CAKE (2006)

 

CAKE (2006)
(CBS, September 16-December 9, 2006)
 
Brookwell McNamara Entertainment, KOL/AOL for Kids, DiC Entertainment Corporation

 

MAIN CAST:
Christa B. Allen – Cake
Anna Maria Perez de Tagle – Miracle Ross
Keegan McFadden – Benjamin Turner
Emily Everhard – Amy Carson

  

Since the year 2000, CBS’ Saturday morning programming was handled by corporate cousin Nickelodeon following the merger between Viacom and CBS Corporation. 5 years later, Viacom was again split from CBS Corporation into two distinct companies under the ownership of National Amusements. With Nickelodeon no longer under a common umbrella, CBS entered into a partnership with DiC Entertainment to take over their Saturday morning programming. DiC, in turn, partnered with KOL, internet provider America Online’s kid-centered website, to create the KOL Secret Slumber Party programming block.

Amy, Miracle, Cake, and Benjamin.

One of the first three programs launched under the block was Cake, created by Barbara Meyer and Maia Terzian and developed by Kaaren Lee Brown (not to be confused with the 2019 series of the same name). Cake was a how-to sitcom centered on a girl named Cake (Christa B. Allen) who was heavily into fashion and arts and crafts; inspired by her Grandma Crystal who used to design costumes and serve as a roadie for famous rock stars. Along with her best friend Miracle Ross (Anna Maria Pere de Tagle), who also loved fashion and art but was a bit on the materialistic and spoiled side, and young neighborhood girl Amy Carson (Emily Everhard), who was an environmentally-conscious jokester, Cake put on a public-access television show called Cake TV. Handling the camera was their other friend, Benjamin Turner (Keegan McFadden), whose stage fright left him happy to stay behind the scenes. They operated out of Cake’s garage and Crystal’s nearby Airstream travel trailer, which was loaded with supplies from her designing days. Despite other characters being mentioned and often being a factor at the center of an episode’s story, nobody else appeared on the show beyond a photograph of Cake with her mother and grandmother or vocal cameos from the television set.

Glue guns ready!

Cake debuted on CBS on September 16, 2006 with the rest of the Slumber Party block. The series was written by Susie Singer Carter and Don Priess, with Donald F. Roberts, PhD serving as an educational consultant to ensure the series met educational requirements mandated by the FCC. The main theme written by Michael J. Mani and Carter with vocals by Joey Singer, and music by Ron Wasserman. Costumes were designed by Sandy Ampon, CDG, and supervised by Dianne Kennedy, with Tim Wonsik, Raquel L. Jaffe and Stephen Oh as the costumers. The sets were decorated by Lisa De Los Reyes, SDSA.

Amy, Cake and Benjamin out in the yard by Grandma Crystal's trailer.

Each episode began with Cake showing the audience what craft project they’ll be working on later in the episode; such as jazzing up an old purse, creating a custom CD case, or revitalizing old plush toys. That was followed by a standard sitcom plot designed to lead the characters into a need or inspiration for that particular project. For instance, the first episode featured Miracle’s credit card being cut off by her parents for repeatedly going over her limit, leaving her without the ability to get a new dress (which was made for her by Cake) or a gift for a friend’s Bat Mitzvah (which was the mentioned project). For a bit of corporate synergy, one project was inspired by the success of pop group the Slumber Party Girls, the hosts and namesake of the Slumber Party block. The rest of the episode was dedicated to the filming of Cake TV and the craft project. The show would end with the disembodied voice of Cake saying “It’s a piece of cake!”

Amy, Cake and Miracle filming Cake TV.

As for the show-within-a-show, Cake TV featured the girls all wearing shirts with their names in creative lettering and Amy providing their introductions. Cake would then describe the project they’ll be working on. However, before that could begin, they played some stock footage of themselves marching out on the lawn carrying signs that spelt out the acronym “PARTY TIME”. PAR stood for “Permission Always Required”, reminding their viewers that they needed parental supervision and/or permission to use the more dangerous tools like scissors or a hot glue gun (Cake’s favorite). TYT stood for “Take Your Time”, encouraging the organization of materials and proceeding at a casual pace. IME stood for “Imagination Means Everything”, opening up their minds to allow their creativity to flow.  The girls then guided the viewers along on a step-by-step process of what materials they’ll need and what to do so they could follow along with their own craft project.

It's "PARTY TIME"!

