The Houndcats cartoon is about TV animals spoofing Mission: Impossible.
The hounds walk on their hind legs (anthropomorphised). In other words they are bipedal. The group consists of:
- Musselmutt who is a big sheepdog-type with huge strength.
- Dingdog, a dog in a Confederate uniform and therefore from the Southern states of America.
- Stutz, who is cat (that’s why this article is justified!). He is dressed like an car driver from days gone by – the early 1900s perhaps.
- Puttypuss, “a pudgy cat-master of disguises”.
- Rhubarb, a dog who is an inventor and scientist dressed in an oversized coat and a large, floppy hat.
They travelled in a Stutz Bearcat – an American sports car of the era of the first world war. The car was named: Sparkplug.
The Houndcats were involved in various exploits such as:
- The Double Dealing Diamond Mission
- The Ruckus on the Rails Mission
- The Great Gold Train Mission
- Misbehavin’ Raven Mission
Things always went awry despite careful planning. However, they always end up being triumphant.
The Houndcats had their own NBC show from 1972-1973. There were 13 episodes. It was produced by DePatie-Freleng.
The voices were as follows:
- Aldo Ray for Musselmutt
- Stu Gilliam for Dingdog
- Daws Butler for Stutz
- Joe Besser of the Three Stooges for Puttypuss
- Arte Johnson for Rhubarb
