Strollerderby : children's television

The Five Peanuts TV Specials That Never Should Have Been

Jen Chaney — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 11:58:00 GMT

"It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown" airs tonight on ABC, allowing us Americans to mark yet another holiday by laughing at Linus's refusal to accept reality. (If you want to hang on to your security blanket, fine. But believing in the Easter Beagle given your high IQ? That's pretty borderline, kid.)

As Peanuts cartoons go, "Easter Beagle" is a relatively decent one. I mean, Marcie's perpetual confusion about how to dye Easter eggs is a pure delight by itself. But as connoisseurs of all things Charlie Brown well know, those animated specials started to dip swiftly in quality not long after this one first aired in 1974.

So in order to help you and your little ones appreciate the finer nuances of "It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown" -- and to make "A Charlie Brown Christmas" and "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" look even more genius than they already do -- I present the Five Peanuts TV Specials That Never Should Have Been.

5. "It's Arbor Day, Charlie Brown" (First aired: 1976)

By this time, CB and the gang had already covered Christmas, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Election Day, Easter and Valentine's Day. I love trees as much as the next person, but when the Peanuts gang sinks to Arbor Day, you know Charles Schulz and co. are scraping the bottom of the holiday special barrel. To their credit, though, they never played the most desperate card in the holiday deck, thereby saving us all from "It's Flag Day, Charlie Brown."

4. "What a Nightmare, Charlie Brown!" (First aired: 1978)

Right out of the gate, the title is pretty terrible. But that aside, there's something a little odd about basing a Peanuts special on Jack London's "Call of the Wild." (And no, I'm not joking.) The fact that Snoopy gets into some vicious dog fights (see video) makes this cartoon potentially frightening for very young kids, but potentially entertaining to anyone who ever insisted that all "A Charlie Brown Christmas" needed was "more dog sled action."

3. "Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales" (First aired: 2002)

This one was invented solely to juice ratings for "A Charlie Brown Christmas," allowing the annual holiday classic to extend into an hour-long TV extravaganza. But "Christmas Tales" is clearly nothing but yuletide filler. To borrow from a question Lucy asks her blockheaded pageant director in "A Charlie Brown Christmas": "Can't you tell the difference between a good holiday special and a poor holiday special?" Yes, Lucy, we can.

2. "Snoopy's Getting Married, Charlie Brown" (First aired: 1985)

A wedding episode is always a blatant grab for ratings. But I think for everyone when I say that Charlie Brown should never, ever utter the following words: "Wake up, Snoopy ... it's time for the bachelor party."

1. "It's Flashbeagle, Charlie Brown" (First aired: 1984)

Wow, where to even begin with this one? How about with Peppermint Patty's attempt to imitate Jane Fonda's aerobics moves and sing her own version of Toni Basil's "Mickey," which, honestly, has to be seen to be believed? (And P.S.: What are Lucy and Schroeder doing to that pommel horse in the middle of this clip?)

Or does the utter ridiculousness that is "Flashbeagle" really start and finish with Snoopy busting out some hardcore '80s-era dance moves? It's hard to say. But I do know this much: the world is a better place when Snoopy stays perched on his doghouse and lays off the legwarmers.

Seame Street's Gordon: Precursor to Obama?

Amy Kuras — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 18:19:00 GMT

How does an actor stay fresh in a role that he’s been playing for more than 30 years?
It probably helps when the show’s target audience refreshes itself every few years. That’s the case with Sesame Street, and one of the few grownup characters who have stayed with the show for most of its run, Gordon, played by Roscoe Orman.

This profile of Orman reveals a few interesting facts: He was actually the third actor to play the role, and didn’t think he’d stick around for long. Previous to taking the Sesame Street gig, he was best known for playing a pimp in the blaxploitation film “Willie Dynamite.” And Gordon and Susan (who we don’t see much anymore, because the actress who plays her has a PhD and is a noted educational expert) have the longest African-American marriage on TV.

This isn’t mentioned in the article, but many years ago when the show followed Gordon and Susan adopting their son, Miles, he was played by (and named after) Orman’s real-life son. Orman’s the father of four and grandfather of five.

I don’t know about you, but I was awfully excited when I started watching the show with my daughter and discovered that many of the grownups I’d known and loved as a little kid were still there. The show has become much more Muppet-centric (yes it IS a word) and focuses less on the human characters, but I love that the adults are still there showing kids the way grownups should treat them – with respect, kindness and caring.

One person quoted in the article says the strong, kind, warm persona of Gordon may have primed the pump for the ascendancy of Barack Obama, because it gave us such a positive image of black men. Interesting – and probably true.

Fall TV Preview: Imagination Movers - Playhouse Disney

Cole Gamble — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 13:00:00 GMT

I should start by saying my daughter and I don't have the same taste in kids’ shows. She's more of a Dora girl; I'm more of a Yo Gabba Gabba dude. I guess I can't blame her; I mostly like Yo Gabba Gabba because it’s just so strange. I can’t expect my four-year-old to share my cultured and detached sense of irony. Yo Gabba Gabba frightens my mother, which makes it a great kids’ show in my book.

What’s This Show About?

