Barney & Friends is a 1992
independent children's television show produced in the
United States aimed at very young children ages 1–5. The series features the title character
Barney, a purple
anthropomorphic Tyrannosaurus rex who conveys learning through songs and small dance routines with a friendly, optimistic attitude.
Origin and development
Barney was created in 1987 by
Sheryl Leach of
Dallas,
Texas. She came up with the idea for the program while considering TV shows that she felt would be educational and appeal to her son. Leach then brought together a team who created a series of home videos,
Barney and the Backyard Gang, which also starred actress
Sandy Duncan in the first 3 videos. Later, Barney was joined by the characters
Baby Bop,
BJ, and
Riff.
Although the original videos were a modest regional success, Barney became a major success only when the character and format were revamped for the television series and were picked up by the
Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), debuting as
Barney & Friends in 1992. The series was produced by
Lyrick Studios (bought by
HIT Entertainment) and
Connecticut Public Television. For several years, the show was taped at the ColorDynamics Studios facility at Greenville Avenue & Bethany Drive in
Allen, after which it moved to The Studios at
Las Colinas, Texas. Currently, the series is produced in a northern suburb of Dallas. The
TV series and videos are currently distributed by
HiT Entertainment and
Lionsgate, while the TV series is currently produced by
WNET. Sheryl Leach left the show in 2002 because
HIT Entertainment bought her company Lyricks Studios.
Barney & Friends is now shown in other countries where it is translated if necessary. One such example is the Spanish language version dubbed in
Mexico which is called
Barney y Sus Amigos, (Spanish translation of "Barney & his Friends.") Another example is the Hebrew production produced from 1997-1999 in
Tel Aviv,
Israel, based on the first three seasons of the show. Rather than dubbing the American episodes, the episodes are recreated with a unique set and exclusive child actors.
Criticism
Although the show has been criticized for its lack of educational value,
Yale researchers Dorothy and Jerome Singer have concluded that episodes contain a great deal of age-appropriate educational material, calling the program a
"model of what preschool television should be."[IPTV]
One specific criticism is:
[1]is shows do not assist children in learning to deal with negative feelings and emotions. As one commentator puts it, the real danger from Barney is denial: the refusal to recognize the existence of unpleasant realities. For along with his steady diet of giggles and unconditional love, Barney offers our children a one-dimensional world where everyone must be happy and everything must be resolved right away.[Lyons Partnership v. Ted Giannoulas, 179 F.3d 384, 386 (5th Cir. 1999), citing Chala Willig Levy, "The Bad News About Barney", Parents, Feb. 1994, at 191-92 (136-39).]
It is ranked on TV Guide's List of the 50 Worst TV Shows of All Time at #50.
[TV Guide]
Cast
Dinosaurs
- Barney the Dinosaur
- The main character is a purple and green Tyrannosaurus Rex in stuffed animal likeness, who comes to life through a child's imagination. His theme song is "Barney Is a Dinosaur," which is sung to the tune of "Yankee Doodle". Episodes frequently end with the song "I Love You", sung to the tune of "This Old Man," which happens to be Barney's favorite song of all time. Despite being a carnivorous type dinosaur, Barney likes many different foods such as fruits and vegetables, but his main favorite is a peanut butter and jelly sandwich with a glass of milk.
- Baby Bop
- A three year old green protoceratops, Baby Bop has been on the show since the 1991 video "Barney in Concert". She carries a yellow blanket, and sings the song "My Yellow Blankey" to show how much it means to her. She refers to herself as 3 years old. She likes to eat macaroni and cheese and pizza. She wears a pink bow and pink ballet slippers. She is B.J.'s little sister.
- B.J.
