The Perils of Penelope Pitstop

Penelope Pitstop went from racecar driver to endangered heiress in Hanna-Barbera Productions’ The Perils of Penelope Pitstop. The animated series aired in 1969-1970, then ran in syndication as part of Fun World of Hanna-Barbera in the late ‘70s into the early ‘80s. The show was a spinoff of Wacky Races, the animated series about cars racing each other in rallies around the country.

Starring Wacky Races characters Penelope Pitstop and the Ant Hill Mob, the series starts when Penelope inherits the Pitstop fortune, but has no idea that her guardian, Sylvester Sneekly, wants the money for himself.

During each episode, Sneekly, tries to take her inheritance by wearing a disguise and calling himself the Hooded Claw. He and his henchman, the Bully Brothers, hatch elaborate plots to kill Penelope over and over again.

The Ant Hill Mob would often try to help her out of their traps, but would end up ensnared themselves and need Penelope to save them. Despite her ability to outsmart Hooded Claw, she constantly fell into new traps before besting him once again.