Timon & Pumbaa (TV series) facts for kids

The Lion King's Timon & Pumbaa, often called Timon & Pumbaa, is an animated children's television series from the United States. It was made by Walt Disney Television Animation. The show is based on the 1994 Disney movie The Lion King. It follows the adventures of Timon the meerkat and Pumbaa the warthog. They live by their famous motto, "Hakuna Matata," which means "no worries." The actors who voiced Timon and Pumbaa in the movie, Ernie Sabella and Nathan Lane, returned for the show. Nathan Lane voiced Timon only in the first season.

The series aired for three seasons on CBS, Toon Disney, and as part of The Disney Afternoon. It first aired on September 8, 1995, and ended on September 24, 1999. This show was the first Lion King story to feature humans on screen. Humans did not appear in the original movie or its later sequels, The Lion King II: Simba's Pride and The Lion King 1½. It is also the first of two TV shows based on the movie; the second is The Lion Guard.

What the Show Is About

The show stars Timon, a meerkat, and Pumbaa, a warthog, both popular characters from The Lion King movie. Most of the stories happen after the first movie ends. However, some episodes show what happened before or during the movie. Timon and Pumbaa go on many funny adventures in different places. These places include the jungles of Africa, Canada, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

While the show mainly focuses on Timon and Pumbaa, some episodes feature other characters. Four episodes are about Rafiki and the hyenas Shenzi, Banzai, and Ed. These are called Rafiki Fables and The Laughing Hyenas. Two episodes also tell the past story of Zazu.

Characters You'll Meet

Main Characters

• Timon (voiced by Nathan Lane in early episodes, then by Kevin Schon and Quinton Flynn): Timon is one of the two main heroes of the show. Nathan Lane played Timon in The Lion King movie. Kevin Schon later voiced Timon in The Lion Guard.
• Pumbaa (voiced by Ernie Sabella): Pumbaa is the other main hero. Ernie Sabella also voiced Pumbaa in The Lion King movie.

Characters from The Lion King Movie

Many characters from the original The Lion King movie appear in this series:

• Simba (voiced by Cam Clarke): Simba is the main character of The Lion King and Timon and Pumbaa's best friend. He is now the King of the Pride Lands. Sometimes, he helps Timon and Pumbaa fix their mistakes.
• Rafiki (voiced by Robert Guillaume): Rafiki is a wise mandrill who often gives good advice. Robert Guillaume also voiced Rafiki in the movie.
• Zazu (voiced by Michael Gough): Zazu is a proud hornbill who works for King Simba.
• Shenzi, Banzai and Ed (voiced by Tress MacNeille, Rob Paulsen, and Jim Cummings): These are three wild hyenas who used to work for Scar. They are usually looking for food, but their plans often go wrong. After the movie, they live in a cave in the Outlands.
• Gopher (voiced by Jim Cummings): Gopher is a small mole who works as Zazu's main helper.

Other Fun Characters

• Speedy the Snail (voiced by Corey Burton): Speedy is a friendly blue snail who can talk and sing. Timon and Pumbaa first planned to eat him, but they became friends instead. They often have to rescue Speedy from danger.
• Fred (voiced by S. Scott Bullock): Fred is a funny meerkat and an old friend of Timon. He loves to laugh and play jokes, often on Timon and Pumbaa.
• Boss Beaver (voiced by Brad Garrett): Boss Beaver is a hardworking beaver who believes in hard work, which is the opposite of "Hakuna Matata."
• Irwin (voiced by Charlie Adler): Irwin is a clumsy penguin who seems to bring bad luck everywhere he goes. Timon and Pumbaa try to avoid him because his bad luck is catchy!

Villains and Rivals

• Quint (voiced by Corey Burton): Quint is Timon and Pumbaa's main human enemy. He often wears different disguises and causes trouble for them.
• Toucan Dan (voiced by Jeff Bennett): Toucan Dan is a sneaky toucan who is wanted by the police. He is good at tricking Timon and Pumbaa into helping his bad plans.
• Cheetata and Cheetato (voiced by Rob Paulsen and Jim Cummings): These are two fancy cheetahs who hunt for food. They are enemies of Timon and Pumbaa, and also of the hyenas.
• Smolder the Bear (voiced by Jim Cummings): Smolder is a big brown bear with a very short temper. Timon and Pumbaa often run into him.
• Little Jimmy (voiced by Joe Alaskey): Little Jimmy looks like a cute bluebird chick, but he is actually a smart criminal. He uses a sweet voice to trick people, but his real voice is gruff.

Music in the Show

The show features several songs, including music videos and songs from specific episodes.

Where to Watch and Play

Home Video Releases

Six VHS tapes with 18 episodes were released in the United States. They were called Timon & Pumbaa's Wild Adventures.

Three VHS tapes with 21 episodes were also released in Europe and Australia. Each tape had six episodes and a music video.

Three DVDs with 21 episodes were released in Europe and Japan.

Streaming and Video Games

The entire series became available on Disney+ in high definition on November 12, 2019. You can also buy the whole series on Amazon Instant Video in Germany.

There is also a video game based on the show:

Awards the Show Won

The show won several awards for its amazing work:

• 1996 – Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program – Nathan Lane won for voicing "Timon."
• 1997 – Outstanding Sound Mixing – Special Class – The sound team won for their excellent sound work.
• 1997 – Outstanding Individual in Animation – Kexx Singleton won for his animation work on the episode "Beethoven's Whiff."

How the Show Influenced Others

Some of the people who worked on Timon & Pumbaa later worked on other Lion King movies, like The Lion King II: Simba's Pride, The Lion King 1½, and The Lion Guard. For example, show writer Ford Riley helped create The Lion Guard. Kevin Schon, who voiced Timon in the later seasons, also voiced Timon in The Lion Guard and other Disney shows like House of Mouse.

Many of the show's staff members, including executive producers Tony Craig and Bobs Gannaway, went on to work on House of Mouse and Leroy & Stitch. Timon and Pumbaa even made guest appearances in these shows, which were like tributes to their own series.

• A scene from the episode "Uganda Be an Elephant" was shown in the 2000 Disney Channel Original Movie Stepsister From Planet Weird.
• The artwork for the two Zazu-focused episodes was referenced in the House of Mouse episode "King Larry Swings in."

See also

In Spanish: Timón y Pumba (serie de televisión) para niños