LeVar Burton Is Kickstarting the Return of Reading Rainbow
LeVar Burton is raising $1,000,000 on Kickstarter to bring back Reading Rainbow, the kids' show that got a whole generation into imagination, literacy, and not taking LeVar Burton's word for anything.
The million bucks will bring new episodes of Reading Rainbow to the web, help produce a specialized version of the show for 1,500 classrooms, and distribute it free to schools in need.
During its original run, from 1983 to 2006, Reading Rainbow won an amazing 26 Emmys. In 2012, Burton brought the show back as an app for tablets, but that doesn't come close to meeting his goal of making it available to every kid everywhere.
Launched Wednesday, the Kickstarter has already raised $418,000. The biggest backer rewards include a private dinner with LeVar at $3,500 and a chance to wear Geordi LaForge's actual visor at $10,000.
Update: Reading Rainbow hit the $1,000,000 goal on day one.