So my daughter, Jillian (age 4), and I recently sat down to watch the Imagination Movers a new show featuring a quartet of musicians who dabble in problem solving. The Imagination Movers live in the world's cleanest garage; you could eat an omelet off their work floor. The Movers’ are comprised of four dudes whose acting ranges from merely super excited to psychopathically enthusiastic. They make The Wiggles look like their hopped up on Quaaludes. In other words, just the right tone to get a girl Jillian’s age jazzed.

The Tone

With the Imagination Movers, we’re really in it for the music. So how's that? The Imagination Movers are billed as alternative rock for preschoolers. On their website the they describe themselves as “what would happen if the Beastie Boys collaborated with Mister Rogers.” This comparison isn’t quite accurate, the Imagination Movers don’t rap (the jury’s out on Mister Rogers rap skills). However, they do wear similar jump suits to those worn by the Beastie Boys in their Intergalactic Planetary video. The website further claims the Imagination Movers songs would be right at home on an MTV countdown, which is also misleading. I’d say they were more VH1-y if it weren’t for the fact neither of those music channels play any music. Personally my gold standard for kids’ music is The Backyardigans, with its loopy, surrealistic lyrics and limitless range of genres, from surf rock to folk music. That said, where do the Imagination Movers fit on a scale of kids’ music ranging from The Wiggles (insufferable) to Backyardigans? In the upper registers of the scale, catchy even. I can imagine listening to the Imagination Movers on a long trip and not wanting driving us all off a cliff, high praise indeed.

Details

The Imagination Movers have all the requisite secondary characters: a cutesy girl who drops by regularly, a puppet mouse that lives in their walls and a beige clad man named Knit Knots who represents the utter banality that apparently is anyone who isn’t as peppy as the Imagination Movers. There was a learning factor (they taught us about sound and how it travels in waves) and the show encouraged movement and problem solving. Oh, and the Imagination Movers had enough gadgets to make Bruce Wayne envious, which is a big draw. Gadgets are cool.

The Verdict

But what I think is just a bunch of noise. What did my daughter think? We sat down Ebert and Roper style to hash it out.

Me: How much did you like it?

Jillian: (Opens her arms wide) This much.

Me: Who was your favorite character?

Jillian: The guy with the long hair and the cool goggles (the most psychotically enthusiastic one).

At this point Jillian wanted no more of my questioning, and asked I play the show for her again. This time she walked up closer to the screen and danced along. The show also caught the attention of my normally amuck 2 year old for the duration. So I'd say we’ll be seeing more of the Imagination Movers in our house, and from the dad perspective, it’ll be a welcome addition.

More by this author:

My Daughter Wants A Penis

They Like Big Butts, and They Can Not Lie: Survey Finds Men Prefer Bigger Body Sizes

The 9 Most Racist Disney Characters

The 6 Creepiest Marketing Campaigns Aimed at Children

**The Sh*t List: 10 Bizarre (or Terrific?) Potty Gadgets**

Satan and 9 other bad (but real) baby names

Nipple Jewelry: 5 Products Moms DON’T Need

10 Naughty Things We Do to Our Kids (but keep doing anyway)

The 26 Most Disturbing Kids Movies Ever

What's Next, Shock Collars For Your Kids?!

Fall TV Preview: Sid the Science Kid on PBS

Adrienne Martini — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 14:00:00 GMT

My oldest kid – she’s six – has the makings of a scientist, if only because she can’t stop asking “why?” every 30 blessed seconds. One of her all-time favorite shows (and mine, if the truth is to be told) is Fetch with Ruff Ruffman, which is a PBS Kids’ program that features an animated dog and kids who are sent out to solve problems. It’s all very silly while remaining smart.

The youngest – he’s three – enjoys Fetch, too, but only because his sister won’t let him change the channel. He has to watch it, unless he wants to go play. And, seriously, who wants to do that when there’s a TV with a talking dog on it?

I doubt he’s getting more than simple enjoyment out of Fetch, which is fine. The concepts are a little to abstract for him to really get a grasp on. Enjoyment has value, sure, but it’d be nice to learn a little, too.

Enter Sid the Science Kid, PBS’ co-production with The Jim Henson Company, which debuts on Sept. 1. Pitched at the pre-school set, Sid explores all of those “why” questions that my older kid can’t stop asking, like ‘why do bananas get mushy” and “why are my shoes shrinking” and “why did mommy ask me to stop talking?”

OK, maybe not that last one.

Still, the Boy loves him some Sid and remained glued to the telly for the entire 25 minutes. His sister, who declared it “lame” when I first popped the disc in, asked to see it again later that night. And again that morning. And again after school. And went to the show’s website to poke around and watch the music clips. Which means we might have different definitions of what “lame” means.

From an adult’s perspective, the jokes are kinda lame, by the standard definition. And Sid’s friends are a little stereotypical, from Gabriela, the tomboy who likes pink, and Gerald, the boy who thinks he’s an airplane. But my perspective is irrelevant because my kids like Sid so much. Which is great because they (and all of their “whys”) are the show's target and it hits that mark well.

Fall TV Preview: Monster Buster Club on ToonDisney

Brett Singer — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 15:30:00 GMT

This animated series, airing in the U.S. on ToonDisney, is about a club. That busts monsters. Yawn.

