Arnold Lobel’s beloved Frog and Toad books leap off the page and onto the screen with the delightful new AppleTV+ animated series, premiering this Friday April 28th. Executive Producer and Showrunner Rob Hoegee guides me through what went into making the show — from adapting the look of the books to collaborating with two other dynamic duos, Lobel’s children and stars Nat Faxon and Kevin Michael Richardson. (This Animation Scoop Q&A was edited for length and clarity.)

Jackson Murphy: I love these books. I can still picture myself reading them in elementary school. Do you have an earliest memory of these “Frog and Toad” books?

Rob Hoegee: I do. They came out in 1970, so it’s been over 50 years. If you think about it, I can’t even begin to imagine how many millions of children learned to read with these books. I would not be surprised if it’s hundreds of millions of kids around the world. It’s incredible.

JM: So no pressure in making this?!

RH: No! No pressure! There are few icons of children’s literature that are as recognizable around the world as Frog and Toad, for sure.

JM: You take the look of [the books] and adapt it SO WELL. How important was it for you to go, “I have to make it as close to that as possible.”

RH: It was absolutely of the essence. Arnold Lobel was a great writer and a brilliant illustrator. What a tremendous artist. If you take the Arnold Lobel style out of Frog and Toad, they no longer are Frog and Toad. That’s part of the charm and essence of it. It was absolutely essential that we find a way to capture as much of that as possible.

JM: It’s such a peaceful, warm and comforting show. You have the success of the source material with it, but I also think, because you worked on “Stillwater” (which has been a big hit for Apple), you bring that energy and that calmness and vibe to this. And I think it will work well for all ages.

RH: I hope so too. They’re fun characters. They’re lively. This definitely has more energy than a show like “Stillwater”, but still it’s really a show, oftentimes, about quiet moments. Although, we’re taking advantage of animation in every way with this series. There is a lot more moving around. But one of the things we have tried visually is to make sure that the composition of each shot has its own cinematic quality. We’re really working within the frame — not only in terms of how the characters interact with each other but also how the background and how the whole environment plays into everything.

JM: Right. You have lots of different objects, animals and elements in nature all coming together. It just feels nice — a nice, escapism show, with such delightful voice acting from Nat Faxon and Kevin Michael Richardson. How do you bring about chemistry and make sure it’s natural between these two, and when did you feel it was right?

RH: Well it’s made even more challenging today because of COVID restrictions, where you can’t have actors in the booth together. So we had to do it digitally by taking Nat’s read and Kevin’s read and putting them together. “Hey, does this sound right?” Right off the bat, I knew Nat’s approach to Frog was it. Kevin, who I’ve had the great pleasure of working with on so many shows over the years, I knew would be the perfect counterpoint to that as Toad. I think those instincts paid off. We were fortunate to have them actually be able to record together once.

JM: Oh good!

RH: They knew each other and have worked together as well. That added to the fun. When you’re a voice actor with the caliber of these two, you’re able to understand what the needs are gonna be for the other character. Even if you’re not in the same room, you can bring it.

Rob Hoegee

JM: It feels so natural. And you can tell that these characters have such goodness in them. How did you find goodness in the crew you worked with — in making a show about a lot of characters with goodness?

RH: We had a secret weapon in this. When we were interviewing everyone involved in the show, the first question we asked was, “Are you familiar with Frog and Toad”? And if people jumped out of their chairs screaming and crying tears of joy, we knew they probably were gonna be a good fit for the show. Every single person involved in this production, across the board, knows and loves these books and characters. Every single one of us, myself especially, with our joy for these characters… we’re bringing that with us.

JM: Arnold Lobel passed away more than 35 years ago, but what’s really great is that his children, Adrianne and Adam, worked with you on this show. What’s one of your biggest takeaways from having them be a part of the step by step process of this series?

RH: It’s a great tragedy that we didn’t have Arnold with us to be a part of this or even to see the work that we’ve done. But having Adam and Adrianne there as sort of guardians of his legacy was really terrific. And it was hugely important to us that they be happy with the work that we’re doing. They are rightfully very protective of these characters and of the legacy of these books. Having them 100% on our side and collaborating with us to make sure that what we were doing was up to the very high standards of Arnold Lobel’s body of work was a big part of it. We were thrilled to have them involved.

JM: Good. What’s sweet about these episodes is: you take some ordinary events in everyday life and make them extraordinary without going over the top. One of the episodes you do that with involves getting mail. I’ve loved getting mail my entire life! Are you the kind of guy who waits for the mail to arrive at the mailbox?

RH: You know, there is something special about getting something in the mail that’s not a bill. (laughs) And it’s sad that today that doesn’t happen anymore. People don’t write letters to each other. Maybe this will inspire some people to write friendly letters to people that they haven’t seen in a while — or people that they see all the time (and take for granted that you can do that). Mail is great. Kids love mail too! That’s gonna be something everyone can relate to.

JM: Definitely. What’s the best letter you’ve ever written or received? Does one come to mind?

RH: It might’ve been my college acceptance letter. That’s the thing we were all waiting by the mailbox for. I only applied to one school, so if I hadn’t gotten in there I would’ve been in trouble!

JM: Whoa! Cool moment for sure. You can only have one of these desserts for the rest of your life: is it cookies or ice cream?

RH: Cookies all day.

JM: Really? Okay! There’s great episodes about both of these in “Frog and Toad”.

RH: That’s true!

JM: Rob, what I think this show is going to do for kids [today] who are reading these books now is go, “I wanna tell stories about my everyday life.” What advice would you have to elementary or middle school kids who want to write stories about what goes on in their everyday lives?”

RH: That’s a great question. And I think a lot of it just has to do with looking at the details. It’s the little things that are actually the ones that make the biggest connection. Whether it’s listening to how people talk to recreate dialogue or noticing the little details in the world around us, whether it’s the way sunlight filters through the trees or the color of the wallpaper in the waiting room — or that certain smell that you have walking down the hallway at school and you’re going past the lunchroom. Those are the things that really stand out and make a difference and make your writing feel real.

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Jackson Murphy

Jackson Murphy is a movie critic and entertainment columnist. He is the creator of the website Lights-Camera-Jackson.com, and has made numerous appearances on television and radio.

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