The current Cartoon Network logo, was used in North America since June 14, 2004, in Latin America since January 1, 2005, and in Europe since April 11, 2005. Cartoon Network is a cable television channel created by Turner Broadcasting and dedicated to showing animated programming. It premiered on October 1, 1992 in the United States, and September 17, 1993 in the United Kingdom. Contents 1 History 1.1 USA 1.2 United Kingdom 2 Special programming blocks 2.1 Fridays 2.2 Miguzi 2.3 Toonami 2.4 Adult Swim 2.5 Preschool programming 2.5.1 Tickle-U (USA) 2.5.2 Tiny TV (some countries) 2.5.3 Cartoon Network Half Ticket Express (India) 3 Live-action programming 4 See also 5 External links History USA By the end of the 1980s, Ted Turner's cable TV conglomerate had acquired the MGM film library (which included the older catalog of Warner Bros. cartoons), and its cable channel Turner Network Television had gained an audience with its film library. In 1991, they purchased animation studio Hanna-Barbera Productions and acquired its large library. The Cartoon Network channel was created as an outlet for Turner's considerable library of animation, and the initial programming on the channel consisted exclusively of re-runs of classic Warner Bros. and MGM cartoons, with many Hanna-Barbera TV cartoons used as time fillers. In 1996, Time Warner purchased Turner Broadcasting, and the Cartoon Network came under their corporate umbrella. This provided still more material for the Cartoon Network, as the channel now had access to the Warner Bros. cartoon library from the 1950s and 1960s. Time Warner changed the direction of Hanna-Barbera Productions, and focused the studio exclusively on creating new material for the Cartoon Network channel (which were baptized Cartoon Cartoons). Among the numerous shows the studio has produced are Dexter's Laboratory (1996), Johnny Bravo (1997), Cow and Chicken (1997), and The Powerpuff Girls (1998), Ed, Edd 'n Eddy (1999), along with more recent hits 'Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends (2004) and Camp Lazlo (2005). The old Cartoon Network logo, used in the United States until June 14, 2004, in Latin America until January 1, 2005, in Britain until April 11, 2005 and in Australia, India, Southeast Asia, Taiwan until October 1 2005. Despite that it's not the main logo anymore, it has still appeared on recent official CN ads on TV and in magazines, as well as on official CN DVDs, as well as Adult Swim programming. The older Hanna-Barbera cartoons, as well as the entire Warner Brothers Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies library and non-Tom and Jerry cartoons made by MGM such as those made by Tex Avery have been largely moved to the nostalgia-themed Boomerang sister network. In recent years, Cartoon Network has also made attempts to attract viewers outside its core audience (young children). Their mid-afternoon cartoon block Toonami consists of acceptable-for-teens anime from Japan, as well as some American animation, while a late-night cartoon block called Adult Swim shows more risque, teenage- and adult-oriented cartoons (with a combination of anime and American-produced comedies such Futurama and Family Guy). On April 17, 2004, Toonami was moved to Saturday evenings and the afternoon slot was filled with Miguzi, showing action-oriented American TV shows aimed at a slightly younger age group than Toonami. By October 2004, nearly all of CN's classic cartoon programming had been replaced by new programming, except for Tom and Jerry (a longtime staple of the Turner networks). In Europe, Boomerang is a block on the original Cartoon Network. In Brazil and Latin America, Boomerang (TV channel) is a separate channel. United Kingdom In the United Kingdom and Ireland, in September 2000, Toonami began broadcasting weekdays for two hours between 4pm–6pm, and 9pm–11pm, as well as weekends from 10am–12pm and 10pm–12am. Its output consisted almost solely of Japanese anime such as the cult Dragonball Z, Tenchi Muyo, and Gundam Wing. The only non-Japanese shows for quite some time were the American-produced The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest and Batman Beyond (Batman of the Future in the UK). Around the same time, there was almost completely new programming on the channel, and so Boomerang began in a late night slot. On May 27, 2000, most "classic" cartoons were removed from Cartoon Network and moved to Boomerang, which became a channel in Britain on that date, running from 6am–12am. Before long, however, it became 24 hours, and the remaining shows were removed from Cartoon Network. In June 2002, Toonami disappeared from Cartoon Network UK, and in October, a new channel was created called CNX. It was hailed as a high-octane, "'triple A' mix of Action, Adventure, and Anime." All American and Japanese animation shown on Toonami was broadcast on this 24 hour channel from 6am–12am, and during the night, there were hard hitting American dramas such as The Shield, adventure shows such as Spawn, martial arts films and extreme sports programmes. In 2003, there was a slot between 9pm and 10pm showing Cartoon Network produced comedy such as Aqua Teen Hunger Force and Space Ghost Coast to Coast. The extreme sports and films were moved to a small slot between 10pm and 2am. For the rest of the time, Toonami returned, on CNX, showing all of its previous output, plus a number of new shows. In September 2003, after 11 months on air, CNX was shut down, and Toonami became a 24-hour channel, in line with Cartoon Network and Boomerang. Cartoon Network also broadcasts in other languages like Japanese, Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, French, Italian, Polish, Hungarian, Romanian, Hindi, Urdu (in Pakistan), etc. Most of the Cartoon Network channels in Europe are broadcast from the United Kingdom, including an English language audio channel). Most of the Kids' WB shows are broadcast on Cartoon Network in locales where Kids' WB does not exist, such as Latin America and Poland. Turner Europe recently announced that they will be launching 2 new channels in the UK : Boomerang +1 and Cartoon Network Too. Boomerang +1 will be a timeshift channel of Boomerang. Cartoon Network Too will show classic cartoons such as Yogi bear and Wacky races. Both channels are expected sometime in 2006. Special programming blocks Fridays Main articles: Cartoon Cartoon Fridays, Cartoon network's fridays} |1= }} Fridays is a live action show that shows premieres of cartoons, sneak peeks of cartoons and new episodes of cartoons, It is hosted by Tommy Snider and Tara Sands, and features kids as well as puppets acting as comic relief. It airs for five hours at 7 PM (E/P) with a rebroadcast of 4.5 hours starting at 12:30 AM. Miguzi Main article Miguzi is a cartoon block that premiered on April 19 2004 and currently airs every night from 5–7 P.M. (E/P) on Cartoon Network in the U.S. This block is themed around Erin, a girl who finds refuge within the confines of a strange spaceship that is trapped underwater and inhabited by aquatic creatures. Not surprisingly, this lighter-toned action block is from Williams Street, the producers of late-night programming block Adult Swim and Toonami, a block of programming which Miguzi replaced in the weekday-afternoon timeslot. Miguzi airs action fare American shows like Codename: Kids Next Door, Code: Lyoko from France, the American series Teen Titans; the popular anime based on the best selling Nintendo games, Pokémon; and Yu-Gi-Oh! GX from Japan. Toonami Main article Toonami (a combination of cartoon and tsunami, suggesting a "giant wave of animated entertainment") was initially a block of action-oriented programming on Cartoon Network in the US and UK, among other countries. The American version premiered on March 17, 1997 as a weekday afternoon block. The Toonami brand was subsequently used in the United Kingdom as the title of a Cartoon Network-operated UK spinoff channel in its own right in September 2003, a little under a year after the network launched as CNX. Today, the US Toonami airs on Saturdays from 7 to 11 PM (E/P). Some shows in this program include Justice League Unlimited, Teen Titans, Dragonball Z, Naruto, and IGPX. Toonami is hosted by TOM, a robot who pilots the Absolution along with an AI unit named Sara. Adult Swim Main article Adult Swim is the name for the more adult-oriented television programming block on Cartoon Network, which premiered on September 2, 2001 in USA. Originally a Sunday-only block that also reran on Thursdays, Adult Swim airs Saturday through Thursday nights at 11 PM (E/P) and Sunday nights at 10 PM ET/PT with an encore airing at 2 AM and then ending with an hour of older shows on every night but Sunday. The block, programmed by Williams Street, the same group that created Toonami and Miguzi, plays American animated comedy series and shorts geared towards audiences 14 and older (despite the "Adult Swim" name), and a wide variety of anime series and OVAs, all intended for older audiences. The name comes from the name for hours designated at public swimming pools where only adults can swim in the pool. On March 28, 2005, the programming block was spun-off as a separate entity from Cartoon Network for Nielsen Ratings purposes. Preschool programming Tickle-U (USA) Main article Tiny TV (some countries) A special block of cartoons for young children in the morning slot. It features: Noddy Pingu Oswald Thomas & Friends Bob the Builder Skipper Cartoon Network Half Ticket Express (India) A special block of cartoons for young children in the morning slot. It features: Franklin Dragon Tales Miss Spider's Sunny Patch Friends Bob the Builder The Koala Brothers Maisy Postman Pat Little Red Tractor Live-action programming Although the majority of the network's programming is animation, live-action programming has been a part of Cartoon Network over the years. Human-hosted shows like Carrot Top's A.M. Mayhem and the current Cartoon Network Fridays format had live actors introducing animated shows and shorts. In the mid-1990s, the Children's Television Workshop co-produced Big Bag, a series that featured a Muppet character and a human counterpart. In mid-2004, Osmosis Jones, a film that was half live-action and half-animation, premiered on the network. The Phantom Tollbooth, another film that featured live-action with animation, also aired on the network. In November 2005, Cartoon Network began airing what network executives called "cartoon-inspired" live-action movies (including Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Small Soldiers, The Goonies, and Honey, I Shrunk the Kids) as part of its Cartoon Theater movie show. The move was made in response to the slumping ratings compared to competing live-action shows on Nickelodeon and Disney Channel. The scheduled movies are mostly acquisitions for sibling Turner networks TBS and TNT. In the future, Cartoon Network will create shows that blend live-action with animation as well as cartoony live-action shows in the vein of Pee-wee's Playhouse, The Three Stooges, and Krofft brothers shows, although the network maintains the dominant programming will remain animation. See also List of programs broadcast by Cartoon Network Pogo TV External links Cartoon Network site Cartoon Network at the Big Cartoon DataBase Time Warner Inc. 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