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, Phil, Lil and Angelica, and their day-to-day lives, usually involving common life experiences that become adventures in the babies' imaginations. Adults in the series are almost always unaware of what the children are up to; however, this only provides more room for the babies to explore and discover their surroundings.

The series premiered on August 11, 1991, as the second Nicktoon after Doug and preceding The Ren & Stimpy Show. Production initially halted in 1993 after 65 episodes, with the last one airing on May 22, 1994. From 1995 to 1996, the only new episodes broadcast were "A Rugrats Passover" and "A Rugrats Chanukah", two heavily Jewish-themed episodes that both received much critical praise. New Rugrats episodes began airing regularly again in 1997, and The Rugrats Movie, which introduced the character of Tommy's younger brother Dil, was released in November 1998. A sequel titled Rugrats in Paris: The Movie came about in 2000, and the infant character Kimi and her mother Kira were added to the series' cast. Rugrats Go Wild, a crossover film with fellow Nicktoon The Wild Thornberrys, was released in 2003 to mixed reviews. The final episode aired on June 8, 2004, bringing the series to a total of 172 episodes and 9 seasons.

On August 11, 2001, Nickelodeon broadcast the made-for-TV special "All Growed Up" in celebration of the series' 10th anniversary. The special acted as a pilot for the Rugrats spin-off series All Grown Up!, which appropriately chronicles the lives of the babies and their parents after aging 10 years. Another spin-off series, Rugrats Pre-School Daze, was considered, but only four episodes made it past production. Two direct-to-video specials have also been produced under the title Rugrats Tales from the Crib. Tie-in media for the series include video games, comics, toys and various other merchandise.

Rugrats gained over 20 awards during its 13-year run, including 4 Daytime Emmy Awards, 6 Kids' Choice Awards, and its own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The series garnered Nickelodeon high ratings and stayed as the network's top rated show for five consecutive years. It was Nickelodeon's longest-running Nicktoon until 2012, when SpongeBob SquarePants aired its 173rd episode.

Development
Rugrats was formed by the then-husband-and-wife duo of Gábor Csupó and Arlene Klasky, along with Paul Germain in 1989. Klasky Csupo had a major animation firm at the time which also provided services for commercials and music videos. Klasky, Csupó, and Germain were also animating The Simpsons at the time, which they would continue to do until 1992. The trio decided to create their own series in reaction to a proclamation by the children's cable network Nickelodeon that they were to launch their own line of animated shows, which would be later called Nicktoons. With the comedic stimulation branching from the antics of Klasky and Csupó's infant children, the 6$1/2$–minute pilot episode, "Tommy Pickles and the Great White Thing" (never to be aired), went into production.

Peter Chung, along with Klasky and Csupó, co-designed the characters and directed the series pilot, "Tommy Pickles and the Great White Thing", as well as the opening sequence. The production was completed in 1990 and they submitted it to Nickelodeon, who tested it with an audience of children. The feedback for the pilot episode was primarily positive. With that, the series went into production. Chuckie and Angelica were added as characters.

Paul Germain felt that the series needed a bully. Angelica was based on a bully in Germain's childhood, who was a girl. In addition to that, it was Germain who decided that Angelica would be a spoiled brat. Klasky initially did not like Angelica Pickles and also protested the character's actions in episodes like "Barbecue Story", where she throws Tommy's ball over the fence.

In a New Yorker article, Klasky said, "I think she's a bully. I never liked Angelica." She never fully approved of Angelica's character development. Her bullying caused Klasky to disdain her. Angelica started to become a problem for the some of the Rugrats staff. In some instances, her voice, Cheryl Chase, had trouble portraying a mean Angelica. To help Chase out, Steve Viksen, one of the writers, would mention that Angelica was the series's J. R. Ewing.

