Barney & Friends

**Barney & Friends** is an American children's live-action educational preschool television series created by **Sheryl Leach**. It was distributed by **Lyons Partnership**, **CPT** (**Connecticut Public Television**), **Lyrick Studios**, **Hit Entertainment**, and produced by **WNET** in New York. The series premiered on April 6, 1992 on **PBS** and ended on November 2, 2010. It also aired on the British children's block, **Milkshake!** on **Channel 5**. Reruns aired on **PBS Kids Sprout** from 2005-2015, and from December 17, 2018, onward on Sprout's successor network rebrand, **Universal Kids**.

The series based from the direct-to-video series, **Barney And The Backyard Gang**, that was released in periodic installments from August 29, 1988 to September 21, 1991, and produced by the **Lyons Group**.

**Premise**

The series featured the title character **Barney**, an anthropomorphic purple T-Rex dinosaur who conveys educational messages through songs, small dance routines and adventures with a friendly, huggable and optimistic attitude.

In 2015, a revival was announced to premiere in 2017, but was delayed into an undated launch. In November 2021, it was announced that a three-part **Barney** documentary series will premiere in 2022 on **Peacock**.

## Origin And Development

**Barney** was created by **Sheryl Leach** of Dallas, Texas. She came up with the idea of a children's educational program after she noticed that her son outgrew **Wee Sing Together**, a children's songbook series published by **Price Stern Sloan,** and then recognized that there were no videos to appeal to her son. Leach then brought together a team who created a series of home videos, **Barney And The Backyard Gang**, initially released in 1988. The first three video tapes featured actress **Sandy Duncan**.

In 1991, **Connecticut Public Television** executive **Larry Rifkin** rented one of the videos and became "**mesmerized**" by it. Rifkin thought the concept could be developed for **PBS**. **Rifkin** saw that Barney had appeal because he was not neurotic as **Big Bird** of **Sesame Street**. He pitched it to **CPTV** president, **Jerry Franklin**, whose preschool-age son had fell in love with it. Franklin and Rifkin pitched the idea to all of their colleagues with preschoolers, and they all agreed that kids would love a **Barney** show. Franklin and Rifkin convinced **Leach** to let **CPTV** revamp the concept for television. The show debuted as **Barney & Friends** in 1992. The series was produced by **CPTV** and **Lyrick Studios,** and it was later bought by **HIT Entertainment**.

Although the series was a successful hit, **PBS** initially opted not to provide funding beyond the initial 30-episode run. When Rifkin and other **CPTV** executives learned this, they wrote letters to their fellow PBS member stations urging them to get PBS to reconsider. **The Lyons Group**, meanwhile, sent out notices through the **Barney Fan Club**, telling parents to write letters and make phone calls to their local PBS stations to show their support for **Barney & Friends**. By the time of the yearly member stations' meeting, station executives across the country were up in arms over the prospect of one of their most popular shows being canceled. Faced with an atmosphere that Rifkin later described as "**like an insurrection**", PBS ultimately relented.

For several years, the series was taped at the **Color Dynamics Studios** facility at **Greenville Avenue** & **Bethany Drive** in Allen, Texas, after which it moved to **The Studios** at **Las Colinas** in Irving, Texas, and then **Carrollton**, a suburb of Dallas. The television series and videos are were distributed by **9 Story Media Group**, **HIT Entertainment** and **Universal Studios**, while the TV series was produced by **WNET** from 2008-2010.

## Format

The series opens with the theme song (over clips from various episodes) and the title card before it dissolves into the school. The children are seen doing an activity, occasionally relating to the episode's topic. The children imagine something and Barney comes to life from a plush doll, transforming into the "real" Barney, how he appears in the children's imaginations.

Here, the main plot of the episode takes place. Barney and the children learn about the main topic of the episode, with **Baby Bop**, **BJ**, or **Riff** appearing during the episode and numerous songs themed relating to the subject featured in the series. The roles of Baby Bop, BJ, and Riff have grown larger in later seasons and later episodes venture outside of the school to other places within the neighborhood, and in season 13, to other countries around the world.

Barney concludes with the "**I Love You**" song before he dissolves back into his original stuffed form and winks to the audience. After the children discuss what they have learned, the sequence cuts to **Barney Says** (in seasons 1, 8 and 12) where Barney, who is off-screen, narrates what he and his friends had done that day, along with still snapshots from the episode. Then Barney signs off before the credits roll. In seasons 3 to 8 and 12, he later appeared on-screen by saying, "**And remember, I love you**," as the first three notes of "**I Love You**" plays out, and waved goodbye before the credits roll.

