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Dottie's Magic Pockets: groundbreaking children's dvd for gay and lesbian families
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Dottie and her puppet friend, Randal the Beaver (Photo by PinkPea)
What does a mother do when her young son wants to watch a television show with a family that looks like his own?
This was the dilemma Tammy Stoner faced over two years ago, when her young son, Oliver, wanted to see a video that featured two moms, just like his family. So Stoner decided to do what most imaginative moms would do—she’d create a gay and lesbian family-oriented video just for kids like Oliver.
“I created Dottie’s Magic Pockets to reflect a diverse family,” says Stoner. “I wanted to put my heart around positive gay and lesbian images. There isn’t anything else like this out there.”
Pink Pea Productions was formed with the help of Stoner’s friends and Dottie’s Magic Pockets was born, becoming the first kid’s show for gay and lesbian families and their friends. Dottie’s reception has been welcoming and much needed, especially in the LGBT community. Dottie is so popular that she makes numerous appearances on R Family (cruise ship) vacations!
Dottie’s Magic Pockets has everything children ages two to six will love. There are Dottie’s lovable puppet friends: James the Flower, who’s a French aristocratic daisy, Motilda the Mouse who loves being everyone’s friend, Randal the Beaver whose curiosity often gets him in trouble and the hilarious Uncanny the Singing Can.
The catchy and easy-to-sing songs will delight both child and parent, (“Doing the Flower” will be bopping in your head for days, trust me), while the instructive cartoons will teach and amuse. My daughter loved the story of how purplish-pink Princess wanted to be orange like her two dads, so Princess ate a “mountain of carrots.” When Princess discovers that turning orange has made her dads' sad, she learns a valuable lesson: that her parents loved her and thought she was special just as she was…purplish-pink. (You’ll have to watch the video to see what Princess did next!) What a great lesson to teach children--being different is more than okay...it's special.
Dottie’s Magic Pockets has been described as "Sesame Street with a glittery nod to Pee Wee,” including a shout-out from Curve magazine, who hails the video as “a hip and zippy show that overflows with imagination.” I couldn’t agree more. Dottie is a great family video for all of today's families who want to teach their children that families come in all shapes and sizes, and being different is something to celebrate. Tammy Stoner accomplished her goal of creating "a kid's show for families with two moms, two dads or one of each!"
The only drawback in this groundbreaking video is that it's not five hours long. The DVD, which runs 50 minutes, was not long enough for my daughter, who simply did not want the video to end. She wanted to see more Dottie! So Dottie, get back to work. The children of America are ready for your next DVD!
Dottie's Magic Pockets is available only on DVD and retails for $19.95. To order, click here or to see video clips, click here. To listen to Dottie on NPR, click here.
For more info: Dottie's Magic Pockets, Pink Pea Productions.
(Copyright © N. E. Francis. All Rights Reserved.)
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