- A seven year old yellow protoceratops, B.J. has been on the show since September 27, 1993. His theme song is "B.J.'s Song". He wears a red baseball cap and red sneakers (as heard in the lyrics of his theme). He has lost his hat in the episode Hats Off to B.J.! and sometimes says stuff to hide fears (like in the episode Barney's Halloween Party, he was shocked by the paper spiders and after learning they were fake, he said "I knew that, sort of."). Pickles are his favorite food and because of that, he actually has had them in different ways like pickles (also with pepperoni, peppers, pineapple and peanut butter) on a pizza (in the episode Barney's Adventure Bus). He is Baby Bop's older brother.
- Riff
- Referred as Cousin Riff by Baby Bop, he is an orange six year old hadrosaur, who is Baby Bop and B.J.'s cousin. He has been on the show since September 18, 2006. He wears green sneakers. His theme music is "I Hear Music Everywhere." Riff loves music and it's in almost everything he does. In the episode Barney - Let's Go to the Firehouse, it was revealed that Riff also likes to invent things; he created a four-sound smoke detector (the first three were different alarm sounds and the final one his own voice). He even likes marching bands and parades as much as Barney does.
Adults
The adults on the show are usually one or two time guest actors who portray teachers, storytellers, and similar characters.
One-time guests
| Role
| Real Name
| Episode/Description
|
| Aunt Rachel
| Saint Adeogba
| Ashley and Alissa's Aunt from the episode Aunt Rachel is Here.
|
| Aunt Molly
| Mary Ann Brewer
| Julie's aunt who appeared in the episode The Alphabet Zoo.
|
| Frank Crim
| Frank Crim
| A real firefighter who appeared in the episode I Can Be a Firefighter!
|
| Mr. Tenagain
| R. Bruce Elliott
| A close friend of Barney's, who loves anything to do with the number 10. He appeared in the episode Having Tens of Fun!
|
| Teri Garr
| Teri Garr
| She was a guest in Barney's First Adventures.
|
| Melissa Gilbert
| Melissa Gilbert
| She was a guest in Barney's First Adventures.
|
| Rebecca Garcia
| Rebecca Garcia
| A Mexican dancer who appeared in the episode Hola Mexíco.
|
| Ella Jenkins
| Ella Jenkins
| A famous children's singer and a friend of Barney's who appeared in the episode A Very Special Delivery.
|
| Captain Kangaroo
| John McDonough
| He was a guest in Barney's First Adventures.
|
| Mr. Delivery Man
| Mark S. Bernthal
| A delivery man who has delivered a package to Barney in the episode Everyone Is Special. Apparently, he can't tell kids in disguise from adults. In real life, Mark was one of the show's writers, along with Stephen White.
|
| Tosha's mom
| J.D. Mosley
| Tosha's mother, who brought her twins with her father in the episode A Very Special Delivery. She reappeared in the episode Barney's Imagination Island.
|
| Tina's mom
| Sonya Resendeze
| She appeared in Barney and the Backyard Gang: Barney's Campfire Sing-Along.
|
| Joe Scruggs
| Joe Scruggs
| A famous children's music singer who appeared in the episode The Exercise Circus. Barney's company owned the rights to his music at one time.
|
| James Turner
| James Turner
| A singer who appeared in the episode Eat, Drink and Be Healthy!
|
| Farmer Henderson
| Max Vaughan
| Barney's farmer friend who appeared in the episode Down on Barney's Farm with a whole bunch of animals.
|
| Rainbowbeard the Pirate
| Stephen White
| A mysterious pirate who left his treasure for Barney and the kids to find in the episode Treasure of Rainbowbeard.
|
| Princess Zulie
| Alexander Hairston
| The princess of the Land of Make Believe, who Barney and the kids have to return home in the episode The Land Of Make Believe.
|
| Patty
| Donna Kraft
| Luci's blind friend from the episode 1-2-3-4-5 Senses.
|
| Nana
| Jane Hall
| Kathy's grandmother who appeared in the episode Grandparents Are Grand!
|
| Granddad Richards
| Cliff Porter
| Derek's grandfather from the episode Grandparents Are Grand!
