Cartoon Network
| Ownership | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Turner Broadcasting System (Time Warner Inc.) |
Cartoon Network is a cable television channel created by Turner Broadcasting and dedicated to showing animated programming. It premiered on October 1, 1992 in the United States, September 17, 1993 in the United Kingdom and on 1995 in Australia.
History
USA
By the end of the 1980s, Ted Turner's cable TV conglomerate had acquired the MGM film library (which included the older catalog of Warner Bros. cartoons), and its cable channel Turner Network Television had gained an audience with its film library. In 1991, they purchased animation studio Hanna-Barbera Productions and acquired its large library. The Cartoon Network channel was created as an outlet for Turner's considerable library of animation, and the initial programming on the channel consisted exclusively of re-runs of classic Warner Bros. and MGM cartoons, with many Hanna-Barbera TV cartoons used as time fillers.
In 1994, Hanna-Barbera started production on What a Cartoon (also known as World Premiere Toons), a series of creator-driven short cartoons that premiered on Cartoon Network in 1995. It was the network's second original series (the first was Space Ghost: Coast to Coast). The project was spearheaded by several Cartoon Network executives, plus Ren and Stimpy creator John Kricfalusi (who was an advisor to the network at the time) and Fred Seibert (who was formerly one of the driving forces behind the Nicktoons, and would go on to produce the similar animation anthology series Oh Yeah! Cartoons).
In 1996, Time Warner purchased Turner Broadcasting, and the Cartoon Network came under their corporate umbrella. This provided still more material for the Cartoon Network, as the channel now had access to the Warner Bros. cartoon library from the 1950s and 1960s.
Time Warner changed the direction of Hanna-Barbera Productions (the production studio now being known as Cartoon Network Studios), and focused the studio exclusively on creating new material for the Cartoon Network channel (which were baptized Cartoon Cartoons). Among the numerous shows the studio has produced are Dexter's Laboratory (1996), Johnny Bravo (1997), Cow and Chicken (1997), and The Powerpuff Girls (1998) (all of which were previously shorts on What a Cartoon), along with more recent shows Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends (2004) and Camp Lazlo (2005).
Shows from other studios (with Cartoon Network's producing) had also shown on the channel, such as Ed, Edd n Eddy (1999, a.k.a. cartoon), Courage the Cowardly Dog (1998, Stretch Films), Mike, Lu & Og (1998, Kinofilm Studios), Sheep in the Big City (2000, Curious Pictures) and Codename: Kids Next Door (2002, Curious Pictures)
The older Hanna-Barbera cartoons, as well as the entire Warner Brothers Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies library and non-Tom and Jerry cartoons made by MGM such as those made by Tex Avery have been largely moved to the nostalgia-themed Boomerang sister network.
In recent years, Cartoon Network has also made attempts to attract viewers outside its core audience (young children about eight years old). Their mid-afternoon cartoon block Toonami consists of acceptable-for-preteens and teens anime from Japan, as well as some American animation, while a late-night cartoon block called Adult Swim shows more risque, teenage- and adult-oriented cartoons (with a combination of anime and American-produced comedies such Futurama and Family Guy). On April 17, 2004, Toonami was moved to Saturday evenings and the afternoon slot was filled with Miguzi, showing action-oriented American, French, and Japanese TV shows aimed at a slightly younger age group than Toonami.
In June 2004, Cartoon Network relaunched itself, with a new logo and slogan, "This is Cartoon Network." The bumps now featured Cartoon Cartoons characters interacting in a CGI city. Nearly all of Cartoon Network's classic cartoon programming had been replaced by new programming, except for Tom and Jerry, a longtime staple of the Turner networks.
Recently, Cartoon Network introduced a new programming block for pre-schoolers called Tickle-U. Half of the content on the block are imported British preschool programming (some of them revoiced), while the other half are original made-for-cartoon-network material.
