Valley of the Dinosaurs

Valley of the Dinosaurs is an animated television series from the Australian studios of Hanna-Barbera that ran for 16 half-hour installments on CBS Saturday mornings from September 7 to December 21, 1974.

Opening narration
"Deep in the heart of the Amazon, the Butler family was exploring an uncharted river canyon. Suddenly, caught up in a violent whirlpool, they were propelled through an underground cavern and flung into a hostile world of giant prehistoric creatures...a world that time forgot. Now, befriended by a family of cave dwellers, each day is an adventure in survival for the Butlers in...the Valley of the Dinosaurs!"

Plot
Science teacher John Butler along with his wife Kim, their two children, Katie and Greg, and their dog, Digger, are on a rafting trip on the Amazon River. As they are going down the river, their boat hits a rock and capsizes. The family then gets caught in a whirlpool. When they surface upon going through an underground cavern, they find themselves in a prehistoric valley where they meet caveman Gorok, his wife Gara, their two children Lok and Tana, and their pet, a baby Stegosaurus named Glump. The two families soon become friends and Gorok and his family help the Butlers in their many attempts to find a way to return home while trying to survive in the valley.

Episode list

 * 1) "Forbidden Fruit" – September 7, 1974
 * 2) "What Goes Up" – September 14, 1974
 * 3) "A Turned Turtle" – September 21, 1974
 * 4) "The Volcano" – September 28, 1974
 * 5) "Smoke Screen" – October 5, 1974
 * 6) "Pteranodon" – October 12, 1974
 * 7) "The Saber-Tooth Kids" – October 19, 1974
 * 8) "After Shock" – October 26, 1974
 * 9) "Top Cave, Please" – November 2, 1974
 * 10) "S.O.S." – November 9, 1974
 * 11) "Fire" – November 16, 1974
 * 12) "Rain of Meteors" – November 23, 1974
 * 13) "To Fly a Kite" – November 30, 1974
 * 14) "Test Flight" – December 7, 1974
 * 15) "The Big Toothache" – December 14, 1974
 * 16) "Torch" – December 21, 1974

Cast

 * Melanie Baker - Tana
 * Shannon Farnon - Kim Butler
 * Joan Gardner - Gara
 * Kathy Gori - Katie Butler
 * Jackie Earle Haley - Greg Butler
 * Don Messick - Narrator
 * Alan Oppenheimer - Gorok
 * Andrew Parks -
 * Mike Road - John Butler
 * Frank Welker - Digger, Glump, Lok

Popular culture
Characters from the show appeared in the Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law episode "Beyond The Valley of the Dinosaurs" with Gorak voiced by Chris Edgerly and Tana voiced by Mary Birdsong.

DVD release
On 22 March 2011, Warner Archive released Valley of the Dinosaurs: The Complete Series on DVD in region 1 as part of their Hanna–Barbera Classics Collection. This is a Manufacture-on-Demand (MOD) release, available exclusively through Warner's online store and Amazon.com.