Funky Phantom, The (ABC 1971, Daws Butler, Mickey Dolenz)

In 1776, a cowardly New Englander named Jonathan Muddlemore grabbed his cat, Boo, and hid from British soldiers inside a grandfather clock in an old, abandoned mansion.

Two hundred years later, a vicious storm forced three teenagers to hole up in the mansion, where they proceeded to reset the aforementioned clock to midnight. This action released the ghosts of Muddlemore and Boo, and the pair teamed up with the teens to fight crime.

Dubbed “Muddsey” by the teens, the still cowardly Muddlemore turned invisible whenever he got frightened, which was quite often. The gang rode around in the Looney Duney dune buggy, crisscrossing America and stomping out evil. Boo’s ghost had a dustup in every episode with Elmo, the teen’s pet bulldog.

Animated in Australia, The Funky Phantom was noted for its unique sound effects, which were unlike those in any other Hanna-Barbera cartoon. The show’s run of original episodes only lasted one season, with repeats being substituted for the second season. After being cancelled in 1973, the show’s episodes were incorporated into The Godzilla/Dynomutt Hour with the Funky Phantom, proving once and for all that if you like Revolutionary War-era ghosts, you’ll love them even more if they’re joined by a giant fire-breathing dinosaur and a robotic crimefighting dog.

This last series only ran two months, after which the Phantom and Boo presumably fled to the veritable sanctity of their grandfather clock, embittered by the phoniness of show business.

production details
USA / ABC – Hanna Barbera / 17×20 minute episodes / Broadcast from 11 September 1971

Music: John Sangster

voice cast
Daws Butler as Jonathan ‘Muddsey’ Muddlemore
Tina Holland as April Stewart
Mickey Dolenz as Skip
Tommy Cook as Augie