What kiddie channels did you watch growing up? - Blue's Clues > Dora the Explorer

[Syaoran Li]

I was a child of the late 1990's and early 2000's, and my main jam was a mix of Fox Kids, Kids WB!, PBS, and a little bit of Cartoon Network as well. I even vaguely remember USA's Action Cartoon block, that's where I first watched Sailor Moon along with the low-budget kids cartoon adaptations of Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat.

My main childhood TV shows when I was a little kid were Shining Time Station/Thomas The Tank Engine (RIP George Carlin), Arthur, Digimon, Sailor Moon, Cardcaptors, Yu-Gi-Oh!, The Simpsons, and King of the Hill.

Never got into Pokemon though, oddly enough.

Every Sunday night, we'd all get together as a family and tune into Fox just to watch the new episodes of The Simpsons and King of the Hill. It was a family tradition that lasted until around 2008-2009, when King of the Hill got cancelled and we had finally realized that The Simpsons had become an unwatchable zombie of a show.

There were even a few live-action comedies I loved as a little kid, mainly The Drew Carey Show, Malcolm in the Middle, and old syndicated reruns of Petticoat Junction and Hee Haw.

When I was an older kid back in the mid-2000's, about middle school aged, it was all about Adult Swim, particularly the anime lineup. This was back when Adult Swim was actually watchable outside of the Toonami revival and reruns of King of the Hill and Bob's Burgers.

You had great stuff like Fullmetal Alchemist (the 2003 anime), InuYasha, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, Lupin III, Trigun, Samurai Champloo, Wolf's Rain, the early seasons of Bleach, Naruto Part I (granted that was Toonami and not Adult Swim at the time), Trinity Blood, Blood+, Cowboy Bebop, and even some of the comedies at the time like Futurama reruns (I also watched the original Fox run of Futurama when I was younger), early Robot Chicken, and classic Family Guy reruns before that show went to shit.

I was a borderline weeaboo back in my middle school years, and I'm glad I've grown up since then, but I'd be lying if I said I don't miss those bygone days. It was a simpler, more innocent, and ultimately more fun time for me.

 

[Chaos Theorist]

I grew up mainly with Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network, back when they didn't try to appeal to cartoon spergs who dislike mean-spiritedness. I'd literally watch Spongebob every time I get the chance to do so on the network.

I never understood the hype behind Spongebob back in the day when it did was combine the Looney Tunes with grossout humour

 

[MysticMisty]

Way back in the day I used to watch a lot of Disney Channel, years before Toon Disney was a thing. This was back when classic cartoons and many of their movies (animated and live action) were still a big part of their programming, although they did include newer things and some non-Disney movies. I was big on Nick, too.

I didn't really start watching Cartoon Network until sometime in the mid-90's, when Disney was no longer a premium channel and started airing a lot less movies and classic shorts and a lot more toddler shows (back when we first started getting it the toddler shows didn't even start airing until mid/late morning and ending in the early afternoon, basically kindergarten hours). The more Disney tried to emulate Nick the less interested in it I was.

Nick itself I quickly watched a lot less of once 2000 hit. Within about two years it went from around half of the TV I watched to only a couple of shows. Just a combination of new shows and growing up I suppose.

 

[MalWart]

I'll never forget the shitstorm that one of their interstitials ignited:

 

[squish]

The earliest children's TV I remember watching was bear in the big blue house. I fuckin loved the beginnings of the episodes where he'd sniff the camera and pretend he was smelling you then say way you smelled like which is probably why I have so many issues as an adult

https://sneed-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/58/83/4e/58834edc9e70ab8e3b9d1c5d1108808c.gif

 

[Replicant Sasquatch]

I was that kid who watched the Discovery Channel for fun. The premier of Walking With Dinosaurs was probably one of my childhood's greatest moments.

 

[InLivingTuna]

Mostly Nick Jr. and some tapes my brother had of Nickelodeon and MTV shows, we had a lot of money for a little while too so I got to see the premium HBO Kids stuff. Crashbox is my jam.

 

[Cable 7]

Finally. I can sperg over how much TVO and Teletoon I watched as a child.
Same with Discovery and YTV. Anyone watch Mystery Hunters? That was my shit back then.

 

[Pickle Inspector]

I was born in '88, so I was the perfect age during the Golden era of both Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network. I watched both, obviously, but I was more of a Nick kid. My favorites were the live action shows. Legends of the Hidden Temple, GUTS, What Would You Do?, Wild & Crazy Kids, etc.

Similar here, although being from the UK I got to watch all the 90s nicktoon shows combined with random 80s UK/EU shows like Ulysses 31 and Trap Door and suprisingly good live Saturday morning kids tv hosts.

 

[Trilby]

Similar here, although being from the UK I got to watch all the 90s nicktoon shows combined with random 80s UK/EU shows like Ulysses 31 and Trap Door and suprisingly good live Saturday morning kids tv hosts.

Programs we Americans missed out on dearly, though they tried with U31.

