News stories written at the time of the show's premiere highlighted Dinosaurs' connection to Jim Henson, who had died the year before. Henson conceived the show in 1988, according to an article in The New York Times, adding he wanted it to be a sitcom, but about a family of dinosaurs. Until the success of The Simpsons, according to Alex Rockwell, a vice president of the Henson organization, "people thought it was a crazy idea."[5]
In the late 1980s, Henson worked with William Stout, a fantasy artist, illustrator and designer, on a feature film starring animatronic dinosaurs with the working title of The Natural History Project; a 1993 article in The New Yorker said that Henson continued to work on a dinosaur project (presumably the Dinosaurs concept) until the "last months of his life."[6]
Rafael Montemayor Aguiton of Vulture wrote that upon premiere the show "was a hit", and Michael Jacobs stated that this was why the network did not interfere much in the production.[8]
Aguiton wrote that ratings suffered from the show being moved to different time slots on the network.[8] The animatronics made the show relatively expensive, with Stuart Pankin recalling that "I heard it was the most expensive half-hour TV show, at least at that point" and that this contributed to the cancellation.[8]
Plot
Dinosaurs is initially set in 60,000,000 BC in Pangaea. The show centers on the Sinclair family: Earl Sneed Sinclair (father), Fran Sinclair (née Phillips – mother), their three children (son, Robbie; daughter, Charlene; and infant, Baby Sinclair) and Fran's mother, Ethyl.
Earl's job is to push over trees for the Wesayso Corporation with his friend and coworker Roy Hess, where they work under the supervision of their boss, Bradley P. Richfield.
The focus of the show's plot is the Sinclair family: Earl, Fran, Robbie, Charlene, Baby, and Ethyl. The family name is a reference to the Sinclair Oil Corporation, which had prominently featured a dinosaur as its logo and mascot for decades, under the belief that petroleum deposits were formed during the age of the dinosaurs.[9] Other character and family names throughout the series often referred to rival petroleum companies or petroleum products. For example: Phillips, Hess, B.P., Richfield, and Ethyl, among others.
The patriarch of the Sinclair family, Earl is the protagonist. He is a 43-year-old Megalosaurus and is depicted as being thick-headed and suggestible. Earl works as a Tree Pusher at the WESAYSO Development Corporation.
The mother and homemaker of the Sinclair family. Fran is mentioned on the show as being an Allosaurus. On rare occasions, Fran wears fuzzy house slippers. Earl affectionately calls his wife "Frannie".
Earl and Fran's son and youngest child, he is a Megalosaurus as stated by Earl. In the episode "Out of the Frying Pan," Baby is shown as a Ceratosaurus. His legal name is Baby Sinclair, which was given to him by the Chief Elder. Baby is sarcastic and wisecracking. His favorite thing to do is to hit Earl on the head with a frying pan. His catchphrases are "I'm the baby, gotta love me!", "Again!", and "Not the mama!" (his preferred name for his father Earl, much to his father's chagrin). Earl will often call his youngest son "Junior". For a while, the character was actually christened as "Aaah Aagh "I'm Dying You Idiot" Sinclair". (the unfortunate last words of a dying Chief Elder who was suffering from a heart attack), but it wasn't until the end of the episode in which he received that hilariously crude name that new Chief Elder Edward R. Hero renamed him "Baby Sinclair" after one of his popular catchphrases.
Jacobs stated that the popularity of Baby contributed to the network allowing the creators to run the show as they saw fit stating: "As long as the Baby hit his father over the head with a pot, we could use that to hide anything."[8]
Ethyl is an Edmontonia who is Fran's mother, Earl's mother-in-law, and the maternal grandmother of Robbie, Charlene, and Baby. Ethyl comes to live with the Sinclairs and is revealed to have a son named Stan (Fran's brother). Ethyl always wears house slippers and uses a wheelchair. Ethyl enjoys making fun of Earl and hitting him with her cane.
B.P. Richfield is Earl, Roy, Ralph, Gus, and Sid's aggressive, heartless and temperamental boss at the WESAYSO Development Corporation where he oversees the Tree Pushers. He is a Triceratops, but has the frill spikes of a Styracosaurus. In episode "Hungry for Love," it is revealed that Mr. Richfield has a daughter named Wendy (in which she there is a slight affair with Robbie) and was known for eating any boyfriend of hers that disappoints him.
