The Talking Mother Goose
The Talking Mother Goose was an animated character toy created by Alchemy II and Worlds of Wonder in 1986, capable of telling fairy tales and singing songs recorded on a cassette mounted in the toy. The character is portrayed as a goose, rather than the woman of the Mother Goose stories.
Like most Worlds of Wonder toys, such as Teddy and Mickey, Mother Goose used specially-coded cassettes and 4 "C" batteries to operate. Mother Goose moved her eyes, beak, and, unlike most of the toys, Mother Goose was able to move her head from side-to-side. Both versions moved her eyes and beak, but only the early first version was able to move her head.
Available books and tapes
There were twenty one books made for Mother Goose by herself. With the addition of Hector, two of her fairy-tale cassettes operated him as well.
- The Ugly Duckling (operates Hector)
- The Tortoise & the Hare
- Peter & the Wolf
- The Princess and the Pea
- The Frog Prince
- Jack and the Beanstalk
- The Little Red Hen
- Lullabies
- Rumpelstiltskin
- Little Red Riding Hood
- The Emperor's New Clothes
- Cinderella
- The Sleeping Beauty
- Rapunzel
- The Shoemaker and the Elves
- Beauty and the Beast
- Goldilocks and the Three Bears
- Hansel and Gretel
- The Golden Touch
- The Grasshopper and the Ant
- Birthday Surprise (operates Hector)
Collector outfits
Worlds of Wonder made two specially-themed books and tapes that came with a bonnet and collar for Mother Goose to wear.
- Birthday Surprise - operates Hector
- Lullabies
Hector
Although Hector had been introduced in The Ugly Duckling, he was not created as an animated toy until 1987. Hector used 4 "AA" batteries and a double ended patch cord to work with Mother Goose. As with Grubby in the Teddy Ruxpin line and Goofy in the Talking Mickey Mouse line, he could not function alone. With Hector, Worlds of Wonder finally came into the world of nursery rhymes, with Hector being the main character and Mother Goose being the supporting narrator. Seven sets were made for Hector, a first for an attachment character. They were:
- The Three Little Kittens
- Little Bo Peep
- Hickory Dickory Dock
- Little Boy Blue
- Hey Diddle Diddle
- Mistress Mary
- Little Miss Muffet