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Dinky Di's

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Dinky Di's
Also known asThe Dinky-Di's: Friends on Freedom's Frontier
GenreAction-adventure
Edutainment
Created byMelvyn Edward Bradford
Written byMelvyn Edward Bradford
Neil Booth
Terry Burstall
Leonard Lee
Peter Merrill
Wayne Moore
Mike Heffernan
Willie Mombassa[1]
Voices ofGennie Nevinson
Ric Melbourne
Lee Perry
Grahame Matters
Tony Bellette
Theme music composerMatthew Sloggett
Opening theme"Friends on Freedom's Frontier" performed by Melvyn Edward Bradford and Bob LaCastra
ComposersPat Aulton
Garry McDonald
Laurie Stone
Country of originAustralia
Original languageEnglish
No. of series1
No. of episodes26
Production
Executive producerHugh Cornish
ProducerMelvyn Edward Bradford
EditorsCarlos Alperin
Bob Bladsall
Running time26 minutes
Production companiesPacific Rim Animation
Motion Picture Management Studios Australia
Original release
NetworkNine Network
Release6 December 1997 (1997-12-06) –
29 May 1998 (1998-05-29)

Dinky-Di's, also known as The Dinky-Di's: Friends on Freedom's Frontier, is an Australian animated television series that aired on the Nine Network Australia from 6 December 1997 to 29 May 1998. It was created by Melvyn Edward Bradford, produced by Roo Films Brisbane and animated by Pacific Rim Animation.[2] The show taught children about the dangers of having carelessness for the planet and also for animals and plants that live on the earth. A common phrase from the theme song used by fans and the creator of the show was "We show no fear, we show no pain!"

Premise

[edit]

The Dinky Di's: Friends on Freedom's Frontier follows a group of anthropomorphic animals who go around the world saving rare and endangered animals and plants, while educating the audience on the importance of environmental preservation. Led by Aussie Roo (a Kangaroo) and Cass Koala (a Koala), this group consists of animals from all over the world who have many different specialties that serve to the Dinky-Di team, and are well organized with a command centre, computer network, and high-tech amphibious vehicles.

The group of rescuers fight against Mephisto, a shadowy eco-terrorist with glowing red eyes who uses a gang of maligned beasts to do his dirty work: Rancid Rodent (a Rat), Hugo Hyena (a Hyena), Ganny Goanna (an Iguana), Serpent Sam (a Dragon), and others. Mephisto's true identity, however, is a true mystery to the Dinky-Di's, and one which, when solved, will be a major step towards slowing damage to the planet.[3]

Voice cast

[edit]
  • Gennie Nevinson as Cass Koala, Equulus Emu, Cauda Kiwi, Orikawa Bear's Son, Beatrice, Hydra Hen, Pleiades Panda and additional voices[4]
  • Ric Melbourne as Aussie Roo, Chopa Crocodile, G.T. Garuda and additional voices
  • Lee Perry as Ernest Eagle, Goat, Sidney Seal, Whales, Iceburglar #2, Animals, Narrator and additional voices
  • Grahame Matters as Bill's Secretary and additional voices
  • Tony Bellette as Plato Pus, Zennie, Mephisto, Rancid Rodent, Hugo Hyena, Ganny Goanna, Serpent Sam, Lazur Lion, Orikawa Bear, Bill Buffalo, Lazur's Boss, Mephisto's Henchman, Baron of Babel, Iceburglar #1, Doctor Hope, Archduke of Avaris, Guard Bear and additional voices[5]

Episodes

[edit]

Out of the 26-episode series, only two full episodes in English have survived, "Baron of Babel" and "Funga Wunda",[6][7][8] while the other only full episodes that are known, "Lost, One Dinky-Di", "The Compututor", "Duke of Deceit", "Sea Beneath the Sea, Beneath the Sea", "Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow", "Journey to Pedra Blanca", "Java Lava", "Tapir Caper" and "Mirage Master", are in Arabic, Brazilian Portuguese, Polish and Russian, respectively. However, half of the first episode and about seven minutes of "The Bilby Tale" also exist in English, and "Good Wood" partially exists in Russian. At some point on the Kooltube1 website (the website that Mel Bradford had), the episodes "The Bilby Tale", "Straits of Sorrow", "The Howling Crystal" and "Mirage Master" were available to watch. Though the Kooltube1 website is no longer around, there are a few archives still without any new content except images and copyright information.[7][9]

The following episode list has mostly been translated from Polish, however, so it is known that these following episodes are the names for the English version of the show.

