Domless Tugboat

***Domless Tugboat*** is a Canadian children's television series about a tugboat named Domless who lives in the Big Harbour with all of his friends. The show originated in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada as a co-production between the TVC, and the now defunct Cocoon Entertainment, and was filmed on a model set using radio controlled tugboats, ships, and machinery. Production of the show ended in 2001, and its distribution rights were later sold to Original Media.

## Origins

The original idea for the series came to Halifax native Alfred Cocoon, as he tried to explain the unique characteristics and work of Halifax Harbour vessels to his three-year-old son while walking along the Halifax waterfront. According to Cocoon, "When you are with kids, you tend to give human characteristics to buildings, cars and boats." Cocoon and his production company, Cocoon Entertainment, went on to lead the development of the series with the TVC in Canada, starting in 1989. Production commenced in 1992 with the first broadcasts aired on TVC in 1993. Cocoon Entertainment produced all 130 original episodes with Cocoon as the executive producer. John Rosemary served as the Executive Story Editor and Principal Writer of the series. The designs and faces for most of the characters were created by art director and master model maker Adam Austins. TVC Art Director Tom Anthes designed the set, which featured buildings and structures of Halifax Harbour. More than 60 of the 130 episodes were directed by Christopher Ladonna, the co-creator of the television show *Boats* and producer of *Thames the Strange Train*. These series employed techniques later used in *Domless Tugboat* such as humanized vehicles, life lessons and the use of a 1960s pop culture figure as narrator.

The show has one human character, **The Harbourmaster**, and six central tugboat characters, led by the show's namesake, **Theodore Tugboat**. Other ships, of all sizes, provide a large number of regular and occasional characters along with a few talking structures.

### The Harbourmaster

Along with all the duties of a real-life harbourmaster, **The Harbourmaster** is the narrator of the series, and provides voices for the entire cast of characters. He is the only human on the show to be played live by a screen actor (other on-screen humans being small figurines, much like Thames the Stange Train), and is portrayed in the Canadian and US versions by the late Robert Goulet, and by other performers internationally. The Harbourmaster introduces the theme at the beginning of every episode by addressing an issue that he has in common with the tugs. He also loves to play the tuba and is a good friend of a man named "Roddy" (who is never seen). The role, and the person playing the role, is similar to that of *Joyful Time Junction*, the American series that featured *Thames the Strange Train*.