Here are the basics: a group of four vaguely ethnically diverse kids are part of a "secret society" that protects Earth from alien intruders. Of course, no one can know that these normal (if a bit annoying) middle school kids are in fact keeping their planet safe. So they live in fear of being discovered… well, that's giving them too much credit. They mention every now and then that no one can know who they are. Of course, they could try wearing masks that actually hide their identities, and not bust monsters while the school play is being performed. In front of everyone they know. But hey, why quibble?

The episode I watched, "Acting Out," explains very little of the background; poking around the interwebs I found out the names of the four main characters, the fact that their leader is an old man who is an alien and the grandfather of one of the members, and also that it is never really explained just where this secret society came from. It doesn't really matter, because the show is a mish-mash of elements from other animated series: think "Men in Black" meets "Power Rangers" meets "Little Einsteins". I'm not going to bother giving you the specifics; if you're interested, check out this page on Wikipedia or the official web site.

The plot of "Acting Out" has the same weird obsession with fame that you find on many Disney shows ("Hannah Montana", "High School Musical"). After the club saves an eight-armed talent agent from a lizard-creature (who turns out to be a rival agent – oh, did I spoil the surprise ending? Good, now you don't have to watch the show) he offers to make them "superstars." They get excited until the old man in charge tells them, "Monster Buster Club is a top secret operation, so you can't be superstars." The kids are, of course, bummed out. One of them decides to make commercials that only air on other planets. Of course, now he thinks he's a big star and he's ignoring his Monster Busting duties. Then the granddaughter of the old man in charge, who is not from Earth, ends up playing Juliet in the school play, and the lizard guy comes after her because he can't get to the kid doing commercials… It's a little bit hard to follow, less because it's complicated and more because it's not remotely interesting.

The animation is all computer-generated; think "Jimmy Neutron" but with a smaller budget. (A review on about.com claims that Disney says the budget for the show is $21 million, but, to paraphrase Chris Rock, somebody must be walking around with $20 million in their pocket.) The voices are either just poorly synced or the show was originally recorded in a language other than English (I think it’s the latter, which is foolish.) In general, everyonetalkseallyfast, which is probably because the characters are spouting some of the lamest lines on television. When the lizard-like alien who shows up in the first four seconds escapes: "He's getting away… and even worse, he squished my fruit." When they encounter said lizard-like alien again: "Don’t stick out your tongue, it's not polite…I've seen faster tongues on an old pair of sneakers."

The show claims to be targeted at ages 6-11, but with so many better entertainment options out there, "Monster Buster Club" will only catch on because the Disney Marketing Machine will cram it down everyone's throats. Not recommended.

image: about.com

Mr. Rogers Talking Keychain

Why the puppy games are better than the Olympics

8 year old blues guitarist not allowed to play in bars

Nastia Luikin's mom watches from the stands (video)

Fall TV Preview: Martha Speaks on PBS

Is it ever OK to hit your kids?

Oy vey, Miley showed her tuchas again

Old Jonas Brothers CD priceless

Family Movie Night – Hairspray

Son stabs father over haircut

Upcoming Sesame Street Guests

Brett Singer — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 20:00:00 GMT

If you can't stand to watch one more episode of 'Sesame Street' that you've already seen 250 times, help is on the way!

PBS might be killing off Fred Rogers, but at least the new season of 'Street' started yesterday, with special guests Jack Black and Feist. The Feist video has already racked up 750,000 views on YouTube since being posted about a month ago. Here are some of the other celebrities who will do time with Elmo and the rest:

* Neil Patrick Harris (8.12): I'm guessing more 'Doogie Howser' than 'Harold and Kumar', but who knows.
UPDATE: Here's a video preview of Neil as - hang on - the Fairy Shoe Person. No. Really.

* Heidi Klum (8.14): According to New York Magazine, Klum's exchange with Elmo is "Sexually charged," with the E man telling Seal's wife, "Ms. Heidi is very pretty." As far as we know, Seal did not whup his little monster butt.

* Jenny McCarthy (8.15): I have a question, and don't take this the wrong way. But if Jenny hadn't become an ambassador for autism, would she be appearing on 'Sesame Street'? I'm not saying that this is part of some master plan, just wondering. I also wonder if this is the first time a former Playboy centerfold has visited the Street. (Vanessa Williams doesn't count since she didn't plan on being in Playboy. Jenny was Playmate of the Year.)

* Will Arnett (8.18): 'Arrested Development' fans rejoice! According to Mike, 'AD' even had a character named Franklin in honor of the dearly departed Roosevelt Franklin, making this an above average booking.

* Jason Taylor (8.20): After 'Dancing with the Stars', this guy is really going places.

* David Beckham (8.22): This guy, who is he again? Maybe this will be what he needs to really break through to the big time.

* LL Cool J (9.22): I hope this is old-school 'I can't live without my RADIO!' LL. I would also accept 'Elmo said knock you out!'

* Chandra Wilson (9.30): I had to look her up, but that's probably because I don't watch 'Grey's Anatomy'. Since much of the rest of the country does, I'm guessing she was a good choice.

