243:. Francine delivers the video to Patty, who laughs it off to the kids' surprise. Arthur and Francine initiate a plan to connect Mr. Ratburn with the town's librarian, Ms. Turner. They visit a chocolate shop where they meet its owner, Patrick, and discuss their plan. Patrick is unsure that chocolate can make two people fall in love, but he ultimately supports their plan. However, they are unable to trick Mr. Ratburn into visiting the library. When he asks them to return a book of love poems for him instead, they slip a romantic poem purporting to be from Mr. Ratburn to Ms. Turner into the book. When she sees that the note is riddled with typos, she returns it to them, unconvinced.
45:
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wedding planning efforts, say that she intends to toughen Mr. Ratburn up. Fearing that a tougher Mr. Ratburn will make their lives more difficult, Arthur and friends make a plan to portray Mr. Ratburn as extremely laid-back, the opposite of Patty's personality, so that she will not want to marry him.
304:
rerun in its place. The network's director of programming, Mike McKenzie, said that the decision was made because some children might watch the episode without their parents, and some children younger than the episode's target demographic might watch the segment. Alabama Public
Television had also
246:
Having exhausted their other options, Arthur and his friends decide to object to the wedding at the ceremony. They back out at the last minute, but in doing so discover that Patty is actually Mr. Ratburn's older sister, not his betrothed. At that moment, Mr. Ratburn walks down the aisle with his
235:
is getting married after he receives a phone call during class from someone named Patty. Later at the diner, Arthur, Francine, Buster, and Muffy speculate about who would want to marry Mr. Ratburn when he and Patty appear. Arthur and his friends overhear Patty, who intends to take charge of the
339:
that "Mr. Ratburn and the
Special Someone" "received overwhelmingly glowing reviews", with some dissenting opinions. Multiple critics praised how the episode treated the reveal that Mr. Ratburn was marrying a man as unremarkable; Helen Armitage in
366:, meanwhile, initiated a petition that garnered at least 13,000 signatures calling for the episode to be removed from TV schedules for what the organization described as the promotion of same-sex marriage. The segment was nominated at the
216:) who will make him an even tougher educator, only to later learn that he is marrying a kind chocolatier named Patrick. "Mr. Ratburn and the Special Someone" received positive critical reviews and a nomination for the
395:, Ashley Fetters and Natalie Escobar described the episode as "a poignant moment in children's TV history" considering that LGBTQ characters appeared infrequently in children's programming, and in particular on
355:
s
Allegra Frank wrote that the segment "refreshingly avoids presenting it as 'different' or 'non-traditional,' and simply shows that it is worthy of celebration, just like any happy marriage."
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said that PBS "fumbled the ball on LGBTQ representation in 2005" for its treatment of "Sugartime!" but found Mr. Ratburn's wedding to be "a quiet moment, but a groundbreaking one".
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to feature a same-sex wedding, a depiction that resulted in two PBS member stations in
Arkansas and Alabama choosing not to air the episode's premiere on May 13, 2019.
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Arthur and Buster trick Mr. Ratburn into recording himself reading a book for young children, which they then edit over a manipulated photo of him dressed as a
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made a guest appearance in the episode, voicing Mr. Ratburn's sister Patty. The episode marked the first appearance of a gay wedding in an episode of
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head writer Peter K. Hirsch, "Mr. Ratburn and the
Special Someone" premiered on May 13, 2019, along with its sister episode, "The Feud".
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similarly did not air the episode on May 13, though they did air the episode several times later that month and in June 2019 on their
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described the segment as groundbreaking for "how without fanfare and matter-of-factly Mr. Ratburn's sexuality is revealed", and
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and his friends mistakenly believe their teacher Mr. Ratburn is marrying a woman named Patty (voiced by guest star
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in the 23 years it had been running as of 2019. However, it was not the first appearance of gay characters in an
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it is important to represent the wide array of adults in the lives of children who look to PBS Kids every day."
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620:
325:, announced that they would show the episode in a public screening that attracted RSVPs from over 100 people.
