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''JoJo's Circus'' is a stop-motion
animated television series An animated series, or a cartoon series, is a set of Animation, animated films with a common title, usually related to one another. These episodes typically share the same main heroes, some different secondary characters and a basic theme. Series ...
created by Jim Jinkins, David Campbell, Lisa Jinkins, and Eric Weiner and produced by the Canada-based
Cuppa Coffee Studios Cuppa Coffee Studios (formerly known as Cuppa Coffee Animation) is a Canadian production company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Cuppa Coffee was founded by Adam Shaheen and Bruce Alcock in 1992. It specializes in both stop-motion animation ...
and Cartoon Pizza. The series was written by Douglas Wood, who previously worked for ''
Tiny Toon Adventures ''Tiny Toon Adventures'' is an American animated television series created by Tom Ruegger and produced by Warner Bros. Animation. It originally aired from September 14, 1990 to December 6, 1992, airing in syndication before eventually settling a ...
'' and ''
Animaniacs ''Animaniacs'' is an American Animated series, animated Comedy television, comedy Musical film, musical television series created by Tom Ruegger and produced by Warner Bros. Television Animation. It originally aired on Fox Broadcasting Company ...
'' as a creative executive. The series' songs were composed by Jeffrey Zahn and Jim Latham, with lyrics done by Judy Rothman. The theme song was performed by BECKY. The series ran on
Disney Channel Disney Channel is an American pay television television channel, channel that serves as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney Entertainment business segment of the Walt Disney Company ...
as part of the
Playhouse Disney Playhouse Disney was a brand of programming blocks and international cable and satellite television channels that were owned by the Disney Channels Worldwide unit (now Disney Branded Television) of The Walt Disney Company's Disney–ABC Tele ...
block from September 28, 2003 to February 14, 2007 with reruns until 2008.


Plot

The series that takes place in a fantasy Circus Town, a self-sufficient city whose cultural center is the "Big Top" tent. The story centers on JoJo Tickle, an active 6-year-old clown girl, and Goliath, JoJo's pet
lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'', native to Sub-Saharan Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body (biology), body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the ...
. She and Goliath learned at the Little Big Top Circus School, where all young soon-to-be circus performers learn under their teacher Mrs. Kersplatski. Alongside her friends, JoJo discovers and learns while dealing with challenging situations.


Format

''JoJo's Circus'' depends on repetition in its structure. Each segment always begins with JoJo searching for Goliath, who is always hiding. JoJo then is introduced with the situation that will occupy the theme of the show. A song, usually about the resolution of the situation, is then performed by JoJo. At the conclusion of each episode, a supporting character asks, "What did you learn today, JoJo?", and before she can reply, JoJo is taken away for the last segment, the "spotlight moment". JoJo is then placed on a makeshift stage with various cameramen, lighting grips, and producers running about, while the "Spotlight Moment" song plays, asking what she's learned, is sung and JoJo taps her foot along (in some episodes she also taps her hand on her leg). Subsequently, JoJo says what she has learned in the course of the episode.


Characters

The show's voice directors are Kent Meridith (United States) and Debra Toffan (Canada).


