40 years ago today (Sept 14th, 1985): Disney's "Adventures of the Gummi Bears" premiered on television
Posted by StatementLazy1797@reddit | Xennials | View on Reddit | 193 comments
eggs_erroneous@reddit
This show was legit. I'm a sucker for stories where part of the plot is rediscovering lost magic/technology from a past civilization. The quick tunnels were badass and I really wanted to ride that thing. Quality Saturday morning shit. And it was immediately followed by Muppet Babies.
Common_Tiger1526@reddit
Fun fact: the theme song is sung by Joseph Williams, son of composer John Williams.
gloebe10@reddit
And lead singer of the band Toto iirc.
jenn363@reddit
And the singing voice of adult Simba in the Lion King
jeng52@reddit
Reading this series of comments 🤯🤯🤯
ghandi3737@reddit
Toto also did the soundtrack for the 1980s 'Dune'.
JerkfaceMcDouche@reddit
I had the same reaction last week from a similar post! It got me to text a bunch of my friends about it because I was so thrown by it.
That family’s DNA needs to be studied to see if there’s a musical gene.
badmotornose@reddit
To save someone a click, he was not the Toto lead singer for Africa and Rosanna. He was on 2 albums in the late 80's and might be in their current touting lineup.
eggplantbren@reddit
Toto superfan here. You are correct about the big hits. He was also on a couple more albums in the 2010s and is the lead singer of the recently concluded tour.
LoudSheepherder5391@reddit
Backing vocals
EggsceIlent@reddit
Awwww yeah it was bound for legend status
At least in my house.
Gummi bears led into a block of cartoons for me that I loved. After GB's there was duck tails, tailspin, Darkwing duck eventually.
Around the same time slot, G.I joe would be on as well, thunder cats, he man, and before all of these Voltron but that might have been really early on Saturdays too.
If I got em a bit shuffled, sorry it's been awhile.
Still great shows. Also HBO played another fav... Fraggle rock.
Saturdays tho I looked forward to Pee-Wees Playhouse.
ShillinTheVillain@reddit
Gummi Bears, Duck Tales and Talespin all had bangers for theme songs too
Weak-Mode7032@reddit
Don't forget the Rescue Rangers! The Disney afternoon was dope.
Josef_Kant_Deal@reddit
And Gargoyles. I was kind of young to really get into that show though
WinterYak1933@reddit
As the kids say, this shit's a bop
SnooConfections6085@reddit
Haha, made a cocktail for a cocktail competition this past summer I named "gummyberry juice"
s_nation@reddit
Reminds me of the Perfect Strangers theme song
dudical_dude@reddit
“Don't be ridiculous!”
hobbes_shot_second@reddit
Listen to He-Man vs Remington Steele intros some time.
col_akir_nakesh@reddit
I've randomly sung this song for years.
andiinAms@reddit
I cannot believe I can sing along to most of this. I don’t even remember watching it. The brain’s filing cabinets are weird like that.
Thanks for the nostalgia!
sasssyrup@reddit
I watched what felt like all 3 episodes of this every chance I got. Why didn’t they give us more!
Embarrassed_Camel422@reddit
I flipping loved this show!
junto80@reddit
A cartoon intro has no reason to slap that hard
International_Link35@reddit
There were some serious bangers back when we were kids!
Dentrvlr@reddit
💯 this and Rescue Rangers pop in my head all the time.
GeauxCup@reddit
Remember this gem? It just popped in my head while I was showering and was like, how do I know this song?!?
yeahokayuhhuhsure@reddit
It's Ducktales for me
🎶 Life is like a hurricane...🎶
International_Link35@reddit
Anyone remember Bucky O'Hare?
GreekGoddessOfNight@reddit
You mean Captain Bucky O’Hare?
International_Link35@reddit
He goes where no ordinary rabbit would dare!
GreekGoddessOfNight@reddit
I stumbled across a video of a woman playing all parts to that song with a cello and it is wonderful.
mechanical_marten@reddit
It's a duck-blur!
Goblinboogers@reddit
Tale Spin hits me too! Haha
theoneandonly6558@reddit
Chi-chi-chi-chip and Dale, rescue rangers Chi-chi-chi-chip and DALE!
