The World of David the Gnome - Nick Knacks Episode

[@erikm8372]

I remember crying at the ending! But also crying at some of the other episodes. As a kid I remember thinking “who allowed this dramatic storytelling on tv?!” It’s too much! Hahaha

[@CartoonTriper]

David the Gnome in the rest of the series: Empathy David the Gnome in the "3 wishes" episode: yOU GOT GNOME'D!

[@Dystnine]

I had to watch that episode and I hate that Woodsman and his design so much. Other humans looked good but he looked like some demon or goblin.

[@jmn327]

Man, the theme song and Swift's reactions during the finale always get me. David the Gnome has that sort of Mr. Rogers quality to it: the childhood show that you get emotional thinking about because it earnestly taught so many important values, and you inevitably find yourself thinking of the times you've failed to live up to those lessons, wishing both yourself and the world might take them all to heart a bit more.

[@leegoldsmith2028]

Spot on observation. Cheers.

[@wutzit]

22:53 Wow, I had absolutely no idea the blue and orange Nick Jr. logo had a predecessor! Kudos to you for showcasing and preserving Nick history, poparena!

[@garjo7131]

Episode 69! We made it everyone!

[@Toonrick12]

Nice. But also not Nice because of Weinstein.

[@chubbiMommi]

Hehe

[@Limousineandapizza]

Unfortunate this episode number features Harvey Weinstein.

[@sottosopravoce]

Nice.

[@dc9662]

Nice.

[@romancuadradocartelle6193]

The Spanish theme song was basically David bragging, the most recognizable verse being “I'm seven times stronger than you, really fast, and I'm always in a good mood”. You better think twice before messing with David the gnome.

[@ChristopherSobieniak]

Figures he'd say that!

[@TheChrisHype]

“I’ve learned those lessons of empathy because they were David and Lisa’s dying wish.” ….wow.

[@waffledog]

That theme song is an absolute banger. Just top tier 80s Cassio power bop. A lot of kids shows get lauded for "respecting their audience" but that usually is shallow praise for something like jokes written at an older level. David the Gnome was the rare show that really did respect who was watching, especially preschoolers. How many pre-k shows even attempted "lore dumps" and worldbuilding in 1988? I can see why it was picked for Nick Jr's premiere.

[@80sDisneyFan]

Why do people always hate on Sesame Street.

[@playfulpanthress]

What got me about David and Lisa’s deaths, besides Swift’s reaction, wasn’t necessarily that they died. Because they were gorgeous trees! But because every tree cut down was probably a gnome and the horror of that was nightmare fuel.

[@Toonrick12]

I feel like we dodged a HUGE bullet with the Gnome remake, considering how both Spy Kids and ESPECIALLY Reboot shows turned out.

[@kyleward3914]

I have my grandmother's copy of the Gnome book on my shelf. It was always in her house the whole time I was growing up, and I ended up with it when she passed away.

[@SameNameDifferentGame]

Gnomes being on the non-fiction bestseller list is perhaps less wild than The Amityville Horror being on it. 😂

[@willmistretta]

No '80s kid will ever forget so much as a note of that theme.

[@kristopherguilbault5428]

Everytime I hear it it's in my head for the rest of the night and sometimes when I wake up too. Lol and that's ok

[@johnbakasmoothhotchocolate]

Possibly the best cartoon Nick Jr. EVER had.

[@chubbiMommi]

I wasn't expecting to tear up. But here we are.. such a great show! I was a teen mom, so I enjoyed watching nick jr in the face days with my daughter. I was so excited to share with her David the Gnome💕 Shows like that and little bear brought cuddles and naptime to our house.. I miss those times.. thank you for a wonderful look back on this show. I've been enjoying this series more than words can express 💕

[@corrosioncat]

This video series is my FAVORITE content on KZbin! I look forward to these all month and re-watch episodes at least twice. Thanks again for another lovely and thoughtful video. You rock!

[@crumbsNbass]

That opening song gets me every time.

[@Simon_Electric]

This was one of the first cartoons I can remember from my early childhood. I'm 36 now and I can't hold back the tears.

[@RatBruno]

I don't know if anybody else has already commented this, but I'm from Spain and I can confirm that David the Gnome is indeed a really big and well-known show here, as well as the other BRB shows you mentioned. CGI animated movies of both David and Willy Fog are now in development, and one of Dogtanian is going to come out later this year.

[@meepmoop2308]

Thank you for your input

[@WillmobilePlus]

This was one of those shows my younger brother (b.1987) was in to. I was a pre-teen, so I saw it as lame at first, but had to watch it because Nick Jr. was the only thing on TV in the morning during summer vacation. I honestly grew to like it. It was a warm, and comfortable little show. Well drawn, and good stories. sophistacated and not pretensious. Kind of a Lord of the Rings for little kids.

