Inspector Gadget
Inspector Gadget is a cartoon series about a bumbling detective, Inspector Gadget, and his fight to stop the evil organization MAD, led by Dr. Claw. It was first released on September 10, 1983 and included 86 episodes. The last of them was aired in 1985.Inspector Gadget was a cyborg; he had various "gadgets" built into his anatomy, including binoculars, a laser, rocket-powered roller skates, and extensible arms and legs. He could activate each gadget by saying the phrase, "Go-go gadget arms!" (for example). The gadgets would often malfunction in humorous ways.
The cartoon was made in France, by it's merchandising company DiC Entertainment. Don Adams, the voice of Inspector Gadget in the American version of the cartoon, also played Maxwell Smart, the lead character in Get Smart, giving both shows a certain resemblance to US viewers.
Each episode, Dr. Claw was foiled not by Inspector Gadget, but by his young niece Penny and her dog Brain. Inspector Gadget invariably got credit for solving the crime, and everyone believed that he had in fact stopped Dr. Claw single-handedly.
Dr. Claw was always depicted sitting in a high-backed chair facing away from the audience, and was thus never seen except for his right arm. He had a cat, Mad Cat. At the end of every episode, Dr. Claw would escape, and yell, "I'll get you next time, Gadget! Next time!" He is a spoof of Ernst Blofeld, the villian of several James Bond movies.
The theme music for the show was composed by Shuki Levy.
In 1992, DiC made a Christmas special called Inspector Gadget: Saves Christmas and in 2001, DiC also made the spinoff Gadget and the Gadgetinis''.
In 1999, Matthew Broderick starred in a live-action movie, also called Inspector Gadget, based on the cartoon series. In 2003, French Stewart starred in the straight to DVD sequel, Inspector Gadget 2.
