Blippi
GenrePreschool
Created byStevin John
Country of originUnited States
Original release
NetworkYouTube
ReleaseFebruary 18, 2014 (2014-02-18) –
present
Blippi
YouTube information
Channel
Years active2014–present
GenrePreschool
Subscribers19.2 million[1]
Total views15.7 billion[1]
NetworkMoonbug Entertainment
Last updated: January 15, 2024

Blippi is an American online based child entertainer for toddlers and children up to the age of about five years old.[2][3]

History

The show was created and the character originally played by Stevin John,[4] who posted the first episode of the show on YouTube on February 18, 2014.[5][6][7] Aiming to keep Blippi going, John joined the multi-channel network Moonbug Entertainment in 2020,[8] which became a subsidiary of Candle Media in 2021.[9] The show is dubbed in Spanish, French, Portuguese, German, Japanese, Italian, Hebrew, Arabic, Swedish, Danish, Welsh and Polish.[10][6]

Until May 2021, the Blippi character was only portrayed by Stevin John. On May 8, Clayton Grimm, who played Blippi in live performances, performed as Blippi for the first time on the channel and would host as an alternative Blippi with John.[6][11] On October 9, 2021, Moonbug announced the addition of a new character named Meekah (played by Kaitlin Becker and Cashae Monya).[12][13] The spin-off series Blippi's Treehouse started airing on December 1, 2021, on Amazon Kids+, with two more characters, Scratch and Patch (both are puppets).[14]

Development

The eponymous YouTube series features Blippi, an adult with a childlike curiosity and energetic persona, who wears a blue and orange beanie cap, orange glasses, blue shirt, orange suspenders, an orange bow tie, blue-grey skinny jeans and blue and orange sneakers.

Distribution

In October 13, 2022, Moonbug Entertainment partnered with Virgin Media to bring Blippi and other Moonbug programs to the United Kingdom.[15] The show expanded to Southeast Asia in March 2021 when Moonbug partnered with POPS Worldwide to bring children's content to the POPS Kids app.[16] Netflix acquired the streaming license to Blippi in January 2022.[17]

Licensing and merchandise

In 2019 Blippi signed a master toy deal with Jazwares LLC to sell a variety of merchandise such as toy vehicles, plush and other toys based on the Blippi show, beginning in spring 2020.[18][2][19]

In early 2020 Jazwares created "My Buddy Blippi," a plush toy that can recreate 15 of the character's sounds and phrases.[2]

In January 2021 Blippi launched an additional toy line.[4]

In addition to toys, books and more, Blippi merchandise also includes clothing.[20]

Blippi The Musical

Blippi The Musical is a live show produced by Round Room Live in partnership with Moonbug Entertainment, and was scheduled to tour North America in summer 2021. In previous tours of Blippi there had been some outcry as a result of the performances not being performed by Stevin John but by another actor.[11][21] Originally scheduled in 2020, live performances were postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[6]

Blippi Wonders

Blippi Wonders is an animated children's web series based on Stevin John's Blippi. The series is about Blippi, along with either TABBS (an orange cat) or D.BO (a blue dog) on a blue car called the Blippi Mobile. The Blippi Mobile can change into many elements, such as wings and shrinking down. The series is produced by London-based Moonbug Entertainment, Italy-based Rainbow CGI and based on a Nova Scotia production services provided by IoM Media Ventures.

