Saturday morning preview specials

(Redirected from Saturday Morning Preview)

Saturday morning preview specials were aired on television annually to present previews of each network's fall lineup of Saturday-morning cartoon children's programming. Similar to the model for their new prime time counterpart shows, television networks in the United States and Canada would film a preview special for the fall season. These would often air as part of the regular network schedule or be made available to their affiliates for airing at any time, especially to fill timeslots that contained programming canceled months before.

Format

The Saturday morning previews were generally aired on the network in prime-time, usually the Friday night before the new schedule began. Specials were staggered between differing time slots and days in order to allow each network's show to stand out.

The preview specials are usually hosted by stars of one or more of the network's popular series and feature an array of special guests, with the continuity between each program preview being fictionalized with a small plot or theme to keep viewers interested. The previews were for new and returning series, with each preview featuring the show's opening credits and a scene from that program. They also unveiled a network's new imaging for Saturday morning programming.

History

Hanna-Barbera Productions created a half-hour syndicated film called "Here Comes a Star" (1964) with Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera playing themselves promoting its newest series, The Magilla Gorilla Show. The program, hosted by You Bet Your Life announcer George Fenneman, offered an inside look at the animation studio and a peek at the upcoming feature, Hey There, It's Yogi Bear. The first network preview special was The World of Secret Squirrel and Atom Ant (1965), a 60-minute special airing on NBC in primetime to celebrate Hanna-Barbera's first animated series made for Saturday morning television.

Decline

Main article: Saturday-morning cartoon § Decline

CBS, which had only irregularly carried preview specials, aired its last in 1985. The other two major networks continued near-annually. NBC's last was in 1991, as by 1992, the network had abandoned cartoons in favor of its teen sitcom block TNBC. ABC continued an annual Saturday preview special as part of its TGIF block through the 1990s, finally ending the practice in 1999, TGIF's last year in its original form.

4Kids Entertainment aired preview specials sporadically for its two blocks, FoxBox and The CW4Kids. Neither Fox Kids nor Kids' WB continued the practice as an annual tradition, though both had aired one-off preview specials in the 1990s.

Because the preview specials incorporated clips from a variety of sources with cross-platform licensing, it was legally impossible to sell them in syndication packages or release them on home video or streaming services.

Year-by-year guide

This television-related list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (October 2021)

Syndication

1964 - Here Comes a Star (hosted by George Fenneman) promoting The Magilla Gorilla Show

ABC

1969 - Super Saturday Cartoon Preview (hosted by the cast of The Ghost & Mrs. Muir and Jonathan Frid from Dark Shadows)
1971 - The Brady Bunch Visits ABC (hosted by the Brady Kids from The Brady Bunch)
1972 - The Brady Bunch Meet ABC's Saturday Superstars (hosted by the Brady Kids from The Brady Bunch)
1973 - Sneak Peek (hosted by Avery Schreiber and Jack Burns)
1974 - Funshine Saturday (hosted by Lee Majors from The Six Million Dollar Man)
1975 - Funshine Saturday (hosted by Jim Nabors and Ruth Buzzi from The Lost Saucer)
1976 - Sneak Peek (hosted by Jimmy Osmond)
1977 - All-Star Saturday (hosted by Kaptain Kool and the Kongs)
1978 - All-Star Saturday (hosted by Jimmy McNichol and Kristy McNichol)
1979 - Plastic Man and ABC Saturday Morning Sneak Peek (hosted by Michael Young) - Due to a cartoonists' strike delaying show premieres, this special aired over two weeks before the season debuted, and a second preview special, The Plastic Man Preview Hour, aired on Saturday of the following week.
1982 - Pac Preview Party (hosted by Dick Clark)
1983 - Preview Special (hosted by Dick Clark)
1984 - Saturday Morning Preview Park (hosted by "Weird Al" Yankovic)
1985 - Saturday Sneak Peek & Fun Fit Test (hosted by Tony Danza)
1988 - (hosted by cast of Mr. Belvedere)
1989 - Perfectly Strange Saturday Morning Preview (hosted by cast of Perfect Strangers)
1990 - ABC Saturday Morning Preview (hosted by Roseanne Barr and cast of Family Matters)
1991 - (hosted by cast of Family Matters)
1992 - ABC Sneak Peek with Step by Step (hosted by cast of Step by Step)
1993 - ABC Saturday Morning Preview Special (hosted by cast of Hangin' with Mr. Cooper)
1994 - Whole New Level of Fun (hosted by cast of Boy Meets World)
1995 - Saturday Morning Preview Special (hosted by Gary Owens, Marquise Wilson, Raven-Symoné, and Zachery Ty Bryan)
1996 - Saturday Morning Preview Party (hosted by Melissa Joan Hart)
1997 - One Saturday Morning (hosted by Charlie of Disney's One Saturday Morning, played by Jessica Prunell)
1998 - One Saturday Morning on Friday Night (hosted by Meme, played by Valarie Rae Miller, and Salem of Sabrina, the Teenage Witch)
1999 - One Saturday Morning on Friday Night (hosted by Meme, played by Valarie Rae Miller)

