The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper

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The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper
The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper.png
GenreAnimated
Based onCasper the Friendly Ghost
by Seymour Reit
Joe Oriolo
Developed bySherri Stoner & Deanna Oliver
Directed byAlfred Gimeno (seasons 1–2)
Marija Miletic Dail (seasons 3–4)
Voices ofMalachi Pearson
Kath Soucie
Dan Castellaneta
Joe Nipote
Joe Alaskey
Brad Garrett
Jess Harnell
Rob Paulsen
Miriam Flynn
Tress MacNeille
Frank Welker
Jim Cummings
Debi Derryberry
Sherry Lynn
April Winchell
Tim Curry
ComposersMichael Tavera
Thom Sharp
Bruce Babcock
Charles Fernandez
Harvey Cohen
Ron Grant
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons4
No. of episodes52
Production
Executive producerJeffrey A. Montgomery
ProducersAlfred Gimeno (seasons 1–2)
Marija Miletic Dail (seasons 3–4)
EditorsPaul D. Calder
Ken Solomon
Production companiesAKOM (South Korea)
Amblin Television
The Harvey Entertainment Company
Universal Cartoon Studios
Jeffrey A. Montgomery Productions
DistributorMCA TV (North America and Japan)
HIT Entertainment (Worldwide, except North America and Japan)[1]
Release
Original networkFox Kids
Picture formatNTSC, 4:3
Original releaseFebruary 24, 1996 (1996-02-24) –
October 17, 1998 (1998-10-17)

The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper is an animated television spin-off and a sequel of the feature film Casper, which, in turn, was based on the Harvey Comics cartoon character of Casper the Friendly Ghost.[2]

Production[]

At the time that principal filming wrapped on Casper, a sequel was proposed and a treatment was written, but a combination of less-than-stellar box office gross (although the film grossed $100 million in the US, the budget was more than half of that total and analysts predicted much higher earnings for the film) and the fact that both Christina Ricci and Bill Pullman were attached to other projects after Casper and would not be available until more than a year later caused the idea to be scrapped. The producers then decided to abandon the live-action sequel ideas and instead develop a cartoon series to continue the story.

The show aired on Fox Kids television from 1996–1998 for 3 seasons.[3] 52 episodes were produced, but only the first 46 appeared on Fox, with the remaining debuting on Fox Family Channel. Many of the same people who worked on this show also worked on Tiny Toon Adventures, Animaniacs and Pinky and the Brain (the latter of which was a spin-off from the former; coincidentally, the former had also debuted on Fox).

The new Casper broke from earlier versions, following a sitcom-style pattern of one-liners and pop culture gags in a manner similar to the Casper feature. The show would also frequently break the fourth wall. The show used old Casper supporting characters such as Casper's cousin Spooky, Spooky's "ghoulfriend" Pearl (or "Poil" as rendered by Spooky's Brooklyn accent), and Nightmare the Ghost Horse who, unlike in the original cartoons and comics, does not talk. The show also introduced new characters, including Casper's super-loud teacher Ms. Banshee.

Characters[]

Casper[]

Casper McFadden has been haunting his family home of Whipstaff Manor for some time, having died from pneumonia (according to a newspaper seen during the scene in the attic from the feature film) after he played out in the cold for too long when he was twelve years old. Now in the care of his three troublemaking uncles, Stretch, Stinkie and Fatso, Casper's afterlife is not exactly pleasant. He has to put up with his uncles' outrageous antics, and his wish to gain a friend in a human is usually ruined. The only exception to this was when Kat and Dr. Harvey moved into Whipstaff. Kat became a close friend to him. Casper has been a ghost for just over a hundred years, as Stinkie and Fatso once stated that Casper's age is 115 and a half years old. Casper himself is very friendly and outgoing, but he sometimes appears rather shy. Most ghosts view his behaviour as unusual, as they believe ghosts should not be friendly or polite in any way. Other ghosts are sometimes even afraid of his good manners, to which Casper sometimes uses to his advantage. One example was when the Ghostly Trio appealed to Casper for help after being convicted in a supernatural court, which denied them to be ghosts any longer as they had no unfinished business on Earth, therefore they would have to crossover. Casper intervened, and revealed quite honestly that his uncles had not taught him how to be scary yet, enabling them to remain as ghosts on Earth. As in the film, Casper is voiced by Malachi Pearson.

