Janice Burgess, the Nickelodeon Executive who created 'The Backyardigans' and oversaw 'Blue's Clue's', has died

Janice Burgess, an award-winning children’s television writer, producer, executive who oversaw some of Nickelodeon's most popular TV shows such as "Blue's Clues" has died.

Burgess, who was also the creator of the Nick Junior animated series "The Backyardigans", died Saturday (March 2) of breast cancer, just a day after she celebrated her 72nd birthday. She had been under hospice care following a breast cancer diagnosis.

The news was announced by Nickelodeon. In a statement, the company said: “We are saddened to learn of the passing of one of the great architects of Nick Jr. and creator of the globally beloved series, "The Backyardigans". Janice was one of the greats — inherently creative and kind, and dedicated to the preschool audience everywhere.”

Burgess grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, and had been the executive-in-charge of production at Nickelodeon since 1995. Brown Johnson, a longtime friend and the creator of Nick Jr., said the cause was breast cancer, according to local news reports.

In her role, Burgess helped the creative teams behind the various shows she worked on, which also included "Little Bill", with characters and storylines. She took inspiration for her creative work from her own childhood.

In “The Backyardigans,” five cartoon animals called Tyrone, Tasha, Pablo, Austin and Uniqua imagine their backyard (or back garden to UK readers) as a place of adventure, traversing deserts, oceans, jungles, rivers and outer space while dancing and singing to music.

With the series, Burgess hoped to help children use their imaginations to have fun. In a 2004, interview with The New York Times, she said that the idea for the show stemmed from memories of playing in her own childhood backyard in Pittsburgh. “I really remember it as a wonderful, happy, safe place,” she said. “You could have these great adventures just romping around. From there, you could go anywhere or do anything.”

Burgess she made sure to cast children of colour, and also recast that the roles every few years as the voices of the character's changed, Johnson said of her friend. Burgess wanted their voices to sound natural and “not Broadway,” she added.

“Janice really taught me about representation in kids’ media and how important it was for kids to not only see themselves, but hear themselves,” Johnson told the New York Times.

Burgess also told The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in 2006 that she drew on action movies like “Die Hard” and the “Star Wars” and “Lord of the Rings” series to create “The Backyardigans,” but toned down the thrilling high-stakes narratives to so that they were appropriate for the pre-schoolers the show was aimed at.

“I’m really quite a refined person, but there’s nothing I like more than cops and robbers and gunfights and crazy driving and fast and furiousness,” she said. “When you think in terms of little kids, you don’t want to scare them, and I’m not in favour of showing any kind of violence or aggression, but you can certainly have a big adventure even if you’re three.”

Burgess saw award success for the shows she had worked on. “Blue’s Clues” and “Little Bill,” went on to win Peabody and Emmy Awards. She also won a 2008 Daytime Emmy Award for outstanding special class animated program for her work on “The Backyardigans.” She is survived by her mother and a brother, Jack Burgess.