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After school special

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DVD release for Martin Tahse's After School Specials from 1979 to 1980

The American Broadcasting Company coined the term After School Special (sometimes rendered Afterschool Special) in 1972[1] with a series of television films, usually dealing with controversial or socially relevant issues, that were generally broadcast in the late afternoon and meant to be viewed by school-age children, particularly teenagers.[2] The specials were generally broadcast four to six times during the school year, pre-empting local programming that would usually follow the network schedule in the late afternoon hours. ABC's series ran from 1972 to 1997.[citation needed]

Competitors

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CBS distributed its own productions as the CBS Afternoon Playhouse (later known as CBS Schoolbreak Special). It also had a program called Famous Classic Tales, which aired Australian cartoons that were adapted from literature books (similar to Family Classic Tales). NBC had after-school programs under the umbrella title Special Treat. ABC had the ABC Afterschool Special; similar programs included The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie and the ABC Weekend Special.[citation needed]

Legacy

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The cult TV show Strangers with Candy and its 2005 feature film adaptation, featuring Amy Sedaris as an ex-con, prostitute, and junkie, spoofs after-school special conventions.[3]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Retroland | ABC Afterschool Special". Retroland, Inc. 2004-07-16. Archived from the original on 2007-04-16. Retrieved 2015-09-12.
  2. ^ Traumatic Episodes: A History of the ABC Afterschool Special | Mental Floss
  3. ^ "Strangers With Candy". AV Club.
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