United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom and Ireland, Cartoon Network was twinned with movie channel TNT. Cartoon Network ran from 5am until 7pm, with TNT taking over from 7pm to 5am. Sunday afternoons saw "Super Chunk", which showed back to back episodes of one show for two hours between 1pm and 3pm. Another feature was "The Longest Day", in which Cartoon Network ran for an extra four hours, until 11pm on 21 June every year. This slot was dedicated to full length cartoon movies. In 1995, Cartoon Network began running for an extra two hours until 9pm, and on 16 December, 1996, it became a 24-hour channel, as did TNT. However, a version of the channel called TNT & Cartoon Network continued to appear on some providers.
In 1998, Vbirds launched all the cartoon characthers called Wow, Boom, Bling & D:Lin.
1 February 1999 saw the introduction of a strand called "aka Cartoon Network", which had a DJ theme and would run from 7pm to 9pm, the 'host' being an afroed cartoon character called Jackie Potato. It would feature selected cartoons from the Cartoon Network library (including Space Ghost Coast to Coast) and a show called Cult Toons, which featured a heavily re-edited Hanna-Barbera cartoon. Aimed at adults, the strand was in some ways a precursor of Adult Swim in the United States.
On 27 May, 2000, the channel Boomerang was launched by Cartoon Network in the UK and Ireland, and most "classic" cartoons were moved from Cartoon Network to the new channel, which initally broadcast from 6am–12am. Before long, however, it became 24 hours, and the remaining classic shows also moved to Boomerang. In September 2000, Toonami began broadcasting weekdays for two hours between 4pm–6pm, and 9pm–11pm, as well as weekends from 10am–12pm and 10pm–12am. Dragonball Z had already been airing on Cartoon Network since 1999, and had been attracting very good ratings, which may have contributed to the decision to launch Toonami in the UK. Its output consisted almost solely of Japanese anime such as the cult Dragonball Z, Tenchi Muyo, and Gundam Wing. The only non-Japanese shows for quite some time were the American-produced The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest and Batman Beyond (Batman of the Future in the UK). Around the same time, there was almost completely new programming on the channel, and so Boomerang began in a late night slot.
In June 2002, Toonami disappeared from Cartoon Network UK, and in October, a new channel was created called CNX. It was hailed as a high-octane, "'triple A' mix of Action, Adventure, and Anime." All American and Japanese animation shown on Toonami was broadcast on this 24 hour channel from 6am–12am, and during the night, there were hard hitting American dramas such as The Shield, adventure shows such as Spawn, martial arts films and extreme sports programmes. In 2003, there was a slot between 9pm and 10pm showing Cartoon Network produced comedy such as Aqua Teen Hunger Force and Space Ghost Coast to Coast. The extreme sports and films were moved to a small slot between 10pm and 2am. For the rest of the time, Toonami returned, on CNX, showing all of its previous output, plus a number of new shows. In September 2003, after 11 months on air, CNX was shut down, and Toonami became a 24-hour channel, in line with Cartoon Network and Boomerang.
On 11 April 2005, six months after the United States, the channel received a new logo. The idents also changed to the same ones used in the U.S., with a CGI layout of a town and various characters (usually related to the show that was coming up next) engaging in activities. These replaced the previous idents used since 2003, featuring characters from one TV show falling through something and coming out in another show. Actual show clips were used.
Asia Pacific
Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Korea
Cartoon Network has been available from most Pay TV providers in Asia since the early 1990s. In most part of Asia, the Cartoon Network feed is the same. This means viewers in Singapore gets the same Cartoon Network programming at the same time as the viewers in Malaysia, Thailand, Brunei, Indonesia, and many other countries in the region. However, some countries such as Japan, the Philippines and India gets a customized version of Cartoon Network for the country and does not use the same feed as the other countries in Asia. Also, unlike the India or Japan counterparts, Cartoon Network Asia does not have a website, and thus the programming schedule must be obtained from any one of the PayTV providers carrying the feed. The Asia feed's headquarters are located in Hong Kong.
Unlike its American counterpart, Cartoon Network Asia does not carry the Adult Swim block, except in the Philippine Cartoon Network, but it does carry the Miguzi or Tickle U block. It used to carry the Boomerang block late at night, but have ceased doing so lately because Boomerang will be launched. However, classic Warner Bros and MGM cartoon programming are still aired regularly as part of its daily programming, as does programming from the Miguzi block such as Teen Titans (they might be carried under the Toonami block, however, as in the case of Teen Titans).
