Telethon

# Telethon

## Abstract

A telethon (a portmanteau of " television " and " marathon ") is a televised fundraising event that lasts many hours or even days, the purpose of which is to raise money for a charitable, political or other cause.

Most telethons feature heavy solicitations for pledges (promises to donate funds at a later time) by masters of ceremonies or hosts, who are often local celebrities or media personalities combined with variety show style entertainment such as singers, bands and instrumentalists. In some cases, telethons feature content related to the cause being supported, such as interviews with charitable beneficiaries, tours of charity-supported projects, or pre-taped sequences. The equivalent term for a radio broadcast is a radiothon; most radiothons do not include live entertainment.

In the United States, the first telethon used for political outreach occurred in 1960.

## History

### United States

On April 9, 1949, Milton Berle hosted the first-ever telethon, raising $1,100,000 for the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation over the course of 16 hours. The first published appearance of the word "telethon" was in the prior day's newspapers.

One of the first continuing annual telethons in the United States was the United Cerebral Palsy (UCP) telethon. Television executive Leonard Goldenson and his wife had a daughter with cerebral palsy, and with the help of other affected parents, launched the UCP Telethon in 1950, with early television personality Dennis James as host. He continued to host New York-based segments on the telethon through the 1980s. The telethon is now defunct, as UCP raises funds through other means, including its website. By 1955 televised telethons had become a familiar enough part of American culture to be parodied that year in the film noir Tight Spot as comic relief.

The oldest continuing annual telethon in the United States on the same channel is Green Bay, Wisconsin, station WBAY-TV (channel 2)'s local Cerebral Palsy telethon, which helps provide financial support for equipment for Cerebral Palsy, Inc., that began broadcasting as a 22-hour event on the first weekend of March 1954. As of 2016, WBAY has presented the telethon for 62 years.

Close behind the Green Bay telethon in longevity is the WHAS Crusade for Children in Louisville, Kentucky, which began in October 1954 on WHAS-TV (channel 11) and WHAS radio (840 AM). It is still broadcast on the two WHAS stations despite their being owned by different entities for three decades, and has expanded to radio and TV stations in other parts of Kentucky and Indiana, as well as a live stream on the internet. The Crusade is famous for the legions of firefighters who collect money at intersections throughout the area each May and June.

The most-broadcast telethon to date was January 22, 2010, Hope for Haiti Now telethon, to aid the victims of the January 10th earthquake. It offered the possibility for viewers to text donations on cell phones and raised a reported $58 million by the next day. It was designed to show viewers a stark divide between them and the people surviving this catastrophic event.

### Australia

Melbourne's Good Friday Appeal, which began in 1931, started its telethon in 1957 after the Seven Network joined as a sponsor.

Adelaide's first telethon was held at the Tynte Street, North Adelaide, studios of NWS9 in December 1960. One fundraiser was Barry Jones, then famous as a quiz champion. Viewers could, for a fee, attempt to "stump" him with their favorite question.

Prior to the establishment of their annual telethon in 1968, Perth station TVW broadcast one-off telethons for bushfire relief in 1961, and to raise funds for Christmas care packages sent to Western Australian soldiers serving in Vietnam in 1966 and 1967.

## Examples

### The Americas

#### United States

In the United States, telethons are held for various charitable organizations; as of 2014, however, no national telethons currently exist.

The longest-running national telethon in the United States was The Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon, which was staged for over 21 hours each Labor Day to benefit the Muscular Dystrophy Association between 1966 and 2010. From 2011 to 2013 it was trimmed down to six hours, then to three, and then to two hours. From 2012 it no longer served as a telethon in the traditional sense. It was discontinued in 2014. Other prior charities such as the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Easter Seals, Arthritis Foundation, and the Children's Miracle Network had produced telethons on a nationwide or regional basis.

Some radio stations produce annual pledge drives which are similar in format to telethons, but instead, use brief breaks between regular programs to appeal for funds.

Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN), a religious television network, hosts non-stop, week-long, semi-annual telethons called "Praise-a-Thons". The Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN; producers of the long-running syndicated program The 700 Club) stages a modified form of a telethon thrice yearly, which runs for approximately one week but is shown for only an hour or so each day. In its early days, CBN's telethons were of the more traditional round-the-clock form; this format ended when the Pat Robertson -founded ministry sold The Family Channel (now Freeform), which no longer gave it access to a round-the-clock outlet for such telethons. However, on the Sunday before the Super Bowl, CBN continues to produce a 12-hour telethon which airs on Freeform and is syndicated to various television stations; the broadcast of the program on the cable channel was a condition inserted in a 1998 deal by International Family Entertainment (which acquired the channel from CBN in 1990) to sell The Family Channel to News Corporation, and remained in place after the channel's 2001 sale to The Walt Disney Company. Other religious stations and networks hold telethons as well, including West Coast Chabad Lubavitch since 1980.

For a brief time in the early 1970s, beginning in 1972, the Democratic Party even held annual telethons (two were called "America Goes Public" and "Answer, America!") to help it erase a multi-million dollar debt (this may have provided the inspiration for the 1979 comedy film Americathon, where a telethon is held to prevent national bankruptcy). The telethon idea was created and promoted by John Y. Brown, Jr., the businessman who built Kentucky Fried Chicken into a worldwide chain and later became Governor of Kentucky.

Local telethons, once a common fixture in nearly every major city in the United States, are now rare but still found in a handful of cities, including Louisville, Kentucky (WHAS Crusade for Children), Buffalo, New York (the Variety Club Telethon, held each winter for Variety, the Children's Charity; it began on what is now WGRZ in 1962 before spending most of its run on WKBW-TV from 1963 to 2019 and then moving back to WGRZ in 2020, with WBBZ-TV added as a broadcast partner that year); Green Bay, Wisconsin (WBAY-TV 's annual March telethon for the locally based Cerebral Palsy Center); and Erie, Pennsylvania (the Community for Kanzius Telethon on WICU and WSEE for the Kanzius Cancer Research Foundation). New York City also features a telethon of sorts; the WFAN Radiothon, by virtue of its two drive time shows being simulcast on cable television, has portions covered on television. Since 2010, this has included the portion covering Boomer and Carton in the Morning on CBS Sports Network and Mike's On on Fox Sports 1 / 2. From 2002 to 2007, the shows in question were Imus in the Morning on MSNBC and Mike and the Mad Dog on YES; Imus revived the practice of hosting radiothons on his most recent radio broadcast homes, WABC and Fox Business Network.

Garden City High School in Garden City, Kansas, holds annual telethons to help fund the school's broadcasting, debate and forensics teams.

On December 14, 2012, Univision introduced the first ever Spanish-language telethon in the United States, Teletón USA, which is hosted by longtime Sábado Gigante host Mario Kreutzberger, known by his stage name Don Francisco. The total donation in the first edition was $8,150,625, 16.44% more than the intended goal of $7,000,000. For its 2013 edition, the goal went up to $15,215,029 and the total donation is now $15,313,525, a $98,496 increase.

#### Canada

There are no annual national telethons in Canada, although as in the U.S., many local children's hospitals operate regional telethons in collaboration with Children's Miracle Network Hospitals in early June. In addition, due to the proliferation of cable television piping in signals from the United States, a number of American telethons, such as the Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon, attracted donations from Canada due to being broadcast there.

Notable regional telethons (outside of those produced by Children's Miracle Network) include:

- Telemiracle (March) in Saskatchewan benefiting the Kinsmen Foundation and currently seen on CTV stations in Saskatchewan. Since its inception in 1977, Telemiracle has raised over $100 million, including the record $7.1 million in the 2018 edition, held in Regina.

- Christmas Daddies (December), benefiting underprivileged children in Atlantic Canada and broadcast on CTV Atlantic stations.

- Show of Hearts (February) in British Columbia, supporting Variety, the Children's Charity and seen on CHAN-DT in Vancouver.

- CTV-Lion's Club Children's Christmas Telethon (December), buys Christmas presents for underprivileged children in Northern Ontario. The telethon is broadcast on CTV Northern Ontario stations and features local musical talent.

#### Chile

Since 1978, the major Chilean television networks hold an annual telethon called Teletón to raise funds to help children with developmental disabilities (most commonly cerebral palsy) in Instituto de Rehabilitación Infantil ("Infant Rehabilitation Institute") centers. Mario Kreutzberger, who is the symbol of "La Teletón" in Chile, has served as the telethon's host since its inception. The telethon is an event of national unity and is proportionally, the most widely watched and most donated telethon in the world, surpassing Australia's Telethon.

There is also a local telethon running, the Days for the Disabled Magellanic Children (Jornadas por el Niño Impedido Magallánico), to raise funds to help disabled children of the Magallanes and Última Esperanza provinces, in an effort led by the local Lions Club. The 2006 Days broadcast raised US$515,000.

During March 2010, a special telethon called Chile ayuda a Chile (Chile helps Chile) was broadcast to raise money to help those affected by a devastating earthquake that struck the southern part of central Chile on February 27 of that year. The aim was to raise $ 15,000,000,000 Chilean Pesos for the construction of 30 thousand emergency homes in the disaster area. In the end, that amount tripled, having been gathered over 46 billion Chilean pesos ($90 million), the biggest amount of money collected from a Telethon in history.

#### Honduras

Since 1987, all television networks in Honduras hold a 27-hour telethon every December to raise funds to help children with disabilities in support of "Fundación Teleton" (Telethon Foundation), a charity under the leadership of businessman Rafael Ferrari. Many international artists, television presenters and journalists participate in the event. TACA Airlines provides free transportation for international invitees. Local banks are open around-the-clock during the Telethon, to enable viewers to donate through their local banks.

#### Mexico

Like Chile and Honduras in December of every year since 1997 the Mexican television network Televisa, in conjunction with other networks, both public and private (except rivals Azteca and Imagen, the latter since 2016), hold a 24-hour telethon with the purpose to raise funds to help children with disabilities. The event is organized by the "Fundación Teletón".

During the transmission of the event especially in the television broadcasting many Mexican media personalities shows testimonies of children and their families who overcame their disabilities. The final act with the Telethon is a concert in the Estadio Azteca with the performance of many national and international artists and singers. Because Televisa programming also airs in the United States on Univision and border city Televisa stations, some additional contributions and pledges come from American viewers.

#### Brazil

The marathon broadcast under the name Teleton by SBT was conceived by Décio Goldfarb, Clovis Scripilliti and Hebe Camargo who asked the owner of SBT, Silvio Santos, to broadcast the program. The collections are passed on to "Associação de Assistência à Criança Deficiente" (AACD) – Portuguese for Association for Assistance to Disabled Children.

