Zoobilee Zoo | |
---|---|
Developed by | Hallmark |
Presented by | Ben Vereen |
Opening theme | "Zoobilee Zoo" by Haim Saban and Shuki Levy |
Ending theme | "Zoobilee Zoo" |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of episodes | 65 (plus three direct-to-video episodes) |
Production | |
Executive producers | |
Producer | Mary Jo Blue |
Running time | 21-22 minutes |
Production companies |
|
Original release | |
Network | First-run syndication |
Release | September 15, 1986 – March 27, 1987 |
Zoobilee Zoo is a children's television series featuring actors dressed as animal characters that originally aired from 1986 to 1987. [1] It continued to run in syndication until 2000 [2] on several television channels including commercial network television stations, PBS stations, The Learning Channel, and Hallmark Channel. The original 65 episodes are currently owned by Hallmark Properties and were produced by WQED Pittsburgh.
Hosted by Ben Vereen, the show revolves around a group of six creative animal friends who live in a magical land called Zoobilee Zoo. Each possess a unique artistic skill and they frequently break into song and dance. [3]
Each episode is opened by a greeting from host Ben Vereen, dressed as a spotted snow leopard, who plays the mayor of Zoobilee Zoo. [2] Speaking directly to viewers that he refers to as "Zoobaroos", Vereen usually appears throughout each episode to summarize the main themes or to perform a song and dance. [3]
The plot in each episode revolves around the main characters, called Zoobles, [4] as they play together and encounter difficulties common to young children. The primary themes are cooperation, making friends, and creativity. [3]
Each Zooble character has a certain artistic talent that shapes the way they approach different scenario: [3]
In addition, Grinn, Schwartz and Vallance have also played some minor characters. Schwartz played the gorilla in "A Camping We Will Go" (revealed in a blooper reel) and Grinn played Bravo's Vaudeville friend Charlie Google in "Vaudeville Star". Due to this, in the respective episodes, neither Bravo nor Bill appear. Vallance voiced Gilda the Tooth Fairy in "When You Wish Upon a Tooth Fairy".
Premiering on September 15, 1986, Zoobilee Zoo was produced and directed by Steve Binder. The show's concept was developed by Hallmark Entertainment, which partnered with children's production company DIC Enterprises. [2]
In 1992, The Learning Channel picked up the show as part of its Ready Set Learn! lineup for preschoolers. [2] [5]
Episodes were released on a wide array of VHS tapes—the most recent series released in 1997—but not yet released to DVD. In 2000, three new direct-to-video episodes and soundtracks were released, and the stage show Zoobilee Zoo Live! toured briefly.[ citation needed ]
Zoobilee Zoo was well-received critically, but earned only modest viewer ratings. It was praised by the National Education Association (NEA), the American Federation of Teachers and the National Association of Elementary School Principals. In addition, it was endorsed by the Action for Children's Television (ACT). [3]
Episodes with an asterisk (*) contain Michael Sheehan as Bill Der Beaver. All other segments feature Sandey Grinn in the role.
The series was awarded the 1987 Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Costume Design.
A leprechaun is a diminutive supernatural being in Irish folklore, classed by some as a type of solitary fairy. They are usually depicted as little bearded men, wearing a coat and hat, who partake in mischief. In later times, they have been depicted as shoe-makers who have a hidden pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.
Benjamin Augustus Vereen is an American actor, dancer and singer. Vereen gained prominence for his performances in the original Broadway productions of the musicals Jesus Christ Superstar, for which he received a Tony Award nomination, and Pippin, for which he won the 1973 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical.
The Fairly OddParents is an American animated television series created by Butch Hartman for Nickelodeon. The series follows the adventures of Timmy Turner, a 10-year-old boy with two fairy godparents named Cosmo and Wanda who grant him wishes to solve his everyday problems.
Manhunter is a 1986 American thriller film directed and written by Michael Mann. Based on the 1981 novel Red Dragon by Thomas Harris, it stars William Petersen as FBI profiler Will Graham. Also featured are Tom Noonan as serial killer Francis Dollarhyde, Dennis Farina as Graham's FBI superior Jack Crawford, and Brian Cox as incarcerated killer Hannibal Lecktor. The film focuses on Graham coming out of retirement to lend his talents to an investigation on Dollarhyde, a killer known as the Tooth Fairy. In doing so, he must confront the demons of his past and meet with Lecktor, who nearly killed Graham.
