Changes: Shining Time Station

Revision as of 06:08, 17 June 2022

This article is about the television show. You may be looking for the station, the town or the song.

Shining Time Station is the American spin-off of Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends.

Cast

Regulars

Didi Conn as Stacy Jones
Brian O'Connor as Horace Schemer

First Series Regulars

Ringo Starr as Mr. Conductor
Leonard Jackson as Henry "Harry" Cupper
Jason Woliner as Matthew "Matt" Jones
Nicole Leach as Tanya Cupper

Christmas Special Characters

Ardon Bess as Tucker Cupper
Lloyd Bridges as Mr. Nicholas
Judy Marshak as Claire
Rachael Miner as Vickie

Second and Third Series Regulars

George Carlin as Mr. Conductor
Erica Luttrell as Kara Cupper
Ari Magder as Dan Jones
Danielle Marcot as Becky
Tom Jackson as Billy Twofeathers

Recurring Characters

Jerome Dempsey as Mayor Osgood Bob Flopdinger
Mart Hulswit as J.B. King, Esq.
Bobo Lewis as Midge Smoot
Barbara Hamilton as Ginny Johnson
Johnathan Shapiro as Schemee
Gerald Parkes as Barton Winslow
Aurelio Padrón as Felix Perez

The Jukebox Puppet Band

Olga Marin as Didi
Wayne White as Tex (1989)
Alan Semok as Tex (1990–1995)
Craig Marin as Rex and JJ Silvers
Jonathan Freeman as Tito Swing
Alan Semok/Peter Baird/Vanesse Thomas as Grace the Bass (1989-1990)
Peter Baird/Kenny Miele/Vaneese Thomas as Grace the Bass (1991-1995)

Broadcast History

PBS (1989-1997)
YTV (1991-1999)
Channel 2 (1992-1994)
Fox Family (1998-1999)
Nick Jr. (Nickelodeon) (2000)

Note: Channel 2, Fox Family and Nick Jr. only aired the second and third seasons of Shining Time Station. Fox Family also used the opening credits from the family specials.