The first edition was held between 17 and 18 May 1998, and since then, 14 rehabilitation centers, a home school and a hospital for rehabilitation operations and exams are created. Another rehabilitation center was in construction but the same was canceled due to the financial crisis Brazil had been suffering since 2015, also two rehabilitation centers have closed and another three were municipalized, making the total of centers down to nine.

The edition of 2019 was held on 25 and 26 October. It had a goal of R$30 million, and raised R$32 450 054 (US$8,106,231) after almost 26 hours of broadcast, making a new record total. In 2018, AACD helped over 8,000 people with physical disabilities.

#### Haiti

" Hope for Haiti Now " was a telethon based in the United States. It was organized as a humanitarian relief effort in response to the 2010 Haiti Earthquake.

### Europe

#### Austria

Licht ins Dunkel (literally: "light in the dark") is an annual telethon held in Austria to help disabled persons.

#### Spain

In Catalonia, public television broadcaster Televisió de Catalunya broadcasts an annual telethon (La Marató de TV3) (in Catalan) for several diseases. In 2018, it raised €15,068,252 for cancer research. €197,340,632 have been collected since the first edition in 1992.

#### France

In France, since 1987, an annual Téléthon, for the muscular dystrophy charity in France (see also Decrypthon), L'Association française contre les myopathies, is held by France 2 on the first or second weekend in December, with the support of France 3 and France 5, and the public radio networks (France Inter, France Info, France Bleu). Several events are organized all around France. Donations are made by telephone or at the Téléthon's website, or on mobile web portals, as well as through SMS messaging (and also Minitel in the past). The 2007 edition earned €96,228,136 (US$141,089,693) during the program and €102.3 million after final collection.

#### Ireland

In Ireland, the RTÉ People in Need Telethon was held roughly every two years in May, from 1989 to 2007, although there was no Telethon in 2003 due to Special Olympics and the sponsorship/volunteering needed, and it was moved to October 26 in 2007. During the 2004 telethon, over 4,000 fundraising events were organised by people nationwide, and proceeds were subsequently distributed to almost 760 projects in the 26 counties.

Since its inception, over €35 million has been raised by the People in Need through the RTÉ People in Need Telethon, supporting a wide variety of charitable organizations nationwide. Eight telethons have been held to date and over €35 million has been distributed in grants, ranging from €150 to €50,000, to thousands of organisations throughout Ireland. Grant applications are assessed by advisory committees in each region before final approval by the Board of Directors of the Trust. Money raised in each county stays in each county.

#### Italy

In Italy, since 1990, Telethon is also held by RAI in December, and in 2006 (when the event was held from December 15–17) donors had raised €30,740,000 for research into cures for genetic diseases. By 2009, a total of €284,000,000 have been collected since 1990.

The creators of the Italian version are Susanna Agnelli and the Italian Union for the fight against muscular dystrophy.

#### Netherlands

The first nationwide telethon in the Netherlands was Open Het Dorp ("Open The Village"), which was classic in format, broadcasting for 23 hours on television and radio from 26 to 27 November 1962. Funds were raised to build and open a special village/community for disabled people.

In 1984 for the first time a number of Dutch humanitarian aid organisations collaborated with a combination of broadcasters, to raise funds through a unified effort: "Eén voor Afrika" (One for Africa). With a combination of 10 hours of television and 18 hours of radio broadcast, €44 million was raised. After another such action in 1987, the organisations decided to sign a permanent cooperation agreement as the Samenwerkende Hulporganisaties (or SHO, meaning Cooperating Aid Organizations). Although the campaigns gradually moved away from classic telethons over the years, the SHO raised some €700 million in forty nationwide efforts since it started.

Starting in 2004 an annual multi-day radiothon called Serious Request is hosted by national pop music station 3FM in the week before Christmas. Three popular radio DJs are locked up for six days in a small temporary radio studio (the "Glass House"), placed in a main square of a Dutch city. Living on a juice-only fast, the DJs make an interactive, themed broadcast around the clock, to raise funds and awareness for International Red Cross initiatives. Regular programming on the station is suspended — instead 3FM and its website are completely dedicated to the event, which is also transmitted as a continuous audio and video live-stream. Additionally there is television coverage, integration with social media, and a dedicated mobile app. All totalled the eleven editions have raised €76.8 million.

Serious Request spin-off projects have since been adopted in Belgium, Switzerland, Sweden, Kenya, South Korea, Austria, Latvia and Portugal.

#### Norway

TV-aksjonen (English: "The TV Campaign/Auction") is an annual national Norwegian charity fund raising event that since 1974 has been run by Norwegian public broadcaster NRK in conjunction with selected organizations. The fundraiser is the world's largest, measured in terms of donated value per capita and number of participants. The event is central to Norwegian society inasmuch as it is viewed as the most famous and trusted charity fundraiser in the country. The campaign is held on a Sunday in October each year, and on the selected day NRK devotes most of its airtime to informing the public about the organization and that year's special cause.

Contributions are collected in a number of ways. Central to the campaign is the door-to-door campaign of approximately 100,000 volunteers servicing all 1.8 million Norwegian households, as well as donations accepted via telephone or by funds transfer to the campaign's bank account. NRK also hosts a live auction of various items and experiences, with proceeds also going to that year's selected charity. Several organizations donate considerable amounts, as does the government of Norway on behalf of the Norwegian people.

#### Ukraine

Since the start of the invasion in the prelude to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, most Ukrainian television channels switched over to the signal of Rada TV. The channel was made state-owned at the end of 2021. Following February 26, 2022, the four biggest broadcasters including the TV channels 1+1, 2+2, 24 Kanal, and TRC Ukraina began broadcasting a 24/7 united newscast called " United News " ("Єдині новини") that is produced in turn by the various channels and amended with official information by governmental agencies to "objectively and promptly provide comprehensive information from different regions of the country 24/7".

#### United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom, the ITV Telethons were three charity telethons organised and televised in the UK by the ITV network. The broadcasts took place in 1988, 1990 and 1992. Each lasted for 27 hours and all were hosted by Michael Aspel.

Regular telethons are held for charitable groups such as Comic Relief 's Red Nose Day and Sport Relief, and the BBC's Children in Need. Some of these occur every year, with millions of pounds raised to support various charities. These usually include music artists, sketches, and other various segments, often with videos in between each segment or song to promote the charity that money is being raised for, usually children in either Africa or the United Kingdom. In 2012/2013, Children in Need raised £26 million and Comic Relief £75 million; a combined total of £101 million ($151 million). Children in Need is well known for its nationwide link-up performances such as the choir that has been running since 2011 featuring over 1500 children in choirs of about 150 singing one song in unison from about 10 locations around the UK. This is usually the point where the telethon receives the most donations.

From 2011 to 2015, ITV held their Text Santa telethon in the buildup to Christmas. The telethon lasted for three hours and was hosted by three ITV presenting duos, Ant & Dec, Phillip Schofield and Christine Bleakley, and Paddy McGuinness and Alesha Dixon, each duo hosting an hour each. Text Santa supported six UK charities; these were Alzheimer's Society, The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association, Marie Curie, Teenage Cancer Trust, Together for Short Lives and WellChild.

Since 2012, Channel 4 has hosted Stand Up to Cancer. The inaugural telethon was presented by Channel 4 faces Davina McCall, Alan Carr and Christian Jessen. All three returned to present the next telethon in 2014, which also had segments hosted by The Last Leg presenters Adam Hills, Josh Widdicombe and Alex Brooker. The 2014 telethon came live from Westminster's Methodist Central Hall.

### Asia

#### Japan

In Japan, Nippon Television hosts its annual telethon titled 24 Hour Television: "Love Saves the Earth" (24時間テレビ 「愛は地球を救う」 (in Japanese), Niju-yojikan Terebi: "Ai wa Chikyū o Sukū") during the final weekend of August, broadcast live from the Ryōgoku Kokugikan arena. Started in 1978, its objective is to raise funds for various charities that aid the sick, the handicapped, victims of war and natural disasters around the world and environmental programmes. Every year, during the live broadcast, a popular television personality attempts to run a 100 km marathon for this worthy cause. Despite its title, the telethon runs for approximately 27 hours.

The 2011 telethon's funds were donated to organizations to help rebuild the prefectures that were damaged in the 2011 Tohoku earthquake.

FNS Day (ja:FNSの日) (in Japanese) is an annual telethon hosted by Fuji Television which started in 1987 and airs during the final weekend of July.

#### Hong Kong

In Hong Kong, Tung Wah Charity Show is an annual telethon (known locally as "charity show") organised by Television Broadcasts Limited and is held on a Saturday or Sunday in December.

#### Israel

In Israel, for many years an annual telethon is held for those serving in the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF).

A telethon is called "teletrom" in Hebrew (Hebrew טלתרום), "trom" meaning donate.

Telethons have also been held for endangered children on Israeli channel 2, the broadcast is called "Yom Tov" (Hebrew "יום טוב"), meaning "Good Day" in English.

#### Singapore

In Singapore, Ren Ci Charity Show is an annual telethon (known locally as "charity show") organised by Mediacorp. Other charity shows in Singapore include NKF Charity Show.

### Oceania

#### Australia

##### Perth

The annual Channel Seven Perth Telethon is run by Perth -based Seven Network station TVW and the Channel 7 Telethon Trust and is broadcast throughout Western Australia on the Seven Network. Starting in 1968, the annual 26-hour continuous broadcast runs on a weekend, usually in October, commencing at 7.00pm on Saturday night. The two major beneficiaries of Telethon are Perth Children's Hospital (and previously Princess Margaret Hospital for Children) and the Telethon Kids Institute along with numerous other additional beneficiaries (in 2021, there were 65 beneficiaries).

In 2017, TVW held its 50th Telethon, raising a then-record A$ 36.4 million ($10 million more than the previous year), which amounted to $13.94 per head of population in WA. The largest amount raised on Perth's Telethon was set in 2023, which saw A$ 77.4 million donated. Since 1968, Perth's Telethon has raised over A$ 600 million in total.

A number of international celebrities have visited Perth to appear on the Telethon, such as Michael Jackson, Celine Dion, Harry Connick, Jr., Stevie Wonder, Sammy Davis Jr., Tina Turner, Julian Lennon, Whitney Houston, Def Leppard, and Elton John (who performed live for the event from the opening night of Perth Arena in 2012). A number of Australian television personalities and actors also fly across the country for the weekend, including stars from Seven Network programs such as Sunrise, The Morning Show and Home and Away.

During the 1970s and 1980s, TVW's rival station, the Nine Network 's STW also broadcast its own telethon, known as Appealathon.

