SpongeBob SquarePants season 3
season of television series
The third season of the American animated television series SpongeBob SquarePants, created by Stephen Hillenburg, aired on Nickelodeon from October 5, 2001, to October 11, 2004, and consists of 20 half-hour episodes. The series chronicles the exploits and adventures of the title character and his various friends in the fictional underwater city of Bikini Bottom. The season was executive produced by series creator Hillenburg and supervising produced by Derek Drymon, whom the former also acted as the showrunner. It is notable for being the last season with Hillenburg as the series' showrunner following uncertainty within the network over whether a fourth season was possible, with Nickelodeon ultimately deciding on making more episodes as a result of the show's continued growth.
The season received acclaim from media critics and fans. During its run, SpongeBob SquarePants became the highest rated children's show on cable, with over 50 million viewers a month. The show received several recognitions, including its nomination at the Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Children's Program. The episodes "New Student Starfish" and "Clams" were nominated for Outstanding Animated Program (for Programming Less Than One Hour) category, while the entry "SpongeBob B.C. (Ugh)" was also nominated for the same category. The season was also the first time the show received a nomination at the Kids' Choice Awards and won. It won the 2003 Kids' Choice Awards for Favorite Cartoon, and also won the following year's Kids' Choice Award for the same category.
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Attribution, date and provenance are strongest when supported by the original work, a catalogue record and documented transmission. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 15, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q865511. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 2001, 2004 and 2003.
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