Steven Spielberg Presents Animaniacs, usually referred to as Animaniacs, is an
Americananimated television series, distributed by
Warner Bros. and produced by
Amblin Entertainment. The cartoon was the second animated series produced by the collaboration of
Steven Spielberg and
Warner Bros. Animation during the
animation renaissance of the late 1980s and early 1990s. The studio's first series, Tiny Toon Adventures, was a success among younger viewers, and a series that attracted a sizable number of adult viewers. The Animaniacs writers and animators, led by senior producer
Tom Ruegger, used the experience gained from the previous series to create new animated characters that were cast in the mold of
Chuck Jones and
Tex Avery's creations. Animaniacs first aired on "
FOX Kids" from 1993 until 1995 and later appeared on
The WB from 1995 to 1998 as part of its "
Kids' WB" afternoon programming block. The series had a total of 99 episodes and one film, titled Wakko's Wish. Like other animated series, it continued to appear on television through
syndication long after its original airdate.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer is an
Americanculttelevision series that aired from March 10, 1997 until May 20, 2003. It was created by writer-director
Joss Whedon under his production tag,
Mutant Enemy. The series narrative follows
Buffy Anne Summers (played by
Sarah Michelle Gellar), the latest in a line of young women chosen by fate to battle against
vampires,
demons, and the forces of darkness. The series usually reached between two and four million viewers on original airings. Although such
ratings are lower than successful shows on the "big four" networks (
ABC,
NBC,
CBS and
Fox), they were a success for the relatively new and smaller
Warner Bros. Network. Reviews for the show were overwhelmingly positive, and it was ranked #41 on the list of
TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time. The show's success has led to hundreds of tie-in products, including
novels,
comics, and
video games. The series has received attention in
fandom,
parody, and
academia, and has influenced the direction of other television series.
"Cartman Gets an Anal Probe" is the
pilot episode of the animated television series South Park. It first aired on
Comedy Central in the United States on August 13, 1997. The episode introduces child protagonists
Eric Cartman,
Kyle Broflovski,
Stan Marsh and
Kenny McCormick, who attempt to rescue Kyle's younger brother
Ike from being
abducted by aliens. At the time of the writing of the episode, South Park creators
Trey Parker and
Matt Stone did not yet have a series contract with Comedy Central. Short on money, the creators animated the episode using
paper cutoutstop motion technique, similar to
the short films that were the precursors to the series. As such, "Cartman Gets an Anal Probe" remains the only South Park episode animated largely without the use of computer technology. Part of a reaction to the
culture wars of the 1980s and 1990s in the United States, South Park is deliberately offensive. Much of the show's humor, and of "Cartman Gets an Anal Probe", arises from the juxtaposition of the seeming innocence of childhood and the violent, crude behavior exhibited by the main characters. The episode also exemplifies the
carnivalesque, which includes humor, bodily excess, linguistic games that challenge official discourse, and the inversion of social structures. Initial reviews of the episode were generally negative; critics singled out the gratuitous obscenity of the show for particular scorn. Regarding the amount of obscenity in the episode, Parker later commented that they felt "pressure" to live up to the earlier shorts which first made the duo popular.
"Give Peace a Chance" is the seventh episode of the
sixth season of the American television
medical dramaGrey's Anatomy, and the show's 109th episode overall. Written by Peter Nowalk and directed by
Chandra Wilson, the episode was originally broadcast on the
American Broadcasting Company (ABC) in the United States on October 29, 2009. Grey's Anatomy centers around a group of young doctors in training. In this episode, Dr.
Derek Shepherd (
Patrick Dempsey) performs an operation on a hospital technician's "inoperable" tumor, despite the objections of the chief of surgery, Dr.
Richard Webber (
James Pickens Jr.). The episode was designed to revolve around Dempsey's character.
Katherine Heigl (Dr.
Izzie Stevens) was absent from the episode, as she was filming the 2010 blockbuster Life as We Know It.
Mark Saul,
Jesse Williams, and
Nora Zehetner returned as guest stars, while
Faran Tahir made his first and only appearance. "Give Peace a Chance" won Wilson an
NAACP Image Award, and was generally well received among critics, with Tahir's character particularly praised. The initial airing was viewed by 13.74 million people, garnered a 5.2/13
Nielsen rating/share in the 18–49 demographic, and ranked fourth for the night in terms of viewership.
The pilot episode of the television series Smallville premiered on
The WB on October 16, 2001. It was written by series creators
Alfred Gough and
Miles Millar, and directed by
David Nutter. The episode introduces the characters of
Clark Kent, an orphaned alien with superhuman abilities, and his friends and family who live in the fictional town of
Smallville, Kansas. It follows Clark as he first learns of his alien origins, and attempts to stop a vengeful student from killing Smallville High School students. Using visual elements and dialogue, the episode introduces many themes that were designed to run either the course of the season or the entire series, such as the triangular relationships of the main characters. Filming for the pilot officially began four days after the last actor was cast for the series. When the series premiere aired, it broke several of The WB's viewership records. It was generally well received by critics, and was nominated for several awards, winning two.
Scooby-Doo is a long-running
Americananimated television series produced for
Saturday morningtelevision in several different versions from 1969 to the present. The series was created by
Joe Ruby and
Ken Spears for
Hanna-Barbera Productions, who produced numerous spin-offs and related works until being absorbed in 1997 into
Warner Bros., which has handled production since then. Though the format of the show and the cast (and ages) of characters have varied significantly over the years, the most familiar versions of the show feature a talking
Great Dane named
Scooby-Doo and four
teenagers:
Fred "Freddie" Jones,
Daphne Blake,
Velma Dinkley, and
Norville "Shaggy" Rogers. These five characters (officially referred to collectively as "Mystery, Inc.", but never referred to as such in the original series) drive around the world in a
van called the "Mystery Machine," and solve mysteries typically involving tales of ghosts and other supernatural forces. At the end of each episode, the supernatural forces turn out to have a rational explanation (usually a criminal of some sort trying to scare people away so that they can commit crimes).
Sesame Street is an educational
Americanchildren's television series designed for
preschoolers and is recognized as a pioneer of the contemporary standard which combines
education and entertainment in
children's television shows. Sesame Street is well known for the inclusion of the
Muppet characters created by the
puppeteerJim Henson. More than 4,000 episodes of the show have been produced in 36 seasons, which distinguishes it as one of the longest-running shows in television history. The program is produced in the
United States by non-profit organization
Sesame Workshop, founded by
Joan Ganz Cooney and
Ralph Rogers; the original series has been televised in 120
countries, and more than 20 international versions have been produced, not including dubs. Sesame Street has received 108
Emmy Awards, more than any other series in television history. An estimated 75 million Americans watched the series as children; millions more have watched around the world, or as parents.