Behind the Scenes

Shining Time Station was created to introduce Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends to American audiences, as The Railway Series has never been published book-by-book in the United States (only compilation volumes have been released) until the late 1990s but only ten were published. Another reason was due to stricter broadcasting schedules, meaning episodes were broadcasted to a mere 28 minutes rather five minutes.
Schemer (portrayed by Brian O’Connor), is the only major adult character from the series to not appear in Thomas and the Magic Railroad, though O’Connor reprised the role in a fan parody of the film much later.
Kevin Roth sang the theme song that played during the opening and closing credits of the show.
The footage of the Rainbow Sun in the opening and closing credits was reused from the 1981 promotional film, Eighty Four Forty Four by Pentrex.
All of the Shining Time Station episodes only ever had three sets: the main room of the station, the workshop and the interior of the station's jukebox where the Jukebox Band resided. This changed in the specials, in which scenes took place outside, in the signal house and in a large basement-type room that may or may not be part of the station building.
Didi, the female drummer of the Jukebox Band, is shown to have a crush on Mr. Conductor, who learns about this in One in the Family and they apparently begin dating.
Mr. Conductor has various forms of his magic gold dust, including some for teleportation, forgetfulness, love, sleep and pranks. It also has life-giving qualities and can make inanimate objects come alive. His whistle also has some magic and is used to start a Thomas story by means of blowing.
A few things regarding Mr. Conductor occur in the Family Specials:
- He shows that he can appear and interact with the Jukebox Band characters.
- He has a name tag on his uniform.
Whistles and Sneezes and most episodes of the second series are the only episodes that were never narrated by Ringo Starr in the US although the US Ringo Starr narrations of Whistles and Sneezes, and most episodes of Series 2 were planned but cancelled due to Ringo Starr having left the series after 1990 to focus on his music career and tour with The All Starr Band, though he often praises his work on the show.
In the episode Washout, when Mr. Conductor tells the story Bertie's Chase, the beginning (Edward waiting for Thomas) was omitted. This scene was also omitted from the James in a Mess picture book. However, in the Mr. Conductor's Thomas Tales episode, Splish, Splash, Splosh, and in all VHS and DVD releases, the episode is in its entirety.
The show aired on Nickelodeon's Nick Jr. block in the summer of 2000 to promote Thomas and the Magic Railroad.
When the show aired on Fox Family, it used the credits from the television specials, but episodes were edited significantly so they could fit the time slot, and even though the series originally aired on PBS the Fox Family airings added commercial interruptions as well.
The Indian Valley Railroad (where the station is located) is an actual defunct short line in California. It was constructed to serve the Engels Copper Mine, the largest copper mine in California and was a branch connection of The Union Pacific Railroad at Paxton, California. Indian Valley is where the mine was located.
Throughout the series, entire episodes (and at one point, an entire season) were knocked out of continuity due to flashbacks from later episodes. For example, the series finale, How the Station Got Its Name changed the continuity of the entire first season.
On the Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends VHS tapes from Thomas Gets Tricked and Other Stories to Better Late Than Never and Other Stories, the Thomas stories featured on the tapes were in order from their Shining Time Station air dates from the first season. All the tapes including the first ones always advertised "As Seen on Shining Time Station" some copies even including the Shining Time Station Sun on the top right corner it was then stopped after the release of James Goes Buzz Buzz and Other Thomas Stories when the show ended the previous year. Later prints of the VHS covers from Thomas Gets Tricked to James Goes Buzz Buzz would take out these advertisements.
The episodes Daisy and Percy's Predicament never aired on Shining Time Station as co-creator Rick Siggelkow disapproved of Daisy's design. This led to both episodes being released on the VHS, Daisy and Other Thomas Stories. Furthermore, her role in the episode Mavis was given to Diesel for this very reason.^[1]
When the second and third seasons aired in New Zealand, the third series VHS releases of Thomas in that country used George Carlin's narrations and advertised "Stories as seen on Shining Time Station" at the bottom of the front cover.
When George Carlin assumed the role of Mr. Conductor in the second season, all Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends stories from the first and second seasons were re-dubbed by him, although not all of them aired on television.
Restored clips from Shining Time Station could be seen at the Explore the Rails travelling exhibit.
After Shining Time Station, the Jukebox that was shown in Schemer's Arcade was featured in the series, The Doodlebops, and is currently in the possession of Twitter user, @NorthernStarCA.
According to Britt Allcroft, she and Rick Siggelkow are currently working on releasing Shining Time Station onto DVD. However, Siggelkow confirmed in 2021 that the masters of Shining Time Station and Thomas are with Mattel, and no other news regarding a DVD release for the series has been announced, so it is currently unknown if the DVD project will be completed.

Trivia

The show was funded by Amtrak for the standard funding, Pentrex for the train footage funding and was sponsored by MTH Electric Trains.

Gallery

Logo

Opening

Series 2 and 3 Opening

Family Specials

Mr. Conductor's Thomas Tales opening

External Links

Shining Time Station Wiki
Please visit the Shining Time Station Wiki, based on the spin-off series of Thomas & Friends.

Shining Time Station

People	Mr. Conductor \| C. Junior \| Stacy Jones \| Billy Twofeathers \| Burnett Stone \| P.T. Boomer \| Lily \| Patch \| Tasha
Animals	Mutt \| Moby Dick
Locomotives	Rainbow Sun \| Lady
Locations	Shining Time \| Muffle Mountain \| Burnett Stone's Workshop \| The Magic Railroad

