''Size Small'' is a Canadian children's music album series, turned television series, first produced in 1980. Written by and starring the Lumby family, characters included Miss Helen (played by

Helen Lumby Helen may refer to: People * Helen of Troy, in Greek mythology, the most beautiful woman in the world * Helen (actress) (born 1938), Indian actress * Helen (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) Places * Helen, G ...

), Oliver (

John Lumby Jr. John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

), Grandma Gussie (

Lisa Lumby-Richards Lisa or LISA may refer to: People People with the mononym * Lisa Lisa (born 1967), American actress and lead singer of the Cult Jam * Lisa (Japanese musician, born 1974), stylized "LISA", Japanese singer and producer * Lisa Komine (born 1978), ...

), Stampede (

Jeff Lumby Jeff Lumby (born 1956) is a Canadian actor. He is a member of the Lumby family, who created and produced the 1980s Canadian children's television series, '' Size Small'', where he performed as various characters and as a puppeteer. Lumby played "W ...

), and Friend Record, a giant record who plays the spoons. Other characters included

puppet A puppet is an object, often resembling a human, animal or Legendary creature, mythical figure, that is animated or manipulated by a person called a puppeteer. The puppeteer uses movements of their hands, arms, or control devices such as rods ...

s such as Hatchet (a beaver), Renfrew (a dog), Gasper (a skunk), Gifford (a gopher), Cooter (a coyote), Casablanca (a cow) and the triplets Webster, Dee Dee and Tug. ''Size Small'' is based on a predecessor series, ''Miss Helen's Kindergarten Party'', airing from 1956 to 1962 on

CFQC-TV CFQC-DT (channel 8) is a television station in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, part of the CTV Television Network. Owned and operated by network parent Bell Media, the station has studios on 1st Avenue North and 23rd Street East in the Central B ...

Saskatoon Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Yellowhead Highway, and has served as ...

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a province in western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North ...

. The television series, launched in 1982, was a huge hit in Canada and around the world; it also aired on some

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of ed ...

member stations in the United States, at least during 1987.Radio-Info: "Retro: Madison/LaCrosse-Eau Claire/Milwaukee/Rockford/Wausau Wed, Mar 18, 1987", November 16, 2009.
/ref> Spin-offs included ''Size Small Country'' (1983) and ''Size Small Island'' (1986). A ''Size Small'' Christmas special was also produced in 1984. ''Size Small'' was produced in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan through the

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749 ...

Manitoba , image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg , map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada , Label_map = yes , coordinates = , capital = Win ...

television station

CKND-TV CKND-DT (channel 9) is a television station in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, part of the Global Television Network. The station is owned and operated by network parent Corus Entertainment, with studios on the 30th floor of 201 Portage in downtown ...

, later involving the

Global Television Network The Global Television Network (more commonly called Global, or occasionally Global TV) is a Canadian English-language terrestrial television network. It is currently Canada's second most-watched private terrestrial television network after CT ...

and Saskatchewan stations

CFRE-TV CFRE-DT (channel 11) is a television station in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, part of the Global Television Network. The station is owned and operated by network parent Corus Entertainment, and maintains studios on Hoffer Drive and McDonald Stre ...

and

CFSK-TV CFSK-DT (channel 4) is a television station in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, part of the Global Television Network. Owned and operated by network parent Corus Entertainment, the station has studios on Robin Crescent on the northwest side of Sa ...

. A series of ''Size Small'' records were produced, featuring songs performed on the show. They were advertised at the end of every episode of the TV show, where they could be purchased by mail order. The show re-aired on YTV in the early 1990s, with advertisements for the records removed.

References

External links

* 1980s Canadian children's television series 1982 Canadian television series debuts Year of Canadian television series ending missing Canadian television shows featuring puppetry Global Television Network original programming Treehouse TV original programming YTV (Canadian TV channel) original programming Television shows filmed in Saskatoon Television shows filmed in Winnipeg {{Canada-kids-tv-prog-stub