Question: As a child, I ...

Question: As a child, I remember a show that was live-action as well as animated. Some of the offerings were tales of Huck Finn, Tom Sawyer and Becky lost in an animated world (the main characters were played by 'real' actors); and I believe an animated version of Gulliver's Travels was also part of the rotation. I'm thinking it was part of the Banana Splits show, but I can't find any information. — Michael, Austin, Tex.

Televisionary: It was indeed part of The Banana Splits, Michael.

You're thinking of NBC's The New Adventures of Huck Finn, which initially ran for a year, beginning in September 1968. Starring Michael Shea, Kevin Schultz and Lu Ann Haslam as Huck, Tom and Becky, the show yanked our heroes (played by the in-the-flesh actors) out of their own book and into animated versions of other classics, where they met their literary counterparts (Don Quixote, Medusa, etc.) and spent a great deal of time running from Injun Joe. (Joe was played by The Addams Family's Ted Cassidy when he chased them through McDougall's cave and into a time warp to kick off the show, then voiced by him when the character showed up in animated form during their travels).

The show first aired as a stand-alone, but after it was axed it was folded into the syndicated Splits.