|
| Tosha's dad
| David J. Courtney
| Tosha's father, who brought her twin baby brothers in the episode A Very Special Delivery, along with Tosha's mom. He makes a brief appearance in the episode Barney's Imagination Island.
|
| Doug and Becky from Kathy Burk's marionettes
| Doug and Becky from Kathy Burk's marionettes
| Marionette performers who guest appeared in the episode Grown Ups For A Day.
|
| Joe Ferguson
| Joe Ferguson
| A storyteller who comes to visit in the episode My Favorite Things.
|
| Old King Cole
| DeWayne Hambrick
| One of Barney's friends who lives in a castle. He comes to visit the treehouse in the episode A Royal Welcome and makes an appearance in the episode Barney's Big Surprise.
|
Multiple appearances
| Role
| Real Name
| Description and Appearances
|
| Mother Goose
| Sandy Walper, Michelle McCarel, Julie Johnson
| The rhyme master herself appears in the episodes Let's Help Mother Goose, Honk! Honk! A Goose On The Loose, A Little Mother Goose, Barney's Big Surprise, and Mother Goose/Fairy Tales.
|
| Stella
| Phyllis Cicero
| Stella the Storyteller travels all around the world, collecting new stories to tell Barney and friends, among other people. She appeared in several episodes from Season 3 to Season 6. Stella reappeared in the episode The Best of Barney, where she gave Barney a photo album of his friends (most of the TV show cast) over the years she made herself.
|
| Professor Tinkerputt
| Barry Pearl
| He appeared in the episode Barney's Imagination Island and in the episode Barney's Big Surprise. Professor Tinkerputt didn't want to share his invented toys, until Barney and the kids showed him that good things happen when you share. For this reason, Tinkerputt left Imagination Island with Barney and the others and started a new toy factory.
|
| Tomie dePaola
| Tomie dePaola
| Appeared in the episodes Picture This, It's Raining, It's Pouring, and Oh Brother, She's my Sister. The famous children's author is also good friends with Barney and usually meets his friends in the episodes he appears in.
|
| Mom
| Sandy Duncan
| Michael and Amy's mom in the Barney and the Backyard Gang episodes.
|
| Mr. Boyd
| Robert Sweatman
| His full name is Grady Boyd and has a niece named Colleen. First worked as a janitor in Seasons 3-6 and worked as a park keeper in Seasons 7 and 8. Like Stella, Mr. Boyd reappeared in the episode The Best of Barney, taking pictures in the park. He also took the latest picture in Barney's new photo album from Stella.
|
Children
Over the years, more than one hundred children have appeared as cast members on the show.
Barney & Friends mostly get local talent which is in
Texas. Some notable children who have appeared in
Barney & Friends include:
Crew
Movies and specials
Airings
Besides the United States, the TV show has aired in Canada, Mexico and Latin America, France, Ireland, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Japan (On English-based DVDs under the name "" and on television as simply "" ), the Philippines, Turkey, Australia, and New Zealand, among others. Two known co-productions of Barney & Friends have been produced outside of the US. The Israeli co-production (החברים של ברני
Hachaverim shel Barney (The Friends of Barney)) produced from 1997-1999 in
Tel Aviv,
Israel, was the first of these. Rather than dubbing the American episodes from Seasons 1-3, the episodes are adapted with a unique set and exclusive child actors. The other co-production was one shot in
South Korea from 2001-2003, airing on KBS (under the name "바니와 친구들" (
Bani-oe Chingul (Barney & Friends)). This one, however, adapted the first six seasons (including the first three that the Israel co-production did). It was done in a similar manner as the Israel production.
Music
A majority of the albums of Barney and Friends feature
Bob West's voice as the voice of Barney, though the recent album
The Land of Make-Believe (like every album starting with
Start Singing with Barney) has
Dean Wendt's voice.
Barney's famous song "I Love You" (as well as songs from Sesame Street and Metallica) has been used by interrogators at
Guantanamo Bay, Cuba to coerce the detainees.
[Sesame Street breaks Iraqi POWs]
See also