"These Are the Voyages..." is the
series finale of the
UPN American
science fiction television show Star Trek: Enterprise. The 22nd episode of the fourth season and the 98th of the series overall, it first aired on May 13, 2005, in the United States. The story takes place concurrently with the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "
The Pegasus", set in the year 2370, in which Commander
William Riker grapples with making a difficult admission to
his commanding officer about a cover-up. Riker visits the
holodeck and turns to the events of the 22nd century for guidance, where the crew of Star Trek: Enterprise travels home to Earth for the signing of the Articles of Federation and formation of the
United Federation of Planets. After a strong premiere, Enterprise had grappled with declining ratings throughout its run. By the fourth season, fewer than three million viewers tuned in each week despite what some fans and critics considered an increase in episode quality. The episode features guest stars
Jonathan Frakes,
Marina Sirtis, and
Jeffrey Combs, as well as a vocal cameo from
Brent Spiner. With no new Star Trek episodes in the fall of 2005, the 2005–2006 season was the first year without a first-run Star Trek in 18 years. Reaction to "These Are the Voyages..." was negative. Critics and cast alike believed The Next Generation frame robbed the characters and their fans closure, and that the death of
Trip Tucker felt forced and unnecessary.
The Wire is an
Americantelevision drama set and produced in
Baltimore,
Maryland. Created by writer/producer and former police reporter
David Simon (pictured), the series is broadcast by the
premiumcable networkHBO in the United States. The Wire premiered on June 2, 2002, with
50 episodes airing over the course of its first four seasons. HBO has ordered a fifth season, which Simon has said will be the show's last. The plot of the first season centers on the ongoing struggles between police units and drug-dealing gangs on the west side of the city, and is told from both points of view. Subsequent seasons have focused on other facets of the city. The large cast consists mainly of
character actors who are little known for their other roles. The Wirehas received critical acclaim for its realistic portrayal of urban life and uncommonly deep exploration of sociological themes, and has been called the best show on television by TIME, Entertainment Weekly, The Guardian, the Chicago Tribune, the San Francisco Chronicle, and the Philadelphia Daily News. Despite the positive reviews, the show has failed to
draw a large audience.
The Quatermass Experiment is a
Britishscience-fiction serial, broadcast by
BBC Television in the summer of 1953, and re-staged by
BBC Four in 2005. Set in the near future against the background of a
British space programme, it tells the story of the first manned flight into space, overseen by
Professor Bernard Quatermass of the British Experimental Rocket Group. When the spaceship that carried the first successful crew returns to Earth, two of the three
astronauts are missing, and the third is behaving strangely. It becomes clear that an
alien presence entered the ship during its flight, and Quatermass and his associates must prevent the alien from destroying the world. Originally comprising six half-hour episodes, it was the first science-fiction production to be written especially for an adult television audience. Previous written-for-television efforts such as Stranger from Space (1951–52) were aimed at children, whereas adult entries into the genre were adapted from literary sources, such as R.U.R. (1938 and again in 1948) and The Time Machine (1949). The serial was the first of four Quatermass productions to be screened on British television between 1953 and 1979. As well as spawning various remakes and sequels, The Quatermass Experiment inspired much of the television science fiction that followed it, particularly in the United Kingdom, where it influenced successful series such as Doctor Who and Sapphire and Steel.
Stephen Colbert's performance at the 2006 White House Correspondents' Association Dinner mocked the
Bush administration and the White House press corps, and subsequently generated significant controversy.
Stephen Colbert was the featured entertainer for the 2006
White House Correspondents' Association Dinner, delivering a 20-minute speech and video presentation which was broadcast live on
C-SPAN and
MSNBC. Colbert spoke as
the same character as the one he plays on The Colbert Report: an over-the-top send-up of a conservative
pundit in the fashion of
Bill O'Reilly and
Sean Hannity. Colbert satirized the
Bush administration and the White House press corps. Colbert spoke directly to
President Bush several times, satirically praising his
foreign policy, lifestyle, and beliefs, and referencing his low
approval rating and popular reputation. Various reports give an impression that Bush did not take too kindly to the performance, as several of Bush's aides and supporters walked out during Colbert's speech, and one former aide said that the President had "that look that he's ready to blow." Reaction to the event caused it to become an Internet and media sensation, and ratings for The Colbert Report soared 37% in the week following the speech.
Yes Minister is a multi-award winning
satiricalBritish sitcom written by
Antony Jay and
Jonathan Lynn that was first transmitted by
BBC television and
radio between 1980 and 1984, split over three seven-episode series. The sequel, Yes, Prime Minister, ran from 1986 to 1988. In total this made 38 episodes, all but one of which last half an hour. Set in the private office in
Whitehall of a British government cabinet minister (and, in the sequel, in
10 Downing Street), the series follows the
ministerial career of
Jim HackerMP, played by
Paul Eddington. His various struggles to formulate and enact legislation or effect departmental changes are opposed by the will of the
British Civil Service, in particular his
Permanent Secretary (senior civil servant), Sir
Humphrey Appleby, played by
Nigel Hawthorne. His
Principal Private SecretaryBernard Woolley, played by
Derek Fowlds is usually caught between the two, although heavily influenced by Sir Humphrey. Almost every programme ends with the line "Yes, Minister" (or "Yes, Prime Minister"), uttered (usually) by Sir Humphrey as he quietly relishes his victory over his "political master" (or, occasionally, acknowledges defeat). A huge critical and popular success, the series received a number of awards, including several
BAFTAs and in 2004 came sixth in the Britain's Best Sitcom poll. It was the favourite television programme of the then
British Prime Minister,
Margaret Thatcher.
Firefly is an
Americanscience fictiontelevision series created by writer/director
Joss Whedon, creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel, under his
Mutant Enemy Productions. Its naturalistic future setting, modeled after traditional
Western movie motifs, presents an atypical science fiction backdrop for the narrative. Whedon served as
executive producer, along with
Tim Minear. Firefly premiered in the
United States and
Canada on the
FOX network on September 20, 2002. It was
cancelled after only eleven of the fourteen produced episodes were aired. Despite the series' relatively short life span, it received strong sales when it was released on
DVD, and has impressive fan support campaigns. It won an
Emmy in
2003 for "Outstanding Special Visual Effects for a Series". The post-airing success of the show led Whedon and
Universal Pictures to produce a film based on the series, titled Serenity after the fictional Firefly-class
spaceship featured in the show. The series is set in the year 2517, after humans have arrived at
a new star system, and follows the adventures of the renegade crew of Serenity, a Firefly-class spaceship. The
ensemble cast portrays the nine characters who live on Serenity.
