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[whimsical music]
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Oh, here you are.
Well, that was pretty good timing.
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You're here and we're here.
Casey and Finnegan and I
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have just come back
from a walk around the block.
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We had a very nice walk, too.
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Having been Mr. Dressup for 20 years
has probably made me a better person.
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Tell us what the secret is
to 30 years on the air.
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I'm a child at heart.
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It's all doing things that
I always liked to do when I was a kid.
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[silly sped up voices]
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[Ralph]
What does Mr. Dressup mean to you?
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{\an8}[Paul, over phone] Mr. Dressup has brought
imagination to the nation.
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Ladies and gentlemen,
one of the great Canadians, Mr. Dressup.
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[crowd cheers]
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It didn't matter what race you were,
what color you were,
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what religion you were, what language
you spoke. You watched Mr. Dressup.
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Ernie Coombs, Mr. Dressup,
he was just so kind and gentle.
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[Fred Rogers]
Ernie never forgot the child within him.
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And that informs everything that he does
with children.
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{\an8}When you tell people that Fred Rogers
and Ernie Coombs came to Canada together,
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{\an8}most people don't even realize
that they were very close friends.
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I'm making a book. You're just in time
to see how I made it.
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His warmth radiated through the screen.
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You didn't just learn...
"Here, learn this."
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There was, "What's over here?"
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I've got a good bat costume here
to show you.
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That's where the adventures would start.
As soon as he opened that lid,
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something was gonna happen.
Something fun, something magical.
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This is one of my favorite dress up
costumes.
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That signature moment every episode.
Maybe it was a cape,
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and there was nothing on it.
But he'd cut out shapes,
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"Is it gonna be a wizard?
Oh, no, he's a dinosaur."
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The endless possibility of that.
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One of the reasons I became an actor was,
because very early age
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this person on television who was
an adult, but not an adult...
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[silly sounds]
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...taught me that it was okay
to let my freak flag fly.
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- Casey, are you in...
- [Casey] Ha-ha-ha!
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I didn't know if Casey was a boy
or a girl.
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[Casey] Oh, my. What a lovely day.
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Can I say gender ambiguous?
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Because I was never sure if Casey
was a boy or a girl.
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Way ahead of its time. Not a little bit,
way ahead of its time.
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[Catherine Tait]
Four thousand episodes, thirty years.
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There are not that many shows
that last that long.
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Hello!
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The power of a word. The power
of a drawing. The power of dressing up.
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[Ernie] What wisdom
have I acquired during 30 years
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{\an8}of making various objects
out of toilet paper rolls?
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{\an8}[audience laughs]
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Is doing crafts on TV a source of wisdom?
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Apparently not.
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And may I remind you for the last time,
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keep an open mind, and an open heart.
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Don't take life too seriously,
because it doesn't last forever, you know.
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And keep your crayons sharp.
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Don't get your sticky tape tangled
and always put the caps on your markers.
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[crowd cheers and applauds]
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- [Casey] Finnegan?
- [birdsong]
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Finnegan, where are you?
Oh, there you are.
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{\an8}You want me to tell you a story?
Oh, you want to hear the story, too?
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{\an8}In that case, I think I'd better tell it.
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{\an8}A long time ago,
in the United States, in Maine,
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{\an8}a boy was born
and his name was Ernie Coombs.
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{\an8}What, did I say something wrong?
What?
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{\an8}Ernest Coombs. Oh, okay.
[sighs] I'll start again, then.
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{\an8}A long time ago, in the United States,
in Maine, a boy was born,
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and his name was Ernest Coombs.
I got it right this time.
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{\an8}Dad was born right before the Depression
in Lewiston, Maine.
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{\an8}Twin Cities, Lewiston and Auburn.
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[Ernie] I was influenced a lot
by my mother
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because she was the kind of a person
that found something great
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and wonderful in everything.
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Having that influence when I grew up
was good because
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it gave me an outlook on life that
there is something nice wherever you are.
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{\an8}Way, way, way, way back,
before I was in school,
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I had a hat that I thought
was a policeman's hat,
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and I actually jumped off my tricycle
and ran in the middle of the street
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to stop traffic. And I got heck for it.
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There was a screech of brakes, I guess.
My mother came running out of the house,
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"Ernest, what are you doing
in the middle of the street?"
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So, you know, I had delusions then
of dressing up and being another person.
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So when he was a young man, he was drafted
eventually into the military
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{\an8}where he was a weatherman,
served in the Air Force as a weatherman.
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Going into the Philippines post-war
after victory must have been,
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you know, an incredibly enlightening
period of his life.
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[Craig Baird] After the military,
Coombs comes back to the United States,
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but it's a tough time financially.
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{\an8}So, he has to start
following in the work, essentially.
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["I've Been Everywhere"
by Geoff Mack playing]
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♪ I've been everywhere, man ♪
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♪ I've been everywhere, man... ♪
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[Craig] And he starts
following his brother around
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{\an8}as they move through
the Eastern United States
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down and as far as Florida
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and eventually making
their way back up North.
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[Ernie] I was going to be an artist,
a cartoonist or a commercial artist,
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so I went to art school and never thought
that I would get into showbiz at all.
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But I went into theater
through painting scenery
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and eventually got work
in a touring children's theater
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where I acted as well.
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I'd been doing a little bit of acting
along at the same time.
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♪ Now, there's just one place
I haven't been ♪
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♪ Stamp on the gas
and roll her, man ♪
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♪ Soon we're gonna be there, man
Soon we're gonna be there ♪
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Dad found himself at WQED
in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania,
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where he was a jobbing actor,
taking just about anything he could get.
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That's where he met Fred Rogers.
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[Jordan Morris] Fred Rogers was
a seasoned TV producer when he met Ernie.
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Fred had experience
as a floor manager at NBC
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and had been working at WQED
in Pittsburgh from its inception.
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{\an8}Fred, in the mid-fifties, started
a program called The Children's Corner,
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{\an8}and it was extremely successful,
not just in Pittsburgh,
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it got syndicated in other parts
of the country.
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{\an8}[Chris] Dad became involved in that
as a sort of a member of the cast.
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These two people coming together,
in terms of children's shows,
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is like Lennon and McCartney.
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[Maxwell] Fred really was
the innovator who developed this program,
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but he was also deeply disappointed in it,
because it was very successful
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on the level of entertainment,
but not so much on the level of education.
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And Ernie and Fred were talking about
what kind of television could be made.
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{\an8}[Chris] And it was after that
that my father moved on
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{\an8}to a show called Dimple Depot.
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And that's where he worked with my mother,
who was a puppeteer.
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{\an8}Marlene, whom everybody called Lynn,
knocked Ernie's socks off immediately.
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{\an8}I was the ingenue and he was the juvenile.
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{\an8}- I was a juvenile at one time.
- Yes, he was, once.
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{\an8}Handsome prince.
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And we spent all of our courting time
sitting in the studio.
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I sat on the ladder
watching him paint the sets.
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[Ernie] That was a typical date for us.
I'd go over and paint and we'd talk,
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and then we'd go out to have a coffee
afterwards. That was a cheap date.
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I had a hound dog in those days,
a beautiful old dog named Pip,
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and he fell in love with Lynn.
He used to go over to her apartment.
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He'd stay there for overnight,
sometimes couple of days.
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So, I had to marry her
to get the dog back.
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[Cathie LeFort] Fred Rogers was
the best man at my parents' wedding,
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so they had a connection
beyond a professional connection.
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{\an8}Maybe something
brought two people together
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{\an8}that had something to give to children.
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[Maxwell] There was a creative intensity
and seriousness about Ernie Coombs
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that was matched by Fred Rogers.
They were both very creative,
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but both very capable of being focused
and intense about their work.
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[Chris] He was making money, not a ton,
but he was earning a living
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doing what he wanted to do.
And then they just had my sister Cathie.
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[Craig] Things seem to be going
pretty well, but his contract runs out.
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{\an8}And now he finds himself married,
he has a daughter,
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{\an8}and he doesn't have any work.
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[Jordan] And that's when CBC,
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who had been developing
their own children's department,
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approached Fred Rogers
and offered him complete creative control
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and a chance to create a show with more
resources than he had ever had before.
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[Ernie] Fred knew that I was unemployed
when he had this chance
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to come up to Toronto
and asked me if I'd come along
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because he knew he needed
an extra puppeteer.
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So, we all came up to Toronto.
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[whimsical music]
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[announcer]
This is the CBC Television Network.
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[Jordan] When the Canadian
Broadcasting Corporation
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began broadcasting, almost immediately,
television became
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the country's number one pastime.
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{\an8}There was no tablet,
there was no video games,
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{\an8}so it was a very different role.
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The public broadcaster at that time
was really the network of choice.
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CBC did something
that no other market was doing.
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They started developing shows
directly for children.
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{\an8}Oh, and how are you this fine day?
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{\an8}Very well, sir. [giggles]
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{\an8}The concept at that time was one of,
uh, an educational component.
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{\an8}CBC was the epitome
of quality children's television
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{\an8}in the '50s, '60s and beyond.
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{\an8}The children's department
was a remarkable part of the CBC.
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{\an8}It wasn't really high on the radar
of the programmers,
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and that allowed something remarkable
to happen.
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The children's programmers didn't have to
worry too much about the politics.
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They didn't have to worry about revenue.
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They could just create good shows
and that's what they did.
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{\an8}We do have a staff of 20 or 25 people
who work patiently from day to day,
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{\an8}developing standards
for children's programs.
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We are proud that we have, perhaps,
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00:11:53,338 --> 00:11:57,592
the only children's television department
in North America.
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[Jordan] Fred Rogers was
a particularly savvy choice of Rainsbury's
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00:12:02,305 --> 00:12:04,641
to bring up and help develop a show with.
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{\an8}He said, "You know, Fred,
I've watched you talk with children.
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I'd like you to translate that
into television."
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If it hadn't been for Fred Rainsbury,
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I probably would
never have been on camera.
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Well, it turned out to be
a good day after all.
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{\an8}When you tell people that Fred Rogers
and Ernie Coombs came to Canada together,
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{\an8}most people don't even realize
that Fred Rogers was ever here,
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or that CBC gave him a start.
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{\an8}♪ My name is Mister Rogers ♪
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{\an8}♪ I'm glad that you are near ♪
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♪ You've made this day a special day ♪
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♪ By just your being here... ♪
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{\an8}Mister Rogers was developed in Canada
out of Studio One.
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{\an8}Not only was he on camera
for the first time,
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but there was a wonderful set
that was developed with him.
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That wonderful trolley
that came by King Friday the 13th
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and all of the wonderful characters
that came about.
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And it was on that first show
for the CBC,
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which at that point
was called Mister Rogers,
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where Fred really came into his own
and started the long journey
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to becoming the famous Mr. Rogers
we know today.
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And watching Fred perfect his on screen
persona had an immediate effect on Ernie.
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{\an8}[Dr. Frogg] I prescribe several smiles
each and every day
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{\an8}and an occasional chuckle to be taken
after each "Please" and "Thank you."
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{\an8}[patient puppet laughs]
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00:13:31,269 --> 00:13:34,397
{\an8}[Dr. Frogg] That'll be signed,
Dr. Frank Lee Frogg, with two G's.
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00:13:34,481 --> 00:13:35,649
{\an8}- Remember that.
- Two G's.
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The CBC had far, far more resources
to support the kind of vision
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Rogers was developing than WQED had.
Well, you know, just one example,
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the carpentry shop was huge
and could fashion anything
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Rogers could think of
for children's television.
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And he had a really clear vision.
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And the Toronto years
is where it crystallized.
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[Craig] In Canada,
Fred Rogers is churning out content.
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00:14:01,758 --> 00:14:04,928
He puts out over 300 episodes
of Mister Rogers
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00:14:05,011 --> 00:14:07,180
in the space of only about two years.
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But he wants to go back to Pittsburgh,
221
00:14:09,099 --> 00:14:11,935
and that's eventually what he does
when his contract runs out.
222
00:14:12,018 --> 00:14:16,398
I remember some of the people saying,
"What are we going to do
223
00:14:16,481 --> 00:14:19,484
when Mister Rogers leaves?"
And I said,
224
00:14:19,568 --> 00:14:23,905
{\an8}"Well, why don't you build a program
around Ernie? Ernie Coombs."
225
00:14:25,657 --> 00:14:29,911
Ernie has never forgotten
the child within him.
226
00:14:31,580 --> 00:14:37,502
And that informs everything that he does
with children.
227
00:14:39,087 --> 00:14:43,216
[Sandra Beech] Lynn was the dynamo
behind Mr. Dressup.
228
00:14:43,300 --> 00:14:46,595
{\an8}And Lynn stepped right in
and said Ernie could do it.
229
00:14:47,637 --> 00:14:50,056
{\an8}And that's exactly what happened.
230
00:14:53,018 --> 00:14:56,104
That is the beginning of Ernie's career.
That is the beginning
231
00:14:56,187 --> 00:14:58,273
of what became Mr. Dressup.
232
00:14:58,356 --> 00:15:01,151
And it all started with a show
called Butternut Square.
233
00:15:03,862 --> 00:15:05,655
{\an8}- Well, I have a chef's hat here...
- Oh.
234
00:15:05,739 --> 00:15:09,159
{\an8}...that I can put on if that helps.
And I also have a spoon.
235
00:15:10,118 --> 00:15:12,287
And now I'll start my cake with a bowl.
236
00:15:13,413 --> 00:15:18,460
{\an8}Ernie stayed and
became the character Mr. Dressup.
237
00:15:18,543 --> 00:15:22,088
He brought skills with him.
He was an artist.
238
00:15:22,172 --> 00:15:24,507
- He was a mimeist.
- [quacking]
239
00:15:24,591 --> 00:15:28,637
He had a rapport with people
that was exceptional.
240
00:15:28,720 --> 00:15:30,096
[Casey] Yep, we're nearly ready.
241
00:15:30,180 --> 00:15:32,766
There was singing, dancing.
There was puppetry.
242
00:15:32,849 --> 00:15:34,309
There was make-believe.
243
00:15:34,392 --> 00:15:36,895
Here we go. Just swing it right around.
244
00:15:36,978 --> 00:15:40,940
[Chris] And it was actually on this show
that Mr. Dressup was formed.
245
00:15:41,024 --> 00:15:42,400
Look at all this!
246
00:15:42,484 --> 00:15:44,903
Gee, look at all the marvelous costumes!
247
00:15:44,986 --> 00:15:46,946
Just in time!
248
00:15:47,030 --> 00:15:49,157
[Stu Gilchrist]
The cast of Butternut Square
249
00:15:49,240 --> 00:15:54,579
comprised of Sandy Cohen,
Don Himes, of course, was the music man.
250
00:15:54,663 --> 00:15:55,664
[piano playing]
251
00:15:55,747 --> 00:15:59,501
And two of the puppets that
Dad interacted with very, very much
252
00:15:59,584 --> 00:16:00,710
were Casey and Finnegan.
253
00:16:00,794 --> 00:16:03,046
[Casey] Finnegan,
are you sure you saw a squirrel
254
00:16:03,129 --> 00:16:04,881
out there in Butternut Square? You did.
255
00:16:04,964 --> 00:16:07,092
And voiced by Judy Lawrence.
256
00:16:08,551 --> 00:16:11,096
[Judith Lawrence] I was born
in a place called Bairnsdale,
257
00:16:11,179 --> 00:16:15,266
{\an8}but we were living in a city,
a small city called Ballarat,
258
00:16:15,350 --> 00:16:18,228
{\an8}which had been one of the biggest
gold finds in Australia.
259
00:16:19,270 --> 00:16:22,440
I used to listen to a children's program
on the radio,
260
00:16:22,524 --> 00:16:25,235
and it was called the Children's Session.
261
00:16:25,318 --> 00:16:27,362
They would talk about how to do something.
262
00:16:27,445 --> 00:16:29,948
And the one time they talked about
how to do puppets
263
00:16:30,031 --> 00:16:32,200
and I made a puppet head.
264
00:16:32,283 --> 00:16:37,205
And I asked my mother, would she sew
the body for this puppet on the machine,
265
00:16:37,288 --> 00:16:40,208
and she said, no, she wouldn't,
but she'd show me how to use the machine.
266
00:16:40,959 --> 00:16:44,921
So, she showed me how to use a machine,
so I made a puppet, I made two puppets.
267
00:16:45,004 --> 00:16:49,926
I used to be invited to go to kids'
birthday parties in the neighborhood.
268
00:16:50,009 --> 00:16:51,886
And that's how I got into puppetry.
269
00:16:51,970 --> 00:16:53,972
{\an8}- [Casey] Oh, Aunt Abigail?
- Yes?
270
00:16:54,055 --> 00:16:57,100
{\an8}[Casey] Finnegan says, would you
bend over just a little bit closer
271
00:16:57,183 --> 00:16:59,728
- so he can get a better look at you?
- Well, certainly.
272
00:16:59,811 --> 00:17:04,023
Oh! Oh, oh, oh, oh. Oh, Finnegan.
273
00:17:04,107 --> 00:17:05,692
[Casey]
You're not Aunt Abigail.
274
00:17:05,775 --> 00:17:08,737
You know, Mr. Dressup,
I had a funny feeling about you.
275
00:17:08,820 --> 00:17:10,363
[Jordan] After only two years
of production,
276
00:17:10,447 --> 00:17:14,159
Butternut Square was slated
for cancellation due to budget cuts
277
00:17:14,242 --> 00:17:16,202
and to make room
for an exciting new talk show
278
00:17:16,286 --> 00:17:17,912
called This Hour Has Seven Days.