Despite being nominated for two Young Artist Awards, winning one, the series was ultimately cancelled after the end of its only season of 13 episodes. A 14^th episode titled “Amy Takeover” was planned, but was never aired. Cake remained on the network in reruns until 2009. Following DiC’s takeover by Cookie Jar Group. CBS renewed its programming deal with Cookie Jar which then subsequently replaced all of DiC’s programming with their own for new programming block Cookie Jar TV.  While never released on home media, various episodes have been uploaded by fans to video sites like YouTube and it was made available for streaming on Tubi.

 

 

EPISODE GUIDE:

“Miracle on Ice…The Case of the Frozen Assets” (9/16/02) – When Miracle’s parents freeze her credit card, she’s unable to buy a new outfit or gift for a friend’s Bat Mitzvah.

 

“Flip-Flopped” (9/23/06) – Amy copies other people’s style until Cake helps her discover her own individuality.

 

“Or-dis-ganized” (9/30/06) – Cake must help everyone get over a spreading case of forgetfulness.

 

“Not Your Mama’s Piggy Bank” (10/7/06) – Amy’s desire to help rebuild a playground destroyed by a tornado helps inspire that week’s craft to renew old stuffed toys.

 

“You Tell Her” (10/14/06) – Everyone tries to figure out the best way to tell Miracle that she stinks when she comes to the garage straight from soccer practice.

 

“The Write Inspiration” (10/21/06) – The kids are inspired by the Slumber Party Girls’ success and set out to achieve their own.

 

“Baby Blues” (10/28/06) – Amy decides that she’s tired of being treated like a kid because she’s the youngest and starts dressing and acting like a grown-up.

 

“Makin’ Up Is Hard to Do” (11/4/06) – A misunderstanding breaks up the friendship between Miracle and Benjamin.

 

“A Cake Walk” (11/11/06) – Miracle is concerned that Cake’s preoccupation with her grandmother’s hip surgery has drained her creative spark.

 

“Trump-IT” (11/18/06) – Benjamin loses his passion for trumpet-playing in the school’s concert band when the new exchange student seems unimpressed by his skill.

 

“Flopportunity” (11/25/06) – Miracle’s fashion sense is challenged when the ripped jeans she spent all her money on is deemed inappropriate by the principal.

 

“Snack Attack” (12/2/06) – Cake is concerned about Miracle’s unhealthy chocolate chip cookie addiction.

 

“Second Hand Woes” (12/9/06) – Amy hates getting hand-me-downs, but Cake sees it as a creative opportunity.

I'M TELLING!

 

I’M TELLING!
(NBC, September 12, 1987-March 5, 1988)
 
DiC Enterprises, Saban Productions

 

MAIN CAST:
Laurie Faso – Host
Dean Goss – Announcer

  

In 1987, DiC Enterprises partnered with Saban Productions to co-produce several shows, which Saban would then handle the international distribution of. Together, they entered into an agreement with NBC to provide them several programs for their Saturday morning line-up. One of them was the live-action game show, I’m Telling!, marking Saban’s expansion into the medium.

The contestants ready to play.

Created by Ellen Levy and developed by Levy and Saban co-founder Haim Saban, I’m Telling! was essentially a kid version of The Newlywed Game. However, instead of romantic partners, I’m Telling! was played by three pairs of siblings—typically a brother and a sister, outside of special “Brothers’ Day” or “Sisters’ Day” episodes featuring siblings of the same sex. That comparison, by the way, didn’t go unnoticed by Newlywed Game producer Chuck Barris, who filed an injunction against Saban. Notably, Fast and the Furious franchise star Paul Walker appeared as a contestant with his sister, Ashlie, very early into his career.

A sister selecting a category.

The game featured three rounds. The first two rounds saw one of the siblings “teleported” to the “isolation zone” via special effects and video editing. In actuality, they were taken from the stage and placed in a soundproof room. The remaining sibling randomly selected one of three pun-laden categories by hitting a button and were asked a question loosely based on that category about their offstage sibling. Much like its inspiration, the questions were often designed to lead to humorous and embarrassing answers. After the three siblings answered every question, the isolated sibling was brought back out and the teams were awarded points for how many of their answers matched; gaining 25 points for matching the first, 50 for the second, and 75 for the third. The roles were then switched for the second round with the points increased to 50, 75 and 150, respectively.

The consolation prizes.

