The PBS Animated Children’s Series ARTHUR Reveals that One Main Character is Gay
By Movieguide® Staff
Generations of children adore ARTHUR, an animated educational PBS series following the life of an anteater with the same name. Based on the beloved children’s books, ARTHUR shows the title character and his friends and family as he goes about his daily life, and the lessons he learns along the way. In the latest episode, one main character was revealed to be gay at his own wedding.
If you’re unfamiliar with the show, Mr. Nigel Ratburn is Arthur’s 3rd-grade teacher and is quite prominent in the series. ARTHUR originally aired in 1996 and currently is in its 22nd season, so fans have had plenty of time to get accustomed to the characters, but it seems writers are adding a new twist to things. In the season premiere “Mr. Ratburn and the Special Someone,” Mr. Ratburn reveals to the children that he’s getting married, and at the end, it’s revealed to be a same-sex wedding.
Movieguide® first learned of the episode when a concerned mother wrote to us stating that she was watching ARTHUR with her child when she noticed the LGBT messaging. Many parents don’t watch PBS’s children’s programming with their children because they trust that it won’t include progressive social messaging, but this isn’t the case. Actress/comedian Jane Lynch (GLEE), an LGBT advocate and outspoken lesbian guest stars on the episode as Mr. Ratburns sister.
For PBS, a government-funded broadcast network to push a same-sex marriage storyline into children’s programming shows tremendous bias against the general public that holds to traditional marriage. For those parents that agree, Movieguide® recommends reaching out to PBS and PBS Kids and voicing your disapproval. As of 3:10 PM on May 13, 2019, the PBS Kids contact page is down, but below are other ways of reaching out.
Twitter– PBS Kids
Phone – 703-739-5000
Emails:
info@marcbrownstudios.com
audienceservices@pbs.org
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