Cookie Jar Entertainment
Encyclopedia
The Cookie Jar Group (formerly Cinar) is an American and Canadian producer of children’s entertainment, consumer products and educational materials. Made up of three divisions: entertainment, consumer products, and education, Cookie Jar Group is one of the world’s largest independent children’s entertainment, consumer products and education companies with ownership and licensing rights to some of the most recognizable character brands. It is headquartered in Toronto
, Ontario
, with offices in Burbank, California
, Paris, London, and Tokyo among other places.
In its previous incarnation as Cinar , the company enjoyed an illustrious existence that ultimately ended in scandal. Cinar was an integrated entertainment and education company involved in the development, production, post-production and worldwide distribution of family entertainment programming and educational products.
After their 1976 meeting in New Orleans, future spouses Micheline Charest
and Ronald A. Weinberg organized an event for a women's film festival, and worked at distributing foreign films to US theatres. The couple moved to New York and formed Cinar, a film and television distribution company.
In 1984, Cinar changed their focus from media distribution to production, and moved operations to Montreal
, where they concentrated on children's television programming (including Animal Crackers
, Emily of New Moon
, Mona the Vampire
, and The Wombles
), as well as the English and French dubs of the anime
series Adventures of the Little Koala
and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and the Spain-originating TV series The World of David the Gnome
, and the short lived English dub of Ultraseven. As a production company, Cinar was also involved in the work of Are You Afraid of the Dark?
, The Busy World of Richard Scarry
, Madeline, The Real Story of Happy Birthday to You
, Space Cases
, The Shoe People
and, its most famous work, Arthur
and Zoboomafoo
. The firm became a public company
in September 1993. By 1999, Cinar boasted annual revenues of $150 million (CAD
) and owned about $1.5 billion (CAD) of the children's television market. In the 1993, Cinar bought the rights to all the shows owned and made by British animation company FilmFair
, which was formerly Central TV's animation division since 1987, and closed it in 1998.
) was invested into Bahamian
bank accounts without the boardmembers' approval. Cinar had also paid American screenwriters
for work while continuing to accept Canadian federal grants
for content. The names of Canadian authors were credited for the work, allowing Cinar to benefit from Canadian tax
credits. While the province
of Quebec
did not file criminal charges, Cinar denied any wrongdoing, choosing instead to pay a settlement to Canadian and Quebec tax authorities of $17.8 million (CAD
) and another $2.6 million (CAD) to Telefilm Canada
, a Canadian federal funding agency. The value of Cinar stock
plummeted, and the company was soon delisted.
In 2001, as part of a settlement agreement with the Société des Valeurs Mobilières du Québec (Quebec Securities Commission) Charest and Weinberg agreed to pay $1 million each and were banned from serving in the capacity of directors or officers at any publicly traded Canadian company for five years. There was no admission of guilt and none of the allegations have been proven in court. In 2004, Cinar was rebranded The Cookie Jar Group.
In September 2008, William A. Urseth published an insider's book called Death Spiral. It details the CINAR scandal and how it tied into two other companies called Norshield and Mount Real.
After 14 years of legal wrangling, on August 26, 2009, the Superior Court of Quebec ruled that CINAR would have to pay author Claude Robinson $5.2 million dollars in damages for plagiarizing Robinson's work for the Cinar-produced animated series Robinson Sucroe
. Robinson had originally presented the work to Cinar in 1986, and the concept was turned down.
190 million by a group led by Nelvana
founder, Michael Hirsh
. and former Nelvana President, Toper Taylor.
On June 20, 2008, Cookie Jar Group announced a deal to merge with DIC Entertainment
. On July 23, 2008, both studios completed their merger, and DIC was then absorbed into Cookie Jar's entertainment division. As part of Cookie Jar's merger with DIC, Cookie Jar acquired Copyright Promotions Licensing Group
and a one-third interest in international children’s television channel, KidsCo
. The acquisition doubled Cookie Jar Entertainment's library of programming. Cookie Jar now has more than 6,000 half-hours of programming as well as rights to several children's brands.
to buy the Care Bears
, Strawberry Shortcake
, and Sushi Pack
franchises. The deal is not finalized yet in late 2008 and with the current scenario, the transaction did not progress. On March 30, 2009, Cookie Jar made a $76 million counter bid for Care Bears
and Strawberry Shortcake
. Cookie Jar had until April 30, 2009 to complete a deal with American Greetings
. In May 2009 American Greetings filed a $100 million lawsuits against Cookie Jar and Cookie Jar filed a $25 million lawsuits against American Greetings over the Care Bears and Strawberry Shortcake deal.