##### Melbourne

HSV7 in Melbourne holds the Good Friday Appeal telethon, which benefits the Royal Children's Hospital in Melbourne on Good Friday every year. It airs across Victoria all day on Seven Network station HSV and Prime Television. It also has a print and radio component via Melbourne's Herald Sun newspaper as well as radio station Mix 101.1. In 2007, the radio partner was Southern Cross Broadcasting. The event has become an annual part of Melbourne culture, and continues to bring in record fundraising efforts across the entire state. In 2015, the appeal raised A$17.1 million.

##### Adelaide

NWS9 in Adelaide aired Telethon broadcasts throughout the 1960s and 1970s including raising money for "The House Of Hope" a home that would be built each year for Telethon. Local television stars from all channels would visit channel 9 across the live broadcast weekend to participate in the Telethon. Musicians from interstate would also travel to Adelaide for the round-the-clock marathon broadcast. It was the only time of the year that an Adelaide television station continued to broadcast during the overnight hours.

In the 1970s, SAS10 created the Children's Medical Research Foundation and the "Channel 10 Christmas Appeal" with stars from the network flying into Adelaide for the weekend live broadcast from SAS10 studios in Gilberton. Stars participating in the broadcast included actors from the popular SAS10 programmes Number 96 and The Box. Game show host Garry Meadows was the anchor for most years. It is this event where the tune "Thank You Very Much for Your Kind Donation" originated, which would be played whenever a major donation was announced during the broadcast with members of the cast forming a conga line and dancing around the studio.

##### Newcastle

NBN Television in Newcastle, New South Wales regularly held telethons every two years throughout the 1970s and 1980s for local charities such as children's hospitals and cancer units. However, with aggregation and the station being affiliated in the early 1990s, these went by the wayside but a few have still been held since, the last occurring in 2002.

##### Sydney

In Sydney, Nine Network station TCN broadcasts the Gold Week Telethon on the second Monday of June (the Queen's Birthday), in benefit for the Sydney Children's Hospital. Established in 2010, the telethon serves as a finale for a week of fundraising for the hospital, known as "Gold Week", which generally runs the first week of June.

The sixth telethon in 2015 was hosted by presenters of the Nine Network's Today show, with various network celebrities including Darryl Brohman and Miranda Tapsell manning the phone lines; the telethon also featured various music performers. A total of $5.2mn was raised for the hospital, breaking expectations and creating a new record.

##### One-off telethons

Throughout Australia, there have been several national telethons during the 2000s. One was held to aid victims of the 2004 tsunami that hit parts of Indonesia, Sri Lanka and India, which killed over 200,000 people. This telethon was simulcast by all three commercial networks, Seven, Nine and Ten. There were other telethons around the world raising money for that event.

On February 12, 2009, the Nine Network held a special telethon to benefit the victims of the 2009 Victorian bushfires, through the Australian Red Cross. Titled Australia Unites – The Victorian Bushfire Appeal, the event was hosted by Nine Network personality Eddie McGuire, and accompanied by many celebrities, athletes and entertainers. Some of the celebrities to have appeared included Russell Crowe, Nicole Kidman, Keith Urban, Orlando Bloom, Hugh Jackman, Anthony La Paglia, Rachel Griffiths and Simon Baker. Rove McManus from rival Ten Network made a special guest appearance. The telethon raised about A$20.5 million from pledges.

On January 9, 2011, the Flood Relief Appeal: Australia Unites telethon, in response to the 2010–2011 Queensland floods, was broadcast by the Nine Network from Brisbane 's Suncorp Piazza raised more than A$10 million in pledged aid.

#### New Zealand

Telethons were run nationwide in New Zealand in 1975 to 1979, 1981, 1983, 1985, 1988, 1990 and 1991 by TVNZ, and in 1993 and 2009 by TV3. As with the Australian telethons, the theme song, "Thank You Very Much for Your Kind Donation" (a cover of " Thank U Very Much " by The Scaffold) was played whenever a large donation was announced.

TV2, which launched on Monday 30 June 1975, held the first 24-hour telethon on its opening weekend (5-6 July 1975), which raised over $585,000 for St. John Ambulance. It was hosted by the then NZBC studios of the four main centres, though only broadcast in Auckland and Christchurch as TV2 was yet to be transmitted in other centres. In 1979, telethon was hosted by TV2 (then named South Pacific Television) but was simulcast on TV One between midnight and 11:00am while TV One was off air for the benefit of those who couldn't yet receive TV2. Telethon was broadcast on TV One in 1981, 1983 and 1985, and on TV2 in 1988 and 1990.

After the first telethon, the rest were hosted in large exhibition halls and indoor stadiums as the public soon arrived by the thousands to be seen on television and to watch the entertainment live. Notable international guests from TV shows and films, in alphabetical order, have included:

- 1981: Basil Brush, Kamahl, Kenny Everett and Bill Oddie

- 1985: Michael Bentine, Sorrell Booke, Johnny Briggs, Alan Dale, Becky Hobbs, Ernie Hudson, Kamahl, Chris King, Valerie Landsburg, Victoria Nicholls, Deborah Raffin, James B. Sikking, Bruce Weitz and Ernie Wise

- 1988: Letitia Dean, Alix Elias, Pat Evison, Max Gail, Estelle Getty, Leeza Gibbons, Kim Lewis, Antonia Murphy, Su Pollard, Christopher Quinten, Ian Rawlings, Mike Smith, Susan Tully, Blair Underwood and Helen Worth

- 1990: Alan Dale, John Farnham, Anne Haddy, Jon Iles, Kevin Kennedy, Barbara Knox, Ari Meyers, Bryan Mosley, Thaao Penghlis, Barbara Thorn and Ernie Wise

Each telethon outdid the previous total for several years, peaking in 1985 with over $6 million, and a mere one month later TVNZ participated in the international LiveAid concert bringing in $1.8 million for New Zealand's contribution. The largest undertaking including smaller regional centres with host locations was 1988. However the economic climate at the time saw money raised drop in 1988 ($5 million) and 1990 ($4 million) while hosting costs soared.

In 1991, an emergency fundraising 16-hour telethon was hurriedly arranged after a devastating cyclone flattened most of Western Samoa. The total raised was just over $1.5 million with the Government of New Zealand matching the dollar amount, bringing the total to just over $3 million.

In 1993, TV3 hosted a 22-hour telethon to raise funds for the Starship Children's Hospital. Events focused on the two main venues at Auckland's Aotea Centre and Wellington's Shed 6, with roving crews based in Christchurch, Dunedin, Hamilton and the rest of the country. The event raised just over $3.5 million.

TV3 broadcast a 23-hour telethon "The Big Night In" to support KidsCan, which aired on August 8 and 9, 2009. The event raised $1,944,225.

In collaboration with the New Zealand Government, Three, Māori Television, TVNZ 2 and various online platforms simulcast an eight-hour telethon on 16 October 2021, known as the 'Vaxathon', to support the country's COVID-19 vaccination effort.

Some regional stations have also operated their own local telethons to fund local facilities and other organizations.

### Worldwide

For nine years, Armenia Fund held an annual international telethon that was broadcast to all major U.S. cities and across the globe. The 12-hour live program is able to raise millions for humanitarian and infrastructure development programs in Armenia and Karabakh. The annual telethon is held on Thanksgiving every year. During Armenia Fund's 10th International Telethon, held on November 22, 2007, the event raised a record-breaking $15.3 million. The program aired from the Hollywood studios of Los Angeles television station KCET and was broadcast in the United States, as well as internationally.

The 2004 Asian tsunami also led to telethons being held in countries such as Canada (CTV and Omni Television), United States (NBC) and Australia (a joint telecast between the Seven Network, Nine Network and Network Ten).

In 2014, TWiT.tv held an online telethon entitled "24 Hours of 2015" celebrating New Year in every time zone to raise money for UNICEF. Founder and host Leo Laporte streamed live for much of the 24 hours, raising over $58,000.

## Other types

Similar to telethons, but considerably shorter, are nationally televised benefit concerts following major disasters such as the September 11, 2001 terror attacks, the Indian Ocean tsunami, Hurricane Katrina and the 2010 Haiti earthquake. These are generally three-time broadcasts meant to spur immediate humanitarian contributions, not part of the annual donation drives of the charities involved. Typically a phone number or website will appear on screen during the entire concert for donors to make pledges, though there may not necessarily be a live host announcing.


Erling Moreno

# Erling Moreno

## Abstract

Erling Enrique Moreno Álvarez (born January 13, 1997) is a Colombian professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent.

## Career

Moreno signed with the Chicago Cubs as an international free agent on July 2, 2013. After signing, Moreno was assigned to the VSL Cubs, and after throwing three scoreless innings in his debut for them, he was reassigned to the Dominican Summer League Cubs where he finished the season, going 0-1 with a 1.08 ERA in 8 + 1 ⁄ 3 innings pitched. Moreno spent 2015 with the AZL Cubs where he posted a 1.93 ERA in 4 + 2 ⁄ 3 innings pitched. In 2016, he split time between the AZL Cubs and the Eugene Emeralds. In 62 + 1 ⁄ 3 innings pitched between both teams, Moreno pitched to a 4-3 record, 1.88 ERA, and a.90 WHIP. He spent 2017 with the South Bend Cubs where he posted a 2-4 record with a 4.22 ERA in a career high 64 innings pitched.

Moreno did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the COVID-19 pandemic. On November 2, 2020, Moreno elected free agency.

## International career

Moreno was on Colombia's roster for the 2017 World Baseball Classic.


Outlander (film)

# Outlander (film)

## Abstract

Outlander is a 2008 action film written and directed by Howard McCain, starring Jim Caviezel, Sophia Myles, Jack Huston, John Hurt, and Ron Perlman.The plot is loosely based on the Anglo-Saxon epic poem Beowulf, adapted to a science fiction backstory involving a spaceship crashing in Iron Age Norway. The film grossed US$7 million compared to a budget estimated at $47 million.

## Plot

In 709 A.D, a spacecraft crashes in a lake in Vendel -era Scandinavia. The only surviving occupant – a humanoid alien – retrieves a distress beacon and a computer which explains that he is on Earth, a "seed" colony that his people have abandoned. The computer downloads the local Norse language and culture directly into his brain. The spaceman soon finds a recently destroyed village, where he is captured by Wulfric, a warrior from another village.

Wulfric takes him to the fortified village of King Hrothgar, father of Freya, who he hopes will marry future king Wulfric. Hrothgar is concerned that Gunnar, chieftain of the destroyed village, will assume it was Wulfric's doing, as Wulfric's father (Hrothgar's predecessor) had been allegedly killed by Gunnar. Wulfric interrogates the "outlander", who identifies himself as Kainan, claiming he is from the north, and states that he is hunting a dragon. The village is attacked that night by an unseen creature, which kills several men. Kainan identifies it as a "Moorwen", a predatory creature which caused his ship to crash and now will hunt men and animals alike. When Kainan is taken with a hunting party to find the Moorwen, he kills a gigantic bear that had slain some of the hunters, proving himself to the others who begin treating him as a part of their tribe.

