Wimzie's House
A Canadian puppet series about a young hybrid monster's adventures.
Wimzie's House is a Canadian children's television series produced in Montreal that aired in French as La Maison de Ouimzie beginning September 4, 1995, and in English on CBC Television from October 21, 1996, and on PBS in the United States from September 1, 1997 until 2002. The show was produced by CINAR Films (later Cookie Jar Entertainment, now WildBrain) and presented on PBS by Maryland Public Television. Its puppetry style, similar to Sesame Street, led to legal troubles with The Jim Henson Company in 2000.
Quick Facts
- Genre
- Children's television series
- Starring
- Sonja Ball / Tyrone Benskin / Jennifer Seguin / Liz MacRae / Jane Woods / Thor Bishopric / Holly Gauthier-Frankel / Bruce Dinsmore
- Open Theme
- "At Wimzie's House" performed by Sonja Ball
- End Theme
- "At Wimzie's House" (instrumental version)
- Composer
- Daniel Scott
- Country
- Canada
- Company
- CINAR Films
- Num Seasons
- 2
- Num Episodes
- 112
- Executive Producer
- Micheline Charest / Ronald A. Weinberg
- Network
- Télévision de Radio-Canada (1995) / Radio-Québec (1995) / CBC Television (1996)
- Runtime
- 25 minutes / 28 minutes (for most PBS airings)
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The series follows Wimzie, a young hybrid monster (dragon/bird) who lives with her parents Rousso and Graziella, grandmother Yaya, and baby brother Bo. Episodes typically involve Wimzie and her friends Jonas, Loulou, and Horace encountering a problem, with two songs leading to the episode's moral. The show's eight characters include Wimzie (performed by Brigitte Brideau, voiced by Sonja Ball), her father Rousso (performed by Michel P. Ranger, voiced by Tyrone Benskin), mother Graziella (performed by Johanne Rodrigue, voiced by Jennifer Seguin), baby brother Bo (performed by Lucie Beauvais, voiced by Liz MacRae), grandmother Yaya (performed by Johanne Rodrigue, voiced by Jane Woods), and friends Jonas (performed by Andre Meunier, voiced by Thor Bishopric), Loulou (performed by Sylvie Comtois, voiced by Holly Gauthier-Frankel), and Horace (performed by Richard Lalancette, voiced by Bruce Dinsmore).
Reader's Guide
Wimzie's House is significant as a Canadian-produced children's series that employed puppetry in the style of Sesame Street, leading to legal issues with The Jim Henson Company in 2000 despite prior collaborations on shows such as Hi Opie!, Dog City, Fraggle Rock, and The Hoobs, as well as with CTW (now Sesame Workshop), known for Sesame Park. The series aired in both French and English across Canada and the United States, reflecting cross-border children's programming trends of the 1990s. Its legacy includes being part of the output of CINAR Films, a Quebec-based studio that later became Cookie Jar Entertainment and then WildBrain. The show's focus on social-emotional learning through puppet characters and musical numbers aligns with the educational television model popularized by Sesame Street.
Did You Know?
- The show ran in French as La Maison de Ouimzie on Télévision de Radio-Canada and Radio-Québec beginning September 4, 1995.
- Wimzie is a dragon/bird hybrid with yellow-orange fur, purple hair, and red wing-like antlers.
- The series was produced by Quebec-based studio CINAR Films, later Cookie Jar Entertainment, now WildBrain.
More in Canadian children's fantasy television series 1-21
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