Telemundo
Telemundo (; formerly NetSpan) is an American Spanish-language terrestrial television network owned by NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises, a division of NBCUniversal, which in turn is owned by Comcast. It provides content nationally with prog ...
's programming since its initial roots in television. This article outlines the history of children's television programming on Telemundo including the various blocks and notable programs that have aired throughout the television network's history.
History
For much of its history, the bulk of NetSpan/Telemundo's children's programming has been derived of mainly live-action and animated programming from American and international producers, including Spanish-language dubs of programs produced in other languages, and Spanish-language programming acquired from other countries.
Telemuñequitos (1992–1998)
On June 1, 1992, the network's first foray into children's programming, Telemuñequitos, was in partnership with
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
, and featured Spanish-language dubs of
Warner Bros. Cartoons
Warner Bros. Cartoons, Inc. was an American animation studio, serving as the in-house animation division of Warner Bros. during the Golden Age of American animation. One of the most successful animation studios in American media history, it ...
productions (including ''
Looney Tunes
''Looney Tunes'' is an American animated comedy short film series produced by Warner Bros. starting from 1930 to 1969, concurrently with its partner series '' Merrie Melodies'', during the golden age of American animation. ...
'', ''
Merrie Melodies
''Merrie Melodies'' is an American animation, animated series of comedy short films produced by Warner Bros. starting in 1931, during the golden age of American animation, and ending in 1969. Then some new cartoons were produced from the late 197 ...
'' and ''
Popeye the Sailor
Popeye the Sailor Man is a fictional cartoon character created by E. C. Segar, Elzie Crisler Segar.
Telemundo Infantil (1995–1998)
In September 1995, Telemundo launched a Saturday morning block, Telemundo Infantil ("Telemundo Kids"), which was developed via input from viewers on what they wanted to be featured in a children's show. Which borrowed its the block originally in Puerto Rico aired on
Telemundo Puerto Rico Telemundo Puerto Rico may refer to:
* Telemundo Puerto Rico (TV channel)
* WKAQ-TV
WKAQ-TV (channel 2) is a television station in San Juan, Puerto Rico, airing programming from the Telemundo and NBC networks. It is owned and operated by the Te ...
, included the weekdays afternoon and weekend morning line-up that consisted mainly of dubbed versions of American, Canadian, and European (including ''
Animaniacs
''Animaniacs'' is an American Animated series, animated Comedy television, comedy Musical film, musical television series created by Tom Ruegger for Fox Broadcasting Company's Fox Kids block in 1993, before moving to The WB in 1995, as part o ...
'', ''
Inspector Gadget
''Inspector Gadget'' is a media franchise that began in 1983 with the DIC Entertainment animated television series '' Inspector Gadget''. Since the original series, there have been many spin-offs based on the show, including additional animated ...
'', ''
The Magic School Bus
''The Magic School Bus'' is an American edutainment media franchise that includes a book series, a TV series, a streaming series, and video games. Each of the stories within the franchise centers on the antics of a fictional elementary scho ...
'', ''
Extreme Ghostbusters
''Extreme Ghostbusters'' is an American animated television series based on the ''Ghostbusters'' franchise. It is a spin-off to the animated series ''The Real Ghostbusters''. The series originally aired on the syndicated Bohbot Kids Network's " ...
'', ''
Mona the Vampire
''Mona the Vampire'' is an cartoon series, animated children's television series that is based on a children's book of the same name written and illustrated by Sonia Holleyman, as well as a series of novels illustrated by Holleyman and written b ...
'', ''
Tiny Toon Adventures
''Tiny Toon Adventures'' is an American animated comedy television series that was broadcast from September 14, 1990, to December 6, 1992. It was the first collaborative effort of Steven Spielberg's Amblin Television and Warner Bros. Animation ...
'' and ''
Bobby's World
''Bobby's World'' (originally known as ''The World According to Bobby'') is an American animated comedy children's television series, which ran from September 8, 1990, to February 23, 1998, on the Fox Kids network. The show was created by Canadi ...
'') as well as
anime
is hand-drawn and computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japanese, (a term derived from a shortening of ...
series (such as ''
Dragon Ball Z
''Dragon Ball Z'' is a Japanese anime television series produced by Toei Animation. Part of the ''Dragon Ball'' media franchise, it is the sequel to the 1986 '' Dragon Ball'' anime series and adapts the latter 325 chapters of the original ...
