Kaboodle is a 13-part anthology television series which includes animation, puppetry, and live action and was produced by the Australian Children's Television Foundation (ACTF) that ran on ABC Television from 1987 to 1990.^[1][2][3] Kaboodle 2 was a follow-on series which provided another six half-hour episodes of innovative television drama for the under-tens.^[4] Kaboodle 2, however, was fully animated and instead of being an ‘anthology’ series of many short dramas, all of which are different, this season had regular characters in every episode.^[4] The show commenced screening on the Seven Network across Australia in April 1990.^[5]

The original concept was conceived by Jenny Hooks^[6] and the series aimed to provide quality Australian television drama for the long neglected 6-9 year old age group.^[6] The series intended to stimulate young children’s imagination and widen their range of experiences.^[6] Some of the stories are based on distinguished Australian children’s books, some on fairy tales and myths, whilst others have been developed as wholly original work for Kaboodle.^[6] The make-believe of television drama, where anything can and should happen, was well suited to foster healthy, emotional and intellectual growth by challenging the imagination and widening the range of children's experience.^[7]

Kaboodle is significant-not only because it catered to a much-neglected audience-but also because the series provided industry experience and international screen credit for numerous talented up-and-coming Australian film-makers.^[8] More than one hundred crew who worked on Kaboodle gained their first television credit or advanced their careers by working on the series.^[9] The series was distributed outside Australia and New Zealand by London and New-York based Richard Price Television Associates Limited.^[8] Kaboodle video cassettes were marketed in Australia by CBS/FOX Video.^[8]

Each half hour episode tells two or three separate stories using a variety of forms including animation, puppetry, and live action.^[6] It was a kaleidoscope of forms, with each episode varying in pace, length and mood.^[7] It aimed to provide laughs and tears, fantasy and realism, but specifically tailored to the interests of the young viewer (6-9 year olds).^[7] There were thirty-two separate short stories included in the thirteen-part series.^[10]

The Short stories

Kaboodle 2 contained four regular drama segments as part of its fully animated 6 half hour mini-series:^[12]

• "Echidna Crossing" animated by Maggie Geddes and Neil Robinson^[12]
• "The Dream Machine" animated by Paul Williams^[12]
• "The Hedge and Mr Snip" animated by Peter Viska^[12]
• "The Great Detective" animated by Michael Cusack and Richard Chataway

The series was produced by the Foundation with Patricia Edgar as Executive Producer and Jeff Peck as Series Producer.^[7] It went into production backed by Film Victoria, ABC-TV, the Australian Film Commission and the ACTF.^[7] It was the first time these companies came together to fund a children’s television series.^[7]

Segments for the series were produced by some of Australia's most experienced filmmakers, as well as some of the most promising new talent on the film and television scene at the time, including many children who were getting their first television acting experience.^[13] Scores of people helped make Kaboodle a diverse and interesting event in the 1987 broadcast schedule, when it was shown on the ABC.^[13]

Kaboodle screened on ABC Television, Australia wide at 4:30 pm weekdays for 13 afternoons from Monday 26 October.^[22] The response to the show from critics and the public was terrific.^[22]

• “Kaboodle is full of joy, delight, fantasy and beauty, nothing like the sort of thing nosily hurled at children’s eyes in early morning or late afternoon cartoon sessions…my six year old watches Kaboodle smiling and chattering, a good sign in this viewer.” The Age, Melbourne, 14/11/87^[22]
• “Kaboodle is a fascinating concept and refreshingly different” The Daily Telegraph, Sydney, 25/10/87^[22]
• “The show offers a veritable melting pot for them to consider” The Daily Mirror, Sydney, 26/10/87^[22]
• “Kaboodle, the idea of the ACTF, is a veritable smorgasbord of everything kids (and big kids) like to watch-comedy, adventure, fantasy and realism” The Daily Sun, Brisbane, 26/10/87^[22]
• "Those who financed this venture have used our taxes so well that we can only hope there will be more series as good as this" The Age, Melbourne, 14/11/87^[22]
• "Just when you thought children's TV had reached rock bottom, along comes Kaboodle", "This innovative 13-part anthology, produced by the ACTF, widens the horizons of TV viewers under 10 with a smorgasbord of home-grown comedy, adventure, fantasy and realism", "It's fun, it's stimulating and refreshingly different" Sunday Observer, Melbourne, 25/10/87^[22]
• "Kids and Kaboodle go together! No, we don't mean the general mess and chaos which accompanies busy children, but a new television series", "Kaboodle, produced by the ACTF, goes to air for the first time this week, bringing some welcome light to the children's television scene" The Weekly Times, Melbourne, 21/10/87^[22]
• "Kaboodle is an excellent demonstration of the capabilities of Australian animators too, whose work is usually confined to the world of TV advertising" The Sunday telegraph, 25/10/87^[22]
• "Kaboodle is a wonderful concept and will hopefully give our children something other than American cartoons, many of which were made some 30 years ago" The Sunday Observer, Melbourne, 18/10/87^[22]
• "Kaboodle uses a unique blend of styles and moods to offer an entertaining and unusual series for young children" The Advocate, Tasmania, 26/10/87^[22]
• "It's the first special television for young children ever made in this country, and it serves for them what we adults require of our programs-it reflects their lives, it's high quality, and it's very entertaining", "Kaboodle is a magic box of superb offerings collected by the ACTF. It's an anthology of terrific stories from some of our brightest and best and sometimes youngest filmmakers" Parents & Children, Australia, Oct/Nov 1987^[22]