Big Blue Marble
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Big Blue Marble | |
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Children's television program | |
Directed by |
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Theme music composer | Skip Redwine |
Composers |
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Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
Production | |
Executive producer | Henry Fownes |
Producers | |
Production company | The Blue Marble Company |
Original release | |
Network | Syndication |
Release | September 21, 1974 January 1, 1983 | –
Big Blue Marble is a half-hour
Overview
Distinctive content included stories about children around the world and a pen-pal club that encouraged intercultural communication. The name of the show referred to the appearance of Earth as a giant marble, popularized by The Blue Marble, a famous photograph taken in December 1972 by the crew of Apollo 17.[1]
Each episode featured a segment about the real life of a boy and a girl, one American, the other foreign. The show also had occasional stories about world ecology. In addition there was a weekly segment in which a singing
Production
The program was funded by
Weimer often rewarded staff members with the opportunity to pitch story ideas and direct segments of the series. As a result, many got their first chance to work in that capacity. Some children featured on the show who went on to high-profile careers include Tisha Campbell (actress/singer), France Joli (Canadian disco singer) and Kevin Clash (prominent Muppet performer of Elmo on Sesame Street). Before they were well known, actors Sarah Jessica Parker and Kelly Reno were featured in dramatic segments in the series.
Each of the first 78 half-hour episodes produced during the original three years of production contained animated pieces sequences by Ron Campbell Films, Inc., executive produced and directed by Ron Campbell, written by Cliff Roberts.
In 1974, A&M Records released an album of songs from the show, also titled Big Blue Marble (catalog no. SP-3401).
Broadcast
Big Blue Marble was syndicated to television stations throughout the United States and Canada. C/F International was the most recent rights holder to the series; that company folded in 2008.
Awards
- Peabody Award(1975)
- Emmy Awards(multiple)
References
- ISBN 0-8108-1651-2.
External links
- Big Blue Marble at IMDb
- C/F International: Big Blue Marble
- Big Blue Marble episode guide courtesy of C/F International
- "The Earth's a Big Blue Marble"