The team with the most points, or with an uncatchable substantial lead, won a $1,000 savings bond and advanced to the final round, while the other teams received consolation prizes that included Huffy bicycles, a 7-Eleven coupon book, and a copy of the I’m Telling! home game by Pressman Toy Corporation (now Goliath Games). In the event of a tie, the winner was selected from the team that came closest to guessing how many objects were placed into the “I’m Telling! Fun Box” or a jar without going over before the show.

The Pick-A-Prize Arcade.

The final round was the Pick-a-Prize Arcade, which was played after the set rotated 180 degrees to reveal 20 prizes in 2 rows of 10 on color-coded podiums; pink for the girls, yellow for the boys. Before the show, each sibling had to make a guess as to what 6 prizes the other would go for during this round. They then took turns selecting their 6 desired prizes from their designated rows. If their choices matched what their sibling selected beforehand, a light would flash after they hit a corresponding button. The team then took home every prize they matched (or, rather, a Service Merchandise gift certificate of equivalent value). If they matched a combined total of 10 prizes, they then won all 20 prizes.

Scoring a prize match.

I’m Telling! debuted on NBC on September 12, 1987. The game was hosted by actor Laurie Faso, with actor and veteran game show announcer Dean Goss announcing. Saban and partner Shuki Levy provided the series’ music. NBC would also have various stars from their shows appear in interstitials leading into a commercial break. Two episodes were populated by young NBC stars and their siblings, including Shannen Doherty (Our House) and her brother, Sean; Mackenzie Astin (The Facts of Life) and his brother, Sean; Heidi Zeigler (Rags to Riches) and her brother, Chuck; Chad Allen (Our House) and his sister, Charity; Benji Gregory (ALF) and his sister, Becky; and Ami Foster (Punky Brewster) and her brother, Shawn. For these shows, the equivalent of any winnings was donated to charity on top of a guaranteed $500.

Faso with that episode's winners.

Unfortunately, the show didn’t perform well on NBC’s already struggling Saturday morning lineup. The final new episode aired on March 5, 1988 and remained in reruns through August. On September 9, 1989, reruns aired on The Family Channel (now Freeform) for a year. It would return for two more runs on August 29, 1994 through September 30, 1995, and on October 30, 1995 through March 29, 1996. Notably, plugs for 7-Eleven and the commercial break between rounds 1 and 2 were edited out, and the credits were redone and presented over the descriptions of the prizes won. In the years since, several episodes of varying quality have found their way onto video sites like YouTube. This would be DiC’s only foray into game shows, while Saban would produce another for syndication, Treasure Mall, reusing several sounds and a reworking of the theme from I’m Telling!

ALF TALES

 

ALF TALES
(NBC, September 10, 1988-December 9, 1989)
 
DiC Entertainment, Alien Productions, Lorimar-Telepictures, Saban Entertainment

 

MAIN CAST:
Paul Fusco – Gordon Shumway/ALF, Rick Fusterman
Thick Wilson – Bob Shumway, Larson Petty
Peggy Mahon – Flo Shumway
Tabitha St. Germain (as Paulina Gillis) – Augie Shumway, Rhonda
Noam Zylberman (season 1) & Michael Fantini (season 2) – Curtis Shumway
Len Carlson – Cantfayl, Sargent Staff
Rob Cowan – Skip, Roger Cowan
Dan Hennessey – Sloop/Eggbert Petty
Ellen-Ray Hennessey – Stella

 

Created by Paul Fusco and Tom Patchett, ALF Tales was a spin-off of ALF: The Animated Series, which in turn was a spin-off of the live-action/puppet sitcom ALF. ALF had become a major success for NBC, and it was only natural for the network to want to try and expand upon that success; particularly with their ever-increasing younger audience. And if one ALF animated show was good, two would have to be even better.

Promotional poster for the series depicting some of the tales.

            As with its predecessor, the series was set on Melmac and followed ALF, aka Gordon Shumway (Fusco) as he and his friends put on productions of fairy tales and other public domain stories. For whom and why beyond entertaining the real-life audience at home was never revealed. Gordon and his girlfriend, Rhonda (Tabitha St. Germain), were typically the stars of the productions. Other roles would be filled out by Gordon’s family, father Bob (Thick Wilson), mother Flo (Peggy Mahon), sister Augie (Germain), and brother Curtis (Noam Zylberman & Michael Fantini); his friends, Rick Fusterman (Fusco), Skip (Rob Cowan); Melmacian citizens like fortune-smeller Madame Pokipsi (Deborah Theaker) and waitress Stella (Ellen-Ray Hennessy); and even his enemies, Larson Petty (Wilson) and Sloop (Dan Hennessey). Cowan would also play a new character modeled after himself named Roger Cowan, a TV executive who tried to impart notes on the productions. The entire cast was carried over from The Animated Series with the exception of Fantini, who was briefly replaced by Zylberman for the first season.

