Top Cat was a Hanna-Barbera classic created in 1961 following the escapades of a bunch of alleycats living in New York and their opportunistc leader called Top Cat. The cats: Spook, FancyFancy, ChooChoo, Brain and Benny were lovable petty criminals always on the lookout for a quick buck, and ran any number of schemes to try to make their fortune. The other main charater in the cartoon was Officer Dibble. Top Cat's alley was a part of Dibble's beat and so many episodes revolved around Dibble trying to stop Top Cat and his friends from cuasing a nuisance, or getting them to tidy-up the alley. Top Cat and Dibble are probably best described as friendly rivalries rather than enemies, for example Top Cat helps Dibble solve any number of crimes, and in one episoe where it looks like Dibble is going to lose his beat to Officer Prowler, Top Cat and the gang help him to win the day.
Here in the UK Top Cat was orignially aired as 'Boss Cat', due to the fact that at the time there was a popular brand of cat food by the same name. This was acheived by the title screens being chopped very shoddily to display 'Boss Cat'; rather than 'Top Cat', but as the characters still referred to him as Top Cat throughout the cartoon it was more of a perfunctory nod to the cat food brand name, rather than a complete re-haul of the cartoon. Of course since approximately 1990, the cartoon now appears in the UK as Top Cat, as it managd to outlive the catfood by a long-shot!
Top Cat
Close friends get to call him T.C! Top Cat lives at the en of the alley in a converted Trash Can, which has even got its own t.v. reception! Top Cat also makes free use of the police phone at the end of the alley which is a particular annoyance to Officer Dibble. The show was based on the Phil Silvers show, which was very popular at the time, and Arnold Stang is said to have modelled his voice on that of Phil Silvers to add that special something something to T.C.'s character.
Officer Dibble
Officer Dibble is the New York police officer with the unfortunate luck of having Top Cat's alley as part of his beat! He spends quite a bit of his time trying to either catch-out Top Cat and his friends in the middle of some caper, or alternatively trying to encourage them to be better citizens and tidy-up after themselves!
Benny the Ball
Benny's character was voiced by Maurice Gosfield who played Private Duane Doberman in the Phil Silvers show. Benny was Top Cat's right-hand man, he was not as sharp as Top Cat, but he was a devoted friend and was able to run a scam with the best of them.
Spook
Spook doesn't really speak alot in the episodes. Spook and Fancy Fancy are pretty similar in appearance. Spook distinguishes himself from the rest of the gang by being a bit of a hustler and a pool shark.
Choo-Choo
Choo Choo, affectionately referred to as Chooch by his friends, is a cat that lives at the local Fire House. Other than Benny Chooch is probably Top Cat's most trusted friend.
Fancy-Fancy
As you can see by the silk scarf that he wears, Fancy Fancy ws a bit of a ladies' man! He is a smooth talker and often is seen at th ebeginning of many episodes chatting up one of the neighbourhood felines, often before getting himself pulled into one of T.C.'s schemes.
Brain
Despite his name Brain is not ne of the quickest cats in the neighbourhood. Brain stutters slightly and is also usually put in charge of the gang's money (what little they manage to successfully scam!)
Top Cat Trivia
Although Top Cat was always a colour cartoon it originally got screened in Black and White on the American television network ABC. ABC are reputed to have bought the show form Hanna-Barbera on the basis of just one sketch of Top Cat! Also if you watch the title sequence very carefully the waiter who serves Top Cat his milk jumps from in front of, to behind, the lunch box when Top Cat lifts his hat, which apparently was a pet peeve of the producers that it never got fixed, but went out like this on every show!
The most effectual Top Cat!
Who's intellectual . . . close friends get to call him T.C. . . .
Providing it's with dignity!
Top Cat!
The indisputable leader of the gang.
He's the boss, he's a pip, he's the championship.
He's the most tip top,Top Cat!
Yes he's a chief, he's a king,
But above everything,
He's the most tip top, Top Cat.
