NASCAR Cartoon Kicks Off Second Season

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 5 -- The Kellys, an animated series only available at NASCAR.com , makes its second season premiere on Friday, February 8. The season opener will feature return appearances by television stars Camryn Manheim, of ABC's hit series The Practice, and Catherine Bell, from the CBS drama JAG. In addition, this season will also include guest starring appearances by Academy Award® winning R&B artist Isaac Hayes, who provides the voice of Chef on Comedy Central's South Park, as well as other sports and entertainment celebrities to be announced at a later date.

``We are thrilled to feature The Kellys on NASCAR.com again this year,'' says Executive Vice President and General Manager of Turner Sports Interactive Drew Reifenberger. ``We feel that this series is a great way to get both the brand and the Web site out there for fans to experience.''

The Kellys is a creation of SportsBlast, a company founded by Emmy® winner Nancy Cartwright, best known as the voice of Bart Simpson on The Simpsons. Cartwright provides the voice of Chip on The Kellys.

``The Kellys keep getting better. We had a lot of fans for the first season, and this year its just going to get bigger,'' said Cartwright. ``We are very happy with the way NASCAR.com and Turner have promoted and continue to promote the show.''

This year NASCAR.com will air a total of 40 episodes, four times the amount it aired in its inaugural season last year, when it received over 500,000 viewings in just two months.

The Kellys is an innovative animated program that explores the world of stock car racing, drivers, pit crews, sponsors and fans through the lives of the Kelly family. The series gives a behind the scene look at a fictional racing family, lead by patriarch Joe Kelly, and their trials and tribulations as owners of Team Kelly Racing. Each episode is 3 to 4 minutes long and new episodes premiere every Friday during the NASCAR season.

Turner Sports Interactive acquired all of NASCAR's Internet rights in October 2000 and became the exclusive producer of NASCAR.com in January 2001. Turner Sports Interactive bases its NASCAR.com staff in Atlanta, with additional personnel in Charlotte, Daytona and at the tracks, giving them the ability to break news stories on-site around the clock. NASCAR.com also provides users with some of the industry's best information resources through AOL and CNN/Sports Illustrated.

Turner Sports, Inc., an AOL Time Warner Company, presents some of the best and most popular sporting events worldwide, and is a leader in televised sports programming. With events airing on four networks -- TBS Superstation, TNT, Turner South and CNN/Sports Illustrated -- Turner Sports' line-up includes the NBA, NASCAR and NASCAR.com, Wimbledon, Atlanta Braves baseball, Atlanta Thrashers hockey, Atlanta Hawks basketball, professional golf and figure skating.