Cold Feet is a
Britishcomedy drama television series produced by
Granada Television for
ITV. It was created by
Mike Bullen, who also wrote most of the episodes, and produced by Andy Harries,
Christine Langan and
Spencer Campbell. The series began on 15 November 1998, following the successful
one-off television film broadcast in 1997 and ran for
32 episodes before concluding on 16 March 2003. The series is set in
Manchester and follows three couples, played by an
ensemble cast, who have trouble with committing to each other however hard they try. The cast were not widely known before their appearances in the programme but their careers received significant boosts; most of the actors received British Comedy Award nominations and
James Nesbitt won Best TV Comedy Actor three times. The series was and remains critically acclaimed, winning multiple
British Comedy Awards,
TRIC Awards, and the
British Academy Television Award for Best Drama Series. It maintained consistently high viewing figures, regularly beating other channels in head-to-head ratings battles.
Excel Saga is a
manga series by
Koushi Rikudou, and a TV
anime series based on it and directed by
Shinichi Watanabe(pictured). Both the anime and the manga are
absurdist comedies following the attempts of the "secret ideological organization," Across, to conquer the city of
Fukuoka as a first step towards world domination.
Excel, the title character, is a key member of Across and ranks below only the organization's enigmatic leader, Ilpalazzo. In both the manga and anime, the city is defended by a shadowy government agency led by Dr. Kabapu, whose subordinates engage Excel and her junior officer,
Hyatt on several occasions. The manga focuses on the development of its principal characters by means of
satirizing life and culture in
Japan. The English-language reception of the Excel Saga anime was generally positive, likening the humor in nature and quality to the works of
Tex Avery and
Monty Python. The Excel Saga manga began publication in Japan in the mid-1990s, serialized in
Shonen Gahosha's Young King OURs, and as of August 2006 sixteen
collected volumes have been published.
"Hell Is Other Robots" is the ninth episode of season one of Futurama. It originally aired in North America on May 18, 1999, as the season finale of the first season. The episode was written by
Eric Kaplan and directed by
Rich Moore. Guest stars in this episode include
The Beastie Boys as themselves and
Dan Castellaneta voicing the Robot Devil. The episode is one of the first to focus heavily on
Bender as he develops an addiction to electricity. When this addiction becomes problematic, Bender joins the Temple of
Robotology; however, after
Fry and
Leela successfully tempt Bender with
alcohol and
prostitutes, he quits the Temple of Robotology, but receives a visit from the Robot Devil for sinning. When Fry and Leela come to rescue him, the three escape safely. The episode introduces
the Robot Devil,
Reverend Lionel Preacherbot and the religion of the Temple of Robotology, a Futurama spoof on the
Church of Scientology. The episode received positive reviews, and was one of four featured on the
DVD boxed set of Matt Groening's favorite episodes: Monster Robot Maniac Fun Collection.
"Homer's Phobia" is the fifteenth episode of The Simpsons'
eighth season, which originally aired on the
Fox network on February 16, 1997. It was the first episode written by
Ron Hauge and was directed by
Mike B. Anderson.
John Waters(pictured) guest starred, providing the voice of the new character
John. In the episode,
Homer disassociates himself from new family friend John after discovering that John is
gay. He worries that John will have a negative influence on his son,
Bart. "Homer's Phobia" was the first episode to revolve entirely around
homosexual themes, with the title being a
pun on the word "
homophobia". Originally, due to the controversial subject, the Fox censors found the episode unsuitable for broadcast, but this decision was reversed after a turnover in the Fox staff. It won four awards, including an
Emmy for
Outstanding Animated Program (For Programming One Hour or Less) and a
GLAAD Media Award for "Outstanding TV - Individual Episode".
"Trapped in the Closet", the twelfth episode of the
ninth season of the
Comedy Central series South Park, originally aired on November 16, 2005. The plot of the episode centers on the South Park character
Stan Marsh, as he joins
Scientology in an attempt to find something "fun and free". After the discovery of his surprisingly high "
thetan levels", he is recognized as the reincarnation of the founder of the church,
L. Ron Hubbard.
Tom Cruise, who is featured in the episode, reportedly threatened "to back out of his Mission: Impossible III promotional duties if Viacom didn’t pull a repeat of the episode." Though the episode was originally scheduled for rebroadcast in March 2006, the episode "
Chef's Chocolate Salty Balls" was shown instead. Comedy Central representatives stated this change was made as a tribute to Isaac Hayes, however South Park creators
Trey Parker and
Matt Stone thought otherwise. Stone and Parker issued a satirical statement saying they were "servants of the dark lord
Xenu".
Isaac Hayes, the voice of
Chef, quit the show shortly before the start of the tenth season. The reason for his departure, as reported by
Matt Stone, was due to his faith in Scientology and this episode, which he claimed to feel was very offensive. "Trapped in the Closet" was nominated for a
Primetime Emmy Award in the
Outstanding Animated Program (for Programming Less Than One Hour) category in July 2006. The episode was featured among
Comedy Central's list of "10 South Parks That Changed The World", spoofed by
Conan O'Brien in the opening segment of the
58th Primetime Emmy Awards, and mentioned in the Scientology critique film, The Bridge.
Nikki Fernandez and Paulo are
fictional characters on the
ABCdramatelevision seriesLost, which chronicles the lives of over forty people after their plane crashes on a remote island somewhere in the
south Pacific. American actress
Kiele Sanchez and
Brazilian actor
Rodrigo Santoro play the survivors of the crash of Oceanic Flight 815. The couple is introduced early in the
third season. The producers of the show were often asked what the rest of the plane-crash survivors were doing because the show only focuses on approximately fifteen of the survivors, and the characters of Nikki and Paulo were created in response. Reaction to the characters was generally negative because of their abrupt introduction onto the show. Lost's co-creator/executive producer/head writer
show runnerDamon Lindelof even acknowledged that the couple is "universally despised" by fans.
