HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''HBO Storybook Musicals'' is a series of
television special A television special (often TV special, or rarely television spectacular) is a standalone television show which may also temporarily interrupt episodic programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Some specials provide a full range of e ...
s that aired on HBO, combining
animation Animation is a method by which still figures are manipulated to appear as moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Today, most ani ...
that is true to the original storybook's illustrations, plus high-spirited songs from musical songwriters. The specials have also aired on
HBO Family Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is bas ...
.


Background

When ''
Doctor DeSoto ''Doctor De Soto'' is a children's picture book written and illustrated by William Steig and first published in 1982. It features a mouse dentist who must help a fox with a toothache without being eaten. Steig and his book won the 1983 Nationa ...
'' was nominated for an Academy Award for a Best Animated Short film, HBO and Michael Sporn agreed to make animated specials for the network. HBO also oriented on family-friendly programs and never financed/produced a children's television series. Michael Sporn directed and produced ''Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile: The Musical'', HBO's first animated television special and aired on November 18, 1987.26 November 1987, 186 at the Los Angeles Times
/ref> Then, HBO presented a few animated specials, such as ''The Story of the Dancing Frog'' (aired in October 1989), ''The Red Shoes'' and ''Earthday Birthday'', both aired in early 1990. The specials combined illustrations with songs.


Episodes

The first four episodes originally aired as individual, stand-alone TV specials; the ''HBO Storybook Musicals'' branding was introduced with the fifth episode. 18 episodes of ''HBO Storybook Musicals'' aired from 1987 to 1993. In addition, only eight episodes are currently owned by Home Box Office, while others are owned by other distributors, such as WildBrain (formerly known as DHX Media) and First Run Features.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:HBO Storybook Musicals 1980s American animated television series 1990s American animated television series 1980s American anthology television series 1990s American anthology television series 1987 American television series debuts 1993 American television series endings American children's animated anthology television series American children's animated education television series American children's animated musical television series English-language television shows HBO network specials HBO original programming Reading and literacy television series Television series by Home Box Office