ALF, Skip and Rick as the Three Little Pigs.

            As stated, those productions were parodies of various fairy tales and legends. They were often set in different eras and locations, featured various Melmacian elements native to the franchise, served as spoofs of various genres, films and television shows and featured numerous pop culture references. The episode “Cinderella”, for example, not only did their rendition of Cinderella, but was also presented like an Elvis Presley film as the prince was replaced by a rock star looking for love. “Rumpelstiltskin” played out like a detective noir as private eye Sam Shovel (ALF), a play on Sam Spade, needed to uncover Rumpelstiltskin’s (Sloop) name to get a miller’s daughter (Rhonda) out of a bad deal. “The Three Little Pigs” was bookended by scenes reminiscent of Rod Serling’s intros and outros for The Twilight Zone. The crocodile in the “Peter Pan” episode was portrayed as a caricature of the titular character from “Crocodile” Dundee. “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” was presented as an episode of Unsolved Mysteries with ALF playing a parody of Robert Stack.

Putting the "rap" in Rapunzel.

        ALF Tales debuted on NBC on September 10, 1988; paired with the second season of The Animated Series to form The ALF/ALF Tales Hour. It was produced by DiC Entertainment, Alien Productions, Lorimar-Telepictures and Saban Entertainment. Only Alicia Marie Schudt, Bradley Kesden, and Skip Shepard were carried over from The Animated Series’ writing staff; although Richard Raynis still served as a producer as he did on the other series. Joining them were David Steven Cohen, Roger S.H. Schulman, Eddie Gorodetsky, Michael Rowe, Ellis Weiner, Mitchell Kriegman, Steve Roberts, Richard J. Schellbach, Phil Harnage and Judy Rothman, with Cohen, Schulman and Rothman serving as story editors and Harnage as assistant story editor. Fil Barlow was the character design supervisor over Paul Wee, Marcelo Vignali, Ed Lee, Michael Goguen, Charles Crawford, Adriana M. Galvez, Dean Gordon, Brian Hogan, David S. Karoll, Joey Banaszkiewicz, David Feiss, Mike Kim and Lou Police. Haim Saban and Shuki Levy provided the music, and animation duties were handled by KK C&D Asia and Mook DLE. In the rare event an episode’s story ran short, a brief live-action ALF segment was tacked onto the end where he’d read and answer fictional fan mail.

Rock star ALF searching for the owner of a glass slipper.

            The Animated Series was cancelled after its second season and its reruns were split from Tales to allow its brief second season to air independently. Tales’ intro showcased Gordon directing an off-camera symphony as his outfit and background changed to the various settings featured in the respective tales, while the Hour intro just used The Animated Series’ with the new title. Unfortunately, it was also cancelled after two seasons as new leadership was moving into NBC with no investment in the ALF franchise. All versions of ALF left the network by the fall of 1990. The animated ALF made one additional appearance in the drug-prevention special Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue, which was broadcast across all the major networks on April 21, 1990 and starred a collection of Saturday morning characters.

The DVD.

            A VHS was released in 1989 in the United Kingdom by The Video Collection, featuring the episodes “Robin Hood” and “Sleeping Beauty”. In 2006, Lionsgate Home Entertainment released the first seven episodes of the series to DVD in ALF Tales: ALF and the Beanstalk and Other Classic Fairy Tales. In 2023, Shout! Factory released Alf: The Complete Series Deluxe Edition, which contained the complete original series, spin-off film Project: ALF, and both animated series. The following year, both animated series became part of the debut line-up of retro animation network MeTV Toons. The series is also available to stream on Prime Video, Fubo, Peacock, The Roku Channel, Tubi and Crackle and the official ALF YouTube Channel.

 

EPISODE GUIDE:
Season 1:
“Robin Hood” (9/10/88) – Robin Hood and his jazz band must rescue Maid Marian from Nottingham castle while opposing the Sheriff’s unjust taxes.
 
“Sleeping Beauty” (9/17/88) – Prince Gordon gets a cursed papercut that causes him to fall asleep, and it’s up to princess Rhonda to defeat the witch that cast it with three wizards.
 
