- Fred Figglehorn
-
Fred Figglehorn FЯED character 
Fred Figglehorn performing an asideFirst appearance Fred on Halloween Created by Lucas Cruikshank Portrayed by Lucas Cruikshank Information Gender Male Occupation Student Family Unnamed mother, father, and grandmother Religion Christianity Nationality American Age 6 years (internet series)[1]
15 years (film)[2]Fred Figglehorn (stylized on webpage and on T-shirts as FЯED) is a fictional character created and portrayed by American actor Lucas Cruikshank. Cruikshank, a teenager from Columbus, Nebraska, created the character for his channel on the video-sharing website YouTube.[3] The videos are centered on Fred Figglehorn, a fictional 6-year-old who has a dysfunctional home life and "anger management issues".[4]
Contents
History
Cruikshank introduced the Fred Figglehorn character in videos on the JKL Productions channel he started on YouTube with his cousins, Jon and Katie Smet. He and his cousins set up the JKL Productions channel on June 11, 2006, and Cruikshank filmed his first Fred video on October 30, 2006. On April 30, 2008, the videos that had been filmed already, got added to the Fred channel, and on May 1 the first official video, titled "Fred on May Day" was released, explaining that Cruikshank asked YouTube for the Fred channel. Someone else previously owned the channel, which was later turned into one of Fred's enemies in the Fred series. By April 2009, the channel had over one million subscribers, making it the first YouTube channel to do so, and the most subscribed channel at the time.[5] However, on August 20, 2009, YouTube celebrities Ryan Higa's and Sean Fujiyoshi's channel, Nigahiga, overtook Fred as the most subscribed channel. It was the third to reach two million, on September 27, 2010, shortly after falling to third.
As of November 2011, the channel has received over 118 million channel views, over 853 million video views since its launch, and over 2.3 million channel subscribers, it is listed as the number eight all-time most subscribed YouTube channel.[6] Cruikshank has made a few television appearances, both as himself, and as Fred. Although Cruikshank voices Fred, the audio is digitally altered to sound higher-pitched than Cruikshank's true voice.
In December 2009, Cruikshank filmed Fred: The Movie, which aired on Nickelodeon on September 18, 2010. Nickelodeon has created a franchise surrounding the character and began producing the sequel in March 2011.[7][8][9] Fred 2: Night of the Living Fred aired on October 22, 2011, also on Nickelodeon.
Fred 
Title cardGenre Comedy Created by Lucas Cruikshank Written by Lucas Cruikshank Starring Fred Figglehorn Voices of Lucas Cruikshank Country of origin United States Language(s) English No. of seasons 4 No. of episodes 47 (List of episodes) Production Editor(s) Lucas Cruikshank Location(s) Columbus, Nebraska Broadcast Original channel JKL Productions (pre-series)
Fred (seasons 1-present)Original run October 30, 2006 – present Chronology Related shows Fred: The Movie
Fred 2: Night of the Living FredExternal links Website Production website Content
Lucas Cruikshank has described the channel as "programming for kids by kids".[3] Cruikshank obtained the Fred channel in April 2008, and was launched officially May 1, 2008.
The series is intended as a parody of people who, in Cruikshank's words, "think that everyone is so interested in them." Cruikshank believes that viewers either "automatically love Fred or automatically hate Fred, there is no in between".[10] The videos primarily consist of the character speaking to the audience about what is happening in his life. Fred has a high-pitched "chipmunk" voice, making him sound more like a 6-year-old. According to Cruikshank, this effect and the hyperactive appearance of the character are achieved by speeding up the video.[11] The song "Watch How I Do This" by Kev Blaze was featured in most of the season 2 videos.
The character lives with his recovering drug-addicted and alcoholic mother, whose voice is often heard, his grandmother, and briefly a man named Claudio who he refers to as 'it'. In seasons one to three Fred communicated with all characters off-screen, unless they were an animal. In the first Fred episode, "Fred on Halloween", Fred's mother was portrayed by Lucas Cruikshank himself. It is implied that Fred has been the victim of child abuse (like being locked in a dog cage for three days), but he frequently speaks of his love for his mother, particularly after she was at rehab. Fred's father has been mentioned several times as being on death row in the state penitentiary. Fred hasn't met his father as he left Mrs. Figglehorn while she was still pregnant with Fred.
