The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss is an American children's puppet television series based on characters created by Dr. Seuss, produced by The Jim Henson Company. It aired from October 13, 1996, to May 15, 1998 on Nickelodeon's preschool block, Nick Jr.. It combines live-action puppets with digitally animated backgrounds, and in its first season, refashioning characters and themes from the original Dr. Seuss books into new stories that often retained much of the flavor of Dr. Seuss' own works.
The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss is an American children's puppet television series based on characters created by Dr. Seuss, produced by The Jim Henson Company. It aired from October 13, 1996, to May 15, 1998 on Nickelodeon's preschool block, Nick Jr.. It combines live-action puppets with digitally animated backgrounds, and in its first season, refashioning characters and themes from the original Dr. Seuss books into new stories that often retained much of the flavor of Dr. Seuss' own works.
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The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss is an American children's puppet television series based on characters created by Dr. Seuss, produced by The Jim Henson Company. It aired from October 13, 1996, to May 15, 1998 on Nickelodeon's preschool block, Nick Jr.. It combines live-action puppets with digitally animated backgrounds, and in its first season, refashioning characters and themes from the original Dr. Seuss books into new stories that often retained much of the flavor of Dr. Seuss' own works.
Format
In many respects, seasons one and two of the program are very different shows. The two seasons have completely different intro and outro credit sequences and songs reflecting their differing orientations. The virtual settings seen in this show are created by Jim Henson's Creature Shop.
Season 1
Each episode is a self-contained story based on Dr. Seuss characters such as Yertle the Turtle and Horton the Elephant. The unifying element is that the stories are introduced and commented on by The Cat in the Hat (performed by Bruce Lanoil) who serves as host of the show. Occasionally, The Cat in the Hat himself appears in the episode, reprising his role as a bit of a trickster, as in his original eponymous books (ex. episode 1.6: "The Simplifier").
The season is notable for hewing closely to many of the themes of the original Dr. Seuss stories, with each episode possessing a strong moral overtone.
Season 2
For season 2, the show was reworked to reflect more traditional children's programming. The Cat in the Hat (now performed by Martin P. Robinson) lives in a playhouse with his Little Cats A through Z and the often flustered Terrence McBird (performed by Anthony Asbury). The Cat in the Hat is no longer a trickster and instead has assumed the role of a friendly and enthusiastic host who is helpful, nurturing and sweet. Aside from the residents of the house, there are frequent visitors based on Dr. Seuss characters.
Each episode revolves around a theme (such as family, health, art) and features one or two songs about the theme. A closing song was also added at the end of each episode. The action shifts between The Cat in the Hat and what is going on in his playhouse and shorter related story interludes, which he shows to the audience by means of his "Wubbuloscope". These story vignettes take place in various locations like:
Seussville – a contemporary city where Sarah Hall Small and her family live.
Main
The Cat in the Hat (performed by Bruce Lanoil in Season 1 and Martin P. Robinson in Season 2) is the main protagonist and host of the series. He starts out as a trickster, then becomes a more nurturing and optimistic host.
The Little Cats debuted in The Cat in the Hat Comes Back.
Little Cat A (performed by Kathryn Mullen in Season 1 and Leslie Carrara-Rudolph in Season 2) – seen as one of the Cat in the Hat's sidekicks.
Little Cat B (performed by Stephanie D'Abruzzo) – seen as one of the Cat in the Hat's sidekicks.
Little Cat C (performed by John Kennedy) – seen as one of the Cat in the Hat's sidekicks.
Little Cat F (performed and voiced by Pam Arciero) – seen in Season 2 at the Cat in the Hat's playhouse.
Supporting
The Grinch (performed by Anthony Asbury) – he appeared in How the Grinch Stole Christmas!. He likes to dampen other people's fun and pleasure for his own vile and sadistic amusement. He serves as one of the two main antagonists of Season 1 (along with Yertle the Turtle), despite appearing in four episodes, and the main antagonist of Season 2.
Max the Dog (performed by Kathryn Mullen in Season 1 (The Guest) and Stephanie D'Abruzzo in Season 2) – he appeared in How the Grinch Stole Christmas!. Max is the Grinch's long-suffering yet loyal dog.
Fox in Socks and Knox in Box (performed by Bruce Lanoil in Season 1 and Tim Lagasse in Season 2 and John Kennedy respectively) – they came from Fox in Socks. Fox is lively and Knox is moody and easily annoyed.
Jungle of Nool – a jungle that is home to Horton the Elephant, Morton the Elephant-Bird, Jane Kangaroo, Junior Kangaroo, Yertle the Turtle, the Wickershams, and the Sneels.
Kingdom of Didd – a Renaissance-like kingdom that is ruled by King Derwin.
Mount Crumpit – home of the Grinch and his dog Max.
Writers hired for the season included Adam Felber and Mo Rocca. A similar episode format was featured in The Jim Henson Company's next children's program Bear in the Big Blue House, which aired on Disney Channel.
Little Cat N (performed by Pam Arciero) – seen in Season 2 at the Cat in the Hat's playhouse.
Little Cat P (performed by Tim Lagasse) – seen in Season 2 at the Cat in the Hat's playhouse.
Little Cat S (performed by Stephanie D'Abruzzo) – seen in Season 2 at the Cat in the Hat's playhouse.
Little Cat Z (performed by Anthony Asbury) – seen in Season 2 at the Cat in the Hat's playhouse. He is the smallest of all and mutters Z-words.
Little Cat Fleep (performed by Kevin Clash) is an indifferent little cat who only speaks in fleeps.
Terrence McBird (performed by Anthony Asbury) is a bird that joins the main cast in Season 2. He is the cats' roommate, and is often grumpy throughout his daily activities in each episode until the end.
Yertle the Turtle (performed by Anthony Asbury) – Yertle is a turtle who tries to be king of anything, and usually uses other characters to his advantage. He serves as one of the two main antagonists of Season 1 (along with the Grinch, due to having more episodes than him), and redeems himself, becoming a recurring character in Season 2.
Horton the Elephant (performed by John Kennedy) – he appeared in Horton Hatches the Egg and Horton Hears a Who!. He is a friendly, humble and steadfast elephant who often receives ridicule for believing in things that no one else does.
Morton the Elephant-Bird (performed by Kathryn Mullen in Season 1 and Leslie Carrara-Rudolph in Season 2) is a Horton's half-bird son who appeared in Horton Hatches the Egg.
Jane Kangaroo (performed by Stephanie D'Abruzzo) – she appeared in Horton Hears a Who!. She is a very snobbish and strict kanga
