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Pop Culture

Steve from 'Blue's Clues' posted an almost entirely silent video that has 90s kids bawling

Hitting millennials and Gen Zers right where they're at.

John Manard/Wikimedia Commons

Steve Burns at Galaxy Con in 2023

In the wake of the docuseries "Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV," kids who grew up watching Nickelodeon are reeling a bit. The documentary unveiled a toxic culture of abuse and exploitation at the network, tainting 90s kids' childhood memories with disturbing behind-the-scenes details of their favorite shows.

But a beacon of light from Nickelodeon still shines in Steve from "Blue's Clues." Steve Burns may have broken children's hearts when he left the show to go to college, but the beloved host has remained a wholesome icon for millennials and Gen Zers who watched him growing up.

In fact, Steve is still bringing comfort to millions, and his latest video on TikTok is a perfect example of how. In a one-minute TikTok, he says only a handful of words, but people are finding themselves tearing up if not outright bawling by the end of it.

What he does is actually very simple, yet the effect is profound. "Hey, just checking in," he says. "Tell me, what's goin' on?" And then he just looks and listens almost entirely in silence, occasionally nodding along. And if you actually go through the exercise of sharing what's going on with you, even just in your own mind, the compassionate listening he demonstrates feels surprisingly powerful.

If you didn't watch Blue's Clues, this may have felt weird or awkward, but Steve asking questions and then pausing for kids to answer was a hallmark of the show. The kids who grew up watching it are now in the Big Adult Things stage of life, navigating relationships, careers, finances, mental health challenges and more, and it can sometimes feel like too much. So similarly to Elmo's viral check-in on X, having a familiar and compassionate listening ear opened the floodgates.

"Not me crying the instant he asked," wrote one person.

"Not me sitting in bed at almost 3 a.m. in tears because Steve from Blue's Clues shows up on my fyp asking what's going on? The one thing we have left that is pure from our childhood," wrote another.

"I just cried for over 5 minutes straight," shared another. "I just realized no one has asked me how I'm doing in such a long time. I can't stop crying."

"I couldn't even get out a word all I did was cry, lol" shared another.

Many people shared that the Nickelodeon documentary had rocked their world and found comfort in Steve being Steve.

"After the Nickelodeon documentary, Steve, all I need is Blue's Clues to save whatever is left of this childhood I once had," wrote one commenter.

"Thank you for being one of the GOOD parts of Nickelodeon, Steve," wrote another.

"Steve checking up on the grown-up kids he left behind is another level of full circle moment," shared another.

"After the Nickelodeon thing we need our Steve now more than ever," agreed another.

And some commenters actually shared the things they are going through, showing why so many people need this kind of check-in:

"Life keeps handing me lemons and I'm not sure how many more I can turn into lemonade. I'm tired, Steve."

"Too much is happening all at once Steve, and idk if I'm getting through it but it's always good to hear from you."

"I lost my mom in January and I'm pregnant with my son…I'm lonely, Steve. I just miss my mom."

"I want to get sober but it's so hard. :("

"I could use a hug, honestly."

Hopefully, Steve's video helped some people realize they really do need someone to talk to so they can seek a therapeutic channel. Thank you, Steve, for giving so many grown-ups the cathartic childhood cry they desperately needed.

This article originally appeared on 3.21.24

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mental health

Pop Culture

Ariana Grande says therapy should be 'mandatory' for all child stars

The pop star has be "reprocessing" her early fame.

IMDB,Condé Nast/Wikipedia

The pop star said that this could help create safer environments for young performers.

Even in the healthiest of work environments, child actors are thrust into adult life before they’ve really had a chance to grow up. They don’t have the coping mechanisms for dealing with the stresses of fame, nor do they have the skills or authority to advocate for themselves when they are being abused.

The obvious answer to this problem is to provide protections for these kids. But let’s face it: exactly how to go about creating these protections isn’t so obvious. Hollywood is only just beginning to address these long-seated issues.

However, Ariana Grande, certainly no stranger to the highs and lows of finding fame at a young age, recently suggested that one solution would be “mandatory therapy” for younger actors.

Grande, who got her big break on the Nickelodeon show “Victorious” when she was just 14, reflected on her time on the network while guest appearing on Penn Badgley’s Podcrushed podcast.

This interview comes not too long after the shocking revelations made in the docuseries “Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV,” where former Nickelodeon stars accused former producer Dan Schnieder of a litany of abuses, including but not limited to sexual harassment and racism.

Grande did not appear on the docuseries, footage from “Victorious” was often used as an example of inappropriate content for children.

"I think that’s something that we were convinced was the cool thing about us,” she reflected during the podcast. “That we pushed the envelope with our humor and innuendos. We were told — and convinced as well — that it was the cool differentiation. It all just happened so quickly and now looking back on some of the clips I’m like, ‘Thats… Damn, really?’”After “reprocessing” a lot of her experience around that time, she came to the conclusion that there should be “mandatory therapy” 2-3 times a week included in a young actors contract.

