Fred Penner vs. Mr. Dress-up

(Warning: Ernie Coombs passed away in on September 18, 2001 at the age of 73. If you feel I am being insensitive by joking around about his show, don’t read this. However, I would suggest you are overly sensitive, since 73 is a full life, it was over six years ago, and the reality is that EVERYONE dies. Furthermore, I mean no actual insult to Mr. Coombs or his family)

I feel very blessed that when I was a child, we had such great children’s television. My favourites were The Elephant Show, Fred Penner, Under the Umbrella Tree, Today’s Special, etc. However, there were a couple boring shows: Thomas the Tank Engine, Polka Dot Door, and Mr. Dressup. Some people swear by these shows, they are sadly deluded. They sucked.

I will now compare Fred Penner to Mr. Dressup

Fred Penner is a Canadian children’s entertainer. Having taught himself how to play the guitar as a child, Penner used his giftings to help his sister, who suffered from Down’s Syndrome. After graduating from university, Penner worked with mentally disabled children using music as a therapeutic device. In his beloved television show, Penner sings songs, teaches basic life skills, and helps children to see the beauty in God’s Creation.

Mr. Dressup was an American who came to Canada to make some cash in children’s entertainment. Ernie Coombs (Dressup) did not have the same touching journey towards working with children. In fact, it has been a rumour (or “rumor” as Coombs would say) that Coombs never liked kids, explaining why his show is only him and puppets. Dressup can’t sing, but he tries. The rest of the show is him telling stories, drawing pictures (Dressup is a very impressive artist, if it was a grade 8 art class. I’d be very jealous.), and changing his clothes for the children in front of his “tickle trunk”. Dressup also has a disturbingly large stuffed animal collection.

The Intro’s.

Penner – Watch here. You’ll see that Penner appears with youthful vigour to the setting of very earthy music. Penner exults in the beauty and diversity of God’s Creation (while wearing a pretty sweet sweater, btw) and then goes further into his Canadian forest hideaway.

Dressup – Watch here. Dressup, instead of showcasing the wonders of creation, tries to wow the children with satanic gay magic (the magic rainbows). Once all that crap is over, the real show begins. Instead of being brought into a forest hideaway, we find ourselves in someone’s living room with grandpa ernie, who, not surprisingly, has failed to stay awake until our arrival. He then attempts to make small talk about his dreamlife. Considering his failing memory, you suspect you will be having this conversation again pretty soon.

The Actual Show:

Penner – Watch here. Penner teaches social skills (don’t leave people out), sings and plays guitar competently (unlike other children’s entertainers), teaches math (365-1=364), and western customs (the exchanging of gifts). Although Penner fails to give Saving Truth in his show, he points people towards it through common grace. Penner sings that “Life is for living, and Love is forgiving” (3:64), and shows the value of the heart and of love and that it is more blessed to give than to receive. I think I’ve seen that Penner has been at Christian events, and no wonder, since his content sounds a lot like most Christian bands (Relient K, Lifehouse, POD, Switchfoot, etc.). Anyways, not perfect, but good for state-run children’s television.

Dressup – Watch here. It is hard to determine whether Grandpa Ernie’s lack of coordination is just a sign of his age or whether its cause there’s something else besides clothes in the tickle trunk. Well, either way, after Grandpa Ernie’s done playing with toys, he then invites the children to participate in pagan wisdom rituals. The demon owl informs Grandpa Ernie that when mistakes happen, we should look to our own record of deeds for our self-justification. This is not a new tactic of the enemy. “Don’t worry, you’ve done so many good things in the past”. Do not believe this lie lest you be recalling your good deeds in Hell. It is the finished work of Christ that Justifies!

So, after the alcohol-induced hallucination and the drunken song and dance, Grandpa Ernie has another slip, ruining craft-time as per usual. At the end, you can tell that Casey really wants to leave, hopefully not because Grandpa Ernie is known to be an angry drunk too, but just cause its super awkward.

The Decision: Penner all the way.

Take good care of each other!