After the episode "The Trial", Klasky complained that the Rugrats were starting to act too old for their age. Csupó often acted as a mediator in arguments between Klasky and the writers, with the writers often winning. Some of the offscreen tensions ultimately found their way into the scripts and, naturally, into the show. In 1993, shortly before Nick premiered the last of the original 65, production of new episodes went on hiatus, and most of the Rugrats writing team left Klasky-Csupo. After the first run days were over, Nick had enough episodes to show every day, and did just that in 1994, scheduling the show in the early evening, when both kids and parents would be watching. After three years of repeats, the show went back into production. However, the tensions between Klasky-Csupo and their former writers still existed.

After The Rugrats Movie and seeing the "new" Angelica in the film, Klasky changed her tune: "I think she's great for the show; I love Angelica."

Nicktoons
Rugrats was Nickelodeon's second Nicktoon, debuting on the same day as Doug (which premiered before it) and The Ren & Stimpy Show (which debuted after). The first run of the series was produced from 1991 to 1994 before production went on a hiatus (episodes that had not yet been released at that point continued to be released through 1995). Between 1995 and 1996, only two Jewish-themed specials were aired, and the rest of the series aired in reruns. Production on new episodes restarted in 1997, and the show aired in Nickelodeon's SNICK block from 1997 to 2000. From 1994 until 2012, Rugrats was Nickelodeon's longest-running Nicktoon, with 172 episodes produced across its thirteen-year run. It was surpassed in 2012 by SpongeBob SquarePants when that series aired its 173rd episode that year.

On August 11, 2001, Rugrats celebrated its 10-year anniversary. The special/TV movie "All Growed Up" was produced for the occasion. After the show, a special retrospective lookback aired, entitled "Rugrats: Still Babies After All These Years". It was narrated by Amanda Bynes. Nickelodeon approved of its ratings and popularity so much, they eventually commissioned a full series, All Grown Up, which ran from 2003 to 2008.

Rugrats ended in 2004, along with fellow Nicktoon Hey Arnold!. After the run, two fairytale-themed direct-to-video films based on the original series under the title Rugrats: Tales from the Crib were produced and then released separately in 2005 and in 2006.

Voice actors
Through its full run, Rugrats occupied several main voice actors. E.G. Daily provided the voice of Tommy Pickles, except in the unaired pilot where Tami Holbrook provided the voice; Christine Cavanaugh was the original voice of Chuckie Finster, but left the show for personal reasons and was subsequently replaced by Nancy Cartwright (voice of Bart Simpson and others on FOX's The Simpsons) in 2002. The fraternal twins, Phil and Lil (as well as their mother, Betty) were voiced by Kath Soucie; Dil Pickles (and Timmy McNulty) were voiced by Tara Strong (who would later voice Timmy Turner on The Fairly OddParents). Cheryl Chase initially auditioned for the role of Tommy, but was passed up. When the show came to series, she was brought on board to be cast as the voice of Angelica Pickles. Dionne Quan was the voice of Kimi Finster, however as she is legally blind, in order to do the voice, the producers had to interpret the scripts into Braille, so she could read them by sensing the bumps with her fingers. Susie was primarily voiced by Cree Summer, though in two episodes where she could not be in attendance E.G. Daily filled in. Other regular voice actors included Melanie Chartoff as Didi Pickles, Jack Riley as Stu Pickles, Tress MacNeille as Charlotte Pickles, and Michael Bell as Drew Pickles and Chas Finster. David Doyle provided the voice of Grandpa Lou Pickles until his death in 1997, where Joe Alaskey took over till the end of the series. In 2000, Debbie Reynolds joined the cast as Lulu Pickles, Lou's second wife, and remained until the series' end.

Episode production
With Rugrats it usually took a few months to make an episode, for the story has to get written, and then approved. The next process consisted of voice recording, storyboarding, pre-eliminating animation, overseas production & delivery, editing and polishing. All of that had to happen even before Klasky-Csupo sent the master tapes to Nick. In addition, fine animation took time to make. During the first six seasons of Rugrats, shows were primarily divided into two eleven-minute episodes. After the second movie, during season seven, Rugrats made a change with a different format that consisted of three episodes per show, though it returned to its original two-episode-per-show format in the final two seasons.

