Yo Gabba Gabba finally got an article in Entertainment Weekly.
Now I've admitted I'm a techno-lover (I blame formative years spent in the late-1980s). I recall the Kraftwerk-"Music Selector is the Soul Reflector"-turn on the strobe light and "Dance Your Love Away" scene as the ultimate in Good Times.
So two years ago when the girls and I happened across this odd little show on Noggin starring a funny black guy in an orange jumpsuit, furry hat, and horn-rimmed glasses dancing around to the musical stylings of Mark Mothersbaugh, we were checkin' that out!
Muno did give me pause, but the girls assured me he was just a hot dog from outer space. (Me: OK!) And by Halloween 2008, my big ole buddy Patrick Johnson and I were rockin out with the kids to "Party in My Tummy" and lovin it.
Can I just say, I know "PIMT" is intended to persuade little ones to eat their green beans and carrots (who are crying because they want to go to the party in your tummy). But if you're anything like me (and Patrick), and you know there's nothing better in life than hoggin' out, then that is the song for you.
Yo Gabba Gabba songs are available on iTunes, btw. I recommend the following: "Don't Bite Your Friends" (good message for kids and adults); Party in My Tummy" (see above); "Working Together" (again, good for parents and kids); The episode "Dance" (for obvious reasons).
What does all this have to do with marketing you ask? Well, I'll tell ya. I mentioned in a previous post that I came across an online forum dedicated to why the Twilight series was so successful.
There were a lot of haters going on about how badly the books were written (e.g., adverbs overload!) and feminist yadda yadda yadda. Personally, I thought the books were a lot of fun. I read them all in less than two weeks with a Disney trip thrown in the mix. They were entertaining and escapist and had an engaging love story.
But seriously, why would those books do better than say, a Sarah Dessen novel? My response = Marketing!
My reasoning was I would never have been aware of the books if I hadn't seen a big feature about Stephanie Myers and "the Twilight phenomenon" in Entertainment Weekly.
Therein lies the bug. I've known about YGG for two years, and EW's just now getting around to going ape over it.
So why is it so successful? I don't know that they've done much marketing for it. Maybe because it's on TV? Maybe because there's a buncha fan-parents out there who can't stop singing the songs and giggling about it to their friends?
I know I sing "Let's Get the Sillies Out" at odd, random moments. (I also bust rhymes from "Forgot About Dre," so I'm not such a great example.)
But I do have this question buzzing around in my head. What is making these books/shows so successful?
From what I understand there were lots of Moms out there reading Twilight before it went viral as well. Maybe that's it? If you can find something the kids like that the parents find irresistable as well, Eureka! You've done it?
I think it's the stylish clothes myself. I mean, heck. You can't beat that orange hat. And if I ever get anywhere near famous, I'm begging DJ Lance to please please please let me be a guest... I could do my Coco the Bird Lady dance!
Monday, March 8, 2010
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Little Miss Strawberry
I was a pretty shy little kid.
I'm telling the truth. My older brother, who I've mentioned before, was not shy. My husband is not. And it looks like neither of my children are either.
My mom likes to say my oldest daughter acts just like me as a child. I don't know about that. I do know last year when Catherine was tapped to be Dolly in the first grade Broadway show, I was all prepared to give her the ole pep talk. You know the "stage fright is only in your head," "everyone is rooting for you," "the audience really wants you to do well" talk.
Then she got out there, they hit her cue, and she lit up like a born performer. She sashayed across the stage, smiling and blowing kisses, twirling with the little boys, skipping. You could've knocked me over with a feather. I don't know what Mom's seeing, but that was not me.
First-grade me would have sped across the stage, chin stuck to chest, completely forgetting what the heck I was supposed to be doing up there, and why I was even there in the first place.
So I wasn't too surprised when Catherine came home a month ago saying she wanted to be in the Little Miss Strawberry pageant.
I did have to giggle when she asked if she would wear a little green hat and red outfit. "No," I explained. "You don't dress like a strawberry. It's for the strawberry festival."
Personally, I don't really care for pageants. I think they put too much emphasis on appearance.
