It's been nearly eight miserable years since beloved PBS show Reading Rainbow was unceremoniously axed. And though host/producer LeVar Burton's been keeping the literary magic alive with an iPad app, there are still plenty of iPadless kids who can't jam out to that theme song and listen to The Adventures of Taxi Dog on the regular. But all that could change soon with a little financial help, thanks to a Kickstarter campaign Burton's launched to make the show universally web accessible.
The campaign, which launched today, seeks $1 million in crowdsourced funds, which Burton plans to use to get Reading Rainbow online. In addition to building a web version of the show—which was created and is owned by Buffalo, NY public television station WNED—Burton hopes to create a specialized teacher's version, which he would then provide to low-income schools for free. Other schools and individual families would be able to purchase the web program for a nominal fee. "Right now, one out of every 4 children in America will grow up illiterate," the campaign reads. "We cannot afford to lose generations of children to illiteracy. And if we work together, we don't have to."
And if the thrill of giving future generations the gift of a Burton/Kermit the Frog hangout session isn't enough, there are prizes! A $25 donation gets you goodies like a monthlong subscription to the iPad app and a special Collectors Edition episode download, $50 gets you a t-shirt or a coffee mug and $175 gets you a calendar, along with other special gifts.
The Kickstarter campaign runs out on July 2nd.
