It's a Big Big World
Encyclopedia
It's A Big Big World is an American
children's television show
on PBS Kids
, that debuted January 2, 2006. It was originally part of Miss Lori and Hooper
's schedule block, but it was replaced in that block on September 3, 2007, though ran for a few years that followed. It's a Big Big World was retired in the spring of 2010.
It was taped at Wainscott Studios at the East Hampton Airport
industrial complex in Wainscott, New York
.
Many of the puppeteers come from similar shows, primarily Bear in the Big Blue House
, as well as Jellybean Jungle, and The Book of Pooh
, another show involving Shadowmation
, a technique that combines bunraku-style puppetry and computer-generated animation.
, Snook helps his friends learn all about the 'Big Big World' around them. He's slow-moving (but smart) and often takes naps, but is always up for a scientific investigation. He also enjoys singing and dancing with all of his friends in the World Tree. In addition to interacting with the other characters, Snook regularly takes the time to break the fourth wall
, often to explain a fact or ask a question. Like Big Bird
or Bear from Bear in the Big Blue House
, Snook is a full-bodied character, the only one not requiring 3 performers.
bird sometimes seems like a controlling older sister, who always thinks she knows more than everyone around her. However, Burdette seems sincere, and while investigating things with her friends in the World Tree, she's sometimes surprised to learn new things about herself too.
s to be exact - who are always stirring things up. Smooch, the girl monkey, is always trying to figure out the mysteries of the world around her, and Winslow is the goofy creative thinker. With such different personalities, these two monkeys don't always see eye to eye, but their little disagreements frequently lead to great adventures . In the episode "Madge is Missing" (Season 1, episode 128) it is revealed that they are, in fact, twins.
loves the ants that live all around him in the World Tree, and he's always trying new things out to make them like him more (He does eat ants). Bob also worries a lot about things that he thinks might happen. He also gets a little timid around Greenie because of Greenie's deep, loud voice and gruff demeanor.
, Oko is a trickster who always shows up when least expected. Oko can be grouchy and mischievous, but he also shares mysterious stories and little bits of wisdom with the others. A T'ai chi master, he carries an old walking stick that he can twirl from his feet to his hands and back again in the blink of an eye. Oko is the only character (along with Greenie) who appears less often than the others. He has a friend named Tsetse, who sometimes gives good advice.
. Wartz has gone through his metamorphosis, growing from a tadpole into a frog. Best friends with Smooch and Winslow, Wartz wants to get along with everyone and will agree with anyone, no matter what they're saying.
who lives in the pond under the world tree. In "The Sting," where it is revealed that Greenie is afraid of bees, Ick stirs up a little joke by making a buzzing sound, showing his naughty side. But when Stripey the bee stops by the pond at the end, Ick freaks out and Stripey giggles. Ick has misanthropic tendencies. Ick is not in Season 2.
, overlooking the Amazon River
.
The format of the "Season 2" (2009) episodes featuring Riona the baby sloth differs from the those of the first season in that each short story concludes with a brief segment in which Snook asks Riona to recall "The Best Parts of Your Day," during which the two characters recap events and lessons learned. In addition, "The Curve of the World" intermission song and the fun-fact segments at the end of the program are replaced by Snook "On the Road," where he visits various locations in the real world and talks to regular people about such topics as farming, indigenous culture, and wildlife. Another conspicuous difference between the two seasons is that those produced in 2009 feature only Riona, along with Snook, Bob, Burdette, and Smooch/Winslow from the original cast (Madge, Oko, Wartz, and Ick are omitted).
Season 2
Other DVDS:
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
children's television show
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
on PBS Kids
PBS Kids
PBS Kids is the brand for children's programming aired by the Public Broadcasting Service in the United States founded in 1993. As with all PBS programming, PBS Kids programming is non-commercial. It is aimed at children ages 2 to 10...
, that debuted January 2, 2006. It was originally part of Miss Lori and Hooper
Miss Lori and Hooper
The PBS Kids Preschool Block is a block of children's television shows which airs on PBS Kids. The block premiered with Curious George on Monday, September 4, 2006 . The block is aired weekdays at 8:00 AM local time on most PBS member stations.-Characters:Miss Rosa: Miss Rosa is the PBS Kids...
