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BY JEFFREY REZNICK

A children’s television program to combat racism was “a noble experiment in human values.”

n September 11, 1975, New York’s Commissioner of Education Ewald Nyquist Oconvened a press conference in New York City to introduce Vegetable Soup, a new magazine-style children’s television series produced and distributed by the Bureau of Mass Communications of the New York State Education Department. The series was funded through a grant from the US Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. To illustrate his remarks, Nyquist presented clips of the open- ing title sequence and a segment about “questions that children ask about race and racial characteristics,” like “what makes people’s hair look and feel different?” The opening welcomed young viewers with a score by the award-winning composer Peter Link, then best known for his work on the rock-opera Salvation, combined with animation by the acclaimed artist James A. Simon, president and creative director of Wantu Animation, NEW YORK STATE ARCHIVES NEW YORK STATE

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well as the envisioned segues between the various “genres” of the series—as Brandt and her production team called the individual produc- tions—all of which made up the mag- azine-style format of each episode, encompassing animation, live-action, VEGETABLE SOUP comedy, drama, and documentaries, all as means to address and celebrate the importance of multicultural diver- sity in America. Link met with Simon to see his visualizations as one guide

NEW YORK STATE ARCHIVES STATE YORK NEW to proceed with his scoring. As Link recalled: “Jim’s animation process was the most powerful thing in our effort together to conceive the title sequence. I was struck by the whimsy of his work, and especially his use of a variety of vivid colors.” In a separate 2017 interview, Simon the first fully African American anima- diversity, and it does this in entertain- emphasized two specific features tion studio. The lyrics to the score ing and effective presentations that which distinguished his animation of invited everyone to “come on along children can understand and relate to.” the opening title sequence: “I used a and join us” as multi-colored, music- variety of colors to help convey and Countering Racism playing individuals and singing faces reflect the many colors of America. encouraged viewers to embrace the Participating in the press conference And if you look carefully, you will see allegory that “it takes all kinds of was Yanna Kroyt Brandt, the award- that the faces did not have eyes, or vegetables to make vegetable soup.” winning executive producer of they did not have complete eyes. I Vegetable Soup, who, through a Vegetable Soup was introduced this in the animation to creative process with Link, developed underscore the diversity of America unique, being the first the name of the series to fit its concept. and [to] counter the idea that a single publicly funded series to be As Link recalled in a 2017 interview, color could represent a single individ- “Yanna told me that she was working broadcast on both public ual.” Such was the creative collabora- on a new children’s series to help tion between Link and Simon which and commercial stations counter racism. She had a working brought Yanna Brandt’s vision to life, nationwide, and on cable title of about five words, and we as she explained in a contemporary discussed a number of ideas based television via Warner-Amex interview, “The melting pot idea is on her fundamental idea, as she no longer viable. Many people don’t Satellite Entertainment. conveyed it to me, that it takes all want life to be a melting pot. They Moreover, it was unlike any other kinds of people to make the diverse want to be a part of the whole, yet contemporary or previous children’s world in which we live. From this— they want to maintain their own television program, as it was based and please keep in mind that crazy ethnic and cultural identities. The aim primarily and fundamentally on the music titles were in vogue at this of the program is to help children understanding that racism and racial time—the idea occurred to me that it learn to live together in appreciation differences were major determinates takes a variety of vegetables to make of the common humanity of different of health in the lives for all children. vegetable soup.” peoples.” Brandt continued, offering As Nyquist explained, the series During this same period, Brandt the realistic view of the intentions of “reinforces and dramatizes the posi- had engaged James Simon in creating Vegetable Soup, “we are not naïve tive, life-enhancing value of human animations for the title sequence, as enough to think that television can

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public profile of the series was the participation of several prominent personalities of the day, including

NEW YORK STATE ARCHIVES NEW YORK STATE singer Bette Midler and actor James Earl Jones. Midler served as the voice of Woody the Spoon in what would become a popular sequence of the same name, animated by Simon, in which Woody helps the viewing youngsters cook up tasty, easy-to- follow ethnic recipes. James Earl Jones lent his voice to the animated charac- ter of Long John Spoilsport, who taught children how not to behave in the genre “The Big Game Hunt.” Other animated characters included multiple minority backgrounds, Luther and his friends, created by Brandt met—and exceeded—the clear Brumsic Brandon Jr. from his nationally The show spawned spin-off publications for expectation of the federal government syndicated comic of the same title— use at school and home. that the series would “employ mem- one of the first such comics to feature bers of minority groups in responsible a mainly Black cast of characters. suddenly change anyone’s deep- positions in [its] development, produc- Other high-profile personalities who seated prejudicial attitudes, but it can tion, and administration.” contributed their time and talents certainly present positive images and In her achievement, Brandt to Vegetable Soup included Ricardo evidences which contradict negative Montalbán, a Mexican-American attitudes. This is especially true for embraced an approach to actor; Paul Russell of the Dance young children 8 to 12, during those producing the series which Theatre of Harlem; Willie Tyler, a crucial years of development.” was as forward-thinking as Black ventriloquist; folk singer Bill Withers; Native American ballet star Many Colors the series itself, fundamen- Maria Tallchief; Asian American With this target audience and overall tally because she believed dancer and singer Pat Suzuki; and focus, Brandt and her creative team that one could not achieve Puerto Rican jockey Angel Cordero. made Vegetable Soup different from one of the most popular publicly the latter without the former. Advisory Committee funded contemporary children’s As Brandt recalled in a 2013 inter- Fundamental to developing and programs: Sesame Street. “I don’t view, “I was determined that we were producing these and the many other consider [Vegetable Soup] competitive going to search out and hire minority genres which made up Vegetable with Sesame Street in any way,” Brandt crews, minority producers, minority Soup—indeed the series as a whole— explained, “Sesame Street is for editors, all sorts of people of color, not was the involvement of an advisory children younger than six … it teaches just African American but Hispanic and committee of consultants, which was them mathematics and how to read. Asian etc. And to have a real United itself a requirement of the federal We’re talking about attitudes.” Nations. And to help these people grant received by the New York State Link and Simon joined a large, train so they could then get jobs in the Education Department. Monitoring diverse group of writers and producers mainstream industry. … So, Vegetable the production of the series every who came together under Brandt’s Soup was not only about doing the step of the way, the committee direction to craft and curate the program. It was also about how the consisted of twenty-five members multi-ethnic focus of Vegetable Soup. program was going to be done.” representing fourteen ethnic groups In identifying, gathering, and orches- Complementing the talent of these and four public school organizations. trating this collective talent from contributors and augmenting the