Characters
The series focuses on the experiences of a courageous, adventurous one-year-old baby named Tommy Pickles and his group of playmates – several other infants and toddlers, some of whom debuted later in the series. Chuckie, Tommy's bespectacled, redheaded, insecure cowardly best friend; the twins Phil and Lil, noted for their revolting eccentricities and love of digging for and eating insects and earthworms; Tommy's baby brother Dil (who was born in The Rugrats Movie); Angelica, Tommy and Dil's outrageously spoiled, selfish older cousin and the main antagonist of the program; Kimi, Chuckie's adventurous, playful stepsister (introduced in Rugrats in Paris); and Susie, Angelica's schoolmate and kindhearted, understanding rival who is better liked by the infants and far more reliable than Angelica.

The other characters depicted in Rugrats, include the babies' parents, who are portrayed as often being easily distracted, leaving their young children free to emancipate themselves from restraints such as playpens or strollers and venture out for to explore. Such adult figures include Didi and Stu Pickles, Tommy and Dil's mother and father. Didi is a sweet, educated, loving mother who decides to return to college in one episode. Stu is an often-feckless toy inventor whose designs have been known to either fail or break. Other parents include Chas Finster, Chuckie's stereotypically-nerdy, mild-mannered father a widower who later remarries; Kira, Chuckie's sweet-natured, kind, and understanding stepmother who Chas marries in Rugrats in Paris; Drew Pickles, Angelica's indulgent, doting father who pampers his daughter to a ridiculous degree; Charlotte Pickles, Angelica's working mother who overindulges her daughter equally if often seen arguing on her cellular phone with an employee of hers named Jonathan; Betty DeVille, Phil and Lil's kind but masculinely-natured mother; and Howard DeVille, the twins' mild-mannered, soft-spoken father.

Susie's parents and elder siblings also make appearances in some episodes, and another major adult character includes Lou Pickles, Drew and Stu's father and Tommy, Angelica, and Dil's grandfather; an elderly widower who later remarries with an active woman named Lulu. Didi's parents, Jewish foreigners named Boris and Minka, also appear numerous times and serve as important characters and are often seen bickering. Other characters of include the Pickles family dog, Spike, who has played important roles in some episodes, and Angelica's pet cat Fluffy.

The show functions under a translation convention for baby talk, which is presented as essentially a separate language which only other babies can understand. The babies' dialogue is almost universally translated for viewers by comprehensible English dialogue, but adults in the series cannot understand them. One example of this dissonance is when Tommy says "Reptar!", the name of a popular children's icon but his mother then responds that she heard him say "riff raff", and that she hopes he's getting close to speaking full words, indicating that adult characters still hear the dialogue of baby characters as babbling. The translated dialogue of the babies is still presented as infantile English, reflecting their limited understanding of the world. Another major point of this plot convention is that toddlers who have learned to speak adult language can still understand baby talk, because they are at a transitional age between the two. Angelica and Susie can understand what the baby characters are saying but can also communicate with adults, though they never outright reveal to the adults that they can comprehend complex messages from the babies. Very young newborns, such as Tommy's little brother, cannot yet communicate even with baby talk.

Setting
Many of the adventures the babies find themselves in take place at Tommy's house; the parents usually rely on Didi, Stu, or Grandpa Lou to babysit the kids while they run errands. Their address is revealed on an invoice in "Tommy's First Birthday" (season one, 1991) as 1258 N. Highland, the original address of Klasky Csupo in Los Angeles. However, a specific city or state is never mentioned in the show. Several indicators, such as a state flag at a post office, license plate designs on the vehicles, and various trips to the Grand Canyon, Las Vegas, and the beach, place the characters somewhere in southern California. The location is also hinted at during "Little Dude" (season one, 1991) when Didi, who is a teacher, takes Tommy to her class at Eucaipah High School, referencing the city of Yucaipa, California. It has been implied that this ambiguity was done intentionally to help give the impression of seeing the world through the eyes of the babies, who wouldn't understand the concept of location. The DeVilles live next door to the Pickles and early in the series the Carmichaels move in across the street.

