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The Wiggles

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The Wiggles

The Wiggles is a children's musical group formed in Sydney, Australia in 1991. They were founded by Anthony Field, Murray Cook, Greg Page, and Jeff Fatt. The group has achieved worldwide success with their children's albums, videos, television series, and concert appearances. In 2005, The Wiggles earned more than AC/DC and Nicole Kidman combined becoming Australia's "richest entertainers."[1] In 2006, they earned $A50 million.[2] They have earned seventeen gold, twelve platinum, three double-platinum, and ten multi-platinum awards for sales of over 17 million DVDs and four million CDs.[3]

Field and Fatt were members of the Australian pub rock band The Cockroaches in the 1980s, and Cook was a member of several bands before meeting Field and Page at Macquarie University, where they were studying to become pre-school teachers. A school project led to the recording of their first album and tour in 1991. As a result of their background, the group combines music and child development research in their videos, television programs, and live shows. Since their inception, the touring company has expanded to include other regular characters (Captain Feathersword, Dorothy the Dinosaur, Henry the Octopus, and Wags the Dog) and "The Wiggly Dancers", a troupe of dancers.

By 2002, The Wiggles become the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's (ABC) most successful pre-school television programs. The group has franchised their concepts to other countries, developed Wiggles sections in amusement parks in Australia and the U.S., and won several recording industry awards. In 2006, Greg Page was forced to retire from the group due to illness and was replaced by former Wiggly dancer Sam Moran.

History

Origins

Anthony Field and Jeff Fatt were members of The Cockroaches, a popular pub rock band signed to Regular Records and distributed by Festival Records (Australia) that had Top 40 hits in Australia during the 1980s. After The Cockroaches disbanded in 1988, Field enrolled at the Institute of Early Childhood Studies at Macquarie University in Sydney. Field, Greg Page and Murray Cook were among the half dozen men in a program with roughly 500 women.[4] At the time Cook was the guitarist in a minor Sydney pop band, Bang Shang a Lang, while working as a clerk at the Australian Taxation Office.[5] The classmates produced a music project for school and included early educational concepts in their plans to become entertainers of children. Motivated to create high-quality children's music, they produced their first self-titled album in 1991.[4]

Needing a keyboardist, Field asked his old band mate, Fatt, to help. Fatt replied, "Sure, but how long will it take...?"[6] The group received song writing help from John Field, Anthony's brother and former band mate, as they reworked a few Cockroaches tunes (like "Do the Monkey") into children's songs.[7] Another Cockroaches song, "Get Ready to Wiggle", inspired the band's name.[4] The Wiggles received keyboards and song writing assistance from Phillip Wilcher, "the fifth Wiggle", whom they met at Macquarie and whose departure from the group shortly before they achieved international fame "seemed reminiscent of the misfortunes of Pete Best, the 'fifth Beatle' who famously departed the Beatles before they became the biggest band in the world."[8]

From the group's inception, The Wiggles decided to "operate from the premise that a young child has a short attention span, is curious about a limited number of objects and activities, loves having a job to do and is thrilled by mastering basic movements".[4] All their songs, based on pop music, were short and featured simple body movements and familiar activities. Their knowledge about how young children learn explained why they stared continually into the camera in their videos and TV shows, and why their stage shows were full of audience participation.[4]

Early career

Using his connections with The Cockroaches, Anthony Field arranged with the ABC to distribute The Wiggles' album in Australia. On their manager's advice, they toured in unusual settings throughout Eastern Australia.[4][9] Their debut performance was at a pre-school in Randwick. Their first tours consisted of busking at places in Sydney such as Circular Quay, performing for crowds debarking from Manly Ferry. After their first album was released, they toured at Westfield shopping centres around Sydney. They performed throughout New South Wales at shows promoted by local playgroups or nursing mothers' associations with whom they split their proceeds. John Field and Mick Conway, who later became The Wiggles' general manager, performed with them.[10]