## Characters And Cast

**Main**

* **Barney -** The main protagonist of the series. He is a purple T-Rex with a green belly in stuffed animal likeness, and comes to life through a child's imagination. He is friendly, huggable and lovable with a optimistic attitude. His theme song is "**Barney is a Dinosaur**", whose tune is based on "**Yankee Doodle**". Barney often quotes things as being "**Super dee-duper**". Episodes frequently end with the song "**I Love You**", sung to the tune of "**This Old Man**", which happens to be one of Barney's favorite songs. Despite being a carnivorous type dinosaur, Barney does not have a carnivore's fearsome teeth. He likes many different foods such as fruits and vegetables, but his main favorite is a peanut butter and jelly sandwich with a glass of milk.
* **Baby Bop -** A green triceratops, who was formally two years old, but turned three in the episode "**Look At Me, I'm 3!**" She wears a pink bow and pink ballet slippers. She is a good friend of Barney and the younger sister of **BJ**. Baby Bop enjoys carrying her yellow blanket with her at all times, calling it "**Blankey**" and is never seen without it. Baby Bop's favorite toy doll is her stuffed teddy bear, something she loves almost as much as her blanket. She is also a Baby Bop's favorite food is macaroni and cheese, but she still likes many other foods such as apples and bananas, popcorn, and even pizza. She loves tea parties, and will try to host them with as many of her friends as she can. One of her favorite animals at the zoo is an elephant and she has an elephant doll named Nelly. She also loves to ride on her tricycle, which she got when she turned three. Baby Bop is very shy but can be ecstatic at times due to her young age.
* **BJ -** A seven-year-old yellow Protoceratops. He is the older brother of Baby Bop, whom he sometimes calls "**Sissy**", a cousin of Riff, and is a friend of Barney. He was formally six-years old. On rare occasions, he'll call Baby Bop by her name. BJ is described as an impulsive dinosaur, but is always eager to help his friends. As an active seven-year-old, BJ also likes to run, jump, and ride around on his red scooter. Although he loves baseball, basketball and soccer, BJ has never met a sport he didn't like. He also likes to play the drums and the guitar. His favorite food is pickles.
* **Riff -** A six-year old orange Hadrosaur. His name is a kind of music that can be played repeatedly. Because of his name, his words in his speech sometimes is repeated, most often adding "**itty**" to the end of a word, before repeating the word properly. He is a good friend of Barney and the cousin of both Baby Bop and BJ. Riff loves music and hears it everywhere he goes, which ties to his favorite song, "**I Hear Music Everywhere**". He is also able to mimic and make various sounds. He loves music so much that his crest blinks whenever he is creating music or is excited. Like the other dinosaurs, he is an amicable character, though can also be rather shy and doubtful of himself, often needing encouragement from his friends. He also enjoys inventing things on the side.

**Adults And Children**

Over hundreds of adults and children have appeared as teachers, storytellers, or other characters.

**Multiple Appearances**

* **Mother Goose -** The imaginary rhyme author herself appears in the episodes "**Let's Help Mother Goose**", "**Honk! Honk! A Goose on the Loose**", "**A Little Mother Goose**", "**Barney's Big Surprise**", and "**Mother Goose/Fairy Tales**". She often appears to visit Barney and his friends every once in a while and speaks in rhymes.
* **Stella The Storyteller -** Stella travels all around the world, collecting new stories to tell Barney and friends, among other people. She appeared in several episodes from seasons 3 to 6 but reappeared in the video **The Best of Barney**, where she gave Barney a photo album of his friends over the years she made herself.
* **Professor Tinkerputt -** He appeared in **Barney's Imagination Island** and in the **Barney's Big Surprise** stage show tour. Professor Tinkerputt did not want to share his invented toys, until Barney and the kids showed him that good things happen when you share. For this reason, Tinkerputt left Imagination Island with Barney and the others and started a new toy factory.
* **Tomie DePaola -** The famous children's author is also a good friend of Barney and usually meets his friends in the episodes he appeared in, which are "**Picture This**", "**It's Raining, It's Pouring**", and "**Oh Brother, She's my Sister**".
* **Mom -** Michael and Amy's mother in the first three **Barney & the Backyard Gang** videos.
* **Mr. Boyd -** A character whose full name is **Grady Boyd**. He has a niece named Colleen and a dog named Bingo. Mr. Boyd is known for being a jack of all trades, meaning he has has a range of skills which enable him to perform a number of different tasks. While he is best known for being the school's janitor and later a park keeper, he has had experiences with various other professions. Alongside Barney, he models healthy interactions between adults. No matter what he does, he always takes on the task with a cheerful and calm demeanor.
* **Colleen -** Mr. Boyd's niece who comes to town for a visit and is introduced to Barney and the Children. She is a congenital amputee born without her right hand, as is her actress. Despite this, she's still able to do many things that her peers can. She appeared in two episodes, "**A New Friend!**" and "**A Perfectly Purple Day**".
* **David -** A boy in a wheelchair who appeared at the beginning of two episodes: "**Falling for Autumn!**" and "**Shawn and the Beanstalk**".

**Puppets**

A few puppets have appeared in many seasons. The most notable puppets were:

* **Scooter McNutty -** A brown squirrel. He is known for his scatterbrained adventures, which are acting first and thinking later. His catchphrases are "**Yikes!**", "**Aw, Nuts!**" and "**Got To Scoot!**"
* **Miss Etta Kette -** An purple bird. She speaks a southern accent and lives in a treehouse with Scooter McNutty. She usually gives very good advice, and bad things often happen to those who do not heed her advice.
* **Booker T. Bookworm -** An imaginary orange worm who's a librarian with interests in books.

**Children**

Throughout the series' run, over 100 children have appeared in the series, with most of them from the **Dallas-Fort Worth** metroplex. Only a small portion of these actors have made notable appearances in media since their roles, including:

* **Danielle Vega**: played Kim in seasons 3 to 6
* **Demi Lovato**: played Angela in seasons 7 to 8
* **Selena Gomez**: played Gianna in seasons 7 to 8
* **Debby Ryan**: played Debby in season 10
* **Madison Pettis**: played Bridget in season 10

## Movies & Specials

* **Barney in Concert** (1991)
* **Barney's Imagination Island** (1994)
* **Barney Live in New York City** (1994)
* **Barney's Great Adventure** (1998) (theatrical movie starring **Trevor Morgan** and **Kyla Pratt**)
* **Barney's Big Surprise** (1998)
* **Barney: Let's Go to the Zoo** (2001)
* **Barney's Musical Castle** (2001)
* **Barney's Colorful World** (2004)

## Home Media

Home media releases of **Barney & Friends**. The **Barney & Friends Episode Videos** are home videos that contain one or more **Barney & Friends** episodes. Originally, this series of home videos was called the "**Barney & Friends Collection**", but these videos only contained one episode from Seasons 1-3 and more often than not, the title of the tape was changed. By technicality, Season 9 videos count as episode videos since they would later be split into two actual episodes, but some of the releases had different songs and longer clips.

