Adventures in Odyssey facts for kids
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| Genre | Radio comedy-drama |
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| Running time | approx. 25 minutes per episode |
| Country | United States Canada |
| Languages | English |
| Syndicates | Focus on the Family |
| Starring | Hal Smith (1987–1994) Paul Herlinger (1996–2008) Andre Stojka (2009–present) Katie Leigh (1987–present) Will Ryan (1987–2000, 2005–2021) Walker Edmiston (1987–2007) Dave Madden (1988–2008) Earl Boen Corey Burton (1991–2008) Pamela Hayden (1992–2000) Alan Young (1994–2012) Townsend Coleman (1994–present) Jess Harnell (2001–present) Audrey Wasilewski (2005–present) Chris Anthony |
| Announcer | Chris Anthony |
| Creators | Phil Lollar and Steve Harris |
| Writers | Paul McCusker Phil Lollar Marshal Younger Kathy Buchanan Nathan Hoobler & many others |
| Directors | Phil Lollar Paul McCusker Marshal Younger Bob Hoose Nathan Hoobler |
| Editors | Jonathan Crowe Rudy Haerr Nathan Jones Christopher Diehl |
| Producers | Bob Luttrell Bob Hoose Nathan Hoobler |
| Exec. producers | Dave Arnold (Current) Chuck Bolte Paul McCusker Kurt Bruner Al Janssen |
| Recording studio | Salami Studios (current) Marc Graue Studios and other locations |
| Air dates | since November 21, 1987 |
| No. of episodes | Radio: 1,012 (including specials and currently unreleased episodes) Full list Video: 17 Books: 81 Full list |
Adventures in Odyssey (often called AIO or just Odyssey) is a popular radio drama and comedy series. It's made by Focus on the Family and is designed for families, especially those with kids. The show started in 1987 with a short pilot series called Family Portraits. Since then, it has grown to include over 970 episodes!
In 2005, about 1.2 million people in North America listened to Odyssey every day. Besides the radio show, there are also videos, computer games, books, and devotionals based on the series. The stories take place in a made-up town called Odyssey. They focus on the people who live there, especially John Avery Whittaker, who owns an ice-cream shop and discovery center called Whit's End.
Contents
History of Adventures in Odyssey
How the Show Started
In 1982, an organization called Focus on the Family began making short radio plays. These plays were created by James Dobson, the founder of Focus on the Family. He wanted to offer families something different from Saturday-morning cartoons.
This idea led to a 13-week test series called Family Portraits, which aired in early 1987. It was created by Steve Harris and Phil Lollar. They set the stories in a small town in the Midwest and named it Odyssey. People really liked the test episodes, which led to a full radio program starting in November 1987. It was first called Odyssey USA, but the name changed in 1988 to Adventures in Odyssey to appeal to more people around the world.
Goals and Production
The people who make Odyssey wanted to create a radio show that taught good values. They also wanted it to sound as good as or even better than other audio dramas. While the show shares Christian values, co-creator Phil Lollar said the main goal is to be "an entertaining program," not just a "preaching program." A lot of effort goes into each story; for the first few years, a single 30-minute episode could take over 100 hours to produce!
Voice Actors and Changes
Many well-known voice actors have been part of the show. Hal Smith was the original voice of John Avery Whittaker, a role he really enjoyed. Other original main characters were voiced by Katie Leigh, Will Ryan, and Walker Edmiston. These actors had all worked together before at Disney. Famous TV actor Dave Madden also joined the cast as Bernard Walton from 1990 to 2008.
When Hal Smith passed away in 1994, the show lost its main character. Focus on the Family even thought about ending the radio show. But after searching for over two years, they found Paul Herlinger, whose voice sounded very similar to Hal Smith's. Herlinger voiced Mr. Whittaker from 1996 to 2008. Due to health issues, he later decided to step down.
Adventures in Odyssey then took a break while they looked for a new voice for Mr. Whittaker. In September 2009, Andre Stojka was chosen as the third actor to voice the character. Just a few months later, Paul Herlinger passed away in February 2010. New episodes of Adventures in Odyssey started airing again in March 2010 with Album 51, Take it from the Top.
As of 2022, Chris Anthony and Katie Leigh are the only original voice actors still on the show.
Global Reach and Club
The show has been translated into Spanish audio and Hindi live-action videos. There are also plans to create Mandarin audio versions.
On January 2, 2014, the Adventures In Odyssey Club was launched. This is a special subscription service for fans. The money from subscriptions helps support Focus on the Family and other groups that do good work around the world. The club is available internationally and had over 7,000 members in 2016. Members can listen to over 900 episodes, watch all 17 videos, listen to the official podcast, and get exclusive new episodes each month!
