There Goes a...
Real Wheels, previously known as Live Action Video for Kids, also known as There Goes a..., is a series of children's videos for ages 3–8 that features a specified vehicle and the various jobs that it has along with real people who work the job which requires the vehicle. Episodes like There Goes a Garbage Truck, There Goes the Mail and There Goes a Rescue Vehicle, were released as a part of the Dream Big series. Each episode focuses on different modes of transport, though one episode is reserved for Santa Claus and another for roller coasters. Each is live-action, starring Dave Hood who is sometimes accompanied by Becky Borg. Dave Hood does not appear in There Goes a Farm Truck, There Goes a Tractor and There Goes a Dump Truck, in which he is replaced by David Sidoni.
| Real Wheels | |
|---|---|
| Created by | Dave Hood |
| Written by | Dave Hood |
| Directed by | Dave Hood Ken Urman |
| Starring | Dave Hood (20 episodes) Becky Borg (12 episodes) David Sidoni (3 episodes) |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of episodes | 23 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Dave Hood |
| Producer(s) | Dave Hood Brian Levine Ken Urman |
| Editor(s) | Dave Hood |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Dave Hood Entertainment Power to Create, Inc. |
| Distributor | KidVision Warner Home Video |
| Release | |
| Original network | PBS (United States) Roadshow Entertainment (Australia) |
| Original release | 1993 – 2003 |
Plot
The series of videos revolved around Dave (sometimes with Becky) in jobs that center around the vehicles being featured. Dave and Becky always reminded kids that they did not have the respective jobs, but the real workers had agreed for them to pretend for the day so that the viewers could learn about the vehicles and a little more about the jobs they serve. While the most part of the videos focused on showing how the vehicles worked and what they can do, some episodes also featured a trope where Dave would predictably get into trouble (example: accidentally knocking down a building in There Goes a Bulldozer) and deliver his catchphrase, "I shouldn't have done that!". Becky would sometimes get into the same trouble caused by Dave.
In these videos, the hosts talked about how the vehicles worked, the history of the vehicle featured and talked to real people who worked in their fields. At the end of each episode, Dave and/or Becky would encourage the viewers to visit their local library or the place based on the theme's episode to learn more about the vehicles. On other episodes, at the end, Dave and Becky would also remind the viewers about safety (such as "don't play on the railroad tracks" in There Goes a Train and "don't play with fire" in There Goes a Fire Truck). Other times, the people who worked in the fields of the vehicles would discuss safety to the viewers as well.
Locations
The majority of the episodes were filmed on location in southern California at locations such as Union Station, Ontario International Airport, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, Six Flags Magic Mountain and Camp Pendleton. They were occasionally filmed at places like the Kennedy Space Center, the Pacific Southwest Railway Museum and the USS Kitty Hawk.
List of episodes
| # | Title | Original air date | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | "There Goes A Fire Truck" | 1993 | ||
| Fireman Dave takes a visit to the Ontario, California Fire Department to see what it takes to be a real firefighter and how fire trucks work. It features footage of the Ontario International Airport Fire Department in action. | ||||
| 02 | "There Goes A Bulldozer" | March 1994 | ||
| Construction Foreman Dave visits demolition and construction sites to learn all about machines used in many types of construction. | ||||
| 03 | "There Goes An Airplane" | 1994 | ||
| Pilot Dave learns all about different types of airplanes and how they work. Some footage shows the US Navy aircraft in action. | ||||
| 04 | "There Goes A Train" | 1994 | ||
| Engineer Dave learns about all different types of trains by visiting places such as Los Angeles Union Station and the Pacific Southwest Railway Museum. | ||||
| 05 | "There Goes A Police Car" | 1994 | ||
| Deputies Dave & Becky (in her first appearance) learn all about police work as well as the equipment and vehicles they use. Most of the footage shows the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department in action. | ||||
| 06 | "There Goes A Truck" | July 1994 | ||
| Truck Drivers Dave & Becky learn about all different types of trucks and how they work. | ||||
| 07 | "There Goes A Boat" | 1994 | ||
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Captains Dave and Becky learn about different types of boats and ships and how they work. Note: The episode was originally to be titled There Goes a Ship and There Goes a Big Ship, but was soon re-titled as bigger ships were not solely shown in the episode. | ||||
| 08 | "There Goes A Spaceship" | 1994 | ||
| Astronauts Dave & Becky visit the Kennedy Space Center to learn about outer space and different types of spacecraft. | ||||
| 09 | "There Goes A Race Car" | 1994 | ||
| Race Car Drivers Dave & Becky learn all about different types of race cars, including off-road racing, stock-car racing at a NASCAR race in Tucson Raceway, Top Fuel Dragsters, and visit Sears Point Raceway to visit the Skip Barber Racing School. | ||||
| 10 | "Here Comes a Roller Coaster" | 1995 | ||
| Dave has a dream that he spends a day at Six Flags Magic Mountain and rides on all different types of roller coasters and other thrill rides, with help by a child named Taylor. | ||||
| 11 | "There Goes A Monster Truck" | 1995 | ||
| Monster Truck Drivers Dave & Becky learn all about monster trucks, and learn how to drive one. | ||||