Themes
Rugrats visualizes ordinary, everyday activities through the eyes of a group of toddlers. Using their imaginations, the babies transform routine tasks into surprising adventures. The show plays with baby talk, having the group constantly mispronounce words and use improper grammar. Challenges often emerge because the babies misinterpret the adults, usually caused by Angelica's deceptive translations. The grown-ups of Rugrats are simultaneously quirky, over-cautious, and oblivious. The series portrays adults as mysterious eccentrics. Episodes usually center on a moral lesson that the babies learn during their imaginative explorations. Angelica serves as a negative influence on the show but her attempts to mislead the babies are always foiled.

DVD releases
Nickelodeon and Amazon.com have struck a deal to produce DVDs of new and old Nickelodeon shows, through the CreateSpace service. Using a concept similar to print on demand, Amazon made the discs, cover art, and disc art itself. The first and second seasons of Rugrats were released on June 2, 2009, along with The Fairly OddParents first and second seasons (although the second Rugrats set contains only the first half of the Season 2 episodes). Season 3 and 4 were released on September 23, 2011, through the CreateSpace program. Season 5 was released shortly after on October 4. On October 6, 2011, the complete Seasons 6–8 were released through CreateSpace, and Season 9 was released in a "Best of" collection. Amazon re-released seasons 2 & 9 as a complete season on May 9, 2014.

Complete Seasons

Other releases

Nick Picks DVDs
 * Nick Picks Volume 1: Finsterella
 * Nick Picks Volume 2: All Growed Up
 * Nick Picks Holiday: The Santa Experience

Critical reception
Since its debut in 1991, Rugrats generally received positive reviews from critics and fans. In a 1995 interview, Steven Spielberg (who, at the time, was producing several competing animated series for Warner Bros.) referred to the show as one of several shows that were the best children's programming at the time. Spielberg described Rugrats as "sort of a TV Peanuts of our time." It was named the 92nd-best animated series by IGN. Rugrats was also considered a strong point in Nickelodeon's rise in the 1990s. In a press release celebrating the show's 10th anniversary, Cyma Zarghami stated, "During the past decade, 'Rugrats' has evolved from a ratings powerhouse, being the number one children's show on TV, to pop icon status. It has secured a place in the hearts of both kids and adults, who see it from their own point of view". According to Nickelodeon producers, this show made them the number-one channel in the 1990s. Jeff Jarvis reviewed Rugrats and stated, "When The Simpsons was a segment on The Tracey Ullman Show, it was just a belch joke with hip pretensions. As a series, it grew flesh and guts. It was my favorite cartoon... until I discovered Nickelodeon's Rugrats, a sardonic, sly, kid's eye view of the world that skewers thirty-something parents and (The) Cosby (Show) kids."

Popularity, appeal, and controversy
Rugrats, which at the time had moderately high ratings, was scheduled to air 65 episodes as Nickelodeon felt that it had enough reruns for a few years, putting production on a hiatus in 1994. Production of Rugrats resumed in 1996 with three specials, and followed with new episodes airing by 1997. In 2012, co-creator Arlene Klasky stated that, if Nickelodeon asked Klasky Csupo to, she would be more than happy to produce new episodes of Rugrats and bring it back for a tenth season.

When Rugrats debuted in 1991, it was not as popular as it would later become. When production went on a hiatus in 1994, Nick began showing Rugrats repeats everyday. More people began to take notice of the show, with ratings and popularity for Rugrats and Nick rising. From 1995 to 2000, it was the highest-rated show on Nickelodeon and the highest rated kids' show. The show experienced a wide diverse audience consisting of kids, teenagers and adults alike. Rugrats was successful in receiving an average of 26.7 million viewers every week: 14.7 million kids (2–11), 3.2 million teens (12–17), and 8.8 million adults (18 and over). In addition, Rugrats was seen internationally in over 76 countries. It was the only one of the three original Nicktoons that continued in the 2000s and had its own spin-off. While the other Nicktoons were popular during their run, Doug would later slip out of Nick's hands and into Disney's; and Ren and Stimpy would crash and burn in a creative rights dispute (only to return several years later in a much raunchier version on another network). During its run, Rugrats was enjoyed by a number of famous stars including Alexa Vega, Daryl Sabara, Amanda Bynes, Aaron Carter, Ray Romano, Nivea and Bow Wow.

