This video is part of an ongoing project to build a retrospective TV archive made for the LL community on my Retro TV channel at
http://www.liveleak.com/c/Retro_TV_

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It's Saturday kiddies!!!

The Ghost Busters is a live action children's show from 1975 that had 15 episodes, produced by Filmation. Starring Forrest Tucker and Larry Storch of "F-Troop" fame, with Bob Burns as Tracy the Gorilla. If you enjoyed them in F-Troop then you would like them in this show too, as the comedy duo continue their vaudeville slapstick tradition. This show was one of the last bastions of pure vaudeville on TV I might add. The show also had an interesting habit of referring to classic cinema. For example two of the main characters were named Spencer and Tracy. (In homage to the actor)

The Ghost Busters had a basic formula. Spencer and Tracy would stop at a store where they would pick up a recording of their mission that would explain their assignment. Yes a parody of Mission Impossible. After the message blows up in Spencer's face they would chase down an apparition, be it Fankenstein's Monster or the Canterville Ghost. After many bumbling chases and pratfalls they would corner the ghost with some wacky plan and send it from whence it came with their dematerializer gun. Sound familiar?

Filmation followed up this series in 1986 with the animated show Ghostbusters, it had 86 episodes. This animated series was based on the 1975 TV show not the 1984 film. Much to the chagrin of Columbia Pictures and Ivan Reitman the makers of the film Ghostbusters 1984, who thought it rode the coattails of their movie. Which no doubt it did. Columbia had purchased the rights to use the name Ghostbusters for the 1984 film but there was no agreement about using the name for other purposes and there was nothing in the contracts about Filmation not using the name. A gross oversight.

There was a lawsuit in 1985 between Filmation and Columbia Pictures. Filmation won with a settlement out of court. Part of that settlement was that Columbia couldn't name their animated show simply Ghostbusters. Columbia, which was determined to stick it to Filmation came up with a unique idea for their new animated show. Which is why Columbia's animated series was called...

..."The Real Ghostbusters" ran from 1986 to 1991 with a total of 147 episodes. This animated series was based on the 1984 film. That episode total includes the remake of the show during the third season in 1988 into and hour long show. It was renamed...

...Slimer and The Real Ghostbusters is our fourth intro in this Retro TV episode. From the third season to the last seventh season another half hour was added to the show. The first half hour remained somewhat the same, with some noticeable differences in animation. This second half hour of the show contained several short stories focused on Slimer. Who was rating well with the kiddies. It introduced new characters also.

There was also another incarnation of the franchise called "Extreme Ghostbusters" in 1997. But that show is unfortunately in the 90's, beyond the reach of this Retro series. Perhaps in another ten years.