The episodes of the animated series The Mysterious Cities of Gold were co-produced by DiC Entertainment and Studio Pierrot. The series premiered in Japan on NHK on May 1, 1982, and ran for 39 episodes until its conclusion on September 5, 1983. The plot of the episodes follows young Spanish boy named Esteban who joins a voyage to the New World in search of the lost Cities of Gold and his father. The series aired in the English dubbed format in the United States; premiering on Nickelodeon on June 30, 1986 and running through June 29, 1990;.[citation needed]