Brought to You by the Letter ‘G’

We weren’t five minutes into the meeting and I’d already said something I knew I would regret. After asking the other editorial folk what was new and learning that little had transpired since I’d last talked to them, I’d responded with the sage observation, “Well, no g-news is good g-news.”

My colleagues had never seen or heard of Gary Gnu (here pronounced “G-nu,” without the silent G), the Muppet-like newscaster from the 80s children’s TV show “The Great Space Coaster.” Nor were they familiar with his spirited catchphrase, which to me is as redolent of the decade as “I pity the fool!” or “Where’s the beef?” They took to the character like a Muppet-like duck to water, though. I spent the next hour or so answering to the name of Gary Gnu (“what do you think, Gary Gnu?”; “do you know what optogenetics is, Gary Gnu, or do you just like saying the word?), and now that I’m writing this I’m sure I’ll be hearing quite a bit more of that particular sobriquet.

Anyway, the episode got me thinking about children’s TV shows in general, and in particular children’s TV shows that impart some kind of knowledge about science. I was once a child myself, of course. And now I have two nephews who like to watch PBS Kids (my niece isn’t yet old enough to hang with Curious George like her brother). So I guess I have some small amount of experience with these shows.

Sesame Street (1969-Present)

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