A few videos and DVD's have had rereleases with cover redesigns and reprints in later years.

**Barney Home Video** is a logo used for the **Barney & Friends** videos from 1992-2017. It was also used for the **Classic Collection** releases from 1992-2012. Variants of the logo varied depending on each video and DVD set.

The videos and DVD sets have also been released internationally, some with different titles and cover redesigns. Countries include the UK, Australia, Hong Kong, Spain, India, Israel (Hebrew).

* **Barney's Magical Musical Adventure - VHS**
* **Barney's Birthday - VHS**
* **Barney's Best Manners - VHS**
* **Barney Rhymes With Mother Goose - VHS**
* **Barney's Home Sweet Homes - VHS**
* **Love To Read, With Barney - VHS**
* **Let's Pretend With Barney - VHS (1994)**
* **Barney's Alphabet Zoo - VHS**
* **Imagination Island - VHS & DVD**
* **Barney Live! In New York City - VHS**
* **Barney: Families Are Special - VHS**
* **Barney: Safety - VHS**
* **Making New Friends - VHS**
* **Riding In Barney's Car - VHS**
* **Barney Songs - VHS & DVD**
* **Barney's All Aboard For Sharing - VHS**
* **Barney's Talent Show - VHS**
* **Barney's Fun & Games - VHS**
* **Barney's Exercise Circus / Barney's Parade Of Numbers - VHS**
* **Barney's 1-2-3-4 Seasons - VHS**
* **Barney's Once Upon A Time - VHS**
* **Barney's Sense-sational Day - VHS**
* **Barney's Colors & Shapes - VHS**
* **Barney's Musical Scrapbook - VHS & DVD**
* **Camp Wannarunnaround - VHS**
* **Barney's Adventure Bus - VHS & DVD**
* **Barney's Stu-u-upendous Puzzle Fun! VHS**
* **Barney's Good Day, Good Night - VHS & DVD**
* **It's Time For Counting - VHS & DVD**
* **Down On Barney's Farm - VHS**
* **Barney In Outer Space - VHS**
* **My Party With Barney - VHS & DVD**
* **Barney's Big Surprise - VHS**
* **Barney's Halloween Party - VHS & DVD**
* **Barney's First Adventures - VHS**
* **Barney's Good, Clean Fun / Oh Brother, She's My Sister - VHS**
* **Sing And Dance With Barney - VHS & DVD**
* **What A World We Share! VHS & DVD**
* **Walk Around The Block With Barney - VHS**
* **Let's Play School - VHS & DVD**
* **Barney's Night Before Christmas - VHS & DVD**
* **More Barney Songs - VHS & DVD**
* **Barney's Rhyme Time Rhythm - VHS & DVD**
* **Barney's Favorite Songs - VHS**
* **Barney's Super Singing Circus - VHS & DVD**
* **Barney's ABC's And 123's - VHS**
* **Come On Over To Barney's House - VHS & DVD**
* **Be My Valentine Love, Barney - VHS & DVD**
* **Barney's Musical Castle - VHS**
* **A To Z With Barney - VHS & DVD**
* **Barney's Dino Dancin' Tunes - VHS & DVD**
* **Movin' & Groovin' With Barney - VHS & DVD**
* **Let's Go To The Zoo - VHS & DVD**
* **Barney's Learning Round-Up - VHS**
* **Barney's Pajama Party - VHS & DVD**
* **You Can Be Anything - VHS & DVD**
* **Barney's Night Light Stories - VHS**
* **Barney's Beach Party - VHS & DVD**
* **Round And Round We Go - VHS**
* **Going Places With Barney - VHS**
* **Barney's Christmas Star - VHS & DVD**
* **On The Move With Barney - VHS**
* **Songs From The Park - VHS & DVD**
* **Sing-Along Fun! VHS**
* **Read With Me, Dance With Me - VHS & DVD**
* **Barney's Outdoor Fun - VHS & DVD**
* **It's A Happy Day - VHS**
* **It's Nice To Meet You! VHS & DVD**
* **Barney's Red, Yellow And Blue! VHS & DVD**
* **Barney's Numbers! Numbers! - VHS & DVD**
* **Barney's Best Manners: Your Invitation To Fun! VHS & DVD**
* **Happy Mad Silly Sad - VHS & DVD**
* **Let's Pretend With Barney - VHS & DVD (2004)**
* **Now I Know My ABC's - VHS & DVD**
* **Barney's Colorful World - VHS & DVD**
* **Ready, Set, Play! VHS & DVD**
* **Let's Go To The Farm - VHS & DVD**
* **Just Imagine - VHS & DVD**
* **Everyone Is Special - VHS & DVD**
* **Can You Sing That Song? VHS & DVD**
* **Let's Go To The Beach - VHS & DVD**
* **Let's Make Music - DVD**
* **Let's Go To The Fire House - DVD**
* **Shake Your Dino Tail! DVD**
* **Dino-Mite Birthday - DVD**
* **Celebrating Around The World - DVD**
* **Animal ABC's - DVD**
* **Hi! I'm Riff! DVD**
* **The Best Of Barney - DVD**
* **Once Upon A Dino-Tale - DVD**
* **Top 20 Countdown - DVD**
* **Let's Go On Vacation - DVD**
* **Barney's Book Fair - DVD**
* **Sharing Is Caring - DVD**
* **Jungle Friends - DVD**
* **Fun On Wheels - DVD**
* **We Love Our Family - DVD**
* **Be My Valentine - DVD**
* **Please & Thank You - DVD**
* **Egg-Cellent Adventures - DVD**
* **Let's Play Outside - DVD**
* **Furry Friends - DVD**
* **A Counting-We-Will-Go - DVD**
* **Best Fairy Tales - DVD**
* **Musical Zoo - DVD**
* **Shapes And Colors All Around - DVD**
* **I Can Do It! DVD**
* **1-2-3 Learn - DVD**
* **Big World Adventure - DVD**
* **A Very Merry Christmas - DVD**
* **I Love My Friends - DVD**
* **Clean Up, Clean Up! DVD**
* **Planes, Trains & Cars - DVD**
* **All About Opposites - DVD**
* **Most Lovable Moments - DVD**
* **Let's Go To The Doctor - DVD**
* **Let's Go To The Moon - DVD**
* **Play With Barney - DVD**
* **Dance With Barney - DVD**
* **Imagine With Barney - DVD**
* **Most Huggable Moments - DVD**
* **Perfectly Purple - DVD**
* **Story Time With Barney - DVD**
* **Happy Birthday, Barney! DVD**
* **A Super-Dee-Duper Day - DVD**
* **This Is How I Feel - DVD**
* **Tee-riffic Bugs & Animals - DVD**
* **It's Showtime With Barney - DVD**
* **Barney's Worldwide Adventure! DVD**
* **Dinos In The Park - DVD**
* **Playground Fun! DVD**