's schedule block, but it was replaced in that block on September 3, 2007, though ran for a few years that followed. It's a Big Big World was retired in the spring of 2010.
It was taped at Wainscott Studios at the East Hampton Airport
East Hampton Airport
East Hampton Airport is a public airport in Wainscott, New York, three miles west of the central business district of the village of East Hampton, in Suffolk County, New York, USA. It is owned and operated by the Town of East Hampton....
industrial complex in Wainscott, New York
Wainscott, New York
Wainscott is a census-designated place that roughly corresponds to the hamlet with the same name in the town of East Hampton in Suffolk County, New York on the South Fork of Long Island. As of the United States 2000 Census, the CDP population was 628...
.
Puppeteers
- Snook/Oko: Peter LinzPeter LinzPeter Linz is an American puppeteer. He is perhaps best known as the voice of Snook in It's a Big Big World and Theo Lion in Between the Lions....
- Burdette: Melissa Creighton
- Smooch: Aimee Garcia
- Winslow/Riona: Tyler BunchTyler BunchTyler Bunch is a puppeteer, puppet designer, director and actor. In addition to his work for the Jim Henson Company, Mr. Bunch has created and performed puppets for PBS, Nickelodeon, and Disney. He has acted in a few Off Broadway productions and has made appearances on American television shows...
- Bob: James Godwin
- Ick/Wartz/Greenie: Tim LagasseTim LagasseTimothy Lagasse is a puppeteer, puppet designer, and filmmaker. He earned his BFA from the University of Connecticut. Lagasse acts as a puppeteering consultant, and creates puppet films for stations like PBS, MTV, HBO, and Nickelodeon...
- Additional Puppetry: Carol Binion, Eric Engelhardt, Jim Kroupa, Paul McGinnis
Many of the puppeteers come from similar shows, primarily Bear in the Big Blue House
Bear in the Big Blue House
Bear in the Big Blue House is a television program for young children produced for the Playhouse Disney channel by Mitchell Kriegman and The Jim Henson Company. It first aired in 1997, and re-runs of the show continue to air on Playhouse Disney . It is produced by The Jim Henson Company and Shadow...
, as well as Jellybean Jungle, and The Book of Pooh
The Book of Pooh
The Book of Pooh is an American television series that aired on the Disney Channel. It is the third television series to feature the characters from the Disney franchise based on A. A...
, another show involving Shadowmation
Shadowmation
Shadowmation is a patented animation process created by Mitchell Kriegman. It uses realtime virtual sets and bunraku style team puppetry , thus combining live action animatronic characters with computer generated animation in real time, high definition virtual environments powered by video game...
, a technique that combines bunraku-style puppetry and computer-generated animation.
Snook
A Pale-throated three-toed slothPale-throated Three-toed Sloth
The Pale-throated sloth is a species of three-toed sloth that inhabits tropical rainforests in northern South America. It is similar in appearance to, and often confused with, the brown-throated sloth, which has a much wider distribution...
, Snook helps his friends learn all about the 'Big Big World' around them. He's slow-moving (but smart) and often takes naps, but is always up for a scientific investigation. He also enjoys singing and dancing with all of his friends in the World Tree. In addition to interacting with the other characters, Snook regularly takes the time to break the fourth wall
Fourth wall
The fourth wall is the imaginary "wall" at the front of the stage in a traditional three-walled box set in a proscenium theatre, through which the audience sees the action in the world of the play...
, often to explain a fact or ask a question. Like Big Bird
Big Bird
Big Bird is a protagonist of the children's television show Sesame Street. Big Bird, like many of the other Sesame Street characters, is a Muppet character. He is sometimes referred to simply as "Bird" by his friends....
or Bear from Bear in the Big Blue House
Bear in the Big Blue House
Bear in the Big Blue House is a television program for young children produced for the Playhouse Disney channel by Mitchell Kriegman and The Jim Henson Company. It first aired in 1997, and re-runs of the show continue to air on Playhouse Disney . It is produced by The Jim Henson Company and Shadow...
