''Raggs'' is a live-action/animated TV series for children about five dogs that form a

Ragtime Ragtime, also spelled rag-time or rag time, is a musical style that flourished from the 1890s to 1910s. Its cardinal trait is its syncopated or "ragged" rhythm. Ragtime was popularized during the early 20th century by composers such as Scott J ...

band called The Raggs Band. There are 195 half hour episodes and 200 original songs in multiple languages. It was originally produced in Sydney, Australia, with additional production in the United States in English and Spanish. It was broadcast in the United States on February 4, 2008 on PBS Kids. In 2014, The Raggs Band reunited to record 20 classic kids' songs.

Broadcast

Raggs began broadcasting on

SABC 2 SABC 2 is a South African family public television channel owned by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC). SABC 2 broadcasts programming in English, Sepedi, Afrikaans, Venda, and Tsonga. As of August 2018, the channel started broad ...

in South Africa on 7 May 2018. "Raggs" recently aired in the US and Canada on

Smile A smile is a facial expression formed primarily by flexing the muscles at the sides of the mouth. Some smiles include a contraction of the muscles at the corner of the eyes, an action known as a Duchenne smile. Among humans, a smile expresses ...

Telemundo Telemundo (; formerly NetSpan) is an American Spanish-language terrestrial television network owned by NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises, a division of NBCUniversal, which in turn is owned by Comcast. It provides content nationally with pr ...

, and in Latin America on FETV Canal-Panama, RTV-Ecuador, Canal Dos-El Salvador, Guest Choice Cable-Dominican Republic and Corporación Televicentro-Honduras. "Raggs" YouTube channel, RaggsTV, hosts short episodes and animations to classic kids' songs.

History

''Raggs'' was originally created in 1990 by U.S. advertising executive Toni Steedman for her 6-year-old daughter, Alison, as a series of carpool stories. Steedman later used the Raggs characters for a regional mall promotion and advertising campaign. By 2001, the successful mall programs encouraged Steedman, along with former HBO producer Carole Rosen, to create a one-hour music video-inspired pilot called "Pawsuuup," which was shot in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

in August 2001. While Steedman shopped the pilot for a production or broadcast partner, ''The Raggs Band'' (also known as the ''Raggs Kids' Club Band'' because of the regional mall kids' clubs for which Raggs served as mascot) began playing concerts at fairs, festivals and performing arts venues. In 2005, Steedman and her company, Raggs LLC, entered into a co-production relationship with Southern Star International (now

Endemol Australia Endemol Australia, formerly known as Southern Star Group, Southern Star Productions, Southern Star/Hanna-Barbera Australia and Taft-Hardie Group Pty Ltd, was Australia's largest independent television production and distribution group. On 26 Jul ...

) to produce the ''Raggs'' series for the

Seven Network The Seven Network (commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is a major Australian commercial free-to-air television network. It is owned by Seven West Media Limited, and is one of five main free-to-air television networks in Australia ...

in Sydney, Australia. Production began in 2005 using Alias Maya at the ABC Studios in Sydney, and the first episode of Series 1 began airing daily at 9 am on Seven in January 2006. Series 1 consisted of 65 half hours episodes. ''Raggs'' quickly garnered strong ratings and, within a few months of airing, Seven ordered Series 2, an additional 65 episodes. In 2007, Seven ordered Series 3, also 65 episodes, bringing the total to 195 original half hours by 2009. Each episode featured original ''Raggs’'' music, written and produced in the U.S. by Concentrix Music and Sound Design, requiring over 200 original songs for the 195 half hours of shows. Southern Star distributed ''Raggs'' to several countries including Singapore, Bulgaria, South Africa and India. In the U.S., Steedman worked to establish ''Raggs'' on public television. KQED

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

signed on as the presenting station in association with

American Public Television American Public Television (APT) is an American nonprofit organization and syndicator of programming for public television stations in the United States. It distributes public television programs nationwide for PBS member stations and indepe ...

, and ''Raggs'' began airing on public TV stations in 2007. In January 2010, Steedman reacquired Southern Star’s distribution and licensing rights under Blue Socks Media LLC. Blue Sock Media LLC, completing a complete consolidation of the worldwide assets, later purchased Raggs LLC. Steedman continues to head Blue Socks Media in

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

. In July 2012,

, the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

-owned Spanish language network, licensed 120 episodes of ''Raggs'' in Spanish. ''Raggs'' aired on Telemundo Saturdays at 8 am ET and Sundays at 8 and 8:30 am ET. The Raggs characters are used at Grand Palladium family-friendly resorts in the Caribbean and Mexico to host the kids program, "Play at Palladium with Raggs." Features include a Live Show, disco party, and character breakfast.