279
00:17:17,996 --> 00:17:22,333
[announcer] Ladies and gentlemen,
This Hour Has Seven Days.
280
00:17:24,711 --> 00:17:27,756
We were shocked. I mean, I was shocked.
281
00:17:27,839 --> 00:17:31,217
We were getting great ratings.
Great ratings.
282
00:17:32,427 --> 00:17:35,930
I told Ernie, and I'll never forget
when I told Ernie.
283
00:17:36,014 --> 00:17:38,475
Ernie said, "Well, I'll go
back down to Pittsburgh
284
00:17:38,558 --> 00:17:41,644
and maybe I can be a puppeteer
with Fred Rogers again,
285
00:17:41,728 --> 00:17:43,396
or maybe I'll drive a school bus."
286
00:17:43,480 --> 00:17:45,774
He really wasn't sure
what he was going to do.
287
00:17:46,941 --> 00:17:50,278
[Judith] Some of us,
the people who'd been involved,
288
00:17:50,361 --> 00:17:53,323
proposed that we do a different program
289
00:17:53,406 --> 00:17:56,451
and that we build it around one of
the characters from Butternut Square.
290
00:17:57,786 --> 00:18:01,039
[Stu] So, I phoned the director
of television for the English Network.
291
00:18:01,122 --> 00:18:04,667
I said, "It's a big set?
Is there gonna be big set in the studio?"
292
00:18:04,751 --> 00:18:07,337
He said, "No, there's set at all."
293
00:18:07,420 --> 00:18:10,715
He said, "All there is, is
a 15-foot riser,
294
00:18:10,799 --> 00:18:12,759
three chairs and a table."
295
00:18:13,927 --> 00:18:17,305
I said, "You're canceling Butternut Square
296
00:18:18,598 --> 00:18:21,518
for a 15-foot riser and three chairs?
297
00:18:22,352 --> 00:18:23,728
Give me half the studio."
298
00:18:26,356 --> 00:18:30,276
I said, "Ernie, can you play around
with this half studio?"
299
00:18:30,360 --> 00:18:34,239
And he got the crayons out and a pencil.
He started drawing,
300
00:18:34,322 --> 00:18:38,034
he drew Mr. Dressup's house
and he drew the counter
301
00:18:38,117 --> 00:18:40,703
and I said, "What about an exterior?"
He said,
302
00:18:40,787 --> 00:18:42,831
"Well, we'll put a little patio
out the back
303
00:18:42,914 --> 00:18:45,416
and we'll put the tree
at the back of the patio."
304
00:18:47,961 --> 00:18:51,923
He said, "Stu, we can't
call it 'Butternut Square' anymore
305
00:18:52,006 --> 00:18:53,675
because we have no square."
306
00:18:53,758 --> 00:18:56,761
And I said, "We'll call it 'Mr. Dressup'."
307
00:18:57,512 --> 00:18:59,389
[whimsical music]
308
00:19:04,143 --> 00:19:08,231
Hi, I'm glad you came to see me today.
It's a nice day,
309
00:19:08,314 --> 00:19:10,859
and Casey and I have been playing
and Finnegan's been playing,
310
00:19:10,942 --> 00:19:13,194
- and we've all been having a good time.
- [knocking]
311
00:19:13,278 --> 00:19:15,655
Somebody is at the door.
Let's go see who it is.
312
00:19:18,324 --> 00:19:20,326
[exclaiming]
313
00:19:20,410 --> 00:19:22,787
- [Casey] Oh, hi, Mr. Dressup.
- Hi.
314
00:19:22,871 --> 00:19:24,247
[Casey]
I was being a turtle.
315
00:19:24,330 --> 00:19:28,126
Yeah, that's a nice thing
that you did with the blanket, Casey.
316
00:19:28,209 --> 00:19:31,296
[Stu]
In the early days, it was heavily scripted
317
00:19:31,379 --> 00:19:34,424
and Ernie didn't respond to scripted.
318
00:19:34,507 --> 00:19:37,010
You know, he'd forget half the lines.
319
00:19:37,093 --> 00:19:41,306
I scrapped the scripting.
We're going down to concepts.
320
00:19:41,389 --> 00:19:43,099
Would you like to help me do the dishes?
321
00:19:43,182 --> 00:19:44,183
[Casey]
Oh, yes!
322
00:19:44,267 --> 00:19:46,352
[Judith]
It was the spontaneity of that
323
00:19:46,436 --> 00:19:49,314
that was the difference between us
and a scripted program.
324
00:19:49,397 --> 00:19:51,232
[Casey]
Hey, Finnegan, get out from there.
325
00:19:51,316 --> 00:19:54,652
I said, "There will be a theme
for each show,
326
00:19:54,736 --> 00:19:59,449
but there will be a series of concepts
that will build a narrative."
327
00:19:59,532 --> 00:20:02,535
Hi. We're building all kinds of things.
328
00:20:02,619 --> 00:20:05,496
[Casey] Now, we need a big one of those
to go along the top here.
329
00:20:05,580 --> 00:20:10,418
{\an8}The scripts at the beginning
were really only six, seven pages,
330
00:20:10,501 --> 00:20:15,131
{\an8}and it required and counted on
331
00:20:15,214 --> 00:20:19,677
the talents of Ernie and Judith to adlib.
332
00:20:20,887 --> 00:20:24,557
Maybe Miss Fizz dropped it down
from the spot, oh...
333
00:20:24,641 --> 00:20:26,225
[Casey] That's a great big boot!
334
00:20:26,309 --> 00:20:27,936
That's a great big mystery!
335
00:20:28,019 --> 00:20:29,228
[Casey] It's a mystery boot.
336
00:20:29,312 --> 00:20:31,314
{\an8}Well, what do you mean?
337
00:20:31,397 --> 00:20:34,317
{\an8}[Mr. Dressup] Well, I found it
up in my fireplace chimney
338
00:20:34,400 --> 00:20:36,569
when I was cleaning it out,
getting the soot out,
339
00:20:36,653 --> 00:20:39,030
and I can't figure out
who could have dropped a boot
340
00:20:39,113 --> 00:20:42,200
- down my chimney or stuck it up in there.
- Must be Santa Clause.
341
00:20:42,867 --> 00:20:45,119
- Santa! Santa Clause!
- [Casey] Santa Clause!
342
00:20:45,203 --> 00:20:47,538
Great! Where is he? Where is he?
343
00:20:47,622 --> 00:20:51,459
{\an8}Making the Dressup TV show was old school.
344
00:20:52,335 --> 00:20:55,713
[Judith] We did live to tape,
they called it in those days.
345
00:20:55,797 --> 00:20:58,383
We did two rehearsals
and then we taped.
346
00:20:58,466 --> 00:21:01,427
And we hardly ever stopped tape
because we couldn't afford to.
347
00:21:01,511 --> 00:21:03,596
We didn't have the money
for that sort of thing.
348
00:21:03,680 --> 00:21:06,182
Some of the tools I was using,
look at this great big wrench.
349
00:21:06,265 --> 00:21:10,269
I thought I was going to need this
to tighten up the pipe, you see.
350
00:21:10,353 --> 00:21:14,983
{\an8}A live show like that,
you have to remember all your lines.
351
00:21:15,066 --> 00:21:16,484
{\an8}There's no second take.
352
00:21:16,567 --> 00:21:19,946
[Jani Lauzon] It's a real skill
to be able to not only improvise,
353
00:21:20,029 --> 00:21:23,616
but watch what's going on,
get a sense of the length
354
00:21:23,700 --> 00:21:27,662
{\an8}and know that it's about to wrap up and
then you just wrap it up.
355
00:21:27,745 --> 00:21:31,916
{\an8}And they... Wow, they had that skill.
It was really, really incredible.
356
00:21:32,000 --> 00:21:34,252
I'm a fireman.
357
00:21:34,335 --> 00:21:36,796
I'm a fireman, too. [chuckles]
358
00:21:36,879 --> 00:21:42,552
{\an8}We had a very clear understanding
that there would be no sexism,
359
00:21:42,635 --> 00:21:46,973
{\an8}no racism, none of the...
that sort of thing that...
360
00:21:47,056 --> 00:21:51,686
that sometimes does creep in, you know,
because people don't know.
361
00:21:51,769 --> 00:21:54,063
- [Mr. Dressup] Joey, come on in.
- Hi, Mr. Dressup.
362
00:21:54,147 --> 00:21:57,316
- Hi! Gee, it's nice to see you.
- It's nice to see you.
363
00:21:57,400 --> 00:21:59,444
- Actually, I'm here for a reason.
- Oh, yeah?
364
00:21:59,527 --> 00:22:01,320
- Well, I had to be in the neighborhood...
- Uh-huh.
365
00:22:01,404 --> 00:22:02,530
...to pick up my tap shoes
366
00:22:02,613 --> 00:22:03,698
- from the shoe repair man.
- Oh, yes.
367
00:22:03,781 --> 00:22:07,285
So, do you want me to help you
with your tap shoes?
368
00:22:07,368 --> 00:22:10,204
No, no, no, I want to...
I really need a costume.
369
00:22:10,288 --> 00:22:13,458
I'd like to borrow one, go over
and surprise my granddaughter.
370
00:22:13,541 --> 00:22:15,334
Oh, well, I can help you there.
371
00:22:15,418 --> 00:22:16,794
Oh, that's good. You know...
372
00:22:16,878 --> 00:22:22,675
{\an8}There's so much meanness in the world,
and some people have...
373
00:22:22,759 --> 00:22:27,555
{\an8}they've just forgotten human kindness.
And he personified it.
374
00:22:27,638 --> 00:22:31,225
[Ernie] Judith was very socially conscious
and very much a feminist,
375
00:22:31,309 --> 00:22:34,645
and she was very good at
rooting out anything
376
00:22:34,729 --> 00:22:38,816
that where we might have a stereotype.
Like the typical woman
377
00:22:38,900 --> 00:22:42,487
has to be a housewife
and work in the home and do that.
378
00:22:42,570 --> 00:22:46,741
And Judith would say,
"Well, you know, that ain't so,
379
00:22:46,824 --> 00:22:48,326
and let's get rid of that notion."
380
00:22:48,409 --> 00:22:51,579
When it comes to that, the whole question
around sexual stereotyping,
381
00:22:51,662 --> 00:22:55,750
we've done quite a lot of work on that,
I think, over the years,
382
00:22:55,833 --> 00:22:59,754
and that very much reflects the attitudes
of the people involved in the program.
383
00:22:59,837 --> 00:23:03,382
So, I mean, there was a time when Ernie...
well, if he needed something sewn,
384
00:23:03,466 --> 00:23:07,011
he might send for one
of his women friends to come and do it.
385
00:23:07,095 --> 00:23:09,472
And if... Susan or somebody
needed a plumber,
386
00:23:09,555 --> 00:23:12,016
the plumbing fixed, they might get Ernie
to come and do it.
387
00:23:12,100 --> 00:23:13,726
But we've changed that.
That doesn't happen anymore.
388
00:23:14,393 --> 00:23:15,895
[Paul Soles]
How come it worked so well?
389
00:23:15,978 --> 00:23:18,981
[Ernie] I don't know. I think
it was just a very lucky combination
390
00:23:19,065 --> 00:23:20,733
of certain people getting together,
391
00:23:20,817 --> 00:23:23,569
and we all liked each other
from the start.
392
00:23:23,653 --> 00:23:25,947
And you know, we related very well
to each other.
393
00:23:26,030 --> 00:23:30,326
I think we all had the same ideas
about what a children's show should be.
394
00:23:30,409 --> 00:23:32,995
[Casey] How much money do you get?
I forget how much.
395
00:23:33,079 --> 00:23:36,332
Well, some bottles, it's five cents
and some bottles it's two cents.
396
00:23:36,415 --> 00:23:38,501
- And some bottles are three cents.
- [Casey] Oh.
397
00:23:38,584 --> 00:23:39,961
We'll just have to see.
398
00:23:40,044 --> 00:23:44,590
{\an8}You have to have a connection for kids
on screen.
399
00:23:44,674 --> 00:23:47,093
{\an8}And that's what Casey is.
That's the child.
400
00:23:47,176 --> 00:23:49,262
{\an8}[Casey] Come on Finnegan,
we have to get busy
401
00:23:49,345 --> 00:23:51,139
{\an8}'cause we got a lot
of cleaning up to do.
402
00:23:51,222 --> 00:23:55,518
{\an8}You knew he was a puppet and
you knew the dog was a puppet, obviously,
403
00:23:55,601 --> 00:23:59,689
but there was something
that really came to life.
404
00:23:59,772 --> 00:24:01,482
[Casey] Mr. Dressup?
405
00:24:01,566 --> 00:24:03,693
Casey? Where are you?
406
00:24:03,776 --> 00:24:05,486
[Casey] In the bathroom.
407
00:24:05,570 --> 00:24:07,280
The bathroom?
408
00:24:07,363 --> 00:24:09,323
[Casey] Mr. Dressup, I can't get out.
409
00:24:10,032 --> 00:24:12,368
Is the door locked?
Why is the door locked?
410
00:24:12,451 --> 00:24:14,203
[Casey] It was an accident.
411
00:24:14,287 --> 00:24:15,663
Where are you?
412
00:24:15,746 --> 00:24:18,499
[Casey] I didn't want you
to be mad at me. I'm behind the door.
413
00:24:18,583 --> 00:24:22,545
Come on, Casey. All I want from you
right now is a nice big hug. Come on.
414
00:24:22,628 --> 00:24:23,671
[Casey] All right.
415
00:24:23,754 --> 00:24:27,800
And Finnegan is the sidekick.
Everybody has a sidekick or a best friend.
416
00:24:27,884 --> 00:24:29,802
[Casey] How long do you think
an hour is, Finnegan?
417
00:24:30,970 --> 00:24:36,184
Fifteen centimeters? Very funny,
that's not the same thing at all.
418
00:24:36,267 --> 00:24:40,104
Casey and Finnegan, they were
the stars of the show, ultimately.
419
00:24:40,188 --> 00:24:42,064
And he was like the adult.
420
00:24:42,148 --> 00:24:45,693
[Bruce McCulloch] Mr. Dressup had the
ability to sort of consider him a friend.
421
00:24:45,776 --> 00:24:48,905
{\an8}He was just like a pal to them.
And I think in a way
422
00:24:48,988 --> 00:24:51,949
{\an8}that a standard authority figure is not.
Even though sometimes,
423
00:24:52,033 --> 00:24:54,327
he would have authoritative things,
he would go, "No, no, no,
424
00:24:54,410 --> 00:24:57,914
you need to eat that chicken noodle soup."
And that's as mean as he would get.
425
00:24:57,997 --> 00:24:59,540
{\an8}Casey, your soup is your lunch,
426
00:24:59,624 --> 00:25:02,501
{\an8}now finish it up so I can get
my gardening done, please.
427
00:25:02,585 --> 00:25:06,005
{\an8}[Casey] I don't want anymore,
thank you. I'm finished.
428
00:25:06,088 --> 00:25:11,427
Casey, you asked me especially
to have chicken noodle soup for lunch,
429
00:25:11,510 --> 00:25:12,678
and I didn't have any.
430
00:25:12,762 --> 00:25:15,598
Remember, I had to run down and borrow
a can of soup from Susan
431
00:25:15,681 --> 00:25:17,808
and heat it up.
And it's all special for you.
432
00:25:17,892 --> 00:25:20,228
- And now, you're not eating it.
- [Casey] Right.
433
00:25:20,311 --> 00:25:23,940
{\an8}He'd sometimes get pissed at Casey.
He got kind of angry.
434
00:25:24,023 --> 00:25:27,360
{\an8}Not angry, but just kind of like,
"Well, I'm trying to give you soup
435
00:25:27,443 --> 00:25:28,778
{\an8}and you won't take the soup."
436
00:25:28,861 --> 00:25:31,155
If you don't eat your soup,
you're going to be hungry
437
00:25:31,239 --> 00:25:33,658
in the middle of the afternoon.
You'll be wanting candy
438
00:25:33,741 --> 00:25:35,284
and all sorts of junk like that.
439
00:25:35,368 --> 00:25:38,913
{\an8}He demanded the chicken noodle soup
and then he didn't want to eat it?
440
00:25:38,996 --> 00:25:43,167
{\an8}Absolutely... bullshit, Casey. [laughs]
441
00:25:43,251 --> 00:25:47,004
[Casey] Mr. Dressup,
why are you making such a loud noise?
442
00:25:47,088 --> 00:25:48,589
What loud noise?
443
00:25:48,673 --> 00:25:50,549
[Casey] Yelling, shouting.
444
00:25:50,633 --> 00:25:51,717
I...
445
00:25:52,468 --> 00:25:55,680
Well, I guess I am shouting,
but that's because I was angry at you.
446
00:25:55,763 --> 00:25:58,891
{\an8}He really listened to what Casey said.
He took it into account.
447
00:25:58,975 --> 00:26:01,852
{\an8}He even listened to
what Finnegan said to Casey.
448
00:26:01,936 --> 00:26:04,689
I think that's something that children
really need to see.
449
00:26:04,772 --> 00:26:06,607
And I think it's something
they really long for,
450
00:26:06,691 --> 00:26:10,319
to be fully accepted
by the adults in their lives.
451
00:26:10,403 --> 00:26:12,446
[Casey] I got mad at Mr. Dressup.
452
00:26:12,530 --> 00:26:15,157
[Aunt Bird] You did? Why?
453
00:26:15,241 --> 00:26:18,077
[Casey] Because he was too busy,
and I wanted...
