JACKSON 5IVE – THE COMPLETE ANIMATED SERIES (ABC 1971-73)

Welcome to the wonderful world of the Jackson 5!  In this complete collection of the much-loved animated series that includes 23 full-length episodes and 46 original Jackson 5ive songs, follow the groovy exploits of Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon, and the youngest brother Michael as they embark on crazy adventures, encounter wacky characters and perform 46 of their original hits along the way.

In 1971, when Arthur Rankin, Jr. and Jules Bass contracted with Motown Recording Company to produce an animated Saturday morning television series caricaturing the recording group the Jackson Five, they capitalized on the group’s popularity. The R&B group’s first four singles for Motown topped the pop charts, and the popularity of the music and the young ages of the members (from 13-year-old Michael to 20-year-old Jackie) made them ripe for weekend cartoon fare.

Rankin-Bass hired African American actors to voice the group’s speaking lines, and veteran actor Paul Frees voiced incidental characters. Mad magazine cartoonist Jack Davis created the model sheets and established the character designs.

The Jackson Five tried to attract viewers to music as well as to the half-hour stories. Each episode of the 1971-72 season featured two recordings from the group’s albums (Diana Ross Presents the Jackson Five, ABC, Maybe Tomorrow, and Third Album).

For the music sequences, Robert Balser incorporated psychedelic animation reminiscent of his work on the Beatles’ animated feature Yellow Submarine.

The series was rebroadcast in syndication during the 1984–1985 Saturday morning season when Michael Jackson was riding a major wave of popularity as a solo artist.

This 2-DVD set contains all 23 episodes, digitally recorded from the source material.

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Number of DVDs: 2

Quality: 9.5/10

Running Time: 8 hr. 26 min (approx)

Aspect Ratio: Digital, Full Screen

NOTES: This is a fan-made DVD set. Not    a studio release.