**Packs & Collections**

* **Barney: The Best Of PBS - VHS**
* **Barney: Fun 4 You: Value Pack - VHS**
* **Barney 3 Pack - VHS**
* **Barney: Classic Collection: Volume One - VHS**
* **Barney: Fun-tastic Value Pack - VHS (February 2000)**
* **Barney: Fun-tastic Value Pack - VHS (July 2000)**
* **First Favorites: 3-DVD Set**
* **Barney's Hugs & Kisses: I Love You 3 Pack - VHS**
* **Super-Dee-Duper: 3-DVD Pack**
* **Dino-Riffic Collection! DVD**
* **Stu-u-upendous Singing Stories! 3-DVD Pack**
* **Let's Go Explore! DVD Pack**
* **The Imagination Collection - DVD Pack**
* **Barney: DVD 3-Pack: The Early Years**
* **I Love You: Gift Set - DVD**
* **Fun Pack: 3-DVD Set**
* **Tee-riffic Holiday Collection - DVD**
* **Learning Pack: 6-DVD Set**
* **Play Date Pack: 3-DVD Set**
* **Holiday Favorites - DVD**
* **Movie Pack: 3-DVD Set**
* **Best Of Learning - DVD**
* **Celebrate With Barney: 3-DVD Set**
* **Barney Loves You: 3-DVD Set**
* **3-Movie Pack - DVD**
* **Let The Games Begin** / **Sing That Song** / **The Land Of Make Believe** **- DVD Pack (UK)**
* **Happy Pack: 3-DVD Set (UK)**
* **Tee-riffic Christmas Collection - DVD Pack (UK)**
* **Learning Pack: 3-DVD Set (UK)**
* **Sing & Dance Pack: 3-DVD Set (UK)**

**Barney & Friends videography/Gallery**

Barney Home Video - Logo (1995-2017)Barney Home Video - 2nd Logo (Star)

## Airings

Other than the United States, the series has aired internationally: **Canada**, **Mexico** and **Latin America**, **France**, **Ireland**, **Italy**, **Malaysia**, **Spain**, the **United Kingdom**, **Japan** (On English-based DVDs under the name "**Let's Play with Barney in English!** (バーニーと英語であそぼう！, **Bānī to Eigo de asobō!**)" and on television as simply "**Barney & Friends** (バーニー&フレンズ, **Bānī ando Furenzu!**)" ), the **Philippines**, **Turkey**, **Australia**, and **New Zealand**, among others. The Australian based company and distributor **Southern Star** handled non-US rights to the series from the mid-'90s until 2001 when **HIT Entertainment** revoked the deal after acquiring **Lyrick**.

Two known co-productions of **Barney & Friends** have been produced outside of the US. The Israeli co-production Hebrew: החברים של ברני **Hachaverim shel Barney** (**The Friends of Barney**) produced from 1997 to 1999 in Tel Aviv, Israel, was the first of these. Rather than dubbing the original American episodes in seasons 1 to 3, the episodes were adapted with a unique set and exclusive child actors. The second co-production was broadcast in South Korea from 2001 to 2003 on **KBS** (under the name "바니와 친구들" (**Baniwa Chingudeul** (**Barney and Friends**)). This one, however, adapted the first six seasons (including the first three that the Israel co-production did).

## Books

**Barney Books** are a series of books that are based on the children's series, **Barney & Friends,** that focus on Barney and other related characters. Some are more educational in tone, while others are simply stories read for entertainment. In 1992, **Barney Publishing**, a self-publishing company that published books based on **Barney**, was formed. As early as spring 1993, Barney books were already on the mass market and were published through Barney Publishing. In that same year, some books made it onto the **Publishers Weekly Bestselling List** from 1992, with one book on the list passing a million units. All five of Barney's first books passed a million units as well.

In 1996, seven Barney books made it onto the **Publisher's Weekly All-Time Bestselling Hardcover Children's Books**. The books had a record-breaking thirty-six titles on the 1999 **Children's Bestsellers List of Publishers Weekly**. In 2001, five Barney books made it onto **Publisher's Weekly All-Time Bestselling Children's Books** list. Over 80 million Barney books have been sold.

Some of the books would come with an audio cassette tape for children and families to read-along to. Some would often be included as an electronic visual version on DVDs to some **Barney Home Videos**. Other books would be included in a series. Some book series included **Bedtime with Barney**, **Babies & Barney**, the **Go To** series, and the **Let's Go** series. Other types of books include specialty books such as **Search and Spot** and **Lift and Peek** books.

Since the formation of **Barney Publishing**, its titles have appeared on the **Publishers Weekly** bestseller list 174 times. Some Barney books were self-published all the way until **HIT Entertainment** bought the Barney franchise in 2001. From there, some books were re-released through **Scholastic** and HIT Entertainment. Books based on the series have largely been discontinued in recent years due to the hiatus of the **Barney & Friends** show and its subsequent ending.

