George Shrinks
Encyclopedia
George Shrinks is a Canadian animated television series. It is based on the children's book by William Joyce
, produced in China
by Jade Animation and in Canada
by Nelvana
, in association with Public Broadcasting Service
(PBS). It tells the story of a ten-year-old boy named George who, for unexplained reasons, is only three inches tall. The show details his adventures with his friends and family and riding in his "Zooper car", and other gadgets for his size.
The series started on September 30, 2000 on PBS Kids
as part of PBS Kids Bookworm Bunch
. The Bookworm Bunch disbanded in 2004, but George Shrinks was given an individual PBS debut on January 6, 2003. The first season consisted of forty episodes, targeted at children five years old and under. The final show aired in mid-2004, though it is still in syndication. However, it ended without a single rerun.
The original book version had a younger boy who awakes one morning to find himself tiny. He has an encounter with a cat, flies a miniature plane, sails in an ocean-sized tub, eats gigantic food,
and rides on top of his giant sized toddler brother before he abruptly grows back to normal size.
or a helicopter
. George often has interesting encounters with animals who, although they do not talk, seem to be able to communicate with George throughout the series. On one occasion, he encountered a robotic alien that was his own size, and helped it get back home.
The show affects a retro-1940s look, with simple animation and colors. Primarily jazz is used for background music, reflecting both his father's occupation as a musician who tinkers with inventing new musical instruments and his mother's style as an avant-garde artist. However, statements made in the characters' dialogue imply that events take place in the year 2000, or the year that the showing episode was produced and filmed.
The theme song, in a jump blues style, is sung by Canadian blues musician Colin James
.
William Joyce (writer)
William Joyce is an American author, illustrator, and filmmaker. Newsweek has called him one of the top 100 people to watch in the new millennium. His illustrations have appeared on numerous New Yorker covers and his paintings are displayed at national museums and art galleries. He lives with his...
, produced in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
by Jade Animation and in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
by Nelvana
Nelvana
Nelvana Limited is a Canadian entertainment company founded in 1971 known for its work in children's animation. It was named by founders Michael Hirsh, Patrick Loubert and Clive A. Smith after a Canadian comic book superheroine created by Adrian Dingle in the 1940s...
, in association with Public Broadcasting Service
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
(PBS). It tells the story of a ten-year-old boy named George who, for unexplained reasons, is only three inches tall. The show details his adventures with his friends and family and riding in his "Zooper car", and other gadgets for his size.
The series started on September 30, 2000 on PBS Kids
PBS Kids
PBS Kids is the brand for children's programming aired by the Public Broadcasting Service in the United States founded in 1993. As with all PBS programming, PBS Kids programming is non-commercial. It is aimed at children ages 2 to 10...
as part of PBS Kids Bookworm Bunch
PBS Kids Bookworm Bunch
PBS Kids Bookworm Bunch was a three-hour block of shows on PBS, produced by Canada's Nelvana animation studio.The block was typically shown on Saturday or Sunday mornings, depending on local station preference and scheduling. The various shows in Bookworm Bunch are based on then-popular children's...
. The Bookworm Bunch disbanded in 2004, but George Shrinks was given an individual PBS debut on January 6, 2003. The first season consisted of forty episodes, targeted at children five years old and under. The final show aired in mid-2004, though it is still in syndication. However, it ended without a single rerun.
The original book version had a younger boy who awakes one morning to find himself tiny. He has an encounter with a cat, flies a miniature plane, sails in an ocean-sized tub, eats gigantic food,
and rides on top of his giant sized toddler brother before he abruptly grows back to normal size.
Content
Because of George's tiny size, even mundane activities, such as working around the house or playing outside, often become dramatic adventures. His primary mode of transportation is his Zooper Car, a multi-purpose miniature vehicle he built with his father that can do things like transform into a submarineSubmarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
or a helicopter
Helicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
. George often has interesting encounters with animals who, although they do not talk, seem to be able to communicate with George throughout the series. On one occasion, he encountered a robotic alien that was his own size, and helped it get back home.
