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Kissyfur

Series, 1986, The mid '80s, Set in Paddlecab County

Kissyfur is #9 of 16 in release order and #9 of 16 in chronological order in the NBC Saturday Morning Cartoons.

The story

Kissyfur is a 1980s animated children's television series which aired on NBC. It was produced by Jean Chalopin & Andy Heyward and created by Phil Mendez for DIC. The series was based on a half-hour NBC prime-time special called Kissyfur: Bear Roots and was followed by three more specials until its Saturday morning debut. The show ran for two seasons. The show follows the adventures of Gus and Kissyfur, a father and son bear duo who had joined the circus. One day on a circus trip, the train they are riding in derails and the bears escape to a new life in the swamps of Paddlecab County. There, they protect the local swamp's inhabitants from the local bumbling alligators Floyd and Jolene. Kissyfur and his father use the skills they have acquired from the human world to create a boat tour business transporting other animals and their products down the river.

Kissyfur recap

Kissyfur (1986) follows a bear cub and his father who leave the circus and make a new home in a southern swamp. Phil Mendez created it, and NBC Productions made it with DIC Animation City. After their circus train derails, eight-year-old Kissyfur (R. J. Williams, later Max Meier) and his widowed father Gus (Ed Gilbert) settle in Paddlecab County, where Gus starts a boat business ferrying swamp folk and tourists. Kissyfur's mother had died in an accident during a circus performance. Kissyfur becomes leader of the swamp's young animals: Beehonie the rabbit, Duane the pig, Stuckey the porcupine, Toot the beaver, Lennie the young warthog, Ralph the pack rat and Flip the chameleon. Miss Emmy Lou (Russi Taylor), a bear who teaches school, is Gus's love interest. The alligators Floyd (Stu Rosen) and Jolene (Terence McGovern) are always plotting to catch the cubs, and Gus and Kissyfur protect the swamp from them. The story began with prime-time specials, starting with Kissyfur: Bear Roots in December 1985. The Saturday morning series premiered on September 13, 1986, and ran two seasons of 13 episodes each, 26 in all, until 1988.

Kissyfur ending explained

Kissyfur ends with "The Great Swamp Taxi Race" and "Weight Not Want Not", aired December 3, 1988. Both are everyday swamp stories, and there is no finale: Floyd and Jolene are still trying to catch the cubs when the show stops. NBC did not order a third season, and Kissyfur has not returned in a new series. The prime-time specials and the 26 Saturday episodes make up the whole of the character's screen life.

Ratings

IMDb 7.6/10

Where it fits

Cast

Created by Phil Mendez.