* **Just Imagine with Barney**
* **Barney's Favorite Mother Goose Rhymes**
* **Baby Bop's Toys**
* **Barney's Farm Animals**
* **Barney's Hats**
* **Where Are My Shoes?**
* **Barney's Color Surprise**
* **Baby Bop's Counting Book**
* **Barney's Magical Picnic**
* **Barney's Favorite Mother Goose Rhymes Vol. 2**
* **Baby Bop's ABC Book**
* **Baby Bop Discovers Shapes**
* **A Tent Too Full**
* **Barney Goes To The Zoo**
* **Baby Bop's Foods**
* **A Day With Barney**
* **Barney's Imagination Island**
* **Barney Says "Please" And "Thank You"**
* **Baby Bop Pretends**
* **Baby Bop Goes To School**
* **What Can It Be?**
* **Barney's Wonderful Winter Day**
* **Barney & Baby Bop Follow That Cat!**
* **BJ's Fun Week**
* **BJ's Silly Story**
* **Barney's Book Of Opposites**
* **Just Like You**
* **Barney & Baby Bop At The Beach**
* **Barney's Weather Book**
* **BJ Makes Music**
* **Barney & Baby Bop's Band**
* **Happy Birthday, Baby Bop!**
* **Barney's Big Balloon: A Hide-And-Seek Adventure**
* **The Turtle Who Lost His Shell**
* **Zoomba In Toyland**
* **BJ And Scooter**
* **Sharing Is Caring**
* **Barney & Baby Bop Go To School**
* **Barney & BJ Go To The Fire Station**
* **Barney Says "Play Safely"**
* **Barney Plays Nose To Toes**
* **Barney & BJ's Treehouse**
* **Barney's Number Friends**
* **A Day In The Park With Barney Souvenir Book**
* **Bedtime For Baby Bop**
* **Barney's Friends**
* **Make-Believe With Barney**
* **Barney's Christmas Surprise**
* **Barney's Big Surprise!**
* **Barney's Halloween Party**
* **Barney Goes To The Dentist**
* **Uh-Oh!**
* **Barney's Alphabet Soup**
* **Barney & Baby Bop's Garden**
* **Barney's Clothes**
* **Barney & Baby Bop Go To The Grocery Store**
* **Barney & Baby Bop Go To The Doctor**
* **Barney's Easter Egg Hunt**
* **Barney's Book Of Boats**
* **Barney's Book Of Trucks**
* **Catch That Hat!**
* **Barney's Treasure Hunt**
* **Barney's Trick Or Treat!**
* **A Very Musical Day**
* **Barney's Christmas Wishes**
* **Baby Bop's Hey, Diddle Diddle!**
* **Barney's This Little Piggy**
* **BJ's Little Boy Blue**
* **Barney Says "I Love You"**
* **Barney's Happy Valentine's Day**
* **Barney's Book Of Hugs**
* **What Would Barney Say?**
* **Barney's Alphabet Fun!**
* **Barney's Animal Homes**
* **Barney Goes To The Farm**
* **Barney & Baby Bop Go To The Restaurant**
* **Barney & BJ Go To The Police Station**
* **Barney's Adventure Hunt**
* **Barney's Baby Farm Animals**
* **Barney's Great Adventure: The Chase Is On!**
* **Barney And Twinken**
* **Barney's Great Adventure (Smart Pages Book)**
* **Barney's Great Adventure**
* **Barney's Book Of Trains**
* **Barney's Book Of Shapes**
* **Barney's Thanksgiving**
* **Barney's Tool Box**
* **Barney Says "Night Night"**
* **Barney Meets The New Baby**
* **Barney's ABC, 123 And More!**
* **Barney's Storybook Treasury**
* **Barney's Let's Learn Book-Set**
* **Hippity Hop, It's Barney & Baby Bop**
* **Barney & Baby Bop Go To The Library**
* **Barney & BJ Go To The Zoo**
* **Barney's In, Out And All Around**
* **Barney's ABC Animals!**
* **Barney's Outer Space Adventure**
* **Barney Makes Music!**
* **Barney's Night Before Christmas**
* **Barney's Peekaboo Halloween**
* **Barney's Puppet Show**
* **Barney's Count To 10**
* **Barney's Neighborhood**
* **Barney's Mother Goose Hunt**
* **Barney Bedtime Songs**
* **Barney's Book Of Foods**
* **Barney Goes To The Fair**
* **Barney Goes To The Pet Shop**
* **Barney, I Did It Myself!**
* **Babies & Barney: Hooray For Babies!**
* **Barney's Favorite Halloween Stories**
* **Barney's Favorite Christmas Stories**
* **Barney On The Go! A Treasury Of Go To Stories**
* **Barney's Color Train**
* **Barney's 5 Senses**
* **Is It Time Yet?**
* **Barney's World Of Trucks**
* **Barney's Musical Castle**
* **Come On Over To Barney's House!**
* **Barney's Little Lessons: Going To My Big Bed!**
* **Barney's Sharing & Caring Treasury**
* **Learn Letters With Barney**
* **The Wheels On Barney's Bus**
* **Barney Is Sooo Big!**
* **Barney's Book Of Clothes**
* **Barney's Super-Dee-Duper ABC's**
* **Color My World!**
* **Barney's Musical Lullaby Treasury: Sweet Dreams**
* **Barney's Super-Dee-Dooper Treasury**
* **Barney Says**
* **My First Sing-Along Book**
* **Let's Go Look And See**
* **Let's Go To The Fire House**
* **Let's Go Visit The Doctor**
* **Let's Go Visit The Police Station**
* **Let's Go Visit The School**
* **Let's Go To The Farm And The Zoo**
* **Let's Go Celebrate Christmas**
* **Music All Around - Play-a-Tune Tale**
* **Ding-Dong! Where's Barney?**
* **Favorite Things**
* **Let's Play Together**
* **Barney And Friends**
* **I Love You Songs**
* **When I Grow Up!**

**Barney Books**

Barney Publishing - 2nd Logo (Mid 1990s)Barney Publishing - 3rd Logo (2000s)

## Games

Throughout Barney's history, a small collection of video games have been available for purchase. The only game released on a mainstream video game console was "**Barney's Hide and Seek Game**". All the others were either released on **PC** or on **V.Smile** consoles.

