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'''Co-promotion''' is a [[marketing]] practice where a [[company]] in addition to its own, uses another company's [[sales force]] to promote the same [[brand]] or range of brands. The term is frequently confused with [[Co-marketing]].
{{Cleanup|December 2006}}
{{dablink|A '''rugrat''' may also be a pejorative term for a [[toddler]].}} {{for|the 1980s [[Canada|Canadian]] children's band|The Rugrats}}
{{infobox Television |
| show_name = Rugrats
| image = [[Image:Rugrats.JPG|center|300px|Rugrats]]
| caption = Center: Angelica; Clockwise from top: Tommy, Chuckie, Cynthia (In Angelica's hands), Lil, Phil, Dil, Kimi, Susie
| format = [[Children's television series]]
| runtime = 22 minutes approx
| creator = [[Arlene Klasky]]<br />[[Gabor Csupo]]<br /> [[Paul Germain]]<br />
| starring = [[E.G. Daily]] <br> [[Christine Cavanaugh]] <br> [[Kath Soucie]] <br> [[Cheryl Chase]] <br> [[Tara Strong]] <br> [[Cree Summer]] <br> [[Dionne Quan]] <br> [[Melanie Chartoff]] <br> [[Jack Riley]] <br> [[Michael Bell]] <br> [[Tress MacNeille]] <br> [[David Doyle]] <br> [[Philip Proctor]] <br> [[Joe Alaskey]] <br> [[Julia Kato]]
| country = [[United States|USA]]
| network = [[Nickelodeon (TV channel)|Nickelodeon]]
| first_aired = [[August 11]], [[1991]]
| last_aired = [[June 8]], [[2004]]
| status = Ended
| num_episodes = 175 (including the pilot episode)
| list_episodes = List of Rugrats episodes
| imdb_id =
|}}
{{Infobox TV ratings
| show_name = Rugrats
| usa_tv = TV-Y<br>[[E/I]] ''([[CBS]] only)''
| gb_tv =
| can_tv = C
| jp_tv =
| dt_tv =
| aus_tv = G
| nz_tv =
}}
'''''Rugrats''''' was an [[United States|American]] [[animated television series|animated series]], produced by [[Klasky Csupo|Klasky-Csupo, Inc.]] for [[Nickelodeon (TV channel)|Nickelodeon]]. It was the network's second [[Nicktoon]]. The series ran from [[1991]] to [[1994]], and again from [[1997]] to [[2006]].
The toddlers in the show, [[Tommy Pickles]], [[Chuckie Finster]] and the twins [[Phil and Lil DeVille|Phillip (Phil) and Lillian (Lil) DeVille]], are able to communicate to each other in baby speak (although viewers can understand them, because it is supposedly 'translated'). Often, they mispronounce words or use poor grammar. Despite the toddlers' inability and lack of desire to communicate with adults, they can understand their parents' speaking, although they often misunderstand what they hear, usually by taking metaphors literally. [[Angelica Pickles]], at age three, is able to communicate and understand language from both the toddlers and the adults, which she often uses as an advantage when she wants to manipulate either party.
== See also ==
The original series was eventually ended to make way for its spin off show, ''[[All Grown Up!]]''; however, it was never a major hit and was eventually cancelled. Re-runs of Rugrats can currently be seen on [[Nickelodeon (TV channel)|Nickelodeon]] at 6:00a E/P and [[Nicktoons Network]] at 9:00a ET.
[[Marketing co-operation]]
The show airs in the UK on [[CITV]] as well as in Canada on [[YTV (TV channel)|YTV]]. In Australia, it can be seen on [[Nickelodeon Australia]] (and, for a period, [[Australian Broadcasting Corporation|ABC]]).
==Characters==
{{main|List of Rugrats characters}}
==Setting==
[[Category:Marketing techniques]]
As the series is shown largely through a child's point of view, the area it is set in is never described precisely. It has been shown that the Rugrats live in the [[United States]], although the name of a specific city or state is never mentioned.
