Camp Candy
Encyclopedia
Camp Candy was a 1989-1992 animated television series produced by DiC Entertainment
, with comedian John Candy
providing the voice for an animated version of himself.
run by Candy. The animated series spawned a brief comic book
series based on the show; also entitled Camp Candy, it was published by Marvel Comics
' Star Comics
imprint.
Twenty-seven episodes of the series aired during the 1989 and 1990 television seasons on the NBC
television network
. Thirteen new episodes ran in syndication in the 1992 season by Worldvision Enterprises (Now CBS Television Distribution
), along with repeats of the previous episodes. The series was later rerun on the Fox Family
cable channel in 1998.
Harry Nilsson
wrote the series' theme song, which Candy sang.
The later syndicated broadcasts featured live action segments featuring Candy.
In both versions, the closing credits featured songs about Camp Candy that were sung to the tune of various traditional "campfire" songs.
The children included Robin - a nature-loving girl; Alex - a tomboy; Vanessa - a fashionista; Iggy - a hypochondriac; his more adventurous younger brother Binky; and Rick - an arrogant prankster. Adult characters included Nurse Molly, who had a crush on John but he never seemed to take notice as he was interested in an attractive redheaded receptionist called Miss Sweetingham.
John's main antagonists were Rex DeForest III — a man who seeks to demolish Camp Candy in order to make way for a condominium, and Chester — a dimwitted greaser employed by DeForest. Another antagonist included Hob Nayles, a strict disciplinarian who headed the rival Camp Kickboot and sought to humiliate John, but was really a coward at heart.
Season Two (1990-1991)
Season Three (Fall 1992)
DiC Entertainment
DIC Entertainment was an international film and television production company. In addition to animated television shows such as Ulysses 31 , Inspector Gadget , The Littles , The Real Ghostbusters , Captain Planet and the Planeteers , and the first two seasons of the English adaptation of...
, with comedian John Candy
John Candy
John Franklin Candy was a Canadian actor and comedian. He rose to fame as a member of the Toronto branch of The Second City and its related Second City Television series, and through his appearances in comedy films such as Stripes, Splash, Cool Runnings, The Great Outdoors, Spaceballs, and Uncle...
providing the voice for an animated version of himself.
Overview
The show was set in a fictional summer campSummer camp
Summer camp is a supervised program for children or teenagers conducted during the summer months in some countries. Children and adolescents who attend summer camp are known as campers....
run by Candy. The animated series spawned a brief comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
series based on the show; also entitled Camp Candy, it was published by Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
' Star Comics
Star Comics
Star Comics was an imprint of Marvel Comics that began in 1984 and continued to publish comic books until early 1988. Titles published by the imprint were aimed at child readers and were often adaptations of children's television series, animated series or toys...
imprint.
Twenty-seven episodes of the series aired during the 1989 and 1990 television seasons on the NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
television network
Television network
A television network is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, whereby a central operation provides programming to many television stations or pay TV providers. Until the mid-1980s, television programming in most countries of the world was dominated by a small...
. Thirteen new episodes ran in syndication in the 1992 season by Worldvision Enterprises (Now CBS Television Distribution
CBS Television Distribution
CBS Television Distribution is a global television distribution company, formed from the merger of CBS Corporation's two domestic television distribution arms CBS Paramount Domestic Television and King World Productions, including its home entertainment arm CBS Home Entertainment...
), along with repeats of the previous episodes. The series was later rerun on the Fox Family
Fox Family
Fox Family may refer to:* The Fox Family, a 2006 South Korean film* Fox Family, a former name of American television cable network ABC Family...
cable channel in 1998.
Harry Nilsson
Harry Nilsson
Harry Edward Nilsson III was an American singer-songwriter who achieved the peak of his commercial success in the early 1970s. On all but his earliest recordings he is credited as Nilsson...
wrote the series' theme song, which Candy sang.
The later syndicated broadcasts featured live action segments featuring Candy.
In both versions, the closing credits featured songs about Camp Candy that were sung to the tune of various traditional "campfire" songs.
Episode formula
Almost all episodes would begin where John Candy would be trying to show an outdoor skill to some kids, to which he would then say it reminded him of a story, where he would tell of the episode in narration. John was a dedicated leader of Camp Candy, a summer camp that is presumably built by him, and he tries to get various kids to get along.The children included Robin - a nature-loving girl; Alex - a tomboy; Vanessa - a fashionista; Iggy - a hypochondriac; his more adventurous younger brother Binky; and Rick - an arrogant prankster. Adult characters included Nurse Molly, who had a crush on John but he never seemed to take notice as he was interested in an attractive redheaded receptionist called Miss Sweetingham.
John's main antagonists were Rex DeForest III — a man who seeks to demolish Camp Candy in order to make way for a condominium, and Chester — a dimwitted greaser employed by DeForest. Another antagonist included Hob Nayles, a strict disciplinarian who headed the rival Camp Kickboot and sought to humiliate John, but was really a coward at heart.
Cast
- John CandyJohn CandyJohn Franklin Candy was a Canadian actor and comedian. He rose to fame as a member of the Toronto branch of The Second City and its related Second City Television series, and through his appearances in comedy films such as Stripes, Splash, Cool Runnings, The Great Outdoors, Spaceballs, and Uncle...
- Himself - Lewis ArquetteLewis ArquetteLewis Michael Arquette was an American film actor, writer and producer. Arquette was known for playing "J.D. Pickett" on the TV series, The Waltons, where he worked from 1978–1981.-Life and career:...