While it lacks a Tickle U block, it has airs a similar block known as Tiny TV. Unlike the Tickle U block, however, this block generally airs programming that're created by Hanna Barbera and/or Warner Bros and might or might not be educational, such as The Flintstone kids and Baby Looney Toons.
Australia / New Zealand
Cartoon Network in Australia is available on Pay TV (Foxtel,Optus and Austar) and also on 3 mbile as a part of their new mobile TV service although cartoons are repeated frequently on the mobile service.
The Cartoon Network feed used in Australia and New Zealand is different from the one used in the Asia region, and thus do not share the same programming as those in the region.
Pakistan
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Almost all the programs shown on Cartoon Network's around the world are also shown on Cartoon Network Pakistan. The channel broadcasts both English and Urdu translated cartoons; ARY Digital holds rights to the channel and in late 2006 Cartoon Network plans to air a Pakistani made cartoon.
Philippines
Started in 2001, the Philippines has a separate feed of its own, including localized content. Although it has the same programming as the Asia-Pacific feed, it also carries Adult Swim and Toonami. This division of Cartoon Network is shown on Sky Cable Gold and Sky Cable Silver (formerly Home cable and Sun cable).
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Japan
In Japan, Cartoon Network is broadcast on the SKY PerfecTV! platform, cable, and on broadband TV platforms. Cartoon Network Japan airs several anime, traditional Cartoon Network programs, as well as aquired western programs, such as The Charlie Brown & Snoopy Show and Clifford the Big Red Dog All non-Japanese programs are avaliable with the orginal English audio, as well as the Japanese-language dub. Cartoon Network Japan was notable for being the only network in Japan outside of Tokyo that aired the second season of The Big O, which was co-produced by Cartoon Network.
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Special programming blocks
Fridays
Fridays is a live action show that shows premieres of cartoons, sneak peeks of cartoons and new episodes of cartoons, It is hosted by Tommy Snider and Tara Sands, and features kids as well as puppets acting as comic relief. It airs for five hours at 7 PM (E/P) with a rebroadcast of 4.5 hours starting at 12:30 AM.
Miguzi
Miguzi is a cartoon block that premiered on April 19, 2004. This block is themed around Erin, a girl who finds refuge within the confines of a strange spaceship that is trapped underwater and inhabited by aquatic creatures. Not surprisingly, this lighter-toned action block is from Williams Street, the producers of late-night programming block Adult Swim and Toonami, a block of programming which Miguzi replaced in the weekday-afternoon timeslot.
Miguzi airs action shows from different countries like Teen Titans from America, One Piece and Yu-Gi-Oh! GX from Japan, and Code: Lyoko from France.
Toonami
Toonami (a portmanteau of cartoon and tsunami, suggesting a "giant wave of animated entertainment") was initially a block of action-oriented programming (mostly Japanese anime) on Cartoon Network in the US and UK, among other countries. The American version premiered on March 17, 1997 as a weekday afternoon block. The Toonami brand was subsequently used in the United Kingdom as the title of a Cartoon Network-operated UK spinoff channel in its own right in September 2003, a little under a year after the network launched as CNX.
Originally hosted by Moltar from Space Ghost Coast to Coast, Toonami is currently hosted by TOM (short for Toonami Operations Module), a sardonic yet heroic robot whose primary functions include piloting the Ghost Planet Spaceship Absolution and processing signals of action-animation programming along with his co-pilot, an AI hologram named Sara. Toonami's programming consisted of mostly anime, most notably popular franchises like Dragon Ball, Tenchi, Gundam, Megas XLR(Toonami's first original production), and Sailor Moon, as well as DC Comics-based programming like Batman, Superman, Batman Beyond, Justice League, Teen Titans, Justice League Unlimited, and The Batman.
