The Greatest Adventure: Stories from the Bible | |
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(From left to right): Seph, Storyteller, Moki, Margo, Derek, Nod children. | |
Genre | |
Directed by |
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Voices of | Darlene Carr Terry McGovern (1985-1989) Darryl Hickman (1989-1992) Rob Paulsen |
Narrated by | Michael Rye (Opening only) |
Theme music composer | Hoyt Curtin |
Composers |
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Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of episodes | 13 |
Production | |
Executive producers |
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Producers |
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Editors |
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Running time | 25–30 minutes |
Production company | Hanna-Barbera Productions |
Release | |
Original release | April 26, 1985 August 19, 1992 | –
The Greatest Adventure: Stories from the Bible is an animated direct-to-video film series produced by Hanna-Barbera that tells of three young adventurers who travel back in time to watch biblical events take place.[1] Thirteen videos were released between 1985 and 1992.
Derek and Margo, two young archaeologists, are on a dig accompanied by "their nomad friend", a boy named Moki. They come across a door in an ancient ruin that turns out to be a portal through time. Though the introduction is the same in all videos, each episode sends the three friends into a different story from the Bible. They often interact with principal figures from each story, but without any significant effect upon the plot so as not to alter the course of history; in other episodes, they arrive decades after the events depicted in the Bible and are relayed the story by a firsthand witness.
The episodes were not released in an order consistent with the Biblical chronology, but can be construed to give a coherent story beginning with "The Creation" and ending with "The Easter Story", which is told from a Christian viewpoint. The first six episodes, released simultaneously, relate Old Testament (Hebrew Bible) stories, with episodes pertaining to the life of Jesus being added among some additional Old Testament stories as the series progressed.
Each individual episode featured celebrity voices in principal Biblical roles.
The series was initially conceived by Hanna-Barbera co-founder Joseph Barbera some seventeen years before it was produced, but he had difficulty in procuring support for the project. Eventually, however, Hanna-Barbera's parent company Taft Broadcasting agreed to provide funding, and the first video was released in 1985, then Turner Home Entertainment continued production after they bought Hanna-Barbera in 1991. Sparrow-Star Song assisted with distribution, releasing all thirteen episodes on VHS, one episode per tape. Five of these episodes ("The Miracles of Jesus", "David and Goliath", "Noah's Ark", "The Easter Story", and "Moses") were released on DVD in 2006.[2][3][4]
No. | Title | Story by | Storyboarded by | Original release date | |
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1 | "Moses" | Harvey Bullock | Ric Estrada | April 26, 1985 | |
The trio witnesses the ten plagues of Egypt and follow Moses through the parting of the Red Sea. | |||||
2 | "David and Goliath" | Harvey Bullock | Ric Estrada | April 25, 1986 | |
The three meet David and eventually see him defeat Goliath. | |||||
3 | "Joshua and the Battle of Jericho" | Harvey Bullock | Ric Estrada | April 25, 1986 | |
The trio find themselves ensnared in the Battle of Jericho. | |||||
4 | "Noah's Ark" | Harvey Bullock | Ric Estrada | April 25, 1986 | |
The protagonists find themselves aboard Noah's Ark. | |||||
5 | "Samson and Delilah" | Harvey Bullock | Ric Estrada | April 25, 1986 | |
The protagonists find themselves witnessing the story of Samson and Delilah. | |||||
6 | "Daniel and the Lion's Den" | Dennis Marks | Ric Estrada | April 25, 1986 | |
The trio find themselves in Babylon, where they witness the miracle of Daniel in the lions' den. | |||||
7 | "The Nativity" | Bruce D. Johnson and Harvey Bullock, Dennis Marks (teleplay) | Ric Estrada and Robert Taylor | October 15, 1987 | |
The trio witnesses the birth of Jesus. | |||||
8 | "The Creation" | Dennis Marks | Lew Saw and Kay Wright | July 15, 1988 | |
The three protagonists listen to a storyteller recount the creation as well as the Fall. At the same time, they learn their own lessons in honesty after tricking a gardener into giving them fruit for free. | |||||
9 | "The Easter Story" | Dennis Marks | Jim Willoughby | March 15, 1989 | |
Mark describes the last days of Jesus' life, leading up to the crucifixion and resurrection. | |||||
10 | "Joseph and His Brothers" | Dennis Marks and Karran Eccles Wright | Jim Willoughby | November 8, 1990 | |
The trio befriend Joseph and learn about his coat of many colors. | |||||
11 | "The Miracles of Jesus" | Karran Eccles Wright | Ric Estrada | September 26, 1991 | |
The time travelers encounter an elderly version of the young man raised from the dead in the city of Nain, who recounts the various miracles of Jesus. | |||||
12 | "Queen Esther" | Karran Eccles Wright | Ric Estrada | February 27, 1992 | |
Esther and Mordecai expose the duplicity of Haman. | |||||
13 | "Jonah" | Karran Eccles Wright | Ric Estrada | August 19, 1992 | |
Jonah recounts the story of his journey to Nineveh and being swallowed by a fish. |