CBS

1969 - CBS Funtastic Preview (hosted by Sebastian Cabot, Johnny Whitaker and Anissa Jones of Family Affair)
1974 - Socko Saturday (hosted by The Hudson Brothers)
1975 - Dyn-o-mite Saturday (hosted by Bern Nadette Stanis, Jimmie Walker and Ralph Carter from Good Times)
1976 - Hey, Hey, Hey! It's the CBS Saturday Morning Preview Special (hosted by Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids)
1977 - The Wacko Saturday Morning Preview and Other Good Stuff Special (hosted by cast of Wacko)
1983 - Preview Special (hosted by Scott Baio; featuring Sorrell Booke, James Best, and the Krofft Puppets)
1984 - Saturday's the Place (hosted by Joyce DeWitt)
1985 - All-Star Rock 'N' Wrestling Saturday Spectacular (hosted by "Rowdy" Roddy Piper)

NBC

1965 - The World of Secret Squirrel and Atom Ant (William Hanna and Joseph Barbera introduce The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show)
1969 - The Banana Splits and Friends (hosted by The Banana Splits)
1972 - Howdy Doody and Friends (featuring the cast of Howdy Doody)
1973 - Starship Rescue (featuring Kevin Tighe and Randolph Mantooth from Emergency!; Billy Barty, Johnny Whitaker and Scott Kolden from Sigmund and the Sea Monsters; and characters from the world of Sid & Marty Krofft)
1974 - Preview Revue (hosted by Jimmy Osmond)
1975 - Preview Revue (hosted by The Lockers)
1976 - Smilin' Saturday Morning Parade (hosted by Freddie Prinze)
1977 - C'mon Saturday (hosted by Andrea McArdle from Annie)
1978 - The Bay City Rollers Meet the Saturday Superstars (hosted by the Bay City Rollers)
1979 - The Thing Meets Casper and the Shmoo (hosted by Gary Coleman) - Due to a cartoonists' strike delaying many season debuts, this special was cancelled and never aired.
1983 - The 1st Annual NBC Yummy Awards (hosted by Ricky Schroder and Dwight Schultz)
1984 - Laugh Busters (featuring Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends, Kidd Video, Alvin and the Chipmunks, The Snorks, Pink Panther and Sons, Mr. T The Smurfs) and ( K.I.T.T.) from TV series "Knight Rider"
1985 - Back to Next Saturday (starring Keshia Knight Pulliam and Lisa Whelchel
1986 - Alvin Goes Back to School
1987 - ALF Loves a Mystery (hosted by Benji Gregory & ALF from ALF)
1989 - Who Shrunk Saturday Morning? (hosted by cast of Saved by the Bell; featuring ALF, John Candy, John Moschitta Jr., Marsha Warfield and Sherman Hemsley)
1991 - NBC's World Premiere Cartoon Spectacular

FOX

1999 - Fox Kids Sneak Preview (hosted by cast of Malcolm in the Middle)
2002 - What's Inside the FoxBox? (hosted by cast of Spy Kids)
2003 - The Fight for the FoxBox

The WB

1995 - Welcome Home, Animaniacs! - Kids' WB Preview (hosted by Harland Williams)
1996 - Kids' WB! Sneak Peek

The CW

2008 - The CW4Kids Brand Spankin' New Spectacular Sneak Peek Party (hosted by Hudson Horstachio from Viva Piñata)
2010 - The CW4Kids Toonzai Friday Fall Preview (hosted by Sonic the Hedgehog from Sonic X)

References

^ Mangels, Andy (August 2020). "Saturday Morning Preview Specials Part Two: 1978-1983". RetroFan (10). United States: TwoMorrows Publishing: 31–42.
Scheimer, Lou (2012). Creating The Filmation Generation. TwoMorrows Publishing. p. 136. ISBN 978-1-60549-044-1.
"It's a Saturday Supercade Fun Fun Fun!".
Rock 'n' Wrestling Saturday Spectacular at IMDb
"Saturday Morning Video Fare To Be Previewed". The Rock Hill Herald. 1 September 1973.
The Bay City Rollers Meet the Saturday Superstars at IMDb
Back to Next Saturday at IMDb
Alvin Goes Back to School at IMDb
Alf Loves a Mystery at IMDb
"PJB Digital Artistry".
https://archive.org/details/G-Fan_060_Daikaiju_2003_WildBlueZero/page/n75
"'What's Inside the FOX BOX?' Find Out in the Half-hour Special Sunday, Sept. 1, On FOX". www.thefreelibrary.com. Archived from the original on 2019-04-27.
The Fight for the Fox Box at IMDb

