The Flintstones Frequently Asked Questions List

8. What are the lyrics to "(Meet) The Flintstones"?

The theme song's lyrics were written by Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera, with music by Hoyt Curtin, the studio's musical director, who also composed the theme and background music for every episode of The Flintstones, as well as around 300 Hanna Barbera cartoons. The song, actually a reworking of sad music already composed for one of the episodes, was recorded with five singers and a 22-man jazz band.

OPENING CREDITS:

Flintstones, meet the Flintstones
They're the modern stone-age family
From the town of Bedrock
They're a page right out of history
Let's ride with the family down the street
Through the courtesy of Fred's two feet
When you're with the Flintstones
Have a yabba-dabba-doo time
A dabba-doo time
You'll have a gay old time

In the CLOSING CREDITS, the "Let's ride" and "Through the courtesy" lines are replaced with:

Some day, maybe Fred will win the fight
And that cat will stay out for the night

The "courtesy of Fred's two feet" line is hopelessly indecipherable to many people and was dubbed, in one of Rich Hall's Sniglets collections, a "Hanna-Barbarism."

The fifth- and sixth-season theme music features a slight difference in the vocals.

Interestingly, the song was actually recorded for the Golden Record album Songs from the Flintstones in 1961, a year before it appeared as the program's theme. Sung by the Flintstones cast, the album version features different lyrics, including a reference to Dino and an entire "Rubbles, meet the Rubbles" section.

An excellent collection of the program's songs and background music is Rhino Records' The Flintstones: Modern Stone-Age Melodies.

Have Flintstones or Hanna-Barbera collectibles to sell or trade? Looking for suggestions for a Flintstones theme party? The Flintstones and Hanna Barbera Bulletin Board