'', ''
The Wonderful Wizard of OZ
''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' is a children's novel written by author L. Frank Baum and illustrated by W. W. Denslow. It is the first novel in the Oz series of books. A Kansas farm girl named Dorothy ends up in the magical Land of Oz aft ...
'', ''
Pokémon
(an abbreviation for in Japan) is a Japanese media franchise managed by The Pokémon Company, founded by Nintendo, Game Freak, and Creatures (company), Creatures, the owners of the trademark and copyright of the franchise.
In terms of ...
'', ''
Slam Dunk
A slam dunk, also simply known as dunk, is a type of basketball shot that is performed when a player jumps in the air, controls the ball above the horizontal plane of the rim, and scores by shoving the ball directly through the basket with one ...
'' and ''
Yu-Gi-Oh!
is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Kazuki Takahashi. It was serialized in Shueisha's ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' magazine between September 1996 and March 2004. The plot follows the story of a boy named Yugi Mutou, ...
'').
Nickelodeon en Telemundo (1998–2001)
On September 15, 1998, Telemundo introduced Nickelodeon en Telemundo, a block featuring Spanish dubs of the joint agreement with
Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...
programming, which debuted on November 9, 1998 and was considered a sub-block of ''Telemundo Infantil'', consisted of Spanish dubs of Nickelodeon's animated series aimed at older children and preschool-oriented programs aired by the channel's
Nick Jr.
Nick Jr. (known on-air as the Nick Jr. Channel) is an American pay television channel spun off from Nickelodeon's long-running programming block of the same name. It is run by Paramount Global through its networks division's Kids and Family Gr ...
block (such as ''
Rugrats
''Rugrats'' is an American animated television series created by Arlene Klasky, Gábor Csupó, and Paul Germain for Nickelodeon. The show focuses on a group of toddlers; most prominently—Tommy, Chuckie, Angelica, and twins Phil and Lil, an ...
'', ''
Doug
Doug is a male personal name (or, depending on which definition of "personal name" one uses, part of a personal name). It is sometimes a given name (or "first name"), but more often it is hypocorism (affectionate variation of a personal name) which ...
'', ''
Aaahh!!! Real Monsters
''Aaahh!!! Real Monsters'' is an American animated television series developed by Klasky Csupo for Nickelodeon. The show focuses on three young monsters—Ickis, Oblina, and Krumm—who attend a school for monsters under a city dump and learn t ...
'', ''
Hey Arnold!
''Hey Arnold!'' is an American animated comedy television series created by Craig Bartlett. It originally aired on Nickelodeon from October 7, 1996, to June 8, 2004. The show centers on fourth grader Arnold Shortman, who lives with his grandpare ...
'', ''
Rocko's Modern Life
''Rocko's Modern Life'' is an American animated television series created by Joe Murray for Nickelodeon. The series centers on the surreal life of an anthropomorphic Australian immigrant wallaby named Rocko and his friends: the eccentric stee ...
'', ''
Blue's Clues
''Blue's Clues'' is an American live-action/animated children's television series, created by Angela C. Santomero, Todd Kessler, and Traci Paige Johnson, that premiered on Nickelodeon as part of its Nick Jr. block on September 8, 1996, and c ...
'' and ''
Dora the Explorer
''Dora the Explorer'' is an American children's animated television series and multimedia franchise created by Chris Gifford, Valerie Walsh Valdes and Eric Weiner that premiered on Nickelodeon on August 14, 2000, went on hiatus on June 5, 20 ...
''). The block ran on weekday mornings until September 5, 2000, when it was relegated to Saturday and Sunday mornings in order to accommodate a time slot for ''Hoy En El Mundo'' (with
Jose Diaz-Balart
Jose is the English transliteration of the Hebrew and Aramaic name ''Yose'', which is etymologically linked to ''Yosef'' or Joseph. The name was popular during the Mishnaic and Talmudic periods.
* Jose ben Abin
* Jose ben Akabya
*Jose the Galil ...
).
