Cartoonito is a brand name used by Warner Bros. Discovery for a collection of television networks and programming blocks aimed at preschool children. The name combines the "cartoon" with the Spanish suffix "ito", meaning "small".
, Cartoonito exists as a TV channel across Europe (including the United Kingdom and Ireland, where it originated), the Middle East, Africa, Latin America, and Southeast Asia; as a block on Cartoon Network in the UK, the Middle East, Turkey, the United States, Japan, the Philippines, Taiwan, South Korea, and South Asia; and as a block on Boomerang in Oceania.
Background
Precursors (1996–2006)
Educational blocks (1996–2005) In 1996, Cartoon Network decided to create a Sunday morning block of preschool programs. The series featured Big Bag, a live-action/puppet television program made by the Children's Television Workshop (known for Sesame Street), Small World, a children's animated anthology show/variety show, and Cave Kids (a Hanna-Barbera-produced cartoon spin-off starring Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm).
Small World aired in several countries (except Japan, China, and Korea) and syndicated many of their respective shows. Cave Kids only ran from September to November of that year. However, Big Bag ran until 1998, while Small World ran until c. 2002 before HBO's deal with Sesame Workshop.
In 1997 (just the year after the merger of Turner Broadcasting System with Time Warner), Warner Bros. Animation announced Baby Looney Tunes, an original preschool series inspired by a line of pre-existing merchandise and had finished production by January 2001 with its pilot aired on 3 June of that year. Once the pilot proved a success, work on Baby Looney Tunes resumed, and it premiered on the Kids' WB block 28 July 2001. However, the series officially ran on Cartoon Network from 2002 to 2005, while continuing its original run international until 16 October 2006.
Tiny TV (2003–2006)
In 2003, Cartoon Network's Indian counterpart introduced Tiny TV, a weekday morning block of acquired preschool cartoons such as Bob the Builder, Kipper, Noddy, and Oswald. By 2006, it had expanded to Cartoon Network and Boomerang channels in Australia, Southeast Asia, and Latin America. Each block carried its own lineup of programs, with only a few shared between feeds. Tiny TV was discontinued internationally in 2007, but was temporarily revived on POGO (a sister channel to Cartoon Network India) in 2010.
Tickle-U (2005–2006) Tickle-U was Cartoon Network's first attempt at an official weekday-morning preschool programming block, premiering on August 22, 2005, and aired from 9 to 11 a.m. ET/PT. Programs on the line-up included acquired shows such as two Teletoon/Treehouse TV series, with one being a co-production (Harry and His Bucket Full of Dinosaurs and Gerald McBoing-Boing), and British shows (Gordon the Garden Gnome, Peppa Pig, Little Robots, and Yoko! Jakamoko! Toto!). Unlike their original counterparts, the British-acquired shows featured an American voice cast. The only original series was Firehouse Tales, produced by Warner Bros. Animation.
It featured domestic and foreign-imported series targeted at preschool-age children like its competitors Nick Jr. (on Nickelodeon) and Playhouse Disney (now Disney Junior on Disney Channel). The hosts were two animated CGI characters: a red butterfly-like creature named Pipoca (voiced by Ariel Winter) and a yellow rabbit-like creature named Henderson (voiced by Tom Kenny).
The block came under fire by the CCFC, which criticized its marketing strategies. After Tickle-U closed on January 13, 2006, some of its programmings still aired on Cartoon Network until 2007 and as part of the schedule of the British variation of Cartoonito. The promos for the shows featured on the block had Tickle-U branding and the mascots of the block were all replaced by shots of the main view of the City of Townsville from The Powerpuff Girls (which was taken from Cartoon Network's on-air presentation from 2004–2007). It was the last attempt at a preschool programming block until Cartoonito in 2021 on both Cartoon Network and HBO Max.
History
Launch (2006–2011)