I doubt the original posters will check back here since the comments are all several years apart but for future visitors here is a little more info. Mattel sold at least three cars from the show. I have three(yes, still have them!): the Jack Rabbit Special which was white and blue, the Sand Crab (the only one I have that is not the same color as the show's. Mine is hot pink.) and the Demon (Dexter's car). I read the lyrics posted and could not even come close to envisioning the melody. I am glad that my memory is not that cluttered. I don't know why, but I kept my cars, but I am glad that I did. They aren't in great shape because I actually played with them. I still regret taking my double decker super charger to the dump, because it still worked great.
9 Reviews
Hot Wheels the show and Sky Hawks too!
steveshadow-13 September 2006
Yeah I remember both shows! They were my favorites for those few seasons. I had the "Sky hawk" airplane they advertised, the Super Star by Mattel. Remember.. Where ever you are, there's a piece of the sky, waiting for Super Star!? i had the original sizzlers, the hot wheels super charger race sets four or five of them... the jumps the ramps the quick release sets with the plastic clamps that went on a door or chair. I had lots of johnny lightnings too and match box and other crappy cars. I never got the big Hot wheel carry case, but my dad tried to throw out my hot wheels lunch boxes... instead they carry tools now.. Some how I always knew they would be worth money some day.. but I never kept them in good shape... My favorite car was the Jack Rabbit special! I guess because of the show.. funny how nobody ever made that car for real... Too bad... I'd buy one!
Long lost but memorable cartoon from the 60s
fivefids8 July 2004
I still remember this cartoon that I never missed on Saturday mornings. The characters were the hero Jack Wheeler, Ardeth the tomboy, Kip, the minority rep of the gang who drove an MG and "Tank" the big guy. Each week they were involved in a different race scenario. Each time they were tormented by their arch-nemesis Dexter, the bad guy. Had that great 60s underpinning where the good guys always won and Dexter left in shame. Jack Wheeler always drove one of two cars, the Jack Rabbit Special or the Sand Crab. Both cars were white, probably to indicate the "good guy." Each episode featured lots of good information regarding automotive mechanics and motor mania in general. At the end of each episode, Jack Wheeler always gave the young audience a driving safety tip. He even did an anti-smoking commercial, which was aired during other Saturday morning cartoons. Its companion cartoon was "Sky Hawks" which had a similar theme but featured airplanes instead of cars. I still remember the Hot Wheels theme song - "Hot Wheels, Hot Wheels, always racing always chasing. Hot Wheels, Hot Wheels, keep a-turning now, keep a-burning now, keep a-turnin' Hot Wheels! Daytona, Indianapolis and Bonneville! Dune buggies, keep a-climbin', up the sandy hill! Hot Wheels, Hot Wheels, keep a-turning now, keep a-burning now, keep a-turnin' Hot Wheels!"
First Cartoon I Recall Seeing
richard.fuller130 January 2010
Warning: Spoilers
In case I am grossly in error, let me say I think this was the first cartoon we learned of on the then-new ABC network, as we were visiting someone else.
Up to that time, I seem to recall the CBS lineup of Smokey the Bear, Casper, tom and Jerry, among others, or Hot Wheels was on this network anyway. (Well, old comic book ads do have Hot Wheels on the same network with Casper and Smokey the Bear).
Either way, the pounding theme repeating "Hot Wheels! Hot Wheels!" as tho it was composed lyrics sticks in a four-yr-old head.
Because of this distinction, I eventually sought the show on Ebay and came across three episodes, and about three of the Skyhawks show as well, which I have no recollection of.
Definitely enjoyed Hot Wheels, even tho about only one episode is in color (well, hey, we had a black and white back then anyway. Actually, when it aired, we did have that big color TV) It was a basic setup. The heroic Jack Wheeler, his father who owned or managed the Hot Wheels group, mini-skirted chickie, a tomboy, and another preppie white kid.
The strangest one, at this time when blacks were entering TV programs as mere tokens, here we have an Arabian black youth, with a small turban on his head.
and then we have the sinister Dexter, rich kid voiced superbly by Casey Kasem. Dexter has his gang of sidekicks, a long-haired motorcycle bunch.
they all go to the hamburger hangout, Mothers, who I actually recall this woman. She was pleased to see the Hot Wheels kids, not so happy when Dexter showed up.
Animation not on par with Scooby Doo or Jonny Quest or Space Ghost, I find the show strangely enticing and enjoyable in all its simplicity.
Would love to see more of them sometime. and I didn't buy a single Hot Wheels car.
well, not like I didn't see them thanks to my brothers and the kids in the neighborhood.
The tape also has commercials on the first episode, cereal ads and a Shasta commercial narrated by Tom Bosley.
There is also an ad for Henry Fonda in a failed TV show, The Smith Family.
Up to that time, I seem to recall the CBS lineup of Smokey the Bear, Casper, tom and Jerry, among others, or Hot Wheels was on this network anyway. (Well, old comic book ads do have Hot Wheels on the same network with Casper and Smokey the Bear).
Either way, the pounding theme repeating "Hot Wheels! Hot Wheels!" as tho it was composed lyrics sticks in a four-yr-old head.
Because of this distinction, I eventually sought the show on Ebay and came across three episodes, and about three of the Skyhawks show as well, which I have no recollection of.
Definitely enjoyed Hot Wheels, even tho about only one episode is in color (well, hey, we had a black and white back then anyway. Actually, when it aired, we did have that big color TV) It was a basic setup. The heroic Jack Wheeler, his father who owned or managed the Hot Wheels group, mini-skirted chickie, a tomboy, and another preppie white kid.