The best guess as to which region of the country in which the series takes place is somewhere in the southwest. Many have speculated that it is set around the Suburbs of [[Phoenix]] since the family has taken trips to both the [[Grand Canyon]] and [[Las Vegas, Nevada|Las Vegas]], and Stu once mentioned "driving through the desert" while returning home from a one-day trip. Also Grandpa (while sleeping during an episode) mentions that he didn't want to move to California, despite the fact that he lived in the [[Dust Bowl]]. Also, in the "The Rugrats in mexico", there was a telephone call from mexico to the US, and the signal appears to go to the SW US, right in the middle of Arizona. Also there in the "all grown down RV having fun yet" preview it showed a car driving right from Arizona to NYC There have also been several scenes of desert or arid land around the area where the ''Rugrats'' live, but there was an episode which featured a snowstorm. So Grandpa doesn't live in California.
Grandpa may originally be from [[Tennessee]]; the episode "Sour Pickles", which takes place in 1960, has Grandpa mentioning his wife was working on [[Estes Kefauver]]'s Senatorial campaign.
It is also unclear what type of community the characters live in; it could be a small city or a [[suburb]] of a larger city. This ambiguity in the setting was probably done intentionally to help give the impression of seeing the world through the naive eyes of toddlers.
One episode does however show they live somewhere in [[California]] due to the license plate shown on Grandpa's [[station wagon]]. In the episode "Special Delivery", a post office has the state's bear flag in front of it. Also in the Nickelodeon edition of [[Trivial Pursuit|Trivial Pursuit for Children]], California is the answer to a question asking where the Pickles live, which may be supposed proof as to what state they reside in.
Their whereabouts in California are probably in the locus of [[Oakland, California|Oakland]]. In one episode, Larry and Steve (occasional teenage characters, working as painters in this episode) remark that black and silver, the colors of the [[Oakland Raiders|Raiders]], are awesome. Of course, the [[Los Angeles, California|Los Angeles]] area is also possible, as the Raiders played there until 1994. In another episode, Stu, Lou, Drew, and Howard want to watch a football game between the [[Dallas Cowboys]] and the [[Tennessee Titans|Houston Oilers]]. Drew and Howard wear Cowboys t-shirts, while Lou and Stu wear Oilers attire. This implies a possible [[Texas]] setting.
In the first season episode "Little Dude", Didi is shown teaching at a [[high school]] in [[Yucaipa, California|Yucaipa]], an actual town about 70 miles east of Los Angeles. It has snowed in the wintertime in Yucaipa, as in the episode where the babies play in the snow and pretend to go to the north pole.
However, in ''The Rugrats Movie'', it is implied that the family lives close to [[Interstate 99]], so the setting could also be somewhere in central [[Pennsylvania]]. This could be a script or drawing goof, as California has a state [[California State Route 99]] serving the east side of the [[San Joaquin Valley]]. Also in the spin off "All Grown Up" in their Thanksgiving special, they have to drive a couple of days in a trailer to get to New York for the parade Susie was singing in.
In ''Rugrats in Paris'', the phone call between Kira and Stu had a CG scene that came from [[Paris]] to [[Kentucky]]. Also mentioned earlier in the movie as Chaz was looking for an online date, one of his dates "is not allowed in the state of Kentucky." This could imply that they live in [[Kentucky]].
It was also stated by Chaz in ''Rugrats in Paris'', that although he has not been to [[Paris]], France, he has been to Paris, Texas a number of times. This could be inferred that they live near an area close to Paris, Texas.
It is reasonable to assume that they live on the west coast, because in one episode that was set on a beach, the sun set over the water. (Though this is also the case on the gulf side of Florida: think Tampa.)