As Fatt reported, "it was very much a cottage industry." They served as their own roadies and travelled in Fatt's van, towing a trailer with borrowed equipment.[10] Their act was later augmented with supporting characters—the "friendly pirate" Captain Feathersword and the animal characters Dorothy the Dinosaur, Henry the Octopus, and Wags the Dog. These characters were initially performed by the original members of The Wiggles. Field played Captain Feathersword and Wags; Cook played Dorothy; and Fatt played Henry.[11]

The Wiggles adopted colour-coded shirts: Page in yellow, Cook in red, Fatt in purple, and Field in blue. Field originally wore a green shirt but changed to avoid clashing with Dorothy the Dinosaur.[4] Additionally each Wiggle developed a "schtick" based on their actual behaviours. Page's performed magic tricks; Cook's played the guitar; Fatt's fell asleep (as Moran said, "Jeff really does fall asleep"); Field's was eating. These behaviours, evolved into caricatures, served the same purpose as the uniforms in differentiating their characters and making them memorable to young children.[12]

File:Samjeff.jpg
Sam Moran and Jeff Fatt demonstrate The Wiggles' signature finger-wagging move.

The Wiggles made a decision, as Cook has said, to not "go down the route of what people think is kids' music".[4] Three albums worth of original children's music, drawing upon several genres of music and types of instruments, were written during marathon song writing sessions for a month each summer and was based on simple concepts familiar to young children. Simple movements were developed by choreographer Leeanne Ashley to accompany each song.[4] One of these simple movements, their signature finger-wagging move, was created by Cook after seeing professional bowlers do it on television.[9] It became the group's policy to use this pose when being photographed with children. They insisted that touching children, no matter how innocently, was inappropriate. As Paul Paddick has explained, "there is no doubting where their hands are". The use of the pose protected them from possible litigation.[11]

The Wiggles have always invited children with special needs and their families to pre-concert "meet and greet" sessions.[13] Since 1995, The Wiggles have visited and performed for patients at the Sydney Children's Hospital every Christmas morning.[14] The group have always had a strict code of conduct based on zero tolerance of drug use, drinking, smoking, or bad language by any employee of their organisation.[2]

Success at home and abroad

The Wiggles stage, Oakland, California

Through the rest of the 1990s, The Wiggles maintained a busy recording and touring schedule, releasing multiple albums and home videos, and performing to increasingly large audiences in Australia and New Zealand. Unable to get a television program produced through the ABC because of "irreconcilable artistic differences", they filmed two self-produced television series in the late 90s.[15] The band gained popularity in the United States in 1998 by piggybacking on the success of the television program Barney & Friends. Lyrick Studios, the producers of Barney, began distributing Wiggles videos in the U.S. and advertising them in Barney videos. During their U.S. tour, The Wiggles performed during the intermission of Barney Live.[4]

In 1997, Twentieth Century Fox produced a feature-length film, The Wiggles Movie, which became the fifth highest-grossing Australian film of 1998.[16] For a few years during the late 90s, while "riding an enormous wave of success in America and the UK", The Wiggles travelled in two planes and on two buses so that if disaster occurred, "at least half of them would survive and carry on." After it proved to be a logistical nightmare, they ended the practice, although by 2007, they travelled in two separate buses between cities.[2]

Their "strong connection" with the U.S. was "forged in the shell-shocked weeks after the terrorist attacks on New York in 2001," when The Wiggles travelled to America to perform despite the "stated risks". Paul Field reported that "New York has really embraced them. It was a kind of watershed." The decision earned them respect and loyalty in the U.S., and strong sales of The Wiggles videos eventually caught the attention of the Disney Channel. In January 2002, Disney began showing a Wiggles video clip between programs of its morning Playhouse Disney block. By June of that year, the popularity of these interstitials prompted the Disney Channel to add The Wiggles television series to the Playhouse Disney program schedule, showing full episodes multiple times per day.[10][17] The Wiggles began to film their television series exclusively with the ABC in 2002; the network called them "the most successful property that the ABC has represented in the pre-school genre."[15]