My kid went to Disney and came back talking about getting to meet Chip and Dip lol. A Xennial would never!
LaplacesBox-0096@reddit
Who here remembers Snorkels?…
LMurch13@reddit
We had some real good shit growing up.
DivorcedGremlin1989@reddit
Watch it in German, thank me later
FartForce5@reddit
And this isn't even the best version, check out the full thing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJmWyZlW2sE
omni42@reddit
Look up the Japanese version of the X-Men intro, lol
WittyWitWitt@reddit
This, Jace and the wheeled warriors. Ulysses the racoons..
80s cartoon intros were different.
Aggressive_Walk378@reddit
Slapped me back to 1985
reeferthetuxedocat@reddit
Bouncing here and everywhere?
OohBeesIhateEm@reddit
Ugh 1985 was not 40 years ago, how dare you
CatBoyTrip@reddit
i loved this show.
DerbGentler@reddit
think about 40somethings talking about gummi bears
Itchy-Noise341@reddit
Wowza. Memories were just unlocked. Forgot all about this show. Thanks OP!
DariosDentist@reddit
It's crazy that this song has never been topped as far as intro songs go. I can't even remember the name of a single character or show premise but this song is always there
Global-Jury8810@reddit
I remember this was part of a lineup of after school cartoons, it was this, ducktales, darkwing duck and something else. When cartoons got replaced, they just got replaced, no special notice or nothing.
mykeuk@reddit
Absolutely banging theme tune!
Express_Pudding6433@reddit
Awe, memories 🥹
EquipmentUnlikely895@reddit
it was magical:)
haminator_22@reddit
Memory unlocked, holy shit I totally forgot about this show.
StevenTheWicked@reddit
The very reason why I've always wanted to live in a tree!
PublicIllustrious@reddit
Oh this is still my fave. Theme song is 🔥
jxp497@reddit
klsi832@reddit
/r/40yearsago
winksoutloud@reddit
As with all things, it was actually only 20 years ago. Let us have our shared delusion!
philalethia@reddit
I’ve woken up with this song stuck in my head at least twice a month for the past 40 years and I’m not even mad about it
DarthSmashMouth@reddit
So, I'm not the only one, nice!
mutantbabysnort@reddit
It’s a banger
cityshepherd@reddit
You lucky SOB. I’ve been waking up with a song stuck in my head for the last 35+ years and I cannot for the life of me figure out what it’s from.
ijustsailedaway@reddit
Go try r/tipofmytongue
cityshepherd@reddit
I don’t think there are any lyrics, it’s just a video game song from an early Nintendo game I’m pretty sure, but I’ve already looked into all the games I remember
theoneandonly6558@reddit
Is is the theme from Spy Hunter, "Peter Gunn"? It's always that one.
Assortedpez@reddit
You tried humming it into the Google app or using AI? I started using AI to unlock movie titles using bits and pieces of what happened and rough time periods. It’s been so awesome putting names to things I had forgotten decades ago
xt0rt@reddit
Yep, same here!
tiowey@reddit
Way to much soul for gelatin candy
gravityhomer@reddit
Wow. I watched this many many times, but never would have remembered before seeing the video. Animation has a very Dragon Lair, the arcade game vibe to it too.
Ok_Wasabi_9989@reddit
Aaand there goes my childhood!
round_is_funny@reddit
LOVED this show. David the Gnome? Not as much. And there was also that anime style Fairy Tails show.
Enge712@reddit
As a silent scroller I had to turn my volume back on for this
MrTitius@reddit
Me too! Loved this show as a young boy.
HOU2CA@reddit
Same!!
MogMcKupo@reddit
Same! Guuummmii Bearssss!!
redheadedfury@reddit
BOUNCING HERE AND THERE AND EVERYWHEREEEEEE!!!!!!
theoneandonly6558@reddit
Prior to this banger came the theme songs to Fraggle Rock and 3-2-1 Contact!
edogg01@reddit
https://youtu.be/s2-LEBc2sO8?feature=shared
GreekGoddessOfNight@reddit
🎼Dance your cares away, worries for another day!🎶
skinflakesasconfetti@reddit
I never really watched this show but I always watched this intro, it just kicked ass.
Man, these product placement shows were fun.
UnicornSheets@reddit
What product placement was gummi bears?!