The show affects a retro-1940s look, with simple animation and colors. Primarily jazz is used for background music, reflecting both his father's occupation as a musician who tinkers with inventing new musical instruments and his mother's style as an avant-garde artist. However, statements made in the characters' dialogue imply that events take place in the year 2000, or the year that the showing episode was produced and filmed.
The theme song, in a jump blues style, is sung by Canadian blues musician Colin James
Colin James
Colin James is a Canadian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer, who plays in the blues, rock, and neo-swing genres. He grew up as a Quaker.-Early years:...
.
Characters
- George Shrinks — George, age ten, is the main character of the series. George wakes up from a dream to discover he his small-- "Based on William Joyce's book, George Shrinks is an animated series about a boy who wakes up and discovers he's the size of a mouse"-- from PBS kids website http://www.pbs.org/parents/tvprograms/program-georgeshrinks.html; his golden plated baby shoes were extremely tiny seen in "Round Up The Usual Insects". Because of his small stature, George has had to invent his own adaptive devicees, most notably the Zooper car (a small vehicle which George built with his father, and which can be automatically transformed into an airplane, a helicopter, or a submarine). Another invention is a system of pneumatic tubePneumatic tubePneumatic tubes are systems in which cylindrical containers are propelled through a network of tubes by compressed air or by partial vacuum...
s, which George also uses for transportation. He is voiced by Tracey MooreTracey MooreTracey Ann Moore in Calgary, Alberta) is a Canadian animated voice actress. She was the voice of Princess Toadstool in the two North American cartoon television series, The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World...
. - Junior Shrinks — George's baby brother, who often accompanies George in his adventures around the house. Junior is George's "sidekick" and "gopher", doing the tasks that are too difficult for George because of the latter's stature. However, his playfulness and his size sometimes leads to accidents, though Junior's sincere "Sowwy, George," always gets his brother to forgive him. He is voiced by Bryn McAuleyBryn McAuleyBryn McAuley, born in 1989, is a voice actress whose roles have included Caillou on the television series of the same name, Anne Shirley on "Anne of Green Gables: The Animated Series", Sam on Harry and His Bucket Full of Dinosaurs, Gina Lash on Angela Anaconda, Harriet on Franklin, Oyster on Toad...
. - Becky Lopez — George's best friend who lives next door. She and George go on many exploits and adventures. Becky is also the captain for a Little League ice hockey team called the Storks, whose terribly bad goal-scoring drought was the focus of one of the later episodes.
- "Mom" Perdita Shrinks — Mom is a freelance artist by trade who builds, sculpts and welds with a very abstract style. She is a member of the town's art committee, and is into organic foods. Mom is also very supportive of the projects that the family and kids work on, and she enjoys helping out in the community. She also used to be a rockette which George reveals his dad told him in "If It Ain't Broke" episode. She is voiced by Kathleen LaskeyKathleen LaskeyKathleen Laskey, sometimes credited as Kathy Laskey, is a Canadian actress, primarily associated with television roles. Her credits include roles in Check it Out!, Being Erica, Street Legal, George Shrinks, Blue Murder, Yin Yang Yo!, Wayside, Weird Years, At the Hotel and The Eleventh...
. - "Dad" Harold Shrinks — Dad is a musician in a jazz band, and he is constantly building and trying out new instruments (most of which resemble oversized and distorted tubaTubaThe tuba is the largest and lowest-pitched brass instrument. Sound is produced by vibrating or "buzzing" the lips into a large cupped mouthpiece. It is one of the most recent additions to the modern symphony orchestra, first appearing in the mid-19th century, when it largely replaced the...
s and saxophoneSaxophoneThe saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
s) in the search for the "perfect sound". Dad is a bit eccentric, but still loves his family and is a good father. He is voiced by Paul O'SullivanPaul O'SullivanPaul Thomas O'Sullivan, AO is Australia's High Commissioner to New Zealand and former Director-General of Security. Prior to his appointment to head ASIO in July 2005, O'Sullivan was former Prime Minister John Howard's senior foreign affairs advisor.O'Sullivan attended Marcellin College, Randwick,...
