Today's Special is a Canadian children's television show produced by Clive VanderBurgh at TVOntario

TVOntario

TVOntario, often referred to only as TVO , is a publicly funded, educational English-language television station and media organization in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is operated by the Ontario Educational Communications Authority, a Crown corporation owned by the Government of Ontario...

 from 1982 to 1987. It also ran on Nickelodeon

Nickelodeon (TV channel)

Nickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...

 and the Faith and Values Channel (now the Hallmark Channel

Hallmark Channel

The Hallmark Channel is a cable television network that broadcasts across the United States. Their programming includes a mix of television movies/miniseries, syndicated series, and lifestyle shows that are appropriate for the whole family...

) as well as many PBS stations throughout the United States. It was set in a department store

Department store

A department store is a retail establishment which satisfies a wide range of the consumer's personal and residential durable goods product needs; and at the same time offering the consumer a choice of multiple merchandise lines, at variable price points, in all product categories...

, based on the flagship location of the now defunct Simpson's

Simpson's

The Robert Simpson Company, or Simpsons , was a Canadian department store chain, founded by Robert Simpson. The chain was eventually bought by the Hudson's Bay Company.- History :...

 in Toronto

Toronto

Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

. Many sequences for it were shot at the Queen Street West

Queen Street West

Queen Street West describes both the western branch of Queen Street, a major east-west thoroughfare, and a series of neighbourhoods or commercial districts, situated west of Yonge Street in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Queen Street begins in the west at the intersection of King Street, The...

 and Yonge Street

Yonge Street

Yonge Street is a major arterial route connecting the shores of Lake Ontario in Toronto to Lake Simcoe, a gateway to the Upper Great Lakes. It was formerly listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest street in the world at , and the construction of Yonge Street is designated an "Event of...

 store after hours.

Core characters

• Jeff (Jeff Hyslop
  Jeff Hyslop
  Jeff Hyslop is a Canadian musical theatre actor, singer, dancer, choreographer, and director. His most famous roles were as Jeff the mannequin in the children's show Today's Special and as the title role in the Canadian travelling production of The Phantom of the Opera...
  
  ): A mannequin with a magic hat that makes him come to life when someone says "hocus pocus alimagocus". If it comes off of his head, he turns back into a mannequin. He can't leave the store or he will become one permanently (he can only go outside onto the building's roof or, in very rare episodes, when traveling by magic). Because he has not been alive for very long, he knows little about many everyday objects (at least in earlier seasons). However, he is often shown to be a fast learner, a deep thinker, and a source of ideas. He is also a very talented dancer, which he gets to show off at some point in nearly every episode. Though he wishes that he was not bound by the rules of the spell that keeps him alive, he puts his friends' needs first.
• Jodie (Nerene Virgin
  Nerene Virgin
  Nerene Virgin is a Canadian journalist, actress and television host, best known for her role on the children's television series Today's Special.-Background:After growing up in Toronto, Ontario, she attended Toronto Teacher's College...
  
  ): The store's display designer. Portrayed as a sweet, level headed woman, she functions as a mentor and teacher to Jeff, who is relatively new to the world. He often works as her assistant in setting up the displays. Although she has no established authority, she usually takes a leadership role among the characters. Her words are often comforting to others, and she is always ready to help her friends with their problems.
• Sam Crenshaw (puppet, Bob Dermer
  Bob Dermer
  Bob Dermer is a children's entertainment actor who first made his contributions to Canadian television starting with the 1976 series Readalong....
  
  ): The store's security guard. Born in 1919, he is the oldest of the four main characters. He is a generally laid-back individual, as the years have worn him down. He often fails to notice or realize certain things around him at first, though when he does, he is known to get hysterical about it. He doesn't seem particularly bright and is sometimes clumsy, but he means well and is capable in his job. He is a retired member of the merchant marine, and his signature song is "Singin' Yo Hee Ho". He's a widower and also has a pet cat named Penelope that Muffy is afraid of.
• Muffy Mouse (puppet, Nina Keogh
  Nina Keogh
  Nina Keogh is a Canadian puppet builder, puppeteer based in Toronto. She is a member of the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television, Canadian Actors' Equity Association, UDA and ACTRA. She has worked for TVO and CBC Television...
  