454
00:26:18,160 --> 00:26:20,997
I wanted him to help me with my blocks.
455
00:26:21,080 --> 00:26:25,626
{\an8}The eternal question the children had,
was Casey a boy or a girl?
456
00:26:25,710 --> 00:26:28,754
{\an8}Well, I know when kids would ask me,
"Is Casey a boy or a girl?"
457
00:26:28,838 --> 00:26:30,298
{\an8}I usually would say, "Yes."
458
00:26:32,174 --> 00:26:33,384
[Casey] Hello, dear.
459
00:26:33,467 --> 00:26:36,762
I've got your mail, Mrs. Jacoby,
you want to send down your basket?
460
00:26:36,846 --> 00:26:39,307
[Casey]
Oh, just a minute, now.
461
00:26:39,390 --> 00:26:41,934
[Kim Wilson] I mean, here we are
at this time, everybody's talking about,
462
00:26:42,018 --> 00:26:44,729
"Oh, we better have some non-binary
or androgynous..."
463
00:26:44,812 --> 00:26:47,148
{\an8}like trying to be more reflective
of the audience we serve.
464
00:26:47,231 --> 00:26:50,109
{\an8}And you think back to the '60s, you think,
"Oh, there was nothing of that going on,"
465
00:26:50,192 --> 00:26:52,069
and here was this character
that was designed
466
00:26:52,153 --> 00:26:55,072
so it would look kind of like a boy,
kind of like a girl.
467
00:26:55,156 --> 00:26:56,866
I mean, really, if you think about it,
468
00:26:56,949 --> 00:27:00,619
Casey was the first non-binary character
on children's television.
469
00:27:00,703 --> 00:27:04,665
Casey, of course, was loveable,
and he, or she,
470
00:27:04,749 --> 00:27:10,755
represented the child, so the child
could see him or herself in Casey.
471
00:27:12,131 --> 00:27:16,469
[Susan]
Judith being the puppeteer she was,
472
00:27:16,552 --> 00:27:22,308
was able to make Casey come
completely alive for the viewing audience.
473
00:27:23,309 --> 00:27:26,812
And not just Casey and Finnegan,
of course, because she was Aunt Bird.
474
00:27:26,896 --> 00:27:29,148
[Aunt Bird]
Everybody has a bad temper sometimes.
475
00:27:29,231 --> 00:27:31,108
[Susan]
And she was Alligator Al.
476
00:27:31,192 --> 00:27:34,028
[Alligator Al] I said, "José,
do you think we can fix this ukulele?"
477
00:27:34,111 --> 00:27:35,571
And he said, "No way, José." Haha.
478
00:27:35,654 --> 00:27:39,075
[Susan] All completely
different characters.
479
00:27:39,158 --> 00:27:40,159
How are you?
480
00:27:40,242 --> 00:27:42,536
[Casey] I'm awful,
thank you. How are you?
481
00:27:42,620 --> 00:27:45,331
{\an8}With Judith, she had
an incredible sense of humor. So that was,
482
00:27:45,414 --> 00:27:48,584
{\an8}you know, that added a lot.
And he did too, really.
483
00:27:48,667 --> 00:27:53,130
But she was really quick...
with her sense of humor. Really fast.
484
00:27:53,214 --> 00:27:56,217
[Casey] You know, I'll give you a shock,
Boo! Ha-ha-ha!
485
00:27:56,300 --> 00:27:57,343
You guys.
486
00:27:57,426 --> 00:28:00,137
[Ernie] Judith was
very, very clever, very witty.
487
00:28:00,221 --> 00:28:02,640
Casey would say such things
while we were rehearsing.
488
00:28:02,723 --> 00:28:06,811
I'd come out and say, "Casey,
could you come out of the treehouse..."
489
00:28:06,894 --> 00:28:08,938
and I'd say,
"Well, what are you doing now?"
490
00:28:09,021 --> 00:28:11,565
And he was supposed to be saying,
I was playing, and he'd say,
491
00:28:11,649 --> 00:28:15,903
"I was reading Nietzsche
and I thought perhaps he might be right.
492
00:28:15,986 --> 00:28:18,322
But Finnegan says, no."
You know, these things.
493
00:28:18,406 --> 00:28:20,241
She was a very intelligent woman
494
00:28:20,324 --> 00:28:23,744
and her wit was always
on a very high plane.
495
00:28:25,204 --> 00:28:28,499
[Alyson Court]
Judith and Ernie vibed so well,
496
00:28:28,582 --> 00:28:31,585
{\an8}because it was just laid back.
497
00:28:31,669 --> 00:28:35,047
{\an8}It was together they had
the influence that they had.
498
00:28:35,131 --> 00:28:38,300
Can't mention Ernie without
mentioning Casey and Finnegan.
499
00:28:38,384 --> 00:28:40,928
You know, Ernie Coombs
fought for Judith Lawrence
500
00:28:41,011 --> 00:28:44,515
to be paid as much as he was being paid
'cause she was doing half the work
501
00:28:44,598 --> 00:28:46,684
as she was doing
these two puppet characters.
502
00:28:46,767 --> 00:28:51,939
We didn't talk about these things, ever.
And I never even knew what he earned.
503
00:28:52,022 --> 00:28:55,359
- Look what I caught. I caught a flower.
- [Casey laughs]
504
00:28:55,443 --> 00:28:57,194
[laughs]
505
00:28:57,278 --> 00:28:58,988
[Casey]
Was that a pretend dream?
506
00:28:59,071 --> 00:29:01,949
Yeah, that was.
I wasn't really dreaming, Casey.
507
00:29:02,032 --> 00:29:05,453
But it just worked,
because we didn't plan it,
508
00:29:05,536 --> 00:29:08,080
and we didn't talk about it.
We just did it.
509
00:29:08,164 --> 00:29:12,668
{\an8}It's a trust they have in each other,
but it's also a trust they have in us
510
00:29:12,751 --> 00:29:16,714
{\an8}and in our parents, too... "We're just...
we're making this up.
511
00:29:16,797 --> 00:29:20,634
But we have... we have your kids'
best interests at heart."
512
00:29:20,718 --> 00:29:23,179
Now, this is the original tickle trunk
513
00:29:23,262 --> 00:29:27,558
that I thought up out of my own head
and actually made.
514
00:29:27,641 --> 00:29:31,812
And it's got about, I'd say,
at least eight coats of paint,
515
00:29:31,896 --> 00:29:33,939
very, very thickly painted.
516
00:29:34,023 --> 00:29:38,319
And at one point, the top cracked,
so I had to repair it.
517
00:29:38,402 --> 00:29:42,865
{\an8}The tickle trunk was this magical,
like Pandora's box,
518
00:29:42,948 --> 00:29:45,493
the anticipation
of what's gonna happen.
519
00:29:45,576 --> 00:29:49,914
{\an8}That's what I liked, was the idea
that you open something, a box,
520
00:29:49,997 --> 00:29:53,083
and inside of it are all these things.
And you can take these things,
521
00:29:53,167 --> 00:29:56,253
like a wig and a hat and a spoon,
a pair of boots,
522
00:29:56,337 --> 00:30:00,424
and you can make another human being.
And I thought that was fascinating.
523
00:30:00,508 --> 00:30:03,219
And I became that person.
My first one person show,
524
00:30:03,302 --> 00:30:04,678
I toured with a tickle trunk.
525
00:30:04,762 --> 00:30:08,766
{\an8}I always dug when he put on a hat
and he'd become the thing.
526
00:30:08,849 --> 00:30:11,435
How's that look? Okay?
527
00:30:11,519 --> 00:30:14,730
And that was so cool to me.
Like, as a kid before I considered acting
528
00:30:14,813 --> 00:30:18,984
as a hobby, let alone a vocation.
That putting on a hat
529
00:30:19,068 --> 00:30:23,906
and having it open your heart
and your soul to other experiences
530
00:30:23,989 --> 00:30:26,742
and what was it? What would a guy
who wore this hat do?
531
00:30:26,825 --> 00:30:29,828
There now. I'm tugboat Captain Dressup.
532
00:30:29,912 --> 00:30:32,790
It astounds me how many kids
keep their dressing up clothing
533
00:30:32,873 --> 00:30:35,167
in something
which they call a Tickle Trunk.
534
00:30:36,502 --> 00:30:41,674
This fella wears a hat like this
most of the time.
535
00:30:41,757 --> 00:30:45,719
{\an8}There was always a drawing segment.
He was a fantastic drawer.
536
00:30:45,803 --> 00:30:48,305
{\an8}He could cartoon just fantastically.
537
00:30:48,389 --> 00:30:51,100
[Mr. Dressup]
And I've seen clowns in circuses
538
00:30:51,183 --> 00:30:54,979
that had great big shoes like that.
539
00:30:55,062 --> 00:30:58,566
{\an8}The fact that he would use a marker
and draw something
540
00:30:58,649 --> 00:31:02,486
{\an8}and it was like, it's so good.
Like, how do you do that?
541
00:31:02,570 --> 00:31:07,324
You're just like, mind blown that
he could just draw something so amazing.
542
00:31:07,408 --> 00:31:11,078
Because oak trees
are made of such strong wood,
543
00:31:11,161 --> 00:31:15,583
the limbs can go out a long way,
right out sort of sideways.
544
00:31:15,666 --> 00:31:17,001
Leaves on it there.
545
00:31:19,712 --> 00:31:22,298
[Bruce] For me,
having a tumultuous time in my life,
546
00:31:22,381 --> 00:31:26,051
I think just watching it was very calming
as he just drew the things
547
00:31:26,135 --> 00:31:27,928
you got from the grocery store.
548
00:31:28,012 --> 00:31:31,307
And you know
it's going to be milk and eggs.
549
00:31:31,390 --> 00:31:34,351
And he draws each egg.
And, oh, what is he going to have?
550
00:31:34,435 --> 00:31:36,645
A banana and you can get the answers.
551
00:31:36,729 --> 00:31:40,941
So I think it's just sort of calm
and there is a sense of kindness.
552
00:31:41,025 --> 00:31:45,112
[Graham Greene]
He taught kids to use their imagination.
553
00:31:45,195 --> 00:31:50,618
{\an8}The imagination of a child
is a spectacular place to be in.
554
00:31:50,701 --> 00:31:56,290
Hi. I'm making something today.
A kind of a magical thing.
555
00:31:56,373 --> 00:31:59,335
See what it is? It's a little black box.
556
00:31:59,418 --> 00:32:03,589
And this little black box
is going to be a camera.
557
00:32:03,672 --> 00:32:08,010
This is going to be a mask.
Now, I know usually when you make masks,
558
00:32:08,093 --> 00:32:13,807
you make masks of animals or clowns
or something like that.
559
00:32:13,891 --> 00:32:18,437
When he did a craft,
you felt like you could make that
560
00:32:18,520 --> 00:32:24,276
{\an8}'cause he did it with actual
toilet paper tubes and paste and...
561
00:32:24,360 --> 00:32:26,654
{\an8}- Stuff you have in your house.
- Yeah, and tissue paper.
562
00:32:26,737 --> 00:32:30,324
I like to save these. You know,
you get them from paper towels,
563
00:32:30,407 --> 00:32:34,161
from toilet paper rolls.
And here's a great big one.
564
00:32:34,244 --> 00:32:37,206
I don't know what this came from,
but it's a good one to use.
565
00:32:37,289 --> 00:32:42,044
{\an8}We had a beer together and I opened
the beers and I had the bottle caps
566
00:32:42,127 --> 00:32:44,755
{\an8}and I was looking to throw them away
and he took them,
567
00:32:44,838 --> 00:32:48,967
he said, "No, no, save those for crafts,"
and put them in his pocket.
568
00:32:49,051 --> 00:32:52,137
- There you go. Eyeballs for something.
- Yeah.
569
00:32:52,221 --> 00:32:56,517
[Mr. Dressup]
Here goes tape. Here goes the cap.
570
00:32:56,600 --> 00:33:00,270
And he always wanted it
to be simple stuff, he said,
571
00:33:00,354 --> 00:33:04,400
so that nobody was excluded,
so that everybody could make the crafts.
572
00:33:04,483 --> 00:33:05,818
I take scissors...
573
00:33:06,944 --> 00:33:10,155
and I make a cut, a little cut in it.
574
00:33:10,239 --> 00:33:12,700
As a father, we're always
doing arts and crafts together.
575
00:33:12,783 --> 00:33:16,370
{\an8}We were making lanterns
for Lunar New Year,
576
00:33:16,453 --> 00:33:20,165
{\an8}and like, I had all the materials out,
laid out.
577
00:33:20,249 --> 00:33:22,960
I was doing the cuts, showing them,
helping them with it.
578
00:33:23,043 --> 00:33:25,087
And that's from the show.
579
00:33:25,170 --> 00:33:26,922
There's my lantern.
580
00:33:27,005 --> 00:33:30,300
And you can draw decorations on it
if you want to, but you don't have to.
581
00:33:30,384 --> 00:33:32,386
Now we've got the lanterns.
I think I'll go out
582
00:33:32,469 --> 00:33:35,013
and see how Casey's coming along.
See you outside.
583
00:33:35,097 --> 00:33:36,849
{\an8}It just felt like there was no agenda.
584
00:33:36,932 --> 00:33:39,059
{\an8}It was like,
"Hey, let's hang out together.
585
00:33:39,143 --> 00:33:42,604
{\an8}Let's draw some pictures, Let's talk."
You know, there is no strict agenda,
586
00:33:42,688 --> 00:33:47,067
but there kind of is, in a sense of like
how to be kind. How to be kind?
587
00:33:47,151 --> 00:33:50,028
{\an8}Sometimes nice isn't considered
the most important thing,
588
00:33:50,112 --> 00:33:52,030
{\an8}but it kind of is.
589
00:33:52,114 --> 00:33:55,617
Thousands and thousands of Canadian
children would be watching Mr. Dressup.
590
00:33:55,701 --> 00:34:00,706
At its peak, it was bringing in
500,000 viewers every single day.
591
00:34:00,789 --> 00:34:03,208
I know I have a lot
of clown things in here.
592
00:34:03,292 --> 00:34:05,878
So, in many ways,
it kind of unites the country because
593
00:34:05,961 --> 00:34:07,671
no matter where you are,
whether you're in Vancouver,
594
00:34:07,755 --> 00:34:10,591
you're in Halifax or you're up North,
you're getting Mr. Dressup
595
00:34:10,674 --> 00:34:14,136
talking directly to you, it's like
he's talking one-on-one with you.
596
00:34:14,219 --> 00:34:19,850
What would a clown be without
a big red nose? Beep-Beep. Woo-hoo!
597
00:34:19,933 --> 00:34:25,939
{\an8}I wonder how his children felt
about sharing their dad with the country.
598
00:34:26,607 --> 00:34:28,942
[gentle guitar music playing]
599
00:34:34,364 --> 00:34:36,909
[Cathie] It was really a kind of
a blessed childhood,
600
00:34:36,992 --> 00:34:39,828
not necessarily because dad
was Mr. Dressup,
601
00:34:39,912 --> 00:34:42,873
{\an8}but probably more because my parents
were who they were as people.
602
00:34:42,956 --> 00:34:46,710
[Chris] You assume that he comes home
and kicks off his Mr. Dressup shoes
603
00:34:46,794 --> 00:34:49,046
{\an8}and becomes a different person
when he's at home.
604
00:34:49,129 --> 00:34:50,297
{\an8}And that just simply didn't happen.
605
00:34:51,089 --> 00:34:54,176
I remember watching Friendly Giant
one time with my son
606
00:34:54,259 --> 00:34:57,054
before it was time for him
to start school,
607
00:34:57,137 --> 00:34:59,348
and Friendly Giant
was coming to an end,
608
00:34:59,431 --> 00:35:00,808
and Chris turned to me and said,
609
00:35:00,891 --> 00:35:03,101
"Daddy, you've got to go to the studio,
you're on next."
610
00:35:03,185 --> 00:35:06,355
[Chris] There was always laughter,
great laughter, 'cause my dad
611
00:35:06,438 --> 00:35:07,731
was a very funny, funny man
612
00:35:07,815 --> 00:35:09,399
and my mum had
a fantastic sense of humor
613
00:35:09,483 --> 00:35:11,568
and the two of them got on
like a house on fire.
614
00:35:12,236 --> 00:35:14,780
[Lynn] The kids tease me a lot
because I laugh at his jokes.
615
00:35:14,863 --> 00:35:17,574
That's why I married you,
because you're such a great audience.
616
00:35:17,658 --> 00:35:19,827
{\an8}- I'm a good audience, right.
- She still laughs after.
617
00:35:19,910 --> 00:35:22,746
{\an8}I can hear the same joke
and I still laugh and the kids say,
618
00:35:22,830 --> 00:35:25,707
"Mom, come on,
you've heard that 17 times."
619
00:35:26,792 --> 00:35:30,629
[Cathie] Chris and I each had
our activities. He was involved in sports.
620
00:35:31,213 --> 00:35:34,550
I was crazy about horses
from the time I could walk.
621
00:35:34,633 --> 00:35:37,928
It's kind of funny. For instance,
when Chris, he's on a skiing team,
622
00:35:38,011 --> 00:35:42,599
freestyle skiing team, and I,
as a father, went out to help set up
623
00:35:42,683 --> 00:35:45,477
during the competitions,
and I think it was kind of funny at first
624
00:35:45,561 --> 00:35:49,815
when the other kids realized
that Chris Coombs' dad was Mr. Dressup.
625
00:35:49,898 --> 00:35:54,820
As a young child, there were times
where kids would make fun of me.