  • "Lost, One Dinky-Di"
  • "The Compututor"
  • "The Bilby Tale"
  • "Bat Chat"[10]
  • "Good Wood"[11]
  • "Duke of Deceit"[12]
  • "The Dolphin Dare"[13]
  • "The Crustaceans"[14]
  • "Baron of Babel"
  • "Sea Beneath the Sea, Beneath the Sea"[15]
  • "Funga Wunda"
  • "Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow"
  • "Journey to Pedra Blanca"[16]
  • "Java Lava"[17]
  • "Straits of Sorrow"
  • "The Howling Crystal"
  • "Tapir Caper"
  • "Mirage Master"
  • "Small Hippo, Big Bust"[18]
Episode list
Episode number# Episode name Written by Original air date Episode status
01 "Lost, One Dinky-Di" Mel Bradford 6 December 1997 Found in Arabic, Brazilian Portuguese and Polish dubs/Partially Lost
02 "The Compututor" Neil Booth 13 December 1997 Found in Brazilian Portuguese dub
03 "The Mystery of the Land of Olgas" 20 December 1997 Lost
04 "The Bilby Tale" Mel Bradford 27 December 1997 Partially Found
05 "Bat Chat" 3 January 1998 Lost
06 "Good Wood" Neil Booth 10 January 1998 Partially found in Russian dub
07 "Duke of Deceit" Neil Booth 17 January 1998 Found in Russian dub
08 Currently unknown 24 January 1998 Lost
09 Currently unknown 31 January 1998 Lost
10 "The Dolphin Dare" 7 February 1998 Lost
11 "The Crustaceans" 14 February 1998 Lost
12 "Baron of Babel" Neil Booth 21 February 1998 Found
13 "Snail's Pace" 28 February 1998 Lost
14 "Losers Have No Choice" 6 March 1998 Lost
15 "In Defense of Forest Chanterelles" 13 March 1998 Lost
16 "Return of Yak" 20 March 1998 Lost
17 "Cranes to the Rescue" 27 March 1998 Lost
18 "Black Chamber" 3 April 1998 Lost
19 "Sea Beneath the Sea, Beneath the Sea" Neil Booth 10 April 1998 Found in Russian dub
20 "Funga Wunda" Neil Booth 17 April 1998 Found
21 "Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow" Wayne Moore and Terry Burstall 24 April 1998 Found in Russian dub
22 "Journey to Pedra Blanca" Neil Booth 1 May 1998 Found in Russian dub
23 "Java Lava" Wayne Moore and Terry Burstall 8 May 1998 Found in Russian dub
24 "Tapir Caper" Wayne Moore and Terry Burstall 15 May 1998 Found in Russian dub
25 "Mirage Master" Mike Heffernan 22 May 1998 Found in Russian dub
26 "Small Hippo, Big Bust" 29 May 1998 Lost

There is uncertainty of where the episodes "Straits of Sorrow" and "The Howling Crystal" go on the list of episodes.

Other names for the show

[edit]

When it aired in Poland, the series' title was Grupa specjalna Eko.[19] In Italy, the show was known as Parola d'ordine: arriviamo![20] The show is also known to have aired in the Arab world, Brazil, Korea, Malaysia,[10][13][14][11][21][12][15][17][16][18][22][23][24][25][26][27] New Zealand,[28] Portugal and Russia.

Production

[edit]

The series was created by Melvyn Edward Bradford, produced by Roo Films Brisbane from December 1989 to 1993, and distributed by Motion Picture Management Studios Australia. Originally scheduled to be completed by 1992, it experienced a series of lawsuits and legal battles during production and was delayed, before eventually airing in New Zealand in 1992, Malaysia in 1994-1998, Italy in 1995, and Australia in 1997-1998.[29][30][31][28][10][13][14][11][21][12][15][17][16][18][22][23][24][25][26][27][20][32] The series was animated by Pacific Rim Animation. The theme song, "Friends on Freedom's Frontier", and the episodes' songs, such as "Cross The Line (Start, Don't Stop)" and "Don't Look Back", were composed and produced by Matthew Sloggett, with lyrics by Bradford and Bob LaCastra, while the soundtrack was composed by Garry McDonald and Laurie Stone and mixed at Grevillea Studios. The voices were recorded at Sunshine Studios, provided by Gennie Nevinson, Ric Melbourne, Lee Perry, Grahame Matters, and Tony Bellette.[32][4][5]

A 93-minute direct-to-video compilation film titled Mephisto's Web was commissioned in the first half of 1993 and completed in February-March 1994, but was never released, with the accounting firm, Krampel Newman & Partners Pty Ltd, cheating Bradford out of his money.[32]

Revival attempts

[edit]

In the late 2000s, four revivals of the series were attempted; a series of animated shorts named The Dinky-Di's 2, a graphic novel, a stop motion pilot and an animated sequel. The Dinky-Di's 2 was a continuation of the original series, where the Dinky-Di's were to face a new villain, Maraudo, and his holographic alien henchmen. The series would have also had a robot named DDRobo, who would do some very amazing things in the Dinky-Dis' High-Tech Control Room.[7]

