Teacher's Pet (TV series) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Teacher's Pet |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Genre | Animated comedy Farce |
| Created by | Gary Baseman Bill Steinkellner Cheri Stienkellener |
| Written by |
|
| Directed by |
|
| Voices of | |
| Theme music composer | Brian Woodbury & Peter Lurye |
| Opening theme | Disney's Teacher's Pet Theme |
| Ending theme | Disney's Teacher's Pet Instrumental Theme |
| Composer(s) | Stephen James Taylor Brian Woodbury Peter Lurye |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 39 (47 Segments) (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) |
|
| Running time | 11 minutes (16 Episodes) 22 minutes (31 Episodes) |
| Production company(s) | Walt Disney Television Animation |
| Distributor | Buena Vista Television |
| Release | |
| Original network | ABC (2000–02) Toon Disney (2002) |
| Picture format | 480i (4:3 SDTV) 1080i (16:9 HDTV) [ Disney + ] |
| Audio format | Stereo |
| First shown in | United States |
| Original release | September 9, 2000 – May 10, 2002 |
Teacher's Pet (also known as Disney's Teacher's Pet) is an animated TV show from the United States. It was made by Walt Disney Television Animation and directed by Timothy Björklund.
The show is about a 9-year-old boy named Leonard and his dog, Spot. Spot loves Leonard so much that he wants to be a human boy and go to school with him! The series was created by Gary Baseman, Bill Steinkellner, and Cheri Steinkellner. It first aired on ABC and later on Toon Disney, from 2000 to 2002.
Contents
What is Teacher's Pet About?
The story follows Leonard Helperman (voiced by Shaun Fleming), a 9-year-old in the 4th grade. He feels a bit awkward because his mom, Mary Helperman (Debra Jo Rupp), is also his teacher. This makes other kids call him "teacher's pet," and he just wants to be a normal kid.
Meanwhile, his dog Spot (voiced by Nathan Lane) really misses Leonard when he's at school. Spot dreams of being a human boy. So, on the first day of school, Spot comes to class dressed up as a new student named Scott Leadready II. Scott quickly becomes the most popular kid in school!
Leonard soon finds out Scott's secret. Even though he's surprised at first, Leonard lets Spot keep going to school as Scott. It leads to many funny and sometimes tricky situations.
Meet the Characters
Main Characters
- Spot Helperman/Scott Leadready II – He's Leonard's talking dog. Spot loves dressing up as a human boy, Scott, to go to school. He's super popular but tries hard to keep his dog identity a secret. Sometimes, his plans get Leonard into trouble. In the movie, he finally becomes human but later chooses to be a dog again.
- Leonard Amadeus Helperman – Spot's owner and best friend. He's not very popular because his mom is the teacher. Other kids sometimes tease him. Leonard often wishes Spot would just be a normal pet instead of a human boy.
- Mary Lou Moira Angela Darling Helperman – Leonard's mom and his teacher. She sometimes embarrasses Leonard, but she's a very loving and caring person. Like most characters, she doesn't know Spot can talk, but she finds out in the movie.
Other Fun Characters
- Ian Wazselewski – He's known as the class genius, but also a bit quirky. He used to be the smartest until Scott (Spot) showed up. Ian collects scabs and thinks he has a special bond with Leonard because both their moms work at the school. He plays a big role in the movie, helping Leonard and Spot.
- Mr. Jolly – Leonard's cat. He's scared of going outside and prefers to stay home with the family's parrot. He loves to eat and has a crush on the principal's cat, but his fear keeps him from her.
- Pretty Boy – Leonard's parrot. He's a smart-mouthed bird who hangs out with Mr. Jolly. He often calls Spot "Dog Breath." He's honest and loyal but can be grumpy and sometimes teases Jolly.
- Principal Strickler – The principal of Leonard and Spot's school and Mary Lou's boss. He owns a cat named Talullah, who Mr. Jolly likes. Principal Strickler knows Scott is a dog and doesn't like dogs much.
- Leslie Dunkling – Leonard's crush. She's a popular girl who is nice to Leonard but prefers Scott/Spot. The show's website says Leonard and Leslie used to be best friends.
- Tyler, Taylor, and Trevor (Pamela Adlon) – These three are the coolest kids in school. Leonard wishes he was like them. They often skateboard and sometimes pick on Leonard, but usually, he's not their main target.
- Younghee Mandlebom (Lauren Tom) – Another girl in the class who is from Korea. She sometimes teases Leonard, but deep down, she cares about him and secretly likes him.
- Chelsey and Kelsey – Twins in the class. They can be a bit stuck-up and think they're better than others, but they often argue with each other. Leonard tries to get their attention, but it usually doesn't work.
- Moltar – Ian's invisible friend. Ian often does his strange activities with Moltar.
Episodes of Teacher's Pet
List of Teacher's Pet episodes
Where and When it Aired
Teacher's Pet first aired on ABC's "One Saturday Morning" on September 9, 2000. It stayed on that block until September 7, 2002. In January 2002, reruns of the show started airing on Toon Disney. The last new episodes were shown on ABC until February 9, 2002. The show stopped airing reruns in America around 2006.