A Brontosaurus and Fran's best friend who is the only four-legged dinosaur on the show and Roy's love interest. She is usually seen from the neck up. It took three or four people to operate her neck and head.
He is a semi-regular character who resembles a Polacanthus with a bandana, a black leather jacket, and biker boots. Spike is Robbie's best friend who often refers to him as "Scooter." Spike is normally a bad influence on Robbie, whom he enjoys belittling and goading into dangerous and/or humiliating situations. To Spike's credit however, he talked sense into his friend when Robbie used thornoids (sentient anabolic substances) to impress a pretty female classmate.
A Troodon who is a co-worker of Earl and Roy at the WESAYSO Development Corporation. The Full-Bodied costume used for Ralph is often used for one-appearance minor characters.
A Ceratosaurus who is a co-worker of Earl and Roy at the WESAYSO Development Corporation. The Full-Bodied costume used for Gus is often used for one-appearance minor characters.
A Psittacosaurus who is a co-worker of Earl and Roy at the WESAYSO Development Corporation. Sid is seen more than the other characters. He enjoys bagels and donuts. The Full-Bodied costume used for Sid is often used for one-appearance minor characters.
A bespectacled Troodon who is Robbie, Charlene, Mindy, and Spike's teacher at Bob LaBrea High School. The Full-Bodied costume used for Mr. Pulman is often used for one-appearance minor characters.
A female Corythosaurus who is Charlene's best friend. There are two different characters with the same name that are both friends of Charlene. There are also two unrelated characters called Mindy:
One green-skinned character named Mindy only appeared in "Slave to Fashion."
A brown-skinned character also named Mindy appeared in "Charlene & Her Amazing Humans" and "Scent of a Reptile."
A Walter Cronkite-esque Pachycephalosaurus who is the newscaster for DNN (short for Dinosaur News Network) which is a spoof of CNN. He is one of a few characters that isn't a Full-Bodied character.
Also known as the Elder-in-Chief, the Chief Elder presides over all of the government in Pangaea. It is assumed that he is the head of the Council of Elders. There had been different Chief Elders in different appearances:
The first Chief Elder appeared in the two-part episode "Nuts to War" where he was a Protoceratops. He was performed by Steve Whitmire and voiced by George Gaynes.
The Dryptosaurus Chief Elder who died in the episode "And the Winner Is..." is voiced by Sam McMurray and was succeeded by political analyst Edward R. Hero. He was about to name Baby Sinclair, but he was dying of a heart attack with the Stegosaurus name announcer thinking the Chief Elder named Baby "Aagh Aagh I'm Dying You Idiot Sinclair". This was the only Chief Elder that was a Full-Bodied character.
A suited Chief Elder that appeared in "Green Card" is performed by Mak Wilson and voiced by Joe Flaherty.
The Chief Elder that appeared in "The Greatest Story Never Sold" is performed by Allan Trautman and voiced by Tim Curry.
The Chief Elder that appeared in "The Golden Child" is voiced by Michael Dorn.
The Chief Elder that appeared in "Working Girl" is performed by Allan Trautman and voiced by Joe Flaherty.
Mr. Lizard is a gray Iguanodon who is the star of Baby's favorite TV show "Ask Mr. Lizard" (a parody of the television show Watch Mr. Wizard). His show helpfully taught generations of children about science that was vaguely related to scientific principles, but mostly existed as a way of ridding the world of young dinosaurs named Timmy. After the often violent death of his assistant, Mr. Lizard would cheerfully call off-camera "We're going to need another Timmy!"
Other characters
The following characters are not in the Unisaurs category below:
Gary is a 50 ft. dinosaur whose feet can only be seen. He appeared in the Dinosaurs episode "High Noon". He takes a romantic interest in Fran, and challenges Earl for her. Gary has been classified as a Dilophosaurus. Dilophosaurus was actually smaller than Megalosaurus in reality.
