Animal Jam (TV series)

***Animal Jam*** is an American educational children's television series created by John Derevlany (who also wrote most of the episodes) and produced by The Jim Henson Company which first aired from February 24 to April 4, 2003.

## Production, development and broadcast
The show featured many innovations in puppet design and production from the Jim Henson Company.

The series premiered on TLC from February 24, 2003 until 2005, and ran on Discovery Kids until December 2006.

In Australia, the series aired on ABC Kids beginning on April 25, 2006 until August 10, 2007.

## Characters
* Edi, a zebra who hosts the Jungle Jam Room.
* Waffle, a monkey who dresses like a cowboy.
* Bozark, an elephant who is the Animal Jam Superstar.
* DJ 1, a panda who serves as one of the three DJs.
* DJ 2, a koala who acts as one of the three DJs.
* DJ 3, a leopard who serves as one of the three DJs.
* Pancake, a water buffalo who is Waffle's adoptive sister.

## Episodes
# Body Talk () 
# Walk the Walk ()
# Love 'Em and Leap 'Em ()
# Side by Side by Side ()
# Not So Lost in Space ()
# Pretzel Monkey and Cheese Dip to the Rescue ()
# The Quick, the Slow and the Waffle ()
# The Right Size for You ()
# The Not So Moving Episode ()
# Every Which Way But Forward ()
# Take a Seat, Please ()
# Swimmin' (Twistin' Too) and Flying ()
# I Am the Rain ()
# Boo Day () 
# Battle of the Animal Jam Bands ()
# Touched by a Monkey ()
# Rockin' and Rollin' ()
# Crouching Edi, Hidden Waffle ()
# Snow Day ()
# On the Spot ()
# Animal Jam Olympics ()
# The Parade Episode ()
# Edi Finds Her Groove ()
# Everything's Springin' Up! ()
# A Hug a Day ()
# Bright Lights, Big Shadow () 
# Hands Across Animal Jam ()
# A Water Buffalo Named Pancake ()
# Waffle Jam! ()
# Dance It Out! ()

## Cast
The following are *Animal Jam*'s puppeteers:

* Rickey Boyd – Waffle
* Leslie Carrara-Rudolph – Edi, Pancake (voice)
* John Kennedy – DJ 1, Pancake (puppeteer)
* David Maida – Bozark
* Alison Mork – Additional Puppeteer
* Andy Stone – DJ 3
* John Tartaglia – DJ 2

### Dancers
* Mark Augustine
* Thea Cabreros
* Clara Kruger
* Spencer Locke
* Gizelle Pagan
* Steven Willsey

## Later appearances
* Pancake the Water Buffalo appears as "Pancake Buffalo" in the *Hannah Montana* episode "Hannah in the Street with Diamonds" performed by Victor Yerrid and voiced by Susie Geiser. Pancake is the beloved puppet star of the local Malibu kids' series called "The Pancake Buffalo Show". When Hannah Montana receives a diamond on a Hollywood street modeled after the Hollywood Walk of Fame, she requests the location be moved due to overly-frequent business in the area and learns that the area her diamond was originally intended to be placed was given to Pancake Buffalo. When Miley attempts to ask the kindly puppeteer of Pancake named Cindy Merriwether (played by Edie McClurg) to switch diamonds, she only communicates (rudely) through Pancake and refuses. Hannah then schemes to switch Pancake's dismal Street Diamond location with Hannah Montana's by playing on the childhood nostalgic fondness of her show by Hollywood Parade of Street Diamonds Committee Chairman Randall Harrison (played by Michael Boatman). She is successful, but ultimately a porta-john is placed directly over the newly moved Diamond much to Miley's astonished joy. Pancake is later seen "occupying" the stall and shooing away anyone who wishes to make use of it.
* The puppets for Waffle the Cow-Monkey, DJ 1, DJ 2, DJ 3, and Pancake the Water Buffalo made appearances in *Puppet Up!*
* Bozark the Elephant appeared in the movie *Old Dogs*. He alongside Scales the Dragon from the pilot to "Little Mermaid's Island" and Beak and YesNo from the proposed show "Muppetmobile" were seen as part of Jimmy Lunchbox's show.
* The puppet for Waffle the Cow-Monkey appeared in *No, You Shut Up!* and *The Happytime Murders*.

## Other websites
* Animal Jam at Internet Movie Database