The Puzzle Place

Overview

The Puzzle Place is an American children's television series produced by KCET in Los Angeles, California and Lancit Media in New York City, New York. It premiered on the Public Broadcasting Service on January 16, 1995, and ran for about four years, airing its final episode on December 4, 1998. Reruns were continued until March 31, 2000. The show followed a multi-ethnic group of kids from different parts of the United States who hung out at "the Puzzle Place", which is a teen hangout themed around jigsaw puzzle pieces. In each episode the characters were confronted with an everyday conflict usually encountered in childhood and even early teenagerdom, such as making moral decisions, sharing, racism, sexism, etc.

Episodes

S01E01 Tippy Woo

January 16, 1995 29 min
Julie obtains a teddy bear, and names it after herself "Tippy Wu". She also remarks on some unflattering nicknames other kids have given her, per her last name "Wu".

S01E02 Train Driving Kids

January 17, 1995 29 min
The boys have a model train but refuse to share with the girls, insisting it’s a boys’ activity. Gradually everyone takes to other suggested activities, leaving only Leon and Kiki still wanting to play with...

S01E03 Rip Van Wrinkle

January 18, 1995 29 min
Leon, Kiki, Julie and Skye host a slumber party, but have to work together to help each other's bedtime routines/needs be met, or else the “slumber” part will be difficult. Sizzle and Nuzzle try to...

S01E04 Accentuate the Positive

January 19, 1995 29 min
Kiki dresses as a space alien, distressed that other kids at school laughed at her Hispanic accent.

S01E05 Gotta Dance

January 20, 1995 29 min
The kids obtain a sheet of dance steps and learn of various cultural dances while trying to decipher it. Sizzle recalls the time Nuzzle criticized her for carrying her tail wrong and refuses to dance...

S01E06 Rudy One

January 23, 1995 29 min
A robot shows up at the Puzzle Place and befriends Leon, while insulting everyone else, in an attempt to sabotage everyone’s friendship. Sizzle turns to Nuzzle for advice after a new cat calls her a...

S01E07 Butterfingers

January 24, 1995 29 min
The kids hold a relay race, but Ben drops his baton, prompting the nickname “Butterfingers” from everyone else. Nuzzle tries to show off his bravado by wanting to be called “Professor Muscles.”

S01E08 Rock Dreams

January 25, 1995 29 min
Skye aspires to perform music, but is discouraged by the fact that he doesn't know very many Native American performers. Eventually he makes contact with Native American Robby Romero and his band, Red Thunder, who...

S01E09 Roamantics

January 26, 1995 29 min
Ben brings in an ant farm to show everyone, but Leon unwittingly wreaks havoc in an attempt to give the ants fresh air, and has to make some sacrifices to restore order to The Puzzle...

S01E10 Spud Buds

January 27, 1995 29 min
Skye finds a party box in the kitchen, but everyone else is too distracted watching TV to take interest. Nuzzle wishes he hadn’t let Sizzle use a flying machine all she wants.

S01E11 Different Drummer

January 30, 1995 29 min
Julie plays referee to Skye and Leon’s dispute over whose cultural drum is more significant. The two eventually agree that both drugs are significant in their own way, and neither's is necessarily better. Sizzle takes...

S01E12 I Love Kiki

January 31, 1995 29 min
Kiki is at a loss as to what to do when she unwittingly “breaks” Julie’s toy horse, and can't bring herself to tell her. Sizzle looks after the sneaker that Nuzzle likes to chew on,...

S01E13 True Colors

February 1, 1995 29 min
The kids all partner up to paint one another, but initially can’t find a suitable paint color for everyone. Their second attempt, using chalk of different colors, is much more successful. Sizzle wants to paint...

S01E14 Cute Is as Cute Does

February 2, 1995 29 min
Julie wants to emulate her favorite singer, Penny Candy, but sees her true colors when a crisis in the greenhouse hits. Nuzzle bores Sizzle to sleep when he tries to show her a photo album...

S01E15 Leon's Pizza

February 3, 1995 29 min
Leon wants to make a pizza for everyone, but he needs a creative solution to satisfy everyone’s different topping preferences. Sizzle and Nuzzle fight over which toy is better.

S01E16 Real Heroes

February 6, 1995 29 min
The kids compare their favorite superheroes but need to band together when the pets get caught in a dangerous situation.

S01E17 Going By the Book

February 7, 1995 29 min
The kids want to play Sleeping Beauty, but as four of them don’t fit the description of the protagonists, they research other princes and princesses that reflect their individual heritages.

S01E18 Mad Music Magic

February 8, 1995 29 min
Kiki leads the kids in a makeshift band, but her authority seems to do more harm than good when she won’t allow them to play their preferred instruments. Sizzle attends her cousin’s birthday party, so...

S01E19 Party of One

February 9, 1995 29 min
Leon learns a hard lesson in racism when he’s barred from attending a friend’s birthday party simply because he’s African-American. Nuzzle refuses to fetch a stick for Kiki because she didn’t say “the magic word”...

