After Jonas Venture Sr. defeats the "L. Ron" robot (a reference to L. Ron Hubbard), a man's spirit escapes into the air, a reference to the Scientology belief that evil alien spirits inhabit mankind.
While Jonas Venture Sr. is fighting the "L. Ron" robot, henchmen wearing gaudy naval uniforms are visible in frame. This is a reference to the Scientology organization's Sea Organization, or "Sea Org."
The owl spying on the Venture family is similar to the mechanical owl from Clash of the Titans (1981)
Billy Quizboy's dream has similar elements to The movie Clashbof the Titans (1981).
Amongst the many pop culture treasures on Augustus St. Cloud's X-2 Venture yacht, is the eponymous Dark Crystal prop from Jim Henson's the Dark Crystal (1982).