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Sing It, Laurie!, the new animated musical preschool series co-created by children’s recording artist Laurie Berkner and Little Airplane Productions’ Josh Selig, is coming to 24-hour preschool television channel Sprout on March 25. For more info on the series, check out our previous post here!
Sing It, Laurie!, the new animated musical preschool series co-created by children’s recording artist Laurie Berkner and Little Airplane Productions’ Josh Selig is coming to 24-hour preschool television channel Sprout. The short-form series will debut exclusively on the network beginning Monday, March 25. Sing It, Laurie! is the first collaboration between Berkner and Little Airplane.
Starring Berkner’s voice and featuring her original music written for the series, Sing It, Laurie! is about a little girl who uses her music and songs to help her better understand the world. The series also stars recording artist Lisa Loeb, who performs the roles of twin sisters Mellie and Nellie. [Read more...]
The Jim Henson Company has announced a partnership with Mindshapes, a leading kids’ mobile learning company. Under the deal, Mindshapes will create appisodes based on The Jim Henson Company’s current preschool series Sid the Science Kid and Pajanimals as well as content for new Henson properties that will be announced later this year. These appisodes will feature stories, games, and learn and play activities, as well as animated video and music content for a fun kid-friendly experience.
The first product, Sid the Science Kid’s Slide to the Side Appisode, will be available beginning in April, following the premiere of the new feature Sid the Science Kid: The Movie, premiering on PBS KIDS on March 25 (check local listings), and will coincide with the release of the movie on DVD and in iTunes. Later in the year will see the release of an appisode featuring the Pajanimals, the musical series that airs every night on 24-hour preschool channel Sprout and on the NBC Kids weekend block.
The Chica Show, Sprout’s newest original series, will join the NBC Kids Saturday morning lineup on February 9. The Chica Show made its television debut on 24-hour preschool television channel Sprout on November 24. With its debut on NBC Kids, the show will double its reach to 115 million homes nationwide. [Read more...]
Just in time for the upcoming holiday season, a new line of toys from Tomy, based on Pajanimals, is now available at retail and online. A co-production with The Jim Henson Company, Sprout, and Sixteen South Television, the television series airs daily on Sprout during The Good Night Show and on Saturday morning on NBC. [Read more...]
9 Story Entertainment has partnered with NCircle Entertainment for home entertainment sales of its animated preschool comedy series Wibbly Pig in the U.S.
Wibbly Pig takes the daily routine of a young child and finds humor and fun in every part of it. 9 Story co-produced the series with Wish Films (UK), which was originally commissioned by the BBC’s Cbeebies, TVO, and Knowledge Network. The series is based on the Wibbly Pig books by Mick Inkpen. The series is currently seen in more than 100 countries and premieres on Sprout (U.S) during The Good Night Show on August 27.
Wibbly does what children do, from day-to-day activities like getting into bed, wrapping a present or climbing a tree, to fantasy play like meeting a giant or going to the moon. He moves seamlessly in and out of fantasy play, echoing the way children interact and play. The simplest tasks are turned into a comedy routine, which Wibbly shares with the viewer.
This post was originally written by Ali Mierzejewski and published by ToyBook.com. For more news, visit www.toybook.com, follow The Toy Book on Twitter, and like The Toy Book on Facebook. The Toy Book is a bimonthly trade magazine covering the toy industry, published by Adventure Publishing Group.
HIT Entertainment has tapped AB Studio Licensing to license a nine-month Angelina Ballerina Dance Academy curriculum to dance studios across the U.S. and Canada. The Angelina Ballerina Dance Academy will commence this fall.
The 34-week program is inspired by the CG-animated series airing on PBS and Sprout, Angelina Ballerina The Next Steps, and it will focus on one story book per month. Targeted at children ages 3 to 6 years old, the program teaches beginner ballet at two levels. The Angelina Ballerina Dance Academy curriculum was developed by dance education specialist Beverly Spell, master teacher and author of the Leap ‘N Learn program. Angelina Ballerina’s voice will guide aspiring dancers through their movement lessons, and the program incorporates music from Angelina Ballerina The Next Steps, and custom music developed by Spell and composer Scott Killian. Participating studios will also have access to Angelina Ballerina posters and signage, costume items such as tutus and mouse ears, and placement mats.
To date, more than 100 studios across North America have applied to become Angelina Ballerina Dance Academy partner studios. The program already exists in the UK and Ireland, as well as Australia and New Zealand. Angelina Ballerina Dance Academy partner studios will also be listed in the national directory of official studio partners linked from the Angelina Ballerina website.
To learn more about the program or to find participating studios, visit www.angelinadanceclass.com.
This post was originally written by Ali Mierzejewski and published by ToyBook.com. For more news, visit www.toybook.com, follow The Toy Book on Twitter, and like The Toy Book on Facebook. The Toy Book is a bimonthly trade magazine covering the toy industry, published by Adventure Publishing Group.
The preschool television channel Sprout is launching a licensing and merchandising business. Starting this summer, new products will be available based on the network’s shows The Sunny Side Up Show and Noodle and Doodle.
In addition, Sprout is preparing for the debut of The Chica Show in November with a collection of merchandise featuring the series’ chicken, who rose to fame as the co-host of Sprout’s The Sunny Side Up Show, the only live program on television for preschoolers.
All of the products will be available at specialty retailers, as well as ShopSprout.com, which will launch in the fall. Chica merchandise will be available beginning this month with a 13-inch plush, soon followed by a 6-inch plush. Additional Chica products, including plush backpacks, will be available early next year. The Noodle and Doodle DVD is available now, with an additional release launching in October. Sprout is also exploring other categories such as e-books and apparel.
This post was originally written by Loren Moreno and published by ToyBook.com. For more news, visit www.toybook.com, follow The Toy Book on Twitter, and like The Toy Book on Facebook. The Toy Book is a bimonthly trade magazine covering the toy industry, published by Adventure Publishing Group.
According to multiple news outlets, including the Financial Times, Mattel is in talks with Apax Partners to buy Hit Entertainment for £500 million. Two anonymous sources told the Financial Times that Mattel is in the final stages of negotiations to purchase the company that Apax bought in 2005 for £489 million. The sale of Hit will not include the group’s stake in children’s channel Sprout, but will include Bob the Builder, Thomas the Tank Engine, Angelina Ballerina, Fireman Sam, and Pingu.
Roary the Racing Car is zooming onto store shelves in the U.S. next month. Following the U.S. broadcast launch of the television series on Sprout, the new Roary line will hit Toys “R” Us stores and Toysrus.com in March.
As the U.S. master toy licensee for the brand, Bandai will offer a full line of Roary toys, including die-cast, push-along Racing Stars, Talking Turbo Vehicles, Roary R/C, Silver Hatch Racetrack play sets, and more. The die-cast vehicles, Talking Turbo Vehicles, and Roary R/C will be packaged with a special episode of Roary the Racing Car on DVD.
Following the Bandai toy launch, K’nex will release sets that will allow kids to recreate their favorite Roary characters and scenes.
The first Roary DVD, Roary The Racing Car, from Lionsgate Home Entertainment, will launch at mass retailers in June. The series was created by Chapman Entertainment and is represented by Hit Entertainment in North America.