Reception and Before Blippi

Nathan J. Robinson of Current Affairs criticized Blippi's programming, calling it "dead and sterile" and lacking intellectual curiosity that children can understand.[22] The actor who plays "Blippi once made a video where he stripped naked and blasted diarrhea all over another man’s bare anus."[23][24]

Actor Stevin John who plays the role of Blippi started making gross out videos in 2013 under the persona of Steezy Grossman.[24] In a 2013 video, John performed the Harlem Shake on a toilet and defecated on a naked friend.[24][23] When the video was unearthed by BuzzFeed News in 2019, John said, "at the time, I thought this sort of thing was funny, but really it was stupid and tasteless, and I regret having ever done it."[24] John used DMCA takedown notices to remove the video from social media and internet search engines.[25]

References

  1. 1 2 "About BlippiVideos". YouTube.
  2. 1 2 3 Patel, Sahil (2020-02-24). "Toy Industry Looks to YouTube Talent for Next Generation of Merchandise". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  3. ↑ "Moonbug Acquires YouTube's 'Blippi' and 'CoComelon'". Animation World Network. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  4. 1 2 "Moonbug Raises $120 Million, Acquires Children's YouTube Titans Cocomelon And Blippi". Tubefilter. 2020-07-30. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  5. ↑ "FARM TRACTORS - KIDS SHOW — Blippi - Educational Videos for Kids". YouTube. Retrieved 15 July 2021.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Cannon, Matt (2021-05-09). "Blippi actor Stevin John is replaced in latest YouTube episode, leaving fans puzzled". Newsweek. Archived from the original on 2021-05-09. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  7. ↑ "Who the Heck Is Blippi, Anyway?". Parents. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  8. ↑ Alexander, Julia (2020-10-19). "YouTube's biggest kids show is about to take over streaming services". The Verge. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  9. ↑ Weprin, Alex (2022-11-16). "Blippi Franchise Expands With Meekah Show at Netflix". hollywoodreporter.com. Retrieved 2023-08-30.
  10. ↑ "Blippi po polsku – Nauka przez zabawę! - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  11. 1 2 Donnelly, Erin (2021-05-10). "Why there's a 'new' Blippi actor — and how confused parents are reacting". Yahoo! Life. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
  12. ↑ "Moonbug Announces New Character Meekah to Join Blippi Universe". The Salamanca Press. October 9, 2021. Archived from the original on October 10, 2021. Retrieved October 10, 2021.
  13. ↑ "Moonbug Announces New Character Meekah to Join Blippi Universe". PR Newswire. October 9, 2021. Retrieved October 22, 2021.
  14. ↑ ""Blippi's Treehouse," Featuring Preschool Juggernaut Blippi, Premieres Exclusively on Amazon Kids+ on December 1, 2021 Moonbug Entertainment". The Futon Critic. November 11, 2021. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  15. ↑ "Moonbug content on Virgin Media". advanced-television.com. 23 September 2020. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  16. ↑ "Moonbug Brings 'Cocomelon,' Blippi to 'POPS' App". licenseglobal.com. 2021-03-10. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  17. ↑ Horgan, Emily (December 17, 2021). "Moonbug Entertainment's 'Blippi' Joining 'CoComelon' on Netflix in January 2022". What's on Netflix.
  18. ↑ "Blippi inks master toy deal with Jazwares". Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  19. ↑ "YouTube Star Blippi Hits Play on Jazwares Toy Line". licenseglobal.com. 2020-01-22. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  20. ↑ "Exclusive: The Point.1888 Inks New Moonbug Licensing Deals". licenseglobal.com. 2021-05-18. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  21. ↑ Parents Demand Refunds on Their Blippi Tickets, retrieved 2022-03-03
  22. ↑ Robinson, Nathan J. (2020-08-25). "The Dead World of Blippi". Current Affairs. Retrieved 2021-07-27.
  23. 1 2 Heritage, Stewart J. (2019-07-17). "YouTube Is Destroying My Child's Mind (And One Person Is To Blame)". Esquire. Retrieved 2024-01-06.
  24. 1 2 3 4 Notopoulos, Katie J. (2019-02-13). "Kids YouTube Star Blippi "Regrets" The Viral Video In Which He Poops All Over His Friend". Buzzfeed News. Retrieved 2024-01-06.
  25. ↑ Koebler, Jason; Maiberg, Emanuel (15 February 2019). "How Kids YouTube Star Blippi Used Copyright Law to Hide His Harlem Shake Poop Video". Motherboard.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.