Joya's Fun School is a children's television series that was produced and broadcast by WPIX-TV in New York City, hosted by Joya Sherrill. After an early iteration with a different title ran in 1970, the series aired weekly from January 3, 1972 until November 13, 1982. The cast also included Luther Henderson, Brumsic Brandon Jr. and a bookworm puppet named Seymour. The series featured stories, songs, and activities.

Synopsis

Host Joya Sherrill would engage viewers in games, craft-making, hobby segments, and storytelling. There were comedy skits with the puppet Seymour the Bookworm, created and manipulated by cartoonist Brumsic Brandon, Jr., a.k.a. Mr. B.B., and songs with musical accompaniment by the show's musical director, Luther Henderson a.k.a. the Professor. The series also included informational segments and interviews with guest personalities.

History

Development

In 1969, Joya Sherrill, a former vocalist with Duke Ellington's Jazz Band, suggested to her manager that she was interested in pursuing her own television program. At the time, WPIX-TV in New York City was seeking a woman to host a children's television show.[1]

On-air

An initial iteration of the program, Time For Joya, premiered as a Sunday-morning program on March 29, 1970, and ran through October 3, 1971. One guest on a 1970 episode was bandleader Duke Ellington, who, in one of his final TV appearances, played music and told stories and jokes.[2]

In 1973, the half-hour educational series Joya's Fun School ran Fridays at noon[3] from January 3 to March 30, 1973, by which time it aired at 3 p.m.[4][5] After a brief hiatus, it returned on Friday, April 20,[6] though it is unclear if the episodes beginning here were new or rerun. The show taped 26 episodes per year for an unspecified duration.[1]

It ran through at least Friday, May 22, 1981, in its original noon timeslot,[7] and through Friday, October 1, 1982, at 2 p.m.[8] Joya's Fun School then ran for a short time on Saturday mornings at 6 a.m., from October 9 to November 13, 1982.[9][10]

After accompanying her husband to Iran in 1976, where he supervised construction of a residential complex, Sherrill produced and hosted a children's television show on one of the national networks, which broadcast in English. She recalled in 1979, after having returned to the U.S., that in Iran

Except for news, they got all their programs from the United States and England. So my live show was a big production. I told stories and made projects with the kids. Most of my fans were Iranian. I did English lessons for the Americans and Farsi lessons for the Iranians.[1]

Availability

Some footage is available on YouTube.[11]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Wilson, John S. (May 25, 1979). "A Blues Singer Looks Back". The New York Times. p. C30. Retrieved June 18, 2015. Abstract; full article requires payment.
  2. ↑ Keepnews, Peter (July 9, 2010). "Joya Sherrill, Who Sang With Ellington and Goodman, Is Dead at 85". The New York Times. Retrieved June 20, 2015.
  3. ↑ See, for example: "Television This Week > Friday, January 12". The New York Times. January 7, 1973. p. D22. Also "Television This Week > Friday, January 19". The New York Times. January 14, 1973. p. D20. Retrieved June 20, 2015. Abstracts; full articles require payment.
  4. ↑ "Television [listings]". The New York Times. January 3, 1973. p. 63. Retrieved June 20, 2015. Abstract; full article requires payment.
  5. ↑ "Television This Week > Friday, March 30". The New York Times. March 25, 1973. p. D22. Retrieved June 20, 2015. Abstract; full article requires payment.
  6. ↑ "Television This Week > Friday, April 20". The New York Times. April 15, 1973. p. D20. Retrieved June 20, 2015. Abstract; full article requires payment.
  7. ↑ "Television". New York. May 25, 1981. p. 138. 12 Noon > Channel 11 > Mon-Thu/Magic Garden; Fri/Joya's Fun School
  8. ↑ "[Television listings]". TV Guide. New York Edition. September 25 – October 1, 1982. Joya's Fun School: Friday, October 1, 1982, 2 p.m. Big Blue Marble took over the timeslot the following week.
  9. ↑ "Television". New York. October 11, 1982. p. 134. Sat., Oct. 9 > 6 a.m. > Channel 11 > Joya's Fun School
  10. ↑ Television Listings, November 20, 1982, The Morning Call / The Weekender , page 78. There is a section on the page that says Program Changes: Jack Anderson Confidential replaces Joya's Fun School on that day at 6am. So the last airing of Joya's Fun School was the week prior, Saturday, November 13, 1982 @ 6am. Here is the link: https://www.newspapers.com/image/283039331/?terms=Joya's Fun School&match=1
  11. ↑ "Joya's Fun School", published January 24, 2014; "Time for Joya, Joya Sherrill", published July 20, 2010; and "Time for Joya [featuring Brandon Brumsic Jr.]", published July 20, 2010, on YouTube.
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