The Friendly Giant

As a child in Detroit, Michigan, I had many favorite CBC television shows, and this was one of them--along with Mr. Dress-up, Chez Helene, etc.

There was just something so gently magical about it, even though Rusty the Rooster really scaried me at first. I always dreamt that he was hiding under my bed waiting to peck at my feet! Anyhow, a great show. I'd love to see some of it again.

Musidora

I watched "The Friendly Giant" as a young boy, and sometimes when I was older, I watched it out of reminiscence, and because I appreciated the sweet and calm gentleness of the program. Most of today's programs are so fast-paced and are far from educational, even children's programs. This program helped me develop a like for reading and for music. The pipe and harp theme song "Early One Morning" still sticks in my head.

Bob Homme, who passed away on May 2, 2000, created one of the finest preschool programs ever, and certainly, along with Mr. Dressup, the finest in Canada. By reading a book, playing the pipe, harp (played by the late John Duncan) and talking about simple, but important things with Rusty and Jerome, children had 15 minutes of quiet where they learned things important to them, at their own pace.

I was in the Czech Republic last month, and my host took me out to Karlstejn Castle, built by Charles IV of Bohemia, who became the Holy Roman Emperor, it was on the top of a ridge over a deep river valley, for its defensive value. As soon as I got through the gate, my mind clicked on with the recorder, accompanied by a gentle harp, playing "Early One Morning" Fact is, you had to "Look up, Wa-a-ay up" to see the castle, and once inside, there was not a lot of furniture left, maybe three chairs and a fireplace, one was big enough for two kids to curl up in and then you could put a rocking chair in the middle. (Can anyone remember the entire quote? Why hasn't it been added here?) I did look over the turrets for giraffes - even whistled for them. Just waited for someone to say "And there's that boot." It is a beautiful place to tour, but it will always be made more memorable by the connection my mind made back to my childhood and some of its warmest memories.

Before the gentle Mr. Rogers Neighborhood, before the frenzied, loud, noisy muppets of Sesame Street, there was The Friendly Giant. Mr. Homme's show appeared on Chicago's Window to the World WTTW and was broadcast somewhere between The Totem Club, What's New, and the Story Teller starring Val Bentin. The soft music, the little set, the quietness of the show was somehow haunting to watch and a little sad to behold in comparison with the other children shows on the air at that time.

Look up. WAY UP! At the stroke of 10:15 am from coast to coast on the CBC for better than 27 years, this meant that "The Friendly Giant" was about to start. Its theme, "Early One Morning," was written as a nostalgic ballad for the slow pace of Britain prior to the Industrial Revolution. Similarly, in an age of fast food, faster cars, and life in the fast lane, "The Friendly Giant" proved to be an escape from the ratrace of real life. It gave children a chance to "curl up in an armchair" as the Friendly Giant's guests in his castle. Along with Rusty the rooster and Jerome the giraffe, "Friendly" entertained youngsters with children's stories, songs, and music. In addition, the show implicitly taught youngsters that not every giant was a scary monster who ground bones to make their bread. After all, the Friendly Giant was a kind and gentle character. Bob Homme, who died earlier this year, certainly left his legacy with thousands of kids across Canada.