**Barney's Hide And Seek Game** is a video game that was released on June 1, 1993 for the **Sega Genesis**. To date, it is the only Barney game to appear on a mainstream video game console. It is also the only animated **Barney** entry.

﻿Players guide Barney through four different levels (A forest, Music Land, the ocean, and a farm), and search for five children (including Baby Bop) and five toys scattered in each. The left and right keys steer Barney, while every action button, as well as the start button, trigger every other action, which are achieved when the player is in the right place. For example, Barney will only jump if he is in an area where it is required. If a child or present is in range, the buttons will allow the player to select the item. If there is nothing in range that requires an action, Barney will blow a kiss if the button is pressed.

By pressing the down key, Barney will steer himself, though pressing buttons is still required to collect items. The same thing will happen if the player leaves the controller alone for a while. After the player completes the level, Barney will count all of the items that they have found. Finding every item is not required to complete the level. However, if a player finds every item in every level, they will get a special ending.

This game has received mixed reviews. **Brett Alan Weiss** of **Allgame** gave the game a rating of 4/5, stating that the game was well-suited for its target audience.

**Fun On The Farm With Barney** is a **Barney Video Game** that was released by **Microsoft** in 1997, and was published by **Hasbro** **Interactive**.

Barney and the player visit six super-dee-duper spots on the farm in two fun ways. In Activity Mode, the player can learn about animal names and sounds, different fruits and vegetables, and more. And in Explore Mode, the player can be more creative in their gameplay. This game consists of the following activities:

* **Professor Tinkerputt's Duck Pond**
* **BJ's Pig Pen**
* **Grandpa Tractor's Garden**
* **Baby Bop's Chicken Coop**
* **Hootin' Annie's Musical Barn**
* **Video Farmhouse**: Features clips from "**The Dentist Makes Me Smile**" and "**Barney's 1-2-3-4 Seasons**".

**Barney Under The Sea** is a video game that was released in 1997 by **Microsoft**. **Barney Under The Sea** is an educational title aimed at pre-school children aged two and upwards. It was compatible with the **Barney ActiMate** toy via a device known as a **PC Pack**, for example covering the toy's eyes caused both the toy and the in-game character to play peek-a-boo while squeezing the toy's middle toe caused both Barney's to sing a song related to the current game. The game has keyboard shortcuts that perform the same functions for those who do not have an **ActiMate**.

This game comprises the following six activities:

* **Baby Bop's Mermaid Castle:** Here players are shown two scenes each depicting a room in the house. Below these scenes are pictures of everyday items and the player must drag and drop the items into the correct room.
* **BJ's Giant Shell:** The player is shown a picture of a person and is asked to click on different parts of the body such as 'arm', 'hand' and 'neck'.
* **Hootin' Annie's Undersea Cave:** Here the player is shown a number of animals and has to identify and click on the one specified.
* **Trisha's Treasure Chest**: The player is shown a set of animals and must select the odd-one-out.
* **Professor Tinkerputt's Dive Site:** The professor gives the player a number and the player must stack that number of shells on top of one another.
* **Video Submarine:** This contains clips from "**Who's Who On The Choo Choo?**", "**Gone Fishing!**", "**May I Help You?**", "**Classical Cleanup**", "**Twice Is Nice!**", "**A Welcome Home**", "**Shopping For A Surprise!**" and "**Look At Me, I'm 3!**"

Games can be played in explorer mode where there are no right or wrong answers, this is designed to encourage children to play and experiment. When they do start playing '**seriously**' all games have three levels of difficulty which can be quite challenging. For example at level three in **Hootin' Annie's Undersea Cave** the player is shown a night scene where only the creatures eyes are visible, they must identify the whale, seal, etc, by the sound they make when the mouse rolls over them.

**Barney Goes To The Circus** is a **Barney PC** game that was released in 1997 by **Microsoft**. Set in a circus, there are 6 activities to explore along with Barney, B.J., and Baby Bop:

* **Baby Bop's Clown Coaster**: Create silly clown faces and learn to connect certain facial expressions with different emotions.
* **B.J.'s Carousel**: Make your own merry-go-round and learn up/down concepts.
* **Professor Tinkerputt's Snack Bar**: Create your own pizzas with all sorts of wacky toppings, and learn about simple fractions.
* **Terry's Letter Train**: Place letters (upper and lowercase) on the correct train cars, then color pictures of objects that start with particular letters of the alphabet.
* **Hootin' Annie's Big Top**: Identify the circus animals, and create silly ones too!
* **Video Ferris Wheel**: Watch video clips from the Barney television show.

Each activity (except the video one, of course) has an **Activity Mode** with 3 levels of difficulty and an **Explore Mode**. In **Activity Mode**, levels automatically advance as needed, and they can be manually adjusted as well. In **Explore Mode**, kids are free to experiment and use their imagination.

Whenever children have completed a picture, they can click on the "**Gift**" icon to "send" their picture as a present to their parents. Parents of course need to check into the **Parent's Room** to retrieve them.

