Welcome to Pooh Corner

Welcome to Pooh Corner is a live-action/puppet television series that aired on Disney Channel, featuring the characters from the Winnie the Pooh universe portrayed by actors in human-sized puppet suits, except Roo, who was originally a traditional puppet. The animatronic costumes used for the characters were created by Alchemy II, Inc., headed by Ken Forsse who later created Teddy Ruxpin. The show was first aired on May 30, 1983-June 9, 1986, the day The Disney Channel was launched.[1] Its timeslot for its early run was at 8:30 a.m. Eastern/Pacific Time, making it the third program of The Disney Channel's 16 (later 18) hour programming day.[1] Reruns of the show aired on The Disney Channel until May 30, 1997.[2]

Welcome to Pooh Corner
Second Welcome to Pooh Corner title card
Starring
  • Joe Giamalva
  • Patty Maloney
  • Ronald Mangham
  • Norman Merrill, Jr.
  • Mark Sawyer
  • Frank Groby
  • Sharon Baird
  • Shelagh Garren
  • Peter Risch
Voices of
Narrated byLaurie Main
Country of originUnited States
No. of episodes120
Production
Running time30 minutes
Production companies
DistributorBuena Vista Television
Release
Original networkThe Disney Channel
Audio formatStereo
Original releaseMay 30, 1983 (1983-05-30) –
June 9, 1986 (1986-06-09)

Hal Smith, Will Ryan, and Laurie Main were the only three actors from the original four Pooh shorts to reprise their roles here (Smith, who had voiced Owl ever since the beginning of Disney's Winnie the Pooh franchise, had recently replaced Sterling Holloway as the voice of Pooh; Ryan had provided Rabbit's voice in the 1983 short Winnie the Pooh and a Day for Eeyore, replacing Junius Matthews; and Main was the narrator for Winnie the Pooh and a Day for Eeyore, replacing Sebastian Cabot). The show's title derives from the second Winnie the Pooh storybook, The House at Pooh Corner.

Background

This series was the only incarnation in the history of Disney's incarnations of Winnie the Pooh in which we could actually see the narrator aside from only hearing his voice. He would present each episode. The show would start off with him greeting the viewers "Welcome to Pooh Corner" and then relate what he was talking about to an event that occurred in the Hundred Acre Wood, the home of the Pooh characters, and then he would proceed to read from a book entitled Welcome to Pooh Corner. He would then narrate the episode acted out by the characters. The action was filmed before a blue screen, rather than using traditional sets (the same technique was used for Dumbo's Circus, another live-action/puppet series that ran on The Disney Channel).

Since the show was designed for The Disney Channel before it began airing commercials, there were no breaks for commercials. As a result, the show lasted a full thirty minutes. The main story ran about twenty minutes followed by two shorter segments. The first segment was a sing-along music video featuring one of nine songs, used over and over throughout the show's run. These songs were written by the Oscar-winning Sherman Brothers who had provided the majority of the Winnie the Pooh music over the years. The Sherman Brothers also wrote the show's theme song, using the music from the original Winnie-the-Pooh theme song from The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, albeit with a slightly altered tempo.

The last segment of the show was a presentational arts and crafts demonstration that took place at the Thoughtful Spot. One of the cast members would speak to the narrator, looking directly into the camera, while they showed the viewers at home how to make something.

When the series first started out, the narrator was seen sitting in a small library. As the series progressed, he is moved into a small playroom which eventually is seen having plush versions of Pooh and his friends.

