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==Progression==
==Progression==
===Hillenburg era (1999–2004)===
===Hillenburg era (1999–2004)===
''SpongeBob'''s first season was only a modest success during its initial run after the series' debut in 1999, but the show still garnered enough popularity that Nickelodeon quietly renewed it for second season. Beginning with this season, production of the series switched from [[Traditional animation#Traditional ink-and-paint and camera|traditional cel animation]] to [[Traditional animation#Digital ink and paint|digital ink and paint]]. During the second season's run, the show quickly achieved enormous and world wide popularity, leading to an immediate third season pick-up. The show's continued success eventually led to the creation of a feature film called ''[[The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie]]'', which was intended to be the end of the series. However, shortly after the film's release, Nickelodeon renewed the series for a fourth season. Also following the film's release, Stephen Hillenburg resigned as show runner, causing a shift in the series' production crew, as well as several of the series' writers. Following the end of the Hillenburg era, the animation style changed to 3D computer animation (although it would still use digital ink and paint).
''SpongeBob'''s first season was only a modest success during its initial run after the series' debut in 1999, but the show still garnered enough popularity that Nickelodeon quietly renewed it for a second season. Beginning with this season, production of the series switched from [[Traditional animation#Traditional ink-and-paint and camera|traditional cel animation]] to [[Traditional animation#Digital ink and paint|digital ink and paint]]. During the second season's run, the show quickly achieved enormous and world wide popularity, leading to an immediate third season pick-up. The show's continued success eventually led to the creation of a feature film called ''[[The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie]]'', which was intended to be the end of the series. However, shortly after the film's release, Nickelodeon renewed the series for a fourth season. Also following the film's release, Stephen Hillenburg resigned as show runner, causing a shift in the series' production crew, as well as several of the series' writers. Following the end of the Hillenburg era, the animation style changed to 3D computer animation (although it would still use digital ink and paint).


===Post-movie era (2005–present)===
===Post-movie era (2005–present)===

Revision as of 13:14, 15 May 2011

This article is about the series. For the title character, see SpongeBob SquarePants (character).

SpongeBob SquarePants
File:2009Spongeboblogo.png
The current "off-screen" logo, enacted in 2007.
GenreAnimated comedy
Created byStephen Hillenburg
Developed byDerek Drymon
Tim Hill
Nick Jennings
Written byCasey Alexander
Steven Banks
Luke Brookshier
Nate Cash
Zeus Cervas
Sean Charmatz
Derek Iversen
Mr. Lawrence
Dani Michaeli
Richard Pursel
Aaron Springer
Paul Tibbitt
Creative directorsDerek Drymon
(Season 1-3)
Vincent Waller
(Season 4-present)
StarringTom Kenny
Bill Fagerbakke
Clancy Brown
Rodger Bumpass
Carolyn Lawrence
Mr. Lawrence
Dee Bradley Baker
Theme music composerHank Smith Music
Opening theme"SpongeBob SquarePants" performed by Pat Pinney
Ending theme"Cierre Bob Esponja"
ComposerNicolas Carr
Country of originUnited States
No. of seasons8
No. of episodes153 (Episodes)
295 (Segments)
(list of episodes)
Production
Executive producersStephen Hillenburg
Paul Tibbitt
(Season 5-present)
ProducersDina Buteyn

(Supervsing Producers)
Derek Drymon
(Season 1-3)
Paul Tibbitt
(Season 4-present)
Running time22–23 minutes
Production companiesUnited Plankton Pictures
Nickelodeon Animation Studios
Original release
NetworkNickelodeon
ReleaseMay 1, 1999 (1999-05-01) –
present

SpongeBob SquarePants (often referred to simply as SpongeBob) is an American animated television series, created by marine biologist and animator Stephen Hillenburg. Much of the series centers on the exploits and adventures of the title character and his various friends in the underwater city of "Bikini Bottom". The series' popularity has prompted the release of a media franchise, contributing to its position as Nickelodeon's highest rated show, the most distributed property of MTV Networks, and among Nicktoons' most-watched shows.[1] As of 2011, SpongeBob SquarePants is the only Nicktoon from the 1990s that has not ended yet.

The basis for SpongeBob SquarePants was formed by Hillenburg in 1984 while teaching and studying marine biology at the Ocean Institute in Dana Point, California, where he wrote the comic strip The Intertidal Zone, which starred various anthropomorphic forms of sea life, many of which would evolve into SpongeBob SquarePants characters. He left the institute to become an animator in 1987, and later attended the California Institute of Arts in 1992. In the institute, he made his thesis film Wormholes (1992), which led to his hiring as a director, writer, producer, storyboard artist, and executive producer of the series Rocko's Modern Life by creator Joe Murray. He started to develop the series in 1996 following Rocko's Modern Life's, and pitched the series to Nickelodeon in 1998 and was later greenlit for a first season.

The pilot episode of SpongeBob SquarePants first aired episodes in the United States on Nickelodeon on May 1, 1999, following the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards. The first episodes were called "Help Wanted", "Reef Blower", "Tea at the Treedome". The "official" series premiere followed on July 17, 1999, with the second episode, "Bubblestand/Ripped Pants." The show reached enormous popularity by 2000 and has remained popular since. A feature film of the series was released in theaters on November 19, 2004. The series celebrated its tenth anniversary on July 17, 2009. SpongeBob was renewed for a ninth season on January 3, 2011.[2] (Note: the definition of season for this show is that more episodes have been ordered for future airing.)

