Nickandmore!

via Nickelodeon press release:

THE FAIRLY ODDPARENTS WREAK MAGICAL MAYHEM IN NEW NICKTOON COMEDY-FANTASY SERIES PREMIERING
FRIDAY, MARCH 30, 2001 AT 8:30 P.M.

Ten-Year-Old Timmy Turner Is Touched by the Wand of Odd Fairy Godparents

Pasadena, CA – January 17, 2001 — Nickelodeon’s new irreverent, action-packed animated comedy series The Fairly OddParents, premiering Friday, March 30, 2001 at 8:30 p.m. (ET/PT), follows the adventures of 10-year-old Timmy Turner and his newly arrived fairy godparents. Created by Oh Yeah! Cartoons! Butch Hartman, The Fairly OddParents husband-and-wife sprites Cosmo and Wanda wreak magical mayhem as they help Timmy conquer typical kid obstacles by granting him wishes and magically fixing his problems ranging from a tough homework assignment to a bothersome babysitter. Despite the wizardry, though, these overly eager oddballs manage to mess things up every time.

“This show is full of physical comedy and mayhem that results from a world turned upside down when a 10-year-old boy makes outlandish wishes,” says Cyma Zarghami, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Nickelodeon. “With Cosmo and Wanda, events always take a left turn, and end up throwing Timmy one challenging curve after another.”

Once a powerless kid at the mercy of every adult in his life, Timmy (Tara Strong) figures he finally has the upper hand when Cosmo (Daran Norris) and Wanda (Susan Blakeslee) appear unexpectedly on the scene. Fairy godparents help kids in need, and these two see Timmy as a client who fits the criteria. They constantly practice their craft on him and delight in playfully punishing his babysitting nemesis, 16-year-old Vicky (Grey Delisle), who turns mean as a snake the second Timmy’s parents leave.

The pair want nothing more than to make their charge happy, but “Da Rules” (the godparent handbook explaining what they can and can’t do) sometimes thwart the effort. For example, in an episode titled “The Big Problem,” Cosmo and Wanda grant Timmy’s wish to be older and incite a disastrous growth spurt. Unfortunately, Timmy isn’t the buff, heroic young man he thought he’d be. Instead, he’s transformed into a plump bald guy who lands in jail doing things young Timmy thought would make him cool as an adult. Aggravating his plight, “Da Rules” dictate that fairy godparents can only grant wishes to kids, leaving Timmy trapped in his new grown-up body.

In another episode, Timmy wishes for an alien that he and his pals Chester ( Frankie Muniz, Malcolm In The Middle) and A.J. (Ibrahim Muhammed) can play with. When Cosmo and Wanda oblige, he finds himself face-to-face with a warrior prince from Yugopotamia. But trouble sets in when the warrior prince becomes smitten with Vicky and his parents, the King and Queen, set out to retrieve him and destroy Earth for kidnapping their son.

Throughout his magical misadventures, and while exploring the big issues of being a kid
— growing up, gaining independence, fitting in, being respected and finding the courage to do what’s right — Timmy’s eyes are opened to a couple of axioms: Be careful for what you wish for; and getting what you want won’t necessarily solve all your problems.

Series creator Butch Hartman began his animation career working as an assistant animator for Don Bluth on “An American Tail” during his senior year at Cal Arts. Upon graduation, he worked as a character designer and storyboard artist for Marvel Productions, and later, Ruby Spears Productions He joined Hanna-Barbera in 1991, where he did storyboard work, directed cartoons and created his own shorts for What A Cartoon! He also wrote and directed episodes of Dexter’s Laboratory, Cow & Chicken and Johnny Bravo. Hartman joined Nickelodeon in 1998 where he created and produced several cartoon shorts for the Oh Yeah! Cartoons! series, including The Fairly OddParents.

The Fairly OddParents is a Nicktoons Production and is produced at the Nickelodeon Animation Studio in Burbank, CA. Hartman and Fred Seibert are the Executive Producers.

Nickelodeon, now in its 22nd year, is the number-one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The company includes television programming and production in the U.S. and around the world, plus consumer products, online, recreation, publishing and feature films. Nickelodeon’s U.S. television network is seen in more than 78 million households and has been the number-one rated cable network for more than five consecutive years. Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom International Inc.