“Cinderella” (9/24/88) – Cinderella’s fairy godmother helps her attend a rock star’s concert where he plans to find his bride and wows him with a spectacular duet.
 
“The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” (10/1/88) - While investigating the Headless Horseman for a story, reporter Ichabod Crane discovers that there are in fact several Horsemen.
 
“Jack and the Beanstalk” (10/8/88) – Jack Bates trades the family cow for magic beans to save their struggling motel and the resulting beanstalk leads to a giant with a hen that lays golden eggs.
 
“The Aladdin Brothers and Their Lamp” (10/15/88) – Ziggy and Roy Aladdin end up in trouble when their genie sends them to Sheboygan and they encounter the princess.
 
“Rapunzel” (10/29/88) – The Wicked Witch controls all media in the country and ends up imprisoning Rapunzel and her family when they lose her rigged quiz show.
 
“Rumpelstiltskin” (11/12/88) – A miller’s daughter comes to P.I. Sam Shovel to find out the name of a dwarf and get her out of a bad deal made with him.
 
“The Princess and the Pea” (11/19/88) – Aspiring stand-up comic Prince Gordy wants to marry a waitress that’s really a princess, but the Queen says she must pace the mattress test first.
 
“John Henry” (12/3/88) – Master chef John Henry fights automation when he competes against a mechanical food processor to see who can make the best meals.
 
“The Three Little Pigs” (12/10/88) – B.B. Wolf is tasked with getting the Three Little Pigs’ land for the oil deposits beneath it.
 
“Alice in Wonderland” (12/17/88) – When a humanoid rabbit steals his birthday present for Rhonda, Gordon follows her down an elevator shaft into Wonderland.
 
“Peter Pan” (1/7/89) – Peter Pan brings Wendy and her brothers to Never-Never Land where stand-up pirate Captain Hook views him as a rival and plots against him.
 
Season 2:
“Hansel & Gretel” (9/16/89) – Hansel and Gretel end up at Camp Eat-a-Kid where Hansel is fattened up by a wicked witch and Gretel is imprisoned with two Chimpunky prisoners.
 
“The Wizard of Oz” (9/23/89) – A tornado brings 1930s Gordon to the 1960s where landing on a witch gets him stuck with magical ruby high-top sneakers that only the Wizard of Oz can remove.
 
“The Elves and the Shoemaker” (9/30/89) – Elves are tasked with helping failed shoemaker Donald Tramp, but the success and riches turns him into a miserly dictator of a CEO.
 
“The Emperor’s New Clothes” (10/14/89) – The finicky Emperor is presented with the most unique of fashion: invisible Schmatex.
 
“Goldilocks & the Three Bears” (10/28/89) – When Rhonda gets a better house-sitting offer, she tasks Gordon with watching Mayor Bear’s place and he turns it into an amusement park.
 
“Little Red Riding Hood” (11/11/89) – Red has a package for scientist Granny, but little does he know that the Wolf had gotten there first and used her own shrinking device to shrink and eat her.
 
“Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” (12/2/89) – Robert Stuck is on the case of missing champion skier Snow White after she was last seen in the company of a thug for hire.
 
“King Midas” (12/9/89) – Oklahoma Jones is in search of King Midas, but the evil Professor Bouquet steals his map with the intent of finding the king first.

CARE BEARS (1985)

 

CARE BEARS

(Syndication, September 14-November 23, 1985)
 
DiC Enterprises, Those Characters From Cleveland

 

 

MAIN CAST:

Billie Mae Richards – Tenderheart Bear, David’s Mother, Sharon Wayland, Keith, Kara’s Mother, Matthew Miller

Jayne Eastwood – Birthday Bear, Willis Carter

Janet-Laine Green – Wish Bear, Mary, Mrs. Miller, Tricia

Eva Almos – Friend Bear, Swift Heart Rabbit, Kathy, Charlie, Elaine, Jimmy, Kathy, Lisa, Melanie, Millie Jacbo’s Mother, Sanford

Linda Sorenson – Love-a-Lot Bear, Amy, Benny, Jeffrey, Kara, Lisa’s Mother, Mrs. Peale, Paula Schaefer, Sandra, Talking Star, Wendy

Melleny Brown – Cheer Bear, Becky, Missy, Jill Wayland, Millie Jacobs, Tommy

Dan Hennessey – Good Luck Bear, Brave Heart Lion, Loyal Heart Dog, Captain McDougal, Cloud Worm, Counselor Bob, Dentist, Mr. Miller, Mayor of Abbotsville