On April 29, 2009 it was announced that Cookie Jar will develop primetime television series and hired Tom Mazza to head its new primetime label, The Jar.
renewed its contract with Cookie Jar for another three seasons, through 2012. On September 19, 2009, KEWLopolis on CBS was re-branded as Cookie Jar TV.
launched airing Cookie Jar's daily children's programming block Cookie Jar Toons
which providing children's and E/I
-oriented programming.
, MyNetworkTV
, and independent stations
to provide them with a source of Educational/Informational (E/I)
programming required by federal law
. The block is syndicated by Ascent Media
. It ceased broadcasting on September 17, 2011.
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, with offices in Burbank, California
Burbank, California
Burbank is a city in Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States, north of downtown Los Angeles. The estimated population in 2010 was 103,340....
, Paris, London, and Tokyo among other places.
In its previous incarnation as Cinar , the company enjoyed an illustrious existence that ultimately ended in scandal. Cinar was an integrated entertainment and education company involved in the development, production, post-production and worldwide distribution of family entertainment programming and educational products.
20th century
Micheline Charest
Micheline Charest was a television producer and founder of the Cinar television company.-Biography:...
and Ronald A. Weinberg organized an event for a women's film festival, and worked at distributing foreign films to US theatres. The couple moved to New York and formed Cinar, a film and television distribution company.
In 1984, Cinar changed their focus from media distribution to production, and moved operations to Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, where they concentrated on children's television programming (including Animal Crackers
Animal Crackers (TV series)
The Animal Crackers is a 1997 television series produced by Cinar, and association with Alphanim, about a group of animals that live in a fictional jungle called Freeborn. It is based on the comic strip Animal Crackers...
, Emily of New Moon
Emily of New Moon (TV series)
Emily of New Moon was a Canadian television series, which aired on CBC Television from 1998 to 2000. The series originally aired in the United States on the Cookie Jar Toons block on This TV and it's currently seen in Canada on the Viva, Bravo! and Vision TV cable channels...
, Mona the Vampire
Mona the Vampire
Mona the Vampire is a Canadian animated television series based on the series Robyn le Vampire, directed by Louis Piché and Jean Caillon, originally based on the short stories created and written Sonia Holleyman and later written by Hiawyn Oram. It is mainly shown on YTV, Radio-Canada, VRAK.TV and...
, and The Wombles
The Wombles
The Wombles are fictional pointy-nosed, furry creatures that live in burrows, where they help the environment by collecting and recycling rubbish in useful and ingenious ways. Wombles were created by author Elisabeth Beresford, originally appearing in a series of children's novels from 1968...
), as well as the English and French dubs of the anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
series Adventures of the Little Koala
Adventures of the Little Koala
is an anime TV series produced by Tohokushinsha Film Corporation. It aired originally in Japan on TV Tokyo from October 4, 1984 through March 28, 1985, and then aired in the United States on Nickelodeon dubbed in English from 1987 to 1994...
and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and the Spain-originating TV series The World of David the Gnome
The World of David the Gnome
The World of David the Gnome, originally titled David el Gnomo , is a Spanish animated television series based on the children's book The Secret Book of Gnomes, by the Dutch author Wil Huygen and illustrator Rien Poortvliet...
, and the short lived English dub of Ultraseven. As a production company, Cinar was also involved in the work of Are You Afraid of the Dark?
Are You Afraid of the Dark?
Are You Afraid of the Dark? may refer to:* Are You Afraid of the Dark?, a 1992 television series* Are You Afraid of the Dark? , a 2004 novel by Sidney Sheldon...
, The Busy World of Richard Scarry
The Busy World of Richard Scarry
The Busy World of Richard Scarry is a Canadian/French animated children's television series, produced by CINAR Animation and France Animation in association with Paramount Television, which aired from 1994 to 1997, first on Showtime, later on Nickelodeon, and ran for 65 episodes...