Gunnar and his men attack the settlement, retreating after both sides suffer casualties. They soon return, pursued by the Moorwen, and enter the safety of the village. Kainan devises a plan to build a huge pit just inside the village entrance, fill it with whale oil and leave wooden shields floating on the surface.

Freya becomes increasingly attracted to Kainan. He explains to her the Moorwen's origin — Kainan's people invaded its land (planet), slaughtered it in the billions and built a colony there. This Moorwen, now the last of its kind, massacred everyone in the colony, including Kainan's wife and child. When his "ship" returned to the colony, the Moorwen snuck onboard and later caused the crash. After listening to Kainan's tale, Freya gives him a family sword, saying she was told that she would know what man to give it to.

Kainan and Wulfric lure the Moorwen to the village. They cross the oil pit by running on the shields, but the Moorwen falls into the pit, and the oil is set on fire. The Moorwen bursts out, kills several people, then escapes. Meanwhile, an offspring of the Moorwen sneaks into the hall where the women and children are hiding. Erik, the orphaned boy that Kainan has begun looking after, alerts Hrothgar, who is killed as the women and children escape. Kainan realizes that they need stronger weapons to kill the Moorwen. Kainan, Freya, and the newly-crowned King Wulfric return to the lake to retrieve fragments of metal from Kainan's submerged ship. While Kainan is underwater, the young Moorwen attacks the boat, taking Freya. Kainan and Wulfric return to the village, where the fragments are soon forged into weapons before descending into the Moorwens' lair.

Freya awakens on a pile of bodies in the underground lair. As the young Moorwen moves toward Freya, it is distracted by the sound of Kainan's hunting party. Many of the hunters are killed, but the young Moorwen is blinded by Boromir. When it returns to attack Freya, Kainan and Wulfric pass her one of the new swords, with which she slays the young Moorwen. The cave exits to a high waterfall, where the adult Moorwen attacks. It seriously wounds Wulfric before Kainan engages it in battle. When Freya joins in, Kainan is able to knock the Moorwen over the cliff's edge to its death. Freya and Kainan return to Wulfric's side, where he passes the kingship to Kainan just before he dies.

Kainan tells Freya to wait for the rest of the warriors and kisses her before he heads back to the lake. Night falls as Kainan retrieves some items from his ship, says goodbye to his wife's submerged coffin, then destroys his distress beacon just as Freya sees a rescue spaceship approaching, leading her to believe that Kainan was sent by the gods. The rescue ship departs without Kainan, who stays as king, weds Freya, and they adopt Erik.

## Cast

- Jim Caviezel as Kainan, an alien warrior.

- Sophia Myles as Freya, daughter of Rothgar

- Jack Huston as Wulfric, nephew and heir of Rothgar, of King of Heorot

- John Hurt as Rothgar, King of Heorot

- Cliff Saunders as Boromir, Heorot's smith

- Ron Perlman as Gunnar, king of the neighbouring village

- Aidan Devine as Einar

- Bailey Maughan as Erik, a young orphan

## Production

In 1998, director Howard McCain met screenwriter Dirk Blackman, who re-designed a story originally written by McCain in 1992.

According to McCain, Renny Harlin expressed interest in directing Outlander. For a time, the film was to be financed independently, with effects designed by Weta Workshop and to be filmed on the South Island of New Zealand, but this plan fell aside. By 2004, production company Ascendant Pictures and producer Barrie M. Osborne had stepped in with financing.

In May 2005, The Weinstein Company announced the addition of the project to its distribution slate, with McCain as director. At that time Karl Urban was in talks to star in the film, but James Caviezel emerged as the lead when production was finally announced in September 2006. By this point, the production had settled on Halifax and Nine Mile River, Nova Scotia, Canada, with a 10-week shooting schedule beginning in October 2006. Some scenes were filmed in the Bay of Islands, Newfoundland, as it possessed an inlet that served as a fjord for the film. Photography was completed on 5 January 2007.

The conceptual design was shaped by Iain McCaig, whose Ninth Ray Studios helped set up concept art, storyboarding, animatronics, and set design. Costume designer Debra Hanson hand crafted costumes for the main characters, using designs from Ninth Ray, while she provided leftover costumes from her previous collaboration, Beowulf & Grendel, to dress the extras.

Kainan's opponent, the creature called the Moorwen, was designed by creature designer Patrick Tatopoulos for free for the film. "Moorwen" was a play on the word Morlock from H. G. Wells ' The Time Machine. The director and the creature designer created the Moorwen to be like an animal, only perceived as a monster by those who were threatened. McCain praised Tatopoulos: "He brought the right amount of fierceness, sensuality, the sense of personality and a sentient kind of intelligence to that was perfect." The creature was designed to possess bioluminescence, using light to draw its prey.

For the film, McCain constructed a replica Viking village and ship. The ship was modeled after the Oseberg ship and deployed at Little Port, Newfoundland for filming as a funeral pyre. The Viking village was built on a farm near Nine Mile River, Nova Scotia. The crew logged their own trees, and hired a logging crew and truck to construct a parapet 800 feet long and 20 feet tall. The Viking village took three months to build.

## Reception

### Critical reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 38% based on 64 reviews, with a weighted average rating of 4.90/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Schizophrenic in subject and lackluster in execution, Outlander might have trouble finding the cult audience for which it was built." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 40 out of 100, based on 11 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".

Ray Bennett of The Hollywood Reporter said, "it's entertaining nonsense with major league special effects, larger-than-life characters and inventive monsters that draw on the 'Aliens' and 'Predator' models, being terrifying but also vaguely sympathetic."

Derek Elley of Variety said that the "script tries to build up a full range of heroic characters in conflict but is let down by workaday dialogue and direction that doesn't conjure any special atmosphere. Only Hurt, who can always be relied on to turn the most basic dialogue metal into something resembling gold, comes close to giving the picture any verbal style. But despite a couple OK action sequences, the first hour largely passes before delivering any serious mano a mano with the mean Moorwen... Color processing has a cold, grungy look in daytime exteriors and a slightly fuzzy, amber-drenched look in interiors. Geoff Zanelli's score is off-the-shelf heroic-action wallpaper. However, production and costume design do sport an impressive authenticity, and effects work does the job in a genre-ish way. Alas, Patrick Tatopoulos' monster simply recalls elements of other, more famous aliens."

### Box office

Outlander had a limited release on January 23, 2009 at 81 theaters and grossed $59,581 at the U.S. box office in its opening weekend. As of August 2009, it had earned $166,003 in the U.S. and $6,192,098 worldwide, against a reported budget of $47 million.


2024 Djurgårdens IF season

# 2024 Djurgårdens IF season

## Abstract

The 2024 season is Djurgårdens IF's 124th in existence, their 69th season in Allsvenskan and their 24th consecutive season in the league. In addition to the Allsvenskan, they will compete in the 2023–24 and the 2024–25 editions of the Svenska Cupen, and will enter the 2024–25 UEFA Conference League at the 2nd Qualifying Round after finishing as runners-up in the Svenska Cupen.

## Squad

### Season squad

Last updated: 15 September 2024. Source:

## Transfers

## Competitions

### Overview

Last updated: 15 September 2024 Source: Soccerway

### Club Friendlies

### Allsvenskan

#### League table

#### Results summary

Source: soccerway

#### Results by round

#### Matches

##### April

##### May

##### June

##### July

##### August

##### September

##### October

##### November

### 2023–24 Svenska Cupen

#### Matches

##### Group stage

##### Quarter-Final

##### Semi-Final

##### Final

### 2024–25 Svenska Cupen

Djurgården were drawn away at FC Järfälla in the 2nd round of the 2024-25 Svenska Cupen on 9 July 2024.

#### Qualification

### 2024–25 UEFA Conference League

#### Qualifying

Djurgården entered the 2024–25 Conference League at the 2nd Qualifying Round after finishing as runners up in the 2023–24 Svenska Cupen. The draw was made on 19 June 2024, with the matches being played on 25 July 2024 and 1 August 2024. Djurgården were drawn against Progrès Niederkorn of Luxembourg, with the 1st leg at home.

The draw for the 3rd Qualifying Round was made on 22 July 2024, which drew the winners of the tie against Ilves of Finland or Austria Wien of Austria, with the first leg away from home.

The draw for the Play-off Round was made on 5 August 2024, which drew the winners of the tie against Maribor of Slovenia or Vojvodina of Serbia, with the first leg at home.

All draws were made at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland.

##### Matches

Djurgården won 3–1 on aggregate.

Djurgården won 4–2 on aggregate.

Djurgården won 2-0 on aggregate.

#### League phase

Djurgården made the league phase, and were placed in pot 2 for the draw as the 11th highest ranked team.

The league phase was made at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco, on Friday 30 August, and drew Djurgården against LASK of Austria, Legia Warsaw of Poland, Vitória de Guimarães of Portugal, The New Saints of Wales, Panathinaikos of Greece and Víkingur Reykjavík of Iceland. The fixtures were announced on Saturday 31 August.

##### League Table

##### Matches

## Statistics

### Appearances

Last updated: 15 September 2024. Source:

### Goalscorers

The list is sorted by shirt number when total goals are equal.

### Disciplinary

Updated 15 September 2024 The list is sorted by shirt number when total cards are equal.

### Clean sheets

The list is sorted by shirt number when total clean sheets are equal.


2024 UTSA Roadrunners football team

# 2024 UTSA Roadrunners football team

## Abstract

The 2024 UTSA Roadrunners football team will represent the University of Texas at San Antonio in the American Athletic Conference (AAC) during the 2024 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Roadrunners are led by Jeff Traylor in his fifth year as the head coach. The Roadrunners will play home games at the Alamodome, located in San Antonio.

## Offseason

### Outgoing transfers

Over the off-season, UTSA has lost fourteen players through the NCAA transfer portal. Seven are currently committed while the remainder are still actively pursuing new schools.

### Incoming transfers

Over the off-season, UTSA added twelve players through the transfer portal.

## Schedule

UTSA and The American announced the 2024 football schedule on February 29, 2024.