Characters

Main article: List of characters in SpongeBob SquarePants

SpongeBob SquarePants is an extremely energetic and optimistic sea sponge (although his appearance more closely resembles a kitchen sponge) who lives in a pineapple under the sea with his pet snail Gary, who meows like a cat. Although Gary only actually speaks in a few episodes, (mainly in "Sleepy Time" in Spongebob's dream world, where Gary is portrayed as a librarian with an English accent) the characters have shown an ability to understand him. Living two houses down from SpongeBob is his best friend Patrick Star, a dim-witted yet friendly pink seastar who lives under a rock. Living between the two is Squidward Tentacles, an arrogant and egotistical octopus[3] who lives in an Easter Island moai and dislikes his neighbors (especially SpongeBob) for their child-like behavior. He enjoys playing the clarinet and painting self-portraits.

Another close friend of SpongeBob's is Sandy Cheeks, a squirrel from Texas. Sandy is an expert at karate and lives in an underwater tree dome. When not inside her tree dome, she wears an astronaut-like suit because she cannot breathe in water. SpongeBob and Squidward's employer is former officer cadet for the Bikini Bottom Navy force and war veteran Eugene Krabs, a miserly crab obsessed with money, who is the owner of the Krusty Krab restaurant. Mr. Krabs has a whale daughter, named Pearl who is a teenage cheerleader. The reason why Mr. Krabs' daughter is a whale is unknown. Mr. Krabs’ archenemy is Sheldon Plankton, a small green copepod who owns a low-rank fast-food restaurant called the Chum Bucket across the street from the Krusty Krab. Plankton spends most of his time planning to steal the recipe for Mr. Krabs's popular Krabby Patty burgers to obtain success (occasionally with the assistance of his computer wife, Karen), though his schemes always end in failure.

Voice cast

Main cast

Recurring cast

Episodes

Main article: List of SpongeBob SquarePants episodes

There are 292 total individual SpongeBob SquarePants episodes that have aired. There are still some episodes that have been announced but have still not yet aired. So far, SpongeBob SquarePants is in its seventh season. Season 8 has been announced and will have 26 new episodes bringing the number of episodes up to 178. Season 8 will start in 2011 and will start airing episodes 153-178.

SeasonEpisodesSegmentsOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
12041May 1, 1999 (1999-05-01)March 3, 2001 (2001-03-03)
22039October 20, 2000 (2000-10-20)July 26, 2003 (2003-07-26)
32037October 5, 2001 (2001-10-05)October 11, 2004 (2004-10-11)
42038May 6, 2005 (2005-05-06)July 24, 2007 (2007-07-24)
52041February 19, 2007 (2007-02-19)July 19, 2009 (2009-07-19)
62647March 3, 2008 (2008-03-03)July 5, 2010 (2010-07-05)
72650July 19, 2009 (2009-07-19)June 11, 2011 (2011-06-11)
82647March 26, 2011 (2011-03-26)December 6, 2012 (2012-12-06)
92649July 21, 2012 (2012-07-21)February 20, 2017 (2017-02-20)
101122October 15, 2016 (2016-10-15)December 2, 2017 (2017-12-02)
112650June 24, 2017 (2017-06-24)November 25, 2018 (2018-11-25)
122648November 11, 2018 (2018-11-11)April 29, 2022 (2022-04-29)
132652October 22, 2020 (2020-10-22)November 1, 2023 (2023-11-01)
1413[a]21November 2, 2023 (2023-11-02)December 2, 2024 (2024-12-02)
1520[4]—July 24, 2024 (2024-07-24)TBA


SpongeBob SquarePants special episodes

Year Episode
2000 Christmas Who?
2002 Party Pooper Pants
2003 The Sponge Who Could Fly
2004 Ugh
2005 Have You Seen This Snail?
2006 Dunces and Dragons
2007 Friend or Foe
2008 Pest of the West
2008 What Ever Happened to SpongeBob?
2009 SpongeBob SquarePants vs. The Big One
2010 SpongeBob's Last Stand
2010 The Clash of Triton
2010 The Great Patty Caper

SpongeBob SquarePants TV movies

Year TV Movie
2007 Atlants SquarePantis
2009 Truth or Square

Setting

A blue colored image of island with one island boxed in the northeast.
A cartoon city consisting of several metallic buildings.
Left image: Bikini Atoll, with Bikini Island boxed in the northeast; right image and, on the left, Bikini Bottom, a fictional underwater city and the main setting of SpongeBob Squarepants.

Much of the series' events take place in Bikini Bottom, an underwater city located in the Pacific Ocean beneath the real life tropical isle of Bikini Atoll.[5] Stephen Hillenburg has stated that much of Bikini Bottom was based on the real life city of Seattle.[6] Much of this is supported within the context of the episodes themselves; however, despite implications of the city's location as well as anologies to real life, Hillenburg has stated that he wishes to leave the city isolated from the real world, explaining the Baywatch parody scene from The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie as simply a reference to his favorite show of all time.[6][7] The citizens of Bikini Bottom live in mostly aquatic-themed buildings, and use "boatmobiles", an amalgamation of cars and boats, as a mode of transportation. The characters' Anthropomorphism may be due to exposure to radiation from the BAKER test.

Origins

File:Calartsentrance.jpg
Creator Stephen Hillenburg became an animator during his period of study at the California Institute of Arts.

