Shining Time Station

Shining Time Station was an American spin-off of Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends series, although it was co-created by Britt Allcroft and Rick Siggelkow. The series was produced by The Britt Allcroft Company and Quality Family Entertainment in New York. The series aired on PBS from 1989 to 1993, but it was rerun on various networks and returned in specials in 1994 and as Mr. Conductor's Thomas Tales in 1997 and their last appearance was in Thomas and the Magic Railroad in 2000.

Overview
Shining Time Station is a train station that resides on the Indian Valley Railroad and is located in the fictional town of Shining Time. The station is managed by Stacy Jones, the station master whose grandmother ran the station when she was Stacy's age, which, based on the episode "How The Station Got Its Name", appears to have been sometime around the 1910s at the latest. The station's workshop is run by railroad engineer and mechanic Harry Cupper. In the second season, Cupper is transferred to a new station in Fort Farley and he is replaced by Billy Twofeathers.

A local named Horace Schemer (simply called Schemer by his friends) runs the station's arcade and is always finding new ways to make more money or to protect his arcade, which he considers his "castle". He serves as the series' comic relief. Schemer thinks that any strange goings-on in the station happen because the station is haunted. His catch phrases include "Genius time" (for when he has an idea), "Schemer's system of success" (for when he wants to impress his friends) and "This place is haunted". Starting in the second season, Schemer would sometimes be aided in his schemes by his nephew, Schemee.

There are some kids who visit the station as well. They are Harry's granddaughter, Tanya and Stacy's nephew, Matt. In the second season, three new children visit the station: Harry's granddaughter, Kara; Stacy's nephew, Dan; and a new girl named Becky.

Other visitors to the station include various townspeople, such as socialite and gossip Midge Smoot, farmer Ginny Johnson, general store proprietor Barton Winslow, bus driver Felix Perez, and J.B. King, Esq., the superintendent of the Indian Valley Railroad. Shining Time's mayor, Osgood Bob Flopdinger, would also visit occasionally as well. (In the early seasons, Flopdinger was referred to as the mayor of East Shemp.)

Then there is a jukebox inside the arcade that houses a band that perform for the nickels that are dropped inside. The band consists of Didi the drummer, cowboy twin brothers Tex and Rex who together play between them one guitar larger than them, Grace who plays bass guitar, and Tito the leader who plays the piano and collects the nickels they accumulate.

Finally, there is Mr. Conductor, a tiny man who lives in a switch house inside the mural and tells stories of the Island of Sodor to the kids. These stories are told to teach them a lesson, encourage them to do something, teach them not to be afraid or just to relate to something that's going on at the station. He is magical in that he comes and goes in a cloud of his magic gold dust.

The show introduced Thomas and Friends to the US; however, none of the original series' plotlines were used; the new stories were rewritten and edited as morale based stories, rather than action based. Another significant change is the characters featured in the Thomas and Friends segments: Gordon was renamed to Grounder; Arry was changed to A.J.; Cranky as Venud; and Toby as Toe. Also, the Island of Sodor became East Warm Isle. In some cases, even the characters' genders were changed, such as the case with Thomas and Friends' major characters, Sir Topham Hatt, Percy, and Harvey, who were now all females, instead of male.

Series Regulars

 * Didi Conn - Stacy Jones
 * Brian O'Connor - Horace Schemer

Season 1 Regulars

 * Ringo Starr - Mr. Conductor
 * Leonard Jackson - Henry "Harry" Cupper
 * Jason Woliner - Matthew "Matt" Jones
 * Nicole Leach - Tanya Cupper

Season 2-3 Regulars

 * George Carlin - Mr. Conductor
 * Erica Luttrell - Kara Cupper
 * Ari Magder - Dan Jones
 * Danielle Marcot - Becky
 * Tom Jackson - Billy Twofeathers

Recurring Characters (Full Series)

 * Jerome Dempsey - Mayor Osgood Bob Flopdinger
 * Mart Hulswit - J.B. King, Esq.
 * Bobo Lewis - Midge Smoot

Recurring Characters (Season 2-3)

 * Barbara Hamilton - Ginny
 * Jonathan Shapiro - Schemee
 * Gerard Parkes - Barton Winslow
 * Aurelio Padrón - Felix Perez

The Jukebox Puppet Band

 * Olga Marin - Didi
 * Alan Semok - Tex Boy
 * Craig Marin - Rex Boy
 * Johnathan Freeman - Tito Swing
 * Vanece Thomas - Grace the Bass (1989-1990)
 * Beverly Glenn - Grace the Bass (1991-1994)

Series' segments

 * Flexitoons Puppets & Marionettes - Jukebox Band Concert
 * Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends - narrated by Ringo Starr & George Carlin
 * Occasionally an episode might have a cartoon/video (usually accompanied by a song) from the picture machine (an old-fashioned arcade film machine), the Anything Tunnel (a tunnel in the station mural), a magic bubble, or if any adult told a story besides Mr. Conductor

Season 2 was delayed because producers needed to find new kids to continue the show's run. The series was famous in North America.

The show ran from (1989-1993) with four 1-hour specials in 1994.

Note: Ari Magder is often credited as "Ari D. Magder", but this is incorrect. The Ari Magder on Shining Time Station is actually Ari Joseph Magder. Ari D. Magder is a camera operator who is not related to the actor Ari Magder.

Season One (1989-1990)

 * NOTE: The Thomas stories that have appeared in Season One are named by their original titles.

Season Two (1991-1992)

 * NOTE: The Thomas stories that have appeared in Season Two and Three are named by their US titles.

