Nickelodeon Goes Off the Air to Help Kids Play Everywhere: Second Annual 'Let's Just Play Worldwide Day of Play' Takes Place Oct. 1

Nickelodeon Goes Off the Air to Help Kids Play Everywhere: Second Annual 'Let's Just Play Worldwide Day of Play' Takes Place Oct. 1

Network to Preempt Saturday Afternoon Schedule with Blackout, Then Return with 'Worldwide Day of Play' Interstitials Featuring TEENick Stars Jamie Lynn Spears, Emma Roberts, Romeo and More

Nick to Award Funding to 40 'Let's Just Play Giveaway' Winners to Help Facilitate Play in Local Communities

Network Talent Visit Local Communities Affected by Hurricanes for 'Play Days' on Oct. 1

International 'Worldwide Day of Play' Participation from Nick Channels in the Asia-Pacific and Europe

NEW YORK, Sept. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- For the second year in row, Nickelodeon will celebrate its "Let's Just Play Worldwide Day of Play" by going off the air for three hours (noon-3 pm ET/PT) on Saturday, Oct. 1, to encourage kids to spend the afternoon being active. "Let's Just Play" is Nickelodeon's pro- social commitment to encourage kids to participate in active, healthy, and playful lifestyles through daily on-air messages and activities.

TEENick stars including Jamie Lynn Spears, Emma Roberts, Romeo, Drake Bell and Josh Peck will join this year's "Worldwide Day of Play" celebration by hosting interstitials after the network returns on-air. They will announce several winners of the "Let's Just Play Giveaway," which offers kids around the country the opportunity to take action and enter for a chance to win $5,000 to improve their school or community programs' fitness resources. They will also introduce mini-documentaries showcasing recipients of the 2004 "Let's Just Play" Grants Program including: James Martin Middle School in Charlotte, NC; Prosperity Heights Elementary School in St. Paul, MN; The Arthritis Foundation in Philadelphia, PA; Nome Elementary School in Nome, AL; and Grimes Elementary School in Burlington, IA.

"Play is symbolic of a healthy, balanced lifestyle for kids. 'Worldwide Day of Play' is our commitment to empower kids to get up and get moving," said Cyma Zarghami, president, Nickelodeon Television. "We have always put kids first in everything we do, and hope that by continuing to use our resources, both on-and off-the-air, we can help empower them to incorporate play as a part of their daily lives."

"The 'Worldwide Day of Play' and the 'Let's Just Play Giveaway' serve to elevate the importance of active play as an essential part of kids' lives, and to provide safe, active places for kids to play," said Marva Smalls, executive vice president, Nickelodeon Public Affairs. "Last year's 'Worldwide Day of Play,' along with our grants program, demonstrated that kids will take the lead and help move the needle on this issue within their communities."

As part of this year's "Let's Just Play" program, Nickelodeon will distribute a total of more than $1 million from September 2005 to June 2006 as part of its "Let's Just Play Giveaway." On Oct. 1, the first Giveaway winners will be identified on-air and on Nick.com by first name, school or organization, and city and state. Nickelodeon will distribute approximately $100,000 each month, to a minimum of 20 "Let's Just Play Giveaway" winners. Kids can enter for a chance to win by visiting www.nick.com or www.everythingnick.com, or by filling out and sending in the application in the October issue of Nickelodeon Magazine.

Joining in Nickelodeon's commitment to promoting healthy lifestyles for kids is Kellogg, which has signed on as a monthly partner for the Giveaway in September, and will match a Nickelodeon grant of $100,000. The Giveaway is an extension of last year's "Let's Just Play" grants program, where Nickelodeon awarded more than $600,000 to 81 organizations and schools. A total of $9 million was cited in the 1,800 grant applications received, causing the network to more than double its funding this year.

As part of its "Worldwide Day of Play," Nickelodeon will also deploy network talent to local communities in the Southern United States that have been affected by Hurricane Katrina. These stars will bring play to kids who have been affected in Gulfport, MS; Mobile, AL; and Baton Rouge, LA (on Oct. 15), in an effort to get kids active and help take their minds off of the recent disaster.

