Claster Television
{{Short description|Television program distributor}}
{{Infobox company
| name = Claster Television, Inc.
| former_name = Bert Claster's Romper Room Inc. BV (1953–1969)
| type = Subsidiary
| logo = Claster Television Incorporated logo.svg
| logo_size = 230px
| industry = Television production
Television syndication
| fate = Folded into Hasbro
| founded = {{Start date and age|1953}}
| founders = Bert Claster
Nancy Claster
| key_people = Bert Claster (1953–1984)
Nancy Claster (1953–1997)
| defunct = {{End date and age|2000}}
| location = Baltimore, Maryland
| location_country = United States
| area_served = Worldwide
| owner =
| parent = Hasbro (1969–2000)
| footnotes = {{cite news|title= Nancy Claster, 82, Miss Nancy of 'Romper Room', Dies |work= The New York Times|url= https://www.nytimes.com/1997/04/27/NYRegion/Nancy-Claster-82-Miss-Nancy-of-Romper-Room-dies.html|access-date=2011-12-24}}
| successors = Allspark
Lionsgate Canada
Hasbro Entertainment
| products = Television programs
}}
Claster Television, Inc. was a Baltimore, Maryland–based television distributor founded in 1953 by Bertram H. (Bert) Claster and Nancy Claster (Goldman) as Romper Room Inc.{{cite news|title= Miss Sally of kids' TV |work= The Baltimore Sun|url= https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-2007-04-14-0704140156-story.html|access-date=2011-12-24}} It was originally a producer of the children's show Romper Room, one of the first preschool children's programs.
Production
Romper Room was fairly successful in its early years. CBS offered to pick up the show, but the Clasters instead decided to syndicate and franchise it, by taping episodes and selling the tapes to local stations or giving the option to local stations to produce their own version of the show.{{cite news|title= 1st 'Romper Room' teacher Nancy Claster dies at 82 |work= The Baltimore Sun|url= https://www.baltimoresun.com/bal-nancyclasterobit-story.html|access-date=2011-12-24}}
In 1969, Hasbro bought Romper Room Inc. and renamed it Claster Television Productions.{{cite news|title= Update of classic may get to educate a new generation RETURN TO 'ROMPER ROOM' |work= The Baltimore Sun|url= https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-1994-08-21-1994233124-story.html|access-date=2011-12-24}} Throughout the 1970s, Claster continued to make Romper Room and did not distribute anything else until 1978 when it brought the anime Star Blazers into the United States. It also developed the television series Bowling for Dollars.
In the 1980s, Hasbro formed contracts with animation studios to make cartoons that would promote the sale of Hasbro's toys. In 1983, Claster distributed the animated series G.I. Joe, which was fairly successful. A year later, Claster distributed The Transformers, which was a major success for Hasbro and Claster.
G.I. Joe ended in 1987, while The Transformers left off airing new run episodes in the United States but continued to air for some time in Japan under the supervision of Takara, the Japanese rightsholder to the Transformers franchise. Beginning in 1989, Claster distributed a G.I. Joe animated series sequel that was made by DIC Entertainment. This ended in 1991. Romper Room finally ended in 1994 due to a loss of interest and popularity, giving the program a run of 41 years. Romper Room had been the longest-running children's show in history to date, a record that Sesame Street passed in 2010.
In 1992, Claster Television made its only attempt at a teen/adult television programme, Catwalk, but it only lasted for two years.{{Cite news|date=1992-02-10|title=Claster primed for 'Catwalk'|work=Broadcasting|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Magazines/Archive-BC-IDX/92-OCR/BC-1992-02-10-OCR-Page-0032.pdf|access-date=2021-10-09}}
In 1996, Claster syndicated ReBoot, the first all-CGI television show, for a short time after it was canceled by ABC. At the same time, they distributed a CGI revival of Transformers known as Beast Wars until 1999 (its sequel, Beast Machines, would air on Fox Kids). Claster released The Mr. Potato Head Show in 1998, which was another attempt to sell Hasbro toys.
The entire list of Claster shows ended in 2000 when Hasbro formed a central media division. This division eventually became known as Allspark, and eventually folded into eOne (now Lionsgate Canada).{{cite news |last1=Foster |first1=Elizabeth |title=eOne takes the reins on Hasbro's content efforts |url=https://kidscreen.com/2020/10/09/eone-takes-the-reins-on-hasbros-content-efforts/ |access-date=October 22, 2020 |work=KidScreen |date=October 9, 2020 |language=en}}
List of television series distributed by Claster
- Romper Room (1953–1994)
- Bowling for Dollars (1960s–2008)
- Fred Flintstone and Friends (1977–1978)
- Star Blazers (1979–1984)
- The Great Space Coaster (1981–1986)
- G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero (1983–1986)
- The Transformers (1984–1988)
- Muppet Babies (1984–1991)
- Jim Henson's Little Muppet Monsters (1985)
- Super Sunday (1985–1986)
- Jem (1985–1988)
- Bigfoot and the Muscle Machines (1985–1986)
- Robotix (1985–1986)
- Inhumanoids (1986)
- My Little Pony 'n Friends (1986–1987)
- My Little Pony (1984–1987)
- The Glo Friends (1986–1987)
- Potato Head Kids (1986–1987)
- MoonDreamers (1986–1987)
- Visionaries: Knights of the Magical Light (1987)
- Maxie's World (1987)
- The New Archies (1987)
- COPS (1988–1989)
- G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero (1989)
- James Bond Jr. (1991)
- Bucky O'Hare and the Toad Wars (1991)
- Mother Goose and Grimm (1991–1992)***
- Catwalk (1992–1994)
- Conan the Adventurer (1992–1994)
- My Little Pony Tales (1992)
- The Pink Panther (1993–1996)
- Transformers: Generation 2 (1993–1995)
- The Baby Huey Show (1994–1996)
- ReBoot (1994–2001)
- Mutant League (1994–1996)
- Action Man (1995–1996)
- Littlest Pet Shop (1995–1996)
- Richie Rich (1996)
- G.I. Joe: Extreme (1995–1997)
- Vor-Tech: Undercover Conversion Squad (1996–1997)
- Beast Wars: Transformers (1996–1999)
- All Dogs Go to Heaven: The Series (1996–1998)
- Mummies Alive! (1997–1998)
- The Mr. Potato Head Show (1998–1999)
- The Lionhearts (1998)
References
{{reflist}}
{{Hasbro cartoons mid 80s}}
{{Animated television series created for syndication}}
{{Allspark and Entertainment One}}
Category:American companies established in 1953
Category:American companies disestablished in 2000
Category:Mass media companies disestablished in 2000
Category:Television production companies of the United States
Category:Defunct mass media companies of the United States
Category:Former Hasbro subsidiaries
Category:Defunct companies based in Baltimore
Category:Television syndication distributors
Category:Mass media companies established in 1953
Category:1953 establishments in Maryland