, Snook is a full-bodied character, the only one not requiring 3 performers.
Burdette
Burdette the Resplendent QuetzalResplendent Quetzal
The Resplendent Quetzal, Pharomachrus mocinno, is a bird in the trogon family. It is found from southern Mexico to western Panama . It is well known for its colorful plumage. There are two subspecies, P. m. mocinno and P. m...
bird sometimes seems like a controlling older sister, who always thinks she knows more than everyone around her. However, Burdette seems sincere, and while investigating things with her friends in the World Tree, she's sometimes surprised to learn new things about herself too.
Smooch and Winslow
Smooch and Winslow are two playful sibling monkeys - Common MarmosetCommon Marmoset
The common marmoset is a New World monkey. It originally lived on the Northeastern coast of Brazil, in the states of Piaui, Paraiba, Ceará, Rio Grande do Norte, Pernambuco, Alagoas and Bahia...
s to be exact - who are always stirring things up. Smooch, the girl monkey, is always trying to figure out the mysteries of the world around her, and Winslow is the goofy creative thinker. With such different personalities, these two monkeys don't always see eye to eye, but their little disagreements frequently lead to great adventures . In the episode "Madge is Missing" (Season 1, episode 128) it is revealed that they are, in fact, twins.
Madge
Madge is a map turtle. Madge has a map of the world on her shell. She is the oldest and wisest creature in the World Tree, and the one everyone comes to when they have a problem to solve. She's traveled all over the world and shares her experiences with everyone. Her library is the place to visit for answers to scientific questions. Madge is not in Season 2 and is replaced by Riona the baby sloth.Bob
Bob the Southern TamanduaSouthern Tamandua
The southern tamandua, also called a collared anteater, or lesser anteater , is a species of anteater from South America. It is a solitary animal, found in many habitats from mature to highly disturbed secondary forests and arid savannas. It feeds on ants, termites and bees...
loves the ants that live all around him in the World Tree, and he's always trying new things out to make them like him more (He does eat ants). Bob also worries a lot about things that he thinks might happen. He also gets a little timid around Greenie because of Greenie's deep, loud voice and gruff demeanor.
Oko
An old Red-handed HowlerRed-handed Howler
The red-handed howler is a vulnerable species of howler monkey, a type of New World monkey. It is endemic to Brazil, where found in the south-eastern Amazon and disjunctly in Atlantic Forest between Rio Grande do Norte and Sergipe....
, Oko is a trickster who always shows up when least expected. Oko can be grouchy and mischievous, but he also shares mysterious stories and little bits of wisdom with the others. A T'ai chi master, he carries an old walking stick that he can twirl from his feet to his hands and back again in the blink of an eye. Oko is the only character (along with Greenie) who appears less often than the others. He has a friend named Tsetse, who sometimes gives good advice.
Wartz
Wartz is a Red-eyed Tree FrogAgalychnis callidryas
The Red-eyed Treefrog is an arboreal hylid native to Neotropical rainforests in Central America.- Description :...
. Wartz has gone through his metamorphosis, growing from a tadpole into a frog. Best friends with Smooch and Winslow, Wartz wants to get along with everyone and will agree with anyone, no matter what they're saying.
Ick
Ick is a fishFish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
who lives in the pond under the world tree. In "The Sting," where it is revealed that Greenie is afraid of bees, Ick stirs up a little joke by making a buzzing sound, showing his naughty side. But when Stripey the bee stops by the pond at the end, Ick freaks out and Stripey giggles. Ick has misanthropic tendencies. Ick is not in Season 2.
Typical Episode Format
A typical episode of It's a Big, Big World begins with the opening theme song, "It's a Big, Big World". That is followed by a short (10-12 minute) story involving some or all of the main characters. This first story is followed by another song, called "Curve of the World", sung by all the characters. (In the Miss Lori and Hooper block, this song was not shown.) Then comes a second 10-12 minute story, which may be thematically linked to the first story but is not usually a direct continuation of the plot. At the end of the episode, Snook sings the closing song, Try to Touch the Sky, although this is often followed by one or two very short segments in which Snook ends some activity and gives some fun facts about the various species of animals that live in the World Tree. The big mountain in the background is Pico da NeblinaPico da Neblina
Pico da Neblina is the highest mountain in Brazil, above sea level, in the Serra do Imeri, a section of the Guiana Highlands on the Brazil–Venezuela border. As determined by a border survey expedition in 1962, its summit lies just within Brazilian territory, at a horizontal distance of only from...