626
00:35:54,903 --> 00:35:56,905
"Your dad plays with puppets
for a living," you know,
627
00:35:56,989 --> 00:35:58,198
or "Your dad's a sissy" or whatever.
628
00:35:58,282 --> 00:36:00,659
And I found that difficult
to deal with sometimes.
629
00:36:00,742 --> 00:36:05,706
They handled it pretty well. They just
said, "Well, does your father have a job?"
630
00:36:05,789 --> 00:36:07,833
"Yeah." "Well, my father has a job too."
631
00:36:07,916 --> 00:36:11,837
Some of their peers expected more
from them or something from them
632
00:36:11,920 --> 00:36:15,132
that they really didn't want to give.
But I think now that they're teenagers,
633
00:36:15,215 --> 00:36:17,259
it's all taken for granted, now.
634
00:36:18,719 --> 00:36:21,597
{\an8}She was the kind of lady,
from everything I could see,
635
00:36:21,680 --> 00:36:25,601
{\an8}that wanted to be the best that she
could be at any job she was doing,
636
00:36:25,684 --> 00:36:30,772
whether it was as a mother to her
two children or as a supporter for Ernie.
637
00:36:32,399 --> 00:36:35,193
[Cathie] My mom
was a pretty amazing woman.
638
00:36:35,277 --> 00:36:39,698
Whatever she put her mind to,
she was successful at.
639
00:36:40,490 --> 00:36:43,535
My mom was trying to find
a nursery school for my brother.
640
00:36:43,619 --> 00:36:46,163
He would have been about preschool age.
641
00:36:47,247 --> 00:36:51,960
And in her inimitable way,
she couldn't find one, so she started one.
642
00:36:53,629 --> 00:36:58,383
Butternut Learning Center.
The name came from Butternut Square.
643
00:36:59,801 --> 00:37:03,055
They took over a building,
which was an old schoolhouse.
644
00:37:03,138 --> 00:37:04,973
And that was a huge venture.
645
00:37:05,057 --> 00:37:09,645
{\an8}We want the child, by the end of the time
that he spends in Butternut,
646
00:37:09,728 --> 00:37:13,565
{\an8}to feel very good about himself.
Any effort that he's made
647
00:37:13,649 --> 00:37:18,612
{\an8}toward developing in any area
is roundly applauded by the staff.
648
00:37:18,695 --> 00:37:23,992
We want them to have a good concept
of themselves. "I can do it.
649
00:37:24,076 --> 00:37:27,496
If I can't do it now,
I'll be able to do it in a little while,
650
00:37:27,579 --> 00:37:29,790
once I've developed to a certain point."
651
00:37:30,791 --> 00:37:35,504
[Terry McManus] His wife, Lynn, wonderful,
wonderful woman, had started a daycare.
652
00:37:35,587 --> 00:37:38,590
{\an8}That costs money. It costs money to do,
653
00:37:38,674 --> 00:37:41,802
{\an8}and it costs money to build it
and the rest of it.
654
00:37:41,885 --> 00:37:47,432
And so, being out on the road
was a way for Ernie to pay those bills.
655
00:37:47,516 --> 00:37:52,104
I think, for Ernie, it was the best time.
Ernie loved being on the road.
656
00:37:52,187 --> 00:37:56,608
["Born To Be Wild" by Steppenwolf playing]
657
00:37:57,359 --> 00:38:00,862
[Chris] Dad was a very resourceful person.
He built a replica,
658
00:38:00,946 --> 00:38:06,368
a tickle trunk that turned into a horse.
He came up with magic and songs and dance
659
00:38:06,451 --> 00:38:09,746
and everything like this
and started touring the show by himself,
660
00:38:09,830 --> 00:38:13,709
carting all of the stuff in the VW bus,
setting the set, doing the show,
661
00:38:13,792 --> 00:38:17,004
striking the set,
selling merchandise out front,
662
00:38:17,087 --> 00:38:19,548
signing autographs, meeting people,
and then, you know,
663
00:38:19,631 --> 00:38:22,009
coming home exhausted
and a few hundred bucks richer.
664
00:38:23,802 --> 00:38:27,055
[Terry] I mean, the tickets
were only four and five dollar tickets.
665
00:38:27,139 --> 00:38:33,145
He was going off and playing places
and walking away with $100, $150.
666
00:38:33,228 --> 00:38:36,273
{\an8}And Don Jones changed that.
667
00:38:38,316 --> 00:38:41,570
{\an8}My father is a concert promoter
in Canada.
668
00:38:41,653 --> 00:38:45,240
Clients in Canada were Alice Cooper
and Deep Purple.
669
00:38:45,323 --> 00:38:49,578
The Mr. Dressup touring show
would go to Nova Scotia,
670
00:38:49,661 --> 00:38:54,624
New Brunswick, P.E.I., Newfoundland
and Southern Ontario, Northern Ontario.
671
00:38:54,708 --> 00:38:57,961
They'd go out to B.C.
and go as far as the island.
672
00:38:58,045 --> 00:38:59,463
[screeching brakes]
673
00:38:59,546 --> 00:39:02,466
{\an8}♪ Born to be wild ♪
674
00:39:06,094 --> 00:39:09,222
{\an8}♪ Born to be wild ♪
675
00:39:13,226 --> 00:39:16,188
[Jim Parker]
He felt a responsibility to his audience.
676
00:39:16,271 --> 00:39:20,692
{\an8}You know, they took the time
to come and see him.
677
00:39:20,776 --> 00:39:23,904
He was gonna take the time
to meet with them.
678
00:39:25,614 --> 00:39:28,158
I saw him, I saw one of his shows
and I met him,
679
00:39:28,241 --> 00:39:30,577
{\an8}and it was, like, one of
the biggest memories of my life,
680
00:39:30,660 --> 00:39:34,498
{\an8}is I got to meet Mr. Dressup.
And I told him I loved his drawings.
681
00:39:34,581 --> 00:39:37,626
{\an8}And we had a little interaction, and
I held on to that for the rest of my life.
682
00:39:38,293 --> 00:39:42,214
{\an8}Can you imagine a little Andrew
going and actually seeing Mr. Dressup?
683
00:39:43,256 --> 00:39:46,051
[Craig] The children are able to go up
to Mr. Dressup and actually see him,
684
00:39:46,134 --> 00:39:47,803
shake his hand and get a picture with him.
685
00:39:47,886 --> 00:39:52,557
{\an8}So, it makes it feel like his world,
his house actually exists.
686
00:39:53,558 --> 00:39:57,395
When I go on tour,
and we frequently perform at colleges
687
00:39:57,479 --> 00:40:00,607
and high school auditoriums,
and you get some big strapping kid
688
00:40:00,690 --> 00:40:04,111
come up and say, "Mr. Dressup!"
and gives me a big hug, you know.
689
00:40:04,194 --> 00:40:06,363
That's, uh, that's kind of nice.
690
00:40:10,700 --> 00:40:15,413
Don Jones set up the whole tour
and did all the advance work.
691
00:40:15,497 --> 00:40:17,916
I couldn't say enough good things
about him.
692
00:40:17,999 --> 00:40:20,710
And you know what?
They were close friends.
693
00:40:20,794 --> 00:40:25,507
{\an8}Very different people. Not the kind of
people that you would necessarily think
694
00:40:25,590 --> 00:40:28,844
{\an8}would go together because
here you have Ernie, this artist,
695
00:40:28,927 --> 00:40:32,889
kind of slight in stature to some degree.
And then you had Don,
696
00:40:32,973 --> 00:40:38,770
who was a pretty big guy,
and he was the boss. Don was the boss.
697
00:40:38,854 --> 00:40:42,149
And God bless him
for what he did for Ernie.
698
00:40:42,232 --> 00:40:44,276
[Jim] The tour is almost over.
699
00:40:44,359 --> 00:40:48,071
- Two more shows. Two more shows.
- [Jim chuckles]
700
00:40:48,155 --> 00:40:51,700
There is a Lord and a God. Two more shows.
701
00:40:51,783 --> 00:40:54,578
- [Jim] And here's Ernie.
- [Don] Here's Ernie.
702
00:40:54,661 --> 00:40:56,371
[Jim] The end of the tour.
703
00:40:56,454 --> 00:40:59,791
- This is what we've made so far.
- [Jim laughs]
704
00:40:59,875 --> 00:41:02,043
I had some, but Don took it.
705
00:41:04,296 --> 00:41:08,675
His share, he takes the first 100%.
And then after that, I get what's left.
706
00:41:08,758 --> 00:41:09,968
[Jim] You lucky fella.
707
00:41:12,846 --> 00:41:15,348
[Terry] Ernie had this clown routine
that he did,
708
00:41:15,432 --> 00:41:18,226
and he put this clown nose on.
709
00:41:18,310 --> 00:41:21,438
Well, Don filled it with shaving cream.
710
00:41:21,521 --> 00:41:25,317
So, Ernie opens up the tickle trunk.
"Let's see what we have in here."
711
00:41:25,400 --> 00:41:29,487
And we can hear him start to laugh, okay?
He's starting to laugh
712
00:41:29,571 --> 00:41:33,241
because he sees the nose there
with the shaving cream.
713
00:41:33,325 --> 00:41:37,370
The son of a gun,
he had an extra clown nose.
714
00:41:37,454 --> 00:41:42,042
And he put that on and he turned around,
kind of looked at us offstage,
715
00:41:42,125 --> 00:41:44,753
like, you know, "You can't get me."
716
00:41:45,754 --> 00:41:47,797
Who carries extra clown noses?
717
00:41:47,881 --> 00:41:51,968
[children laughing]
718
00:41:52,052 --> 00:41:55,430
He could have been
a vaudevillian comedian. He was...
719
00:41:55,513 --> 00:41:59,434
Actually, he was a comedian
just hamming it up, doing something.
720
00:41:59,517 --> 00:42:01,645
[Jim] That's quite an outfit
you're wearing, sir.
721
00:42:01,728 --> 00:42:04,231
Thank you. It is my "at home."
722
00:42:06,983 --> 00:42:10,445
There's green, and then there's mint
and there's chartreuse.
723
00:42:13,323 --> 00:42:15,325
[man]
And then there's only one olive left.
724
00:42:15,408 --> 00:42:18,662
Which is racing green.
And then there's olive green.
725
00:42:18,745 --> 00:42:20,247
- [Jim laughs]
- Ooh. [indistinct]
726
00:42:21,081 --> 00:42:23,208
[Jim] There was a snowstorm.
727
00:42:23,291 --> 00:42:27,420
We had to pull off the highway
and just wait out the storm.
728
00:42:27,504 --> 00:42:31,800
So, we stayed up way into the night.
729
00:42:31,883 --> 00:42:34,511
I was having anxiety attacks at the time,
730
00:42:34,594 --> 00:42:36,388
and it turned out that
he was having them, too.
731
00:42:37,055 --> 00:42:39,766
[voice breaking]
He and I talked all night.
732
00:42:42,143 --> 00:42:45,021
And I think that's when
we became like that, you know.
733
00:42:45,105 --> 00:42:46,398
[Mr. Dressup] You know what, folks?
734
00:42:46,481 --> 00:42:49,317
I think Mr. Dressup
is gonna need all your clapping hands
735
00:42:49,401 --> 00:42:51,695
to help him keep time. So, let's hear it.
736
00:42:51,778 --> 00:42:56,074
- [clapping]
- [singing]
737
00:42:56,157 --> 00:42:58,785
[Peter Moss] When you're in a studio,
you feed an audience.
738
00:42:58,868 --> 00:43:01,454
{\an8}When you're up on stage,
you're fed by an audience.
739
00:43:01,538 --> 00:43:04,874
You go out there and you're up on stage
and there's lots of kids
740
00:43:04,958 --> 00:43:07,669
and they're all singing along
and they're clapping and they're laughing.
741
00:43:07,752 --> 00:43:11,047
It's great. For someone like Ernie,
I'm sure it was terrific.
742
00:43:13,133 --> 00:43:15,760
{\an8}One time he came to pick me up
from the school,
743
00:43:15,844 --> 00:43:20,390
{\an8}and that was probably the day that
I really realized, like, how big he was.
744
00:43:21,057 --> 00:43:26,938
Three packed school busses in the front
and just screaming like it was a concert.
745
00:43:27,022 --> 00:43:30,191
I just remember him being like,
you know, "Hi."
746
00:43:32,819 --> 00:43:35,196
[caller] Mr. Dressup, I have to tell you,
I grew up on your show.
747
00:43:35,280 --> 00:43:37,907
My son, when he was four,
I had an opportunity to take him
748
00:43:37,991 --> 00:43:41,619
to see your live show here in Nappanee.
And I have to tell you
749
00:43:41,703 --> 00:43:44,706
how magical you made my childhood
and his childhood.
750
00:43:44,789 --> 00:43:46,958
And I just want to say thank you.
751
00:43:47,042 --> 00:43:49,002
[chuckles] Well, thanks, for saying that.
752
00:43:49,085 --> 00:43:50,837
- It's great.
- It's nice, but...
753
00:43:50,920 --> 00:43:54,549
you know, I had a lot of help, though.
If we hadn't had all of our great writers
754
00:43:54,632 --> 00:43:58,011
and puppeteers and musicians,
it wouldn't have been much of a show.
755
00:43:58,094 --> 00:44:01,139
{\an8}For more than two years, Mr. Dressup
greeted kids every single morning
756
00:44:01,222 --> 00:44:03,350
{\an8}in a way that no other show ever had.
757
00:44:03,433 --> 00:44:08,104
It was a unifying, dependable daily voice,
unlike anything that had come before it.
758
00:44:08,188 --> 00:44:09,856
And there was almost no competition.
759
00:44:09,939 --> 00:44:12,484
One of the more fascinating additions
to the morning hours
760
00:44:12,567 --> 00:44:15,737
will be what is perhaps
the most interesting and acclaimed
761
00:44:15,820 --> 00:44:19,866
children's series ever made.
It's called Sesame Street.
762
00:44:19,949 --> 00:44:23,870
[whimsical music]
763
00:44:23,953 --> 00:44:27,415
[Deb Bernstein] It was the first time
where you brought together producers,
764
00:44:27,499 --> 00:44:32,170
{\an8}writers, educators and researchers
to create a show
765
00:44:32,253 --> 00:44:34,714
with specific developmental goals.
766
00:44:34,798 --> 00:44:36,674
[Sesame Street narrator]
That's a something.
767
00:44:36,758 --> 00:44:37,842
Something starts with "S."
768
00:44:37,926 --> 00:44:40,804
{\an8}What Sesame Street,
I think, did extremely well,
769
00:44:40,887 --> 00:44:44,516
was taking a lot
of the educational concepts...
770
00:44:44,599 --> 00:44:46,142
counting, reading...
771
00:44:46,226 --> 00:44:50,772
You need a "W" to make such words
as "Wash" and "Woman"
772
00:44:50,855 --> 00:44:53,691
and "Weeping Willow" and, um...
773
00:44:55,652 --> 00:44:57,695
{\an8}Of course, when Sesame Street came on,
they said,
774
00:44:57,779 --> 00:44:59,072
{\an8}"Oh, that'll be the end of you."
775
00:44:59,155 --> 00:45:00,698
{\an8}You know, "Dressup will be canceled."
776
00:45:01,825 --> 00:45:05,036
Somebody, a producer, thank goodness,
I don't remember who it was, said,
777
00:45:05,120 --> 00:45:07,330
"You know, you have to do something
with those puppets.
778
00:45:07,414 --> 00:45:11,459
You're gonna have to make their eyes move
and make their mouths move."
779
00:45:11,543 --> 00:45:13,086
And I said, "No, I'm not going to."
780
00:45:13,169 --> 00:45:17,632
Finnegan's mouth moved. Casey's didn't.
Didn't matter to the kids anyway.
781
00:45:17,715 --> 00:45:22,929
[Susan] We were worried that
maybe this is the way it's gonna go.
782
00:45:23,012 --> 00:45:26,307
{\an8}And if that's the way it's gonna go
783
00:45:26,391 --> 00:45:30,061
{\an8}with fast-paced shows,
784
00:45:30,145 --> 00:45:35,442
how are we gonna survive
with our gentle, quiet,
785
00:45:35,525 --> 00:45:38,862
take-our-time... show?
786
00:45:38,945 --> 00:45:40,530
One banana...
787
00:45:41,531 --> 00:45:43,908
[Casey] Do you have a lot of monkeys
coming to this bank, Mr. Banks?
788
00:45:43,992 --> 00:45:46,286
No, this is the first monkey so far,
789
00:45:46,369 --> 00:45:48,538
and the first monkey I've ever seen
that said "oink."
790
00:45:48,621 --> 00:45:50,623
- [Casey] Oh.
- That's why I like working in the bank.
791
00:45:50,707 --> 00:45:54,627
You meet so many different people.
Two bananas.
792
00:45:55,545 --> 00:45:59,632
{\an8}While other shows have gone
to be disco-fied, video hit shows,
793
00:45:59,716 --> 00:46:03,178
{\an8}this show has remained as serene and
simple as it always was. How come?
794
00:46:03,261 --> 00:46:07,765
{\an8}Because we program to preschoolers,
and they have their own little world.
795
00:46:07,849 --> 00:46:10,560
They're not familiar with
the great outside world too much.
796
00:46:10,643 --> 00:46:13,271
They're dealing with their own emotions
and how to grow up
797
00:46:13,354 --> 00:46:16,566
and how to learn to tie your shoelaces,
eh, Casey?
798
00:46:16,649 --> 00:46:18,234
[Casey] I'm still learning to do mine.