I know, they're not all like that, but this one is. This one is 73 little second-grade girls walking out on the stage, and from there they go down to seven. From there to one Little Miss Strawberry. It's completely old-school, Miss America-Atlantic City, 100% appearance-based.
I'm a little conflicted about the whole thing. I wanted to stop her from doing it, but some of her friends are in it. And my mom always put me in pageants, shyness and all, and I don't think it hurt me.
Little me would look around at most of the other little girls there, and I understood we were different. They were the kids who must be on stage.
That's also why I've never thought anything negative about my friends who've done pageants and who really like them. It's not one of my things, but that doesn't mean it can't be someone else's. (Please note, I'm not talking about the crazy pageant-mom types. Those ladies need therapy.)
It's like me vs. my husband. Me = "Crap! Why is everyone looking at me?" Richard = "Crap! Why is everyone NOT looking at me?" Or me and my brother.
Did I mention my brother won "Master Bayou State" as a child? You should see the picture of him with his little crown and scepter. He's just beaming.
So it'll be interesting to see how this day plays out. I'll let you know,* and I'd love to hear your thoughts.
*UPDATE: She did not win LMS. Catherine was OK with it; Laura was not. Laura was mad Catherine didn't win and said she'd never be in a pageant. LOL!
I said to Catherine, "You know, Grammy used to put me in pageants, and I never really liked them."
Catherine: "Well, you weren't in a Broadway show."
Me: "That's true..."
(Thanks, Dolly, for bolstering the ole confidence! Onward and upward!)
I'm telling the truth. My older brother, who I've mentioned before, was not shy. My husband is not. And it looks like neither of my children are either.
My mom likes to say my oldest daughter acts just like me as a child. I don't know about that. I do know last year when Catherine was tapped to be Dolly in the first grade Broadway show, I was all prepared to give her the ole pep talk. You know the "stage fright is only in your head," "everyone is rooting for you," "the audience really wants you to do well" talk.
Then she got out there, they hit her cue, and she lit up like a born performer. She sashayed across the stage, smiling and blowing kisses, twirling with the little boys, skipping. You could've knocked me over with a feather. I don't know what Mom's seeing, but that was not me.
First-grade me would have sped across the stage, chin stuck to chest, completely forgetting what the heck I was supposed to be doing up there, and why I was even there in the first place.
So I wasn't too surprised when Catherine came home a month ago saying she wanted to be in the Little Miss Strawberry pageant.
I did have to giggle when she asked if she would wear a little green hat and red outfit. "No," I explained. "You don't dress like a strawberry. It's for the strawberry festival."
Personally, I don't really care for pageants. I think they put too much emphasis on appearance.
I know, they're not all like that, but this one is. This one is 73 little second-grade girls walking out on the stage, and from there they go down to seven. From there to one Little Miss Strawberry. It's completely old-school, Miss America-Atlantic City, 100% appearance-based.
I'm a little conflicted about the whole thing. I wanted to stop her from doing it, but some of her friends are in it. And my mom always put me in pageants, shyness and all, and I don't think it hurt me.
Little me would look around at most of the other little girls there, and I understood we were different. They were the kids who must be on stage.
That's also why I've never thought anything negative about my friends who've done pageants and who really like them. It's not one of my things, but that doesn't mean it can't be someone else's. (Please note, I'm not talking about the crazy pageant-mom types. Those ladies need therapy.)
It's like me vs. my husband. Me = "Crap! Why is everyone looking at me?" Richard = "Crap! Why is everyone NOT looking at me?" Or me and my brother.
Did I mention my brother won "Master Bayou State" as a child? You should see the picture of him with his little crown and scepter. He's just beaming.
So it'll be interesting to see how this day plays out. I'll let you know,* and I'd love to hear your thoughts.
*UPDATE: She did not win LMS. Catherine was OK with it; Laura was not. Laura was mad Catherine didn't win and said she'd never be in a pageant. LOL!
I said to Catherine, "You know, Grammy used to put me in pageants, and I never really liked them."
Catherine: "Well, you weren't in a Broadway show."
Me: "That's true..."
(Thanks, Dolly, for bolstering the ole confidence! Onward and upward!)