Patrice Black – Funshine Bear, Share Bear, Chris, Eddie, Joey and Elaine’s Mother, Linda, Mary’s Mother

Bob Dermer – Grumpy Bear, Frostbite, Narrator, Amy’s Husband, Carl, Charlie, David, Eddie, Charlie, Firefighter, Joey and Elaine’s Father, Ken, Mr. Bland, Mr. Poole, Race Flag Man

Theresa Sears – Bedtime Bear, Champ Bear, Amy, Fred, Joshua

 

For the history of the Care Bears, check out the post here.

 

            Since their debut in 1982, Care Bears was basically a license for American Greetings to print money. Their greeting cards and plush dolls from partner Kenner rolled out alongside an aggressive merchandising campaign that saw the name and characters slapped on just about everything imaginable, and they all sold well. Their efforts to expand to other media were also well-met, with two highly-rated animated specials and a successful theatrical film. They decided to keep things going by continuing on from the film into an animated series.

Share Bear peeping down at Earth for a caring problem.

            Care Bears followed the adventures of the titular group of bears as they dealt with caring problems around the world. They resided up in the clouds in the Kingdom of Caring; specifically, the town of Care-A-Lot (a play on Camelot) in and around Care-A-Lot Castle. They peered down at the Earth below through a star-shaped telescope with a heart-shaped lens that always seemed to manage to land on a kid or kids in some kind of trouble. The bears would then descend in their cloud cars or cloud hot air balloon to meet the kids and try to help them find a solution to their problems. Occasionally, the Care Bear Cousins would join them from their home in the Forest of Feelings. Their special skill was their Care Bear Stare, which allowed them to project beams of caring from their Belly Badges that could perform various tasks or create a variety of objects. The Stare was often more powerful when the bears all worked together.

Care Bears "rolling" on up in their cloud whip to help bring the caring.

            The bears consisted the original 10 made for the franchise: de facto leader Tenderheart Bear (Billie Mae Richards), who organized their efforts to spread love and caring, kept Care-A-Lot in shape, and initiated new members into the family by giving them their Belly Badges; Birthday Bear (Jayne Eastwood), who loved birthdays and parties and was always ready to celebrate either; Wish Bear (Janet-Laine Green), who had fun granting wishes or working hard to make them come true; Friend Bear (Eva Almos), a social butterfly who knows how to make friends and be a good one; Love-A-Lot Bear (Linda Sorenson), who loved everything and everyone and worked the word “love” into most of her sentences; Cheer Bear (Melany Brown), who was very happy and perky, living up to her name; Good Luck Bear (Dan Hennessey, who also served as a voice director), whose positive outlook tended to help him manifest an endless supply of good luck; Funshine Bear (Patrice Black), who could always see the sunny side of life when not indulging in pranking others; Grumpy Bear (Bob Dermer), whose constantly sour disposition often proves helpful in dealing with kids of a similar personality; and Bedtime Bear (Theresa Sears), who, as you might expect, was constantly sleepy and was in charge of the sleep of others. Additionally, there was Champ Bear (Sears), who was great at sports and loved sharing their social and physical benefits with others; Share Bear (Black), who was selfless to a fault; and the tight-lipped Secret Bear, who tended to communicate via pantomime.

Care Bears and Cousins working together.

            The Care Bear Cousins were comprised of Brave Heart Lion (Hennessey), their loud and overbearing leader who wasn’t afraid to recklessly dive headfirst into a situation; Bright Heart Raccoon (Jim Henshaw), the intelligent inventor who relied on logic and reasoning to solve problems; Cozy Heart Penguin (Pauline Rennie), who loved making others feel better as much as swimming in chilly waters; Gentle Heart Lamb (Luba Goy), the shiest and most soft-spoken of the Cousins that could be hesitant to charge into situations; Lotsa Heart Elephant (Goy), the strongest being in the Forest although not always the most athletic; Loyal Heart Dog (Hennessey), an exceptionally-loyal friend who could relax anywhere just as easily as enter a fracas; Playful Heart Monkey (Marla Lukofsky), a practical joker; Proud Heart Cat (Louise Vallance), a perfectionist obsessed with order and cleanliness that tended to end sentences with some kind of cat sound; Swift Heart Rabbit (Almos), the fastest Cousin whose overconfidence often lead to trouble; and Treat Heart Pig (Rennie), who always loved a good time—especially if it involved snacks.

