Pop Culture Kids Should Have #PCHH

Linda Holmes, Trey Graham, Glen Weldon, Mike Katzif

Last week's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast from National Public Radio was primarily devoted to paying tribute to new mom Barrie Hardymon and to suggesting pop-culture entertainments for children. After the show's recommendations were elaborated on by posts both on that site and its Facebook page, I had lost track of the plethora of great suggestions (and hit myself on the head for failing, for example, to recommend the children's books of Marjorie Flack (1897-1958) and others). So what would be handier and quicker than to organize all those suggestions? Oh. Not so quick. But here's what I came up with by combining what was posted. To find out why folks came up with those specifics? Well, check out the show, its comments, and its Facebook page. 

TV

The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. (1993-1994)

Adventure Time (2010- )

Animaniacs (1993-1998)

Blue's Clues (with Steve) (1996-2002)

Dexter's Laboratory (1996-2003)

The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961-1966)

Electric Company (1971-1977)

George of the Jungle (1967)

Jack's Big Music Show (2005-2007)

Kids' science shows, such as Beakman's World (1992-1997), Bill Nye The Science Guy (1993-1997) and, of course, Mr. Wizard [Watch Mr. Wizard (1951-1972) and Mr. Wizard's World (1983-1990)]

The Magic Garden (1972-1984)

Mister Rogers' Neighborhood (1968-2001)

Monty Python's Flying Circus (1969-1974)

The Muppet Show (1976-1980)

Pee-Wee's Playhouse (1986-1990)

Peter Pan starring Mary Martin (1960)

Phineas and Ferb (2007- )

Pinky and the Brain (1995-1998)

Rocky and Bullwinkle

Schoolhouse Rock (1973-1985, 1993-1999)

Sesame Street (1969- )

The Simpsons (1989- )

SpongeBob SquarePants (1999- )

Tiny Toon Adventures (1990-1992)

The Upside Down Show (2006-2007)

The Weird Al Show (1997)

Movies

Babe (1995, 89 min.)

Babe, Pig in the City (1998, 97 min.)

Fantasia (1940, 124 min.)

Fantasia/2000 (1999, 74 min.)

Hansel and Gretel (1954, 72 min., with Anna Russell as the witch)

The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977, 74 min.)

The Muppet Movie (1979, 95 min.)

Pee-Wee's Big Adventure (1985, 90 min.)

The Point (1971, 74 min.)

Films with the Marx Brothers, Bob Hope, and Danny Kaye

Looney Tunes cartoons ["What's Opera, Doc?" (1957, 7 min.) especially]

Books

Art Baltazar (1968- ) Tiny Titans series

Doris Burn (1923- ) Andrew Henry's Meadow

Patricia Coombs (1926- ) Dorrie the Little Witch series

Susan Cooper (1935- ) [The Dark Is Rising series]

Bruce Coville (1950- ) Magic Shop series

Roald Dahl (1916-1990) [Note: While such of his children's books as Charlie & the Chocolate Factory and The Gremlins are well known, some of Dahl's output is for older readers]

Eleanor Davis (1983- ) The Secret Science Alliance and the Copycat Crook

Ul de Rico (1944- ) The Rainbow Goblins

Kate DiCamillo (1964- ) and Alison McGhee (1960- ) Bink and Gollie illustrated by Tony Fucile

"Franklin W. Dixon" the Hardy Boys series

Edward Eager (1911-1964) [the Magic series]

John D. Fitzgerald (1906-1988) Great Brain series

Louise Fitzhugh (1928-1974) Harriet the Spy

Wanda Gág (1893-1946) Nothing at All and Millions of Cats

René Goscinny (1926-1977) Asterix series illustrated by Albert Uderzo (1927- )

Theodore Gray (1964- ) The Elements

Ben Hatke Zita the Spacegirl series

Kevin Henkes (1960- ) including Chester's Way; Julius, Baby of the World; Lily's Big Day; and Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse

Hergé (1907-1983) Tintin series

Norton Juster (1929- ) The Phantom Tollbooth illustrated by Jules Feiffer (1929- )

"Carolyn Keene" the Nancy Drew series

Judith Kerr (1923- ) Mog the Forgetful Cat

James Kochalka (1967- ) Peanutbutter & Jeremy; Pinky & Stinky; Monkey vs. Robot; and Johnny Boo

Gordon Korman (1963- ) [the Bruno and Boots series]

Roger Langridge (1967- ) The Muppet Show comic book

Joaquin Salvador Lavado ("Quino," 1932- ) Mafalda comic strip (1964-1973 in Argentina)

Munro Leaf (1905-1976) The Story of Ferdinand illustrated by Robert Lawson (1892-1957)

Madeleine L'Engle (1918-2007) A Wrinkle in Time

Elizabeth Levy (1942- ) Something Queer Is Going On books

C.S. Lewis (1898-1963) The Chronicles of Narnia

Mercer Mayer (1943- ) Professor Wormbog in Search for the Zipperump-a-Zoo and One Monster after Another

