When I was a youngin in the mid 80s, I contracted viral meningitis. Back then, they really had no solid idea what I was yet. I was quarantined in the hospital for almost a week and had multiple spinal taps. My mom and grandma bought me some things to keep me company - Teddy Ruxpin. And all of the figures and the airship. Teddy protected me that week and he holds a special place in my heart even now as a 40 year old man. Thank you for this video.
Yeah, somehow I had no idea about this, and I talked with toy distributors all the time back then. How crazy that a former Atari employee enabled Nintendo to become a juggernaut in the USA.
Another 1981'er here that remains nostalgic about all this. To learn the marketing behind it all is a little unexpected twist and the history very interesting. After learning about the creator of Teddy Ruxpin, it's no wonder I fell in love with this toy as a young child, leaving me with fond memories of my loving and providing Parents.
Nintendo and Worlds of Wonder partnered up in the Fall of 1985 to Distribute the NES. SEGA then got the idea to partner up with Tonka Toys in the Fall of 1986 to Distribute the Sega Master System.
My goodness did my childhood start coming back to me. I never knew that they developed new versions of Teddy Ruxpin into this decade. I definitely miss that bear-like creature.
I've had a very long day and was starting to fall asleep while watching this, so I'm going to assume that Teddy Ruxpin having a conversation with Corey Feldman at 12:16 is some sort of hallucination.
My Sister loved hers, and around 10 years ago my Mom found another one for sale and got one for her and her. Kids. Now her youngest daughter loves it as much as she did.
As a kid, I remember loving and hating the serialized nature of the show. I was so interested in what would happen next but you’d often get a repeat episode which was the worst. Also, airships! Amazing!
God, I was OBSESSED with Teddy Ruxpin and the story books as a kid... the map on the inside covers had my little mind wondering forever with the worldbuilding
I remember a friend's sibling having a Teddy Ruxpin that we would put Ozzy & Motley Crue tapes in. Nothing quite like seeing Teddy belting out "Shout at the Devil" or "Mr Crowley"!
@@thegillman777 I think it’s the way the mouth tried to be in sequence but never was that drove the creepy factor up and solidified teddys place in metal history. For me at least and the several of us
I actually knew a guy who worked on the original teddy design when I was a kid in the 80s in socal .Very nice guy I remember he made me a toy car racer for cub Scouts and used one of the plastic teddy figurines for a driver.
A friend of mine created the patterns for the original Teddy Ruxpin toys. She went on to have a prolific career in special effects costumes and puppets, including on Jurassic Park, the Country Bear Jamboree Movie, the Admiral Ackbar animatronic in Tokyo Disneyland, and a bunch more!
my son was born in 1992, and I picked up Teddy from a thrift store. The tapes for his machine and for a Mickey mouse with tape player were all on clearance at toys r us. He loved this toy
In the 80s and early 90s, there were a lot of "minimally violent adventure shows" (see also early Care Bears and Ducktales, for example). For my money, Adventures of Teddy Ruxpin was the best of the bunch. It had great serialized storytelling with mysteries that actually paid off.
I was genuinely surprised by "The Adventures of Teddy Ruxpin" cartoon series. Sure, it had all the hallmarks of a toddler show (like Care Bears), but had elements which were much darker than I expected (MAVO anyone?). One of the more genuinely imaginative series for kids both young and old.
Obviously the best part of this toy was putting tapes in them that didn’t belong. I would often put my dad’s Boston cassette tape in Teddy and watch him sing along.
Damn I put Kriss kross mc hammer vanilla ice and dj jazzy Jeff and the fresh prince in my little brothers I think onyx bacdafucup was the last tape I was ever allowed to use on him because the lyrics were so harsh … I was re gifted a new Walkman a family member didn’t have a use for not long after teddy rapped slam and I couldn’t of been happier lol
Thank you for this video. It brings back so many childhood memories. I credit both Teddy Ruxpin and Reading Rainbow for my lifelong love of reading. I remember having several different ones because the eye would pop out of one and half the mouth would fall off of another. When I got older, I asked my mother about having a new Teddy after the previous one broke; she told me that she kept the receipt and exchanged them
Hey, WJZY TV 46! That's the station on which I watched Teddy Ruxpin. in the intervening years, it went from an independent station, to UPN, to WB, and now it's a part of the FOX network.
Teddy Ruxpin must have stayed on the market for a while. I was born in '84 and I remember having a Teddy Ruxpin. Remember watching the cartoons. My little brother had a Mickey Mouse that lipsync'd to storybook tapes. I remember trying a bunch of different music tapes in them and being disappointed that they didn't lipsync to the song.
I loved my Teddy Ruxpin! One Christmas, or maybe it was a birthday, my parents bought me a Grubby to go with him, but it didn't work, so we returned it to the store and I got like 5 M.A.S.K. vehicles instead.
I was born in '85 and I remember having one, just not when I got it, but it was there until the early 90s until my mom gave it to our church for their rummage sale.
I was born in December of 1982. I remember seeing Both NES and Teddy Ruxpin in New Jersey in late '85. I wanted one for Christmas and Mom went out of her way to get me one, but it was NOT easy to find. She succeeded though. By '87, I had the ENTIRE Storybook and Cassette collection.
I remember seeing the Teddy Ruxbin on the toy aisle of the Benjamin Franklin crafts store in 1985. This bear was creepy yet cool. My brother played his Def Leppard tape in it and it sang to it barely.
