Wikipedia

Timon & Pumbaa (TV series)

This article is about the television series. For the characters, see Timon and Pumbaa.

The Lion King's Timon & Pumbaa is an American animated buddy comedy television series created by Walt Disney Television Animation.[1] It was based on Disney's 1994 animated feature film The Lion King, centering on Timon the meerkat and Pumbaa the warthog as they continue to live by their problem-free philosophy hakuna matata. Compared to most other The Lion King media, the tone of the series is more slapstick comedy-oriented.[2]

Timon & Pumbaa
Also known asThe Lion King's Timon & Pumbaa
Genre
Based onThe Lion King
Developed by
  • Bobs Gannaway
  • Tony Craig
Voices of
List
Theme music composer
Opening theme"Hakuna Matata"
Ending theme"Hakuna Matata" (instrumental)
ComposerStephen James Taylor
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons3
No. of episodes85 (171 segments) (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers
  • Tedd Anasti (Season 3)
  • Patsy Cameron (Season 3)
Producers
  • Bobs Gannaway (Seasons 1–2)
  • Tony Craig (Seasons 1–2)
  • Chris Bartleman (Season 3)
  • Blair Peters (Season 3)
EditorJohn Royer
Running time22 minutes
Production companies
Original release
Network
ReleaseSeptember 8, 1995 (1995-09-08) –
September 24, 1999 (1999-09-24)
Related

Ernie Sabella reprised his role as Pumbaa for the show's entire run, while Nathan Lane only reprised his role as Timon in ten episodes, the last of which being "Paraguay Parable".[3]

The show ran for three seasons, with the first two as part of the syndicated The Disney Afternoon block,[4] CBS, and the third season on Toon Disney. It aired from September 8, 1995, to September 24, 1999. It is notably the first Lion King-related media to feature on-screen appearances by humans, as humans did not appear in the film and the subsequent direct-to-video follow-ups. It is also the first of two television series to be based on the film, the second being The Lion Guard (2016–2019).

Bobs Gannaway and Tony Craig, who would later work on shows like 101 Dalmatians: The Series, House of Mouse, and Lilo & Stitch: The Series, served as the show's executive producers for the first two seasons. As of Season 3, the series was produced by Chris Bartleman and Blair Peters, with Tedd and Patsy Cameron-Anasti (who have previously worked on DuckTales and The Little Mermaid TV series) serving as the executive producers.

Premise

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The show stars Timon, a meerkat, and Pumbaa, a warthog, both characters from The Lion King. Taking place after the events of the movie, Timon and Pumbaa continue to live according to the hakuna matata lifestyle, as they venture beyond the Pride Lands in search for wild, wacky adventures.[5][6] From the jungles of Africa to other places around the world, the duo is shown being on various quests and misadventures, either in search for food, fun, valuables, and as well as escape from danger such as predators, encountering various new allies and enemies throughout their journey. Whereas the show focuses on Timon and Pumbaa, four episodes center respectively on Rafiki and the hyena trio Shenzi, Banzai, and Ed, named Rafiki Fables[b] and The Laughing Hyenas, and two episodes are focused on Zazu. Simba makes appearances in some episodes, often accompanying Timon and Pumbaa.[8]

Episodes

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Main article: List of Timon & Pumbaa episodes
SeasonSegmentsEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast airedNetwork
1262513September 8, 1995 (1995-09-08)December 29, 1995 (1995-12-29)Syndicated
2412September 16, 1995 (1995-09-16)December 16, 1995 (1995-12-16)CBS
2242113September 2, 1996 (1996-09-02)November 25, 1996 (1996-11-25)Syndicated
168September 14, 1996 (1996-09-14)November 9, 1996 (1996-11-09)CBS
37839January 1, 1999 (1999-01-01)September 24, 1999 (1999-09-24)Toon Disney

Characters

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Main article: List of The Lion King (franchise) characters

Main

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The Lion King alumni

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The following additional characters from The Lion King appear in this series:

