Super Chicken

Super Chicken was one of three segments in the half-hour show George of the Jungle. The other segments included Tom Slick, and the show’s feature segment George of the Jungle. Each of the segments was 6–7 minutes in length.

Millionaire playboy fowl, Henry Cabot Henhouse III fought crime in the guise of his masked alter ego, Super Chicken. He drank a special concoction he called Super Sauce to gain super powers, although what specific abilities he gained was difficult to discern as any special “abilities” weren’t readily apparent.

Henry was assisted by his faithful companion Fred, a none-too-bright lion of loyal service who wore a sweater monogrammed with a backward letter “F”. As often happened, if Fred expressed concern when danger loomed, Super Chicken was quick to remind him, “You knew the job was dangerous when you took it, Fred!”

The process of becoming Super Chicken quickly became familiar to those watching the show. When the service of Super Chicken was needed, Henry slipped into his super suit while Fred went off screen to prepare the Super Sauce (conveniently, a mixing bowl and the ingredients were always handy, regardless of their location). Fred returned after a few moments and presented the mixture, usually in a martini glass, to Henry. Henry drank the super sauce, made some comment on the quality or oddity of its flavor, then succumbed to a vigorous physical reaction.

The duo traveled in an egg shaped, jet aircraft called the Super-Coop. From his jet powered perch, Super Chicken occasionally let loose with his “cry in the sky”. The clucking battle challenge that went “Buck, ba-buck, ba-buck, ba-buck, ba-buck, bu-buuu, ba-buck, ba-buck, ba-buck,…” put evildoers everywhere on notice. In addition to his “super powers,” Super Chicken possessed an assortment of random, oddball gizmos — such as an oyster magnet, tear gas fountain gun pen, or a total destruct button — that just happened to be ideally suited for the problem at hand. Useful as the devices may have been, however, for Super Chicken they always backfired.

Super Chicken may not have been the most refined superhero in the history of the genre, but through the use of skill, luck, and the fortuitous intervention of the police, he always managed to get the job done. In the final analysis, isn’t that what really matters?