Main

* JoJo Tickle (voiced by Madeleine Martin) is a very cheerful 6-year-old clown girl whose parents are famous circus clowns and the hostess of the show. She's very kindhearted, has a great sense of humor and boundless curiosity; she loves to clown around. Quite often, she talks to the audience. JoJo attends Clown School with various friends, including her best friend Skeebo Seltzer. They are taught by Mrs. Kersplatski. * Goliath (voiced by Robert Norman Smith and Alan Ford) is JoJo's 4-year-old pet
lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'', native to Sub-Saharan Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body (biology), body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the ...
who attends school just like JoJo and the show's co-host. He's also part of the Tickle family. Because of his great playfulness, he hides a lot from JoJo in the beginning of each episode. He is JoJo's best friend. * Skeebo Seltzer/Funnyshoes (voiced by Austin Di Iulio in Season 1 and Keeler Sandhaus in Seasons 2 & 3) is a class cowboy clown who is also JoJo's closest best friend, just like Goliath, and attends school with her and the other circus kids. Skeebo's very eager to make people laugh a lot by making new jokes, gags and tricks that sometimes fall flat. Since "Skeebo's Pet", he has a pet dog named Harpo. * Croaky Frogini (voiced by Diana Peressini) is the great leaper of the group. She met JoJo on the first day of school when she realized she had different abilities and agreed to help each other learn different tricks. * Trina Tightrope (voiced by
Tajja Isen Tajja Isen is a Canadian writer, editor, and actress. Her first book, the essay collection Some of My Best Friends: Essays on Lip Service, was published in April 2022. As an actress, she is best known for voicing the title character '' Atomic Be ...
) is a ballet dancing tightrope walker and a fellow classmate of the Circus Clown School. She comes across as abrupt and snobbish on some reason, but apologizes for her mistakes when she becomes aware of them. She has a pet cat named Caterina. * Mr. Tickle (voiced by David Sparrow in Season 1 and Noah Weisberg in Seasons 2 & 3) is JoJo's father, Peaches' husband, Lotta Yucks' grandson-in-law, Granny and Grampy's son-in-law and Uncle Flippy's brother-in-law. He is a very jolly clown who often blasts off in a cannon and whose first name is never mentioned. * Peaches Tickle (voiced by Marnie McPhail in Seasons 1 & 2 and Shannon Perreault in Season 3) is JoJo's mother, Mr. Tickle's wife, Lotta Yucks' granddaughter, Granny and Grampy's daughter and Uncle Flippy's sister. She is a very tall, skinny clown who is full of lots of sunshine and often makes goodies for her family and Circus Town residents. She is a klutzy ilk, but a very good juggler and sometimes catches 15 objects in the air when she accidentally trips. * Mrs. Karen Kersplatski (voiced by Jayne Eastwood) is JoJo's teacher and the ringmistress of the Big Top. A warm and encouraging teacher with glasses, Mrs. Kersplatski gives the circus kids a strong sense of mastery and confidence, with her combination of hard work and play. Often she has a tendency to be rather clumsy and often says, "I'm okay!" after tripping up. In the special "A Circus Town Wedding", she marries Mr. Muscles and becomes Maya's stepmother.


Supporting

* Dinky Pachyderm (voiced by Julie Lemieux) is a very sweet and frisky young baby
elephant Elephants are the largest living land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant ('' Loxodonta africana''), the African forest elephant (''L. cyclotis''), and the Asian elephant ('' Elephas maximus ...
and a fellow classmate of JoJo. While Dinky may be a bit clumsy and somewhat oafish, when he dances, he turns into "Mr. Graceful". Hide and seek is his personal favorite game. * Tater Spudinski (voiced by Cole Caplan) is one of the two children in the Spudinski group. His sleepy potato kind seems to be the antithesis to the "get up and go" feel of the show, but sometimes he just can't help but join in the fun. In the second season, he has a younger sister named Small Fry. * Bal Boa (voiced by Julie Lemieux) is a sneaky contortionist
snake Snakes are elongated limbless reptiles of the suborder Serpentes (). Cladistically squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales much like other members of the group. Many species of snakes have s ...
with a talent for making number and letter shapes. Bal Boa also has a knack for troublemaking. He thinks it's fun to coax JoJo and others into doing what they are not supposed to do, and the children are sometimes susceptible to Bal Boa's charms. Bal Boa is also an expert on harvesting squirting flowers by doing a trance dance. * Fellini (voiced by Neil Crone) and Federico Frogini (voiced by John Stocker) are the two
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
-accented brothers are expert jumpers and
trapeze artist A trapeze is a short horizontal bar hung by ropes, metal straps, or chains, from a ceiling support. It is an aerial apparatus commonly found in circus performances. Trapeze acts may be static, spinning (rigged from a single point), swinging or ...
s. Fellini and Federico are uncle and father, respectively, to Croaky. They are also called the Flying Froginis. * Mr. Aldeberto Muscles (voiced by
Mark Consuelos Mark Andrew Consuelos (; born March 30, 1971) is an American actor and talk show host. He rose to prominence as a television actor on the ABC soap opera ''All My Children'' for his portrayal of Mateo Santos (1995–2002, 2010), and subsequently ...
in Season 1 and Erik Estrada in Seasons 2 & 3) is the circus strongman and a physical education instructor. He knows a lot of different exercises that he teaches to those in Circus Town. He has a daughter named Maya and recently married Mrs. Kersplatski, but it's unknown whether he was divorced or widowed by Maya's mother. He is in dual language and also speaks in both English and Spanish. * Maya Muscles (voiced by Phoebe McAuley) is the daughter of Mr. Muscles and stepdaughter of Mrs. Kersplatski. Maya can be rather shy at times, but she loves to get up and go. She is known by her nickname "Little Mouse" by her father and her favorite "happy place" is a daisy patch.


