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Curious George (TV series)

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This article is about the television series shown from 2006. For the 1982 television series, see Curious George (1982 TV series).
Curious George
GenreAdventure
Comedy
Edutainment
Based on
Curious George
by
Developed byJoe Fallon
Voices of
Narrated by
Theme music composer
  • Rocco Gagliese
  • Steve D'Angelo
  • Terry Tompkins
Opening theme"Like Curious George!" performed by Dr. John
Ending theme"Like Curious George!" (instrumental)
ComposerNick Nolan
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons15
No. of episodes198 (389 segments + 3 specials) (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers
EditorKirk Demorest
Running time22 minutes (11 minutes per segment)
Production companies
Original release
Network
ReleaseSeptember 4, 2006 (2006-09-04) –
April 1, 2015 (2015-04-01)
ReleaseSeptember 3, 2018 (2018-09-03) –
March 17, 2022 (2022-03-17)[1]

Curious George is an American children's animated television series based on the children's book series of the same name for PBS Kids and a sequel series to the 2006 animated film Curious George. Frank Welker, who voiced George in the 2006 film, reprises the role in the series while Jeff Bennett co-stars as the voice of "The Man with the Yellow Hat" (whose name is revealed in the film to be Ted Shackelford), replacing Will Ferrell.[2] The show premiered on PBS Kids on September 4, 2006, not long after the film's release,[3] and originally ended after nine seasons on April 1, 2015 before returning in 2018. Later seasons were released on Peacock, and the series concluded on March 17, 2022 after a total of 15 seasons. This is the second animated series from Imagine Entertainment, following 1999’s The PJs.

Season 10 premiered on September 3, 2018 on Family Jr. in Canada. Seasons 10–13 debuted on NBCUniversal's streaming service Peacock in the United States when it launched in July 2020.[4] Seasons 1–9 are available to stream for Peacock Premium subscribers since September 20, 2020, which is also available to stream on Hulu.[5] Season 10 premiered on PBS on October 5 the same year.[6]

Curious George is a production of Universal 1440 Entertainment (Universal Studios Family Productions before 2013[7]), Imagine Entertainment, and WGBH-TV (WGBH Kids) (before season 13),[8] and animation production by Toon City in some seasons.[9] From seasons 1–9, each episode has two animated segments per half hour episode, and a short live-action segment after each. The live-action shorts illustrate and explain various STEM concepts, and shows a class with kids engaging in experiments that demonstrate a concept within the previous episode's script. After the ninth season, the STEM featurettes were phased out.

Premise

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Setting

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  • City: George and the Man with the Yellow Hat live in an apartment in the Big City. The actual name of the city is unknown but it has some similarities to New York City. However in the episode "Curious George Takes a Vacation", an airport worker mentions they are in Illinois, suggesting that the city is Chicago. The Doorman of the building they live in keeps a pigeon coop on the roof and is the guardian of a dachshund dog named Hundley. The apartment is near Endless Park, the museum where Professor Wiseman works, the zoo, an Italian restaurant owned by Chef Pisghetti, a doughnut shop, Dulson's Toy Store, Mabel's Department Store (a parody of Macy's and its erstwhile competitor Gimbels), the supermarket, and the pet shop, which are recurring locations.
  • Country: George and the Man vacation in a small house in the country. The house is near Lake Wanasinklake, a stream, and a river that eventually flows past the city and to the ocean. George is friends there with farming neighbors Mr. and Mrs. Renkins, their five-year-old granddaughter Allie, the Quint Family, and the teenage paperboy, Bill.

Characters

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Main

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  • Curious George (vocal effects by Frank Welker) is a tailless monkey who is the protagonist of the series. As his name implies, he is excessively curious and often causes unintentional problems. He is used as the "teachable" character in the show, and he is the one to whom lessons are explained to by the other characters. He is a character that children enjoy watching and can learn from.
  • The Man with the Yellow Hat (voiced by Jeff Bennett) is a man who first befriended George. He is almost always wearing some form of yellow clothing, and acts as George's primary teacher and mentor. In the animated film, his name was given as Ted Shackelford.
  • Narrator (voiced by William H. Macy in season 1 and Rino Romano in seasons 2–15) is an unseen storyteller who narrates the events of each episode of the show. His narrations largely describe about the feelings of George and the Man with the Yellow Hat along with their actions, often serving as an internal monologue for speechless characters such as animals.

