The American Broadcasting Company coined the term After School Special (sometimes rendered Afterschool Special) in 1972[1] with a series of television films, usually dealing with controversial or socially relevant issues, that were generally broadcast in the late afternoon and meant to be viewed by school-age children, particularly teenagers.[2] The specials were generally broadcast four to six times during the school year, pre-empting local programming that would usually follow the network schedule in the late afternoon hours. ABC's series ran from 1972 to 1997.[citation needed]
Competitors
editCBS distributed its own productions as the CBS Afternoon Playhouse (later known as CBS Schoolbreak Special). It also had a program called Famous Classic Tales, which aired Australian cartoons that were adapted from literature books (similar to Family Classic Tales). NBC had after-school programs under the umbrella title Special Treat. ABC had the ABC Afterschool Special; similar programs included The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie and the ABC Weekend Special.[citation needed]
Legacy
editThe cult TV show Strangers with Candy and its 2005 feature film adaptation, featuring Amy Sedaris as an ex-con, prostitute, and junkie, spoofs after-school special conventions.[3]
See also
edit- Degrassi (franchise)
- 13 Reasons Why
- Last of the Curlews – The very first ABC Afterschool Special (1972), and one of a very few animated ones.
- Public information film – In the UK, extended versions of these were shown in schools. These were often about safety.
- Schoolhouse Rock!
- Very special episode
- WonderWorks – Produced several after-school-type specials for PBS
References
edit- ^ "Retroland | ABC Afterschool Special". Retroland, Inc. 2004-07-16. Archived from the original on 2007-04-16. Retrieved 2015-09-12.
- ^ Traumatic Episodes: A History of the ABC Afterschool Special | Mental Floss
- ^ "Strangers With Candy". AV Club.
Bibliography
editExternal links
edit- Complete list of ABC After School Specials at the Internet Movie Database
- Complete list of CBS Schoolbreak Specials at the Internet Movie Database
- Partial list of NBC Special Treat episodes at the Internet Movie Database
- Reviews of a DVD collection of ABC After School Specials
- "The Strange Afterlife of the After School Special" by Joanna Weiss, The Boston Globe, January 1, 2006
- "My Dad Lives in a Downtown Hotel: The Subtle Brilliance of the After School Special" by Marisa Meltzer, Slate, July 20, 2006