| 12 | "There Goes A Motorcycle" | 1995 | ||
| Bikers Dave & Becky learn all about motorcycles and how they are used when driving for recreation and racing. | ||||
| 13 | "There Goes a Helicopter" | 1995 | ||
| Helicopter Pilots Dave & Becky learn all about different types of helicopters and how they work. | ||||
| 14 | "There Goes Santa Claus" | 1995 | ||
| Dave and Becky pretend to be Santa Claus and do the duties that he does. This episode is a flashback episode when Dave and Becky remember what they did in the past. It features flashback footage from There Goes a Boat, There Goes a Police Car, There Goes a Motorcycle, and There Goes a Monster Truck. | ||||
| 15 | "There Goes the Mail" | 1996 | ||
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Letter Carriers Dave & Becky learn about where the mail goes and how it is transported. Note: The episode is alternately titled as There Goes a Mail Truck. | ||||
| 16 | "There Goes a Rescue Vehicle" | 1996 | ||
| Paramedics Dave and Becky learn about different types of rescue work and the vehicles they use. | ||||
| 17 | "There Goes a Garbage Truck" | 1997 | ||
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Trash Collectors Dave and Becky learn about garbage trucks and how important it is to keep the Earth clean and not pollute. Note: This episode marks Becky's final appearance in the series. The episode also features a flashback from There Goes a Truck. | ||||
| 18 | "There Goes a Dump Truck" | 1999 | ||
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Dump Truck Driver Dave learns all about dump trucks and other construction vehicles in road work, and what it takes being a construction foreman. Note: Dave Sidoni hosts this episode. | ||||
| 19 | "There Goes a Tractor" | 2000 | ||
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Farmer Dave learns about tractors and equipment used in farm work. Note: Dave Sidoni hosts this episode. | ||||
| 20 | "There Goes a Farm Truck" | 2000 | ||
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Dave learns all about farm trucks and how they work. It uses the same principle settings as the previous episode. Note: Dave Sidoni hosts this episode. | ||||
| 21 | "There Goes a Bus" | 2002 | ||
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Bus Driver Dave learns about buses and attends bus driver school to know what it takes to become one. Note: Dave Hood returns in this episode. | ||||
| 22 | "There Goes a Tank" | 2003 | ||
| Tank Driver Dave goes to Camp Pendleton and learns all about tanks and other military vehicles and how they work. | ||||
| 23 | "There Goes a Rescue Hero" | 2003 | ||
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Rescue Hero Dave learns about rescue work and the vehicles and equipment they use in emergency situations. He also meets a rescue dog named Charlie, where he attempts to train him how to rescue people in distress. Note: This is the final episode of the series. | ||||
Rockin' Real Wheels
A spin-off known as Rockin' Real Wheels was also released featuring songs about the specific types of vehicles featured in the main series. There are four episodes in this series.
1. Train Songs
Two kids named Michael and Jennifer visit the Pacific Southwest Railway Museum to learn all about trains. Along the way, they meet Tuffy the train in a musical train adventure.
2. Bulldozer Songs
Two kids named Winnie and Alex meet Rocky the bulldozer as he takes them to learn all about bulldozers and other construction vehicles and how they work through song.
3. Fire Truck Songs
During an open house at the fire department, two kids meet Freddy the Friendly Fire Engine as they embark on a musical journey learning all about fire trucks. Along the way, the kids learn about the various types of tools and equipment the firefighters use as well as various fire safety guidelines. Various songs are used to entertain the kids.
4. Santa Songs
An animated Santa Claus takes the viewers on a holiday musical adventure.
DVD releases
The "Real Wheels" series has also released a series of DVD, each usually containing two episodes as well as a blooper reel, interactive glossary, and other special features. The DVDs are usually titled as "Adventures", with three episodes sharing a theme among their featured vehicles. A spin-off called "Rockin' Real Wheels" was also released featuring songs about a specific type of vehicle. All episodes except for Here Comes a Roller Coaster, There Goes Santa Claus, and Santa Songs were featured on DVD.
"Adventures" DVDs
1. Truck Adventures
There Goes a Fire Truck, There Goes a Garbage Truck, and There Goes a Truck.
2. Mega Truck Adventures
There Goes a Bulldozer, There Goes a Monster Truck, and There Goes a Tank.
3. High Speed Adventures
There Goes a Race Car, There Goes a Motorcycle, and There Goes a Spaceship.
4. Travel Adventures
There Goes a Train, There Goes a Plane, and There Goes a Bus.
5. Land, Sea, and Air Adventures
There Goes a Boat, There Goes the Mail, and There Goes a Helicopter.
6. Tractor Adventures
There Goes a Tractor, There Goes a Dump Truck, and There Goes a Farm Truck.
7. Rescue Adventures
There Goes a Rescue Hero, There Goes a Police Car, and There Goes a Rescue Vehicle.
8. Rockin' Real Wheels
Train Songs, Bulldozer Songs, and Fire Truck Songs.
Reception
The Real Wheels series had over 8 million dollars in sales and had won numerous awards including the Dove Foundation Award, The National Parenting Association Award, the Parents' Choice Award, and Kid's First Endorsement Award.
Live tour
From 2001-2004, there was a live tour entitled, "Dave's Big Live Show" (aka Real Wheels Live). It starred Dave Hood that featured him doing magic tricks and had audience participation stunts. Before the show, there were vehicles that the audience would touch and look at.
The production was produced and presented by Dave Hood Entertainment.