| The Magic School Bus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | |
| Based on | |
| Developed by |
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| Directed by |
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| Voices of |
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| Theme music composer | Peter Lurye |
| Opening theme | "Ride on the Magic School Bus", performed byLittle Richard |
| Ending theme | "Ride on the Magic School Bus" (instrumental) |
| Composers |
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| Country of origin |
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| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 4 |
| No. of episodes | 52(list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Producers |
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| Running time | 26 minutes |
| Production companies | |
| Original release | |
| Network | PBS |
| Release | September 10, 1994 (1994-09-10) – December 6, 1997 (1997-12-06) |
| Related | |
| The Magic School Bus Rides Again | |
The Magic School Bus is an animated educational children's television series, based on thebook series of the same name byJoanna Cole andBruce Degen. Originally broadcast from 1994 to 1997, the series received critical acclaim for its use of celebrity voice talent, as well as combining entertainment with an educational series.[1] The series starsLily Tomlin as the voice of Ms. Frizzle. The theme song is performed byLittle Richard.[2]
The animated series follows the adventures of eccentric teacher Ms. Frizzle and her eight students as they explore the wonders of science on their exciting field trips. Their journey takes them to different locations, time periods, and encounters with various creatures, all while learning about science and the world around them. The school they attend, Walkerville Elementary, is set in the fictitious town of Walkerville. The characters travel all over the world and into space throughout the duration of the show.
| Season | Episodes | Originally released | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First released | Last released | |||
| 1 | 13 | September 10, 1994 (1994-09-10) | December 3, 1994 (1994-12-03) | |
| 2 | 13 | September 9, 1995 (1995-09-09) | December 2, 1995 (1995-12-02) | |
| 3 | 13 | September 14, 1996 (1996-09-14) | December 25, 1996 (1996-12-25) | |
| 4 | 13 | September 13, 1997 (1997-09-13) | December 6, 1997 (1997-12-06) | |
In early 1991,The Magic School Bus concept was co-produced into an animated series of the same name byScholastic. The NSF was the first to commit to funding a pilot animatic that helped to inform the series' development. Creation and testing of the pilot were completed early in 1992. Meanwhile, other funders, including the Carnegie Corporation of New York and the U.S. Department of Energy, joined the effort, enabling Scholastic Productions to begin scripting while looking for a corporate underwriter. In early 1993, Lily Tomlin signed on to play Ms. Frizzle, and Malcolm-Jamal Warner agreed to play The Producer. The show went into full production with Nelvana.[3] It premiered on September 10, 1994. Craig Walker (former vice president and senior editorial director of Scholastic) developed the idea for the show. The company's president Deborah Forte explained that adapting the books into an animated TV show was an opportunity to help kids "learn about science in a fun way".[4] During this time, Forte had been hearing concerns from parents and teachers about how to improve science education for kids and minorities all across the globe.[4]Hanho Heung-Up Co., Ltd. contributed some of the animation for this program. The theme song, called "Ride on the Magic School Bus", was written byPeter Lurye and performed byLittle Richard.[5] The voice director wasSusan Blu; two of the writers for the series wereBrian Meehl andJocelyn Stevenson.
In the United States, the original run ofThe Magic School Bus was broadcast onPBS --originally aired onPBS (first TV airing on the American television)-- from 1994 until 1997 (as part of its daytime and weekday children's block). It was the first fully-animated series to be aired onPBS. The last episode aired on December 6, 1997. By the series' end, it was among the highest-ratedPBS shows for school-age children.[6] After the final episode, the series subsequently continued inreruns on the PBS lineup until September 25, 1998, when PBS dropped the show altogether to make room for other new programs aimed at preschoolers.
On December 15, 1997,Fox network acquired the series to filleducational television mandates for Fox affiliates.[7] The show was then broadcast on theFox Kids block,[8] where reruns aired from October 5, 1998, until September 6, 2002.
After the PBS original run and Fox Kids reruns,TLC andDiscovery Kids chose to air the series.TLC aired it from February 24, 2003 until 2008. Discovery Kids aired it from February 24, 2003 until 2009, as part of theReady Set Learn! block.[4]
On September 27, 2010, the series (on the American television) moved and changed networks once again. It was broadcast through a daily run onQubo Channel as well asNBC's Saturday morning Qubo block. Reruns continued on both NBC and now-defunct Qubo until 2012.
In Canada, the series aired onCBC Kids (from 2000 until 2003),Teletoon,YTV,TVOKids, andKnowledge Network. In the United Kingdom, it aired on Channel 4 (Children Planet Programmes Block) andNickelodeon. And in 2005, Canada-based studioNelvana Limited acquired the series and sold it to the Latin American versions ofCartoon Network andNickelodeon (which continues to air on select Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network stations --in Latin America-- since 2005).[9] As of 2021, the show is currently distributed by9 Story Media Group.
The opening theme song was notably shortened during the show's airings on Fox Kids and Qubo. The airings onPBS,TLC, andDiscovery Kids (United States airings) andCBC Kids,Teletoon, andKnowledge Network (Canada airings), along with the VHS and DVD releases, all used the full version of the opening.
