Family fare attacked
Disney has l ong been the main target of the religious right. But family fare from other producers also has come under fire over the years:
Sesame Street’s Bert and Ernie are suspect because they live together and share each other’s clothing.
That lovable cartoon dinosaur Barney has been attacked as a gay tool of Satan — apparently the fact that he’s purple is a giveaway.
The Teletubbies became a subject of controversy when the late Jerry Falwell outed Tinky Winky (also purple).
The animated dancing penguins in the two Happy Feet movies outrage some observers. It’s bad enough that they plead the cause of environmentalism and other liberal concerns — they condone the desire of two male penguins to live together and adopt. “This is kiddie Karl Marx,” complained New York Post critic Kyle Smith, who was incensed with Happy Feet Two for promoting feminism, vegetarianism, same-sex marriage and the United Nations.
Brad Bird’s acclaimed 1999 film, Iron Giant, was accused of a political agenda because of its anti-gun message.
SpongeBob SquarePants has been attacked as gay because he sometimes holds hands with his friend Patrick.
Fox News host Lou Dobbs accused the film version of Dr. Seuss’s The Lorax of promoting “environmental radicalism.”