## Game summaries

### Kennesaw State

at Alamodome San Antonio, Texas

- Date: August 31st

- Game time: 2:30 p.m. CDT

- Game weather: None (played indoors)

- Game attendance: 25,911

- Referee: Gary Leeper

- TV announcers (ESPN+): Jack Benjamin (play-by-play) and LaDarrin McLane (analyst)

### at Texas State (I-35 Rivalry)

at Bobcat Stadium San Marcos, Texas

- Date: September 7th

- Game time: 3:00 p.m. CDT

- Game weather: Sunny, 88 °F (31 °C) Wind: NE at 19 miles per hour (31 km/h)

- Game attendance: 28,000

- Referee: Trennis Livingston

- TV announcers (ESPNU): Doug Sherman (play-by-play) and Tyoka Jackson (analyst)

### at No. 2 Texas

at Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium Austin, Texas

- Date: September 14th

- Game time: 6:00 p.m. CDT

- Referee: Wayne Winkler

- TV announcers (ESPN): Mark Jones (play-by-play), Roddy Jones (analyst), and Quint Kessenich (sideline)

### Houston Christian (FCS)

at Alamodome San Antonio, Texas

- Date: September 21st

- Game time: 2:30 p.m. CDT

- Game weather: None (played indoors)

- TV: ESPN+

### at East Carolina

at Dowdy–Ficklen Stadium Greenville, North Carolina

- Date: September 28th

- Game time: TBD a.m./p.m. CDT

- TV: TBD

### at Rice

at Rice Stadium Houston, Texas

- Date: October 12th

- Game time: TBD a.m./p.m. CDT

- TV: TBD

### Florida Atlantic

at Alamodome San Antonio, Texas

- Date: October 19th

- Game time: TBD a.m./p.m. CDT

- Game weather: None (played indoors)

- TV: TBD

### at Tulsa

at H. A. Chapman Stadium Tulsa, Oklahoma

- Date: October 26th

- Game time: TBD a.m./p.m. CDT

- TV: TBD

### Memphis

at Alamodome San Antonio, Texas

- Date: November 2nd

- Game time: TBD a.m./p.m. CDT

- Game weather: None (played indoors)

- TV: TBD

### North Texas

at Alamodome San Antonio, Texas

- Date: November 15th

- Game time: 8:00 p.m. CST

- Game weather: None (played indoors)

- TV: ESPN2

### Temple

at Alamodome San Antonio, Texas

- Date: November 22nd

- Game time: 6:00 p.m. CST

- Game weather: None (played indoors)

- TV: ESPN2

### at Army

at Michie Stadium West Point, New York

- Date: November 30th

- Game time: 11:00 a.m. CST

- TV: CBSSN


X-Men '97

# X-Men '97

## Abstract

X-Men '97 is an American animated television series created by Beau DeMayo for the streaming service Disney+, based on the Marvel Comics superhero team the X-Men. It is a revival of X-Men: The Animated Series (1992–1997), continuing the story of the X-Men who face new challenges following the loss of their leader, Professor X. X-Men '97 is produced by Marvel Studios, via its Marvel Animation label, with DeMayo as head writer for the first two seasons, followed by Matthew Chauncey for the third season, and Jake Castorena as supervising director.

Ray Chase, Jennifer Hale, Alison Sealy-Smith, Cal Dodd, J. P. Karliak, Lenore Zann, George Buza, A. J. LoCascio, Holly Chou, Isaac Robinson-Smith, Matthew Waterson, Ross Marquand, and Adrian Hough star as members of the X-Men. Sealy-Smith, Dodd, Zann, Buza, and Hough reprised their roles from the original series, as did Christopher Britton. Original series stars Catherine Disher, Chris Potter, Alyson Court, Lawrence Bayne, and Ron Rubin returned to voice new characters.

The revival was first discussed in June 2019 and formally announced in November 2021, with DeMayo and Castorena attached. Chase Conley and Emi Yonemura also directed episodes. DeMayo was fired as head writer in March 2024 after completing work on the first two seasons. Chauncey was hired to write the third season in July 2024. The series is the first X-Men project from Marvel Studios since the company regained the film and television rights to the characters. Animation was provided by Studio Mir and Tiger Animation, and is a modernized version of the original series' style.

X-Men '97 premiered on March 20, 2024, with its first two episodes. The rest of the ten-episode first season was released weekly until May 15. It received critical acclaim. A second season is in production and a third is in development.

## Premise

X-Men '97 continues the story of X-Men: The Animated Series (1992–1997). In both series, mutants are people born with superhuman abilities that generally manifest during puberty. The X-Men are a team of mutant superheroes founded by Professor Charles Xavier to protect mutants and humans alike. X-Men '97 begins a year after the events of the finale of The Animated Series, with the team facing new challenges and led by their former adversary Magneto, as Xavier has been taken to space to be healed by the alien Shi'ar Empire following a near-fatal assassination attempt. As with the original series, X-Men '97 combines action and soap opera -style drama to explore serious topics.

## Cast and characters

- Ray Chase as Scott Summers / Cyclops: The mutant field leader of the X-Men whose eyes emit powerful beams of concussive energy. Cyclops is prepared to lead the X-Men after the loss of Charles Xavier, before Magneto takes that role. Chase replaces Cyclops's original voice actor Norm Spencer, who died in 2020. Chase had not seen the original series when he auditioned, and was provided clips and references for the character's voice to base his performance on. After being cast, he watched the original series and listened to interviews of Spencer.

- Jennifer Hale as Jean Grey: A powerful telepathic and telekinetic mutant who is married to Cyclops, and was once the host of the cosmic entity Phoenix Force. Her relationship with Cyclops is complicated by Wolverine's feelings for her. Hale, who previously voiced the character in other Marvel media, replaces original series voice actress Catherine Disher, and based her performance on Disher's voice. Hale also voices Madelyne Pryor / Goblin Queen, a mutant clone of Jean created by Mister Sinister. Madelyne gives birth to Cyclops's son, Nathan, which further complicates his relationship with Jean. Hale used a slightly different tone when voicing Madelyne to separate her from Jean.

- Alison Sealy-Smith as Ororo Munroe / Storm: A powerful mutant who can control the weather and is described as a "goddess". Sealy-Smith reprises her role from the original series, and also voices the Adversary, a demon that feeds on negative emotions.

- Cal Dodd as Logan / Wolverine: A hotheaded mutant with a regenerative healing factor, heightened senses, retractable claws, and an adamantium -laced skeleton. Dodd reprises his role from the original series.

- J. P. Karliak as Morph: A mutant metamorph who can change their voice and appearance to that of any person. Morph's base design is updated from the original series to be "pale, hairless, and blankly-featured" similar to the version of the character seen in the " Age of Apocalypse " comic book storyline and the Exiles comic book. Morph identifies as non-binary, but the series does not explicitly use that term as it was not common in the 1990s. Characters that Morph shape-shifts into in the first season include Xavier, Jean Grey, Archangel, Blob, Lady Deathstryke, Colossus, Psylocke, Sabretooth, Spiral, Illyana Rasputina / Magik / Darkchylde, Quicksilver, Juggernaut, Hulk, Mister Sinister, Sauron, and Mister Fantastic. Karliak replaces Morph's original voice actor Ron Rubin. He also voices William Stryker, an anti-mutant Christian minister, and Morph as the superhero Hulk.

- Lenore Zann as Rogue: A mutant who absorbs the memories, powers, and energy of those she touches. The series reveals that Rogue had a secret romantic relationship with Magneto when she was younger, causing friction in her current relationship with Gambit. Zann reprises her role from the original series.

- George Buza as Dr. Henry "Hank" McCoy / Beast: A blue-furred mutant genius with superhuman strength and agility. Buza reprises his role from the original series.

- A. J. LoCascio as Remy LeBeau / Gambit: A mutant and former thief who can charge objects with explosive kinetic energy, including his signature playing cards. Gambit's actions in the early episodes—including wearing a crop top and taking his shirt off, and his relationship with Rogue—were intended to endear the audience to him before his death at the end of the fifth episode. LoCascio replaces Gambit's original voice actor Chris Potter.

- Holly Chou as Jubilation Lee / Jubilee: The youngest member of the X-Men who can create firework-like explosions. Chou replaces Jubilee's original voice actor Alyson Court, who previously said she would not reprise the role and would prefer that an Asian-American actor take it. Court instead voices Abscissa, an older version of Jubilee from the "Motendo" video game world.

- Isaac Robinson-Smith as Lucas Bishop: A mutant from a dystopian future with the ability to absorb kinetic energy and redirect it into concussive blasts. Robinson-Smith replaces Bishop's original voice actor Philip Akin. Robinson-Smith also voices T'Chaka / Black Panther, the king of Wakanda. The character's appearance creates an apparent continuity error with the animated series Fantastic Four (1994–1996) in which he dies.

- Matthew Waterson as Erik "Magnus" Lehnsherr / Magneto: A powerful mutant who controls magnetism. Magneto is given control of the X-Men in the last will and testament of Charles Xavier. Waterson replaces Magneto's original voice actor David Hemblen, who died in 2020.

- Ross Marquand as Professor Charles Xavier: The founder of the X-Men who was taken to space to be healed by the Shi'ar Empire following an assassination attempt. Marquand replaces Xavier's original voice actor Cedric Smith. Coincidentally, both actors previously provided the voice for Marvel villain Red Skull in different projects. Marquand also voices Doctor Doom, the leader of Latveria who is a member of "Operation: Zero Tolerance" (OZT); and Apocalypse, one of the first mutants who is thousands of years old and an enemy of the X-Men, replacing the late John Colicos and James Blendick who voiced the character in the original series.

- Adrian Hough as Kurt Wagner / Nightcrawler: A Catholic, blue mutant with teleporting abilities and prehensile hands and feet. Hough reprises his role from the original series in X-Men '97, which includes the character's playfulness from the comics. Hough also voices Strong Guy, a mutant who can channel kinetic energy into physical strength.

Recurring guests in the first season include Gui Agustini as Roberto da Costa / Sunspot, a young mutant rescued by the X-Men who can channel solar energy; Catherine Disher —who voiced Jean Grey in the original series—as Dr. Valerie Cooper, a United Nations official; Gavin Hammon as Sentinel creator Dr. Bolivar Trask, replacing original voice actor Brett Halsey, as well as Shi'ar chancellor Lord Araki; Eric Bauza as the Master Mold supercomputer and mutant-hunting Sentinels, replacing original voice actor David Fox; Donna Jay Fulks as news reporter Trish Tilby, as well as the mutants Tommy and Amelia Voght; Christopher Britton as Dr. Nathaniel Essex / Mister Sinister, a scientist from Victorian era -London who has enhanced himself using mutant DNA, reprising his role from the original series; Gil Birmingham as Forge, a mutant who can invent advanced technology, replacing original voice actor Marc Strange; Christine Uhebe as Roberto's mother Nina da Costa; Chris Potter —who voiced Gambit in the original series—as Nathan Summers / Cable, the son of Cyclops and Madelyne Pryor who was taken to the future as an infant after being infected with a techno-organic virus; Theo James as Bastion, the anti-mutant leader of OZT, a human-machine hybrid created by Nimrod whose parents were background characters in the original series episode " One Man's Worth "; and Ron Rubin —who voiced Morph in the original series—as U.S. president Robert Kelly, replacing original voice actor Len Carlson.