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462:"Kids' TV rarely shows same-sex marriage. PBS's Arthur just did â and it was, wonderfully, no big deal"
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s "Sugartime!" 14 years prior, which PBS ultimately pulled from its schedule due to pressure from the
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931:"Former Trump aide Sebastian Gorka says 'Arthur' gay wedding is proof of 'culture war'"
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792:"Alabama Public Television refuses to air Arthur episode with same-sex wedding"
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577:"Mr. Ratburn And The Special Someone/The Feud - Arthur â All Broadcast Times"
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348:
662:"'Arthur' Gives Mr. Ratburn The Gay Wedding to a Chocolatier We All Deserve"
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549:
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759:"Alabama Public Television refuses to air Arthur episode with gay wedding"
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209:
504:"Arthur: Why 'Mr Ratburn And The Special Someone' Was So Groundbreaking"
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s
Cartoon Rat's Gay Wedding Outrages One Million Moms, Sebastian Gorka"
268:
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120:
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subchannels in the evening, overnight, and early morning hours. The
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The episode was not aired in several television markets. PBS member
248:
858:"Alabama church will screen 'Arthur' episode with same-sex wedding"
314:
824:"Arkansas public TV didn't air 'Arthur' episode with gay marriage"
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but garnered negative responses from some fundamentalist groups.
49:
Multiple critics praised the reveal of Mr. Ratburn's true fiancé
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240:
218:
GLAAD Media Award for
Outstanding Kids and Family Programming
827:
399:. Reactions to the episode were contrasted to reactions to
723:"'Arthur' Opens Season With a Same-Sex Wedding and a Cake"
583:
191:" is the first segment of the first episode of the
540:Fetters, Ashley; Escobar, Natalie (May 14, 2019).
1351:LGBTQ-related controversies in the United States
1302:
1371:Censorship of broadcasting in the United States
694:"Mr. Ratburn and the Special Someone; The Feud"
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653:
300:opted not to broadcast the episode, showing an
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195:of the animated edutainment television series
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650:
436:typically consist of two 11-minute segments.
383:High School Musical: The Musical: The Series
1331:Television episodes about same-sex weddings
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258:
1336:LGBTQ-related animated television episodes
1326:American LGBTQ-related television episodes
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43:
1346:LGBTQ-related controversies in television
888:
882:
410:, one of the show's funders. Jude Dry in
309:that depicted a same-sex couple in 2005.
231:and his friends learn that their teacher
1341:LGBTQ-related controversies in animation
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18:1st episode of the 22nd season of Arthur
1311:2019 controversies in the United States
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372:Outstanding Kids and Family Programming
311:Arkansas Educational Television Network
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638:from the original on February 16, 2018
516:from the original on February 28, 2022
502:Armitage, Helen (September 13, 2021).
283:", a 2005 episode of the spinoff show
1321:Animation controversies in television
999:
962:Mitovich, Matt Webb (July 30, 2020).
943:from the original on December 5, 2022
910:from the original on January 30, 2023
870:from the original on November 8, 2020
756:
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459:
408:United States Department of Education
889:Gilchrist, Tracy E. (May 15, 2019).
816:
804:from the original on January 5, 2022
674:from the original on August 18, 2023
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546:Reflects Changing Norms in the U.S."
450:
1211:Mr. Ratburn and the Special Someone
834:from the original on April 24, 2021
659:
189:Mr. Ratburn and the Special Someone
26:Mr. Ratburn and the Special Someone
13:
980:from the original on June 15, 2022
771:from the original on June 24, 2022
721:Garcia, Sandra E. (May 14, 2019).
714:
474:from the original on April 3, 2022
14:
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1361:2019 American television episodes
735:from the original on June 4, 2023
590:from the original on June 4, 2023
1285:
1284:
955:
929:Gilmour, David (May 15, 2019).
460:Frank, Allegra (May 14, 2019).
686:
623:. June 2010. pp. 14â23 .
621:Writers Guild of America, East
602:
426:
201:. It was the first episode of
60:
1:
856:Aviles, Gwen (June 4, 2019).
790:Romano, Nick (May 21, 2019).
757:Crain, Abbey (May 20, 2019).
