Premiering in October 1995 on PBS, Wishbone was an immediate hit. While the show only had two seasons and 50 episodes, the titular literature-loving canine would be in constant rotation on PBS up until the 2000s. Now three decades later, there’s a new documentary on the show. The movie, What’s The Story, Wishbone, is a documentary on the making of the series. It’s a well-made movie, filled with stories and archival footage that long-time fans are sure to enjoy.
What Is Wishbone?
Created by Rick Duffield, Wishbone is about the titular Jack Russell terrier (voiced by Larry Brantley, played by Soccer) and the fictional town of Oakdale. Wishbone lives with his owner Joe Talbot (Jordan Wall) and Joe’s widowed librarian mother Ellen (Mary Chris Wall). The Talbots are usually joined by their neighbor Wanda Gilmore (Angee Hughes) and Joe’s friends David Barnes (Adam Springfield) and Samantha Kepler (Christie Abbot).
In each episode, Wishbone relates everyday life to stories found in classic literature. These stories are then acted out by a company of theater actors along with Wishbone. Throughout each episode, the real life and fantasy sequences will see-saw back and forth, showing the similarities in both stories.
Wishbone would last for two seasons that aired two years apart from each other in 1995 and 1997. This was then followed by a TV Movie called Wishbone: Dog Days Of The West, which aired on Showtime in 1998.
The Documentary
For the most part, What’s The Story, Wishbone tells its story in chronological order. With a few exceptions, all the people in this movie were interviewed with colorful movie set backgrounds behind them. As the movie progresses, more people join in and tell their stories.
The documentary has many strengths. For one thing, the archival footage shown in the movie is remarkable. In the documentary, you’ll get to see many behind-the-scenes pictures and videos, along with a slew of other archival clips. For long-time Wishbone fans, this will be a feast for the eyes. Another strength of the movie is the interviewees. You’ll get to hear from Rick Duffield, Larry Brantley, Mary Chris Wall, Angee Hughes and a few of the Wishbone Company players in the fantasy segments. Most of the participants, however, are the people working behind the scenes.
Speaking of production, viewers will also get an insight as to how the episodes were made. These sections are discussed thoroughly: make-up, costume design, set design and a whole lot more. There were a lot of people working on Wishbone and it’s remarkable as to how much they were able to make in such a short span of time. If you enjoyed the behind-the-scenes features (aka “Tail Ends”) that were at the end of most episodes, you’ll love these segments of the movie. In fact, some of the footage from the “Tail Ends” make their way into the movie.
While a solid movie throughout, the documentary isn’t without its weaknesses. Of them, the biggest is the lack of interviews with the real-life segment actors. The actors who played Joe, David and Sam (Jordan, Adam and Christie) were not interviewed for this movie. While three of the main actors (Larry, Mary Chris and Angee) are in the movie, it feels like there aren’t enough Oakdale citizens interviewed. With this, the movie feels like it focuses more on how the show was made from a technical standpoint rather than experiences on the set. To be fair, the fantasy segments and Soccer’s performance as Wishbone (in both the real-life segments and fantasy segments) were the defining parts on the show. With that, it makes sense that more focus would be put on that element of the show.
If the movie has anything to fall back on, it’s the interviewees and archival footage. The people who worked on Wishbone seemed to truly enjoy their job, with many of them having this as one of their first gigs. It’s bittersweet to watch as well, considering that Wishbone was only on the air for a short time compared to other PBS Kids shows. Though in that short amount of time, Wishbone brought a lot of joy to viewers and the people working on it.
Final Thoughts
Overall, What’s The Story, Wishbone is an enjoyable documentary. While it isn’t without its flaws, this is clearly a labor of love from the filmmakers. Longtime Wishbone fans should enjoy this movie while newcomers might be persuaded to check out the show afterwards.
Rating: 7/10
What’s The Story, Wishbone will be airing on PBS stations from May 27 to June 9. It will then be available on streaming platforms for rent and/or purchase on June 10. Click here for more information on the movie.
If you’d like to see when the documentary will be playing in your area, check your local PBS schedule and/or search “Wishbone” on the website.
I'm a writer/journalist with a passion for music and pop culture. Having graduated from King's College in Wilkes-Barre, PA in 2014, I've been looking for a platform in which I can share my passions. Since 2009, I've been posting to my own blog- The Walrus' Music Blog- via Blogger. I'm also the author of two self-published books, "The Camp: Stories from the Summer" and "The College: Stories from King's." Together, the two books cover the story of my life from 2004 to 2014. I've been lucky enough to interview several of my favorite musicians over the years and go to concerts from time to time. I'm also very devoted to the CBS reality TV show Survivor, which I started watching in 2002 when its fourth season started. I currently live in New Jersey.