"Today's Special" ... Shout it loud and clear!

"Today's Special." Remember that obscure Canadian children's television show that was broadcast in the '80s on TVOntario as well as Nickelodeon? Oftentimes, I have found that people do not remember the show until I remind them about a mannequin that came to life whenever a hat was put on his head and the magic words, "Hocus pocus alimagocus," were said. I also remind them that it took place in the children's department of store and it also starred a rhyming mouse, a puppet security guard and Jodie, who was in charge of putting together the displays. The show was on from 1981-1987 and produced about 120 episodes. It definitely ranked up there with "Sesame Street" and "3-2-1 Contact" as some of the best educational shows for children.

Anyway, the real story begins a couple of years ago as I was bored late one night at Goshen College. I was trying to finish a paper and my mind began to wander. I knew that I needed to surf the Web. But, what Web site to go to at 3 in the morning? Well, I happened to run across a certain site (http://todays-special.schuminweb.com/), the best and most complete "Today's Special" site one can find. All of the memories came back to me and it wasn't long before I was in regular contact with somebody at TVOntario, trying to bring this wonderful show back to us in DVD form. I started an online petition (http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/derekb27) in 2004, that still gets new signatures every day.

I know that there are many people from all over (including people who worked on the show itself) who want this to happen. In short, this blog is my way of updating fans on the status of the show making its way to DVD. So, stay tuned. I'm hoping things will happen soon.