Teddy Ruxpin was one of my most favorite toys when I was a kid. Never went anywhere without him. Might still have that old toy somewhere in my parent's attic. Really happy to see the character and their intent endure after all these years and children can enjoy him and his stories even now. Honestly, one of the few legacy brands I'm fine with continuing on so long as the mission statement Ken Forsee envisioned for the character remains the focus. Teaching kids to care about the world and each other and use their imaginations should always be a priority of toy development and children's entertainment first and foremost.
As a kid, one of my friends had one. Yes, I admit I was extremely jealous. But then came that 1987 cartoon...the theme song stayed in my noggin, where it still is filed away some 37 years later!! Come dream with me tonight... Let's go to far off places, And search for treasures bright! Come dream with me tonight... Let's build a giant airship, And sail into the sky... Let's watch the ground from far below, And wave at birds as they fly high... Fly so high... COME DREAM WITH ME TONIGHT!! Though maybe I remember the show's title wrong, I could've sworn that it was "The NEW Adventures of Teddy Ruxpin". Whatever, it was still my jam like so many others.
WOW, this illiop was my jam when i was young, and that live-action special is new to me. Stopped to watch the whole thing (it's on this site) and it's fantastic. Jack Tweeg's suit actor is having a blast.
My first career was working at an independent toy store for almost 5 years. I started in Christmas season of 1986, so I was a little late for Teddy, but I was there when WOW released the Mickey Mouse version (can't believe that one wasn't a bigger hit). And *man* were there a lot of knockoffs! Some of them were quite good, my favorite of which was a talking (but not animatronic) shar-pei dog named "Wrinkles".
Mom got me the First Run Teddy Ruxpin in Christmas of 1985. This was in Cape May/Atlantic City,NJ. It wasn't easy to obtain though. I also saw the Nintendo Entertainment System for the very first time as my Neighbor, Andre got one for his 4th Birthday. I recall it being pretty easy to find. Mostly the Control Deck SKU. Its astonishing how FUZZY people's Memories of when the Crash hit and when they first saw the NES are. Every Book I read in HS says the Crash hit in '84, Not '83. And EVERY source says it occurred in the Spring of 1984, with NES, ONLY Toys Stores and Department Catalogs mostly carried it before 1986. That's what I remember. Which is Why Nintendo Partnered up with Worlds of Wonder to Distribute the NES in The Fall of 1985 and why SEGA followed suit with Tonka in 1986 with SMS.
i owned a Teddy Ruxpin storytelling plush as a kid ... when i got older i would plug music cassettes into his back and he would 'sing' the songs of my favorite bands at the time (also i enjoyed the cartoon)
The head of marketing and one of the lead engineers for WoW after it ended, went on to help develop the Kawasaki branded Sax-A-Boom in the 90s for DSi Toys. Teddy Ruxpin even helped Jack Black in an off handed way.
Oh man! I had the talking Mother Goose with connecting Hector the duckling! Actually I still *have* them! 😅 Been meaning to tinker with them a fix them up for a while. I was in love with those things as a kid. It felt magical. It felt like taking some of the talking animatronics from a Disneyland ride home with you. And it all came from an encoded casette, which still blows my mind! So cool to see Teddy Ruxpin and the Worlds of Wonder dolls covered on this channel!
Teddy Ruxpin was huge in Uruguay. A handful of generations grew up wirh the series. It was so magical and heartwarming. We who grew up with it will never forget it.
I happen to be among the lucky owners of an original Teddy Ruxpin. I found it at a charity shop a decade ago, in good working condition. And it only cost $4AU!
Watched the cartoon for years, never cared much for it as a kid but loved it more as a teen. Bought the dvds in my adulthood and lent them to my friend when he bought the original toy at a garage sale lol.
Same here and was probably my first experience with a cartoon that had an actual serialized story, that didn't just reset to status quo after each episode
don't remember ever having the toy, but damned if I didn't see the commericals all the time back then! had no idea his history went back that far. Never would've imagined Nintendo's Famicom making a cameo, though! (I forgot worlds of wonder had distribution of the NES at first! reminds me of Tonka doing the same for SEGA's Master System) also did not know he isn't actually a bear! If they say so... :P
I remember watching the animated series in the morning. Nostalgia. I was so happy to get a full explanation of the Illiop civilization, the translator being in Teddy's mother's kitchen was odd. I didn't remember the talking doll until Robot Chicken had one commit suicide rather than play Gallagher's tape.
Teddy was one of my favorite characters growing up. What kept me coming back to the show was the continuous narrative - there was nothing like it among kids' TV shows at the time! Every episode had that "To Be Continued" vibe that served as an occasional gimmick in other, lesser programs. What's more, Teddy and his gang were wholesome heroes, on an epic quest against some truly evil enemies. They served as some of the better role models for my generation. My mum had purchased a Teddy Ruxpin unit; like so many other cool toys, it was one of those that we had for all of a day before it "mysteriously disappeared" (i.e. was returned to the store for undisclosed reasons). My bros and I still got our hands on (in?) a few of Teddy's puppet friends while the fad was in full swing, but we would never see Teddy himself again. Maybe one day.
I had a Teddy Ruxpin when I was a kid. Later in life I found another one at a thrift store and have that one still displayed on my shelf till this day.
Loved the cartoon series. I tried to convince all of my classmates to give it a chance despite the singing, because it had comicbook-style continuity with one big continuing story full of mysteries and reveals foreshadowed 60 episodes earlier, exactly what I wished all of the other shows of the 80s had been like.
