When CBS announced last year that its fall Saturday-morning schedule would include a new live action/animated series starring Pee-wee Herman, there were snickers all around.
These days, of course, ”Pee-wee`s Playhouse,” which returned for a second season Sept. 19 (9 a.m. on CBS-Ch. 2) has become a hit kiddies` show as well as a cult item for adults, even those without children. Only last month the Television Critics Association presented the series with an award for outstanding achievement in children`s programming.
This fall`s new lineup for the youngsters apparently contains no such phenomenon, but then, a Pee-wee Herman and his favorite piece of furniture, Chairry, for better or worse, come around only once in a TV generation.
The offerings from the Big Three, in fact, appear to be drearily familiar: cartoons, cartoons and cartoons. Are the networks defensive about all this? Of course not. They`re providing a public service. According to Squire D. Rushnell, vice president of long-range planning and children`s television for ABC, a new animated series, ”Little Clowns of Happytown” is designed, yes, to ”educationally entertain” the youth of America. ”The message we want to bring to young people,” says Rushnell, ”is that happiness is healthy. This will be conveyed through joyous little characters that we believe will not only delight youngsters, but also show them that positive, happy emotions are important to their well-being, as are nutrition and hygiene.”
Moving right along, the season`s schedule on CBS-Ch. 2 includes:
– Four new animated series, all of which premiered Sept. 19: ”Hello Kitty`s Furry Tale Theater” (7 a.m.), ”The New Adventures of Mighty Mouse” (7:30 a.m.), ”Garbage Pail Kids” (9:30 a.m.) and ”Popeye and Son” (10 a.m.).
– ”CBS Storybreak” (11 a.m.), which is designed to motivate and encourage young people to read, returned for its fourth season Sept. 19 with new animated adaptations of popular children`s books. Bob Keeshan (”Captain Kangaroo”) once again is hosting.
On ABC-Ch. 7, the Saturday schedule, part of which premiered Sept. 12, includes:
– ”Animal Crack-ups” (11 a.m.), a half-hour live-action program billed as ”funny and informative” that is hosted by Alan Thicke of ”Growing Pains” and features celebrities answering questions about behavioral patterns and habitats of animals, as seen in footage acquired from the Tokyo Broadcasting System. The series was introduced through a limited run in August.
– Three new animated series: ”Little Clowns of Happytown” (7:30 a.m.),
”My Pet Monster” (8 a.m.) and ”Little Wizards” (9 a.m.).
– ”ABC Weekend Specials” (noon), a mix of live action and animation adapted from best-selling children`s novels and short stories, returns for its 11th season, again hosted by the animated, well-read cat, Cap`n O.G. Readmore. And ”ABC Afternoon Specials” (3 p.m.) also is back, having premiered Sept. 9 with ”Just a Regular Kid: An AIDS Story.” Other new entries will include
”The Day My Kid Went Punk” (Oct. 21) and ”Seasonal Differences” (Dec. 2), which deals with the controversy surrounding a nativity scene displayed on school property.
And on NBC, the Saturday lineup that premiered Sept. 12 includes:
– ”I`m Telling” (11:30 a.m.), a new game show for children that ”pits sibling teams against each other, as contestants are confronted with humorous and revealing questions about their brothers and sisters.” The host is Laurie Faso, former star of the CBS children`s series ”Marlo and the Magic Movie Machine.”
– Three new animated programs: ”Fraggle Rock” (9 a.m.), ”ALF” (10 a.m.) and ”The New Archies” (10:30 a.m.).
Also on NBC, ”Main Street,” now hosted by Maria Shriver, returns for a third season at 3 p.m. Sept. 22, with segments featuring Malcolm-Jamal Warner of ”The Cosby Show,” Hispanic pop-music star Lisa Lisa and a report on teen homosexuality. This spring the program received an Achievement in Children`s Television award from Action for Children`s Television.
Meanwhile, WFLD-Ch. 32 is introducing ”Dr. Science,” a new comedy series from Fox Broadcasting that debuted Sept. 19 and will continue to air at noon on Saturdays. Originated by, and starring members of, the Duck`s Breath Mystery Theatre, the popular San Francisco-based comedy troupe, the series explains scientific phenomena by employing sound logic but bogus ”knowledge nuggets.” Also on tap at WFLD are three new animated series that will air Mondays through Fridays: ”Dennis the Menace” (7:30 a.m.) and ”The Real Ghostbusters” (3:30 p.m.), which both premiered Sept. 14, and ”DuckTales”
(4 p.m.), the first daily animated TV series from Disney Studios, which had a two-hour preview on Sept. 18 before it lands in its regular 4 p.m. time slot weekdays beginning Sept. 21.
And WGN-Ch. 9 will present two new animated series-”Spiral Zone” (6:30 a.m. Monday through Friday starting Sept. 21), ”Bravestarr” (4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday starting Sept. 24), and a live-action/computer-animation series, ”Captain Power” (9:30 a.m. Sunday starting Sept. 20).
