Drawing With Fred’s host Fred M. Grandinetti poses with the show’s resident genie, played by Brandon Stumpf. The show has been on for 25 years.
Since 1992 Watertown resident, Fred M. Grandinetti, has been the producer, writer and host of the award winning cable access series Drawing With Fred, the producer said. The show’s format has remained pretty constant over the years. It begins with a drawing lesson followed by an animated cartoon featuring the object of instruction. The show is rounded off with more cartoons plus original water safety and fitness segments.
Popeye, Betty Boop, Sinbad Jr., Snuffy Smith, Barney Google, Krazy Kat, Beetle Bailey and Cool McCool are among the animated favorites. Over the years the program has featured original animated cartoons. Most notably was Logan Likes His Lyrics featuring the actual singing voice of Logan McCarty. Old Popeye song recordings received new life being turned into music videos.
Grandinetti’s inspiration for the series were the programs, with an adult host, he watched growing up; The Uncle Gus Show, Boomtown, Major Mudd and Bozo the Clown.
“I believe one of the reasons children act intolerant towards adults today is they don’t have these wonderful television role models,” Grandinetti said. “During the cartoons, games and activities the host would remind their young audience to look both ways before crossing the street. You didn’t need an entire half-hour show dealing with this particular issue. The hosts would quietly slip these messages in.”
Drawing with Fred crew members Dominic P. Grandinetti and Linda and Edward Collins are pictured with opera singer Logan McCarty (right).
Drawing With Fred has won three CONTI awards for excellence in instructional and children’s programming.
“The most frustrating aspect of doing the program are the technical glitches which occur for one reason or the other. I am very critical of myself and what product I put out there for the public whether it be my series or in my writing. One occasion I had to just laugh at a technical problem. On channel 9 a football announcer’s voice was coming out of my mouth during Drawing With Fred. On the corresponding channel 8 the football announcer was heard teaching the audience how to draw a cartoon character during a game,” Grandinetti said.
Two special episodes are planned for the show’s anniversary. One features a cartooning lesson from 1994 of ‘Jeannie’ from I Dream of Jeannie. Along with the lesson are color animated films featuring Aladdin’s Lamp. Each is introduced by the series’ resident genie (Brandon Stumpf) who emerges as smoke out of his bottle. The other will have Popeye cartoons in Italian and co-hosted by Nicola Orichuia. Orichuia, a co- founder of the first Italian-American book store in the country I AM Books, will also become an animated cartoon.
Many have contributed to Drawing with Fred over the years, including Helen Olivo, Dolores Grandinetti and Mary Caramanica, who sang on a Holiday special.
Grandinetti said he had to the people who have contributed their talents to the program over the years.
“They include Linda and Edward Collins, Dennis Volpe, Madeline Yusna, John Woodland, Tamara Green, Michael Atkinson, Daniel Mariano, Rob Nelson, David Hudon, Neil Tenczar, Frank Caruso, Mike Levin, Marc Mandel, Vatche Arabian, Cuyle Carvin, Brandon Stumpf, Claudia Smith, Angela Relucio, Logan McCarty, Michael Cuna, Domenic D’Amico, Graham King, Eric Petersen, Josh Eilberg, Marc Vadeboncoeur and Dominic P. Grandinetti,” he said.
See Drawing with Fred on Watertown Cable Access, http://wcatv.org/.