Nanna's Cottage
Nanna's Cottage is a children's TV series produced by Polara Productions and created by husband and wife producing team Davey Porter and Karen Sponsler-Porter.
| Nanna's Cottage | |
|---|---|
| File:Nanna'sCottagePoster.jpg Abigale "Nanna" Macaroon | |
| Created by | Davey Porter Karen Sponsler-Porter |
| Starring | Rachael Rizzo Greg Izay Lauren Stone Jason Booth Gracie Porter C.J. Walker Carly Walker Liza Clark Lydia Hale Austen Reeder |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Production | |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Original release | |
| Network | Faith TV, TBN, Sky Angel Satellite Network |
| Release | July 1, 2006 – present |
The show is about a 75-year old grandmother Abigale "Nanna" Macaroon, a world traveler and archeologist, who dispenses love and knowledge to her granddaugher and her friends about the world, and the importance of character. Every episode is filled with warmth, adventure, fun, music, valuable lessons and a little bit of magic.
The series debuted on multiple broadcast outlets in 2006:
- The ABC affiliates KEZI-9 (Eugene, Oregon), KDRV-12 (Medford, Oregon), KDKF-31 (Klamath Falls, Oregon), and KOHD-51 (Bend, Oregon).
- Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN)
- Smile of a Child
- Faith TV on the Sky Angel Satellite Network
- Kids & Teens TV, a 24/7 children's channel on the Sky Angel network.
- Total Living Network, also on the Sky Angel network.
- Familyland Television Network
- God's Learning Channel
- Family Television Network
- Australian Christian Channel
The Pilot Episode
The unaired pilot episode started production on September 25, 2005. The sets were smaller and some of the character costumes and makeup were different. Arbuckle's costume, for example, is completely different in the series episodes. The producers now refer to Arbuckle's pilot costume as "Puppy Arbuckle" since some scenes from the pilot have been incorporated into later episodes. The original Danny was played by Cameron Booth, and the original Anna Belle was played by Savannah Booth, who are the brother and sister of Jason Booth, who plays Arbuckle. Some of the scenes with Danny and Anna Belle from the pilot appear in episode #10 "Music! Music! Music!" and are renamed "Jimmy" and "Lola Belle" in the credits. The Little Harry puppet has also changed completely since the pilot.
First Season Episodes
(By Broadcast Order)
- 1.1 "Welcome to Cottage Hamlet"
Nanna (Rachael Rizzo) introduces the characters of Cottage Hamlet; the kids learn the importance of friendship when Nanna and the kids take a trip to Pluto on Danny’s rocket ship.
- 1.2 "Time Well Spent"
Nanna (Rachael Rizzo) stays home while the kids are on a camping trip; Marvin sends Nanna on a treasure hunt; and traveling salesman Gilbert Gadgetseller (Gaylord Walker) visits the Cottage.
- 1.3 "Happy Birthday, Arbuckle"
Arbuckle (Jason Booth) thinks everyone has forgotten his birthday; the kids learn about electricity; and comedy ensues as Nanna (Rachael Rizzo) plans a surprise party for Arbuckle.
- 1.4 "The Great Cottage Hamlet Mystery"
Danny (C.J. Walker) becomes a detective to help solve the mystery of Trudy’s missing idea. Little Harry helps Marvin find Nanna’s missing North Pole diamond.
- 1.5 "Rushin' There and Russian Here!"
Nanna (Rachael Rizzo) takes the kids on a trip to St. Petersburg, Russia, where they meet Sasha Playnowski (Spencer Hansen). Upon returning to the Cottage, they discover a certain stowaway in their luggage.
- 1.6 "Tick Tock Travelers"
Danny (C.J. Walker) invents a time machine to help Heather (Liza Clark) after she accidentally breaks Nanna’s priceless Babylonian urn. Misadventure ensues when they travel to Ancient Babylon.
- 1.7 "Everyone's a Winner!"
Trudy (Lauren Stone) learns a lesson about charity after winning a local sweepstakes; Heather (Liza Clark) discovers there’s more to winning than coming in first place.
- 1.8 "Bookworms"
During a book drive in Cottage Hamlet, Nanna (Rachael Rizzo) teaches the kids the importance of reading – and not judging books, or people, by their covers.
- 1.9 "A Clean Sweep"
A comedy of errors ensues when Nanna (Rachael Rizzo) gets a visit from an absent-minded chimney sweep (Jason Booth). Rosey (Gracie Porter) and Anna Belle (Carly Walker) discover that superstitions can cause misunderstandings.
- 1.10 "Music, Music, Music!"
Cottage Hamlet is filled with the sounds of music as Nanna (Rachael Rizzo) revisits some of her favorite musical numbers from Nanna’s Cottage.