[@Clovershroom]

I'm looking forward to when you cover Eureeka's Castle! I loved that show when I was little!

[@yszman6478]

The theme song that always stuck with me even in the years when the show faded from my memory, the theme song stood true.

[@CinnamonGrrlErin1]

I have vague to solid memories of most of what's been covered so far, but David the Gnome has always stuck firmly in my memory. It helps too that I own Gnomes and several other Riet Poortvliet books, but I was always drawn to that homey, folk art style even as a small child.

[@edgeman83]

I have been waiting for this episode ever since Nick Knacks started, and I am loving it. Thank you!

[@michellecrocker2485]

I get it. Before I discovered Nickelodeon, I was watching a lot of Mr Rogers Neighborhood, a guy who was made out of empathy

[@Talowolf]

Sang along with the theme song the whole way through in the video. Still know it by heart.

[@MissAshley42]

Damn, this show was something. As a kid, I was pretty sensitive to things I deemed as "kiddy." For example, I largely wrote-off many of Disney's pre-Renaissance work back then. David the Gnome was different, though. Despite containing plenty of tropes I associated with "kiddy" stuff, it still felt substantial. Important. Serious. The worldbuilding when a long way towards this, and Tom Bosley's performance made nearly every moment feel like a learnable one. The character designs and backgrounds also carried that naturalistic 80s fantasy vibe that was all the rage back then, which again, made everything feel much grander in scope. It's just an excellent show all around.

[@genemelendez8157]

I think what gives the moment of death it’s weight in this show, is that we see David and Lisa die on screen. They’re turned into tress, but the audience still gets the point that their bodies and personalities are gone forever. Contrast this with shows like Rugrats or Avatar that only talk about death or show the characters mourning. Those shows and episodes are great, but David the Gnome arguably had the bigger impact

[@russw8813]

You don't know how long I've been waiting for this

[@traviskemp5408]

Very fascinating! I remember "David the Gnome" on Nick Jr. when I was little. Also, I did not know that the show lasted only 26 episodes.

[@zachadams4310]

So...you're telling us that GNOMES was the ZOMBIE SURVIVAL GUIDE of its day?

[@mightyink]

Thank you for this. I had all but forgotten how important this was to me in my childhood. I was on the verge of tears the entire time.

[@NAJ0202]

Man oh man, that theme song. All these years later, and it still makes me bawl like a baby. Just amazing!

[@KaiserBeamz]

You missed talking about the episode where Richie and Potsie lost all their money to those card sharks and David the Gnome had to get it all back.

[@ChristopherSobieniak]

HA!

[@ChristopherSobieniak]

Reminded Tom also voiced a dad in Hanna-Barbera's "Wait Til Your Father Gets Home".

[@christopherb501]

We desperately need a 'David the Gnome'-equivalent for actual cultures.

[@wraithgames]

**bellows** LET EPISODE 15 BE FOREVER STRICKEN FROM THE DAVID THE GNOME CANON! SO SAYETH I! **wheeze**

[@everlasting3447]

I'm so freakin sensitive. I teared up hearing that theme song lol I miss my childhood 🤗

[@JennyBenFoldsFan421]

I have not heard this theme song in decades! But when the first couple of notes started up, I was right back in it

[@tenthz]

I was born in 1983, and had the gnomes book growing up. It felt like the type of book that existed forever and wasn't just published a few years before.😮

[@janedoe3043]

Man, my childhood friend was a short, pudgye, German, boy named David. He HATED this show.

[@springheeledjackofthegurdi2117]

the thing to remember about hunters during the time the books were written was that many hunters were also avid naturalists, Theodore Roosevelt and Buffalo Bill being the two best examples I can think of off the top of my head.

[@PersephoneDarling28]

Hunter and Poacher are two different words with different implications even today afterall

[@carmineknight9123]

I've only heard of this, and somehow I'm still tearing up at them passing away and the fox being upset even if they're just becoming trees.

[@NextToToddliness]

I totally forgot how much I loved this show. I forgot how much that ending stayed with me. 💜 Thank you for the nostalgia.

[@Love1nOther]

Thank you for all the allyship on this channel!

[@gregf8918]

One of the few shows that I did not believe that was a fever dream. This was an amazing story I am glad that I was able to see it.

[@TickleMonster333]

Now I know where I got my love for whimsy, magic, and fantastic mythical creatures!