Supporting

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  • Speedy (voiced by Corey Burton imitating Bing Crosby) is a laid-back blue snail who can talk and sing. Timon and Pumbaa originally planned to eat him, but ended up becoming friends with him instead. They often find themselves rushing to have to save Speedy from dangerous situations.
  • Fred (voiced by S. Scott Bullock) is a maniacal meerkat who is an old friend of Timon. He loves to laugh and play around, as well as pulling practical jokes. He often uses Timon and Pumbaa as his victims, although they don't find his jokes very funny.
  • Boss Beaver (voiced by Brad Garrett) is a stereotypical beaver whose life philosophy is the exact opposite of Hakuna Matata. He values hard work and is sometimes too harsh on his employees. He also emphasizes the importance of safe work conditions.
  • Irwin (voiced by Charlie Adler) is a dimwitted, accident-prone penguin whose bad luck seems to be terribly contagious. Timon and Pumbaa became his friends after they were stranded in Antarctica and Irwin had two extra tickets to a cruise ship. They will try to avoid him at all costs.

Antagonists

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  • Quint (voiced by Corey Burton) is Timon and Pumbaa's human archenemy and the main antagonist of the series. He is a man of many disguises and his role varies from episode to episode, from mildly bothersome antagonist to full villain.
  • Toucan Dan (voiced by Jeff Bennett) is a criminal toucan, wanted by the police. He is known for being a sly con-artist and always manages to trick Timon and Pumbaa (or, as seen in his debut episode, only Timon) into helping him in his schemes and cons.
  • Cheetata and Cheetato (voiced by Rob Paulsen and Jim Cummings respectively) are a pair of sophisticated cheetahs who hunt for their prey, enemies of Timon and Pumbaa and of Shenzi, Banzai and Ed. Although hard to tell apart, aside from their voices, Cheetata appears to be more eager and aggressive while Cheetato seems more likely to think things through and is the most conniving.
  • Mr. Bear (voiced by Jim Cummings) is a large brown bear with a very short temperament who Timon and Pumbaa often run into. He can be quite menacing and dangerous, but at least one episode shows that deep inside he is a nice guy.
  • The Three Natives (voiced by Jeff Bennett) are a trio of natives who are really university students. Their "chief" is also a university student, and usually precedes what he says with "Bungala bungala!"
  • Little Jimmy (voiced by Joe Alaskey) is a cute yet dangerous bluebird who is a criminal mastermind. He also has two voices: a cute, innocent voice to pass himself off as a hatchling and a gruff voice to prove his true maturity.

History

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Production

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On January 24, 1995, it was announced that a Lion King television series starring Timon and Pumbaa was set to premiere during the fall, as part of The Disney Afternoon.[9][10] Gary Krisel, who was then president of Walt Disney Television Animation, found Timon and Pumbaa to be the best new comedy team to come on the scene for a long time and that they had the potential to be just as classic as Abbott and Costello, Hope and Crosby, Martin and Lewis, and Nichols and May.[10]

Bobs Gannaway and Tony Craig were the supervising producers for the show, and instead of recreating the lush, lyrical tone of the movie weekly, they decided to shape the series in a more Tex Avery-ish vein. Gannaway explained that he and Craig wanted to expand on Timon and Pumbaa's personalities as a comedy team to keep the series fresh and to keep the show interesting, they decided to not have Timon and Pumbaa be locked into the Serengeti, but allow them to explore the world and meet different kinds of animals.[11] According to one of the show's writers Kevin Campbell, at the beginning of the series, he and Gannaway made a giant list of puns using country names to open the doors on how many places they could go. After figuring out which funny animal or obstacle situation Timon and Pumbaa would face, they used a "Which Animals Live Where" atlas reference book to find where in the world an episode could take place and check a list of country puns they could pick.[7]

The show was one of the last Disney productions to air on CBS, which had a cross-promotion agreement with Disney, as Disney bought ABC in 1996, the same year that this show (and all other Disney properties still airing on CBS at the time) left the network. Also, in 1995, Westinghouse acquired CBS outright for $5.4 billion. As one of the major broadcasting group owners of commercial radio and television stations (as Group W) since 1920, Westinghouse proceeded to transform itself from its legendary role as a diversified conglomerate with a strong industrial heritage into a media giant with its purchase of CBS.[citation needed] Music underscore by Stephen James Taylor featuring frequent use of a microtonal xylophone and pan pipes based on an African tribal tuning. [citation needed]

