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Kids' WB AI simulator
(@Kids' WB_simulator)
Hub AI
Kids' WB AI simulator
(@Kids' WB_simulator)
Kids' WB
Kids' WB (stylized as Kids' WB!) was an American children's programming block that originally aired on The WB from September 9, 1995, to September 16, 2006, and later on The CW from September 23, 2006, to May 17, 2008. Initially launched as a competitor to Fox Kids, Kids' WB aired primarily during the Saturday morning and weekday after-school time slots, although airtimes for the block's programming varied at the local affiliate's discretion.
In 1999, the block gained a major foothold in the children's television market when it acquired the rights to 4Kids Entertainment's English-dub of the Pokémon anime (which had previously been syndicated on Fox-affiliated stations the previous year), helping cement the anime as a pop culture phenomenon among American audiences. Other notable series during the block's WB run included Animaniacs (a Fox Kids carryover) and spinoff Pinky and the Brain (which began as a WB prime time series), Freakazoid!, The New Batman/Superman Adventures, Histeria!, Cardcaptors, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Jackie Chan Adventures, Static Shock, and Johnny Test.
The block moved to The CW (a result of the merger of Time Warner-owned The WB and CBS Corporation-owned UPN) upon its launch in September 2006. Following a nearly 13-year run on broadcast television, on May 24, 2008, Kids' WB was replaced by successor block The CW4Kids (later renamed Toonzai in 2010) under a time-lease agreement reached between The CW and 4Kids Entertainment to take over programming the network's Saturday morning timeslot. An online version of Kids' WB featuring episodes of popular series from the block operated from April 29, 2008, to May 17, 2015.
In July 1994, ahead of the launch of The WB, plans for Kids' WB were already being made, with a September 1995 launch. The network planned new episodes of Animaniacs, as well as reruns for the weekday blocks, and two all-new series: The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries and Freakazoid!. Animaniacs would continue on Fox for the entirety of the 1994–95 season. Long-term plans included the expansion of the Saturday block to four hours in 1996, while the weekday block would expand to two hours by 1996 or 1997. In February 1995, a further title from Warner Bros. Animation, the Animaniacs spin-off Pinky and the Brain, was announced for the block. The block had plans to surpass Fox Kids within a ten-year window.
The first announced series coming from a studio other than Warner Bros. Animation was Universal Cartoon Studios' Earthworm Jim, based on the video game series of the same name. During August 1995, it struck a deal with Kraft Foods for "watch-and-win" sweepstakes. On August 18, 1995, 30-second previews of The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries were released for AOL subscribers as a test run. A full website was expected for September.
Kids' WB launched in the United States on September 9, 1995, striving to compete against the dominance of Fox Kids at the time, and airing on Saturday mornings from 8:00 to 11:00 a.m. and Monday through Fridays from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. The block was structured to air in all time zones, airing on a tape delay outside of the Eastern Time Zone to adjust the recommended airtime of the block to each zone. However, during its first five years, an exact timeslot was not announced on-air, leaving viewers to check their local WB station listings; since the programs had different airtimes depending on the local WB affiliate schedule in the market. On September 7, 1996, the Saturday block was extended by one hour, airing from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
Simultaneously with the launch of the block, it also launched an online service which was initially available exclusively for AOL subscribers. Ratings for its first Saturday (its first day on air) had a share of 1.5%, ending in fourth place among the Saturday morning blocks, but the final figures were delayed due to some stations clearing Fox Kids on Saturdays, moving the Kids' WB block to Sundays.
Although Kids' WB aired on almost all of The WB's affiliated stations (including those later affiliated with The WB 100+ Station Group), the network's Chicago affiliate WGN-TV – owned by The WB's co-parent, the Tribune Company – declined to carry the weekday and Saturday blocks. Instead, it opted to air its weekday and Saturday morning newscasts (the first incarnation of the latter was canceled in 1998), and other locally-produced programming (such as The Bozo Super Sunday Show) in the morning hours, and syndicated programming in the afternoons. Kids' WB programming instead aired on Weigel Broadcasting-owned WCIU-TV. However, WGN's superstation feed carried the block from 1995 to 1999, making the network available to markets without a local affiliate. WGN-TV began clearing Kids' WB on its Chicago broadcast signal in 2004, taking over the local rights from WCIU-TV.