Robert Frederick Paulsen III is an American voice actor and voice director, known for his roles in numerous animated television series and films. He received a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program and three Annie Awards for his role as both Yakko and Pinky in the Animaniacs franchise. His other voice roles include Hadji in The New Adventures of Jonny Quest (1986–1987) and The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest (1996–1997); Raphael in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1987–1996); P.J. Pete in Goof Troop (1992), A Goofy Movie (1995), and An Extremely Goofy Movie (2000); Jaq in Cinderella II: Dreams Come True (2002) and Cinderella III: A Twist in Time (2007); and Mac in The Looney Tunes Show (2011–2013) and Looney Tunes: Rabbits Run (2015).
Bernard Shalom Kotzin, known as Stubby Kaye, was an American actor, comedian, vaudevillian and singer, known for his appearances on Broadway and in film musicals.
Stephanie Louise Vallance, commonly known as Stevie Vallance, also credited as Louise Vallance during the 1970s–90s, is a Canadian actress, musician, composer and director who has worked on numerous films and television series, both live-action and animated. Vallance is most recognized as Jenny in The Ropers, Det. Stevie Brody in Night Heat, and Whazzat Kangaroo in Zoobilee Zoo. As a director, she received a Daytime Emmy for voice-directing the music and dialogue on the children's animated series Madeline, in which she also portrayed "Miss Clavel" and "Genevive".
Shirt Tales are characters that were created in 1980 by greeting card designer Janet Elizabeth Manco and were featured on Hallmark Cards greeting cards. The characters were adapted into a 1982-1985 animated series for television, by Hanna-Barbera Productions, which aired on NBC.
Brittney Elizabeth Irvin is a Canadian actress who has also done voiceover work for Ocean Productions. Irvin is best known for playing Katie in Scary Godmother: Halloween Spooktakular and its sequel Scary Godmother: The Revenge of Jimmy. She was first billed as Britt Irvin in a 2001 episode of The Outer Limits, and is still sometimes billed as Brittney Irvin in recent work, such as her voice work as Jade in Bratz, and in two of the three episodes of Aliens in America in which she appeared in 2007. She also voiced Sunny Flare in My Little Pony: Equestria Girls.
Quarterlife is an American web series, also briefly an NBC television series in 2008, created by Marshall Herskovitz and Edward Zwick, the creators of Thirtysomething and Once and Again, and producers of My So-Called Life. The show is about a group of twenty-something artists who are coming of age in the digital generation.
Extinct was a Channel 4 TV series, that originally aired between 25 September to 30 October 2001. There were 6 episodes.
Bear in the Big Blue House is an American children's television series created by Mitchell Kriegman and produced by Jim Henson Television for Disney Channel's Playhouse Disney preschool television block. Debuting on October 20, 1997, it aired its last episode on April 28, 2006. Reruns of the program continued to air on Playhouse Disney until May 6, 2007.
Candace Helaine Cameron Bure is an American actress and talk show panelist. She is known for portraying D.J. Tanner on Full House and its sequel series Fuller House, and a number of roles in Hallmark Channel original productions—including the title character in their adaptations of the Aurora Teagarden novel series.
New Zoo Revue is an American half-hour children's television show that ran in first-run syndication from 1972 to 1977.
Ben & Holly's Little Kingdom is a British preschool animated television series. The show was created by Neville Astley and Mark Baker, and produced by Astley Baker Davies and by Entertainment One. Many of the voice actors who worked on Peppa Pig have lent their voices to the show; these include John Sparkes, Sarah Ann Kennedy, David Rintoul and David Graham. The music is produced by Julian Nott, who is noted for his Wallace and Gromit, Bing and Peppa Pig scores. Ben & Holly's Little Kingdom is the third show to be produced by Astley Baker Davies.
When Calls the Heart is a Western drama television series inspired by Janette Oke's book of the same name from her Canadian West series and developed by Michael Landon Jr. The series began airing on the Hallmark Channel in the United States on January 11, 2014, and on Super Channel in Canada on April 16, 2014.
Goldie & Bear is an American animated fantasy children's television series created by Jorge Aguirre for Disney Junior. The series is produced by Milk Barn Entertainment and Titmouse, Inc in its first and second seasons respectively. Inspired by the fairy tale "Goldilocks and the Three Bears," the show focuses on Goldie and Bear, who become best friends following an incident at his house.