Kids' Writes facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Kids' Writes |
|
|---|---|
| Genre | Arts Musical |
| Created by | Jim Mairs |
| Directed by | Jim Mairs Dick Heller Christopher Sarson |
| Starring | Jim Mairs Wynn White Carlo Grossman John Rousseau Steve Rifkin |
| Composer(s) | Jim Mairs Steve Rifkin |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 17 |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Christopher Sarson |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Nickelodeon Productions Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment |
| Distributor | Sony Pictures Television |
| Release | |
| Original network | Nickelodeon |
| Picture format | 480i (SDTV) |
| Audio format | Monaural |
| Original release | 1981 – 1983 |
Kids' Writes was a fun and unique children's TV show on Nickelodeon. It first aired in 1981 and continued until 1987. The show was special because kids got to be the writers! Children would send in their own short stories. Then, a group of actors would bring these stories to life on TV.
Contents
About Kids' Writes
Kids' Writes was a program where young viewers could share their creativity. The show's main goal was to act out stories written by children. This made the show very interactive and exciting for its audience.
Meet the Cast
The main actors on the show were Jim Mairs, Wynn White, Carlo Grossman, John Rousseau, and Steve Rifkin. Jim Mairs was very busy. He was also the director, played guitar, and sang. The other actors often wore colorful jumpsuits. They were known as the Magic Carpet Band.
How Your Stories Came Alive
The main idea of Kids' Writes was simple. Children would write short stories and mail them to the show. The best stories were then chosen to be acted out. The actors performed these stories live in front of an audience. The set was very unique. It had wooden ramps, steps, metal hoops, and nets. Before each story or song, its title was shown. The author's name and hometown were also displayed.
What Happened in Each Episode
Each episode of Kids' Writes started with a fun activity. Jim Mairs would ask a child in the audience what animal they wanted to see. Then, the other actors would work together to form that animal. Jim Mairs would play the piano in a funny way during this part.
Midway through each show, there was a segment called "Short Stories." Jim Mairs would again play music. The other four actors would each perform a different story sent in by a viewer. This meant lots of different stories were shown in one episode.
Show's Run and Themes
A total of 17 episodes of Kids' Writes were made. This happened between 1981 and 1983. During this time, Jim Mairs would ask viewers to send in new stories at the end of each show. This request stopped when new episodes were no longer produced in 1983. However, reruns of the show continued to air on Nickelodeon until 1987.
The stories on Kids' Writes often featured common child fantasies. These included space travel, monsters, and children becoming heroes. Some stories even had "tickling boots." This probably reflected how much young children enjoy being tickled. Some of the stories were turned into songs. Jim Mairs and Steve Rifkin wrote the music for these songs. Jim usually performed them on his guitar or piano.
