| King Koopa's Kool Kartoons | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Variety Comedy Sketch comedy |
| Created by | Gerry Pass |
| Based on | |
| Written by | Christopher Brough Jack Hanrahan Eleanor Burian-Mohr |
| Directed by | Stephen J. Abramson |
| Starring | Christopher Collins Patrick Pinney |
| Theme music composer | Haim Saban |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 65 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Andy Heyward |
| Producer | Christopher Brough |
| Production companies | DIC Enterprises Nintendo of America |
| Original release | |
| Network | KTTV |
| Release | September 11 (1989-09-11) – November 20, 1989 (1989-11-20) |
| Related | |
King Koopa's Kool Kartoons is a local, Americanlive-action children'stelevision show broadcast inSouthern California during theAutumn of 1989. The show was produced byDIC Entertainment in association withFox Television Studios[1] for theFox television stationKTTV by Gerry Pass – who developed and rolled out theFox Kids Club – andDIC Animation City, in association withNintendo.[2] It was a live-action spin-off toThe Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, a popular animated show based on theSuper Mario video games. The show was discontinued after 65 episodes.
The show stars King Koopa, based on an animated version ofBowser, the central arch-villain from theMariovideo game series. The 30-minute wrap around program was originally broadcast during late afternoon time slots, normally around 4:30pm to 5:30pm[3] on theLos Angeles-based television channel KTTV Fox 11.
The format of the show was one of the last in the tradition of classic children's television shows in the vein ofBozo the Clown: the show would begin with the same pre-recorded theme song and lead into a live studio audience of around 40 to 60 children bussed in from aroundLos Angeles at the beginning of the show. The audience of children were all given special hats shaped likeKoopa heads and T-shirts with "Koopa's Troopas" printed on them[4] (the children would actually get to keep the shirts, but the troopa helmets, as they called them, were claimed by the producers at the end of the taping and reused every show). Koopa would then start talking to the audience with a different theme every day.
The live-action Koopa would then act asemcee, introducing old,public domainanimated cartoon shorts, wrapped around different live-action segments, including a segment with Ratso, King Koopa's pet rat, a segment with Koopa reading fanmail, a segment with Mr. Mean Jeans, and a joke segment. King Koopa would then end the show by telling the audience to be a good Koopa Troopa or he would "Koopa Youpa'. After that, he would give contestants prizes with an envelope given by Ratso.[5]
The show featured an actor in a King Koopa costume similar to one previously used in the 1989Super Mario Bros.-themedIce Capades show, only with a more detailed mask to make the actor look more believable on television. The actor playing Koopa (originallyChristopher Collins, laterPatrick Pinney) performed the role with a gruff, gravel-voiced faux-malevolence that ultimately revealed a hesitantly nice personality.
Unlike any previous appearance, King Koopa was seen with apet creature named Ratso that best resembled a mix ofdog andweasel with the large ears of abat. Ratso had his own special "theatre" where kids could also claim prizes (in which he was played by apuppet). Koopa would be seen walking Ratso on a leash in the pre-recorded opening and closing credit sequences (where he was played by adog in a costume).
Partway through the series' production, Christopher Collins was fired and replaced allegedly due to inappropriate behavior toward crew and audience members.[6]
The entire 65 episodes ofKing Koopa's Kool Kartoons was produced and developed over the course of 13 weeks before being quietly cancelled.
Despite high ratings and viewership,King Koopa's Kool Kartoons was not renewed for a second season. The full reasoning behind the show's cancellation is unknown, but is partially accredited by former writer Christopher Brough to be a formal invitation from the then-president ofThe Walt Disney Company,Michael Eisner, to Fox Kids to cancel the cartoon regarding the content.[7]
The show was later aired in theUnited Kingdom viaThe Children's Channel throughout the remainder of 1990.[8][better source needed]
Reception of the show among children was overwhelmingly positive, but the show was not received well by parents, as an angry letter from theLos Angeles Times newspaper shows. In a "Viewers' View" column in theLos Angeles Times, a parent wrote that the show's portrayal of King Koopa was "frightening for small children", implying a mixed reception.[9][better source needed]
In 1990, the program was nominated as the best youth program for the Los Angeles localEmmy Awards.[10]
Due toKing Koopa's Kool Kartoon's one-time broadcast format, the show has become one ofDIC Entertainment's and Nintendo's famous examples oflost media, and efforts to preserve the show have been ongoing.[citation needed]
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