==Brief history==
''Rugrats'' was created by the then husband and wife duo of [[Gabor Csupo]] (pronounced Chew-poh) and [[Arlene Klasky]], along with [[Paul Germain]] in [[1989]]. K-C had a successful animation firm at the time which provided services for commercials and music videos, Klasky, Csupo, and Germain were also animating [[The Simpsons]] at the time, which they would continue to do until [[1992]]. The three decided to create their own series in response to an announcement by the children's cable network [[Nickelodeon]] that they were to launch their own line of animated shows, later to be called [[Nicktoons]]. With the comedic inspiration coming from the antics of Klasky and Csupo's infant children, the 6 1/2 minute, never to be seen on televison pilot episode, "Tommy Pickles and the Great White Thing", went into production. After production on the pilot was completed in [[1990]], they submitted it to Nick, who tested it with an audience of children, the majority of which approved. The series debuted on [[August 11]], [[1991]], along with ''[[Doug]]'' and ''[[Ren and Stimpy]]''. It went out of production in [[1994]], but after increased ratings when shown in primetime, it was revived in [[1997]], subsequently leading to 3 [[film|movies]]: ''[[The Rugrats Movie]]'' ([[1998]]), which became the first non-[[The Walt Disney Company|Disney]] animated movie to earn $100 million in the US, ''[[Rugrats in Paris: The Movie|Rugrats in Paris]]'' ([[2000]]), and ''[[Rugrats Go Wild!]]'' ([[2003]]), a [[fictional crossover|crossover]] with ''[[The Wild Thornberrys]]''.
In [[2001]], the show celebrated its 10th [[anniversary]] by creating a special four-hour episode entitled "[[All Growed Up]]," focusing on what the Rugrats would be like in 10 years. After the special had aired, Klasky-Csupo said that they had no plans to make a series about it. The special became one of the highest rated episodes in Nickelodeon's history. Consequently, Nickelodeon eventually commissioned a full series, ''[[All Grown Up!]]'', which started its regular run in [[November 2003]] (a sneak peek full episode named ''Coup DeVille'' had aired earlier in April). Many fans feel that ''All Grown Up'' took a step in the right direction, while others feel that it takes away from the show's original premise, and reduces it to something that, at best, vaguely resembles the show that many people grew to love in the [[1990s]]. Many also believe it pales in comparison to the writing, acting, artwork, and even music of the original show. In 2003, it aired on ''[[Nick on CBS]]'', then ended in July 2003.
Meanwhile, production on the ''Rugrats'' series (along with that of most of the other Klasky-Csupo shows) was eventually shut down, and the last new episode ("Hurricane Alice") aired on [[August 1]], [[2004]].
In [[2005]], Klasky-Csupo announced that they were reviving the original ''Rugrats'' as a series of DVDs based on classic [[fairy tale]]s. The first were based on ''[[Snow White]]'' and ''[[Jack and the Beanstalk]]''.
==Episodes==
{{main|List of Rugrats episodes}}
As stated above, there are 175 aired episodes, however each episode has 2 (or 3 in later seasons) stories. When you add them all together, include the Pilot, the 2 "Tales From the Crib" movies, and the 3 Feature Films, the number of episodes is approximately 330.
== Popularity ==
The first three seasons of ''Rugrats'' were very popular. The early episodes boasted effective but subtle references to popular culture and occasionally but rarely then-current events. There were also references to [[Clarence Thomas]], [[Anita Hill]], [[Saddam Hussein]] ([[Angelica Pickles|Angelica]] worries about him breaking into her secret clubhouse in "Tommy and the Secret Club"), [[Sidney Poitier]], [[Eco-terrorism|Ecoterrorists]] (In the episode "Mommy's Little Assets", it is revealed that [[Angelica Pickles|Angelica]]'s mom Charlotte was once kidnapped by a group of [[Eco-terrorism|Ecoterrorists]] ), and [[George H.W. Bush]]. Despite the occasional [[potty humor]], the early episodes were more reliant on amusing dialogue and imagery than juvenile jokes. This was different in the later seasons which used more "gross out"/potty humor than the original. Also commonly criticized by fans of the first series, was that when the show was revived the plots became redundant and the theme of the babies misunderstanding the adults' words or concepts was overused.
==Criticism==
{{pov}}
After the show's revival in 1997 (and especially after the first movie), the show, though still making a few culture references, began relying on more bizarre and outlandish plots, and more reliant on gross-out/[[toilet humor]], especially with the addition of Dil to the cast. The show also seemed to have changed its [[animation]] to a much brighter style. Two problems older fans had with the series' second run in particular were the show's increased use of [[baby talk]] (such as "diapey" for "diaper", for the most obvious example) and repetitive plots (the babies hear an adult's conversation and misinterpret their words, etc.). This is commonly seen as the moment when ''Rugrats'' [[jumping the shark|jumped the shark]].
