Timon & Pumbaa (TV series)
The Lion King's Timon & Pumbaa, often simply referred to as Timon & Pumbaa, is an animated television series created by The Walt Disney Company. It centers on Timon the meerkat and Pumbaa the warthog from Disney's 1994 film The Lion King. The show ran for three seasons on CBS, Disney Channel, Toon Disney, and in syndication as apart of The Disney Afternoon. It aired from September 8, 1995 to September 24, 1999. It is also the first Lion King related media to show humans, as humans were not present in the movie. It is the first of two television series to be based on the film, the second being The Lion Guard.
In 2004, Timon and Pumbaa starred in their own released feature film The Lion King 1½, a direct-to-video adaptation of the television series to the first of two films. Robert Guillaume, Matthew Broderick, Cam Clarke, Julie Kavner and Estelle Haris, Nathan Lane, Quinton Flynn, Kevin Schon, Ernie Sabella, Scott Bullock and Jerry Stiller, provided the voices of Rafiki, Simba, Timon's Mother, Timon, Pumbaa, Fred and Uncle Max respectively in The Lion King 1½, and two seasons of television series episodes Mombasa-In-Law/The Laughing Hyenas: TV Dinner, Once Upon a Timon.
Premise
The show stars Timon, a meerkat, and Pumbaa, a warthog, both characters from the Disney animated film The Lion King and its sequels. Set after the events of the original film, the series involves the characters having misadventures in the jungle of Africa, as well as across the globe in various settings such as Canada, Britain, the United States and Spain.
Production
The series premiered on September 8, 1995, airing on Fridays on the syndicated block The Disney Afternoon. Eight days later, on September 16, the series also began airing on Saturday mornings on CBS. The show was one of the last Disney productions to air on CBS, which had a cross-promotion agreement with Disney, as Disney bought ABC in 1996, the same year that this show (and all other Disney properties still airing on CBS at the time) left the network. Also, in 1995, Westinghouse acquired CBS outright for $5.4 billion. As one of the major broadcasting group owners of commercial radio and television stations (as Group W) since 1920, Westinghouse sought to transition from a station operator into a major media company with its purchase of CBS.[1] In 1998, there was a change in writers and a new director, which meant the show became aimed more towards children than the whole family. As a result of this, ratings declined and the show was canceled. Music underscore by Stephen James Taylor featuring frequent use of a microtonal xylophone and pan pipes based on an African tribal tuning. Since February 8, 2009 (after its final airing on the now-defunct Toon Disney), this show went off the air for three years. However, it returned to broadcast reruns on March 23, 2012 on Disney Junior.
Characters
- Timon (voiced in early episodes by Nathan Lane, then by Kevin Schon or Quinton Flynn) – One of the show's two main protagonists.
- Pumbaa (voiced by Ernie Sabella) – One of the show's two main protagonists.
- Simba (voiced by Cam Clarke) – Friend and adopted son of Timon and Pumbaa and King of the Pride Lands.
- Zazu (voiced by Edward Hibbert) – A pompous hornbill who works for Simba.
- Shenzi, Banzai and Ed (voiced by Tress MacNeille, Rob Paulsen and Jim Cummings) – Three hyenas who are usually spending their time looking for food, though their attempts to get it tend to backfire in their faces.
- Rafiki (voiced by Robert Guillaume) – A wise baboon who gives good advice and is occasionally the butt of jokes.
- Quint (voiced by Corey Burton) – Timon and Pumbaa's human archenemy and the main antagonist of the series. He is a man of many disguises and his role varies from episode to episode, from mildly bothersome antagonist to full villain.
- Speedy the Snail (voiced by Corey Burton, in a manner similar to Bing Crosby) – An easygoing blue snail who can talk and sing. Timon and Pumbaa originally planned to eat him, but ended up becoming friends with him instead. They often find themselves rushing to have to save Speedy from dangerous situations.
- Boss Beaver (voiced by Brad Garrett) – A stereotypical beaver whose life philosophy is the exact opposite of Hakuna Matata. He values hard work and is sometimes too harsh on his employees. He also emphasizes the importance of safe work conditions.
- Irwin (voiced by Charlie Adler) – A dimwitted, accident-prone penguin whose bad luck seems to be terribly contagious. Timon and Pumbaa became his friends after they were stranded in Antarctica and Irwin had two extra tickets to a cruise ship. They will try to avoid him at all costs.
- Toucan Dan (voiced by Jeff Bennett) – A criminal toucan, wanted by the police. He is known for being a convincing liar and impersonator and always manages to trick Timon and Pumbaa (or just Timon) into helping him.
