The need for the show was facilitated by the Children's Television Act. Player (voiced by Joanie Tucker (Season 1) Justin Shenkarow (Season 2) Asi Lang (Season 3-4) Joanie Pleasant (Season 3-4)) - The only live-action character on the program, always seen from behind as a computer player at the beginning and closing of the show. It should be noted that Zack's jacket has his name misspelled as Zak. He takes cases less seriously than his sister Ivy. He, also, is very good at sciece and engineering. He is a genius who can speak over 20 languages and has a photographic memory. Zack (voiced by Scott Menville) - Zack has blond hair, blue eyes, and is fourteen years old.
She can get frustrated easily, such as hating it when Zack calls her "sis" or when Carmen is getting away. Her skills include having multiple black belts in martial arts and being an expert pilot. She is the elder of the show's star siblings. Ivy (voiced by Jennifer Hale) - Ivy has short red hair, green eyes, and is eighteen years old.
He had a very intimate professional and personal relationship with Carmen. His role consisted of providing exposition, information, alerts of Carmen's recent crime and comic relief. (short for Computerized Holographic Imaging Educational Facilitator) is the head of ACME. She was a former agent of the ACME Detective Agency.Ĭhief (voiced by Rodger Bumpass) - The C.H.I.E.F.
Despite the name of her organization, she has a strong code of morals and only steals for the challenge of it. Nevertheless, the show never portrayed Carmen returning to ACME or giving up her thieving ways.Ĭarmen Sandiego (voiced by Rita Moreno) - Carmen Sandiego is an international thief and the head of V.I.L.E. By the show's fourth and final season, Zack and Ivy were regularly teaming up with their former nemesis to stop considerably less moral criminals from taking over V.I.L.E. Early on, it was established that Carmen only stole for the challenge of it and that she had her own ethical code, but, as it progressed, the show began to increasingly focus on her "good" side and on her weaknesses.
However, this structure began to be abandoned as the writers started to explore the nature of Carmen's character. Time travel would continue to recur throughout the rest of the show's run. Towards the end of the first season, time travel was added into the show when Carmen built her own time machine and travelled back in time to the American Revolution. Though the loot would typically be recovered, Carmen, who usually had some kind of "master plan", would always escape. An outrageous theft would be committed somewhere in the world and Zack and Ivy, guided by the Player, would try to retrieve the loot and capture Carmen Sandiego.
Originally, episodes of the series were quite similar to the typical "formula" of the computer games. Also, the game's menu is sometimes used as a transition between scenes. Zack and Ivy will often ask for the player to open C5 corridors. The opening and closing of each show has the player communicating with Carmen via computer.
Notably, the show was portrayed as taking place inside a computer game. Zack and Ivy were also siblings, but their last name was never stated nor was their mysterious lack of parents or a guardian ever explained. Specifically, Where on Earth is Carmen Sandiego? followed the adventures of two teenaged ACME detectives named Zack and Ivy. gang from stealing artifacts around the world. 5 International television broadcast historyĪs with the rest of the Carmen Sandiego franchise, the show's basic premise had the ACME Detective Agency attempting to stop the title thief and her V.I.L.E.In 2001, TV Guide ranked the show at #47 on its list of 50 Greatest Game Shows of All Time. The program's theme song, written by Sean Altman and David Yazbek, has maintained public awareness over the years. The program received the George Foster Peabody Award for excellence in 1993. Howard Blumenthal, Dana Calderwood, and Dorothy Curley were the series' developers and Blumenthal served as the show's producer for its first four seasons. The series was recorded in New York City and coproduced by PBS stations WQED and WGBH. The series was replaced the following Monday by a second Carmen Sandiego-based game show, Where in Time Is Carmen Sandiego?.Īctor Greg Lee hosted the program in the role of "The ACME Special Agent (renamed Senior Agent for Seasons 3–5) in charge of training new recruits." He was joined by actress Lynne Thigpen, who portrayed Lee's superior "The Chief", and a capella performing group Rockapella, who served as the show's in-house band and comedy troupe. The program aired on PBS from Septemuntil December 22, 1995, and reruns of the series continued until October 4, 1996. Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego? is an American children's television game show based on the Carmen Sandiego computer game series created by Brøderbund Software.