The Adventures of Pete and Pete - Definition and Overview

The Adventures of Pete and Pete was an American television series about two brothers named Pete which aired on the Nickelodeon cable channel. Most recently it was found on the Noggin Cable network for teen programming but has since been dropped.

Origins

The show was created by Will McRobb and Chris Viscardi and began as 1 minute shorts in 1990 which were shown in-between regular programs. After the popularity of the shorts, 5 half hour specials were made. This was followed by a regular half hour series that ran for three seasons (1994-1996).

Setting

The show featured many humorous and surreal elements both in its narrative and its recurring themes. It was set in the fictional town of Wellsville and originally filmed in Leonia, New Jersey (school scenes) and South Orange, New Jersey (neighborhood scenes). In the third season filming was moved to Cranford, New Jersey.

Cast

The show starred Mike Maronna as the older Pete, Danny Tamberelli as the younger Pete, Allison Fanelli as Ellen, Judy Grafe as Mom, Hardy Rawls as Dad, Michelle Trachtenberg as Nona Mecklenberg, and Toby Huss as Artie, the Strongest Man in the World. The many guest stars that appeared on Pete and Pete include Selma Blair, Steve Buscemi, LL Cool J, Chris Elliott, Janeane Garofalo, Frank Gifford, Debbie Harry, Patty Hearst, David Johanson (Buster Poindexter), Luscious Jackson, John McLaughlin, Iggy Pop, Michael Stipe, Hunter S. Thompson and Adam West.

The show featured music by such independent artists as Polaris, Lucious Jackson, The Magnetic Fields, RACECAR, and The Apples in Stereo. Some of the Polaris' music from the show was released as a CD, Music from The Adventures of Pete and Pete, including the theme song "Hey Sandy".

Content

Although Pete and Pete was a children's show aired on a children's network, many of the jokes and allusions were lost on the younger generation. It is not to say that some subject matter was mature, but simply that many referential antecedents fall outside of the target audience's experience.

Some such allusions include:

• Citizen Kane - Little Pete drops the snow globe in Sick Day
• Ferris Bueller's Day Off - Possibly a minor influence in Sick Day
• Jimmy Hoffa - While digging a tunnel out of his house, Little Pete finds a wallet and reads the name inside: "Hoffa!" he says.

Peculiarly, almost every product mentioned on the show was manufactured by KrebStar products -- if someone on the show were to have some coffee they would drink "Kreb Full o' Nuts Coffee", their underwear would be "Kreb of the Loom", and wax the floor with "KrebStar Industrial Floorwax". In other words, KrebStar was to Pete and Pete what Acme was to the Coyote and Road-Runner.

Episode Guide

Season One

1. Day of the Dot
2. Nightcrawlers
3. King of the Road
4. Tool and Die
5. Rangeboy
6. When Petes Collide
7. Don't Tread on Pete
8. Hard Day's Pete

Season Two

1. Grounded for Life
2. Field of Pete
3. The Call
4. The Big Quiet
5. Time Tunnel
6. Halloweenie
7. Inspector 34
8. Farewell, My Little Viking (Two Parts)
9. Sickday
10. Yellow Fever
11. X=Why

Season Three

1. 35 Hours
2. The Trouble with Teddy
3. The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
4. Splashdown
5. Dance Fever
6. Crisis in the Love Zone
7. Last Laugh
8. Allnighter
9. Road Warrior
10. Pinned!
11. On Christmas Pete
12. Das Bus
13. Saturday

External links

• Jeremy Frens's fan site (http://www.cs.indiana.edu/entertainment/pete-and-pete/) at Indiana University
• Another fan site (http://www.cannit.com/peteandpete/)
• Overview of Pete and Pete music (http://www.cs.indiana.edu/~jfrens/pete-and-pete/music.html), including lyrics of theme song "Hey Sandy"