The first segment, a very loose adaptation of
Marvel Comics' character
Thing, consisted of stories following the adventures of a scrawny, red-headed teenager named Benjy Grimm (voiced by Wayne Morton) who changes into the monstrous and mighty Thing (voiced by
Joe Baker impersonating
Jimmy Durante) by touching together two magic rings and reciting the words "Thing Ring, do your thing!", releasing an explosion of energy that causes orange rocks to hurl in from every direction and transform him into the stone-skinned superhero. The stories centered mostly around Benjy at Centerville High School with his friends, the beautiful brunette Betty Harkness (voiced by
Marilyn Schreffler), her snooty rich boyfriend Ronald Radford (voiced by
John Erwin), and Betty's blond
tomboy younger sister Kelly (voiced by
Noelle North), with minimal adult supervision provided by Principal Twilly (voiced by
Marilyn Schreffler). Only Kelly and her scientist father Professor Harkness (voiced by
John Stephenson) know Benjy's secret identity. When not battling various
mad scientists and getting involved in
Scooby-Doo-style mysteries, Thing spent most of his time using his superhuman strength to protect his pals from everyday dangers and the nasty
practical jokes of leather-clad bully Spike Hanrahan (voiced by
Art Metrano) and his biker buddies Stretch (voiced by
Wayne Morton) and Turkey (voiced by
Michael Sheehan) in the
Yancy Street Gang. Other members of the
Fantastic Four did not appear in the show and the portrayal of the Thing and his origin story differed greatly from the original comics. Twenty-six 11-minute episodes of
The Thing were produced; two shorts aired per show.
Other appearances In
FF #8,
Ant-Man and
Dragon Man give Darla Deering her own Thing Rings to become Miss Thing, in a homage to
Fred and Barney Meet the Thing. Betty and Ronald appeared in
Scooby-Doo: Where Are You #66, but it appears their names were changed, but remained similar (i.e. Betty was renamed to Bella.)
Episodes ==Second run==