Toonami was extremely popular during the late 90s/Early 2000s it had different variations; which included Rising Sun which was a Morning version of the block and Midnight Run which showed uncut versions of the afternoon Toonami block, before being replaced by Adult Swim.
Currently, the US Toonami airs on Saturdays from 7 to 11 PM (E/P). Some shows in this program include Zatch Bell!, Teen Titans, Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo, Naruto, One Piece, and IGPX.
Boomerang
Shortly before the launch of the classic cartoons spinoff channel Boomerang, Cartoon Network introduced a programming block of the same name that originally aired for two hours on early morning Saturdays and Sundays. The block's programming time jumped frequently, with the Saturday block moving to Saturday afternoons and back to the early morning and the Sunday block moving to Sunday evenings. Eventually, Boomerang was cut to one day a week, Saturday, and it was shortened by an hour.
Boomerang (both the programming block and the original spinoff channel) followed a unique programming format - every week, cartoons produced during a certain year (and cartoons produced during years prior to that year) would be showcased. For example, if Boomerang was showcasing the year 1969, you would more than likely catch an episode of "Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?" and "The Flintstones".
Once the Boomerang channel was launched, promos for the channel aired at the end of every broadcasted show during the block in attempt to gain popularity for Boomerang.
With the re-launch of Cartoon Network in 2004, the Boomerang block no longer has a regularly scheduled air date. The programming block airs very rarely on the channel.
Adult Swim
Adult Swim is the name for the more "adult-oriented" television programming block on Cartoon Network, which premiered on September 2, 2001 in USA. It basically shows "cartoons for adults".
Originally a Sunday-only block that also reran on Thursdays, Adult Swim airs Saturday through Thursday nights at 11 PM (E/P) and Sunday nights at 10 PM ET/PT with an encore airing at 2 AM and then ending with an hour of older shows on every night but Sunday. The block, programmed by Williams Street, the same group that created Toonami and Miguzi, plays American animated comedy series and shorts geared towards audiences 14 and older and a wide variety of anime series and OVAs intended for audiences 18 and older.
The name comes from the name for hours designated at public swimming pools where only adults can swim in the pool. On March 28, 2005, the programming block was spun-off as a separate entity from Cartoon Network for Nielsen Ratings purposes.
Cartoon Network Block Party
Cartoon Network Block Party is the name for a three-hour block of programming that aired on Saturdays that sometimes featured several new episodes of a single show it was removed from Cartoon Network in 2004.
Preschool programming
Tickle U (USA)
Tickle U is a preschool programming block on Cartoon Network in United States. It premiered in the on August 22, 2005. Tickle U is hosted by Pipoca, Henderson and Place. It's similar to Playhouse Disney and Nick Jr.
Tiny TV (some countries)
A special block of cartoons for young children in the morning slot. It features:
Half Ticket Express (India)
A special block of cartoons for young children in the morning slot. It features:
- Franklin
- Dragon Tales
- Miss Spider's Sunny Patch Friends
- Bob the Builder
- The Koala Brothers
- Maisy
- Postman Pat
- Little Red Tractor
Pipola Pepola (Japan)
A special block of cartoons for young children in the morning slot. It features:
Live-action programming
Although the majority of the network's programming is animation, live-action programming has been a part of Cartoon Network over the years. Human-hosted shows like Carrot Top's A.M. Mayhem and the current Cartoon Cartoon Fridays (now called just Fridays) format had live actors introducing animated shows and shorts. In the mid-1990s, the Children's Television Workshop co-produced Big Bag, a series that featured a Muppet character and a human counterpart. The network has also broadcast films which combine 2D animation and live actors, such as Osmosis Jones and Who Framed Roger Rabbit, and November 2005 saw the premieres of various fully live-action films such as The Goonies, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, Small Soldiers (which used 3-D animation), and Batman. Cartoon Network has recently begun showing a live action series with CGI-elements, called Zixx, as of January 14, 2006. The use of live-action programming and films on Cartoon Network has rankled some fans of the channel, which they believe that the channel should feature only animation, besides host segments.
See also
External links
- Websites in English speaking region.
- Cartoon Network Studios at The Big Cartoon DataBase