[@fergalstackstreams]

I don't remember seeing this show on Nick Jr., not when I first saw it. There was a block of afternoon programming on Nickelodeon circa 1988 I would watch every weekday so often that I still remember the order: The Adventures of Belle and Sebastian (1:00PM), David the Gnome (1:30PM), Today's Special (2:00PM), The Mysterious Cities of Gold (2:30PM), Lassie (3:00PM) and Inspector Gadget (3:30PM).

[@middleschoolgravy]

Loved this show growing up and the theme song does not get enough love. It’s right up there with all the Disney Afternoon bangers.

[@Elementa2006]

This really brought back memories. I've watched the 1980 TV special when I was living in the UK, in fact it was because of that special that I knew what a gnome was. Then when my family moved back to Egypt, I got to see Arabic dubbed episodes of David The Gnome.

[@TheDanishGuyReviews]

Very NICE video!

[@daelen.cclark]

I got introduced into this series through a montage in the Ren & Stimpy documentary on how bad cartoons were beforehand. That’s something I oughta look into for myself.

[@mikesilva3868]

Greatest cartoon I havent seen it in years last time was on Nickjr in 1991 I was 7 until 1995 I was 11 at the time remember recording a lot of episodes on VHS 😊

[@meyerj75]

No other animated cartoon (Noozles, Maya the Bee, Adventures of the Little Koala) has ever lasted as long on Nick Jr. as David the Gnome has.

[@kootunesscrewy]

Fun Fact: This is the first non-DiC show from Wildbrain that aired on Nickelodeon. Are You Afarid of the Dark?, The Busy World of Richard Scarry, Yo Gabba Gabba and (currently) Blaze and the Monster Machines would later air on the network.

[@christopherb501]

Me, waiting for the shoe to drop: Hmm...good attention to detail, solid source material, charming animation...okay, where's the catch? Was somebody involved anti-Semitic? fatphobic? Reagan-fan? Video: (Weinsteins) Me: Ah; _there_ it is.

[@Justin-Hill-1987]

David the Gnome was a wholesome childrens' cartoon with a sad ending...

[@zorrobuenaonda440]

Bad news, the creator of the tv series Claudio Biern Boyd passed away last sunday

[@janedoe3043]

Definitely should start your kids with David the Gnome. Then when they're close to Ten, you should switch them to Steven Universe.

[@Libluini]

"David the Gnome" has earned my ever-living enmity because it made child-me think he was a Klabauter. (As a kid I never looked closely enough to realize that the German title "David der Kabauter" references a completely different type of German gnome, not the ship-traveling "Klabauter" I knew about because of living in northern Germany. When i was later forced to confront the truth, I was embarassed to death.

[@DanknDerpyGamer]

6:13 Wait, so even the story of David and the doctor-known-as-Wimpy-as-a-kid seen in the 2nd to last episode "The Gift" was based on the book? (regardless of if a story, or even an illustration of it)? (Am I being dumb?)

[@huntercoleherr]

It took a lot longer to get to stuff I recognize than I thought it would. I vaguely remember watching this, along with another show called The Little Bits?

[@alannamcfall7887]

29:20 I actually think it makes sense to have hunters write a story like this. Hunters can often be some of the most dedicated environmentalists out there; they interact with and see the natural world a lot more than most people, and on a practical level, they want the environment to be well cared for and the animals thriving so that they can hunt a select few. Very fun video, I was unfamiliar with this work and am super charmed by it. But woof, I hate chimpanzees, so next video is gonna be tough >___

[@christopherb501]

_Actual_ hunters, that is; not the living, breathing strawmen that toxic macho idiots might portray themselves as.

[@christopherwall2121]

Bambi was written by a hunter, and that book goes out of its way to show what happens when hunters see the animals they hunt as beneath notice.

[@darktetsuya]

wow you never know where these episodes are gonna start sometimes! gonna have to look up that book after I'm done here. I do have fond memories of this one! this was definitely a special show for sure.... well except the one episode, where the hell did THAT come from?! the wife and I did stumble onto their youtube though, so definitely have to revisit it here soon!!

[@ryanlemay6296]

Hot damn! I remembered almost all the lyrics to the theme song! I miss this show!!!

[@MouseRants]

Miramax and Dimension made some absolutely amazing films and the fact that it was half-run by a terrible person doesn't discredit all the amazing talent that worked on these films and television shows.

[@jenniferschillig3768]

I saw that 1981 Gnomes special before getting the book for my birthday. As much as I liked it, I realized later on that it did contradict the book a bit by having an older brother to two young twins (he was the one getting married), when according to the book, each gnome couple (through some sort of magical intervention) had one pair of twins, no more, no less.