The Ghostly Trio[]

The Ghostly Trio are Casper's uncles, who love scaring humans, or as they call them, "fleshies", "skinbags", "bone-bags" and "skinsacks". They include Stretch, the tallest, and hot-headed leader, Stinkie, who almost always smells, and in turn loves anything smelly. He uses his bad smell as a weapon or annoyance on others, and Fatso, who is seen as the least intelligent of the brothers, and loves to eat almost anything. The three are chaotic in every sense, and can't resist scaring or causing trouble no matter what the cost. They order Casper around constantly, who they refer to as "Bulbhead" or "Short-sheet". However, despite being considered mean spirits, they do on a number of occasions display compassionate sides. One example was when Casper was accidentally turned into a baby. The Ghostly Trio at first reluctantly, took care of him, but soon bonded with him, particularly Stretch. They also appeared to be worried about Casper when they thought he was going to face "the most evil spirit to haunt the Earth", Whitebeard, on his own. There was a rare occasion when Casper became furious and shouted at the Trio for not restraining their own anger during a "frightening storm", which fed off the fury of others. Casper even planned on leaving his uncles, which surprised them further. However, using the best thing to compliments only the Trio could give, such as "fun to knock around", "easily insultable", and even admitting that they liked him, they persuaded him to stay. In the film, the primary turning point for the Ghostly Trio was when they kept their promise to Dr. Harvey, and brought his wife Amelia, to speak to him one last time. As in the feature film, they are voiced by Joe Nipote, Joe Alaskey and Brad Garrett, although in the third and fourth seasons Fatso would be voiced by Jess Harnell, who also voiced Fatso in the direct-to-video films: Casper: A Spirited Beginning and Casper Meets Wendy. Notably, Harnell also voiced Wakko Warner, who like Fatso also has a voracious appetite, and was one of three manic siblings who perpetually annoyed a psychiatrist.

Dr. Harvey[]

Dr. James Harvey (or "Doc" as he is called by the Ghostly Trio) is a psychiatrist and is shown to be an alumnus of Johns Hopkins University. In the film, after his wife Amelia's death, he has gone on to become a "ghost therapist” to find and make contact with his wife, because he believes she is a ghost. However, after learning that she instead became an angel, he and his teenage daughter Kat stay at their new home of Whipstaff, where he continues to work as a ghost therapist, trying (unsuccessfully) to rehabilitate the mischief-making Ghostly Trio. Dr. Harvey is an easy-going guy with a big heart. He obviously loves Kat, although he sometimes appears rather neglectful of his motherless daughter's emotional needs. This was demonstrated in the scene from the film where he speaks with his departed wife when he says he is worried that he's not taking good care of her, but Amelia assured him that he was doing a good job, although she gave him some "motherly" advice ("Don't pick up the extension every time she gets a phone call, french fries are not a breakfast food..." etc.) Dr. Harvey tolerates the Ghostly Trio antics, and it is because of this that they grow to like him, and kept their promise to him so he could speak to Amelia. The animated version of Dr. Harvey deviates slightly from the film version, in that the animated Dr. Harvey was totally focused on being a therapist and used psychological epithets when talking to everyone, including his own daughter. Kat, Casper and the Ghostly trio simply regarded this as an eccentricity. The role was originated by Bill Pullman in the Casper film, but he is voiced by Dan Castellaneta on the show.

Kat Harvey[]

Kathleen "Kat" Harvey is the daughter of Dr. Harvey and is portrayed as the stereotypical teenager who has a sense of humour.