One of my parents' favorite stories was reminding my sister and I how when they turned Teddy Ruxpin on for the first time Christmas morning we both ran away screaming. Despite the rocky start, we loved that bear and got his buddy, Grubby, eventually. When my daughter turned one I bought her the 2017 version of the bear and she loved it too for awhile, but like with all things, she grew out of it as did I so her Teddy is hanging out in a toy box with my old one only that one probably won't work in 20 years since that app is sure to be dead.
Hearing about a Teddy Ruxpin movie immediately made me think of a certain old Penny Arcade strip (I checked and it was the 7/4/2007 one as well as the next one).
My brother had a Teddy Ruxbin. I swear that thing was possessed. Regardless, I was fascinated by the technology. I also may have been a little older than the target demographic, but I watched the show whenever I could catch it. It was unique, imaginative, and I hadn't seen a serialized cartoon like that before
I was a young adult when Teddy Ruxpin came out. I had a group of friends who all had Lazer Tag guns. I did own a Teddy Ruxpin, though; as I worked briefly for this daycare. I would use Teddy to talk stories to the kids before naptime, so I had learned all the songs to sing with Teddy. The tape of lullaby songs was my favorite. I would sing them to my niece as well. Many years later; I found a Teddy Ruxpin on eBay and bought as many tapes as I could. But once again; I would lose that one as well. But he served his purpose both times, and we did own the DVD animated series, so my nephew would grow up knowing Teddy. He will always be a part of me.
When I was a really young child (3-4yo), I ran away from home 2 or 3 times while my mother was asleep- in search of adventure! Each time the cops would bring me back and on the last occasion, they put me in a temporary home for a few days (or maybe a week, idr). I was so upset when they took me away- that the cop took out a Ruxpin out of his trunk to keep me company. Wild that I can still recall that. Ty to the officer & Ruxpin wherever you both are for looking after me 😢
not having a tape player myself growing up, i would put my tapes into my sisters teddy ruxpin ( she no longer cared about it) listen to my music and scary stories.
I had one and it was my absolute favorite toy!!!! I used it so much the mouth motor got so wore out it made a ton of noise when moving so my dad had to cut the wires. The mouth quit moving but it was so much quieter and I still loved him.
I was an infant in the mid 1980s when Teddy Ruxpin was popular, I used cassette tapes a lot as a kid, because I kept swapping tapes to listen to the stories, and I kind of wish there was a Muppets version of Teddy Ruxpin, because I was such a fan of Kermit the frog on Muppet babies and Sesame Street at that time!
@@marctoad I was about the same age, and I didn’t even know there was a Big Bird variant, but too bad there wasn’t one of Kermit the Frog, because he had the better voice.
@@Markimark151 Yeah it looks like it was just Big Bird, Oscar and Cookie Monster that got the Teddy Ruxpin treatment. I agree on Kermit being better - hell, I always wished my Big Bird was a Teddy Ruxpin, but such is life.
@@Markimark151 Born December 1982 here. Mom got me Teddy Ruxpin for Christmas in '85. She had to go through alot to find it. That's what I recall. This was Cape May,New Jersey. The NES however was a different story. I saw it in late '85. It WAS pretty easy to find.
🎶Come dream with me tonight🎶 Sorry but I'm talking about Teddy Ruxpin so I had to use his classic intro jingle, it should be a rule for this. I still have my Teddy and Grubby from my childhood, they're in storage these days and I don't know if they even still work. I also had several tape/book/outfit sets for Teddy, the purple Fobb and the Airship playset with a few figures from the cartoon show (Teddy, Grubby, Gimmick, Tweeg and a Gutang (those green monkey-like creatures in over-sized owl-like masks). I think I may also still have the few VHS tapes I managed to collect in storage somewhere, didn't know about the DVD release from the early 00s until literally just now though. Teddy was my best little buddy as a kid since I'm an only child who didn't have many friends back then. Yeah, sad, I know, but at least I had good ol' Teddy to keep me company and tell me fun stories. I was also unaware of the hardships at Worlds of Wonder and ironically, I was blissfully oblivious of it that Christmas morning when I opened my Baby Teddy. * sigh * Such nice memories. Thanks for the very informative video, great job as always. 👍🧸
I was a toddler during the 80s but I do remember having a Teddy Ruxpin bear with his own automated voice with songs and story telling and everything. I use to love that toy but somehow along the way lost it unfortunately. This is way more information about it than I've ever known before tho.
Never had a TR, but I did have (and still do) my talking Alf doll, which works the same way, with a cassette player in his back, and moving mouth, ears, and eyebrows. I used to make him sing along to my sister's NKOTB tapes.
Still have mine. Gave it to my son and my daughter. Found a really nice man a few years ago who serviced him, but unfortunately he passed away. Not as easy now to get him fixed for a reasonable amount. His eyes don’t open and shut on their own anymore, but Teddy still works. My daughter loves to listen to him tell the few stories I have. Gets me a little misty when she plays with him. 😊
I was a preschooler at the time Teddy Ruxpin hit the toy stores and I was obsessed with the character, much like kids a few years younger than me were later obsessed with Barney as preschoolers. I was so excited when my sister and I got one of the Teddy Ruxpin dolls for Christmas. It never got through to me that he wasn't a bear, though. I only found that out several decades later while reading Wikipedia.
Fun fact: A popular prank involving Teddy Ruxpins was to play heavy metal cassettes inside the doll. Also, thanks to the Nostalgia Critic, many people now think Teddy Ruxpin is creepy.
