# Help identifying a children's show from the mid to late 80's? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 13, 2011, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-identifying-a-childrens-show-from-the-mid-to-late-80s/581745 "2011-05-13T01:53:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Jihi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jihi/32/17768_2.png) [@Jihi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jihi)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2011, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-identifying-a-childrens-show-from-the-mid-to-late-80s/581745/1 "2011-05-13T01:53:49Z")
Okay Dopers I’m asking for help on this one… Talking with some friends and co-workers recently I’ve been reminded of an obscure children’s show from the mid to late 80’s that I used to watch, but I can’t for the life of me remember the name of the show, any stories or any of the characters names/names of the actors. But I have a very vivid memory of the show and what it looked like, and it’s driving me insane! Some details… It was a live action show with puppets and real people. I’m strongly associating it with Sesame Street and Mr. Rogers Neighborhood, and I want to say I saw it on the local PBS station, (this would have been in SW Michigan at the time), but it may have been on Nickelodeon as well. It took place in a, (department?), store of some kind, and there was only a hand full of regular characters, (not a huge SS style cast), maybe 3 or 4? There was a woman who I think was a manager of some kind, and a young looking man. The man was actually a store mannequin who came to life when the store closed at night. I think it had something to do with the hat he wore? Not sure… There was also an “old man” character who was actually a puppet who I think was a store security guard of some kind. He was friends with the woman but didn’t know that the mannequin came to life during his shift and they had to hide it from him for some reason. I also vaguely recall a female “mouse” character, another puppet, who came out of her hiding place at night. I don’t think she ever interacted directly with the other characters. The show always took place after the store had closed which is why there were never many people around. That’s all I can recall off the top of my head. Does this sound familiar to anyone else? I’m not imagining this show am I? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2011, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-identifying-a-childrens-show-from-the-mid-to-late-80s/581745/2 "2011-05-13T02:00:13Z")
Today’s Special. > **[Today's Special](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Today's_Special)** > > Today's Special is a Canadian children's television program produced by Clive VanderBurgh at TVOntario, originally broadcasting 120 episodes from 1981 to 1987. Much of the series was set in a department store, based on Simpson's then-flagship location in Toronto. Some store sequences were shot at the Queen Street West and Yonge Street store after hours. The show ran on TVOntario in Canada as well as Nickelodeon in the United States. > In the children's department of a major department store, eac... ---
**Author:** ![Jihi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jihi/32/17768_2.png) [@Jihi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jihi)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2011, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-identifying-a-childrens-show-from-the-mid-to-late-80s/581745/3 "2011-05-13T02:05:01Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > Today’s Special. > > [Today's Special - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Today's_Special) Yes! That’s it! Thank you! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Jihi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jihi/32/17768_2.png) [@Jihi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jihi)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2011, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-identifying-a-childrens-show-from-the-mid-to-late-80s/581745/4 "2011-05-13T02:25:48Z")
Man, it’s strange the things you can remember from your childhood. I looked up the show on YouTube and, sure enough, found the [intro](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_cxLfIs051c). I barely remembered it, but for some reason the image of the 3 main characters riding the escalator is seared into my brain. ---
**Author:** ![Jihi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jihi/32/17768_2.png) [@Jihi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jihi)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2011, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-identifying-a-childrens-show-from-the-mid-to-late-80s/581745/5 "2011-05-13T02:35:53Z")
And I completely misremembered the mouse’s role in the show, so yeah…