Rugrats was noteworthy among contemporary children's television for depicting observant, identifiable Jewish families. Jewish and Christian religion groups gave the show high praises for their special holiday episodes. Nonetheless, at one point the Anti-Defamation League and The Washington Post editorial page castigated the series for its depiction of Tommy Pickles' maternal grandparents, accusing their character designs of resembling Nazi-era depictions of Jews.

Honors
On June 28, 2001, in commemoration of their tenth anniversary, Rugrats received a star on the fabled Hollywood Walk of Fame, making it Nickelodeon's first (and to date, only) series to receive a star. It was placed at 6600 W. Hollywood Bl., near Cherokee Ave. outside a toy and costume shop.

In the October 2001 issue of Wizard Magazine, a leading magazine for comic book fans, they released the results of the 100 Greatest Toons ever, as selected by their readers, Rugrats ranked at No. 35. Three other Nicktoons—SpongeBob SquarePants, Invader Zim, and Ren and Stimpy—also placed on the list.

In a list of TV Land's The 2000 Best Things About Television, ranking the all-time TV shows, channels, commercials, people, catch phrases, etc., Rugrats is ranked #699.

Angelica Pickles placed seventh in TV Guide's list of "Top 50 Greatest Cartoon Characters of All Time" in 2002.

On September 24, 2013, in honor of TV Guide's 60th anniversary, Rugrats earned a spot on their "60 Greatest Cartoons of All Time" list.

Films
In 1998, The Rugrats Movie was released, which introduced baby Dil, Tommy's little brother, onto the show. It grossed in worldwide results, $140,894,675, making it a very large box office success, considering its modest $24 million budget, though it also received mixed reviews from critics. In 2000 a sequel, Rugrats in Paris: The Movie, was released, with two new characters introduced, Kimi and Kira. Kimi would become Chuckie's sister and Kira would become his new mother, after marrying his father. It too was a box office success and also received a more positive critical reception. In 2003, Rugrats Go Wild was released. It was a crossover between the Rugrats and The Wild Thornberrys. It was the least successful Rugrats film both critically and commercially.

Comics
From 1998 to 2003, Nick produced a Rugrats comic strip, which was distributed through Creators Syndicate. Initially written by show-writer Scott Gray and drawn by comic book artist Steve Crespo, with Rob Armstrong as editor. Will Blyberg came on board shortly after as inker. By the end of '98, Lee Nordling, who had joined as a contributing gag writer, took over as editor. Nordling hired extra writers, including Gordon Kent, Scott Roberts, Chuck Kim, J. Torres, Marc Bilgrey, and John Zakour, as well new artists including Gary Fields, Tim Harkins, Vince Giaranno, and Scott Roberts. Stu Chaifetz colored the Sunday strips. The Rugrats strip started out in many papers, but as often happens with spin-off strips, soon slowed down. It is still seen in some papers in re-runs. Two paperback collections were published by Andrews McMeel It's a Jungle-Gym Out There and A Baby's Work Is Never Done.

During this time, Nickelodeon also published 30 issues of an all Rugrats comic magazine. Most of these were edited by Frank Pittarese and Dave Roman, and featured stories and art by the comic strip creators and others. The last nine issues featured cover art by Scott Roberts, who wrote and drew many of the stories. Other writers included Roman, Chris Duffy, Patrick M. O'Connell, Joyce Mann, and Jim Spivey. Other artists included Joe Staton and Ernie Colón. The magazine also included short stories, many by Pittarese, and games, as well as reprints from an earlier, UK produced Rugrats comic.

Finally, Nick produced a special, 50-page comic magazine retelling of the film Rugrats in Paris, edited by Pittarese and Roman, with script by Scott Gray, pencils by Scott Roberts, and inks by Adam DeKraker.

