The WORST episodes of Daktari
Every episode of Daktari ever, ranked from worst to best by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The worst episodes of Daktari!
Daktari (Swahili for "doctor") was a television series that aired on CBS from 1966 to 1969, featuring Marshall Thompson as Dr. Marsh Tracy, a veterinarian at the fictional Wameru Study Center for Animal Behavior in East Africa. The show followed the work of Dr. Tracy, his daughter Paula (Cheryl Miller), and his staff, who were frequently forced to protect animals from poachers and local officials. Tracy's pets, a cross-eyed lion named Clarence and chimpanzee Judy, were also popular characters. Daktari was based upon the 1965 film Clarence, the Cross-Eyed Lion, which also starred Thompson as Dr. Tracy.
#1 - Judy and the Jailbirds
Season 3 - Episode 9 - Aired 10/31/1967
Dr. Tracy finds himself involved in a scheme by two old ex-cons, who want to return to the safety and comfort of their jail cell, to get caught breaking into the safe in Hedley's office so they can be sent back to prison.
#2 - License to Kill
Season 3 - Episode 20 - Aired 1/16/1968
After being unexpectedly attacked by a lioness at Wameru, a retired boxer turned game hunter gets a permit to track her down and kill her. But Tracy is determined to find the lioness first and discover the reason for her strange behavior.
#3 - The Big Switch
Season 3 - Episode 19 - Aired 1/9/1968
When Judy the chimp gives a revitalizing serum to an old native chief who has been banished from his tribe, he comes up with a plan to regain his honor: he's going to singlehandedly kill a lion.
#4 - Riddle of the Bush
Season 3 - Episode 18 - Aired 1/2/1968
A stranger shows up on the sight where Jack and Paula are exploring an elephant graveyard.
#5 - Miracle in the Jungle
Season 3 - Episode 17 - Aired 12/26/1967
A man on the run from the law slips into Wameru to retrieve stolen money he had previously buried there, but when he is frightened away by Clarence the lion, Judy the chimp takes the money and Dr. Tracy ends up being arrested for possession of it.
#6 - The Elephant Raid: Part 2
Season 3 - Episode 16 - Aired 12/19/1967
Dr. Tracy and his friends race against time to keep a destructive elephant herd from being destroyed by land mines and incendiary charges, while also trying to keep the herd from destroying the Wameru compound.
#7 - The Elephant Raid: Part 1
Season 3 - Episode 15 - Aired 12/12/1967
When Wameru is threatened by a stampeding elephant herd that has already destroyed a village, a government expert (who is also an old Army friend of Dr. Tracy) plans to kill off the herd against Dr. Tracy's wishes.
#8 - Clarence's Love-In
Season 3 - Episode 14 - Aired 12/5/1967
Clarence the lion runs away and joins a pride of three wild lionesses he meets in the bush, forcing him to choose between remaining in the wild with them or returning to his Wameru home.
#9 - Judy and the Wizard
Season 3 - Episode 13 - Aired 11/28/1967
Dr. Tracy and his friends try to help an aging magician, whose chimpanzee is getting too old to perform.
#10 - Return of Ethel and Albert
Season 3 - Episode 12 - Aired 11/21/1967
Ethel the hippopotamus and Albert the donkey accidentally escape from Wameru into the bush together, and risk becoming a leopard's prey.
#11 - Judy and the Thoroughbred
Season 3 - Episode 11 - Aired 11/14/1967
Dr. Tracy clashes with an Italian countess who, in striving to win races, has mistreated her champion race horse and caused it to go lame.
#12 - One of Our Cubs is Missing
Season 3 - Episode 10 - Aired 11/7/1967
When Jack and Mike release a rescued lion cub back into the jungle over Paula's objections, Paula first sends Judy the chimp to guard the cub and later goes herself, ending up in a dangerous situation.
#13 - Judy Strikes Back
Season 3 - Episode 21 - Aired 1/23/1968
Dr. Tracy installs an electronic alarm system to protect more than $1 million worth of vaccines. Judy the chimp, angry that she's lost her job as guard, leads a protest against the new system that's replaced her.
#14 - Countdown for Judy
Season 3 - Episode 8 - Aired 10/24/1967
Judy the chimp becomes gravely ill after eating some berries sprayed with poison by a new farmer. Dr. Tracy and his team race against the clock to save Judy by finding out the source and nature of the poison in order to give an antidote.
#15 - The Return of the Phantom
Season 3 - Episode 7 - Aired 10/17/1967
A hunter and Dr. Tracy are both stalking a famous leopard, as Dr. Tracy tries to save the leopard from the hunter.
#16 - The Scent of Fear
Season 3 - Episode 6 - Aired 10/10/1967
A new game warden comes to the compound to be trained by Dr. Tracy, but he doesn't get along well with the animals, and is forced to confront an old fear.
#17 - The Killer Tribe
Season 3 - Episode 5 - Aired 10/3/1967
A search party is sent out to look for Judy the chimp when it's discovered that she has left the compound with a stranger suspected of being a member of a very dangerous tribe.
#18 - Goodbye, Wameru
Season 3 - Episode 4 - Aired 9/26/1967
A well-known African journalist is determined to discredit Wameru in print. Jack, Mike and Paula try to come up with a plan to stop him, but in the end Judy the chimp has the best plan and saves the day.
#19 - Crime Wave at Wameru
Season 3 - Episode 3 - Aired 9/19/1967
A stern, no-nonsense sergeant has been sent to replace District Officer Hedley. In an effort to save his job, Judy the chimp and her animal friends kidnap a lion cub.
#20 - The Execution
Season 3 - Episode 2 - Aired 9/12/1967
A mother leopard behaves strangely by attacking Dr. Tracy and Hedley, but abandoning its cub. Rather than destroy the leopard, Dr. Tracy operates on the leopard for a brain tumor while Judy the chimp secretly adopts the cub.
#21 - A Cub Called Danger
Season 2 - Episode 29 - Aired 4/11/1967
Paula discovers a lioness is not feeding her cub. Despite her father's warnings not to interfere with nature, Paula and Judy the chimp decide to "rescue" the cub, endangering the lives of Paula, the cub, and Clarence the lion.
#22 - Judy and the Vulture
Season 2 - Episode 28 - Aired 4/4/1967
Judy the chimp and Clarence the lion "adopt" a vulture as their new friend and playmate, but they don't know that the bird is carrying a lethal virus that makes Clarence very ill.
#23 - The Long Hunt
Season 2 - Episode 27 - Aired 3/28/1967
The nephew of an Indian sultan visits the compound, but his real objective is the revenge killing of a tiger previously donated by his uncle. Only Judy the chimp realizes his plan, and saves the tiger several times until Dr. Tracy catches on to the plot.
#24 - Strike Like a Lion
Season 4 - Episode 5 - Aired 10/23/1968
A young and wealthy idealist from the States, Andy Brewster, disillusioned by man’s lack of concern for his fellow man, comes to Africa and enlists in a small country’s rebel army. His first assignment is to come to Wameru and get Bart Jason, well known all over the continent for his skill with weapons and knowledge of jungle warfare, to join the cause.
#25 - Judy Comes Home
Season 4 - Episode 15 - Aired 1/15/1969
An all-out search of the dense bush country surrounding Wameru is called after Judy and Clarence disappear. When four days have passed and there is still no trace of them, Jenny starts to worry. Fearing that they have been killed, she refuses to do anything but stand vigil. In an attempt to cheer her up, Marsh gets out Judy’s box containing souvenirs of past escapades. Using these as props, he begins to tell “Judy and Clarence’s Tales” while waiting to hear word of their rescue.