"Through the Looking Glass" is the twenty-second episode and season finale of the
third season – sixty-ninth episode overall – of the
ABCtelevision seriesLost. It was written by co-creator/executive producer
Damon Lindelof and executive producer
Carlton Cuse, and directed by executive producer
Jack Bender. When the episode first aired on May 23, 2007 in the
United States and
Canada, it was watched by an average of 14 million American viewers. Like the previous two
season finales, it was two hours long with advertisements, which is twice the length of a normal episode. It was split when released on DVD. The season finale was critically acclaimed and the episode has garnered a number of awards and nominations. The episode begins on December 22, 2004, ninety-two days after the crash of
Oceanic Airlines Flight 815. The battle between the crash survivors and the dangerous and mysterious island inhabitants referred to as the "
Others" comes to a head as ten of the Others ambush the survivors' camp and are subsequently killed. Meanwhile,
Jack Shephard (played by
Matthew Fox) leads most of the survivors to the island's radio tower to communicate with a nearby ship. This is the first Lost episode to feature flashforwards, as opposed to the customary flashbacks. Actor
Dominic Monaghan makes his final appearance with main cast credit as
Charlie Pace in this episode.
Our Friends in the North is a British television drama. A serial produced by the BBC and originally screened in nine episodes on
BBC2 in early 1996, Our Friends tells the story of four friends from the city of
Newcastle in
North East England over 31 years from 1964 to 1995. The storyline includes real political and social events both specific to the north-east and from Britain as a whole during the era portrayed. The show is commonly regarded as having been one of the most successful
BBC television dramas of the 1990s. It was also a controversial production in some respects, as the issues and occurrences upon which its fiction were based involved real politicians and political events. It took several years before the production–adapted from a play originally performed by the
Royal Shakespeare Company–finally made it to the screen, due in part to the BBC's fear that it might become involved in legal action.
"Greatest Hits" is the twenty-first episode of the third season of Lost and sixty-eighth episode of the series. It was written by co-executive producers
Edward Kitsis and
Adam Horowitz and directed by supervising producer
Stephen Williams. The episode first aired on May 16, 2007 on the
American Broadcasting Company in the United States and on
CTV in Canada. "Greatest Hits" was viewed by 12 million Americans and was well received by critics. The episode takes place on December 22, 2004, 92 days after the crash of
Oceanic Airlines Flight 815. A group of survivors prepare for an upcoming raid on their camp by the "
Others", while the rest prepare to contact a nearby freighter.
Charlie Pace (played by
Dominic Monaghan) recounts the five greatest moments of his life, which are depicted in flashbacks, as he prepares to fulfill
Desmond Hume's (
Henry Ian Cusick) premonitions of his death.
Lost: Missing Pieces are thirteen video clips ranging in length from one to four minutes that aired during the hiatus between the
third and
fourth seasons of the
television showLost, from which the series is
spun off. They generally became available to
Verizon Wireless users on Mondays from November 2007 to January 2008 and were uploaded onto the
American Broadcasting Company's website a week later for free streaming. The "
mobisodes", which have also been referred to as "
webisodes", are shot in
Honolulu,
Hawaii and produced by the same crew with the same cast as the television series; thus, all content is considered to be
canon. The project was announced in November 2005 as the Lost Video Diaries; however, production was delayed several times due to contractual restrictions. Lost's writer-producers originally proposed the mobisodes as a self-contained story that would focus on two previously unseen characters of the Lostfictional universe. These characters would be played by actors who were not part of the
Screen Actors Guild; however the entertainment guild refused to support such a project. After months of unsuccessful negotiating, the series was seemingly shelved by ABC. In June 2007, it was revealed that the mobisodes, which would be renamed Lost: Missing Pieces, would star the regular characters of Lost in thirteen short video clips unrelated to each other. Twelve scenes were newly shot; one was a deleted scene from the television series. Lost: Missing Pieces received minimal media attention and critical reviews were mixed.
"The Joy of Sect" is the thirteenth episode of The Simpsons'
ninth season. It originally aired on the
FOX network in the
United States on February 8, 1998. In the episode, a
cult called the "
Movementarians" takes over Springfield, and Homer and the rest of the Simpson family become members.
Homer and
Bart are initially introduced to a pair of young Movementarian recruiters in an airport. Homer becomes
brainwashed, and moves his family into the cult compound.
David Mirkin had the initial idea for the episode,
Steve O'Donnell was the lead writer, and
Steven Dean Moore directed. The writers drew on many groups to develop the Movementarians, but were principally influenced by
Scientology,
Heaven's Gate, the
Unification Church and
Peoples Temple. The episode was later analyzed from
religious,
philosophical and
psychological perspectives, and books compared the Movementarians to many of the same groups that the writers had drawn influences from. The show contains many references to
popular culture, including the title reference to The Joy of Sex and a gag involving
Rover from the television program The Prisoner.
Portal:Television/Selected article/32
"A Streetcar Named Marge" is the second episode of The Simpsons'
fourth season. It first aired on the
Fox network in the United States on October 1, 1992. In the episode,
Marge wins the role of
Blanche DuBois in a
musical version of
Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire.
Homer is apathetic to his wife's acting pursuits, and Marge begins to see parallels between him and
Stanley Kowalski, the play's boorish lead male character. The episode contains a
subplot in which
Maggie Simpson attempts to retrieve her
pacifier from a strict
daycare attendant.
Jeff Martin wrote the episode, and
Rich Moore served as director.
Jon Lovitz made his fourth guest appearance on The Simpsons, this time as musical director
Llewellyn Sinclair, as well as Llewellyn's sister, who runs the daycare. The episode generated controversy for its original song about
New Orleans, which contains several unflattering lyrics about the city. One New Orleans newspaper published the lyrics before the episode aired, prompting numerous complaints to the local Fox affiliate. In response, the president of Fox Broadcasting issued an apology to anyone who was offended. Despite the controversial song, the episode was well-received by many fans, and show creator
Matt Groening has named it one of his favorite episodes.
"Homer's Enemy" is the twenty-third episode of The Simpsons’
eighth season, first broadcast by
Fox on May 4, 1997. It was directed by
Jim Reardon and written by
John Swartzwelder, although the idea for the episode came from
Bill Oakley. The plot of the episode centers on the
Springfield Nuclear Power Plant's hire of a new character named Frank Grimes. Homer attempts to befriend Grimes; however, Grimes ends up hating
Homer and declares himself Homer's enemy. Meanwhile,
Bart buys a run-down factory for a dollar. "Homer's Enemy" is one of the darkest and most famous episodes of The Simpsons, and is a favorite of several members of the production staff, including
Bill Oakley,
Josh Weinstein,
Matt Groening, as well as The Office creator
Ricky Gervais. Although Grimes makes his only appearance in this episode, he was later named one of the "Top 25 Simpsons Peripheral characters" by
IGN.
"Cape Feare" is the second episode of The Simpsons'
fifth season, which premiered on the
Fox network on October 7, 1993 after being held over from
season four. The episode features
Sideshow Bob trying to kill
Bart Simpson after getting out of jail. It is a spoof of the 1962 film Cape Fear as well as its
1991 remake, but alludes to other
horror films. The production crew found it difficult to stretch "Cape Feare" in order to fulfil the standard length of a half-hour episode, leading to the padding of several scenes for which some became memorable. "Cape Feare" was written by
Jon Vitti and directed by
Rich Moore and was the last episode that the original writing staff helped produce.
