Ricky Sprocket: Showbiz Boy
Ricky Sprocket: Showbiz Boy is a Canadian-American animated TV series that aired on Teletoon and Nickelodeon UK. Its first airing was as a sneak peek on August 31, 2007,[1] with regular airings in the country beginning on September 8, 2007.[2]
| Ricky Sprocket: Showbiz Boy | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Also known as | Ricky Sprocket |
| Genre | Comedy Sitcom |
| Created by | David Fine Alison Snowden |
| Written by | Russell Marcus David Fine Alison Snowden Bill Motz Bob Roth Shane Simmons Steven Sullivan Alicia Sky Varinaitis |
| Directed by | Josh Mepham Alison Snowden David Fine |
| Starring | Jillian Michaels Tabitha St. Germain Ashleigh Ball Jayne Eastwood Jeff Lumby Kathleen Barr Dorla Bell Andrea Libman Scott McNeil Ian James Corlett Jamie Watson Brian Drummond Peter Kelamis Richard Newman French Tickner Dave Ward Cathy Weseluck Dale Wilson Chiara Zanni |
| Opening theme | "Ricky Sprocket!" |
| Ending theme | Come along with me |
| Composer(s) | Hal Beckett |
| Country of origin | Canada United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 25 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | David Fine Alison Snowden Chris Bartleman Tatiana Kober Blair Peters |
| Producer(s) | Ashley Ramsay |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Bejuba Entertainment SnowdenFine Animation Studio B Productions |
| Release | |
| Original network | Teletoon Nicktoons |
| Original release | August 31, 2007 – May 4, 2009 |
| Chronology | |
| Related shows | Bob and Margaret |
Production
The series was created by Alison Snowden and David Fine, who also created the prime-time animated series Bob and Margaret as well as the Oscar-winning short Bob's Birthday. They co-directed the series along with Josh Mepham.
The series was produced at Studio B Productions in Vancouver, BC and was a production of Studio B, Snowden Fine and Bejuba Entertainment. There are 52, 11 minute episodes which air as half hours with two segments in each show. It was produced using Flash animation which was done partly at Studio B and partly in the Philippines at Top Draw Animation.
Writers on the series include Russell Marcus (who also served as an executive story editor), Louise Moon, Bill Motz and Bob Roth, Brandon Sawyer, Shane Simmons, Ian Boothby, Roger Fredericks and others.
Voices were recorded in Vancouver and Toronto.
Summary
Ricky Sprocket is the world's biggest child film star. He works for Wishworks studio (a parody of DreamWorks Studio) and for Mr. Louie Fischburger, his boss. Despite the fact that Ricky stars in some of his favorite movies, lives in a mansion, and sometimes performs brain surgeries for actor patients, otherwise he is a very normal kid who doesn't let celebrity fame go to his head. He likes to hang out with his friends and shares a rivalry with a spoiled female child star named Kitten Kaboodle. Still, Ricky has chores and homework he must do sometimes when he isn't battling animatronic props.
Characters
- Ricky Sprocket (Jillian Michaels) – Ricky is the world's biggest child movie star. At the age of ten he's famous, adored, has everything a kid could want, but at heart, he's still a normal kid with normal kid problems. He loves hanging with his pals as much as he loves making movies. One minute he's on set battling aliens, the next he's doing his homework or taking out the garbage.
- Bunny Sprocket (Jayne Eastwood) – Bunny is a down-to-earth, unsophisticated, no-nonsense mother. She is loving and devoted and only sees Ricky as a typical boy. She is more concerned with his homework and taking out the garbage than "showbiz shenanigans". She also used to be a trapeze artist in high school.
- Leonard Sprocket (Jeff Lumby) – Ricky's Dad, Leonard is a goofy guy, but he always means well. He's a dedicated father, but not very sophisticated. Despite his son's fame and fortune, he still works in a sausage factory and often imparts wisdom to his son with stories about sausages. Ricky's father is well-meaning, but not that bright. In fact, he can be a bit of a buffoon, which causes Ricky acute embarrassment. He loves his job at Wishworks Sausages.
- Ethel Sprocket (Kathleen Barr) – Ethel is Ricky's younger sister and as charming and fun as Ricky is, Ethel is pretty much the opposite. She is smart and scheming and if she can get Ricky into trouble, all the better. She has no interest in her stupid brother's movie business. Occasionally, Ricky has come to Ethel when he needs her.
