CINAR: Backstreet Boys Guest Star in Upcoming ARTHUR 'R' Back-to-School Special.

Business Editors

BOSTON & MONTREAL--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 8, 2002

CINAR

Attention all Backstreet Boys fans! MARC BROWN STUDIOS, WGBH Boston, and CINAR Corporation have begun production on a new television special, ARTHUR's "It's Only Rock and Roll" (working title), that will star none other than the Backstreet Boys-Kevin, AJ, Howie D., Brian, and Nick-as animated versions of themselves.

ARTHUR's "It's Only Rock and Roll" will premiere August 2002 as an hour-long PBS special. Premiering during PBS pledge, the special will include behind-the-scenes production footage, giving viewers an inside look at how the program was made. "It's Only Rock and Roll" will also be given a national airdate on PBS after August pledge.

A Backstreet Boys concert tour stop in Elwood City is the backdrop for this musical ARTHUR special. For Muffy, their imminent arrival brings to fruition her crush on Backstreet Boy heartthrob Nick Carter. In response to Muffy's infatuation with Nick and his group, Francine creates an "anti-cute, anti-commercial" band called U Stink. But things start to fall apart for Francine-including her friendship with her bandmates and Muffy-when her band becomes a huge success. Through a Hard Day's Night-esque chain of events, the special culminates in U Stink and Backstreet Boys onstage performing an impromptu duet.

ARTHUR has always had a rich musical tradition. In addition to the series' catchy reggae theme song, performed by Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers, past guest stars Yo-Yo Ma, Joshua Redman, and Art Garfunkel have each contributed their own signature musical styles to the series. The music on ARTHUR reaches beyond the broadcast with three CDs (distributed by Rounder Records), featuring music from the series and "Arthur's Perfect Christmas." ARTHUR's "It's Only Rock and Roll" will continue this tradition while folding pop music, through Backstreet Boys, into the mix.

"We were thrilled when Backstreet Boys accepted my invitation to team up for a back-to-school ARTHUR special," said Arthur creator Marc Brown. "I've been a big fan of their music from the start and it's a huge treat to be working on this project together which has been nothing but fun!"

ARTHUR's "It's Only Rock and Roll" (working title) is a joint production of MARC BROWN STUDIOS, WGBH Boston, and CINAR Corporation. Funding for the special is provided by public television viewers. ARTHUR's "It's Only Rock and Roll" is closed-captioned for deaf and hard-of-hearing viewers by The Caption Center at WGBH Boston and described for blind and visually impaired audiences by Descriptive Video Service(R) (DVS(R)) at WGBH. ARTHUR's "It's Only Rock and Roll" will also be available on home video from Sony, and a book by the same name will be published by Little, Brown and Company.

ARTHUR is based on the best-selling books by Marc Brown. There are now over 52 million Arthur books in print. Currently in its sixth season, ARTHUR remains the most watched children's television program among kids two-to-eleven years old, with more than 11-1/2 million weekly viewers. ARTHUR has won numerous awards, including the George Foster Peabody Award and four Daytime Emmys-three in the Outstanding Children's Animated Program category. ARTHUR is produced for PBS by WGBH Boston and CINAR Corporation. The award-winning ARTHUR Web site is pbskids.org/arthur.

MARC BROWN STUDIOS is dedicated to the success of children and families through education and entertainment. They are currently in production for an ARTHUR feature animated film to be released in 2003. Visit www.arthurworldwide.com.

WGBH Boston is America's preeminent public broadcasting producer. More than one-third of PBS's prime-time lineup and companion Web content is produced by WGBH, and the Boston station is the source of many public radio favorites. WGBH also is a pioneer in educational multimedia and in access technologies for people with disabilities. For more information visit www.wgbh.org.

CINAR Corporation is an integrated entertainment and education company involved in the development, production, post-production, and worldwide distribution of non-violent, quality programming and educational products for children and families. CINAR's Web site is www.cinar.com.