Top Cat!
Farewell, Mr. Dibble - There's a new cop on the beat, Officer Prowler. Prowler a no nosense policeman ousts Dibble from his job. Top Cat and th egang work thei rmagic to get Dibble re-instated and Prowler off the beat!
The Grand Tour - Choo-Choo follows one of Top Cat's guided tour fake treasure maps, but this time there is actually real treasure at the end of it. Before T.C. and the gang can get their hands on Captain Kidd's treasure that Choo Choo has found the city claim it for their own - and fien Top Cat for running a city guided tour without the proper licenses.
The Golden Fleecing - Benny receives a $2,000 insurance pay-out, with which he treats Top Cat and the gang to a slap-up meal at the Pink Palm Club. Whilst there Benny fall sin love with the singer, Honeydew Melon, but he hasn't met her family yet - the notorious Melon Gang!
Space Monkey - Top Cat and the gang rescue the home-sick Marvo from a planned 'Chimp in Space' flight, by re-directing the rocket back to his home in Africa!
The Late T.C. - Dibble overehars a doctor telling Top Cat that his 'ticker will only last for a week'. Not realising that the doctor meant Top Cat's watch and not his heart, Dibble pampers Top Cat, until of course he finds out the truth - Top Cat is going no-where!
Dibble's Birthday - Once again Dibble overhears a conversation incorrectly. Dibble hears the police chief saying he is 'going to remove all of the old wrecks from the force'. Top Cat throws Dibble a surprise birthday party to cheer him up, and the real present is that Dibble finds out the chief was just talking about replacing the old police cars!
Choo-Choo Goes Ga-Ga - Choo-Choo scores a date with the Hollywood actress Lola Glamure, he is a bit disapointed when he finds out he's actually got a date with his old classmate Gerti Hefflemeyer!
King for a Day - Dibble is crowned King for a Day, when Top Cat is exposed in the middle of a scam by Dibble. Top Cat is on the show 'King for a Day' pretending the rest of his gang are his hard-up family and they deserve a prize. Dibble comes on the show to expose them, but Top Cat tells them that without Dibble they would starve and he is the real King for a Day!
The Con Men - Top Cat helps Tony the Hot-Dog salesman to get his revenge on two con-men that stole his money. Top Cat gets Tony back three times what the con-men took from him!
Dibble Breaks the Record - If Dibble can stay on the beat for just a few more weeks he will win a two week vacation for the longest un-interrupted service on the force. Top Cat and the gang are very keen for a fortnight without Offcier Dibble butting into their scams and so when he is struck down with a cold they do everything they can to keep him at work!
Dibble Sings Again - Top Cat owes Big Gus a lot of money, so he convinces Dibble that he should take up a singing career and have Top Cat as his manager. But at heart Dibble finds out that he is most comforatble on the beat.
Griswald - Dibble recruits police dog Griswald to keep Top Cat form using the police phone in the alley. For a while Dibble's plan works perfectly, until Top Cat sets it up so that Griswald accidentally bites the police commissioner, when he tries to use the phone!
Dibble's Double - There is an art thief lose in town, and what's worse he's dressing up as Officer Dibble to carry out his crimes. When the thief steals Top Cat's paintings from him, Top Cat decides enough is enough and helps Dibble to catch Al the Actor, the notorious thief.
Top Cat: Episode Guide
Hawaii Here We Come - Benny wins a cruise to Hawaii, so he and the gang board the SS Aloha Hooey, unaware that Officer Dibble is also on the ship. Dibble has been chasing a counterfieter, whose money T.C. and the gang find. Dibble finds the guys spending the counterfeit cash and throws them in the brig, but all's well that ends well, T.C. devises a way to catch the real counterfieter, leaving Dibble and the gang to enjoy the rest of their cruise!