, Madeline, The Real Story of Happy Birthday to You
The Real Story of Happy Birthday to You
The Real Story of Happy Birthday to You is a children's short animation film directed by Gerald Potterton as part of the Favorite Songs series. The short was produced in Canada by Cinar and in France by France Animation and was released in January of 1992 in the USA...
, Space Cases
Space Cases
Space Cases is a science fiction television series that aired on Nickelodeon for two seasons. Created by Peter David and Bill Mumy, it premiered on March 2, 1996, and was cancelled a year later. It aired for a time on Nickelodeon's Saturday night block of shows known as SNICK, and on Nickelodeon...
, The Shoe People
The Shoe People
The Shoe People is an animated television series which was first broadcast in the UK in April 1987 on TV-am. The Shoe People went on to be broadcast in 62 countries around the world....
and, its most famous work, Arthur
Arthur (TV series)
Arthur is an American/Canadian animated educational television series for children, created by Cookie Jar Group and WGBH for the Public Broadcasting Service...
and Zoboomafoo
Zoboomafoo
Zoboomafoo is an American children's television series that aired from January 25, 1998, to April 21, 2001, and is still shown today in syndication depending on the area, and it is regularly shown on PBS Kids Sprout. A total of 65 episodes were aired...
. The firm became a public company
Public company
This is not the same as a Government-owned corporation.A public company or publicly traded company is a limited liability company that offers its securities for sale to the general public, typically through a stock exchange, or through market makers operating in over the counter markets...
in September 1993. By 1999, Cinar boasted annual revenues of $150 million (CAD
Canadian dollar
The Canadian dollar is the currency of Canada. As of 2007, the Canadian dollar is the 7th most traded currency in the world. It is abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or C$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies...
) and owned about $1.5 billion (CAD) of the children's television market. In the 1993, Cinar bought the rights to all the shows owned and made by British animation company FilmFair
FilmFair
FilmFair was a British production company and animation studio that produced stop motion children's television series and animated cartoons from the late 1960s until the mid-1990s...
, which was formerly Central TV's animation division since 1987, and closed it in 1998.
Scandal
The success of Charest, Weinberg, and Cinar ended in March 2000, when an internal audit revealed that about $122 million (USUnited States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
) was invested into Bahamian
The Bahamas
The Bahamas , officially the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, is a nation consisting of 29 islands, 661 cays, and 2,387 islets . It is located in the Atlantic Ocean north of Cuba and Hispaniola , northwest of the Turks and Caicos Islands, and southeast of the United States...
bank accounts without the boardmembers' approval. Cinar had also paid American screenwriters
Screenwriting
Screenwriting is the art and craft of writing scripts for mass media such as feature films, television productions or video games. It is a freelance profession....
for work while continuing to accept Canadian federal grants
Grant (money)
Grants are funds disbursed by one party , often a Government Department, Corporation, Foundation or Trust, to a recipient, often a nonprofit entity, educational institution, business or an individual. In order to receive a grant, some form of "Grant Writing" often referred to as either a proposal...
for content. The names of Canadian authors were credited for the work, allowing Cinar to benefit from Canadian tax
Tax
To tax is to impose a financial charge or other levy upon a taxpayer by a state or the functional equivalent of a state such that failure to pay is punishable by law. Taxes are also imposed by many subnational entities...
credits. While the province
Province
A province is a territorial unit, almost always an administrative division, within a country or state.-Etymology:The English word "province" is attested since about 1330 and derives from the 13th-century Old French "province," which itself comes from the Latin word "provincia," which referred to...
of Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
did not file criminal charges, Cinar denied any wrongdoing, choosing instead to pay a settlement to Canadian and Quebec tax authorities of $17.8 million (CAD
Canadian dollar
The Canadian dollar is the currency of Canada. As of 2007, the Canadian dollar is the 7th most traded currency in the world. It is abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or C$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies...
) and another $2.6 million (CAD) to Telefilm Canada
Telefilm Canada
Telefilm Canada or Téléfilm Canada is a Crown corporation owned by the Government of Canada.It is the primary federal cultural agency dedicated to the development and promotion of the Canadian audiovisual industry....
