Kid 'n Play (TV series)
Kid 'n Play is a 1990 animated cartoon series based on the real life hip-hop duo, Kid 'n Play.[1][2] It ran for one season on NBC from September 8 to December 8, 1990. On the show, Kid 'n Play were portrayed as teenagers, but their recording careers remained the same as in real life, as did their character traits. Production was by Marvel Productions and Saban Entertainment.
Kid 'n Play | |
---|---|
Starring | Christopher Reid Christopher Martin |
Voices of | J. D. Hall Brian Stokes Mitchell |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language(s) | English |
No. of seasons | 1 |
No. of episodes | 13 (list of episodes) |
Production | |
Executive producer(s) | Winston Richard Ellen Levy Maynell Thomas Joe Taritero |
Production company(s) | Marvel Productions Saban Entertainment |
Distributor | Saban International |
Release | |
Original network | NBC |
Original release | September 8 – December 8, 1990 |
The real Kid 'n Play appeared in live-action wraparounds of the cartoons, but voice actors took over for the animated versions of the duo.[3] The show stressed positive role models, teaching children how to get along with each other and stay out of trouble. Akin to the House Party films, Play was the less responsible member of the duo, cooking up get rich quick schemes, while Kid, the more responsible member, would usually be made to clean up messes. Oftentimes the issue would be resolved by the characters' girlfriends, or sometimes by an elderly jazz musician who wore a blue beret and was aptly named "Old Blue". The lessons ranged from serious to lighter fare. One of the "less serious" episodes dealt with Kid's father under the impression hip hop is bad and Kid not having the means to put it in a positive light. Old Blue offers to help by sending Kid on a trip back in time to the era of jazz and 1920s speakeasies to help better understand its roots.
In 1992, Marvel Comics published a comic book based on the cartoon. The comic book ran for nine issues.[4]
The series was created by John Semper Jr. and Cynthia Friedlob who also served as the show-runners and head-writers. They would later go on to write Kid 'N Play's third live-action feature, Class Act, for Warner Bros. Semper would later produce and be the head-writer for "Spider-Man: The Animated Series," for Marvel Films Animation.
Cast
- Christopher Reid as Himself (live-action segments)
- Christopher Martin as Himself (live-action segments)
Voices
- Jack Angel
- Tommy Davidson as Jazzy, Acorn
- Chris Hooks as Christopher Reid
- J. D. Hall as Pitbull, Mr. Reid
- Dorian Harewood as Old Blue
- Martin Lawrence as Wiz, Hurbie
- Dawnn Lewis as Lela
- Brian Stokes Mitchell as Christopher Martin
- Rain Pryor as B.B.
- Alaina Reed
- Terri Semper
- Cree Summer as Marika, Downtown
Additional voices
Episodes
No. | Title | Original air date |
---|---|---|
1 | "Play's Place" | September 8, 1990 |
2 | "Flip Your Kid Wig" | September 15, 1990 |
3 | "Rap-O-Mania" | September 22, 1990 |
4 | "There's No Business Like Dough Business" | September 29, 1990 |
5 | "One Kid and a Baby" | October 6, 1990 |
6 | "Rapped Around His Little Finger" | October 13, 1990 |
7 | "Not What It's Rapped Up To Be" | October 20, 1990 |
8 | "Tap To The Rap" | October 27, 1990 |
9 | "Say It, Don't Spray It" | November 3, 1990 |
10 | "Jump Street Jazzy" | November 10, 1990 |
11 | "Quantum Rap" | November 17, 1990 |
12 | "Project Creeper Sweeper" | December 1, 1990 |
13 | "Jazzman Jazzy" | December 8, 1990 |
References
- Goldmark, Daniel; Taylor, Yuval (1 November 2002). "The Cartoon Music Book". Chicago Review Press. Retrieved 8 May 2018 – via Google Books.
- http://hiphopdx.com, HipHopDX -. "Chris "Kid" Reid Reveals Kid 'n Play's Dumbest Career Mistake & Talks Narrating NFL Show "Undrafted"". Retrieved 8 May 2018.
- Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nd ed.). McFarland & Co. pp. 466–467. ISBN 978-1476665993.
- "I Love Ya But You're Strange - How Did It Take Until 1992 For Kid 'n' Play to Have Their Own Comic Book?". Comic Book Resources. 10 March 2013. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
External links
- Kid 'n Play on IMDb
- Kid 'n Play at TV.com
- Kid 'n Play at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)