Video games
Nineteen video games based on the series have been released: Rugrats: Scavenger Hunt for Nintendo 64; Rugrats: Search for Reptar and Rugrats: Studio Tour for PlayStation, Rugrats: Totally Angelica for the PlayStation and Game Boy Color; Rugrats: Time Travelers and The Rugrats Movie for Game Boy Color; Rugrats in Paris: The Movie for Nintendo 64, PlayStation, Game Boy Color, and PC CD Rom; Rugrats: Royal Ransom for PlayStation 2 and Nintendo GameCube; Rugrats: Totally Angelica Boredom Busters, All Growed Up, Rugrats Activity Challenge, Rugrats Adventure Game, Rugrats Munchin Land, and The Rugrats Mystery Adventures for PC CD Rom; Rugrats: Go Wild for PC CD Rom and Game Boy Advance; Rugrats: I Gotta Go Party, Rugrats: Castle Capers, and All Grown Up!: Express Yourself for Game Boy Advance; and Rugrats Food Fight for Mobile phone. Tommy and Angelica appear as guest characters in Rocket Power: Team Rocket Rescue. They appear again as playable characters in Nickelodeon Party Blast and Nicktoons Racing. Tommy later appears in Nicktoons Basketball in his All Grown Up! form. Rugrats characters make non-playable appearances in Nicktoons: Attack of the Toybots and Nicktoons MLB.

Live performances
Rugrats – A Live Adventure was a show about Angelica's constant attempts to scare Chuckie. To help Chuckie combat his wide range of fears, Tommy invents a magic wand called the "People-ator" to make Chuckie brave. Angelica, however, wants Chuckie to stay scared, so she steals Tommy's wand. The Rugrats try to get it back, but to no avail. Angelica becomes Princess of the World. Eventually, Chuckie becomes brave thanks to the help of Susie, Mr. Flashlight and the audience. Many songs were included in the play, including the theme song. Despite some criticism, the show was well received. The show had two 40-minute acts, with a 20-minute intermission (or a commercial break).

Merchandise
Merchandise that was based on Rugrats varied from video games, toothpaste, Kelloggs' cereal to slippers, puzzles, pajamas, jewelry, wrapping paper, Fruit Snacks, Inflatable balls, watches, pens, pencils, markers, cookie jars, key rings, action figures, and bubblegum. The show also managed to spawn a popular merchandise line at Walmart, Kmart, Target, EBay, Hot Topic, J. C. Penney, Toys "R" Us, Mattel, Barnes & Noble, and Basic Fun.

The Rugrats had their own cereal made by Post called Reptar Crunch Cereal. The Rugrats and Reptar were predominantly featured on the front, there's a board game on the back, and a special $3 rebate for Runaway Reptar on the side. This cereal was released for a limited time only, sold at US supermarkets 8/1/99 to 9/15/99 only, and not all supermarkets carried the cereal. To memorialize the movie, Rugrats in Paris, another Rugrats-based cereal came out in October 2000. Simply called the Rugrats in Paris Cereal, it has a similar appearance to Trix; it's a sweetened, multi-grain cereal with small-round bits in plain, red, purple and green. Small Eiffel Towers could also be seen.

Rugrats made fast-food appearances as well, with the most appearances being on Burger King. Their first fast food appearance was in 1994, when the Hardee's fast food chain offered a collection of Nicktoons toys as premiums that were included with kids' meals at Hardee's. All 4 Nicktoons at that time were featured—Ren & Stimpy, Rocko's Modern Life, Doug and Rugrats. Other food items that feature Rugrats were Fruit Snacks, Macaroni and Cheese, Bubble Gum and Campbell's Rugrats Pasta with Chicken and Broth.

In their first tie-in with Burger King, 5 Rugrats toys were offered with their Kids Club meals, a different one with each meal. Each toy came with a 12-page (including covers) miniature version of Nickelodeon Magazine, which featured the toy's instructions, word search, picture puzzle, "Say What?", a scrambled word puzzle, a coupon for Oral-B Rugrats toothpaste and toothbrush, and entry blanks to subscribe to Rugrats Comic Adventures, Nick Magazine and the Kids Club. From 1998 till 2003, Rugrats based-products included watches and various toys.