Baby Einstein

**Baby Einstein** (stylized as **baby einstein**) is an American franchise and line of multimedia products, including home video programs, CDs, books, flashcards, toys, and baby gear that specialize in interactive activities for infants and toddlers, created by Julie Aigner-Clark. The videos show babies and toddlers under four years simple patterns, puppet shows, and familiar objects, such as everyday items, animals, and toys that are often accompanied by reorchestrated classical music written by composers such as Johann Sebastian Bach, Ludwig van Beethoven, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and many others, as well as some traditional rhymes constructed for an easy, relaxing way, meant for a baby's ear.

The puppets are all animals who seldom speak, mostly communicating in simple sounds and their respective animal sounds.

Baby Einstein was introduced to the public on June 4, 1996, and remained a small company until Clark sold it to Disney. Between November 7, 2001, and September 13, 2013, Disney owned and operated the Baby Einstein brand. Starting on October 14, 2013, Kids II, Inc. owns and operates the Baby Einstein brand.

## History

**The Baby Einstein Company** was founded in 1996 by former teacher and stay-at-home mom Julie Aigner-Clark at her home in suburban Alpharetta, Georgia, as **I Think I Can Productions**. Clark was a mix of a stay-at-home mom and former teacher, with a passion to expose children to the arts. According to an interview with Julie Dunn, she wanted her babies to be exposed to classical music, poetry, colors, shapes, and more. Aigner-Clark and her husband invested $18,000 of their savings to produce the initial product, a VHS they named *Baby Einstein* and later sold as *Language Nursery* in 2002 to avoid confusion with the Baby Einstein brand as a whole.

The original video shows a variety of toys and visuals interspersed with music, stories, numbers, and words of many languages. Eventually, the video was marketed across the United States, Europe, Asia, and Australia. It even won the 1997 Parenting Magazine award for Best Video of the Year. Other videos followed, some featuring the Clarks' two daughters, Aspen and Sierra, as well as other children.

It quickly became a multimillion-dollar franchise; its revenue grew from $1 million in 1998 to $25 million in 2001. In October 1998, Julie Aigner-Clark renamed the company the Baby Einstein Company, and on February 10, 2000, gave distribution rights of the company's home videos to Artisan Entertainment and Family Home Entertainment, both now acquired by and folded into Lionsgate Home Entertainment. On November 7, 2001, Julie Aigner-Clark sold Baby Einstein to The Walt Disney Company.

In 2003-2004, the original Baby Einstein videos were re-produced and edited as well as the DVD artwork, discontinuing the selling of the original versions of the videos.

The concept and popularity of Baby Einstein expanded as a Disney property. Educational toys and additional videos were developed. Baby Einstein was also the source of inspiration for a preschool-aimed television series called *Little Einsteins*, created jointly by the Disney-owned Baby Einstein Company and Curious Pictures. The series aired episodes on Playhouse Disney (later rebranded as Disney Junior).

The success of Baby Einstein was estimated to be nearly $400 million based on revenues. Julie was named "Entrepreneur of the Year" and won various awards, and one in three U.S. households with babies were found to own at least one Baby Einstein product.[*citation needed*] It received positive media and Aigner-Clark appeared on the *Oprah Winfrey Show*, *Good Morning America*, *The Today Show*, and *USA Today*, among others. President George W. Bush mentioned the Baby Einstein Company in his 2007 State of the Union address, which Aigner-Clark was invited to attend.

In 2008, Clark, along with actress Jennifer Garner, hosted a tenth anniversary party for *Baby Einstein*. Clark had also announced plans to launch a toddler brand called *Einstein Pals*, including videos, but it has since been abandoned.

As a result of Baby Einstein being named after Albert Einstein, royalties had to be paid to Corbis which compensates the Einstein estate. This made Einstein one of the top five earning dead celebrities.

On October 14, 2013, Kids II, Inc. acquired the Baby Einstein brand from Disney.