I had no idea there was a connection between Teddy Ruxpin and NES. Really, the connections to Jim Henson, Chuck E. Cheese (and therefore Atari), and Disney make sense - but I didn't know about them until I watched this. But I had no clue they helped Nintendo take over America. Also, I didn't know they also invented Laser Tag. So, very cool stuff. That non-bear Bear (Really? Not a bear, but named "Teddy"?!? com'on!) helped define the 1980s and it's lasting cultural impact far more deeply than I ever imagined.
So I miss the super cool retro open which was one of my favorite things about the channel and the thing that made me subscribe. I hope to see it again.
I remember really getting into the Teddy programme. It felt like a US/UK mash-up, US syle animation and UK ideas. I also had a story like Cities of Gold or Dogtanian. It was an oddbood thing but the story kept me watching, having said that, I have no idea how it ended.
So, I was writing this fanfic (long story) and I decided to base a fanfic-original plot detail on Teddy Ruxpin. I remembered a few odd trivia bits, like that there was a lot more lore than you would expect, and looked up information on YT, which led me to that very documentary, which led me to realizing just how friggin' MASSIVE the lore and meta-lore of Teddy Ruxpin are. I went from "man, he was trying maybe a little too hard for the audience, but bless 'em" to "I am legit in awe and I can see this helping pave the way for stuff like Bone."
I still have my WOW Snoopy. Just put batteries in it for the first time in decades. His ears and eyes still move and the tape plays. I don’t have the book anymore though.
Huh. Who would have guessed that Teddy Ruxpin was still kind of relevant. I only ever knew the animated series and cursed doll, but I had no idea about the rest of the history.
So many random connections to other IP. Also I totally would have loved a muppet babies version! Also also this got dark. Also also also loved it great work guys!
That would be a pretty interesting video! From what I've heard, it started out as a Michael Jackson\Looney Tunes project & has a connection with Space Jam.
When I was a youngin in the mid 80s, I contracted viral meningitis. Back then, they really had no solid idea what I was yet.
I was quarantined in the hospital for almost a week and had multiple spinal taps.
My mom and grandma bought me some things to keep me company - Teddy Ruxpin. And all of the figures and the airship.
Teddy protected me that week and he holds a special place in my heart even now as a 40 year old man.
Thank you for this video.
Glad you had a friend like Teddy to be there for you.
I had the same thing happen to me around that same time, but the toy I got was the whole first wave of Zoids
That’s a great story 😢😊
I'm not crying, you're crying
@@joypadretro2797sigh... Yeah.
Eyeball popped out of mine while it was yapping at me and had nightmares for months
Ha!
HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!
I feel like animatronics are definitely a leading cause of PTSD.
@@Shin_Lona for sure. Those show biz ones especially.
The eyes were connected I think. I know this because I also accidentally popped out the eyes and they both popped in together :(
I was devastated.
Thanks so much for the credit and the shoutout. I hope everyone has a chance to watch my docuseries, “Ken Forsse: Come Dream with Me Tonight.”
It's nice to get credit, isn't it.
Teddy Ruxpin facilitated the success of the NES?!?!?! i'm so happy to have been born in 1981 and remember all this shit.
Yeah, somehow I had no idea about this, and I talked with toy distributors all the time back then. How crazy that a former Atari employee enabled Nintendo to become a juggernaut in the USA.
Bro I was already 3 yo in 1981 you can't believe the shit I remember !
I was born a few years after you and I second that dude!!
Another 1981'er here that remains nostalgic about all this. To learn the marketing behind it all is a little unexpected twist and the history very interesting. After learning about the creator of Teddy Ruxpin, it's no wonder I fell in love with this toy as a young child, leaving me with fond memories of my loving and providing Parents.
Nintendo and Worlds of Wonder partnered up in the Fall of 1985 to Distribute the NES.
SEGA then got the idea to partner up with Tonka Toys in the Fall of 1986 to Distribute the Sega Master System.
My goodness did my childhood start coming back to me. I never knew that they developed new versions of Teddy Ruxpin into this decade. I definitely miss that bear-like creature.
I had a Teddy Ruxpin as a child and I loved it
I've had a very long day and was starting to fall asleep while watching this, so I'm going to assume that Teddy Ruxpin having a conversation with Corey Feldman at 12:16 is some sort of hallucination.
Peak 1985.
My Sister loved hers, and around 10 years ago my Mom found another one for sale and got one for her and her. Kids. Now her youngest daughter loves it as much as she did.
As a kid, I remember loving and hating the serialized nature of the show. I was so interested in what would happen next but you’d often get a repeat episode which was the worst. Also, airships! Amazing!
God, I was OBSESSED with Teddy Ruxpin and the story books as a kid... the map on the inside covers had my little mind wondering forever with the worldbuilding
Same. The Teddy Ruxpin book I had as a kid ignited my lifelong obsession for books with maps.
I have a huge vinyl foldout version of that map now.
@daviddalrymple2284 thats amazing! where'd you get that map? Definitely something I'd be interested in getting my hands on!
@@unclesigsig It was marketed as a "play mat" to use with the 3" figures back in the 80s. I bought mine on eBay a few years back.
@@daviddalrymple2284
I had that vinyl map too. No longer have it, but still have the three figures.
I still remember my cousin popping in a Wham! cassette, making Teddy sing along to Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go. Ah, the '80s were a magical time.
I will never forget Teddy with bark at the Moon playing.