- Benny Newford (Tabitha St. Germain) – Ricky's biggest fan and pal. Often doesn't understand what Morris is talking about, but then, few people do. Benny isn't the sharpest knife in the drawer, but he makes up for it with his enthusiasm and his sheer dedication to Ricky. Also colorblind.
- Morris Moony (Ashleigh Ball) – Morris Moony is Ricky's brainy pal. He loves science and biology and excels in all academic subjects. He is exceptionally bad in art, drama and gym. However, he is a good rope holder and apparently good at video games. If there's a technical way of looking at anything, Morris will find it. Often refers to facts on his laptop, which he seems to have with him almost all the time.
- Jamal Pennycook (Dorla Bell) – Ricky's pal. Jamal has some attitude, but he's still just a regular kid. He's a little more streetwise than Benny and Morris, but that's not really saying much. Always ready for action, Jamal is the cool kid.
- Alice Applewood (Chiara Zanni) – Alice is sweet, clever, and often has good ideas when a problem needs solving. She's kind of goofy and far more down to earth than Morris in her approach in problem-solving. She is the least seen of Ricky's friends.
- Kitten Kaboodle (Andrea Libman) – Kitten is another child actor who is often cast in the same projects as Ricky. She is precocious, competitive, demanding, and terribly jealous of Ricky and his success. She drives everyone crazy, which may be due to the example her mother sets as her domineering agent. Her father is a milquetoast. Kitten is jealous of Ricky and loves to see him fail, but when they were lost on a deserted island she gave some indication that she may actually have feelings for Ricky.
- Mr. Louie Fischburger (Scott McNeil) – Ricky’s boss. Mr. Fischburger is the head of Wishworks Studios (a parody of DreamWorks), where Ricky works. He's a little man with a big voice. He's an old time Hollywood boss and movies are his life. He treats Ricky like his own son. Well, better than his own son due to fact that he fired his own son and because Ricky pays the bills.
- Wolf Wolinski (Jamie Watson) – Wolf is Ricky's regular director at Wishworks. He is driven, passionate, and demands the best from Ricky, but he also has a short fuse, which makes dealing with Ricky and Kitten something of a trial for him. He can come across as obsessive and manic, but the stereotypical genius sometimes comes across this way.
- Vanessa Stimlock (Tabitha St. Germain) – Showbiz Buzz Entertainment reporter at lager. If there's a media scrum, she's leading it. Vanessa reports on all things showbiz, but seems to be especially assigned to cover Ricky Sprocket.
Episodes
Season 1 (2007)
| No. | Title | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "The Screen Kiss" "The Boy King" | September 8, 2007 | |
| Ricky is shocked when he learns he must deal with his first on screen kiss; Ricky and his family travel to a Polynesian island so he can research a new role, The Boy King. | |||
| 2 | "Great Bowls of Ricky" "Burptacular" | September 9, 2007 | |
| Ricky learns a cereal is launching with his face on the box; Ricky tries to learn the art of belching. | |||
| 3 | "We Are Not Amused" "Being Leonard" | September 15, 2007 | |
| Ricky opens an amusement park; Leonard brings Ricky to work with him. | |||
| 4 | "Oh Hap-Pee Day" "Ricky for Sale" | September 16, 2007 | |
| After Ricky's sister spills her drink on him at an awards show, the press believes that Ricky wet his pants on stage; Ricky's friends urge him to sell his unwanted knickknacks online. | |||
| 5 | "Perfect Pitch" "In the Drink" | November 3, 2007 | |
| Ricky learns that he can not sing; Ricky's inability to swim jeopardizes the movie that he is shooting. | |||
| 6 | "Ethel's New Friend" "Vicky Sprocket" | September 22, 2007 | |
| Ricky's parents want him to help find Ethel some friends; Ricky disguises himself as a girl in order to get a big role. | |||
| 7 | "Double Crossed" "Monkey See, Monkey Do" | September 23, 2007 | |
| The Studie Boss insists that Ricky has a stunt double for his upcoming movie; Ricky co-stars with Chico the talking monkey. | |||
| 8 | "Runaway Ethel" "Freezer Burn" | September 29, 2007 | |
| Ethel drives Ricky's motor home through the set and onto the freeway; Ricky and his friends hear a rumor about Fischburger's cryogenically frozen pet bunny. | |||