Creator Stephen Hillenburg initially conceived SpongeBob SquarePants in 1984, while he was teaching and studying marine biology at what is now the Orange County Ocean Institute.[8] During this period, Hillenburg became fascinated with animation, and wrote a comic book entitled The Intertidal Zone starring various anthropomorphic forms of sea life, many of which would evolve into SpongeBob SquarePants characters,[9] including "Bob the Sponge", who was the co-host of the comic and resembled an actual sea sponge, as opposed to SpongeBob who resembles a kitchen sponge.[10] In 1987, Hillenburg left the institute to pursue his dream of becoming an animator,[9][10] and began to envision the possible concept of a project involving anthropomorphic sea life, drawing several rough sketches.[10] In 1992, Hillenburg began to attend the California Institute of the Arts to study animation, having been accepted into the institute by Jules Engel, who was impressed with Hillenburg's previous work.[9][11][12]

While attending animation school, Hillenburg received a job on the children's TV series Mother Goose & Grimm, and worked on the series from 1991 to 1993. When attending the California Institute of the Arts, he made his thesis film entitled Wormholes,[10] which was funded by the Princess Grace Foundation and was later displayed at various animation festivals.[10] In 1993, Hillenburg graduated from the institute, earning a Master of Fine Arts in experimental animation.[9] In 1995, Joe Murray, creator of Rocko's Modern Life, met Hillenburg at an animation festival, and offered him a job as a director of the series.[10][13][14][15] Hillenburg then joined the Nickelodeon animated series as a writer, producer, and storyboard artist during the series' third season, continuing his position for much of the fourth season.[10][15][16] The third season episode "Fish-N-Chumps" (November 12, 1995) was directed by Hillenburg, and involved Rocko, Heffer, and Filburt going on a fishing trip, oblivious to the fact that a pair anthropomorphic fish are attempting to catch them from underwater.[13][17] While working on Rocko's Modern Life, Hillenburg became friends with Tom Kenny, who was later approached by Hillenburg to become the voice of SpongeBob SquarePants,[18] and future SpongeBob SquarePants collaborators Doug Lawrence, Paul Tibbitt and others.

Rocko's Modern Life ended in 1996.[19] Shortly following this, Hillenburg began working on SpongeBob SquarePants, teaming up with several Nickelodeon veterans and Rocko crew members.[10][17] To voice the character of SpongeBob, Hillenburg approached Tom Kenny, who had worked with him on Rocko's Modern Life.[18] Originally SpongeBob was to be named SpongeBoy but this name was already in use.[20] This was discovered after voice acting for the original seven minute pilot was recorded in 1997. The Nickelodeon legal department discovered that the name was already in use for a mop product.[21] Upon finding this out, Hillenburg decided that the character's given name still had to contain "Sponge" so viewers would not mistake the character for a "Cheese Man." Hillenburg decided to use the name "SpongeBob." He chose "SquarePants" as a family name as it referred to the character's square shape and "had a nice ring to it".[22]

While pitching the cartoon to Nickelodeon executives, Hillenburg donned a Hawaiian shirt, brought along an “underwater terrarium with models of the characters”, and Hawaiian music to set the theme. The setup was described by Nick executive Eric Coleman as "pretty amazing".[23] When given money and two weeks to write the pilot episode (“Help Wanted”),[11] Derek Drymon, Stephen Hillenberg, and Nick Jennings returned with, described by Nickelodeon official Albie Hecht, “a performance he wished he had on tape”.[24] Although described as stressful by executive producer Derek Drymon,[11] the pitch went “very well”; Kevin Kay and Hecht had to step outside because they were “exhausted from laughing”, making the cartoonists worried.[24]

Progression

Hillenburg era (1999–2004)

SpongeBob's first season was only a modest success during its initial run after the series' debut in 1999, but the show still garnered enough popularity that Nickelodeon quietly renewed it for a second season. Beginning with this season, production of the series switched from traditional cel animation to digital ink and paint. During the second season's run, the show quickly achieved enormous and world wide popularity, leading to an immediate third season pick-up. The show's continued success eventually led to the creation of a feature film called The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, which was intended to be the end of the series. However, shortly after the film's release, Nickelodeon renewed the series for a fourth season. Also following the film's release, Stephen Hillenburg resigned as show runner, causing a shift in the series' production crew, as well as several of the series' writers. Following the end of the Hillenburg era, the animation style changed to 3D computer animation (although it would still use digital ink and paint).

Post-movie era (2005–present)

The series' fourth season began in May 2005, and was ordered a fifth season in December 2005, bringing the show’s total episode count to 100.[25] In December 2006, SpongeBob was approved for a sixth season. The fifth season began in February 2007.[26] On July 23, 2007, Nickelodeon began airing a special event, called the "SpongeBob New–New–New–New–New–Week" in which from Monday to Friday, a new episode would air.[27] This continued until the end of the second week. Later on November 12, 2007, a TV movie aired titled Atlantis SquarePantis, guest staring David Bowie as the voice of Lord Royal Highness. In March 2008, it was announced that SpongeBob would have an additional thirty-nine episodes, which includes the remaining episodes of the sixth season, and a seventh season.[28][29][30]