443:
319:First United Methodist Church
966:Schitt's Creek, Pose, Maddow
610:"Peter Hirsch and Susan Kim"
328:
7:
10:
1397:
1366:Censorship of LGBTQ issues
660:Dry, Jude (May 13, 2019).
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1220:
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360:Protestant fundamentalist
298:Alabama Public Television
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1236:Arthur's Teacher Trouble
542:"How a Gay Character on
419:
397:public-access television
259:Production and broadcast
368:31st GLAAD Media Awards
305:rejected an episode of
223:
99:May 13, 2019
1316:2019 in LGBTQ history
1254:Postcards from Buster
964:"GLAAD Media Awards:
401:Postcards from Buster
333:Gwen Aviles wrote on
307:Postcards from Buster
286:Postcards from Buster
1204:Arthur Takes a Stand
797:Entertainment Weekly
146:Pal and the Big Itch
323:Birmingham, Alabama
1356:Arthur (TV series)
728:The New York Times
377:The Bravest Knight
130:Episode chronology
1381:LGBTQ in Arkansas
1298:
1297:
968:Among TV Winners"
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96:Original air date
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1376:LGBTQ in Alabama
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830:. May 21, 2019.
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619:. Vol. 32.
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553:. Archived from
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364:One Million Moms
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208:In the segment,
180:List of episodes
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112:Guest appearance
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53:as unremarkable.
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982:. Retrieved
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945:. Retrieved
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912:. Retrieved
903:The Advocate
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872:. Retrieved
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836:. Retrieved
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806:. Retrieved
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773:. Retrieved
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737:. Retrieved
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704:. Retrieved
697:
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676:. Retrieved
665:
640:. Retrieved
616:
604:
594:February 14,
592:. Retrieved
571:
559:. Retrieved
555:the original
550:The Atlantic
548:
543:
518:. Retrieved
507:
476:. Retrieved
465:
433:
432:Episodes of
428:
411:
400:
392:The Atlantic
390:
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375:
374:, losing to
370:in 2020 for
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25:
15:
1272:Video games
1267:Soundtracks
1049:Arthur Read
863:NBCNews.com
509:Screen Rant
343:Screen Rant
336:NBCNews.com
279:property; "
263:Written by
253:chocolatier
233:Mr. Ratburn
193:22nd season
173:(season 22)
75:Greg Bailey
72:Directed by
1305:Categories
1041:Characters
1033:Marc Brown
947:August 16,
914:August 16,
739:August 18,
702:. Fandango
678:August 18,
617:On Writing
561:August 18,
444:References
281:Sugartime!
269:Jane Lynch
214:Jane Lynch
121:Jane Lynch
103:2019-05-13
80:Written by
67:Episode 1a
51:(pictured)
667:IndieWire
413:IndieWire
329:Reception
1290:Category
1260:episodes
1195:Episodes
984:June 29,
978:Archived
941:Archived
908:Archived
874:June 25,
868:Archived
838:June 25,
832:Archived
808:June 25,
802:Archived
775:June 25,
769:Archived
733:Archived
706:June 25,
672:Archived
642:June 12,
633:Archived
629:51883406
588:Archived
520:June 25,
514:Archived
478:June 25,
472:Archived
315:PBS Kids
291:"believe
158:The Feud
141:Previous
123:as Patty
59:Episode
1246:Related
1058:Seasons
247:actual
171:Arthur
154: â
139:â
101: (
38:episode
1028:Arthur
973:TVLine
893:Arthur
764:Al.com
627:
544:Arthur
434:Arthur
302:Arthur
277:Arthur
273:Arthur
265:Arthur
249:fiancé
241:hippie
229:Arthur
210:Arthur
203:Arthur
198:Arthur
35:Arthur
1221:Books
896:'
636:(PDF)
613:(PDF)
420:Notes
404:'
353:'
91:2201A
986:2022
949:2023
916:2023
876:2022
840:2022
828:KATV
810:2022
777:2022
741:2023
708:2022
680:2023
644:2022
625:OCLC
596:2023
563:2023
522:2022
480:2022
380:and
358:The
224:Plot
152:Next
1031:by
584:PBS
467:Vox
389:In
349:Vox
321:in
61:no.
1307::
1185:25
1180:24
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976:.
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