Diehard fans also noticed that the show had lost its creative innovation and seemed to be a lot lighter in tone. This is clearly due to the departure of all of the show's writers and producers. The death of Grandpa's voice, [[David Doyle]], and his replacement by [[Joe Alaskey]], also created a negative reaction from many fans, as did the replacement of [[Christine Cavanaugh]] as Chuckie with [[Nancy Cartwright (actress)|Nancy Cartwright]] in 2002. The characters of Kimi and her family were met with a mixed reaction at best, while the character Taffy (voiced by [[Amanda Bynes]]) was largely disliked among fans.
Many fans of the original seasons of the show (1991-1994) say the newer episodes (1997-2004) make the series feel like two completely different shows. This shift in tone and creativity can be looked at in comparison to another popular Nickelodeon show, ''[[Doug]]'', which was cancelled in [[1994]] as well, went on hiatus and was brought back to [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] in [[1996]] after being sold to [[The Walt Disney Company|Disney]]) with a much different (and often criticized) style.
By [[2000]], the show's long-reigning position as Nickelodeon's highest rated and most popular show had been surpassed by the then new ''[[SpongeBob SquarePants]]'', which continues to hold this title to this day. ''SpongeBob's'' humor style was considerably more sophisticated and at times even more adult oriented than that of the later ''Rugrats'' episodes, and because of this was often compared to older, lower-budget Nickelodeon shows such as ''[[The Ren and Stimpy Show|Ren & Stimpy]]'' and ''[[Rocko's Modern Life]]'' as opposed to ''Rugrats'' and other high-budget Klasky-Csupo shows of the late-90s.
==Other spinoff plans==
Besides ''All Grown Up!'' there were plans for two other spinoffs that never made it to air:
* ''The Carmichaels'' was planned to see Susie move away from California to [[Atlanta, Georgia|Atlanta]], where she apparently has relatives. There were plans to make ''The Carmichaels'' into a series as early as the 1999-2000 TV season, but plans involving the toddler Rugrats had put the new series' plans on ice. Subsequently, when plans for ''All Grown Up!'' and ''Angelica and Susie's School Daze'' (below) came up, concerns for continuity led to this idea being shelved for good. The "[[Kwanzaa]]" episode (2001) serves as the show's pilot.
* ''[[Angelica and Susie's Pre-School Daze]]'' was planned to be about the titular characters going to pre-school. 13 episodes had originally been ordered, and slated to premiere late [[2002]], and was also intended to feature new looks for the two characters. The most recent official word on this series was in this [http://www.rugratonline.com/tweens2.htm press release] for ''All Grown Up!'', when it was announced that it was reduced to just 4 episodes. There were also complications involving the planned new animation designs for the characters. The ''Pre-School Daze'' ep (made for 2002, aired [[2004]]) serves as the show's pilot, and used the regular ''Rugrats'' look (as did the other episodes involving the preschoolers that actually aired ''before'' that ep in the US). Klasky-Csupo finally completed the 4 episodes of the series [http://www.cooltoons2.com/newsletter/2005/newsletter161/]. They had their television premiere on [[Nickelodeon UK]]. However, the ''Rugrats'' as babies live on in the direct-to-DVD feature animation series, ''[[Rugrats: Tales From the Crib]]''.It also shown in Ireland on [[RTE Two]]
==Trivia==
{{toomuchtrivia}}
* The ''Rugrats'' received a star on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]] in a ceremony on [[June 28]], 2001. It was placed at 6600 W. Hollywood Bl., near Cherokee Ave. outside a toy and costume shop<ref>[http://www.cooltoons2.com/rugrats/games/star/walkoffame.html Klasky-Csupo press release]</ref>
* ''Rugrats'' had a daily [http://www.rugratonline.com/rrstrarc.htm comic strip] that ran from [[1998]] to [[2003]].