Palace Theatre 2004

Throughout 2004, the band starred in a 90-minute performance at The Palace Theatre in Myrtle Beach, alongside comic strip cat

Garfield ''Garfield'' is an American comic strip created by Jim Davis. Originally published locally as ''Jon'' in 1976, then in nationwide syndication from 1978 as ''Garfield'', it chronicles the life of the title character Garfield the cat, his hum ...

. The performances focused on the RAGGS Kids Club Band planning a birthday party for the famous orange cat. Suspecting things, Garfield "won't relax until he gets the surprise".

RAGGS Kids Club Band: PAWSUUUP! Tour

A DVD was released 17 August 2004, featuring in-concert performances of seven of the band's songs, and three "music videos". The 55-minute-long program was produced by

Linda Mendoza Linda Mendoza Kahle is an American film director and television director. Mendoza's directorial career began in 1992, directing promotional segments for Fox and MTV. She then went on to direct/produce segments for '' Kidsongs'' and the Nickelo ...

(''

The Chris Rock Show ''The Chris Rock Show'' was a weekly, Friday night, late-night talk show featured on HBO. It was created by comedian and namesake Chris Rock and featured various guests. The show won an Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Variety or Music Progr ...

'') of Line by Line Productions, and executive produced by Carole Rosen. The crew included screenwriter Mark Valenti (''

Rugrats ''Rugrats'' is an American animated television series created by Arlene Klasky, Gábor Csupó, and Paul Germain for Nickelodeon. The show focuses on a group of toddlers; most prominently— Tommy, Chuckie, Angelica, and twins Phil and Lil, a ...

'', ''

Hey Arnold! ''Hey Arnold!'' is an American animated comedy television series created by Craig Bartlett. It originally aired on Nickelodeon from October 7, 1996, to June 8, 2004. The show centers on fourth grader Arnold Shortman, who lives with his grandpar ...

'', ''

Totally Spies! ''Totally Spies!'' is an animated spy-fi series created by Vincent Chalvon-Demersay and David Michel mainly produced by French animation company Marathon Media and French broadcaster TF1, with seasons 3 to 5 being co-produced with Canadian c ...

''), lighting designer Alan Adelman (75+ episodes of ''

Great Performances ''Great Performances'' is a television anthology series dedicated to the performing arts; the banner has been used to televise theatrical performances such as plays, musicals, opera, ballet, concerts, as well as occasional documentaries. It is p ...

'', '' Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards''), music producers Fred and Becky Story (Concentrix Music & Sound), costume designer "Greyseal", and choreographer Hardin Minor (National Dance Institute). The DVD earned 3.5 out of 4 stars from Suite 101 Family Entertainment film critic Nicholas Moreau, tied for the highest ever rating for an independently produced DVD. The music from the tour was later released as a CD album.

''Raggs'' Live Around the World

The Raggs Band has played more than 2,000 live performances in four continents. In the U.S., Raggs has performed at many state fairs, basketball games, regional malls, national fundraisers such as the

Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon The ''MDA Labor Day Telethon'' was an annual telethon held on (starting the night before and throughout) Labor Day in the United States to raise money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA). The Muscular Dystrophy Association was founded in ...

, and parades. Overseas, the Raggs Band has performed at U.S. military bases in Japan, South Korea, Belgium, The Netherlands, Germany, and Iceland. In Australia, the Raggs Band performed at Westfield Malls and was one of two children's acts to perform on ''

Carols in the Domain Carols in the Domain is an annual Australian Christmas concert event held in the Domain Gardens in Sydney. It began in 1983, and features many national and international performers and guest appearances. It a free event, broadcast around Austra ...

'', a nationally televised live musical show.

Episodes

Series 1 (2006–2008)

Series 2 (2008–2009)

References

External links

*
Raggs.com.au

''Raggs''
at Blue Socks Media * * {{Authority control Seven Network original programming English-language television shows Animated television series about dogs Television series by Endemol Australia American children's animated musical television series 2006 Australian television series debuts 2008 Australian television series endings 2000s Australian animated television series 2008 American television series debuts 2009 American television series endings American children's musical groups 2000s American animated television series 2000s American children's television series Australian children's animated musical television series American preschool education television series American television series with live action and animation American television shows featuring puppetry Australian preschool education television series Australian television series with live action and animation Australian television shows featuring puppetry PBS Kids shows Australian children's musical groups 2000s preschool education television series