Aired: 1964-1967
Budget: $15 million in total
The television show starred Flipper, a bottlenose dolphin and the pet of Chief Porter Ricks, the Head Warden at the Coral Key Park & Marine Preserve. Flipper was portrayed at first by a female dolphin named Susie and occasionally by other females. Female dolphins were chosen for the role because they are less aggressive than males.
The show’s marine preserve was based on the John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, located in Key Largo, Florida. Dubbed “the aquatic Lassie,” the show ran on NBC for eighty-eight episodes and is still inspiring children’s merchandise today.
Davey and Goliath
Aired: 1960–2004
Budget: $500 per episode
A claymation classic, "Davey and Goliath," was a kids' show that was based on the Bible Story. The United Lutheran Church in America produced the show, and though it was a children's show, it dealt with some pretty severe issues.
The show shined a light on racism, religious intolerance, prejudice, and many more serious subjects that were considered taboo. At first, the thought of a religious show caused hesitance, but it quickly vanished because the show did not reference the Lutheran Church directly.
The All-New Super Friends Hour
Aired: 1977–1978
Budget: $110,000 per episode
"The All-New Super Friends Hour" was an animated program that featured the adventures of the DC Comics’ characters, The Justice League. The animated show was created by Hanna-Barbera Productions and featured all The League's classic characters as well as The Wonder Twins and Gleek.
No one ever understood why but during its first run, the show's viewership was down. A few years later, ABC rebooted the show, and it was a massive rating success, which led to the show getting a total of sixty episodes.
The Batman/Superman Hour
Aired: 1968-1969
Budget: $150,000 per episode
"The Batman/Superman Hour" was based on the DC Comic Books characters and featured Robin, Batgirl, and Superboy. The show marked the beginning of Batman appearing as an animated character and was also the first time the classic Batman villains were featured on television.
When CBS secured the animation rights of Batman, the series moved to that network where it would air reruns well into the nineties.
Harlem Globetrotters
Aired: 1970-1973
Budget: $10,000 per episode
"Harlem Globetrotters" was a cartoon based on the famous basketball team of the same name. Each episode ran for thirty minutes, and there were a total of twenty-two episodes of the show. Of course, Hanna-Barbera was the producer behind the show.
The show featured an animated version of the basketball players as well as a fictional bus driver, manager, and Dribbles the dog - the team's mascot. The series followed the team as they traveled, usually getting into a local conflict that led to one of the players proposing a basketball game to settle the issue.