Being one of the elders here, my childhood channels happen to be the earliest days of cable TV in this country, when the format itself was very nascent and nobody really knew where it could go, so you had a lot of trial and error happen with even the earliest days of Nickelodeon. One cool guy out there has been doing a series called "Nick Knacks" which goes into very good detail of Nickelodeon's birth and the industry itself. Worth checking out.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL63ushetAZ-xoXYf46MkIywbmLq_3qXRw

The kind of channels I watched were often still local stations playing cartoons mornings and afternoons, "The Big Three" doing their Saturday morning blocks, PBS (which was very much Sesame Street, Electric Company, Mister Rogers and 3-2-1 Contact for the most part) and whatever cable TV tried to do "for kids". Nickelodeon was one of these early channels devoted to kids, and the stuff I used to watch on it was very much this weird, obscure foreign crap nobody thinks about anymore, I used to went there a lot when I realized domestic cartoons didn't cut it!

EDIT: Oh, I forgot the USA Cartoon Express, but I'm sure someone else will pick up from there!

 

[Overcast]

I found myself alternating between Toon Disney, Cartoon Network, and Nickelodeon with a bit of PBS Kids on occasion.

I've always had a preference for the third one because I friggen loved Spongebob as a kid.

 

[Gordon Cole]

As a toddler, it was a lot of Noggin and PBS. I watched Cartoon Network/Kids WB! religiously as a kid, but my sister was more of a Nickelodeon/Animal Planet fan. When we didn't have our own tvs, we had to compromise and watch Disney Channel together. Whenever we had dinner, it was a family ritual to watch Simpsons reruns. I also started getting into Adult Swim when I was about nine.

 

[Jetpack Himmler]

The first show I have even a vague recollection of was the black and white version of Astro Boy from the 1960s with my parents when I was around two years old. This was during the mid-80s, so it probably aired early in the morning on the weekend. The station may have also aired the 1980s series, but my memory is not that good.

As for other stuff I watched, I was a huge fan of Sharon, Lois, and Bram as a tyke and watched The Elephant Show religiously as well as Mr. Dressup (the Canadian version of Mr. Rogers), The Friendly Giant, and the bilingual Canadian version of Sesame Street on the CBC. Meanwhile for animated fare, I watched Inspector Gadget, The Real Ghostbusters, and eventually Tiny Toons every afternoon on CTV.

As I grew older, I started watching Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, You Can't Do That on Television, and The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show on YTV in the early 90s. Then that became my jam as shows like Samurai Pizza Cats, Bots Master, and (of course) Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers aired until YTV took the latter off the air after its first season because of concerned parents.

Not that it amounted to much as our cable package soon included the Rochester FOX affiliate (something that puzzles me to this day because the American networks we had were Spokane stations) so I could watch Power Rangers again. Not only that, I also got to watch X-Men and the 90s Spider-Man too. Those were good times... before dear ol' Dad literally cut the cable to the rest of our consternation.

 

[Army Burger]

As for other stuff I watched, I was a huge fan of Sharon, Lois, and Bram as a tyke and watched The Elephant Show religiously as well as Mr. Dressup (the Canadian version of Mr. Rogers).

Mr. Dressup was good. Fraggle Rock is another show that I enjoyed as a child.

 

[Whetfahrt Cheesebörger]

Growing up, I had access to C-band satellite TV so I was able to watch a lot of US stations that otherwise weren't in Canada. Nickelodeon, PAX (now Ion), The Disney Channel, were favourites as well as the usual ABC, CBS, NBC line up for Saturday morning cartoons. WGN was king during Disney Afternoon days, always on once I got home from school. I feel like PBS is somewhat universal no matter where you're from, and I couldn't go without watching Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego when it came on. Disney Channel was great for a lot of movies during weekend afternoons and was the first place I saw obscure movies like Unico. I also watched Network One and got into anime when they aired Streamline's dubs late at night.

When I had a chance to get actual cable, I enjoyed watching TVO and CBC for their children's programming. Today's Special was one of my favourites. YTV was later in my teens and that's where Sailor Moon was aired each day after school, as well as new episodes of ReBoot once ABC kicked it off the air in the US.

As a kid, I didn't realise how many things I watched that weren't aired in Canada and vice versa. It's strange going back over all I enjoyed as a kid and understanding why some of my classmates were confused when I mentioned certain shows.

 

[Trilby]

The first show I have even a vague recollection of was the black and white version of Astro Boy from the 1960s with my parents when I was around two years old. This was during the mid-80s, so it probably aired early in the morning on the weekend. The station may have also aired the 1980s series, but my memory is not that good.

Canada did get the 80's show though, something America apparently didn't have time for, this was due to the fact they created a different English version to get it past "Canadian Content" rulings from the CRTC. It's easy to skirt an anime under those clauses if you have Canadian voice talent involved.

As for other stuff I watched, I was a huge fan of Sharon, Lois, and Bram as a tyke and watched The Elephant Show religiously as well as Mr. Dressup (the Canadian version of Mr. Rogers), The Friendly Giant, and the bilingual Canadian version of Sesame Street on the CBC. Meanwhile for animated fare, I watched Inspector Gadget, The Real Ghostbusters, and eventually Tiny Toons every afternoon on CTV.

