Bumpity is an American children's television series that aired locally in the Portland, Oregon, area on the ABC affiliate KATU, from 1971 to 1985. Bumpity, a green "bump on a lawn" (though many viewers assumed he was a frog) with one pronounced tooth, along with his friend and side-kick, a red and purple striped worm (some children thought he was a snake) named Fred, hosted the show. Other friends included Digger Mole and Scotty MacThistle. Fred never said a word, but did make squeaks in what he termed "High Worm".
An employee of the station named Bob Griggs, came up with an idea to design a puppet as an answer to a call from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) which had asked local station affiliates around the country to air family friendly and educational morning programming. Bob created the original characters with less than three dollars. The concept was approved and quickly became a hit with children and parents alike due to the program's easy, gentle nature.
Among the most frequent guests to "Bumpity Park" were librarians from the Multnomah County Library, who would bring children's books to read to viewers. Bumpity also welcomed police officers, dentists, clog dancers, and magicians.
In 2001, Crispin and Patrick Rosenkranz created a short documentary about Bumpity titled "Bumpity Returns." The video is available through their website or can be borrowed from the Multnomah County Library. The documentary includes interviews with Bob Griggs and others involved with the production of the program, and with Bumpity himself. The documentary also features clips from the show.
The Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly known simply as Fox and stylized in all caps, is an American commercial broadcast television network owned by the Fox Entertainment division of Fox Corporation, headquartered at 1211 Avenue of the Americas in Midtown Manhattan. Fox hosts additional offices at the Fox Network Center in Los Angeles and at the Fox Media Center in Tempe, Arizona. Launched as a competitor to the Big Three television networks on October 9, 1986, Fox went on to become the most successful attempt at a fourth television network. It is also known to push the boundaries of what could be shown on a broadcasting network, as evident with shows like Married... with Children, The Simpsons, Family Guy, and That '70s Show. It was also the highest-rated free-to-air network in the 18–49 demographic from 2004 to 2012 and 2020 to 2021, and was the most-watched American television network in total viewership during the 2007–08 season.
Mister Rogers' Neighborhood is an American half-hour educational children's television series that ran from 1968 to 2001. It was created and hosted by Fred Rogers. Its original incarnation, the series Misterogers debuted in Canada on October 15, 1962, on CBC Television. In 1966, Rogers moved back to the United States creating Misterogers' Neighborhood, later called Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, on the regional Eastern Educational Television Network. The US national debut of the show occurred on February 19, 1968. It aired on NET and its successor, PBS, until August 31, 2001.
"Saturday-morning cartoon" is a colloquial term for the original animated series and live-action programming that was typically scheduled on Saturday and Sunday mornings in the United States on the "Big Three" television networks. The genre's popularity had a broad peak from the mid-1960s through the mid-2000s; over time it declined, in the face of changing cultural norms, increased competition from formats available at all times, and heavier media regulations. In the final two decades of the genre's existence, Saturday-morning and Sunday-morning cartoons were primarily created and aired to meet regulations on children's television programming in the United States, or E/I. Minor television networks, in addition to the non-commercial PBS in some markets, continue to air animated programming on Saturday and Sunday while partially meeting those mandates.
The WB Television Network was an American television network launched on broadcast television on January 11, 1995, as a joint venture between the Warner Bros. Entertainment division of Time Warner and the Tribune Broadcasting subsidiary of the Tribune Company, with the former acting as controlling partner. The network aired programs targeting teenagers and young adults between the ages of 13 and 35, while its children's division, Kids' WB, targeted children between the ages of 4 and 12.
Broadcast syndication is the practice of content owners leasing the right to broadcast television shows or radio programs to multiple television stations or radio stations, without having an official broadcast network to air on. It is common in the United States where broadcast programming is scheduled by television networks with local independent affiliates. Syndication is less widespread in the rest of the world, as most countries have centralized networks or television stations without local affiliates. Shows can be syndicated internationally, although this is less common.
WRAL-TV is a television station licensed to Raleigh, North Carolina, United States, serving as the NBC affiliate for the Research Triangle area. It is the flagship station of the locally based Capitol Broadcasting Company, which has owned the station since its inception.
Kids' WB was an American children's programming block that aired as part of The WB network from September 9, 1995, to September 16, 2006. Initially launched as a competitor to Fox Kids, Kids' WB aired during the Saturday morning and after-school time slots, although as an affiliate network the times and programming varied regionally. In 1997, the block gained its Warner Bros. studio lot backdrop.
Television is one of the major mass media outlets in the United States. In 2011, 96.7% of households owned television sets; about 114,200,000 American households owned at least one television set each in August 2013. Most households have more than one set. The percentage of households owning at least one television set peaked at 98.4%, in the 1996–1997 season. In 1948, 1 percent of U.S. households owned at least one television; in 1955, 75 percent did. In 1992, 60 percent of all U.S. households had cable television subscriptions.
American Public Television (APT) is an American nonprofit organization and syndicator of programming for public television stations in the United States. It distributes public television programs nationwide for PBS member stations and independent educational stations, as well as the Create and World television networks.
KETC is a PBS member television station in St. Louis, Missouri, United States, owned by St. Louis Regional Public Media. The station's studios are located at the Dana Brown Communications Center on Olive Street in St. Louis' Grand Center neighborhood, and its transmitter is located in South St. Louis County.
Fox Kids was an American children's programming block and branding for a slate of international children's television channels. Originally a joint venture between the Fox Broadcasting Company (Fox) and its affiliated stations, it was later owned by Fox Family Worldwide.
WXYZ-TV is a television station in Detroit, Michigan, United States, affiliated with ABC. It is owned by the E. W. Scripps Company alongside CW affiliate WMYD. The two stations share studios at Broadcast House on 10 Mile Road in Southfield, where WXYZ-TV's transmitter is also located.
Ernest Earle Anderson was an American radio and television personality, horror host, and announcer.
WJW is a television station in Cleveland, Ohio, United States, affiliated with the Fox network. Owned by Nexstar Media Group, WJW maintains studios on Dick Goddard Way just northeast of downtown Cleveland near the shore of Lake Erie, and its transmitter is located in the Cleveland suburb of Parma, Ohio.
The Morning Exchange is an American morning television program that aired on WEWS-TV in Cleveland, Ohio from 1972 to 1999.
WBBZ-TV is a television station licensed to Springville, New York, United States, serving the Buffalo area. It has a primary affiliation with MeTV, but is otherwise programmed as an independent station. WBBZ-TV is owned by ITV of Buffalo, a company controlled by former news photographer Philip A. Arno. The station's studios are located at the Eastern Hills Mall in the town of Clarence, and its transmitter is located near Springville in the hills of southern Erie County.
KBTX-TV is a television station licensed in Bryan, Texas, United States, serving the Brazos Valley as an affiliate of CBS. Owned by Gray Television, the station maintains studios on East 29th Street in Bryan; its transmitter is located northwest of Anderson, Texas.
Sailor Bob is an American children's television program produced by WRVA that aired from 1959 to 1969.
Buzzr is an American digital broadcast television network owned by Fremantle North America, a unit of the Fremantle subsidiary of RTL Group. The network serves as an outlet for the extensive library of classic game shows owned by Fremantle. Buzzr marks Fremantle's entry into North American television broadcasting; parent company RTL currently operates numerous TV channels in Europe.