Animation

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Animation production was done by a consortium of overseas animation studios, including Walt Disney Animation Australia, Toon City, Wang Film Productions, Thai Wang Film Productions, Rough Draft Korea Co., Ltd., Sunmin Image Pictures Co., Sunwoo Animation, Koko Enterprises, Toonz Animation, Gnome Productions, Jaime Diaz Productions, Golden Key Animation, Project X Animation, Shanghai Morning Sun Animation and Studio B Productions.

Broadcast

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The first two seasons of the show aired simultaneously on The Disney Afternoon and CBS, whereas the third and final season aired on Toon Disney. Reruns of the series aired on Disney Channel from 1997 to 2008. Reruns were shown on Toon Disney up until the channel's demise on February 8, 2009. As a result, the show went off the air for three years.

While the show aired on Disney Channel and Toon Disney, certain episodes from its original run were never re-aired or had scenes edited out, likely for content reasons. For example, "Catch Me if You Kenya" originally had a scene with the butterfly collector returning to his tree house from China and threatened Timon and Pumbaa to put them in a collection for releasing the butterflies. That scene was removed from reruns due to his clothing and appearance evoking Asian stereotypes. The scene was eventually reinstated when the show became available on the Disney+ streaming service since its launch on November 12, 2019.[12]

On March 23, 2012, the show returned to television when Disney Junior was launched as its own channel. However, only selected episodes were shown and some episodes were abruptly edited (presumably due to scenes being deemed inappropriate for preschoolers). As of 2014, the show was removed from the channel. In Russia, however, the show continued to air until the channel closed in 2022.

Marketing

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Upon its premiere in the United States, the show was accompanied with a marketing campaign, which include promotional tie-ins with Burger King (the same promotional partner for the original theatrical and home video releases of The Lion King), KFC and Campbell's through its Franco-American brand's SpaghettiOs.[13][14][15]

Music

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Name Notes
"The Lion Sleeps Tonight" Music video
"Yummy Yummy Yummy" Music video
"Stand by Me" Music video
"Alone Together" From the episode "Once Upon a Timon"
"Beethoven's Whiff" Musical episode
"Bumble In The Jungle" Musical episode

Home media

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VHS releases

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North American releases

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Six VHS cassettes containing 18 episodes were released in the United States and Canada under the name Timon & Pumbaa's Wild Adventures. Also in the same two North American countries, a double-feature LaserDisc contains the series' first two volumes, Hangin' with Baby and Grub's On.

VHS name Season(s) Episode count Release date Episodes include Stock Number
Hangin' With Baby[16] 1 3 January 30, 1996
  • "Never Everglades"
  • "To Kilimanjaro Bird"
  • "Rafiki Fables: Good Mousekeeping"
 6705
Grub's On[17]
  • "Saskatchewan Catch"
  • "French Fried"
  • "The Laughing Hyenas: Big Top Breakfast"
 6706
True Guts[18]
  • "The Pain in Spain"
  • "How to Beat the High Costa Rica"
  • "The Laughing Hyenas: Cooked Goose"
 6709
Don't Get Mad, Get Happy[19] May 8, 1996
  • "Yosemite Remedy"
  • "Kenya Be My Friend?"
  • "Rafiki Fables: The Sky Is Calling"
 6711
Live & Learn![20]
  • "The Law of the Jungle"
  • "Uganda Be an Elephant"
  • "Be More Pacific"
 7646
Quit Buggin' Me[21]
  • "Frantic Atlantic"
  • "Swiss Missed"
  • "Going Uruguay"
 7647

International releases

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Three titles containing 21 episodes were released in Europe, Australia and New Zealand, Asia, the Middle East, South Africa, and South America each containing six episodes and a music video. These three titles were released on VHS, LaserDisc, Video CD and DVD. The first release, Around the World with Timon And Pumbaa, features an original story told through bridging sequences in which, after Pumbaa develops amnesia from a lightning strike, Timon tries to restore his friend's memory through the episodes featured on that video.

