John Lurie is an American musician, painter, actor, director, and producer. He co-founded the Lounge Lizards jazz ensemble; has acted in 19 films, including Stranger than Paradise and Down by Law; has composed and performed music for 20 television and film works; and he produced, directed, and starred in the Fishing with John television series. In 1996 his soundtrack for Get Shorty was nominated for a Grammy Award, and his album The Legendary Marvin Pontiac: Greatest Hits has been praised by critics and fellow musicians.
The Lounge Lizards were an eclectic musical group founded by saxophonist John Lurie and his brother, pianist Evan Lurie, in 1978. Initially known for their ironic, tongue-in-cheek take on jazz, The Lounge Lizards eventually became a showcase for John Lurie's sophisticated compositions straddling jazz and many other genres. They were active until about 1998 with the Lurie brothers as the only constant members, though many leading New York City based musicians were members of the group.
Winx Club is an animated series co-produced by Rainbow SpA and later Nickelodeon. It was created and directed by Italian animator Iginio Straffi. It premiered on 28 January 2004, becoming a ratings success in Italy and on Nickelodeon networks internationally. The show is set in a magical universe that is inhabited by fairies, witches, and other mythical creatures. The main character is a fairy warrior named Bloom, who enrolls at Alfea College to train and hone her skills. The series uses a serial format with an ongoing storyline.
The Backyardigans is an animated musical children's television series created by Janice Burgess. The series was written and recorded at Nickelodeon Animation Studio. It centers on five anthropomorphic animal neighbors who imagine themselves on fantastic adventures in their backyard. Each episode is set to a different musical genre and features four songs, composed by Evan Lurie with lyrics by McPaul Smith. The Backyardigans' adventures span many different genres and settings. The show's writers took inspiration from action-adventure films, and many episodes are parodies of films.
Nickelodeon Records is the defunct record label for the children's television channel Nickelodeon, which is owned by Paramount Global. The label featured new and emerging young musical artists, "triple threat" singers who would also act and dance on the network's series, and soundtrack compilations based on Nickelodeon TV shows.
Janice Burgess was an American television executive, screenwriter and producer for Nickelodeon. She created the Nick Jr. series The Backyardigans and worked as a writer and story editor for Nickelodeon's revival of Winx Club. Due to both shows being produced at the Nickelodeon Animation Studio, Burgess joined Nickelodeon in 1995 as executive-in-charge of production.
Smokey Hormel is an American guitarist known for his blues-influenced Americana style and working as a session musician with a wide array of performers.
Ben Perowsky is an American drummer, percussionist, composer, and music producer. He is the drummer on stage in the 8 TONY award winning Broadway musical Hadestown. Perowsky leads the Ben Perowsky Trio, Moodswing Orchestra and Upstream Trio with Chris Speed and John Medeski. He is a founding member of the electric jazz group Lost Tribe. A prolific sideman, Perowsky has performed with Roy Ayers, John Scofield, The Lounge Lizards, Joan As Police Woman, Elysian Fields, Darryl Jenifer, Uri Caine, Dave Douglas, Mike Stern, Bob Berg, Walter Becker, Steven Bernstein., and John Zorn.
Elizabeth Egan Gillies is an American actress and singer. She made her Broadway debut at age 15 in the musical 13, playing the character of Lucy. After her first television appearance in The Black Donnellys (2007), she went on to star as Jade West in the Nickelodeon series Victorious (2010–2013), Gigi Rock in the FX comedy series Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll (2015–2016) and Fallon Carrington on The CW reboot of Dynasty (2017–2022). She voiced Daphne in the Nickelodeon series Winx Club (2011–2014) and Catwoman / Selina Kyle in the animated film Catwoman: Hunted (2022), and has appeared in various feature and television films, including the horror film Animal (2014), the television film Killing Daddy (2014), the comedy film Vacation (2015), and the black comedy thriller film Arizona (2018).
The Lounge Lizards is the first album by the Lounge Lizards. It features hectic instrumental jazz. The songs are mostly composed by band leader and saxophone player John Lurie. The album artwork was designed by the English graphic designer Peter Saville.
Koba Entertainment is a producer of original musical theatre based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. To date, they have produced numerous Canadian and U.S. tours for such famous children's properties as Bubble Guppies, Max and Ruby, Toopy & Binoo, The Backyardigans, The Big Comfy Couch, Caillou, The Doodlebops, Franklin the Turtle, and Maurice Sendak’s Little Bear.
David Carbonara is an American film and TV composer. He is best known for his work on the critically acclaimed TV series Mad Men. His other television shows include Vegas, The Romanoffs, the mini series The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe, as well as producing original songs for the period drama The Last Tycoon. His film work includes David O. Russell's Spanking the Monkey, Amos Kollek's Fast Food Fast Women and the award-winning Amélia, by Brazilian director Ana Carolina.
No Pain for Cakes is an album by the American jazz band the Lounge Lizards, released in 1987. John Lurie sang on the album.
Nickelodeon Digital, often shortened to Nick Digital and originally known as Nickelodeon Creative Labs, is an American animation studio based in New York City which opened in 1994. It is a division of Nickelodeon Animation Studio. Nickelodeon Digital produces some of Nickelodeon's animated series and creates digital content and motion graphics for the Nickelodeon Group. The company's Burbank, California branch creates CGI and visual effects for Nickelodeon's animated series.
Cymphonique Miller, known professionally by her mononym Cymphonique, is an American singer and actress. She is the daughter of Master P and is the younger sister of Romeo Miller. She is known in the acting world for her leading role as Kacey Simon on the Nickelodeon sitcom How to Rock, as well as her voice role as Krystal on Nickelodeon's Winx Club.
Katarzyna Łaska, known professionally as Kasia Łaska, is a Polish singer, who is best known from the Musical Theatre Roma where she starred in the lead role of Kim in the musical Miss Saigon, adult Wendy in the musical Peter Pan and Frenchy in the musical Grease. She also played Maria in the musical West Side Story at the Musical Theatre Capitol in Wrocław.
Michael Blake is a Canadian saxophonist, composer and arranger. Blake is based in New York City where he has led a robust career leading his own bands. As a sideman Michael has performed with Charlie Hunter, The Lounge Lizards, Steven Bernstein/Henry Butler and the Hot 9, Ben Allison and Ray LaMontagne. The New York Times jazz critic Ben Ratliff wrote,"Mr. Blake, on tenor especially, is an endlessly engaging improviser, and an inquisitive one".
"Castaways" is a song that aired in the animated children's TV show The Backyardigans. It went viral on TikTok in 2021.
Queen of All Ears is an album by the American band the Lounge Lizards, released in 1998. It was the band's final album.