## Characters

### Main Characters

* **Julie Aigner-Clark** (voiced by Jill Talley): At 24-years-old, Julie Aigner-Clark is the creator of the franchise of the same name. She appears to be taking on a coach role in the videos. She was previously Madeline's coach, and decides to coach Sierra and Aspen as well.
* **Aspen Clark** (voiced by Jessica McKenna): At 6-years-old, Aspen Clark is the oldest daughter of the Clarks. Aspen also has a genetic disorder called Down Syndrome. She is a lover of playing princess and an incredibly sweet girl.
* **Sierra Clark** (voiced by Evangeline Lomelino): At 5-years-old, Sierra Clark is the youngest daughter of Julie-Aigner and Bill and a fashion-loving girl. She can be seen shouting at Aspen for using her cosmetics.
* **Madeline Pluto** (voiced by Kari Wahlgren): At 6-years-old, Madeline Pluto is the youngest daughter of the Plutos. Madeline is a tomboy who doesn't mess around with "girly stuff".
* **Mia Mettais** (voiced by Grey Griffin): At 3-years-old, Mia is the youngest daughter of the Mettais family and cousin of the Clark family. Mia is an infant, who tends to defecate in her underwear and leave a foul stench, which disgust her parents and cousins. She can walk independently and can be carried by one of her parents for longer distances.
* **Macrae Long** (voiced by Cristina Milizia): At 1-year-old, Macrae is the youngest son of the Long family and Maddison's youngest brother. Macrae can be seen imitating various family members.
* **Brad Boller** (voiced by Alex Cazares): At 5-years-old, Brad is the smooth talking son of the Boller family.
* **Gabriel Mazon** (voiced by Jahzir Bruno): At 5-years-old, he is Aspen's best friend, who serves as a wingman to her in her exploits. He is an only child and spends almost all of his time with Aspen. Gabriel harbors an unrequited crush on Sierra.
* **Brandon Calbart** (voiced by Sean Kenin): At 5-years-old, Brandon is the animal-loving son of the Calbart family. He is also Maddison's best friend.
* **Maddison Long** (voiced by Grey Griffin): At 5-years-old, Maddison is the oldest and only daughter of the Long family and Macrae's older sister. She is a fun-loving tomboy who loves to get her hands dirty, which often annoys Macrae.
* **Markie Scholz** (voiced by Grey Griffin): At 53-years-old, Markie is the Clarks' maternal grandmother. She loves to spend time writing poems and watching shows in front of the TV. She seems to be related to Julie since childhood.

### Supporting Characters

* **Olivia Reed** (voiced by Ava Ro): At 4-years-old, Olivia is a beach-loving girl who likes to find fun in even the hottest of places. She likes to play with Aspen and Sierra when she comes over to their house.
* **Selah Atwood** (voiced by Jenna Warren): At 3-years-old, Selah is a jack of all trades, having had to juggle multiple jobs at the same time. Selah is shown to be calm and compassionate, but sometimes a little too absent minded.
* **Emily Ruderman** (voiced by Glee Dango): At 2-years-old, Emily is one of the youngest kids in the franchise. Unlike Mia and Macrae, Emily likes to dogpile on anyone no matter who it is, and finds it funny when somebody falls down.
* **Sophia Squires** (voiced by Grey Griffin): At 1-year-old, Sophia is a calm and compassionate baby who doesn't cry too often. She shares the same age as Macrae, however they're not related.
* **Katie Gifford** (voiced by Jenna Warren): At 4-years-old, Katie is the daughter of the Gifford family. She is an avid photographer.
* **Essence Nickies** (voiced by Leah Mei Gold): At 4-years-old, Essence is a fun-loving girl who likes to dance in her ballerina costume! Even though she's a happy kid, she always tries to make things right, and knows what it means to be a good listener.
* **Bailey Baker** (voiced by Ava Ro): At 6-years-old, Bailey is the owner of the downstairs bodega and the household gossiper.
* **Alice Denton** (voiced by Catherine Taber): A young girl who is Cameron's younger sister. While she does not appear physically in the videos, she later appeared in the TV series, where she is a main character along with the other kids.
* **Cameron Denton** (voiced by Charlie Zeltzer): A young boy who is Alice's older brother. He does not appear physically in the videos, but he appeared in the Teletubbies episode Paddling Pool and the Baby Einstein TV series, where he is a main character along with the other kids.
* **Amy Leigh-Quine** (voiced by Nika Futterman): A young girl who likes to play in her paddling pool and throw her bucket in the water. She does not appear physically in the videos, but she appeared in the Baby Einstein TV series, where she is a main character along with the other kids.
* **Sophia Denton** (voiced by Lara Jill Miller): A young girl who is Alice and Cameron's cousin and neighbor. She is a supporting character in the TV series and doesn't appear too often.

