Shazam! (TV series)

Did You Know?

• After its original network run, Shazam! was brought back for reruns from January 5 through August 30, 1980.
• A handful of episodes appeared on TV Land infrequently throughout the 2000s, originally on the "Ultimate Fan Hour" in early 2004.
• The series was available for streaming on the now defunct DC Universe streaming service.

Format

The Mentor character, played by Les Tremayne, was created for the television series and did not appear in the original Shazam! comics; his background and relationship to Billy were never explained. In later 1970s tie-in comics, Billy's Uncle Dudley grew a mustache, drove an RV, and told Billy the Wizard Shazam had chosen him as a mentor, effectively adapting the TV character into the comics. Neither Mary nor Freddy appeared in the series, though the Marvel Family appeared together in tie-in comic stories. After Shazam! paired with The Secrets of Isis in 1975, Joanna Cameron appeared as Isis on three Shazam! episodes, and John Davey appeared as Captain Marvel on three Isis episodes. The show was among the first Filmation productions to feature the spinning executive producers' credit wheel in the opening credits.

Home media

The pilot episode, "The Joy Riders," was included as a bonus disc with the 2005 North American release of Wonder Woman's third season, part of a Warner Bros. promotional DVD series. On October 23, 2012, the complete series arrived on DVD through Warner Archive's burn-on-demand service. Warner Archive later issued a four-disc HD Blu-ray set on October 8, 2019, with new masters restored from the original Filmation 16 mm and 35 mm film elements.