- Smolder the Bear (voiced by Jim Cummings) – A large bear with a very short temperament who Timon and Pumbaa often run into. He can be quite menacing, but at least one episode shows that deep inside he is a nice guy.
- The Three Natives (voiced by Jeff Bennett) – Three natives who are really university students. Their "chief" is also a university student, and usually precedes what he says with "Bungala bungala!"
Episodes
| Season | Episodes | Originally aired | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season premiere | Season finale | |||
| 1 (Syndicated) | 13 | September 8, 1995 | December 29, 1995 | |
| 1 (CBS) | 12 | September 16, 1995 | December 16, 1995 | |
| 2 (Syndicated) | 13 | September 2, 1996 | November 25, 1996 | |
| 2 (CBS) | 8 | September 14, 1996 | November 9, 1996 | |
| 3 (Toon Disney) | 39 | January 1, 1999 | September 24, 1999 | |
Home video releases
VHS releases
US releases
Six VHS cassettes containing 18 episodes of the series were released in the United States under the name Timon & Pumbaa's Wild Adventures.
| VHS Name | Episode Titles | Release Date | Stock Number |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grub's On | "Saskatchewan Catch" "French Fried" "The Laughing Hyenas: Big Top Breakfast" | January 30, 1996[2] | 6706 |
| Hangin' With Baby | "Never Everglades" "To Kilimanjaro Bird" "Rafiki Fables: Good Mousekeeping" | January 30, 1996[3] | 6705 |
| True Guts | "The Pain in Spain" "How to Beat the High Costa Rica" "The Laughing Hyenas: Cooked Goose" | January 30, 1996[4] | 6709 |
| Don't Get Mad, Get Happy | "Yosemite Remedy" "Kenya Be My Friend?" "Rafiki Fables: The Sky is Calling" | May 8, 1996[5] | 6711 |
| Live & Learn! | "The Law of the Jungle" "Uganda Be an Elephant" "Be More Pacific" | May 8, 1996[6] | 7646 |
| Quit Buggin' Me | "Frantic Atlantic" "Swiss Missed" "Going Uruguay" | May 8, 1996[7] | 7647 |
European & Australian releases
Three VHS cassettes containing 21 episodes of the series were released in Europe and Australia. The first one, Around the World with Timon and Pumbaa, features an original story in which, after Pumbaa develops amnesia from a lightning strike, Timon tires to restore his friend's memory though the episodes featured on that video.
| VHS Name | Episode Titles | Release Date |
|---|---|---|
| Around the World with Timon & Pumbaa | "Boara Boara" "Yukon Con" "Saskatchewan Catch" "Stand by Me" (music video episode) "Brazil Nuts" "Truth or Zaire" "Never Everglades" | September 12, 1996 |
| Dining Out with Timon & Pumbaa | "French Fried" "Russia Hour" "Swiss Missed" "To Kilimanjaro Bird" "Don't Break the China" "Rocky Mountain Lie" "Yummy, Yummy, Yummy" (music video episode) | August 15, 1997 Rereleased: March 14, 2005 |
| On Holiday with Timon & Pumbaa | "Kenya Be My Friend?" "South Sea Sick" "Uganda Be an Elephant" "The Pain in Spain" "How to Beat the High Costa Rica" "You Ghana Join the Club" "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" (music video episode) | August 15, 1997 Rereleased: March 14, 2005 |
DVD releases
Three DVDs containing 21 episodes of the series were released in Europe and Japan.
| DVD Name | Episode Titles | Release Date |
|---|---|---|
| Around the World with Timon & Pumbaa | "Boara Boara" "Yukon Con" "Saskatchewan Catch" "Stand by Me" (music video episode) "Brazil Nuts" "Truth or Zaire" "Never Everglades" | June 7, 2004[8] |
| Dining Out with Timon & Pumbaa | "French Fried" "Russia Hour" "Swiss Missed" "To Kilimanjaro Bird" "Don't Break the China" "Rocky Mountain Lie" "Yummy, Yummy, Yummy" (music video episode) | March 14, 2005[9] |
| On Holiday with Timon & Pumbaa | "Kenya Be My Friend?" "South Sea Sick" "Uganda Be an Elephant" "The Pain in Spain" "How to Beat the High Costa Rica" "You Ghana Join the Club" "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" (music video episode) | March 14, 2005[10] |
To date, none of the series has yet been released on DVD in the United States.