Telemundo Kids (2001–2006)
The Nickelodeon blocks were discontinued after September 30, 2001, ahead of the expiry of Telemundo's program supply deal with Nickelodeon. It was then replaced with
Telemundo Kids
Telemundo Kids (in borrowed its name from Telemundo's 1995-1998 Saturday morning block Telemundo Infantil) is a former American children's programming block that airs on the Spanish-language television network Telemundo, which debuted on October 6 ...
debut on October 6, 2001, which featured a mix of acquired programming from various providers, including
Sony Pictures Television
Sony Pictures Television Inc. (abbreviated as SPT) is an American television production and distribution studio. Based at the Sony Pictures Studios complex in Culver City, it is a division of Sony Entertainment's unit Sony Pictures Enterta ...
Dragon Tales
''Dragon Tales'' is an animated educational fantasy children's television series created by Jim Coane and Ron Rodecker and developed by Coane, Wesley Eure, Jeffrey Scott, Cliff Ruby and Elana Lesser and produced by Sony Pictures Television, Ses ...
'', ''
Jackie Chan Adventures
''Jackie Chan Adventures'' is an American animated television series, created by John Rogers, Duane Capizzi and Jeff Kline, and produced by Sony Pictures Television (originally as Columbia TriStar Television for the first three seasons). T ...
'' and ''
Max Steel
Max Steel is a line of action figures produced and owned by the toy company Mattel since 1999. The original figures based on the first TV series were similar to the original 12-inch G.I. Joe toys, consisting almost entirely of different versi ...
'') and later Nickelodeon (''Rugrats'', ''Hey Arnold!'', ''Dora the Explorer'' and ''
All Grown Up!
''All Grown Up!'' is an American animated television series created by Arlene Klasky, Gábor Csupó, and Paul Germain for Nickelodeon. It served as a continuation of the series ''Rugrats'', as explores the daily lives of protagonist Tommy Pickles ...
'').
Following the sale of Telemundo to NBC in 2001 and the
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
/
Viacom Viacom, an abbreviation of Video and Audio Communications, may refer to:
* Viacom (1952–2006), a former American media conglomerate
* Viacom (2005–2019), a former company spun off from the original Viacom
* Viacom18, a joint venture between Par ...
(now
Paramount Global
Paramount Global (Trade name, doing business as Paramount) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational mass media and entertainment Conglomerate (company), conglomerate owned and operated by National Amusements (79.4%) and headquar ...
) split in early 2006, the block was discontinued September 3, 2006. However, ''
Jacob Two-Two
''Jacob Two-Two'' is a series of children's books written by Canadian author Mordecai Richler: ''Jacob Two-Two Meets the Hooded Fang'' (1975), ''Jacob Two-Two and the Dinosaur'' (1987) and ''Jacob Two-Two's First Spy Case'' (1995) written by Mor ...
'' carried over to the block’s direct successor
Qubo
Qubo ( ; stylized as qubo) was an American television network for children between the ages of 5 and 14. Owned by Ion Media, it consisted of a 24-hour free-to-air television network often mentioned as the "Qubo channel" (available as a digital ...
, which premiered the following week.
Qubo on NBC/Telemundo (2006–2012)
In September 2006, Telemundo debuted
Qubo
Qubo ( ; stylized as qubo) was an American television network for children between the ages of 5 and 14. Owned by Ion Media, it consisted of a 24-hour free-to-air television network often mentioned as the "Qubo channel" (available as a digital ...
, a new weekend morning block of educational programming formed as a joint venture between NBC Universal,
Ion Media Networks
Ion Media (formerly known as Paxson Communications Corporation and Ion Media Networks) was an American broadcasting company that owned and operated over 71 television stations in most major American markets (through its television stations grou ...
,
Corus Entertainment
Corus Entertainment Inc. is a Canadian mass media company. Formed in 1999 as a spin-off from Shaw Communications, it has prominent holdings in the radio, publishing, and television industries. It is headquartered at Corus Quay in Toronto, Onta ...
,
Scholastic
Scholastic may refer to:
* a philosopher or theologian in the tradition of scholasticism
* ''Scholastic'' (Notre Dame publication)
* Scholastic Corporation, an American publishing company of educational materials
* Scholastic Building, in New Y ...
