
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, March 5, 1994                   TAG: 9403050211
SECTION: SPECTATOR                    PAGE: S-9   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: By Martie Zad The Washington Post
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

GEOGRAPHIC OPENS ANIMAL WORLD TO KIDS

The National Geographic Society, which has been bringing factual data and quality entertainment to the world for more than 100 years, launches a new dimension in its shower of information with the first three in the "Really Wild Animals" series of home videos for children from ages 5 to 10.

The initial three releases, due out Wednesday, are: "Swinging Safari," leading youngsters through Africa's Serengeti plains and Kalahari desert; "Wonders Down Under," about the weird and funny animals in Australia; and "Deep Sea Dive," exploring the ocean's treasures from the surface to the floor of the sea.

The videos, being distributed by Columbia TriStar Home Video, list at $14.95 and have a running time of 40 to 45 minutes each (1-800-343-6610). Three more will be released in July and three more in September, when a "GeoKids" series debuts for the 4-and-under set.

Dudley Moore does a masterful job of narrating the new series as the voice of "Spin," a jocular, globe-shaped geographer who adds facts to the matchless images from many of the world's greatest wildlife photographers. Spin also serves as the hip emcee who introduces the swinging animal-music videos as he bounces across the screen.

The series producers are Joan F. Wood, who has produced after-school specials "Sesame Street" and "3-2-1 Contact," and Andrew Carl Wilk, who has worked as a director and producer for Jim Henson and Disney studios.

by CNB