children's
A child ( : children) is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person young ...
animated television series
An animated series is a set of animated works with a common series title, usually related to one another. These episodes should typically share the same main characters, some different secondary characters and a basic theme. Series can have eith ...
created by Cathy Moss and
Susin Nielsen
Susin Nielsen is a Canadian author for children, adolescent and young adults. She received a Governor General's Award and the 2013 Canadian Library Association Book of the Year for Children Award for her young adult novel '' The Reluctant Journal ...
. The show was produced by Decode Entertainment (now WildBrain) with the participation of Family Channel and in association with Channel Five Broadcasting Limited for the first two seasons. 52 episodes were produced spanning over three seasons.
The show follows the adventures of Frances "Franny" Fantootsie (a
portmanteau
A portmanteau word, or portmanteau (, ) is a blend of wordsFamily Channel in Canada on July 8, 2003 and was broadcast until October 31, 2010. In the U.S, the show aired on
PBS Kids
PBS Kids is the brand for most of the children's programming aired by the Public Broadcasting Service ( PBS) in the United States. Some public television children's programs are not produced by PBS member stations or transmitted by PBS. Inste ...
in 2006 and
Five
5 is a number, numeral, and glyph.
5, five or number 5 may also refer to:
* AD 5, the fifth year of the AD era
* 5 BC, the fifth year before the AD era
Literature
* ''5'' (visual novel), a 2008 visual novel by Ram
* ''5'' (comics), an awa ...
in the U.K.
Summary
A 5-year-old girl named Franny visits with her grandfather every day at his shoe repair shop in
Vancouver, Canada
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. The ...
They talk about all matters until a customer comes. The customer presents shoes needing to be repaired to her grandfather, and he gives the pair to Franny to place inside the shoe repair box. Franny tries on the footwear and they take her to a magical place such as a Native American powwow in Wyoming, a sunny beach in Jamaica, or a high mountain in China. At the end of each episode, after Franny solves the problem in a magical place, she receives a treasure and adds it to her treasure box and solves her own problem.
The show is designed to teach children about the joys of exploring for the first time.
Reception
It has been praised by critics in the U.S. and Canada and was honoured as an Outstanding Product of 2007 by
iParenting Media
iParenting Media was a company and then a unit of Disney Online that operated web sites, provided apps, and gave widely recognized prizes for content related to children and parenting. It was a separate company prior to the Disney acquisition. The ...
Awards.
Cast
Main
* Phoebe McAuley as Franny (speaking voice)
**
Tajja Isen
Tajja Isen (born June 29, 1991) is a Canadian writer, editor, and voice actress. Her first book, the essay collection Some of My Best Friends: Essays on Lip Service, was published in April 2022. As an actor, she is best known for voicing the tit ...
as Franny (singing voice)
* George Buza as Grandpa
Supporting
* Katherine Crimi as Lucy
* Juan Chioran as Nat the Yak
* Stacey DePass as Kinka the Kinkajou/Sally the Tough Old Cat/Jerry the Penguin/Darlene the Duck
*
Tajja Isen
Tajja Isen (born June 29, 1991) is a Canadian writer, editor, and voice actress. Her first book, the essay collection Some of My Best Friends: Essays on Lip Service, was published in April 2022. As an actor, she is best known for voicing the tit ...
as Lacey/Princess Tia
* Scott Beaudin as Fritz
* Melanie Tonello as Penny the Artist's Daughter
*
Julie Lemieux
Julie Lemieux (born December 4, 1962) is a Canadian voice actress.
Career
Lemieux has provided the voice for characters such as Sammy Tsukino in ''Sailor Moon'', young Darien Shields in '' Sailor Moon R: The Movie'', and Peruru in '' Sailor Moon ...
as Bobby Jean the Hen/Zelda the Wild Boar/Susan the Sloth
* Scott McCord as Charlie the Bronco/Brady the Fire Dog
*
Alex House
Alexander Charles Albert House (born December 11, 1986) is a Canadian actor best known for his Gemini Award winning role in the television series ''Todd and the Book of Pure Evil''.
Early life
House was born and raised in Toronto, Ontario, Canad ...
Robert Tinkler
Robert Tinkler is a Canadian voice actor who provides voices for a number of cartoons and anime shows. He voiced Max in '' The Adventures of Sam & Max: Freelance Police'', Delete in the children's animated series '' Cyberchase'', Pelswick Eggert ...
as Salsa the Donkey
* Sunday Muse as Li-Mei the Chinese Girl
*
Jordan Francis
Jordan Francis is a Canadian rapper and actor.
Career
He got his first acting role at the age of seven and he recorded his first song when he was eleven years old. He later switched to live theatre and he appeared as Young Simba in the Mi ...
as Johnny the Jamaican Boy
* Dwayne Hill as Joey the Canadian Digger Boy
*
Connor Price
Connor Price (born November 11, 1994) is a Canadian-American actor and hip hop artist. Beginning his career as a child actor, he is best known for his roles in the films ''Cinderella Man'' (2005) and '' Good Luck Chuck'' (2007).
Career
Price's ...
as George the Mouse
* Amos Crawley as Henry the Mouse/Spencer the Skunk
* Adrian Truss as Joanna the Pirate Girl
* Martin Roach as Joey the Dogsled
* Thomas Callaway as Oxie the Oxpecker/Gus the Fish
* Stephanie Anne Mills as Ice-Skater Customer/Marie the Blonde-Haired Girl/Lulu the Loon
* Marc McMulkin as Jacques the Hockey Player
*
Mark Rendall
Mark Rendall (born October 21, 1988) is a Canadian film, television and voice actor whose roles include the lead in the 2004 film, '' Childstar'' and Mick in season 1 of the Canadian television drama series ''ReGenesis''. He played Bastian Bux ...