Other future guests include new mama Jessica Alba (OH YEAH!), Molly Shannon (amusing), Patrick Warburton ('The Tick' is the greatest fake-superhero-live-action-sitcom in the history of the small screen), Feijoo Sisters (Cuban ballet dancers I'd never heard of), Jonah Hill (wearing a moustache – this seems like an odd choice but I guess he's a big deal now; I would've preferred Seth Rogen), Brian Williams (who's actually fairly amusing), Gilbert Gottfried (who's f**king hilarious but will likely not be his usually filthy self), Megan Mullally (should be fun), Randy Jackson (Gee, you think he'll say "dawg?" - yawn) and Sandra Oh (who I like, despite the fact that everyone seems to think she's ugly). New sketches too, such as "30 Rocks," "Pre-School Musical" and "Are You Smarter Than an Egg Layer."

Here's a little video to whet your appetite.

It all started when Mary needed a laxative

Kid climbs into claw game to get prizes

James Blunt loves triangles

Old Jonas Brothers CD priceless

Family Movie Night – Hairspray

More Kids Stuff I like that my kids don't care about

Kids Stuff I like that my kids don't care about

Return of the son of stuff YUPPIE parents like

More stuff YUPPIE parents like

Stuff White Parents Like

The Dark Knight -- parents strongly cautioned (to go see it)

Baby Penis Album only five bucks

PBS Dropping Mister Rogers??!!

James Blunt loves triangles

Brett Singer — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 21:00:00 GMT

This isn't new but I only recently saw it and it's been stuck in my head for days. Here's James Blunt doing a shaper-sized version of his hit song, "Beautiful" – except now he's singing about a triangle:

This shape was brilliant / This shape was pure.
I saw three angles / Of that I'm sure.
And I saw three pointy corners / And then I saw three straight sides.
The top was very narrow / And the base was oh so wide
(Telly says, "Wait that sounds like…")
A Triangle / My triangle
Oh triangle, it's true.
I saw your shape / In a crowded place
Now I don't know what to do.

Eventually they even manage to force a rhyme with "hypotenuse."

I'm not a fan of the original song, but this actually makes me respect James Blunt a bit, just for having a sense of humor. And, to paraphrase Telly, there's nothing like a Euclidean love story.

More Kids Stuff I like that my kids don't care about

Kids Stuff I like that my kids don't care about

"1-2-3-4": Feist On Sesame Street

George Carlin dies

Brett Singer — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 16:05:00 GMT

Comedy just got a little less funny.

Also, Thomas the Tank Engine needs a new narrator.

George Carlin passed away on Sunday at the age of 71. According to Bloomberg News, the cause was heart failure.

Carlin had, in my opinion, one of the weirder careers in the entertainment business. His most famous routine (video below) is the Seven Dirty Words. I'm not going to bother naming them; watch the video, but not when your kids are around. He continued to make incredible use of language throughout his career, especially with regard to what was considered acceptable speech and what was "offensive." "You can prick your finger, but don't finger your prick." Or "Pete Rose has two balls on him."

And he also did children's television. Yes, that's George Carlin's voice on old Thomas The Tank Engine videos. I remember popping one into the VCR and doing a double-take when I realized that the gravelly voiced narrator was indeed also the man who raged against tomatoes ("I don't eat bicycle tires – why should I eat little pink ones?"), baseball ("you go HOME") and one of my favorites, "Become a Schmuck" ("Don't be a schmuck – be a schmuck!") Other kiddie credits include Mr. Conductor on "Shining Time Station" (a "Thomas" spin-off -- maybe he had a thing for trains?), and voice work in "Cars" and "Tarzan 2." His other film appearances were equally incongruous, including "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure", "Scary Movie 3" and "Jersey Girl."

Several years ago I went to a taping of Carlin's television show in Los Angeles. The show only lasted one season, probably because it wasn't very good. It's very tough to take a comic as brilliant as he is and turn him into a sitcom star, especially when the material is not even close to what you are allowed to do on prime time. (Look at Chris Rock's show, "Everybody Hates Chris" – he had to go back to his childhood to make it work.) It was fun to watch them tape the show, although I would have preferred to see Carlin do some stand-up.

Hopefully future generations will dig a little bit deeper than the Seven Dirty Words. That's what he'll be remembered for, and that's one hell of a legacy. But he also spoke his mind despite having unpopular opinions at times, which is something that we always need more of. And his material wasn't all R-rated; the above lines are all clean, and there are more, such as "Where does the dentist go when he leaves the room?" Funny, funny stuff. There's a scroll of Carlin lines on his website.

We won't be able to hear what his thoughts on the 2008 election, but at least we have video. Here are a collection of classic Carlin clips that are COMPLETELY NOT SAFE FOR WORK OR KIDS. Unless, you know, you want Junior to go to school and ask his teachers what "tits" means. Up to you.

UPDATE: there's a YouTube channel/chat room/something or other that seems to have a continuous stream of Carlin videos. Kinda cool. Check it out here.

RIP, George. You will be missed.

It's a neighborly day here on the 'Derby

Brett Singer — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 22:00:00 GMT

Mr. Rogers was a huge part of my childhood. To this day I can sing the theme song, and the basic lessons he taught about being kind to people and staying forever intrigued by the world around you are absolutely ingrained in my psyche. (Yes, I still get annoyed from time to time. We're none of us perfect, as Mr. Rogers taught us. So be tolerant, dammit!)