Actors who voice multiple characters include Todd Haberkorn, who voices former government agent Henry Peter Gyrich who attempted to assassinate Xavier, replacing original voice actor Barry Flatman; and Ronan the Accuser, a high-ranking member of the Kree Empire. David Errigo Jr. voices Leech, a young Morlock who can nullify other mutants' powers, replacing original voice actor John Stocker; Mojo, an interdimensional media mogul from the Mojoverse, replacing original voice actor Peter Wildman; Sean Cassidy / Banshee, an Irish mutant with a sonic scream who serves on the council of Genosha, replacing original actor Jeremy Ratchford; and Gladiator, the Strontian leader of the Shi'ar Imperial Guard. Courtenay Taylor voices Callisto, the leader of the Morlocks, replacing original voice actor Susan Roman; and Illyana Rasputina / Magik / Darkchylde, a mutant sorcerer, replacing original voice actor Tara Strong. Martha Marion voices Emma Frost, a former member of the Inner Circle Club who serves on the council of Genosha, replacing original voice actor Tracey Moore; and Dr. Moira MacTaggert, a Scottish geneticist who serves on the council of Genosha, replacing original voice actor Lally Cadeau. Kari Wahlgren voices Sebastian, a young version of Bastion, and his mother Rose.

Other guest stars include Lawrence Bayne—who voiced Cable in the original series—as Carl Denti / X-Cutioner, leader of the anti-mutant group Friends of Humanity; Kimberly Woods as a vision of Bishop's younger sister Shard, replacing original voice actor Kay Tremblay; Abby Trott as Spiral, Mojo's assistant, replacing original voice actor Cynthia Belliveau; Travis Willingham as Sebastian Shaw, a former member of the Inner Circle Club who serves on the council of Genosha, replacing original voice actor David Bryant; Morla Gorrondonna as Lilandra Neramani, the empress of the Shi'ar Empire, replacing original voice actor Camilla Scott; Cari Kabinoff as Lilandra's sister Deathbird; Jeff Bennett as Ford, the da Costa family's butler; Anjali Bhimani as Bastion's assistant Daria; Rama Vallury as Baron Zemo, a member of OZT; Gates McFadden as Rachel Summers / Mother Askani, leader of the Askani Clan in a desolate future; and Adetokumboh M'Cormack as En Sabah Nur, a younger version of Apocalypse living in Ancient Egypt. Additionally, Josh Keaton and Michael Patrick McGill reprise their respective roles as Steve Rogers / Captain America and Thunderbolt Ross from the series What If...? (2021–present); Bayne voiced Captain America in the original series.

In addition to Callisto, Leech, and Tommy, the Morlocks Ape and Erg are seen. Characters that appear in Genosha include Glob Herman, Pixie, Nature Girl, Gentle, Multiple Man, Exodus, Dazzler, Boom Boom, Squid-Boy, Marrow, Blob, Forearm, Angel Salvadore, Mimic, Psylocke, Cipher, Frenzy, someone who resembling Warren Worthington III's alternate reality form Fallen, and members of the Savage Land Mutates. Other characters that make non-speaking appearances in the first season include Cyclops's brother Vulcan who is a member of the Shi'ar Imperial Guard; Alpha Flight members Northstar, Puck, and Aurora; Japanese mutant Silver Samurai; the Russian superhero team Winter Guard which includes the mutants Omega Red and Darkstar alongside Crimson Dynamo; Iron Man from the 1990s series of the same name; the magic-wielding superhero Doctor Strange; New York heroes Daredevil, Cloak, and Dagger; and the characters Peter Parker / Spider-Man, Mary Jane Watson, and Flash Thompson from the animated series Spider-Man (1994–1998), revealing that Spider-Man has found Mary Jane following the events of that series' finale. Magneto sees a vision of his children Wanda Maximoff / Scarlet Witch, Pietro Maximoff / Quicksilver, and Lorna Dane / Polaris, while alternate versions of Polaris and Rachel Summers are seen in the future that Cable is trying to prevent.

## Production

### Development

Larry Houston, the producer and director of X-Men: The Animated Series (1992–1997), said in June 2019 that he and that series' creative team were discussing a potential revival with Disney. They wanted to continue the story from where the original series ended. Disney subsidiary Marvel Studios was developing their first animated series, What If...?, and executives began discussing what their next animated project could be. The first idea considered was a revival of X-Men: The Animated Series, which was suggested by Brad Winderbaum. The head of streaming, television, and animation at Marvel Studios, Winderbaum was a fan of the series, and said several filmmakers who had met with Marvel Studios in the past had cited that series as a touchstone. In November 2020, Beau DeMayo was asked to present a pitch for the revival after working as a writer for Marvel Studios' live-action Disney+ miniseries Moon Knight (2022).

By June 2021, Marvel Studios Animation was developing a slate of at least three series in addition to What If...? that, as of August 2021, were in various stages of development and not expected to be released until 2023. In November, one of these was announced to be X-Men '97, a revival and continuation of X-Men: The Animated Series. Dana Vasquez-Eberhardt, VP of animation at Marvel Studios, said many of the people involved with the revival were fans of the 1990s series and "knew exactly " what the continuation should be. DeMayo was announced as head writer and executive producer, with Jake Castorena as supervising director and Charley Feldman as supervising producer. Houston and the original series' showrunners, Eric and Julia Lewald, were consulting on the revival, assisting with any "red flags" that arose and suggesting things they would like to see. The trio were contacted by Winderbaum shortly after the revival series entered development, and were excited that Marvel chose to make a direct continuation of their series. The Lewalds attributed Disney and Marvel Studios' fast-tracking of the revival to the success of the original series streaming on Disney+ and the book X-Men: The Art and Making of The Animated Series (2020). Castorena, Chase Conley, and Emi Yonemura directed episodes of the first season. Marvel Studios' Winderbaum, Kevin Feige, Louis D'Esposito, and Victoria Alonso also served as executive producers.

The series is the first X-Men project from Marvel Studios since they regained the film and television rights to the characters from 20th Century Fox, which put more pressure on DeMayo to get the project right in addition to wanting to respect the original series. X-Men '97 is not set in the Sacred Timeline of Marvel Studios' shared universe, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), though Feige did consider integrating the series with the MCU during development. Instead, X-Men '97 shares continuity with the original series and several other animated Marvel series that were released in the 1990s, including Iron Man (1994–1996), Fantastic Four (1994–1996), Spider-Man (1994–1998), The Incredible Hulk (1996–97) and Silver Surfer (1998); within Marvel Comics' multiverse, X-Men: The Animated Series exists on Earth-92131. Winderbaum said X-Men '97 would continue the original series' tradition of featuring crossover cameo appearances from the other 1990s series. During Marvel Studios Animation's panel at the 2022 San Diego Comic-Con, X-Men '97 and the studio's other animated series were described as being part of the "Marvel Animated Multiverse", and Winderbaum acknowledged that there was potential to connect the series with other MCU properties using the MCU's multiverse.

Work on a second season had begun by July 2022, and writing on the second-season finale started by July 2023. Conley and Yonemura returned as directors for the season. By March 2024, DeMayo had finished writing for the second season, and had began discussing ideas for a potential third season when he was fired by Marvel Studios ahead of the series' premiere. He was not involved in further promotion for the series and missed its red carpet premiere, which The Hollywood Reporter said was unusual for someone working on a Marvel Studios project, "even if they've been shuffled to the side" or replaced by other creatives. Marvel stated DeMayo had been fired after an investigation with their findings "egregious nature"; this was reported to have involved sexual misconduct. According to Jeff Sneider, the investigation found that DeMayo sent photos of himself to several young male staff members "in various states of undress" and suggestive "hero" poses that he wanted them to use for inspiration, as well as having groped an assistant, and being physically and emotionally abusive to staff members. An agreement following his exit was made that allowed DeMayo to still tweet about the series. Winderbaum praised DeMayo's work on the series and said his departure would not negatively affect work on the third season, which was in development by the end of the month and remained on track to meet its production schedule. The studio was searching for DeMayo's replacement by then.

In June 2024, Marvel reached out to DeMayo following the posting of gay pride –themed X-Men fan art on his Instagram account that they would be removing his credits from the second season because of the post. This was reportedly in addition to multiple other instances Marvel viewed as a violation of his termination agreement, which led to them removing DeMayo's executive producer credit for the second season. DeMayo called the alleged agreement breaches "mislead", adding that they were for his posts about the first season during its run and speaking at a screening of the show at a bar. His lawyer Bryan Freedman believing the agreement had included "illegal unconscionable items". DeMayo later released a video response denying the egregious misconduct against him and accused crew members on the series and Marvel executives of "egregious prejudicial misconduct" for weaponizing his identity to undermine his work, refusing to create new storylines for the series or depict characters as Marvel wanted, speaking out against the working conditions of the VFX crew and animators, and witnessing various sexual misconduct and harassment among crew or executives, some directed towards him, among other claims. Matthew Chauncey, a writer on What If...?, was hired in July 2024 to write the third season, replacing DeMayo. The season two scripts had reportedly been revised and rewritten by then, with Chauncey reportedly overseeing the rewrites.

### Writing

By April 2022, the Lewalds had seen premises for all 10 episodes and several completed scripts from the first season, as well as the series' bible, which confirms that—as with the original series and the comic books—the revival's central ethos is the X-Men are allegories for people who face prejudice and discrimination. Eric Lewald described X-Men '97 as an extension of the original series that the Marvel Studios team had made their own, while Vasquez-Eberhardt said the original series "embraced action, soap opera and serious topics", and the revival would do the same. DeMayo wanted to honor the original series while bringing it into the modern world, hoping to retain its earnestness, emotional sincerity, and focus on found family while updating the social commentary to reflect contemporary society. The new series explores whether Professor Charles Xavier 's dream of mutant /human co-existence and his focus on empathy are still relevant to modern audiences, with DeMayo feeling that issues of social acceptance had become more complicated since the 1990s.

