Bunnytown

Bunnytown
Genre	Children's television series
Created by	David Rudman Adam Rudman Todd Hannert
Developed by	The Walt Disney Company
Directed by	David Rudman
Starring	Alice Dinnean-Vernon Eric Jacobson Mark Jefferis Nigel Plaskitt David Rudman Victoria Willing Mak Wilson
Opening theme	Bunnytown
Ending theme	It's a Bunnytown Life
Composers	Todd Hannert Terry Fryer
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	26
Production
Executive producers	David Rudman Adam Rudman Todd Hannert
Production location	Elstree Studios
Camera setup	Multi-camera
Running time	24 minutes
Production companies	Spiffy Pictures Baker Coogan Productions
Original release
Network	Playhouse Disney
Release	November 10, 2007 (2007-11-10) (November 3 in Canada) – November 8, 2008 (2008-11-08)

Bunnytownis an American children's television program that aired on Playhouse Disney. It premiered in the United States on November 10, 2007. The series received generally positive reviews from critics.

Format

The basic format features between ten and twelve segments as follows:

• A running gag setting up some sort of problem played out in four parts such as bunnies getting ready to race, drumming, etc. For example, the bunnies get ready for a race in the first episode "Hello Bunnies!" but they end up disco dancing in the first part (events with disco balls usually happen in the third part in most episodes), sleeping in the second, flying in the third and finally racing in the fourth part before the ending song but there is a tape at the finish line which flies them back to the start of the race, but they failed again.
• Red and Fred, a silent comedy-slapstick pratfall team in Peopletown made up of a fat ginger haired man and a smaller, thin dark haired male, played by Ed Gaughan and Andrew Buckley. This is done in the vein of Laurel and Hardy, who have the same style as Red and Fred. On the US broadcast, they are known as "Two Best Friends". Before this scene, a bunny named Bart Bunnytoes travels through an underground tunnel system to reach Peopletown, where he watches the events before leaving.
• The Adventures of Super-Bunny, created new for Bunnytown follows the format of Little Bad Bunny stealing carrots from Bunnytown, and Super-Bunny comes to the rescue.
• The Bunnytown Hop, done by a rock-and-roll band inspired by mega groups such as Earth, Wind and Fire. Characters from earlier segments may take part in this song.
• Super Silly Sports, also held in Peopletown, hosted by Pinky Pinkerton (portrayed by Scottish actress Polly Frame), best known for her wearing a pink Alice band in her blonde bouffant hairdo along with a matching neck scarf and sportsjacket over a white tennis dress, along with pink and white-striped above-the-knee socks. An example of this spoofing of sports contests and their telecasts within is a staring contest between an 11-year-old boy and an Idaho potato (because both of them have "eyes"). Pinky's signature exclamation is "Oh me, oh my!" done multiple times. Just like in the Red and Fred segments, Bart travels through the underground tunnels to watch the events.
• After the payoff of the running gag, all of the bunnies gather to sing the closing song "It's a Bunnytown Life", followed by a bunny blowing on a party horn.
• The Bunnytown segments Two Best Friends (Red and Fred) and Super Silly Sports were formerly shown in bumper segments on Disney Junior.

Cast

The bunny rod puppets (which take up to eight puppeteers to operate with a trigger at the bottom to move their mouths and invisible marionette strings to work from above on all other parts) are made from foam rubber and covered in fake fur.

Characters include the many types of characters found in pop culture and storybooks. Included are a king and his court (supposedly the leaders of Bunnytown as they live in a castle), pirates, a superhero bunny, a female bunny who is an astronaut, two cave bunnies and their pet dinosaur, an inventor, a farmer and his helpers and many more.

Puppeteers

• Alice Dinnean-Vernon ^[1] as Space Bunny, Dino, Edna, Teacher Bunny, Blue Pirate Bunny
• Eric Jacobson ^[1] as Super Bunny, Melvin, Green Cave Bunny, Royal Assistant Marvin, Captain Dan
• Mark Jefferis ^[1] as Professor DoodleBunny, Farmer Gramps
• Nigel Plaskitt ^[1] as King Bunny, Little Bad Bunny, Green Bunny Pirate
• David Rudman ^[1] as Yellow Cave Bunny, Hoppy Funtooth, Blue Bunny Musician
• Victoria Willing ^[1] as Louise
• Mak Wilson ^[1] as Jester Bunny