Mental Floss has a list titled "15 Reasons Mister Rogers Was the Best Neighbor Ever." Some things I knew ("He got into TV because he hated TV", "He composed all the songs on the show"), some I didn't ("Michael Keaton got his start on the show" as a puppeteer). Some I had forgotten about, like the fact that he testified before Congress about the VCR, which was in danger of being banned by paranoid Hollywood lobbyists.

Then there's this tidbit: "Mr. Rogers weighed in at exactly 143 pounds every day for the last 30 years of his life." He liked weighing that number, because "the number 143 means ‘I love you.’ It takes one letter to say ‘I’ and four letters to say ‘love’ and three letters to say ‘you.’ One hundred and forty-three." If anyone else on the planet said that you would have them committed, and you certainly wouldn't want them hanging around your children. But since Mr. Rogers said it, it's fine. He really meant all of that stuff, and it was great.

Some of his advice, which was always delivered in a kind, caring way, applies to everyone. "You can't make it work by sitting and thinking about it. You have to do it." I mean, what's wrong with that? I'm including three videos below, all of which really brought me back to my childhood, in a good way.

Does the show still hold up today? To me it does, but the lack of new episodes (for the obvious reason that Fred isn't around to make them anymore) definitely hurts in terms of kids catching on to the show. Sesame Street still works, but neither of my kids ever got into Mr. Rogers, although I tried both times. I'll throw this out to the group – do your kids watch ol' Fred change his shoes, zip up his sweater and sing about what a neighborly day for a beauty it is?

image: Wikipedia

Mr. Rogers Videos

Mr. Rogers Goodbye: I'd never seen this. It's sad but in a nice way.

Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, "You Did It" Song

Mr. Rogers sings "It's You I Like"

Giveaway: Win "The Muppet Show: Season 3" DVD!

editors — Fri, 30 May 2008 14:00:00 GMT

There are a few different ways to watch The Muppet Show: The Complete Third Season. You can view it as a freakish collection of pop-culture oddities: Gilda Radner singing Gilbert and Sullivan with a seven-foot-tall carrot, Sly Stallone sparring with a talking punching bag. You can look at it as a record of great live performances by the likes of Pearl Bailey and Danny Kaye, or a tribute to forgotten stars like Leo Sayer and Elke Sommer. You can see it as an an absurd backstage soap opera, following Kermit's struggles to keep his show afloat while Fozzie enters group therapy and Piggy threatens her romantic rivals.

But I'd recommend watching it as a child would: Laugh when the Swedish Chef is outsmarted by his own dough. Smile at the unexpected beauty of the African masks singing backup to Harry Belafonte. Let yourself believe the puppets are alive. Season Three is the best Muppet Show collection yet, with fantastic bonus features perfect for family viewing (including a 1968 special called "Muppets on Puppets," which explains the art and process of puppeteering).

And we have three to give away!

Email babblecontest@gmail.com with your full name, mailing address, and the name of your favorite Muppet, and we'll pick three winners at random.

And if you don't win, you can still pick up the set for $32.99 at Amazon. Good luck! -- Gwynne Watkins

UPDATE: The contest is closed and we have 3 winners -- congratulations to Tracey from Ontario (favorite Muppet: Fozzie), Maribeth from Quentin PA (favorite Muppet: Rizzo) and Jeanette from Santa Monica (favorite Muppet: Rowlf)!

Turns Out TV Boosts IQ

Amy Kuras — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 17:03:00 GMT

Now here's a study that just makes my day: children who watch at least four hours of television a day see at least a 10-point jump in IQ, and later, in SAT scores.

It doesn’t matter whether the TV is educational or not, either – researchers from the Society for Lenient Childrearing found that it was time in front of the screen, not the content of the programming, that made the difference.

"To our surprise, we found that exposure to everything from Little Einsteins to mommy's stories had a salutary effect," said lead researcher Dora Marquez. "The take-home message from this is that parents should watch whatever TV they wish, for as long as they wish, and not worry about what their children are doing."

Watching TV with the children and discussing it actually lessened the positive effect.

Researchers did express concern that many of the children who watched the most TV showed lower weights than those who watched little to none. High-calorie snacks, especially those with large amounts of high fructose corn syrup, reversed this effect.

As with much about parenting, the earlier the TV-watching commenced, the better. Marquez suggested beginning in the hospital, if at all possible, and certainly immediately on arriving home. "It's a good use for those two a.m. feedings," Marquez said.

An American Academy of Pediatrics spokesperson said the group is scrambling to revise its recommendations posthaste. "Wow, we called that one wrong," she said.

Old, Dorky, Great

Madeline Holler — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 21:37:00 GMT

Mr. Rogers is a dork and even my kids, on some level, get this. But I like him because of his dorkiness, and they like him in spite of it. So here's to another 40 years of his dorky goodness.

The series "Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood" premiered Feb. 19, 1968. It's 40th birthday is being feted around Pittsburgh and includes a re-assembled Neighborhood of Make Believe set at its home, WQED. A Mr. Rogers Sweater Drive has also been planned.

Fred Rogers would have turned 80 this year, something fans will also be celebrating. He died in 2003.