Episodes
  1. The Fastest Rabbit in the Wood
  2. The Long, Long Walk
  3. Roo Gets Lost
  4. The Fastest Does Not Win the Race
  5. Carrots, Carrots and More Carrots
  6. Pooh and His Friends Switch Places
  7. Almost Perfect Picnic
  8. Pooh Forgets to Remember
  9. Treasures Island
  10. Eeyore Goes Exploring
  11. You Need a Friend
  12. Eeyore Solves A Problem
  13. Piglet Cares for a Carrot
  14. Pooh Gets a Turn
  15. A Brand New Sign
  16. Mystery of the Missing Tail
  17. Dress Up Day
  18. Pooh Corner On Parade
  19. Pooh Shows Tigger A Bright Side
  20. Kanga and Roo Learn Where Home Is
  21. Now You See It
  22. It Must Be Summer
  23. Feelings
  24. Practice Makes Perfect
  25. Piglet Learns to Swing
  26. Rabbit's Treasure Hunt
  27. Heat Wave
  28. Big Little Piglet
  29. Surprise, Surprise
  30. Pooh Builds a Bee House
  31. Tale of a Tail
  32. When I Was Younger
  33. Rabbit Wins One for the Tigger
  34. Hi Neighbor
  35. Pooh and His Friends Take Pot Luck
  36. Piglet Finds Out Who His Friends Are
  37. All Fall Down
  38. Tigger Takes A Fall
  39. Bright Idea
  40. Singing Helps the Work Along
  41. There's No Place Like Owl's Place
  42. A House of a Different Color
  43. Pooh Cleans Up
  44. Wishing
  45. Happy Birthday, Roo
  46. Hello, Hello There
  47. Piglet's Secret Place is Safe
  48. Eeyore Talks to Himself
  49. Owl Has A Party For His Auntiversary
  50. Clouds
  51. Pooh Corner Singing Society
  52. Iceboat Cometh
  53. Eeyore Joins the Band
  54. Rabbit and Eeyore Do a Good Deed
  55. Pooh Goes Boom
  56. Pooh Learns to Remember
  57. The Pooh Scouts
  58. Rabbit's Cousin
  59. Song of Eeyore
  60. Roo's Great Adventure
  61. Sleepytime Tigger
  62. Pooh Makes a Trade
  63. Don't Quit
  64. Little Things
  65. Home is Better
  66. Handyman Tigger
  67. The Old Swimming Hole
  68. Brighten Your Corner
  69. A House is Blown Down
  70. Fine-Feathered Friend
  71. Many Things: Lost and Found
  72. Tigger Finds A Hobby
  73. "Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti"
  74. The Great Kite Race
  75. Let's Pretend
  76. Piglet Lends A Helping Hand
  77. To Be A Friend
  78. Poor Eeyore
  79. It Must Be Fall
  80. Doing What I Do Best
  81. Day for Knights
  82. Stay at Home Adventure
  83. Safety First
  84. Look Around, Look Around
  85. Be of Good Cheer
  86. Piglet Sings Out
  87. Eeyore's Island
  88. Pooh Corner Carnival
  89. A Bicycle Built for Five
  90. Eeyore's Costume Party
  91. Piglet Sees Spots
  92. My Echo and I
  93. The Man in the Moon is a Tigger
  94. A Swing for Eeyore
  95. Do It Now
  96. Butterflies Tigger
  97. Strawberry Time
  98. Eeyore's Gift
  99. Pooh Corner School
  100. Snow Falls on Pooh Corner
  101. Pooh and His Friends Play Follow the Leader
  102. "The Iceboat Cometh"
  103. Pooh Borrows Trouble
  104. Piglet's Slumber Party
  105. Rabbit Learns to Share
  106. A Mysterious Noise Keeps Piglet Awake
  107. Piglet Pride
  108. Pooh Scouts Campout
  109. Very Beautiful Day
  110. Eeyore's Tea Party
  111. The Great Outdoors
  112. Rules of the Game
  113. There's A Party Going Round
  114. It Must Be Spring
  115. Tigger's Day Off

Holiday specials
  1. Pooh Corner Thanksgiving (1983)
  2. Christmas at Pooh Corner (1983)
  3. Pooh's Funny Valentine's Day (1984)
  4. Because It's Halloween (1984)
  5. Christmas Is For Sharing (1984)

Educational specials
  • Too Smart for Strangers - a 1985 TV special (which was also released to home video), where Pooh and his friends tell the viewers about strangers and molestation and what to do.
  • Pooh's Great School Bus Adventure - a fifteen-minute 16mm educational film produced in 1986, where the characters explain the importance of school bus safety.
  • One and Only You - a ten-minute 16mm educational film produced in 1989, where the characters explain about being yourself.
  • Responsible Persons - a ten-minute 16mm educational film produced in 1989, Pooh and friends demonstrate taking responsibility for your actions.

Cast

With

Voice cast

Performers
  • Sharon Baird (Pooh)
  • Robin Frederick
  • Joe Giamalva
  • Clancy Gorewit
  • Frank Groby
  • Patty Maloney (Piglet/Roo)
  • Ronald Mangham
  • Norman Merrill Jr.
  • Peter Risch
  • Mark Sawyer

Music

Music composers

Songs

The songs were written by the Academy Award-winning songwriting duo of Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman. The Sherman Brothers also wrote the majority of the well known Winnie the Pooh songs, including "The Wonderful Thing about Tiggers" and "Heffalumps and Woozles" from the 1960s, and in 2000 wrote the score to The Tigger Movie.

