SHAZAM!

With the release of DC's latest major motion picture, SHAZAM! (the real Captain Marvel), I thought I would set The Way Back Machine to September of 1974.  Networks that broadcast cartoons non stop did not yet exist, so every Saturday Morning was greeted with extreme joy by just about every kid in the US and Canada as that was when the three major networks set aside a lengthy block for nothing but Saturday Morning Cartoons.  Hanna-Barbera ruled that time period with the most animated series, but many often following the same formula that became super popular with Scooby Doo Where Are You? back in 1969.

However, HB was not the only company to produce content for that kid friendly block.  Another studio brought to our televisions quite a few original shows.  Filmation, probably best known for series like Fat Albert, He Man and She Ra, rode its own wave of successes, one of which was a half hour television adaption of DC's Shazam! comic book property.  Now, unlike Hann-Barbera, Filmation was more than willing to dabble in live action shows and Shazam!, along with it's female led companion show Isis, were two of the more popular series that Filmation put on Saturday Morning televisions across the nation for kids to consume. 

Filmation was known for it's cost cutting approach to animation and that also applied to it's stable of live action series as well, however, they still manage to pump out what to kids in the 1970's were fun superhero shows featuring not just great feats of daring, but also a moral lesson at the end of each episode, which was often spelled REPEATEDLY within the episode's story line.  Nonetheless, these shows were fun for what they were even if their ultra low budgets often hindered the final product.

So,with that said, if you've never encountered either Shazam! or Isis from the mid 1970's allow me to introduce them to you.

I haven't been able to find any complete episodes of Shazam! but here is the opening titles from that show:

This clip is an "exciting" and "action packed" (not really) sequence from Shazam! as Captain Marvel runs, yes runs, to stop a plane with the bad guys.

The success of this series spurred Filmation to produce an original idea as a companion piece.  The first live action superhero series featuring a woman in the lead role, predating both The Bionic Woman and Wonder Woman by over a year.  Isis (later renamed The Secrets of Isis when it went into syndication shortly after the production run ended).  This time I was able to find complete episodes so here is a sample.  Enjoy:

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