On July 14, 2009, a primetime SpongeBob tenth anniversary documentary titled Square Roots: The Story of SpongeBob SquarePants, aired on VH1, discussing the history of the show, and its impact on popular culture.[31] Starting on July 17, 2009 at 8:00 PM EST, Nickelodeon aired a 50½-hour marathon titled "The Ultimate SpongeBob Sponge Bash." The marathon included the premiere of 11 new episodes, countdowns of celebrities' and viewer-chosen top 10 episodes, and more.[32] On November 6, 2009, a second TV movie debuted on Nickelodeon, titled Truth or Square, in which SpongeBob, Patrick, Squidward, and Mr. Krabs are accidentally locked inside the Krusty Krab freezer on the night of the restaurant's eleventy-seventh anniversary celebration. While trapped inside, the friends look back on their shared memories with "shocking" reveals.[33] Several celebrities made live-action cameo appearances on Truth or Square, including Rosario Dawson, LeBron James, Tina Fey, Will Ferrell, Craig Ferguson, Robin Williams and Pink, while Ricky Gervais provided opening and closing naration for the special.[34] Also Victoria Beckham lent her voice as Queen Amphitrite, a Brit-accented goddess of the sea in an episode titled "The Clash of Triton," a half-hour special that aired on July 5, 2010.[35][36]

SpongeBob SquarePants is currently slated to surpass Rugrats as the longest running Nicktoon in number of episodes during its eighth season, slated to occur on February 27, 2012. Rugrats aired 172 episodes in its run; SpongeBob, when the eighth season completes, will have 178.[37] The series was further extended to a ninth season in January 2011, bringing its total to 204 episodes. It will become the first Nicktoon to reach the 200-episode milestone.[38]

Music

The Original Music was composed by Nicolas Carr. Other music was from the APM (Associated Production Music) Library, including several pieces by Sam Spence (music best known outside of SpongeBob for its use on NFL Films presentations).

Reception

Popularity and appeal

SpongeBob SquarePants was the first "low budget" Nickelodeon cartoon, according to the network, to become extremely popular. Low-budget cartoons had not garnered as much esteem as higher-rated, higher-budgeted shows, although when SpongeBob SquarePants aired in 1999, it had gained a significant enough number of viewers in the ratings to be considered popular, eventually reaching worldwide popularity by 2000. SpongeBob follows other Nickelodeon shows that have attracted "older" followers: Other shows have followed in this trend as well: The Fairly OddParents won a similar fan base when it premiered in 2001, and is now second only to SpongeBob in popularity. Though the show debuted in 1999, SpongeBob did not become hugely popular until around 2000, and it has remained popular since then.

Heavy metal group Metallica even released a T-shirt featuring cartoon versions of themselves playing live with the characters SpongeBob and Patrick. British rock singer David Bowie was a special guest on the SpongeBob SquarePants episode Atlantis SquarePantis, which aired on November 12, 2007.[39] The episode drew total 8.8 million viewers, the biggest audience in the show's eight-year history.[39]

The show became so popular with adolescents and adults that the series was broadcast on MTV and featured on Spike TV. A quote by Patrick, "It's gonna rock!" from the episode Mid-Life Crustacean, has been used as a promotional tag-line for rock stations.[citation needed] Ren and Stimpy, among others, had followed a similar path. The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie features a cameo appearance by actor David Hasselhoff, in a parody of his role from the Baywatch TV series. In April 2009, as a tie-in to the special "SpongeBob vs. The Big One", Burger King distributed two different commercials geared toward children and adult audiences. In ads broadcast on major networks, the commercial shows rapper Sir Mix-a-Lot recording a music video for his new song, “SpongeBob Got Back”.