The series (through home media) was released onVHS from 1995 to 2002,DVD from 2002 to 2013, DVD (by New Video Group) in Region 1 (which are the rereleases of theWarner Home Video DVDs) on July 31, 2012, andNetflix on August 15, 2013.
The series was originally released onVHS. The series on VHS was distributed byWEA Corp. andWarner Home Video between 1995 and 2002. OnDVD, it was distributed byWarner Home Video between 2002 and 2005.
On July 31, 2012, New Video Group released the complete series on DVD in Region 1, as well as rereleases of the Warner Home Video DVDs.[10]
On August 15, 2013, Scholastic announced the complete series' availability onNetflix.[11] Currently however only season 1 of the series is available to stream onNetflix. But the full series is available to stream onPeacock, and for free onTubi, andThe Roku Channel.
In a 2007 column for the online edition ofThe Wall Street Journal, Jason Fry expressed an overall appreciation for the series, but wrote that the episode "The Magic School Bus Gets Programmed" illustrated the rapid pace of technological change over the ten years since it first aired. He explained the episode presented an old-fashioned "technology-gone-amok" story about the respective roles of programmer and machine that was no longer relevant to children growing up in 2007. He suggested that an updated version of the episode would have focused instead on the perils of Internet searches and on network concepts surfacing at the time.[12]
Both the book series and the television series have been used as tools in classrooms since their original releases. Several studies have suggested that the Magic School Bus's inclusion of fantastical elements helps students understand the basics of a concept before introducing them to more complicated vocabulary and images.[13] The book series was originally created to serve as a tool for kids to learn about and get interested in science while also providing entertainment.[14] Becoming a classroom tool has allowed the Magic School Bus to continue to be a relevant piece of educational media that has allowed teachers to better explain and introduce science to young children as intended when it was originally published byJoanna Cole.[15]
Additionally, many scientists today credit early exposure to The Magic School Bus and other programs on PBS geared towards science education as a reason they chose their respective field later in life.[16] Because of this widespread affect, it has become the subject for further studies on its impact on early childhood development in regards to science education.[17]
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| Year | Award | Category | Nominee | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Graphics and Title Design | Nominated | ||
| Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program | Lily Tomlin as Ms. Frizzle | Won | [18] | ||
| USA Environmental Media Award | Children's Animated Program | Nominated | |||
| Grammy Award | Best Spoken Word Album for Children | Fun with Sound: John Wynne, producer | Nominated | [19] | |
| 1996 | |||||
| NCLR Bravo Award | Outstanding Program for Children or Youth | Nominated | |||
| Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Children's Animated Program | Nominated | |||
| Outstanding Hairstyling | Milton Buras (for episode "Halloween Special" | Nominated | |||
| Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program | Lily Tomlin as Ms. Frizzle | Nominated | |||
| 1997 | Television Critics Association Award | Outstanding Achievement in Children's Programming | Nominated | ||
| Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program | Lily Tomlin as Ms. Frizzle | Nominated | ||
| Outstanding Children's Animated Program | Nominated | ||||
| 1998 | ALMA Award | Outstanding Program for Children or Youth | Nominated | ||
| Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program | Lily Tomlin as Ms. Frizzle | Nominated | ||
| Outstanding Children's Animated Program | Nominated |
Numerous computer and video games associated with the series were released from 1994 to 2000, and were typically amalgamations of storylines from both the original book series and the television show. The games were published byMicrosoft Home.
A video game titledThe Magic School Bus: Oceans was released forNintendo DS on October 25, 2011, ten years after the release of the last game. This is the only game to be released on a Nintendo platform.
On June 10, 2014, a new series was announced byNetflix and Scholastic Media titledThe Magic School Bus 360°.[20][21] The new iteration of the franchise features a modernized Ms. Frizzle and high-tech bus that stresses modern inventions such as robotics, wearables and camera technology. The producers hoped to captivate children's imaginations and motivate their interest in the sciences.[22][23]9 Story Media Group would produce the series.[24] ProducerStuart Stone, who voiced Ralphie in the original series, explained thatThe Magic School Bus 360° would feature some of the original voice actors in different roles. The series' voice cast is based inLos Angeles andToronto withSusan Blu as the Los Angeles voice director andAlyson Court as the Toronto voice director.[25]
In February 2017, Netflix announced thatSaturday Night Live cast memberKate McKinnon was cast in the role of Fiona Felicity Frizzle, the younger sister of Ms. Frizzle, now Professor Frizzle, again voiced by Lily Tomlin. By this point the title of the series had been changed toThe Magic School Bus Rides Again.[26]Lin-Manuel Miranda performed the theme song.[27] On September 29, 2017 the series premiered onNetflix.[28]
On October 17, 2024, it was announced that a CG-animatedMagic School Bus spin-off titledThe Magic School Bus: Mighty Explorers is currently in the works.[29]Mighty Explorers would be geared more towards a preschool audience, and its version of the titular Magic School Bus would speak.
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