Dr. Shrinker

Lore & Background

Dr. Shrinker was a recurring segment on the first season of the ABC series The Krofft Supershow, which aired in 1976. The story follows a mad scientist named Dr. Shrinker, played by Jay Robinson, who has invented a ray capable of miniaturizing any object. Three teenagers—Brad Fulton, B.J. Masterson, and her brother Gordie Masterson—crash-land their plane on an island.

They head to the only house there, where they meet Dr. Shrinker and his assistant, Hugo, portrayed by Billy Barty. To demonstrate his invention works, Dr. Shrinker shrinks the trio to six inches tall. The rest of the series shows the so-called Shrinkies trying to return to normal size, while the doctor and Hugo attempt to capture them as physical proof for a potential buyer.

Dr. Shrinker once hinted he would throw in the Shrinkies as a free bonus, and in another episode, he planned to sell the ray to the highest bidder, with the runner-up receiving the teens. Each episode followed a similar pattern, with Dr. Shrinker chasing, catching, and then losing the Shrinkies. The show only lasted one season.

Reader's Guide

Dr. Shrinker lasted only one season on The Krofft Supershow. During the second season, it was dropped (as was the superhero segment Electra Woman and Dyna Girl). The concept may have been inspired by the 1940 film Dr. Cyclops in which a scientist working in the South American jungle uses his radiation experiments to shrink a group of fellow scientists to prevent them from discovering his secret work. One episode, 'Slowly I Turn', is available on DVD with the Krofft Box Set.

In 2005, Marty Krofft said that he and his brother would be recording commentary for a DVD release of Dr. Shrinker. The show is remembered as a repetitive but distinctive example of 1970s children's television, with each episode following the same chase-and-escape pattern described by Dr. Shrinker himself: 'I chase the Shrinkies. I catch the Shrinkies. The Shrinkies escape. It's a vicious cycle, and it's driving me mad!'