PBS Kids show ‘Arthur’ ending after 25 years

John Lynch, WTRF, Nexstar Media Wire

Updated: Jul 28, 2021 / 10:48 AM CDT

“Arthur” on PBS Kids (Credit: AP)

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(WTRF) — The iconic children’s show “Arthur,” which airs on PBS Kids, will come to an end after 25 seasons.

The final season will air during winter 2022, Kathy Waugh, who originally developed the show from the books by Marc Brown, said on the “Finding D.W.” podcast with Jason Szwimer.

“’Arthur’ is no longer in production. We had our wrap party two years ago,” Waugh told Szwimer. “I think [PBS] made a mistake, and I think ‘Arthur’ should come back and I know I’m not alone in thinking they made a mistake. I don’t know if it was a ratings issue or if it felt like it needed to be retired. To me, it felt evergreen, like it was never going to end, but it did end. We finished the last episode, season 25, two years ago.”

“Arthur” features an animated aardvark of the same name and the lessons he learns about kindness, empathy and inclusion from friends and family while growing up in the fictional Elwood City.

The show, which debuted in 1996, is the longest-running animated children’s TV series in U.S. history, and it has won four Daytime Emmys for Outstanding Children’s Animated Program as well as a Peabody Award.

“Finding D.W.” is a podcast that explores why Arthur’s sassy sister, D.W., has always been voiced by boys. Szwimer first played one of those male voices at age 10, NPR reported.

Debra Toffan, the show’s casting director, told Szwimer in one episode that D.W. is a “rough-and-tumble little girl” who was better voiced by the huskier tones of prepubescent boys, NPR reported.