Special

 * 1) 'Tis A Gift (Television: Thomas Stories: Terence the Tractor and Thomas' Christmas Party) (Video: Thomas Stories: Thomas' Christmas Party and Thomas and the Missing Christmas Tree) (Available on VHS)
 * 2) Schemer Presents: The World According to Me (No Thomas Stories) (Available on VHS)

VHS

 * Tis a Gift (Christmas Special)
 * Sweet and Sour
 * Stacy Cleans Up
 * Schemer Alone
 * Bully for Mr. Conductor
 * Becky Makes a Wish
 * Billy's Party
 * Mr. Conductor's Evil Twin
 * Schemer's Special Club
 * A Day In The Life Of The Jukebox Band. (video only)
 * Jukebox Lullaby (video only)
 * Jukebox Rainy Day Singsongs (tape only)
 * Jukebox Rise and Shine Singsongs (tape only)
 * Jukebox Sleeptime Singsongs (tape only)
 * Jukebox Birthday Party Singsongs (tape only)

1989-1990

 * Thomas
 * Edward
 * Henry
 * Gordon
 * James
 * Percy
 * Toby
 * Annie and Clarabel
 * The Old Coaches
 * Duck
 * Diesel
 * Troublesome Trucks

1991-1992

 * Bill
 * Ben
 * Donald
 * Douglas
 * Henrietta

1993-1995

 * Mavis
 * Oliver
 * Daisy
 * Boco
 * City of Truro
 * Milk and Tar Wagons
 * Sodor Fuel Wagons
 * Breakdown Train
 * The Express Coaches
 * Sodor Mail Coaches
 * Toad

G Scale

 * Thomas with Annie and Clarabel
 * James with the Troublesome Trucks

O Scale

 * Thomas the Tank Engine with Annie and Clarabel
 * Percy the Small Engine
 * James the Red Engine
 * Thomas Expansion Pack
 * Sodor Freight Expansion Pack
 * Devious Diesel

United States

 * PBS (1989-1998)
 * Fox Family (1998-2000)
 * Nick Jr. (Nickelodeon) (2000)

Canada

 * YTV (1990-1998/99)
 * TVO (1997-2000)

Ireland

 * TV3 (1999-2003)

Trivia

 * Shining Time is seen in the movie Thomas and the Magic Railroad. Didi Conn plays Stacy again, but Tom Jackson's role as Billy was handed over to Russell Means. The new Mr. Conductor is played by Alec Baldwin.


 * While Shining Time was in production, David Mitton and Robert D. Cardona were working on Thomas's sister series TUGS.


 * In the episode "Washout", when the Thomas story "Bertie's Chase" is shown, the first scene (Edward waiting for Thomas) is omitted. This scene is also omitted from the James In A Mess Random House Read to Me book. But in the Mr. Conductor's Thomas Tales episode "Splish, Splash, Splosh" the episode is in full length.
 * All of the Shining Time Station episodes only ever have three sets: the main room of the station, the workshop, and the interior of the station's jukebox, where the Jukebox Band resided.  This changed in the specials, in which scenes took place outside, in the signal house, and in a large basement-type room that may or may not be part of the station building.


 * In Mayor Flopdinger's first appearance ("Too Many Cooks") and in the Christmas special, he is the mayor of East Shemp. However, in all subsequent appearances, the writers treated him as the mayor of Shining Time so he could be in more episodes. East Shemp and Shining Time must be two different towns because they needed a train make a delivery to East Shemp


 * Matt and Dan are cousins, as are Tanya and Kara. Therefore, Stacy must have at least two siblings, and Harry must have at least two children.


 * The season 2 episode He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not was the first episode to only have Mr. Conductor tell only one Thomas story as opposed to the usual two stories.


 * Mr. Conductor has a name tag on his uniform in the TV Specials.


 * In the episode "Does it Bite?", Mr. Conductor describes himself to be 18 inches tall, but on screen, he appears to be significantly shorter. In the TV special, he describes himself to be "about a pencil and a half, in my stocking feet."


 * The train seen in both the opening and closing credits is a real engine known as the Union Pacific 844.


 * In the opening, Shining Time is listed as having a population of "5,006 give or take". Coincidentally, those same words appear on the Shining Time welcome sign in Thomas and the Magic Railroad.


 * Many places on the Indian Valley Railroad besides Shining Time are never seen, but are often mentioned. Snarlyville is Shining Time's biggest rival, and its people are known for not being very nice.


 * Other places on the Railroad include Chubby Corners, Dillylick Station, Pelican Falls, Eggyweg, Lucy's Leap, Leaky Park, Doodle Haven, Cloggyville, Fort Farley, Lucky Lake, Twiddly Junction, East Shemp, Turley, Waddley, Mount Careful, Spotsville, Farmer's Dell, Logan Wash, Butter Town, and Indian Valley.


 * Joe Raposo served as music director for Shining Time Station before he died. He was replaced by Steve Horelick, who was also the music director for Reading Rainbow.


 * Beginning in season 3 Didi Conn wore a wig as Stacy Jones.


 * The "Rainbow Sun" mentioned in the theme song is the name of Billy Twofeathers' train.


 * Every single episode of Thomas and Friends from seasons 1-4 appear at least once during all seasons of Shining Time Station and Mr. Conductor's Thomas Tales.


 * Every Thomas story shown in season 1 gets re-narrated at least once by George Carlin over the course of seasons 2-3, the family specials, and Mr. Conductor's Thomas Tales with the exception of Terence the Tractor, Thomas' Christmas Party, and Thomas and the Missing Christmas Tree


 * When Shining Time Station aired on Nickelodeon, it was aired to promote "Thomas And The Magic Railroad".


 * When Shining Time Station aired on Fox Family, the episodes featured the opening credits used in the family specials, and the episodes were edited so they could fit the time slot.