September 13, 1997 (1997-9-13)– November 30, 2001 (2001-11-30)
Pepper Ann is an American animated television series created by Sue Rose and aired on Disney's One Saturday Morning on ABC.[2] It first premiered on September 13, 1997, and ended on November 30, 2001.[3] It was the first Disney animated television series to be created by a woman.
Pepper Ann centers on the trials and tribulations that occur during the titular character's adolescence and charts her ups and downs at Hazelnut Middle School. The character originated in a comic strip published in YM magazine.[4]
Pepper Ann Pearson (voiced by Kathleen Wilhoite) is the titular protagonist of the series, who is a bespectacled, quirky 12-year-old girl whose emotions come out in fantasies. Her conscience, Alter-Ego, often drives her insecurities through misguided advice. She is of Jewish faith from her mother's side (as stated in "A Kosher Christmas").
Nicky Anais Little (voiced by Clea Lewis) is Pepper Ann's female best friend, a very intelligent and sensible, yet soft-spoken overachiever, who often serves as a confidant for Pepper Ann. She can be prone to bursts of rage or extreme emotion and struggles to keep her composure when she feels she is overlooked. Nicky keeps to a pescetarian diet (which has only been broken once).
Milo Kamalani (voiced by Danny Cooksey) is Pepper Ann's male best friend, a laid-back and mellow hippie who prides himself in his artistic "talent". Milo is driven by passion, which can sometimes ostracize him from his peers. In early seasons, he is often her partner in crime with her schemes.
Lydia Pearson (voiced by April Winchell) is the mother of Pepper Ann and Moose and the ex-wife of Chuck. She is a salesclerk working with the fashion store "It's You!" at Hazelnut Mall.
Margaret Rose "Moose" Pearson (voiced by Pamela Adlon) is Pepper Ann's stoic younger 7-year-old sister with an androgynous appearance, whose favorite pastime is skateboarding.
Craig Bean (voiced by Jeff Bennett) is a "cool" 8th grader whom the 7th graders admire. He serves as Pepper Ann's main love interest, as they both have hidden crushes on each other.
Recurring
Dieter Liederhosen (voiced by Jeff Bennett) is a German student in Pepper Ann's class with an articulate appreciation for food.
Trinket St. Blair (voiced by Jenna von Oÿ) is a spoiled, rich, popular girl who often serves as a foil to Pepper Ann.
Cissy Rooney (voiced by Kath Soucie) is an air-headed popular girl who is Trinket's best friend.
Tessa & Vanessa James (both voiced by Cree Summer) are two gossipy black twin sisters who finish each other's sentences.
Janie Lilly Diggity (voiced by Susan Tolsky) is the aunt of Pepper Ann and Moose and Lydia's sister. A former member of the Peace Corp, she spends her time as an activist.
Jo Jo Diggity (voiced by Tino Insana) is Pepper Ann and Moose's uncle and Janie's husband who works as a cop.
Nedward "Ned" Diggity (voiced by Jeff Bennett) is the socially inept son of Janie and Jo Jo, and Pepper Ann's cousin, who has an affinity for cheese.
Peter "Pink-Eye Pete" Ogilvy (voiced by Jeff Bennett) is a nerdy kid who suffers from pink eye.
Alice Kane (voiced by Lauren Tom) is Pepper Ann's pompous (sometimes egomaniacal) academic rival. She presents a superficially mature attitude in spite of being just as competitive as Pepper Ann.
Gwen Mezzrow (voiced by Kimmy Robertson) is a bubbly girl who constantly alternates between pining for Milo and being entirely uninterested in him in favor of Dieter, who is indifferent to her affection.
Stuart Walldinger (voiced by Luke Perry in Season 2 & Cam Clarke in Season 3 onwards) is Nicky's bookish boyfriend, whose main hobby is RC car-racing. He holds a reserved attitude but has a tendency to act out and bottle his emotions.
Constance Goldman (voiced by Candi Milo) is a shy, awkward girl who looks up to Pepper Ann.
Shelf McClain (voiced by Jeff Bennett) is a large, academically stunted Scottish student in Pepper Ann's class who bullies other students and steals their lunch money.
