“Old School” Entertainment for Kids
When I first found out that my wife was pregnant with our daughter, I started to wonder what life would be like when she was born. As I thought about life with a young toddler, I started to have nightmares filled with Barney and the Teletubbies (I’d mention the Wonder Pets but I’m afraid I might start having seizures). It never occurred to me that my daughter would enjoy some of the things we enjoyed when we were younger. Sure any animation that isn’t CGI is SO two decades ago, but what do our kids know. They don’t have those biases yet and you’d be amazed at what you could find at your local Best Buy thanks to the magic of DVD. In fact, because of video restoration, most of these shows and movies look better than even you might remember them.
For Babies and Toddlers:
1. Sesame Street: Now I know what you are thinking. Isn’t that still on now? Well, sure it is, but this is not OUR Sesame Street. Elmo, Abby, and that annoying Zoe were nowhere to be found back in the day. Fortunately, the folks at Sesame Workshop have just released a collection called Sesame Street: Old School which is a collection of episodes from the first few seasons of Sesame Street. I’ll admit, these even pre-date our years watching the Street, but there is something undeniably charming about watching all of the classic songs such as “Rubber Duckie” and “Bein’ Green.” And while we are on the subject of Kermit….
2. The Muppet Show: I was shocked while watching these DVDs at how dated they felt but I am a complete sucker for The Swedish Chef, Waldorf, Statler, Bunsen Honeydew, Beaker, and company. I think that the hosts of the shows (anyone remember Twiggy?) are the real reason that they feel so old but your kids won’t care. All they will care about are the crazy backstage antics of Kermit, Ms. Piggy, and Fozzie. Wakka wakka wakka! And of course the Muppet Movies - (“The Rainbow Connection”, “Moving Right Along”, Kermit and Piggy’s Wedding). My personal favorites are the original Muppet Movie and The Muppets Take Manhattan. In recent years, the Muppets have started to take on classic stories such as Treasure Island, The Wizard of Oz, and A Christmas Carol. Kids will take to any of them.
3. The Peanuts – Halloween just isn’t the same without viewing, “It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown”. Snoopy never gets old. All of the Peanuts TV Specials, including classics like, “A Charlie Brown Christmas” can be bought in a 2 disc set – “Peanuts 1960s Collection”. You won’t regret this purchase.
4. The Electric Company: I have to admit, I never watched this. My wife thinks I was raised in a hut without electricity. Many of my friends purchased this set for their kids and have told me how much they loved it. Morgan Freeman, Bill Cosby, and Spiderman make me think that they could be on to something.
5. Disney Movies: Do I need to explain this one? These days you’d be hard pressed to find kids who would choose one of these classics over a 3-D film. However, these movies are so timeless that most children fall in love with them upon first viewing. Our daughter loved The Little Mermaid and we continue to pick up Disney Classics whenever they become available. On another note, I don’t know if I’m just becoming jaded as I get older, but I found Bambi to be absolutely unwatchable. Maybe this whole classics thing isn’t such a good idea. But for every Bambi, there is a……
6. Fraggle Rock: As a kid, this was my absolute favorite. My memories of sitting in front of the TV waiting for Fraggle Rock to start are some of my most vivid memories from childhood. When I first purchased these DVD sets (The first two seasons are available now), I got them for me. On a whim, I showed one to my daughter after watching the same episode of Sesame Street for the fifth straight time. She was hooked. She can’t get enough. My wife and I were so determined to be those parents who don’t have their kids watch TV. But in truth, I find that things like Fraggle Rock allow me to connect to my 21-month old daughter in a very special way. It’s something we can talk about together and as I watch her face light up, I get it. We both do. That’s the real magic behind sharing these classics with your kids. I’m not advocating mass TV watching by any means. However, by getting my daughter into Fraggle Rock, I was able to purchase a set of Fraggle Rock books on EBay that we read together before bedtime. And anything that can excite my daughter about reading is something I am totally for.
For the Older Crew:
7. School House Rock: Admit it. Just reading the title of this entry made you think of one of two things: “Conjunction Junction” or “I’m Just a Bill.” School House Rock was the melding of cartoons and schoolwork. And unbelievably, it worked. And now there is a whole new generation that can share the love.
8. The Last Unicorn: I can’t really explain this one other than to say both my wife and I were excited by its release on DVD and neither of us understood why. It has something for the girls (unicorns), something for the boys (a bad-ass giant bull), and something for the old-timers (a soundtrack by America – the band who sang A Horse With No Name). It’s a little dark but no where near as dark as The Dark Crystal which is a movie that I love infinitely more but is too mature for this list.
9. Transformers/Thundercats/He-Man/G.I. Joe/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: OK, this one was for the boys. Any male who was between the ages of 3 and 13 during the early 80’s needs no explanation for any of these. And to top it off, these are cool again. He-Man had a new series a couple of years ago and Transformers is going to be a live-action film this summer and TMNT has one out now. Cowabunga, dude.
10. Strawberry Shortcake/Care Bears/Rainbow Brite/My Little Pony: Unbelievably enough, these are all still around. Plus, I had to show some love for the ladies in my life with my last pick.