Prfoessor Coldheart, Auntie Freeze and Frostbite.

            For the most part, the Care Bear Family dealt with common issues: bullies, self-confidence, cheaters, bad feelings, etc. However, there were a few legitimate villains that the bears had to contend with, helping to spread negativity to the world—especially among children. Returning from the earlier television specials was Professor Coldheart (Len Carlson), a blue-skinned man with icy features and powers that hated anything warm and caring, and his bumbling sidekick, Frostbite (Dermer). New for the series was Auntie Freeze (Joyce Gordon), Frostbite’s aunt who loved causing misery and fear in others; Strato Nefarious (Carlson), a violinist from space whose home didn’t have enough light to see his sheet music necessitating his stealing stars from the sky; and the Cloud Worm (Hennessey), a giant worm-like creature who ate clouds—like the ones that comprised Care-A-Lot.

Model sheet for Professor Coldheart.

            Care Bears debuted in syndication on September 14, 1985. For the series, American Greetings went with DiC Entertainment; one of their considerations for producing the theatrical film before that job went to Nelvana.  Nelvana, instead, was retained to work on the film’s sequel. 11 episodes were made, each containing 2 story segments that could be broken up into individual presentations or moved around (at least one CITV broadcast in the 80s shows an exchange of segments between the last two episodes). Most of the film’s cast reprised their respective roles. The series was written by Eleanor Burian Mohr, Randal Case, Howard R. Cohen, Matt Geller, Jack Hanrahan, Don Hart, Shelley Karol, Francis Moss, Jack Olesker and Bruce Reisman, with Sandy Fries and Olesker serving as story editors. Doug McCarthy, Rachel Brenner, Judie Martin and Richard Moore handled the character designs. Bob Chimbel and Merry Loomis composed the theme, with the other music and sound effects selected by Fizz Sound Creation Co. Ltd. Marc Simon and Kelly Simon were music consultants. Following the conclusion of the series, American Greetings returned to Nelvana for a follow-up called The Care Bears Family that aired on network television. Despite its short run, the series had two intro sequences: the first three episodes featured a string of continuous scenes under the theme, while the remainder had a more traditional intro featuring original animation that kept more in line with the song’s lyrics.

The Care Bear Stare and Care Cousin Call.

       Buena Vista Home Video and Castle Communications released VHS collections of several segments each in North America and the United Kingdom, respectively. In 2003, Sterling Entertainment released four VHS and DVD compilations containing 6 individual story segments. The DVD versions all contained a 7^th bonus segment, with the last release’s bonus episode being from Sylvanian Families, based on another line of animal toys by Japanese company Epoch. In 2004, Sterling released 7 DVDs containing 3 stories each. In 2013, Mill Creek Entertainment  produced 3 DVD compilations containing 3 complete episodes each; with the first re-released as part of the compilation package DVD TV Guide Spotlight: Totally 80s Toons. A Three Program FUNdle! was released in 2014 collecting all 3 DVDs. They released the complete series in 2016 and re-released it in 2018 as Care For YOU! Collection.

 

 

EPISODE GUIDE:

“Camp / The Birthday” (9/14/85) – The Care Bears help two boys with opposite personalities get along at summer camp. / Upset because his parents seemed to forget his birthday with the arrival of his new sister, Matthew trashes his house with encouragement from his friend.

 

“Braces / Split Decision” (9/21/85) – The Care Bears try to help Joey feel better about his new braces. / The Care Bears and his friend Mary help Carl up his soccer game to get bullies of his case.

 

“The Lucky Charm / Soap Box Derby” (9/28/85) – The Care Bear family helps Mildred get over her streak of bad luck while Proud Heart tries to keep Playful Heart out of her garden. / The Care Bears help two girls participate in a soap box race against two cheating boys.

 

“The Last Laugh / The Show Must Go On” (10/5/85) – Trying to make Grumpy happy causes Cheer to lose her cheerfulness. / The Care Bear Cousins try to get Patty’s father out of work so he can watch her in the school play.

 

“The Forest of Misfortune / Magic Mirror” (10/12/85) – Professor Coldheart and Frostbite plan to freeze the Forest of Feelings. / Professor Coldheart invents a magic mirror that turns anything that appears into it into its mirror opposite.

