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Adventures in Odyssey

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Adventures in Odyssey
GenreRadio drama/comedy
Running time17-30 minutes per episode
Country of originUnited States
Canada
Language(s)English
SyndicatesFocus on the Family
StarringHal Smith (1987–1994)
Katie Leigh
Paul Herlinger (1996–2008)
Andre Stojka (2009–present)
Will Ryan
Walker Edmiston (1987–2007)
Dave Madden (1990–2008)
Alan Young (1994–2016)
Earl Boen
Townsend Coleman
Chris Anthony
Corey Burton
Jess Harnell
Pamela Hayden (1992–2002)
Audrey Wasilewski
AnnouncerChris Anthony
Created byPhil Lollar and Steve Harris
Written byPaul McCusker
Phil Lollar
Marshal Younger
Kathy Buchanan
Nathan Hoobler
& many others
Directed byPhil Lollar
Paul McCusker
Marshal Younger
Bob Hoose
Nathan Hoobler
Produced byBob Luttrell
Bob Hoose
Executive producer(s)Dave Arnold (Current)
Chuck Bolte
Paul McCusker
Kurt Bruner
Al Janssen
Recording studioSalami Studios
and other locations
Original releaseNovember 21, 1987 –
present
No. of episodesRadio: 818 (including specials)
Video: 17
Books:78
Full list
WebsiteWhitsEnd.org

Adventures in Odyssey (AIO), or simply Odyssey, is an Evangelical Christian radio drama and comedy series created and produced by Focus on the Family. The series first aired in 1987 under the title Family Portraits. As of 2005, the show's daily audience averaged around 1.2 million within North America.[1] The Odyssey series also includes several spin-off items, including a home-video series, books, and several computer games. John Campbell composed music for over 500 episodes of Adventures in Odyssey.[2] Adventures in Odyssey was created for kids from the ages 6-10 . The series centers on the fictional town of Odyssey, and in particular, an ice-cream emporium named Whit's End, and its owner, John Avery Whittaker.

History

In 1983, Focus on the Family began creating several short dramas for inclusion in the ministry's daily half-hour radio show; these radio dramas were commissioned by Focus on the Family founder and then-president Dr. James Dobson as an alternative to Saturday-morning cartoons. This effort culminated with a 13-week test series titled Family Portraits which aired in early 1987.[3] It was created by Steve Harris and Phil Lollar, who set it in a small Midwest town they called Odyssey. The test episodes engendered a favorable audience response, and led to a continuing radio program in November 1987, called Odyssey USA.[4] The title was later changed to Adventures in Odyssey to "increase international appeal".[5]

The goal of the Odyssey staff was to create a "values-based" radio show with production values comparable with or surpassing those of most mainstream audio dramas. While the show aimed to promote Christian values, according to Odyssey's co-creator Phil Lollar, the goal was not to be "a preaching program", but to be an "entertaining program".[6] Large amounts of work were put into each individual story; for the first few years, each thirty-minute episode typically took over one hundred hours to produce.[7]

Several well-known voice actors were brought in to provide the lead roles. Hal Smith voiced the lead character John Avery Whittaker[8] in one of his favorite roles.[9] The rest of the original "key" characters were voiced by Katie Leigh, Will Ryan, and Walker Edmiston,[10] who, along with Hal Smith, had all previously worked together extensively at Disney.[9] When Hal Smith died in 1994, Adventures in Odyssey was left without its main character and Focus on the Family considered canceling the radio show.[11] After a search that lasted over two years, a replacement voice was finally found in Paul Herlinger, who sounded very similar to Hal Smith; Paul Herlinger voiced the main character from 1996 through 2008.[12] Because of health issues, a mutual decision was made by Herlinger and the crew to replace Herlinger with another voice actor.

Consequently, Adventures in Odyssey took a long "hiatus", with no new episodes planned while the staff searched for a new actor to voice Mr. Whittaker. In September 2009, Andre Stojka was selected as the third actor to voice Mr. Whittaker; only months later, on 2 February 2010, Paul Herlinger died from his illness. In March 2010, new episodes started as Album 51, Take it from the Top, premiered.[5] The show is being adapted into Spanish audio and Hindi live-action videos, with plans to create Mandarin audio, as well.[4]

Popularity

By the end of its second year in 1988, the show was on 634 radio stations in North America.[7] As of 1995, it was the second-most popular Christian radio show in the United States.[13] By 2002, the show was on over 6000 stations world-wide.[14]

The radio episodes have also been widely released on both cassette and CD collections, and by 1992, almost a million cassettes had been sold.[15] Odyssey episodes have also been released annually (since 1990) as promotional items through Chick-fil-A.[16] Several times in the past, Chick-fil-A has had special CD sets as their "kids' meal" product.

Characters

Main article: List of Adventures in Odyssey characters
A wall in the real-life Whit's End at the Focus on the Family visitor's center showing the Adventures in Odyssey voice actors, challenging viewers to match them with the characters.

Episodes

Main article: List of Adventures in Odyssey episodes

Adventures in Odyssey has released over 800 episodes to date, and has released 60 main albums and many other special collections.