Chuck Pearson (voiced by Maurice LaMarche) is the estranged ex-husband of Lydia and father of Pepper Ann and Moose. He works as a blimp pilot and speaks with a Mid-Atlantic accent.
Sherrie Spleen (voiced by April Winchell) is the TV anchorwoman for Channel 96 in Hazelnut.
Margot LeSandre (voiced by Kathy Najimy) is a snooty saleswoman who is rivals with Lydia and Janie.
"Shouty Kid" Sean LeSandre (voiced by Pamela Adlon) is the son of Margot, and Moose's crush. He is most recognizable for his booming voice.
Sketch (voiced by Karen Duffy) is an 8th grader whom Pepper Ann admires for her "coolness". She values loyalty but is shown to be somewhat aloof.
Crash (voiced by Adam Wylie) is Moose's neurotic best friend.
Crying Girl (typically voiced by Cree Summer & Kath Soucie) is an unfortunate girl who often breaks down in tears at the slightest mishap, most often Pepper Ann's misadventures.
Lamar Abu-Dabe (voiced by Kenny Blank) is a 7th grader and a classmate of Pepper Ann's whom Constance has a crush on.
Hazelnut Middle School
Principal Herbert Hickey (voiced by Don Adams) is the school's tough disciplinarian with zero tolerance for Pepper Ann's shenanigans. This was Adams's final role on television.
Mr. Roland Carter (voiced by Jim Cummings) is a science teacher who is passionate about what he teaches. He is known for giving Pepper Ann detention slips but does believe that she can be a good student even when she successfully does her assignments.
Ms. Abriola Stark (voiced by April Winchell) is the math teacher who is also in charge of the drama club.
Ms. Bronte Bladdar (voiced by BeBe Neuwirth) is a stoic English teacher (who often substitutes for art teacher Ms. Ford) who speaks in deadpan-monotone mannerisms.
Mr. Sherman Finky (voiced by Don Lake) is the social studies teacher. He presents a hip (if not out-of-touch) demeanor, but is no-nonsense when it comes to shirking projects.
Ms. Carlotta Sneed (voiced by Julia Sweeney) is the economics teacher whose main hobby is knitting.
Mr. Owen Clapper (voiced by James Avery) is the music teacher. He tends to clash with Ms. Stark concerning school plays.
Mr. Reason (voiced by Kurtwood Smith) is the stern woodshop teacher.
Coach Doogan (voiced by Kathy Najimy) is the physical education teacher, and the head of the school's soccer team.
Coach Bronson (voiced by Tom Wilson) is the football coach.
Pepper Ann was aired as part of the Disney's One Saturday Morning block on ABC from 1997 to 2001. Select new episodes of the show were also shown (alongside reruns) on Disney's One Too on UPN during the 2000–01 season.
Starting on September 3, 2001, the series began syndication through Disney Channel, and also joined Toon Disney alongside Disney’s Doug on an hour-long primetime block called The Magical World of Toons.[5] Previously unaired episodes that had never aired on ABC or UPN made their premiere throughout September on Toon Disney, and November on Disney Channel.[6]
The series airing on Disney Channel until September 8, 2002.[7] While Pepper Ann would leave regular syndication on Toon Disney in 2004, the show received a few marathons throughout 2007 and 2008, with the final one being played on July 20, 2008, the last time the show was broadcast on US television.
All 65 episodes of the series were included on Disney+ on September 8, 2021 in the United States,[8] with the episodes from season 4 listed under season 3 on the platform (due to them being produced concurrently),[9] along with the episodes being listed in their package order.[10]
Internationally, the show aired on GMTV in the UK and RTÉ in Ireland.
Scrapped film
In 1999, an animated film based on the series was in development at Walt Disney Television Animation and Walt Disney Pictures under the name Pepper Ann's Rio Adventure. The movie would have followed Pepper Ann's soccer team being invited to Rio De Janeiro as part of an event where they try to stop a land developer from deforesting the Amazon River. The movie was scrapped for unknown reasons, however concept art of the film by animation director Richard Bowman was posted onto eBay in recent years, the most recent piece being posted in July 2024.[11] It is unknown whether or not the film was intended to be theatrical or made for television.
Notes
↑ Animation outsourced to Sunwoo Entertainment and The Hana Animation Company (three segments).
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