| 9 | "Roy vs. Roy" "Dueling Birthdays" | November 4, 2007 | |
| After being cast in a movie with Ricky, Roy is replaced when he cannot follow directions; Ricky must work with his friends to attend birthday parties thrown by his parents and Mr. Fischburger. | |||
| 10 | "The Lie Detector" "Leonard's Groove" | November 10, 2007 | |
| Ricky tries out a lie detector on his family and friends; Ethel and Ricky discover that Leonard was in an '80s glam band. | |||
| 11 | "The Big Sleepover" "I Want to Direct!" | November 11, 2007 | |
| Ricky invites his friends to the set of his new movie; Ricky tries to write and direct his own movie. | |||
| 12 | "The Real Sprocket" "A Book for Bedtime" | November 18, 2007 | |
| Ricky visits his cousin Leonard's farm as research for an upcoming movie; Kitten tries to sabotage Ricky by sending him a book that he is unable to stop reading. | |||
Season 2 (2008–09)
| No. | Title | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | "A Boy and his Bodyguard" "Ricky Who?" | September 1, 2008 | |
|
"A Boy and his Bodyguard": Mr. Fischburger hires a bodyguard to protect Ricky. "Ricky Who?": Ricky finds a town where no one knows his name. | |||
| 14 | "Space Family Sprocket Part 1+2" | September 8, 2008 | |
| "Space Family Sprocket": Ricky's family gets the opportunity to live in space. | |||
| 15 | "The Survivors" "Ricky is History" | September 15, 2008 | |
|
"The Survivors": Ricky and Kitten get lost on a remote island. "Ricky is History": Ricky has a school history project about show business. | |||
| 16 | "The Highest Bidder" "Write for the Part" | October 6, 2008 | |
|
"The Highest Bidder": Larry Knish bribes Ricky for a contract. "Write for the Part": Rick's autobiography is full of lies he must correct. | |||
| 17 | "Where Wolf" "Ricky Spook-it" | February 2, 2009 | |
|
"Where Wolf": Ricky stars in a werewolf movie and borrows the costume to go out with his friends on Halloween. "Ricky Spook-it": Ricky and Kitten are shooting a vampire movie on location. Ricky thinks that the actor who plays Dracula is a real live vampire. | |||
| 18 | "Ethelebrity" "Ricky Rolls Over" | February 9, 2009 | |
|
"Ethelebrity": Ethel becomes Hollywood's newest darling. "Ricky Rolls Over": Ricky gets hypnotized which causes him to act like a dog on cue. | |||
| 19 | "Fan Club" "Face Lift" | February 16, 2009 | |
|
"Fan Club": Ricky's fan club is overloaded so the mail is redirected straight to Ricky. He insists on answering every letter but when it starts to get in the way of studio business, Fischburger insists he hires help. "Face Lift": Kitten sees face lift as a fantastic opportunity. In disguise, she manages to get the job and sabotage Ricky's fanbase. | |||
| 20 | "Ricky Inc." "Relative Discomfort" | March 2, 2009 | |
|
"Ricky Inc": Ricky's summer off is filled with odd jobs for his neighbors. "Relative Discomfort": Ricky and Kitten compete on a game show with their families. | |||
| 21 | "Grounded" "Bush League" | March 9, 2009 | |
|
"Grounded": Ricky must prove his innocence while grounded. "Bush League": Benny and Ricky swap roles in the school play. | |||
| 22 | "The Perfect Family" "Moby Rick" | March 16, 2009 | |
|
"The Perfect Family": Ricky's fake family is interviewed on The Family Famous Channel. "Moby Rick": Ricky tries to prove that a sea monster is real. | |||
| 23 | "Who's Your Daddy?" "Test Audience" | April 6, 2009 | |
|
"Who's Your Daddy?": Leonard emberrasses Ricky in front of an action star. "Test Audience": Ricky and Kitten sabotage each other's films. | |||
| 24 | "Ricky the Ringleader" "Mind Games" | April 13, 2009 | |
|
"Ricky the Ringleader": Ricky helps save Chico the monkey's circus. "Mind Games": Ricky stars in a new video game which Kitten sabotages. | |||
| 25 | "Head Over Heels" "When Life Gives You Lemonade" | May 4, 2009 | |
|
"Head Over Heels": Ricky falls in love with an Austrian actress. "When Life Gives You Lemonade": Ricky tries to help his friend's Lemonade stand. (Series Finale) | |||
Home release
The first season was released on DVD in the US with 8 episodes. A Canadian DVD was released on March 2009.
References
- Gazette, The (2007-08-25). "Boogie Beebies to Zula Patrol". Canada.com. Archived from the original on 2014-03-15. Retrieved 2013-11-30.
- "Watch for these new shows". City Parent. 2007-09-07. Retrieved 2013-08-13.