The Neighborhood of Make Believe was never my favorite. I liked Chef Brocket and that guy with the music store. My favorite now is watching those video tapes of how everyday things were made in what was once a very industrial Pittsburgh.

What do you think of Fred?

Mom Likes Sick Kids and Lice

Madeline Holler — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 22:29:00 GMT

An AlphaMummy at the Times lists all the stuff she thought she would hate about parenting but turns out to have enjoyed. I'm so not relating.

I mean, she lists "taking care of sick kids" at No. 1. I would say that's one of the things I wasn't looking forward too, and for good reason: it's far worse than I ever imagined (Mommy's a little sleep-sensitive.)

What else has unexpectedly brought her joy: the smell of her kids dirty pants and picking through their hair for lice. Seriously? I think I might be jealous. As for dirty pants, I'm neutral, but wouldn't it be great if I loved them? The lice, though, forget it. Granted, I have no experience there yet, but I can't imagine it being the least bit, as she describes it, "satisfying" (Mommy's also got bug issues.)

This AlphaMummy also likes helping with homework (makes her feel smart), coloring, instructing her kids in "hard-core feminism" and co-sleeping (mostly the comments on her post turn into a debate on co-sleeping. We're so over that though, aren't we?).

So what about you? If you didn't raise your hand -- what anticipated drudgery has turned out to be fun? Anything you thought you'd love that you are more than eager to turn over to your partner?

I thought I was going to hate children's TV, and sure, it can be crappy. But I have "my shows" (Arthur being one, Clifford being NOT one.) I expected the worst of car trips with young kids but I actually look forward to them -- the crappy food, the whining, the same CD 2,000 times. Fun.

On the flip side, I thought I'd love giving baths, pre-kids, but it's not my favorite (too much prep-work and clean up) and I found myself surprisingly bored with so much of the reading material meant for 4- to 6-year-old's.

Your turn!

The Harrrd, Harrd Life of a Kids-Show Writer

Karen Murphy — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 21:27:00 GMT

When I moved back to Pennsylvania a year and a half ago from warmer/drier/higher climes, there was an online acquaintance in the area who expressed an interest in meeting me face-to-face sometime. Great! It was nice feeling a bit welcomed here. But a year and a half later we've still yet to meet. I will blame it on the fact that he's the writer for the Pokemon TV show (and does some of the voices), and that, combined with being a single full-time dad of two, means He Has No Personal Life.

Which is completely consistent with last week's American Public Media Marketplace report on the hard hard life of children's TV writers. Seriously! And this is why it's hard (one, two, three: awww!):

1. Writers must avoid writing conflict. Uh, any writer knows that it's pretty much conflict (or, if you blog for Strollerderby, it's witticisms and snark, hopefully combined) that drives good writing. But kid's shows can't have conflict! Or, the idea of "conflict" is something like "Clifford's dog-friend was shy about being seen in an unflattering pose/making a mistake/having white-lied about something," but it's all handily resolved within the 8-minute time window for each low-attention-span-friendly story.

2. Deadlines. Ugh, the pressure! My Pokemon-friend said he wrote an entire movie over 6 days on the Christmas break (how does he do it with the kids???), and that sounds "normal."

3. Kid's Shows are Serious Busines. Really! Writer Doug Cordell talks about puppeteers who stayed in character during lunch (they're PUPPETS, not method actors!!) and disputes over thngs like the improbabilities of a rabbit puppet wearing running shoes (though he habitually wore a vest).

All of which makes blogging sooo much more appealing, doesn't it?

Image: www.sfondideldesktop.com

Buddy G: The Boy We've All Been Waiting For

Erin White — Fri, 23 Nov 2007 15:54:00 GMT

Wouldn’t it be great if all those wildly creative gay boys we’ve come to depend on to create all that is funny or interesting or edgy in theatre today would take a moment to create one--just one--funny, interesting, and edgy show for and about the kids their boring friends and ex-boyfriends are accumulating at such an impressive rate?

I’ll keep dreaming. And while I am, my daughter will be watching episodes of the newly-minted DVD Buddy G, My Two Moms and Me.

Several years ago the creators of Buddy G set out to create an animated show that their own little fella could relate to. "Something like a cartoon," they say on their website. "Something like a Caillou with two moms or dads."

Now I haven't seen much of Buddy G yet, but I can tell you that he does have a full head of hair and he doesn't seem particularly whiny or phobic and neither of his mothers wears a headband. These encouraging facts alone are enough to make me go out on a limb and say that fielding a few questions about Buddy G's family structure will be seen by even the straightest of straight folks as a small price to pay for the opportunity to say au revoir to their stash of TiVoed Caillou episodes.

Bring Da Funk, Bunnies!

Amy Kuras — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 00:11:00 GMT

Fans of Noggin's "Jack's Big Music Show" — and seriously, if you're not, what precisely is wrong with you? – will want to check out the new show "Bunnytown" on the Disney Channel.
Spiffy Pictures, the production team behind "Jack," worked with the UK's Baker Coogan to make "Bunnytown," which intersperses scenes of the puppet bunnies with live action sketches of Peopletown, where the bunnies observe their human counterparts.Airing at 11am Saturdays and Sundays, the show shares the look of Jack's brightly colored and goofily adorable puppet stars and its music focus.