Like **Barney's Fun on Imagination Island**, **Fun on the Farm with Barney** and **Barney Under The Sea** if you do have the **ActiMates** Barney, along with the **PC Pack**, you can set it up so that the doll will take the place of on-screen Barney and interact with your child. Cover ActiMates Barney's eyes while playing the activities and the on-screen character will play peek-a-boo. Squeezing the doll's hand in regular activity mode will prompt Barney to give a little learning lecture, and in explore mode, Barney will participate by adding something to the creation. During an activity, pressing Barney's middle toe will prompt the doll to sing a song that has a similar theme as the activity at hand.

**Barney's Fun On Imagination Island** was a Barney video game released in 1997 by **Microsoft**. This game was originally included with the **ActiMates PC Pack**.

**Barney's Fun On Imagination Island** is an educational title aimed at pre-school children aged two and upwards. It was made exclusively for the **Barney ActiMate** toy via a device known as a **PC Pack**.

There are six activities in this game:

* **Baby Bop's Buccaneer Bay** is a game that teaches shapes.
* **BJ's Treasure Cove** teaches colors.
* **Hootin' Annie's Musical Woods** where children identify animals and the sounds they make.
* **Lucy's Letter Lagoon** teaches letters.
* **Professor Tinkerputt's Tree House** teaches counting and numbers, using his "balloon-making machine". In the explore mode of the game, the player may group these numbers of balloons however they like. The **Barney ActiMate** and **Professor Tinkerputt** keep count.
* **Video Volcano** shows video clips from Season 2-3 episodes.

**Barney: Magical Music** is a Barney video game that was released in 2000. It came packaged with a playset, which is attached to the keyboard. The game can also be played with only a keyboard, if the player knows what buttons to press (as the playset presses certain buttons on the keyboard). It was developed by **ImaginEngine** and published by **Hasbro Interactive**.

**Musical Playset**

The playset features five different instruments used to play the game. The instruments are a trumpet, a violin, a three-key piano, a bongo, and a foot drum.

**Areas Of The Game**

### Barney's One-Man Band

The player selects one of three types of music: **Country**, **Rock N' Roll**, or **Latin**, and selects the speed of the music: fast, medium, or slow. Then, use the instruments on the playset to play along to the song!

### Main Menu

#### Farmyard Festival

Play **Old MacDonald**, **Turkey in the Straw** or mix up **The Itsy Bitsy Spider**.

#### Jungle Jamfest

Play **Boom Boom**, **Ain't It Gonna Be Crazy**, **Mr. Knickerbocker** or mix up **Twinkle Twinkle Little Star**.

#### Fairytale Fantasy

Play **The Land of Make-Believe**, **Silly Sounds**, **BINGO** or the music game about manners.

#### Options

Change audio settings, game settings, graphic settings, play controls or go backstage.

### Farmyard Festival

#### A. Farmyard Sing-Along

Use the playset instruments to make the animals sing along with Baby Bop to **Old MacDonald**.

#### B. Farmyard Musical Mix-Up

Select a shape by pressing one of the piano keys to create a silly version of **The Itsy Bitsy Spider**. (example: **The Squirrelley Turtley Spider** climbed up the waterspout.)

#### C. Country Dance

Use the playset instruments to make BJ dance to **Turkey in the Straw.**

### Jungle Jamfest

#### A. Jungle Sing-Along

Use the playset instruments to make the jungle animals sing in **Boom Boom**, **Ain't It Great to Be Crazy**.

#### B. Boppity Bop

Use the playset instruments to help the animals play the instruments to Mr. Knickerbocker

#### C. Jungle Musical Mix-Up

Select a shape by pressing one of the piano keys to create a silly version of **Twinkle Twinkle Little Star**. A very Mad-Libs like game, you pick different words to replace the real lyrics. An example would be "**Like a lizard in the sky**."

### Fairytale Fantasy

#### A. Fairytale Sing-Along

Use the playset instruments to make the fairytale animals sing to **The Land of Make-Believe**.

#### B. The Fairytale Magic Word Game

Use the playset instruments to make all the fairytale characters sing 'n' play along to London Bridge. However, you may only play when Barney says "Please."

#### C . PIcture Your Own Kingdom

Use the playset instruments to create a picture of a magical kingdom while listening to **Silly Sounds**. Pressing different buttons.

#### D. Surprise the Mice

When the mice peak their heads out from behind an instrument, use the playset instruments to surprise them while listening to **BINGO**.

### Backstage

#### A. The Print Activity

Print out all sorts of fun coloring pages.

#### B. The Jukebox

A collection of all the silly songs created throughout the game.

**Barney: On Location All Around Town** is a Barney video game that was released in 2000 by **Hasbro Interactive** and **ImaginEngine**. The players can explore the world with not only Barney, but with BJ and Baby Bop, accessing locales from the show such as the bakery.

It is also possible to play twelve different mini-games and activities which are complete with lots of magical surprises in store for the player.

**Barney: Secret Of The Rainbow** is a PC **Barney** game that was released on August 28, 2009. It was developed by **HIT Entertainment** and published **Nova Department Corporation**.

When the colors of the rainbow need saving, there's only one figure for the job: Barney! In **Barney: Secret of the Rainbow**, the beloved purple dinosaur takes kids on a fun and educational journey through a world of colors, music and more. Will Barney and your child be able to save the rainbow's colors and restore happiness to the entire land? In **Secret of the Rainbow**, preschoolers can team up with Barney, Riff, BJ and Baby Bop for a one-of-a-kind adventure. By using the mouse, children will be able to enter an imaginative, interactive world filled with music, creativity, sharing, dancing and more. Exciting educational games and activities help children improve their memory, problem solving and other skills, and multiple skill levels allow kids to work at their own pace and grow in knowledge and confidence as they play.

