Donkey Hodie (TV series)

*Donkey Hodie*
Donkey Hodie
Genre	Children's television series; Musical; Comedy
Created by	David Rudman; Adam Rudman
Based on	Characters; by Fred Rogers
Developed by	Ellen Doherty
Starring	Haley Jenkins; Stephanie D'Abruzzo; David Rudman; Frankie Cordero;
Theme music composer	Bill Sherman
Opening theme	"With Our Pal Donkey Hodie" performed by Taylor Iman Jones, Haley Jenkins, Frankie Cordero, Stephanie D'Abruzzo, and David Rudman
Ending theme	"With Our Pal Donkey Hodie" (instrumental)
Composers	Bill Sherman; Zack Zeyde; Noah Deblasis;
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	3
No. of episodes	74 (144 segments) (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers	David Rudman; Adam Rudman; Ellen Doherty;
Producers	Adam Rudman; David Rudman; Ellen Doherty; Kristin DiQuollo;
Running time	23 minutes (two 11-minute segments)
Production companies	Spiffy Pictures; Fred Rogers Productions;
Original release
Network	PBS Kids
Release	May 3, 2021 –; present
Related
	Mister Rogers' Neighborhood; Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood; Nature Cat

Donkey Hodie is an American puppet live action musical children's television series created by David and Adam Rudman for PBS Kids, and is aimed at preschoolers ages 3 to 5. Inspired by characters created by Fred Rogers, the series premiered May 3, 2021,^[1] and is the second spin-off of Rogers' television series Mister Rogers' Neighborhood after Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood.^[2] The first full episode was initially set to premiere in the winter of 2021 on PBS Kids in the United States, but it was pushed back to May 3 of the same year.

Plot

In the land of Someplace Else, just north of the Neighborhood of Make-Believe, Donkey Hodie and her friends go throughout their day while solving different problems along the way.

Cast

Haley Jenkins as Donkey Hodie, the granddaughter of Grampy Hodie (the original Donkey Hodie^[3]). Like her grandfather, her name is a pun on the novel Don Quixote. She's eponymously named, sunny and brave.
Stephanie D'Abruzzo as Duck Duck, Harriet Elizabeth Cow, Mama Panda, and Doc Skunk; Duck Duck's name is eponymous.
David Rudman as Bob Dog, an upbeat orange dog, Grampy Hodie and Stanley the Dragon.
Frankie Cordero as Purple Panda and Turtle Lou.
Peter Linz as Clyde the Cloud.
Matt Vogel as King Friday, the ruler of the Neighborhood of Make-Believe.
Joey Mazzarino as Game Show Gator and Super Porcupine.
Leslie Carrara-Rudolph as Dodie Hodie, Donkey's cousin.
Jimmica Collins as Rockstar Penguin.
Melvin Campbell as Rogers the Fish

The original Donkey Hodie, Bob Dog, Purple Panda, Harriet Cow and King Friday all originated on Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. All other characters were newly created for the Donkey Hodie series.^[3]

Episodes

Season	Segments	Episodes	Originally released
Season	Segments	Episodes	First released	Last released
1	79	40	May 3, 2021 (2021-05-03)	February 23, 2023 (2023-02-23)
2	48	25	August 14, 2023 (2023-08-14)	April 17, 2025 (2025-04-17)
3	28	15	August 11, 2025 (2025-08-11)	TBA

Production

The series was announced in January 2020. The title character is the granddaughter of the original Donkey Hodie, a character from the Neighborhood of Make Believe on Mister Rogers' Neighborhood.^[3]^[4]^[5]^[6]

Music

Like Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood, the series includes both new songs as well as songs written by Rogers.

The music for the show was composed by Bill Sherman, Zack Zeyde, and Noah Deblasis.

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Nominee(s)	Result	Ref.
2021	Television Critics Association Awards	Outstanding Achievement in Youth Programming	Donkey Hodie	Nominated
2022	Children's and Family Emmy Awards	Outstanding Lighting Design for a Live Action Program	Joel K. Flory and Mark Kluiszo	Nominated
2022	Writers Guild of America Awards	Television: Children’s Script	Adam Rudman, David Rudman, and Joey Mazzarino	Nominated
2023	Children's and Family Emmy Awards	Outstanding Puppetry Performance	Harley Jenkins	Nominated
	Children's and Family Emmy Awards	Outstanding Puppetry Performance	Frankie Cordero	Nominated
	Television Critics Association Awards	Outstanding Achievement in Children's Programming	Donkey Hodie	Nominated
2025	Children's and Family Emmy Awards	Outstanding Preschool Series	Donkey Hodie	Nominated
	Children's and Family Emmy Awards	Outstanding Interactive Media	Cousin Hodie Playdate	Won
	Television Critics Association Awards	Outstanding Achievement in Children's Programming	Donkey Hodie	Nominated	^[7]

