The Banana Splits! (partially found pilot for cancelled "Banana Splits" reboot; 2016)

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The pilot's logo, done by Parker Jacobs.

Status: Partially Found

The Banana Splits Adventure Hour was a live-action-animated hybrid series created by Hanna-Barbera Productions that originally aired on NBC from September 7th, 1968, to November 29th, 1969. The series is named for its hosts, an animal band consisting of Fleegle the Beagle, Bingo the Gorilla, Drooper the Lion, and Snorky the Elephant. The Splits appeared in no animated segments of their own and instead appeared in song and comedy sketches in between the show's segments.

After the show's cancellation, there have been many attempts by Warner Bros. to reboot the series, such as in 2016, when Warner Bros. teamed up with Christian Jacobs (best known for Yo Gabba Gabba! and The Aquabats! Super Show! fame)^[1] to make a pilot for an attempted revival of the show.

Production/Development

The filming for the pilot commenced from October 18th, 2016,^[2] to October 22nd, 2016.^[3] A few days of the shooting of the pilot took place on location at Castle Park in Riverside, California. During the filming process, as well as the Pre-Production phases of the pilot, Parker Jacobs, an artist who worked on the pilot, teased the project multiple times through his daily doodles online.

The production companies involved with the reboot pilot are Awesome Forces! (Founded by Christian Jacobs and his collaborator Jason deVilliers) and Escalante Pictures (Joe Escalante's production company, Joe also worked on the pilot as both a writer and producer).^[4]

Cuchillo Lope, a gaffer on the pilot, mentioned how it was stated to be super fun and stayed true to capture the spirit of the original "Banana Splits" show, but was also perfect for today's kids. Warner Bros. loved the pilot that was made, saying that it was "probably better than the original" show.

However, despite the pilot being completed, Warner Bros. decided to not go through and ultimately shelved the pilot. Multiple crew members were disappointed at this decision, due to the hard work that was put into production.^[5]

Availability

Very little material has resurfaced from the pilot.^[6]^[7] Currently, the only known available footage of it was a seven-second clip as part of the 2017 Awesome Forces! production reel on Vimeo. In 2022, Christian Jacobs, one of the makers involved with the pilot, uploaded an eight-second behind-the-scenes clip from the on-location shoot at Castle Park on his Instagram, however, the post, as well as Christian's Instagram, has been set to private. The clip can still be found on Twitter.^[8]

Footage

Footage of the pilot (00:20, 00:27).

Gallery

Photo of "The Banana Splits" drums used in the pilot.^[9]
Behind-the-scenes photo, showcasing Bingo The Gorilla.^[10]
Behind-the-scenes photo, showcasing Cuchillo Lope (gaffer) with Bingo the Gorilla.
Behind-the-scenes photo with the main Splits on set, while Bingo is being thrown off scissor lift.
Behind-the-scenes photo with the main Splits on set (1/2).
Behind-the-scenes photo with the main Splits on set (2/2).
Crew member in the Bingo suit.
Crew members setting up lighting rig on set.
Crew member with the finished lighting rig.
Pre-painting prep work for set, done by Production Designer Helen Harwell.
Drooper and Snorky on the Scrambler ride at Castle Park in Riverside, California.
Crew member Gabe Graham on a scissor lift near set.
Gaffer Cuchillo Lope, along with several crew members on set.

External Links

References

[1] ttps://parkerjacobs.myportfolio.com/logo-design

[2] ttp://parkerjacobs.blogspot.com/2016/10/this-is-your-daily-doodle_18.html

[3] ttps://instagram.com/p/BL5JEEBjqcz/

[4] ttps://escalantepictures.com/projects

[5] ttps://twitter.com/HosteenCholo/status/1571702095526658049

[6] ttps://twitter.com/HosteenCholo/status/1345519433939361795

[7] ttps://twitter.com/HosteenCholo/status/789998273150853120

[8] ttps://twitter.com/Bugmaster06/status/1541296064929509377

[9] ttps://instagram.com/p/BL1G1W4jfRU/

[10] ttps://instagram.com/p/BLu8WrVDv4i/

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