[@nomadcowatbk]

they skipped one episode, but they still had the promo at the end

[@Linkbrawler9000]

Have we been... Gnomed?

[@Snakie747]

Okay, this is by far the most nostalgic that a theme song has made me feel in this series. I'm not even sure how close it is.

[@Lynxan]

I was well out of the age range when this came out... still would watch it if I found it on though. It was a relaxing thing.

[@stephenholloway6893]

Also RIP to Tom Bosley the voice of David.

[@jenniferschillig3768]

I was surprised to hear him on the original cast album of the stage version of Beauty and the Beast (he played Belle's dad Maurice), but then I remembered he'd originated the title role of Fiorello.

[@t4washere384]

Of course it did great in Sweden, we bloody love "Tomtar" as we call them.

[@doktorventure9977]

Of course David is the perfect choice to get the King's gold back from the trolls; before he was a doctor, he was a highly decorated member of the Gnomish Space Marines.

[@gracefullynadine864]

This was one of my favorite shows when I was a kid, watched it all the time. I wish I could remember it better, but the only episode that I can remember with any real detail is the Three Wishes one. Even when I was a kid there was definitely something off about it, David felt so mean spirited that whole episode, and I guess now I can see why it sticks in my mind!

[@good03boy]

Can't wait for the episodes about Kids' Court, Don't Just Sit There, and Kids Choice Awards for 1988.

[@tenthz]

No one's going to be surprised that this video started with a dissertation on Paracelsus? I guess we shouldn't be surprised that philosopher of the 1500s is some how connected to this animated show from the 1980s. 😂

[@agerard6297]

My introduction to Tom Bosley and Christopher Plummer.

[@LikaLaruku]

This theme song lives in my head rent free.

[@ragnarnorgren2172]

Im Swedish and i know the movie gnomes (1980) as a Christmas movie, mostly because it used to air on TV on December 23rd which might be because gnomes are called "Tomte" in Swedish and Santa Claus is called "Jul tomten" so basically "Christmas Santa". It's probably one of the most iconic Christmas movies in Sweden which is why i believe it did so well over here. Additionally trolls are very frequent in local folklore as sort of general evildoers, with many tales about how they live inside of large rocks and so on, likely these stories were made up to discourage children from wandering into the forest. Though interestingly the most popular TV Christmas event is "From all of us to all of you" which is an episode of "The wonderful world of Disney" which has been broadcasted on SVT on every Christmas Eve since 1960. It's usually called "Kalle Anka" which is the Swedish word for Donald Duck and is seen as a major part of Swedish Christmas.

[@theblarneystone1023]

I know I brought up Count Duckula in your Noozles video, but could you PLEASE do a Nick Knacks sample platter at least on Count Duckula? I think you might like it. And it's nickelodeon history!

[@jmn327]

Duckula ran on Nick, so there'll eventually be an episode about it.

[@dootuss83]

Considering that he's now into Nickelodeon in 1988, Count Duckula's Nick Knacks episode isn't too far away since it premiered that year on the network. I'm definitely looking forward to that one since the relationship between Nickelodeon and Cosgrove Hall will be deeply analyzed.

[@jenniferschillig3768]

I'm still waiting on Mad Movies With The L.A. Connection. (Sort of an ancestor of MST3K.)

[@Justin-Hill-1987]

This is one of those shows I first saw on Nick Jr. in the early 1990s that I would later see again on TLC in the mid-1990s....

[@XJLuke765]

0:57 ...oh no

[@apbuitron]

Thank you as always for your insight and the tremendous effort that you put into these videos. I’m a proud patron.

[@Moonbeam143]

I used to watch this! I even bought the book a few years ago.

[@mr.tomraypaz6085]

Oh I loved watching David The Gnome, back in the day! That theme song brings back memories of my early childhood. Seeing Harvey Weinstein in the credits is a little sickening, though.

[@vgtrp]

The Weinsteins would continue their cutting foreign animation ways when they launched The Weinstein Company. Also , hopefully you won't have to deal with a show with a sexual deviant behind the scenes until you get Ren and Stimpy (fingers crossed). Anyway , I loved David the Gnomes as a kid, but while the show is still good, the dub doesn't seem to match the mouth movement in spots. Anyway, I loved the video with bothe Gnome history and putting the deaths of David and Lisa in a new perspective.

