December 7, 1991 (1991-12-07) – December 2, 1992 (1992-12-02)
A Bunch of Munsch is an animated anthology television series produced by Cinar. Each episode is based on a book by American-Canadian children's author Robert Munsch.[1] The show aired from December 7, 1991 to December 2, 1992 on CTV in Canada and Showtime in the United States.[2]
Every story featured a unique original song, usually sung by the lead character.
Broadcast
In Canada, the series aired on CTV on December 7, 1991 with the first special, "Thomas' Snowsuit" and "50 Below Zero".
It debuted in the United States on Showtime on December 17, 1991. It was later added to the Showtime's Fall 1992 lineup opposite of the series debut of American Heroes & Legends, as part of the network's hour long block of kiddie-oriented programming. The series aired regularly with the next episode of the first regular 22-minute episode, "The Paper Bag Princess" premieres on October 14, 1992.
Episode list
Seven episodes, each being two 11-minute segments in a 30-minute slot (the lone exception being The Paper Bag Princess, which was one 22-minute episode divided into two segments), were created:[4]
No.
Title
Directed by
Written by
Storyboard by
Original release date
Prod. code
1
"Thomas' Snowsuit"
Bill Speers
Cassandra Schafhausen
Chris Schouten, Bill Speers, Stephan Martiniere and Craig Wilson
December 7, 1991 (1991-12-07) (CTV)[5] December 17, 1991 (1991-12-17) (Showtime)[6]
101
"50 Below Zero"
Thomas tries to run away from the grown-ups such as the teacher and principal who want him to put an ugly brown snowsuit on him.Jason realizes his house is going crazy, especially when Papa sleepwalks everywhere in the house and into dangerous situations.
2
"David's Father"
Bill Speers
Michel Choquette and Alan Annand
Bob Browning
October 21, 1992 (1992-10-21) (Showtime) December 5, 1992 (1992-12-05) (CTV)[7]
102
"Pigs"
Cassandra Schafhausen
Luc Savoie
A schoolgirl named Julie befriends her new neighbor, David, and his enormous father.Megan one day feeds the pigs on her family's farm, and opens the gate to the pig pen, thinking that they are dumb. This results in chaos in the farm and in her school, until she befriends a younger pig who she names Einstein.
A toddler named Mortimer cause a huge amount of noise in his house, which turns into a worldwide sensation at one point.Julie, Andrew, and Tyya (based on Robert Munsch's adopted children) are on a trip to the grocery store, and try to convince their strict father (based on Robert Munsch himself) into getting them various junk food that tastes good.
October 14, 1992 (1992-10-14) (Showtime)[8] November 28, 1993 (1993-11-28) (CTV)[9]
104
Princess Elizabeth becomes friends with a dragon after she realizes the true colors of her fiancé Prince Ronald. Narrated by Robert Munsch.
5
"The Boy in the Drawer"
Greg Bailey
Irene Berkowitz, Peter Landecker and Lucie Lortie
Greg Bailey and Chris Damboise
November 4, 1992 (1992-11-04) (Showtime) December 4, 1994 (1994-12-04) (CTV)
105
"Murmel, Murmel, Murmel"
Cheryl Blakeney
Greg Bailey and François Brisson
Shelley must find a way to stop a Delinquent little boy-minded and shaped gnome from causing chaos in her house while her parents ignore it.Robin finds an unusual baby named "Murmel, Murmel, Murmel" who can only say his name in a sandbox, who needs an owner.
6
"The Fire Station"
Steven Majaury and Meinart Hansen
Thomas LaPierre
Steven Majaury
November 11, 1992 (1992-11-11) (Showtime) January 3, 1998 (1998-01-03) (CTV)
106
"Angela's Airplane"
Cheryl Blakeney
Meinert Hansen
A boy and a girl named Michael and Sheila visit a fire station to wreak havoc and have fun, especially when they sneak onto a mission with the Dalmatian, Spot.Angela, a little girl is obsessed with buttons and is very curious about the world sneaks onto an airplane and begins to have a fascination for it.
7
"Moira's Birthday"
Craig Wilson and Richard T. Morrison
Stephen Ashton
Craig Wilson
December 2, 1992 (1992-12-02) (Showtime)[10] December 1, 1994 (1994-12-01) (CTV)[11]
107
"Blackberry Subway Jam"
Diana West
Richard T. Morrison
A little girl named Moira has an enormous and loud destructive birthday and invites her entire school. All they do is eat the entire time.A young boy named Jonathan starts to notice subway station keep wreaking havoc in his apartment, so he decides to convince the man in charge of it at the City Hall by giving him crates of his favorite food, blackberry jam.
All episodes were released to VHS by Golden Book Video in the early 1990s. The releases were eventually packaged and updated in the late 1990s by Sony Wonder.
DVD release
All episodes were released to DVD by Cookie Jar Entertainment. Mill Creek Entertainment released the complete series on DVD in Region 1 on August 4, 2015 which includes a bonus episode of The Busy World of Richard Scarry.[12]
References
^Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nd ed.). McFarland & Co. pp. 165–166. ISBN978-1476665993.
^Perlmutter, David (2018). The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 100. ISBN978-1538103739.
