A ‘Cro’-Magnon boy stars in new cartoon with a scientific bent

Sure, Cro’s a member of a Stone Age family, but he’s certainly not one of the Flintstones. He does have his own cartoon show, though (as did the Rubble clan, which will soon be featured in their own live-action movie).

Cro, on the Children’s Television Network, follows the adventures of a bright Cro-Magnon boy (voice of Max Cassella of “Doogie Howser, M.D.”). Cro’s ingenuity helps him rescue his pals, the Neanderthals, from weekly crises. Ruth Buzzi provides the voice of Nandy, Cro’s adoptive Neanderthal mother.

The show is told in flashback from the viewpoint of Phil (voice of Jim Cummings of “Bonkers” and “Darkwing Duck”), a recently defrosted woolly mammoth who regales his new 20th-Century friends with tales of Cro.

Cro follows in the tradition of other CTW shows by combining entertainment and education, says Franklin Getchell, senior vice president of programming and production at the network.

While CTW had exclusively presented its shows on PBS stations, Getchell points out that the network wanted to find a way to demonstrate basic scientific principals to kids and, “We decided to look for them where they already were, which was Saturday morning.”

With the live-action competition of “Beakman’s World” and “Disney Presents Bill Nye the Science Guy,” Getchell says CTW chose to make “Cro” a cartoon because, “When we began discussions on this show it was almost two years ago and the only way in (to Saturday morning) was through animation.”

“No one was thinking about the ‘Bill Nye’ and ‘Beakman’ stuff. We wanted the show to look like the rest of the stuff they were watching, and have the avenue for the education to come to them in that way,” Getchell says. “It will be interesting to see what will happen to ‘Beakman’ and if Saturday morning is really a place for that.”

Goals of the show include stimulating kids’ interest in scientific and technological principles as well as introducing them to the workings of familiar machines, gadgets and simple tools.

Action for Children’s Television founder Peggy Charren offers this critique of “Cro”: “It’s not in the category of ‘Beakman’s World,’ ‘3-2-1 Contact’ or ‘Newton’s Apple.’ It may have science in it, but it features these Bluto-like characters. It’s not really a science show. It’s a cartoon.”

The production of “Cro” is partially financed by a grant from the National Science Foundation, which will be used in free community outreach material, including a 16-page comic and activity book, trading cards, posters--all available in January. The book will be published in the “3-2-1 Contact” magazine and distributed through after-school groups, including the Boys and Girls Club of America, the 4-H Club and the YMCA of the USA, as well as to young people in low-income school districts.

“Cro” airs Saturdays at 7 a.m. on KGTV, KEYT and KESQ and at 8 a.m. on KABC. CTW has targeted the show for ages 6 to 11.

MORE FOR THE FAMILY

Michael Keaton (“Batman”) dons a hard-core New York accent for his narration of the American Heroes & Legends episode “Mose the Fireman” (Wednesday 8-8:30 a.m. Showtime). Mose is a legendary Gotham fireman whose outrageous exploits shaped one of America’s tallest tales. The evocative turn-of-the-century-style musical score is provided by Walter Becker (co-founder of Steely Dan) and jazz musician John Beasley. For ages 2 to 11.