, a Canadian federal funding agency. The value of Cinar stock
Stock market
A stock market or equity market is a public entity for the trading of company stock and derivatives at an agreed price; these are securities listed on a stock exchange as well as those only traded privately.The size of the world stock market was estimated at about $36.6 trillion...
plummeted, and the company was soon delisted.
In 2001, as part of a settlement agreement with the Société des Valeurs Mobilières du Québec (Quebec Securities Commission) Charest and Weinberg agreed to pay $1 million each and were banned from serving in the capacity of directors or officers at any publicly traded Canadian company for five years. There was no admission of guilt and none of the allegations have been proven in court. In 2004, Cinar was rebranded The Cookie Jar Group.
In September 2008, William A. Urseth published an insider's book called Death Spiral. It details the CINAR scandal and how it tied into two other companies called Norshield and Mount Real.
After 14 years of legal wrangling, on August 26, 2009, the Superior Court of Quebec ruled that CINAR would have to pay author Claude Robinson $5.2 million dollars in damages for plagiarizing Robinson's work for the Cinar-produced animated series Robinson Sucroe
Robinson Sucroe
Robinson Sucroe is a 1994 animated series. It was created by France Animation in France and Cinar in Canada, illegally plagiarized from Claude Robinson's work Les aventures de Robinson Curiosité. The show was a loose adaption of Robinson Crusoe set with a Looney Tunes twist...
. Robinson had originally presented the work to Cinar in 1986, and the concept was turned down.
Purchase and rebranding
In March 2004, Cinar was purchased for more than CA$Canadian dollar
The Canadian dollar is the currency of Canada. As of 2007, the Canadian dollar is the 7th most traded currency in the world. It is abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or C$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies...
190 million by a group led by Nelvana
Nelvana
Nelvana Limited is a Canadian entertainment company founded in 1971 known for its work in children's animation. It was named by founders Michael Hirsh, Patrick Loubert and Clive A. Smith after a Canadian comic book superheroine created by Adrian Dingle in the 1940s...
founder, Michael Hirsh
Michael Hirsh (producer)
Michael Hirsh is a Belgian-born Canadian citizen. He has been a significant figure in the Canadian television industry, or more specifically children's programming, since the 1980s.-Personal life:...
. and former Nelvana President, Toper Taylor.
On June 20, 2008, Cookie Jar Group announced a deal to merge with DIC Entertainment
DiC Entertainment
DIC Entertainment was an international film and television production company. In addition to animated television shows such as Ulysses 31 , Inspector Gadget , The Littles , The Real Ghostbusters , Captain Planet and the Planeteers , and the first two seasons of the English adaptation of...
. On July 23, 2008, both studios completed their merger, and DIC was then absorbed into Cookie Jar's entertainment division. As part of Cookie Jar's merger with DIC, Cookie Jar acquired Copyright Promotions Licensing Group
Copyright Promotions Licensing Group
Copyright Promotions Licensing Group is a brand licensing agency founded in 1974. Headquartered in London, CPLG also operates offices in Paris, Barcelona, Milan, Amsterdam, Lisbon and Munich and has recently expanded its global reach by opening new offices in Toronto and Japan.CPLG represents...
and a one-third interest in international children’s television channel, KidsCo
KidsCo
KidsCo is an international children's entertainment brand founded by Canadian broadcaster Corus Entertainment's Nelvana Enterprises, American-based producer DIC Entertainment, and European broadcaster Sparrowhawk Media Group in April 2007. By the end of 2007, Sparrowhawk was purchased by media...
. The acquisition doubled Cookie Jar Entertainment's library of programming. Cookie Jar now has more than 6,000 half-hours of programming as well as rights to several children's brands.
Recent activity
On July 23, 2008 it was announced that Cookie Jar was in negotiation with American GreetingsAmerican Greetings
American Greetings Corporation, Inc. is the world's largest publicly-traded greeting card company. It is based in Brooklyn, Ohio and sells paper greeting cards, electronic greeting cards, party products , and electronic expressive content...
to buy the Care Bears
Care Bears
The Care Bears are characters created by American Greetings in 1981 for use on greeting cards. The original artwork for the cards was painted by artist Elena Kucharik. In 1983, Kenner turned the Care Bears into plush teddy bears...
, Strawberry Shortcake
Strawberry Shortcake
Strawberry Shortcake is a licensed character owned by American Greetings, originally used in greeting cards and expanded to include dolls, posters, and other products...
