35 Years Later, Renee Margolin Reflects On The Lasting Impact Of Sillywhim And 'Wee Sing In Sillyville'
One of my core childhood memories is watching Wee Sing in Sillyville and dancing along to the music. The one-hour tape had everything a ’90s kid could want — a colorful world, unique characters, and catchy music that wouldn’t get out of your head (even decades later).
Sillyville continues to resonate with its core audience, racking up millions of views on YouTube and even millions of streams on Spotify. It has appeared in viral articles compiling the best of childhood nostalgia and is the subject of numerous Reddit threads questioning, “Who else watched this as a kid?”
The film’s star is Sillywhim, a spunky, energetic woman who recruits Laurie and Scott to reunite the townspeople, who have stopped talking to each other based on the colors they wear.
Celebrating 35 years since its release, I had the honor of speaking with Sillywhim actor Renee Margolin.
Note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
BuzzFeed: I’m so excited to chat! Let’s start at the very beginning. How did you initially hear about Sillyville, and do you remember your audition for this role?
Renee Margolin: I had moved to Eugene, Oregon. I did theater for years and worked with a ballet company. My best friends of 50 years and I had an extraordinary company called Live Matinee that did comedy, and we made movies. I was also in New Mime Circus, and then I decided I wanted to get an agent. Before that, there was a really cool club at the Eugene Hotel, and there would be great live bands. I had band people stay at my home. There was a guy in one of the bands Upepo, David Poulshock.
I then moved to Portland, Oregon, to get an agent. When one of my first auditions was for Sillyville, I didn’t know anything about it. I was just going to audition for Betty Bitty Booty. So I’m at the audition. There are tons of people, and it’s crazy. And I see David Poulshock! I said, “David, hi, haven’t seen you so long! What are you doing here?”
He says, “Well, I’m directing this and part of this team.” And he looks at me, he asks, “Well, you know what? What are you auditioning for?”
“A Bitty Booty.”
And he said, “Well, I want you to audition for Sillywhim.” So the [Sillywhim] audition happened all because I knew David Poulshock.
Sillywhim is such a great character, full of positive energy and a great outlook on life. What was your favorite part about playing her character?
I think the fact that she was concerned. She loved all the colors. She didn’t understand what was going on and why they wouldn’t talk to each other, which is one of those things that happen in life, in all relationships.
Dramatic misunderstandings happen, and suddenly, because of an incident that happens at the end, [the townspeople] look at each other and say, “This is silly. We love this person; let’s get back together again.” And so the power of that confusion and then helping people get it, it’s magical.
I agree! I rewatched Sillyville last night, and it’s amazing how it sticks in your mind. How long did the video take to film?
It’s been 35 years, but I’m gonna tell you, it took about 10 days. It was a quick thing! I remember an incident that’s kind of funny. I’m working on this scene. I sit down on the ground, and I sit on a tack! That’s no fun. I mean, it hurt, and [director] Dave [Poulshock] is really concerned. I mean, it hurts.
So I burst into tears and left the set. He was concerned because they had such a tight schedule and brought me long-stem roses. And I said, “Well, David, no big deal. I can do this. We’re going to go on.” This was produced in Portland, Oregon — it wasn’t done in Hollywood, and they only had a little bit of money. So you just do your professional best.
The world of Sillyville is really colorful and fun to look at. Can you describe what the sets and costumes were like?
The creative team behind this was just really wonderful. The sets were very cartoon-like, and they were all by Portland artists. I remember one of the costume designers played Betty Bitty Booty. She [Sandra Dee Heidecke] was in the production because not only was she working on the costumes, but she acted and performed a lot around Portland.
The quality of the costumes blew me away. This was major tailoring and finishing. Many years later, I got to wear that costume by permission to do events, and it held up. They were made beautifully.
I liked wearing the colorful costume, but the black-and-white one was just my favorite. I just loved that it was a cartoon you could color. I got to go to video conferences and book signings as the character, and I always had to wear the colorful costume.
Did you have a favorite costume from the other Sillyville characters?
