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A.J.'s Time Travelers facts for kids

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A.J.’s Time Travelers
Genre Fantasy
Directed by Mike Finney and others
Starring John Patrick White
Wayne Thomas Yorke
Julie St. Claire
Country of origin United States
No. of seasons 1
No. of episodes 40
Production
Executive producer(s) Gianni Russo
Running time 30 minutes
Production company(s) Gold Coast Company Entertainment
DNA Productions
Release
Original network Fox
Syndication
Original release December 4, 1994 (1994-12-04) – September 10, 1995 (1995-09-10)

A.J.’s Time Travelers is a 1994 children’s fantasy series that aired on the Fox television network. The series follows the adventures of teenager A.J. Malloy as he and his crew travel onboard the time-traveling ship Kyros, seeking knowledge across history. The series was later the subject of a lawsuit.

Plot

A.J., a teenage boy, is given a computer disk by an eccentric neighbor inscribed with "SCIENTIA EST POTENTA" (Latin for "knowledge is power"). When downloaded, A.J. was transported to a time-traveling ship called the Kryos and made captain in the crew's effort to stave off a villain called Warp. Warp sought to capture the Kryos in order to use its knowledge for evil, but could only do so if A.J. failed to answer any of three questions he posed. Episodes included visits to Egyptian court official Imhotep, printing press inventor Johannes Gutenberg, Sir Isaac Newton. One episode also crossed with A.J's life outside the Kryos, where he struggled with a decision to join a high school clique who had snubbed a black friend of his. A.J. is then sent to meet Colonel Benjamin Davis of the Tuskegee Airmen, and better realizes the scenario after seeing the problems of Jim Crow and the Second World War.

Cast and characters

  • John Patrick White as A.J. Malloy, the Commander
  • Julie St. Claire as Maria, the Captain
  • Patty Maloney as B.I.T. (Back in Time)
  • Wayne Thomas Yorke as Izzy/Mr. Malloy
  • Larry Cedar as Warp/Ollie
  • John Crane as The Fly
  • Jeremiah Birkett as Pulse
  • Teresa Jones as Mrs. Malloy

Lawsuit

In 1995, children's writer Diane Russomanno sued former partner Gianni Russo and his companies for breach of contract, claiming they had used elements of her “Ricky Rocket” character in the A.J.’s Time Travelers series in violation of a 1994 settlement not to do so. After a three-month trial, the court found in favor of Russomanno, awarding her $54.2 million. The award was later lowered to $14.7 million.

Media information

A VHS tape containing two episodes of the series (visits to Thomas Jefferson and Winston Churchill) was distributed by Bridgestone Multimedia Group in 1999. A second tape contained episodes with Leonardo da Vinci and Aristotle.

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