Awards and nominations

Year Association Category Nominee Result
2000 Golden Reel Award Best Sound Editing in Television Animation — Music Episodes: "Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy" and "Pickles" Won
2000 Golden Reel Award Best Sound Editing in Television Animation — Sound Episode: "Karate Choppers" Won
2001 Annie Awards Outstanding Individual Achievement for Voice Acting by a Female Performer in an Animated Television Production Mary Jo Catlett as Mrs. Puff in "No Free Rides" Nominated
2001 Annie Awards Outstanding Individual Achievement for Voice Acting by a Male Performer in an Animated Television Production Tom Kenny as SpongeBob in "Wormy" Nominated
2001 Annie Awards Outstanding Individual Achievement for a Song in an Animated Production Peter Straus and Paul Tibbitt for the song "The Very First Christmas" Nominated
2001 Golden Reel Award Best Sound Editing in Television Animation — Sound Episodes: "Rock Bottom" and "Arrgh" Won
2001 Golden Reel Award Best Sound Editing in Television Animation — Music Episodes: "Fools In April" and "Neptune's Spatula" Nominated
2002 Emmy Awards Outstanding Animated Program (For Programming Less Than One Hour) Nominated
2002 Golden Reel Award Best Sound Editing in Television – Animation Episodes: "Secret Box" and "Band Geeks" Won
2002 Golden Reel Award Best Sound Editing in Television Animation — Music Episodes: "Jellyfish Hunter" and "The Fry Cook Games" Nominated
2002 Television Critics Association Awards Outstanding Achievement in Children's Programming Won
2003 Emmy Awards Outstanding Animated Program (For Programming Less Than One Hour) Episodes: "New Student Starfish" and "Clams" Nominated
2003 Golden Reel Award Best Sound Editing in Television Animation — Music Episodes: "Wet Painters" and "Krusty Krab Training Video" Won
2003 Golden Reel Award Best Sound Editing in Television Animation Episodes: "Nasty Patty" and "Idiot Box" Won
2003 Kids' Choice Awards Favorite Cartoon Won
2004 Emmy Awards Outstanding Animated Program (For Programming Less Than One Hour) Episode: "SpongeBob B.C. (Before Comedy)" Nominated
2004 Golden Reel Award Best Sound Editing in Television Animation — Music Episodes: "The Great Snail Race" and "Mid-Life Crustacean". Won
2004 Golden Reel Award Best Sound Editing in Television Animation — Music Episode: "Mid-Life Crustacean". Nominated
2004 Kids' Choice Awards Favorite Cartoon Won
2005 Annie Awards Best Animated Television Production Won
2005 Emmy Awards Outstanding Animated Program (For Programming Less Than One Hour) Episodes: "Fear of a Krabby Patty" and "Shell of a Man" Nominated
2005 Golden Reel Award Best Sound Editing in Television: Animated Episodes: "Pranks A Lot" and "SpongeBob Meets the Strangler" Nominated
2005 Kids' Choice Awards Favorite Cartoon Won
2005 Satellite Awards Best Youth DVD Complete Second Season DVD Nominated
2005 Television Critics Association Awards Outstanding Achievement in Children's Programming Nominated
2006 Annie Awards Best Writing in an Animated Television Production C.H. Greenblatt, Paul Tibbitt, Mike Bell, and Tim Hill in "Fear of a Krabby Patty" Won
2006 Golden Reel Award Best Sound Editing in Television: Animated Episode: "Have You Seen This Snail?" Nominated
2006 Kids' Choice Awards Favorite Cartoon Won
2007 Emmy Awards Outstanding Animated Program (For Programming Less Than One Hour) Episodes: "Bummer Vacation" and "Wigstruck" Nominated
2007 Kids' Choice Awards Favorite Cartoon Won
2007 Television Critics Association Awards Outstanding Achievement in Children's Programming Nominated[40]
2008 Annie Awards Best Voice Acting in an Animated Television Production Tom Kenny in "Spy Buddies" Nominated
2008 Golden Reel Award Best Sound Editing in Television: Animated Episode: "SpongeHenge" Nominated
2008 Kids' Choice Awards Favorite Cartoon Nominated
2008 Emmy Awards Outstanding Animated Program (For Programming Less Than One Hour) Episodes: "The Inmates of Summer" and "The Two Faces of Squidward" Nominated
2008 Philippines Kids' Choice Awards Favorite Cartoon Won
2009 Kids' Choice Awards Favorite Cartoon Won
2009 Indonesia Kids Choice Awards Favorite Cartoon Won
2009 Annie Awards Direction in an Animated Television Production Episode: "Penny Foolish" Nominated
2009 Golden Reel Awards Best Sound Editing: Television Animation Episode: "Suction Cup Symphony" Nominated
2009 Teen Choice Awards Choice TV Animated Show Won
2009 Emmy Awards Special Class Animated Program Episode: "Dear Vikings" Nominated
2010 Golden Reel Awards Best Sound Editing: Television Animation Episode: "SpongeBob vs. The Big One" Nominated
2010 Annie Awards Best Home Entertainment Production "SpongeBob vs. The Big One" DVD Nominated
2010 Annie Awards Best Animated Television Production for Children Nominated
2010 Annie Awards Best Voice Acting in a Television Production Tom Kenny in "SpongeBob's Truth or Square" Won
2010 Kids' Choice Awards Favorite Cartoon Won
2010 Indonesia Kids Choice Awards Favorite Cartoon Won
2010 Emmy Awards Outstanding Special Class Animated Program Won
2011 Annie Awards Best Animated Television Production for Children Won
2011 Annie Awards Music in a Television Production Jeremy Wakefield, Sage Guyton, Nick Carr, Tuck Tucker Won
2011 Kids' Choice Awards Favorite Cartoon Won

Criticism and controversy

In 2005, a promotional video which showed SpongeBob along with other characters from children's shows singing together to promote diversity and tolerance,[41] was attacked by an evangelical group in the United States because they saw the character SpongeBob being used as an advocate for homosexuality.[42] James Dobson of Focus on the Family accused the makers of the video of promoting homosexuality due to a pro-tolerance group sponsoring the video.[42]

The incident led to questions to whether or not SpongeBob is homosexual. In 2002, SpongeBob creator Stephen Hillenburg denied this, despite SpongeBob's popularity with gay men grew. He clarified that he considers the character to be "almost asexual".[43][44] After Dobson made the comments, Hillenburg repeated this assertion that sexual preference was never considered during the creation of the show.[45] Tom Kenny and other production members were shocked and surprised that such an issue had arisen.[21]

Dobson later asserted that his comments were taken out of context and that his original complaints were not with SpongeBob, the video, or any of the characters in the video but with the organization that sponsored the video, We Are Family Foundation. Dobson indicated that the We Are Family Foundation posted pro-homosexual material on their website, but later removed it.[46] After the controversy, John H. Thomas, the United Church of Christ's general minister and president, said they would welcome SpongeBob into their ministry. He said "Jesus didn't turn people away. Neither do we".[47]

Jeffrey P. Dennis, author of the journal article "The Same Thing We Do Every Night: Signifying Same-Sex Desire in Television Cartoons," argued that SpongeBob and Sandy are not romantically in love, while adding that he believed that SpongeBob and Patrick "are paired with arguably erotic intensity." Dennis noted the two are "not consistently coded as romantic partners," since they live in separate residences, and have distinct groups of friends, but claimed that in the series, "the possibility of same-sex desire is never excluded."[48] Martin Goodman of Animation World Magazine described Dennis's comments regarding SpongeBob and Patrick as "interesting."[49]

