On the Path of Butterfly Valley

On the Path of Butterfly Valley is an American children's documentary special hosted by Marc Summers, who is best known for hosting the game shows Double Dare and What Would You Do? from Nickelodeon, as well as the documentary series Unwrapped from the Food Network and guest starring multiple times in the 1998 Butterfly Valley series. This one-and-a-half-hour special premiered on the sister channel of WAM!, Encore (now called Starz Encore) on July 21, 2001, a few months before the fifth season premiered on WAM!.
Divided into six segments, it details the history of the Butterfly Valley franchise, the pilot film and the 1969 series, while also featuring the production of the 1998 series, as well as Summers interviewing with the production crew of both series and the characters who appeared in the 1998 series with four questions per interview.
==Plot==
===Pre-Introduction===
The special begins with a cold open by Princess Butterfly, who hopes that the viewers will enjoy the following presentation, then she uses her transportation spell to send them to the studio set.
===Introduction===
The special officially starts out with Marc Summers walking into a studio set decorated with Butterfly Valley-related merchandise, introducing the viewers to the world of Butterfly Valley. He felt glad that the viewers are going to enjoy this presentation as much as Princess Butterfly is, then he leads them to the first segment.
===Our Way to the Valley: The Beginning of the Show===
Marc Summers went to the next set, which is adorned with butterfly-themed decals, to tell the viewers how the Butterfly Valley series begin with the pilot film.
It all starts out with two gentlemen named Ronald Smickon and Bobby Westmoreland, who founded a production studio named HeyKids Studios. They wanted to make an animated television series for children, but they had to make a pilot film to impress television executives, so they hired writer Sean Hancock and director Rudolph Pasky to help them produce the film.
When Hancock thought of bringing something "magical and majestic" to the show, he was suggested by his daughter Kathy to use butterflies and fairies, her points of interest. This resulted in the creation of the butterfly fairies.
Pasky, on the other hand, thought of using trolls as villains as suggested by his son Ben, who likes to imitate trolls.
At the evening in the studio, during dinner, the crew are joined by the soon-to-be art director Avery Jones, Tim Weiss and Glenn Donovan. Westmoreland came up with the title "Butterfly Valley", deriving from the place where the butterfly fairies live in.
The next day, the crew began production of the pilot film, spending five months to create characters, write scripts, train voice actors, record lines for the characters and animate scenes, then in June 14, 1968, the pilot film was completed and Smickon and Westmoreland send it to the NBC network executives. They like the film so much, they wanted them to make it to a full animated series for NBC's Saturday morning timeslot.
===Interview with Rudolph Pasky===
Marc Summers is in his seat, ready to interview with 1969 series director Rudolph Pasky. The following questions he asked him are…
#"How long does it take to make an episode?" - Answer: "They took, um, five months to make."
#"When did you create the evil wizard Frank?" - Answer: "It was when Sean asked what his name should be, I thought for a minute, shrugged and said, "Frank maybe?" We then spent almost an hour amusing ourselves with a terrifying wizard named Frank. After a while, we decided to go ahead and use it, but Thomson's Jungle was cancelled, so we decided to use him for Butterfly Valley instead."
#"Why is the show named "Butterfly Valley"?" - Answer: "We named the show "Butterfly Valley" because we wanted kids to get used to the good stuff."
#'’What other shows did you directed?" Answer: "I've directed many shows, including the time when HeyKids Studios is still in operation, like Jumbo’s Circus and Fisherman Fred."
===One in a Million: The Great Success===
Marc Summers heads to the next set, which is shaped like a heart, to tell the viewers about the first episode of the 1969 series
After the success of the pilot film, Ronald Smickon and Bobby Westmoreland began producing a full animated series for NBC on June 15, 1968. Tim Weiss and Glenn Donovan came up with the storyboards of the episodes that were planned to be produced, with the first one entitled "Arrival".
This episode took six months to be produced, instead of usually five months, due to the producers struggling to write a story to start the show. They thought of having two human characters named Rose and Petunia explore Butterfly Valley and its lively inhabitants.
The episode finally premiered on International Women's Day, March 8, 1969, to thousands of households across the country. It was watched by 1.7 million people in America.
===Interview with Bluebell===
Marc Summers returns to his seat to interview with Bluebell, who is adjusting her seat with her growing spell so she can see him better. The following questions he asked her are…
#"When do you get your wings?" - Answer: "I got my wings when I become twelve years old."
#"What will you ever want to be when you grow up?" - Answer: "Anything, but personally, I want to be an astronaut, just like my brother Spike."
#"Do you have friends?" - Answer: "I've made lots of friends around the world."
#"Do you enjoy school?" - Answer: "Yes, I do love school!"
===Enter Frank: The Last-Minute Addition===
Marc Summers went into the next set, decorated with bee-themed decals, to tell the viewers about Frank the bee fairy and the second season of the 1969 series.
The series became one of the hottest cartoons in America, with several merchandising deals involving toys, lunchboxes and even food products. It was renewed for five more seasons to continue.
