A Storied Career: Leader in Children's Public Television Inducted into Emmy® Silver Circle

Arthur, Curious George, Martha the talking dog — if you've grown up or raised children within the last few decades, you're sure to recognize the names of these popular children's public television characters. Jaffrey resident Carol Greenwald co-developed and was executive producer for these children's programs and numerous others over her 40-plus years at GBH, the primary PBS member television station in Boston. On March 15, her outstanding contributions to the broadcasting of children's and family programming was recognized by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) at the 3rd annual Children's & Family Emmy® Awards ceremony with an induction into the 2025 Silver Circle. According to NATAS, both the Gold and Silver Circle honorees "have made enduring contributions in broadcasting. Inductees are exceptional professionals who have performed distinguished service within the television industry, setting standards for achievement, mentoring, leadership and professional accolades for 50 or 25 years, respectively. They represent the best and brightest in the industry." Retired since October of last year, Greenwald started working at GBH in 1981 in a unit manager role with budget-related responsibilities. Later, she was hired by her mentor Brigid Sullivan into an administrative position for a program attempting new initiatives at the station. Her position then expanded into producing and programming due to the company president's desire to reinvest in children's programming, eventually leading her to become senior executive producer. "That was always my dream," Greenwald said of the new career opportunity that began in the late '80s with the show 'Long Ago and Far Away.'" She grew up in Youngstown, Ohio, and majored in communications and literature at Antioch College in the same state before relocating to Boston with friends after graduation. She then spent some time freelancing but says she always knew that she wanted to be in media. "Long Ago and Far Away," originally narrated by James Earl Jones, was like a children's version of "Masterpiece Theatre" and lasted for only a few seasons. What the GBH team learned from the series, Greenwald says, is that children want consistent characters that they can connect to and hang onto every day. That was the genesis for "Arthur" she says, which they began work on in 1985, inspired by her 3-year-old son's love of the children's book "Arthur's Tooth" by Marc Brown. Greenwald recalls attending a library book-signing event of Brown's that was mobbed with families and prompted a call to him about the possibility of developing a series. The show premiered in 1986 and has since won multiple Emmy® and Peabody Awards. It is now the longest-running children's animated series on television at more than 25 years. Its popularity has also led to digital shorts, games and podcasts. "Public television has been really good at seeing where kids are and adapting," Greenwald said of the progression to incorporate other types of media for kids. While "Arthur" is certainly at the top of the list, "Curious George" was also a lot of fun, she says of the favorite shows she's developed and executive produced. It was different in that the authors H.A. and Margret Rey were no longer living, and the books were written with a limited number of characters. "It was a treasure hunt," she described of the development process. "We did a deep dive to create a world with more characters, like the dachshund and the doorman. They were there; we just had to dig in and find them." Her other credits include shows like "Martha Speaks," "Postcards from Buster" and "Time Warp Trio" (which aired on the Discovery Kids block on NBC). As director of children's media, she also managed a talented team responsible for multiple broadcast and digital series, like "Scribbles & Ink," "The Ruff Ruffman Show" (for PBS KIDS digital channel); "Pinkalicious & Peterrific," and "Molly of Denali" (for PBS KIDS broadcast channel). "Every show I worked on had to have an educational mission," she explained, citing for examples that "Curious George" focused on preschool science and "Arthur" was built around literacy and social-emotional learning skills. Besides the original "Molly of Denali," which was the first nationally distributed show to feature an Alaskan native as a lead character, they were primarily book-based shows. Modeling and creating characters that a wide range of kids could relate to and see a reflection of themselves in, like Molly, was important to Greenwald, including characters with differing abilities like autism, cultural backgrounds and family makeups. "Public television is so impactful for society, especially children's programming," she said. "I hope everyone thinks about how important it is and what a resource it is. There are more options now, but I hope we can keep children's public TV afloat. Kids consume a lot of media, so having good media is crucial for learning opportunities." At the time of our interview, Greenwald was busy preparing for her trip to L.A. for the award ceremony. Her daughter (she has two adult children with husband John Brouder and a granddaughter) was going to be her date for the event. After years spent living in Somerville and Winchester, Mass., they purchased a camp on Thorndike Pond in Jaffrey in 2010, which they rebuilt in 2017, moving to the area full-time during the pandemic. A lifelong lover of libraries, she was recently elected to a trustee position at Jaffrey Public Library. "We're so lucky to be here," she remarked of the Jaffrey area's beauty and charm and her long-ago move to the Northeast. "I love the changing seasons and I'm really looking forward to spring." She was excited to reconnect with her PBS colleagues at the awards. "It will be fun to go back and see old friends," she said of the trip. "It's a small world and it will be a lovely experience to see everyone." Greenwald is grateful to NATAS for the honor of induction into the Silver Circle, and even more grateful to the nomination by her peers. "I feel so lucky to have been able to do this for as long as I have under the umbrella of GBH," she said. "It feels like a big bonus to be recognized. That's really the reward: That your colleagues value you. Their respect is so wonderful. I've been really lucky and I'm very grateful for the experience of my career."