VHS Name Episode Titles Release Date
Around the World with Timon & Pumbaa "Boara Boara"
"Yukon Con"
"Saskatchewan Catch"
"Stand by Me" (music video episode)
"Brazil Nuts"
"Truth or Zaire"
"Never Everglades"		 September 12, 1996
Re-released: June 7, 2004
Dining Out with Timon & Pumbaa "French Fried"
"Russia Hour"
"Swiss Missed"
"To Kilimanjaro Bird"
"Don't Break the China"
"Rocky Mountain Lie"
"Yummy Yummy Yummy" (music video episode)		 August 15, 1997
Re-released: March 14, 2005
On Holiday with Timon & Pumbaa "Kenya Be My Friend?"
"South Sea Sick"
"Uganda Be an Elephant"
"The Pain in Spain"
"How to Beat the High Costa Rica"
"You Ghana Join the Club"
"The Lion Sleeps Tonight" (music video episode)		 August 15, 1997
Re-released: March 14, 2005

Video on demand

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United States

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The series was made available in its entirety on Disney+ since its November 12, 2019 launch, in remastered high definition.[12]

International

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The first two seasons of the show was made available on the DisneyLife streaming service in the United Kingdom.[22]

The entire series is currently available for purchase on Amazon Instant Video in Germany.[23]

The series is available in its entirety on Disney+, where the streaming service is available.

Accolades

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Year Award Category Nominee(s) Result
1996 Daytime Emmy Awards[24][25] Outstanding Sound Mixing - Special Class Melissa Ellis

Jim Hodson

Dan Hiland

Joseph D. Citarella

Bill Koepnick

Deb Adair

Allen L. Stone

Nominated
Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program Nathan Lane
  • For playing Timon
 Won
Ernie Sabella
  • For playing Pumbaa
 Nominated
1997 Outstanding Individual in Animation Kexx Singleton
  • For the episode "Beethoven's Whiff"
 Won
Outstanding Sound Mixing - Special Class Deb Adair

Jim Hodson

Melissa Ellis

Michael Beiriger

Dan Hiland

Joseph D. Citarella

Allen L. Stone

Michael Jiron

Won
Outstanding Music Direction and Composition Stephen James Taylor Nominated
Outstanding Sound Editing - Special Class Bill Kean

Thomas A. Harris

Fil Brown

David Lynch

Robbi Smith

Brian F. Mars

Eric Hertsguaard

Kris Daly

Michael Warner

Phyllis Ginter

William Griggs

Jennifer Mertens

Nominated
Annie Awards[26] Best Individual Achievement: Storyboarding in a TV Production Bob Logan
  • For the episode "Bumble in the Jungle"
 Nominated
Best Individual Achievement: Directing in a TV Production Roberts Gannaway
Tony Craig
  • For the episode "Bumble in the Jungle + Beethoven's Whiff / Mind Over Matterhorn"
 Nominated
Best Achievement in Production Design Mike Moon
  • For the episode "Bumble in the Jungle"
 Nominated
Kexx Singleton
  • For the episode "Beethoven's Whiff"
 Nominated
Sy Thomas Tex
  • For the episode "Bumble in the Jungle"
 Nominated
Best Individual Achievement: Character Animation Bob Baxter Nominated
Humanitas Prize[27] Children's Animation Roberts Gannaway
  • For the episode "Once Upon a Timon"
 Nominated
2000 Golden Globe Awards[28] Best Sound Editing - Television Animated Series - Sound Jennifer Mertens

Charles Rychwalski

Eric Hertsguaard

Rick Hammel

Kenneth Young

David Lynch

  • For the episode "War Hogs / The Big No Sleep"
 Nominated
Best Sound Editing - Television Animation - Music Fil Brown
Liz Lachman
  • For the episode "Hot Air Buffoons"
 Nominated
Brian F. Mars
Liz Lachman
  • For the episode "Steel Hog / Dealer's Choice Cut"
 Nominated

