Q.T. Hush

I remember watching Q.T.HUSH in 1961 when it was shown around dinner time. I thought it was so cool. But then again, I was only 7.

In 1971, Q.T.HUSH was aired on WUTV Channel 29 from Grand Island, NY. Being older and wiser, I understood the tongue-in-cheek humor in the plots involving criminals with names like "Al Cologne". The episodes were short 10-minute cliff hangers which were to be continued. This idea would later be used with BATMAN in 1966.

Q.T.HUSH had the same silliness as ROCKY & BULLWINKLE, though the humor of Q.T.HUSH got lost in the artwork, which unlike ROCKY & BULLWINKLE was not "so bad that it was good". The artwork of Q.T.HUSH was dark and eerie (even though the animation was simple). The background images were well drawn and detailed. For example, the blinds in the police station looked old and in need of replacement. The street lights cast an eerie glow on the seedy city streets. And the music was done in a style that was clearly a jazz/blues fusion that was just too cool for words.

While watching a few episodes, I recognized the voice talents of the late great Dal McKennon. The vocal style of Q.T.Hush would be used for "Mr, Weatherbee" on the ARCHIE cartoon and the vocal style of "Seamus" would be used for "Archie" himself.

In spite of the flaws in the series, one must remember that it was intended to be a filler between a local program that ended with time to spare and the local news. Still, it was an entertaining feature that would generate quite a bit of interest as a DVD set. And, like it or hate it, Q.T.HUSH is better than the garbage being made today. There's no comparison!