'. * Mata Hairi (played by Debbie, voiced by
Joan Gerber Joan Gerber (July 29, 1935 – August 22, 2011) was an American voice actress who provided voices for a variety of cartoons. Her most challenging voice role was "all the children in a Japanese train wreck" for a ''Godzilla'' television episode ...
). Mata spoke in a high, whiny voice reminiscent of the
Dumb Dora ''Dumb Dora'' is a comic strip published from 1924 to 1936 distributed by King Features Syndicate. The term "dumb Dora" was a 1920s American slang term for a foolish woman; the strip helped popularize the term. Publication history ''Dumb Dora'' ...
comediennes of the 1920s and '30s. Her name was a take-off on
Mata Hari Margaretha Geertruida MacLeod (, ; 7 August 187615 October 1917), better known by the stage name Mata Hari ( , ; , ), was a Dutch Stripper, exotic dancer and courtesan who was convicted of being a spy for German Empire, Germany during World War ...
. * Commander Darwin (voiced by
Dayton Allen Dayton Allen (born Dayton Allen Bolke; September 24, 1919 – November 11, 2004) was an American comedian and voice actor. He was one of the "men in the street" on ''The Steve Allen Show''. His catchphrase was "Why not, Bubbe?" (pronounced "whooo ...
). Named after
Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English Natural history#Before 1900, naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all speci ...
. * Bruce - Official A.P.E. courier.


C.H.U.M.P.

* Baron von Butcher (voiced by
Bernie Kopell Bernard Morton Kopell (born June 21, 1933) is an American character actor known for his roles as Siegfried in ''Get Smart'' from 1966 to 1969 and as Dr. Adam Bricker ("Doc") on ''The Love Boat'' from 1977 to 1986. Early life Kopell was born in B ...
). Modeled on Kopell's character of "Siegfried" in the television show '' Get Smart!'' Kopell is believed to have approached his voicings of the Baron as if Siegfried were the head of KAOS. * The Dragon Woman (voiced by
Joan Gerber Joan Gerber (July 29, 1935 – August 22, 2011) was an American voice actress who provided voices for a variety of cartoons. Her most challenging voice role was "all the children in a Japanese train wreck" for a ''Godzilla'' television episode ...
in a precise dialect). Her name was a take-off on the Dragon Lady, a villainess in the
Terry and the Pirates ''Terry and the Pirates'' is an action-adventure comic strip created by cartoonist Milton Caniff, which originally ran from October 22, 1934, to February 25, 1973. Captain Joseph Patterson, editor for the Chicago Tribune New York News Syndica ...
comic-strip series. * Creto (voiced by
Bernie Kopell Bernard Morton Kopell (born June 21, 1933) is an American character actor known for his roles as Siegfried in ''Get Smart'' from 1966 to 1969 and as Dr. Adam Bricker ("Doc") on ''The Love Boat'' from 1977 to 1986. Early life Kopell was born in B ...
). His name was basically a play on the word " cretin." Also a play on Kato, the Green Hornet's chauffeur and crime-fighting "sidekick". * Wang Fu (voiced by
Bernie Kopell Bernard Morton Kopell (born June 21, 1933) is an American character actor known for his roles as Siegfried in ''Get Smart'' from 1966 to 1969 and as Dr. Adam Bricker ("Doc") on ''The Love Boat'' from 1977 to 1986. Early life Kopell was born in B ...
). His name was a play on
Kung Fu Chinese martial arts, commonly referred to with umbrella terms Kung fu (term), kung fu (; ), kuoshu () or wushu (sport), wushu (), are Styles of Chinese martial arts, multiple fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in Greater Ch ...
. * The Duchess (voiced by
Joan Gerber Joan Gerber (July 29, 1935 – August 22, 2011) was an American voice actress who provided voices for a variety of cartoons. Her most challenging voice role was "all the children in a Japanese train wreck" for a ''Godzilla'' television episode ...
with cultured diction). * Ali Assa Seen (voiced and sung by
Dayton Allen Dayton Allen (born Dayton Allen Bolke; September 24, 1919 – November 11, 2004) was an American comedian and voice actor. He was one of the "men in the street" on ''The Steve Allen Show''. His catchphrase was "Why not, Bubbe?" (pronounced "whooo ...
). His last name was meant to sound like "
assassin Assassination is the willful killing, by a sudden, secret, or planned attack, of a personespecially if prominent or important. It may be prompted by political, ideological, religious, financial, or military motives. Assassinations are orde ...
." * Dr. Strangemind (voiced by
Dayton Allen Dayton Allen (born Dayton Allen Bolke; September 24, 1919 – November 11, 2004) was an American comedian and voice actor. He was one of the "men in the street" on ''The Steve Allen Show''. His catchphrase was "Why not, Bubbe?" (pronounced "whooo ...
impersonating Béla Lugosi). Name inspired by Dr. Strangelove.


