Barney the Invisible

Barney the Invisible
Details
Show	The Flintstones
Season	3
Episode number	63
Production number	P-64
Original airdate	September 28, 1962 (ABC)
Recording Date	May 24, 1962
Crew
Animated by	George Nicholas George Goepper Kenneth Muse Ed Aardal
Layout	Dick Bickenbach Lance Nolley
Background	Art Lozzi
Written by	Warren Foster
Chronology
Previous	"Fred's New Boss"
Next	"Bowling Ballet"

"Barney the Invisible" is the third episode of the third season of The Flintstones. It aired on September 28, 1962.

Synopsis

In an attempt to cure Barney's hiccups, Fred offers his friend a swig from an experimental soft drink he has formulated, and it turns him temporarily invisible.

Plot

Fred has converted his garage into a laboratory, in which he is combining chemicals in an attempt to concoct a wealth-and-fame-earning, new soft drink. Meanwhile, Barney, plagued with persistent hic-coughing, is urged by Betty to visit a Dr. Quartz in search for a hic-cough cure. When Fred learns of Barney's affliction, he insists that Barney forgo a costly visit to a doctor (Stone Age physicians are quacks anyway) and permit him to endeavor a cure. Conventional methods, involving a paper bag over the head and sudden fright with a thrown hatchet, prove ineffective.

So, Fred supplies his latest chemical mixture for Barney to drink- and it halts the hiccoughs and turns Barney invisible. Fred is unable to reverse the vanishing process, and he escorts Barney to Dr. Quartz in the hope that Quartz can supply an antidote. First though, Fred and Barney stop at the Bedrock Bowling Alley, where Fred uses Barney's unseen presence to foil a braggart named Blowhard Sandstone, who challenges Fred to a bowling string. Barney tampers with Blowhard's bowling balls, causing them to go into gutters or stop before striking pins and reverse course back to a confounded Blowhard, and Fred's wild delivery is aided by Barney to garner strikes every time- even when Fred is blindfolded and releases the bowling ball from between his legs!

Blowhard bursts into tears when he loses to Fred. Fred and Barney resume their travel in Barney's car (with invisible Barney driving the vehicle and startling a policeman on duty at an intersection) and arrive at the office of Dr. Quartz. Quartz is unable to restore Barney to visibility, but Fred's formula eventually "wears off", and Barney can be seen again. Still, all is not normal, for Dino has sampled some of Fred's drought and jumps unseen on top of Fred.

Characters

• Fred Flintstone
• Wilma Flintstone
• Barney Rubble
• Betty Rubble
• Dino
• Blowhard Sandstone (only appearance)
• Dr. Quartz (only appearance)
• Charlie

Locations

Bedrock

• Flintstone home
• Rubble home
• Bedrock Bowl

Objects

• Hair Grower (only mentioned)
• 411up (only appearance)
• 412up (only appearance)
• Paper bag (only appearance)
• Rock Bell Phone

Animals

• Snorkasaurus
• Mammoth (as a laundry sink)
• Sealasaurus
• Parrotsaurus
• Dodo Bird (as Dodo eggs, mentioned)
• Brontosaurus (as Corned Brontosaurus)
• Pterodactyl (as Onion Pterodactyl Sandwiches, mentioned)
• Saber-Toothed Tiger (mentioned)

Vehicles

• Loggin Continental

Cast

Alan Reed	Fred Flintstone
Jean Vander Pyl	Wilma Flintstone
Mel Blanc	Barney Rubble Dino Sealasaurus Parrotsaurus Bird
Bea Benaderet	Betty Rubble Nurse
John Stephenson	Blowhard Sandstone Cop #1
Hal Smith	Announcer Cop #2
Howard McNear	Dr. Quartz

Quotes

• Ok Cowboy Pull Over
• What are you some kind of a Show Off or something

Notes/Trivia

• Blowhard's last name is Sandstone. The elephant is named Cicero, an unlikely name for a Flintstones character.
• According to the book, The Flintstones: A Modern Stone Age Phenomenon, this episode was sometimes known as "Invisible Barney".
• This is the first episode where the now-famous "Meet the Flintstones" song is used and becomes the show's main theme which replaced "Rise and Shine", the instrumental song from the first and second seasons plus the previous two episodes of the third season.
  • It is also the first episode for the DVD to use the new credits and theme as well.

Errors

• During the bowling match, Blowhard is shown shooting an 8 on one of his frames, missing the 7-10 split, but later according to the score sheet, it shows that he has not scored above 4 in any of his frames.
• After Blowhard misses all the pins with his first two throws he moves over to the next lane for another turn even though none of the other lanes have pins set up on them and it isn't his turn anyway.
• When Wilma is talking to Betty while she is dusting she picks up the vase and dusts under it twice.