Doug

Doug is an American-French animated television series created by Jim Jinkins. The show focuses on the early

adolescent life of its title character, Douglas "Doug" Funnie, who experiences common predicaments while attending school in his new hometown of Bluffington. Doug narrates each story in his journal, and the show incorporates many imagination sequences. The series addresses numerous topics, including trying to fit in, platonic and romantic relationships, self-esteem, bullying, and rumors. Numerous episodes center on Doug's attempts to impress his classmate and crush, Patti Mayonnaise.This is a Reboot of the 1991-1994 Series with the Same Name The Series will Premiere in August 11, 2018 on Nickelodeon after Ren and Stimpy and Before Rugrats.

Premise
Doug revolves around Douglas "Doug" Funnie, an 11(later 12)-year-old boy who wants to be another face in the crowd, but, by possessing quite an imagination and a sense of morality, he is more likely to stand out.[1] He keeps a journal, which he treats as an autobiography, as he records a variety of experiences over the series, which range from learning to dance to getting a bad haircut.[2] Doug Funnie and his family (which consists of his parents Theda and Phil, sister Judy, and dog Porkchop) move from the town of Bloatsburg to Bluffington after his dad receives a job promotion. Bluffington is located in the US, but not in any specific US state. However, Bluffington is loosely based on the city of Richmond, Virginia, where creator Jim Jinkins was born and raised.[3] Beyond the title character, Doug featured a large ensemble cast of characters. Many of the series' ancillary characters, among them Ms. Wingo and Mr. Spitz, are based on authority figures from Jinkins' childhood.[4]

Production
Doug was created by animator Jim Jinkins.[8] He was born in Richmond, Virginia in 1953, and grew up fascinated by drawing. He went on to animation and filmmaking at Ohio State University, and upon graduation, got a job working at PBS in their children's programming unit. Jinkins first sketched the character of Doug while doodling without thought, not aiming to create a character based on himself.[6] In the 1980s, he began working on an autobiographical character named "Brian", which he later changed to "Doug", as it was a very general, common name. He began to view the character as his "alter-ego," drawing him in variously cynical and silly scenarios in his sketchbook.[4]

In 1984, Jinkins' career took a turn for the worse, as well as his personal life: he had a rough breakup and suffered injuries in a biking accident.[9] During this time, he gained a new outlook on life.[7] Desiring to "create a place where there was no overdue rent and no delinquent phone bills," he began doodling and formed the basis for Bluffington, the central location in Doug. The character's early designs were solidified alongside friend David Campbell at a small Mexican restaurant in New York. He later credited the character's odd coloring choices from being in a "margarita stupor."[7] Campbell suggested he make Doug into a children's book, titled Doug Got a New Pair of Shoes, which was rejected by all of the city's publishing houses.[9] Simon & Schuster was interested, but management changed before it purchased the pitch.[5] The character made its first animated appearance in a 1988 Florida Grapefruit Growers commercial,[6] and it was also used for a 1989 promotional bumper for the USA Network.[4]

Meanwhile, cable network Nickelodeon, aiming to expand its content and find creative auteurs, began a search for animators to develop their first original animated series. This was very unusual for the time period, which often consisted of pre-licensed characters, such as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Where's Waldo?. Jinkins had actually worked at the network before it was renamed Nickelodeon; he was employed in the late 1970s when it was named Pinwheel.[6] Jinkins set up a meeting with executive Vanessa Coffey to show her the book prototype.[9] Coffey ran out of the room ("which is, you know, disturbing," Jinkins would recall), but only to inform her boss that "This [Jinkins] guy is the real deal, and we're taking him to pilot."[5] Employing voice artists and writers from New York, Jinkins created a pilot for Doug, titled Doug Can't Dance.[5] It was one of three six-minute pilots chosen out of eight to premiere as Nickelodeon's debut animated series, or Nicktoons.[2] The long contract development took nearly a year to complete. Jinkins made sure that his contract allowed him to take the series to another network if Nickelodeon did not complete the show's order.[10]

In another unusual move, Nickelodeon allowed their purchased pilots to be animated at independent studios. Jinkins founded Jumbo Pictures to produce Doug. He would later recall the oddity of the deal, remarking, "that was a moment in time where we were able to be an independent production company and deliver those shows."[6] Coffey was the main executive in charge of the series' production, and Jinkins would later give her credit in bringing the show to air.[6]

Trivia
This is The Second First Rebooted Nicktoon