Supporting

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  • Chef Pisghetti (voiced by Jim Cummings) is an Italian chef in the City who owns a restaurant with his wife.
  • The Doorman (voiced by Bill Chott in season 1 and Lex Lang in season 2) is the doorman for the apartment building in which George and the Man with the Yellow Hat live. He is Hundley's owner.
  • Professor Wiseman (voiced by Rolonda Watts) is a scientist who is a friend of George and the Man. In different episodes she is seen to be a rocket scientist, and is seen to work at a local museum. She has two colleagues named Professor Einstein and Professor Pizza. Her name is a play on the words wise man.
  • Steve (voiced by Elizabeth Daily) and Betsy (voiced by Grey DeLisle) are siblings from George's neighborhood in the city. They live with their Aunt Margaret and their dog, Charkie.
  • Mr. Glass (voiced by Rob Paulsen, with the vocal impression similar to that of Gilbert Gottfried) is a friend of Chef Pisghetti who owns a building known as "The Glass Palace" and hires window washers in the city. He is known to like things that are unique to him.
  • Hundley (vocal effects by Bill Chott in season 1 and Lex Lang in season 2) is an orange male dachshund. Hundley is very proper and gentlemanly. He keeps vigil on the lobby of George's apartment building when his owner, the Doorman, is absent.
  • Compass (vocal effects by Rob Paulsen) is a blue male homing pigeon, also cared for by the Doorman. His sense of direction is substandard, he is therefore often referred to as an "Almost-Homing Pigeon". A running gag throughout the series shows him constantly trying to guess what kind of animal George is, but has trouble.
  • Jumpy Squirrel (vocal effects by Jim Cummings) is a male squirrel who lives in the country.
  • Gnocchi (vocal effects by Debi Derryberry in seasons 1–3 and "Gnocchi The Critic" and Dee Bradley Baker in season 4–15) is Chef Pisghetti's beige female cat.
  • Charkie (vocal effects by Kel Mitchell and Rob Paulsen) is a female black cocker spaniel owned by Steve and Betsy.
  • Bill's Bunnies (vocal effects by Frank Welker) are seven baby bunnies owned by Bill. Their names are Fuzzy, Whitey, Brownie, Spotty, Black Ears, Cotton Tail, and Herbert Nenninger. He also owns their mother (Ma Rabbit), whose burrowing abilities are highlighted in several episodes.
  • Mr. Renkins (voiced by Jeff Bennett) & Mrs. Renkins (voiced by Kath Soucie) are a couple who own a farm near the country house.
  • Allie (voiced by Lara Jill Miller) is the 5-year-old granddaughter of the Renkins, who is first introduced in George Meets Allie-Whoops! where she and George become fast friends.
  • Mr. Zoobel (voiced by Carlos Alazraqui) is George's upstairs neighbor in the city, and a painter of modern art. When doing art, he mostly uses rubber stamps that look like elephant feet, which made George think he was an elephant upstairs. He also has several pet animals; a snake, an elephant, and mice.
  • Marco (voiced by Grey DeLisle) is a Mexican boy who lives in The Puerto Del Sol district, a Mexican neighborhood in the city, he and his family play Spanish music everywhere.
  • Bill (voiced by Annie Mumolo) is George's neighbor from across the street in the country.

Minor

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Voice cast

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Episodes

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Main article: List of Curious George episodes

The setting for most episodes is either the city, where George lives in an apartment building with the Man in the Yellow Hat, or the country, where they share a small house near a lake called Lake Wanasinklake (on rare occasions, both settings are featured). This allows George to mirror the experiences of kids who live in an urban environment and those who live on farms and in suburbs. A few episodes take place in alternate but familiar settings, like an airport or a train station.

SeasonSegmentsEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast airedNetwork
16030September 4, 2006 (2006-09-04)February 23, 2007 (2007-02-23)PBS Kids
24020September 3, 2007 (2007-09-03)April 22, 2008 (2008-04-22)
32211September 1, 2008 (2008-09-01)April 22, 2009 (2009-04-22)
4189September 8, 2009 (2009-09-08)June 14, 2010 (2010-06-14)
52010September 6, 2010 (2010-09-06)May 6, 2011 (2011-05-06)
62010September 5, 2011 (2011-09-05)June 25, 2012 (2012-06-25)
7126December 3, 2012 (2012-12-03)April 24, 2013 (2013-04-24)
8126February 10, 2014 (2014-02-10)May 21, 2014 (2014-05-21)
9126October 28, 2014 (2014-10-28)April 1, 2015 (2015-04-01)
102815September 3, 2018 (2018-09-03)December 10, 2018 (2018-12-10)Family Jr.
112915May 6, 2019 (2019-05-06)August 12, 2019 (2019-08-12)
122915February 3, 2020 (2020-02-03)February 21, 2020 (2020-02-21)
133015July 15, 2020 (2020-07-15)December 11, 2020 (2020-12-11)Peacock
142915October 21, 2021 (2021-10-21)
152815March 17, 2022 (2022-03-17)


Broadcast and release

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The show premiered on PBS through PBS Kids in the United States. The series is broadcast by CBC Kids, TVOKids, Knowledge Network, and Family Jr. in Canada. Season 10 premiered on PBS and the series made its debut on the PBS Kids 24/7 channel the same day. All seasons are available on Peacock and PBS Kids with the first 9 seasons exclusive to Peacock Premium and Hulu.

Curious George: A Very Monkey Christmas, an animated television film, was released on November 25, 2009. It was distributed by PBS and produced by Imagine Entertainment and Universal Animation Studios. The film is a holiday television special featuring George, as featured in the TV series, wondering what to give The Man in The Yellow Hat who is also wondering what to give George. It is shown every Christmas season on PBS Kids.

On September 30, 2024, the series stopped airing on PBS Member Stations possibly due to licensing rights expiring. Despite this, the series still airs on the 24/7 PBS Kids network.

Awards

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Emmy Award

References

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  1. ^ "Curious George".
  2. ^ Perlmutter, David (2018). The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 143. ISBN 978-1538103739.
  3. ^ Publicity, Pbs (2005-01-15). "Curious George In Production for PBS KIDS". About PBS - Main. Retrieved 2023-10-23.
  4. ^ "NBCUNIVERSAL UNVEILS PEACOCK, A FREE PREMIUM AD-SUPPORTED STREAMING SERVICE WITH SUBSCRIPTION TIERS". NBCUNIVERSAL MEDIA. 2020-01-16. Retrieved 2020-04-22.
  5. ^ "Curious George New Movie, TV Series Seasons Streaming Free on Peacock". Variety. 3 September 2020. Retrieved 2020-09-04.
  6. ^ @ItsPeebs (2020-08-20). "Beginning October 5, 2020, Season 10 of Curious George will debut on PBS! 5 "new" episodes will air that week. These episodes are already available on Peacock" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  7. ^ "Curious George – Program Summary". PBS. Archived from the original on October 31, 2012. Retrieved September 18, 2016.
  8. ^ "Curious George – Program Summary". PBS. Retrieved September 18, 2016.
  9. ^ "Curious George – TV Credits". PBS. Retrieved September 18, 2016.
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