Adults and Quick Draw McGraw

TV critics managed to find ways to watch The Quick Draw McGraw Show even when they didn’t have to.

Larry Thompson of the Miami Herald outlined his subterfuge in his column of December 6, 1960. At least one of his kids didn’t appear to be too happy about it.

Psychology in Action
THIS WOMAN was company for dinner, and we sat around in the front room making small talk until I looked at my watch.
I called to my wife: "Don't forget, this is Quick Draw McGraw night. We'd better start dinner soon or the children won't have time to see it."
"And what," asked the lady, "is Quick Draw McGraw?"
"That," I explained, "is a cartoon character on TV. He's on every Tuesday night. So are Doggie Daddy, and Snooper, the cat detective. Our kids love the program."
"It is very considerate of you to try to arrange the dinner schedule so they can see it," the lady said.
"Oh, yes," I said. "I believe in letting the children see the programs they enjoy, as long as they are uplifting, amusing, or wholesome. A parent can't be too careful about the TV programs his children watch."
We were called to dinner, and, as usual, the children dawdled over the food.
* * *
“IF YOU DON'T HURRY," I said, "you'll miss Quick Draw McGraw. Remember, the champion gets to turn on the TV.”
"Aw, you're always the champion on Quick Draw night," said Carl.
I turned to the company.
"That is part of my child psychology," I explained. "I try to cultivate the competitive spirit — in a sportsmanlike, mannerly way, of course — by pretending that I'm in the contest with them. That way they feel that I am sharing their interests."
"Very commendable," said the lady.
“I’m the champ!" I shouted, as I swallowed the last bit of my milk. "I'll go turn on TV. Nobody else can come until they've finished."
I give the lady a knowing glance and she nodded approval at my applied psychology. It was only a few minutes before the children joined me in front of the TV:
* * *
LATER, after the children were in bed, our company commented on my excellent behavior as a father.
"Mrs. Thompson," she said, "you are most fortunate to have a husband who takes such an interest in his children. I have never seen a better example of child psychology in action."
"You mean about Quick Draw McGraw?" asked my wife, and the lady nodded.
"He does that every Tuesday night," my good wife said. "Only child psychology has nothing to do with it. He likes Quick Draw McGraw. He acts the same way when Huckleberry Hound is on."
* * *
AND I REALLY do feel sorry for grown-ups who don't have children to give them an excuse to look at those funny cartoon programs.

Thompson never really explained the “contest” or “champion” part. Maybe someone had to finish their dinner first.

Perhaps the story was in conjunction with a visit to Miami by costumed Hanna-Barbera characters. The Herald published the photo shoot below on Dec. 11.



Quick Draw was featured on the front page of the TV section of the Vallejo Times-Herald of December 31, 1960. Looking at the gopher, I wonder if this publicity art was drawn by Gene Hazelton. The story on the next page is short but explains Quick Draw’s appeal.

Quick Draw Held Funniest Cowboy
This TV fast gun is a horse.
Television watchers have grown to love this western hero with the four legs. His name is Quick Draw McGraw, at 6:30 p. m., Thursday, Channel 2. There's affection, too, for his fearless but slightly dumb sidekick named Bobba Looey. Mr. Looey is a Mexican burro.
Quick Draw and his pal are the animated cartoon creations of Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera, whose success on TV was already assured when they introduced such stars as Ruff and Ready [sic], Huckleberry Hound and Yogi Bear.
The creators feel an important reason for their success is the good taste in their productions. Parents and PTA groups have yowled long and loud over the sadism, violence and sex innuendos permeating most of the ancient theatrical cartoons rerun on TV the past several years.
HURT PRIDE
When "Quick Draw McGraw" shoots a bad man, usually just his pride is hurt, or the seat of his pants is singed. It's doubtful either that you'll ever find him casting lecherous glances at some Betty Boop saloon hostess. In spite of such distillation, Hanna and Barbera have injected enough western satire into "McGraw" to make him palatable to adults, who make up 60 per cent of their audience.
This season the boys got away from their exclusive diet of talking animals to take on “The Flintstones," a talented bunch of cave dwellers of the Stone Age. But that's another story.

Indeed. The Flintstones’ success all but killed feature stories on the Emmy-nomimated Quick Draw. Prime time is prime time, after all.

Still, the Kelloggs affiliate in St. Louis took out a two-page ad in the Post-Dispatch for a Quick Draw contest.


The Oregonian’s Harold Hughes fit in Quick Draw in part of his column of December 26, 1960. After talking about how former Portlander Bill Selleck set up a really low-budget commercial animation studio (25 frames a minute for $900 a minute), Hughes has some thoughts on Hanna-Barbera. Story missing conjunctions, other words.

BEST WAY to watch old Huckleberry Hound is to stretch out on the floor with the kids. The wind-up Yogi Bear strip is a riot. Maybe Forest Service should recruit army of wind-up Smokey Bears, put them to work fighting forest fires.
BILL HANNA AND JOE BARBERA are the heads behind Huck Hound, The Flintstones, Ruff 'N' Ready [sic], Quick Draw McGraw and the like. They plan series next year built around Yogi Bear, and there is report of full length movie on Yogi.
HANNA AND BARBERA were unemployed three years ago, like Selleck, came up with a cheaper way of producing cartoons by cutting the number of frames per minute, thus reducing the vast amount of drawing that Disney does. But both Bill and Joe worked 20 years doing cartoons for MGM, gave birth to cat-and-mouse team known as Tom and Jerry.
JOE ATTENDED banking school, took up doodling, became "cartooner." Bill studied engineering and journalism in college, worked as a structural engineer before joining Leon Schlessinger's [sic] cartoon company. Both are doggie daddies, trapped in the suburbs.

Since we’re looking at December 1960, there was merchandise just in time for Christmas, with Knickerbocker plush dolls of Quick Draw, Baba Looey, Snooper, Blabber (and, of course, Huck and Yogi).

But the one I kind of like is the Quick Draw McGraw Private Eye game, with 4 player tokens on plastic stands, 48 cards, a spinner and a 15¾ by 18½ inch folding board. One store was selling it for $1.98. Quite a while ago, I posted pictures of various H-B games. I decided to check eBay to see if one of these private eye games was for sale. I found several.