Other

* Dr. Seltzer/Funnyshoes (voiced by Kathy Greenwood) is Skeebo's mother. She is Circus Town's only doctor and Fire Chief Seltzer's wife. Though she's not in many episodes and only makes cameos in some episodes, her most notable appearances are in the episodes, "A Serious Case of the Sillies", and "Tickled Pink". * Fire Chief Seltzer/Chief Funnyshoes, also known as Seltzy, (voiced by Patrick McKenna), is Skeebo's father. He is the chief of the local fire department in Circus Town and Dr. Seltzer's husband. He is also the director of the Circus Town Clown Band. * Mr. (voiced by Bruce Bayley Johnson) and Mrs. Spudinski (voiced by Julie Lemieux) are Tater's parents, who have the same sleepy nature as he does. It's revealed in "The Thanksgiving Hip-Hooray Parade" episode that Tater calls his father "Daddy Spud", and in "Circus Town Makeover" Mrs. Spudinski's name is revealed as Ida and Mr. Spudinski's name is revealed as Russ. * Small Fry Spudinski (voiced by Julie Lemieux) is Tater's baby sister and one of the two children in the Spudinski clan. * Mrs. Pachyderm (voiced by Judy Marshak) is Dinky's mother. She has also been referred to as Mrs. Elephant. * Babalulu (voiced by Kathy Brier) is Circus Town's pretzel vendor and ice cream shop owner. JoJo and her friends sometimes visit her at the ice cream parlor for a treat. JoJo and her friends taught Babalulu how to make pretzel twists in the episode "A New Twist". * Lotta Yucks is JoJo's great-grandmother, Peaches' grandmother, Mr. Tickle's grandmother-in-law, Granny's mother and Grampy's mother-in-law. She was a famous circus performer doing tightrope and comical pratfall acts. * Jumberto (voiced by Jonathan Potts) is a jackrabbit magician whose tricks rarely work. * Jig, Jag, and Jug (all voiced by Sunday Muse) are the three mischievous nephews of Jumberto. * Terrific (voiced by Ed Saheley) is a famous tiger tamer in Circus Town. He has a
tiger The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is a large Felidae, cat and a member of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Asia. It has a powerful, muscular body with a large head and paws, a long tail and orange fur with black, mostly vertical stripes. It is ...
named Tippoo. * Uncle Flippy (voiced by Tony Daniels) is a
farmer A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising field crops, orchards, vineyards, poultry, or other livestock. A farmer ...
, JoJo's maternal uncle, Peaches' brother, Mr. Tickle's brother-in-law, Granny and Grampy's son. Uncle Flippy owns a farm on the outskirts of Circus Town. On the episode entitled "Uncle Flippy's Funny Farm", JoJo and her classmates help Uncle Flippy round up all the animals who escaped from the barn. Strangely, he has a pet tiger and two horses named Moe and Costello. * Super Duper Girl is JoJo's favorite TV superhero clown whose motto is "Morning, Noon or Night I Always Do What's Right!" while fighting "Big Meanies" who "Pick on" others. * Baloney Balloony (voiced by Darren Frost) is known for making balloon animals. Baloney Balloony can make any animal-shaped balloons with his hands. He has a grandson named Bailey. * Cotton Andy (voiced by Paul Soles) is a cotton candy vendor who own a cotton candy machine named "Whoopsabelle" and also officiated as Justice of the Peace for the marriage of Mrs. Kersplatski and Mr. Muscles in the wedding episode "A Circus Town Wedding". * Bingo Bongo is the world's greatest traveling clown who travels via hot air balloon. * Charlie the Clown Baby is one of JoJo's cousins who the Tickles sometimes babysit. He is the son of Peaches' sister. * Grampy Tickle (voiced by Keith Knight), Young Grampy Tully (voiced by Joshua Isen) and Granny Tickle (voiced by Kate Gallant) are JoJo's maternal grandparents, Peaches' parents, Mr. Tickle's parents-in-law, Lotta Yucks' son-in-law and daughter. Tully and Sadie Tickle were experts on clowning way before JoJo was born. Their famous act is the "Silly Shoe Shuffle", in which Granny Tickle passed the act to both JoJo and Goliath. * Terra Cotta (voiced by Kristen Bone) is a young clown girl who wears an oversize flowerpot for a hat, and she bought JoJo's silly skates in the "Too Many Toys" episode. * Mrs. Cotta is Terra Cotta's mom who wears a planter for a hat. * Mr. Postman is an
octopus An octopus (: octopuses or octopodes) is a soft-bodied, eight-limbed mollusc of the order Octopoda (, ). The order consists of some 300 species and is grouped within the class Cephalopoda with squids, cuttlefish, and nautiloids. Like oth ...
/ polyp who is the Mail Carrier for Circus Town. * Mrs. Boa is Bal Boa's mother. * Hogan the
Hamster Hamsters are rodents (order Rodentia) belonging to the subfamily Cricetinae, which contains 19 species classified in seven genera. They have become established as popular small pets. The best-known species of hamster is the golden or Syrian ...
is one of the class pets who live at the Little Big Top Clown School. * Cha Cha the Clown
Crab Crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura (meaning "short tailed" in Greek language, Greek), which typically have a very short projecting tail-like abdomen#Arthropoda, abdomen, usually hidden entirely under the Thorax (arthropo ...
is one of the class pets from the Little Big Top Clown School who JoJo takes care of for the night. * The Fire Clowns are the firefighting crew at the Circus Town firehouse under the command of Fire Chief Seltzer who carry JoJo off at the end of each episode and help build the makeshift stage for JoJo's "spotlight moment". They're also the resident orchestra for Circus Town's Big Top. * King Regis ( Aiden Turner) and Queen Regina: JoJo's Royal Uncle (and brother of Mr. Tickle) and Aunt from Really Royal Land who are the Parents of Princess Josephina. * Princess Josephina (voiced by