799
00:46:18,318 --> 00:46:19,360
It's not easy.
800
00:46:19,444 --> 00:46:23,072
Whereas Sesame Street
had to be more current,
801
00:46:23,156 --> 00:46:28,328
and even Mr. Rogers to an extent, had to
be more reflective of the world outside.
802
00:46:28,411 --> 00:46:30,663
Mr. Dressup was a haven.
803
00:46:30,747 --> 00:46:35,293
At first, I didn't think
that Sesame Street was going to work,
804
00:46:35,376 --> 00:46:37,170
but obviously it did.
805
00:46:37,253 --> 00:46:40,256
So, we didn't go the Sesame Street route.
806
00:46:40,340 --> 00:46:43,468
We let them go their way
and we continued on our way.
807
00:46:43,551 --> 00:46:47,805
{\an8}Our audience reduced for a while,
again, you know what?
808
00:46:47,889 --> 00:46:52,310
{\an8}Not very long after,
our audience came back.
809
00:46:53,478 --> 00:46:54,979
{\an8}And stayed with us.
810
00:46:55,063 --> 00:46:59,192
[announcer] Live
from the Harbor Castle Hotel in Toronto,
811
00:46:59,275 --> 00:47:03,279
the 1978 ACTRA Awards!
812
00:47:03,363 --> 00:47:07,408
The best children's television program...
Mr. Dressup!
813
00:47:07,492 --> 00:47:10,912
[audience cheers]
814
00:47:10,995 --> 00:47:13,998
I've never been so nervous
in all my life. I usually talk to puppets.
815
00:47:14,082 --> 00:47:15,208
[audience laughs]
816
00:47:15,291 --> 00:47:19,254
Actually, Casey and Finnegan
should be here to accept this lovely lady,
817
00:47:19,337 --> 00:47:22,298
but it's past their bedtime.
So, I have to accept it
818
00:47:22,382 --> 00:47:26,553
on behalf of the entire family
that produces Mr. Dressup.
819
00:47:27,595 --> 00:47:30,557
Before I mention the names,
I would like to say that
820
00:47:30,640 --> 00:47:34,852
I'm very happy that ACTRA finally...
Well, I shouldn't say "finally,"
821
00:47:34,936 --> 00:47:39,357
but I'm very happy to say that there is
a children's category now in television.
822
00:47:42,110 --> 00:47:43,570
Thank you.
823
00:47:44,612 --> 00:47:47,490
[Scott Henderson]
By the 1970s, television's a mainstay.
824
00:47:47,574 --> 00:47:51,286
{\an8}You know, it's starting to turn into
a full blown industry.
825
00:47:51,369 --> 00:47:53,413
["Takin' Care of Business"
by Bachman-Turner Overdrive playing]
826
00:47:54,956 --> 00:47:58,668
♪ You get up every morning
from your alarm clock's warning ♪
827
00:47:58,751 --> 00:48:02,171
♪ Take the 8:15 into the city ♪
828
00:48:02,255 --> 00:48:05,925
♪ There's a whistle up above
and people pushin', people shovin' ♪
829
00:48:06,009 --> 00:48:08,761
♪ And the girls
who try to look pretty... ♪
830
00:48:08,845 --> 00:48:12,515
{\an8}Having those early shows
like Mr. Dressup that were a staple,
831
00:48:12,599 --> 00:48:14,642
{\an8}every day you go and see Mr. Dressup,
832
00:48:14,726 --> 00:48:17,437
you know, started to bring
a lot of similar shows.
833
00:48:17,520 --> 00:48:21,274
TVO launched with
Polka Dot Door, Today's Special.
834
00:48:22,400 --> 00:48:24,444
So, there was a lot more live action.
835
00:48:24,527 --> 00:48:28,740
♪ And I'll been taking care of business
every day ♪
836
00:48:28,823 --> 00:48:32,118
{\an8}♪ Taking care of business every way ♪
837
00:48:32,201 --> 00:48:34,537
{\an8}♪ I've been taking care of business... ♪
838
00:48:34,621 --> 00:48:37,165
{\an8}As the importance of Canadian programing
839
00:48:37,248 --> 00:48:40,835
{\an8}and the relevance
of Canadian programing grew,
840
00:48:40,918 --> 00:48:43,546
{\an8}so did the restrictions on it.
841
00:48:43,630 --> 00:48:46,299
And that, I think,
was a result of politics.
842
00:48:46,382 --> 00:48:50,803
It was the turn of both the CBC and CTV
television networks today to appear
843
00:48:50,887 --> 00:48:54,307
before the Canadian Radio-television
and Telecommunications Commission.
844
00:48:55,141 --> 00:49:00,104
[Craig] In the 1980s, the landscape
is starting to change for the CBC.
845
00:49:00,188 --> 00:49:03,608
The economy,
there's big changes happening with that.
846
00:49:03,691 --> 00:49:08,029
But one of the biggest changes
is in 1984, when the Liberal government
847
00:49:08,112 --> 00:49:12,367
that had been in power since about 1963
is defeated.
848
00:49:12,450 --> 00:49:17,121
[newscaster] Look at this. Conservatives,
leading are elected in 190 seats.
849
00:49:17,205 --> 00:49:19,123
The Liberals totally wiped out.
850
00:49:20,208 --> 00:49:23,753
[Craig] And that brings in the progressive
Conservative government to Brian Mulroney.
851
00:49:23,836 --> 00:49:27,256
{\an8}We're gonna recapture
the Canadian dream together
852
00:49:27,340 --> 00:49:30,259
{\an8}and we're gonna bring about
a brand-new wave of prosperity
853
00:49:30,343 --> 00:49:31,928
that will do honor to all of you.
854
00:49:32,011 --> 00:49:36,474
And they're looking to cut costs.
And because the CBC is heavily funded
855
00:49:36,557 --> 00:49:39,560
by the federal government,
that means the CBC
856
00:49:39,644 --> 00:49:41,854
is going to be suffering some deep cuts.
857
00:49:41,938 --> 00:49:45,316
And they have to start looking at
where they're going to cut.
858
00:49:45,400 --> 00:49:47,735
Now they can look at something
like Hockey Night in Canada,
859
00:49:47,819 --> 00:49:51,072
{\an8}which is bringing in massive dollars
with advertising.
860
00:49:51,155 --> 00:49:53,032
{\an8}Or they can look at
the children's department
861
00:49:53,116 --> 00:49:55,576
{\an8}where there's not really any advertisers.
862
00:49:55,660 --> 00:50:00,832
And they have to start looking at ways
to cut costs there. And unfortunately,
863
00:50:00,915 --> 00:50:05,336
one of the main ways they do that
is they end The Friendly Giant.
864
00:50:05,420 --> 00:50:07,714
The CBC has chopped The Friendly Giant.
865
00:50:07,797 --> 00:50:11,551
The final episode of the popular
children's show was taped last week.
866
00:50:11,634 --> 00:50:14,554
Friendly Giant has been
on the air for 26 years.
867
00:50:14,637 --> 00:50:17,348
I couldn't even understand why the show
was canceled in the first place,
868
00:50:17,432 --> 00:50:19,767
because it was popular
and it was a wonderful show.
869
00:50:19,851 --> 00:50:22,603
[Craig] Mr. Dressup does survive
through that,
870
00:50:22,687 --> 00:50:24,605
but you see changes in the show.
871
00:50:24,689 --> 00:50:28,443
[Susan] In the beginning,
there seemed to be more money
872
00:50:28,526 --> 00:50:32,780
for certain things.
There was a lot more money for filming.
873
00:50:32,864 --> 00:50:38,619
We went on location and filmed things
like "Casey and Finnegan in the car wash."
874
00:50:38,703 --> 00:50:44,709
We went to Marineland.
We did a film shoot about ice fishing.
875
00:50:44,876 --> 00:50:49,172
{\an8}We did a shoot going to the dentist.
So there was money for that,
876
00:50:49,255 --> 00:50:53,301
{\an8}which seemed to dwindle out later on.
877
00:50:53,384 --> 00:50:59,390
{\an8}But when I got there, the costume budget
was $25 for two episodes,
878
00:50:59,474 --> 00:51:04,479
{\an8}and I think I managed to get up
to $35 an episode by the time I left.
879
00:51:05,188 --> 00:51:07,398
And Ernie and I would make jokes
about this. He'd say,
880
00:51:07,482 --> 00:51:10,109
"You know, it's not like
the show is called Mr. Math."
881
00:51:10,193 --> 00:51:13,613
And I'd say, "No, it is Mr. Dressup,
you'd think there'd be a costume budget."
882
00:51:13,696 --> 00:51:15,573
But it was just such a low budget show.
883
00:51:15,656 --> 00:51:20,620
{\an8}We kind of absorbed
the need to make money, to an extent,
884
00:51:20,703 --> 00:51:22,997
from the American influence.
885
00:51:24,040 --> 00:51:26,626
It became
much more of a bottom-line thing.
886
00:51:28,628 --> 00:51:33,966
[Judith] I felt as if we were
moving towards creating consumers,
887
00:51:34,050 --> 00:51:36,677
{\an8}and I didn't like that idea at all.
888
00:51:36,761 --> 00:51:39,931
{\an8}I mean, that was what I really hated
about television, was that,
889
00:51:40,014 --> 00:51:44,310
you know, so much was commercial
and it's selling stuff to people.
890
00:51:46,020 --> 00:51:49,023
[Susan] There were a couple
of us that knew
891
00:51:49,106 --> 00:51:51,484
that Judith was talking about
leaving the show.
892
00:51:52,652 --> 00:51:57,406
Her decision to leave the show, obviously,
really well thought out
893
00:51:57,490 --> 00:52:00,201
and in some way, a courageous one.
894
00:52:00,284 --> 00:52:04,664
But she left a big, big hole in the show
when she went.
895
00:52:04,747 --> 00:52:10,586
{\an8}Casey and Finnegan, Aunt Bird,
Alligator Al. That was a huge deal.
896
00:52:10,670 --> 00:52:14,257
{\an8}There was a question whether the show
would go on without her.
897
00:52:15,091 --> 00:52:17,885
[Susan] It was worrisome because...
898
00:52:17,969 --> 00:52:21,222
"Is it gonna fly?
Is it gonna continue?"
899
00:52:21,305 --> 00:52:27,144
What will happen? I mean,
as much as Mr. Dressup was Mr. Dressup,
900
00:52:27,228 --> 00:52:29,939
and all the things that he was
and brought to the show,
901
00:52:30,022 --> 00:52:35,319
could not imagine how the show could go on
without Casey and Finnegan.
902
00:52:36,320 --> 00:52:39,532
[Ernie] When Casey and Finnegan left,
it was a little bit like
903
00:52:40,241 --> 00:52:42,702
my kids growing up and leaving home.
904
00:52:43,953 --> 00:52:47,957
Judith had her own particular way
of going through rehearsals
905
00:52:48,040 --> 00:52:51,878
and her own particular wit
that I missed a lot.
906
00:52:51,961 --> 00:52:57,091
I had a bit of a tussle with the CBC
about who owned Casey and Finnegan.
907
00:52:58,092 --> 00:53:01,137
And I said, "Well, I made them, you know.
I do own them."
908
00:53:02,138 --> 00:53:07,226
And they tried to tell me that they did.
But anyway, that didn't go anywhere.
909
00:53:07,310 --> 00:53:11,230
I said, "No, no, you can't do that."
I said, "When I'm dead,
910
00:53:11,314 --> 00:53:14,483
up to that point, no, they're mine.
You know, I own them.
911
00:53:14,567 --> 00:53:16,527
I made them. They're my puppets."
912
00:53:18,487 --> 00:53:20,406
[easy guitar music playing]
913
00:53:23,868 --> 00:53:28,956
I remember driving off the ferry
onto Hornby Island and thinking,
914
00:53:29,040 --> 00:53:31,292
"Oh, yes, this is where I want to be."
915
00:53:33,085 --> 00:53:35,922
This is a small island
off Vancouver Island
916
00:53:36,005 --> 00:53:38,549
between Vancouver Island and the mainland.
917
00:53:51,562 --> 00:53:54,607
{\an8}[man over mic] We're gonna go
way back in time
918
00:53:54,690 --> 00:53:57,109
{\an8}and remember a guy named Mr. Dressup.
919
00:53:57,193 --> 00:53:59,070
[audience cheering]
920
00:53:59,153 --> 00:54:02,865
Ladies and gentlemen, Casey and Finnegan.
921
00:54:06,035 --> 00:54:08,704
[Judith] I mean, it's astounding.
I couldn't believe it.
922
00:54:08,788 --> 00:54:10,706
Lot of these adults were crying
and I thought,
923
00:54:10,790 --> 00:54:13,501
"What the earth's matter with
these people? What are they crying for?"
924
00:54:13,584 --> 00:54:15,670
[man] Does Finnegan ever say anything?
925
00:54:15,753 --> 00:54:17,880
[Casey]
He only says things to me.
926
00:54:19,590 --> 00:54:23,844
He says he's learned
a lot of good, new, rude words tonight.
927
00:54:23,928 --> 00:54:25,262
[audience laughs]
928
00:54:25,346 --> 00:54:28,683
And I thought it was just good fun,
and I couldn't imagine what...
929
00:54:28,766 --> 00:54:32,353
I said afterwards... I said,
"Why were people crying?"
930
00:54:33,104 --> 00:54:35,606
Well, because they were put in touch
with their childhood
931
00:54:35,690 --> 00:54:40,277
in a way that I guess I didn't appreciate,
or something. I don't know.
932
00:54:42,613 --> 00:54:47,118
- Did you want something? What? Come on.
- [chickens clucking]
933
00:54:50,371 --> 00:54:52,373
Looking back on it, well, now I wonder,
934
00:54:52,456 --> 00:54:55,292
how on earth did I manage
to do it for so long?
935
00:54:55,376 --> 00:54:56,377
Come on, chickens.
936
00:54:57,420 --> 00:55:02,091
And then, how on earth have I managed
to survive so long after I finished?
937
00:55:02,174 --> 00:55:04,427
Those questions are very hard to answer.
938
00:55:13,936 --> 00:55:17,148
[Bob Dermer] When Judith left,
they had some big shoes to be filled,
939
00:55:17,231 --> 00:55:22,028
{\an8}and how to dole that out to one puppeteer.
They didn't see doing that,
940
00:55:22,111 --> 00:55:25,698
{\an8}so they invited several of us
to come in and do the show.
941
00:55:25,781 --> 00:55:31,370
Cheryl Wagner, and Nina Keogh,
Karen Valleau and myself.
942
00:55:34,165 --> 00:55:35,499
[Truffles]
Here I am!
943
00:55:35,583 --> 00:55:36,792
- Hello.
- Hello.
944
00:55:37,877 --> 00:55:38,919
- Hi.
- Hi.
945
00:55:39,003 --> 00:55:43,132
[Susan] I think Truffles might have
been the first and then Chester the Crow.
946
00:55:43,215 --> 00:55:47,094
Oh, Mr. Dressup.
You knew it was me all the time!
947
00:55:47,178 --> 00:55:48,763
[Susan] And Granny.
948
00:55:48,846 --> 00:55:50,973
[Granny] Okay.
Thank you very much, Mr. Dressup.
949
00:55:51,057 --> 00:55:52,516
- I'll see you later.
- [Mr. Dressup] Okay.
950
00:55:52,600 --> 00:55:54,018
[Susan] And Lorenzo.
951
00:55:54,101 --> 00:55:57,855
Well, it is an old sock,
but it's also my trunk.
952
00:55:57,938 --> 00:55:59,023
[Susan] And Annie.
953
00:55:59,106 --> 00:56:02,985
[Annie] That's it,
I'd like to build a castle when I grow up.
954
00:56:03,069 --> 00:56:06,530
- [puppet] Hello!
- [laughs]
955
00:56:06,614 --> 00:56:09,700
[Jani Lauzon] You know, the realization
that we were actually going to tape.
956
00:56:09,784 --> 00:56:13,954
{\an8}We were actually going to do this. I was
actually here. It was actually Ernie.
957
00:56:14,038 --> 00:56:16,248
And then trying to figure out
the mechanics
958
00:56:16,332 --> 00:56:19,460
of how we could actually
make all of this work.
959
00:56:19,543 --> 00:56:23,964
While the learning curve was high, I think
we were all just really, really excited.
960
00:56:27,134 --> 00:56:29,929
All of our newer puppeteers
could be very outrageous...
961
00:56:30,012 --> 00:56:31,055
[Granny] Ooh!
962
00:56:31,138 --> 00:56:35,267
...very witty, and just break me up
completely during our rehearsals.
963
00:56:35,351 --> 00:56:38,395
[Granny] Not fair, I was fixing my legs.
See? [laughs]
964
00:56:38,479 --> 00:56:40,606
Oh, Truffles! Hiya, hiya, hiya.
965
00:56:40,689 --> 00:56:43,734
{\an8}He was really good with me,
because I would be below the set
966
00:56:43,818 --> 00:56:48,280
{\an8}and I was always next to his legs
when I'm working my puppet.
967
00:56:48,364 --> 00:56:52,618
And so I would always... I'd bite his leg
or something during rehearsals.
968
00:56:52,701 --> 00:56:54,703
- I'll race ya! Okay!
- Oh, all right.
969
00:56:54,787 --> 00:56:57,039
Here I go. Here I go! [laughs]
970
00:56:57,873 --> 00:57:01,168
Follow the puck. Whoops.
971
00:57:01,252 --> 00:57:03,796
She's a speedy little devil, isn't she?