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Scene from a popular segment called “Outerscope II.” Some viewers found the puppets odd and producers subsequently made changes to make them more “aesthetically pleasing.”

The grant guidelines their collaborative contributions to stipulated that one-third of Vegetable Soup, Simon and Link won seven of the top awards at the the committee members 1975 International Animated Film were to be Black, one-third Association-East Festival. The Ohio Caucasian, one-third State University conferred its prestigious Ohio State Award, specifically for epi- Hispanic, and half of the sode #16 of season 1, which featured members had to be parents a historical, multi-lingual segment of children in the target about celebrating birthdays and an especially provocative segment about age range of 7-10 years. bullying. The series also received the Moreover, members had to Writers’ Guild of America, East, Best represent at least five ethnic Writing Award for best children’s script of the year 1976 for “The organizations, and it needed Superlative Horse,” which was directed to include three students. by Urs B. Furrer and based on Jean Merrill’s award-winning 1961 allegori-

Vegetable Soup continued for a cal children’s story The Superlative NEW YORK STATE ARCHIVES second and final, season as Horse: A Tale of Ancient China. Vegetable Soup II, and it continued Vegetable Soup also won the Bronze to be broadcast into the early 1980s. Medal of the International Film Over the course of its lifespan, the and Television Festival of New York, series won numerous awards. For the Cindy Gold Award from the

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Information Film Producers THE ARCHIVES C O N N E C T I O N Association, and the Golden Eagle Award from the Council on his article draws on interviews Archives and Library also include International Non-Theatrical Events. Twith contemporaries who unique correspondence and meet- Researchers also appreciated the brought Vegetable Soup to life, ing minutes pertaining to the series through the work of its head and substantial collections of the production of the series, ephemera of research and evaluation, Luberta New York State Archives and reflecting publicity efforts, and Mays, PhD, a professor of education Library which document the devel- rare printed publications, including at Medgar Evers College, a former opment, production, and reception parent-teacher guides, a contem- teacher at Bank Street College of of the series. These collections porary history of the series by Education, and a specialist in early include drafts of the “Special noted New York journalist Osborn childhood development. Mays led the Project” grant application of the Segerberg Jr., and extensive research formative and summative research New York State Education reports authored by Luberta Mays components of the series, outcomes Department submitted to the US of Medgar Evers College. which prompted psychologist Dr. Department of Health, Education, In February 2020, the American Sherryl Browne Graves to state that and Welfare, which reveals how Archive of Public Broadcasting “[o]ne conclusion emerges clearly very well staff of the department (AAPB) announced the inclusion from this research: Educational pro- justified the cultural need for of Vegetable Soup in its freely gramming that consciously includes their proposed children’s series on available online collection, avail- blacks and other minorities in positive race, racial isolation, and racism. able at https://americanarchive. portrayals can alter positively racial Collections of the New York State org/ special_collections/ attitudes, especially under conditions vegetable-soup. Made possible of prolonged or multiple exposure.” through the support of the New Complementing Graves’s positive York State Archives, this new assessment of Vegetable Soup, the availability of Vegetable Soup noted New York clinical psychologist brings the series full circle into the Salvatore Didato aptly described the digital age, fulfilling its origins as series as “a noble experiment in a publicly funded initiative. Now, human values.” As such, it represent- it can be appreciated anew and ed a remarkable achievement in its continue to help combat the day and one which audiences across racism which unfortunately still the United States appreciated for its pervades our society. thoughtful and creative content and intended goals. Today, Vegetable Soup is an equally remarkable chapter in New York State history and the history of initiatives to ameliorate the negative effects of racism and racial isolation on all children. n IMAGES: NEW YORK STATE ARCHIVES

For classroom activities related to this article, see our Educator Guide at www.nysarchivestrust.org/education/ educator-guide-new-york-archives- magazine

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