[@the-NightStar]

I would hope John K only gets a passing, condemning mention. Because imo Ren and Stimpy is an extremely culturally significant show and not just one of the best, but quite possibly THE most important television animated show in history. And i'm already sick of it being dragged down by everyone's hyperbolistic hollering about the things we've only learned about the creator in the last several years. We've all heard it over and over, we all know about it, it shouldn't define Ren and Stimpy's incredibly important legacy. John K is a terrible person, throw him in the trash, but the show itself shouldn't be blamed or dragged down with it... and besides... I think out of consideration for John's victims, it's best to stoop dragging it up and making it the main focus everytime this show has to be discussed. This was also Mary Harrington's show, it was Vanessy Coffey's show, it was Bob Camp's show, it was Eddie Fitzgerald, Bill Wray, Vincent Waller, Jim Smith and Billy West's show, too. It was a collaborative effort by MANY talented people to re-vitalize the entire animation industry and get it on it's feet again since the 40's. A sentence or two to address the elephant in the room and sweep it under the carpet is good enough. It's like the finale of Coco taught us with it's final moments... Remember Ren and Stimpy, Forget John K.

[@Rhomega]

Another Nick Jr. show I watched when I was 5...then after I stopped watching it, I forgot about it. Then about 20 years later, I found the opening on KZbin, and I'm like "This looks familiar..."

[@mr.tomraypaz6085]

22:48-22:54, The Cinar music is playing in the background and there’s a series of DTMF tones! Kind of unusual.

[@ChristopherSobieniak]

Cable TV was always littered with those tones back then.

[@mr.tomraypaz6085]

Yes indeed. I remember hearing them at the end of commercial breaks. They were used to signal when it was time to switch feeds.

[@ChristopherSobieniak]

@@mr.tomraypaz6085 Cable was such a different beast to what regular TV was growing up.

[@leegoldsmith2028]

I swear I saw a clip with an old Ang sans head tattoo. Is Last Airbender a David the gnome prequel?

[@animefan25]

1. Playing for Keeps is not a bad movie. I taped off cable a while back, and it's currently on KZbin if you're interested in watching it. 2. The new Reboot series is a vanity project for the CEO of Rainmaker.

[@DanknDerpyGamer]

21:31 I THOUGHT THE VOICE OF LAVERNE FRENSKY SOUNDED FAMILIAR! Holy shit! 😮

[@SpongeTheKid]

Very fitting this is episode 69 because this episode was very nice 😎😎😎

[@caa1000]

The Harvey Weinstein mention at 17:50 almost made me die of laughter! Literally I had a shortness of breath moment with the "Oh no!" part! Also from what I heard... Chances are that David The Gnome could be a theatrical movie, since BRB Internacional announced a movie version of Dogtanian and the Musketeer Hounds with a possible release of their other properties, including David The Gnome. Hope for that to happen!

[@sebastianmoreno6004]

Practically laughed my ass off at that part. XD

[@ChristopherSobieniak]

Well at least BRB cares about their earlier properties.

[@andrejg4136]

Yeah I was OOFing pretty hard reading those names on the credits. I know we should at least 'try' to seperate art from the artist, but it's hard when the artist is that infamous.

[@ChristopherSobieniak]

@@andrejg4136 In fairness, the Weinstein's were only producers, not artists.

[@ChristopherSobieniak]

@@andrejg4136 Also they imported the show from Spain basically, so the show didn't have much done besides dubbing by a Canadian staff.

[@jenniferschillig3768]

Maybe when Christmas rolls around again, you could do an episode on Raymond Briggs' The Snowman? They ran it on Nickelodeon sometime in the eighties, and that's the first place I saw it. (This version had the David Bowie intro, which was played up in Nick's commercials for it.)

[@MattyHervey]

For some reason I only remember Lancelot Link on Nick at Night.

[@supermakermatic2111]

Episode 15 sounds like a joke moral from Family Guy you aren't supposed to take seriously.

[@jonathanstern5537]

"There aren't any witches, black cats, or any of those other unbelievable things!" Ummm, black cats?

[@VahanNisanian]

Weinstein had the nerve to stand by Roman Polanski at the 2003 Oscars and in 2009, ignoring what he did and his complete lack of remorse after that. And for all I know, Weinstein, who is now rotting in a maximum security prison, probably still thinks Polanski did nothing wrong.

[@allyssaswain2394]

youtube says this video was uploaded 45 seconds ago, but there are comments from 1 day to 2 hours ago. What's that about?

[@poparena]

Patrons of a certain level on Patreon get early access to this video before it goes live to the public.

[@Toonrick12]

Patreon, me thinks.

[@bullmonty764]

Since Greg will be talking about Nick Jr. shows, I hope that, when he talks about (and attempts to survive) Dora, he brings up the fact that *someone* on the crew of that show was seemingly obsessed with putting the title character in outfits that made her (to paraphrase Derek Zoolander) really, really, ridiculously beautiful. That’s because I find it really creepy because she’s only seven years old