Arthur Takes a Stand

Last updated

"Arthur Takes a Stand"
Arthur episode
Arthur Takes a Stand title-card.png
Title card
Episode no.Season 21
Episode 4b
Directed byGreg Bailey
Written byPeter Hirsch
Production code236b
Original air dateFebruary 12, 2018 (2018-02-12)
Guest appearance
John Lewis as himself
Episode chronology
← Previous
"Muffy Misses Out"		Next →
"Slink's Special Talent"
Arthur (season 21)
List of episodes

"Arthur Takes a Stand" is the second segment of the fourth episode of the 21st season of Arthur . It originally aired on PBS Kids in the United States on February 12, 2018. "Arthur Takes a Stand" was written by Peter Hirsch and storyboarded by Cilbur Rocha. In the episode, Arthur learns that his school's lunch lady, Mrs. MacGrady, has to do all her work by herself. He attempts to get the principal to hire an assistant for her, but his request is denied. Through advice and encouragement from his friend Sue Ellen and civil rights leader John Lewis, Arthur gets the rest of his class to participate in a sit-in protest.

Contents

Plot

At Lakewood Elementary, principal Ms. Tingley announces that breakfast will be served in the school cafeteria, and that civil rights leader John Lewis will be visiting the school. The next morning, the students enjoy the breakfast, and Arthur talks to Mrs. MacGrady as she is clearing the tables. He is surprised to learn that she does all the cafeteria work by herself, without any assistance. Arthur goes to the principal's office, where he asks Ms. Tingley to hire more cafeteria staff, and she answers that the school does not have the budget for it.

Arthur's friend Sue Ellen suggests that he start a boycott. Arthur goes to Mrs. MacGrady with a "Boycott Breakfast" poster, although she states that serving breakfast was her own decision. In the library, Arthur has a nightmare where Mrs. MacGrady is overworked from breakfast being served 24 hours a day; he awakes to find John Lewis sitting at the table with him. Lewis advises Arthur to be persistent in his protesting.

After breakfast the next day, Arthur continues to sit at his table, starting a sit-in protest. Mrs. MacGrady joins him, agreeing that not getting any help is unfair. The entire class slowly joins Arthur's protest. Ms. Tingley enters and demands them to stop; however, Mrs. MacGrady refuses to leave until she is guaranteed to get an assistant. Lewis enters and recognizes Mrs. MacGrady as an old friend from the March on Washington, also joining the sit-in. Finally, Ms. Tingley decides to write to the school board and request more money. Lewis tells Arthur, "There's nothing more important than following your conscience. If you can do that, you're always going to sleep well" as the episode ends. [1]

Production

Marc Brown, creator of the Arthur franchise, had met Lewis at the National Press Club and got the idea to have him appear on the show. Carol Greenwald, executive producer of Arthur, wrote that Lewis was excited to appear on the show, although he corrected facts about his history in the writing and rejected initial character designs. In one, he was depicted as "a really cuddly teddy bear"; Lewis denied it, stating that "I just don't look like that" and opting for a more realistic design. However, during Lewis's voice line recording sessions, Greenwald was impressed by "his warmth and his openness and also just his willingness to jump in and have some fun." [1]

The writer of "Arthur Takes a Stand," Peter Hirsch, described that the episode aims to "explore how a young kid can protest." In order to teach "one, how to protest, and two, empathy," the episode is about "Arthur [identifying] an injustice that [is]n't necessarily happening to him and to feel strongly enough to want to do something about it." In writing the episode, Hirsch was careful to "have a little bit of bite but not be so out there that the kids [a]re putting themselves in jeopardy." Greenwald said that the writing "definitely is in line with all that we’ve done always on Arthur, which is to bring in diverse viewpoints and interesting guest stars and think about topics that a lot of other kids’ series might not." [1]

In the episode, Mrs. MacGrady is revealed to have been a political activist. Hirsch described that this was "perfect" for the character, as the staff "had always envisioned her as a child of the ’60s. She's a lot hipper than you would know unless you talked to her." [1]

Reception

After the episode's release, Greenwald noted that it received "a lot of really positive responses," but also a few about "people saying we shouldn't be showing kids stuff like this." She responded that "not all kids" can be "protected from these issues," and that "[t]hat's part of what our goal with Arthur is, to be sharing these experiences broadly so kids of all kinds can understand and build empathy." [1]

Legacy

An animated short titled "Arthur on Racism: Talk, Listen, and Act" was produced in memory of John Lewis in August 2020. [2] In the video, Arthur and Buster ask Mrs. MacGrady what they can do to help fight racism. [3] The short was written in response to the murder of George Floyd in May 2020, [1] [4] and features Arthur and Buster's solemn reactions to watching a video implied to be of Floyd's murder. [3] After John Lewis's death, the Arthur Facebook account made a post commemorating Lewis, [5] and "Arthur Takes a Stand" was made available for free on the PBS Kids website and app. [1] [5]

Related Research Articles

<i>Arthur</i> (TV series) Animated television series (1996–2022)

Arthur is an animated television series for children ages 4 to 8, developed by Kathy Waugh for PBS and produced by WGBH. The show is set in the fictional U.S. city of Elwood City and revolves around the lives of Arthur Read, an anthropomorphic aardvark, his friends and family, and their daily interactions with each other.