 

“Daydreams / Runaway” (10/19/85) – The Care Bear Cousins try to help Melanie reign in her daydreams while Professor Coldheart unleashes his latest plan. / Cara runs away from home jut as Professor Coldheart is snatching up runaways.

 

“Mayor for a Day / The Night the Stars Went Out” (10/26/85) – Professor Coldheart rigs an election so that he can become mayor of Abbottsville—and then, the world. / Wish Bear tries to make a wish on the stars when they’re taken by a cloud.

 

“The Magic Shop / Concrete Rain” (11/2/85) – Two kids take a device from Professor Coldheart’s magic shop that makes everyone they shoot mean. / Professor Coldheart’s plan to cover the world in concrete sounds appealing to skater Susie.

 

“Dry Spell / Drab City” (11/9/85) – Rescuing two kids who fall into a cave leads the Care Bear Family to discover a cure for the city’s drought problem. / The Care Bear Family must restore the color to a city.

 

“Wedding Bells / The Old Man and the Lighthouse” (11/16/85) – Prfoessor Coldheart plans to marry Auntie Freeze in Care-A-Lot as a ploy to destroy it. / The Care Bear Family try to convince a couple of kids that a man that lives in the lighthouse isn’t as odd as they think.

 

“The Cloud Worm / The Girl Who Called Wolf” (11/23/85) – The Care Bears must save Care-A-Lot from a cloud-eating worm. / Jill’s habit of lying gets her friends in trouble when they explore a spooky house for treasure she claimed was there.

SABRINA'S SECRET LIFE

 

SABRINA’S SECRET LIFE
(Syndication, November 10, 2003-February 3, 2004)
 
Archie Comics Entertainment LLC, Les Studios Tex SARL, DiC Entertainment

  

 For the history of Sabrina, check out the entry here.

            Following the conclusion of Sabrina: The Animated Series, DiC Entertainment regained their independence from Disney after falling under their ownership with their purchase of ABC. Still possessing the Sabrina license from Archie Comics, DiC produced a follow-up movie called Friends Forever!, utilizing the same designs as The Animated Series but featuring an all-new voice cast with no connection to the live-action sitcom that inspired it. Sabrina (Britt McKillip), having turned 13, received a magic wand from queen witch Enchantra (Jane Mortifee) and was allowed to enroll in the Witch Academy. There, she met and befriended a fellow half-human named Nicole (Alexandra Carter) and they endeavored to make themselves into full witches so that they would fit in with the other students.

Harvey Kinkle: smitten by Sabrina, or under a spell?

            This led into a new series: Sabrina’s Secret Life. Sabrina was now 14 and attending Greendale High School. While she still lived with her aunts Hilda (Moneca Stori) and Zelda (Bettina Bush) and warlock-turned-cat Salem (Maurice LaMarche), and continued to have a crush on her friend, Harvey Kinkle (Michael Monroe Heyward), they were the only returning characters. Her best friend Chloe was said to have moved away, and rival Gem Stone went to attend a private school out of town. Uncle Quigly, Pi and the Spooky Jar just disappeared without a mention or trace. Newly added was Sabrina’s new human best friend, Maritza (Vanesa Tomasino), who was unaware of her powers; Sabrina’s best-friend-turned-enemy and Enchantra’s niece, Cassandra (Tifanie Christun); and teachers Ms. Magrooney and Mr. Snipe (Christopher Gaze), who taught classes in both the Human World and Netherworld. While the series continued the theme of Sabrina balancing the two halves of her heritage, her powers were considerably weaker than the other versions; relying on her wand to cast spells rather than hand waves and incantations.

Sabrina and Cassandra square off.

            Sabrina’s Secret Life debuted on November 10, 2003 in syndication as part of the DiC Kids Network programming block. It was developed by DiC founder Jean Chalopin, who also served as head writer and wrote half of the episodes. Jean-Michel Guirao was the series’ composer. It would be the last show produced by French animation studio Les Studio Tex, which shut down shortly after its conclusion. Unlike its predecessor, Secret Life only ran for a single season of 26 episodes. Disney would purchase the international rights to air it on their channels alongside The Animated Series in a package called Totally Sabrina (although in Germany it aired simply as a third season to The Animated Series), and would be rerun on Toon Disney and Disney Channel in the United States until 2005. It made its way to CBS as part of the KOL Secret Slumber Party programming block from 2006-07, and later as part of their successor Cookie Jar Entertainment’s Cookie Jar TV block from 2010-11.