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
L O S T Anthems
A while back a friend recommended I download "Big Light" by the group Roman Candle. Very luminous, I know.
Anyway, I did, but I didn't really listen to it at the time. I'm sure you guys agree, you have to be in the mood for certain songs. Lately, it's been in constant rotation, much to the children's annoyance.
The girls are very into "Les Champs-Elysses" by Joe Dassin. I blame my French-teaching friend Jenni and Eloise in Paris.
Don't get me wrong, it's a fun, catchy tune, and I'm diggin the multiculturalism. But after the 100th time, I'm thinking thoughts I can't translate into English...
"Au soleil, sous la pluie, a midi ou a minuit
Il y a tout ce que vous voulez aux Champs-Elysees"
Jenni!
I've also been liking "Animal" by Kie$ha. Another anthem and great inspiration for romance. Yep. That's the emotion you're trying to capture. Good stuff.
(Can I go off on a tangent for a second and wonder what's the deal with no pants? I know we have Madonna to thank [again], but jeez, isn't the leotard look over yet? You're fit. That's awesome, now go get dressed already.)
So L O S T is in it's final season, and it is totally RULING!
My theory: the events that are happening off the island are going to end up being how the show rides off into the sunset. When they were on the plane, and Jack looked out the window and they showed the island underwater, I think that's what un-Locke/Smokey is ultimately going to do (sink the island), and our friends the Lostaways are going to be bounced back to what's going on in the real world.
Juliet did say "it worked" after all.
But that's just my theory. I have a group of friends in a separate email discussion who blow my mind with all their theories. Of course, they're all ST:TNG/Sci-Fi/Fantasy geeks, so I'm used to it. Having never read An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, I'm behind the curve. It's fun, though.
So I was thinking, those of you out there who watch, two questions:
1-What do you think?
2-Which L O S T character are you?
I have to admit, while I'd like to be Kate, and last month I felt like I was turning into Rousseau, the truth is I'm really Hurley.
He outweighs me by like 200 lbs and all, but every line he utters is totally in my head before he says it. I'm as completely confused as he is (in which cases, I do tend to go all Zen and be like "whatever"--Hurley!), and I would have totally been writing the screenplay for Return of the Jedi, because he's right. Ewoks sucked.
That's it for today, kids. I've got to get back to Bidding of the Bulls. Let me put my lighter away...
Anyway, I did, but I didn't really listen to it at the time. I'm sure you guys agree, you have to be in the mood for certain songs. Lately, it's been in constant rotation, much to the children's annoyance.
The girls are very into "Les Champs-Elysses" by Joe Dassin. I blame my French-teaching friend Jenni and Eloise in Paris.
Don't get me wrong, it's a fun, catchy tune, and I'm diggin the multiculturalism. But after the 100th time, I'm thinking thoughts I can't translate into English...
"Au soleil, sous la pluie, a midi ou a minuit
Il y a tout ce que vous voulez aux Champs-Elysees"
Jenni!
I've also been liking "Animal" by Kie$ha. Another anthem and great inspiration for romance. Yep. That's the emotion you're trying to capture. Good stuff.
(Can I go off on a tangent for a second and wonder what's the deal with no pants? I know we have Madonna to thank [again], but jeez, isn't the leotard look over yet? You're fit. That's awesome, now go get dressed already.)
So L O S T is in it's final season, and it is totally RULING!
My theory: the events that are happening off the island are going to end up being how the show rides off into the sunset. When they were on the plane, and Jack looked out the window and they showed the island underwater, I think that's what un-Locke/Smokey is ultimately going to do (sink the island), and our friends the Lostaways are going to be bounced back to what's going on in the real world.
Juliet did say "it worked" after all.
But that's just my theory. I have a group of friends in a separate email discussion who blow my mind with all their theories. Of course, they're all ST:TNG/Sci-Fi/Fantasy geeks, so I'm used to it. Having never read An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, I'm behind the curve. It's fun, though.
So I was thinking, those of you out there who watch, two questions:
1-What do you think?
2-Which L O S T character are you?
I have to admit, while I'd like to be Kate, and last month I felt like I was turning into Rousseau, the truth is I'm really Hurley.