Music
| Name | Notes |
|---|---|
| Stand By Me | Music video |
| Yummy, Yummy, Yummy | Music video |
| The Lion Sleeps Tonight | Music video |
| Alone Together | From the episode "Once Upon a Timon" |
| Beethoven's Whiff | Musical episode |
| Bumble in the Jungle | Musical episode |
Other media
Video games
| Game | Publisher | Platform | Release date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Timon & Pumbaa's Jungle Games | THQ (SNES) Disney Interactive (PC) |
Super NES Microsoft Windows |
1995 (Windows) March 26, 1998 (SNES) |
Awards and nominations
- 1996 – Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program – Nathan Lane For playing "Timon". (Won)
- 1997 – Outstanding Sound Mixing – Special Class – Deb Adair, Jim Hodson, Melissa Ellis, Michael Beiriger, Dan Hiland, Joseph D. Citarella, Allen L. Stone, and Michael Jiron (Won)
- 1997 – Outstanding Individual in Animation – Kexx Singleton for ("Beethoven's Whiff") (Won)
See also
References
- ↑ "The Lion King's Timon & Pumbaa". www.bcdb.com, accessdate=May 13, 2012
- ↑ "Timon & Pumbaa: Grub's on [VHS]: Ernie Sabella, Kevin Schon, Jim Cummings, Quinton Flynn, Jeff Bennett, Corey Burton, Rob Paulsen, Frank Welker, Tress MacNeille, Robert Guillaume, Nathan Lane, Charles Adler, Chris Henderson, Daryl G. Nickens, James W. Bates, Joan Considine Johnson, Kati Rocky, Sib Ventress: Movies & TV". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2014-05-10.
- ↑ "Timon & Pumbaa: Hangin With Baby [VHS]: Ernie Sabella, Kevin Schon, Jim Cummings, Quinton Flynn, Jeff Bennett, Corey Burton, Rob Paulsen, Frank Welker, Tress MacNeille, Robert Guillaume, Nathan Lane, Charles Adler, Chris Henderson, Daryl G. Nickens, James W. Bates, Joan Considine Johnson, Kati Rocky, Sib Ventress: Movies & TV". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2014-05-10.
- ↑ "Timon & Pumbaa: True Guts [VHS]: Ernie Sabella, Kevin Schon, Jim Cummings, Quinton Flynn, Jeff Bennett, Corey Burton, Rob Paulsen, Frank Welker, Tress MacNeille, Robert Guillaume, Nathan Lane, Charles Adler, Chris Henderson, Daryl G. Nickens, James W. Bates, Joan Considine Johnson, Kati Rocky, Sib Ventress: Movies & TV". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2014-05-10.
- ↑ "Timon & Pumbaa: Don't Get Mad [VHS]: Ernie Sabella, Kevin Schon, Jim Cummings, Quinton Flynn, Jeff Bennett, Corey Burton, Rob Paulsen, Frank Welker, Tress MacNeille, Robert Guillaume, Nathan Lane, Charles Adler, Chris Henderson, Daryl G. Nickens, James W. Bates, Joan Considine Johnson, Kati Rocky, Sib Ventress: Movies & TV". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2014-05-10.
- ↑ "Timon & Pumbaa: Live & Learn [VHS]: Ernie Sabella, Kevin Schon, Jim Cummings, Quinton Flynn, Jeff Bennett, Corey Burton, Rob Paulsen, Frank Welker, Tress MacNeille, Robert Guillaume, Nathan Lane, Charles Adler, Chris Henderson, Daryl G. Nickens, James W. Bates, Joan Considine Johnson, Kati Rocky, Sib Ventress: Movies & TV". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2014-05-10.
- ↑ "Timon & Pumbaa: Quit Buggin Me [VHS]: Ernie Sabella, Kevin Schon, Jim Cummings, Quinton Flynn, Jeff Bennett, Corey Burton, Rob Paulsen, Frank Welker, Tress MacNeille, Robert Guillaume, Nathan Lane, Charles Adler, Chris Henderson, Daryl G. Nickens, James W. Bates, Joan Considine Johnson, Kati Rocky, Sib Ventress: Movies & TV". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2014-05-10.
- ↑ "Timon And Pumbaa: Around The World With Timon And Pumbaa DVD: Amazon.co.uk: Timon & Pumba: DVD & Blu-ray". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 2014-05-10.
- ↑ "Timon And Pumbaa: Dining Out With Timon And Pumbaa - Volume 2 DVD: Amazon.co.uk: Timon and Pumbaa: DVD & Blu-ray". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 2014-05-10.
- ↑ "Timon And Pumbaa: On Holiday With Timon And Pumbaa - Volume 3 DVD: Amazon.co.uk: Timon and Pumbaa: DVD & Blu-ray". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 2014-05-10.
External links
- Timon & Pumbaa at the Internet Movie Database
- The Lion King's Timon and Pumbaa at the Big Cartoon DataBase
- Timon & Pumbaa at TV.com
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