Kelsey Grammer guest stars as Sideshow Bob. The episode is generally rated as one of the best of the entire series and the score received an
Emmy Award nomination.
"Lisa the Skeptic" is the eighth episode of The Simpsons'
ninth season, first aired on November 23, 1997. On an
archaeological dig with her class, Lisa discovers a skeleton that resembles an
angel. All of the townspeople believe that the skeleton actually came from an angel, but
skeptical Lisa attempts to persuade them that there must be a
rational scientific explanation. The skeleton is later revealed to be a
publicity stunt for a new mall going up in Springfield, and the townspeople forget their concerns about the skeleton to go shopping. Writer
David S. Cohen(pictured) had the inspiration for the episode after visiting the
American Museum of Natural History, and decided to loosely parallel themes from the
Scopes Monkey Trial. The episode has been discussed in the context of concepts involving
virtual reality,
ontology,
existentialism, and
skepticism. The episode received mixed reviews, but has since been used in Christian religious education classes to form a discussion around angels, skepticism, and the balance between science and faith.
"The City of New York vs. Homer Simpson" is the first episode of The Simpsons'
ninth season, and premiered on September 21, 1997 on
Fox. The episode sees the
Simpson family traveling to
Manhattan to recover the family car, which was taken by
Barney and abandoned outside the
World Trade Center complex with numerous parking tickets. Upon arrival, the family tour the city, while Homer attempts to find his car. He discovers it outside the World Trade Center, where a parking officer later arrives to remove the
clamp, but leaves as Homer is urinating inside one of the towers. In frustration, Homer decides to drive the car with the clamp attached. He successfully removes it later and races to
Central Park to find his family and leave the city. Writer
Ian Maxtone-Graham was interested in making an episode where the Simpson family travels to New York to retrieve their lost car. Executive producers
Bill Oakley and
Josh Weinstein suggested that the car be found in the
World Trade Center plaza, as they wanted a location that would be widely known. Great lengths were taken to make a detailed replica of the city of Manhattan. The episode received generally positive reviews, and has since been on accolade lists of Simpsons episodes. The "You're Checkin' In" musical sequence won two awards. Because of the World Trade Center's central role, the episode was initially taken off
syndication in many areas following the
September 11, 2001 attacks, but has come back into syndication in recent years.
The SimpsonsTreehouse of Horror episodes, also known as The Simpsons Halloween episodes, are a series of episodes in the
animated television seriesThe Simpsons. They are
Halloween specials, each consisting of three separate, self-contained segments. These segments usually involve the
Simpson family in some
horror,
science fiction, or
supernatural setting. Considered
non-canon, they always take place outside the normal continuity of the show and completely abandon any pretense of being realistic. The first Treehouse of Horror episode aired on October 25, 1990 as part of the
second season and was inspired by
EC Comics horror tales. As of 2007, there are 18 Treehouse of Horror episodes, with one airing every year. The episodes are known for being far more violent and much darker than an average Simpsons episode. Episodes contain several trademarks, including the alien characters
Kang and Kodos, "scary names" in the credits, a special version of the opening sequence, and parodies of horror and science fiction films. The show's staff regard the Treehouse of Horror as being particularly difficult to produce as the scripts often go through many rewrites, and the animators typically have to design new characters and backgrounds.
Meerkat Manor is a British
television programme produced by Oxford Scientific Films for
Animal Planet International. Blending more traditional animal
documentary style footage with
dramatic narration, the series tells the story of the Whiskers, one of over a dozen families of
meerkats in the
Kalahari Desert being studied as part of the
Kalahari Meerkat Project, a long-term
field study into the ecological causes and evolutionary consequences of the cooperative nature of meerkats. The original programme is narrated by
Bill Nighy, with the narration redubbed by
Mike Goldman for the
Australian airings and
Sean Astin for the American broadcasts. Although the show faced criticism from viewers for not intervening when a meerkat was injured and faced death, as a whole Meerkat Manor has enjoyed considerable success and is now Animal Planet's top series, both on the cable channel and through its video-on-demand service. The show's experimental format broke new ground in animal documentary filming techniques and allowed viewers a long term, intimate look into the lives of its meerkat stars, breaking the traditional wall between viewer and subject found with most documentaries.
"The Beginning of the End" is the
fourth seasonpremiere, and seventieth
episode overall, of the
American Broadcasting Company's
serialdramatelevision seriesLost. It was aired on ABC in the
United States and
CTV in
Canada on January 31, 2008. Co-creator/executive producer
Damon Lindelof and executive producer
Carlton Cuse wrote the premiere in late July 2007, with most of the episode directed
on location in
Oahu,
Hawaii in August and September by executive producer
Jack Bender. With this premiere,
Jeff Pinkner no longer serves as an executive producer and staff writer. The episode was watched by 16 million Americans, bringing in the best ratings for Lost in seventeen episodes. According to Metacritic, "The Beginning of the End" garnered "universal acclaim". The narrative takes place 93 days after the crash of
Oceanic Flight 815, on December 23, 2004. The stranded crash survivors make contact with
Naomi Dorrit's (played by
Marsha Thomason) associates on a nearby freighter, but the survivors divide when they hear that those on the freighter may not be coming to rescue the survivors.
Flashforwards show the post-island lives of
Hurley Reyes (
Jorge Garcia) and
Jack Shephard (
Matthew Fox). They are lying to the public about their time on the island. In flashforwards, Hurley has visions of his deceased friend
Charlie Pace (
Dominic Monaghan); in the present, Hurley grieves over Charlie's death on the island.
Daniel Faraday (
Jeremy Davies) makes his first appearance in "The Beginning of the End".
"Confirmed Dead" is the second episode of the
fourth season and seventy-first episode overall of the
ABC's
serialdramatelevision seriesLost. It was aired on ABC in the United States and on
CTV in Canada on February 7, 2008. The episode was written by co-executive producer
Drew Goddard and co-producer
Brian K. Vaughan and directed by co-executive producer
Stephen Williams. "Confirmed Dead" was watched by seventeen million Americans and received positive critical reception with reviewers praising the introductions of the new characters. The episode marks the first appearance of main characters
Miles Straume (played by
Ken Leung) and
Charlotte Lewis (
Rebecca Mader) and supporting character
Frank Lapidus (
Jeff Fahey). The actors were given fake scenes when auditioning to limit the leak of
spoilers and each actor influenced their character's development. The narrative begins on December 21, 2004, ninety-one days after the crash of
Oceanic Airlines Flight 815. Flashbacks introduce the four people from the offshore freighter 130 kilometers (81 mi) who land on the island.