### Puppets

* **Isaac the Lion** (voiced by Carlos Alazraqui) is a lion with a rainbow trim on the top of his mane who hosted Baby Newton, and is known for being the first PlaySoup puppet.
* **Pavlov the Dog** (voiceed by Dee Bradley Baker) is a red and tan/brown and tan dog who has made several appearances throughout the series, the first of which being Neighborhood Animals, which he hosted.
* **Quackers the Duck** (voiceed by Dee Bradley Baker) is a duck who was originally a Legends and Lore puppet, but was later redesigned to be a PlaySoup puppet. He is also a major character in the Baby Einstein series.
* **Neighton the Horse** (voiced by Audrey Wasilewski) is one of the major characters who appeared in the videos, who was originally by Legends and Lore with a small mouth, until a design by PlaySoup was made with a big mouth. He hosted On the Go.
* **Baby MacDonald the Cow** (voiced by Lara Jill Miller) was a major character in the franchise. With two variants being made of her, the second one hosted Baby MacDonald, and there are two versions of her.
* **Opus the Octopus** (voiced by Dee Bradley Baker) is a blue octopus puppet made by Playsoup. He is based on a Folkmanis puppet, depending on the color.
* **Baby Neptune the Sea Turtle** (voiced by Cassandra Lee Morris) is a sea turtle puppet. He was originally by Legends and Lore, but was remade into a Playsoup puppet.
* **Baby Beethoven the Giraffe** (voiced by Dee Bradley Baker) is a giraffe. He was originally by L&L as Georgia Giraffe, but was later redesigned as Playsoup puppet.
* **Lizzy the Tiger** (voiced by Erika Harlacher) is a Playsoup Puppet. He hosted Numbers Nursery, and later appeared in Baby Mozart (2008) and Baby Noah (2009).
* **Ladybug** (voiced by Cherami Leigh) is a Playsoup puppet who only appeared in Numbers Nursery.
* **Squirt the Pig** (voiced by Dee Bradley Baker) is a pig who was originally a Legends and Lore puppet, but was later redesigned to be a Playsoup puppet.

### Other Characters

* **CGI Clown** (voiced by Greg Cipes) is the military leader of the CGI Crayons. Unlike the other CGI characters, he is capable of speech. He treats the other crayons like a tornado treats cars, throwing and kicking them to steal cubits.
* **CGI Crayons** (voiced by Fred Tatasciore) are creatures who are enemies of the kids, and like to destroy any combinations that the kids create. This is because they consider themselves far superior to the kids, but are only able to say quite a few words. Their white faces can pop out of their bodies and walk around (with no arms).

## Controversy

### FTC Complaint

In May 2006, the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood (CCFC) filed a complaint with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) against the Baby Einstein Company and similar companies for false advertising. The CCFC alleged false advertising based on an American Academy of Pediatrics recommendation that children under two should be discouraged from watching television. It also cited studies showing that only 6% of parents were aware of that recommendation, whereas 49% thought educational videos were very important in children's intellectual development.

In December 2007, the FTC closed the complaint, noting that some of the CCFC's claims did not raise issues under the FTC's substantiation rules. The FTC also considered the redesign of the Baby Einstein website, which removed certain product testimonials and product descriptions, as well as the company's promise to make sure that advertising claims about products' educational and developmental value would be properly substantiated. However, the websites of Baby Einstein in languages other than English are not all modified in the same way. For example, its official Chinese website still contains the product effect statement as "For example, the *Baby Van Gogh* released by us can initiate your baby's interest and recognition of colors."

### Language Development

A 2010 study published in *Psychological Science* demonstrated that children who viewed the videos regularly for one month, with or without their parents, "showed no greater understanding of words from the program than kids who never saw it". On the other hand, children who were taught by their parents improved the most; researchers speculated that this was probably because children learn best "through meaningful gestures and interactive communication with parents". In response to these new findings, Disney offered refunds to parents whose children did not see improvement, even though Bob Iger, CEO of the Walt Disney Company, demanded a retraction (of the press release) when a similarly unsupportive study was announced in 2007.

The 2007 study, based on telephone interviews with parents, had been published in the *Journal of Pediatrics* and resulted in a lawsuit by the company's founders due to widespread negative media coverage stemming from the article. The press release announcing the study explained that for each hour spent watching baby DVDs/videos, infants understood on average six to eight fewer words than infants who did not watch them. The University of Washington researchers Frederick Zimmerman, Dimitri Christakis, and Andrew Meltzoff had claimed that, among infants aged 8 to 16 months, exposure to "baby DVDs/videos" such as "Baby Einstein" and "Brainy Baby" was strongly associated with lower scores on a Communicative Development Inventory, a standard language development test. The Baby Einstein Company expressed "serious concerns about the many contradictions" in the study. Although University of Washington President Mark Emmert rejected Disney's claims, in 2010, the university settled with the founders, paying out $175,000 in back legal fees and turned over the study's data to the Baby Einstein founders.

In March 2008, the *Journal of Pediatrics* released a study by Harvard University and the Boston Children's Hospital's Center on Media and Child Health showing that television viewing is, “neither beneficial nor deleterious to child cognitive and language abilities” for children under 2, in a study that examined all television rather than just education DVDs for babies. In January 2010, the founders requested that a judge order the University of Washington to release records for the 2007 study, saying, “Given that other research studies have not shown the same outcomes, we would like the raw data and analytical methods from the Washington studies so we can audit their methodology, and perhaps duplicate the studies". In 2013, the original dataset was reanalyzed by independent scholars who concluded that it was safest to suggest that baby videos had minimal impact on language development and that linking baby videos to decreased language development was not well supported by the data.

## See also

* List of Baby Einstein videos
* International Baby Einstein