Additional characters

* Marty
Mandrill The mandrill (''Mandrillus sphinx'') is a large Old World monkey native to west central Africa. It is one of the most colorful mammals in the world, with red and blue skin on its face and posterior. The species is Sexual dimorphism, sexually ...
III - Former songwriter for The Evolution Revolution turned C.H.U.M.P. spy. * Unnamed
Orangutan Orangutans are great apes native to the rainforests of Indonesia and Malaysia. They are now found only in parts of Borneo and Sumatra, but during the Pleistocene they ranged throughout Southeast Asia and South China. Classified in the genus ...
- Appeared in cameos as a picturesque extra. Often referred to by Lance as "that weirdo." * Ernest Finster - English writer who was captured by C.H.U.M.P. * Blackie - The drummer in The Evolution Revolution. * Parnelli Smith (voice: Dayton Allen) An auto-racing champion and supplier of cars to A.P.E., his name was a take-off on former
Indy 500 The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly shortened to Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indian ...
champion
Parnelli Jones Rufus Parnell "Parnelli" Jones (August 12, 1933 – June 4, 2024) was an American professional racing driver and racing team owner. He is notable for his accomplishments while competing in the Indianapolis 500 and the Baja 1000 desert race, and ...
. * Bart Sparks (voice: Bernie Kopell) Emcee of the Miss Globe beauty contest (parody of Miss America host Bert Parks). * Raquel Wench (voice: Joan Gerber, imitating
Mae West Mary Jane "Mae" West (August 17, 1893 – November 22, 1980) was an American actress, singer, comedian, screenwriter, and playwright whose career spanned more than seven decades. Recognized as a prominent sex symbol of her time, she was known ...
) Screen star making an appearance at the road races. Parody of
Raquel Welch Jo Raquel Welch (; September 5, 1940 – February 15, 2023) was an American actress. Welch first gained attention for her role in ''Fantastic Voyage'' (1966), after which she signed a long-term contract with 20th Century Fox. They lent her con ...
. * Herman - C.H.U.M.P. henchman.


The Evolution Revolution

This all-chimp band, dressed in colorful hippie-style wigs and wardrobe, featured Lancelot Link (played by Tonga) on guitar and Mata Hairi (played by Debbie) on tambourine, with Blackie as "Bananas Marmoset""Lancelot Link & The Evolution Revolution" Original Album Liner Notes on the drums. "SweetWater Gibbons" (in fringed vest and granny glasses) was credited for playing Farfisa organ, although the organ usually pictured in the clips was a Vox Continental organ. In the episode "The Evolution Revolution", it was established that the band's music was used to communicate coded messages for A.P.E. agents. The songs were usually co-written and performed by Steve Hoffman, in the
bubblegum pop Bubblegum (also called bubblegum pop) is pop music in a catchy and upbeat style that is marketed for children and adolescents. The term also refers to a more specific rock and pop subgenre, originating in the United States in the late 1960s, th ...
style then in vogue; Hoffman received "voices" credit along with the various character actors. A Lancelot Link record album was released on
ABC Records ABC Records was an American record label founded in New York City in 1955. It originated as the main popular music label operated by the Am-Par Record Corporation. Am-Par also created the Impulse! jazz label in 1960. It acquired many labels bef ...
, as well as a single titled "Sha-La Love You", a song originally intended for The Grass Roots; the music shared some of its style with the music of The Grass Roots, who used the same recording facilities and studio musicians. Steve Barri, who is listed as producer on the album, was the co-creator and long-time producer of The Grass Roots as well.


