The Hillbilly Bears


The Hillbilly Bears is an animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions which aired as a segment on The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show from October 2, 1965 to September 7, 1967.

Overview

The Hillbilly Bears, played on a social stereotype of the "hillbilly", with a gun-toting, mumbling father Paw Rugg who was always "feudin" with their neighbors, the Hoppers.
Paw Rugg's voice was a low mumble, splattered with a few understandable words. Particularly in the first episodes, Paw Rugg's voice was incomprehensible; his speech improved with the later segments. His wife Maw was a homemaker who appeared as the more level-headed parent. Their daughter Floral had lemon-colored fur ; she was the Southern belle and most sophisticated member of the family. Shag was a troublemaker who looked up to his father. The voices and personas of Floral and Shag were nearly identical to Elroy and Judy Jetson from The Jetsons.

List of episodes

Season 1 (1965-66)

Season 2 (1966)

Cast

GoodTimes Home Video released a VHS tape of The Hillbilly Bears in the 1980s, which has long since gone out of print.
The episode "Woodpecked" is available on the DVD Saturday Morning Cartoons 1960's vol. 1.
The episode "Picnic Panicked" is available on the DVD Saturday Morning Cartoons 1960's Vol. 2.

Other appearances

The Hillbilly Bears appeared in Yogi's Ark Lark and its spin-off series Yogi's Gang.
Paw and Maw Rugg appeared in Yogi's Treasure Hunt.
The Hillbilly Bears appeared in a Cartoon Network Shortie, "Miss Understanding," where Maw takes them on a Jerry Springer-like show due to the fact she cannot understand Paw, although the audience assumes that she means she does not "understand" him in the sense that she does not know who he is anymore. This results in Paw shooting on the wall with his gun the sentence "I luv you Maw".
On the Dexter's Laboratory episode, "Chubby Cheese", an animatronic Paw Rugg is seen playing the xylophone during Chubby's song.
The Hillbilly Bears appear in the Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law episode "Guitar Control" defending their home from the SWAT team and Bear. Paw Rugg's name can also be seen in Harvey's black book in "BabySitter" and Paw can be seen using a crowbar to tear off the logo for Sebben and Sebben in "The Death of Harvey."
Paw and Maw Rugg had a minor cameo in the Wacky Races episode "Grandfather Knows Dast" with Paw Rugg voiced by Billy West and Maw Rugg voiced by Jill Talley.
Paw Rugg will appear in the upcoming HBO Max original series Jellystone!