Below is a sampling of original WRAL programming throughout the years. Click the show title to play the video excerpt. Let us know if you would like to see more of any of these programs.
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Frog Hollow
Frog Hollow is a fun, half-hour program encompassing friends, music and important life lessons. Frog Hollow was produced locally by WRAL-TV during the 1970s and early 1980s.
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Time For Uncle Paul
A simple, sweet and funny show for kids, the Time For Uncle Paul show, featuring Paul Montgomery, featured a daily march with the studio audience and children. The show ran on WRAL from 1961 to 1981.
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Sparks
Sparks is a weekly half-hour fantasy/drama children's program set in a mythical North Carolina town. The stories revolve around a mysterious time machine that sends the cast of characters into the past and the future to resolve conflicts. Sparks is targeted to children 7 years of age and older. An Iris award winner in 1991, Sparks also received several Parents' Choice Awards and the Service to Children Television Award from the National Association of Broadcasters. Sparks was locally produced by WRAL-TV from 1985-1990.
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The Southern Sportsman with Franc White
A 1993 clip of a WRAL show called "The Southern Sportsman" featuring Franc White.
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The Androgena Show
The Androgena Show is a half-hour children's program revolving around the adventures of the puppet Androgena and her friend Sammy Lou. This locally produced program entertains children, ages 5 to 9. Although entertaining, the show includes social and educational themes, such as self-esteem, sibling rivalry, recycling, ethnic differences, starting school and more. Produced locally by WRAL-TV, The Androgena Show aired August 1992 to May 1996.
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A Vision, A Voice ... 40 Years of Service
In honor of WRAL's 40th anniversary, this locally produced documentary showcases the best of WRAL's news coverage, children's programming and community service from 1956 to 1996. Hosted by WRAL's David Crabtree and Pam Saulsby, this program aired in December 1996, to commemorate WRAL's 40th anniversary on Dec. 15, 1996.
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2002: Super-Sizing Our Kids
This WRAL ‘For the Children’ documentary examines childhood obesity. North Carolina health professionals discuss the problem and offer solutions. Overweight children tell their personal stories of trying to improve their health by making healthy lifestyle changes, along with their parents. Several community programs, that offer support for overweight and obese kids are also highlighted. Hosted by WRAL's Pam Saulsby, this locally produced documentary first aired in 2003 and won the North Carolina Prevention Award for Excellence in Media from the North Carolina Prevention Partners. WRAL's documentary was credited for explaining the overweight epidemic and influencing society with examples of positive lifestyle choices. This program also won AWRT's Gracie Award for Outstanding Documentary.
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N.C. Celebrates the Centennial of Flight
This locally produced special highlights aviation in North Carolina, with special emphasis on the Wright Brothers' first flight from Kitty Hawk on Dec. 17, 1903. Other features include construction of a 1903 Wright Flyer replica that was flown Dec. 17, 2003 during Kitty Hawk’s centennial celebration, a profile on the state's first licensed pilot, N.C.’s military aviation history and a look at the aviation curriculum in schools. First broadcast in May 2003 and hosted by WRAL's Bill Leslie, this WRAL special aired in conjunction with the opening weekend of Fayetteville’s Festival of Flight, an 11-day celebration featuring air shows, expos, displays, exhibits and an arts festival. It was rebroadcast in December to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Wright Brothers' historic flight.
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I Got the Blues So Bad
Against the backdrop of oppression, poverty, hard work and hard times, the inability for a people to give voice to their social conditions sparked the birth of a powerful musical art form that was simply called “The Blues.” This program looks at the history of the Blues across North Carolina and specifically in the North Carolina city considered to be the home of the Blues, Durham. Interviews include Blues legends John Dee Holeman, of Durham, George, Higgs of Tarboro, and Mike “Lightning” Wells, of Greene County. The program discuses the history of the Blues, entertains viewers with samples of this music style and explores the future of this art form. This locally produced special first aired in February 2005.
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The Class of '86
WRAL revisits Duke's 1986 run at the men's basketball NCAA national championship and a young Mike Krzyzewski who led the team there. (Originally aired March 31, 2006)
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Sex, Lies & Education
Seventy-four percent of North Carolina high school seniors report having sexual intercourse at least once. Each day in North Carolina, 51 girls become pregnant. This half-hour WRAL special examines what teens know about sex, how they get their information, and ways parents can talk to their teenagers about this subject. Hosted Debra Morgan meets a teen mother struggling to balance school, work and parenthood, while also reaching out to other girls to keep them from becoming teen parent statistics. Then, a teen father determined not to be a ‘deadbeat dad’ tells his story. And teenagers discuss growing up in a "sex-obsessed society," myths they hear from their peers and what parents and teachers have taught them about sex and teen pregnancy prevention. This special first aired May 25, 2006 and won a Mid-South Regional Emmy in the Community Service category.
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WRAL's Tall Ships Special
Host David Crabtree gives a highlights tour of the Tall Ships event in Beaufort, N.C., as well as a firsthand look at Mystic Seaport, Conn. and its 19th century seafaring village, maritime exhibition gallery and active preservation shipyard. Mystic Seaport mirrors what Olde Beaufort Seaport will provide for North Carolinians and other tourists in the future. This locally produced special first aired in July 2006, following the Tall Ships event.
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Smart Start Kids
Smart Start Kids is a locally produced children's program for 3- to 5-year olds and their families. Local children are the "stars" of the show and go "behind the scenes" of interesting places throughout North Carolina. Besides fun, educational "field trips," host Willa Brigham, encourages children to share their stories, sing songs, ask questions and play along. Smart Start Kids began airing on WRAL in October 2002 and won a Mid-South Regional Emmy Award in the Children's Educational Program category in 2004. Besides WRAL, Capitol Broadcasting Company also broadcasts this program on its stations in Charlotte and Wilmington and shares this award-winning program with statewide television station UNC-TV.
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Spiritual Awakening
What began as a salute to the black community has now become a staple in the Triangle. A weekly, half-hour, local gospel music program produced by WRAL, Spiritual Awakening first aired as The Sister Gary Spiritual Program on WRAL Radio in the 1940s. It moved to television in 1969 and still runs strong with weekly airings on both WRAL-TV in Raleigh and Fox 50 in Durham. Spiritual Awakening has won the Torchbearers Award for Excellence, presented by the Raleigh/Triangle Chapter of the Gospel Music Workshop of America and also a Community Service Award presented by the Capital City Academy in Raleigh.
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Brain Game Championship
Brain Game premiered in January 1997 as one of the components of WRAL's For The Children programming campaign. Hosted by WRAL's Mark Roberts, Brain Game is produced as an instructional/educational program targeting viewers 16 years of age and younger. Three teams with three members each, representing area high schools, compete for points by answering questions. Between 1997 and 2007, hundreds of students from dozens of high schools across North Carolina have played Brain Game. The questions are derived from the state's 9th & 10th grade curricula plus current events and popular culture categories.