Nick’s ‘ SpongeBob’ turns 20; ‘ Molly of Denali’ debuts on WQED on Monday
PASADENA, Calif. — Summertime and the viewing is easy — and new, at least if you’re a parent in search of new TV content for your child.
With children out of school, multiple networks have decided this year to debut new shows or new seasons of established hits, including a 20th anniversary special for “SpongeBob SquarePants” on Nickelodeon and the premiere of the Native American- themed “Molly of Denali” on PBS.
In addition, this month Universal Kids ( formerly Sprout) debuts two new series, “Where’s Waldo?” ( 10 a. m. July 20), featuring the iconic character as he and best friend Wenda celebrate cultures worldwide, and “Norman Picklestripes” ( 11 a. m. July 27), which features a forest- dwelling handyman and Broadway- inspired songs.
‘ SpongeBob’ special
Nickelodeon celebrates 20 years of “SpongeBob SquarePants” with a new season that kicks off with “SpongeBob’s Big Birthday Blowout” ( 7 p. m. Friday). This one- hour special features the show’s voice actors playing doppelgangers of their animated characters in liveaction segments.
SpongeBob ( voice of Tom Kenny) and Patrick ( voice of Bill Fagerbakke) travel to the surface world where they encounter lunchtime rush at The Trusty Slab, itself a stand- in for Bikini Bottom’s Krusty Krab, while their friends under the sea set up a surprise birthday party for SpongeBob.
“It became very familiar, and it seemed just like a natural thing for us to do,” said Mr. Lawrence ( that’s his full stage name), who voices Plankton, of filming the live- action scenes. “But at first, just wearing the outfits and standing in that set was really strange.”
Fagerbakke (“Coach”), who voices Patrick Star, agreed.
“Clancy [ Brown, the voice of Mr. Krabs] couldn’t not call Rodger [ Bumpass] ‘ Squidward,’ even though his [ live- action] character’s name was something else, because he’s been calling him Squidward for 20 years,” he said during a “SpongeBob” press conference at the Television Critics Association winter 2019 press tour in February.
To what do the actors attribute the show’s longevity? Cast member Carolyn Lawrence, the voice of Sandy Cheeks, says it’s SpongeBob’s “glass half- full” optimism.
“He’s the person you want to be with that’s always looking at things from a positive angle,” she said. “Something terrible could be going on, and SpongeBob’s gonna see the good side of it.”
Mr. Lawrence said it’s the show’s writers’ approach, which is to view “SpongeBob” more as a comedy than as a kids’ show. Bumpass agreed.
“The analogy of ‘ Looney Tunes’ is something that I use quite frequently,” Bumpass said. “They’re both short cartoons, but different ages of people and viewers get different things [ from them]. Little kids get something out of it ‘ cause it’s colorful, and it’s animated. And then the little older guys get a little bit more stuff out of it, and adults get something totally [ different] out of it, too. And funny is funny, so I think that’s one of the reasons it has struck a chord.”
‘ Molly of Denali’
Premiering Monday at 8: 30 a. m. on WQED- TV ( and airing again at 4 p. m. Monday), the latest PBS Kids program marks the first national TV series to feature Native American lead characters.
Set in Alaska and aimed at children ages 4 to 8, “Molly of Denali”