↑ https://twitter.com/ChildrensTVArch/status/1529781950227312641

[1] ttps://twitter.com/ChildrensTVArch/status/1529781950227312641

[1]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-{{youmay|''the television show''|''[[Shining Time (station)|the station]]'', ''[[Shining Time|the town]]''  or ''[[Shining Time (song)|the song]]''}}[[File:ShiningTimeStationtitlecard.jpg|thumb]]
+{{youmay|''the television show''|''[[Shining Time (station)|the station]]'', ''[[Shining Time|the town]]''  or ''[[Shining Time (song)|the song]]''}}
+{{Infobox Series
-'''''Shining Time Station''''' is the [[United States|American]] spin-off of ''[[Thomas & Friends|Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends]]''.
+|title1 = Shining Time Station
+|image1 = File:ShiningTimeStationtitlecard.jpg
+|director(s) = * Matthew Diamond
+* Gregory Lehane
+* Stan Swan
+* Wayne Moss
+* John Ferraro
+* Steve Wright
+|producer(s) = * [[Britt Allcroft]] and [[Rick Siggelkow]] {{Note|1989-1990}}
+* [[Nancy Chapelle]] and Jim Corston {{Note|1991-1995}}
+|composer(s) = * Joe Raposo
+* Paul Derrick Mason {{Note|Series 1}}
+* Stacey Hersh {{Note|Series 2 and 3}}
+|no_of_episodes = 70
+|released = 29th January 1989 - 18th December 1995
+}}'''''Shining Time Station''''' is the [[United States|American]] spin-off of ''[[Thomas & Friends|Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends]]''.
 ==Cast==
@@ Line 7: / Line 23: @@
 * [[w:c:shiningtimestation:Brian O'Connor|Brian O'Connor]] as [[w:c:shiningtimestation:Horace Schemer|Horace Schemer]]
-===First season regulars===
+===First Series Regulars===
 * [[Ringo Starr]] as [[Mr. Conductor]]
 * Leonard Jackson as Henry "Harry" Cupper
@@ Line 13: / Line 29: @@
 * Nicole Leach as Tanya Cupper
-===Christmas Special characters===
+===Christmas Special Characters===
 * Ardon Bess as Tucker Cupper
 * Lloyd Bridges as Mr. Nicholas
@@ Line 19: / Line 35: @@
 * Rachael Miner as Vickie
-===Second and third seasons regulars===
+===Second and Third Series Regulars===
 * [[George Carlin]] as Mr. Conductor
 * Erica Luttrell as Kara Cupper
@@ Line 26: / Line 42: @@
 * Tom Jackson as [[Billy Twofeathers]]
-===Recurring characters===
+===Recurring Characters===
 * Jerome Dempsey as Mayor Osgood Bob Flopdinger
 * Mart Hulswit as J.B. King, Esq.
@@ Line 45: / Line 61: @@
 ==Broadcast History==
-[[File:ThomastheTankEngineShiningTimeStation.PNG|thumb|Thomas in the original opening]]
 * [[PBS]] (1989-1997)
-* YTV (1991-1999)
+* [[YTV]] (1991-1999)
 * [[TVNZ 2|Channel 2]] (1992-1994)
-* [[Twentieth Century Fox|Fox Family]] (1998-1999)
+* [[20th Century Studios|Fox Family]] (1998-1999)
 * [[Nick Jr.]] ([[Nickelodeon]]) (2000)
 Note: Channel 2, Fox Family and Nick Jr. only aired the second and third seasons of ''Shining Time Station''. Fox Family also used the opening credits from the family specials.
-===Behind The Scenes===
+==Behind the Scenes==
-* ''Shining Time Station'' was created to introduce ''[[Thomas & Friends|Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends]]'' to American audiences, as ''[[The Railway Series]]'' has never been published book-by-book in the United States (only compilation volumes have been released) until the late 1990s but only ten were published.
+*''Shining Time Station'' was created to introduce ''[[Thomas & Friends|Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends]]'' to American audiences, as ''[[The Railway Series]]'' has never been published book-by-book in the United States (only compilation volumes have been released) until the late 1990s but only ten were published. Another reason was due to stricter broadcasting schedules, meaning episodes were broadcasted to a mere 28 minutes rather five minutes.
-* Schemer (portrayed by Brian O’Connor), is the only major adult character from the series to not appear in ''Thomas and the Magic Railroad'', though O’Connor reprised the role in a fan parody of the film much later.
+*Schemer (portrayed by Brian O’Connor), is the only major adult character from the series to not appear in ''Thomas and the Magic Railroad'', though O’Connor reprised the role in a fan parody of the film much later.