Sounds like you saw some good classics! I remember the Sharon, Lois & Bram's Elephant Show coming to town a few times in the 80's when they did their touring shows.

As I grew older, I started watching Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, You Can't Do That on Television, and The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show on YTV in the early 90s. Then that became my jam as shows like Samurai Pizza Cats, Bots Master, and (of course) Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers aired until YTV took the latter off the air after its first season because of concerned parents.

In the 80's, Rocky & Bullwinkle was something of a cult status here in the states that sometimes allowed stations to stick those cartoons on at a late night slot. My UHF station used to play it 11PM Saturday nights so I was glued to that before bed! I think they played "G.L.O.W." too (Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling).

Not that it amounted to much as our cable package soon included the Rochester FOX affiliate (something that puzzles me to this day because the American networks we had were Spokane stations) so I could watch Power Rangers again. Not only that, I also got to watch X-Men and the 90s Spider-Man too. Those were good times... before dear ol' Dad literally cut the cable to the rest of our consternation.

Many Canadians often got several US channels on their cable dial for a certain market, but it can vary from place to place. Winnipeg for instance had channels from Detroit included on their cable dial.

Mr. Dressup was good. Fraggle Rock is another show that I enjoyed as a child.

I was lucky to live close enough to get CBC either in the clear on regular TV or on cable, so I would watch whatever kid show CBC had in back then. I loved Friendly Giant and Mr. Dressup, of course I also saw Fred Penner's Place long before Nick Jr. picked it up.

Growing up, I had access to C-band satellite TV so I was able to watch a lot of US stations that otherwise weren't in Canada. Nickelodeon, PAX (now Ion), The Disney Channel, were favourites as well as the usual ABC, CBS, NBC line up for Saturday morning cartoons. WGN was king during Disney Afternoon days, always on once I got home from school. I feel like PBS is somewhat universal no matter where you're from, and I couldn't go without watching Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego when it came on. Disney Channel was great for a lot of movies during weekend afternoons and was the first place I saw obscure movies like Unico. I also watched Network One and got into anime when they aired Streamline's dubs late at night.

When I had a chance to get actual cable, I enjoyed watching TVO and CBC for their children's programming. Today's Special was one of my favourites. YTV was later in my teens and that's where Sailor Moon was aired each day after school, as well as new episodes of ReBoot once ABC kicked it off the air in the US.

As a kid, I didn't realise how many things I watched that weren't aired in Canada and vice versa. It's strange going back over all I enjoyed as a kid and understanding why some of my classmates were confused when I mentioned certain shows.

I knew a guy up in Ontario who had a C-Band in his childhood. Used to be a thing that American channels like Nick would be in the clear without a need to descramble their signals, so yes, Canada had the best of both worlds that way in the 80's!

 

[Whetfahrt Cheesebörger]

I knew a guy up in Ontario who had a C-Band in his childhood. Used to be a thing that American channels like Nick would be in the clear without a need to descramble their signals, so yes, Canada had the best of both worlds that way in the 80's!

I also knew the guy who set that sort of thing up. He did it a lot in the northern parts of Ontario though he would go as far as Peterborough once in a while. It took a special chip to descramble and then there was a technique to it later on down the line. Quite a few people had it but I'm guessing most of my classmates weren't lucky enough to have control over the remote during cartoon time.

 

[Trilby]

I also knew the guy who set that sort of thing up. He did it a lot in the northern parts of Ontario though he would go as far as Peterborough once in a while. It took a special chip to descramble and then there was a technique to it later on down the line. Quite a few people had it but I'm guessing most of my classmates weren't lucky enough to have control over the remote during cartoon time.

No different form cable. Some parents want to keep their investment from being screwed around by 8 year olds.

But yeah, I really wanted one of these dishes when I found out! Of course there was also "Wild Feeds" of stuff like live news reports or interviews taped for later. It was like uncharted territory and you had a backseat to it!

 

[Trans Fat 41g]

Cow and Chicken, a show about literally eating ass after school/work. Totally a kids show.

 

[Whetfahrt Cheesebörger]

No different form cable. Some parents want to keep their investment from being screwed around by 8 year olds.

But yeah, I really wanted one of these dishes when I found out! Of course there was also "Wild Feeds" of stuff like live news reports or interviews taped for later. It was like uncharted territory and you had a backseat to it!

Oh yeah, the wild feeds were great. You could get a whole week's worth of a show all at once. I used to do that with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and The Super Mario Bros. Super Show. The latter was usually done on Sunday so there was nothing better than relaxing on a Sunday afternoon to a whole stretch of cartoons. Finding the feeds for TV shows was a treat, that's for sure. Commercials didn't air along with them so you could watch it all the way through without fast forwarding. Same with sporting events. They'd say they're going to commercial but you got to watch the action and listen to the commentator banter. I miss it sometimes.