  ): A mouse who speaks in rhyme and lives in the store. Young, childlike and more mischievous than the other characters, she likes to ride her scooter, plays the piano, enjoys playing tricks on people, and is obsessed with eating snacks (especially cheese). She is usually the first one to get upset or frustrated over a situation. As a mouse, she is afraid of cats and hates it when people mention them.

Other main characters

• TXL Series 4 (Robyn Hayle): The store’s computer system. Sam operates it from the security room. It appears to have a feminine persona. Despite being a machine, it is suggested that it is capable of human emotions.
• Mrs. Pennypacker (puppet, Cheryl Wagner
  Cheryl Wagner
  Cheryl Wagner, the creator of The Big Comfy Couch, is a Gemini Award and Emmy award- winning Canadian children’s television writer, showrunner and producer who began her career as a performer in both theatre and on the screen...
  
  ): An employee who runs the stock room at night. She is an elderly lady who shows her age in terms of physical appearance more than Sam does, but often appears more enthusiastic and full of energy than him.
• Mort (puppet, Bob Stutt
  Bob Stutt
  Bob Stutt is a Canadian puppeteer/writer, who has starred in various children's television programs throughout his career.He has appeared in the following television series:* Canadian Sesame Street – Basil...
  
  ): Muffy’s cousin from the farm. His country lifestyle tends to contrast with her city life. He, like her, speaks in rhyme, and often comes to visit.
• Waldo the Magnificent (Barrie Baldaro): The magician who originally brought Jeff to life. A rather wise but somewhat inept man, the spells he casts with his wand often go awry, and it may take multiple tries to get it right. A running gag
  Running gag
  A running gag, or running joke, is a literary device that takes the form of an amusing joke or a comical reference and appears repeatedly throughout a work of literature or other form of storytelling....
  
   is his tendency to call Sam by the wrong name.
• The Mime Lady (Nikki Tilroe
  Nikki Tilroe
  Nikki Tilroe was an Emmy Award-winning American puppeteer. She is best known for her work as the "Mime Lady" on the children's television series Today's Special...
  
  ): A mime character seen in quiz segments of the show. Tilroe also provided voices for several other characters.

Premise

In the children's department of a major department store, each night when Jodie arrives for work, she carries a mannequin (Jeff) upstairs, where Muffy says the magic words "hocus pocus alimagocus!" This brings him to life.

Many early episodes focused on a tangible object as a subject, such as hat

Hat

A hat is a head covering. It can be worn for protection against the elements, for ceremonial or religious reasons, for safety, or as a fashion accessory. In the past, hats were an indicator of social status...

s or costumes, with the show revolving around teaching about it. Later episodes dealt with more complicated ones, such as the episode "Wishes" dealing with sacrificing one thing for another, or "Phil's Visit", which dealt with alcoholism

Alcoholism

Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...

.

Short films, often less than a minute long, were often inserted as breaks in the episode's main plot, narrated by Robyn Hayle (the same actress who provided the voice of TXL). These included Mime Lady segments, animated quizzes designed to test a child's observation

Observation

Observation is either an activity of a living being, such as a human, consisting of receiving knowledge of the outside world through the senses, or the recording of data using scientific instruments. The term may also refer to any data collected during this activity...

, narrated storybooks, and popular nursery rhymes (which an unseen Muffy would introduce with "And now I'd like to introduce a nursery rhyme by Mother Goose").

Many episodes featured one or more one-time visitors to the store. Some would cause problems for the characters, while others would befriend them and help solve their problems. These visitors included the characters' friends or family, people coming to the store to do their jobs, people brought there by magic ("Treasure Hunts", "The Queen of Hearts"), bizarre, non-human characters ("Space", "Sam and the Robot"), and real life celebrities ("Opera", "Trash"). Magic was important to many episodes, and the characters sometimes would have an adventure that involved it.

Set change

For the 1984 season, the sets were changed significantly. The children's department set was given a new color scheme, along with the addition of two large "Today's Special" signs. Muffy's apartment received a new entrance, complete with a balcony and elevator. The computer room set was completely redesigned from the ground up, to give it a more futuristic appearance. Additionally, the rooftop set was transformed from a functional-looking appearance to a space designed for people to spend time, with the addition of large, wooden flower beds.

These set changes were introduced in the 1984 episode "Changes", where it was explained that the store was being redecorated. It is unknown what the real-life reason (if any) for it was. Viewers can determine if the episode they are watching was made before or after it by listening for two chimes (descending, then ascending) mixed into the start of the opening. If present, it was made after it.