972
00:57:03,879 --> 00:57:06,090
It's not going the way it went last time.
973
00:57:06,173 --> 00:57:11,303
[Susan Sheehan] Nina, she was very good
to work with, very upbeat and fun.
974
00:57:11,387 --> 00:57:14,723
{\an8}They all were, actually.
Puppeteers are amazing people.
975
00:57:14,807 --> 00:57:17,184
[Jim] Hi, Nina. Nina does Truffles.
976
00:57:17,268 --> 00:57:20,020
When I came in, and then,
Karen and the others,
977
00:57:20,104 --> 00:57:23,858
I think it was maybe
a lot more playful or something, or crazy.
978
00:57:23,941 --> 00:57:26,861
Do you think this is funny? [farts]
979
00:57:26,944 --> 00:57:29,155
[laughs]
980
00:57:29,238 --> 00:57:30,781
Yeah, pretty funny, Chester.
981
00:57:30,865 --> 00:57:34,618
Boy, last time Mr. Dressup did this to me,
I couldn't sit down for a week.
982
00:57:34,702 --> 00:57:36,704
[crew laughs]
983
00:57:36,787 --> 00:57:40,749
I don't know if they really knew what was
gonna hit them when we arrived.
984
00:57:40,833 --> 00:57:44,628
And we were like,
"Pow, we're here!" You know, so...
985
00:57:44,712 --> 00:57:48,924
Hey, everybody, I'm Alex.
You haven't met me yet.
986
00:57:49,008 --> 00:57:51,927
I'm the new addition
to the Mr. Dressup show.
987
00:57:52,011 --> 00:57:56,307
Jim Parker started out as a guest singer.
988
00:57:56,390 --> 00:58:00,144
- Hey, Jim! Hi!
- Hi, Mr. Dressup! [chuckles]
989
00:58:00,227 --> 00:58:05,065
[Susan] Jim Parker became interested
in doing the new puppet Alex.
990
00:58:05,149 --> 00:58:10,404
And we did auditions, and he
really worked very, very hard
991
00:58:10,487 --> 00:58:13,282
because he was not a puppeteer.
992
00:58:13,365 --> 00:58:19,079
{\an8}Jim's a pretty special guy. He just had
a similar kind of personality to Ernie
993
00:58:19,163 --> 00:58:24,084
and that same kind of love and enthusiasm
for children and play.
994
00:58:24,168 --> 00:58:29,089
And the way that he expressed himself
creatively and just a super nice guy.
995
00:58:29,173 --> 00:58:33,135
Like a super nice guy.
Would it have been nice
996
00:58:33,219 --> 00:58:38,599
to have a black puppeteer? Absolutely.
Not taking anything away from Jim.
997
00:58:39,391 --> 00:58:41,477
[Jim Parker] Today, it would have been
totally different.
998
00:58:41,560 --> 00:58:44,355
Think it was, "Here's Parker,
he can do it.
999
00:58:44,438 --> 00:58:47,441
{\an8}He's got the relationship
with Ernie already.
1000
00:58:47,524 --> 00:58:50,527
{\an8}So let's, you know, if he can do it,
let's let him do it."
1001
00:58:50,611 --> 00:58:53,614
- [guest] Yoo-hoo. We're here.
- [Granny] Oh, hello?
1002
00:58:53,697 --> 00:58:55,532
- [guest] Anybody around?
- [Granny] In here.
1003
00:58:55,616 --> 00:58:57,993
- Where's Granny?
- [Granny] Over here.
1004
00:58:58,077 --> 00:59:00,120
Oh, there you are, Granny.
How are you?
1005
00:59:00,204 --> 00:59:01,914
[Granny] I'm fine, thank you.
1006
00:59:01,997 --> 00:59:04,416
We brought the costumes, Granny.
You want to see them?
1007
00:59:04,500 --> 00:59:06,460
[Granny]
Oh, good. Yes, of course I do.
1008
00:59:06,543 --> 00:59:08,504
I don't even think
it was a different show,
1009
00:59:08,587 --> 00:59:11,715
but it had certainly
felt a little different, I think.
1010
00:59:11,799 --> 00:59:16,011
New set, that community center.
Yeah, the community center.
1011
00:59:16,095 --> 00:59:18,889
As a Métis woman,
I think the idea of community
1012
00:59:18,973 --> 00:59:21,183
has always been really,
really super important,
1013
00:59:21,267 --> 00:59:24,353
and the community center
offers an environment
1014
00:59:24,436 --> 00:59:28,857
where that is the most important thing.
1015
00:59:28,941 --> 00:59:32,361
For writers, it was a little easier
to work with that,
1016
00:59:32,444 --> 00:59:36,323
because you had different characters
who could have different experiences.
1017
00:59:36,407 --> 00:59:39,910
But everybody missed Casey and Finnegan.
1018
00:59:39,994 --> 00:59:42,371
{\an8}But it didn't really affect the ratings.
1019
00:59:42,454 --> 00:59:46,166
{\an8}I mean, it didn't affect
how kids responded to Mr. Dressup.
1020
00:59:46,250 --> 00:59:50,212
♪ We have a band
This is how we play ♪
1021
00:59:50,296 --> 00:59:56,302
♪ We each make music
in a different way ♪
1022
00:59:56,385 --> 01:00:00,347
[Lynn] Here we have
my big sister Caitlin, holding me.
1023
01:00:00,431 --> 01:00:03,517
Well, my grandchildren like to
come over and visit
1024
01:00:03,600 --> 01:00:06,478
and come down here
and get into the tickle trunk.
1025
01:00:06,562 --> 01:00:10,524
They dress up in the costumes
and do little plays.
1026
01:00:11,984 --> 01:00:14,987
And even though the costumes don't fit,
they have a lot of fun.
1027
01:00:15,070 --> 01:00:20,034
Look, a Christmas elf
ringing the Christmas bells.
1028
01:00:20,117 --> 01:00:25,914
♪ Oh, Tannenbaum, oh, Tannenbaum
How lovely are your branches ♪
1029
01:00:25,998 --> 01:00:32,004
♪ And your electric lights
and all the other decorations ♪
1030
01:00:32,087 --> 01:00:34,757
- Can't take it out. Ooh, it's a secret.
- [Ernie laughs]
1031
01:00:34,840 --> 01:00:37,051
Can't take it out.
We have to put it in the box.
1032
01:00:37,134 --> 01:00:40,054
[Ernie] All right, we better cut here.
There's an elf in the way. Cut!
1033
01:00:40,137 --> 01:00:42,931
♪ We wish you a merry Christmas ♪
1034
01:00:43,015 --> 01:00:47,311
♪ And a Happy New Year ♪
1035
01:00:47,394 --> 01:00:48,771
We wish you were here.
1036
01:00:48,854 --> 01:00:52,358
Yes, but since you're there,
have a good Christmas anyway.
1037
01:00:52,441 --> 01:00:55,694
And Natalie, too.
And we'll see you as soon as possible.
1038
01:00:55,778 --> 01:00:56,779
Bye!
1039
01:00:56,862 --> 01:00:58,989
[Cathie]
From Casey and Finnegan.
1040
01:00:59,073 --> 01:01:02,159
And me, Mr. Dressup. [laughs]
1041
01:01:14,588 --> 01:01:17,216
[Nina] We were having a wrap party,
1042
01:01:17,299 --> 01:01:21,095
and we didn't want
to really start the event
1043
01:01:21,178 --> 01:01:25,599
'cause we were waiting
for Ernie's wife, Lynn, to come.
1044
01:01:27,643 --> 01:01:29,478
He had bought her flowers.
1045
01:01:31,313 --> 01:01:33,399
They were her favorite color.
1046
01:01:35,359 --> 01:01:36,443
Um...
1047
01:01:37,903 --> 01:01:41,782
He was like a kid in a candy store
waiting for his wife.
1048
01:01:41,865 --> 01:01:44,576
But then, as time went on,
I think we were getting the sense
1049
01:01:44,660 --> 01:01:47,037
that Ernie was getting concerned.
1050
01:01:47,121 --> 01:01:50,624
My dad had called me,
this is before the time of cell phones,
1051
01:01:50,707 --> 01:01:53,252
but he had called me to ask
if I'd heard from my mom.
1052
01:01:53,335 --> 01:01:58,966
I just... my last memory of Ernie that day
was just holding those flowers.
1053
01:02:00,134 --> 01:02:03,637
I remember my neighbor
coming in and saying,
1054
01:02:03,720 --> 01:02:05,764
"Cathie, let me hold the baby."
1055
01:02:05,848 --> 01:02:08,892
And as soon as he said that to me,
I knew.
1056
01:02:10,519 --> 01:02:14,815
The wife of popular children's entertainer
Ernie Coombs, better known as Mr. Dressup,
1057
01:02:14,898 --> 01:02:17,651
has been killed
in a tragic motor vehicle accident.
1058
01:02:17,734 --> 01:02:21,613
Marlene Coombs was hit by a car
outside a downtown supermarket.
1059
01:02:21,697 --> 01:02:23,824
CFTO's Austin Delaney has more.
1060
01:02:23,907 --> 01:02:26,034
[Austin Delaney]
Fifty-five year old Marlene Coombs
1061
01:02:26,118 --> 01:02:28,412
was walking on the sidewalk
on Young Street in Temperance
1062
01:02:28,495 --> 01:02:31,832
late yesterday afternoon, when
a southbound car clipped another vehicle
1063
01:02:31,915 --> 01:02:34,376
and went out of control.
The car mounted the curb
1064
01:02:34,460 --> 01:02:36,587
and ended up in the doorway
of a Loblaw's store.
1065
01:02:41,550 --> 01:02:43,302
[Chris] Dad...
1066
01:02:43,385 --> 01:02:48,599
{\an8}just took me and he said,
"I've lost my wife.
1067
01:02:48,682 --> 01:02:50,058
{\an8}But you've lost your mother.
1068
01:02:51,977 --> 01:02:54,480
{\an8}And I'm going to look after you."
1069
01:02:56,648 --> 01:02:58,901
And I said,
"I'll stay as long as you want."
1070
01:02:58,984 --> 01:03:01,403
And he said, "Well, how about forever?"
[chuckles, sniffles]
1071
01:03:05,532 --> 01:03:09,912
And he wrote a letter to the universe...
1072
01:03:09,995 --> 01:03:12,206
[voice breaking]
about how that made him feel.
1073
01:03:15,042 --> 01:03:16,168
And, uh...
1074
01:03:20,631 --> 01:03:22,508
You know, it was hard to read.
1075
01:03:25,177 --> 01:03:29,223
{\an8}The way life takes someone
so beautiful as she was
1076
01:03:29,306 --> 01:03:34,228
{\an8}and so important to Ernie is very,
very sad. And I've never forgotten it.
1077
01:03:35,896 --> 01:03:40,901
[Susan] How in the world
was Ernie going to continue?
1078
01:03:40,984 --> 01:03:46,990
Would he want to? How could he possibly?
And what was he gonna need if he did?
1079
01:03:48,325 --> 01:03:51,578
[Denise] I remember
speaking to Cathie, his daughter,
1080
01:03:51,662 --> 01:03:54,540
{\an8}and sort of trying to suss it out.
And she said,
1081
01:03:54,623 --> 01:03:59,586
{\an8}"The two most important things in
my dad's life was his marriage to my mom
1082
01:03:59,670 --> 01:04:03,173
and being Mr. Dressup."
And she said, "He's lost one this year,
1083
01:04:03,257 --> 01:04:05,008
he can't lose two this year."
1084
01:04:07,970 --> 01:04:12,849
Nobody talked about... As soon as
we got on set, nobody talked.
1085
01:04:12,933 --> 01:04:14,851
Because he didn't want it.
1086
01:04:16,395 --> 01:04:22,067
{\an8}He just wanted to be able to come on set,
do the job, and he did it.
1087
01:04:22,150 --> 01:04:26,822
{\an8}It was clear that we were gonna go on now
as long as he wanted to go on.
1088
01:04:27,864 --> 01:04:30,075
{\an8}[Fred] When he came on my show,
that's when the...
1089
01:04:30,158 --> 01:04:34,079
{\an8}That's when the challenge happened.
This was, I think,
1090
01:04:34,162 --> 01:04:38,041
{\an8}only maybe two or three weeks
after his wife had been tragically killed.
1091
01:04:38,125 --> 01:04:42,546
And we contacted him and said,
"You know, we're fine canceling.
1092
01:04:42,629 --> 01:04:45,841
You know, we're so sorry, etc..."
And he said, "No, no."
1093
01:04:45,924 --> 01:04:49,553
That the day he and his wife
had talked about his being on the show
1094
01:04:49,636 --> 01:04:53,890
and he was really looking forward to it.
So, we proceeded.
1095
01:04:54,725 --> 01:04:55,934
{\an8}[Fred] Are you okay?
1096
01:04:56,018 --> 01:04:59,062
{\an8}Yep! Just working my way through the log.
What a great log you have there.
1097
01:04:59,146 --> 01:05:01,607
{\an8}- It's a long crawl.
- [laughs] Yes, but it's fun. Hi!
1098
01:05:01,690 --> 01:05:03,734
- It's good to see you.
- Oh, I'm glad to be here.
1099
01:05:03,817 --> 01:05:05,027
Say hello to my friends.
1100
01:05:05,110 --> 01:05:07,487
Hi. We're going to have
a lot of fun today.
1101
01:05:07,571 --> 01:05:09,197
Glad you're visiting too.
1102
01:05:09,281 --> 01:05:12,659
So, we worked the whole thing through.
All the pieces were there.
1103
01:05:12,743 --> 01:05:18,749
And we got to the last song.
We're sitting on the top level,
1104
01:05:18,832 --> 01:05:19,958
just outside of the log
1105
01:05:20,042 --> 01:05:22,210
and the song we're doing is
a Tom Chapin song
1106
01:05:22,294 --> 01:05:24,546
called "Together Tomorrow."
1107
01:05:24,630 --> 01:05:30,218
And I don't know how we had not realized
what this song was really saying
1108
01:05:30,302 --> 01:05:32,471
because it was talking about his wife.
1109
01:05:32,554 --> 01:05:37,267
♪ But we will be happy together tomorrow ♪
1110
01:05:37,351 --> 01:05:41,605
♪ Together tomorrow again ♪
1111
01:05:41,688 --> 01:05:46,735
♪ Every day must pass away ♪
1112
01:05:46,818 --> 01:05:51,448
♪ Never to come again ♪
1113
01:05:51,531 --> 01:05:57,287
♪ Tonight when I'm sleeping
I'll dream of us being ♪
1114
01:05:57,371 --> 01:06:00,415
♪ Together tomorrow again ♪
1115
01:06:00,499 --> 01:06:02,042
[Fred] That's my dream.
1116
01:06:02,125 --> 01:06:07,547
♪ Together tomorrow ♪
1117
01:06:07,631 --> 01:06:13,053
♪ Together tomorrow, my friend... ♪
1118
01:06:13,136 --> 01:06:17,641
In all of the shows that I had done,
you know, 900-plus,
1119
01:06:17,724 --> 01:06:22,479
that was the most poignant moment
that I had ever experienced
1120
01:06:22,562 --> 01:06:25,982
on, you know, on television
or on a stage. It was just...
1121
01:06:26,066 --> 01:06:28,568
It was powerful, to say the least.
1122
01:06:28,652 --> 01:06:33,740
♪ We will be happy when we get together ♪
1123
01:06:33,824 --> 01:06:39,830
♪ Together tomorrow again ♪
1124
01:06:43,375 --> 01:06:44,835
[cheering]
1125
01:06:44,918 --> 01:06:47,045
[reporter]
One hundred and twenty-seven Canadians,
1126
01:06:47,129 --> 01:06:49,631
a little later this afternoon
right here on Parliament Hill,
1127
01:06:49,715 --> 01:06:51,967
will be sworn in as new Canadians.
1128
01:06:52,050 --> 01:06:54,886
[Peter Mansbridge] You know who
one of those is going to be? Mr. Dressup?
1129
01:06:54,970 --> 01:06:56,179
[reporter] Mr. Dressup.
1130
01:06:56,263 --> 01:07:01,435
{\an8}When I asked Ernie why he decided
to become a Canadian citizen
1131
01:07:01,518 --> 01:07:05,772
{\an8}after all of these years of
living in Canada and being in America,
1132
01:07:07,190 --> 01:07:11,069
he told me about a letter that he received
from a nine-year-old child
1133
01:07:11,153 --> 01:07:14,072
whose class project was to
1134
01:07:14,740 --> 01:07:18,243
write to and learn about
their favorite Canadian.
1135
01:07:18,326 --> 01:07:21,163
And this child had written to Ernie,
1136
01:07:21,246 --> 01:07:26,001
and he had had to reply back
that he wasn't a Canadian.
1137
01:07:26,084 --> 01:07:28,420
{\an8}[announcer]
Here to share with us his unique talent
1138
01:07:28,503 --> 01:07:33,800
{\an8}for bringing generations of Canadians
together each and every day, Mr. Dressup.
