Traci Paige Johnson

Traci Paige Johnson is an American animator and voice actress best known for creating the Nick Jr. preschool television series, Blue's Clues (1996–2006), its spin-off, Blue's Room (2004–2007), and the reboot series, Blue's Clues & You! (2019–present).

While a student at Northwestern University, where she earned a degree in radio, television, and film, Johnson began developing her "unique signature style of cutout animation using construction paper and everyday objects and textures".[1] She was a freelance animator in the early 1990s when cable television network Nickelodeon wanted to create a new television show for preschoolers. She already had experience working in children's television.[2] In 1994, Johnson, along with producer Angela Santomero and director Todd Kessler, which Nickelodeon executive Brown Johnson called a "green creative team",[3] created the series Blue's Clues. According to writer Diane Tracy, Johnson, Santomero, and Kessler did not possess traditional backgrounds of most producers of children's programs, but "did possess an amazing combination of talents, backgrounds, and personal attributes".[4] Also, according to Tracy, Johnson would "change the look of preschool children's television".[1] Johnson reported that she was cast as the voice of Blue, the show's main animated character because out of the show's crew, she sounded the most like a dog.[3]

While in high school, she was a member of an award-winning student-produced comedy show, Beyond Our Control which ran on the local NBC affiliate, WNDU-TV, at that time owned and operated by the University of Notre Dame.[5][6]

She is married to Robert Mowen (another Beyond Our Control alum) and has three sons: Thomas, Oliver, and Emmet.[7]

Filmography

Title	Role	First aired	Last aired	Co-production	Network	Notes
Blue's Clues	Co-creator	September 8, 1996	August 6, 2006	Out of the Blue Enterprises Nick Jr. Productions	Nick Jr.	Also the voice of Blue
Blue's Room		August 2, 2004	March 29, 2007
Super Why!		September 3, 2007	May 12, 2016	Out of the Blue Enterprises Decode Entertainment	PBS
Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood		September 3, 2012	present	Out of the Blue Enterprises Fred Rogers Productions WQED-TV 9 Story Entertainment
Creative Galaxy		April 19, 2013		Out of the Blue Enterprises 9 Story Entertainment Amazon Studios	Amazon Prime
Blue's Clues & You!		November 11, 2019		Out of the Blue Enterprises Nickelodeon Animation Studio Brown Bag Films	Nick Jr.	Also the voice of Blue
Gabby's Dollhouse		January 5, 2021		DreamWorks Animation Television	Netflix

Notes

1. Tracy, p. 15
2. Tracy, p. 14
3. Jim Forbes (narrator) (2006-07-27). "Behind the Clues: 10 Years of Blue (Part 1)" (Short documentary). Nickelodeon
4. Tracy, p. 12
5. "Beyond Our Control Alumni Association". beyondourcontrol.org.
6. "Beyond Our Control (TV Series 1968–1986) - IMDb" – via www.imdb.com.
7. "Traci Paige Johnson: Producing Kids' TV… versus Producing an Actual Kid". September 13, 2013.

Works cited

• Tracy, Diane. (2002). Blue's Clues for Success: The 8 Secrets Behind a Phenomenal Business. New York: Kaplan Publishing. ISBN 0-7931-5376-X.

External links

• Traci Paige Johnson at IMDb