Set in Manhattan, Disney Channel's new animated comedy/adventure series "American Dragon: Jake Long" tells the story of a 13-year-old Chinese-American boy who tries to balance ordinary adolescent transformation with a cool new revelation in his life... he is the descendant of dragons, the Chinese culture's ultimate representation of excellence and the forces of Mother Nature. Jake's life takes madcap twists and turns as he juggles all the social hurdles of teenage years with his secret training to become the American Dragon, a regimen guided by his recently immigrated grandfather Lao Shi, and Grandpa's unique "associate," a gruff 600-year-old magical Shar-Pei named Fu-Dog.

Geared towards kids age 6-11 and produced in 2D animation, the series features a fresh concept and lively action/adventure approached from a comedic angle. It is a production of Walt Disney Television Animation, the studio behind Disney Channel's hit franchise "Kim Possible."

Although Jake Long is still in the early training stages to be the American Dragon, it's his destiny to act as guardian, protector and champion to magical creatures secretly living alongside humans in New York City. Among them are the herd of unicorns in Central Park, the leprechauns on Wall Street, the gargoyle nest atop the Empire State Building, the Triborough Troll Bridge, the mystical city between NOHO and SOHO and the underwater Hudson mermaids. Greater New York is the American Dragon's territory and if he can make it here, he can make it anywhere. But that means Jake must figure out how to control his fire breathing, flying and shape-shifting so he can perform his duties and Grandpa must figure out how to decipher his hip-hop grandson's colloquial language style.

Jake Long is the cool kid in school -- but not too cool. He has a keen awareness of the newest developments and styles, is self-assured, and likes video games, extreme sports, all sorts of music and the occasional comic book. Jake also has a passion for skateboarding to and from class at Fillmore Middle School and around every obstacle, ramp, bowl and bank the city streets offer him and his skateboarding friends, feisty Trixie and dimwitted Spud. Although Jake can easily overcome obstacles when he transforms into the American Dragon, as his ordinary self he can't conquer his crush on pretty blonde schoolmate Rose who, unbeknownst to Jake, has an amazing secret of her own... she's a dragon slayer. Born into The Hunstman, a group that leads normal lives by day and hunts magical creatures by night, Rose has the covert dual identity of Huntsgirl.

When Jake comes home to his Westside brownstone, it's to an extended family. Businessman Dad is as American as apple pie and completely unaware that he has married into a family of dragons. Jake's Mom is a professional caterer who also is a dragon but without transforming capacity (dragon powers skip a generation). Jake tries to ignore his brilliant yet pesky younger sister Haley, a nascent dragon, to no avail. Jake's Dragon Master is his wise Grandpa who, upon arrival to the United States, established an electronics shop on Canal Street and took Jake under his wing. Despite the generation gap, Grandpa is patiently training Jake to master the fundamentals of being a dragon, unlock his potential and to be on time for his lessons. Grandpa's sidekick, the not so patient Fu-Dog, acts as Jake's animal guardian.

Madcap antics include: Jake misusing his shape-shifting powers to impress his friends and avoid a conference with his parents and teacher; Jake, Trixie and Spud transporting a unicorn from Coney Island to Central Park during rush hour; Jake's first date, arranged by Fu Dog, turning out to be a soul-sucking Nix that creates a magical battle royale at the school dance; and during Fu Dog's outing to a Yankees game, his unfortunate encounter with an evil New York City dogcatcher.

Starring are Dante Basco ("Love Don't Cost a Thing") as Jake Long; Amy Bruckner (Disney Channel's "Phil of the Future") as Haley Long; Keone Young (Disney Channel's "The Even Stevens Movie") as Grandpa; John DiMaggio (Disney Channel's "Kim Possible," "Futurama") as Fu Dog; Lauren Tom ("The Joy Luck Club") as Mom; Jeff Bennett (Disney Channel's "Lilo & Stitch: The Series") as Dad; Kittie (cq) (of the new JETIX series "W.I.T.C.H.") as Trixie; Charlie Finn ("Andy Richter Controls the Universe") as Spud; and Mae Whitman ("State of Grace," "Disney's Fillmore!") as Rose.

"The Chosen One," the upbeat theme song for "American Dragon: Jake Long" is performed by the Los Angeles rock band Mavin featuring actor/musician AJ Trauth (of Disney Channel's "Even Stevens").

The cultural consultant to the series is Professor Yunxiang Yan, Ph.D. A graduate of Harvard University, Professor Yan is an author and faculty member at UCLA's Department of Anthropology. His areas of expertise include folklore, mythology, the Chinese dragon, Chinese family and kinship.

The series carries a TV-G parental guideline.

"American Dragon: Jake Long" was created by playwright and director Jeff Goode, a native of Iowa and co-founder of No Shame Theatre in Los Angeles. Goode, Matt Negrete ("Kim Possible"), Eddie Guzelian ("Disney's Fillmore!") and Christian Roman are executive producers. Roman also directs the episodes. The series is a production of Wang Film Productions and Walt Disney Television Animation in association with Disney Channel.

Press Contact:
Christel Wheeler
ABC Cable Networks Group
(818) 569-7884

12/04