How Popular is It?
By the end of 1988, just two years after it started, Adventures in Odyssey was broadcast on 634 radio stations in North America. By 1995, it was the second most popular Christian radio show in the United States. By 2002, the show was heard on over 6,000 stations worldwide!
Most of the radio episodes have also been released on cassette tapes and CDs. By 1992, almost a million cassettes had been sold. Since 1990, Odyssey episodes have also been given away as special promotions through Chick-fil-A, sometimes as CD sets in their kids' meal products.
Characters
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Here are some of the main characters and the actors who voice them:
- John Avery Whittaker: Voiced by Hal Smith (1987–1994), Paul Herlinger (1996–2008), and Andre Stojka (2009–present).
- Connie Kendall: Voiced by Katie Leigh (1987–present).
- Eugene Meltsner and Harlow Doyle: Voiced by Will Ryan (1987–2000, 2005–2021).
- Wooton Bassett: Voiced by Jess Harnell (2001–present).
- Chris (the show's announcer): Voiced by Chris Anthony (1987–present).
- Jason Whittaker: Voiced by Townsend Coleman (1994–present).
- Katrina Shanks-Meltsner: Voiced by Pamela Hayden (1993–2000) and Audrey Wasilewski (2005–present).
- Bernard Walton: Voiced by Dave Madden (1990–2008).
- Tom Riley: Voiced by Walker Edmiston (1987–2007).
- Jack Allen: Voiced by Alan Young (1994–2012).
- Dr. Regis Blackgaard: Voiced by Earl Boen (1989–1999).
Episodes
Adventures in Odyssey has aired more than 900 episodes. These episodes have been released in 75 main album collections. There are also special collections, including monthly episodes just for members of the Adventures in Odyssey club.
Spin-off Products
Besides the radio show, Adventures in Odyssey has created many other cool things! These include:
- An official Odyssey podcast.
- A fan-favorite podcast called Whit's Up?.
- 17 animated videos.
- Two musical albums: Eugene Sings! and Eugene Sings! Christmas.
- Three edutainment computer games.
Books
Adventures in Odyssey has more than 7 different spin-off book series! These include:
- Passages
- Kidsboro
- The Imagination Station
- Candid Conversations with Connie
- The Blackgaard Chronicles
- Jones and Parker Case Files
- Young Whit
There's also a 12-book series of novels simply called Adventures in Odyssey. Plus, you can find episode guides, Bibles, devotionals, mysteries, and even a comic book!
Video Series
The first Adventures in Odyssey video came out in 1991. These videos were created after the success of another video project by Focus on the Family called McGee and Me!. The Odyssey video series was originally made by a different team than the radio show. Each episode cost about $400,000 to make! By 1998, over two million Odyssey videos had been sold. There are currently 17 episodes in the video series. These episodes have been shown on TV channels like Channel 4 in Britain and the Australian Christian Channel in Australia.
Computer Games
A company called Digital Praise has released three computer games based on the series:
- Adventures in Odyssey: The Treasure of the Incas
- Adventures in Odyssey: The Sword of the Spirit
- Adventures in Odyssey: The Great Escape
The voice actors Will Ryan, Katie Leigh, and Paul Herlinger voiced the main characters in these games.
The Imagination Station Book Series
The Imagination Station Book Series is based on a special machine in the Adventures in Odyssey radio dramas. This machine, called the Imagination Station, can take characters back in time to see historical events using their own imagination. There are currently 26 books in this series, along with 6 audiobooks.
Eugene Sings!
Eugene Sings! and Eugene Sings! Christmas are musical albums from Adventures in Odyssey. They feature songs written and sung by Will Ryan, who voices the character Eugene Meltsner in the series.
Merchandise
Since 1987, Adventures in Odyssey has released hundreds of products related to the show. This includes clothes, toys, games, calendars, pens, and other collectibles. Some items are sold in stores, while others are special promotional items given away at events. There's even a display at the Welcome Center of Focus on the Family in Colorado Springs, Colorado, that shows some of the rarest Odyssey items. Many fans enjoy collecting these products, along with the audio albums, books, and videos.
Radio Theatre
Radio Theatre is a program run by Focus on the Family that creates both new and adapted radio dramas. Many of the people who work on Adventures in Odyssey, like Paul McCusker, also work on Radio Theatre. They have created radio adaptations of many famous novels, including Les Miserables and Anne of Green Gables. They also adapted the complete Chronicles of Narnia series.
See also
- The Last Chance Detectives
- Iliad House