, overlooking the Amazon River
Amazon River
The Amazon of South America is the second longest river in the world and by far the largest by waterflow with an average discharge greater than the next seven largest rivers combined...
.
The format of the "Season 2" (2009) episodes featuring Riona the baby sloth differs from the those of the first season in that each short story concludes with a brief segment in which Snook asks Riona to recall "The Best Parts of Your Day," during which the two characters recap events and lessons learned. In addition, "The Curve of the World" intermission song and the fun-fact segments at the end of the program are replaced by Snook "On the Road," where he visits various locations in the real world and talks to regular people about such topics as farming, indigenous culture, and wildlife. Another conspicuous difference between the two seasons is that those produced in 2009 feature only Riona, along with Snook, Bob, Burdette, and Smooch/Winslow from the original cast (Madge, Oko, Wartz, and Ick are omitted).
Episode Guide
Season 1- 101 Not Found Here
- 102 Ant Ray Vision/Moving On Up
- 103 Balance/Ick Alone
- 104 Burdette Queen Ant/One Monkey Too Many
- 105 My Friend Will Bee Right Back/Learning to Fly
- 106 Shell/Spirit
- 107 On on a Limb/The More Things Change
- 108 Dancing/King of the Tree
- 109 Burdette Bald Eagle/Hot ice
- 110 Color My World/Smooch's Caterpillar
- 111 Mini Monkey/The Five Senses
- 112 Wartz's Work Out/Hot Enough for You?
- 113 Windy Night/So Long Planty
- 114 Hold on Rainbow/Where Have All the Berries Gone?
- 115 Sappy Monkey/Growing Pains
- 116 The Big Sneeze/Go to Sleep Wartz
- 117 Down in the Dumps/Who Moved My Sunflower?
- 118 The Itch/Everything's Going to Be Just Fine
- 119 What a Wonderful Leaf/Roots Rock
- 120 Making Tracks/Map it Out
- 121 Hide and Seek/Take Care of Yourself
- 122 World Tree Day/World Tree Cuisine
- 123 The Sloth Must Be Crazy/Smarter Than You Think
- 124 Fish Out of Water/Burdette's Nest
- 125 Bones/Food and Plenty of It
- 126 The Sting/Growing
- 127 The Big Race/You Are What You Are
- 128 Madge Is Missing/The Anteater Songbook
- 129 Get Well Moon/Take Your Time
- 130 A Bird Tale/Friendship
- 131 Eyes and Noses/Snook's Songbook
- 132 The Hatch/Sounds of the Forest
- 133 The Guardians of the Sappenwood Tree/Over the Hills and Far Away
- 134 Oko's Birthday/Spinning a Tale
- 135 Echoes/A Good Heartbeat
- 136 Sleepover/The Disappearing Water Hole
- 137 Flying Fish/Smooch and Winslow's Songbook
- 138 Sloth Lessons/The Avocado Queen
- 139 In Good Voice/Wartz's Family Tree
- 140 Big Big Water Hole/Oko's Songbook
Season 2
- 201 Hanging with a Sleepy Sloth/Enough Is Enough
- 202 Winslow Is It/The Fourth R
- 203 Making New Friends/Little Things
- 204 Things That Go Bump/What's That Smell
- 205 Why Can't I Fly/Big Big Dinner Party
- 206 Winslows gone bananas/i love purple
DVDs
Six DVDs have been released by Sony Pictures. They are:- The Sky Above (2007)
- Safe and Sound (2007)
- Let's Investigate the World (2007)
- The Earth Needs You (2007)
- You Can Do It (2007)
- The Big Big Sleep (2007)
Other DVDS:
- Be Healthy and Happy (2008)
- Everyone's Different (2008)