She is about thirteen years old (about the age Christina Ricci, who originated the role in the Casper film, was when the film was filmed) and is a good companion to Casper. Kat hates having to put up with the Ghostly Trio because none of them get along with her. Any time they spend together usually involves insulting each other. On one occasion, after the Trio made fun of her for not being able to get a job, Kat made a bet with them saying she could get a job, and bring home a paycheck before they could. The end result was all of them getting a job in the same theatre, which became partly destroyed, after which they declared a draw. But there are rare occasions when Kat and the Ghostly Trio would work together. One example was when to Kat and Casper's surprise, the Trio were trying to return the goldfish Kat won at a fair back to its mother. At first she thought they were going to turn it into a "ghost fish", but when they told her what they were planning, she became slightly emotional and decided to help. Another example was when Dr. Harvey was given his own television show in order to help all ghosts. Both he and Casper became famous and power hungry, resulting in Kat and the Ghostly Trio being neglected, and treated badly. This resulted in them working together to remind Dr. Harvey what was more important. Kat is voiced by Kath Soucie on the show.

Spooky[]

Spooky is Casper's mischief-minded cousin. He looks up to the Ghostly Trio as his heroes and, while having no true dislike for Casper, despises his cousin's lack of interest in scaring humans. As such, Spooky is always trying to out-scare Casper and become the best in class, but usually fails. However, underneath the gruff, ghostly exterior, Spooky may also have a slight soft spot for his cousin. Spooky is visually very similar to Casper, but he has a black nose and freckles, wears a brown "doiby" hat, and speaks in a Brooklyn accent. He is voiced by Rob Paulsen.

Pearl[]

Pearl or "Poil" is Spooky's "ghoulfriend". Often absent-minded, Pearl is almost always oblivious to current situations and takes things way too literally. She adores Spooky and everything about him, right down to the freckles on his face and his black nose, is good friends with Casper and doesn't care as much for the Ghostly Trio as Spooky does. She is voiced by Miriam Flynn.

Miss Banshee[]

Miss Maddie Banshee is the teacher at Casper, Spooky and Poil's ghost school. Befitting her name, Miss Banshee can yell and scream loud enough to be heard several towns away, even to wake the dead. Miss Banshee enjoys being a teacher, but dreams of being a professional opera singer. All three of the Ghostly Trio have a crush on Miss Banshee, and constantly compete for her affections. Miss Banshee is okay with the Trio, but remains unimpressed with their efforts. She is voiced by Tress MacNeille.

Amber Whitmire and the Jennifers[]

Amber Whitmire and the Jennifers are classmates and rivals of Kat's at Friendship Junior High School. Amber and the Jennifers are portrayed as rich, mean, spoiled queen bees. Jennifer #1 has dark brown hair and wears glasses and is the closest to Amber, Jennifer #2 has strawberry blonde hair, and Jennifer #3 has light brown hair and a snorting laugh and is the least intelligent of the three. Amber is voiced by Sherry Lynn and the Jennifers are voiced by Debi Derryberry.

Series overview[]

Season Episodes Originally aired
Season premiere Season finale
1 10 February 24, 1996 May 18, 1996
2 16 September 7, 1996 February 22, 1997
3 20 September 6, 1997 February 27, 1998
4 6 September 12, 1998 October 17, 1998

Episodes[]

Season 1 (1996)[]

Episode No. Title(s) Original airdate
1 Spooking Bee
Fugedabouit
The Flew
February 24, 1996
2 Paws
The Alphabet Song
Is So Too
March 2, 1996
3 Legend of Duh Bigfoot
The Ghostly Day
Invasion of the UGFO's
March 9, 1996
4 Rocket Booster
A Really Scary Casper Moment
The Day of the Living Casper
March 16, 1996
5 Three Boos and a Babe
The Whipstaff Inmates
Elusive Exclusive
March 30, 1996
6 Paranormal Press
Another Spooky and Poil Moment
Deadstock
April 20, 1996
7 Poil Jammed
The Who That I Am
A Picture Says a Thousand Words
April 27, 1996
8 Spooks, Lies and Videotapes
Ghostfather
May 4, 1996
9 Rebel Without a Date
Don't Bank on It
May 11, 1996
10 Casper vs. the Ultimate Fan Boy
Field of Screams
May 18, 1996

