‘Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood’ celebrating 10 ‘grr-ific’ years
Heather Bambrick’s first indication that “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood” was catching on occurred at a Toys R Us. The voice of Mom Tiger was picking up a gift and was pleasantly surprised to find a whole shelf of Daniel Tiger merchandise.
“That’s when I thought, ‘OK, there are some legs here,’ ” said Bambrick.
As the years went by, she continued to see tangible examples of the show’s impact on its target demographic of preschoolers. She visited a friend in
New York City who told her that she regularly uses the songs and strategies featured on “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood” in her own parenting. Her “heart melted” after seeing a video of a child coming down from a tantrum after his mother asked him, “What does Daniel say?”
The first episode of “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood” premiered Sept. 3, 2012, on PBS Kids. To commemorate its 10-year anniversary this year, PBS Kids will air a five-hour “Top Ten Tiger Tales” marathon of favorite episodes as voted on by fans on Sept. 3.
That’s just the appetizer, though, before Fred Rogers Productions and PBS Kids debut the sixth season of “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood” on Sept. 5 and kick off four days of new episodes. The new season will consist of 18 30-minute episodes that contain “Daniel Tiger” hallmarks like original songs, life lessons and live-action vignettes filmed in Fred Rogers’ hometown of Pittsburgh.
The show is a team effort for Pittsburgh-based Fred Rogers Productions, Canadian children’s media company 9 Story
Media Group and 9 Story’s animation studio Brown Bag Films.
There was quite a bit of pressure surrounding the launch of “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood” in 2012. It was the first Fred Rogers Productions show following the end of “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” in 2001 and Rogers’ death in 2003. Chris Loggins, the show’s supervising producer, said the team was nervous about how the show would be received by the Mister Rogers faithful.
“Everyone had a lot of great care and attention to detail going into the show, but there was no guarantee how it was going to resonate until it was out on the air,” Loggins said. “I just remember a feeling of, we think this is good and hopefully others will like it too . ... I like to think that we got it right because we’re still around and kids and families seem to enjoy the show.”
For Bambrick, part of the show’s lasting appeal has been its “sense of authenticity in every respect.” She appreciates that “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood” never talks down to its audience, whether it’s presenting a song designed to assure children that their caregivers will eventually pick them up or trying to explain early
2020 pandemic lockdowns in a kid-friendly way.
“The one thing Fred Rogers taught us was the idea of respecting young people and giving them truth that satisfies curiosity, but does it in a kind and gentle way,” Bambrick said. “I think we need to tell these stories and explain things to kids as opposed to, ‘Oh it’s fine, don’t worry about that.’ I think kids need to know about things in the right way.”
Ellen Doherty, Fred Rogers Productions’ chief creative officer, used Daniel’s “grr-ific” catchphrase to describe how happy she is that the show is “still relevant and going strong” after 10 years.
Loggins thanked parents and children for “going on this journey with us” for a decade, while Bambrick simply said, “How many ways can you say thank you?”
Photos of Danielthemed Halloween costumes and birthday parties never cease to make Tammy Langton, the show’s director, smile.
“It’s part of their life, and they’re sharing that with us or other people,” she said. “I think that’s pretty awesome.”