Parents' Guide to

The Dick Tracy Show

By Melissa Camacho, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 8+

Classic cartoon mixes detective work, guns, and stereotypes.

TV Hulu Kids' Animation 1961
The Dick Tracy Show Poster Image

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What you will—and won't—find in this TV show.

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What's the Story?

Based on a 1930's comic strip created by Chester Gould, The DICK TRACY SHOW (1961-1962) is a classic animated series about a hard-boiled police detective and the criminals he chases down. When Tracy (voiced by Everett Sloane) gets word that notorious criminals, like Pruneface and Itchy, Stooge Miller and Mumbles, or the infamous counterfeiter B-B Eyes, are on the loose, he uses his radio wristwatch to contact his assistant detectives, including Joe Jitsu (Benny Rubin), Heap O'Calorie (Johnny Coons), and/or Manuel Tijuana Guadalajara Tampico "Go-Go" Gomez, Jr. (Paul Frees; Mel Blanc) to hunt them down. Also on the chase is Cockney police bulldog Hemlock Holmes (Jerry Hausner), and his Keystone Cop-like officers known as "The Retouchables." The bad guys are sneaky, but the detectives manage to put them away and earn a hearty congratulations from their chief.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: Not yet rated
Kids say: Not yet rated

The Dick Tracy Show is a compilation hard-boiled detective vignettes that have been infused with elements of comedy, including running gags and referents to the comic strip from which it was born. Meanwhile, the colorful cast of characters are parodies of pop culture icons of the time, including Sherlock Holmes, Boris Karloff, and The Untouchables, as a way of paying homage to them.

There is humor in it, but some of these caricatures (namely Jitsu and "Go-Go" Gomez) are extremely stereotypical. Meanwhile, little of the action surrounds Tracy himself, who seems to only appear long enough to assign detectives to investigations, and just in time to see the criminals caught. But the stories do offer both kids and adults some classic cartoon fun.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about why some characterizations and/or generalizations were once socially acceptable, but are considered derogatory today. Why were they not considered stereotypes back in the day? What changed?

  • Are there media generalizations of people and/or cultures that are commonplace today, but that you would like to see eliminated? How can these stereotypes be diffused?

  • Many popular characters on TV shows and in films originated from comic strips. What are some of your favorites? Are there any current comic strip characters that you'd like to see on TV or in movies today?

TV Details

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