The series uses a floating timeline, that is, it is always taking place in the current year, meaning that Fred is perpetually 6 years old and in kindergarten. He also has a crush on a girl in his class, Judy. Fred has described Judy as, "so mean... yet so attractive." Fred's grandmother is mentioned as briefly caring for Fred while his mother was in rehab, on account of alcoholism and drugs. In almost every episode, Fred sings a song he makes up. It was established early in the series that Fred has anger management issues, which require him to take medication.
On screen characters are seen for the first time in a dream sequence, in "Fred: A Star In His Own Mind", Fred dreams of being a famous actor, meeting fan girls and other famous actors. Season four, as it was filmed after Fred: The Movie, marked a change in production style, it is filmed in a higher video quality, and shows other on-screen characters. The original production style was revived for a few episodes, after the movie was released in the UK, until Cruikshank returned to movie filming. Leading up to the second movie's release a new series, called "Figgle Chat", was produced, and features internet and television stars.
Episodes
This is a list of videos currently uploaded to the Fred channel. As of November 2011, 47 episodes have been listed as official Fred canon.[12]
Season/
EpisodeSeries
#Title Release date Millions of views 1.11 * "Fred on Halloween" October 30, 2006 5.0+13.8 0.02 * "Fred on Saint Patrick's Day" March 15, 2007 2.0+5.6 0.03 * "Fred Goes to the Park" April 19, 2007 4.6+14.5 0.04 * "Fred on the 4th" July 3, 2007 4.6+8.3 0.05 * "Fred Gets Babysat" September 29, 2007 3.9+13.7 1.12 * "Fred on Halloween 2" October 30, 2007 2.0+6.4 0.07 * "Fred on Christmas" December 21, 2007 2.1+10.7 0.08 * "Fred on Valentine's Day" February 10, 2008 3.4+9.8 1.01 1 "Fred on May Day" May 1, 2008 16.6 1.02 2 "Fred Loses His Meds" May 8, 2008 34.5 1.03 3 "Fred Gets Bullied" May 15, 2008 20.1 1.04 4 "Fred Gets Detention" May 22, 2008 22.2 1.05 5 "Fred Goes to the Dentist" May 29, 2008 28.8 1.06 6 "Fred Stalks Judy" June 5, 2008 18.4 1.07 7 "Fred on Father's Day" June 12, 2008 11.7 1.08 8 "Fred Goes Swimming" June 19, 2008 55.1 1.09 9 "Fred Meets Bertha" June 26, 2008 13.0 1.10 10 "Fred's Mom is Missing" July 3, 2008 17.1 2.01 11 "Fred's Grandma Has a Secret" August 21, 2008 9.6 2.02 12 "Fred Goes Camping" August 28, 2008 9.4 2.03 13 "Fred Auditions For a Play" September 4, 2008 7.8 2.04 14 "Fred's Mom Returns" September 11, 2008 9.6 2.05 15 "Fred: A Star in His Own Mind" September 18, 2008 6.8 2.06 16 "Fred Sneaks into Judy's Party" September 25, 2008 15.5 2.07 17 "Fred Tries to Ride a Bike" October 3, 2008 17.2 * * "FRED WANTS TO BE A STAR!! (City of Fred?!)" October 4, 2008 7.8 2.08 18 "Fred Runs for President!" October 9, 2008 8.8 2.09 19 "Fred Faces a Dirty Campaign" October 18, 2008 5.5 2.10 20 "Fred on Election Day" October 23, 2008 6.7 * * "Kev Blaze feat. FRED - "Watch How I Do This (remix)"" October 30, 2008 6.7 3.01 21 "Fred on Thanksgiving" November 26, 2008 9.6 * * "Fred on iCarly" February 10, 2009 18.6 3.02 22 "Fred Rescues the Neighborhood Squirrels" February 19, 2009 14.5 3.03 23 "Fred Cooks for Judy" March 8, 2009 12.7 3.04 24 "Fred on April Fool's Day" April 1, 2009 11.7 * * "One Million Subscribers" April 7, 2009 5.7 3.05 25 "Fred Goes to the Doctor" April 30, 2009 9.9 3.06 26 "Fred Throws a Party" May 21, 2009 9.4 3.07 27 "Fred Gets Dissed at Bible School" June 4, 2009 7.7 3.08 28 "Fred Works Out" June 18, 2009 12.9 3.09 29 "Fred Tries Dancing" July 9, 2009 6.7 * * "Fred Talks About Teen Choice Awards" July 23, 2009 