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Even Crashcup had a Dell comic, at least briefly. Dell even ran him for president in 1964, putting him in company with Andy Gump, Betty Boop and other toon presidential candidates. That version ran 28 issues, the last dated October, 1973.
#Chipmunk names tv
It lasted only one season in prime time, but was rerun the next year on Saturday morning, and has since been seen in syndicated reruns.ĭell adapted the TV cartoon into a comic book, starting with a December, 1962 cover date. Again, Bagdasarian did all four voices, with Shepard Menken (whose voice is also heard in Chuck Jones's The Phantom Tollbooth) as Crashcup. Alvin was definitely the star, with Simon and Theodore in supporting roles - sort of like Wally to Alvin's Beaver. The lead segment featured the Chipmunk characters as kids with David Seville, their guardian, playing the role of Dad. Two of them (shorter than most cartoon show segments) had The Chipmunks leading viewers in sing-alongs, and one starred a crazy inventor named Clyde Crashcup. They made their real transformation into toons a couple of years later when, on October 4, 1961, The Alvin Show debuted on CBS. But it didn't become a series, and the Chipmunk design created for that issue, one with natural proportions and looking altogether more like real chipmunks than one would expect of cartoon characters, wasn't used again. Their first foray into the toon world was in 1959, when Dell Comics devoted the 1042nd issue of Four Color Comics to their adventures. Before long they were appearing on The Ed Sullivan Show, with hand puppets designed and crafted by Bob Clampett ( Tweety Bird, Beany & Cecil) representing the Chipmunks.
#Chipmunk names plus
This was followed by Let's Sing with the Chipmunks, an album containing both, plus Chipmunk versions of several other well known songs (including a rock'n'roll rendition of "Whistle While You Work", from Walt Disney's Snow White). It was Alvin, of course, who became the star, and it was probably Alvin's participation that sent "The Chipmunk Song" to the top of the charts.Ī new Chipmunk release, acknowledging Alvin's star status, was quickly prepared, and "Alvin's Harmonica" went on sale in February, 1959. Alvin was a real cut-up - when Dave tried to criticize Alvin's performance, he had to yell just to get any response at all from the furry li'l critter. Theodore was kind of giddy, and not quite as smart. His response to "Dave" praising his performance was "Naturally". Simon was characterized as good at what he does, a fast learner, and well aware of the fact. Bagdasarian did all four voices (including the David Seville character) himself, and named his chipmunks after Liberty Records executives Si Waronker, Ted Keep and Al Bennett - Simon, Theodore and Alvin. It was his children who suggested chipmunks. The idea was to use his gimmick to represent animal voices - butterflies, birds, something like that. But he really struck it rich later that year with his Christmas hit, "The Chipmunk Song" (aka "Christmas, Don't Be Late"). It sold over a million copies and is still heard, on rare occasions, as a moldie oldie. His first attempt to cash in on the phenomenon was a popular song called "Witch Doctor", which he recorded in 1958 for Liberty Records. The first person to become a millionaire because of that. Song writer/performer Ross Bagdasarian (under the stage name "David Seville") may have been Please contribute to its necessary financial support.Įvery kid who ever fiddled with a multi-speed record player knows that when you speed up recorded sound, it sounds silly. If this site is enjoyable or useful to you, ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS Original medium: Popular music
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