When Mychal Threets, a dedicated librarian, received an email last year inviting him to host a revived version of the classic children’s show ‘Reading Rainbow,’ he initially suspected it was a prank.
“I honestly thought they were lying when they first reached out to me, that it was all a trick,” said Mr. Threets, widely recognized on social media as Mychal the Librarian. “I was like, ‘OK, I’ll play along.'”
To his surprise, it was no trick at all.
After nearly two decades off the air, the acclaimed show makes its grand return today, with Mr. Threets as its new host. Produced by Embassy Row in collaboration with Buffalo Toronto Public Media, the original creators, the reboot will premiere on KidZuko, a children’s YouTube channel from Sony Pictures Television, marking a shift from its traditional home on PBS.
The new season will also feature a lineup of celebrity guests, including John Legend, Chrissy Teigen, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Gabrielle Union.
“I’m the biggest fan of LeVar Burton, of Mr. Rogers, of Steve Irwin, of Bob Ross — all the wholesome people in the world,” Mr. Threets shared, speaking about his heroes, including the original ‘Reading Rainbow’ host. “For me, just to have been considered blew my mind.”
Michael Davies, known for his work as an executive producer on ‘Jeopardy!’ and for bringing ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire’ to the United States, began developing the ‘Reading Rainbow’ revival in 2020. Initially, he pitched the show to various streaming platforms and broadcast channels, but found little interest.
Yet, his belief in the show’s timeless appeal never wavered.
A trailer for the show was recently released on YouTube and across social media, quickly amassing over two million views on Instagram alone. “Everything changed,” Mr. Davies noted. “Now we’re getting incoming calls.”
Unlike a previous attempt by Buffalo Toronto Public Media in 2022, which was a single live event with multiple co-hosts, Mr. Threets’s version will closely resemble the original show, updated with a few contemporary elements. It includes a newly recorded rendition of the iconic theme song and introduces a fun trivia segment.
However, with Mr. Threets at the forefront, the show’s core mission to inspire a love for reading remains unchanged.
“All I’ve ever sought to do is amplify library people and library kids,” Mr. Threets explained. “And remind them that every single one of them are readers, they’re all capable, they’re all worthy.”
The reboot arrives at a time of political debate surrounding government funding for public television. The show aims to reaffirm public media’s “commitment to continuing to provide quality and educational content, and to ensuring that this programming is available, free of charge, to young learners,” stated Nancy Hammond, an executive vice president at Buffalo Toronto Public Media and a producer of the new series.
The original ‘Reading Rainbow,’ partially funded by the Department of Education, aired from 1983 to 2006 with Mr. Burton as host. Its primary objective was to combat learning loss in children during summer breaks.
The show garnered over 250 awards, including 26 Emmy Awards and a George Foster Peabody Award. At its peak, it reached more than two million weekly viewers, becoming the most watched program in elementary school classrooms, according to PBS.
LeVar Burton, celebrated for his roles as Kunta Kinte in ‘Roots’ and Geordi La Forge on ‘Star Trek: The Next Generation,’ became synonymous with ‘Reading Rainbow.’ So much so that many, including Mr. Threets, still see him as the ultimate advocate for children’s literacy. (Mr. Threets humorously addressed this on Instagram, saying, “If you’re upset because I’m not LeVar Burton… GET BEHIND ME!”)
In 2023, when President Biden presented him with the National Endowment for the Humanities medal, Mr. Burton was even asked to sing the opening lines of the ‘Reading Rainbow’ theme song.
Now, the torch of childhood literacy is being passed to Mr. Threets, whose journey into children’s literature began in 2013 at a Northern California library.
During the pandemic in 2020, he started posting short videos on TikTok, sharing library anecdotes and reading books aloud. These videos quickly gained immense popularity, with his account attracting over 847,000 followers and more than a dozen videos surpassing one million views.
Last March, after experiencing significant personal mental health challenges, he resigned from his job, planning to end his life the following day. However, the sheer joy he witnessed in children at the library became his reason to keep going.
A few months later, the ‘Reading Rainbow’ offer came his way. There was no formal audition for the role, according to Mr. Davies. As soon as Mr. Threets’s name was suggested, the team immediately recognized him as the perfect fit for a show designed for social media platforms.
“It wasn’t what saved me, but it helped me stay another day,” Mr. Threets reflected.