''Ready Set Learn!'' is a defunct American television block broadcast from late 1992 until 2010 across the

Discovery Communications Discovery, Inc. was an American multinational mass media factual television conglomerate based in New York City. Established in 1982, the company operated a group of factual and lifestyle television brands, such as the namesake Discovery Cha ...

-owned

TLC TLC may refer to: Arts and entertainment Television * ''TLC'' (TV series), a 2002 British situational comedy television series that aired on BBC2 * TLC (TV network), formerly the Learning Channel, an American cable TV network ** TLC (Asia), an A ...

and

Discovery Kids Discovery Kids, stylized as discovery k!ds, is a brand name owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Starting as a television block within Discovery Channel, the brand expanded as a separate television channel in October 1996. Discovery Kids on NBC was ...

networks. A cable competitor to PBS's children's offerings, it broadcast twice on weekday mornings and comprised three hours of original, imported, and rerun programming plus music videos geared towards preschoolers. In its early years, it was hosted by children's entertainer Rory Zuckerman, who was billed

mononym A mononym is a name composed of only one word. An individual who is known and addressed by a mononym is a mononymous person. A mononym may be the person's only name, given to them at birth. This was routine in most ancient societies, and remains ...

ously; an early 2003 relaunch replaced her with Paz, a penguin who was represented in animated and puppet form. A 1990 Carnegie Foundation report inspired Discovery to develop the block; shows were selected based on their educational value and visual vibrancy. Amid a $10 million investment from TLC, a line of home video and software releases, and plans to spin it off into a standalone channel, the parent company used ''Ready'' as a

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to expand the network's carriage. A counterpart for older children debuted on the main

Discovery Channel Discovery Channel, known as The Discovery Channel from 1985 to 1995, and often referred to as simply Discovery, is an American cable channel that is best known for its ongoing reality television shows and promotion of pseudoscience. It init ...

in early 1997. By mid-2002, the TLC block ended up under the management of Discovery Kids, whose schedule it also appeared on. ''Ready Set Learn!'' ran on TLC from December 28, 1992 to September 26, 2008, with Discovery Kids following suit during the 2000s. Despite brief skepticism on its chances as an "

educational television Educational television or learning television is the use of television programs in the field of distance education. It may be in the form of individual television programs or dedicated specialty channels that are often associated with cable televi ...

" outlet, it was positively reviewed during both its 1990s and 2000s incarnations. The block helped TLC receive a CableACE Creators Award in 1995, and was also honored by the

National Education Association The National Education Association (NEA) is the largest labor union in the United States. It represents public school teachers and other support personnel, faculty and staffers at colleges and universities, retired educators, and college st ...

, the American Academy of Children's Entertainment, and the Parents' Choice Foundation.

History

The

network's foray into preschool television, ''Ready Set Learn!'' was first mentioned as early as August 1992. Of the first five shows announced for the block, three of them ('' Bookmice'', '' Kitty Cats'', and ''The Magic Box'') would have their U.S. premieres there; the other two were rerun packages of ''

Join In! ''Join In!'' was a Canadian educational children's television show which aired on TVOntario between 1989 and 1995. It was created and produced by Jed MacKay, who also wrote all of the show's original songs. Premise Each episode had a number of ...

'' (previously on the religious

VISN The Vision Interfaith Satellite Network (VISN) was an American religious cable and satellite television network that was owned by the interfaith group National Interfaith Cable Coalition, in cooperation with cable operators. The channel became k ...

network) and ''

Zoobilee Zoo ''Zoobilee Zoo'' is a children's television series featuring actors dressed as animal characters that originally aired from 1986 to 1987. It continued to run in syndication until 2000 on several television channels including commercial network ...