Tajja Isen Tajja Isen is a Canadian writer, editor, and actress. Her first book, the essay collection Some of My Best Friends: Essays on Lip Service, was published in April 2022. As an actress, she is best known for voicing the title character '' Atomic Be ...
) is JoJo's similar-looking royal cousin who lives in Really Royal Land. She has a pet lion named Hercules who looks just like Goliath. She and JoJo decide that it would be fun to trade places. * Jibby Jabby-Jamboree, also known as Jibbs, is the
butler A butler is a person who works in a house serving and is a domestic worker in a large household. In great houses, the household is sometimes divided into departments, with the butler in charge of the dining room, wine cellar, and pantries, pantr ...
who serves the Royal Family of Really Royal Land. * Miss Blathers is Princess Josephina's personal tutor on etiquette. * Bailey Balloon (voiced by Matthew Josten) is Baloney Ballooney's grandson. Bailey Ballooney normally attends Small Top Hills School and only visited JoJo's class on
Valentine's Day Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is celebrated annually on February 14. It originated as a Christian feast day honoring a Christian martyrs, martyr named Saint Valentine, Valentine, and ...
. JoJo comes up with a special way to make him a valentine in the episode "My Clowny Valentine". * Mr. Jing-a-Ling is the telephone at Fire Chief Seltzer's firehouse where Fire Chief Selzer receives their emergency calls. * Waldo is a
sea lion Sea lions are pinnipeds characterized by external ear flaps, long foreflippers, the ability to walk on all fours, short and thick hair, and a big chest and belly. Together with the fur seals, they make up the family Otariidae, eared seals. ...
who suffered from memory loss who JoJo helps to remember a musical piece before a major performance. * Ivan is a famous circus
bear Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family (biology), family Ursidae (). They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats ...
from Circusylvania who only speaks Circusylvanian. * Franco the Fantastic is a lion who is known as "The King of the Jungle" and "The Greatest Circus Lion of All Times". * Alex is Skeebo's cousin who is deaf and only speaks in sign language. * Mr. and Mrs. Tightrope are Trina's parents who are slightly uppity and snooty, but very loving and kind. * T.J. Freckles/ T.J. Hiccups is Skeebo's
Ventriloquist Ventriloquism or ventriloquy is an act of stagecraft in which a person (a ventriloquist) speaks in such a way that it seems like their voice is coming from a different location, usually through a puppet known as a "dummy". The act of ventrilo ...
puppet in which Skeebo uses in his act. * Dr. Longtall is the
veterinarian A veterinarian (vet) or veterinary surgeon is a medical professional who practices veterinary medicine. They manage a wide range of health conditions and injuries in non-human animals. Along with this, veterinarians also play a role in animal r ...
who takes care of Goliath and the other sick animals at Circus Town. * Miss Spritzy is the hairstylist who works at the Circus Town Hair Salon. * Chico the Mouse is the ringmaster of the Mouse Circus. * Grasshopper the Magnificent is the tightrope walker of the Mouse Circus. * Sasharoo is the wild animal trainer in the Mouse Circus who trains with a
chipmunk Chipmunks are small, striped rodents of subtribe Tamiina. Chipmunks are found in North America, with the exception of the Siberian chipmunk which is found primarily in Asia. Taxonomy and systematics Chipmunks are classified as four genera: '' ...
. * Professor Tick Tock is the watcher of the
cuckoo Cuckoos are birds in the Cuculidae ( ) family, the sole taxon in the order Cuculiformes ( ). The cuckoo family includes the common or European cuckoo, roadrunners, koels, malkohas, couas, coucals, and anis. The coucals and anis are somet ...
s of the Cuckoo Forest and provider of the cuckoo clocks for Circus Town. * The Cricketeers (Hector, Gracie, and Cody) are a musical group formed of a family of
cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...
s who comes to perform at Circus Town. Hector is the leader and his wife is Gracie and his son is Cody. Goliath has a crush with Gracie. * Nosey Josie is the
reporter A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...
for the Circus Town News Network who has a nose for news. * Jumping Jack is the host of Circus Town Makeover and exercise/fitness guru. * The citizens of Sky Top are the villagers who live in the village of Sky Top who at once thought that Normus the Giant was a mean giant who once destroyed their village, but discovered that Normus was actually very friendly. * Normus (voiced by Al Roker) is a very friendly
giant In folklore, giants (from Ancient Greek: ''wiktionary:gigas, gigas'', cognate wiktionary:giga-, giga-) are beings of humanoid appearance, but are at times prodigious in size and strength or bear an otherwise notable appearance. The word ''gia ...
who lives on top of the beanstalk who due to a misunderstanding by the townsfolk of the beanstalk village of Sky Top thought he was a mean giant who almost destroyed the town and had a slight fear of clowns. * Cozy is Normus' pet chipmunk.