-* Kevin Roth sang the theme song that played during the opening and closing credits of the show.
+*Kevin Roth sang the theme song that played during the opening and closing credits of the show.
-* The footage of the Union Pacfic #844 seen in the opening and closing credits was reused from the 1981 promotional film, ''Eighty Four Forty Four''.
+*The footage of the Rainbow Sun in the opening and closing credits was reused from the 1981 promotional film, ''Eighty Four Forty Four'' by Pentrex.
-* All of the ''Shining Time Station'' episodes only ever had three sets: the main room of the station, the workshop and the interior of the station's jukebox where the Jukebox Band resided. This changed in the specials, in which scenes took place outside, in the signal house and in a large basement-type room that may or may not be part of the station building.
+*All of the ''Shining Time Station'' episodes only ever had three sets: the main room of the station, the workshop and the interior of the station's jukebox where the Jukebox Band resided. This changed in the specials, in which scenes took place outside, in the signal house and in a large basement-type room that may or may not be part of the station building.
-* Didi, the female drummer of the Jukebox Band, is shown to have a crush on Mr. Conductor, who learns about this in "One in the Family" and they apparently begin dating.
+*Didi, the female drummer of the Jukebox Band, is shown to have a crush on Mr. Conductor, who learns about this in One in the Family and they apparently begin dating.
-* Mr. Conductor has various forms of his magic gold dust, including some for teleportation, forgetfulness, love, sleep and pranks. It also has life-giving qualities and can make inanimate objects come alive. His whistle also has some magic and is used to start a Thomas story by means of blowing.
+*Mr. Conductor has various forms of his magic gold dust, including some for teleportation, forgetfulness, love, sleep and pranks. It also has life-giving qualities and can make inanimate objects come alive. His whistle also has some magic and is used to start a Thomas story by means of blowing.
-* In the specials, Mr. Conductor shows that he can appear and interact with the Jukebox Band Characters.
+*A few things regarding Mr. Conductor occur in the Family Specials:
+**He shows that he can appear and interact with the Jukebox Band characters.
-* Also in the specials, Mr. Conductor has a name tag on his uniform.
+**He has a name tag on his uniform.
-* "[[Whistles and Sneezes]]" and most episodes of the second series are the only episodes that were never narrated by Ringo Starr in the US although the US Ringo Starr narrations of "[[Whistles and Sneezes]]" and most episodes of Season 2 were planned but cancelled due to Ringo Starr having left the series after 1990 to focus on his music career and tour with The All Starr Band, though he often praises his work on the show.
+*[[Whistles and Sneezes]] and most episodes of the second series are the only episodes that were never narrated by Ringo Starr in the US although the US Ringo Starr narrations of [[Whistles and Sneezes]], and most episodes of Series 2 were planned but cancelled due to Ringo Starr having left the series after 1990 to focus on his music career and tour with The All Starr Band, though he often praises his work on the show.
-* In the episode "Washout" when Mr. Conductor tells the story "[[Bertie's Chase]]" the beginning (Edward waiting for Thomas) was omitted. This scene was also omitted from the [[James in a Mess and Other Thomas the Tank Engine Stories|James in a Mess]] picture book. But in the Mr. Conductor's Thomas Tales Episode [[w:c:shiningtimestation:Splish, Splash, Splosh|Splish, Splash, Splosh]] and in all VHS and DVD releases, the episode is in its entirety.