Season 2 (1996–1997)[]

Episode No. Title(s) Original airdate
1 Grim and Bare It
Fatso of the Opera
September 7, 1996
2 Dead of the Class
A Spooky and Poil Moment
Y-Files
September 14, 1996
3 Losing Face
Galloping Ghost
September 21, 1996
4 Aunt Misbehavin'
Split Personalities
September 28, 1996
5 Something to Stink About
Pulp Friction
October 5, 1996
6 Ectospasms
Stink of the Road
Doc's Depression
October 12, 1996
7 Boo to the Future
All That Falderal
October 19, 1996
8 Spooky and Poil Meet the Monsters
You Know You're Alive When...
13 Ways to Scare a Fleshie
The Trick's a Treat
October 26, 1996
9 Frightening Storm
The Ghostly Trio
The Legend of Whitebeard
November 2, 1996
10 Three Ghosts and a Baby
I Wanna Be Rude
Leave It to Casper
November 9, 1996
11 Luck of the Spookish
Daycare Nightmare
November 16, 1996
12 Scream Card
You Know You're Alive When...
Lady Screams the Boos
November 23, 1996
13 A Christmas Peril
Ms. Banshee's Holiday Hits
Good Morning Dr. Harvey
Fright Before Christmas
December 21, 1996
14 A Midsummer's Night Scream
You Know You're Alive When...
Auntie Maimed
February 1, 1997
15 Gargoils
Ms. Banshee's Public Domain Hits
Boosom Buddies
February 15, 1997
16 What Goes Around
Scavenger Haunt
February 22, 1997

Season 3 (1997–1998)[]

Episode No. Title(s) Original airdate
1 Columboo
All About "C"
September 6, 1997
2 Hat Sick
Cancion de Olor
The Boo-Muda Triangle
September 13, 1997
3 Intensive Scare
F-A-T-S-O
Stench!
September 20, 1997
4 The Phantom of the Oprah
Stretch's Information Tidbit
The Crying Game
September 27, 1997
5 Free Goldie
I'd Pick Your Nose
Birthday Boos
October 4, 1997
6 Rats!
Stinkie Time Theater
Great Ghouly Governess
October 11, 1997
7 Aboove the Law
Ten Little Fatsos
Haunt-a-Thon
October 31, 1997
8 This Old Manor
Scareobicize
November 3, 1997
9 Gingersnap Out of It
Send a Good Stink Up Their Noses
Ghostly Locks and the Three Scares
November 10, 1997
10 Boopardy
Do You Like Me?
MacDeath!
November 17, 1997
11 The Scummies
Three-Ring Whipstaff
It's Best to Be the Most
November 27, 1997
12 The Son Also Rises
Stretching Is Good for You
Ghostfinger
December 12, 1997
13 Mom Always Likes Ghouls Best
Dare to Scare
Bury Maguire
December 19, 1997
14 Four Funerals and a Wedding
I Can Be Anything
Family Reunion
February 6, 1998
15 Horrid Copy
I'm Nothing Without My Hat
Caspeer Pressure
February 13, 1998
16 That Thing You Boo!
A Good Walk Poiled
February 13, 1998
17 Jasper
It's Great to Be a Ghost
The Boo-Bloods of Whipstaff
February 20, 1998
18 Ghost Jam
Do the Spooky
Dr. Harvey and Mr. Gruesome
February 20, 1998
19 Politically Co-Wrecked Casper
Three Little Letters
Pen and Tell Her
February 27, 1998
20 Jack and the Scream Stalk
Boo Bash a Bone Bag
Artistic? That's a Stretch!
February 27, 1998

Season 4 (1998)[]