LMurch13@reddit
The candy? I think they fall out while he's crossing the log? I got to go back and watch it again. (I was anyways).
UnicornSheets@reddit
The Candy, gummy bears were a German product invented in the 1920s. They kinda had no bearing on the cartoon. They weren’t advertised on the cartoon etc. I guess I’m trying to see how “the adventures of the gummi bears” was product placement unless you count generally selling “Disney”. When I think product placement I’m thinking shows like GI Joe, gobots, Transformers, Wuzzles which were cartoons that were for selling toys/products.
WineAndDogs2020@reddit
Wuzzles... now there's another deep cut show with a head banging intro!
UnicornSheets@reddit
Candy? What
JoySkullyRH@reddit
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gummy_bear
worksnake@reddit
I just realized that this was probably the singlemost important cartoon for establishing the "animated leg of meat" archetype in my little kid brain. The human friend of the bears (I can't remember his name) hits an ogre or whatever in the intro sequence with a leg of meat, and my eyes went right to it and pinged my brain with a big "Oh yeah! I thought that leg of meat looked super cool as a kid!"
eadgster@reddit
The sword in the stone had a scene with a big ol leg of meat that was pretty satisfying also.
Patches_Mcgee@reddit
Yeah man the leg of meat
Anarch-ish@reddit
Years ago, I had a group of friends who would get together twice a month on Saturday mornings to eat cereal and watch old cartoons in our pajamas, and I remember watching S1E14 "The Secret of the Juice" and was convinced Vince Gilligan took that plot outline and made the pilot episode of Breaking Bad...
An older, gruff mentor takes a younger, less serious student under their wing to teach them a secret recipe that gets you (to jump) high. Granny even has a moment where she she cautions Sunni that making screwing up the cook process could blow up in her face and cause harm. They throw away a batch because they have to "make it right." Then, the two are taken hostage by thugs who want their recipe but are incapacitated where the older cook intentionally sabotages the batch and (literally) blows up the bad guys. Our heroes then escape while the villains are handily defeated by the cook.
It may occur to you that weed may have been involved but I can assure you... yes.
Kain-rpg@reddit
A cartoon about Gummi snacks
aaah the 90's and its pure bolivian Blow that was in ALL the marketing offices at the time
Jibbajaba@reddit
The weird thing is that I don't remember a damned thing about this show, yet I can sing the theme song.
Luminaire_Ultima@reddit
A small reminder that for a brief, glorious moment, the Disney Afternoon block gave us absolutely amazing shows. Gummi Bears, DuckTales, Chip ‘n Dale, TaleSpin, Darkwing Duck, Goof Troop, Aladdin, Gargoyles, Timon and Pumbaa, and Mighty Ducks.
Not that it was perfect… I’m looking right at you, not blinking, Bonkers and Quack Pack .
anansi52@reddit
Watch this then mon chi chis then snorks.
Rommy143@reddit
Disney cartoon theme songs were 🔥
meswifty1@reddit
I miss those days
Ethel_Marie@reddit
I was 2 when this premiered. I remember it clearly.
I cannot remember last week clearly. Brains are weird.
DivorcedGremlin1989@reddit
The intro goes hard in German. Highly recommend.
bikemandan@reddit
Care Bears was apparently also 1985. What was going on with bears?
binahbabe@reddit
I bounced all over my room to this theme song, lol
DinnerSilver@reddit
Actually a live action version of this could work.
bigpinelittlepine@reddit
I wanted to be Honey so bad!!!!
DeltaFlyer0525@reddit
My kids love this show and I could not have been happier that this was the one show that stuck with them when I tried all my old cartoons with them. I would have also liked them to get into Duck Tales and Rescue Rangers, but at least we have Gummi Bears!
ILootEverything@reddit
I still know every line of this song without even playing the video.
Now THAT is how you write a show intro.
Solintari@reddit
GreekGoddessOfNight@reddit
I love this gif with my whole heart.
mechanical_marten@reddit
I had such a crush on Sunni and I didn't know why for the longest time.
Kerb3r0s@reddit
I’m not old - you’re old
Jasion128@reddit
Today it would be adventures w gummy bear edibles
Hipcatjack@reddit
i always wanted to drink the berry juice.. it explains a lot of my teen years
hobbes_shot_second@reddit
who didn’t want a strength potion?
