Between the Lions is a children's television series on PBS that is aimed at helping children learn to read. Each half-hour program begins with a “whole” read-aloud experience followed by animated, live action, and music “parts” that feature phonic elements introduced in the opening story. Each episode closes with a twist on the original piece that results from events the characters encounter during the show. Between the Lions premiered nationwide on April 3, 2000, and continues to air daily.

From early 1997 through June 2001, Erica Lindberg Gourd was senior vice-president for licensing and merchandising for Sirius Thinking, Ltd., a new children’s education entertainment company headed by John Sculley, former CEO of PepsiCo. and Apple Computer. At the same time Lindberg Licensing functioned as the agent for both Sirius Thinking and WGBH Boston for Between the Lions.