'' (a previously syndicated production of

DIC Entertainment DIC Entertainment Corporation (; also known as DIC Audiovisuel, DIC Enterprises, DIC Animation City, DIC Entertainment, L.P., and DIC Productions, sometimes stylized as DİC) was a French American film and television production company that ...

and

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). Greg Moyer,

' senior vice-president of programming, expressed hope that a full-fledged channel would spin off from it within one or two years of launch. According to TLC employee John Ford, the block was inspired by ''Ready to Learn: A Mandate for the Nation'', a 1990 Carnegie Foundation report which stated that 35% of U.S. children began their education unprepared. Assisted by director of programming Mike Quattrone (who had previously undertaken similar endeavors at

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

), Ford selected the shows on the strengths of their educational value along with their visual vibrancy. Finding it "extremely well-produced", he also bet on ''Kitty Cats'' as the block's breakout series. ''Ready Set Learn!'' debuted on December 28, 1992, with ''

Iris, The Happy Professor ''Iris, The Happy Professor'' (also known as ''Iris'' and ''Professor Iris'' and in French as ''Iris, le gentil professeur'' or ''Professeur Iris'') is a Spanish-Canadian-French-produced television show that run for 156 episodes from 1992 to 199 ...

'' rounding out the six-show lineup. A competitor to the PBS lineup, its three-hour schedule aired twice on weekdays, first at 6:00 a.m. and again at 9:00 a.m. (in the Eastern Time Zone)—a slot that Ford viewed as "a safe haven". TLC chose to air it commercial-free because doing otherwise would detract from its purpose. As such, Discovery used the format as a

for expansion of the network's carriage, which stood at 18 million homes at the time. According to the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

, TLC invested $10 million in the block's initial development (excluding tentative fees from

underwriting Underwriting (UW) services are provided by some large financial institutions, such as banks, insurance companies and investment houses, whereby they guarantee payment in case of damage or financial loss and accept the financial risk for liability ...

, a supplement that never came to fruition); original programming was also planned. In its early years, ''Ready Set Learn!'' was hosted by children's entertainer Rory Zuckerman (billed simply as "Rory"). A resident of

Bethesda, Maryland Bethesda () is an unincorporated, census-designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. Located just northwest of Washington, D.C., it is a major business and government center of the Washington metropolitan region ...

(where TLC's parent company Discovery was based), Rory set out to teach children language skills through her music, as well as to "welcome the children into the world of The Learning Channel and also the parents, care-givers and other viewers" as hostess. The block would become the home of her own shows, ''Rory and Me'' and ''Rory's Place'', which were seen by one million combined viewers per month in 1996. Interstitial material on the block was branded under the "Short Stuff" banner, and rounded out each half-hour. Around 1994, music videos began appearing during this feature, starting with clips from

Joanie Bartels Joan Constance Bartels (born May 21, 1953) is a retired American children's singer-songwriter, recording artist, and occasional actress based in New Zealand. Her 1985 album, ''Lullaby Magic'', was certified gold by the Recording Industry Assoc ...

(an artist signed to Discovery's former in-house record label). By 1996, TLC played 10–12 videos per day on ''Ready''—showcasing children's artists as varied as

Fred Penner Frederick Ralph Cornelius Penner (born November 6, 1946) is a Canadian children's entertainer and musician known for the song "The Cat Came Back" and his television series, ''Fred Penner's Place'', which aired on Canadian Broadcasting Corporatio ...

, Parachute Express, Joe Scruggs, and

Sharon, Lois & Bram Sharon, Lois & Bram (also known as Sharon, Bram & Friends, Sharon & Bram or Sharon & Randi) are a Canadian children's music group founded in Toronto, Ontario, 1978. The group's original lineup consisted of Sharon (née Trostin) Hampson, L ...

—to the point where they would all but replace the older "Short Stuff" segments from 1992. The latter group would later headline the mainline ''Ready'' program ''

Skinnamarink TV ''Skinnamarink TV'' is a children's television show created by Richard Mortimer and starring Sharon, Lois & Bram. The series originally aired on CBC Television in Canada, and in the United States on The Learning Channel's programming block ''Ready ...

''. Around 1992, the

began plans for a counterpart weekend block to ''Ready''. After a four-year delay, it was launched on Sundays in early 1997 alongside the companion

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and

Latin American Latin Americans (; ) are the citizenship, citizens of Latin American countries (or people with cultural, ancestral or national origins in Latin America). Latin American countries and their Latin American diaspora, diasporas are Metroethnicity, ...