External links

TV: Preview of Saturday Cartoons (1983) at the New York Times

v t e Children's programming on NBC
Individual blocks	TNBC (1992–2002) Discovery Kids on NBC (2002–2006) programs Qubo on NBC (2006–2012) NBC Kids (2012–2016) programs The More You Know (2016–)
NBCUniversal Cable blocks	The Animation Station (1995–1997) Cartoon Quest (1992–1995) USA Cartoon Express (1982–1996) Universal Kids Preschool (2017–)
Related topics	List of programs 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s Saturday-morning cartoon (preview specials) Howdy Doody NBComics

v t e Children's programming on CBS
By decade	1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s
Individual blocks	CBS Kidshow (1997–2000) Nickelodeon on CBS (2000–2006) programs Cookie Jar TV (2009–2013) programs CBS WKND (2013–2024)
Related topics	List of programs Saturday-morning cartoon (preview specials)
Owned & operated studios	Terrytoons

v t e Children's programming on the American Broadcasting Company
By decade	1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s
Individual blocks	ABC Kids (1997–2011) Weekend Adventure (2011–present)
Interstitial programs	The Bod Squad Schoolhouse Rock! Time for Timer
Related topics	List of programs Saturday-morning cartoon (preview specials) The Mickey Mouse Club Super Friends

Kids' WB

General
programming
topics

Succeeding blocks	The CW4Kids / Toonzai (programs) Vortexx
International versions	Australia

Asian cartoons and anime
dubbed in English

Astro Boy (2004)
Cardcaptors (2000–2001)
Cubix: Robots for Everyone (2001–2003)
Dragon Ball Z (2001)
Eon Kid (2007–2008)
MegaMan NT Warrior (2003–2005)
Pokémon (1999–2006)
Sailor Moon (2001)
Transformers: Cybertron (2005)
Viewtiful Joe (2005–2006)
Yu-Gi-Oh! (2001–2006)

Decode Entertainment/
DiC Entertainment/
Cookie Jar Group/
Wildbrain

Brats of the Lost Nebula (1998)
Captain Planet and the Planeteers (1997–1998)
Johnny Test (2006–2008, seasons 2–3)
Magi-Nation (2007–2008)
Spider Riders (2006–2007)
Will and Dewitt (2007–2008)
World of Quest (2008)

Marvel/
Disney–ABC
Domestic Television

X-Men: Evolution (2000–2003)
The Spectacular Spider-Man (2008)

Adelaide Productions/
Sony Pictures Television

Channel Umptee-3 (1997–1998)
Generation O! (2000–2001)
Jackie Chan Adventures (2000–2005)
Max Steel (2000–2001)
Men in Black: The Series (1997–2001)
Phantom Investigators (2002)
Astro Boy (2004)
The Spectacular Spider-Man (2008)

Universal Animation Studios/
DreamWorks Animation/
NBCU TV Distribution

Earthworm Jim (1995–1996)
Invasion America (1998)
The Mummy (2001–2003)

Nelvana

Rescue Heroes (2001–2003)
Waynehead (1996–1997)

Warner Bros. Animation/
Warner Bros. Television

Coconut Fred's Fruit Salad Island (2005–2006)
Detention (1999–2001)
Histeria! (1998–2001)
Johnny Test (2005–2007, Seasons 1–2)
¡Mucha Lucha! (2002–2005)
The Nightmare Room (2001–2002)
Ozzy & Drix (2002–2004)
Road Rovers (1996–1997)
Waynehead (1996–1997)
Xiaolin Showdown (2003–2006)

Based on DC Comics	Batman: The Animated Series (1992–1995) Batman Beyond (1999–2001) The New Batman Adventures (1997–1999) The New Batman/Superman Adventures (1997–2000) Static Shock (2000–2004) Superman: The Animated Series (1996–2000) The Zeta Project (2001–2002) Teen Titans (2003–2005; 2007–2008) The Batman (2004–2008) Krypto the Superdog (2006–2007) Legion of Super Heroes (2006–2008)
Hanna- Barbera	The New Adventures of Captain Planet (1997–1998) The New Scooby and Scrappy-Doo Show (2002–2003) The New Scooby-Doo Movies (2002) Shaggy & Scooby-Doo Get a Clue! (2006–2008) Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo (2002–2003) The Scooby-Doo Show (2002–2003) Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! (2002–2004) Tom and Jerry Tales (2006–2008) What's New, Scooby-Doo? (2002–2005)
Looney Tunes	Animaniacs (1995–1998) Freakazoid! (1995–1997) Pinky and the Brain (1995–2000) Tiny Toon Adventures (1997–2000) Bugs 'n' Daffy (1996–1999) Pinky, Elmyra & the Brain (1998–1999) The Cat&Birdy Warneroonie PinkyBrainy Big Cartoonie Show (1999–2000) The Daffy Duck Show (1996–1997) Loonatics Unleashed (2005–2007) The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries (1995–2001) That's Warner Bros.! (1995–1996)
Cartoon Network Studios	Codename: Kids Next Door (2004) Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends (2005) The Powerpuff Girls (2002) Samurai Jack (2001)

Misc. programs

Da Boom Crew (2004)
The Legend of Calamity Jane (1997)
Monster Allergy (2006–2007)
Skunk Fu! (2007–2008)

Specials	Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer (2002) Pokémon: Destiny Deoxys (2005) Pokémon: The Mastermind of Mirage Pokémon (2006) Wakko's Wish (2000)

Categories:

Misplaced Pages