From 1983 to 2006, PBS aired Reading Rainbow, a LeVar Burton-hosted series designed to encourage children to read. For the past two years, Burton has been delivering new Reading Rainbow installments via a tablet app — but a new Kickstarter campaign aims to greatly enhance the program's reach. The expansion would revive Reading Rainbow on the internet, and develop a specialized classroom version of the series that would be delivered to schools in need for free. If the program meets its minimum funding goal, they'll be able to distribute Reading Rainbow to more than 1,500 classrooms.
To help meet the funding goal, Burton is offering some pretty impressive rewards. A contribution of $110 will get you a signed headshot; $1,500 will get you a group picnic with Burton in attendance; $3,000 will get you a private dinner; and $10,000 will get you a private dinner at which you'll get the chance to wear the "ONE-AND-ONLY ORIGINAL VISOR" that Burton wore in Star Trek: The Next Generation. While $1,000,000 is a lofty goal for any campaign, like a butterfly in the sky, this Kickstarter could go twice as high.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Do smartphone bans in schools work?The Explainer Trials in UK, New Zealand, France and the US found prohibition may be only part of the solution
-
Doom: The Dark Ages – an 'exhilarating' prequelThe Week Recommends Legendary shooter adds new combat options from timed parries to melee attacks and a 'particularly satisfying' shield charge
-
7 US cities to explore on a microtripThe Week Recommends Not enough vacation days? No problem.
-
Warren Buffet announces surprise retirementspeed read At the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway, the billionaire investor named Vice Chairman Greg Abel his replacement
-
Trump calls Amazon's Bezos over tariff displaySpeed Read The president was not happy with reports that Amazon would list the added cost from tariffs alongside product prices
-
Markets notch worst quarter in years as new tariffs loomSpeed Read The S&P 500 is on track for its worst month since 2022 as investors brace for Trump's tariffs
-
Tesla Cybertrucks recalled over dislodging panelsSpeed Read Almost every Cybertruck in the US has been recalled over a stainless steel panel that could fall off
-
Crafting emporium Joann is going out of businessSpeed Read The 82-year-old fabric and crafts store will be closing all 800 of its stores
-
Trump's China tariffs start after Canada, Mexico pausesSpeed Read The president paused his tariffs on America's closest neighbors after speaking to their leaders, but his import tax on Chinese goods has taken effect
-
Chinese AI chatbot's rise slams US tech stocksSpeed Read The sudden popularity of a new AI chatbot from Chinese startup DeepSeek has sent U.S. tech stocks tumbling
-
US port strike averted with tentative labor dealSpeed Read The strike could have shut down major ports from Texas to Maine