Megadeth tape + teddy = fond childhood memories
I remember a friend's sibling having a Teddy Ruxpin that we would put Ozzy & Motley Crue tapes in. Nothing quite like seeing Teddy belting out "Shout at the Devil" or "Mr Crowley"!
I had a friend who put in Ozzys Ultimate Sin tape, lol
@@thegillman777 I think it’s the way the mouth tried to be in sequence but never was that drove the creepy factor up and solidified teddys place in metal history. For me at least and the several of us
Iron Maiden here 😂
I actually knew a guy who worked on the original teddy design when I was a kid in the 80s in socal .Very nice guy I remember he made me a toy car racer for cub Scouts and used one of the plastic teddy figurines for a driver.
A friend of mine created the patterns for the original Teddy Ruxpin toys. She went on to have a prolific career in special effects costumes and puppets, including on Jurassic Park, the Country Bear Jamboree Movie, the Admiral Ackbar animatronic in Tokyo Disneyland, and a bunch more!
What's her name? If it's OK to ask.
my son was born in 1992, and I picked up Teddy from a thrift store. The tapes for his machine and for a Mickey mouse with tape player were all on clearance at toys r us. He loved this toy
In the 80s and early 90s, there were a lot of "minimally violent adventure shows" (see also early Care Bears and Ducktales, for example). For my money, Adventures of Teddy Ruxpin was the best of the bunch. It had great serialized storytelling with mysteries that actually paid off.
You forget the animals of Farthing wood. That show was very depressing as a kid, but you always watched to see what would happen next
@@meikahidenori That one's after my time.
Teddy Ruxpin WAS the beginning of my childhood and yet again one of Jean Chalopin's D&D games turning into a giant bag of money
I was genuinely surprised by "The Adventures of Teddy Ruxpin" cartoon series. Sure, it had all the hallmarks of a toddler show (like Care Bears), but had elements which were much darker than I expected (MAVO anyone?). One of the more genuinely imaginative series for kids both young and old.
Obviously the best part of this toy was putting tapes in them that didn’t belong. I would often put my dad’s Boston cassette tape in Teddy and watch him sing along.
Teddy singing "More than a Feeling" would be cool.
I hear someone tell me they put ZZ Top in. It still gives me a laugh.
My dad still raves about Teddy playing Willie Nelson on Christmas Eve before I opened him up
I would put in my Megadeth type 🤣
Damn I put Kriss kross mc hammer vanilla ice and dj jazzy Jeff and the fresh prince in my little brothers
I think onyx bacdafucup was the last tape I was ever allowed to use on him because the lyrics were so harsh … I was re gifted a new Walkman a family member didn’t have a use for not long after teddy rapped slam and I couldn’t of been happier lol
Thank you for this video. It brings back so many childhood memories. I credit both Teddy Ruxpin and Reading Rainbow for my lifelong love of reading. I remember having several different ones because the eye would pop out of one and half the mouth would fall off of another. When I got older, I asked my mother about having a new Teddy after the previous one broke; she told me that she kept the receipt and exchanged them
Hey, WJZY TV 46! That's the station on which I watched Teddy Ruxpin.
in the intervening years, it went from an independent station, to UPN, to WB, and now it's a part of the FOX network.
I had a Teddy Ruxpin and LOVED it. I loved the world and the stories.
Teddy Ruxpin must have stayed on the market for a while. I was born in '84 and I remember having a Teddy Ruxpin. Remember watching the cartoons. My little brother had a Mickey Mouse that lipsync'd to storybook tapes. I remember trying a bunch of different music tapes in them and being disappointed that they didn't lipsync to the song.
I loved my Teddy Ruxpin! One Christmas, or maybe it was a birthday, my parents bought me a Grubby to go with him, but it didn't work, so we returned it to the store and I got like 5 M.A.S.K. vehicles instead.
I was born in '85 and I remember having one, just not when I got it, but it was there until the early 90s until my mom gave it to our church for their rummage sale.
I was born in December of 1982. I remember seeing Both NES and Teddy Ruxpin in New Jersey in late '85. I wanted one for Christmas and Mom went out of her way to get me one, but it was NOT easy to find. She succeeded though. By '87, I had the ENTIRE Storybook and Cassette collection.
I remember seeing the Teddy Ruxbin on the toy aisle of the Benjamin Franklin crafts store in 1985. This bear was creepy yet cool. My brother played his Def Leppard tape in it and it sang to it barely.
Bearly? 😉
Ruxpin Hit retailers early in the Fall of '85.
Teddy Ruxpin was one of my most favorite toys when I was a kid. Never went anywhere without him. Might still have that old toy somewhere in my parent's attic.
Really happy to see the character and their intent endure after all these years and children can enjoy him and his stories even now. Honestly, one of the few legacy brands I'm fine with continuing on so long as the mission statement Ken Forsee envisioned for the character remains the focus. Teaching kids to care about the world and each other and use their imaginations should always be a priority of toy development and children's entertainment first and foremost.
As a kid, one of my friends had one. Yes, I admit I was extremely jealous. But then came that 1987 cartoon...the theme song stayed in my noggin, where it still is filed away some 37 years later!!
Come dream with me tonight...
Let's go to far off places,
And search for treasures bright!
Come dream with me tonight...
Let's build a giant airship,
And sail into the sky...
Let's watch the ground from far below,
And wave at birds as they fly high...
Fly so high...
COME DREAM WITH ME TONIGHT!!
