Archie's Funhouse

This was one of the first cartoon shows I ever saw and it is one of the few which I can still remember 30 years later. It was quite inventive for it's time. The Archies were already familiar fixtures on the Saturday morning circuit when this began. It basically took the characters and transplanted them into a Laugh-In/Saturday Night Live (well, a G-rated form that is) type of show. There were lots of one-liners, 1-3 minute sketches and recurring characters, like say, several segments in which Big Ethel would demonstrate a foolproof method to snag Jughead as he walked by, but naturally, Ethel would inevitably fall victim to the Wily Coyote syndrome. There were also frequent songs on the show which were presented in a style which may well have inspired the MTV station. These songs (from "The Giant Juke Box")were a bit deeper than the typical Archies bubblegum selections. Some of their songs dealt with racism ("We're One Big Family") and environmental pollution ("Mr.Factory"). All in all, a fun show that was fast paced, creative and sometimes topical, yet inoffensive (as all 70s cartoons were!). Hope it comes on video soon!

I notice the raves about the great songs and messages in the 32 Giant Jukebox songs from Archies Funhouse, but nowhere is the unsung creator of these songs mentioned, so here it is: Mr Factory - We're One Big Family - Love Vibrations - Love Went Round The World - Sweet Saturday Night - Comes The Sun - La La La La Love - The Big Boat - Little By Little, and many others, were all written, arranged, and produced by Neil Brian Goldberg. I knew him. Mr Factory was the first ecology song to make major airwaves, and the other great songs were the first positive messages on kids TV. Thanks for allowing me to let people know the story behind these songs. (Jeff Barry wrote Sugar Sugar, but called in Neil to write and produce all of the Giant Jukebox songs.)