Blarney is a red Deinonychus hand-puppet character on Dinosaurs, intended as a spoof of Barney the Dinosaur. He appeared in Dinosaur TV segments in two fourth-season episodes – "Terrible Twos" and "Into the Woods". Blarney is adored by young children, but is less popular with older viewers. He appears on videotapes released as part of the Blarney Home Video Library. Parents who order will "get a new video delivered to their child every hour for the next decade". Titles spoof not only the Barney franchise, but other commercials for mail-order videos, from fitness and health tapes to bridge, computers, and semi-religious quests.
Henri Poupon is an Archaeopteryx that appeared in the episode "Getting to Know You". Henri is the father of Francois Poupon and husband of Simone Poupon. The Poupons are a family of birds who come from an unnamed country, clearly based on France, that is outside of Pangea. Henri is irritated by exchange student Charlene Sinclair. He is disappointed by the consumption of his own son, but feels that a big screen TV would help the healing process.
Simone Poupon is an Archaeopteryx that appeared in the episode "Getting to Know You". She is the wife of Henri and the mother of Francois.
Francois Poupon
Bruce Lanoil
Bruce Lanoil
Francois Poupon is an Archaeopteryx that appeared in the episode "Getting to Know You". He is the son of Henri Poupon and Simone Poupon. Francois was eaten by Baby Sinclair.
Decker is a Glyptodon that appeared in the episode "Monster Under the Bed". When thought to be the titular monster that has been lurking under Baby Sinclair's bed, it turns out that he was lurking under their house which they built over his house when he captured him, Charlene, and Robbie. Decker did mention that he had to get a permit to do some tunnel digging. When Earl and Fran find out about the situation that ended up involving the police and a broadcast from Howard Handupme that covered the hostage situation, Baby Sinclair suggested that they move the Sinclair house off of Decker's house. Everyone accepted that idea after Howard Handupme did a consultation with someone as it is moved a short distance away from where Decker's house is.
Georgie is a dinosaur dressed as a full bodied European hippopotamus. He is a children's TV icon and host of "The Georgie Show" who appeared in the Dinosaurs episode "Georgie Must Die." He appears as kind-hearted. Georgie is actually a megalomaniac planning to take over the world through his financial empire and the devotion of the dinosaur children. After Earl was arrested for impersonating Georgie, Fran invited Georgie down to the police department to clear things up where he showed off his bad side when alone with Earl while stating that he was not pleased with Earl posing as him and reveals his evil plans to take over the minds of children. Later that night, Earl learned about his motives from Jean-Claude and Brigitte upon them springing Earl from the police department. Earl later fought Georgie on his television show and ended up defeating him. During the credits on the DNN Pre-Prime News, Howard Handupme reported about the resulting fallout caused by last week's melee on "The Georgie Show" that sparked a Justice Department investigation on the Georgie empire leading to the arrest of Georgie himself on the charges of tax evasion and racketeering. It was also mentioned by Handupme that Earl was pardoned of all criminal charges by the Chief Elder who is also a parent, presented Earl with the Key to the City, and thanking Earl for in his words "giving that chuckling carpet bag the well-deserved shot in the chops". Roy ended up taking his place on TV as the eponymous "Uncle Roy." Like Blarney, Georgie is also a parody of Barney.
Unisaurs
Outside of the recurring characters, there are a group of dinosaur characters called Unisaurs. They are customizable dinosaur characters similar to the Whatnots from The Muppet Show and the Anything Muppets from Sesame Street. Some of the Unisaurs are Full-Bodied while the others are hand-puppets. They come in different types.
A generic green Dryptosaurus. This Unisaur was used for:
Ansel from the episode "Driving Miss Ethyl". His face was performed by Julianne Buescher, his body was performed by Pons Maar, and his voice was provided by Michael McKean.
The Babysitter from the episode "Terrible Twos". His face was performed by Bruce Lanoil, his body was performed by Tom Fisher, and his voice was provided by John Glover.
Buddy Glimmer from the episode "Family Challenge". His face was provided by David Greenaway, his body performed by Jack Tate, and his voice was provided by Sam McMurray.
The Devil from the episode "Life in the Faust Lane". His face was performed by Bruce Lanoil, his body was performed by Pons Maar, and his voice was provided by Tim Curry.