  • "Welcome to Pooh Corner Theme Song"
  • "Try a Little Something New" (Rabbit's Song); is sung by Rabbit. It is about how Rabbit deals with his "naughty habits" of 'mundanity and stagnation.' The song was re-written for the later 1999 VHS production, Sing a Song with Pooh Bear, in which Tigger and Owl perform it as a duet.
  • "Just Say, 'Yes I Can' " (Eeyore's Song)
  • "You're the Only You" (Tigger's song); is his personal "theme song" specifically for this series, as opposed to his widely accepted theme song in reference to the Pooh franchise as a whole, "The Wonderful Thing about Tiggers" (also written by the Sherman Brothers). In the song, he asserts that "the wonderful thing about Tiggers is: I'm the only one".
  • "I Hum to Myself" (Piglet's Song); is about how Piglet deals with his fears by humming to himself.
  • "The Right Side" (Pooh's Song); was originally written in 1961 or 1962 as part of the Sherman Brothers' score for Mary Poppins. In the song, Pooh explains how he makes the best out of a bad situation.
  • "Responsible Persons" (Owl's Song)
  • "Be A Buddy, Be A Pal" (Tigger and Roo's Song)
  • "Please and Thank-You" (Pooh and Piglet's Song)
  • "It's What's on the Inside That Matters" (Rabbit/Tigger and Piglet Song)
  • "Smile When You Say That" (Rabbit/Tigger and Piglet Song)
  • "Clouds" (Rabbit and Eeyore's Song)
  • "Trees" (Tigger and Owl's Song)
  • "Tiggers Go Up and Down" (Tigger)
  • "The Tigger Strut" (Tigger, with the Pooh Corner Band)
  • "Mr. Song and Dance" (Eeyore, with the Pooh Corner Band)
  • Welcome to Pooh Corner Closing Song
  • "Stay Cool, Calm and Collective" (Roo and Robert) In the episode "The Long, Long Walk", Rabbit's brother comes to visit the 100 Acre Wood. But when Rabbit asks Roo to show Robert around, the kangaroo and the rabbit's brother sing this song while lost in the woods about being brave when something scary happens as you get lost.
  • "Halloween" (all) In this song, all the characters explain what happens on Halloween night like dressing up in costumes, going to parties and Trick-Or-Treating for candy.

"A Part of Me"

Sometimes, if an episode ended a few minutes early, a certain character would sing a song entitled "A Part of Me", which was written by one of the voice actors, Phil Baron. The song depicts the importance of a certain body part that each character was singing about:

Home media

US releases

Six VHS tapes were released by Walt Disney Home Video in the mid-1980s for the then new video home rental market. Each tape contained four episodes.

  • Volume One contains the episodes "You Need A Friend", "Doing What I Do Best", "The Pooh Scouts" and "Brighten Your Corner".
  • Volume Two contains the episodes "Safety First", "Rabbit Learns to Share", "The Great Outdoors" and "Surprise, Surprise".
  • Volume Three contains the episodes "Piglet Pride", "Roo's Great Adventure", "Eeyore Talks to Himself" and "Snow Falls On Pooh Corner".
  • Volume Four contains the episodes "Hello, Hello There", "Practice Makes Perfect", "The Old Swimming Hole" and "Pooh Makes a Trade".
  • Volume Five contains the episodes "A Bicycle Built for Five", "My Echo and I", "Pooh Learns to Remember" and "Wishing".
  • Volume Six contains the episodes "Don't Quit", "Holiday for Pooh Bear", "Pooh Builds a Bee House" and "Piglet Lends a Helping Hand".

UK releases

The show was also released on VHS PAL in the UK as part of a six-volume set which also each featured an episode of Good Morning, Mickey!, Donald Duck Presents, The Mouse Factory and Mousercise. Each tape contained one episode of Welcome to Pooh Corner.

  • Volume One contains the episode "Eeyore Joins the Band".
  • Volume Two contains the episode "Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti".
  • Volume Three contains the episode "A Bicycle Built for Five".
  • Volume Four contains the episode "Piglet's Slumber Party".
  • Volume Five contains the episode "Eeyore's Costume Party".
  • Volume Six contains the episode "Handyman Tigger".
  • Volume Seven contains the episode "Do It Now".
  • First Christmas Volume contains the special "Christmas at Pooh Corner"

DVD releases
  • Disney Safety Hits Vol. 2 (Pooh's Great School Bus Adventure & Too Smart for Strangers)

References
  1. The Disney Channel Magazine, May 30, 1983 (Premiere Issue), pp. 7, 14.
  2. TV Guide - May 24-30, 1997
Preceded by
N/A		 Disney Channel Original Series Succeeded by
Good Morning, Mickey!
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