- 1.11 "Remember When..."
Marvin (Davey Porter) and Little Harry (Dave Moppert) take a trip down memory lane as they recall their favorite adventures at Nanna’s Cottage.
- 1.12 "There's Never Enough Gus"
A showcase of Gardener Gus’ (Greg Izay) favorite visits to Nanna’s Cottage.
- 1.13 "The Ones You Liked The Best"
The children of America pick their favorite segments of Nanna’s Cottage in this delightful episode.
Cast
The Adult Characters
| Picture | Character | Actor | Description from Series Writer's Guide |
|---|---|---|---|
| File:Nanna.jpg | Abigale "Nanna" Macaroon | Rachael Rizzo | Age seventy-something, Nanna Macaroon is an insightful, caring and “fun” grandmotherly character. But she's no slouch! Having lived a full and adventurous life, Nanna has traveled the world over. She has led archeological digs, has enjoyed friendships with kings, queens and presidents, and has circled the globe on a tramp steamer, the S/S Hawaiian Pilot. |
| File:Gardener Gus.jpg | Gardener Gus O'Hara | Greg Izay | Nanna's good friend and traveling companion, the Irish-born Gus is Nanna's “Man Friday,” a spirited fellow who lives down the lane with always a watchful eye on Nanna's Cottage. |
| File:Arbuckle the dog.jpg | Arbuckle | Jason Booth | Arbuckle is a big, dumb, dopey dog who just happens to be the kindest, sweetest canine standing on four big legs. If there is a single word to describe Nanna's canine protector, it is LOYALTY. Arbuckle is fearless (to a point), smart (uhmmm... to a point!), and honest. |
| File:Neighbor Trudy.jpg | Gertrude "Trudy" Hazelnut | Lauren Stone | Nanna's next door neighbor, Trudy is the life of the party and is an often and welcome visitor to the Cottage. Trudy is an adult contemporary of Nanna's, and affords Nanna's character someone who is her direct opposite to play off of. |
The Puppet Characters
| Picture | Character | Actor | Description from Series Writer's Guide |
|---|---|---|---|
| File:Marvin Micklewhite.jpg | Marvin | Davey Porter | Marvin can be loud, obnoxious, selfish, and is known to throw tantrums and pick his nose in public. Marvin provides conscience and lessons of right and wrong for our viewers and visitors to Nanna's Cottage. |
| File:Little Harry.jpg | Little Harry | Dave Moppert | A bad little puppet who gives Marvin bad ideas. He tries to get Marvin to do bad things, and to tell big lies. He usually succeeds, until Marvin learns his lesson and tells Harry, “I’m not gonna do it!!!” |
The Kids
| Picture | Character | Actor | Description from Series Writer's Guide |
|---|---|---|---|
| File:Rosey Smartidoddle.jpg | Rosey Smartidoodle | Gracie Porter | Seven-year-old Rosey is Nanna's granddaughter, and is a ball of happy, friendly energy. Rosey lights up any room she enters. Rosey is friend to all, and looks forward to enjoying the kind of life her Nanna has lived. |
| File:Danny O'Hara.jpg | Danny O'Hara | Cameron J. Walker | Nephew of Gardener Gus, Danny is a genius. His many inventions are legendary in Cottage Hamlet lore. Kind of shy and soft-spoken, Danny is living proof that those who do the right thing, always try their best, and consider other people's feelings will get ahead in life. |
| File:Heather Horsetrotter.jpg | Heather Horsetrotter | Liza Clark | Heather is an expert horsewoman who competes, competes, competes! With her gentle interaction with Nanna, Heather learns that competition isn't half the fun as the game itself. Heather has a crush on Danny, which he never quite realizes because he's so involved in his inventions and experiments. |
| File:Fu Cheng.jpg | Fu Cheng | Lydia Hale | Fu Cheng appears to be the calm center of the room, but there is an impish glee that comes from Fu Cheng just as easily! She is as smart as they come, and she is very musical! |
| File:Andy Puddlesplash.jpg | Andy Puddlesplash | Austen Reeder | Andy is the cynic of the group. He can't believe that trains can travel to an island, that Rosey can talk to Arbuckle, that Gus can grow a whole shade tree in five minutes, or that Nanna's living room clock carries on conversations. Yet... much to Andy's surprise, these things actually seem to happen at Nanna's Cottage. |
| File:Anna Belle Jingleheimer.jpg | Anna Belle Jingleheimer | Carly Walker | Related to the John Jacob Jingleheimer-Smith's of camp song notoriety, Miss Anna Belle is the inquisitive best friend of Rosey. Anna Belle keeps a journal of the many adventures of Nanna and company, and wants to be a newspaper reporter when she grows up. |
