Histeria!
Series, 1998, Kids' WB, Set in History, as sketch comedy
Histeria! is #7 of 10 in release order and #7 of 10 in chronological order in the Warner Bros. Cartoon Classics.
The story
Perhaps the world's only animated sketch-comedy educational series, Histeria! delivers lessons that stick - to your funny bone. Hosted by Father Time, the cartoon cast careens through time to deliver historical facts from Siberia to Sumeria, despite the efforts of Miss Information, the claims of The World's Oldest Woman and the perpetually poopy diapers of the egg-shaped Big Fat Baby.
Histeria! recap
A sketch comedy show about world history, made to meet the US requirement for educational children's programming. A cast of regular characters plays historical figures and travels through time, under the eye of the host, Father Time, who loses patience whenever the kids get their facts wrong. The regulars include Big Fat Baby, his accident-prone sidekick; Loud Kiddington, who shouts everything; Pepper Mills, an overexcited fan who demands autographs; Froggo, who asks for parts to build inventions; Charity Bazaar, a gloomy girl who announces "I'm not happy"; the World's Oldest Woman, who claims to remember when air was invented; and Lucky Bob, who agrees with everyone. Episodes take on a period, a place or a theme through song parodies, fake commercials and slapstick in the style of Saturday Night Live. Tom Ruegger created it, and it aired on Kids' WB from 1998 to 2000, for 52 episodes.
Histeria! ending explained
Histeria! was cut short. Production stopped in 2000 before the 65 episodes originally planned were made, reportedly because the show had gone far over budget, and the last episode, "Big Fat Baby Theatre", aired on March 31, 2000. It ends with the cast and crew singing "Auld Lang Syne" over a montage of photos of the people who made the show. Reruns continued until 2001, and there has been no revival.
Where to watch Histeria!
Histeria! isn't on a US streaming service right now. You can rent or buy it on Amazon.
Ratings
IMDb 7.9/10
Where it fits
- Release order: after Superman: The Animated Series, before Pinky, Elmyra & the Brain.
- Chronological order: after Superman: The Animated Series, before Pinky, Elmyra & the Brain.
Cast
- Frank Welker as Father Time (voice)
- Tress MacNeille as The World's Oldest Woman / Pepper Mills / Toast (voice)
- Laraine Newman as Miss Information / Charity Bazaar (voice)
- Jeff Bennett as Lucky Bob (voice)
- Cree Summer as Aka Pella (voice)
- Billy West as Chit Chatterson (voice)
- Nora Dunn as Lydia Karaoke (voice)
- Luke Ruegger as Big Fat Baby (voice)
- Cody Ruegger as Loud Kiddington (voice)
- Nathan Ruegger as Froggo (voice)
- Maurice LaMarche as Abe Lincoln (voice)
- Adam West
Created by Tom Ruegger.