Can you trace these beloved characters back to the correct decade?

Do you know when Columbo, Perry, Hawkeye and others first appeared?

 

Some of your favorite TV characters have a long history that traces back to the era before television! 

Networks based classic shows on comic strips, radio programs, bestselling novels, and hit films.

Do you know when beloved protagonists like Columbo and Perry Mason first popped up? Try to trace these characters back to their decades of origin!

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  1. Perry Mason originated as a character in crime novels by Erle Stanley Gardner. When did he make his first appearance?
  2. Columbo was on 'The Chevy Mystery Show' and stage before getting his own mystery series. When did Columbo first appear?
  3. Sgt. Joe Friday made his debut on the radio. The Dragnet detective made his debut in the…?
  4. The Three Stooges originated in which decade?
  5. MASH was a novel and movie before a TV show. When did Hawkeye Pierce made his debut?
  6. Gidget can also trace her origins back to page and silver screen. Gidget made her debut in the…?
  7. Buck Rogers was on the radio and in newspapers long before he appeared on TV. Buck Rogers made his debut in the…?
  8. Uncle Fester and the rest of The Addams Family premiered as a comic strip in the…?
  9. Mister Ed the talking horse first appeared as a literary character in the…?
  10. The Lone Ranger made his debut in the…?
  11. Simon Templar a.k.a. "The Saint" made his debut in the…?
  12. Finally, you know Mr. Belvedere best as a 1980s sitcom. The character traces back to the…?

Can you trace these beloved characters back to the correct decade?

Your Result...

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67 Comments

Claude 52 months ago
At the end it asked me "which answer was the most surprising?"
For me, it was #8. The Addams Family appearing in the comics way
back in the 1930's was surprising.
Ehsauve Claude 51 months ago
I have an old book filled with Chas Addams cartoons. Amazing work
kkvegas 52 months ago
12/12. It was easier than it could have been because often a plausible decade was omitted from the choices. For example, I might have guessed the 1950's for Dragnet and 1930's for the Stooges, but those choices weren't listed.
Wiseguy 52 months ago
The Three Stooges first appeared in the 1930s after they broke up with Ted Healy. They were known by different names before but not "The Three Stooges." And depending on what you mean by "appeared," their first filmed appearance was in the movie "Soup to Nuts" (with Shemp) in 1930.
MrBill Wiseguy 52 months ago
You are incorrect. Their act in the late 1920's on vaudeville was called Ted Healy and his Three Stooges.
Thank you for the correction MrBill. If you hadn't done so, I was all set to to do so. I knew he was wrong after the first few words While reading the rest of his reply, I was hoping someone would do what you did.
If you want to get "technical" about when the Stooges first appeared, there is film footage of Moe and Shemp doing Vaudeville in 1929. They were honing their Stooges act way back then.
Obviously, I meant an official film appearance. I can make a film of you but it doesn't mean you appeared in a movie.
You're both wrong. In vaudeville they were known as Ted Healy and his Racketeers or Three Southern Gentlemen. They were also referred to Ted Healy and His Gang." In "Soup to Nuts" they were credited individually. In the MGM shorts, they were credited as Howard, Fine and Howard or Ted Healy and HIS Three Stooges. They were never credited as "THE Three Stooges" until the Columbia shorts. Even in their first Columbia short they weren't billed as The Three Stooges. The credits were later changed. Moe came up with the name "The Three Stooges" in 1934. Do some REAL research instead of just arrogantly disagreeing with someone just to see your words in print. (And yes, Stephanie, I know you never let facts get in the way of a post.)
Barry22 Wiseguy 52 months ago
You are right. They started using the name when they signed with Columbia.
daDoctah 52 months ago
And James Bond first appeared in the movie Outwitted in 1917, when Ian Fleming was just nine years old.

Okay, it wasn't *the* James Bond, the secret agent, but a character of that name played by Frederick Truesdell.
Muleskinner 52 months ago
8/12. That one was tough and took a lot of thought. 🤔
Big3Fan 52 months ago
7/12 Knew a few, guessed a few.
Runeshaper 52 months ago
4/12 = OUCH! LOL
biscuits18521 Runeshaper 51 months ago
I know right? I got a measly 5/12.
Hollie 52 months ago
1/12 that didn't work out to well lol
biscuits18521 Hollie 51 months ago
same here.
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