The Earth Day Special | |
---|---|
Written by | Armyan Bernstein Richard Baskin Various Writers |
Directed by | Dwight Hemion James Burrows Gerry Cohen Ted Haimes Jim Henson Terry Hughes Terry Lennon Jay Sandrich Dick Schneider Dave Wilson |
Starring | Bette Midler Danny DeVito Rhea Perlman |
Voices of | Jeff Bergman |
Opening theme | "Somewhere," performed by Barbra Streisand |
Composer | Patrick Williams |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
Production | |
Executive producers | Armyan Bernstein Richard Baskin Paul Junger Witt Lorne Michaels |
Production locations | Warner Bros. Studios, Burbank, California, U.S. |
Running time | 120 minutes |
Production company | Warner Bros. Television |
Release | |
Original network | ABC |
Picture format | NTSC |
Audio format | Mono |
Original release | April 22, 1990 |
The Earth Day Special is a television special revolving around Earth Day that aired on ABC on April 22, 1990. Sponsored by Time Warner, the two-hour special featured an ensemble cast addressing concerns about pollution, deforestation, and other environmental ills.
Several cutaways are made to famous fictional characters watching events unfold and discussing what can be done to save the planet.
This special was one of Jim Henson's final performances as Kermit the Frog prior to his death later that year, as well as one of Jeff Bergman's first as Bugs Bunny following the death of Mel Blanc the year prior.
The episodic narrative, consisting of several individual skits threaded together, focused on an ailing Mother Earth (Bette Midler), who falls from the sky and faints, and is rushed to the hospital where she is attended to by Doogie Howser (Neil Patrick Harris[1]) and two other doctors (James Brolin and Dana Delany). This special is watched by a married couple named Vic (Danny DeVito) and Paula (Rhea Perlman), and features a host of contemporary celebrities and characters, including Bugs Bunny, The Muppets, Emmett "Doc" Brown, and E.T.