The World of David the Gnome

The series follows the gnomes, a kind species who are tall and weigh . There are several types of gnomes: those of the forest, garden, farm, house, dunes, and Siberia, as well as nomadic "gypsy" gnomes, who are generally looked down upon by other gnomes. With few exceptions, a gnome's lifespan is exactly 400 years, though one couple in the Balkans lived for 550 years. When they reach the end of their lifespan, they transform into large trees; though they seem to have some control over when and where this happens, they cannot avoid it. Unable to prevent their transformation into trees, the gnomes are dedicated to protecting forests and the environment, as trees are their ancestors. Gnomes such as the main characters live in pairs in caves or holes under trees, and have a mainly vegetarian diet. They are often aided by forest animals when traveling long distances or needing to reach a specific location quickly. They also have the powers of telepathy and mind control. Their main enemies are the trolls, malevolent and clumsy creatures who cause trouble, as well as gnome poachers. == Characters ==

• David (voiced by José María Cordero in the original Spanish version, Tom Bosley in the English dub) is a gnome of the forest who is 399 years old, making him the oldest gnome around except for Franklin, a gnome from the West who lived for 550 years. David is a doctor and uses his knowledge of many fields, such as hypnosis and acupuncture, to heal his patients, usually animals or other gnomes. David also befriends a bird that, when he whistles, arrives to transport him to where he needs to go. For longer trips, he sometimes travels in a basket attached to the bird's neck. • Lisa (voiced by Matilde Conesa in the original Spanish version, Jane Woods in the English dub) is David's wife and companion, who is also 399 years old. They have two children, Lily and Harold. She is in charge of the household, but occasionally accompanies him on his adventures. • Swift the Fox (vocal effects provided by Ramón Langa in the original Spanish version, Vlasta Vrána in the English dub) is David's best friend, who lives in the forest and is loyal to him, always being ready to transport David to where he needs to go. He is the cub of David's former fox mount, Nimble. • Pit (voiced by José Moratalla in the original Spanish version, Marc Denis in the English dub), Pat (voiced by Ángel Egido in the original Spanish version, Rob Roy in the English dub), Pot (voiced by Manuel Peiro in the original Spanish version, Adrian Knight in the English dub), and Holler (voiced by Paco Hernández in the original Spanish version, A.J. Henderson in the English dub) are four hairy trolls with cat-like tails who cause trouble for the gnomes and the inhabitants of the forest. They possess some supernatural powers and can cast magical spells too powerful for gnome magic to break, but they are unintelligent and easily outsmarted, as well as being vulnerable to sunlight, which petrifies them upon direct exposure. • Susan (voiced by Barbara Pogenmiller in the English dub) is David and Lisa's granddaughter. • King (voiced by Eduardo Moreno in the original Spanish version, Richard Dumont in the English dub) • Paul (voiced by Walter Massey in the English dub) is David's twin brother, who has a normal moustache in contrast to David's handlebar moustache. He also wears differently colored clothing, as he wears a dark blue jumper and hat, as well as beige trousers and dark boots. == Episodes ==

David, the Gnome ran for twenty-six episodes, each approximately 24 minutes in length. It was originally aired in Spain on TVE1 between 26 October 1985 and 19 April 1986. In the United States, the series first aired between 4 January and 9 February 1988 on Nickelodeon's Nick Jr. The English-language episode titles are listed below, along with brief episode synopses: == Telecast and home media ==

In the United States, the series aired on weekdays on Nickelodeon's Nick Jr. block for seven years from 1988 until 1995. Starting on 30 September 1996, it aired on TLC (as part of the channel's Ready Set Learn! block). The series aired on The Family Channel in Canada from its launch in 1988 until 1990. It was later aired on British Columbia's statewide Knowledge Network. In the United Kingdom, the series ran on various channels. It was first picked up on ITV's Children's ITV block, then The Children's Channel, and finally Nickelodeon. In Australia, the show was first picked up on ABC, and later aired on Nickelodeon. In Ireland, this show was picked up on RTÉ's The Den block in the early 90s. In 1989, Family Home Entertainment released four VHS tapes of the series in the U.S., each containing two episodes. In the United Kingdom, Video Collection International Ltd released one VHS tape of The World of David the Gnome (Cat. No. VC1178) with the first two episodes, Good Medicine and Witch Way Out, on 14 May 1990. A complete series DVD set was released in the United Kingdom in 2006 by Revelation Films. The complete series was also released on DVD in 2011 in Spain and Italy. Most episodes are available on DVD in Germany and the Netherlands. The complete series was released on DVD in the U.S. in 2012 by Oasis DVDs. == Film ==

BRB Internacional released in 1987 a film titled ''The Gnomes' Great Adventure by re-editing together four episodes of The World of David the Gnome''. == Sequels ==

Wisdom of the Gnomes Wisdom of the Gnomes (, literally "Call of the Gnomes") is the first spin-off of The World of David the Gnome. It was produced by BRB Internacional and . It follows Klaus, a judge who travels with his assistant Danny on Henry the Swan and aims to solve disputes and lawsuits between animals peacefully and wisely. Like in The World of David the Gnome, trolls also appear. David and Lisa also appear in the final episode, though in the English dub, Tom Bosley and Jane Woods did not reprise their roles. The penultimate episode features Wil Huygen and his wife, the only pair of humans in direct communication with Gnomes. Klaus and Danny complain to Huygen of "inaccuracies" in his book, though what these errors are is not made specific. U.S. airings of this installment began on 5 November 1996 on Ready Set Learn!. Cast • Robert Axelrod - Adaptation • Richard Epcar - Adaptation • Melora Harte - Adaptation • Dave Mallow - Adaptation, Director • Doug Stone - Adaptation, Director Episodes • Klaus the Judge (27 September 1989) • Loch Ness (4 October 1989) • Trip to Canada (11 October 1989) • The Magic Carpet (18 October 1989) • The Chamois (25 October 1989) • Trip to Nepal (1 November 1989) • The Gold-Diggers (8 November 1989) • Adventure in the Arctic (15 November 1989) • The Discovery of Ithaca (22 November 1989) • The Carpathians (29 November 1989) • Trip to Venice (6 December 1989) • The Ballad of Gnomoshima (13 December 1989) • The Gnome-Olympics (20 December 1989) • Trip to Siberia (10 June 1993) • Andalusia (17 June 1993) • China (24 June 1993) • France (1 July 1993) • Hawaii (8 July 1993) • The Stolen Mirror (15 July 1993) • The Winter Race (22 July 1993) • Mystery in the Forest (29 July 1993) • The Gnomewegians (5 August 1993) • Argentina (12 August 1993) • Dany's Wedding (19 August 1993) • Holland (26 August 1993) • Goodbye Klaus (2 September 1993) The New World of the Gnomes In 1997, there was a series called The New World of the Gnomes which was a retelling of the original series as David and his nephew Tomte now travel the world to save animals and preserve nature as it is endangered by problems of modern-day pollution and environmental dangers. Lisa, David's wife from the original series, also appears in the show. Other than the humans who cause either unintentional or intentional destruction to nature and harm to animals, the show's other antagonists are three trolls who run into David and the gnomes now and then, their names are Stinky, Brute, and Drool. It was produced by BRB Internacional, , CLT UFA, and Panini, in collaboration with the World Wildlife Foundation. This series spawned two films: The Gnomes in the Snow (1999) and The Fantastic Adventures of the Gnomes (2000). == References ==