Weekday cartoon

A weekday cartoon is an animated television programming block for children and later teens during the weekday mornings and afternoons.

History

1960s and 1970s

Weekday cartoons began as far back as the early 1960s on non-network independent commercial stations in large television markets. On such stations, cartoon blocks would occupy the 7-9 a.m. and the 3-5 p.m. blocks, with some stations (such as WKBD-TV and WMYD in Detroit having cartoon programming in 6-9 a.m. and 2-5 p.m blocks). In smaller markets, network affiliates sometimes filled the 3 or 4 p.m. hour with such programming. Cartoons broadcast in the 1970s consisted of:
*"Bugs Bunny"
*"Mighty Mouse"
*"Tom and Jerry"
*"Popeye"
*"Yogi Bear"
*"The Flintstones"
*"Porky Pig"
*"Woody Woodpecker"
*"Casper the Ghost"
*"Heckle and Jeckle"
*"Underdog"
*"Astro Boy"
*"Crusader Rabbit"
*"Felix the Cat"
*"Kimba the White Lion"
*"Speed Racer"
*"Rocky and Bullwinkle"
*"Huckleberry Hound"
*"Top Cat"
*"Magilla Gorilla"
*"Quick Draw McGraw"
*"Tennessee Tuxedo"
*"Josie and the Pussycats"
*"Banana Splits"
*"Alvin Show"
*"Deputy Dawg"
*"King Leonardo"
*"Gumby"
*"Wally Gator"
*"The Nutty Squirrels Present"
*"Spider-Man (1967 TV series)"
*"Ultraman"
*"The King Kong Show"
*"Marine Boy"
*"The Marvel Superheroes"
*"Peter Potamus"
*"Rocket Robin Hood"
*"Dudley Do-Right"
*"George of the Jungle"
*"The Mighty Hercules"
*"Prince Planet"
*"Gigantor"
*"Cool McCool"
*"Colonel Bleep"
*"Space Giants"
*"Star Blazers"
*"The Archie Show"
*"Scooby-Doo"
*"Fred Flintstone and Friends"
*"Battle of the Planets"
*"JOT (TV series)"
*"Davey and Goliath"
*"New Zoo Revue"
*"Prince Planet"
*"Beetle Bailey"
*"Mel-O-Toons"
*"Mr. Magoo"
*"Groovie Goolies"
*"Ruff and Reddy"
*"Garfield and Friends"
*"The Harveytoons Show"
*""
*"Yo Yogi!"
*"Cave Kids"
*"Back to Bedrock"
*"The Mighty Heroes"
*"The Amazing 3"
*"Touche Turtle"
*"Lippy the Lion"
*"Sinbad Jr. and his Magic Belt"
*"The New Yogi Bear Show"
*"Valley of the Dinosaurs"
*"Courageous Cat and Minute Mouse"
*"Dastardly and Muttley"
*"Wacky Races"
*"Perils of Penelope Pitstop"
*"Snorks"
*"Smurfs"
*"Real Ghostbusters"
*"The New Three Stooges"
*"Roger Ramjet"
*"DoDo, The Kid from Outer Space"
*"Space Angel"
*"DangerMouse"
*"Herge's Adventures of Tintin"
*"Hoppity Hooper"
*"Voltron"
*"The Comic Strip (TV series)"
*"Roger Ramjet"
*"Q.T. Hush"
*"The Funny Company"
*"Captain Harlock and the Queen of a Thousand Years"
*"Clutch Cargo"

In the 1970s, more independent stations signed on running such programming. Examples included WNEW-TV and WPIX in New York City; KTTV and KCOP-TV in Los Angeles, California; WMYD-TV and WKBD-TV in Detroit; CHWI-TV (briefly) in Windsor; WUAB and WOIO in Cleveland; WGN-TV and WFLD in Chicago, and WSBK-TV, WLVI-TV, and WXNE-TV, in Boston, WKBS, WTAF and WPHL-TV in Philadelphia, WPMT in York; KVVU, KRLR and KFBT in Las Vegas; KWGN, KTVD and KDVR in Denver and among others. The programming blocks did not have an official name such as "Fox Kids" or "Kids' WB."

