Dinosaurs ran for four seasons and 65 episodes on ABC, from April 26, 1991, to November 10, 1995. Bob Young and Michael Jacobs created it. Michael Jacobs Productions and Jim Henson Productions made it with Walt Disney Television. The premise sounds like a throwaway: a family of anthropomorphic dinosaurs living in a modern world, with TVs, fridges and microwaves.
This paper’s view is that it is not a throwaway. It is one of the sharpest family sitcoms of its decade, and it earns a 9.1/10, with a 91% Rotten Tomatoes figure.
The Sinclair Family in Pangaea
The show is initially set in 60,000,000 BC in Pangaea. The Sinclairs are Earl Sneed Sinclair, the father; Fran Sinclair, née Phillips, the mother; their three children, Robbie, Charlene and the infant Baby; and Fran’s mother, Ethyl.
The cast is a voice ensemble: Stuart Pankin as Earl, Jessica Walter as Fran, Jason Willinger as Robbie, Sally Struthers as Charlene and Kevin Clash as Baby Sinclair. In this paper’s view, Walter’s Fran is the center of the household.
Earl’s Job at Wesayso
Earl pushes over trees for the Wesayso Corporation. His friend and coworker Roy Hess does the same, and both answer to their boss, Bradley P. Richfield.
That is the engine of the show. A dinosaur with a mortgage and a supervisor reads as a joke on the surface. This paper’s view is that a critique of labor, consumption and corporate power sits underneath it.
The Joke Inside the Names
The family name is a reference to the Sinclair Oil Corporation, which had prominently featured a dinosaur as its logo and mascot for decades, under the belief that petroleum deposits formed during the age of the dinosaurs. Other names throughout the series refer to rival petroleum companies: Phillips, Hess, B.P., Richfield and Ethyl.
| Name | Reference |
|---|---|
| Sinclair | Sinclair Oil Corporation |
| Phillips, Hess, B.P., Richfield, Ethyl | rival petroleum companies |
The source lists those names only. It does not give the full corporate names behind them.
Kirk Thatcher’s Character Design
The characters were designed by Henson team member Kirk Thatcher. The source describes the design credit and nothing more about how the puppets were built or operated.
A sitcom about a family arguing at the dinner table only works if the family reads as a family. This paper’s view is that the design is what makes the premise hold.
Where the Show Actually Lands
The best episodes stay small. Earl at work. Fran holding the household together. Robbie and Charlene hitting the age where they start asking why things are the way they are.
Dinosaurs follows the life of a family of dinosaurs, living in a modern world.
That synopsis undersells it, in this paper’s view.
Four Seasons and 65 Episodes
Four seasons is a short run. The show never had to explain itself twice, and the episode count stayed at 65.
The score holds up, in this paper’s view, because the show works on two levels at once: funny on the surface, angry underneath. Walter and Pankin carry the house. Thatcher’s designs carry the illusion.
The Verdict on Dinosaurs
9.1/10, with 91% on Rotten Tomatoes. The show ran four seasons and 65 episodes, and it ended in 1995 without wearing out its premise.
Nothing about Dinosaurs feels dated in the way a 1991 sitcom should, in this paper’s view. It feels early.
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