Live-action cast

• Andrew Buckley as Red ^[2]
• Polly Frame as Pinky Pinkerton ^[3]
• Ed Gaughan as Fred ^[2]
• Keely Cat-Wells as Millie The Cheerleader ^[2]
• Jami Reid-Quarrell as Spot ^[2]
• Owen Mulhall as Chef flanders ^[2]
• Alanis Peart as Smart Lady ^[2]
• Ian Stacey as Fingers Frederico ^[2]

Episodes

No.	Title	Original release date  [4]	Prod. code  [5]	US viewers (millions)
1	"Hello Bunnies"	November 10, 2007 (2007-11-10)	101	N/A
Running Gag: Runners - The Runners are getting ready for a race, but they end up disco dancing in the first part, sleeping in the second part and flying in the third before finally running the race in the fourth part. However, there is a rubberband at the end of the finish line which flings them back to the start of the race, but they failed again. Song: Makin' Music in Bunnytown Super Silly Sports: The 3 Clowns Race
2	"Bunny Funnies"	November 11, 2007 (2007-11-11)	102	N/A
Running Gag: Artistic Bunny trying to start painting an apple, but ends up with a worm going inside an apple as a spaceship in the first part, a fruit dancing bunny in the second The Adventures of Super-Bunny: Bunnytown Carrot Festival
3	"Bunny Giggles"	November 17, 2007 (2007-11-17)	103	N/A
4	"Barrel Full of Bunnies"	November 18, 2007 (2007-11-18)	104	N/A
5	"Bunny Shenanigans"	November 24, 2007 (2007-11-24)	105	N/A
6	"Wintertime In Bunnytown"	December 1, 2007 (2007-12-01)	116	N/A
7	"Bunny Ha-Ha's"	December 8, 2007 (2007-12-08)	106	N/A
8	"Hiya Bunnies"	December 15, 2007 (2007-12-15)	108	N/A
9	"Bunny-A-Go-Go"	January 5, 2008 (2008-01-05)	109	N/A
10	"G'Day Bunnies"	January 19, 2008 (2008-01-19)	107	N/A
11	"Carrot Giving Day"	February 9, 2008 (2008-02-09)	113	N/A
12	"Bonkers for Bunnies"	February 23, 2008 (2008-02-23)	112	N/A
13	"Bunnytown Pets"	March 1, 2008 (2008-03-01)	114	N/A
14	"Bunnytown Fun"	March 24, 2008 (2008-03-24)	110	N/A
15	"King Bunny's Birthday"	March 25, 2008 (2008-03-25)	115	N/A
16	"Those Wacky Bunnies"	March 26, 2008 (2008-03-26)	117	N/A
17	"Bunny Blankie Blues"	March 27, 2008 (2008-03-27)	118	N/A
18	"Bunnytown Follies"	March 28, 2008 (2008-03-28)	111	N/A
19	"Bunnytown Babbles"	April 5, 2008 (2008-04-05)	120	N/A
20	"Bumbling Bunnies"	May 24, 2008 (2008-05-24)	121	N/A
Farmer Bunny attempts to grow a flower but it ends up becoming a pizza in the first part, a clock in the second part and a disco dancing ball in the third part before finally becoming a squirting flower in the fourth part. The Adventures of Super Bunny: The Picnic Disaster - Little Bad Bunny strikes again stealing carrots from the picnic of some nearby bunnies when he realizes he forgot his carrot lunch at home in the fridge. Cave Bunnies - The Cave Bunnies' pet dinosaur is feeling dirty so they decide to give him a bath Red and Fred Song: Making Music in Bunnytown (rehashed from episode 1 "Hello Bunnies") Super Silly Sports: The Tortoise and the Hare Race King Bunny the 4th's Crazy Castle - Royal Rap
21	"Bunnies Bunnies Bunnies"	June 21, 2008 (2008-06-21)	119	N/A
22	"Groovy Bunnies"	July 5, 2008 (2008-07-05)	122	N/A
23	"Bunny-A-Rama"	August 16, 2008 (2008-08-16)	125	N/A
24	"What a Bunnytown Hoot"	September 27, 2008 (2008-09-27)	124	N/A
25	"Bunnytown Chuckles"	October 18, 2008 (2008-10-18)	123	N/A
26	"Get Fit, Bunnytown"	November 8, 2008 (2008-11-08)	126	N/A

Production

Bunnytown was created by David Rudman, his brother Adam, and Todd Hannert, under their Spiffy Pictures television production-channel company. ^[6] The show was produced at Elstree Studios. ^{[7] [8]}

Release

Broadcast

Bunnytown premiered in Canada on November 3, 2007. It aired in the United States on November 10, 2007. ^[9] The series was released in the United Kingdom on the Playhouse Disney channel on January 13, 2008, a sublet of pay-broadcaster Family Channel. In France, it began airing on January 27, 2008, and kept its original title Bunnytown. The series ran for one season and twenty-six episodes total, which finished its run on November 8, 2008.