The revival begins a year after the loss of Xavier during the original series finale. Cyclops, Jean Grey, Storm, Wolverine, Rogue, Beast, Gambit, and Jubilee return as members of the X-Men, now led by their former adversary Magneto. Joining the team in the first season are Bishop, a time-traveling ally of the X-Men; Morph, who rejoins after their death and resurrection in the original series; and Kurt Wagner / Nightcrawler. Winderbaum said fans remembered these three characters as being more important in the original series than they actually were, and the creatives wanted to make-up for that by elevating them in the revival. The X-Men question their future after Xavier's loss and a subsequent increase in sympathy towards mutants. Cyclops and Storm want to continue Xavier's dream but others, such as Jean Grey, want to build new lives. Magneto is moved by the growing mutant sympathy and wants to follow in Xavier's footsteps as the team's leader. The main antagonists for the first season are the returning Mister Sinister and the Sentinels, along with new villain Bastion. A character "off-limits" from being featured in the show, however, was Deadpool.

DeMayo said the original series' melodrama and exploration of character relationships was key to its success and set it apart from other animated series at the time, which Marvel executives felt was a compelling approach to the material. X-Men '97 also retains the campiness of the original series in its writing, such as Storm announcing her attacks and Rogue using "syrupy" Southern metaphors and analogies. DeMayo found it particularly difficult to write for Rogue, who developed in ways that he did not initially plan for throughout the first season; and for Jubilee, who was introduced as a representative for younger audiences in the 1990s and needed to remain relevant for younger audiences in the modern day. DeMayo was more comfortable writing for Beast, whose scientific terms are similar to the writer's work on the series Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (2022–present).

As with the original series, various comic book storylines were adapted for the revival. The Animated Series was primarily influenced by Chris Claremont 's run on the comics from the mid-1970s to the early 1990s, and X-Men '97 continues to adapt stories from that era as well as elements from later in the 1990s and into Grant Morrison 's early 2000s run. "The Trial of Magneto" from Uncanny X-Men #200 (1985), by Claremont and John Romita Jr., is adapted in the second episode. The third episode is a condensed version of the comic book crossover event " Inferno " (1989). The "Lifedeath" storyline from Uncanny X-Men #186 (1984), by Claremont and Barry Windsor-Smith, is adapted in the fourth and sixth episodes; the fourth episode contains two mini-episodes, the first part of "Lifedeath" and also "Motendo" which is an homage to the 1992 X-Men arcade game.

Central to DeMayo's pitch for the revival was the idea that the original series was made in a "simple of right and wrong, where questions about identity and social justice had relatively clear cut answers", but the people who grew-up watching the original had since experienced 9/11, a rise in populist movements, the COVID-19 pandemic, and other traumatic events. DeMayo particularly highlighted the 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting which had personally impacted him as a gay man who had partied at that club. He wanted the X-Men to go through a similarly traumatic event and face "the realities of an adult and unsafe world" just like the audience of the original series had, which led to the attack on the mutant nation of Genosha in the fifth episode. This is based on the " E Is for Extinction " storyline from New X-Men #115 (2001) by Morrison and Frank Quitely, though the attack is not perpetrated by Cassandra Nova as in that comic. Following the fifth episode, the X-Men have to decide how they will change in response to the attack and whether social healing or social justice is needed. The reveal that Bastion is responsible for the Genosha attack leads to the season's three-part finale, which includes elements from the crossover event " Operation: Zero Tolerance " (1997). The final episodes see the X-Men split into two teams, Blue and Gold, as was done in the 1990s comics. Magneto ripping the adamantium metal from Wolverine's skeleton at the end of the ninth episode was adapted from the crossover event " Fatal Attractions " (1993).

### Casting and voice recording

With the revival's announcement, several voice actors were revealed to be returning from the original series: Cal Dodd (Logan / Wolverine), Lenore Zann (Rogue), George Buza (Henry "Hank" McCoy / Beast), Catherine Disher (Jean Grey), Chris Potter (Remy LeBeau / Gambit), Alison Sealy-Smith (Ororo Munroe / Storm), Adrian Hough (Kurt Wagner / Nightcrawler), Christopher Britton (Nathaniel Essex / Mister Sinister), and Alyson Court (Jubilation Lee / Jubilee). Lawrence Bayne (Nathan Summers / Cable) and Ron Rubin (Morph) also returned. Dodd, Zann, Buza, Sealy-Smith, Hough, and Britton all reprised their roles from the original series, while the others voice new roles: Disher voices Dr. Valerie Cooper, Potter voices Nathan Summers / Cable, Court voices Abscissa, Bayne voices Carl Denti / X-Cutioner, and Rubin voices President Robert Edward Kelly.

Ray Chase takes on the role of Scott Summers / Cyclops following the death of original voice actor Norm Spencer; Jennifer Hale replaces Disher as the voice of Jean Grey; Holly Chou replaces Court as Jubilation Lee / Jubilee, with Court previously stating that she would not return to the role and hoped an Asian-American actor would voice the character instead; A. J. LoCascio replaces Potter as Remy LeBeau / Gambit; Matthew Waterson voices Erik Lehnsherr / Magneto, following the death of David Hemblen; Gui Agustini voices Roberto da Costa / Sunspot; J. P. Karliak replaces Rubin as Morph; Isaac Robinson-Smith voices Lucan Bishop, replacing Philip Akin; Ross Marquand voices Professor Charles Xavier, replacing Cedric Smith; Gil Birmingham voices Forge following the death of Marc Strange; and Eric Bauza voices the Sentinels after the death of David Fox.

Meredith Layne was the casting and voice director for the series, responsible for casting actors and directing the voice recording sessions. New cast members were hired for instances where the original voice actor was not available or their voice was no longer appropriate for the character, and were intended to match the original performances. Recasting was also done to have more authentic representation (as with Court and Jubilee), because of specific vocal intonations (as with Cable to better highlight the "weird" father-son relationship with Cyclops), or for symbolic reasons (as with Disher now voicing Valerie Cooper). Regarding Disher's new role, DeMayo explained that Cooper delivers the series' thesis and he wanted Disher to be the one to present that since he felt "she was such the heart of the original series" and her original role as Jean Grey was "the epitome of empathy".

In February 2024, DeMayo said Theo James, who DeMayo worked with on the film The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf (2021), had been cast in a "fan favorite" role, later revealed to be Bastion. Reprising their voice roles from What If...? in the first season are Josh Keaton as Steve Rogers / Captain America and Michael Patrick McGill as Thunderbolt Ross. Gates McFadden appears at the end of season 1 as Mother Askani; DeMayo and Winderbaum decided to cast McFadden in the role after watching the third season of Star Trek: Picard.

Voice recording began by November 2021, primarily taking place remotely over Zoom due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Chase and Hale recorded scenes for the third episode together in-person because of how much dialogue they share in that episode, but they said this was a rare occasion. Dodd revealed in February 2023 that he had started recording for the second season, and Zann stated in August 2023 that she had begun recording for it as well. By May 2024, she had completed her work on the season except for additional dialogue recording (ADR). Bayne also returned for the season. Despite the pandemic having less of an impact on the second season, recording continued to take place remotely for most cast members due to them being based in different locations.

### Animation and design

Animation was provided by Studio Mir and Tiger Animation. The 2D animation style of the original series was retained, but "slightly modernized" to improve the quality and reflect advances in animation since the 1990s. Castorena's pitch for the job of supervising director was to make the series "fresh, but familiar", and he said it needed to be "the show we remember, but it has to be in 4K". Houston advised the animation team on how the original series was made, and the storyboard artists reviewed the original to inform their composition, editing, and cinematography decisions. Winderbaum said there was a "code of ethics" they followed to align with the restrictions of the 1990s animation, but they occasionally broke this for dramatic effect such as during key action sequences. A VHS -inspired effect was applied to the animation to make it appear more like 1990s television. 3D animation was used to lay out scenes and create more complicated vehicles and ships, but the animation team drew over this in 2D to maintain the series's art style. The opening title sequence of The Animated Series was recreated with updated animation for the revival. Houston worked with episodic directors Conley and Yonemura to recreate the title sequence based on Houston's original storyboards.

DeMayo said the costumes chosen for each character indicated which comic book storylines were being adapted by the series. Lead character designer Amelia Vidal retained the design concepts from the original series along with the style and aesthetics of the X-Men comic books of the 1970s to the 1990s. Any changes from those were made to either better serve the story or to assist with the technical side of the animation. Nightcrawler's design is based on his appearance during John Byrne and Dave Cockrum 's 1970s comic book runs. In the final episodes of the first season, the X-Men don costumes based on their original comic book designs and those of the failed 1989 animation pilot X-Men: Pryde of the X-Men. DeMayo said this was always planned as part of the series' exploration of nostalgia. The original series' animators could not move Mister Sinister around much because of his complex design, which includes tendrils coming from his back; this was not an issue for the new series, but the animators chose to restrict the character's movements to align with the original series.

To show emotion with Cyclops, whose eyes and eyebrows are covered by his visor, animators adjusted how the glints and reflections appeared on his visor. Castorena said other mutants' powers were also used in unique ways to convey their emotions, and his goal was to use mutant powers in ways that had not been seen before such as having Gambit charge Wolverine's claws with kinetic energy. Morph's shape-shifting powers allow for cameo appearances of other mutants. A background in the fifth episode features the Watcher in a blink-and-you-miss-it Easter egg for fans. The Watcher was included because that character observes important moments throughout the multiverse, including the massacre in Genosha. Castorena said this was not necessarily the same version of the Watcher that appears in What If...? since a different version of the character also appeared in the original series.

Work on the animatics for the first season had begun by November 2021, and full animation began by April 2023. The first season was in post-production by July, and animatics for the entire second season had been created by March 2024.

### Music

One of Feige's stipulations for reviving X-Men: The Animated Series was ensuring Marvel Studios was able to use that series' theme song, which was composed by Ron Wasserman. Wasserman composed the theme while under contract with producer Haim Saban, giving legal ownership of the song to Saban. Following legal battles over the use of the theme, Marvel Studios paid a large sum to secure the rights to it in 2022. This was done on the condition that it be re-recorded for future projects and credited to the original series' music executives, Saban and Shuki Levy. Wasserman was set to meet with Marvel about his involvement in the revival by early 2022, but John Andrew Grush and Taylor Newton Stewart—known professionally as the Newton Brothers —were announced to be the composers for X-Men '97 that July.

The Newton Brothers were hired while Marvel was still in the process of securing the rights for the original theme. On revisiting the original series, the composers realized that the music did not match with their childhood memories and many of the original synthesizer sounds would now sound dated to modern audiences. They chose to modernize the score with an orchestra, choir, and some modern synthesizers. However, they felt the theme song should remain more true to the original style, to not "ruin the nostalgic vibes" and embrace the sincerity of the original series. They produced eight different versions of the theme, each with a different amount of orchestral music versus synthesizer music, before settling on the final version. The main melody is played on a synthesizer and an electric guitar, the latter performed by Nili Brosh. The X-Men '97 version of the theme, credited to Saban and Levy, was first heard in the MCU film Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022) and then the series Ms. Marvel (2022) when those projects referenced mutants.

