Erie native Marc Brown's 'Arthur' returns with new podcast series

Baylee DeMuth, Erie Times-News
·2 min read

Eight months after PBS Kids' longest-running animated children's TV series "Arthur" ended, the 8-year-old aardvark is back to tell more stories, this time in a podcast.

Arthur the Aardvark is back to retell stories from the former TV show as well as introduce new stories about his friends, family and school.

The first of eight episodes of "The Arthur Podcast" will be available Thursday. Episodes will be released each week on Thursdays. The show can be found on the PBS Kids Video app, Spotify, Apple Podcasts and other streaming platforms. It is produced by Boston's GBH Kids and Gen-Z Media.

Listeners will also be able to submit responses to "Arthur’s Inbox" on the PBS KIDS for Parents website to be potentially included in future episodes.

Although the TV series finale depicts Arthur and his friends as adults, the cast appears to be back to their younger selves for the podcast, according to the podcast promotional video.

Related:‘Arthur’ is (sob) over after 25 years. The people behind the cartoon aardvark say goodbye.

Background on 'Arthur'

"Arthur" was created by Erie native and children's book author Marc Brown. Brown has been writing about Arthur, D.W. and their friends since the late 1970s. The aardvark has starred in at least 30 books.

Brown, who has visited his hometown often through the years, based several of his characters on people he knew in Erie as a child.

"Arthur" came out of a bedtime story he told his son, Tolon, involving an aardvark who didn't like his long nose. He turned this tale into 1976's "Arthur's Nose," the first book in his popular "Arthur Adventure" series.

Most recent visit:Children's book author Marc Brown returns to Erie

Marc Brown, Erie native and children's book author, draws in illustration with the input from the students at Grandview Elementary School on March 4, 2020. Brown, who attended Lakewood Elementary School and then McDowell High School, credited his childhood education to his success as an author.
Marc Brown, Erie native and children's book author, draws in illustration with the input from the students at Grandview Elementary School on March 4, 2020. Brown, who attended Lakewood Elementary School and then McDowell High School, credited his childhood education to his success as an author.

"Arthur" first appeared on air in October 1996. It ran for 25 years and boasted more than 200 episodes. It aired in 80 countries, won seven Emmy Awards and a Peabody. The books that inspired the series have sold over 65 million books in the United States alone, according to Brown's website.

"I was happy about what 'Arthur' accomplished,” Brown told USA TODAY. “I think in many ways, he helped us all grow up.”

Baylee DeMuth can be reached at 814-450-3425 or bdemuth@timesnews.com. Follow her on Twitter @BayleeDeMuth.

A cartoon depiction of Marc Brown talks with Arthur for some of the final episodes.
A cartoon depiction of Marc Brown talks with Arthur for some of the final episodes.

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: PBS Kids' 'Arthur' returns with new podcast series for children