Though maybe I remember the show's title wrong, I could've sworn that it was "The NEW Adventures of Teddy Ruxpin". Whatever, it was still my jam like so many others.
WOW, this illiop was my jam when i was young, and that live-action special is new to me. Stopped to watch the whole thing (it's on this site) and it's fantastic. Jack Tweeg's suit actor is having a blast.
One of my most prized memories is getting Teddy for my Birthday/Christmas in either ‘85 or ‘86.
the lack of ending to the series still frustrates me to this day .....
At least we found out what all six crystals did.
Ken Forsse was emblematic of the geniuses Disney produced in their heyday
Teddy Ruxpin was too pure for this cruel world. I still have mine from childhood that the top part of the jaw broke off.
I've been waiting years for you to do this one. Thanks for doing Teddy justice.
Thank you for another reminder of my childhood. I doubt I'm the only one to miss Teddy Ruxpin.
My first career was working at an independent toy store for almost 5 years. I started in Christmas season of 1986, so I was a little late for Teddy, but I was there when WOW released the Mickey Mouse version (can't believe that one wasn't a bigger hit). And *man* were there a lot of knockoffs! Some of them were quite good, my favorite of which was a talking (but not animatronic) shar-pei dog named "Wrinkles".
Mom got me the First Run Teddy Ruxpin in Christmas of 1985. This was in Cape May/Atlantic City,NJ. It wasn't easy to obtain though. I also saw the Nintendo Entertainment System for the very first time as my Neighbor, Andre got one for his 4th Birthday. I recall it being pretty easy to find. Mostly the Control Deck SKU. Its astonishing how FUZZY people's Memories of when the Crash hit and when they first saw the NES are. Every Book I read in HS says the Crash hit in '84, Not '83. And EVERY source says it occurred in the Spring of 1984, with NES, ONLY Toys Stores and Department Catalogs mostly carried it before 1986. That's what I remember. Which is Why Nintendo Partnered up with Worlds of Wonder to Distribute the NES in The Fall of 1985 and why SEGA followed suit with Tonka in 1986 with SMS.
Man, I didn't expect this story to be so inspiring. Good to see a guy make his dream come true through talent, grit and persistence.
I love the animated series! The opening theme was beautiful
I'm going to look up the theme based on your comment -- some of those songs were so well-done. Thanks!
i owned a Teddy Ruxpin storytelling plush as a kid ... when i got older i would plug music cassettes into his back and he would 'sing' the songs of my favorite bands at the time (also i enjoyed the cartoon)
I'm an 85 kid and I had one. Never really played with it as intended. Ended up amused by it playing Chipmunks cassettes!
The head of marketing and one of the lead engineers for WoW after it ended, went on to help develop the Kawasaki branded Sax-A-Boom in the 90s for DSi Toys. Teddy Ruxpin even helped Jack Black in an off handed way.
Oh man! I had the talking Mother Goose with connecting Hector the duckling! Actually I still *have* them! 😅 Been meaning to tinker with them a fix them up for a while.
I was in love with those things as a kid. It felt magical. It felt like taking some of the talking animatronics from a Disneyland ride home with you. And it all came from an encoded casette, which still blows my mind! So cool to see Teddy Ruxpin and the Worlds of Wonder dolls covered on this channel!
I have been mildly obsessed with Teddy since I was a little kid
I never had the doll but I would often rent the VHS tapes and I had a collection of hardcover books that I read a lot.
Teddy Ruxpin was huge in Uruguay. A handful of generations grew up wirh the series. It was so magical and heartwarming. We who grew up with it will never forget it.
I happen to be among the lucky owners of an original Teddy Ruxpin. I found it at a charity shop a decade ago, in good working condition. And it only cost $4AU!
man I loved the cartoon as a kid.
Wow, this was fascinating and a little heartbreaking. Thanks for yet another genuinely entertaining episode!
I remember Worlds of Wonder specifically because Lazer Tag was my jam.
Watched the cartoon for years, never cared much for it as a kid but loved it more as a teen. Bought the dvds in my adulthood and lent them to my friend when he bought the original toy at a garage sale lol.
Loved Teddy Ruxpin as a kid.
😄👍
Same here and was probably my first experience with a cartoon that had an actual serialized story, that didn't just reset to status quo after each episode
don't remember ever having the toy, but damned if I didn't see the commericals all the time back then! had no idea his history went back that far. Never would've imagined Nintendo's Famicom making a cameo, though! (I forgot worlds of wonder had distribution of the NES at first! reminds me of Tonka doing the same for SEGA's Master System) also did not know he isn't actually a bear! If they say so... :P
I remember watching the animated series in the morning. Nostalgia.
I was so happy to get a full explanation of the Illiop civilization, the translator being in Teddy's mother's kitchen was odd.
I didn't remember the talking doll until Robot Chicken had one commit suicide rather than play Gallagher's tape.
Teddy was one of my favorite characters growing up. What kept me coming back to the show was the continuous narrative - there was nothing like it among kids' TV shows at the time! Every episode had that "To Be Continued" vibe that served as an occasional gimmick in other, lesser programs. What's more, Teddy and his gang were wholesome heroes, on an epic quest against some truly evil enemies. They served as some of the better role models for my generation.
My mum had purchased a Teddy Ruxpin unit; like so many other cool toys, it was one of those that we had for all of a day before it "mysteriously disappeared" (i.e. was returned to the store for undisclosed reasons). My bros and I still got our hands on (in?) a few of Teddy's puppet friends while the fad was in full swing, but we would never see Teddy himself again. Maybe one day.
