September 30

Animated sitcom “The Flintstones” premiered on September 30, 1960, on ABC-TV and ran through April 1966. Produced by Hanna-Barbera, working-class Stone Age individuals lived quasi-modern lives, using technology powered by animals that frequently broke the “fourth wall” to complain to viewers about their jobs. Trade rag Variety called the show "A Pen and Ink Disaster," but it became wildly popular and was the first animated series nominated for an Emmy Award (Outstanding Comedy Series). It was blatantly modeled after Jackie Gleason’s “The Honeymooners”: Fred Flintstone as Ralph Cramden, neighbor Barney Rubble as Ed Norton (Art Carney’s character), Wilma and Betty as their wives. Gleason threatened to sue but did not want to be known as “the guy who yanked Fred Flintstone off the air.”