.
Other, minor and one-time characters
- Timmy and Jimmy Fortevoce— Timmy and Jimmy are identical twins, members of Becky's hockey team—Jimmy plays center and Timmy plays defense. Despite appearing in just two episodes, they still play an important role as supporting members of the cast. In Italian, their last name literally means "Loud Voice".
- Aunt Eunice— Aunt Eunice is George and Junior's great aunt (but whom the entire family calls 'aunt'), who sometimes serves as their babysitter. The first time she watched the boys, she was very patronizing toward George, treating him as though his size were a handicap and "assisting" him at every turn. However, Aunt Eunice's ways are changed when George fixes her prized plant, a BonsaiBonsaiis a Japanese art form using miniature trees grown in containers. Similar practices exist in other cultures, including the Chinese tradition of penjing from which the art originated, and the miniature living landscapes of Vietnamese hòn non bộ...
tree named "Maurice", which has seemingly been damaged beyond repair. In "Return To Sender", she expresses complete confidence in that George will handle himself just fine when he was mailed to various locations across the planet, and that he can mail his way back home safely. She has travelled around the world; as such, she knows a great deal about different places as well as people. The boys' mother Perdita is Eunice's niece.
- Ellen— Ellen is a kindhearted girl next door with a Chinese nationality. Despite only appearing in three episodes, Ellen plays a major role in two of them. Ellen is a fan of old horror movies and enjoys playing harmless practical jokes. She has an older brother, Matt, who is the owner of an anole lizard named Ting-Ting (which, as Ellen describes, is literally Chinese for "Gracefully Graceful"). She is left-handed and a member of the Storks, Becky's hockey team, as a forward on the left wing.
- Hilda and Henry— Hilda and Henry are two blond-haired, glasses wearing fraternal twins. They say almost everything in unison and only appear in two episodes. They enjoy playing tricks on one another, such as during a scary movies night at the Shrinks' residence. They are somewhat competitive, but are good friends with George and Becky.
- Helga— Helga is the goaltender for the Storks, a Little League Hockey Team that is the focus of the episode "Coach Shrinks". This episode is her only appearance, in which she plays a major role. She usually wears glasses, except on the ice because the lenses fog up.
- Lizzy — Lizzy is the right-wing forward for the Storks, Becky's little League Hockey Team. She's skilled at turning on the spot because of her previous experience figure skating; she joined a hockey team because she felt figure skating was lonely and wanted to join a team.
- Russell Copeland— Russell is a kindhearted senior that used to live in George's house as a boy. He is also a retired veterinarianVeterinarianA veterinary physician, colloquially called a vet, shortened from veterinarian or veterinary surgeon , is a professional who treats disease, disorder and injury in animals....
.
- The Cadwells— Seen only in the episode "Speed Shrinks", they are two twins similar to Hilda and Henry, but they are somewhat villainous. They build a craft similar to the SR-71 BlackbirdSR-71 BlackbirdThe Lockheed SR-71 "Blackbird" was an advanced, long-range, Mach 3+ strategic reconnaissance aircraft. It was developed as a black project from the Lockheed A-12 reconnaissance aircraft in the 1960s by the Lockheed Skunk Works. Clarence "Kelly" Johnson was responsible for many of the...
and use its special features to sabotage and unfairly halt the other racers in order to win. - Skyler— George and Junior's cousin once removed. Seen only in Toy George.
Episode guide
| 3 | If I Ran The Circus - October 14, 2000 | The circus Circus A circus is commonly a travelling company of performers that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, unicyclists and other stunt-oriented artists... is in town, and the Shrinks family is all excited about going. But everyone's plans are threatened when a surprise attack of chicken pox hits Junior. |
| 4 | Coach Shrinks - October 21, 2000 | George makes an effort to help Becky's struggling hockey team (which hasn't scored all season) to score a goal.
|
| 5 | Becky In Wonderland - October 28, 2000 | George and Becky read Alice in Wonderland, and are transported into a fantasy world of caterpillars, rabbits, and creatures.