1139
01:07:33,884 --> 01:07:38,430
[cheering]
1140
01:07:40,432 --> 01:07:41,725
♪ Oh, Canada! ♪
1141
01:07:41,808 --> 01:07:43,101
♪ Oh, Canada! ♪
1142
01:07:43,185 --> 01:07:44,352
♪ Hey, Canada! ♪
1143
01:07:44,436 --> 01:07:45,520
♪ Hey, Canada! ♪
1144
01:07:45,604 --> 01:07:46,688
♪ Oh, Canada! ♪
1145
01:07:46,772 --> 01:07:48,023
♪ Oh, Canada! ♪
1146
01:07:48,106 --> 01:07:49,232
♪ Hey, Canada! ♪
1147
01:07:49,316 --> 01:07:50,609
♪ Hey, Canada! ♪
1148
01:07:50,692 --> 01:07:55,155
♪ My name is Mr. Dressup
You can call me Mister D ♪
1149
01:07:55,238 --> 01:08:00,327
♪ I'll sing you a song about Canada
from Newfoundland to B.C ♪
1150
01:08:00,410 --> 01:08:02,037
♪ Hey, Canada! ♪
1151
01:08:02,120 --> 01:08:05,957
[crowd cheers]
1152
01:08:06,041 --> 01:08:08,418
[Chris] He is such a massive part
of Canadian culture.
1153
01:08:08,502 --> 01:08:11,296
And yeah, he's American,
born in Maine.
1154
01:08:11,379 --> 01:08:14,633
But he was able to get Canadian
citizenship eventually,
1155
01:08:14,716 --> 01:08:16,009
and it meant a lot to him.
1156
01:08:19,137 --> 01:08:21,890
[indistinct chatter]
1157
01:08:21,973 --> 01:08:25,143
And it's so wonderful to be able to say...
"fellow citizens."
1158
01:08:28,605 --> 01:08:32,192
{\an8}[Chris] He was constantly humbled
and honored by the accolades,
1159
01:08:32,275 --> 01:08:33,735
that he got.
1160
01:08:37,531 --> 01:08:40,700
{\an8}[Fred Rogers] I would like to say,
Ernie, that all of your friends here
1161
01:08:40,784 --> 01:08:43,787
in this neighborhood
are very proud of you.
1162
01:08:43,870 --> 01:08:49,209
We've worked together a long time and
known each other for many, many years
1163
01:08:49,292 --> 01:08:52,254
and just know that we all love you
1164
01:08:52,337 --> 01:08:56,007
and that you are in our thoughts
and prayers always.
1165
01:08:56,091 --> 01:08:57,717
Congratulations to you.
1166
01:08:59,261 --> 01:09:02,347
[Chris] When Dad received
his Earle Grey Award at the Geminis,
1167
01:09:02,430 --> 01:09:04,641
and he dedicated it to Mom.
1168
01:09:04,724 --> 01:09:07,352
I wish that my wife Lynn
could've been here.
1169
01:09:07,435 --> 01:09:11,356
She would love things like this.
You know, she gave me so much support
1170
01:09:11,439 --> 01:09:15,026
and criticism over the years
and a lot of information
1171
01:09:15,110 --> 01:09:18,029
about the right way
to handle preschoolers,
1172
01:09:18,113 --> 01:09:19,906
because that was her field of expertise.
1173
01:09:19,990 --> 01:09:23,869
So, this is gonna be dedicated
to Lynn's memory.
1174
01:09:23,952 --> 01:09:27,497
That was a lovely moment.
And she would have been very proud.
1175
01:09:27,581 --> 01:09:29,416
Thank you. Thank you all.
1176
01:09:35,547 --> 01:09:39,926
[Nina] It's interesting when you're
doing a series, I mean, you never know
1177
01:09:40,010 --> 01:09:46,016
if or when it's going to be canceled.
I mean, if it's really popular,
1178
01:09:46,099 --> 01:09:50,061
you figure it's gonna go on forever,
you know.
1179
01:09:50,145 --> 01:09:54,399
And then something will always happen
'cause no show ever goes on forever.
1180
01:09:54,482 --> 01:09:57,861
Hi, there you are.
I've been sitting here waiting for you.
1181
01:09:57,944 --> 01:10:00,780
And I'm glad you're here.
And I'm really glad that I'm here.
1182
01:10:00,864 --> 01:10:03,325
[Chris] We also asked him about
when he was thinking of retirement.
1183
01:10:03,408 --> 01:10:05,243
It was a question that a lot of people
started to ask him
1184
01:10:05,327 --> 01:10:08,747
simply because he'd been on the air
for so long, and he was kind of like,
1185
01:10:08,830 --> 01:10:11,124
"I don't know. I hadn't thought about it
until you mentioned it."
1186
01:10:11,207 --> 01:10:13,168
For the last three years,
people have said,
1187
01:10:13,251 --> 01:10:17,422
"Do you have any plans for retirement?"
I think finally it got into me and I said,
1188
01:10:17,505 --> 01:10:19,758
"Do I have... Yeah,
I guess I better retire.
1189
01:10:19,841 --> 01:10:21,593
It looks like the thing to do."
1190
01:10:21,676 --> 01:10:23,803
Where do we want to put the sun in?
1191
01:10:24,512 --> 01:10:26,681
[Cathie] I think, you know,
he just kind of maybe felt
1192
01:10:26,765 --> 01:10:30,352
that he'd come to a point where
they'd done as much as they could do.
1193
01:10:30,435 --> 01:10:35,148
And it was time in his life to try...
while he was still feeling healthy
1194
01:10:35,231 --> 01:10:37,984
and at a good place in his life,
it was time to move on
1195
01:10:38,068 --> 01:10:40,111
and do some things for himself.
1196
01:10:43,156 --> 01:10:46,201
[Chris] You know, it wasn't
because of my mom's passing.
1197
01:10:46,284 --> 01:10:48,620
You know, it certainly wasn't
any pressure by the CBC
1198
01:10:48,703 --> 01:10:51,081
or Canadians turning away from him
or anything like that.
1199
01:10:51,164 --> 01:10:52,666
It just was the right time for him.
1200
01:10:53,333 --> 01:10:57,754
[Jani] There was something that had
changed in him that he was gonna be okay,
1201
01:10:57,837 --> 01:11:01,091
that he'd made that decision,
that that was good for him.
1202
01:11:01,174 --> 01:11:06,179
I remember thinking
that he deserved the rest, you know?
1203
01:11:06,262 --> 01:11:11,601
That he had done so much
for so many generations, for so long,
1204
01:11:11,685 --> 01:11:17,691
that just spending time with grandkids and
that's just really what he wanted to do.
1205
01:11:22,821 --> 01:11:24,739
[Nina] When you are doing a series
1206
01:11:24,823 --> 01:11:28,284
and you spend months or years every year,
1207
01:11:28,368 --> 01:11:32,664
and you get really close to people
and you realize that, "Oh, my gosh,"
1208
01:11:32,747 --> 01:11:35,917
you know, like, "This isn't
gonna be happening anymore."
1209
01:11:36,001 --> 01:11:40,797
There's this real sense of sadness,
you know, and loss.
1210
01:11:42,632 --> 01:11:46,386
I didn't want it to end.
I could've kept going.
1211
01:11:46,469 --> 01:11:48,304
That would've been all right for me.
1212
01:11:49,597 --> 01:11:54,686
{\an8}I had never realized
what taping the last show would be,
1213
01:11:54,769 --> 01:11:57,689
{\an8}what it would be like. I still don't know
what it's going to be like.
1214
01:11:57,772 --> 01:11:59,858
But it's going to be very, very emotional.
1215
01:12:00,567 --> 01:12:03,069
{\an8}Here it is! February 14th.
1216
01:12:04,738 --> 01:12:05,989
Right there.
1217
01:12:06,948 --> 01:12:09,284
Last... Last day.
1218
01:12:18,626 --> 01:12:23,256
Okay, before we start, I just want to say
I want to make this like a regular show.
1219
01:12:23,339 --> 01:12:27,052
I love you all. [voice breaking]
And it won't be easy.
1220
01:12:27,135 --> 01:12:28,928
Okay, let's go.
1221
01:12:29,012 --> 01:12:32,515
[crew applauds]
1222
01:12:35,060 --> 01:12:38,396
[Chris] You know, I was there
when Dad spoke to the crew.
1223
01:12:40,190 --> 01:12:41,191
Yeah.
1224
01:12:42,692 --> 01:12:46,154
Yeah, 'cause...
what he must have been feeling.
1225
01:12:47,322 --> 01:12:52,660
You've made me what I am today.
You know that. And I appreciate it.
1226
01:12:52,744 --> 01:12:55,872
Okay, so, this is for the kids. So...
1227
01:12:55,955 --> 01:12:59,250
[Chris] Because everything in his life
was leading up to that moment,
1228
01:12:59,334 --> 01:13:02,045
and he was just going to
take some time for himself
1229
01:13:02,128 --> 01:13:05,090
and reflect and be a grandfather.
1230
01:13:05,173 --> 01:13:10,678
Hi. Here I am in the kitchen,
but I'm not cooking anything.
1231
01:13:10,762 --> 01:13:14,182
[Cathie]
That last show, if you were to watch it,
1232
01:13:14,265 --> 01:13:17,435
you would never know
it was the last taped show.
1233
01:13:17,519 --> 01:13:20,980
Dad was the ultimate
consummate professional.
1234
01:13:21,064 --> 01:13:25,819
But underneath, we knew as a family
that it was a real bittersweet moment,
1235
01:13:25,902 --> 01:13:30,323
because it was four years
after my mom had passed away.
1236
01:13:30,406 --> 01:13:36,204
And, you know, it was supposed to
have been their time together.
1237
01:13:37,539 --> 01:13:41,292
Until the next time,
we'll say bye-bye from...
1238
01:13:41,376 --> 01:13:44,212
- Lorenzo...
- Truffles...
1239
01:13:44,295 --> 01:13:47,966
- And me!
- Mr. Dressup!
1240
01:13:48,049 --> 01:13:49,300
[blows horn]
1241
01:13:49,384 --> 01:13:52,470
And then, whoever said,
"And that's a wrap..."
1242
01:13:53,763 --> 01:13:54,931
And then the tears.
1243
01:13:55,014 --> 01:13:56,432
[Mr. Dressup theme music]
1244
01:13:56,516 --> 01:14:01,896
{\an8}[Chris] Don Himes played out
the regular Mr. Dressup theme
1245
01:14:01,980 --> 01:14:06,901
{\an8}and then added
some lovely extension to it
1246
01:14:06,985 --> 01:14:10,405
that he that he played for a minute
or two, which was pretty sweet.
1247
01:14:10,488 --> 01:14:12,991
[grand piano finish]
1248
01:14:24,043 --> 01:14:27,672
[Jani] The last theme song,
the last note, the last show.
1249
01:14:27,755 --> 01:14:31,801
That was the finality of it.
The last note of that song was the end.
1250
01:14:32,969 --> 01:14:37,765
[Jim] It was sad. It was a bit of
a celebration, too. But it was sad.
1251
01:14:37,849 --> 01:14:42,645
That, you know, I can't believe that last
moment. "And me, Mr. Dressup."
1252
01:14:42,729 --> 01:14:46,441
[deep inhale, exhale]
1253
01:14:46,524 --> 01:14:49,068
[Ed Robertson]
It's a rare thing
1254
01:14:49,152 --> 01:14:51,946
that someone devotes their whole life
to something.
1255
01:14:52,030 --> 01:14:57,035
Lives up to all of everyone's
expectations of them.
1256
01:14:57,118 --> 01:15:01,289
{\an8}Goes out completely classy and graceful.
1257
01:15:01,372 --> 01:15:06,920
And is untarnished.
You know, it's pretty amazing.
1258
01:15:08,254 --> 01:15:11,257
[Patty] I don't think we realized
at the time when it ended
1259
01:15:11,341 --> 01:15:16,638
that that is an end of an era.
It was an end of a kind of show
1260
01:15:16,721 --> 01:15:18,973
{\an8}that I don't know if we'll ever see again.
1261
01:15:19,057 --> 01:15:20,725
{\an8}I think people will try.
1262
01:15:21,976 --> 01:15:24,729
But there will only ever be
one Mr. Dressup.
1263
01:15:31,736 --> 01:15:36,658
[Caitlin] My grandpa's from Maine.
And when they were younger,
1264
01:15:36,741 --> 01:15:41,204
{\an8}they bought a property right on the water,
just like you can smell the ocean.
1265
01:15:41,287 --> 01:15:43,331
- I'm with you, Grandpa.
- Okay, that's a wrap.
1266
01:15:44,874 --> 01:15:46,834
Everybody's invited to wrap party.
1267
01:15:48,253 --> 01:15:52,382
Dad was really a social guy.
He really enjoyed spending time
1268
01:15:52,465 --> 01:15:56,427
with friends and family,
so, you know...
1269
01:15:56,511 --> 01:15:59,180
I think that really...
really became the focus for him.
1270
01:15:59,264 --> 01:16:04,018
Here we are, Labor Day weekend
after much labor by Ken and Gerri,
1271
01:16:04,102 --> 01:16:08,606
providing a beautiful feast
of hamburgers and salad.
1272
01:16:11,693 --> 01:16:13,194
The old, old, olden car.
1273
01:16:13,278 --> 01:16:16,489
[Cathie] He was doing all those things
he had, for whatever reason,
1274
01:16:16,572 --> 01:16:18,366
had put off for all these years.
1275
01:16:18,449 --> 01:16:23,496
[Ernie] Drive the car. Vroom, vroom,
goes the Auburn. Vroom, vroom!
1276
01:16:26,457 --> 01:16:30,420
That's me. Yep.
1277
01:16:30,503 --> 01:16:34,257
Maine's finest.
No mad cow disease there.
1278
01:16:34,340 --> 01:16:35,842
[Chris] How do you feel?
1279
01:16:35,925 --> 01:16:38,011
- Full.
- [Chris] Full?
1280
01:16:41,222 --> 01:16:45,184
And so, he was having
an absolute whale of a time
1281
01:16:45,268 --> 01:16:50,815
being able to live his life,
on his schedule, and have a great time.
1282
01:16:54,110 --> 01:16:57,071
I don't think retirement
slowed dad down at all.
1283
01:16:59,490 --> 01:17:03,786
[cheering]
1284
01:17:03,870 --> 01:17:05,288
It is water.
1285
01:17:05,371 --> 01:17:07,165
[laughs]
1286
01:17:07,248 --> 01:17:11,085
{\an8}Ernie and I came up with this idea, it was
called "The Tales of the Tickle Trunk,"
1287
01:17:11,169 --> 01:17:13,880
{\an8}because so many of those generation,
the younger generation,
1288
01:17:13,963 --> 01:17:15,089
{\an8}were now in university.
1289
01:17:15,173 --> 01:17:17,383
I was wondering about the story
behind Casey and Finnegan
1290
01:17:17,467 --> 01:17:19,177
'cause when I was a kid,
I used to wonder
1291
01:17:19,260 --> 01:17:21,346
why he didn't have a mommy and daddy
and why didn't he go home?
1292
01:17:21,429 --> 01:17:25,266
Shall we explain why Casey and Finnegan
are supposed to be little
1293
01:17:25,350 --> 01:17:28,853
and live out in the treehouse? [laughs]
1294
01:17:28,936 --> 01:17:31,439
So we decided,
"No, we'll just forget about it."
1295
01:17:31,522 --> 01:17:35,109
And kids like you
who wanted to know about that
1296
01:17:35,193 --> 01:17:37,487
could just try to figure it out yourself.
1297
01:17:37,570 --> 01:17:40,865
And they basically just became
Mr. Dressup Love Fests.
1298
01:17:40,948 --> 01:17:42,241
[girl] Thank you so much.
1299
01:17:43,534 --> 01:17:47,246
I have a confession to make. I started
a rumor about you when I was a kid
1300
01:17:47,330 --> 01:17:50,625
that you used to trace your drawings.
[laughs]
1301
01:17:50,708 --> 01:17:53,878
And I wanted to apologize
and ask you if that was true.
1302
01:17:53,961 --> 01:17:56,464
Sometimes I practiced a lot if they
were gonna be hard.
1303
01:17:56,547 --> 01:17:59,467
But, um, I forgive you.
1304
01:17:59,550 --> 01:18:01,260
[laughs]
1305
01:18:01,344 --> 01:18:04,722
{\an8}That, to me, was really significant
because it spoke to
1306
01:18:04,806 --> 01:18:08,101
{\an8}how he had touched the young people
at the time,
1307
01:18:08,184 --> 01:18:12,188
and what that kind of childhood memory
and nostalgia meant for them.
1308
01:18:12,271 --> 01:18:13,898
Cheese! Say "chicken feet."
1309
01:18:13,981 --> 01:18:16,526
[Cathie] People were generally
kind of in awe of the fact
1310
01:18:16,609 --> 01:18:19,529
that he was there in their pub,
somebody that they looked up to.
1311
01:18:19,612 --> 01:18:22,907
So, I think that people were
really respectful of who he was.
1312
01:18:22,990 --> 01:18:25,243
Now, do we have Mr. Rogers
on the phone right now?
1313
01:18:25,326 --> 01:18:28,121
Okay, well, you all know Fred Rogers
I would imagine
1314
01:18:28,204 --> 01:18:32,041
as well as you know Mr. Dressup.
And Fred has joined us on the phone now,
1315
01:18:32,125 --> 01:18:36,170
to say hi to Ernie and I guess, to say bye
to Ernie. How are you, Mr. Rogers?
1316
01:18:36,254 --> 01:18:38,005
{\an8}[Fred Rogers, over phone]
I'm just fine, is this Ralph?
1317
01:18:38,089 --> 01:18:39,382
{\an8}- It is.
- That's Ralph.
1318
01:18:39,465 --> 01:18:41,259
{\an8}[Fred]
Hello, Ralph, and hello, Ernie.
1319
01:18:41,342 --> 01:18:43,553
{\an8}- Hello, Fred! This is wonderful!
- [Fred] How are you?
1320
01:18:43,636 --> 01:18:47,473
{\an8}I'm just overwhelmed.