- Rex DeForest III - Valri BromfieldValri BromfieldValri Bromfield is a Canadian comedian, actor, writer, and television producer who started her career as one half of a comedy team with Dan Aykroyd. Together, they joined the first Toronto company of The Second City where she was one of the original players.-Television appearances:Bromfield was a...
- Nurse Molly - Danny MannDanny MannDaniel "Danny" Mann is an American voice actor, writer, singer, musician, and production manager. He is best known for his voice of Hector from Heathcliff and the Catillac Cats, Freeway, Cloudraker and Lightspeed in Transformers, Backwoods Beagle in DuckTales, Kaltag in Balto, Ferdinand from Babe,...
- Chester - Tony Ail - Binky (seasons 1-2)
- Tom Davidson - Iggy (seasons 1-2)
- Danielle Fernandes - Robin (season 1)
- Willow JohnsonWillow JohnsonWillow Johnson is a Canadian voice actress working for the Ocean Productions based in Vancouver. She has performed the roles of several characters for many anime series...
- Vanessa (seasons 1-2) - Andrew Seebaran - Rick (seasons 1-2)
- Chiara ZanniChiara ZanniChiara Zanni is a Canadian actress & voice actress, performing in movies such as BIONICLE: Mask of Light as Hahli, playing the role of Hamtaro in the TV anime cartoon series. Young Joe in Cyborg 009, Hamtaro, Jubilee in X-Men: Evolution, Bon Bon in My Little Pony Tales and Nori, the mermaid in...
- Alex (seasons 1-2) - Brian GeorgeBrian GeorgeBrian George is a British-Israeli actor and voice actor for Indian accents, who typically plays guest roles for characters of South Asian descent. Perhaps his most famous role is as Pakistani restaurateur Babu Bhatt on Seinfeld.-Early life:...
- Botch (season 2) - Gary MacPherson - Duncan (season 2)
- Cree SummerCree SummerCree Summer Francks , best known as Cree Summer, is a Canadian actress, musician and voice actress. She is perhaps best known for her role as college student Winifred "Freddie" Brooks on the NBC sitcom A Different World...
- Robin (season 2) - E.G. Daily - Alex, Binky, Rick (season 3)
- Katie LeighKatie LeighKatherine "Katie" Leigh is an American voice actress best known for her role as Connie Kendall on the Focus on the Family radio program Adventures in Odyssey since 1987...
- Iggy (season 3) - Gail MatthiusGail MatthiusGail Matthius is an American actress and voice actress. She was a cast member of NBC's Saturday Night Live during its critical and ratings low point at the time , and co-anchored the Weekend Update segment with Charles Rocket in 1981.-Recurring characters:*Vicki, a Valley girl who,...
- Vanessa (season 3) - Candi MiloCandi MiloCandi Milo is an American voice actress and singer. She voiced many different animated characters such as the voice of Jacobo on Disney's The Replacements, Coco, Madame Foster and Cheese on Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, Irma Lair on Disney's W.I.T.C.H., lead character Maya Santos on Maya &...
- Robin (season 3)
List of Camp Candy episodes
Season One (1989-1990)- The Forest's Prime Evil (9/9/1989)
- Small Foot, Big Trouble (9/16/1989)
- The Katchatoree Creature (9/23/1989)
- Tough as Nayles (9/30/1989)
- Bird Is the Word/Best Behavior (10/7/1989)
- Fool's Gold (10/14/1989)
- Sleight of Hand/Thanks, But No Pranks (10/21/1989)
- Mind Over Matter/Brat Pact (11/4/1989)
- May the Best Parents Win (11/11/1989)
- Not So Brave Brave/Opposites Attract (11/18/1989)
- Indian Love Call/Spoiled Sports (12/2/1989)
- Rick Gets the Picture/Poor Little Rich Girl (12/9/1989)
- Christmas in July (12/16/1989)
Season Two (1990-1991)
- Robo-Camp/The Glasnost Menagerie (9/8/1990)
- Color War and Peace (9/15/1990)
- Camp Cuisine/Take the Compass and Run (9/22/1990)
- Candy Springs (9/29/1990)
- Wish Upon a Fish (10/6/1990)
- Taking the Bully by the Horns/Rock Candy (10/13/1990)
- Dear Mom and Dad (10/20/1990)
- Stand Up and Deliver/Ruthless Campers (10/27/1990)
- Camp Candy's Funniest Home Videos (11/3/1990) (NOTE: This was a "clip show" episode.)
- Robin's Ark (11/10/1990)
- Candy and the Ants/Smart Moose, Foolish Choices (11/17/1990)
- One Million Years B.C. (11/24/1990)
- Jokers of the Wild/Uncle Rexie (12/1/1990)
- Scare Package (1/19/1991)
Season Three (Fall 1992)
- TV or Not TV
- Rock and Rest/Rick Van Winkle
- The Last Word
- A Ribbeting Experience/The Bamboo Woodpecker
- Wild, Wild Candy
- When It Rains...It Snows
- Saturday Night Polka Fever
- Chester's Millions
- Bee Prepared/Signs of Silence
- Dr. Tongue's Amazing Adventure/Lucky Dog
- Wild World of Camping/Total Lack of Recall
- Battle of the Badges/The Return of the Magnificent Three
- Ladies and Gentlemen, Your Host, Bobby Bittman