Lancelot Link, Secret Chimp
| Lancelot Link, Secret Chimp | |
|---|---|
| Genre |
Action/Adventure Comedy |
| Created by |
Stan Burns Mike Marmer |
| Starring | Tongo (chimpanzee) |
| Voices of |
Dayton Allen Joan Gerber Bernie Kopell |
| Narrated by | Malachi Throne |
| Composer(s) | Bob Emenegger |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 13/17 |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Stan Burns Mike Marmer |
| Camera setup | Single-camera |
| Running time | 45–48 minutes (1970–1971) 22–24 minutes (1971–1972) |
| Production company(s) | Sandler-Burns-Marmer Productions |
| Distributor | CBS Television Distribution |
| Release | |
| Original network | ABC |
| Audio format | Monaural |
| Original release | September 12, 1970 – January 2, 1971 |
Lancelot Link, Secret Chimp is an American action/adventure comedy series that originally aired on ABC from September 12, 1970 to January 2, 1971. The Saturday morning live-action film series featured a cast of chimpanzees given apparent speaking roles by overdubbing with human voices.
Lancelot Link, Secret Chimp had a "seven-figure budget" with location filming, props and costumes, and the laborious staging and training of the animals. The filmmakers made the most of the budget, staging multiple episodes with the same settings and wardrobe, occasionally reusing the more elaborate chase footage that sometimes included a Rolls Royce.
Two of the three producers/creators were Stan Burns and Mike Marmer, former writers for Get Smart! Both resigned from their jobs as head writers on The Carol Burnett Show to work on Lancelot Link, Secret Chimp.
According to The Believer, "to make the dialogue fit the chimps’ lip action, Burns and Marmer went to ridiculous lengths. Voiceovers were ad-libbed on the set, giving birth to beautifully absurd moments of the chimps breaking into songs at the end of sentences or spontaneously reciting Mother Goose rhymes just so it would look right."
Owing considerable lineage to Get Smart, the plot was always played for laughs and featured Lancelot Link and his female colleague, "Mata Hairi," whose own name in turn was a play on Mata Hari, in secret agent and spy satires. Link worked for A.P.E., the Agency to Prevent Evil, in an ongoing conflict with the evil organization C.H.U.M.P., the Criminal Headquarters for the Underworld's Master Plan. APE's chief Darwin gave Link and Hairi their orders as part of his "theory," a play on the Charles Darwin (after whom the character had been named) theory of evolution. CHUMP's monocled chief Baron von Butcher inevitably hatched the latest plan to endanger the world. The Baron's network of international fiends included his shifty chauffeur Creto, mad scientist Dr. Strangemind, imperious Dragon Woman, drowsy Wang Fu, singing sheikh Ali Assa Seen, and the cultured Duchess. One or more would appear in each episode.
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