John Locke (
Terry O'Quinn) leads his group to the Barracks and begins to find out why
Ben Linus (
Michael Emerson) is afraid of the island's latest arrivals.
"The Shape of Things to Come" is the seventy-eighth episode of the
American Broadcasting Company's Lost, and is the ninth
episode of the
fourth season. It aired on April 24, 2008 on ABC in the United States and on the
CTV Television Network in Canada. The episode was written by co-executive producer
Drew Goddard and co-producer
Brian K. Vaughan in late February 2008 and directed by executive producer
Jack Bender in mid-March. The narrative centers on
Ben Linus (played by
Michael Emerson) as he and the
Oceanic Airlines Flight 815 crash survivors at the Barracks come under attack in December 2004, while flashforwards to late 2005 show him recruiting
Sayid Jarrah (
Naveen Andrews) as a
hitman and confronting his enemy
Charles Widmore (
Alan Dale). "The Shape of Things to Come" is one of a few Lost episodes to contain footage filmed outside
Hawaii. The episode aired as the first of the second batch of fourth season episodes that were originally planned to air uninterrupted by a hiatus with the rest of the season; however, the one hundred-day
2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike paused production and caused the writers to condense the second half of the season, which aired after a four-week break. "The Shape of Things to Come" received positive critical reviews and the original was watched by fourteen million Americans. Much praise was directed at Emerson's acting skills, particularly in his reaction to the execution of his character's daughter
Alex (
Tania Raymonde). Emerson and the episode's editors are nominated for
Primetime Emmy Awards.
Portal:Television/Selected article/43 First Sergeant Martin Christopher Keamy is a
recurringfictional character played by
Kevin Durand in the
fourth season of the American
ABC television series Lost. Keamy is introduced in the fifth episode of the fourth season as a crew member aboard the freighter called the Kahana that is offshore the island where most of Lost takes place. In the second half of the season, Keamy served as a primary antagonist. He is the leader of a mercenary team hired by billionaire
Charles Widmore (played by
Alan Dale) that is sent to the island on a mission to capture Widmore's enemy
Ben Linus (
Michael Emerson) from his home, then torch the island. Unlike Lost's ensemble of characters who, according to the writers, each have good and bad intentions, the writers have said that Keamy is evil and knows it. Durand was contacted for the role after one of Lost's
show runners saw him in the 2007 film 3:10 to Yuma. Like other Lost actors, Durand was not informed of his character's arc when he won the role. Throughout Durand's nine-episode stint as a
guest star, little was revealed regarding his life prior to his arrival on the island and Durand cited this as a reason why the audience "loved to hate" his villainous character. Critics praised the writers for breaking Lost tradition and creating a seemingly heartless character, while Durand's performance and appearance were also reviewed positively.
"Interactions" is the second episode of the
animatedtelevision seriesThe Spectacular Spider-Man, which is based on the
comic book character
Spider-Man, created by
Stan Lee and
Steve Ditko. The episode sees Spider-Man confronting the
supervillainElectro, whose body was corrupted with electricity after a freak lab accident. "Interactions" was written by Kevin Hopps, who researched all the available comic books he had that featured Electro, and directed by Troy Adomitis. Electro's appearance in the episode draws on his traditional comic book style, though designer
Victor Cook emphasized the color green and removed the character's customary star-shaped mask. His voice actor,
Crispin Freeman, sought to reflect the character's declining sanity in his vocal style. "Interactions" first aired March 8,
2008, on the
Kids WB! block for
The CW network, following the first episode. Its 1.4/4
Nielsen rating was higher than that of the pilot, "
Survival of the Fittest". The episode received mixed reviews, with
IGN commenting that "[w]hile not as strong as the pilot, the episode had some notable moments."
"North by North Quahog" is the first episode of season four of Family Guy, following the
revival of the series three years after its cancellation in 2002. Directed by
Peter Shin and written by series creator
Seth MacFarlane(pictured), the episode was first broadcast on May 1, 2005, on
FOX. In "North by North Quahog", the show's main characters
Peter and
Lois Griffin go on a second honeymoon to spice up their marriage, but are eventually chased by
Mel Gibson after Peter steals the sequel to The Passion of the Christ from Gibson's private hotel room. Meanwhile, their
anthropomorphic dog
Brian and their infant son
Stewie take care of their teenage kids
Chris and
Meg. Family Guy had been canceled in 2002 due to low ratings, but was revived by FOX after reruns on
Adult Swim became the network's most watched program, and more than three million DVDs of the show were sold. Much of the plot and many of the technical aspects of the episode, as well as the title, are direct parodies of the
1959Alfred Hitchcock movie North by Northwest. The episode was watched by 12 million viewers and received a
Primetime Emmy Award nomination for
Outstanding Animated Program (for Programming Less Than One Hour).
The history of Sesame Street began with its conception in 1966 during discussions between television producer
Joan Ganz Cooney and
Carnegie Corporation vice president
Lloyd Morrisett. Their goal was to create a
children's television show that would "master the addictive qualities of television and do something good with them", such as helping young children prepare for school. After two years of research, the newly formed
Children's Television Workshop (CTW) received a combined grant of $8 million from the Carnegie Corporation, the
Ford Foundation, and the U.S. federal government to create and produce a new children's television show. Sesame Street premiered on November 10, 1969. Featuring animation,
live shorts, humor, celebrity appearances, and
Jim Henson's
Muppets such as
Big Bird(star pictured), it was the first television program of its kind to base its contents and production values on laboratory and formative research, and the first to include a curriculum "detailed or stated in terms of measurable outcomes". Initial responses to the show included adulatory reviews, some controversy, and high
ratings. By its 40th anniversary in 2009, Sesame Street was broadcast in over 120 countries, and 20 independent international versions had been produced.
Portal:Television/Selected article/47
"A Rugrats Chanukah" is a
special episode of
Nickelodeon's animated television series Rugrats. The first episode of the show's fourth season, it tells the story of the
Jewish holiday
Chanukah through the eyes of
the Rugrats, who imagine themselves as the main characters. The idea of a Rugrats Chanukah special was pitched by Nickelodeon executives in 1992, but the concept was revised and became the 1995 special, "
A Rugrats Passover". After production of the Passover episode wrapped, the crew returned to the Chanukah idea. Nickelodeon broadcast "A Rugrats Chanukah" on December 4, 1996; the episode received a
Nielsen rating of 7.9 and positive reviews from television critics. Along with other Rugrats episodes featuring
Grandpa Boris and his wife, the special attracted controversy when the
Anti-Defamation League compared the character designs to
anti-Semitic drawings from a 1930s
Nazi newspaper.