| File:Bunny Hoppergrass.jpg | Bunny Hoppergrass | Bethany Smith | Bunny is a sweet, loyal, practical 7-year-old who is the doer of the group. She takes care of the details and makes sure all the kids are wearing their coats and galoshes. She helps Nanna in the kitchen and Gus in the garden. She tells it like it is and definitely knows right from wrong, and keeps everyone on track. |
| File:Sasha Playnowski.jpg | Sasha Playnowski | Spenser Hansen | When Nanna and the Kids return from a trip to Russia, they discover Sasha Playnowski hiding in their baggage. Sasha wants to play all the time. ALL THE TIME! This can be a problem when there are chores to do and projects to accomplish at the cottage. Sasha needs to learn how to balance work and play, and how to pay attention to his surroundings and listen! |
| File:Christopher the Geography Boy.jpg | Christopher the Georgraphy Boy | Ben Ballard | Christopher is a recurring character. Wherever the group travels, Christopher is there to greet them, dressed in native costume, and speaking with a local accent. Christopher gives the group insight into other countries and faraway places. |
| File:Nice Nick.jpg | Nice Nick Micklewhite | Griffin Moser | Marvin's older brother. |
| File:Nanna'sCottagePoster.jpg | Calvin Coalshovel | Evan Kossow | Calvin is the train engineer for Nanna's Fast Express. |
| File:Nanna'sCottagePoster.jpg | Peter Pufferbelly | Ben Bailey | Peter is the train conductor. |
| File:Operissimo2.jpg | Operissimo | Ben Taube | Cottage Hamlet's professional Opera singer. |
Recurring Guest Stars
| Picture | Character | Actor | Description from Series Writer's Guide |
|---|---|---|---|
| File:Gaylord Walker.jpg | The Merchants of Cottage Hamlet | Gaylord Walker | Character actor, Gaylord Walker, plays the entire town of Cottage Hamlet (almost). Each time Nanna and the Kids visit a Cottage Hamlet merchant, it is Gaylord who is in make-up and costume. Roles to date include: Arlo Cartunpacker, Franklin Ticketaker, Larry Letterleaver and Gilbert Gadgetseller. |
| File:Captain Macaroon.jpg | Captain Carsten Macaroon | Tom Snyder | Whenever Nanna and the Kids go back in time via Danny's Time Machine, they usually stop aboard the S/S Hawaiian Pilot and visit with Nanna's late husband, the famous Captain Macaroon. It was aboard the tramp steamer that Nanna met Captain Mac, and found a little puppy in the cargo hold named Arbuckle. |
| File:Nanna'sCottagePoster.jpg | Beatrice Bookshussher | Joy Doctor | Beatrice is the town Librarian. |
| File:Nanna'sCottagePoster.jpg | Various | Don Moser | Moser plays a variety of historical and contemporary characters. Most recently he played the role of Benjamin Franklin. |
Monster Sunday School
Monster Sunday School is a series of interstitials that exclusively replace the commercial breaks in TBN's non-commercial broadcasts of Nanna's Cottage. There are three breaks within each episode of Nanna's Cottage which last approximately 2 minutes each, together making up a 6-minute stand-alone mini-episode (an episode within an episode) featuring 100% puppet characters in a Sunday School setting. Each Monster Sunday School episode imparts a basic Bible story lesson. The Nanna's Cottage puppet characters of Marvin (Davey Porter) and Little Harry (Dave Moppert) will make crossover appearances on Monster Sunday School.
Monster Sunday School is being developed as a full-blown spin-off series which will begin airing on TBN in January 2007. The interstitials began airing with TBN's broadcast of Nanna's Cottage on October 7, 2006.
Production Staff
- Davey Porter, executive producer
- Karen Sponsler-Porter, co-executive producer & costume designer
- Eric A. Stillwell, associate producer & head writer
- Kevin M. Sponsler, associate producer & station relations
- Lee Reeder, associate producer & staff writer
- Steve Ogle, production manager & technical director
- Penny Havlovick, associate producer & stage manager
- Dave Moppert, associate producer, assistant director & graphic artist
- Pete Noriega, art director
- Loren Starr, art director
- Sal Collura, director of photography
- Cynthia McCourt, hair & makeup
- Spence Palermo, sound
- Jason Booth, staff writer
- Michael Chariker, editor & post production supervisor
- Rick Cullis, S.O.C., camera
- Matt Dinsmore, camera
- Brad McCormick, camera
- Kale Dawes, ADR & closed caption engineer
- Randi Jacobs, boom operator
- Phil Gerke, boom operator
- Ashley Sehorn, makeup assistant & costume builder
- Jeffrey L. Robinson, props
- Don Miller, costume assistant
- Judy Miller, child development & activities coach