Episode No. Title(s) Original airdate
1 Scaredy Boo, Where Have You Got To?
Casper's New Theme Song
The Daunting Game
September 12, 1998
2 At the BOO-vies
Sing Yourself Happy
Snowball's Chance
September 19, 1998
3 NYPD BOO
Three Cool Ghouls
Working Ghouls
September 26, 1998
4 Scream Test
Ms. Banshee's Kid Songs
The Doctor Is Out
October 3, 1998
5 Miami Nice
If You're Unhappy and You Know It
That Advice Stinks
October 10, 1998
6 BOO-kini Beach
Garlic Bread Man
October 17, 1998

Voice cast[]

  • Joe Alaskey
  • Dan Castellaneta
  • Miriam Flynn
  • Jim Cummings
  • Tress MacNeille
  • Brad Garrett
  • Rob Paulsen
  • Kath Soucie
  • Malachi Pearson

Additional voices[]

Crew[]

  • Ginny McSwain - Casting Director and Voice Director (seasons 1–2)
  • Kelly Ward - Voice Director (seasons 3–4)

Home media[]

From 1996 through 1998, Universal Studios Home Video released episodes from seasons 1, 2, and 3 onto VHS.

In 2007/2008, Universal Studios Home Entertainment released two volume collections entitled The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper, Volume 1 and The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper, Volume 2 on DVD in Region 1.[4][5] Volume 1 consists of the first 5 episodes of the animated series, while volume 2 contains the last 5 episodes of season 1.

No further plans have been made by Universal to release any further DVDs of the show.

VHS[]

United States[]

Video Name (Volumes) Ep # Release Date Episodes Featured
Volume 1 6 September 17, 1996 (1996-09-17) Spooking Bee; Fugedabouit; The Flew; Paws; The Alphabet Song; Is So Too
Volume 2 6 September 17, 1996 (1996-09-17) Three Boos and a Babe; The Whipstaff Inmates; Elusive Exclusive; Poil Jammed; The Who That I Am; A Picture Says a Thousand Words
Volume 3 7 September 9, 1997 (1997-09-09) Spooky and Poil Meet the Monsters; You Know You're Alive When...; The Ghostly Trio; The Trick's a Treat; Dead of the Class; A Spooky and Poil Moment; Y-Files
Volume 4 7 September 9, 1997 (1997-09-09) A Christmas Peril; Ms. Banshee's Holiday Hits; Another Spooky and Poil Moment; Fright Before Christmas; Three Ghosts and a Baby; I Wanna Be Rude; Leave It to Casper
Volume 5 6 September 1, 1998 (1998-09-01) Free Goldie; I'd Pick Your Nose; Birthday Boos; Four Funerals and a Wedding; I Can Be Anything; Family Reunion
Volume 6 6 September 1, 1998 (1998-09-01) Rats!; Stinkie Time Theater; Great Ghouly Governess; Hat Sick; Cancion de Olor; The Boo-Muda Triangle

DVD[]

DVD Name Ep # Number of Discs Total Running Time Release Date Additional Information
The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper: Volume 1 5 1 107 minutes September 18, 2007 (2007-09-18) This single-disc volume one set contains the first 5 episodes of the animated series.
The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper: Volume 2 5 1 106 minutes September 9, 2008 (2008-09-09) This single-disc volume two set contains the last 5 episodes of season 1.

References[]

  1. ^ "Archived copy". www.hitentertainment.com. Archived from the original on 3 July 1998. Retrieved 12 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. ^ Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nd ed.). McFarland & Co. pp. 188–191. ISBN 978-1476665993.
  3. ^ Arnold, Mark (2017). The Harvey Comics Companion. BearManor Media. ISBN 9781629332703. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
  4. ^ "Casper DVD news: Box Art for The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper - Volume 1". TVShowsOnDVD.com. 2007-07-17. Archived from the original on 2015-04-02. Retrieved 2015-02-28.
  5. ^ "Casper DVD news: Box Art & Menu for The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper - Volume 2". TVShowsOnDVD.com. 2008-06-28. Archived from the original on 2015-11-04. Retrieved 2015-02-28.

External links[]

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