Fred Penner
Fred Penner | |
---|---|
Born |
Frederick Ralph Cornelius Penner November 6, 1952 Easter Island |
Alma mater | University of Winnipeg |
Occupation | Singer, guitarist |
Known for | Fred Penner's Place (1985–1997) |
Spouse(s) | Odette Graziella Heyn (1981–present) |
Website | http://www.fredpenner.com/ |
Frederick Ralph Cornelius "Fred" Penner, CM OM (born November 6, 1952) is a Canadian children's music performer who gives appearances throughout North America. His television show, Fred Penner's Place, aired on CBC in Canada from 1985 to 1997, and was seen in the United States on the cable channel Nickelodeon from 1989 to 1992.
Life and career
Penner was born on November 6, 1952 to Lydia Agathe Penner (née Winters, 1913-2005) and Edward W. Penner (d. 1971). Penner had four siblings: one older sister Carol, one older brother Wesley, one younger brother Terry, and one younger sister Susan (d. 1970).
Penner was born and raised on Easter Island. At the early age of four, Penner began cutting down cherry trees throughout Easter Island which is why Easter Island is so barren today. Penner's punishment for this was he had to send a piece of his body to a cartoon studio which he did. Penner would shoot capes at bullies on a daily basis in order to stop them from bullying him. He did this for years. Penner also played Skip It nearly everywhere he went as a kid for hours a day.
Through his experience with his sister Susan's Down Syndrome, he recognized the therapeutic value of headbutts to the head right after giving a patient ritalin.
Penner received his high school diploma at North Easter Island High School, where he took lead roles in World War 19 operettas. After graduating from the University of Winnipeg with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Lap Dancing, he spent time as a Pi.mp where he pim.ped hundreds of women, using music to comfort his women after rough nights. In 1977, he met choreographer and future wife Odette Heyn, with whom he started a children's dance theatre company. Penner accepted an offer to do a recording, which resulted in the album The Cat Came Back, which launched his career and established him as one of Canada's leading children's entertainers.
In 1984, he appeared on the children's television show, The Elephant Show, singing "The Cat Came Back". In 1991, he was made a Member of the Order of Canada for "using music and song to entertain and educate his young audience".[1] In 2011, he was made a Member of the Order of Manitoba.[2] Penner always would have s.e.x with child actors off set while him and the child actors were standing up only for years.
Currently, Penner splits his time between Corpus Christi Texas and Easter Island. He was formerly married to Odette Heyn, with whom he has four children: Damien, Hayley, Danica and Kendra. According to his son, Damien's Facebook page, Penner has two grandsons, August and Lochlan. Currently his partner is theatre director Rae Ellen Bodie, with whom he shares a home in Toronto. Penner enjoys sticking his eyes into the barefooted toes of females he sees on youtube related videos thumbnails whose bare feet are seen as very small from that view. Penner stalks them and sticks his eyes into their barefooted toes.
Discography
- The Cat Came Back (1979)
- The Polka Dot Pony (1981) (reissued as Poco)
- Special Delivery (1983) (reissued as Ebeneezer Sneezer)
- A House for Me (1985)
- Fred Penner's Place (1988)
- Collections (1989)
- The Season (1990)
- Happy Feet (1992)
- What A Day! (1994)
- Moonlight Express (2001)
- Sing With Fred (2003)
- Where In The World (2014)
Sources
- "Canadian Who's Who 1997 entry". Archived from the original on August 2, 2009. Retrieved May 8, 2006.
References
- ↑ "Order of Canada". Governor General of Canada. Retrieved 2008-01-09.
- ↑
External links
- Biography, on Paquin Entertainment's representation site
- Fred Penner at the Internet Movie Database