Development and concept

The show emphasizes simple, everyday lessons such as playing with others, detecting the sequence, personal hygiene, responsibility, and safety. Also, foremost is the show's emphasis on
exercise Exercise or workout is physical activity that enhances or maintains fitness and overall health. It is performed for various reasons, including weight loss or maintenance, to aid growth and improve strength, develop muscles and the cardio ...
: JoJo often asks for audience participation (such as clapping, jumping, and stretching) for the viewers. The series is animated in
claymation Claymation, sometimes called clay animation or plasticine animation, is one of many forms of stop-motion animation. Each animated piece, either character or background, is "deformable"—made of a malleable substance, usually plasticine cl ...
, which is a serious departure to Jinkin's past animated works. Characters JoJo and her pet lion, Goliath, returned in a yoga-style interstitial called '' Feeling Good with JoJo''.


Episodes


Series overview


Season 1 (2003–04)


Season 2 (2004–06)


Season 3 (2006–07)


''Feeling Good with JoJo''

''Feeling Good with JoJo'' is a series of five-minute shorts that were a spin-off of ''JoJo's Circus''. The series featured JoJo Tickle and her pet lion Goliath teaching the viewers yoga lessons. Sometimes one of the show's characters were involved. In the intro, JoJo would stand in front of the stage, spin around and magically have her hair tied up in a bun while wearing a yellow shirt with a clown on it. The shorts run from February 24, 2006 to May 16, 2008, spanning 2 seasons with a total of 20 episodes.


Episodes

* Snakes * Bears * Windshield Wipers * Reach for the Sun Stretch * Clown Shoe Stretch


See also

* '' PB&J Otter'' * ''
Allegra's Window ''Allegra's Window'' is an American musical children's television series that aired on Nickelodeon during its Nick Jr. block from October 24, 1994, to December 8, 1996, with reruns being shown until February 5, 1999; it was later shown on Nogg ...
'' * ''
Stanley Stanley may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Stanley'' (1972 film), an American horror film * ''Stanley'' (1984 film), an Australian comedy * ''Stanley'' (1999 film), an animated short * ''Stanley'' (1956 TV series) ...
'' * '' Higglytown Heroes'' * '' Pinky Dinky Doo''


References


External links

* * {{Cuppa Coffee Studios 2000s preschool education television series 2000s American animated television series 2000s American children's comedy television series 2003 American animated television series debuts 2007 American television series endings 2000s Canadian animated television series 2000s Canadian children's television series 2003 Canadian television series debuts 2007 Canadian television series endings American children's animated comedy television series American children's animated fantasy television series American children's animated musical television series American preschool education television series Canadian children's animated comedy television series Canadian children's animated fantasy television series Canadian children's animated musical television series Canadian preschool education television series American English-language television shows Disney Jr. original programming Animated television series about children Animated television series about lions American stop-motion animated television series Canadian stop-motion animated television series Television series by Disney Television series by Cuppa Coffee Studios Disney animated television series Television shows set in circuses Television series created by Jim Jinkins Television shows about clowns Animated preschool education television series