4Kids facts for kids
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Formerly
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Leisure Concepts (1970–1995) 4Kids Entertainment (1995–2012) 4Licensing Corporation (2012–2017) |
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| Public | |
| Traded as | NYSE: KDE OTCBB: KIDE OTCQB: FOUR |
| Industry | Licensing |
| Fate | Bankruptcy |
| Successor | Konami Cross Media NY |
| Founded | 1970 (as Leisure Concepts, Inc.) |
| Founders | Mike Germakian Stan Weston |
| Defunct | February 7, 2017 |
| Headquarters |
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U.S.
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Area served
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Worldwide |
| Products | Fox Box/4Kids TV The CW4Kids/Toonzai |
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Number of employees
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16 (2013) |
| Subsidiaries | 4Kids Entertainment International Limited 4Kids Entertainment Licensing, Inc. 4Kids Entertainment Home Video, Inc. 4Kids Productions, Inc. 4Kids Ad Sales, Inc. The Summit Media Group, Inc.<4Kids Technology, Inc. Websites 4 Kids, Inc. 4Kids Entertainment Music, Inc. |
4Kids Entertainment, often called 4Kids, was an American company that made and shared movies and TV shows. They focused on creating and sharing fun shows for kids all over the world. The company became famous for bringing many Japanese animated shows, called Anime, to TV. Some of their popular shows included Yu-Gi-Oh! and Sonic the Hedgehog. They also helped bring Pokémon to English-speaking audiences until 2006.
4Kids Entertainment provided many series for the Fox television network. These shows were broadcast on Fox under the name 4Kids TV.
The company faced financial difficulties and filed for bankruptcy twice. They first filed for bankruptcy in 2011, and again in 2016.
Contents
The Story of 4Kids Entertainment
In 1970, the company started with a different name: Leisure Concepts, Inc. It was founded by two people, Mike Germakian and Stan Weston.
Over the years, the company grew and changed. It became known as 4Kids Entertainment in 1995. They focused on getting rights to popular shows and bringing them to new audiences.
Bringing Anime to New Audiences
4Kids Entertainment got most of its Anime series from Japan. Before showing these series in countries like the United States and the United Kingdom, they would edit them.
Changing Language and Scenes
One main change was translating the words from Japanese to English. This process is called "dubbing." It allowed more people to understand and enjoy the shows.
They also changed other things that might be seen as inappropriate for children. For example, scenes showing cigarette smoking were often removed. This was done to make the shows safer for younger viewers.
Making Shows Relatable
Sometimes, the names of items or places were changed from Japanese to American names. This helped viewers understand the show more easily. It made the stories feel more familiar to children in Western countries.
Story Changes for Kids
In some cases, the entire story of an episode was changed. This was done to make it more suitable for children. For example, a serious or complex storyline might be simplified.
Some people believed that all these changes were not good. They felt that the Anime series should be shown exactly as they were first created in Japan. However, 4Kids Entertainment believed their changes made the shows more accessible and appropriate for their target audience.
Images for kids
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A robot for kids.
See also
- In Spanish: 4Licensing Corporation para niños