References

↑ "TV Talk: New 'Mister Rogers' Neighborhood' spin-off debuts in May". TribLIVE.com. January 27, 2021. Archived from the original on January 27, 2021. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
↑ "'Donkey Hodie,' PBS KIDS Series Inspired by 'Mister Rogers' Neighborhood,' Premieres 3 May 2021 with help/funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting". PBS. PBS Publicity. Archived from the original on February 4, 2021. Retrieved February 16, 2021.
1 2 3 Graeber, Laurel (May 2, 2021). "'Donkey Hodie' Adds a Fresh Face to Fred Rogers's World. And a Mohawk". The New York Times. Archived from the original on May 8, 2021. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
↑ Tuchow, Ryan (January 13, 2020). "Fred Rogers sees space for more puppets". KidScreen. Archived from the original on February 3, 2021. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
↑ Milligan, Mercedes (January 27, 2021). "'Donkey Hodie' Continues the Mister Rogers Legacy on PBS KIDS May 3". Animation Magazine. Archived from the original on January 27, 2021. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
↑ "Donkey Hodie". 9 Story. Archived from the original on February 2, 2021. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
↑ Schneider, Michael (July 9, 2025). "TCA Awards 2025 Nominations: 'Severance' Tops Tally, Followed by 'Adolescence,' 'Hacks,' 'The Pitt,' 'The Studio'". Variety. Archived from the original on July 9, 2025. Retrieved July 29, 2025.

External links

[1] "TV Talk: New 'Mister Rogers' Neighborhood' spin-off debuts in May". TribLIVE.com. January 27, 2021. Archived from the original on January 27, 2021. Retrieved April 4, 2021.

[2] "'Donkey Hodie,' PBS KIDS Series Inspired by 'Mister Rogers' Neighborhood,' Premieres 3 May 2021 with help/funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting". PBS. PBS Publicity. Archived from the original on February 4, 2021. Retrieved February 16, 2021.

[nyt-3] 1 2 3 Graeber, Laurel (May 2, 2021). "'Donkey Hodie' Adds a Fresh Face to Fred Rogers's World. And a Mohawk". The New York Times. Archived from the original on May 8, 2021. Retrieved May 9, 2021.

[4] Tuchow, Ryan (January 13, 2020). "Fred Rogers sees space for more puppets". KidScreen. Archived from the original on February 3, 2021. Retrieved January 29, 2021.

[5] Milligan, Mercedes (January 27, 2021). "'Donkey Hodie' Continues the Mister Rogers Legacy on PBS KIDS May 3". Animation Magazine. Archived from the original on January 27, 2021. Retrieved January 29, 2021.

[6] "Donkey Hodie". 9 Story. Archived from the original on February 2, 2021. Retrieved January 29, 2021.

[7] Schneider, Michael (July 9, 2025). "TCA Awards 2025 Nominations: 'Severance' Tops Tally, Followed by 'Adolescence,' 'Hacks,' 'The Pitt,' 'The Studio'". Variety. Archived from the original on July 9, 2025. Retrieved July 29, 2025.

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v t e Fred Rogers and Mister Rogers' Neighborhood
Neighborhood of Make-Believe
Seasons	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
Films	Speedy Delivery Won't You Be My Neighbor? Mister Rogers: It's You I Like A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
Other	26858 Misterrogers Children's Museum of Pittsburgh Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood (episodes) Donkey Hodie (episodes) Fred Rogers's 1969 Senate testimony Fred Rogers Productions Idlewild and Soak Zone Jeff Erlanger "What Do You Do with the Mad That You Feel?"

v t e PBS Kids original programming
Current	Sesame Street (since 1969) Cyberchase (since 2002) Wild Kratts (since 2011) Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood (since 2012) Odd Squad (since 2014) Molly of Denali (since 2019) Elinor Wonders Why (since 2020) Donkey Hodie (since 2021) Alma's Way (since 2021) Rosie's Rules (since 2022) Work It Out Wombats! (since 2023) Lyla in the Loop (since 2024) Milo (since 2024) Carl the Collector (since 2024) Weather Hunters (since 2025) Phoebe & Jay (since 2026)
See also	PBS original programming Educational television PBS Kids Bookworm Bunch PBS Kids Go!
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