The first season of Smallville began airing on October 16, 2001, on
The WB television network. Smallville recounts the early adventures of
KryptonianClark Kent as he adjusts to life in the fictional town of
Smallville,
Kansas, during the years before he becomes
Superman. The first season comprises 21 episodes and concluded its initial airing on May 21, 2002. The season's stories focus on
Martha and
Jonathan Kent's attempts to help their adopted son Clark cope with his
alien origin and control his developing
superhuman abilities. Clark must deal with the meteor-infected individuals that begin appearing in Smallville, his love for
Lana Lang, and not being able to tell his two best friends,
Pete Ross and
Chloe Sullivan, about his alien nature. Clark also befriends
Lex Luthor. "
Villain of the week" storylines were predominant during the first season; physical effects, make-up effects, and
computer-generated imagery became important components as well. The
pilot broke The WB's viewership record for a debut series, and was nominated for various awards. Although the villain of the week storylines became a concern for producers, critical reception was generally favorable, and the series was noted as having a promising start.
Joking Apart is a
BBC televisionsitcom written by
Steven Moffat about the rise and fall of a relationship. It juxtaposes a couple, Mark (
Robert Bathurst) and Becky (
Fiona Gillies), who fall in love and marry, before getting separated and finally divorced. The twelve episodes, broadcast between 1993 and 1995, were directed by
Bob Spiers and produced by
Andre Ptaszynski for independent production company Pola Jones.
The show is semi-autobiographical; it was inspired by the then-recent separation of Moffat and his first wife. Some of the episodes in the first series followed a non-linear parallel structure, contrasting the rise of the relationship with the fall. Other episodes were
ensemblefarces, predominantly including the couple's friends Robert (
Paul Raffield) and Tracy (
Tracie Bennett).
Paul Mark Elliott also appeared as Trevor, Becky's lover.
Fringe's premise is based on the idea of two
parallel universes, our own and the Other Side, each of which contains historical idiosyncrasies. The two universes began to clash in 1985, after
Dr. Walter Bishop (
John Noble) stole the parallel universe version of his son,
Peter, following his own son's death. The finale's narrative recounts what happens when Peter (
Joshua Jackson) is taken back to the Other Side by his real father, dubbed
"Walternate" (Noble).
FBI agent
Olivia Dunham (
Anna Torv) and Walter lead a team of former
Cortexiphan test subjects to retrieve him, after discovering that Peter is an unwitting part of Walternate's plans to bring about the destruction of our universe using an ancient
doomsday device.
Portal:Television/Selected article/51
In 1969, the children's television show Sesame Street premiered on the
National Educational Television network (later succeeded by
PBS) in the United States. Unlike earlier children's programming, the show's producers used research and over 1,000 studies and experiments to create the show and test its impact on its young viewers' learning. By the end of the program's first season,
Children's Television Workshop (CTW), the organization founded to oversee Sesame Street production, had developed what came to be called "the CTW model": a system of planning, production, and evaluation that combined the expertise of researchers and early childhood educators with that of the program's writers, producers, and directors.
CTW conducted research in two ways: in-house
formative research that informed and improved production, and independent
summative evaluations conducted by the
Educational Testing Service (ETS) during the show's first two seasons to measure the program's educational effectiveness. CTW researchers invented tools to measure young viewers' attention to the program. Based on these findings, the researchers compiled a body of data and the producers changed the show accordingly.
The episode depicts its main characters' final hours before a major British offensive on the
Western Front of the
First World War, and
Captain Blackadder's attempts to escape his fate by feigning madness; after he fails to convince
General Melchett, and
Field Marshal Haig's advice proves useless, he resigns himself to taking part in the offensive. "Goodbyeee" has a darker tone than other episodes in the series, culminating in its acclaimed ending in which the main characters are assumed to have died. The episode's theme of death ties in with the series' use of
gallows humour, its criticism and satire of war, and its depiction of authority figures contentedly sending their subordinates to face the enemy, while unwilling to do so themselves.
In the episode, Ensign
Harry Kim (
Garrett Wang) experiences
déjà vu and develops a rash when the Voyager enters a new sector of the Delta Quadrant. Mostly female aliens known as Taresians tell him that he is not human but is a member of their species. On discovering this is a ruse by the female aliens to attract and kill their men during reproduction, the crew rescues Kim and restores him to his original state.
Deborah May and
Kristanna Loken play two of the Taresians,
Patrick Fabian portrays a man tricked by them and
Irene Tsu appears as Kim's mother.
Portal:Television/Selected article/55 Chad Harris-Crane is a fictional character on the American soap opera Passions, which aired on
NBC from 1999 to 2007 and on
DirecTV in 2007–08. Developed by the soap's creator and
head writerJames E. Reilly, Chad was portrayed by two actors over the course of the show:
Donn Swaby (1999 to 2002) and Charles Divins (2002 to 2007). Swaby left the show to pursue roles outside daytime television and was replaced by Divins. The role was the first time that either actor had worked on a television series.
Chad is a member of the
Crane family. The illegitimate son of the evil patriarch
Alistair Crane, Chad is introduced as a music producer from Los Angeles who is searching for his biological family. Chad becomes involved in a love triangle with sisters
Whitney and
Simone Russell. His romance with Whitney is complicated by the possibility they may be engaging in an incestuous relationship as Chad is initially believed to be her half-brother, and later revealed to be her adoptive cousin. Chad's later storylines focus on his confusion over his
sexual identity, and his sexual relationship with tabloid reporter
Vincent Clarkson. Chad attempts to reconcile with Whitney, after his affair with Vincent is revealed, before being killed by his father Alistair while trying to protect his best friend,
Ethan Winthrop.
Portal:Television/Selected article/56
"all things" is the seventeenth episode of the
seventh season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files. Written and directed by lead actress
Gillian Anderson, it first aired on April 9, 2000, on the
Fox network. The episode is unconnected to the wider
mythology of The X-Files and functions as a "Monster-of-the-Week" story. Watched by 12.18 million people, the initial broadcast had a
Nielsen household rating of 7.1. The episode received mixed reviews from critics; many called the dialogue pretentious and criticized the characterization of Scully. However, viewer response was generally positive.