I was going to send you a letter.
1321
01:18:49,809 --> 01:18:52,145
{\an8}[Chris reading]
1322
01:19:21,215 --> 01:19:25,887
[audience cheering]
1323
01:19:25,970 --> 01:19:28,764
[Jonathan Torrens] There are two
highly rated episodes of Jonovision.
1324
01:19:28,848 --> 01:19:33,853
One was the Degrassi reunion
and the other was childhood heroes.
1325
01:19:33,936 --> 01:19:37,607
It had Sharon, Lois and Bram.
It had Polkaroo.
1326
01:19:37,690 --> 01:19:43,237
And even in that room, Mr. Dressup
was just on a whole other level.
1327
01:19:43,321 --> 01:19:45,531
Please welcome Mr. Dressup.
1328
01:19:45,615 --> 01:19:47,742
[cheering]
1329
01:19:47,825 --> 01:19:51,537
People couldn't contain themselves,
and the noise was deafening.
1330
01:19:51,621 --> 01:19:53,873
What have you been up to
since you've retired?
1331
01:19:53,956 --> 01:19:56,542
{\an8}Oh, I've been very busy.
I've been touring,
1332
01:19:56,626 --> 01:19:59,837
{\an8}- I've been doing personal appearances...
- [girl] We love you!
1333
01:19:59,921 --> 01:20:02,965
{\an8}...and making speeches and keeping busy
1334
01:20:03,049 --> 01:20:05,510
and restoring my old car
and all kinds of stuff.
1335
01:20:06,260 --> 01:20:10,264
Dad had lost a few teeth, wore a bridge.
1336
01:20:10,348 --> 01:20:13,726
And I think he thought, "You know what,
I'd like to have a set of teeth."
1337
01:20:13,809 --> 01:20:19,023
But he had to undergo surgery
to remove cartilage from his rib
1338
01:20:19,106 --> 01:20:22,735
and have it grafted into his jaw
so that his jaw would be strong enough
1339
01:20:22,818 --> 01:20:23,861
to take the implant.
1340
01:20:24,445 --> 01:20:27,532
Don Jones,
his best friend and manager, said,
1341
01:20:27,615 --> 01:20:30,576
"You know, Ernie, you sure?
You sure you need to do that?"
1342
01:20:30,660 --> 01:20:33,788
And you know, and Dad said,
"Yeah, you know, it'll be fine."
1343
01:20:33,871 --> 01:20:36,249
And so he underwent the surgery.
1344
01:20:37,291 --> 01:20:40,419
[Jim] We were talking about doing
another tour and he wanted to come over
1345
01:20:40,503 --> 01:20:43,214
and just do some preliminary writing.
1346
01:20:44,298 --> 01:20:50,054
He was complaining because
he had had a little operation on his rib.
1347
01:20:50,137 --> 01:20:55,851
And yeah, so we hung out and then,
"Okay, see ya."
1348
01:20:55,935 --> 01:20:59,605
I got home and there were
a couple of messages from my dad
1349
01:20:59,689 --> 01:21:01,607
saying he wasn't feeling well.
1350
01:21:01,691 --> 01:21:04,652
So, I went to his house
1351
01:21:04,735 --> 01:21:09,240
and he was, you know,
obviously uncomfortable.
1352
01:21:09,323 --> 01:21:11,867
I was kind of saying, you know,
"We really should
1353
01:21:11,951 --> 01:21:13,869
go to the hospital
and get this checked out."
1354
01:21:13,953 --> 01:21:16,372
There was a drug they were
going to give him that would've helped
1355
01:21:16,455 --> 01:21:19,792
against pancreatitis, but because
of the heart medication that he was on,
1356
01:21:19,875 --> 01:21:21,752
he couldn't take the drug.
1357
01:21:21,836 --> 01:21:24,880
So they were doing some testing,
and I sat with him.
1358
01:21:24,964 --> 01:21:27,967
And then at some point, it was,
you know, 11:00 or 12:00 at night,
1359
01:21:28,050 --> 01:21:30,928
and I said, "I'm gonna go home
and get the kids off to school,
1360
01:21:31,012 --> 01:21:34,765
and I'll come back," and I left.
1361
01:21:34,849 --> 01:21:37,977
And at some point in the night,
I got a call from the hospital.
1362
01:21:38,060 --> 01:21:41,105
He had a stroke. He had a major stroke.
1363
01:21:43,858 --> 01:21:48,195
My brother was in the UK
having his second daughter
1364
01:21:48,279 --> 01:21:49,947
who was born on September 10th.
1365
01:21:51,365 --> 01:21:55,369
[Chris] We're still completely wired
from the birth of my daughter,
1366
01:21:55,453 --> 01:21:57,204
and the phone rang
and it was somebody that said,
1367
01:21:57,288 --> 01:21:59,415
"Oh, my God, turn on the television."
1368
01:21:59,498 --> 01:22:03,044
And that's when we saw the events of 9/11.
1369
01:22:09,550 --> 01:22:13,304
I was calling my brother on the phone
and saying, you know,
1370
01:22:13,387 --> 01:22:16,515
"You really you really need
to come to Canada. Dad's not well."
1371
01:22:16,599 --> 01:22:20,936
And he said, "All flights are grounded.
I can't come over there."
1372
01:22:21,020 --> 01:22:24,857
[Chris] I tried to get onto an Air Canada
flight and they said, "No, there's no way.
1373
01:22:24,940 --> 01:22:28,778
There's no way. We've got, you know,
days of people trying to get back home."
1374
01:22:30,363 --> 01:22:33,991
I've never done this before,
but I... The guy was Canadian.
1375
01:22:35,868 --> 01:22:37,745
And I said, "Do you know
who Mr. Dressup is?"
1376
01:22:37,828 --> 01:22:39,580
He's like, "Yeah, of course I do."
1377
01:22:40,498 --> 01:22:43,042
I said, "Look, between me and you,
1378
01:22:43,125 --> 01:22:46,295
but he's my dad. He's had a stroke.
1379
01:22:46,379 --> 01:22:48,756
I don't think he's gonna make it,
and I need to get home."
1380
01:22:50,341 --> 01:22:55,179
Guy was like, "Hang on a second."
He said, "All right, I got you a seat."
1381
01:22:55,262 --> 01:22:59,308
If he's watching... I appreciate you.
1382
01:22:59,392 --> 01:23:02,603
That meant the absolute world to me,
because I got home
1383
01:23:02,687 --> 01:23:04,105
and I was able to be with him.
1384
01:23:07,149 --> 01:23:10,111
I just remember being with him
and just telling him
1385
01:23:10,194 --> 01:23:15,825
it was okay to go and be with mom.
You know, we're gonna be okay. It's okay.
1386
01:23:16,659 --> 01:23:17,952
You know, I thought about it
and I thought,
1387
01:23:18,035 --> 01:23:20,871
"Wow, you know, what a life,
1388
01:23:22,373 --> 01:23:26,127
and what a death in the company of family,
in comfort,
1389
01:23:26,210 --> 01:23:30,464
dignity, respect and love."
1390
01:23:30,548 --> 01:23:32,758
We were all staying at his house.
1391
01:23:32,842 --> 01:23:36,512
I just felt like there was, like,
a ton to do, because there was...
1392
01:23:37,346 --> 01:23:42,810
It wasn't just us that had lost him.
It was everybody.
1393
01:23:42,893 --> 01:23:47,022
Before Barney, before Teletubbies,
there was Mr. Dressup,
1394
01:23:47,106 --> 01:23:50,609
a gentle man who delighted
generations of children.
1395
01:23:50,693 --> 01:23:54,071
Ernie Coombs died this morning
in a Toronto hospital
1396
01:23:54,155 --> 01:23:55,573
after suffering a stroke.
1397
01:23:55,656 --> 01:23:59,243
{\an8}He was a wonderful, special,
gentle person,
1398
01:23:59,326 --> 01:24:04,874
{\an8}and you will not likely see him again...
a person like him again.
1399
01:24:04,957 --> 01:24:07,668
[sniffles] Sorry.
1400
01:24:07,752 --> 01:24:11,380
Our whole generation was shaped
by seeing Mr. Dressup.
1401
01:24:11,464 --> 01:24:14,133
Well, he was your weekday routine.
1402
01:24:14,216 --> 01:24:16,677
I mean, he'll be missed,
but he'll be really remembered.
1403
01:24:16,761 --> 01:24:19,930
The fact that everyone's talking about it
and everyone remembers him is really nice.
1404
01:24:23,893 --> 01:24:28,647
[Craig] In parliament, they even
take a moment to talk about Ernie Coombs
1405
01:24:28,731 --> 01:24:31,066
and Mr. Dressup,
Prime Minister Jean Chretien.
1406
01:24:31,150 --> 01:24:34,111
{\an8}He issues a statement
because of the impact that
1407
01:24:34,195 --> 01:24:36,655
{\an8}Ernie Coombs had
on generations of children.
1408
01:24:36,739 --> 01:24:39,700
{\an8}I remember when John Lennon was killed,
I remember when Elvis died.
1409
01:24:39,784 --> 01:24:41,994
{\an8}And I remember when Mr. Dressup died.
1410
01:24:42,745 --> 01:24:46,373
I think a lot of adults were
probably more affected by it
1411
01:24:46,457 --> 01:24:48,459
than they thought they would be.
1412
01:24:48,542 --> 01:24:53,172
{\an8}It took me back to my kidhood,
and I felt like I had lost a parent.
1413
01:24:53,255 --> 01:24:55,966
He had filled my life with so much joy.
1414
01:24:57,551 --> 01:25:00,471
{\an8}Somehow, you thought
that he would never die.
1415
01:25:00,554 --> 01:25:04,225
I don't know. He was so much
a part of our lives.
1416
01:25:05,184 --> 01:25:08,395
[Jonathan] It had never
occurred to me that he was mortal.
1417
01:25:08,479 --> 01:25:11,774
{\an8}He's forever. He always was
and he just always is.
1418
01:25:13,609 --> 01:25:17,404
We had a commemoration.
1419
01:25:17,947 --> 01:25:19,448
I went into Dad's closet...
1420
01:25:19,532 --> 01:25:21,742
[audience laughs]
1421
01:25:21,826 --> 01:25:24,662
...in the bedroom this morning
looking for something to wear
1422
01:25:24,745 --> 01:25:26,330
because Dad and I
are about the same size,
1423
01:25:26,413 --> 01:25:31,001
and I saw this and I thought,
"Well, hey, I can't think of anything
1424
01:25:31,085 --> 01:25:33,170
that would be better suited to the event."
1425
01:25:33,254 --> 01:25:36,632
[Casey] Hey, come on, Finnegan.
This looks like a good spot to me.
1426
01:25:41,470 --> 01:25:43,430
[Casey] Mr. Dressup's not here anymore.
1427
01:25:43,514 --> 01:25:46,892
- No, no, he's not.
- And we're pretty sad about that.
1428
01:25:46,976 --> 01:25:49,687
- Yes, we are.
- [Casey] We're very sad about it. Yep.
1429
01:25:50,771 --> 01:25:54,441
Huh? Hey, Finnegan says
he knows where Mr. Dressup is.
1430
01:25:54,525 --> 01:25:55,776
- Really?
- [Casey] Mm-hmm.
1431
01:25:56,443 --> 01:25:57,736
Where is he?
1432
01:25:57,820 --> 01:25:59,488
[Casey] He says he's in our hearts.
1433
01:26:00,614 --> 01:26:03,284
- Well, Finnegan... Finnegan's right.
- [Casey] That's right.
1434
01:26:03,367 --> 01:26:05,452
Mr. Dressup is in our hearts.
1435
01:26:06,579 --> 01:26:08,873
People just broke up over that.
1436
01:26:10,040 --> 01:26:13,752
And I think that's probably true.
He was... He was in our hearts.
1437
01:26:17,631 --> 01:26:19,341
[children chatter]
1438
01:26:19,425 --> 01:26:22,428
Just sit down over there, guys.
Close to the front.
1439
01:26:28,350 --> 01:26:34,356
I adored all those times that we talked
about how amazing children were.
1440
01:26:35,858 --> 01:26:37,818
Kid-me would say thank you.
1441
01:26:40,613 --> 01:26:42,448
And adult-me would say thank you too.
1442
01:26:42,531 --> 01:26:47,036
Oh, hello. You're here now,
so I'll put my book down.
1443
01:26:47,119 --> 01:26:51,165
You still live in my imagination,
and I hope you never go away.
1444
01:26:51,248 --> 01:26:52,917
Casey and Finnegan are out in the yard.
1445
01:26:53,000 --> 01:26:55,002
I don't know what they're doing,
but they were...
1446
01:26:55,085 --> 01:26:58,255
[Casey] Mr. Dressup, we found one,
we found one. We found the worms.
1447
01:26:58,339 --> 01:27:02,051
You played such an important part
of my life growing up,
1448
01:27:02,134 --> 01:27:03,594
and I didn't even realize it.
1449
01:27:03,677 --> 01:27:05,679
[Casey] I'll put them back in the dirt
where I found them
1450
01:27:05,763 --> 01:27:07,348
and then they can find their family.
1451
01:27:07,431 --> 01:27:10,351
It was the show that was fundamental
1452
01:27:10,434 --> 01:27:14,355
in developing me into the human being
that I am today.
1453
01:27:14,438 --> 01:27:17,858
You exceeded all of my expectations
1454
01:27:17,942 --> 01:27:21,737
of what meeting a childhood hero
can be like.
1455
01:27:21,820 --> 01:27:25,157
All right, I'll get my duck costume on,
it's right here in the trunk.
1456
01:27:25,240 --> 01:27:27,368
I think of you all the time.
1457
01:27:27,451 --> 01:27:31,997
When I'm putting on a costume,
when I'm drawing something.
1458
01:27:33,332 --> 01:27:36,043
Or when I talk to my son, Finnegan.
1459
01:27:36,126 --> 01:27:40,297
Well, you are a good dog, Finnegan,
so I'll do what I promised.
1460
01:27:40,381 --> 01:27:44,176
It's hard to imagine anyone having had
a bigger influence on my life.
1461
01:27:44,259 --> 01:27:46,428
[Casey]
And that's the end of the story.
1462
01:27:47,805 --> 01:27:50,224
Right now it's time
for us to say goodbye to you.
1463
01:27:50,307 --> 01:27:52,726
- [Casey] Oh.
- For now, until we see you next time.
1464
01:27:52,810 --> 01:27:56,814
Goodbye from Casey and Finnegan and me...
1465
01:27:56,897 --> 01:27:58,440
- [Casey] Mr. Dressup.
- Bye-bye.
1466
01:28:24,800 --> 01:28:26,927
{\an8}[audience applauding]
1467
01:28:32,808 --> 01:28:35,310
{\an8}We stand here tonight
in front of a nation
1468
01:28:35,394 --> 01:28:39,106
{\an8}who loves our grandfather
just as much as we do.
1469
01:28:39,189 --> 01:28:43,777
{\an8}My whole life, I have felt inspired by
the legacy my grandfather has left behind.
1470
01:28:44,862 --> 01:28:47,531
{\an8}He gave the people of Canada
a unique kind of warmth,
1471
01:28:47,614 --> 01:28:50,993
{\an8}kindness and compassion
that is still present to this day.
1472
01:28:51,076 --> 01:28:56,665
{\an8}I feel so honored to be his granddaughter,
so lucky to have known him
1473
01:28:56,749 --> 01:28:58,792
{\an8}and to have him be a part of my life.
1474
01:28:58,876 --> 01:29:02,046
{\an8}And I feel a totally unmatched kind of joy
1475
01:29:02,129 --> 01:29:05,049
{\an8}when I share with someone
that he was my grandfather
1476
01:29:05,132 --> 01:29:07,885
{\an8}and they respond with such love
in their voices.
1477
01:29:07,968 --> 01:29:12,389
{\an8}Ernie Coombs was never acting
when he was Mr. Dressup.
1478
01:29:12,473 --> 01:29:17,728
{\an8}Sure, he may have been reading a script,
but all of his drawings,
1479
01:29:17,811 --> 01:29:22,691
{\an8}his gentle nature, warmth, candor
and his ability
1480
01:29:22,775 --> 01:29:26,987
{\an8}to create an imaginative space
was just him being himself.
1481
01:29:27,071 --> 01:29:30,532
{\an8}So tonight, we accept this award
as his grandchildren,
1482
01:29:30,616 --> 01:29:33,869
{\an8}but I think we accept it on behalf
of all Canadians
1483
01:29:33,952 --> 01:29:37,998
{\an8}because we realize he belongs
just as much to you as he does to us.
1484
01:29:38,082 --> 01:29:39,875
{\an8}Thank you so much, Canada.
1485
01:29:55,974 --> 01:29:57,810
{\an8}[Casey] It's been a long time.
1486
01:29:58,811 --> 01:30:00,104
{\an8}Yes, it has.
1487
01:30:00,896 --> 01:30:05,234
{\an8}But I hope that you're gonna come back
and visit us again soon.
1488
01:30:05,317 --> 01:30:08,362
And I hope that you've learned
all sorts of things from us.
1489
01:30:09,029 --> 01:30:12,741
How to make things
and how to do things and how to have fun.
1490
01:30:12,825 --> 01:30:15,953
{\an8}But now it's time for us to say goodbye
1491
01:30:16,036 --> 01:30:18,372
{\an8}because I'm gonna take
Finnegan for a walk.
1492
01:30:19,039 --> 01:30:20,874
He's coming with me.
1493
01:30:22,918 --> 01:30:24,837
[soft whimsical music]