He outweighs me by like 200 lbs and all, but every line he utters is totally in my head before he says it. I'm as completely confused as he is (in which cases, I do tend to go all Zen and be like "whatever"--Hurley!), and I would have totally been writing the screenplay for Return of the Jedi, because he's right. Ewoks sucked.
That's it for today, kids. I've got to get back to Bidding of the Bulls. Let me put my lighter away...
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Life Goes On
Bidding of the Bulls has eaten my life! It's OK, though. I'm not complaining because I was going a little nutso hitting the "refresh" button on the ole Gmail every five minutes waiting for query replies.
So I'm up to my neck in volunteer publicity. Here's a little for you, no charge: Attention SFES parents, Bidding of the Bulls is our biggest fundraiser of the year!
March 12, 6:30 p.m., Daphne Civic Center. Tix: $25/$45 in advance, $30/$50 at the door. Adults only.
On the auction block: Orlando vacation, P'cola Beach vacations, Season passes to Toros football games *with parking*, GMAC bowl package for four, Several golf packages, two sets of orthodontic packages with two-year follow ups, and more. Good stuff!
All money raised goes directly to SFES, so come out and support our school!
As for fun reads, well, I'm a bit swamped. Hours spent on BOB: 20; hours spent on work that actually pays me: 2; hours spent revising Book 2: 0.
I can say I recently did a get to know feature on a super-interesting fellow, Darrel Williams. He's a transplant from jolly ole England, has explored the world Indiana Jones-style twice, wrestles crocodiles, eats pirhanas, survives botfly attacks, and (big points for him) says Baldwin County is the best place he's ever lived.
Well, we could've told him that.
He's a trainer at Fitness Together at the Eastern Shore Centre if anyone's looking to shape up. He's also in training for the Iron Man triathlon in Utah, May 1. Wow. And I complain when I have to run in "the cold." (Seems I remember running in the snow in Indy.)
You can read the article here. Happy reading, and I'll be checking in with you guys soon!
P.S.
Again, I apologize to those of you having problems following my blog, leaving comments, etc. I'm glad that I sent the world this blog address and now it seems to be quite user-unfriendly. Heads up to those who've talked to me about starting your own blog: I've read Wordpress is much easier. (Sorry, blogspot.) For now, we'll hold on here. If it gets too unbearable, I'll see about relocation.
So I'm up to my neck in volunteer publicity. Here's a little for you, no charge: Attention SFES parents, Bidding of the Bulls is our biggest fundraiser of the year!
March 12, 6:30 p.m., Daphne Civic Center. Tix: $25/$45 in advance, $30/$50 at the door. Adults only.
On the auction block: Orlando vacation, P'cola Beach vacations, Season passes to Toros football games *with parking*, GMAC bowl package for four, Several golf packages, two sets of orthodontic packages with two-year follow ups, and more. Good stuff!
All money raised goes directly to SFES, so come out and support our school!
As for fun reads, well, I'm a bit swamped. Hours spent on BOB: 20; hours spent on work that actually pays me: 2; hours spent revising Book 2: 0.
I can say I recently did a get to know feature on a super-interesting fellow, Darrel Williams. He's a transplant from jolly ole England, has explored the world Indiana Jones-style twice, wrestles crocodiles, eats pirhanas, survives botfly attacks, and (big points for him) says Baldwin County is the best place he's ever lived.
Well, we could've told him that.
He's a trainer at Fitness Together at the Eastern Shore Centre if anyone's looking to shape up. He's also in training for the Iron Man triathlon in Utah, May 1. Wow. And I complain when I have to run in "the cold." (Seems I remember running in the snow in Indy.)
You can read the article here. Happy reading, and I'll be checking in with you guys soon!
P.S.
Again, I apologize to those of you having problems following my blog, leaving comments, etc. I'm glad that I sent the world this blog address and now it seems to be quite user-unfriendly. Heads up to those who've talked to me about starting your own blog: I've read Wordpress is much easier. (Sorry, blogspot.) For now, we'll hold on here. If it gets too unbearable, I'll see about relocation.
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