The Wiggles performed 12 sold-out shows at Madison Square Garden in 2003, and have been in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, the first time in 2001. In 2003, November 1 was declared "Wiggles Day" in New York City.[18] In "one of the highlights of their 15 years of being together", The Wiggles were awarded honourary doctorate degrees from the Australian Catholic University in recognition of "their outstanding contribution to early child development" in 2006. Cook gave the commencement speech for the graduates.[19]

Balloon versions of Murray and Jeff at a Wiggles concert

By 2008, The Wiggles had earned seventeen gold, twelve platinum, three double-platinum, and ten multi-platinum awards for sales of over 17 million DVDs and four million CDS.[3] As of 2005, they had performed in front of more than a million people across the globe.[20] They won APRA song writing awards in 1994, 1995, and 1996,[6] and have won the ARIA Award five times, in 1995, 1996, 1998, 2006, and 2007.[21][22] In 2003, they were awarded ARIA's Outstanding Achievement Award for their success in the U.S.[6]

Their success in music and television has led to extensive merchandising of Wiggles-branded books, toys, clothing, and other products for children by the Toronto-based toy company Spin Master since 2003. The group began franchising its concept to other countries in 2003, branching into Taiwan and Latin American markets with versions of Mandarin- and Spanish-speaking Wiggles.[6] At the end of 2007, The Wiggles donated their complete back catalogue of 27 master tapes to Australia's National Film and Sound Archive.[23]

In September 2005, Australia's largest theme park, Dreamworld in Queensland, opened a "Wiggles World" section. Driven by the Dreamworld success, Six Flags opened its first "Wiggles World" section in April 2007 and by the end of the year planned to open 20 more at its parks across the U.S. The sections emphasized family involvement; they offered joint rides, as opposed to rides in parks where "parents might stick their kid on a ride and sit back and watch."[13]

The founding members of The Wiggles, 2004, during a visit to NASA; from right to left: Anthony Field, Murray Cook, Jeff Fatt and Greg Page

By 2007, The Wiggles employed 20 full-time workers in offices in Sydney and Dallas, Texas, as well as another 30 employees on their tours.[2] They became formally consolidated in 2005. The original four members serve as the group's only directors; Paul Field has been general manager of operations since the group was formed. Mike Conway has been general manager since 2001.[10]

Greg Page's retirement

In December 2005, lead singer and founding member Greg Page, at age 33, underwent a double hernia operation. He withdrew from The Wiggles' U.S. tour in June 2006 after suffering fainting spells, lethargy, nausea, and loss of balance. He returned to Australia, where doctors diagnosed his condition as orthostatic intolerance, a chronic but not life-threatening condition.[24] Page's final performance with The Wiggles was in Kingston, Rhode Island.[25]

On November 30, 2006, the Wiggles announced Page's retirement from the group "to focus on managing his health".[26] Page was replaced by Sam Moran, who had served as an understudy for The Wiggles for five years and had already stood in for Page on 150 shows. Although the transition was "smooth" for the young children of The Wiggles' audience, it was more difficult for their parents. Initially, The Wiggles "struggled" over their decision to replace Page, but they "ultimately decided to go on because they thought that was what their young audience would want".[25]

Characters

Aside from the four Wiggles, four secondary characters usually appear in their television series, videos, and live concerts. These characters were developed in the early 1990s and were originally played by group members and by Anthony Field's brother Paul, the band's manager. They are now played by hired actors, occasionally touring without The Wiggles as "Dorothy the Dinosaur and Friends".[11] In 1998, Moran hosted this show before becoming Page's understudy.[27]

File:Captain Feathersword 110807.jpg
Dorothy the Dinosaur
Captain Feathersword
(Paul Paddick)
Wags the Dog
Henry the Octopus