Criticism of decline in quality

The more recent episodes of SpongeBob have been widely criticized for not living up to the standards as the older episodes. Most of the characters in these episodes were described as having "stereotypes and characteristic clichés", as claiming that older episodes used a procedure where the characters were introduced and then them coming into a situation (the recent episodes do not use this procedure) and no overuse of significant character traits. A similar example was used for The Simpsons, which used the same basic process for its older episodes; many people described the recent The Simpsons that "it became a series about wacky situations dropping onto a ceaselessly wacky family" for its new episodes.[50]

Fans of SpongeBob believe the start of the decline began around 2004, after The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie. A major factor in this decline was the resignation of Stephen Hillenburg,[51] who gave the post to Derek Drymon. Many old writers resigned, so Derek hired in some new writers for the show. The only writers that didn't resign were Mr. Lawrence, Aaron Springer and Paul Tibbitt.

Other media

Amusement rides

Main articles: SpongeBob SquarePants 4-D and SpongeBob SquarePants Rock Bottom Plunge

SpongeBob SquarePants 4-D is located in Six Flags Over Texas, Noah's Ark Dive-In Theater in Noah's Ark Waterpark and Flamingo Land and opened in Six Flags Over Texas and Noah's Ark Dive-In Theater in 2007. The ride features water squirts, real bubbles, and other sensory enhancements. The SpongeBob SquarePants 4-D ride opened at the Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin in the summer of 2007. SpongeBob appears at the Mall of America's new Nickelodeon theme park re-branded from the Mall of America's Park at MOA, formerly Camp Snoopy, to Nickelodeon Universe in the Minneapolis-St. Paul suburb of Bloomington, Minnesota. The new theme park features a SpongeBob-themed Gerstlauer Euro-Fighter custom roller coaster, the SpongeBob SquarePants Rock Bottom Plunge, which has replaced the Mystery Mine Ride and Olde Time Photo store on the west end of the theme park. The theme park opened March 15, 2008.

The Chicago Shedd Aquarium hosts a 15 minute feature of Sponge Bob in 4-D with vibrating “special FX” movie seats accompanied by bubbles, wind, a distinct pickle smell, and tickles throughout the film. The feature ran through 2009 being temporarily replaced on November 27.[52]

Film

Main article: The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie
The theatrical poster for The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie.

Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies produced The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, a film adaption of the SpongeBob SquarePants animated series released on November 19, 2004. The film was directed by series creator Stephen Hillenburg, and was written by long-time series writers Hillenburg, Derek Drymon, Tim Hill, Kent Osborne, Aaron Springer, and Paul Tibbitt. Nickelodeon official Albie Hecht, Drymon, Hillenburg, Julia Pistor, and Gina Shay produced the film, while much of the film's music was composed by Gregor Narholz.Originally,this movie was going to be the series finale,but because of the film's popularity and universal critical acclaim,Stephen Hillenburg decided to make more episodes. The film follows SpongeBob, who expects to be bestowed the title of manager for Mr. Krabs' new restaurant, the Krusty Krab 2 (although this restaurant is never seen or mentioned for the rest of the series). However, the position is given to Squidward instead, causing SpongeBob to go into a state of depression. Jealous of Mr. Krabs' success, Plankton initiates his final plan, Plan Z, which involves framing Mr. Krabs for the theft of King Neptune's crown. SpongeBob and Patrick then go on a quest to retrieve Neptune's crown and save the lives of both Mr. Krabs and the rest of Bikini Bottom from Plankton's scheme. The film also guest stars Jeffrey Tambor as King Neptune, Scarlett Johansson as the king's daughter Mindy, Alec Baldwin as Dennis the Hitman, and David Hasselhoff as himself.[53] It received a largely positive critical reception and grossed over $140 million worldwide.

Merchandise

Main article: List of SpongeBob SquarePants merchandise

Merchandise based on the show ranges from Kraft Macaroni & Cheese, Go-Gurt, Kellogg's cereal, and video games to boxer shorts, flip-flops, pajamas, t-shirts, slippers, Pez dispensers, and radios. The show also spawned a large and popular merchandise line at Hot Topic, Claire's, Waldenbooks, Borders Books, Barnes & Noble, Best Buy, RadioShack, Target, KB Toys, Big Lots, Wal-Mart, Shopko, Pamida, Meijer, Kmart, Sears, JCPenney, Kohl's, Lowe's, T.J. Maxx, Toys "R" Us and Ames stores in the United States as well as the Zellers, Wal-Mart Canada, and Toys "R" Us stores in Canada, and a limited selection of merchandise in Australia at Kmart Australia, Target Australia, Big W, and The Warehouse.

Kids' meal tie-ins have been released in fast-food restaurants in many different parts of the world, including Burger King in Europe and North America, as well as Wendy's in North America, and Hungry Jack's in Australia. A McDonald's Happy Meal tie-in with SpongeBob-themed Happy Meal boxes and toys has not been released in North America yet,[when?] but was released in Europe and other international markets in the summer of 2007.[54] In Australia, the advertisement for the McDonald's SpongeBob Happy Meal won the Pester Power Award for the fact that the ads are enticing young children to want its food because of the free toy. In Japan, they had a kids meal tie-in with KFC which featured different toys based on the TV series.[55][dead link] As a tie-in beverage for the SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, 7-Eleven convenience stores created a pineapple-flavored Slurpee in 2004, which was discontinued in 2005.

