How did the Super Mario Bros Super Show come to be?

These kids today have no idea how good they have it. They can just waltz right into a movie theater and hand over a few greenbacks, and suddenly they're watching a video game-accurate adaptation of Super Mario. Back in my day, things weren't that easy. If you wanted to watch Super Mario, you either had to watch Bob Hoskins and John Leguizamo power their way through a set designer's acid flashback or catch a rerun of the Super Mario Bros. Super Show. Although both options were perfect nightmare fodder for a six-year-old, the latter was easily the better choice. Plus, the Super Mario Bros. Super Show had Captain Lou Albano as Mario. What's not to love? 

Now that Illumination's The Super Mario Bros. Movie is knocking on the door of a billion dollars, several older Nintendo fans have found themselves looking back at Mario's previous forays into film and television. In the video linked above, the fine folks at the Secret Galaxy YouTube channel have put together a great mini-documentary that chronicles the life of the Super Mario Bros. Super Show