The strangest one, at this time when blacks were entering TV programs as mere tokens, here we have an Arabian black youth, with a small turban on his head.
and then we have the sinister Dexter, rich kid voiced superbly by Casey Kasem. Dexter has his gang of sidekicks, a long-haired motorcycle bunch.
they all go to the hamburger hangout, Mothers, who I actually recall this woman. She was pleased to see the Hot Wheels kids, not so happy when Dexter showed up.
Animation not on par with Scooby Doo or Jonny Quest or Space Ghost, I find the show strangely enticing and enjoyable in all its simplicity.
Would love to see more of them sometime. and I didn't buy a single Hot Wheels car.
well, not like I didn't see them thanks to my brothers and the kids in the neighborhood.
The tape also has commercials on the first episode, cereal ads and a Shasta commercial narrated by Tom Bosley.
There is also an ad for Henry Fonda in a failed TV show, The Smith Family.
Why Not DVD?
paul22-123 May 2020
This is probably the first cartoon I can remember. I was 4 when this came out, and I remember the theme song to this day. The idea of a 30 minute commercial is quite normal by todays standards, since every cartoon out there now sells merchandise. I would like to see this come out on DVD now, because there are those of us out here that remember the cartoon, and would love to go back to 1969 and revisit this era, when it seems everything was better (at least for a kid).
One of a handful of cartoons I recall from my youth
JBastock13 January 2004
This was just one of the cartoons I would watch religiously as a kid. It never even occurred to me that it was a 30 minute commercial for the miniature cars. It and it's sister program "Skyhawks" had catchy '70's era theme songs which had my friends and me playing with our Hot Wheels cars and toy airplanes and singing the songs every time we let the cars roll down the track. The Hot Wheels show was almost the American version of Speed Racer and traced the exploits of the Hot Wheels race club from one race to the next. Looking back, I wonder how it held my attention for more than the first episode. But even after 30 years, I can still hear the theme song in my head... "Hot Wheels! Hot Wheels! Always racin', always chasin'... Keep a turnin' Hot Wheels! Please someone get it out of my head!!
Possibly the first 30-minute toy commercial
Brett_Buck15 September 2002
This may the among the first of a dubious trend - a 30-minute toy commercial masquerading as a Saturday morning cartoon. Hot Wheels was a wildly popular toy car line, spawning several imitators (like Johnny Lightning). As a product, it was quite enjoyable, and a high-quality product that now is among the mega-collectible boomer toys. And yes, my mom in fact DID throw out my "wheel" carrying case with all my cars in it! But I digress
Hard to say how the cartoon came about. Did someone say, "hey, my kids love Hot Wheels cars, let's make a cartoon vaguely related to Hot Wheels and cash in", or alternatively, "hey, I had this great idea - why not make a cartoon about our toy, and maybe we can sneak it into the Saturday morning line up, advertise our toy, and also get paid for doing it!"
The cartoon itself was the typical, generic, limited animation that looked like it cost about $150 an episode to produce. The plot was nominally about a race car club competing in some unspecified series, with some rival "bad guy" car club as a frequent antagonist. Rule #1 about cartoons - if it's about a race, it's gonna stink! This cartoon did not prove to be the exception, it stunk out loud. Nonetheless, it worked pretty well and it was relatively popular for a while. Whether it ever sold any more Hot Wheels cars is unclear.
I vaguely recall an airplane-related sister series, but it's been too many years.
Hard to say how the cartoon came about. Did someone say, "hey, my kids love Hot Wheels cars, let's make a cartoon vaguely related to Hot Wheels and cash in", or alternatively, "hey, I had this great idea - why not make a cartoon about our toy, and maybe we can sneak it into the Saturday morning line up, advertise our toy, and also get paid for doing it!"
The cartoon itself was the typical, generic, limited animation that looked like it cost about $150 an episode to produce. The plot was nominally about a race car club competing in some unspecified series, with some rival "bad guy" car club as a frequent antagonist. Rule #1 about cartoons - if it's about a race, it's gonna stink! This cartoon did not prove to be the exception, it stunk out loud. Nonetheless, it worked pretty well and it was relatively popular for a while. Whether it ever sold any more Hot Wheels cars is unclear.
I vaguely recall an airplane-related sister series, but it's been too many years.
A Precursor of Things to Come
Sargebri21 October 2009
A some of the other posters have mentioned, this and "Skyhawks" were probably the earliest examples of cartoon series that had a toy tie in. Of course, this was several years before shows like "Transformers", "He Man" and "GI Joe" would hit the airwaves and would make weekday afternoons into a virtual infomercial for various toys. However, this show was one of the first and probably one of the best. I still fondly remember it and I would look forward to watching it on Saturday morning. At least they had some cool animation to make you keep watching even if you didn't want the toys. Of course, I did get plenty of Hot Wheels cars as well as the tracks, but this cartoon really didn't have an impact on my decision. Besides, I was only three years old at the time.
This definitely is a lost classic.
This definitely is a lost classic.
Original Hot Wheels cartoon on ABC.
oldrushfan54 February 2017
I watched this avidly when it came out, my Father bought me my first Hot Wheel (Silhouette, blue) in '68, at a K-mart in Ann Arbor and had those same cars that were in the cartoon. My collection still grows, though not as fast as it did in the '60s, 70s. Latest acquisition, The Batman Vs Superman Batmobile.(always purchase two, and keep one in original packaging) Of course I was a child of the '60s-'70s, so the cartoon fit right in with the times. Of COURSE it was a commercial for the fans, but what about when G.I. Joe (the smaller figures, not the original 13 in. ones, of which I had a Navy guy) Why didn't the FTC shut THOSE down? They were in the very same category, along with GO bots, Transformers, My Little Pony, Care Bears, and all the other toys with cartoons bunch....I have given up on ANY governmental agency being FAIR, I guess....
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