Rocky and His Friends
Painting Theft: Parts 1-2
TV Flash files “Painting Theft: Parts 1-2” as the first listed hour of season 4 — Rocky and His Friends (1959–1964) on ABC, season 4, episode 1, aired 1962-06-08, 30 min.
From the desk
How this hour is filed
This leaf is S04E01: listed hour 285 of 308 in the Rocky and His Friends guide, first listed hour of season 4. It aired 1962-06-08 (30 min). The listed hour before it is “Topsy Turvy World: Parts 13-14” (S03E33). Next is “Painting Theft: Parts 3-4” (S04E02).
Catalog log
Broadcast listing — not a TV Flash recap.
Rocky and Bullwinkle "Painting Theft" Part 1 of 6, Fractured Fairy Tales "Red White", Peabody's Improbable History "Charge of the Light Brigade", Rocky and Bullwinkle "Painting Theft" Part 2 of 6.
Viewer FAQ
Where does Painting Theft: Parts 1-2 sit in the Rocky and His Friends guide?
S04E01 is listed hour 285 of 308 — first listed hour of season 4, season 4 episode 1.
When did Rocky and His Friends S04E01 air?
Painting Theft: Parts 1-2 aired 1962-06-08 and is listed at 30 minutes.
Where should I start?
Start with Rocky, Bullwinkle, Boris, and Natasha, then let Fractured Fairy Tales or Peabody prove the sketch-comedy cartoon. 1959 ABC is this brief.
In the series
Why this series still plays
Rocky and His Friends dropped a flying squirrel, a moose, and Cold War satire into kids' animation at decade's end. Jay Ward's anarchic gift: adult-aimed jokes, Bullwinkle's mangled punchlines, Boris Badenov. In 2026 it is the wry-cartoon tradition in the egg — smart enough for parents, rude enough for the kids they were.
The pun arrives before the plot, which is the point. Rocky and His Friends debuted on ABC November 19, 1959 (later The Bullwinkle Show on NBC): Rocket J. Squirrel and Bullwinkle J. Moose foiling Cold War–flavored villains Boris and Natasha in pun-soaked serialized adventures. Jay Ward Productions, Bill Scott as writer-performer, Alex Anderson. June Foray as Rocky and Natasha, Paul Frees as Boris Badenov, Edward Everett Horton narrating Fractured Fairy Tales. Satire, puns, Peabody's Improbable History. Three…
Filed against
- June Foray as Rocky / Natasha
June Foray packed a flying squirrel and a spy-voiced femme fatale into the same throat for Jay Ward’s Rocky and His Friends, then kept the Cold War giggle going on The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show. Natasha’s purr, Rocky’s pep — limited…
- Bill Scott as Bullwinkle / Dudley Do-Right
Bill Scott’s Bullwinkle — and Dudley Do-Right — made Rocky and His Friends a Cold War pun factory — 1950s catalog limited animation with expensive wit, then The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show keeping the moose talking past the kids in the…
- Paul Frees as Boris Badenov
Paul Frees’s Boris Badenov hissed “moose and squirrel” into Jay Ward’s Cold War kids’ hour — Rocky and His Friends at decade’s end, then The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show’s puns and fractured fairy tales. Limited animation, expensive wit, a…
- Edward Everett Horton as Narrator (Fractured Fairy Tales)
Edward Everett Horton narrated Fractured Fairy Tales on Rocky and His Friends — Jay Ward anarchy, a flying squirrel, Cold War satire in kids' clothing, and a droll voice that treated the Brothers Grimm like gossip. TV Flash files him as…