Other media

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Video games

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Game Publisher Platform Release date
Timon & Pumbaa's Jungle Games THQ (SNES)
Disney Interactive (PC) 		Super NES
Microsoft Windows 		November 1997 (SNES)
December 15, 1995 (Windows)

Impact and legacy

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Some of the show's crew returned for The Lion King II: Simba's Pride, The Lion King 1½, and The Lion Guard. Show writer Ford Riley went on to develop the latter, and has since been a series creator, writer and lyricist on many Disney properties.[29] Kevin Schon, who voiced Timon in the series as of its second season, reprised his role as the character in The Lion Guard (as well as its pilot film), along with some other related media, such as House of Mouse. Edward Hibbert continued to voice Zazu in the two direct-to-video follow-ups to The Lion King.

Much of the show's staff members (including executive producers Tony Craig and Bobs Gannaway) went on to work on House of Mouse and Lilo & Stitch: The Series.

References in other media

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Notes

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  1. ^ Animation outsourced to Jaime Diaz Productions, Koko Enterprises, Rough Draft Korea, Sunmin Image Pictures, Sunwoo Animation, Toon City, Toonz Animation, Walt Disney Animation Australia, Studio B Productions, Morning Sun Animation and Wang Film Productions.
  2. ^ Often credited as Rafiki's Fables.[2][7]