* The Pickles are a mixed Jewish-[[Christian]] family. Many fans say the Pickles are somewhat based on Klasky's real family (for example, as in the show, she is from Southern California and in real life she is a Jew and married to a Christian). There are two episodes that reflect the Pickles' Jewish heritage, one episode deals with the [[Passover]] holiday and the other with [[Hanukkah]] (in addition to episodes about [[Christmas]], [[Easter]], etc.). These episodes have been praised by Jewish groups and are re-run every year on Nick at the appropriate holiday times and can also be purchased on [[VHS]] or [[DVD]].{{Fact|date=February 2007}}
* A spoof of the ''Rugrats'' is featured in an episode of PBS's hit ''[[Arthur (TV series)|Arthur]]''.
* ''Rugrats'' was also parodied in the ''[[Fairly OddParents]]'' TV movie, "[[Channel Chasers]]" as "Carpet Critters". The show was also parodied by this name in a ''[[Free Willy]]'' parody sketch printed in ''[[Nickelodeon Magazine]]'' in summer 1998.
* ''Rugrats'', along with ''[[Rocket Power]]'', has a storyline in which a mother, in this case, Chuckie's, is not a main/minor character because of some reason (car accident, sudden death, etc.). This could be another reference to Klasky's life, in which her mother died when she was only one year old.{{Fact|date=February 2007}}
* The 4th season episode "Heatwave" is a parody of the film ''[[Lawrence of Arabia (film)|Lawrence of Arabia]]'' (the [[Nefud Desert]], or "Sun's Anvil", for the "Black Tar Playground", and Tommy's rescue of Chuckie is a spoof of Lawrence's rescue of the Arab Gassim).
*For the first 3 seasons, the Pickles family owned a purple-and-white Citroen DS21 and an older-model green Volvo station wagon. The Volvo was replaced by a yellow van that combined elements of Toyota Previa, Ford Aerostar and VW EuroVan. As a promotion for ''[[The Rugrats Movie]]'', ads for the [[Mercury Villager]] featured The Pickles.
==Airing history==
*'''USA'''
**[[Nickelodeon (TV channel)|Nickelodeon]] (1991-Present)
**[[Nicktoons Network]] (2002-Present)
*'''UK'''
**[[Children's BBC]] (Including [[Live & Kicking]]) (1993-2004)
**[[Nickelodeon UK|Nickelodeon]] (1994-Present)
**[[Nicktoons UK|Nicktoons]] (2002-Present)
**[[CITV]] (2005-Present)
*'''Australia'''
**[[Nickelodeon Australia|Nickelodeon]] (1995-Present)
**[[ABC TV]] (1994-2005)
*'''Ireland'''
**[[RTE Two]]
Canada
**((Treehouse)))
==See also==
{{portalpar|Nickelodeon|Open Use Nick Logo.gif}}
*''[[All Grown Up!]]''
==External links==
{{wikiquote}}
* Nickelodeon's [http://www.nick.com/all_nick/tv_supersites/display_show.jhtml?show_id=rug Rugrats site]
* [http://www.creators.com/comics_show.cfm?comicname=rug Rugrats daily comic strip at Creators Syndicate]
* ''[http://www.bcdb.com/cartoons/Other_Studios/K/Klasky_Csupo/Rugrats/index.html Rugrats]'' at the [[Big Cartoon DataBase]]
* [http://www.rugratonline.com Unofficial Rugrats homepage by Steve]
* [http://www.sarahs-rugrats.co.uk Sarah's Rugrats]
* {{imdb title|id=0101188|title=Rugrats}}
* {{tvtome show|id=534|title=Rugrats}}
{{RugratsNav}}
{{Nicktoons}}
[[Category:1990s American television series]]
[[Category:2000s American television series]]
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[[Category:2004 television program cancellations]]
[[Category:Animated television series]]
[[Category:Hollywood Walk of Fame]]
[[Category:YTV shows]]
[[Category:Rugrats and All Grown Up!|*]]
[[Category:Television shows set in California]]
[[Category:BBC children's television programmes]]
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