Spin-off products

Aside from the radio drama, Adventures in Odyssey has begun many spin-offs and special series, including an Official Odyssey Podcast,[17] 17 animated videos,[18] Eugene Sings! and Eugene Sings! Christmas, and three edutainment computer games,[19] in addition to the four book series created as spin-offs to Adventures in Odyssey, Passages,[20] Kidsboro,[21] The Imagination Station, and a 12-book series titled simply Adventures in Odyssey.

Video series

The first AiO video was released in 1991. This series was created following the success of Focus on the Family's involvement in Tyndale House's video project, McGee and Me. Originally, the Odyssey video series was created by a separate staff from that of the radio series and each episode had a budget of about $400,000;[15] by 1998, over two million Odyssey videos had been sold.[22] Currently, 17 episodes are in the video series and several attempts have been made to place this series on television.[15] The episodes were screened in Britain on Channel 4 in the mid-1990s.

Computer games

Christian video game developer Digital Praise has released three computer games based on the series, Adventures in Odyssey: The Treasure of the Incas,[23] Adventures in Odyssey: The Sword of the Spirit,[24] and Adventures in Odyssey: The Great Escape.[25] Will Ryan, Katie Leigh, and Paul Herlinger voiced the main characters of the games.[26]

Eugene Sings!

Eugene Sings! and Eugene Sings! Christmas are Adventures in Odyssey musical albums, released by Tyndale House. Both feature songs written and sung by Will Ryan, voicing Eugene Meltsner from the series.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Chick-fil-A giving away 'Adventures in Odyssey'". Herald-Journal. October 23, 2005. pp. E6.
  2. ^ Baber, La Rue V. (October 9, 2003). "Spreading the 'Light'". Inland Valley Daily Bulletin. Retrieved March 5, 2009.
  3. ^ "The History of Adventures in Odyssey". WhitsEnd.org. Archived from the original on 20 July 2011. Retrieved June 15, 2011. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ a b Deutsch, Ken (December 12, 2008). "'Radio Theatre': Tales With a Message". Radio World. Retrieved January 4, 2008.
  5. ^ a b Hoobler, Nathan (2008). Adventures in Odyssey: The Official Guide. Tyndale. ISBN 1-58997-475-1.
  6. ^ "Radio Show is Family Adventure". The Modesto Bee. November 23, 1997. pp. H2.
  7. ^ a b "A Growing Grass-Roots Renaissance for Radio Drama". Los Angeles Times. December 26, 1988. p. 1.
  8. ^ "How the Message is Packed". The Atlanta Journal Constitution. September 4, 1993. pp. E6.
  9. ^ a b Ehrbar, Greg; Hollis, Tim (2006). Mouse Tracks. Univ. Press of Mississippi. ISBN 1-57806-849-5.
  10. ^ "Children's Entertainer Walker Edmiston, 81, Dies". Los Angeles Times. February 27, 2007. pp. B8.
  11. ^ Younger, Marshal (1997). The Complete Guide to Adventures in Odyssey. Focus on the Family. ISBN 1-56179-466-X.
  12. ^ "Tacoma Voice Has National Role". The News Tribune. February 6, 1999. pp. A6.
  13. ^ "Christians Take to the Air Waves". St. Petersburg Times. July 29, 1995. pp. E6.
  14. ^ "Christian Ministry Focus on the Family Enters the Mainstream Video Market". September 2, 2002. Retrieved May 17, 2009.
  15. ^ a b c "Focus on the Family cartoons". Gazette Telegraph. January 25, 1992. pp. D1.
  16. ^ "Fast meals with kid frills". Houston Chronicle. September 21, 1990. p. 1.
  17. ^ "Odyssey Podcasts". WhitsEnd.org. Archived from the original on 22 February 2009. Retrieved February 24, 2009. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  18. ^ Consisting of 13 'Animated DVD's and 4 'New Series' animated DVDs — Whit's End CDs DVDs
  19. ^ Cummings, Betsy (March 2, 2006). "Praise the Lord and Pass the Joystick". The New York Times. Retrieved January 4, 2009.
  20. ^ "Adventure in Odyssey - Passages". Mid-Continent Public Library. Retrieved February 24, 2009.
  21. ^ "Adventures in Odyssey - Kidsboro". Mid-Continent Public Library. Retrieved February 24, 2009.
  22. ^ "Audience for Christian Kid Vid Grows". Billboard Magazine. Vol. 110, no. 16. April 18, 1998. p. 59.
  23. ^ Es, Martijn van (February 19, 2006). "Adventures in Odyssey: The Treasure of the Incas review". Adventure Gamers. Retrieved 2009-02-24.
  24. ^ Rice, Joyce (October 1, 2006). "Adventures in Odyssey and the Sword of the Spirit". School Library Journal. Retrieved February 24, 2009.
  25. ^ "Christians Code Heavenly Games". Wired News. August 4, 2005. Retrieved January 4, 2008.
  26. ^ Collins, Lois M. (August 11, 2005). "'Odyssey' games engaging and crafty". Deseret News. Retrieved February 15, 2009.

Further reading

  • Adventures in Odyssey: The Official Guide--25th Birthday Edition : ISBN 1-58997-719-X
  • Adventures in Odyssey: The Official Guide : ISBN 1-58997-475-1
  • The Complete Guide to Adventures in Odyssey : ISBN 1-56179-466-X
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