Bradford was planning on giving the series a DVD release, but died of a cerebral aneurysm caused by coronary artery disease at his computer desk in the town of Coolangatta near the border of Queensland and New South Wales on 4 November 2010. His service took place in Parkwood, Queensland on 23 November 2010.[33]

Credits list

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  • Associate Producer – Mike Heffernan
  • Production Manager – Rhonda Fortescue
  • Production Supervisor (China) – Mark Lovick
  • Production Co-Ordinator – Kerry Mulgrew
  • Production Accountants – Debra Cole and Lyn Paeiz
  • Production Secretary – Patricia Mcinally
  • Production Receptionist – Tammy Sovenyhazi
  • Script Editor – Mel Bradford
  • Animation – Pacific Rim Studios
  • Studio Representative – Richard Hindley
  • Character Designers – Kelvin Hawley, Brian Doyle, Andrew Trimmer, Glenn Ford, Fräntz Kantor, Ray Van Steenwyk, Sue Schmidt, Paul Fitzgerald, and Ted Blackall
  • Backgrounds – Dean Taylor – Mr. Big, Peter Sheehan, Kelvin Hawley, Paul Fitzgerald, Andrew Trimmer, Glenn Ford, Ray Van Steenwyk, Sue Schmidt, Fräntz Kantor, Ted Blackall
  • Props – Kelvin Hawley, Glenn Ford, Paul Fitzgerald, Andrew Trimmer, Sue Schmidt, Fräntz Kantor, Brian Doyle, Ray Van Steenwyk, and Ted Blackall
  • Story Boarders – Bob Smith, Kelvin Hawley, Bill Moselen, Ray Van Steenwyk, Glenn Ford, Fräntz Kantor, Steve Lumley
  • Script Clerk – Fiona Matters
  • Voice Recordings – Sunshine Studios
  • Character Voices – Gennie Nevinson,[4] Ric Melbourne, Lee Perry, Grahame Matters, Tony Bellette[5]
  • Mag Tracks – Hoyts Jumbuck
  • Theme Song/Cross The Line (Start, Don't Stop)/Don't Run with the Pack/Love Comes to the Rescue/Don't Look Back/Don't Call Me A Hero/What About The Animals/Reach Out – Lyrics: Mel Bradford and Bob Lacastra, Composer: Matthew Sloggett
  • Score – Garry McDonald, Laurie Stone
  • Post Supervisor – Rod Herbert
  • Film Editor – Bob Bladsall