The second season premiered on October 11, 1969 with the episode "Homecoming", then as the series progresses, the producers thought of having new characters for more excitement to the viewers, one of which is named Frank.
To many people, Frank was believed to be sketched by a man named Ronald R. Birchman, who sued HeyKids Studios for not receiving credit to him, but he lost the lausuit.
At the last minute, they made an episode, titled "Engagement," to include him. Frank was finally introduced to the public in that episode, aired March 21, 1970. He is a bee fairy who wants to kidnap Princess Butterfly so he can rule the world. The season ended when Princess Butterfly and King Boogieman married, making Frank jealous of the troll king, so he decided to seek revenge, in hopes of annihilating King Boogieman and marrying Princess Butterfly.
Marc Summers then adds that the bee fairies are the animal world equivalent to Canadians in the 1998 series.
===Interview with Jeremy Kirby===
Marc Summers returns to his seat again, but he is facing the other way. He turns his seat around so he can interview with Jeremy Kirby, Frank's voice actor in the 1969 series. The following questions he asked him are…
#"Have you worked on other shows before?" - Answer: "I've worked as a producer on a show called Peppermint Park, where I produced executively."
#"Have you ever played a character in a show?" - Answer: "I played Frank in Butterfly Valley and Dylan the Dalmatian and Topher the Gopher in Jumbo's Circus."
#"Do you ever wished Frank is be in the reboot?" - Answer: "I’ve never wished Frank is in the reboot, but maybe the produces can use him in future episodes."
#"Speaking of the reboot, how do you think of it?" Answer: "The reboot is pretty faithful to the original show in terms of, um, the scripts and the personalities of the characters."
===Leaving the Valley: The Downfall and the Cancellation===
Marc Summers went to the next set, which is adorned with troll-themed decorations, to tell the viewers what happened to the next three seasons of the 1969 series.
When the third season premiered on November 7, 1970, the show suffered budget problems, with cheaper animations and weaker plots, but things get even worse when the fourth season premiered on Christmas Day, December 25, 1971, the show became much more surreal, with the episodes having darker plots, due to the producers of the series trying to competing with the crew who worked on another show titled "Candle Cove", which is a pirate-themed series also produced by HeyKids Studios.
As a result, the ratings of Butterfly Valley decreased significantly. The producers try to keep the show running on the air, but they soon find out that the studio suffered from financial loss and only three episodes were produced for the fifth season, but only two episodes aired on Tuesday morning as opposed to Saturday morning.
The fifth and final season premiered on January 9, 1973, but six days later, on January 15, HeyKids Studios shut down due to the loss of funding and controversies over its shows. "Pirate's Island", the final episode of the series, premiered the next day, preceded by a note left by a former employee of the studio regarding its closure.
After the episode was shown, NBC apologized to the viewers with a note left by one of its employees regarding the sudden dark nature of Butterfly Valley and its cancellation.
For over eighteen years, many episodes of the series were rendered lost, with the remaining sixty-five episodes survived in the possession of Rudolph Pasky's family, until in October 1, 1996, when they sell the surviving copies to a Canadian company called Nelvana.
===Interview with Rose and Petunia Hanson===
Marc Summers returns to his seat once again to interview Rose and Petunia Hanson. The following questions he asked them are…
#"Where do you live in?" - Rose's answer: "Well, we are born in Crestview, Florida, but we now live in Sideview Beach."
#"Where do you get your magical powers?" - Petunia's answer: "Oh, we fell into a big pot of butterfly magic potion and we got our own magical powers."
#"What is the scariest thing you had encountered?" - Petunia's answer: "Well, we were camping in Camp Wigglybill, then some humongous creature with menacing eyes, sharp teeth and fur all over it came and sneak into our tent. The next day I woke up and saw that creepy face and woke up my sister that there's a monster in out tent, but Rose said there's no monster the the tent..." When Petunia goes off with her long answer, Rose interrupts, "Long story short, we thought there's a monster in our tent, but it's just a dream."
#"Well, how much do you care for butterfly fairies?" Rose's answer: "We love butterfly fairies and the are very special to us."
===Back to the Valley: The Great Comeback===
Marc Summers went into the next set, which is styled after a city skyline, to tell the viewers about the beginning of the 1998 series.
On August 5, 1997, a VHS compilation video called "Saturday Morning Classics Vol. 1," containing the first episode of the 1969 series, was released to North American markets.
An employee from Curious Pictures named Carl Keatley brought one of the copies from a local video store and played it in his record player. He watched that episode and thought of bringing the series to the big screen, so he came into the office and showed it to his co-workers. They were interested about the episode and thought of returning the series to the small screen as well…
The production crew spend their time making the episodes for the next few months. They create new characters and redesign existing characters.
The camera switches to Marc Summers' attention, so he can quickly show the viewers the differences between the designs of the new series and the old ones.
He picks up two different pictures of Princess Butterfly as an example. He points out the differences between her two designs; the old design features a purple bonnet, while the new design features a burgundy cardigan.