City on the Edge of Forever (<i>South Park</i>) 7th episode of the 2nd season of South Park

"City on the Edge of Forever" is the seventh episode of the second season of the American animated television series South Park. The 20th episode of the series overall, it originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on June 17, 1998. The episode was written by series co-creator Trey Parker, along with Nancy M. Pimental, and directed by Parker. It guest stars Henry Winkler, Jay Leno, and Brent Musburger. In the episode, the boys reminisce about past experiences as their school bus is left teetering on the edge of a cliff. Ms. Crabtree leaves to seek help, but forgets about the children when she meets a truck driver named Marcus, and pursues a career as a stand-up comedian.

<i>Age of Iron</i> Book by John Maxwell Coetzee

Age of Iron is a 1990 novel by South African Nobel Prize winner J. M. Coetzee. It is among his most popular works and was the 1990 Sunday Express Book of the Year. In it, he paints a picture of social and political tragedy unfolding in a country ravaged by racism and violence. Critically acclaimed, it remains one of the most striking pieces of literature regarding South African apartheid and is still used in schools worldwide for literature studies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grady Memorial Hospital</span> Public hospital in Atlanta, Georgia

Grady Memorial Hospital is the public hospital for the city of Atlanta. The hospital is ranked as the tenth largest public hospital in the United States and is a Level I trauma center.

"Ain't No Magic Mountain High Enough" is the thirteenth episode of the second season of the American mystery television series Veronica Mars, and the thirty-fifth episode overall. Written by Diane Ruggiero and directed by Guy Bee, the episode premiered on UPN on February 8, 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lunch lady</span> Female worker who serves food in a school cafeteria

Lunch lady, in Canada and the US, is a term for a person who cooks and serves food in a school cafeteria. The equivalent term in the United Kingdom is dinner lady. The role is also sometimes known as cafeteria lady. Sometimes, a lunch lady also patrols the school playgrounds during lunch breaks to help maintain order.

<i>Wayside</i> (TV series) Canadian animated comedy television series

Wayside is a Canadian animated series and sitcom developed by John Derevlany and produced by Nelvana Limited. The series follows Todd, a transfer student who attends Wayside, an offbeat 30-story grammar school. It is loosely based on the Wayside School books by Louis Sachar, and several elements differ between the two works.

<i>Having Wonderful Time</i> 1938 film by Robert Parrish, Alfred Santell

Having Wonderful Time is a 1938 American romantic comedy film adapted from Arthur Kober's 1937 Broadway play of the same name, directed by Alfred Santell and starring Ginger Rogers and Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. along with Lucille Ball and Eve Arden. It was Red Skelton's film debut.

The Lunch Date is a 1989 American drama short film written and directed by Adam Davidson. In 2013, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

<i>Clifford the Big Red Dog</i> (2000 TV series) Animated television series or program

Clifford the Big Red Dog is an animated educational children's television series, based upon Norman Bridwell's children's book series of the same name. Produced by Scholastic Productions, it was originally aired on PBS Kids from September 4, 2000, to February 25, 2003. A UK version originally aired on BBC Two in April 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Naga Munchetty</span> British journalist and television presenter

Subha Nagalakshmi Munchetty-Chendriah, known professionally as Naga Munchetty, is an English television presenter, newsreader and journalist. She is a regular presenter on BBC Breakfast. She is also a former presenter of BBC World News and BBC Two's weekday financial affairs programme Working Lunch.

<i>Molly and Me</i> 1945 film by Lewis Seiler

Molly and Me is a 1945 American comedy film directed by Lewis Seiler and starring Monty Woolley, Gracie Fields, Reginald Gardiner and Roddy McDowall and released by 20th Century Fox. The screenplay was based on the novel written by Frances Marion and adapted by Roger Burford.

Caroline Hirsch is the founder and owner of the New York comedy club Carolines on Broadway and the New York Comedy Festival. She is recognized for her ability to spot rising comedic talent including Jerry Seinfeld and Paul Reubens.

"Q&A" is the fifth episode of the second season of the American television drama series Homeland, and the 17th episode overall. It originally aired on Showtime on October 28, 2012.

<i>Lucy Lewis Cant Lose</i>

Lucy Lewis Can't Lose is a children's comedy web series for ThreeNow in New Zealand. The first series became available online on 8 August 2016 and aired on Three on 25 December 2016; it was released on YouTube in March 2017. The second series was released on ThreeNow on 18 September 2017.

The 21st season of Arthur aired on PBS Kids in the U.S. from October 24, 2017 to February 15, 2018. John Lewis guest starred on the episode "Arthur Takes a Stand". This is also the last season where Jacob Ursomarzo voices Arthur, Christian Distefano voices D.W. and Max Friedman Cole voices Brain.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Blake, Meredith (July 25, 2020). "How John Lewis wound up in an episode of 'Arthur'". Los Angeles Times.
  2. ↑ Haneline, Amy (August 26, 2020). "'Everything starts at home': Kids' TV shows that teach anti-racism, celebrate diversity". USA Today.
  3. 1 2 McCarthy, Tyler (August 12, 2020). "New 'Arthur' video teaching kids how to combat racism dedicated to the memory of Rep. John Lewis". Fox News.
  4. ↑ Smith, Meghan (July 30, 2021). "'Arthur's Not Going Anywhere': Producer Says Show Will Focus On Digital Future, Not New TV Episodes". GBH.
  5. 1 2 Kueppers, Courtney (July 19, 2020). "A look back at the time John Lewis was featured on 'Arthur'". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.