Dr. Ficus from the episode "Germ Warfare". His face was performed by Bruce Lanoil, his body was performed by Pons Maar, and his voice was provided by Charles Kimbrough.
Ed from the episode "Scent of a Reptile". His face was performed by David Greenaway, his body was performed by Jack Tate, and his voice provided by Thom Sharp.
Mel Luster from the episode "The Mating Dance". His face was performed by Bruce Lanoil, his body was performed by Jack Tate, and his voice was provided by Richard Portnow.
Stu Boomird from the episode "Network Genius". His face was performed by Bruce Lanoil, his body was performed by Jack Tate, and his voice was provided by Jason Alexander.
Ty Warner from the episode "Swamp Music". His face was performed by Bruce Lanoil, his body was performed by Pons Maar, and his voice was provided by Jon Polito.
Walter Sternhagen from the episode "The Discovery". His face was performed by Bruce Lanoil, his body was performed by Pons Maar, and his voice was provided by Thom Sharp.
A tall dinosaur resembling a Troodon with an elongated snout. In addition to being used for Mr. Pulman and Ralph Needlenose, this Unisaur was used for:
The Doctor from the episode "Golden Child". His face was performed by David Greenaway, his body was performed by Tom Fisher, and his voice was provided by Sam McMurray.
Dr. Herder from "Terrible Twos". His face was performed by David Greenaway, his body was performed by Tom Fisher, and his voice was provided by Michael McKean.
Glenda Molehill from the episode "Switched at Birth". Her face was performed by Bruce Lanoil, her body was performed by Tom Fisher, and her voice was provided by Mimi Kennedy.
Heather Worthington from the episode "A Slave to Fashion". Her face was performed by Terri Hardin, her body was performed by Tom Fisher, and her voice was provided by Julia Louis-Dreyfus.
A bulky Ceratosaurus with a striped back, striped tail, and a nose horn. In addition to being used for Gus Spikeback, this Unisaur was used for:
Al "Sexual" Harris from the episode "What "Sexual" Harris Meant". His face performed by Bruce Lanoil, his body was performed by Jack Tate, and voice provided by Jason Alexander.
Andre from the episode "Leader of the Pack". His face was performed by Mak Wilson, his body was performed by Jack Tate, and his voice was provided by Sam McMurray.
Bob the DMV Worker from the episode "Unmarried...With Children". His face was performed by David Greenaway, his body was performed by Jack Tate, and his voice was provided by David Wohl.
Dolf from the episode "Steroids to Heaven". His face was performed by Allan Trautman, his body was performed by Jack Tate, and his voice was provided by Sam McMurray.
Frau Woodhouse from the episode "Terrible Twos". Her face was performed by Julianne Buescher, her body was performed by Jack Tate, and her voice was provided by Julianne Buescher.
Gus Molehill from the episode "Switched at Birth". His face was performed by David Greenaway, his body was performed by Jack Tate, and his voice was provided by Jason Alexander.
Hank Hibler from the episode "Charlene and her Amazing Humans". His face was performed by Allan Trautman, his body was performed by Jack Tate, and his voice was provided by Jeffrey Tambor.
The Job Wizard from the episode "Career Opportunities." His face was performed by David Greenaway, his body was performed by Jack Tate, and his voice was provided by Jason Alexander.
Ray Gherkin from the episode "Scent of a Reptile". His face was performed by Rickey Boyd, his body was performed by Jack Tate, and his voice was provided by Glenn Shadix.
Richard from the episode "Refrigerator Day". His face was performed by John Kennedy, his body was performed by Jack Tate, and his voice was provided by Thom Sharp.
Shelly from the episode "Dirty Dancin'". Her face was performed by Bruce Lanoil, her body was performed by Jack Tate, and her voice was provided by Conchata Ferrell.
The Clerk from the episode "The Son Also Rises". His face was performed by Bruce Lanoil, his body was performed by Jody St. Michael, and his voice was provided by Robert Picardo.
The Dinosaur Chief from the episode "Hurling Day". His face was performed by Kevin Clash, his body was performed by Michelan Sisti, and his voice provided by Harold Gould.
