Nickelodeon (TV channel)

**Nickelodeon**
Image:Nickelodeon.JPG
Type	Cable network (kids)
Country	United States
Availability	National
Owner	MTV Networks (Viacom)
Key people	Tom Freston - President, MTV Networks
Launch	April 1, 1979
Past Names	Pinwheel
Website	http://www.nick.com

Nickelodeon (Nick for short) is a cable TV network primarily for children. The first Nickelodeon channel was American, but there are now several channels in different countries such as Japan, Australia, and UK..

Nickelodeon has produced and aired many programs, including Pinwheel, You Can't Do That on Television, Double Dare, GUTS, Clarissa Explains It All, The Adventures of Pete & Pete, Ren and Stimpy, Hey Arnold!, Rugrats, Doug, and Rocko's Modern Life. Its shows that are currently in production include SpongeBob SquarePants, The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron, The Fairly Odd Parents, Drake and Josh, All Grown Up, Nick News, All That, Catscratch and Danny Phantom.

Nickelodeon also became known for its iconic green slime, originally used on the Canadian sketch-comedy show You Can't Do That on Television. It was then adopted by the station as a primary feature of many of its shows, especially Slime Time Live, U-Pick Live, and Friday Night Slimetime.

Many adults know the service best for its Nick at Nite offerings of classic TV sitcoms in the prime-time and overnight hours.

1 History
2 Other Nickelodeon channels
3 Other Nickelodeon projects
4 See also
5 External links

[edit]

History

The world's first cable channel devoted to programming for children and youth, Nickelodeon debuted in 1979 as Pinwheel (renamed to "Nickelodeon" in 1981). It was originally owned by Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment, a joint venture of American Express and Warner Communications; it is now part of MTV Networks, a division of Viacom.

In 1986, Nick held the Big Ballot, an award show voted on by kids that would later become the Kids' Choice Awards. Each April, the Kids' Choice Awards show honors kids' favorites in movies, music, television, and sports, and features stereotypically juvenile elements like the Best Fart award and a celebrity burp-off.

Nickelodeon began producing original animated shows, known as Nicktoons, in 1991. The three original Nicktoons, Doug, Rugrats, and Ren & Stimpy, debuted that year.

Nickelodeon is currently the most-profiting cable network in the world.

[edit]

Other Nickelodeon channels

The Nick at Nite programming block from prime time to early morning. It features various Paramount Pictures and Viacom-owned programs from the 1980s and '90s such as The Cosby Show, Roseanne, Full House Cheers, and Fresh Prince of Bel Air. Nick at Nite also introduced Fatherhood, an animated show based on the book by Bill Cosby.

In 1996, Nick at Nite spun off the channel TV Land, which currently airs a variety of older shows, primarily sitcoms from 1951 to 1992.

Nickelodeon has spun off other cable networks: Nick Too (which is Nick on a three hour delay), Nick Games and Sports (Nick GAS), NickToons, and Noggin/The-N (originally a joint venture with Sesame Workshop). It also operates language- or culture-specific Nickelodeon channels for various markets in different parts of the world, and has licensed translated versions of some of its cartoons and other content to TV and cable stations such as Kinderkanal and Super RTL of Germany, YTV (Youth TV) of Canada, Canal J of France, and Alpha Kids from Greece.

Outside of the U.S., Nickelodeon appears in Argentina, Australia, Belgium (as a block on MTV), Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, France, Germany, India, Ireland,Israel,Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Panama, Peru,Philippines, Portugal, Russia, Singapore, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Turkey, the United Kingdom, Uruguay, and Venezuela. See also: List of programs broadcast by Nickelodeon.

[edit]

Other Nickelodeon projects

[edit]

Nick.com

Nick's website launched in 1995. The website features many sections and services:

The "myNick" service allows regular visitors to the website to get personalized information, post on internet forums, and collect e-Collectibles, akin to trading cards (the very first collection commemorated the 10th anniversary of Rugrats in 2001).
The "All Nick" section features description of Nickelodeon's television shows and movies, the current programming schedule, specials, and information on their magazine, Nick Magazine.
The "Games" section features games of various sorts (many based on Nick programs) and information on popular video games.
The "Music" section is devoted to popular music, featuring news on various artists and music videos.
The "Web Lab" section features has web exclusives, like Shockwave Flash-animated games featuring Agent Pixel and Tony Simiano, among others; shorts featuring the Crimson Chin from The Fairly Oddparents; and e-Cards.
The "Blab" section features message boards for each Nickelodeon show, and from time to time, celebrities chat in the "Blab-a-torium" chat room.
The "Your World" section features the Nick GAS (Games and Sports) subsection, sections devoted to entertainment news, e-calendar, weather, horoscopes, jokes, weird news, and "Nick Talk."
The "TurboNick" section, introduced in 2005, allows visitors to view streaming episodes of shows over the internet.
Members of the myNick service choose a nickname and a password which enables them to make a nickpage]] which is a special page with a theme usually relating to a Nick TV Show, a holiday, or another theme like music or jurassic.

[edit]

Nickelodeon Magazine

Main article: Nickelodeon Magazine

Nickelodeon also publishes Nickelodeon magazine. The current magazine was launched in 1993, following a short-lived effort from 1990. It contains informative non-fiction pieces, humor, interviews, pranks, recipes (such as green slime cake), and a big comic book section in the center that features original comics by leading underground cartoonists as well as strips about popular Nicktoons.

[edit]

Nickelodeon Hotel

Main article: Nickelodeon Family Suites

Nickelodeon Family Suites is a Nickelodeon-themed Holiday Inn hotel in Orlando, Florida, located near Universal Studios theme park. The property includes Nick-themed suites and entertainment, although mainly geared to children. The hotel also has adult-themed Nick at Nite suites.

[edit]

Nickelodeon Studios

Main article: Nickelodeon Studios

Nickelodeon Studios was an attraction at the Universal Studios theme park in Orlando, Florida that opened June 1990. It is also the name of a production studio where many Nickelodeon shows have been produced, before being moved to Los Angeles, California. Nickelodeon Studios was closed on April 30, 2005. The Slime Gyseier was removed from Nickelodeon Studios in May 2005.

[edit]