Penny Proud
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The Proud Family is an American animated sitcom created by Bruce W. Smith that aired on Disney Channel for two seasons from September 15, 2001, to August 19, 2005. The series centers on the life of the titular family, including the show’s main protagonist, Penny Proud, a 14-year-old African American teenage girl who navigates her adolescence while dealing with her friends and family. Episodes deal with Penny discovering her boundaries and struggling with family relationships and peer pressure. Penny Proud has strong relationships with her entrepreneurial father Oscar Proud and her veterinarian mother Trudy Proud, as well as her friends Dijonay Jones, LaCienega Boulevardez, Zoey Howzer, and Sticky Webb.
Bruce W. Smith previously directed the film, Bebe's Kids, which was a box office failure. Because of the lack of African-American animated shows, Smith co-founded Jambalaya Studios to create diverse projects. The Proud Family was the first project to be created by the company, starting development in 1998. Smith was inspired to create the series due to the lack of African-American empowerment in animation. Based on his experiences with a middle-class African-American family in Los Angeles, the series featured several elements in animated sitcoms that explored socially relevant themes.
The Proud Family is the first animated series to air exclusively on Disney Channel. The series premiered on September 15, 2001, as part of the network's programming block Zoog Disney. The series received generally positive reviews for its humor and themes, but received some criticism for its stereotypes. A feature film, The Proud Family Movie, premiered as the series finale on August 19, 2005. A revival, known as The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder, premiered on February 23, 2022, on Disney+.
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