S01E20 Dancing Dragon

February 10, 1995 29 min
Skye and Kiki unwittingly invade Julie’s privacy by opening a package meant for her. Nuzzle and Sizzle cause some mischief with it.

S01E21 Picture Perfect

February 13, 1995 29 min
Ben is unwilling to wear his glasses for a group picture because of some teasing, but unwittingly wreaks havoc when he spends a day without them. Nuzzle goes for a “hip cat” approach, which fails...

S01E22 Maiden Voyages

February 14, 1995 29 min
While the others turn the basement into a moonwalk with many balloons, Kiki and Julie enjoy moon cakes, but a humorous misunderstanding may mean Julie will marry Leon.

S01E23 Donuts and Dithering

February 15, 1995 29 min
The kids receive six assorted donuts, and Jody gets first dibs, but she struggles to decide which one she wants. Leon attempts to manipulate her choice to keep her from picking the one he wants,...

S01E24 Bully for Jody

February 16, 1995 29 min
Jody is a victim of bullying when a bigger student keeps stealing her lunch. Sizzle also tries to keep away a bigger cat.

S01E25 Ben's Bad Hair Day

February 17, 1995 29 min
Ben attempts to change his “boring” hairstyle with disastrous results, before learning that his hair was fine the way it was.

S01E26 All Weather Friends

February 20, 1995 29 min
When a storm hits the Puzzle Place, Leon is embarrassed to admit he is afraid of thunder and lightning.

S01E27 Bread and Matzoh

February 21, 1995 29 min
Skye brings some special bread from his tribe to share with the kids but is troubled when Jody refuses to try any for eight days. It turns out the reason is because of one of...

S01E28 Owning It

February 22, 1995 29 min
Leon obtains a new watch but drives everyone else crazy with it, causing them to snap back at him. Kiki is preparing chili in the kitchen, and Sizzle and Nuzzle want to taste it so...

S01E29 Baffled Ben

February 23, 1995 29 min
Ben is struggling to put together a puzzle but angrily snaps and puts down anyone who tries to help him. He also insults Skye's special plant, which grows when complimented, but shrinks when put down.

S01E30 Practice Makes Perfect

February 24, 1995 29 min
While nearly all the kids are sick with chickenpox, Skye finds a guitar and wants to play it, but he is slow to understand that he has to put time and effort into becoming good...

S01E31 Finders Keepers

February 27, 1995 29 min
Julie finds Skye’s misplaced Apache pollen pouch and is so enamored with it that she doesn’t return it right away, damaging her friendship with Skye when she finally does. Jody does not appear in this...

S01E32 You Say Potato

February 28, 1995 29 min
The kids bring in items for a picnic but can’t seem to agree on where to have it. While Leon and Jody are content to go anywhere, Skye and Julie prefer the mountains and Ben...

S01E33 At the End of Our Rope

March 1, 1995 29 min
The boys challenge the girls to a game of tug of war but are unexpectedly defeated and can’t figure out why.

S01E34 Just Kidding

March 2, 1995 29 min
The others tease Skye when he forgets to bring a bat to a baseball game, prompting Skye to get upset and leave. Ben feels badly their teasing, even though they were just joking. Sizzle and...

S01E35 Everything In Its Place

March 3, 1995 29 min
Kiki makes plans to clean the place, but it doesn’t go as planned.

S01E36 Big Boys Don't Cry

March 6, 1995 29 min
Leon cries when the others exclude him from his own pancake making recipe and is labelled a “crybaby” by Ben and Skye. Julie convinces the two that they've had reason to cry in the past....

S01E37 Here's to the Winners

March 7, 1995 29 min
Ben becomes discouraged when everyone but him has won a trophy for something, even though he does have an impressive skill that’s worthy of a prize in and of itself. Sizzle and Nuzzle do not...

S01E38 A World of Difference

March 8, 1995 29 min
Everyone except Skye disguise themselves as identical superheroes, but Skye can use each one's individual quirks to tell who is who.

S01E39 Willing and Able

March 9, 1995 29 min
Ben takes pity on Skye’s friend Kyle, who’s in a wheelchair. Sizzle and Nuzzle find out the hard way that she can’t bury a bone and he can’t climb a tree. Leon and Kiki only...

S01E40 It's Magic

March 10, 1995 29 min
Kiki becomes scared when her friends disappear after a failed magic act. Nuzzle becomes inspired by a heroic dog on TV.

Cast

Alice Dinnean
Alice Dinnean
Julie Woo / Sizzle (voice)
Noel MacNeal
Noel MacNeal
Leon MacNeal (voice)
Carmen Osbahr
Carmen Osbahr
Kiki Flores (voice)
Jim Martin
Jim Martin
Ben Olafson (voice)
Alison Mork
Alison Mork
Jody Silver (voice)
Matt Vogel
Matt Vogel
Skye Nakaiye / Nuzzle (voice)

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