1980s

In the 1980s, independent stations signed on in medium and many small markets. The market for made-for-television cartoons grew as a result. Many of these stations were beginning cartoon blocks on weekdays as early as 6 a.m. and as early as 2 p.m. in the afternoon. Some stations ended weekday cartoons as late as 6 p.m. The older Bugs Bunny and Popeye cartoons made way for first-run syndicated cartoons such as "He-Man and the Masters of the Universe", "", "ThunderCats", "Dennis the Menace", "My Little Pony", "The Transformers", "Voltron", and reruns of "Scooby Doo", "Garfield and Friends", and "The Pink Panther", among many others. Most large and medium markets had at least two local stations running such programming in the 6-9 a.m. and the 2:30 to 5 p.m. slots. Some markets had as many as three.

In 1987, The Walt Disney Company tried its luck at syndication; "DuckTales" went on the air that September and lasted 100 episodes. The success of "DuckTales" paved the way for a second series two years later, "Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers". The following year, the two shows aired together under the umbrella title "The Disney Afternoon". In 1991, Disney added another hour; the block aired in syndication until 1999.

1990s

In 1990, The Fox television network began running a weekday afternoon cartoon called "Peter Pan and the Pirates". In 1991, they added another hour; this block would be known as "Fox Kids". In some markets one show was run in mornings and the other two in afternoons, while in others the entire block was on in afternoons. [http://mag.awn.com/index.php?article_no=1751&page=2]

In 1992, "Fox Kids" added Warner Brothers-produced cartoons like "", "Merrie Melodies" reruns, "Tiny Toon Adventures", "Tom and Jerry Kids Show", and others. Some of these were previously syndicated. Disney continued its "Disney Afternoon" block. Fox affiliates primarily aired Fox Kids and other syndicated cartoons while independents aired Disney cartoons along with other syndicated shows. By now many markets had three stations running such programming. In 1993, "Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers" premiered on Fox. By this point, the network had a three-hour block of such programming. Beginning at the end of 1994, some Fox affiliates declined to run "Fox Kids" programming, replacing them either with talk/reality shows or with additional newscasts. These included stations that formerly had ABC, CBS, or NBC affiliations. In such markets "Fox Kids" would run on an independent station. Many of these stations would affiliate with The WB or UPN.

The popularity of the weekday cartoon lineup climbed from the mid-1980s to mid-1990s. As a result, The WB began an afternoon cartoon block called "Kids' WB!" in the fall of 1995. At that point, Looney Toons characters would move off "Fox Kids" and onto "Kids' WB". This block was initially one hour long, and at the end of 1996, expanded to three hours—two in the afternoon and one in the morning. By then, "The Disney Afternoon" was airing mostly on UPN affiliates but in some markets aired on WB and even a handful of Fox stations. In 1996, weekday cartoons would reach their peak with no decline seemingly in sight.

Decline

That year, Congress passed—and then-President Bill Clinton signed into law—the Telecommunications Act of 1996, relaxing radio and television ownership limits. But it would regulate children's television substantially. All broadcast television stations would be required to air three hours of educational and informative ("E/I") children's programming. With a few exceptions, however, the weekday cartoons were not considered E/I under the requirements. Also, the Federal Communications Commission regulated content in advertising, making selling such programming difficult on over-the-air stations. Cable channels would not be as regulated. In 1997, the decline of the weekday cartoon began. FCC regulations in children's programming resulted in complaints from local affiliates in terms of ability to make money airing cartoons.

Regardless of the new regulations, UPN attempted to run a teen sitcom block in 1997, only to end the following year. Warner Brothers would stop syndicating their vintage theatrical and made-for-TV cartoons to local stations in 1997 expect for Jay Ward classic cartoons such as Underdog (TV series), Rocky and Bullwinkle, Tennessee Tuxedo and Dudley Do-Right. Because are relegating those to cable. They still continued their Kids' WB! block for their affiliates.