Discovery Kids formats. By mid-2002, the TLC block had come under the purview of the Discovery Kids team; a revamped lineup that tentatively included '' Animal Jam'', '' The Save-Ums!'', and '' Ni Ni's Treehouse'' was slated to take effect early the following year. The resulting relaunch on February 24, 2003 introduced Paz the Penguin as the new host of the interstitial segments; the 9:00 a.m. repeat moved to Discovery Kids. Paz, created by Irish author Mary Murphy, was seen in both puppet and animated forms; Discovery's Marjorie Kaplan saw him as "the avatar for his audience, the optimistic, persistent learner we want each of our viewers to be", and with his introduction, "hop dfor a 'less hyper, more unified programming environment.'" ''

The Magic School Bus ''The Magic School Bus'' is an American edutainment media franchise which includes a book series, TV adaptations, a streaming series, and various video games. Each of the stories within the franchise focuses on the antics of the fictional ...

'', a 1990s PBS staple, bookended the revised three-hour stretch. During ''Ready'' last few years, new programs on the block premiered on Discovery Kids a week ahead of TLC. The final TLC airing of ''Ready Set Learn!'' occurred on September 26, 2008, with '' Bigfoot Presents: Meteor and the Mighty Monster Trucks'' and ''The Magic School Bus'' in its closing hour. From that point on, reruns of TLC's remaining programs for older audiences occupied its timeslot. By then, the Discovery Kids version was airing from 9:00 a.m. till 2:00 p.m.; it evolved into ''HubBub'' after the network's October 10, 2010 rebranding as The Hub. As part of a cross-channel preview campaign leading up to The Hub's debut, TLC briefly returned to family-oriented entertainment with an airing of the

Hasbro Hasbro, Inc. (; a syllabic abbreviation of its original name, Hassenfeld Brothers) is an American multinational corporation, multinational toy manufacturing and entertainment holding company founded on December 6, 1923 by Henry, Hillel and Herma ...

game show '' Family Game Night''.

Reception

Almost three weeks before its launch, the ''

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'' was skeptical on whether the original ''Ready Set Learn!'' could succeed as "

", writing, "What children will learn first and foremost from this 'unprecedented' offering is how to watch TV, something they will master all too soon without TLC." The block managed to premiere to positive press; Peggy Charren of Action for Children's Television approved of its commercial-free nature, while a reporter for the '' Northwest Florida Daily News'' said, "From what I've seen, they're doing a pretty good job t making television a teacher" Lynne Heffley of ''

The Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper in the U.S. and the larges ...

'' favorably reviewed the 2003 relaunch, citing '' Hi-5'' (a U.S. remake of an Australian format) and ''The Save-Ums!'' as the standouts. "All the new shows are colorful, watchable and scrupulously created with the principles of child development firmly in mind," she said. "Several feature characters who talk directly to viewers, in the tradition of the best children's programming." In October 1993, ''Ready Set Learn!'' helped TLC secure one of that season's five Golden CableACE nomination slots; upon its return in 1994–95, the block received a CableACE Creators Award. During its original run, it was also honored by the

and the American Academy of Children's Entertainment. In 2005, the relaunch era's Paz segments won a Silver

Parents' Choice Award The Parents' Choice Award was an award presented by the non-profit Parents' Choice Foundation to recognize "the very best products for children of different ages and backgrounds, and of varied skill and interest levels." It was considered a "prest ...

Merchandise

A merchandising line for ''Ready Set Learn!'', featuring coloring books and videotapes, was actively considered from the time of its planning stages. Discovery chose Professor Iris to represent the first products under the brand—first through three VHS collections in August 1993, and then through two CD-ROM titles, ''Fun Field Trip: Animal Safari'' in November 1994 and ''Seaside Adventure'' in May 1995. By the twilight of the block's tenure (during 2006–2008), DVD releases of select shows went through Genius Products.

Programming

References

General

Specific

External links

* {{Discovery Communications 1992 establishments in the United States 2010 disestablishments in the United States Television programming blocks in the United States TLC (TV network) original programming Discovery Kids original programming Preschool education television networks