Alyson Court
Alyson Stephanie Court (born November 9, 1973) is a Canadian actress. Beginning her career as a child actress, her first role was on the series '' Mr. Dressup'' (1984–1994) and she made her film debut in '' Sesame Street Presents: Follow That B ...
as Meena the Butterfly
* Chris Netherton as Antonio
* Peter Oldring as Randall the Duck and Ralph the Hare
*
Barbara Mamabolo
Barbara Mamabolo (born November 30, 1985) is a Canadian actress and singer.
Career
Mamabolo has made guest-star appearances on the critically acclaimed series '' The Eleventh Hour'', '' Sue Thomas: F.B. Eye'', and '' Relic Hunter''. Her stage c ...
Episodes
Season 1 (2003)
* 101. ''Wonderful Woolies/A Home for Herman'' (July 8, 2003)
* 102. ''Small is Nice/Opening Night Jitters'' (July 26, 2003)
* 103. ''Not Yeti/Jingle Dress'' (August 2, 2003)
* 104. ''Ride e’m Cowboy/Monkey Stuff'' (August 9, 2003)
* 105. ''You Bug Me/Double Trouble'' (August 16, 2003)
* 106. ''Paper Presents/Fowl Weather'' (August 23, 2003)
* 107. ''Egg Sitting/Arctic Antics'' (August 30, 2003)
* 108. ''Under The Sea/Bedtime For Bears'' (September 13, 2003)
* 109. ''A Visit to the Vet/Game Over'' (September 19, 2003)
* 110. ''Lonely Library/What’s So Funny?'' (September 22, 2003)
* 111. ''Paint Job/Yummy in My Tummy'' (September 26, 2003)
* 112. ''Whiz Kid/Birds of a Feather'' (October 11, 2003)
* 113. ''Fancy Footwork/Say Jamaica'' (October 31, 2003)
Season 2 (2004-07)
* 201. ''Franny’s Manners/Swamp Thing'' (March 14, 2004)
* 202. ''A Pirate’s Treasure/Nat The Yak'' (April 26, 2004)
* 203. ''Hop To It/Make Them Laugh'' (May 10, 2004)
* 204. ''Night Time/Bear Facts'' (July 24, 2004)
* 205. ''Jumbo Jinx/The Fais Do Do'' (September 4, 2004)
* 206. ''Messy Monkey/Greece Is The Word'' (September 8, 2004)
* 207. ''Princess Tia/Chez Lou Lou'' (September 12, 2004)
* 208. ''Sweet Mystery/A Standout Performance'' (October 16, 2004)
* 209. ''Long Stories/Best In Show'' (October 30, 2004)
* 210. ''Reindeer To The Rescue/Bright Idea'' (December 4, 2004)
* 211. ''A Pony Tale/Puppet Pals'' (February 12, 2005)
* 212. ''Octopus’s Garden/The Colossal Fossil'' (March 5, 2005)
* 213. ''The Big Race/It’s A Big Job'' (July 12, 2005)
* 214. ''Pink Flamingos/Granny Nanny Goat'' (August 4, 2005)
* 215. ''A Little Moose Music/The Great Museum Caper'' (October 22, 2005)
* 216. ''Franny and Five-Pin/Net Worth'' (November 5, 2005)
* 217. ''Iguana Play Paddle Ball/Lighthouse Lily'' (March 18, 2006)
* 218. ''Like Magic/Scatterbrained Squirrel'' (May 13, 2006)
* 219. ''Armadillo Allergy/Bee Patient'' (September 2, 2006)
* 220. ''Unhappy Hippo/Westward Ho'' (September 30, 2006)
* 221. ''Happy Halloween/Tunnel Vision'' (November 25, 2006)
* 222. ''Shiver Me Timbers/Mount Do It Later'' (January 13, 2007)
* 223. ''Mischievous Magpies/Snowy Jamaica'' (May 12, 2007)
* 224. ''Lost In Mexico/It’s Snow Small Feat'' (July 21, 2007)
* 225. ''Pilot Project/Season’s Greetings'' (August 25, 2007)
* 226. ''There's No Place Like Home/Old Friends, New Friends'' (October 13, 2007)
The show was first premiered on Family Channel in Canada on July 8, 2003 and ran through October 31, 2010.
In the U.S, the show was aired on
PBS Kids
PBS Kids is the brand for most of the children's programming aired by the Public Broadcasting Service ( PBS) in the United States. Some public television children's programs are not produced by PBS member stations or transmitted by PBS. Inste ...
in 2006. These specific airings were co-funded by PBS affiliate
WNET
WNET (channel 13), branded on-air as "Thirteen" (stylized as "THIRTEEN"), is a primary PBS member television station licensed to Newark, New Jersey, United States, serving the New York City area. Owned by The WNET Group (formerly known as the ...
, who were listed as co-producer.
Spanish-language V-me aired the show under the title "Los pies màgicos de Franny". In the late 2010s, the show aired on repeats on Light TV (now TheGrio TV).
Phase 4 Films' Kaboom! Entertainment released seven volumes on DVD. As of 2022, the show is now streaming on
Tubi
Tubi is an American over-the-top content platform and ad-supported streaming service owned by Fox Corporation. The service was launched on April 1, 2014, and is based in Los Angeles, California. In January 2021, Tubi reached 33 million monthly ...