Kids' WB
Kids' WB (stylized as Kids' WB!) was an American children's programming block that originally aired on The WB from September 9, 1995, to September 16, 2006, and later on The CW from September 23, 2006, to May 17, 2008. Initially launched as a competitor to Fox Kids, Kids' WB aired primarily during the Saturday morning and weekday after-school time slots, although airtimes for the block's programming varied at the local affiliate's discretion.
In 1999, the block gained a major foothold in the children's television market when it acquired the rights to 4Kids Entertainment's English-dub of the Pokémon anime (which had previously been syndicated on Fox-affiliated stations the previous year), helping cement the anime as a pop culture phenomenon among American audiences. Other notable series during the block's WB run included Animaniacs (a Fox Kids carryover) and spinoff Pinky and the Brain (which began as a WB prime time series), Freakazoid!, The New Batman/Superman Adventures, Histeria!, Cardcaptors, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Jackie Chan Adventures, Static Shock, and Johnny Test.
The block moved to The CW (a result of the merger of Time Warner-owned The WB and CBS Corporation-owned UPN) upon its launch in September 2006. Following a nearly 13-year run on broadcast television, on May 24, 2008, Kids' WB was replaced by successor block The CW4Kids (later renamed Toonzai in 2010) under a time-lease agreement reached between The CW and 4Kids Entertainment to take over programming the network's Saturday morning timeslot. An online version of Kids' WB featuring episodes of popular series from the block operated from April 29, 2008, to May 17, 2015.
In July 1994, ahead of the launch of The WB, plans for Kids' WB were already being made, with a September 1995 launch. The network planned new episodes of Animaniacs, as well as reruns for the weekday blocks, and two all-new series: The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries and Freakazoid!. Animaniacs would continue on Fox for the entirety of the 1994–95 season. Long-term plans included the expansion of the Saturday block to four hours in 1996, while the weekday block would expand to two hours by 1996 or 1997. In February 1995, a further title from Warner Bros. Animation, the Animaniacs spin-off Pinky and the Brain, was announced for the block. The block had plans to surpass Fox Kids within a ten-year window.
The first announced series coming from a studio other than Warner Bros. Animation was Universal Cartoon Studios' Earthworm Jim, based on the video game series of the same name. During August 1995, it struck a deal with Kraft Foods for "watch-and-win" sweepstakes. On August 18, 1995, 30-second previews of The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries were released for AOL subscribers as a test run. A full website was expected for September.
Kids' WB launched in the United States on September 9, 1995, striving to compete against the dominance of Fox Kids at the time, and airing on Saturday mornings from 8:00 to 11:00 a.m. and Monday through Fridays from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. The block was structured to air in all time zones, airing on a tape delay outside of the Eastern Time Zone to adjust the recommended airtime of the block to each zone. However, during its first five years, an exact timeslot was not announced on-air, leaving viewers to check their local WB station listings; since the programs had different airtimes depending on the local WB affiliate schedule in the market. On September 7, 1996, the Saturday block was extended by one hour, airing from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
Simultaneously with the launch of the block, it also launched an online service which was initially available exclusively for AOL subscribers. Ratings for its first Saturday (its first day on air) had a share of 1.5%, ending in fourth place among the Saturday morning blocks, but the final figures were delayed due to some stations clearing Fox Kids on Saturdays, moving the Kids' WB block to Sundays.
Although Kids' WB aired on almost all of The WB's affiliated stations (including those later affiliated with The WB 100+ Station Group), the network's Chicago affiliate WGN-TV – owned by The WB's co-parent, the Tribune Company – declined to carry the weekday and Saturday blocks. Instead, it opted to air its weekday and Saturday morning newscasts (the first incarnation of the latter was canceled in 1998), and other locally-produced programming (such as The Bozo Super Sunday Show) in the morning hours, and syndicated programming in the afternoons. Kids' WB programming instead aired on Weigel Broadcasting-owned WCIU-TV. However, WGN's superstation feed carried the block from 1995 to 1999, making the network available to markets without a local affiliate. WGN-TV began clearing Kids' WB on its Chicago broadcast signal in 2004, taking over the local rights from WCIU-TV.