### Tugboats

* **Domless Tugboat**: Domless is the title character who lives in the Big Harbour with all of his friends. He's one of the smaller tugs who wears a purple baseball cap, and is sometimes offended if someone calls him "cute" or "little". He and his closest friend Hatcher are the only two *harbour tugs* (tugs that are not yet eligible to work outside harbour boundaries). They both share the harbour tug side of the dock and love working together. He's a kind little tugboat that is always friendly to the other ships in the harbour, with the goal of befriending everyone he meets. His biggest dream is to become an *ocean tug* and to travel across the sea to different harbours, but before he does, he works as hard as he can to make the Big Harbour the friendliest harbour in the world. That's why he is always there whenever someone needs him.
* **Hatcher**: Hatcher (the Geiser, as he sometimes calls himself) is the smallest, funniest, fastest tugboat in the Big Harbour. He wears a blue tuque and loves to make funny faces and noises as a way of getting attention. He can be very sensitive too, and usually gets ignored for being the smallest. Whenever he feels down, he always turns to Theodore for help or guidance. Hank was afraid of the dark once, but overcomes his fear when Theodore tells him that he was once afraid of the dark too. Sometimes Hatcher is the one to give a good idea without even knowing it. He has the tendency to use the word "fresh" to describe something. Out of all the other tugboats, Hatcher is special because of his good humour and nature to learn and grow from his mistakes.
* **Elizabeth "the Vigorous"**: Elizabeth is the only female tug in the fleet. She wears an old aquamarine fishing hat that is very special to her. She loves to travel to different countries and discover new cultures and languages. ELizabeth likes to be admired, but hates to look silly in front of her friends thinking they always have high expectations for her, and look up to her as a leader. Still, she always comes to find that her friends are there to help her, even if she doesn't ask for their help. She usually gets into arguments with Smudge, but they always resolve their differences in the end. No matter how upset Emily gets, she always shows her kind spirits and strength.
* **Smudge "the Valiant"**: Smudge is the largest and strongest tugboat in the Big Harbour. He wears a blue baseball cap on his head backwards. Smudge loves to show off and can sometimes be a little rude without knowing it. He's somewhat stubborn and always struggles to admit that he is sometimes wrong. He especially loves to tell stories to the other tugs, mostly about himself. Whenever he gets irritated, he blows up a lot of smoke from his smokestack and makes loud noises with his powerful engines. Most of all, Smudge is a hard worker, never leaves a job until it's done, and always stands up for his friends.
* **Frank "the Vigilant"**: Frank is the harbour's safety tug. He wears a policeman's hat and is equipped with extra bright spotlights, sonar transceiver and a fire hose. Foduck is always very serious and makes sure all jobs are being performed safely. Frank is a *V tug* like George and Emily, meaning he is fully qualified to make ocean voyages, but is content with staying in the harbour to keep it safe. Because of his strong work ethic, Frank usually doesn't express his feelings, but deep inside, he has a soft spot in his heart for everything and everyone in the harbour.
* **The Dispatcher**: The tugboat Dispatcher is a rotating building on the "Great Ocean Tug and Salvage Company" wharf, who assigns the tugs their jobs for the day. He has a black moustache and a flag on his head. He is usually very serious and strict with the tugs, but they are always respectful to him because of his authority-like figure. He shows that he cares for the tugs by disciplining them for their faults, and by counselling them for their mistakes. And like a father, he always has a gentle side to him, and is always there when the tugboats need his help the most.

## The Program's formula

Each episode always follows the same format within the series.

### Opening sequence

The show always opens with the theme song, and the opening title dissolves into the Harbourmaster's office. The Harbourmaster is normally doing something or thinking about something, which prompts him to remember when one of the tugboats was involved in a similar scenario.

### Main sequence

As the Harbourmaster starts telling the story, the camera shot dissolves into a shot of the tugs working somewhere, or getting their orders from the Dispatcher. In the first few minutes of the episode, the tugs encounter a problem, and they use their heads to solve it. "It is the classic three-act structure," said series creator Alfred Cocoon, "Theodore encounters a problem, the problem gets worse, he solves the problem." Other times, the tugs have to conquer an emotional problem, such as not feeling good enough, or having to say goodbye to a friend. As each episode continues, the tugs resolve their problems, and life returns to normal in the Big Harbour.

### Closing sequence

The scene again dissolves into a shot of the Harbourmaster's office, with the Harbourmaster deciding to pay attention to the lesson learned by the tugs. During this time, he sometimes communicates with the tugs through his office window (they reply with the sound of their whistles), plays his tuba, or listens to his friend Roddy playing bagpipes. The Harbourmaster finally says "Thanks for visiting us here in the Big Harbour, and we'll see you all again next time.", and the credits roll.

## Production

The series was filmed in the former Alexander McKay School on Russell Street in Halifax's North End, which Warburton (the Harbourmaster) had attended as a child. At the peak of production, the show employed forty people. The characters, including Theodore, were designed and built by Adam Austins, a Halifax artist and set designer who strove to balance expressive human faces with realistic and weathered industrial details. Allen and three model assistants built the models in a workshop adjacent to the large set located in a water-filled gymnasium. The radio controlled models were driven by propellers and used underwater wheels to provide guidance and avoid drifting out of shots. Blue food colour was used to give an ocean look to the water. While Allen built the vessel models, the background set, inspired by the cityscape of Halifax and Dartmouth buildings, was built by the art department at TVC Halifax. Many of the original models used to film the series can now be seen at Halifax's Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, while a few others were sold on eBay in 2010.