Quacula, prince of duckness.
Quacula (voiced by Frank Welker) is a vampire duck, who is distinct from Count Duckula. Unlike the latter, Quacula speaks with a Transylvanian accent, and his fangs are always prominently displayed. He headlined his own segment on The New Adventures of Mighty Mouse & Heckle and Jeckle for one season.
Plot[]
Quacula was depicted as a pale blue duck with a bill reminiscent of Daffy Duck's and prominent fangs, attired in a blue jacket and a black cape with a red lining. By day, he slept in a white coffin shaped like an egg, located in the basement of a house owned by an anthropomorphic bear named Theodore (voiced by Norm Prescott, imitating Joe E. Ross of Car 54, Where Are You?).
Each night, Quacula would emerge from his coffin, attempting to instill fear in Theodore and others, though his endeavors typically veered towards the comical rather than the terrifying. Despite Theodore's continual efforts to rid himself of Quacula through various schemes, he consistently failed to do so.
Broadcast History[]
Quacula made its debut on September 8, 1979, in the inaugural episode of The New Adventures of Mighty Mouse and Heckle & Jeckle. However, cartoonist Scott Shaw soon filed a lawsuit against Filmation, alleging similarities between Quacula and "Duckula... and His Hairy Henchman, Bearzanboltz,"[1] his one-page strip that was featured in the inaugural July 1976 release of the comic book Quack! #1 (these characters were also featured on the back cover of issue #2), published by the independent label Star Reach.[2] The legal dispute was settled out of court, resulting in the removal of all 16 Quacula episodes from the show, which was subsequently condensed from an hour to a half-hour format.[3]
Episodes[]
| Title | Airdate | Summary | Writers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Star Boars | September 8, 1979 | Quacula finds himself aboard a spaceship, being whisked away to a planet where the sun always shines. | Ted Pedersen |
| 2. House For Sale | September 15, 1979 | Theodore hopes to sell the mansion to a Southerner who plans to open a wax museum, so Quacula decides to intervene. | Ron Card |
| 3. Weird Bear | September 22, 1979 | Theodore gets doused with one of Quacula's ancient potions, which transforms him into a monster. | Bill Danch Ted Pedersen |
| 4. Monster Mash | September 29, 1979 | Theodore buys a Transylvanian robot monster to rid himself of Quacula, but Frankie turns out to be trouble for both of them. | Ted Pedersen |
| 5. Uncle Ferenc | October 6, 1979 | Theodore hopes to join a birdwatching club, whose committee members arrive on the same night as Quacula's uncle. | Ron Card |
| 6. The Magic Lamp | October 13, 1979 | Theodore's flea market find is a magic lamp, but even the genie proves to be no match for Quacula. | Ron Card |
| 7. Room for Rent | October 20, 1979 | Theodore tries to spend a quiet night in a hotel, but Quacula is hot on his trail. | Ron Card |
| 8. Morgana La Duck | October 27, 1979 | Morgana La Duck rises from her 1,000-year slumber and claims ownership of Theodore's house. | Paul Dini |
| 9. Return of Star Boars | November 3, 1979 | Theodore drops Quacula's coffin in the local Bermuda Triangle, where the vampire duck again ends up in the clutches of aliens. | Ted Pedersen |
| 10. Time and Before | November 10, 1979 | Theodore builds a machine to send Quacula back in time, where the duck contends with the bear's primitive ancestors. | Ted Pedersen |
| 11. Bungled Burglary | November 17, 1979 | After swiping his egg coffin, mad scientist Dr. Hugo Frankenfox (voiced by Frank Welker imitating Ed Wynn) creates clones of Quacula. | Paul Dini |
| 12. Shanghai Salty | November 24, 1979 | Theodore's relaxing cruise takes a turn when Quacula rears his head and pirates hijack the ship. | Ted Pedersen |
| 13. Pyramid | December 1, 1979 | When Theodore gets a job as a museum night watchman, he inadvertently awakens a cat-like mummy. | Ron Card Bill Danch |
| 14. Haunted House | December 8, 1979 | Theodore hires The Stranger, a menacing ape in 19th-century attire, to exterminate Quacula. | Ron Card |
| 15. Magic Duck | December 15, 1979 | Theodore hosts a birthday party for his duck-hating buddy, Bruno the bear, who's unusually taken with Quacula's billed friend, Merlin. | Ron Card |
| 16. The Fantastic 2½ | December 22, 1979 | Theodore brings in a band of unusual superheroes (voiced by Frank Welker and Norm Prescott) to contend with Quacula. | Ted Pedersen |
In addition to their 16 shorts, Quacula and Theodore also made an appearance in the Heckle & Jeckle episode "Where There's a Will." The magpies inherit their uncle's mansion and mistakenly show up at Theodore's home. He quickly realizes the mistake but decides to allow Heckle & Jeckle to spend a night in the house, hoping they'll inadvertently drive Quacula away.
Frank Welker, in addition to voicing Quacula, provided the voices for most of the guest characters.
Composer Ray Ellis occasionally reused music cues from Groovie Goolies.