The yellow Spurtlegurgles and the blue Twirlypops. I love their costumes and also Sillywhim’s magic wand which was probably my favorite thing. It’s amazing that they were doing magical things without what we have today. I mean, David Poulshock really came up with tools and technical ways to make magic happen.
Speaking of magic, I thought the use of puppetry brought a uniqueness to the video. What was it like acting and singing with the puppets?
The puppeteers were from another Portland company. They created the set in a fashion so that all those things, like the nut, could work well, and they were all really cute.
I mean, they really did a magnificent job. There were different parts of the set that were designed to really make these animals and creatures come alive.
There were so many fun songs throughout the video. I’m curious if you had a favorite song to film and also one that was most challenging.
Susan Nipp and Pam Beall [the Wee Sing creators] had been elementary school music school teachers, so they really keyed in on the music. The song with the blue Twirlypops [“Once an Austrian”] had the most challenging choreography to get everybody doing it at the same time. And we had such little time to get it right. We would do different shots, but you’re limited on how many different shots you had, so we had to be on point. We had to be right on the money because you’re doing all these little gestures.
It’s very complicated choreography, and that was the most challenging. I think that was also my favorite because we did so well on it. That’s the one I remember the most.
I remember Sillywhim was very spontaneous. Did you improvise anything, or was it all following the script?
It was just scripted. There was no real improvisation. What I brought to it was just my acting and being real. I think the the whole team of people involved with the acting part was very real. The scene that I remember when I see myself is when Sillywhim is talking to purple Pasha, and she’s just deeply concerned. She just doesn’t understand why [the townspeople aren’t talking to each other].
And I mean, I just saw my face, and I thought, “I’m really concerned and want to know why!” And I looked weary! That’s the part that was really magical, that everybody was top notch actors.
Do you have a personal favorite memory from your time on the Sillyville set?
Just how hard everybody was working. The story of sitting on the tack was a very strong memory, but also just how caring and loving everybody was. Everybody was very professional and really wanted to help David [Poulshock, the director]. David was such a great guy that you just really wanted to make it happen and help him get it done.
Before we wrap up, just a few post-Sillyville questions. Have you watched it over the years? Do you ever get recognized in public?
I used to have the VHS and CDs. I gave those all away. The coolest thing is that my best friend’s daughter had a Sillyville fan club when she was in college 25 years ago. She now has her own children, and they’re watching it again. That’s really sweet.
I remember being at a deli eating, and a woman came up to me and asked, “Are you Sillywhim?” It was the cutest thing, and we took pictures together.
I left Oregon and worked at my family’s business. Early on, when I was there, I would stand behind the counter and see moms come up. They would look at me and say, “Hmm.” I’d lean in and ask, “Do you have a child that’s three to five years old?” And they would say, “Oh, my God, you’re Sillywhim!”
I would get recognized, and sometimes that still happens. I don’t have her curls anymore, but you know what? I’m just so pleased that it’s still so powerful.
Can you believe it’s been 35 years? What are you up to these days? How has life been?
Well, darlin’, I’m retired. I’m 74 years old, I did Sillywhim when I was in my 30s, so I am retired. I’m living my best life. I worked in our family business for a long time, took care of my mother when she was sick, and did a lot of different things, but I stopped performing. There was a couple of years early on with my group in Oregon, I would fly in, and we would do a ‘Best of Show’ on stage in Eugene, but I miss the performing.
One very cool thing that we also got to do — we got to perform in California for a live show. It wasn’t just Sillywhim but also the other video characters. It was at one of the Universal Parks. We did a whole stage show for two weeks, and that was a lot of fun. And then we did a second video [Wee Sing: Wee Singdom] in Los Angeles, with all the characters from all the videos.
I’m just so charmed by the fact that it’s still so powerful. And with everything that has happened in our world, inclusivity is everything, even more so.
I want to thank you for the positive impact you had on my childhood and on behalf of other ’90s kids who grew up watching Sillyville.
Thank you, I’m very proud, and good luck in your career!
Thank you to the incredible Renee Margolin for taking the time to chat with BuzzFeed. You can relive all the “Wee Sing” magic at their official YouTube channel.
Do you have any favorite Sillyville memories you want to share? Feel free to leave a comment!
