The Chipper, yet Confusing History of Alvin and the Chipmunks (1983–1990)
The Alvin and the Chipmunks franchise needs no introduction. Owned by family operated company Bagdasarian Productions, since the 50’s, the trio of high-pitched superstars have been entertaining children and adults alike for generations, but what if I told you things weren’t always so smooth sailing? In this article I will explain the complex history of their second biggest reincarnation, the hit television series, The Chipmunks.
Rundown of the series itself
Launched in 1983 on NBC, animated by Ruby-Spears Animations, The Chipmunks, titled Alvin and the Chipmunks during its earlier run, was a revival series created to piggyback off of the success of The Alvin Show, the first Chipmunks cartoon, which aired in the 1960s.
The show has the original Trio of chipmunks, Alvin, Simon, and Theodore, along with their caretaker/Father figure David Seville, or Dave for short, who is shown to take the Chipmunks in as babies. But they didn’t just stop at the original three, with the introduction of this all new series came the introduction of a new trio of squeaky singers, and the show’s largest addition in the form of The Chipettes, Brittany, Jeanette, and Eleanor, along with their caregiver/mother figure, Miss Beatrice Miller, or Ms.Miller for short, though strangely, Ms.Miller wouldn’t be introduced until later on in the show’s lifespan in 1986.
The show followed the Chipmunks and/or the Chipettes getting into many different kinds of situations, whether it be trouble making, arguments, rivalries, etc. Most of the episodes ended with a valuable lesson for children to learn, though many incorporated the lesson into the whole episode to strengthen the effect of the message being told.
The Chipmunks and Chipettes could be considered friendly rivals in the show, but they each show affection to one another, and are always there to give each other a helping hand. David and Ms.Miller are good friends, with Ms.Miller babysitting the Chipmunks or giving them rides to places.
The show has received praise since its inception, and became the defining Alvin and the Chipmunks series to many. One of the largest improvements from past renditions was the large amount of personality given to characters other than Alvin, Namely Simon and Theodore, who up until the release of the ’83 series, were just Alvin’s backup singers with one note traits. For example, Theodore was all about laughing a lot, but would later become the glutton of the group. The show tackled situations with more layers to them as well, such as giving and earning respect to and from others, or losing a pet, which resonated with a larger amount of people.
Setbacks During the Series’ Run
Seems like everything’s going hunky-dory right? The Chipmunks get an all new show, and it’s not only successful, but vastly superior to what had preceded it, what could possibly go wrong? Well, a lot, actually.
Things may have seemed like sunshine and rainbows for audiences watching the series, behind the scenes, things were rather inconsistent throughout the series’ lifespan. One of the more noticeable differences were the name changes as the series went on. Initially, the show was titled Alvin and the Chipmunks, but later on was changed to The Chipmunks. During the later seasons of the show, the animation duties were given to DIC entertainment and Murakami-Wolf-Swenson, and certain aspects about the different animation style stuck out, such as how the Chipmunks were animated differently to make them look more anthropomorphic. During the show’s final season, the title was changed one more time to The Chipmunks Go to the Movies, and each episode was a parody of a Hollywood film, Such as Back to the Future. In 1990, the series would end after eight seasons.
The series has had numerous licensing issues with copyrighted songs used in many episodes, a more recognizable example would be Girl’s Just Want To Have Fun by Cyndi Lauper. Due to these issues, the series has not seen a complete release on DVD or digital streaming services.
So there you have it, a short history of the many Ups and Downs of The Chipmunks cartoon series. While things behind the production line may have been all over the place and potentially stressful, what came of it was, and still is, a marginal part of the Alvin and the Chipmunks franchise, and is still looked back on fondly by many. While the future of our famous furry friends remains uncertain, this show still stands tall as a defining milestone of their beloved franchise.