|
| 6 | George Unshrinks - November 5, 2000 | When George, Dad, and Junior all have dreams about being different sizes, they find out that staying their original size would have prevented a lot more problems.
|
| 7 | Migrate-est Adventure - November 12, 2000 | After a monarch butterfly emerges from its cocoon in George's room, George and his family track a butterfly on its migration route with a scientist. |
| 8 | Toy George - November 19, 2000 | George puts on a school play of Pinocchio, featuring Junior and their first cousin once removed, Skyler. |
| 9 | Lost and Found Art - November 26, 2000 | After George and Becky carelessly lose Mom's found art Found art The term found art—more commonly found object or readymade—describes art created from undisguised, but often modified, objects that are not normally considered art, often because they already have a non-art function... sculpture, they set out to recover all of the pieces before they are recycled and permanently lost. |
| 10 | If It Ain't Broke - December 3, 2000 | George and Junior sneak an illegal peek at Mom's surprise birthday sculpture for Dad (something she told them not to do), and get more trouble than they bargained for.
|
| 11 | Ghost of Shrinks Manor - December 10, 2000 | After Dad tells a spooky ghost story, George and Becky are so convinced that there is a ghost in the Shrinks House that they forget to think about a logical explanation for the spooky goings on at night. |
| 12 | Can We Keep Him? - December 17, 2000 | George nurses a mouse with an injured leg back to health, but not without upsetting Junior, who feels that the mouse has taken away all of George's attention. |
| 13 | Journey to the Center of the Garden - December 24, 2000 | George and Becky's bean project is going AWOL, so George sets out to find out what could be causing the trouble. |
| 14 | Close Encounters of The Bird Kind - December 31, 2000 | George meets a new kid on the block named Becky, and helps a little bird learn to fly.
|
| 15 | Dog Sitting Miss Daisy - January 7, 2001 | George is planning a surprise birthday party for Becky... but her present (a little dog) keeps messing things up. |
| 16 | Ants In The Pantry - January 14, 2001 | An army of ants threatens to attack the family's picnic and George tries to stop them by himself. |
| 17 | Return To Sender - January 21, 2001 | When George gets trapped in a mail parcel headed to Nigeria, he ends up going all around the world in a strange turn of events. |
| 18 | Round Up The Usual Insects - January 28, 2001 | George and Becky carry out another science project about bugs, but when Junior releases them all, the pair need to round them up before Mom's party is ruined. |
| 19 | The More Things Change - February 29, 2001 | George and Becky find half of a treasure map belong to Russell Copeland and the trio set out with Russell's friend Edna (who has the other half) to find their buried treasure, though not without some friction between some old friends. |
| 20 | From Bad To Worse - March 24, 2001 | When Aunt Eunice is left to babysit George and Junior, George sets out to prove he can do all the things a regular ten year old boy can do, but not without various mishaps. |
| 21 | George-Lo-Phone - April 4, 2001 | When George is rejected by the school's band because he is too small to play the piano, George and Dad resolve to create a one-of-a-kind musical instrument to prove everyone otherwise. |
| 22 | Sunken Treasures - April 11, 2001 | George and Becky find a hidden room in the attic belonging to a boy named Russell, who lived in the house 70 years ago, and after reading his journal, use George's Zoopersub to recover a lost toy.