2.5 3.10 30 "Fred Sees a Therapist" July 30, 2009 7.2 3.11 31 "Fred Goes on a Date With Judy" August 20, 2009 10.4 3.12 32 "Fred Has a Vocal Lesson" September 3, 2009 5.4 3.13 33 "Fred Goes Fundraising" September 18, 2009 5.5 3.14 34 "Fred Gives Advice" October 8, 2009 3.8 3.15 35 "Fred Finds a Creepy Doll" October 22, 2009 10.6 * * "Fred Talks About His Christmas Music" November 4, 2009 1.7 * * "Fred Figglehorn - Christmas Cash" November 10, 2009 18.9 * * "Fred - Christmas is Creepy" December 7, 2009 25.2 3.16 36 "Fred Has a Snow Day" January 14, 2010 10.8 3.17 37 "Fred Goes to a School Dance" February 4, 2010 6.8 3.18 38 "Fred Gets a Letter From His Dad" February 26, 2010 8.5 4.01 39 "Fred Stays in a Fancy Hotel Room" April 27, 2010 15.6 4.02 40 "Fred Gets a Haircut" May 27, 2010 16.1 4.03 41 "Fred Goes Reporting" June 10, 2010 10.4 4.04 42 "Fred Goes Grocery Shopping! Feat. Annoying Orange!" June 24, 2010 34.6 4.05 43 "Fred Works at a Tattoo Shop!" July 8, 2010 9.1 4.06 44 "Fred's Summer Halloween!" July 22, 2010 5.0 4.07 45 "Fred Goes to the Movies!" August 5, 2010 9.8 * * "Fred: The Movie" Official Clip - "Fred Gets Advice From His Dad About Women" August 17, 2010 6.4 * * "Nobody Believes Fred" August 26, 2010 2.8 * * "Fred Figglehorn - Don't Forget to Brush - Official Music Video" August 31, 2010 4.3 4.08 46 "Ted Tigglecorn Interviews Fred Figglehorn" September 9, 2010 1.9 4.09 47 "Fred and Weezer Go to the Moon" September 13, 2010 4.1 * * "Fred's First Video Contest" September 16, 2010 1.4 * * "Fred Figglehorn - Who's Ready to Party? - Official Music Video" September 19, 2010 3.7 * * ""Fred: The Movie" - DVD Trailer with Fred" September 29, 2010 1.8 * * "Fred Video Contest Winner and Party Clips" October 5, 2010 1.1 * * "Fred Figglehorn - The Babysitter's a Vampire - Official Music Video" October 20, 2010 8.6 * * "Fred Figglehorn - Tater Haters - Official Music Video" November 2, 2010 3.8 * * "Some News!...from some creeper named Lucas" November 18, 2010 1.2 * * "DOUG - Doug Derky's First Video Blog" November 20, 2010 1.9 * * "FRED: The Movie - Official UK Trailer - In Cinemas Dec. 17" November 29, 2010 0.7 * * "Fred Babysits a Psycho" December 4, 2010 6.5 * * "Message from Fred to Everyone in the UK & Ireland" December 15, 2010 0.2 * * "Fred Gets Kidnapped by Claudio" January 22, 2011 3.0 * * "Fred is Left Alone With Claudio" January 29, 2011 3.2 * * "Fred Investigates Rumors at School" February 23, 2011 2.2 * * "Fred Figglehorn - I Wanna Be a Celebrity - Official Music Video" March 9, 2011 2.1 * * "Fred's Top Secret New Project" April 7, 2011 4.5 * * "FRED Gets a Talk Show "Figgle Chat" Series Teaser" September 15, 2011 0.3 * * "FRED Interviews OBAMA "Figgle Chat" Ep1 feat AlphaCat" September 22, 2011 0.4 * * "FRED Goes Through Puberty 'Special Guest Perez Hilton' Figgle Chat Ep.2" September 29, 2011 0.3 * * "FRED Interviews Eduardo Fresco Ep.3 Figgle Chat w/ Wilmer Valderrama" October 6, 2011 0.2 * * "FRED hangs on set with John Cena" October 10, 2011 0.4 * * "FRED Interviews Hunter Hunterson Figgle Chat Ep.4" October 13, 2011 0.2 * * "FRED 2 Sneak Freak "Fred the Ladies Man"" October 18, 2011 0.3 * * "FRED Interviews iJustine Figgle Chat Ep. 5" October 20, 2011 0.3 * * "Watch Every Episode of Figgle Chat!!" October 26, 2011 0.1 * * "FRED Interviews Sneezle The Cat & Power Figgle Chat Ep. 6" October 27, 2011 0.1 * * "Official "FRED 2" Costume Contest" October 28, 2011 0.2 * * "FRED Learns to Airdrum with Power" November 9, 2011 ~ * * "FRED gets Animated and Answers your comments and questions!" November 17, 2011 ~ * denotes a video not listed on the channel's Fred episode listings.