The game features:

* **Problem Solving**
* **Memory Skills**
* **Music & Skills**
* **Music & Dancing**
* **Social Skills**
* **Computer Skills**
* **Creativity**

**Flash Games**

* **Happy, Happy Birthday!**
* **Let's Go Playset**
* **Musical Counting Game**
* **Barney's Music**
* **Barney's Submarine Race**
* **Barney Puzzle**
* **Barney's Music Game**
* **Barney's Coloring Book**
* **Barney & Friends Coloring**
* **Barney's Music Band**
* **Counting The Chickens**
* **Barney's Jungle Friends**
* **Baby Bop's Shape Game**

## Music & Discography

Over the years, **Barney** has released thirty-seven US audio titles, with nineteen of them being studio albums, seventeen Spanish albums, three Hebrew albums, one Korean album, two German albums, three Portuguese albums, and one Afrikaans album. Three out of the nineteen US studio albums have been certified gold, platinum, double platinum and or triple platinum by the **Recording Industry Association of America**. Four albums have been in the top 150 on the **Billboard 200**. Nine albums have been on **Billboard's Top Kid's Albums** during the years of 1993-2000.

Barney's debut album **Barney's Favorites, Volume 1** is the most successful to date, achieving triple platinum by the **RIAA** on March 13, 1998. Barney's next two albums would also be certified by the RIAA. **Barney's Favorites, Volume 2** was certified platinum on March 13, 1998 and **Barney's Sleepytime Songs** was certified gold.

In 1998, **Barney's Great Adventure: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack** was released to coincide with Barney's first feature film. It featured a cast of guest stars including **Bernadette Peters**, **Peabo Bryson**, **Sheena Easton**, **Jeffrey Osborne**, **Valerie Carter**, **Linda Ronstadt**, **Roberta Flack**, **George Hearn**, **Jennifer Rush**, **Take 6**, **Johnny Van Zant**, **Jennifer Warnes** and the young Latina sensation, **Gina**. It is so far the only album to feature celebrities and was the final album to reach the **Billboard 200**.

From 1996-1998, **Barney** ranked as Billboard's top children's artist and the **Barney Music** label was the third largest kids' music label in the industry at the time.

After **HIT Entertainment** acquired **Lyrick Studios**, a majority of the albums that were under **Lyrick Studios** were transferred to **HIT Entertainment** and were labeled under **Koch Records**.

On April 10, 2020, **Barney** albums that were under **HIT Entertainment** and **Koch Records** were transferred to **Arts Music**. The announcement was made on May 1, 2020 that toy manufacturing giant **Mattel, Inc.** signed an exclusive, multi-year global music licensing deal with **Warner Music Group's Arts Music** division, which became the sole distributor of Mattel's catalog of more than 1,000 songs from brands like **Barbie**, **Thomas & Friends**, **Hot Wheels**, **American Girl**, **Fisher Price** and **Barney**.

* **Barney's Favorites, Volume 1**
* **Barney's Favorites, Volume 2**
* **Barney's Sleepytime Songs**
* **Run, Jump, Skip, Sing**
* **Barney's Big Surprise! Live On Stage**
* **Happy Holidays Love, Barney**
* **Barney's Great Adventure: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack**
* **I Love To Sing With Barney**
* **Barney's Great Day For Learning**
* **Barney For Babies: Love And Lullabies**
* **Barney Rocks!**
* **Start Singing With Barney**
* **The Barney Boogie**
* **Barney's Colorful World**
* **The Land Of Make-Believe**
* **Let's Go To The Beach**
* **Let's Go To The Farm**
* **Perfectly Platinum: 30 Dino-Mite Songs**
* **Barney Live In Concert - Birthday Bash! Original Cast Recording**
* **Barney's Greatest Hits: The Early Years**
* **Songs In The Key Of Purple**
* **Super-Dee-Duper Songs**
* **Dino-Tunes**
* **Sing Along With Barney & Friends**
* **Music For Me!**
* **Barney's Sing-Along: Halloween Party**
* **Barney's Great Adventure Sing-Along**
* **Barney's Sing-Along: Night Before Christmas**

**Barney Albums**

## Toys & Merchandise

From 1990-2018, many Barney-themed toys, board games and other pieces of merchandise were made available to stores and retailers.

**Barney Toys & Games**

## Reception

Several people have concluded that episodes contain a great deal of age-appropriate educational material, including **Yale University** researchers **Dorothy** and **Jerome Singer**, who called the program a "**model of what preschool television should be**". Others have criticized the show for a lack of educational value, as well as being repetitive.

The show is often cited as a contributing factor to the perceived sense of entitlement seen in millennials, who grew up watching the show. One specific criticism is:

> His shows do not assist children in learning to deal with negative feelings and emotions. As one commentator puts it, the real danger from Barney is "**denial: the refusal to recognize the existence of unpleasant realities. For along with his steady diet of giggles and unconditional love, Barney offers our children a one-dimensional world where everyone must be happy and everything must be resolved right away**."
>
>

In 1992, the **Barney** franchise generated $500 million in retail sales.

The creator and performer of the **San Diego Chicken** mascot, **Ted Giannoulas**, called Barney a "**ubiquitous and insipid creature**" in a 1999 court case.

**Barney & Friends** ranked No. 50 on **TV Guide's 2002** list of the 50 worst TV shows of all time. The show has also been parodied in many forms.

In a 1993 newspaper article, **Jerry Franklin**, the head of **Connecticut Public Television**, which co-produced Barney at the time, was quoted thus:

> When adults say they do not like Barney, Franklin says, 'in a way, we take that as a compliment. Barney is not designed for parents, whereas Sesame Street is designed for parents and children. We made a conscious decision to make Barney simple. It is not a program for parents. Barney relates to preschoolers. We think he speaks to them at their level, which is in simple terms and with music.
>
>

**Howard Blumenthal**, producer of **Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?**, said **“Even the most knowledgeable people … can't really understand why that Barney phenomenon happened and another didn't**".

## Gallery

Barney & Friends - 2nd TV PosterBarney & Friends - LogoBarney & Friends - 2nd Logo