“The Flintstones” was also one of the few pre-“Star Wars” marketing bonanzas that really took off in earnest. The Flintstones faces made their way onto multiple grocery store products, some of which can be bought to this day; be sure to pick up some Flintstones Vitamins (launched in the late ’60s), Fruity Pebbles (launched in 1971), or orange Push-Ups (c. 1990). Many modern kids have likely eaten the Flintstones foods without having seen the original TV series.
Which may be fine. Because “The Flintstones” was so dated when it premiered, it feels downright backward by today’s standards. The men are all loutish, sawed-off dolts, and the women are all gossips and harridans. This author was born back in 1978, and my mother forbade “The Flintstones” in our household because it was blunt and sexist. She was right. Watching “Flintstones” reruns can be painful, especially if one was to find the old Winston Cigarette ads wherein Fred and Barney lit up a few smokes to relax.
Gen-X grew up with those reruns, and “The Flintstones” branded itself into their collective unconsciousness. There are multiple “Flintstones” references throughout “The Simpsons,” for instance, and “Weird Al” Yankovic wrote a “Flintstones”-themed parody of Red Hot Chili Peppers’ “Give It Away.” The show’s indelible theme song, written by Hoyt Curtain, regularly makes its way onto compilations of the best TV theme songs ever written, and one might recall hearing John Candy sing it in the film “Planes, Trains, and Automobiles.”
“The Flintstones” wasn’t just the first prime-time animated series, but it’s a massive cultural force that we can’t seem to shake. As of this writing, Elizabeth Banks is working on another animated reboot of “The Flintstones” called merely “Bedrock.” The characters even appeared in season 3 of the Hanna-Barbera universe comedy, “Jellystone!”
It seems “The Flintstones” will never be done with us.
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