The Bunnytown Band is made up of puppet players with names like Clyde, Wojo and Jools, and is based on –wait for it – bands like Sly and the Family Stone and Earth, Wind and Fire. All types of music, from hip-hop and funk to rock and jazz, will be featured.
Spiffy's Adam Rudman, David Rudman and Todd Hannert have worked on kid-show classics like "Sesame Street" and "Blue's Clues" as well.

Like most shows for the preschool set, there's an educational component, but if the show's as awesome as "Jack's Big Music Show," who really cares? Any show that can bring on the Thinking Woman's TV Boyfriend, Jon Stewart, as well as luminaries like blues idol Buddy Guy is good with me, and I have high hopes for "Bunnytown" as well.

Peppa Pig and the Adorable Accent

Gwynne Watkins — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 15:46:00 GMT

Oh, British children's cartoons, what is it about you? Granted, I have slight Anglophile tendencies, but if an animated cat starts talking about prams and teatime, I'm totally mesmerized. When I was in London earlier this year, I made my husband sit through an entire episode of Postman Pat, during which absolutely nothing happened except that cute clay characters puttered around being British. So I'm pleased to present the latest UK cartoon import: Peppa Pig, which comes to DVD today. Normally, this much grunting and burping in a children's cartoon might get to me, but in this case, the accents make it worthwhile. At least, for the duration of this clip. Anybody out there actually seen the show?

Things Fall Apart: It's a Lead, Lead World

Karen Murphy — Sun, 16 Sep 2007 18:18:00 GMT

My three-year old has taken to watching "It's a Big, Big World." It comes on right after Teletubbies, which means I have an hour of uninterrupted blogging time if I can stand an hour of existentialist/acid trippy/environmentalist children's public television. Which I can, because, after all, an hour of uninterrupted blogging time? Punctuated by the occasional procurement of snacks? I can live with that.

However, I'm pretty sure that Snook the sloth would be aghast to find out that the Fisher-Price 6-in-1 Bongo Band with his likeness on it is covered with toxic lead paint. Lead paint that's rather anathema to the message of the show, as far as I can tell (not having actually watched more than a couple of minutes at a time, though the songs, the songs kill me and I always cry, what a wuss), which seems to preach a bit on the oneness of the universe and blah-di-blah. Which I rather like.

But. We're taking lead paint and toxicity here, so let's get down to it: the recalled set has product number K9343 inside the orange drum, and a date code between 139-7SH and 232-7SH is printed on the drum’s orange ring surface. The recall only extends to the sets that have both product number and date code. Affected sets were sold at a variety of stores in July and August 2007 for about $20.

If you own this, and 8900 of you do, contact Fisher-Price (a division of Mattel; I have to point that out) or phone them at(888) 496-8330.

Puff the Magic Dragon Beat Down

Mike Adamick (Cry It Out!) — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 15:09:00 GMT

I promise this is the last time I post about anything related to "Flight of the Conchords." This week. But something very odd happened yesterday. I picked up a miniature dragon from a toy bin and instead of flashing on images of Puff and his weird-ass predilection for little boys and ceiling wax, I immediately thought of the modern version: Albi. Albi the Racist Dragon.

God I love this show. They should update more children's tales.

Super Secret Super Spy Sounds Super Fly

ChagHolland — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 17:22:00 GMT

Fans of Pablo, Uniqua, Tasha, Tyrone, and Austin, get ready to set your DVRs. An hour-long The Backyardigans movie, Super Secret Super Spy, will premiere on Nickelodeon on Monday, September 17 at 7:00 PM. The DVD will hit stores the next day. Set to a jazz soundtrack, the movie will send the five friends to London, Miami, Switzerland, and the Caribbean. In the upcoming weeks, Nick Jr.'s website will feature activities, crafts, and online games inspired by the movie.

But the coolest thing about the movie is that Cyndi Lauper will be singing the theme song, "The Lady In Pink." I'm a big fan of Cyndi Lauper and it seems she's a big fan of the show. Said Lauper about the show: "It's real music that isn't dumbed down like most kids' music is. The characters are also fantastic -- strong, smart and lovable. The Backyardigans shows kids how fun it is to use one's imagination and in this video-crazed age there is just not enough of that in most kids' daily lives."

I think my wife and I like The Backyardigans more than our kids do. We love the songs and the dancing. Especially the dancing. So yeah, there's a damn good chance I'll be watching this before heading out to the bar to catch Monday Night Football.

Dora v. Diego

ChagHolland — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 17:35:00 GMT

Forget the Stones/Beatles, Yankees/Sox, or Ashlee/Jessica Simpson debates. There really are only two types of people in this world: Diego people and Dora people. After carefully examining the two, Alyssa at MommyBlogsToronto declared Diego the winner. I must respectfully disagree.

Don't get me wrong, Diego's got a lot going for him. As Alyssa points out, Diego has better music and owns an all-purpose Rescue Pack. You can learn a few interesting facts about an animal in each episode as opposed to Dora rehashing the same five Spanish words. Diego also has fewer lead-covered toys in his likeness.