This link has the list of credits on the episode at the end.[34]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Mombassa, Willie (2008). Far East, La!: A Far Eastern Journal of Personal Growths and Other Skin Conditions. Trafford. ISBN 9781412062275. Retrieved 17 June 2024. Years later, I wrote a script for an Australian eco-warriors animated series called "The Dinky-Di's," (shown everywhere but Australia!) in which a particular critical environmental conservation issue would be the premise on which a bunch of good animals (a Kangaroo, Koala, etc.) would battle evil, bad animals (Jackals, Hyenas, etc.). Naturally good would triumph. Anyway, for my script I chose the plight of the South American Spider Monkey. That's it really, not much more to the story than that, just another symptom of monkey madness I'd caught somewhere in my Dreaming.
  2. ^ "The Dinky-Di's". Screen Australia. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
  3. ^ "Andrew Trimmer Portfolio". Retrieved 22 February 2023.
  4. ^ a b c "Voice Actor". Gennie Nevinson. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
  5. ^ a b c "Tony Bellette". BrisVO. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  6. ^ "Baron of Babel Episode". YouTube. 28 October 2013. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
  7. ^ a b c "KoolTube1". Archived from the original on 26 April 2009. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
  8. ^ "The Dinky Di's Friends On Freedom's Frontier - 'Funga Wunda'". YouTube. 11 October 2024. Retrieved 22 October 2024.
  9. ^ "KoolTube1". Archived from the original on 28 February 2007. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
  10. ^ a b c Editorial Staff, New Straits Times (8 January 1994). "TV/RADIO". New Straits Times. Kuala Lumpur. p. 12.
  11. ^ a b c Editorial Staff, New Straits Times (20 February 1994). "WEEKLY PLANNER". New Straits Times. Kuala Lumpur. p. 12.
  12. ^ a b c Editorial Staff, New Straits Times (10 March 1994). "TV/RADIO". New Straits Times. Kuala Lumpur. p. 13.
  13. ^ a b c Editorial Staff, New Straits Times (22 January 1994). "TV/RADIO". New Straits Times. Kuala Lumpur. p. 13.
  14. ^ a b c Editorial Staff, New Straits Times (23 January 1994). "WEEKLY PLANNER". New Straits Times. Kuala Lumpur. p. 19.
  15. ^ a b c Editorial Staff, New Straits Times (17 March 1994). "TV/RADIO". New Straits Times. Kuala Lumpur. p. 13.
  16. ^ a b c Editorial Staff, New Straits Times (21 April 1994). "TV/RADIO". New Straits Times. Kuala Lumpur. p. 13.
  17. ^ a b c Editorial Staff, New Straits Times (26 March 1994). "WEEKLY PLANNER". New Straits Times. Kuala Lumpur. p. 59.
  18. ^ a b c Editorial Staff, New Straits Times (11 May 1994). "TV/RADIO". New Straits Times. Kuala Lumpur. p. 14.
  19. ^ "Glos Pomorza – TV RTL 7 – program telewizyjny z 12 listopada 2001". Bałtycka Biblioteka Cyfrowa. Retrieved 21 June 2024.
  20. ^ a b "Parola d'ordine: arriviamo!". AntonioGenna.net. Retrieved 21 June 2024.
  21. ^ a b Editorial Staff, New Straits Times (3 March 1994). "TV/RADIO". New Straits Times. Kuala Lumpur. p. 23.
  22. ^ a b Editorial Staff, New Straits Times (18 May 1994). "WEEKLY PLANNER". New Straits Times. Kuala Lumpur. p. 20.
  23. ^ a b Editorial Staff, New Straits Times (25 May 1994). "Nuclear sub sinks after collision with freighter". New Straits Times. Kuala Lumpur. p. 20.
  24. ^ a b Editorial Staff, New Straits Times (8 April 1997). "TV GUIDE". New Straits Times. Kuala Lumpur. p. 24.
  25. ^ a b Editorial Staff, New Straits Times (29 April 1997). "TV GUIDE". New Straits Times. Kuala Lumpur. p. 22.
  26. ^ a b Editorial Staff, New Straits Times (11 May 1997). "WEEKLY PLANNER". New Straits Times. Kuala Lumpur. p. 20.
  27. ^ a b Editorial Staff, New Straits Times (11 October 1998). "WEEKLY PLANNER". New Straits Times. Kuala Lumpur. p. 19.
  28. ^ a b "The Dinky Di's Next On 2 Promo 1992". YouTube. 7 October 2024. Retrieved 22 October 2024.
  29. ^ "Official Gazette of the United States Patent and Trademark Office". U.S. Department of Commerce, Patent and Trademark Office. 11 February 1991. Retrieved 17 June 2024.
  30. ^ "Motion Picture Management Limited v Bradford [1993] QSC 87". Supreme Court of Queensland. 5 April 1993.
  31. ^ "Motion Picture Management Limited v Bradford [1993] QSC 87" (PDF). Supreme Court of Queensland. 6 April 1993.
  32. ^ a b c "Krampel Newman Partners Pty Ltd v Commissioner of Taxation [2003] FCA 123". Federal Court of Australia. 2003.
  33. ^ "The Dinky Di's Theme Song with Lyrics". YouTube. 9 April 2012. Retrieved 22 October 2024. Alilb Ani: The last moments of Mel Edward Bradford's life. Mel had been trying to find peace within himself, despite being an agnostic. He would often sit at a local church and ponder the existence of God. Mel was my dear friend and neighbour. He asked me that I be with him to sit at the top of Razorback Lookout. As we sat there overlooking the valley, he was in a sorrowful mood, a glistening tear running from his eye, and he said, "All that I ask for; continue my legacy." He feared all that he had and all that he was will one day be discarded like rubbish, his memory and his achievements forever lost. The evening before Mel died we were discussing many things, some of which were the characters of The Dinky Di's 2 and others were deep profound discussions of God. Part of Mel's last email to me that evening was, "The thing that I have noticed with God and being on or offside with him is sometimes we are being offside with ourselves more so." On 4 November 2010, Mel died suddenly of an aneurysm at his computer desk in a humble unit in the town of Coolangatta near the boarder of Queensland and New South Wales, Australia. The post-mortem examination took some weeks to reveal an aneurysm. Though my memory escapes me tortured by the last vision I had, the impression was of a cerebral (brain) aneurysm from the officials. Mel did indeed suffer heart problems. I can not recall with certainty if the aneurysm may have in fact been coronary-related. I was quite traumatised by the event at the time, and only now I've felt strong enough to revisit. His service took place in Parkwood, Queensland on 23 November 2010. Most of his possessions, including his works of The Dinky Di's, were thrown out in the rubbish just as he had feared they would be treated. I jumped in the dumpster after them and I salvaged what I could, including an old reel that perhaps Mel never got around to converting, and if so may hold the key to lost episodes.
  34. ^ "Polish Dub/Credits". Archived from the original on 23 February 2023. Retrieved 22 February 2023 – via YouTube.
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