Hipcatjack@reddit
it wasn’t just the strength… it looked so thirst quenching
Piccoroz@reddit
Roided bears.
8trackroadtrip@reddit
this started right at last bell in elementary school for me. i would RUN home to catch the last ten minutes of the show.
MysteriousPattern386@reddit
Love the theme song and still remember it. Loved this cartoons so much.
_undercover_brotha@reddit
God I loved that show.
moe_saint_cool@reddit
Oh goddamnit, now the Gummi Bears theme is going to replace the Duck Tales theme playing in my head. Thanks for that
justnotok@reddit
It’s crazy how the words just come right back! Initially, I didn’t remember this, but I knew the song!!
Life-Finding5331@reddit
Peak television.
Factsoverfictions222@reddit
This song is epic, and I think about it often
GramercyPlace@reddit
Core memories removed from deep storage.
StellaSlayer2020@reddit
I particularly liked this episode.
Dv8f8@reddit
See I don't remember ever watching this show but the theme song I remember🤷🏻
NW_Forester@reddit
Did they used to shorten that for syndicated runs? Like right around half of that I remember word for word and about half of it is WTF is this?
iAmNotAfraid_Spiders@reddit
And 40 years before Gummi Bears, premiered, less than 10,000 people had TVs, at least according to this page: https://hypertextbook.com/facts/2007/TamaraTamazashvili.shtml
RavelsPuppet@reddit
Theis song rocks!
thelegoroom@reddit
Not seen or heard this for decades - knew every word in tune!
whoibehmmm@reddit
Best theme song ever.
Artee5000@reddit
The only reason I know that a spoonerism is a spoonerism is because of this show.
Chaos_Sauce@reddit
It's crazy that Disney keeps crapping out remakes of their classic movies while they're just sitting on IP like this that could be reimagined today as something really cool and different.
SnooPies246@reddit
Woah, I haven't heard that song in decades but I was just singing along word for word. That was buried deep within my soul!
CorgiMonsoon@reddit
At my undergrad there was this a capella quartet that did the theme song. It was cute the first time. Then they did it everywhere, and I mean everywhere. We couldn’t have a single party or get together without them singing it, sometimes multiple times per night.
It sucks to have a childhood favorite ruined for you like that
Brock_Savage@reddit
That manages to be both annoying and cringe. Did they completely lack self awareness?
CorgiMonsoon@reddit
Pretty much. Musical Theatre majors (and I say that as someone who was getting a BA in Theatre on the design/tech side)
Brock_Savage@reddit
Thankfully, my interaction with theater kids has been next to zero. Tech side is cool tho.
The_BSharps@reddit
Treated a few episodes with my kids and was disappointed in how bad it was. I loved this show.
kinisoncartwright@reddit
I watched
JeyKeyDeeSee@reddit
Bouncing out of the tree was always my favorite part of the opening. Reminded me of Peter Pan’s Lost Boys’ hideout.
Naive_Wolf3740@reddit
I forgot it was set on a medieval fantasy realm
KillysgungoesBLAME@reddit
As a kid who had read The Hobbit around that time and was fascinated with that period/genre that was the primary appeal to me.
cbih@reddit
Was it on ABC back then? Disney channel was definitely not a thing back then
mumblebeebug@reddit
My kids know this song because I sung it to them when they were littles.
No9No9No9No9@reddit
No joke, when my husband sang this with me when we were dating, I knew he was the one!
Corn_Beefies@reddit
Is this AI interpolated? It looks off.
TheHoodieConnoisseur@reddit
Loved that show
AcetheShooter1@reddit
Man, I've been confusing this with that animated Care Bears show in my mind for all this time.
L3g3ndary-08@reddit
Is this the reason why I am still addicted to gummy bear candies? I'm just gonna chalk it up to that.
perdy_mama@reddit
It’s on Disney!! My 6yo is going to fucking love this. Thanks for the inspiration!!
EmRuizChamberlain@reddit
I loved this show!!!!
RockItGuyDC@reddit
I'm 42 years old, and just sang the whole damn thing.