“There should be an element that is mandatory of therapy, a professional person to unpack what this experience of your life changing so drastically does to you at a young age,” she said, adding that this should probably be used for celebrities of all ages.

In addition, she thinks that “parents [should be] allowed to be wherever they want to be.”

"A lot of people don’t have the support that they need to get through performing at that level at such a young age. But also, dealing with some of the things that the survivors who have come forward [have]... There’s not a word for how devastating that is to hear about. So, I think the environment just needs to be made a lot safer all around.”

You can watch the podcast episode in full below:

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television

Joy

Steve from 'Blue's Clues' wells up after a reunion with a Make-a-Wish kid from 22 years ago

He survived stage 4 cancer.

via Nick Jr. / Twitter

Steve Burns from "Blue's Clues"with a heartfelt message.

Former “Blue’s Clues” host and Millennial icon, Steve Burns, 49, made an appearance at Steel City Con in Monroeville, Pennsylvania earlier this month and he had no idea the surprise he was going to get. According to TMZ, Brandon Ragland, 25, stopped by his booth and showed him a photo that brought both men to tears.

It was a shot of Ragland taken in 2000 when he was just 4 years old, hanging out with Burns, who was his favorite TV personality. At the time, Ragland had stage 4 cancer in his kidneys and lungs so he was able to meet Burns through the Make-a-Wish program. The Make-a-Wish experience also included a shopping spree at Toys “R” Us and tickets to see "Blue's Clues Live."

After seeing the photo, Burns’ eyes lit up and he said, "I remember this and you!" Burns then told Ragland he remembers he was a bit of a wild child that ran all around the New York City restaurant where they met.

The two then took a reunion photo and both burst into tears. "This made my entire year and I'm so glad you're here,” Burns told Ragland.

“I could hear his voice crack and get choked up, so I instantly just started to do the same,” Ragland wrote on Facebook. “I thanked him for not only being there today, but meeting me all those years ago.”

“One of the nicest and most genuine people I’ve had the pleasure to meet,” Ragland continued. “I think he might have been more moved than I was over the whole ordeal.”

The great news is that Ragland has been cancer-free and in remission for 23 years.

Burns left “Blue’s Clues” in 2002 for a career in music and voiceover acting. As a musician he's worked with Steven Drozd from The Flaming Lips and composed the theme song to “Young Sheldon.” He also remained part of the “Blue’s Clues” family, working as a mentor to the show’s current host, Joshua Dela Cruz. He even appears on the show from time to time.

Most of Burns’ post “Blue’s Clues” work has been behind the camera, leaving many who loved him as a child to wonder what happened to him. He addressed his sudden departure from the show in September 2021 by appearing in his “Blue’s Clues” outfit on Nick Jr.’s Twitter account.

"You remember how when we were younger, we used to run around and hang out with Blue and find clues and talk to Mr. Salt and freak out about the mail and do all the fun stuff?" he asked on the video. "And then one day, I was like, 'Oh hey, guess what? Big news, I’m leaving. Here’s my brother Joe, he’s your new best friend,' and then I got on a bus and I left and we didn’t see each other for like a really long time?"

Burns then gave a heartfelt “thank you” that brought countless Millenials to tears.

"I guess I just wanted to say that after all these years, I never forgot you. Ever. And I'm super glad we’re still friends," he said.

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millenials

Read the badass message Nickelodeon showed during the student walkout.

Students across the country took part in a national walkout to end gun violence on March 14, 2018.

Students in Philadelphia participate in the walkout. Photo by Jessica Kourkounis/Getty Images.

Beginning at 10 a.m. local times, thousands of students at hundreds of schools abandoned their classrooms to send a clear message to legislators from coast to coast: They may be young, but they mean business when it comes to gun control.

And they had a sizable chunk of cable TV in their corner while they did it.

Cable TV giant Viacom suspended all programming during the walkout as a show of solidarity with student participants.

The media conglomerate — which owns networks like MTV, Comedy Central, BET, and Nickelodeon — broadcasted bold statements to viewers instead.

"We believe it’s critical to support the inspiring efforts of our youth, who are literally fighting for their lives," Marva Smalls, Viacom's executive vice president of global inclusion, said in a statement. "Viacom also has a responsibility to our audiences to do everything we can to elevate the many brave and bold activists to help them extend the reach and impact of their voices in this important movement."

If you tuned into Nickelodeon, for instance, this is what you would have seen.

If you flipped on MTV, this message would have been on your screen.

The network also had students take over its social media channels for a period during the day.

And BET told viewers it's "going dark" during the walkout as well.