Home media

The show was released in DVD on March 17, 2009. ^[10] The Bunnytown shorts were made available to stream on DisneyNow. ^[11] Disney-ABC Television Group later released the series on Hulu. ^{[12] [13]}

Reception

Critical response

Mike Hale of The New York Times wrote, "What you do get on screen is a fast-moving variety-show and sketch-comedy format that alternates elaborate silly jokes with musical numbers in which the bunnies grab guitars and crank out generic but bouncy R&B-inflected power pop. (If you had access to those press notes, you too could say, “Ah, they are trying to sound like Earth, Wind & Fire.”) It all seems sufficiently safe and diverting to serve as a surrogate baby sitter, while perhaps just strange enough to appeal to hung-over adult hipsters." ^[14] Marilyn Moss of Associated Press described Bunnytown as "very colorful and fast-moving for the youngest set," writing, "Bunnytown is a musical bonanza for preschoolers. If the music is not original (its sound resembles the jingles of many other preschooler shows), that's not a problem for this venture. The animation is lively enough to overcome anything else." ^[15] Emily Ashby of Common Sense Media gave Bunnytown a grade of three out of five stars and complimented the depiction of positive messages, asserting, "The energetic series promotes animation and exposes preschoolers to a range of musical styles, including disco, country, piano, and light opera. Lyrics or dialogue very occasionally include repetitive counting or other simple skills, but on the whole, entertainment outweighs educational content." ^[16]

Accolades

Bunnytown was nominated for Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction/Set Decoration/Scenic Design at the 2008 Daytime Emmy Awards. ^{[17] [18]}

References

1. "Bunnytown". Broadcast . November 1, 2007. Retrieved 2023-09-06.
2. "Bunnytown (2007)". The A.V. Club . Retrieved 2023-09-06.
3. Rinaldi, Giancarlo (November 6, 2007). "Actress lands dream Disney role". BBC News . Retrieved 2023-09-06.
4. "Bunnytown – Episode list". iTunes. 10 November 2007. Retrieved 2015-07-18.
5. "Public Catalog - Copyright Catalog (1978 to present) - Basic Search [search: "Bunnytown"]". United States Copyright Office.
6. Calder, Kate (January 1, 2008). "Spiffy gets on the map with Bunnytown". Kidscreen . Retrieved 2023-09-06.
7. Byrne, Bridget (December 28, 2007). "'Bunnytown' mixes learning, laughs". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved 2023-09-06.
8. Fitzsimmons, Caitlin (November 21, 2007). "Disney Channel invests in UK talent". The Guardian . ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2023-09-06.
9. "Bunnytown Season 1 Episodes". TVGuide . Retrieved 2023-09-06.
10. "Bunnytown: Hello Bunnies". Amazon.com . Retrieved September 6, 2023.
11. "Watch Bunnytown TV Show | Disney Junior on DisneyNOW". DisneyNow . Retrieved 2023-09-06.
12. McLean, Tom (March 3, 2015). "Hulu Nets SVOD Exclusive for Disney's 'Doc', 'Bunnytown'". Animation Magazine . Retrieved 2023-09-06.
13. Jarvey, Natalie (March 3, 2015). "Hulu Adds 'Doc McStuffins' in Exclusive Disney Junior Deal". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved 2023-09-06.
14. Hale, Mike (November 9, 2007). "Bunnies Who Not Only Hop but Are Also Hip (Alas, the Humans Are Hapless)". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2023-09-06.
15. Moss, Marilyn; Press, Associated (November 8, 2007). "Bunnytown". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved 2023-09-06.
16. Ashby, Emily. "Bunnytown TV Review | Common Sense Media". Common Sense Media . Retrieved 2023-09-06.
17. Variety Staff (April 30, 2008). "Daytime Emmys nominations". Variety . Retrieved 2023-09-06.
18. BWW News Desk (April 30, 2008). "Daytime Emmy Nominations Announced!". BroadwayWorld . Retrieved 2023-09-06.