|
| 23 | Down On The Bayou - May 15, 2001 | The Shrinks family take their annual camping trip, and this year, George inherits his father's special compass. |
| 24 | Snowman's Land - June 21, 2001 | After a huge snowfall, everyone is having fun but a disappointed Becky, who has the measles Measles Measles, also known as rubeola or morbilli, is an infection of the respiratory system caused by a virus, specifically a paramyxovirus of the genus Morbillivirus. Morbilliviruses, like other paramyxoviruses, are enveloped, single-stranded, negative-sense RNA viruses... and won't be able to make her annual snowman from the first snowfall. George decides to make one for her, but risks being lost in a terrible blizzard. |
| 25 | A Star Is Shrunk - June 24, 2001 | Mom, Dad, and Aunt Eunice all get small parts in a movie being filmed in town, but George becomes the real star when he gets to stand in the for the hero of the movie. |
| 26 | Monster Mash - July 13, 2001 | A new neighbor proves that everyone's negative first impression of her was wrong with her clever contributions to George and company's annual Monster Movie Marathon. |
| 27 | In the Duck Soup - July 29, 2001 | When Junior's beloved toy duck "Wiggy" is broken, George and Junior take it to a local toy inventor to fix it. The duck is saved, but not safe unless George can stop a legion of flawed toy robots from wrecking Junior's duck. |
| 28 | George's Apprentice - August 17, 2001 | George manages to get his parents to buy him a new cool robot, but the toy proves to be more troublesome than he anticipates. |
| 29 | The Lost World of George Shrinks - August 31, 2001 | George and Ellen release Ting-Ting, Ellen's older brother's lizard, when they aren't supposed to and must track it down to the local zoo while learning about following instructions. |
| 30 | Tankful of Trouble - September 15, 2001 | George and Becky planned to raise a frog for a science project, but things get out of hand when they end up with a bunch of frog eggs and far too many baby frogs. |
| 31 | Zoopercar Caper - September 24, 2001 | A pair of toymakers, stumped for new ideas, find out about the Zooper Car. In order to please their hard-to-please boss, they decide to acquire it from George by hook or crook.
|
| 32 | All Along the Clocktower - October 15, 2001 | For the town's big anniversary, everyone decides to fix up town hall and the broken clocktower attached, despite rumours that the clocktower is cursed. |
| 33 | Down the Drain - November 1, 2001 | George promises to keep a ring well hidden and safe that Dad plans to give Mom for their anniversary, but ends up going through the house's drainage system when the ring accidentally falls into the sink drain. |
| 34 | Return of the Space Invaders - November 6, 2001 | George, Junior, and Aunt Eunice end up meeting Manigishi (Manny for short), a space alien who appears to be of the same kind as George met earlier. She needs their help repairing her crashed spaceship. She needs it too; an upcoming meteor shower will make it impossible to get back home. |
| 35 | A Day at the Beach November 11, 2001 | George and Junior are excited about taking a trip to the beach, even though Mom is suffering from artist's block near a deadline and Dad needs to come up with a new tune soon. |
| 36 | Small of the Wild November 16, 2001 | George and Becky prepare for the worst and attempt to save a yard full of animals when a bad winter storm comes around. |
| 37 | King Kongo - November 21, 2001 | Junior, who's supposed to be starring in George and Becky's monster movie, is more interested in eating cookies than in acting. They decide to find a replacement right in their backyard a monkey who has escaped from the circus, but things get a little crazy when their new star crashes the arts fund-raiser which Mom and Dad are hosting. |
| 38 | Speed Shrinks - November 26, 2001 | George and Becky enter a model car race, but need to watch out for competitors who aren't beyond winning if it means cheating. |
| 39 | George vs. the Space Invaders - November 30, 2001 | Too much pepperoni pizza and scary movies, along with Dad's new musical instrument, have George on edge, especially when real space aliens drop by for a visit and George can't convince anyone he isn't just imagining things.
|
| 40 | Hound of the Bathervilles - December 1, 2001 | To raise money and awareness for a local animal shelter, George and Becky set up a pet-wash-a-matic, but finds things turning upside down when a stray dog turns out to be someone's cherished pet.
|
PBS funding
- Juicy JuiceJuicy JuiceJuicy Juice is a brand of juices and juice concentrates geared toward children and sold in the United States by Nestlé using the slogan "The very best juice for the very best kids." Prior to March 2006, it was known as Libby's Juicy Juice and was formerly owned by the Libby's Canned Food Company,...
(2000–2004) - Barnes and Noble (2000–2003)
- HasbroHasbroHasbro is a multinational toy and boardgame company from the United States of America. It is one of the largest toy makers in the world. The corporate headquarters is located in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, United States...
(2000–2003) - "Viewers Like You" (2003–2004)
External links
- George Shrinks Episode Guide at Big Cartoon DataBase