, and
Classic Media
Classic Media, LLC, doing business as DreamWorks Classics, is an American entertainment company owned by DreamWorks Animation, which is a subsidiary of Universal Pictures and a division of Comcast's NBCUniversal. It was founded as Classic Media ...
subsidiary
Big Idea Entertainment
Big Idea Entertainment, LLC (formerly known as Big Idea Productions, Inc. and Big Idea, Inc.; also simply as Big Idea) is an American Christian animation company, best known for its computer-animated ''VeggieTales'' series of Christian-themed ...
. The block carried Spanish-language dubs of programming acquired or produced for Qubo's English-language blocks on
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters ...
and
Ion
An ion () is an atom or molecule with a net electrical charge.
The charge of an electron is considered to be negative by convention and this charge is equal and opposite to the charge of a proton, which is considered to be positive by conven ...
, airing on Saturday and Sunday mornings in 90-minute blocks.
The reasoning why the name "qubo" was chosen for the endeavor, or why its logo is a cube, has not been publicly explained by any of the partners, although general manager Rick Rodriguez stated in an interview with ''
Multichannel News
''Multichannel News'' is a magazine and website published by Future US that covers multichannel television and communications providers, such as cable operators, satellite television firms and telephone companies, as well as emerging Internet ...
'' that the name was intended to be something that sounded fun, and be a brand that could easily be uniformally used in English and Spanish.
MiTelemundo (NBC Kids) (2012–2017)
On July 7, 2012, after the acquisition of
NBC Universal
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...
by
Comcast
Comcast Corporation (formerly known as American Cable Systems and Comcast Holdings),Before the AT&T merger in 2001, the parent company was Comcast Holdings Corporation. Comcast Holdings Corporation now refers to a subsidiary of Comcast Corpora ...
, the block was replaced by MiTelemundo; programmed by Sprout, it consisted of Spanish dubbed versions of programs seen on its sister broadcast network's Saturday morning block,
NBC Kids
NBC Kids was an American Saturday morning children's television programming block that aired on NBC from July 7, 2012 to September 25, 2016. Telemundo also aired a version of the block under the "MiTelemundo" title, which featured a separate line ...
, which debuted on the same date.
MiTelemundo debuted on July 7, 2012, one week after the Qubo block ended its run on both NBC and Telemundo on June 30 (which left Ion Television (and later
Ion Plus
Ion Plus is an American free linear television network owned by the Katz Broadcasting subsidiary of the E. W. Scripps Company that formerly operated as a broadcast television network until February 28, 2021. The network originally launched in 2 ...
) as the only network to retain a Qubo-branded children's block up until the closure of the Qubo Channel on February 28, 2021, as the E.W. Scripps Company is now the owner of
Ion Media
Ion Media (formerly known as Paxson Communications Corporation and Ion Media Networks) was an American broadcasting company that owned and operated over 71 television stations in most major American markets (through its television stations grou ...
The More You Know
''The More You Know'' is a series of public service announcements (PSAs) broadcast on the NBC family of channels in the United States and other locations, featuring educational messages. These PSAs are broadcast occasionally during NBC's networ ...
block on NBC by September 25, 2016, MiTelemundo initially retained its existing programming until January 6, 2018, when MiTelemundo moved exclusively to Saturday mornings and became programmed by Litton. The relaunched MiTelemundo carries Spanish dubs of programming from The More You Know.
Named after NBC's series of public service campaigns, the three-hour Saturday morning block is programmed by Litton Entertainment, and features
live-action
Live action (or live-action) is a form of cinematography or videography that uses photography instead of animation. Some works combine live-action with animation to create a live-action animated film. Live-action is used to define film, video ga ...
programming aimed at
teen
Adolescence () is a transitional stage of physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with the te ...
s, all of which is dubbed in Spanish. Despite the change of programming, it did not change the name of the block, which remains as MiTelemundo.
Programming
Schedule issues
Due to regulations defined by the Children's Television Act that require stations to carry E/I compliant programming for three hours each week at any time between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m. local time, some Telemundo stations may defer certain programs aired within its Saturday morning block to Sunday daytime or earlier Saturday morning slots, or (in the case of affiliates in the Western United States) Saturday afternoons as makegoods to comply with the CTA regulations.