Maharajah of Pookajee - T.C. and the gang sneak past hotel security to try and visit the Maharajah who is well know for giving out expensive jewels as gifts. The hotel mistakes T.C. for the Maharajah and pout him up in a penthouse suite, that is until the real Maharajah arrives!
All That Jazz - There's a new cat in town! Top Cat vies with Jazz to be the coolest cat in town. Meanwhile Benny gets the starring role in a HollyWood film, 'the Thing from the Alley!'
The $1,000,000 Derby - Top Cat beleives that the horse Benny has brought to photo kids on as a side-business could eb a winnig race-horse. Posing as Arabian oil king Ali Khat T.C. enters the horse into a million dollar, but unfortunately the horse is so used to posing for photos it stops at the photo finish for a portait!
The Violin Player - Benny is mistaken for the world renowned violinst Laszlo Laszlo. T.C. quickly negiotiates a $50,000 dollar deal for Benny to play at the Carnegie Hall,all goes well until they realise thier street cleaner is the real Laszlo Laszlo!
The Missing Heir - T.C. and the gang go to Ridgeley Hall where Benny tries to claim the inheritance of a missing heir that looks just lie him. Unfortunately the resident butler (who is next in line to the fortune) has other ideas.
Top Cat Falls In Love - Top Cat submits himself to hospital with the fake disease 'Blubberitis' to try and woo the resident nurse Ms La Rue.
A Visit From Mother - Benny's mother comes for a visit to the big city. Unfortunately Benny has told her that he is the Mayor of New York, Top Cat and the gang help him keep up the pretence.
Naked Town - Two wanted criminals Knuckles and Ape con Top Cat, Dibble and the gang into helping them steal from a warehouse, under the rouse of being a tv production company filimingin Hoag's alley. Luckily T.C. and the gang realise just in time to set a trap of their own.
Sergeant Top Cat - Top Cat overhears Officer Dibble's great ideas for imporving the policing of the neighbourhood. When Top Cat then repeats these ideas to the police captain as his own, he is made an honorary Sergeant! Dibble finally gets T.C. to sign a confession, when he is asked for help by T.C. during a shoot-out in the alley by soem local robbers.
Choo-Choo's Romance - Choo-Choo falls in love with Goldie a sophisticated cat from next door, that is until her boyfriend Pierre challenges Top Cat to a duel mistakenly beleiving he is Choo Choo.
The Unscratchables - Benny swallows a diamond stolen from Stiftany's by Big Gus' gang. Top Cat and the gang hav to rescue Benny from Big Gus by pretendin gto be 'the Unscratchables'. After succesffully rescuing Benny they lose the diamond, when Benny sneezes and the diamond falls under a steam-roller!
Rafeefleas - Benny falls asleep in the museum and accidentally walks out with a priceless Egyptian brooch. When they realise this, the gang try to do the right thing and return it to the museum, where Officer Dibble catches them as thieves! Before he can arrest them the real jewel thief appears and Dibble arrests him.
The Tycoon - Mr Vanderfeller is searching for a homeless person to present a chequwe for a million dollars to. Benny receives the cheque, when Mr Vanderfeller beleives that T.C. and the gang are Benny's destitute family. Unfortunately T.C. accidentally tears up the cheque not realising what it is!
The Long Hot Winter - The gang call 'Strife' magazine and tell them Dibble is a philanthropist who is offering his apartment for cold alley cats to spend the night in. When Strife comes to talk to Dibble he is conned into allowing T.C. and the gang to stay in his apartment all winter!
The Case of the Absent Anteater - An ant-eater called Jimmy follows Benny back to the Alley. The gang realise that there is a reward for returning Jimmy to the Zoo, but before they can he is caught by a dog-catcher, they are going to need to break him out!
T.C. Minds the Baby - T.C. find a baby abandoned in a park by it's mother with a note asking the finder to take care of him. T.C. and the gang become unlikely, but very succesful parents. Dibble has to take the baby back from them though when the mother changes her mind, be prepared for some tears!