+*In the episode Washout, when Mr. Conductor tells the story [[Bertie's Chase]], the beginning (Edward waiting for Thomas) was omitted. This scene was also omitted from the [[James in a Mess and Other Thomas the Tank Engine Stories|James in a Mess]] picture book. However, in the Mr. Conductor's Thomas Tales episode, [[w:c:shiningtimestation:Splish, Splash, Splosh|Splish, Splash, Splosh]], and in all VHS and DVD releases, the episode is in its entirety.
-* The show aired on [[Nickelodeon]]'s Nick Jr. block in the summer of 2000 to promote ''[[Thomas and the Magic Railroad]]''.
+*The show aired on [[Nickelodeon]]'s Nick Jr. block in the summer of 2000 to promote ''[[Thomas and the Magic Railroad]]''.
-* When the show aired on Fox Family, it used the credits from the television specials but episodes were edited significantly so they could fit the time slot, and even though the series originally aired on PBS the Fox Family airings added commercial interuptions as well.
+*When the show aired on Fox Family, it used the credits from the television specials, but episodes were edited significantly so they could fit the time slot, and even though the series originally aired on PBS the Fox Family airings added commercial interruptions as well.
-* The Indian Valley Railroad (where the station is located) is an actual defunct short line in California. It was constructed to serve the Engels Copper Mine, the largest copper mine in California and was a branch connection of The Union Pacific Railroad at Paxton, California. Indian Valley is where the mine was located.
+*The Indian Valley Railroad (where the station is located) is an actual defunct short line in California. It was constructed to serve the Engels Copper Mine, the largest copper mine in California and was a branch connection of The Union Pacific Railroad at Paxton, California. Indian Valley is where the mine was located.
-* Throughout the series, entire episodes (and at one point, an entire season) were knocked out of continuity due to flashbacks from later episodes. For example, the series finale, "How the Station got its Name" changed the continuity of the entire first season.
+*Throughout the series, entire episodes (and at one point, an entire season) were knocked out of continuity due to flashbacks from later episodes. For example, the series finale, How the Station Got Its Name changed the continuity of the entire first season.
-* On the Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends VHS tapes from [[Thomas Gets Tricked and Other Stories]] to [[Better Late Than Never and Other Stories]], the Thomas stories featured on the tapes were in order from their ''Shining Time Station'' air dates from the first season. All the tapes including the first ones always advertised "As Seen on ''Shining Time Station''" some copies even including the ''Shining Time Station'' Sun on the top right corner it was then stopped after the release of [[James Goes Buzz Buzz and Other Thomas Stories|James Goes Buzz Buzz and Other Thomas Stories]] when the show ended the previous year. Later prints of the VHS covers from Thomas Gets Tricked to James Goes Buzz Buzz would take out these advertisements.
+*On the Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends VHS tapes from [[Thomas Gets Tricked and Other Stories]] to [[Better Late Than Never and Other Stories]], the Thomas stories featured on the tapes were in order from their ''Shining Time Station'' air dates from the first season. All the tapes including the first ones always advertised "As Seen on ''Shining Time Station''" some copies even including the ''Shining Time Station'' Sun on the top right corner it was then stopped after the release of [[James Goes Buzz Buzz and Other Thomas Stories|James Goes Buzz Buzz and Other Thomas Stories]] when the show ended the previous year. Later prints of the VHS covers from Thomas Gets Tricked to James Goes Buzz Buzz would take out these advertisements.
-* When the second and third seasons aired in [[New Zealand]], the [[Series 3|third series]] VHS releases of Thomas in that country used George Carlin's narrations and advertised "Stories as seen on ''Shining Time Station''" at the bottom of the front cover.
