Pop History Moment: "The Jetsons" Debuted

This is the future the fascist media promised us, and goddammit, we're still waiting for it!

On this day in 1962 The Jetsons premiered on ABC, following its established hit The Flintstones; both shows offered a critique of contemporary times using anachronistic settings, all safe and easy to swallow thanks to the candy-coloured animation of Hanna-Barbera.

George Jetson was voiced by George O'Hanlon, his wife Jane by Penny Singleton (of Blondie fame); the first episode was entitled Rosie the Robot, who was herself voiced by Jean Vander Pyl*. In another of those pop cultural twists I love so much, the character of Rosie was based on Shirley Booth's Hazel.

Although only 24 episodes were made of this first series, the show also spawned two feature films and a further 51 half-hour episodes were produced for Saturday morning television between 1985 and 1987.

*The lady was already famous as the voice of Wilma Flintstone.
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