Daniel makes stuff, and, in his spare time, writes about things like movies, kid culture, and geek stuff.
This Is What I Love...

… People who like books but also think TV ain’t that bad either:

There is an argument to be made in favour of TV’s role as a failsafe babysitter, giving frazzled parents restorative breaks, and we should also be wary of characterising the TV as something that injects noxious substances directly into children’s brains, and of books as something that are universally capable of transforming the dustiest mental landscape into a lush and verdant pasture.

But perhaps after the revelation that the average adult in the UK watches nearly four-and-a-half hours’ TV a day, it is time to remind ourselves of some of the best books out there for our young people.

The Guardian’s put together a truly top-notch list of book recommendations – and they offer it in a way that encourages reading without demonising TV and technology. Thanks for keeping it classy, Guardian.

May 12, 2010 :: Tagged under: , , , :: #

Yes, It's True.

And I couldn’t be happier.

Mar 19, 2010 :: Tagged under: , , :: #

Ivor, Bagpuss and Me

Stephen Fry and Nick Park salute legendary children’s television creator Oliver Postgate, one year after his passing.

I think this bit from Stephen Fry is especially enduring:

During bouts of childhood theism, I always supposed that if God had a voice, it would be that of Oliver Postgate, the same matchless blend of authority, kindliness and humour. And if Oliver was God, then we were all inhabitants of the planet “far, far away where the Clangers live”, where we could also find the Soup Dragon, Noggin, Olaf the Lofty, Ivor, Professor Yaffle and Jones the Steam, not to mention that “old, saggy cloth cat, baggy, and a bit loose at the seams”….

I’m a relatively new convert to the Postgate religion, but count me as a firm and fanatical believer. If there was one man in television who innately understand children, it was Oliver Postgate.

Nov 30, 2009 :: Tagged under: , , :: #

How "Sesame Street" Has Cleaned Up Over the Years

Any essay that starts out like this immediately gets my admiration:

In the early days of “Sesame Street” — that is, B.E. (Before Elmo) — Sesame Street was a pretty grimy place.

The brownstone at 123 Sesame Street looked like it needed a serious power washing, the storefront of Mr. Hooper’s shop was intentionally dingy and the Fix-It Shop’s window was cluttered with toasters. It was gritty, but gritty in a magical way.

Katie McLaughlin recounts for CNN how PBS’s “Sesame Street” – incidentally celebrating 40 years on the air this week – has “cleaned up” over the years. Cookie Monster no longer smokes a pipe, kids ride bikes with helmets, and the Street itself is a lot more sparkly-clean now – just an overall sanitation of the show which many adults remember as a much grittier, dirty world during it’s first two or three decades of existence.

It’s certainly true, there’s been a lot of changes to the show over the years. It’s hard to say whether the changes have been made because childhood itself is different today – or because we just think differently about childhood. Of course it’s never strictly one or the other, but my own inclination (especially after reading Michael Davis’s excellent “Street Gang: The Complete History of Sesame Street”) is that the balance has skewed much more toward the latter as motivation for the changes, in a very unfortunate way.

Nov 07, 2009 :: Tagged under: , , :: #

Cartoon Network Goes Live-Action

Variety reports on two new live-action shows the Cartoon Network is adding to its line-up: “Tower Prep” and “Unnatural History.” Yeah, it’s still taking me time to get used to the whole “Non-Cartoons on Cartoon Network” thing too. (Is nothing holy anymore?!)

Still, neither of these two new shows look that bad – and the live-action strategy has been working out well for Cartoon Network so far.

Nov 07, 2009 :: Tagged under: , :: #

The Best Sesame Street Segment... Ever!?

Yup, to celebrate their huge Four-Zero, Sesame Street is asking for your vote in determining which is the jiggiest Sesame Street segment ever!

Each week for five weeks will have a new round of voting, according to BoingBoing, and this first week sports some great classics from the ’90s.

Oh, and while you’re voting, buy this book for me. I really want it.

Oct 31, 2009 :: Tagged under: , :: #