In 1998, some UPN and WB affiliates would trim morning syndicated cartoons in favor of family sitcoms, newscasts, and/or court/talk/reality programming. Many Fox affiliates started morning newscasts. In 1999, the "Disney Afternoon" ended its run in syndication. Disney would then form an alliance with UPN, converting the block to UPN Kids under the "Disney's One Too" name. Still, a decent amount of cartoons were still available in syndication. That year, "Fox Kids" trimmed the block to two hours while syndicating "The Magic School Bus", which occupied an hour.

2000s

In 2000, syndicated cartoons continued to decline as more stations dropped weekday cartoons in the morning or afternoon, or both. By now, UPN stations ran Disney cartoons either during the morning or afternoon, dropping syndicated cartoons. Some WB and UPN stations continued running an hour or so of syndicated cartoons. Fox affiliates for the most part had morning newscasts and only had an afternoon block. Some affiliates no longer ran the afternoon block, but in most cases, UPN, WB or independent stations ran it during the morning or afternoon.

In 2001, the "Kids' WB!" block was trimmed to two hours. Syndicated cartoons lacked clearances. Fox also ended its weekday kids block at the end of that year. Just about every Fox affiliate would replace the cartoons with talk and reality shows. By 2002, most UPN stations ran "Disney's One Too" from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. or from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., while WB stations ran "Kids' WB" from 3 to 5 p.m. In most markets, these were the only cartoons available on local stations. Some ran a syndicated educational cartoon or program here and there in such blocks. Still, stations lost money on this programming.

In the fall of 2003, UPN ended the "Disney's One Too" block as well. Fox-owned UPN affiliates continued running cartoons from DIC Entertainment for two hours in the 7 to 9 a.m. slot. But most UPN affiliates still ran only one kid's show per day, if that. Some WB stations also aired a show or two produced by DIC. By 2003, "The Daily Buzz", a three-hour national news program, would replace weekday morning cartoons on many UPN affiliates in some markets and on WB affiliates in others.

In 2004, "Kids' WB" still continued its weekday block. In most markets this was the only weekday cartoon block left on broadcast TV. In 2005, even the Fox-owned UPN stations decreased weekday cartoons to one hour. In January 2006, "Kids' WB" ended and was replaced with "Daytime WB", a two-hour block of sitcom and drama reruns, which continued even after the WB and UPN merged programming into a single network, The CW. That fall, Fox-owned UPN affiliates, which became owned-and-operated stations of the News Corporation-owned MyNetworkTV, dropped weekday cartoons. Still, they run an educational kid's show per day on some stations.

On cable

On cable, non-children's channels also began dropping cartoons. In the late 1990s, the USA Network ended the "USA Cartoon Express" lineup. In the fall of 1998, WTBS/TBS replaced its cartoons with sitcoms. In September 2006, ABC Family dropped its "Jetix" lineup, making it exclusive to Toon Disney.

Today, weekday cartoons are relegated to basic cable networks like Nickelodeon, Disney Channel for much of the day along with educational and family programs, and Cartoon Network until 11 p.m. (10 p.m. on Sundays), prior to its "Adult Swim" programming block. Local PBS stations run plenty of educational children's programming on weekdays. In addition, there are digital cable channels that only offer children's programs. These are all available on DirectTV and Dish Network, as well as most digital cable packages. Cartoon Network has Boomerang, which runs primarily classic cartoons. Disney has Toon Disney, which only runs cartoons, while Nickelodeon has Nicktoons Network. There are also educational channels like PBS Kids, Noggin, and others.

Current state

Weekday children's blocks are now run only on PBS stations. The WB dropped its weekday block in January 2006 and other cable networks featuring family and children's programming have cut back. In addition, it is unlikely that The CW will air any children's programming on weekdays in the future. Its unclear if MyNetworkTV will eventually add cartoons on weekdays. That year, the qubo block of programming began airing on ION affiliates, targeting children ages 2-3, on Wednesdays-Fridays from 2-3/3-4c PM.