The Folk Singer from the episode "I Never Ate My Father". His face was performed by John Kennedy, his body was performed by Michelan Sisti, and his voice was provided by Steven Banks.
Frank from the episode "Fran Live". His body was performed by Michelan Sisti and his voice was provided by Thom Sharp.
General H. Norman Conquest from the episode "Nuts to War". His face was performed by John Kennedy, his body was performed by Michelan Sisti, and his voice was provided by Jason Alexander.
Hank from the episode "Life in the Faust Lane". His face is performed by David Greenaway, his body was performed by Michelan Sisti, and his voice was provided by Michael McKean.
The Insurance Agent from the episode "Family Challenge". His face was performed by Bruce Lanoil, his body was performed by Jack Tate, and his voice was provided by Peter Bonerz.
Jean-Claude from the episode "Georgie Must Die". His face was performed by David Greenaway, his body was performed by Michelan Sisti, and his voice was provided by Tim Curry.
Mr. Myman from the episode "Out of the Frying Pan". His face was performed by David Greenaway, his body was performed by Leif Tilden, and his voice was provided by Michael McKean.
The Muse from the episode "Charlene's Flat World". His face was performed by John Kennedy, his body was performed by Jack Tate, and his voice was provided by Robert Picardo.
Officer Bettelheim from the episode "License to Parent". His face was performed by David Greenaway, his body was performed by Michelan Sisti, and voice was provided by Michael McKean.
The Odd Job Dinosaur from the episode "How to Pick Up Girls".
Police Chief Parish from the episode "Monster Under the Bed". His face was performed by Rickey Boyd, his body was performed by Michelan Sisti, and his voice was provided by Michael McKean.
Ted Hardshell from the episode "Network Genius". His face was performed by Allan Trautman, his body was performed by Michelan Sisti, and his voice was provided by Robert Picardo.
UFO Host from the episode "We Are Not Alone". His face was performed by Bruce Lanoil, his body was performed by Michelan Sisti, and his voice was provided by Jason Alexander.
Zabar from the episode "Germ Warfare." His face was performed by David Greenaway, his body was performed by Michelan Sisti, and his voice was provided by Dan Castellaneta.
A female Corythosaurus with a short snout, eyelashes, hair-like crest, and lighter-hued skin that was often used for Mindy. This Unisaur was also used for:
Caroline Foxworth from the episodes "How to Pick Up Girls" and "Steroids to Heaven". Her face was performed by Julianne Buescher, her body was performed by Star Townsend, and her voice was provided by Julianne Buescher.
Sally from the episode "Out of the Frying Pan". Her face was performed by Julianne Buescher, her body was performed by Star Townsend, and her voice was provided by Suzie Plakson.
Thighs of Thunder from the episode "The Discovery". Her face was performed by Julianne Buescher, her body was performed by Star Townsend, and her voice provided by Suzie Plakson.
Wendy Richfield from the episode "Hungry for Love". Her face was performed by Julianne Buescher, her body was performed by Michelan Sisti, and her voice was provided by Wendie Jo Sperber.
In the episode "I Never Ate for My Father," in lieu of carnivorism, Robbie chooses to eat vegetables, which the show uses as a metaphor for homosexuality, communism, drug abuse and counter culture.[11]
The 2-part episode "Nuts to War" was a satire of American involvement in the Gulf War, with two-legged dinosaurs going to war with four-legged dinosaurs over pistachios instead of oil.[12]
In the final season, "The Greatest Story Ever Sold" (a take-off of The Greatest Story Ever Told) references religion when the Sinclair family becomes eager to learn the meaning of their existence. The Elders dictate a new system of beliefs, and the entire cast (with the exception of Robbie) abandons science to blindly follow the newly popular "Potato-ism".
Another religious-themed episode was "The Last Temptation of Ethyl", in which Ethyl willingly allows a televangelist to exploit her near-death experience to extort money from followers. She backs out after having a second such experience, where instead of heaven, she experiences a "place not so nice": an existence surrounded by nothing but multiple Earl Sneed Sinclairs.
Several jokes in the series were at the expense of television shows in general. Earl often wants to watch TV rather than do something more practical, and several jokes accuse television of "dumbing down" the population and making it lazy.
