My Dad the Rock Star
| My Dad the Rock Star | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Created by | Gene Simmons |
| Voices of |
Lawrence Bayne Joanne Vannicola Don Francks Sarah Gadon Martin Villafana Kathy Laskey Stephanie Anne Mills Rob Stefaniuk |
| Country of origin | Canada France |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 26 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production company(s) |
Nelvana Carrere Group |
| Release | |
| Original network |
Teletoon (Canada) Nickelodeon (U.S.) |
| Original release | September 1, 2003 – July 5, 2004 |
My Dad the Rock Star is a Canadian/French animated television series that was created by KISS bassist Gene Simmons. The series was a Canada-France co-production between Nelvana and Carrere Group for the Canada-based channel Teletoon. The show aired on Nickelodeon in the U.S.
The show focuses on Willy Zilla, an ordinary timid teenage male just trying to be a normal person despite being the son of a flamboyant, rich, lively celebrity rock star named Rock Zilla.
Gene Simmons wanted to create a cartoon series with a loud rock star for his kids. The idea of the cartoon started off when Gene's son, Nick in his kindergarten days, brought in a picture of Gene drooling blood and spitting fire for a project of what his parents do, which may have influenced the character of Willy Zilla.
Before becoming a series, it became a book called "My Dad the Rock Star: Rebel without a Nose Ring" in 2001. Because Gene loved Nelvana shows, he called them for a cartoon idea. It was originally supposed to be about the band KISS itself, but it was later changed to a family of rock-star parents, which were based on Gene's family. Rock Zilla is actually a fictionalized version of Gene Simmons himself, counting his signature "long-tongue". Gene himself chose Lawrence Bayne as the voice for the character. Willy is based on Gene's son, Nick, and Serenity was based on Gene's daughter, Sophie. Crystal was also based on Gene's wife, Shannon Tweed, who, being Canadian, helped Gene to get Nelvana to make the show. Gene served as the executive producer and creator, while the rest of the production was done in Canada.
The series went on hiatus after the episode "Blind Date", until it was announced that the show ended, despite popular ratings, possibly for Gene to continue his music career. Also, there was an unaired episode that showcases Alyssa's true rapping skills, named "Silent Springs' Most Wanted" (which is a reference to the movie Malibu's Most Wanted), but it never got the chance to air. It was never revived in time to air a third season.
Teletoon air dates in parentheses:
1. Welcome to Silent Springs (09/01/2003)
...
Wikipedia