In addition to the more than 500 schools and organizations that have already committed to holding "Worldwide Day of Play" events in their communities, Nickelodeon's "Let's Just Play" partners are also participating on Oct. 1. More than 300 local Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) chapters are organizing play events and driving clubs to participate on Oct. 1 through their websites and targeted mailings to reach more than 4.4 million kids. The National Association for Sport & Physical Education has outreached to more than 70,000 phys. ed teachers to host play days. And National Parent Teacher Associations are putting play in the spotlight by incorporating play into programs and events in local communities, as well as working with schools to host "Let's Just Play" events as part of membership drives and fundraisers. Nickelodeon is also a partner of the Women's National Basketball Association's (WNBA) Be Fit Tour, part of the WNBA's Be Smart-Be-Fit-Be Yourself fitness program which helps promote the "Worldwide Day of Play."

To generate participation in the "Worldwide Day of Play," Nickelodeon is airing PSAs, and is providing information on Nick.com and in the October issues of the Nickelodeon and Nick Jr. Family magazines. Kids can also log on to Nick.com and register that they are celebrating the "Worldwide Day of Play" as well as download information on how to hold their own "Worldwide Day of Play" events. "Worldwide Day of Play" messaging will also take over the Nick.com homepage on Oct. 1. TurboNick, Nickelodeon's online broadband platform available at Nick.com, will be streaming all of the health and wellness messaging that airs on Nickelodeon during "Worldwide Day of Play," including "Let's Just Play" spots and health and wellness PSAs on the importance of breakfast. In addition, "Let's Just Play" messaging will be featured on more than 1,000 National Amusement screens in theaters nationwide.

The Oct. 1 schedule is as follows (all times ET/PT):

* From 12-3 p.m., Nickelodeon will pre-empt regularly scheduled programming by going dark to remind kids to be active and engage in physical play, airing only a "Let's Just Play Worldwide Day of Play" logo.

* From 3-8 p.m., Nickelodeon will broadcast interstitials hosted by TEENick talent including Jamie Lynn Spears (Zoey 101), Emma Roberts (Unfabulous), Romeo (Romeo!), Drake Bell and Josh Peck (Drake and Josh), and Devon Werkheiser (Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide), among others, offering the stars' favorite ways to play, and mini- documentaries showcasing recipients of the 2004 "Let's Just Play" Grants Program. These interstitials will air in between The Fairly OddParents marathon (from 3-6 p.m.) and a SpongeBob SquarePants marathon (from 6-8 p.m.).

* At 8 p.m., the on-air "Let's Just Play Worldwide Day of Play" celebration continues with the season premieres of TEENick shows Drake and Josh, All That and Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide.

About Nickelodeon's "Let's Just Play" Pro-Social Campaign

Currently in its third year, "Let's Just Play" is Nickelodeon's pro-social commitment to encourage kids to participate in active, healthy, and playful lifestyles -- a much needed antidote to reports of the rise in childhood obesity, the concerns about reduction of PE in schools and in after-school programs, and the over-scheduled and sedentary lifestyles of kids today. In addition to using the power of Nickelodeon's air, online sites, and celebrity support, the channel devotes significant year-round resources to building a grassroots infrastructure that supports physical play opportunities in communities everywhere.

"Let's Just Play" was recently awarded four Cable Television Public Affairs Association Beacon Awards, which recognize excellence in the public affairs industry. For more information on the "Let's Just Play" program, visit www.everythingnick.com.

About Nickelodeon

Nickelodeon, now in its 26th year, is the number-one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The company includes television programming and production in the United States and around the world, plus consumer products, online, recreation, books, magazines and feature films. Nickelodeon's U.S. television network is seen in more than 89 million households and has been the number- one-rated basic cable network for ten consecutive years. Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom International Inc.

Source: Nickelodeon

CONTACT: Joanna Roses, +1-212-846-7326, Joanna.roses@nick.com or Nancy Hostler, +1-212-846-7491, nancy.hostler@nick.com

Web site: http://www.nick.com/ http://www.everythingnick.com/

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