Cartoon Network Unveils Rebrand as Cat-toon Network

BURBANK -- Cartoon Network has announced a rebrand and complete overhaul of its Kids & Family programming to focus solely on cats.  The announcement was made today by the cats of the newly rebranded Cat-toon Network, who are assuming the leadership from its current President of Warner Bros. Global Kids, Young Adults and Classics, Tom Ascheim.

According to the APPA National Pet Owners Survey by the American Pet Products Association, there are approximately 85 million pet owners in the U.S. and a recent survey shows that cats are a preferred pet, with more than 42 million living in U.S. households.  Naturally, watching breeds like the laidback American Shorthair to the prissy Siamese is the purr-fect form of entertainment that parents, kids and families alike are shifting their viewing habits toward.

The new Cat-toon Network launches today, Aril 1 and kicks-off at 6:00 a.m. ET/PT with reimagined new episodes of favorite series, Cats of the Creek and Meow Cats Go! Programming will also be available on Cat-toon Network’s YouTube channel starting at 7:00 a.m. PT / 10:00 a.m. ET.

“Though Cartoon Network is the world’s most popular global animated network, in our opinion, it was figuratively ‘going to the dogs’,” meowed Beast Boy (in cat form), Gumball Watterson and Nicole Watterson, the freshly minted co-presidents, Warner Bros. Global Kids, Young Adults and Classics. “This rebrand will put the focus on what Americans really want to see – cats in all their splendor – starring in comedy, drama, reality and even hard news programs.”

Below is a look at new Cat-toon Network series in development:

Comedy/Reality (in development)

• The Big Bang Tabby – A house of nerds gets flustered when a new redhead, way out of their league, moves in.
• De-Claws – Set in the nail salon, hardworking manicurists try to balance personal and professional demands.
• Felines – A group of lovable, quirky felines figure out how to navigate their way in the big city together, even though they only want to be left alone.
• Keeping Up with the Katdashians – An all-access peek into the glamorous lives, loves and feuds of Hollywood’s most famous kitty brood.
• Make Room for Felix – A reboot of the early TV classic starring Danny Thomas with Felix as the harried entertainer dad in a 1950s period piece family sitcom.
• Search Paw-ty – A dark satirical comedy ensues as a group of NYC hipster cats search for a missing friend.
• Tiger King Jr. –  A sequel to this early Quarantine-era pop phenomenon, where the kittens get their big star turn, and the big cats take a back seat.

Drama (in development)

• Better Call Tom – What happens when the macho man from America’s favorite cat and mouse duo goes to the dark side.
• Bobcat Legal – A feline focused spinoff of the classic David E. Kelley series starring this classic breed.  Features James Spader as “The Spay-der.”
• Catsession – A rich Sphynx family vies for which one of them will take over the family business.
• Game of Paws – Powerful families fight for who will ultimately rule the kingdom and sit atop the Iron Litterbox.
• Love-Cat Country – Southern gothic horror, with a supernatural kitty spin.
• Meowland – A CIA tabby globetrots to keep America safe from extremists.

News (in development)

• Abyssinian Cooper 360 – News and views from one of catdom’s most high-class breeds.
• Cats & Friends – The cable news morning show with all of the top stories of the day that will be the talk of the litter box…for America's oldest cat demo.

And, something for the kids! (in development)

• Catnip’d – In the tradition of prank shows like Punk’d, what happens when A-list feline stars get secretly spiced with some ‘nip.  Hilarity and hallucinations ensue.
• Meowalorian – Feline bounty hunters at the edge of the galaxy.
• PUSS15 – The heart and hilarity and indignities of awkward adolescence, as seen through lives of two high school kittens.

Source: Cat-toon Network

Dan Sarto is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network.