References

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  1. ^ Perlmutter, David (2018). The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 361–362. ISBN 978-1538103739.
  2. ^ a b "Rare PRODUCTION Cels of Disney's The Lion King's Timon and Pumbaa". WorthPoint. Archived from the original on 2023-06-26. Retrieved 2023-06-26.
  3. ^ Hyatt, Wesley (1997). The Encyclopedia of Daytime Television. Watson-Guptill Publications. p. 262. ISBN 978-0823083152. Retrieved 19 March 2020.
  4. ^ Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nd ed.). McFarland & Co. pp. 498–499. ISBN 978-1476665993.
  5. ^ "18 Disney movies that were turned into TV shows". Insider. 27 August 2019. Archived from the original on 30 March 2021. Retrieved 24 June 2023. Accessed 27 August 2019.
  6. ^ "Press-Telegram TV (1995, Paramount Ca) September 3-9 Disney Timon & Pumbaa Cover". eBay. Archived from the original on 2023-06-24. Retrieved 2023-06-24.
  7. ^ a b "The Lion King's Timon & Pumbaa Debuts in Syndication". D23. 8 September 1995. Archived from the original on 30 November 2020. Retrieved 10 January 2021. Accessed 22 August 2019.
  8. ^ Disney's Retired Cartoons (YouTube video). Fastpass Facts. 4 July 2019. Event occurs at 19:17-19:37. Archived from the original on 26 March 2020. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
  9. ^ "Disney's 'Lion King' Roars Off to Television". SFGate. 24 January 1995. Accessed 24 January 1995.
  10. ^ a b "'TIMON & PUMBAA' TV SHOW TO FEATURE 'LION KING' PAIR". Orlando Sentinel. 24 January 1995. Accessed 24 January 1995.
  11. ^ "Disney's Little Big Screen: Turning Animated Features Into TV Series". Animation World Magazine. Archived from the original on 2020-11-25. Retrieved 2021-01-10. Accessed September 1998.
  12. ^ a b Timon & Pumbaa on Disney+  
  13. ^ Burger King Kids Club Commercial Featuring Timon & Pumbaa Toys (YouTube video). Weird And Forgotten. Archived from the original on 2024-08-05.
  14. ^ Kentucky Fried Chicken - 1996 -- KFC Kid's Meal & Timone and Pumbaa Promotion Commercial (YouTube video). Mayor McCheese.
  15. ^ Spaghetti Os - Mouth Mamba with Timon and Pumbaa Tattoos - 1996 (YouTube video). Commercial Rewind. Archived from the original on 2024-08-05.
  16. ^ Timon & Pumbaa: Hangin With Baby [VHS]: Ernie Sabella, Kevin Schon, Jim Cummings, Quinton Flynn, Jeff Bennett, Corey Burton, Rob Paulsen, Frank Welker, Tress MacNeille, Robert Guillaume, Nathan Lane, Charles Adler, Chris Henderson, Daryl G. Nickens, James W. Bates, Joan Considine Johnson, Kati Rocky, Sib Ventress: Movies & TV. ASIN 6303925332.
  17. ^ Timon & Pumbaa: Grub's on [VHS]: Ernie Sabella, Kevin Schon, Jim Cummings, Quinton Flynn, Jeff Bennett, Corey Burton, Rob Paulsen, Frank Welker, Tress MacNeille, Robert Guillaume, Nathan Lane, Charles Adler, Chris Henderson, Daryl G. Nickens, James W. Bates, Joan Considine Johnson, Kati Rocky, Sib Ventress: Movies & TV. ASIN 6303925324.
  18. ^ Timon & Pumbaa: True Guts [VHS]: Ernie Sabella, Kevin Schon, Jim Cummings, Quinton Flynn, Jeff Bennett, Corey Burton, Rob Paulsen, Frank Welker, Tress MacNeille, Robert Guillaume, Nathan Lane, Charles Adler, Chris Henderson, Daryl G. Nickens, James W. Bates, Joan Considine Johnson, Kati Rocky, Sib Ventress: Movies & TV. ASIN 6303925340.
  19. ^ Timon & Pumbaa: Don't Get Mad [VHS]: Ernie Sabella, Kevin Schon, Jim Cummings, Quinton Flynn, Jeff Bennett, Corey Burton, Rob Paulsen, Frank Welker, Tress MacNeille, Robert Guillaume, Nathan Lane, Charles Adler, Chris Henderson, Daryl G. Nickens, James W. Bates, Joan Considine Johnson, Kati Rocky, Sib Ventress: Movies & TV. ASIN 6304032129.
  20. ^ Timon & Pumbaa: Live & Learn [VHS]: Ernie Sabella, Kevin Schon, Jim Cummings, Quinton Flynn, Jeff Bennett, Corey Burton, Rob Paulsen, Frank Welker, Tress MacNeille, Robert Guillaume, Nathan Lane, Charles Adler, Chris Henderson, Daryl G. Nickens, James W. Bates, Joan Considine Johnson, Kati Rocky, Sib Ventress: Movies & TV. ASIN 6304032137.
  21. ^ Timon & Pumbaa: Quit Buggin Me [VHS]: Ernie Sabella, Kevin Schon, Jim Cummings, Quinton Flynn, Jeff Bennett, Corey Burton, Rob Paulsen, Frank Welker, Tress MacNeille, Robert Guillaume, Nathan Lane, Charles Adler, Chris Henderson, Daryl G. Nickens, James W. Bates, Joan Considine Johnson, Kati Rocky, Sib Ventress: Movies & TV. ASIN 6304032153.
  22. ^ "What Disney movies and TV shows are available on DisneyLife in the UK?". Vodzilla.co. Archived from the original on 2021-01-15. Retrieved 2021-01-10.
  23. ^ "Disneys Abenteuer mit Timon und Pumbaa - Prime Video". Amazon.de. Archived from the original on 2024-08-11. Retrieved 2021-01-10.
  24. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2023-06-16. Retrieved 2023-06-16.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  25. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2023-06-16. Retrieved 2023-06-16.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  26. ^ disney Toons Studios Australia 1988 - 2006 (YouTube video). little shepherd. 3 March 2014.
  27. ^ "Humanitas Prize". IMDb. Archived from the original on 2022-03-01. Retrieved 2020-03-01.
  28. ^ "Golden Globe Awards". IMDb. Archived from the original on 2024-08-29. Retrieved 2020-03-01.
  29. ^ "Returning to "The Lion King" Pride Lands with Showrunner Ford Riley". Creative Content Wire. December 2015.[permanent dead link‍]
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