WAUKEGAN -- As your 4-year-old can no doubt inform you, Thomas is the cheeky one, while James is vain but lots of fun. Meanwhile, Percy pulls the mail on time, and Gordon thunders down the line. At least, that's what the theme song for "Thomas Friends" tells us about The Really Useful Crew.
If you're heading out to the Genesee Theatre Tuesday, July 17, for "Thomas Friends Live! On Stage: Thomas Saves the Day" (4 p.m.
and 7 p.m.), you probably already know all there is to know about the Island of Sodor and Sir Topham Hatt and Annie and Clarabel, but here are some Thomas facts to buff up your buffers: Thomas Friends Live!
On Stage: Thomas Saves the Day Click to enlarge image Before becoming a multimedia sensation, the tales of Thomas the Tank Engine began as sickbed stories for the son of the Rev. Awdry would eventually write books about Thomas (under the pen name The Rev. Awdry), penning 26 titles between 1945 and 1972 that became known as "The Railway Series.
" His son, Christopher, took over in 1983, adding another 14 books to the library, and "Thomas and Victoria" is due out this September. The original model of Thomas himself was built by Awdry himself, long before "The Railway Series" came to be. While there was a Percy model marketed in 1967, the first mass-produced die-cast "Thomas and Friends" models arrived in 1984.
Since then, "Thomas" merchandising has grown to include clothing, LEGO sets, computer and video games, and both electric and wooden rail sets. In June, the Oak Brook-based toy company RC2 announced a voluntary recall of 1.5 million wooden "Thomas Friends" toys sold since January 2005 that reportedly contained lead paint.
But don't expect that to put much of a dent in what has been rated the No. 1 preschool toy brand in the U.S.
In 1984, "Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends" premiered on British television, with scale-model trains (Gauge 1, or 10 millimeters to a foot) performing the action, and former Beatle Ringo Starr providing the narration as Mr. Ringo would stay on through 13 episodes, but by the time the series made it to the U.S.
in 1991, George Carlin had taken over as Mr. Other Conductors for the "Thomas" series include Michael Brandon and Alec Baldwin. Baldwin was back behind the microphone for "Thomas and the Magic Railroad," which hit theaters in the United Kingdom and the U.
S. in July 2000. Also joining the rolling stock for live-action sequences were Russell Means, Didi Conn and Captain America himself, Peter Fonda.
Now on its inaugural tour, the 90-minute "Thomas Saves the Day" features a cast of human performers -- including Sir Topham Hatt and the train engineers -- but preschoolers should rest assured that Thomas, Percy, Diesel and The Troublesome Truck will also be represented with animatronic likenesses. Along with the theme song referenced earlier, seven familiar songs from the "Thomas Friends" library are heard in the show, including "Good Morning" and "Really Useful Engine." If you don't know the words, ask your favorite 4-year-old.
WAUKEGAN -- As your 4-year-old can no doubt inform you, Thomas is the cheeky one, while James is vain but lots of fun.
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