Another example, or at least two of them, is Rose and Petunia. He points out that the twins look identical to each other in the 1969 series, while they look different from each other in the 1998 series.
The first episode of the 1998 series, entitled "Welcome to Butterfly Valley", premiered in the United States and Canada on January 20, 1998 on WAM! and the Family Channel respectively. It is a remake of the first episode of the 1969 series.
But prior to this, a feature film based on the series called Butterfly Valley: Adventures in Pleasant Island was released in some theatres on January 16, before premiering nationwide two days later on January 18.
Ever since then, people of the new generation began to find their love for Butterfly Valley, especially with kids and parents alike.
===Interview with Celia Morris===
Marc Summers is cleaning his seat, before sitting in it to interview with one of the twins' close friends, Celia Morris. The following questions he asked her are…
#"When do you first meet Rose and Petunia?" - Answer: "Um, I was just playing in the playground, then I sprained my leg and Rose and Petunia heard me screaing "help!" And that's when I first met them."
#"Have you went to Butterfly Valley before?" - Answer: "It's part of a school trip with my friends."
#"Do you study math?" - Answer: "I'd rather spend my time playing with my friends."
#"Did you have a pet dog like Rose and Petunia?" - Answer: "I don't have a pet dog, but I had a pet cat named Shirley, he's so cute, i've bet he'll win every pet show in the whole world!"
===Magic Happens Here: Making the Episodes===
Marc Summers went out to Seoul, South Korea to visit the animation studios of JM Animation to show the viewers how episodes of the 1998 series was made, a là Food Network documentary series Unwrapped. He explained that animation has changed over the decades, as technology evolves, we can now use computers to make animation easier and faster. Marc then went inside the studios.
The stories started out as storyboards, then the art director began to sketch out new characters and backgrounds for the plot. They soon began developing the layout of the scenes. The animators arrange the scenes chronologically and edit them to their final looks, then they began to draw frames, one at a time. The writers then write scripts for the episode.
At the recording room, the voice actors record their lines for their characters, which was then synced to the finished scenes, along with the musical scores composed by Tom Singh. The episodes soon take screen tests to make sure they are ready to be shown on television networks.
Each episode take four months to be produced, while feature-length films like Butterfly Valley: Adventures in Pleasant Island took nine months.
===Interview with Carl Keatley===
Marc Summers went back to his seat for the last time to interview with 1998 series producer Carl Keatley. The following questions he asked him are…
#"What's the name of the video store where you buy that video?" Answer: "The store is called "Josh's Video Emporium" and it's just a few blocks away from the office."
#"Do you love Butterfly Valley?" - Answer: "I've watched the show before on VHS and that's what makes me want to, um, return the show to the new generation."
#"Why do you want to bring Butterfly Valley back?" - Answer: "I loved the show so much, I wanted to bring Butterfly Valley back to the small screen.
#"How do the viewers think about the new show?" - Answer: "I've heard about the news that everyone, um, likes the show."
===Conclusion===
Marc Summers returns to the set shown at the beginning of the special and remarks that he and the viewers had lots of fun learning about the history of Butterfly Valley, then he reminds them that it is time to say goodbye. He bids farewell to the viewers as the camera zooms out.
Some puffs of fairy sparkles transition to the closing credits, ending with a special thanks to the crew who worked hard on both series, thus ending the special, but it's not over yet…
===Post-credits===
The camera returns to Princess Butterfly, who thanks the viewers for enjoying the feature presentation, then she uses a spell to take them to a dedication screen to Sean Hancock, officially signaling the end of the special.
==Behind the scenes==
This special was shot on January 28-30, 2001 at Universal Studios Hollywood in California (for most segments and the interviews) and on April 17-20, 2001 at the JM Animation offices in Seoul, South Korea (for the Magic Happens Here segment).
Interviews with the characters of the 1998 series are scripted, while interviews with the production crew are improvised.
The animation for the special was produced by South Korean animation company JM Animation using computers. Said company would later replace fellow South Korean animation company AKOM, which had provided animation for the first five seasons, for the sixth and final season in 2002.
==Trivia==
*This special is dedicated to 1969 series head writer Sean Hancock, who has passed away on June 30, 2001 after suffering from cardiac arrest.
*This is the first instance of 2D animation done with computer as opposed to traditional cel animation, despite the main series continued to be animated traditionally by AKOM until "Bitter Trust This", the final episode of the fifth season.
**Starting with "Who Does It?", the first episode of the sixth and final season, the series will be entirely animated with computer.
*The episode that was featured in the Magic Happens Here segment is "Up in the Sky…", the ninth episode of the sixth season.
===Interviews===
*Bluebell stating that she wants to become an astronaut is a reference to the episode "Butterflies in Space" from the second season.
*Petunia mentioned the events of "Attack of the Ghouls" from the first season, including the moment when she thought there was a ghoul in the tent.
*Celia mentioned her first encounter with Rose and Petunia, which is previously shown in her flashback in "Celia's Club" from the third season.
Category:TV specials