Dorothy the Dinosaur

Dorothy is a "rososaurus", a "yellow-spotted green dinosaur with surprisingly scary teeth". She lives in a beautiful pink and purple house with her own Rosy Orchestra and a rose garden in her backyard. She loves to eat roses and dance the ballet.[28] She enjoys serving guests rose-derived treats such as "rosy tea".[29] Dorothy, originally played by Cook, has since been played by Leanne Ashley,[30] and Lyn Stuckey.[31] South Australian Carolyn Ferrie, a trained opera singer and dancer, has provided her voice since 1997 when she worked with Field on an Irish music Wiggles CD. Ferrie described Dorothy as "a dinosaur superstar ... very open, friendly, and warm. She is like a mother figure even though she is only meant to be five, and kids really respond to her... She is calm and mothering but friendly as well. She's young and still playful but has got a motherly feeling to her." Ferrie insisted that Dorothy "is number one after the boys including Captain Feathersword, in terms of who kids say they love." Dorothy has a distinctive, charming, trill-like, descending laugh created by Ferrie.[32][29] In the spring of 2007, it was announced that Dorothy would star in her own television show in Australia.[32]

Captain Feathersword

Captain Feathersword, "the friendly pirate", wears a hat, patch, and puffy shirt[11] and wields a "feathery saber".[33] He was created by Field but was first played by Paddick in 1993.[34] At first, Paddick's role was minor, but it eventually evolved, and he has been called "the Fifth Wiggle".[33] For many parents, his vocal impersonations "are the high point of the Wiggles stage show" and include Mick Jagger, Cher, Placido Domingo and James Hetfield, lead singer of Metallica.[11]

Wags the Dog and Henry the Octopus

Wags is a tall, brown, furry dog with floppy ears and a happy face. He "loves to sing and dance and kids bring 'bones' that the Wiggly Dancers collect from the audience."[28] Wags was originally played by Field.[11][35]

Henry the Octopus, who directs an underwater band, likes to sing and to breakdance with his eight legs.[28] Since Henry's creation, Fatt has served as Henry's voice.[36][37]