Albums
It's Hackin' Christmas With Fred
It's Hackin' Christmas with Fred is a four track EP released on November 10, 2009. The music videos for the singles "Christmas Cash" and "Christmas is Creepy" were also released on the Fred YouTube channel. The album was available online via iTunes.[13]
Who's Ready To Party?
Who's Ready To Party? is an album released on September 21, 2010. The music videos for the singles Don't Forget to Brush, Who's Ready to Party?, The Babysitter's a Vampire, and Tater Haters, were also released on the Fred YouTube channel.
Films
Fred: The Movie
Main article: Fred: The MovieFred: The Movie is a 2010 film based on the YouTube series about Fred Figglehorn. It features Lucas Cruikshank as Fred, Pixie Lott as Judy, Jennette McCurdy as Bertha, Jake Weary as Kevin, John Cena as Fred's dad, and Siobhan Fallon Hogan as Fred's mom. It follows the character as he tries to track down his crush, Judy (after she moves away). It is written by David A. Goodman, directed by Clay Weiner, and produced by Brian Robbins.[14] Filming began November 9, 2009, and wrapped up December 20, 2009.[15] The movie was released on Nickelodeon on September 18, 2010, and the DVD was released October 5, 2010[7] as well as streaming media such as Netflix. [16]
Fred 2: Night of the Living Fred
Main article: Fred 2: Night of the Living FredFred 2: Night of the Living Fred is a 2011 Halloween-themed sequel to Fred: The Movie. It first aired on October 22, 2011.
Sponsorship and appearances
Zipit Wireless Messenger (Z2) sponsored the first season of "Fred", which had several cameos in various videos posted to the Fred Channel. Although the collaboration had originally been kept low-key, Fred now has a separate website promoting the Zipit and has starred in television ads for the device on Nickelodeon.
He made a cameo appearance as both "Fred" and himself on Nickelodeon's iCarly in "iMeet Fred", which originally aired on February 16, 2009.[17]
Walden Media also hired Cruikshank to promote the film City of Ember, along with the sci-fi novel it was based on, and cameos from the film's star Tim Robbins in Fred episodes and a mock movie trailer.[18]
Cruikshank has launched a website to promote the Fred series and sell Fred T-shirts and other merchandise. The merchandise is also available at Hot Topic, Justice and Five Below stores. Cruikshank has appeared on The Tyra Banks Show, as well as in the Hannah Montana episode "Come Fail Away", which aired December 6, 2009.[19]
He appeared at the 2009 Teen Choice Awards as well as the 2010 Kids' Choice Awards presenting awards to winners off-stage.
Other channels
Cruikshank was originally a part of JKL Productions,[20] a group comprising twins Jon and Katie Smet and Lucas Cruikshank, their cousin. Although Cruikshank formally left the group, JKL prefers to keep Lucas' "L" in its name. Cruikshank deleted all of his individual videos when he left JKL Productions, but he can still be seen in a few of their videos. In January 2009 he set up his own channel, called Lucas, in which he appears as himself. In the June 25, 2010, Annoying Orange episode, Cruikshank made a cameo as Fred, the first time Fred has officially appeared on a different YouTube channel.