After discussing the score's tone with DeMayo, the Newton Brothers decided to begin closer to the original series and modernize the music more with each episode. They began by experimenting with ideas separately and then came together to write musical suites for each main character, defining sounds and instruments which could be their "calling cards". For instance, Storm's music uses woodwind instruments, choir, and chanting to reflect the wind aspect of her powers, while a waterphone and other metallic sounds were used for Magneto. To ensure the music did not become too modern, the composers took influence from 1990s musicians such as Michael Jackson, the Prodigy, Radiohead, and Depeche Mode. Jackson's " Thriller " particularly inspired the third episode, which "got the Gothic treatment" and includes an organ. The song " Happy Nation " by Ace of Base, which was released days after X-Men: The Animated Series premiered in 1992, is used prominently in the series in relation to the nation of Genosha and the Sentinel attack on it.

The X-Men '97 version of the main theme was released by Marvel Music and Hollywood Records as a digital single on March 20, 2024. The next month, Stewart confirmed that he and Grush were returning for the second season but said they had not yet begun writing music for it. A full soundtrack album for the first season was released on May 24. All music composed by the Newton Brothers:

## Marketing

The series was discussed during Marvel Studios Animation's panel at the 2022 San Diego Comic-Con, where animatics were shown. Completed animation from the series was shown a year later at the 2023 San Diego Comic-Con, where Hasbro 's Marvel Legends figures for the series were also revealed. In December 2023, Marvel Comics announced a four-issue comic book prequel series, also titled X-Men '97, written by Steve Foxe and with art by Salva Espin. The comic was made in collaboration with the series' producers. Foxe said the comic was an "original tale that feeds right into" the new series. The first issue was released in March 2024. Foxe and Espin previously worked on X-Men '92, a comic book continuation of the original series. Select X-Men comic books released in March 2024 feature variant covers based on Hasbro's Marvel Legends figures for the series.

A trailer for the series was released on February 15, 2024, when the first season's premiere date was announced. Charles Pulliam-Moore at The Verge and Joshua Rivera at Polygon both praised the trailer's nostalgia for the original series and specifically focused on the use of the original series' main theme. Ben Travis, writing for Empire, also noted the nostalgia and music as well as the "narrative weight" suggested by the trailer's character details. James Whitbrook at Gizmodo felt something was off about the trailer and identified that the animation "flits between looking oddly flat and stilted and some elements that almost look 3D", along with the combination of new and returning voice actors. However, he liked the series' aesthetic and some of the story ideas suggested by the trailer, and hoped that the elements which made him uneasy would work better when actually watching the series. The trailer reportedly set an internal Disney record as the biggest trailer launch for a Disney+ animated series, surpassing the trailers for What If...? and the service's Star Wars animated series.

Arcade1Up announced a home arcade cabinet, themed around X-Men '97, later in February. It features eight Marvel/ Capcom video games: X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse (1994), Marvel Super Heroes (1995), X-Men: Children of the Atom (1995), X-Men vs. Street Fighter (1996), Marvel Super Heroes in War of the Gems (1996), Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter (1997), Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes (1998), and Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes (2000). The titles for each episode of the first season were announced on a poster done in the style of a 1990s issue of TV Guide. The first three episodes debuted at the series' world premiere in Hollywood, Los Angeles, on March 13. By the end of the month, viewership for all five seasons of the original series had increased on Disney+ by 522 percent since the release of the trailer in February.

## Release

X-Men '97 premiered on Disney+ on March 20, 2024, with its first two episodes. The rest of the ten-episode first season was released weekly until May 15. The season was originally scheduled for release in late 2023.

## Reception

### Viewership

According to Whip Media, who track viewership data for the 25 million worldwide users of their TV Time app, X-Men '97 was the most anticipated new series of March 2024. Disney announced that the first episode had 4 million views worldwide in the five days following its release, marking the second-biggest first-season premiere for a full-length animated series on the service since the first season of What If...? in 2021. According to the streaming aggregator JustWatch, X-Men '97 was the fifth most watched television series across all platforms in the United States during the week of March 18–24, 2024. Whip Media reported that the show was the 2nd most streamed television series in the United States from April 14 to 28, 2024, and was the most streamed television series from May 5 to 12, 2024. The season finale saw 3.5 million views globally during its first five days on the streaming service.

### Critical response

X-Men '97 received critical acclaim. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported that critics called the series "Marvel's best release in years", praising "its nostalgic 2D animation style, smart writing, and captivating action sequences". 99% of 79 reviews are positive on the website, with an average rating of 8.9/10. The website's critics consensus states, "Pulling off the x-traordinary feat of staying true to its beloved predecessor while charting a path forward for the franchise, X-Men '97 is simply x-cellent." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the first season a score of 82 out of 100 based on 14 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".

Hayden Mears of TVLine complimented the show for combining the "vintage" feel with modernity in an "unassuming way". Francis Agustin of the BBC believed that the series was a shift away from the heavily interconnected Marvel Cinematic Universe. Alex Abad-Santos of Vox said "verything about ' 97 reflects an affection and thoughtfulness, not just for the Saturday morning cartoon but for the X-Men, too", praising the show for its understanding of the source material. Brian Lowry of CNN News commented on the series' more adult tone and noted how it managed to remain faithful to the original series in spite of it. Simon Gallagher from Screen Rant said "27 years after The Animated Series ended, X-Men '97 takes the original further, adding freshness without betraying anything that made us love it" and praising the show for its story, chosen plots and improved animation style.

## Documentary special

In February 2021, the documentary series Marvel Studios: Assembled was announced. The specials go behind the scenes of the Marvel Studios films and television series with cast members and additional creatives. The special of this series, " The Making of X-Men '97 ", features cast members from the original series and X-Men '97 who reveal their behind-the-scenes stories, and it explores the origins of the original series. It was released on Disney+ on May 22, 2024.


# List of NFL career passing touchdowns leaders

## Abstract

In American football, passing, along with running (also referred to as rushing), is one of two primary methods to advance the ball, typically executed by the quarterback from behind the line of scrimmage, but any offensive player can attempt a pass provided they are behind the line. A pass must move forward from the passer's hands to qualify as a passing play, whereas lateral or backward movements classify as running plays. A player who catches a forward pass is called a receiver. A touchdown pass is a pass thrown from a passer to a receiver that results in a touchdown being scored. The National Football League (NFL) records the number of touchdown passes made by players, a statistic also noted historically for the American Football League (AFL), which merged into the NFL in 1970 after operating from 1960 to 1969.

Tom Brady holds the record for most passing touchdowns with 649, followed by Drew Brees with 571 and Peyton Manning with 539. Aaron Rodgers leads all active players with 475 career passing touchdowns. Brady also is the record holder for the most career playoff passing touchdowns with 88. He is followed by Joe Montana and Rodgers, with both tied at 45. Rodgers leads all active players in career playoff passing touchdowns. The longest career passing touchdown record holder was Fran Tarkenton, who held the record from 1975 to 1994.

## Regular season career passing touchdowns leaders

Bolded player(s) indicate making their debut on list. Through Week 2 early Sunday games of 2024 season.

## Playoff leaders

Based on 15 TD passes minimum. Through 2023 playoffs.

## Historical passing touchdowns leaders

Sixteen players are recognized as having held outright or tied the record as the NFL's career passing touchdowns leader.


Waipawa railway station

# Waipawa railway station

## Abstract

From at least 1870 Waipawa was served by mail coaches running between Napier and Waipukurau.

On Monday 28 August 1876 the railway was extended from Te Aute to Waipawa, later becoming part of the Palmerston North–Gisborne Line. It was part of the Paki Paki to Waipukurau contract, tendered on 15 July 1874 for £19,532 by Charles McKirdy, of Wellington, who built the Rimutaka Incline and several other lines. A local contractor tendered £29,173. There were allegations of mismanagement and disputes about the contracts. For example, the work was started by the international contractor, Brogdens. However, in 1876, the Minister for Public Works, Edward Richardson, attributed delays only to unexpectedly heavy land claims and floods. S Tracey and Allen, of Napier, tendered £7,989 for track for the Paki Paki-Waipawa length in September 1875, but they lost the contract in May 1876, due to slow progress. Waipawa started with 2 trains a day in each direction, increased to 3 in 1883 and 4 in 1896. Waipawa had 7 trains a day in 1940.

Waipawa was the terminus for 3 days, until a 4 mi 62.93 ch (7.703 km) extension to Waipukurau opened on 1 September 1876. The contract for laying the track for the 28.58 km (17.76 mi) southerly extension of the line to Takapau was advertised in April 1876. The line to Waipukurau was built by Brogdens for £9,469 7s 9d. Donald Ross built the 60 ft (18 m) bridges over the Waipawa and Tukituki Rivers for £23,410. In 1875 construction of the Waipawa bridge, just south of Waipawa, was delayed by timber supplies. The bridge was strengthened in 1911 and rebuilt in 1939. About 13 February 2023 the small Harker Street bridge 176, just to the north of the 305 m (1,001 ft) Waipawa Bridge 175, was washed away during Cyclone Gabrielle. Other parts of the town were also flooded. The bridge was first to be repaired and the line to Hastings reopened on 3 April.

When the station opened, McLeod's contract for a 5th class stationmaster's house had been completed in October 1875 and Richard Phillips' contract for the station buildings by 22 March 1876. Following the opening Richard Phillips extended the station over the next couple of years. By 1896 Waipawa had a 4th class station, platform (12 ft (3.7 m) wide in 1912), cart approach to platform, 40 ft (12 m) x 30 ft (9.1 m) goods shed, loading bank, cattle yards, stationmaster's house, urinals and a passing loop for 42 wagons, extended to 49 by 1911 and 80 in 1940. Fires damaged the station in 1896 and 1899. In 1905 Richard Phillips rebuilt the station and goods shed. Railway houses were built in 1905 and 1928. A verandah was added in 1908 and can be seen in a 1913 photo. In 1912 an automatic tablet exchanger was added, by which time the lean-to station had luggage and parcels rooms, an office, vestibule, ladies waiting room and a 1½ ton crane. By 1914 the goods shed has been doubled in length. Electricity was connected in 1928. In the annual returns of traffic, Waipawa was one of the medium sized stations on the line. For example, in 1925 it sold 15,446 tickets and handled 74,062 pigs and sheep.

On 6 December 1981 the station closed to passengers, it was an unattended station from 20 November 1983, closed to all but parcels on 18 August 1984 and closed completely on 2 November 1984. By 1987 only a platform and goods shed remained. The platform, goods shed and a single track still remain.