, and Sushi Pack
Sushi Pack
Sushi Pack is an American animated television series produced by DIC Entertainment and American Greetings, that aired on the KEWLopolis block on CBS November 3, 2007 - September 12, 2009...
franchises. The deal is not finalized yet in late 2008 and with the current scenario, the transaction did not progress. On March 30, 2009, Cookie Jar made a $76 million counter bid for Care Bears
Care Bears
The Care Bears are characters created by American Greetings in 1981 for use on greeting cards. The original artwork for the cards was painted by artist Elena Kucharik. In 1983, Kenner turned the Care Bears into plush teddy bears...
and Strawberry Shortcake
Strawberry Shortcake
Strawberry Shortcake is a licensed character owned by American Greetings, originally used in greeting cards and expanded to include dolls, posters, and other products...
. Cookie Jar had until April 30, 2009 to complete a deal with American Greetings
American Greetings
American Greetings Corporation, Inc. is the world's largest publicly-traded greeting card company. It is based in Brooklyn, Ohio and sells paper greeting cards, electronic greeting cards, party products , and electronic expressive content...
. In May 2009 American Greetings filed a $100 million lawsuits against Cookie Jar and Cookie Jar filed a $25 million lawsuits against American Greetings over the Care Bears and Strawberry Shortcake deal.
On April 29, 2009 it was announced that Cookie Jar will develop primetime television series and hired Tom Mazza to head its new primetime label, The Jar.
Cookie Jar TV
On February 24, 2009, it was announced that CBSCBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
renewed its contract with Cookie Jar for another three seasons, through 2012. On September 19, 2009, KEWLopolis on CBS was re-branded as Cookie Jar TV.
Cookie Jar Toons
On November 1, 2008, This TVThis TV
This TV is a United States general entertainment television network, with a large emphasis in its programming on movies....
launched airing Cookie Jar's daily children's programming block Cookie Jar Toons
Cookie Jar Toons
Cookie Jar Toons is a daily children's programming block on the This TV digital broadcast network. The block is programmed by Toronto based Cookie Jar Entertainment...
which providing children's and E/I
E/I
E/I, which stands for "educational and informative," refers to a type of children's television programming shown in the United States. The Federal Communications Commission requires that every full-service Terrestrial television station in the U.S. show at least three hours of these television...
-oriented programming.
Cookie Jar Kids Network
Cookie Jar Kids Network (formerly DiC Kids Network) is a children's programming block that airs selected Cookie Jar programs on local FOXFox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
, MyNetworkTV
MyNetworkTV
MyNetworkTV is a television broadcast syndication service in the United States, owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a division of News Corporation...
, and independent stations
Independent station
An independent station is in the category of television terminology used to describe a television station broadcasting in the United States or Canada that is not affiliated with any television network....
to provide them with a source of Educational/Informational (E/I)
E/I
E/I, which stands for "educational and informative," refers to a type of children's television programming shown in the United States. The Federal Communications Commission requires that every full-service Terrestrial television station in the U.S. show at least three hours of these television...
programming required by federal law
Federal law
Federal law is the body of law created by the federal government of a country. A federal government is formed when a group of political units, such as states or provinces join together in a federation, surrendering their individual sovereignty and many powers to the central government while...
. The block is syndicated by Ascent Media
Ascent Media
Ascent Media Corporation is a holding public company whose primary subsidiary is Ascent Media Group, LLC. Ascent Media Group is a Delaware limited liability company , which provides creative and technical services to the media and entertainment industries. Ascent Media was a wholly owned...
. It ceased broadcasting on September 17, 2011.
See also
- CinéGroupeCinéGroupeCinéGroupe Corporation is a Canadian animation studio based in Montreal, Quebec. The company also has offices in nearby Toronto and in the U.S. city of Los Angeles...
, another animation studio from Quebec.
External links
- Official site (in English and French)
- Jaroo Official Streaming Episodes Site
- A history of the studio (1998) from the Canadian Encyclopedia
- DIC Entertainment Cartoons at the Big Cartoon DatabaseBig Cartoon DataBaseThe Big Cartoon DataBase is an online database of information about animated cartoons, animated feature films, animated television shows and cartoon shorts....