References
- ^ Fred on May Day (Video). United States: YouTube. May 1, 2008. Event occurs at 0:34. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-CehxoJy0I. "If I would've joined two years ago, I would've only been four years old."
- ^ Fred: The Movie (Motion picture). United States: Varsity Pictures. September 18, 2010. Event occurs at 1:17:16. "But I'm 15."
- ^ a b Andrew Keen (2008-07-28). "Andrew Keen on New Media: Kids with cameras lead the way in giving web users their daily Fred". London: The Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/online/andrew-keen-on-new-media-kids-with-cameras-lead-the-way-in-giving-web-users-their-daily-fred-878508.html. Retrieved 2008-10-26.
- ^ Stephen Hutcheon, with Tom Burton (2008-06-20). "Fast-talking Fred is the toast of YouTube". The Sydney Morning Herald. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/06/30/1214677897205.html. Retrieved 2011-08-07.
- ^ Editorial Team (2008-11-13). "BB Suggests: The Best of Web TV". http://www.batchbuzz.com/detailedStoryDefault.php?id=751. Retrieved 2011-08-07.
- ^ "Fred's Channel". You Tube. http://www.youtube.com/user/Fred. Retrieved November 17, 2011.
- ^ a b Barnes, Brooks (March 24, 2010). "‘Fred: The Movie’ Lands on Nickelodeon - Media Decoder Blog - NYTimes.com". The New York Times. http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/03/24/fred-the-movie-lands-on-nickelodeon/.
- ^ Cruikshank, Lucas (February 22, 2011). "Twwet 40139239941210112". Twitter. http://twitter.com/LucasCruikshank/status/40139239941210112. Retrieved March 6, 2011.
- ^ Cruikshank, Lucas (March 3, 2011). "Tweet 43282065155829760". Twitter. http://twitter.com/LucasCruikshank/status/43282065155829760. Retrieved March 6, 2011.
- ^ Brook, Anderson. "The Teen Behind Fred.". CNN. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bi57YE9jon4. Retrieved 2011-08-07.
- ^ Sioux City Journal: Nebraska teen making 'Fred' an Internet star
- ^ FRED - season listings
- ^ "YouTube Sensation Fred Releases Christmas Album and Premieres Music Video - Pynk Celebrity". http://www.pynkcelebrity.com/archives/21178. Retrieved 2009-11-26.
- ^ Barnes, Brooks (2009-12-07). "A High-Pitched Whine Brings ‘Fred’ to the Movies: Bigger Screen for a High-Pitched Whine". New York Times. http://nytimes.com/2009/12/08/movies/08fred.html. Retrieved 2010-01-21.
- ^ Sanchez, Adrian (28 December 2009). "Cruikshank's YouTube character to hit silver screen". Columbus Telegram. http://www.californiachronicle.com/articles/yb/139368128. Retrieved 28 December 2009.
- ^ http://instantwatcher.com/titles/158448
- ^ Albrecht, Chris (November 18, 2008). "'Fred' Cranks Up the YouTube Views and Ad Dollars". Business Week. http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/nov2008/tc20081118_508970.htm. Retrieved July 7, 2009.
- ^ Sanders, Pete (September 18, 2008). "Studios Hope YouTube Tie Sells Movie". The Wall Street Journal. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122169004968649685.html. Retrieved 2008-09-19.
- ^ "Come Fail Away" at the Internet Movie Database
- ^ YouTube - jklproduction's Channel
External links
- Fred Figglehorn at the Internet Movie Database
- Fred at the Internet Movie Database
- Fred's Official website
- Fred's YouTube Page
- JKL Production's YouTube Page
- Fred on Zipit
- It's Hackin' Christmas With Fred official site
Honorary titles Preceded by
?Most subscribed channel on YouTube
?—August 2009Succeeded by
NigahigaPreceded by
collegehumorTop Subscribed Channel on YouTube
Ranked eighth as of November 2011Succeeded by
realannoyingorangeCategories:- YouTube videos
- Fictional children
- Viral videos
- Internet memes
- Fictional characters introduced in 2006
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