The series centers on
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) special agents
Fox Mulder (
David Duchovny) and
Dana Scully (Anderson) who work on cases linked to the
paranormal, called "
X-Files". Mulder is a believer in the paranormal. The skeptical Scully was initially assigned to debunk his work, but the two have developed a deep friendship. In this episode, a series of coincidences lead Scully to meet Dr. Daniel Waterston (Nicolas Surovy), a married man with whom she had an affair while at medical school. After Waterston slips into a coma, Scully puts aside her skepticism and seeks out
alternative medicine to save Waterston.
Portal:Television/Selected article/57 Thunderbirds is a British science fiction television series created by
Gerry and
Sylvia Anderson, filmed by their production company
AP Films (APF) and distributed by
ITC Entertainment. It was made between 1964 and 1966 using a form of electronic
marionette puppetry (dubbed "
Supermarionation") combined with
scale model special effects sequences. Two series, totalling thirty-two 50-minute episodes, were filmed; production ended with the completion of the sixth episode of the second series after
Lew Grade, the Andersons' financial backer, failed in his bid to sell the programme to American network television.
Set in the 2060s, Thunderbirds is a follow-up to the earlier Supermarionation productions Four Feather Falls, Supercar, Fireball XL5 and Stingray. It follows the exploits of International Rescue, a life-saving organisation equipped with technologically advanced land, sea, air and space rescue craft; these are headed by a fleet of five vehicles named the
Thunderbirds and launched from the organisation's secret base of operations in the Pacific Ocean. The main characters are ex-astronaut
Jeff Tracy, leader of International Rescue, and his five adult sons, who pilot the Thunderbird machines.
The TV show carries over the graphic style and much of the content of the
Horrible Histories book series. It maintains the franchise's overall irreverent but accurate focus on the dark, gruesome or scatological aspects of British and other
Western world history, spanning predominantly from the
Stone Age to the post-
World War II era. Individual historical eras or civilisations are defined and named as in the books, with sketches from several different time periods combined within a single episode.
Live-action sketches—which often parody other UK media or celebrities—and music videos are intercut with animations and quizzes. The
starring troupe are
Mathew Baynton,
Simon Farnaby,
Martha Howe-Douglas,
Jim Howick,
Laurence Rickard,
Ben Willbond and
Sarah Hadland, alongside a large supporting cast headed by
Katy Wix,
Lawry Lewin,
Alice Lowe and
Dominique Moore. The black rat puppet "host", Rattus Rattus, appears in short bridging segments, explaining the factual basis for each sketch and helping children understand the facts.
Portal:Television/Selected article/59
"Abyssinia, Henry" is the 72nd episode of the M*A*S*H television series and the final episode of the series' third season. It was written by Everett Greenbaum and Jim Fritzell, and it first aired on March 18, 1975. The episode is notable for its shocking ending, in which the unit's amiable commanding officer Lieutenant Colonel
Henry Blake (played by
McLean Stevenson) receives an
honorable discharge and leaves for home but, in the final scene, is reported killed by enemy fire. This ending prompted more than 1,000 letters to series producers
Gene Reynolds and
Larry Gelbart, and drew fire from both
CBS and
20th Century Fox.
The title of the episode refers to the 1920s–1930s slang use of "Abyssinia" for "goodbye". ("Abyssinia", pronounced "ab-ee-SIN-ee-ah" can be understood as "I'll be seeing you".)
Critically acclaimed and a popular success, Pride and Prejudice was honoured with several awards, including a
BAFTA Television Award for Jennifer Ehle for "
Best Actress" and an
Emmy for "Outstanding Individual Achievement in Costume Design for a Miniseries or a Special". The role of Mr Darcy elevated Colin Firth to stardom. A scene showing Firth in a wet shirt was recognised as "one of the most unforgettable moments in British TV history". The New York Times called the adaptation "a witty mix of love stories and social conniving, cleverly wrapped in the ambitions and illusions of a provincial gentry". The series inspired author
Helen Fielding to write the popular Bridget Jones novels, and their screen adaptations subsequently featured Firth as Bridget's love interest, Mark Darcy.
KPHO-TV signed on in 1949 as Arizona's first television station and the only one approved prior to a
nearly four-year freeze on new TV stations. It initially aired programming from all of the national networks, though it gradually lost them from 1953 onward as new stations signed on in the Phoenix area once the freeze ended. After losing CBS to
KOOL-TV (channel 10) in 1955, channel 5 operated as an independent station for nearly 40 years, during which time it sometimes measured as the most-watched independent within its market in the United States; one of its productions, The Wallace and Ladmo Show, was among the longest-running local children's programs in the country. However, in the 1980s and early 1990s, it faced stiff competition in the guise of new independent outlets
KNXV-TV and
KUTP and saw declining ratings.
Portal:Television/Selected article/63 Hannah Montana is an American
teen sitcom created by
Michael Poryes,
Rich Correll, and
Barry O'Brien that aired on
Disney Channel for four seasons between March2006 and January2011. The series centers on
Miley Stewart (played by
Miley Cyrus), a teenage girl living a double life as famous pop singer Hannah Montana, an
alter ego she adopted so she could maintain her anonymity and live a normal life as a typical teenager. Episodes deal with Miley's everyday struggles to cope with the social and personal issues of adolescence while maintaining the added complexities of her secret identity, which she sustains by wearing a blonde wig. Miley has strong relationships with her brother Jackson (
Jason Earles) and father
Robby Ray (
Billy Ray Cyrus), as well as her best friends
Lilly Truscott (
Emily Osment) and
Oliver Oken (
Mitchel Musso), who become aware of her secret. Overarching themes include a focus on family and friendships as well as the importance of music and discovering one's identity.
The Walt Disney Company commissioned the series after the success of Disney Channel's previous music-based franchises, such as the made-for-television film High School Musical (2006). Hannah Montana was produced by
It's a Laugh Productions in association with Poryes's production company, and premiered on Disney Channel on March 24, 2006. A
concert film, Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert, in which Miley Cyrus performs as Hannah Montana and herself, was released in 2008. The following year, the feature film Hannah Montana: The Movie was released. The series concluded on January 16, 2011, as a result of Cyrus's growing popularity and music career, and her desire to move into more mature acting roles.
Channel 57 was allocated for commercial use in Philadelphia at the start of the 1970s; it was fought over by two groups who sought to broadcast
subscription television (STV) programming to paying customers in the metropolitan area. Radio Broadcasting Company prevailed and launched WWSG-TV on June 15, 1981. It offered limited financial news programming, which was abandoned after 18 months, and a subscription service utilizing programming from
SelecTV. Two years later, the station switched to broadcasting
PRISM, a premium regional sports and movies service seeking to reach potential subscribers in areas beyond cable coverage, such as the city of Philadelphia.
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