Minor characters

For their stage shows, The Wiggles used two 16-metre (52 ft) trucks, three tour buses, a cast of 13 dancers, and 10 permanent crew members.[10] The "Wiggly dancers" have always made up a major part of the Wiggles shows and TV programs and play many of the minor roles. Minor characters of note include The Cook (portrayed by Anthony Field's late father, John, and Crowded House drummer Paul Hester),[38] Professor Singalottasonga, and Dapper Dave (both played by Moran),[39] and Officer Beaples and Fiona Fitbelly (both played by Wiggles' choreographer Leanne Halloran).[40]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Kids' favourites Wiggle to the top of wealth list". ABC News. 2006-04-06. Retrieved 2007-01-22. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  2. ^ a b c d Blake, Elissa (2007-09-02). "Unusual suspects". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2007-09-03. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  3. ^ a b Skrobot, Sam (2008-01-31). "More 'wiggling' and 'doodling' through children's TV". The Shield. Retrieved 2008-02-02. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Scott, Paul (2006-04-02). "Kid Rock". The New York Times. Retrieved 2007-01-23. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  5. ^ Mulligan, Mark. "A brief history of nearly everything BSL". Bang Shang a Lang.com. Retrieved 2007-08-06.
  6. ^ a b c d "About Us". The Wiggles Official Website. Retrieved 2007-01-23.
  7. ^ "New Best of the Cockroaches Hey Let's Go CD The Wiggles". Rare Music CDs. Retrieved 2007-08-16.
  8. ^ Sams, Christine (2005-08-01). "The fifth Wiggle speaks out". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2007-01-22. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  9. ^ a b "Enough Rope with Andrew Denton, episode 15, The Wiggles". ABC TV Online. 2003-06-23. Retrieved 2007-01-23. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  10. ^ a b c d e Munro, Catharine (2005-05-22). "The Wiggly way". The Age. Retrieved 2007-11-29. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Cite error: The named reference "wigglyway" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  11. ^ a b c d e f Meacham, Steve (2005-12-03). "The master of sword play". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2007-08-10. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Cite error: The named reference "swordplay" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  12. ^ Durden, Douglas (2007-08-05). "A new face". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Retrieved 2007-08-10. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  13. ^ a b Zuel, Bernard (2007-12-15). "Welcome to Wiggles World". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2007-12-23. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  14. ^ Australian AP (2007-12-26). "Wiggles make Christmas hospital visit". The West Australian. Retrieved 2008-01-06. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  15. ^ a b Tabakoff, Jenny (2002-10-01). "Wake up, Aunty!". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2007-11-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  16. ^ "Release Success of Australian Productions - Top 5 Box Office Each Year". Australian Film Commission. Retrieved 2007-01-23.
  17. ^ "The Wiggles Join Playhouse Disney Monday, June 17" (Press release). Disney Channel. 2002-06-12. Retrieved 2007-01-23. {{cite press release}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  18. ^ "They're off to see the Wiggles, the wonderful Wiggles of Oz". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2003-11-03. Retrieved 2008-01-22. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  19. ^ Sams, Christine (2006-04-06). "Wiggles four degrees hotter". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2007-11-28. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  20. ^ "The Wiggles win 2005 DHL Australian Exporter of the Year". Business Asia. 2005-09-01. Retrieved 2007-07-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  21. ^ "Artist: The Wiggles". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 2007-10-29.
  22. ^ "List of ARIA award winners". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2007-10-29. Retrieved 2007-10-29. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  23. ^ "Wiggles donate early tapes to Archive". Herald Sun. 2007-12-19. Retrieved 2007-12-23. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  24. ^ Associated Press (2006-11-30). "The Wiggles' lead vocalist to stop performing". MSNBC. Retrieved 2007-08-08. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  25. ^ a b Steinberg, Jacques (2006-12-04). "Hush, Mama, don't you cry, a new yellow Wiggle will sing". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-02-04. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  26. ^ "Greg Page Leaves The Wiggles" (Press release). The Wiggles. 2006-11-30. Retrieved 2007-01-24. {{cite press release}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  27. ^ "Wiggles Sam's family values". The Daily Telegraph. 2006-12-16. Retrieved 2007-11-18. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  28. ^ a b c Wright, Diane (2007-03-14). "Hey, kids! It's fun--and you may even learn something". The Seattle Times. Retrieved 2007-11-28. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  29. ^ a b Horswill, Amanda (2007-06-05). "Meet Dorothy Dinosaur's giggle". The Couriermail. Retrieved 2007-11-24. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  30. ^ "Leeanne Ashley". TV.com. Retrieved 2007-11-23.
  31. ^ Fouch, Robert L. (2007-07-29). "Fast chat: Sam Moran". Newsday. Retrieved 2007-08-14. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  32. ^ a b Browne, Rachel (2007-05-27). "Kids will go dotty about solo Dorothy". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2007-11-23. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  33. ^ a b Baughman, Tony (2007-11-12). "Captain Feathersword may steal The Wiggles' show". The Aiken Standard. Retrieved 2007-11-16. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  34. ^ Yeap, Sue (2006-08-17). "The fifth Wiggle sails on". The Age. Retrieved 2007-08-10.
  35. ^ Wags has also been played by Edward Rooke, Andrew McCourt, Kristy Talbot, and Paul Paddick.
  36. ^ "Jeff Fatt". TV.com. Retrieved 2007-11-25.
  37. ^ Other performers of Henry include Reem Hanwell, Kristy Talbot, and Katherine Patrick.
  38. ^ Harris, Chris (2005-03-28). "Crowded House drummer Paul Hester found dead in Australia". MTV.com. Retrieved 2007-10-14. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  39. ^ Meacham, Steve (2006-12-15). "First Dorothy, then another yellow road". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2007-11-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  40. ^ "Leanne Halloran". TV.com. Retrieved 2007-11-30.

External links

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