Nervous_InsideU5155@reddit
This was one of my favorites growing up. Wish Disney would do a new movie or series of Gummi Bears. 🔥
_Face@reddit
Anyone know if this is on Disney+?
mickeltee@reddit
I haven’t heard that in 30 something years and I sang every word like it was yesterday.
puff_puff_paint_19@reddit
Rescued a dog 5 months ago and have been singing this theme song to her with a few words changed to make it about her 💜
Pure-Shoe-4065@reddit
Man when you'd get your free preview weeks of the ppv channels this shit was always on! Solid and always wondered what gummy berry juice would taste like 🤤
AZCouple14021@reddit
I’m still brainwashed with that theme song
TumbleDownShaq@reddit
How does he drum up so much drama with the “…along with the secret, of Gummy Berry Juice” line? One line turns these little creatures into medieval forest ninjas.
itcamefromthe216@reddit
For this to come out right after Wuzzles was like going from black and white TV to Technicolor. Started the golden age of TV cartoon series for Disney.
Far_Cut_@reddit
I still song this randomly
thegreatfartrocket@reddit
Fuckin loved that show.
Goblinboogers@reddit
For anyone who likes table top RPGs they did make a interesting one for this toon. It was fun to play and light on rules. You could learn it and play it in a night if anyone needs a change for a one shot night!
DunstonCzechsOut@reddit
This show used to confuse me. I thought I was supposed to want to eat them. I was a dumb child. And now I'm a dumb adult.
NavierIsStoked@reddit
It’s this AI upscaled? I don’t think it was this clear when it aired.
Most_Boysenberry8019@reddit
Looks like it’s on the dis+ app. I loved this show.
Standard_Track9692@reddit
It was this, the Care Bear show, and under the umbrella tree. Everyday
Debs4prez@reddit
Thank you
levioh_snap@reddit
40 years? God, I’m old. I watched the shit outta this show.
Classic_Engine7285@reddit
I fuckin’ loved that show.
mvillegas9@reddit
This song goes hard
cheddercaves@reddit
it was my dream for this to become a Disneyland ride
thefrostryan@reddit
Same day as Golden Girls
Human-Put-5569@reddit
Well now this should be a national holiday. Gummi Bears in the morning Golden Girls at night. 9/14
TSLBestOfMe@reddit
I still sing the theme song word for word every now and then.
thesnark1sloth@reddit
One of my favorite cartoon intros from our early childhood. Thanks for posting this!
JadieRose@reddit
Anyone else used to drink some red juice and bounce all around like it was gummi berry juice?
Just me?
Surfer_Sandman@reddit
This song lives rent free in my head. Any time anyone mentions the tasty candy it immediately plays.
MLAheading@reddit
Same! I sing the chorus aloud whenever I’m in the same room as the candy. Usually that’s in my classroom. Or my home. So I guess… all the time. lol.
ih4teme@reddit
Damn I forgot this was a Disney production. And was that character butch?!? A bit ahead of its times.
Ok-Si@reddit
I still have a thing for girls with short hair
Responsible_Sound_71@reddit
I’d forgotten that I’d forgotten this
LMurch13@reddit
Same, i couldn't list the scenes, but as they happened, my brain was like, "yes, there's the cape that makes them disappear, there's the leg of meat slamming the ogre's head, etc.."
Themoosemingled@reddit
I was almost assuredly there for this day 1, sectional couch in fort mode.
Sugar cereal in hand. My sister and I.
LMurch13@reddit
Damn, so much nostalgia from this video. I must have watched it every Saturday,
abstutz@reddit
Did not need to unmute to hear this
Megthemagnificant@reddit
I immediately started singing the theme song. Serious core memory unlocked. Wow. Haven’t thought about this show in a very, very long time
Mattimvs@reddit
One of the things I do to purposely annoy my wife: I sing the entire Gummybears theme (loud and poorly)
TerrakSteeltalon@reddit
Sonofa… now I have that song stuck in my head
Repulsive_Glove6085@reddit
How do I remember all the words?!
jojobobfancy@reddit
This song has been stuck in my head for 40 years?!
Sufficient-Quote-431@reddit
Fuck, I’m getting old
Crans10@reddit
I loved Saturday Morning Cartoons. This intro slaps.
Venusian2AsABoy@reddit
This is like literally the cornerstone of my entire identity.
ihavenoidea12345678@reddit
This intro is solid