The Ant and The Aardvark

The Ant and the Aardvark is an early 1970's cartoon series about a blue aardvark -- simply named Aardvark, trying to catch a red ant named Charlie. Produced by the theatrical cartoon production company DePatie-Freleng Enterprises, the cartoon was introduced on Saturday's mornings as part of the immensely popular Pink Panther cartoon series. Both of the characters were voiced by impressionist John Byner -- the aardvark was patterned after comedian Jackie Mason, and the ant had the cool, hip demeanor of Dean Martin. The cartoon also featured minor characters such as green aardvark, cousin ant, Tiny the elephant, and cousin Term the termite. Most of these characters were also notably voiced by John Byner. The cartoon formed such a vast following that it was picked up as featured part of the NBC lineup. And although only 17 episodes were ever produced, the cartoon has never waned in popularity and is considered an all-time favorite. MORE