Super Why!
Super Why! is an animated superhero preschool educational television series created by Angela C. Santomero and developed by Santomero and Samantha Freeman Alpert for PBS Kids. Santomero and Alpert additionally serve as executive producers alongside Steven DeNure and Anne Loi. The series was produced by Santomero and Alpert's New York City-based production company Out of the Blue Enterprises in co-production with Decode Entertainment for the first season and DHX Studios Halifax for the second and third seasons. Animation was by Toronto-based C.O.R.E. Toons (season 1), Gallus Entertainment (season 2) and DHX Media (originally through its Decode Entertainment division). The opening and closing theme songs were written by composers and lyricists Steve D'Angelo and Terry Tompkins, with D'Angelo also providing lead vocals for both. The background score for seasons 2 and 3 was composed by Lorenzo Castelli and Jeff Morrow.
| Super Why! | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Preschool Superhero Educational |
| Created by | Angela C. Santomero |
| Voices of |
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| Theme music composer | Steve D'Angelo Terry Tompkins |
| Opening theme | "Who's Got the Power?" |
| Ending theme | "Hip Hip Hooray" (Instrumental, S1-2) "Super Readers to the Rescue" (Instrumental, S3) |
| Composers |
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| Country of origin | United States Canada |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 3 |
| No. of episodes | 103 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Running time | 26 minutes |
| Production companies |
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| Original release | |
| Network |
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| Release | September 3, 2007 – May 12, 2016 |
The show was originally created as a stop motion pilot episode in 1999 by Cuppa Coffee Animation that was pitched to Nickelodeon/Nick Jr.[1] It was later featured at the 2000 Annecy Film Festival.[2] Nickelodeon ultimately opted not to pick up the show. Instead, Curious Pictures pitched another pilot to PBS Kids sometime in 2006, and PBS Kids further developed the series with funds from the United States Department of Education's Ready to Learn grant[3][4] and aired the premiere episode on September 3, 2007.[5] The original run ended on May 12, 2016 with a total of 103 episodes across three seasons.[6]
Episodes list
changeSeason 1
change| Episode number | Title | Director | Writer | Storyboard | Super Story Answer | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "The Three Little Pigs" | Angela C. Santomero | Angela C. Santomero | Ruth Ramirez | Friend | September 3, 2007 |
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Pig is mad at Jill for knocking down his buildings. The Super Readers then jump into the Three Little Pigs book, where they meet the Big Bad Wolf, who is blowing down the pigs' houses. Alphabet Power: Wolf Word Power: Wall/Ball Spelling Power: Big | ||||||
| 2 | "Hansel and Gretel" | Samantha Freeman Alpert | Angela C. Santomero and Jennifer Hamburg | Wayne Lee Pack | Ask First | September 4, 2007 |
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Peter Piper is upset at Red for eating one of his pickled peppers without asking first. The Super Readers then jump into the Hansel and Gretel book, where a witch gets mad at Hansel and Gretel for eating cookies from her gingerbread cookie house. Alphabet Power: Track the trails Word Power: Opens Spelling Power: Raft | ||||||
| 3 | "Humpty Dumpty" | Cheer | September 5, 2007 | |||
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Alphabet Power: Word Power: Spelling Power: | ||||||
| 4 | "Jack and the Beanstalk" | Samantha Freeman Alpert | Angela C. Santomero and Jennifer Hamburg | Wayne Lee Pack | Ask First | September 6, 2007 |
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Alphabet Power: Climb up the beanstalk Word Power: Bed Spelling Power: Open | ||||||
References
change- ↑ "Portfolio". www.cuppacoffee.com:80. Archived from the original on 16 August 2000. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
- ↑ "Film Index". www.annecy.org. Archived from the original on June 23, 2021. Retrieved 2022-06-21.
- ↑ "Illustration, Concept Design, Visual [[:Template:As written]] Curious Pictures LLC - Current client since 01/2002". EEW Books. Archived from the original on March 24, 2024. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
{{cite web}}: URL–wikilink conflict (help) - ↑ "Research Proves Super Why! Helps Children Learn to Read". About PBS - Main. 6 May 2009. Archived from the original on October 29, 2023. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
- ↑ "Literacy Takes the Lead on PBS Kids and PBS Kids Go!". About PBS - Main. 14 November 2007. Archived from the original on June 7, 2023. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
- ↑ "Will Super Why! Return For a Season 4 on PBS // Renewed or Canceled?". tvnextseason.com. Archived from the original on September 22, 2022. Retrieved 2022-09-22.