Good news! You can now watch the show, along with the movie, on Disney+.
Around the World
Teacher's Pet was shown in many countries around the world! Here's a look at where it aired and what it was called in some places:
| Country | Network/Years Aired | Language | Foreign Title | Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | ABC: September 9, 2000 - September 7, 2002 |
English | None | 4:3 |
| Toon Disney: January 7, 2002 – June 1, 2006 |
||||
| Disney XD | ||||
| Australia | Disney Channel Australia: 2001 – 2005 Seven Network |
English | ||
| United Kingdom Ireland |
Toon Disney (UK & Ireland) 2003-2006 Disney Cinemagic |
English | N/A | |
| Czech Republic | TV Nova: 2005 | Czech | N/A | 4:3 |
| Netherlands | NET 5: April 11, 2005 - June 27, 2005 Jetix |
Dutch | ||
| Mexico | Disney Channel (Latin America): April 2, 2001 - June 18, 2005 |
Spanish | La Mascota de la Clase (Class Pet) | |
| Russia | Channel One Russia: November 13, 2001 - August 27, 2002 |
Russian | Любимчик (Pet) |
|
| Germany | Disney Channel (Germany): July 15, 2001- July 22, 2003 (Original Run) July 23, 2003 - April 30, 2004 (Reruns) Super RTL: January 1 - February 24, 2004 Toon Disney (Germany): January 17, 2006 - February 28, 2007 |
German | Klassenhund (Class Dog) |
|
| Brazil | SBT: 2000-2003 Disney Channel: 2001-2005 |
Brazilian Portuguese |
O Cãozinho Esperto (The Smart Doggy) |
|
| Hungary | RTL Klub: 2003 | Hungarian | Tanárok kedvence (Teacher's Favorite) | |
| Sweden | SVT: 2001; 2008-2009 | Swedish | En jycke i klassen (A Pooch in Class) |
|
| Hong Kong | Disney Channel | Cantonese | N/A | N/A |
| New Zealand | TV2 | English | N/A | |
| Greece | ET1: 2008; 2011 | Greek | ΣΠΟΤ, ΤΟ ΟΝΕΙΡΟ ΕΝΟΣ ΣΚΥΛΟΥ (Spot, The Dream Of A Dog) |
4:3 |
| Poland | Disney Channel: March 25 - June 6, 2013 2013 (Reruns) |
Polish | Pupilek | |
| Portugal | Disney Channel: 2002-2003 | European Portuguese | Este Cão é um Craque (This Dog is an Ace) |
|
| United Arab Emirates | Disney Channel Middle East: 2004 MBC3: 2008; 2011; 2013 |
Arabic | تيتشرز بيت (Teachers pet (phonetic transliteration)) |
|
| Philippines | TV5: March 23 – May 1, 2015 (Original run) Mid July - September 21, 2015 (Reruns) |
Tagalog | None | 16:9 |
| Guatemala | Trecevisión: May 5 - July 16, 2014 July 8 - August 31, 2016 March 8 - April 21, 2017 July 6 - August 16, 2017 |
Spanish | La Mascota De La Clase (The Mascot Of The Class) |
4:3 |
| Malaysia | TV3: August 27, 2013 - October 28, 2013 January 5 - July 13, 2017 |
English | None | 4:3 |
| Francia | Summer 2008 | French | Scott, Premier de la Classe |
Awards and Recognition
Teacher's Pet won several awards for its animation and voice acting!
| Year | Award | Category | Nominee | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Performer In An Animated Program | Nathan Lane | Won |
| British Academy Children's Awards | Best International Children's Programming | Teacher's Pet | Won | |
| Annie Award | Outstanding Achievement in a Daytime Animated Television Production | Teacher's Pet | Nominated | |
| Outstanding Individual Achievement for Production Design in an Animated Television Production | Gary Baseman | Nominated | ||
| Outstanding Individual Achievement for Voice Acting by a Male Performer in an Animated Television Production | David Ogden Stiers | Nominated | ||
| 2002 | Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Special Class Animated Program | Teacher's Pet | Won |
| Outstanding Individual in Animation | Chuck Klein | Won | ||
| 2003 | Daytime Emmy Award | Outstanding Special Class Animated Program | Teacher's Pet | Won |
| Outstanding Individual in Animation | Gary Baseman | Won |
The Teacher's Pet Movie
A full-length animated movie based on the show was released in theaters on January 16, 2004. It was simply called Teacher's Pet and served as the big finale for the series.
In the movie, Spot sees a scientist on TV who can turn animals into humans. Spot thinks this is his big chance to become a real boy! But once he becomes human, he quickly realizes it's not quite what he expected. Most of the original voice actors from the TV show came back to voice their characters in the movie. Even though critics generally liked the movie, it didn't make much money at the box office.
See also
In Spanish: Teacher's Pet (serie de televisión) para niños
