Nightmare Ned

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Nightmare Ned
"Nightmare Ned" Title Card
Format	Children's television series
Created by	Donovan Cook
Starring	Courtland Mead Brad Garrett Aria Noelle Curzon Kevin West Dan Castellaneta
Country of origin	United States
No. of episodes	25
Production
Running time	22 minutes approx
Broadcast
Original channel	ABC
Status	Ended

Nightmare Ned was an animated television series which ran on ABC in 1997 for 25 episodes It was Disney's first attempt in animation and presentation which emulated Nickelodeon's many preteen and pre-pubescent cartoons. The series focused on the young Ned Needlemeyer as he dealt with his fears and problems through his nightmares. The cause for the nightmare would be shown in the first part of the show. Other characters included Ned's father, Ed Needlemeyer, and his mother and Mrs. Needlemeyer. Ned's nightmares were often very dark and surreal with almost a gothic-type sensibility and resembled Tim Burton's work. The show was never released on home video and there are currently no plans for a DVD release.

Video game

The show was first spun into a computer game, released in 1997. The game features young Ned as he travels through five different adventure portals such as The Graveyard, The Alcatraz Elementary School, The Medical Nightmare, The Attic, Basement and Beyond, and The Bathroom. You start at the Quilt, where you can choose from 5 of the nightmare worlds. You only have 8 times to go to the Quilt, but there are secret passages in each portal that take you to another portal. There is one "shadow creature" for every portal. Throughout a portal, by defeating creatures and completing tasks, a small part of the shadow creature is revealed. There are 3 pieces for each. After each section is completed, the shadow creature becomes someone (or something) from reality who is connected with that issue. In the Graveyard Nightmare, the shadow creature turns into Ned's grandfather at the end, because Ned was worried about him dying. In the Medical Nightmare, the creature turns into a nurse named Dr. Klutzchnik. Ned was scared about getting sick and having to get a shot. In the Alcatraz Elementary School, the creature turns into Billy, a bully who just wanted to be friends with Ned. Ned simply wanted him to stop calling him "Melonhead". In the Attic, Basement, and Beyond, the creature turns into a girl named Sally with a weird doll whom she calls "Sandy Patty Cake". She found it in the trash. Finally, in the Bathroom Nightmare, the creature turns into Ned's bathroom toilet who, in the nightmare, can talk. There are two endings to the game. The "bad" ending is when you use up all 8 "Quilt tries". Ned ends up still being scared of everything. The "good" ending is where Ned wakes up and isn't scared. The shadow creatures don't know what to do any more. The shadow creature from the Medical Nightmare suggests performing "hideous, painful, medical procedures on each other".

Episode list

• Nightmare Ned at the Internet Movie Database
• Nightmare Ned at TV.com
• Nightmare Ned at Toonopedia
• Scenes From the Nightmare Ned Video Game