+*The episodes [[Daisy (episode)|Daisy]] and [[Percy's Predicament]] never aired on Shining Time Station as co-creator Rick Siggelkow disapproved of [[Daisy]]'s design. This led to both episodes being released on the VHS, [[Daisy and Other Thomas Stories]]. Furthermore, her role in the episode [[Mavis (episode)|Mavis]] was given to [[Diesel]] for this very reason.<ref>https://twitter.com/ChildrensTVArch/status/1529781950227312641</ref>
-* When George Carlin assumed the role of Mr. Conductor in the second season, all ''Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends'' stories from the first and second seasons were re-dubbed by him, although not all of them aired on television.
+*When the second and third seasons aired in [[New Zealand]], the [[Series 3|third series]] VHS releases of Thomas in that country used George Carlin's narrations and advertised "Stories as seen on ''Shining Time Station''" at the bottom of the front cover.
-* Restored clips from ''Shining Time Station'' could be seen at the [[Explore the Rails]] travelling exhibit.
+*When George Carlin assumed the role of Mr. Conductor in the second season, all ''Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends'' stories from the first and second seasons were re-dubbed by him, although not all of them aired on television.
-* After ''Shining Time Station'', the fate of most of the props are unknown. The jukebox was featured in the series "The Doodlebops."
+*Restored clips from ''Shining Time Station'' could be seen at the [[Explore the Rails]] travelling exhibit.
-* According to Britt Allcroft, she and Rick Siggelkow are currently working on releasing ''Shining Time Station'' onto DVD. However, no other news has been announced since then, so it is currently unknown if the DVD project will be completed.
+*After ''Shining Time Station'', the Jukebox that was shown in Schemer's Arcade was featured in the series, ''The Doodlebops'', and is currently in the possession of Twitter user, [https://twitter.com/NorthernStarCA @NorthernStarCA].
+*According to Britt Allcroft, she and Rick Siggelkow are currently working on releasing ''Shining Time Station'' onto DVD. However, Siggelkow confirmed in 2021 that the masters of Shining Time Station and Thomas are with Mattel, and no other news regarding a DVD release for the series has been announced, so it is currently unknown if the DVD project will be completed.
+== Trivia ==
+* The show was funded by Amtrak for the standard funding, Pentrex for the train footage funding and was sponsored by MTH Electric Trains.
 ==Gallery==
 ===Logo===
 <gallery position="center" spacing="small" captionalign="center" bordersize="none">
+File:ThomastheTankEngineShiningTimeStation.PNG|Thomas in the original opening
+File:Sts merch ertl goldrail stslogo.jpg|1991-1993 logo
+</gallery>
+===Opening===
-File:Sts merch ertl goldrail stslogo.jpg|1991-1993 Logo
+====Series 2 and 3 Opening====
+<gallery spacing="small" position="center" bordersize="none" captionalign="center">
+File:ShiningTimeStationtitlecard.jpg
+File:ThomasShiningTimeStationIntro.png
+</gallery>
+====Family Specials====
+<gallery spacing="small" position="center" bordersize="none" captionalign="center">
+File:ThomasShiningTimeStationIntro2.png
 </gallery>
-===Mr. Conductor's Thomas Tales opening===
+====Mr. Conductor's Thomas Tales opening====
 <gallery spacing="small" position="center" bordersize="none" captionalign="center">
 File:ThomasMrConductor'sThomasTalesIntro.png
@@ Line 96: / Line 128: @@
 </gallery>
-==Links==
+==External Links==
 * [[w:c:shiningtimestation|The Shining Time Station Wiki]]
 * [[Wikipedia:Indian Valley Railroad|More information about the actual Indian Valley Railroad]]
 * [https://www.sodor-island.com/shining-time-station Sodor Island's Shining Time Station Mini-Site]
 {{Sister wiki 2}}
 {{Shining Time Station}}
@@ Line 106: / Line 137: @@
 [[he:תחנת זמן נוצץ]]
 [[ru:Shining Time Station]]
-[[Category:PBS]]
-[[Category:YTV]]
 [[Category:Shining Time Station]]
 [[Category:Magic Railroad]]
-[[Category:Browse]]
+[[Category:Thomas & Friends]]
-[[Category:Thomas and Friends]]
-[[Category:Show]]