But Dora has a monkey for a sidekick. While this fact alone is enough to make my case in the Dora/Diego debate, Dora has to be cooler than Diego because she's got more friends. Diego only has his cousin and a baby jaguar. In addition to Boots, Dora cavorts with a squirrel, a bull, an iguana, and, occasionally, a freaky-looking octopus. Plus, she's got three little bugs that play a song every time she accomplishes a task.

Go, Dora! Go!

Mr. Rogers: 15 Reasons He's Still Relevant (and Awesome)

Patti — Sat, 02 Jun 2007 17:57:00 GMT

Mr. Rogers is one of those very few people that, whenever I think about him, I miss him so much. My kids have recently started watching the reruns and they're enthralled, and I'm reminded all over again that there once existed a man with no irony, no posing, who was just purely nice. I wish I could make that work for me.

Mental Floss's 15 Reasons Why Mr. Rogers Was the Best Neighbor Ever nails it pretty much right on the head. I wrote about #4, his testimony before the Senate to secure funding for public television, and #6 might be the nicest thing I've ever heard about anyone. And if you've never read them before, don't miss the links to the two Esquire articles toward the bottom of the piece.

It's always a beautiful day in the 'hood when Mr. Rogers crosses my mind.

(via Metafilter)

Kid's Show Hosted By Former Navy SEAL

Kelly Mills — Fri, 01 Jun 2007 20:48:00 GMT

Former Navy SEAL David Rutherford has created a show for Boca Raton television called Froglogic. No, it's not a slur against the French or a nod to the retired WB mascot, it's named after the SEALs, who are called "frogmen". Rutherford uses the lessons he learned during his training to help keep kids on the straight-and-narrow. "I teach kids things like, 'never quit, never leave a man behind, there is no such thing as failure,'' he says. You know, when the kids are doing military exercises and stuff. I totally disagree that there's no such thing as failure, and I can point to about a hundred examples from my own life alone to prove it. But maybe I just haven't had the proper training.

I like this: "He targets kids between the ages of 10 and 15 because kids under 10 are too young to get into trouble..." Someone has not met the right under-ten kids yet. But Rutherford is very active in his community, and he is trying to give kids a positive attitude. He's even organizing an event: "'Frogapalooza,' which would feature healthy, local food vendors, music acts and motivational speakers to provide kids with positive influences." Now these pearls aren't part of the SEAL training, but here's my credo: 1) No one is allowed to use '-alooza' anymore, because I'm so friggin' sick of it I can't even stand it, and 2) motivational speakers are usually scary. Worse than clowns, even. Not all, but most. Other than that and the interesting military vibe of all this, more power to you, Rutherford. I'll try and check out the show after my bootcamp exercise class.

PBS Kids Sprout Launches New Afternoon Show

Stefania Pomponi Butler (CityMama) — Wed, 09 May 2007 22:06:00 GMT

PBS Kids Sprout, one of cable tv's most popular preschool channels is launching a new, original afternoon block of programming on June 25. Thank god, because when my kids see the Goodnight Show come on at 3 o'clock, they freak out thinking it's time for bed.

Airing every afternoon from 3:00 - 6:00 p.m. eastern, the new Let's Go Show is designed to "encourage preschoolers to ask questions, be curious about the world around them and participate in a daily musical adventure."

Host Miles (played by actor Milton Barnes) and his puppy friend Banjo, an adorable and spirited puppet who loves to play her homemade banjo, will embark each afternoon on a musical journey in their cardboard car, Carla. Miles loves to sing, discover new things and connect with viewers to help them learn through humor, music and interactive play. Always ready for adventure, Banjo represents the wonder, energy and curiosity of a preschooler.

PBS (just the regular ol' TV channel) is a favorite in my house because it's what I grew up on. I love their gentle-albeit-sometimes-annoying programming. PBS Kids Sprout is unique because it follows a preschooler's normal day from morning until night (the sinister motives behind this I'll save for another post), and watching a few minutes of the Good Night show is how we usually end our day. We look forward to the new afternoon programming, especially on rainy days or when "Mamma needs to work."

MythBusters: Just Part of Raising a Geek

Kelly Mills — Mon, 07 May 2007 12:31:00 GMT

As utter dork parents, we are doing our darndest to make our daughter the kind of kid who will play Dungeons and Dragons, correct her teacher during the physics lesson, join the drama club, and have thick tape holding her glasses together. In other words, we are grooming her for total geekdom. As my better half said recently, "It's gonna make the whole dating thing so much easier on us."

Therefore I was pleased to see other parents encouraging the same kind of behavior. Geekdad from the ubergeek source, Wired, put in a plug for kids watching one of our favorite shows, MythBusters. We adore this program because the hosts are appropriately hilarious, cute, and dorky; they encourage experimentation and skepticism; and best of all, they blow lots of shit up. Heh heh, cool.

I, like Geekdad, highly recommend this program for all ages. In fact, we just turned my engineer stepfather onto the show, and now he watches it religiously. Explosions and critical thinking for the whole family served up by funny people: what more could you want?

I'll also give a shout-out to another one of the dork programs we watch as a unit, called How It's Made. It's a completely straightforward look at how, um, stuff is made. They cover everything from a crayon factory to fish husbandry with the same unflappable delivery and bad puns. It's low tech and literal and Canadian and we like it. See? You can learn things from television.