List of networks airing weekday cartoons

This is a list of television networks airing weekday cartoons as of January 2006

Broadcast

* PBS
* ION (Fridays only, through the shared-with-NBC qubo block)

Cable and satellite

* Toon Disney / Jetix (24/7 except for Power Rangers)
* Disney Channel
* Cartoon Network (24/7, but does have at least 1 live action show)
* Nickelodeon
* PBS Kids Sprout (24/7)
* Noggin
* BabyFirstTV (24/7)
* qubo (24/7)
* Discovery Kids
* TLC ("Ready, Set, Learn" morning block)
* Boomerang (24/7)
* Nicktoons Network (24/7)

No longer airing weekday cartoons

* ABC Family
* FOX (Some areas still show morning programs)
* The CW (predecessor networks Kids WB and UPN's Disney's One Too block)
* USA
* Superstation WGN
* TNT
* TBS (WTBS-TV in Atlanta)

Defunct weekday cartoons

This is a list of Weekday Cartoon line ups that are no longer on television.
* Kids' WB! Weekday Line Up (known as the AfterToons Show) (Afternoon 1995–2006, Morning 1998-2009?)
* Fox Kids Weekdays (Afternoons 1990–2001, Mornings 1993-2001)
* Disney's One Too (1999-2003)
* USA Cartoon Express (early 1980s-late 1990s)
* TNT Weekday Cartoon line up (1981-1998)
* WGN-TV Cartoon line up
* The Disney Afternoon (1990-1999)
* UPN Weekday Morning Line Up (1995-2005)
* NBC Weekday Line Up (1950s)
* CBS Weekday Line Up
* ABC Weekday Line Up
* Cartoon Network's Toonami (1997-2004)
* Cartoon Network`s Miguzi (2004-2007)

Notable weekday cartoon shows

This is a list of weekday cartoon shows on broadcast and cable networks (both morning and afternoon).

* (Syndication 1999-2001?)
* AAAHH!!! Real Monsters (Nickelodeon 1994-1998)
* Action Man (FOX 2000-2001)
* Aladdin (UPN 1995-1996)
* Archie's Weird Mysteries (Syndication 2004-2005)
* (FOX 1993-1996), (WB 1996-2002?)
* Bonkers (UPN 1995-1997)
* Darkwing Duck (UPN 1995-?)
* Dragonball Z (Cartoon Network (1996-2003)
* Dennis the Menice (UPN 1995-1999)
* Digimon (FOX 1999–2001, UPN 2002-2003)
* Double Dragon (unknown 1993-1995)
* Dragon Tales (PBS 1999-present)
* Ed, Edd n Eddy (Cartoon Network, 1999-present)
* Goof Troop (UPN 1995-?)
* (UPN 1995-1996)
* Pepper Ann (UPN 2000-2001)
* Pokémon (Syndication 1998–1999, WB 1999-2006, Cartoon Network 2006-)
* Puzzle Place (PBS 1995-1998)
* Redwall (PBS Dec 2001 and Summer 2002) *
* Recess (UPN 2000-2003)
* Robotech (anime) (Syndication 1985-1986)
* Sailor Moon (UPN 1995-2001)
* Star Blazers (Syndication 1979–1985, USA late 1980s-1992)
* The Legend of Tarzan (UPN 2002-2003)
* The Littles (Syndication 2004-2005)
* The Magic School Bus (PBS 1994–1998, FOX 2000-2001)
* The Smurfs (USA late 1980s-mid 1990s)
* Trollz (Syndication 2005-present, CBS 2006-)
* Sabrina, the Animated Series (UPN 1999-2003)
* Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century (Syndication 2004-2005)

ee also

*Kids' WB
*Fox Kids
*PBS Kids
*Saturday morning cartoon
*WGN-TV History (weekday morning cartoons)