Jean Merrill (1923- ) The Pushcart Wars and The Toothpaste Millionaire

A.A. Milne (1882-1956) Winnie-the-Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner

Barbara Park (1947- ) Junie B. Jones series illustrated by Denise Brunkus

Dav Pilkey (1966- ) Captain Underpants series

Peggy Rathmann (1953- ) Good Night Gorilla

Andy Runton Owly series

Lore Segal (1928- ) Tell Me a Mitzi

Ellen Raskin (1928-1984) The Westing Game

Anne K. Rose The Triumphs of Fuzzy Fogtop

Louis Sachar (1954- ) Sideways Stories from Wayside School series

John Scieszka (1954- ) Math Curse and any of his other collaborations with artist Lane Smith (1959- )

Maurice Sendak (1928- ) Nutshell Library and the TV musical Really Rosie (with Carole King) based on it

Dr. Seuss (1904-1991) The Lorax

Shel Silverstein (1930-1999) The Growing Tree, Where the Sidewalk Ends, A Light in the Attic, Falling Up [Note: As with Roald Dahl, be aware that not everything by Silverstein was aimed at a young audience.]

Christian Slade Korgi

Esphyr Slobodkina (1908-2002) Caps for Sale

Donald J. Sobol (1924- ) Encyclopedia Brown series

Kean Soo Jellaby

Art Spiegelman (1948- ) and Françoise Mouly (1955- ) editors of the Little Lit series

Raina Telgemeier (1977- ) Smile and comics adaptations of The Baby-Sitters Club series by Ann M. Martin (1955- )

Jill Thompson (1966- ) Magic Trixie

Judith Viorst (1931- ) Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

Landry Q. Walker (1971- ) Supergirl: Cosmic Adventures in the 8th Grade illustrated by Eric Jones

Bill Watterson (1958- ) Calvin and Hobbes collections

E.B. White (1899-1985) Stuart Little and Charlotte's Web

Audrey and Don Wood Quick as a Cricket

Jane Yolen (1939- ) Sleeping Ugly

"Records"

Free to Be … You and Me (record and book) (1972)

P.D.Q. Bach

Edvard Grieg "In the Hall of the Mountain King" from Peer Gynt

Michael Flanders and Donald Swann

Arlo Guthrie Woody's 20 Grow Big Songs

Tom Lehrer "New Math," "The Elements," and his songs for The Electric Company

Peter, Paul and Mommy

Sergei Prokofiev Peter and the Wolf (Columbia recording directed by Stokowksi and narrated by Basil Rathbone or — on Disneyland backed with Dukas' The Sorceror's Apprentice — Sterling Holloway)

Leos Janacek, Rudolf Tesnohlidek, and Stanislav Lolek The Cunning Little Vixen (Spoiler note: The Vixen dies in the end: not the case in the original comic book.)

Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine Into the Woods (Act I)

Camille Saint-Saens Carnival of the Animals (Trey recommends the version in Leonard Bernstein's Young People's Concerts; my favorite is the version with comedy narration by Ogden Nash)

Ladysmith Black Mambazo

Ella Jenkins

Allan Sherman

Bob Newhart

Smothers Brothers

Bill Cosby

Shelley Berman

"Darktown Strutters Ball" and "Jelly Roll Blues" performed by The Boston Pops

Sweet Honey in the Rock

Modest Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition

Spike Jones

Sufjan Stevens

Pete Seeger

They Might Be Giants kids' music

Simon and Garfunkel Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme

Engelbert Humperdinck Hansel und Gretel

Motown: The Big Chill soundtrack

Henry Mancini "Baby Elephant Walk"

Johann Strauss II "Blue Danube Waltz"

Stevie Wonder

The Supremes

Iron & Wine's Kiss Each Other Clean

Raffi Baby Beluga

The Flirtations singing Fred Small's "Everything Possible"

Gian-Carlo Menotti's "The Telephone" 1949 (Columbia) version (Marilyn Cotlow and Frank Rogier), now maybe available on the Pearl label

Stan Freberg Presents the United States of America, Volume One: The Early Years

Other

Wonderground Radio (online/HD station run by The Current, a Twin Cities station)

The Goon Show radio series (1951-1960)

Wii games, especially with a group

hooded animal towels

Jearl Walker The Flying Circus of Physics and website, books, etc.

Gyroscope

Pyotr Illyich Tchaikovsky ballets Sleeping Beauty and The Nutcracker (Pacific Northwest Ballet version of the latter recommended)

Have a crazy uncle who provides such pop culture as episodes of Mel Blanc's Story Lady radio show and Jack Benny's radio show.

"Expose them when they're too young."

Stay up on new technology: Develop animation skills via iPad and DSi, record yourself reading to your children.