Pasadena, CA -- January 18, 2000 -- Nickelodeon's SpongeBob SquarePants, the incurably optimistic and earnest sea sponge who has won the hearts of Nickelodeon viewers, will be featured in a special Valentine's Day episode to air in prime time Monday, February 14 at 8:30 p.m. ET/PT. The animated series, which is currently the number two ranked Saturday morning program among kids 2-11*, focuses on the nautical and sometimes nonsensical adventures of SpongeBob SquarePants and his undersea friends.

In "Valentine's Day," SpongeBob has planned an extra special Valentine surprise for his best friend in the world Patrick (an amiable starfish). He has created a giant hot-air style heart-shaped chocolate balloon to be delivered to Patrick by Sandy Cheeks, SpongeBob's friend. The plan goes awry when chocolate eating sea scallops attack the balloon and delay Sandy in making the delivery. Patrick believes that SpongeBob has forgotten him on Valentine's Day and feels snubbed, to say the least.

The prime time episode also features "The Paper" in which Squidward discards what to him is a worthless gum wrapper. SpongeBob finds the scrap and manages to have the time of his life with the paper. Squidward is filled with envy and anger toward SpongeBob who shows him that one man's useless piece of paper can be another man's magical toy.

Since premiering in July 1999, SpongeBob Squarepants has become a favorite among kid viewers and a cornerstone of Nickelodeon's highly successful Saturday morning program block. The series draws an average of 1.8 million kids age 2-11 each week earning a 6.22/26 rating/share.*

Dwelling a few fathoms beneath the tropical isle of Bikini Atoll in the sub-surface city of Bikini Bottom, SpongeBob lives in a two-story pineapple. Instead of taking the logical approach to everyday challenges, SpongeBob looks at life in an unconventional way. Whether searching for the ultimate spatula to perfect his burger flipping technique at the Krusty Krab, or just hanging out with his best friend Patrick, SpongeBob's good intentions and overzealous nature usually create chaos in his underwater world.

SpongeBob SquarePants is created and executive produced by Steve Hillenburg, who previously worked as a writer, director and creative director on Nickelodeon's animated series Rocko's Modern Life. Steve graduated from the California Institute of the Arts with a Masters degree in Experimental Animation and studied marine biology and art as an undergraduate. Before beginning a career in animation, Steve worked with kids as a science educator and staff artist at the Orange County Marine Institute. His independent animated films "The Green Beret" and "Wormholes" have been exhibited internationally in such festivals as Annecy, Hiroshima, Ottawa, Oberhausen, and the Los Angeles Animation Celebration.

SpongeBob SquarePants is a Nicktoons Production and is produced at the Nickelodeon Animation Studio in Burbank, California. Steve Hillenburg is Creator and Executive producer. Derek Drymon is the Creative Director and Donna Castricone is the Line Producer.

Nickelodeon, which celebrated its 20^th birthday in 1999, has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The company includes television programming and production in the U.S. and around the world, plus consumer products, online, recreation, magazines, books and feature films. Nickelodeon's U.S. television network is seen in more than 75 million households, and has been the number one rated cable network for four consecutive years. Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom International Inc.

* Nielsen Media Research, 7/17/99-1/02/00