Niche of Time: Wideo Wednesday: Family Classic Adventures

Wednesday, June 4, 2025

When I was a very small child (say from 1968 – 1973) we were still feeling the last throes of Great Society thinking. Part of that trend was adapting cultural touchstones, classics if you will, for the youngest generation to imbibe and grow accustomed to. Part of this was fear that the new generation absorbed most of its culture through television. A cartoon show, adventurous, ‘groovy’, and simplified, might just act as breadcrumbs leading to a literary experience. It’s easier to adapt a familiar tale already out of copyright than make up something wholesale. And it can be peddled as ‘educational’.

All I’ve got to say is that somehow in my case it worked. I don’t remember watching all of those series of classics (Mr. Magoo was a bit early for me) but they were all … around. In the air, as it were. Many of these links lead to playlists of the whole series.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yExA2Ru8xQM&list=PLCPrPoHZC8w35i5QQBh2kLnNhc_tJBsT4&index=1

New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwMYLKLmrUU&list=PLLhOnau-tupTdOXJntRqMMpYioWNCrP4T&index=1

The Reluctant Dragon and Mr. Toad Show

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTZpE7itQdg&list=PLV4Ztn9euy7QmW1zfNl-zsfe9f8GZwiCk

Dr. Dolittle

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMn6XwsBLjk&list=PLV4Ztn9euy7RWCs-ngBQs_zNFcr5oLK0v

The Three Musketeers

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kulroxzLdwg&list=PLZs0gQed9tMTCwdqInLAjsrKrfQ0thU_R&index=1

The Arabian Knights

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SlbDInLkbto&list=PLLhOnau-tupSRAZ56jFjRhpftdc4VTfB2&index=4

Arthur! And His Square Knights of the Round Table