In 2007, some new high-end SpongeBob-themed electronics have been introduced by Imation Electronics Products under the Npower brand, such as MP3 players, digital cameras, a DVD player, and a flatscreen television.[56] Other items featuring SpongeBob include a special edition Monopoly board game, Life and Operation board game as well as a SpongeBob SquarePants edition of Ants in the Pants and Yahtzee. There are also rarer items such as Spongebob Surfboards and electric guitars.

Pictures of SpongeBob SquarePants also started to appear on the labels of 8 oz. cans of Green Giant cut green beans and frozen packages of Green Giant green beans and butter sauce which featured free stickers in 2007 as part of an initiative to get kids to eat their vegetables.[57] In the United Kingdom, a SpongeBob SquarePants magazine is currently being published by Titan Magazines every four weeks. It was first published on February 3, 2005. The issue published on February 1, 2007 was the second anniversary of the magazine. The magazine contains comic strips, fan letters, competitions and several features including games.

A SpongeBob SquarePants 2009 calendar has been released featuring the caption on the bottom right corner of the front cover, "Celebrating his 10th Anniversary!", which was on May 1 and July 17, 2009 respectively.[58] On March 31, 2009 three songs from the show were released as downloadable content for the music video game series Rock Band. Nickelodeon has also created a Facebook page and Twitter account for SpongeBob. His best friend, Patrick Star, has been given a page on Facebook as well.

