简介：The Flintstones is an animated, prime-time American television sit that was broadcast from September 30, 1960 to April 1, 1966 on ABC. The show was produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions. The Flintstones was about a working-class Stone Age manamp;#39;s life with his family and his next-door neighbor and best friend.The showamp;#39;s continuing popularity rested heavily on its juxtaposition of modern everyday concerns in the Stone Age setting.The show is set in the Stone Age town of Bedrock. (In some of the earlier episodes, it was also referred to as amp;quot;Rockvilleamp;quot;.) In this fantasy version of the past, dinosaurs, saber-toothed tigers, woolly mammoths, and other long-extinct animals co-exist with cavemen. Like their mid-20th century counterparts, these cavemen listen to records, live in split-level homes, and eat out at restaurants, yet their technology is made entirely from pre-industrial materials and largely powered through the use of animals. For example, the cars are made out of stone, wood, and animal skins, and powered by the passengersamp;#39; feet (as in the theme song, amp;quot;Through the courtesy of Fredamp;#39;s two feetamp;quot;).The original pilot episode clip was called the amp;quot;Flagstonesamp;quot; (which first appeared in 1959 as a 90-second promotion to draw advertisers to the show) and was later reincorporated into the showamp;#39;s first episode (third episode in original air date order). The showamp;#39;s name was changed to amp;quot;The Flintstonesamp;quot; shortly thereafter.TechnologyOften the amp;quot;prehistoricamp;quot; analog to a modern machine uses an animal.[5] For example, when a character takes photographs with an instant camera, inside the camera box, a bird carves the picture on a stone tablet with its beak. In a running gag, the animal powering such technology would frequently break the fourth wall, look directly into the camera at the audience and offer a mild plaint about his job. Other monly seen gadgets in the series include a baby woolly mammoth used as a vacuum cleaner; an adult woolly mammoth acting as a shower by spraying water with its trunk; elevators raised and lowered by ropes around brontosaurusesamp;#39; necks; amp;quot;automaticamp;quot; windows powered by monkeys on the outside; birds acting as amp;quot;car hornsamp;quot;, sounded by the driver pulling on their tails or squeezing their bodies; an amp;quot;electricamp;quot; razor made from a clam shell, vibrating from a honey-bee inside; a pelican as a washing machine, shown with a beakful of soapy water; and a woodpecker whose beak is used to play a gramophone record. In most cases, amp;quot;The Man of a Thousand Voicesamp;quot;, Mel Blanc, contributed the animalsamp;#39; gag lines, often lowering his voice one to two full octaves, far below the range he used to voice the character of Barney Rubble. In the case of the Flintstonesamp;#39; cuckoo clocks, which varied from mechanical toys to live birds announcing the time, when the hour approached 12:00, the bird inside the clock amp;quot;cuckooingamp;quot; usually just ran out of steam and gave up vocally, physically, or both.amp;quot;Stone-ageamp;quot; namesThe Stone Age setting allowed for gags and word plays involving rocks and minerals. For example, San Antonio bees amp;quot;Sand-and-Stony-oamp;quot;; the country to the south of Bedrockamp;#39;s land is called amp;quot;Mexirockamp;quot; (Mexico). Travel to amp;quot;Hollyrockamp;quot;, a parody of Hollywood, usually involves an amp;quot;airplaneamp;quot; flight — the amp;quot;planeamp;quot;, in this case, is often shown as a giant pterosaur, with the fuselage strapped to its back. Sun Valley bees amp;quot;Stone Valleyamp;quot; and is run by amp;quot;Conrad Hailstoneamp;quot; (Conrad Hilton). The last names amp;quot;Flintstoneamp;quot; and amp;quot;Rubbleamp;quot;, as well as other mon Bedrock surnames such as amp;quot;Shaleamp;quot; and amp;quot;Quartzamp;quot;, are in line with these puns, as are the names of Bedrockamp;#39;s celebrities: amp;quot;Gary Graniteamp;quot; (Cary Grant), amp;quot;Stony Curtisamp;quot; (Tony Curtis), amp;quot;Ed Sulleyrock/Sulleystoneamp;quot; (Ed Sullivan), amp;quot;Rock Pile/Quarry/Hudstoneamp;quot; (Rock Hudson), amp;quot;Ann-Margrockamp;quot; (Ann-Margret), amp;quot;Jimmy Darrockamp;quot; (James Darren), amp;quot;Alvin Brickrockamp;quot; (Alfred Hitchcock), amp;quot;Perry Masonry/Masoniteamp;quot; (Perry Mason as played by Raymond Burr), amp;quot;Mick Jadestone and The Rolling Bouldersamp;quot; (Mick Jagger and The Rolling Stones, called amp;quot;Mick Jagged and the Stonesamp;quot; in live-action film The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas), amp;quot;Eppy Brianstoneamp;quot; (Brian Epstein) and amp;quot;The Beau Brummelstonesamp;quot; (The Beau Brummels). Once, while visiting one of Bedrockamp;#39;s houses of amp;quot;Haute Coutureamp;quot; with Wilma, Betty even mented on the new amp;quot;Jackie Kennerock (Jackie Kennedy) lookamp;quot;. In some cases, the celebrity featured also provided the voice: amp;quot;Samanthaamp;quot; and amp;quot;Darrinamp;quot; from Bewitched were voiced by Elizabeth Montgomery and Dick York. Examples from the above list include Ann-Margret, Curtis, Darren, and the Beau Brummels. Other celebrities, such as amp;quot;Ed Sulleystoneamp;quot; and amp;quot;Alvin Brickrockamp;quot;, were rendered by impersonators. Some of Bedrockamp;#39;s sports heroes include: football player amp;quot;Red Graniteamp;quot; (Red Grange), wrestler amp;quot;Bronto Crushrockamp;quot; (Bronko Nagurski), golfer amp;quot;Arnold Palmrockamp;quot; (Arnold Palmer), boxers amp;quot;Floyd Patterstoneamp;quot; (Floyd Patterson) and amp;quot;Sonny Listoneamp;quot; (Sonny Liston), and baseball players amp;quot;Sandy Stoneaxeamp;quot; (Sandy Koufax), amp;quot;Lindy McShaleamp;quot; (Lindy McDaniel), amp;quot;Roger Marbleamp;quot; (Roger Maris), and amp;quot;Mickey Marbleamp;quot; or amp;quot;Mickey Mantlepieceamp;quot; (Mickey Mantle). Ace reporter amp;quot;Daisy Kilgraniteamp;quot; (Dorothy Kilgallen) was a friend of Wilma. Monster names include amp;quot;Count Rockulaamp;quot; (Count Dracula), Rockzilla (Godzilla), and amp;quot;The Frankenstone Monsteramp;quot; (Frankensteinamp;#39;s monster).
