Animation Creation! -- It Takes A Lot Of Teamwork To Make A Cartoon Series Like The Magic School Bus

Making a cartoon series is a long process that takes several teams of skilled people.

Deborah Forte, executive in charge of production of the animated television series "The Magic School Bus," says it takes eight months from start to finish to complete one episode of the program.

First, a creative team in New York thinks up show ideas. Then the science team matches the science to the idea. "The hardest part of our jobs is having the end product meet the goals of the original idea," says Deborah.

When the idea and science are figured out, the writers go to work to create the script and story. When they are finished, the script goes to Toronto, Canada, where animators take the words and put them into pictures.

Scene-by-scene, artists draw what the characters are doing. They create a storyboard, which looks like a fat comic book and is the blueprint for producing each episode.

Next, the voice director uses the storyboard to help the actors record their scenes. Voice directors tell the actors what the lines should sound like and how they should come across to audiences.

"It's difficult at first, just acting with your voice," says Danny Tamberelli, who is the voice of Arnold in "The Magic School Bus." "It's much easier if you make hand motions and use body language to make the voice and character come to life."

The actors don't have to be in the same room while recording their parts. In "The Magic School Bus" they are not even in the same country. All the kids record in Toronto while Lily Tomlin, the voice of Ms. Frizzle, records in Los Angeles.

Once the voices are recorded and edited, the animation process continues in Seoul, South Korea. Artists take clear sheets of plastic and paint the characters speaking the same words as the actors' recordings. Each sheet of plastic is called a cell. Each cell has to be painted and photographed. It takes 20,000 cells to make one half-hour episode.

Sound effects and music are added after the action animation is complete. This is done in a recording studio in New York. The sound designers use pans, cans, hair gel and other household items to create the different sounds needed for each episode.

"When I see the finished product, I can't believe it," says Lisa Yamanaka, the voice of Wanda. "It blows me away. The conversations and actions seem so natural."

"The Magic School Bus" is based on the book series by Joanna Cole. It can be seen at 7:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. weekdays and 9 a.m. Sundays on KCTS-TV, through Oct 5. After that, it can be seen on KCPQ.

Did you hear the one? Q. What type of songs do automobiles sing? A. Cartoons (car tunes).

Wordy's Word of the Week: Animation

Can you create ten words using the letters in animation? Remember to only use a letter once unless it appears more than once in animation such as, A, I and N. Did you find the following words? Nation, Man, Ant, Mint, Main, Tan, Tin, Ton, Mat

Remembering Summer: Now that summer is almost over, it's a good time to make a memory box. You might even want to make a new one every year to help you remember your best summer days. Here's how:

What you'll need: A shoe box (use the one your new school shoes came in) . Tempera Paint and paint brushes . Markers . Glitter . Glue . Mementos from your summer.

What to do: 1. Paint the outside of your box and lid and decorate them. 2. Label the box with your name, age and the date (Summer 1998) 3. Fill the box with mementos. Some ideas include photos and ticket stubs from movies, sports events or amusement parks. Include your beach treasures such as, clean rocks and shells. From your travels put in tickets, maps and restaurant memorabilia - coasters, menus or place mats. Include drawings, letters and postcards. 4. Make a list of your favorite summer movies, songs, friends, videos and books. 5. Place your memory box in a special place and enjoy looking in it each year.

Read On! Check out any one of the books in the "Animorph" series by K.A. Applegate and discover adventure as five children are given the ability to turn into animals to save Earth from outer-space creatures.

Once Upon A Time: On this day in 1911, the Procter & Gamble Co. introduced Crisco shortening and today, people are still using it for many cooking tasks including making pie crusts and cookies, and frying chicken.

Hidden Message: Cross out all of the following letters in the puzzle below and find out Ms. Frizzle's famous phrase on "The Magic School Bus". B, F, J, L, O, P, Q, R, U and V .

Answer: Take chances, make mistakes and get messy!