Both the walkout and suspension in Viacom programming lasted 17 minutes in honor of the 17 victims of the shooting at a Florida high school on Feb. 14.

The senseless tragedy rattled the country — and then prompted a wave of student activists to rise up in its wake.

"We are going to be the kids you read about in text books," said Emma Gonzalez, a senior at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, in a powerful speech on Feb. 17. "Not because we're going to be another statistic about mass shooting in America, but because ... we are going to be the last mass shooting."

Photo by Rhona Wise/AFP/Getty Images.

Viacom said it also has plans to boost messaging and awareness around the March for Our Lives, a protest largely being executed by student activists demanding common sense gun legislation on March 24, 2018, in Washington, D.C.

"Companies trying to make caricatures of the teenagers these days, saying that we are self-involved and trend-obsessed, and they hush us into submission when our message doesn't reach the ears of the nation," Gonzalez said in her speech, "we are prepared to call BS."

Learn more about the March for Our Lives.

Meet Mr. and Mr. McBride — Nickelodeon's first same-sex parents.

Other cartoon networks, take note from Nickelodeon.

If you haven't watched Nickelodeon cartoons in a while, here's a spectacular reason to jump back on the bright orange wagon:

The cartoon series "The Loud House" is about to become the first Nickelodeon cartoon to debut a same-sex couple.

Let's get an animated cheer for progress!

GIF by Nickelodeon Animation Studios/Tumblr, used with permission.

The cartoon features a family named The Louds (appropriate based on the title and above GIF), specifically their son Lincoln — the only boy in a family of 10 girls. So many different girl characters in one cartoon? Well, that's fantastic, for starters.

However, the episode entitled "Overnight Success", which is set to air Wednesday, July 20, could rocket the series to legendary status.

That's right, kids — those are two openly gay, interracial parents dropping their son off at a sleepover. But the best part isn't the fact that they're gay — it's how little attention the show draws to that fact. Well, except for the less-than-subtle announcement "Time to make history!" But can you really blame them for that? It is, after all, a huge moment for the network, and a little attention should be paid.

This is another major step forward in the history of gay characters stepping into the spotlight on television.

LGBTQ characters could be spotted on a number of animated programs, one example dating as far back as 1990, when a guest character named Karl (voiced by Harvey Fierstein) shares a kiss with Homer in an episode entitled "Simpson and Delilah." The episode racked up over 29.6 million viewers and is often touted as one of the best "Simpsons" episodes of all time.

Homer and Karl. Photo by The Simpsons/YouTube.

"The Simpsons" played a pivotal role in bringing gay characters into the foreground, as did "Family Guy" and "South Park," but "The Loud House's" move to show a regular same-sex couple may make even more of a difference.

It's one of the first shows aimed at young children to do so, and as such, it's teaching kids just how normal it is to have gay parents. These characters are no different than heterosexual parents: overprotective and overly emotional at milestones like sleepovers. But the more those messages can be shown on television, the better.

Case in point, these appreciative fans:

Let's hope other kid-friendly cartoons soon follow in "The Loud House's" footsteps. While this particular TV family is neurotic and even a little crazy, it's great to have one more example of families — of all shapes and sizes — to remind us that love is love.

From Your Site Articles

nickelodeon

Steve from 'Blue's Clues' posted an almost entirely silent video that has 90s kids bawling

Hitting millennials and Gen Zers right where they're at.

Ariana Grande says therapy should be 'mandatory' for all child stars

The pop star has be "reprocessing" her early fame.

Steve from 'Blue's Clues' wells up after a reunion with a Make-a-Wish kid from 22 years ago

He survived stage 4 cancer.

Read the badass message Nickelodeon showed during the student walkout.

Students across the country took part in a national walkout to end gun violence on March 14, 2018.

Cable TV giant Viacom suspended all programming during the walkout as a show of solidarity with student participants.

If you tuned into Nickelodeon, for instance, this is what you would have seen.

If you flipped on MTV, this message would have been on your screen.

And BET told viewers it's "going dark" during the walkout as well.

Both the walkout and suspension in Viacom programming lasted 17 minutes in honor of the 17 victims of the shooting at a Florida high school on Feb. 14.

Meet Mr. and Mr. McBride — Nickelodeon's first same-sex parents.

Other cartoon networks, take note from Nickelodeon.

If you haven't watched Nickelodeon cartoons in a while, here's a spectacular reason to jump back on the bright orange wagon:

However, the episode entitled "Overnight Success", which is set to air Wednesday, July 20, could rocket the series to legendary status.

This is another major step forward in the history of gay characters stepping into the spotlight on television.

"The Simpsons" played a pivotal role in bringing gay characters into the foreground, as did "Family Guy" and "South Park," but "The Loud House's" move to show a regular same-sex couple may make even more of a difference.

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