Episodes

The show's first-season episodes were an hour long, and also included Warner Bros. cartoon shorts from that animation studio's final years. The second season consisted of repeats from the first season with the cartoons removed. The original network broadcast included a laugh track; this was later removed for the syndicated and video releases. The series consisted of 17 episodes (standard practice at the time for the ABC network, allowing for each episode to be broadcast three times per year). Each episode featured two Lance Link stories, plus a band number and Chimpies sketches. #There's No Business Like Snow Business (parts one and two) #The Lone A.P.E. / Missile Beach Party #The Mysterious Motorcycle Menace / The Great Beauty Contest #C.H.U.M.P. Takes A Holiday / To Tell The Tooth #The Great Brain Drain / The Great Double Double Cross #Lance Of Arabia / The Doctor Goes A.P.E. #The Surfin' Spy / The Missing Link #Bonana / The Greatest Chase In The World #The Reluctant Robot / The Royal Foil #The Great Great Race / The Great Plane Plot #Landlubber Lance / The Temporary Thanksgiving Turkey Truce #The Dreaded Hong Kong Sneeze / The Great Bank Robbery #The Sour Taste Of Success / The Baron's Birthday Ball #The Golden Swwword / The Chilling C.H.U.M.P. Chase #The Spy Who Went Out In The Cold / Too Many C.H.U.M.P.s #The C.H.U.M.P. Code Caper / Weather Or Not #The Evolution Revolution / The Great Water Robbery All titles were shown in the Roberta typeface in Scanimation form (except The Great Bank Robbery, where the word "bank" was eventually
smash cut A smash cut is a technique in film and other moving picture media where one scene abruptly cuts to another for aesthetic, comedic, narrative, or emotional purpose. To this end, the smash cut usually occurs at a crucial moment in a scene where a cu ...
out).


Reception

''Lancelot Link, Secret Chimp'' was an immediate success, spawning a wave of related merchandise including a record album, comic books, lunchboxes, and Halloween costumes. ''
Life Magazine ''Life'' (stylized as ''LIFE'') is an American magazine launched in 1883 as a weekly publication. In 1972, it transitioned to publishing "special" issues before running as a monthly from 1978 to 2000. Since then, ''Life'' has irregularly publi ...
'' featured the series in a photo spread.


Syndication

Reruns aired for one season on
Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (nicknamed Nick) is an American pay television channel and the flagship property of the Nickelodeon Group, a sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on April 1, 1979, as the first ca ...
's
Nick at Nite Nick at Nite (stylized as nick@nite since 2009) is an American nighttime programming block on Nickelodeon. List of programs broadcast by Nick at Nite, The block's programming broadcasts from prime time to Late-night television, late night, with ...
during the late 1980s; the program was also shown on Nick at Nite’s TV Land for a brief time in 1999 as part of their "Super Retrovision Saturdaze" Saturday morning-oriented overnight prime programming block. The Comedy Channel (now
Comedy Central Comedy Central is an American Cable television in the United States, cable television channel, channel owned by Paramount Global through its Paramount Media Networks, network division's Paramount Media Networks#MTV Entertainment Group, MTV Ente ...
) aired reruns of this as well as
Gerry Anderson Gerald Alexander Anderson (; 14 April 1929 – 26 December 2012) was an English television and film producer, director, writer and occasional voice artist, who is known for his futuristic television programmes, especially his 1960s production ...
stop-motion series '' Dick Spanner, P.I.'' in a block hosted by detective-themed stand-up comedian Tommy Sledge. It aired internationally in such countries as
Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...
.


Home media

In June 2006, most of the episodes were released on a 2-
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 ki ...
set by
Image Entertainment RLJ Entertainment (formerly Image Entertainment) is an American film production company and home video distributor, distributing film and television productions in North America, with approximately 3,200 exclusive DVD titles and approximately 34 ...
. On May 29, 2012, SBM Productions and Film Chest released the complete series on a 3-disc collector's edition. The Chimpies skits and Evolution Revolution music videos were included as separate items as well as inside the various episodes. The documentary ''I Created Lancelot Link'' was included in the bonus features, along with an interview with the original producer Allan Sandler, an interview with music composer Bob Emenegger, and a visit with Tonga, the chimp who played Lancelot in the series.


Documentary

A 1999 documentary short, ''I Created Lancelot Link'', was made by Diane Bernard and Jeff Krulik; it includes a reunion between the show's two creators and was "shot in shlocky Hi-8 video, and eaturingan entertaining juxtaposition of anecdotes from Burns and Marmer and some of the show's finest moments."


Print media

The fanzine Lancelot Link Fan World was published in 1975 by Cornell Kimball. Additional subjects included '' Sealab 2020''.


References


External links

* {{IMDb title, 0065309
TvParty page


Copy provided by producer Bob Emenegger
Lancelot Link
at
Grand Comics Database The Grand Comics Database (GCD) is an Internet-based project to build a database of comic book information through user contributions. The GCD project catalogues information on creator credits, story details, reprints, and other information use ...
Lancelot Link comic books
Lancelot Link on Amazon
1970 American television series debuts 1971 American television series endings 1970s American children's comedy television series American Broadcasting Company original programming American children's action television series American children's adventure television series American English-language television shows Espionage television series Television shows about chimpanzees Link Lancelot Television series by CBS Studios Television shows adapted into comics