I had a Teddy Ruxpin when I was a kid. Later in life I found another one at a thrift store and have that one still displayed on my shelf till this day.
I remember seeing a Fivel from An American Tail doll styled after Teddy Ruxpin when I was a kid
Loved the cartoon series. I tried to convince all of my classmates to give it a chance despite the singing, because it had comicbook-style continuity with one big continuing story full of mysteries and reveals foreshadowed 60 episodes earlier, exactly what I wished all of the other shows of the 80s had been like.
I never had a Teddy Ruxpin, but I had the Alf version. Not only were the tape stories cool, but even more gun was playing rock music on him.
13:00 HOW'SMYHAIR?!
Mr Larson, you are quite the dapper Dan, man.
One of my parents' favorite stories was reminding my sister and I how when they turned Teddy Ruxpin on for the first time Christmas morning we both ran away screaming. Despite the rocky start, we loved that bear and got his buddy, Grubby, eventually. When my daughter turned one I bought her the 2017 version of the bear and she loved it too for awhile, but like with all things, she grew out of it as did I so her Teddy is hanging out in a toy box with my old one only that one probably won't work in 20 years since that app is sure to be dead.
WHAAA?!....What happed to the intro? That's one of my favourite parts!!
Hearing about a Teddy Ruxpin movie immediately made me think of a certain old Penny Arcade strip (I checked and it was the 7/4/2007 one as well as the next one).
My brother had a Teddy Ruxbin. I swear that thing was possessed. Regardless, I was fascinated by the technology. I also may have been a little older than the target demographic, but I watched the show whenever I could catch it. It was unique, imaginative, and I hadn't seen a serialized cartoon like that before
I never got 😪 to watch the adventures of Teddy 🧸 Ruxpin, but I love ❤️ 😍 the 🍟 song "Intro to the Show 📺 🖥 📺
I was a young adult when Teddy Ruxpin came out. I had a group of friends who all had Lazer Tag guns. I did own a Teddy Ruxpin, though; as I worked briefly for this daycare. I would use Teddy to talk stories to the kids before naptime, so I had learned all the songs to sing with Teddy. The tape of lullaby songs was my favorite. I would sing them to my niece as well.
Many years later; I found a Teddy Ruxpin on eBay and bought as many tapes as I could. But once again; I would lose that one as well. But he served his purpose both times, and we did own the DVD animated series, so my nephew would grow up knowing Teddy. He will always be a part of me.
Got Teddy Ruxpin for Christmas in '85. Watched the 1986 Saturday Morning Cartoon as well. Had the ENTIRE Book and Cassette Collection by '87.
This doll was revolutionary. Like lost of 80's kids I dreamt of a robot companion and this guy came pretty close.
When I was a really young child (3-4yo), I ran away from home 2 or 3 times while my mother was asleep- in search of adventure! Each time the cops would bring me back and on the last occasion, they put me in a temporary home for a few days (or maybe a week, idr). I was so upset when they took me away- that the cop took out a Ruxpin out of his trunk to keep me company. Wild that I can still recall that. Ty to the officer & Ruxpin wherever you both are for looking after me 😢
not having a tape player myself growing up, i would put my tapes into my sisters teddy ruxpin ( she no longer cared about it) listen to my music and scary stories.
This kinda makes we wanna have Teddy "read" old The Shadow! Radio shows to me...
@@nikkicoyotie8431 i would rent spooky story tapes from the school library and listen to them over and over on good old ted.
The first time I listened to none thugs was creeping on a come up on cassette in a teddy ruxpin 🤣
@@nikkicoyotie8431that would be incredible!
I had one and it was my absolute favorite toy!!!! I used it so much the mouth motor got so wore out it made a ton of noise when moving so my dad had to cut the wires. The mouth quit moving but it was so much quieter and I still loved him.
I was an infant in the mid 1980s when Teddy Ruxpin was popular, I used cassette tapes a lot as a kid, because I kept swapping tapes to listen to the stories, and I kind of wish there was a Muppets version of Teddy Ruxpin, because I was such a fan of Kermit the frog on Muppet babies and Sesame Street at that time!
There was! I was born in 86 and I had a Big Bird that was a Teddy Ruxpin-alike with the cassette player in the butt and the beak would move
@@marctoad I was about the same age, and I didn’t even know there was a Big Bird variant, but too bad there wasn’t one of Kermit the Frog, because he had the better voice.
@@Markimark151 Yeah it looks like it was just Big Bird, Oscar and Cookie Monster that got the Teddy Ruxpin treatment. I agree on Kermit being better - hell, I always wished my Big Bird was a Teddy Ruxpin, but such is life.
@@marctoad I think it’s due to the complexity of those characters, while teddy bears are easy to design the mechanics.
@@Markimark151 Born December 1982 here. Mom got me Teddy Ruxpin for Christmas in '85. She had to go through alot to find it. That's what I recall. This was Cape May,New Jersey.
The NES however was a different story. I saw it in late '85. It WAS pretty easy to find.
