Freddy is an animated weatherman. The short animated series covers 20 different weather conditions, complete with sound effects. It is currently shown in Hong Kong on the
TVB television channel during the weather report. Freddy's purpose is to show the next day's predicted weather. Freddy was created in
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...
and TVB pays license fees for his continual use.
Appearance
Freddy wears a yellow suit and has a pink face; his design has not generally changed over the years.
Freddy and the weather
Freddy's actions gives a short forecast of the day's weather:
* For extreme heat, he melts;
* For lightning, he gets struck by lightning and runs away;
* For rain, a rain cloud drifts in and he opens his umbrella;
* For heavy rain, the rain fills the screen;
* For strong winds, he is blown away;
* For cold, he turns to ice;
* For fog, he holds up a lantern for light.
* For sunny conditions, a flower sprouts, he picks it and walks.
At the same time, there are various sound effects including falling rain, thunder, blowing wind, footsteps, and Freddy's whistling and reactive cries such as "oooh", "aaah" and "awww".
Other markets
Freddy (also known as "Freddy Forecast" or "Freddy the Forecaster") has been shown in 19 television markets in the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, such as
KNOE-TV in
Monroe, Louisiana;
KTVO TV in
Kirksville, Missouri;
WJBF in
Augusta, Georgia
Augusta is a city on the central eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The city lies directly across the Savannah River from North Augusta, South Carolina at the head of its navigable portion. Augusta, the third mos ...
and many other stations. The series also ran in Perth, Australia for many years.
In
Shenzhen
Shenzhen is a prefecture-level city in the province of Guangdong, China. A Special economic zones of China, special economic zone, it is located on the east bank of the Pearl River (China), Pearl River estuary on the central coast of Guangdong ...
, China,
Shenzhen Television's news bulletin at noon uses a similar character and features Shenzhen's skyline in the background.
Hong Kong (TVB)
In
Hong Kong
Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
, where Freddy is known as () in Cantonese and Mandarin, the character is utilised on TVB's
weather forecasts, for both its English (
TVB Pearl) and Chinese (
TVB Jade
TVB Jade (), or simply Jade, is a Hong Kong Hong Kong Cantonese, Cantonese-language Terrestrial television, free-to-air television channel owned and operated by Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB) as its flagship service, alongside its sister n ...
) channels. In 1993, he became
computer-animated.
The
skyline
A skyline is the wikt:outline, outline or shape viewed near the horizon. It can be created by a city's overall structure, or by human intervention in a rural area, rural setting, or in nature that is formed where the sky meets buildings or the ...
behind him on TVB's broadcasts is regularly updated to keep abreast of the ever-changing skyline of Hong Kong. It appears as if he is walking on the water surface of
Victoria Harbour. As of January 2008, Freddy was upgraded to his third incarnation.
During the 1980s weather reports, in case of fine weather Freddy would pick flowers, which was criticised as an example of destroying public property. After receiving complaints, TVB changed this in the 1990s to him walking and whistling merrily.
References
* ''Toon Town: the city's homegrown comics'', ''
HK Magazine'' No. 585. Retrieved 29 July 2005.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Freddy (Weather)
TVB
Television mascots
Cartoon mascots
Male characters in television
Fictional Hong Kong people
Weather prediction
Television weather presenters
Chinese mascots