The popularity of SpongeBob translated well into sales figures. In 2002, SpongeBob SquarePants dolls sold at a rate of 75,000 per week, which was faster than Tickle Me Elmo dolls were selling at the time.[59] SpongeBob has gained popularity in Japan, specifically with Japanese women. Nickelodeon's parent company Viacom purposefully targeted marketing at women in the country as a method of the SpongeBob SquarePants brand. Skeptics initially doubted that SpongeBob could be popular in Japan as the character's design is very different to already popular designs for Hello Kitty and Pikachu.[60]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Stock, Rosina (June 24, 2009). "Nickelodeon Celebrates Pop Culture Icon SpongeBob SquarePants decade". Media News International. Retrieved July 14, 2009.
  2. ^ http://www.deadline.com/2011/01/nickelodeon-renews-spongebob-squarepants-for-ninth-season/
  3. ^ Hillenburg, Stephen. (2003-11-28). Introduction. SpongeBob SquarePants: The Complete First Season — Disc 1 [DVD]. Paramount Home Entertainment.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Paramount SB S15 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ QSR Staff (June 7, 2001). "Burger King SpongeBob SquarePants". QSR Magazine. QSRmagazine.com. Retrieved August 19, 2010.
  6. ^ a b "SpongeBob SquarePants". Spongebob Squarepants information. Retrieved February 10, 2009.
  7. ^ Banks, Steven (September 24, 2004). SpongeBob Exposed! The Insider's Guide to SpongeBob SquarePants. Schigiel, Gregg (Illustrator). Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-0689868702. {{cite book}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  8. ^ Banks, pp. 8-9
  9. ^ a b c d Banks, p. 9
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h Hillenburg, Stephen (2003). The Origin of SpongeBob SquarePants. SpongeBob SquarePants: The Complete First Season (DVD). Paramount Home Entertainment.
  11. ^ a b c Drymon, Derek (2003). The Origin of SpongeBob SquarePants. SpongeBob SquarePants: The Complete First Season (DVD). Paramount Home Entertainment.
  12. ^ "Nickelodeon Taps Patrick Creadon and Christine O'Malley to Produce First-Ever SpongeBob SquarePants Documentary". Press Release. Viacom. January 19, 2009. Retrieved February 1, 2009.
  13. ^ a b Murray, Joe (2003). The Origin of SpongeBob SquarePants. SpongeBob SquarePants: The Complete First Season (DVD). Paramount Home Entertainment.
  14. ^ Neuwirth, p. 50
  15. ^ a b "Lisa (Kiczuk) Trainor interviews Joe Murray, creator of Rocko's Modern Life," The Rocko's Modern Life FAQ
  16. ^ Banks, pp. 9-10
  17. ^ a b Banks, p. 10
  18. ^ a b Orlando, Dana (March 17, 2003). "SpongeBob: the excitable, absorbent star of Bikini Bottom". St Petersburg Times. Retrieved November 8, 2008.
  19. ^ "Rocko's Modern Life". Joe Murray Studio.
  20. ^ Banks, p. 31
  21. ^ a b Farhat, Basima (Interviewer) (December 5, 2006). Tom Kenny: Voice of SpongeBob SquarePants – Interview (mp3) (Radio production). The People Speak Radio. Retrieved November 8, 2008.
  22. ^ Neuwirth, p. 51
  23. ^ Coleman, Eric (2003). The Origin of SpongeBob SquarePants. SpongeBob SquarePants: The Complete First Season (DVD). Paramount Home Entertainment.
  24. ^ a b Hecht, Albie (2003). The Origin of SpongeBob SquarePants. SpongeBob SquarePants: The Complete First Season (DVD). Paramount Home Entertainment.
  25. ^ "More SpongeBob on Nickelodeon". Star Online eCentral. December 27, 2005. Retrieved April 24, 2008.
  26. ^ "SpongeBob SquarePants Season 5 Episode Guide on". Tv.com. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
  27. ^ "Nickelodeon July Highlights". Animation Insider. June 25, 2007. Retrieved November 8, 2009.
  28. ^ "Nickelodeon Picks-Up Returning Animated Hits". Viacom.com. March 13, 2008. Retrieved March 15, 2008.
  29. ^ "Nickelodeon Upfront 2008". Animation Insider. March 13, 2008. Retrieved March 16, 2008.
  30. ^ "Nick Orders New Eps of "SpongeBob," "OddParents" and Other Series". ToonZone. March 13, 2008. Retrieved March 19, 2008.
  31. ^ Goldman, Eric (January 9, 2009). "SpongeBob SquarePants Meets Johnny Depp - TV News at IGN". Tv.ign.com. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
  32. ^ "Ultimate SpongeBob SpongeBash Weekend - Raving Toy Maniac - The Latest News and Pictures from the World of Toys". Toymania.com. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
  33. ^ "2009 Is The Year To Get 'Happy Squared' As Nickelodeon Celebrates 10 Years Of SpongeBob SquarePants". News.prnewswire.com. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
  34. ^ "News Headlines". Cnbc.com. Retrieved September 14, 2010. [dead link]
  35. ^ "Victoria Beckham : Posh Spice lands princess role in Spongebob Squarepants | Entertainment Biz!". Entertainmentandshowbiz.com. April 12, 2009. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
  36. ^ "Victoria Beckham to Square Off with SpongeBob". Us Magazine. April 8, 2009. Retrieved October 12, 2009. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)
  37. ^ "'SpongeBob' Renewed for 26 Episodes". The Wrap. December 15, 2009. Retrieved December 16, 2009. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)
  38. ^ http://tvseriesfinale.com/tv-show/spongebob-squarepants-season-nine-18999/
  39. ^ a b Starr, Michael (November 15, 2007). "Bowie "sponge" makes splash". New York Post. Retrieved December 7, 2007.
  40. ^ "NBC 'Lights' Up Critics' Nominations". Zap 2 It. June 5, 2007. Retrieved July 8, 2008.
  41. ^ BBC Staff (January 20, 2005). "US right attacks SpongeBob video". BBC News. Retrieved June 11, 2007.
  42. ^ a b "Spongebob, Muppets and the Sister Sledge writer suffer criticism". USA Today. Associated Press. January 22, 2005. Retrieved June 11, 2007.
  43. ^ BBC Staff (October 9, 2002). "Camp cartoon star 'is not gay'". BBC News. Retrieved June 11, 2007.
  44. ^ Silverman, Stephen M. (January 28, 2005). "SpongeBob Asexual, Not Gay: Creator". People. Retrieved August 26, 2009.
  45. ^ "SpongeBob isn't gay or straight, creator says". Reuters. January 29, 2005. Retrieved November 9, 2008.
  46. ^ Chang, Pauline J. (January 28, 2005). "Dobson clarifies Pro-Gay SpongeBob Video Controversy". The Christian Post. Retrieved June 11, 2007.
  47. ^ Till, Francis (February 4, 2005). "Ministry celebrates SpongeBob: Gay, happy, yellow, orange, whatever, he's welcome". National Business Review. Retrieved June 11, 2007.
  48. ^ Dennis, Jeffrey P. "The Same Thing We Do Every Night: Signifying Same-Sex Desire in Television Cartoons." Journal of Popular Film & Television. Fall 2003. Volume 31, Issue 3. 132-140. 9p, 3bw. Within the PDF document the source info is on p. 137 (6/10)
  49. ^ Goodman, Martin. "Deconstruction Zone — Part 2." Animation World Network. Wednesday March 10, 2004. 4. Retrieved on October 28, 2009.
  50. ^ Zeus, Maxie (December 10, 2008). ""Whatever Happened to SpongeBob?": Good Question!". ToonZone. Retrieved October 14, 2008.
  51. ^ Access Hollywood Staff (July 13, 2009). "Nickelodeon's 'SpongeBob SquarePants' Reaches: 10 Years". NBC Chicago. Retrieved November 5, 2009.
  52. ^ "Chicago | Plan a Visit | Now Playing in 4-D". Shedd Aquarium. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
  53. ^ Johansson, Scarlett (2005). The Absorbing Tale Behind The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie. The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie (DVD). Paramount Home Entertainment.
  54. ^ "SponbgeBob SquarePants Happy Meal". Megamodo.
  55. ^ "SpongeBob SquarePants KFC toys in Japan".
  56. ^ "SpongeBob SquarePants". Npower Electrionics. Retrieved April 24, 2008.
  57. ^ "Nickelodeon Expands Healthy Food Initiative with Green Giant". Promomagazine.com. May 31, 2007. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
  58. ^ SpongeBob 2009 Calendar
  59. ^ Strauss, Gary (May 17, 2002). "Life's good for SpongeBob". USA Today. Retrieved November 8, 2008. [dead link]
  60. ^ Kageyama, Yuri (January 24, 2007). "SpongeBob Goes Trendy to Win Japan Fans". The San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved November 8, 2008. [dead link]

References

  • Banks, Steven (September 24, 2004). SpongeBob Exposed! The Insider's Guide to SpongeBob SquarePants. Schigiel, Gregg (Illustrator). Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon. ISBN 978-0689868702. {{cite book}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  • Neuwirth, Allan (2003). Makin' Toons: Inside the Most Popular Animated TV Shows and Movies. Allworth Communications, Inc. pp. 50, 252–253. ISBN 1581152698.
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