🎶Come dream with me tonight🎶
Sorry but I'm talking about Teddy Ruxpin so I had to use his classic intro jingle, it should be a rule for this. I still have my Teddy and Grubby from my childhood, they're in storage these days and I don't know if they even still work. I also had several tape/book/outfit sets for Teddy, the purple Fobb and the Airship playset with a few figures from the cartoon show (Teddy, Grubby, Gimmick, Tweeg and a Gutang (those green monkey-like creatures in over-sized owl-like masks). I think I may also still have the few VHS tapes I managed to collect in storage somewhere, didn't know about the DVD release from the early 00s until literally just now though. Teddy was my best little buddy as a kid since I'm an only child who didn't have many friends back then. Yeah, sad, I know, but at least I had good ol' Teddy to keep me company and tell me fun stories. I was also unaware of the hardships at Worlds of Wonder and ironically, I was blissfully oblivious of it that Christmas morning when I opened my Baby Teddy. * sigh * Such nice memories. Thanks for the very informative video, great job as always. 👍🧸
I was a toddler during the 80s but I do remember having a Teddy Ruxpin bear with his own automated voice with songs and story telling and everything. I use to love that toy but somehow along the way lost it unfortunately. This is way more information about it than I've ever known before tho.
Gosh I did love that old Teddy Ruxpin cartoon. It was so good.
Had one growing up, loved him. Awesome toy 🧸
Never had a TR, but I did have (and still do) my talking Alf doll, which works the same way, with a cassette player in his back, and moving mouth, ears, and eyebrows. I used to make him sing along to my sister's NKOTB tapes.
Don Draper would have never let that add fly. Also, I wouldn't even know that toy ever existed if it wasn't for that one episode of Venture Bros.
Still have mine. Gave it to my son and my daughter. Found a really nice man a few years ago who serviced him, but unfortunately he passed away. Not as easy now to get him fixed for a reasonable amount. His eyes don’t open and shut on their own anymore, but Teddy still works. My daughter loves to listen to him tell the few stories I have. Gets me a little misty when she plays with him. 😊
I remember going to the mall as a kid in the 80s and seeing all them robots in front of the store is waving people in
I was a preschooler at the time Teddy Ruxpin hit the toy stores and I was obsessed with the character, much like kids a few years younger than me were later obsessed with Barney as preschoolers. I was so excited when my sister and I got one of the Teddy Ruxpin dolls for Christmas. It never got through to me that he wasn't a bear, though. I only found that out several decades later while reading Wikipedia.
I didn't know about Teddy until a sports radio host in Michigan brought him up in a rant in 2006
Amazing. A week ago I broke out my old Teddy Ruxpin to show my daughter and thought why hasn't Secret Galaxy done an episode about this.
Fun fact: A popular prank involving Teddy Ruxpins was to play heavy metal cassettes inside the doll.
Also, thanks to the Nostalgia Critic, many people now think Teddy Ruxpin is creepy.
I saw the animated series of the 80s. Was awesome.
So did I!
I loved the show a lot, basically responsible for my love of serialized storytelling.
I had no idea there was a connection between Teddy Ruxpin and NES. Really, the connections to Jim Henson, Chuck E. Cheese (and therefore Atari), and Disney make sense - but I didn't know about them until I watched this. But I had no clue they helped Nintendo take over America. Also, I didn't know they also invented Laser Tag. So, very cool stuff. That non-bear Bear (Really? Not a bear, but named "Teddy"?!? com'on!) helped define the 1980s and it's lasting cultural impact far more deeply than I ever imagined.
I've know since I was very small. I saw BOTH Teddy Ruxpin and The NES for the first time in Late 1985.
So I miss the super cool retro open which was one of my favorite things about the channel and the thing that made me subscribe. I hope to see it again.
Thanks and please keep the retrospectives, research and high production value in each ep. So much story and lore I had long forgotten.
I remember really getting into the Teddy programme. It felt like a US/UK mash-up, US syle animation and UK ideas. I also had a story like Cities of Gold or Dogtanian. It was an oddbood thing but the story kept me watching, having said that, I have no idea how it ended.
So, I was writing this fanfic (long story) and I decided to base a fanfic-original plot detail on Teddy Ruxpin. I remembered a few odd trivia bits, like that there was a lot more lore than you would expect, and looked up information on YT, which led me to that very documentary, which led me to realizing just how friggin' MASSIVE the lore and meta-lore of Teddy Ruxpin are.
I went from "man, he was trying maybe a little too hard for the audience, but bless 'em" to "I am legit in awe and I can see this helping pave the way for stuff like Bone."
I've been out of the loop for about 2 yrs... I am so happy to see the growth in this channel!!! Keep growing Dan & crew!!!!!!!
Whoa, the new Teddy Ruxpin is even creepier than the original. That thing is the stuff of nightmares
I still have my WOW Snoopy. Just put batteries in it for the first time in decades. His ears and eyes still move and the tape plays. I don’t have the book anymore though.
16:10 that thing is horrifying. Its looks like a toy you’d see in a horror movie where you’re like “really, nobody thinks the doll looks evil?”
A+ video!
LOVE IT! Another classic by Secret Galaxy!
Huh. Who would have guessed that Teddy Ruxpin was still kind of relevant. I only ever knew the animated series and cursed doll, but I had no idea about the rest of the history.
So many random connections to other IP. Also I totally would have loved a muppet babies version! Also also this got dark. Also also also loved it great work guys!
The voice of Teddy Ruxpin is frequently heard in promos for the 80s on 8 for Sirius XM!
Nice work, I wondered why my rip of the live action pilot was suddenly getting attention. You're welcome.
Please do the history of Cats Don't Dance.
That would be a pretty interesting video!
From what I've heard, it started out as a Michael Jackson\Looney Tunes project & has a connection with Space Jam.
Oh my childhood … Teddy & Grubby my friends.. my friend My friends my friend ❤❤❤😢😢😢