Captain Action Figure shows up in children's programming that Fran mistakes for a commercial. Whenever Captain Action Figure mentions a product, the screen flashes "Tell Mommy I WANT THAT!". Before the appearance of Georgie, Dinosaurs used a puppet reminiscent of Barney the Dinosaur named "Blarney" in two episodes. During his appearances, members of the Sinclair family commented on his annoying characteristics and failure to teach anything to children.
The characters will sometimes break the fourth wall as well, especially Baby. An example of such is seen in the episode "Nature Calls" (Season 3, Episode 1) when Fran and Earl spell out words in front of Baby during an argument, who, after looking at the camera and saying "This could get ugly", proceeds to spell out "They think I can't spell" with his alphabet blocks.
The final episode of Dinosaurs produced and aired on ABC was intended as the series finale[a] and depicts the irresponsible actions of the dinosaurs toward their environment, and the ensuing Ice Age which leads to their demise.
Stuart Pankin, the voice of Earl, stated that the ending "was a simplistic and heartfelt social comment, yet it was very powerful" with "subtlety" being a defining aspect.[8]
The television series creators decided to make this finale as a way of ending the series as they knew the show could be canceled when they created season 4. Michael Jacobs stated that "We certainly wanted to make the episode to be educational to the audience", and as people knew dinosaurs were no longer alive, "The show would end by completing the metaphor and showing that extinction."[8]Ted Harbert, president of ABC, expressed discomfort at the ending in a telephone call, but allowed it to go forward.[8]
Jacobs stated that correspondence from parents revealed that "They understood the creativity in the final episode, and they were sad at the predicament we presented in the story."[8] Pankin stated that "Everybody was at first shocked, but I think it was more of a reaction to the show ending."[8] Pankin stated that he did not remember a significant number of audience members being angry about the ending.[8] In 2018, Jacobs stated that the episode would have trended on social media had it been released that year.[8]
Noel Murray of The A.V. Club stated that the episode "delivered as blunt an environmental message as any major network TV broadcast since The Lorax."[13] Brian Galindo of BuzzFeed described it as being shocking for children.[14]
International screening
In the United Kingdom, the show was screened on ITV in 1992 and in reruns from 1995 to 2002 on Disney Channel.[15] In Canada, the show started airing reruns in 1992 on The Family Channel and aired them until the late 1990s; the show also aired on CHRO-TV in the early-to-mid 1990s. In Australia, the show started airing on the Seven Network from February 1992 through to 1995. In Ireland, in the mid-1990s, it was shown on a Sunday evening on RTÉ Two (known as network 2 back then). In 1994, it was shown in Italy on Rai 1. The show has also aired on TV3, then moved in 2003 to TV2 in New Zealand, KBC in Kenya and M-Net in South Africa. In Brazil the show started airing on Rede Globo from 1992 to 1999, on SBT from 2003 to 2005, on Band from 2007 to 2011, and on Canal Viva in 2014.[16] In Mexico the show was aired on Canal 5.[17]
Home media
The first three volumes were released on VHS on December 6, 1991. On May 2, 2006, Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment released Dinosaurs: The Complete First and Second Seasons as a four-disc DVD box set. The DVD set includes "exclusive bonus features including a never-before-seen look at the making of Dinosaurs". The complete third and fourth seasons, also a four-disc DVD set, were released on May 1, 2007, with special features, including the episodes not aired on U.S. television. Both sets are currently available only in Region 1.
Dinosaurs was made available for streaming on Disney+ on January 29, 2021, for the United States.[19]
Reception
As of September 2022, the series as a whole has received an approval rating of 91% on review aggregatorRotten Tomatoes.[20] Its first season received an approval rating of 83%, its consensus reads, "Dinosaurs, marries astonishingly expressive puppetry with genuinely funny satire of social norms, making for a forward-thinking prehistoric sitcom."[21] While its fourth season received more critical praise, with a 100% approval rating.[22]
^Seven episodes set prior to "Changing Nature", which had not previously aired on ABC, first aired in television syndication in fall 1994, with "Scent of a Reptile" being the final episode to premiere. Ordering on digital platforms varies, however Disney+ now lists the final season episodes in production order ending with "Changing Nature".
.png)
