‘Barney’ cast received death threats, backlash from the KKK over show

The children’s tv amusement "Barney & Friends" was a monolithic deed successful the aboriginal '90s, but it wasn’t each "I Love You and You Love Me" for the formed and crew.

The "Generation Barney" podcast, a seven-part bid from Connecticut Public, looks backmost astatine the show’s interaction connected audiences and the radical who worked connected the show. At the tallness of the show’s popularity, the podcast shared, the formed and unit faced superior backlash implicit the kid-friendly purple dinosaur character.

"There were definite things, definite messages that radical would nonstop that were beauteous threatening," Bob West, the archetypal dependable of "Barney" said successful the series' 3rd episode.

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"Barney & Friends" was a deed for PBS, but the quality and the show's formed and unit faced decease threats and backlash. (Mark Perlstein/Getty Images)

He noted it happened a fewer times "because my email code got leaked."

"If you get a decease menace from a mediate schoolhouse kid who sends you an email, past it doesn't marque maine consciousness atrocious for me. It makes maine consciousness atrocious for them due to the fact that they're evidently going done thing that's starring them to enactment retired this way," West added.

Bob West, the archetypal dependable of Barney the Dinosaur, said his email was leaked and helium received decease threats from people, including mediate schoolers. (Bobby Bank/Getty Images)

Barney’s suit performer David Joyner received hatred arsenic well.

"Some radical conscionable consciousness the request to hate," helium said. "I don't cognize why. They conscionable consciousness the request to hate."

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Joyner recalled being astatine a parade successful New York, wearing the costume connected a float, and arsenic they rounded a corner, helium said, "I spot this antheral yelling, 'I hatred you Barney! F--- you, Barney!' I'm connected this float, and he's lasting successful beforehand of a oversea of radical shouting this."

The histrion decided to effort to defuse the situation, explaining, "My happening was, I gotta flip this guy, I gotta assistance him understand. So I conscionable started pounding my bosom similar a heartbeat, and past I benignant of bowed successful beforehand of him." He said helium continued gesturing with a bosom question and "I emotion you" successful operation with the bow.

"If you get a decease menace from a mediate schoolhouse kid who sends you an email, past it doesn't marque maine consciousness atrocious for me. It makes maine consciousness atrocious for them."

"By the clip the interval gets to him, he's like, 'Ugh, I emotion you Barney,'" Joyner said, adding the assemblage cheered arsenic well. "Sometimes it’s conscionable astir changing opinions."

Joyner, who performed successful the costume from 1991 to 2001, besides dealt with racially charged backlash against him from the Ku Klux Klan.

David Joyner, Barney's suit performer, recalled a antheral yelling curse words during a parade, and having to defuse the situation.  (Vinnie Zuffante/Getty Images)

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"I get a telephone erstwhile I'm doing ‘Barney’ from my hometown quality reporter, from the Decatur Herald & Review, and helium asked maine to remark connected an nonfiction that was in Esquire magazine," helium shared successful the 2nd episode. 

"I had nary thought what helium was talking about, truthful helium asked maine if I would spell get the mag and past springiness him a telephone with a comment. Well, successful the magazine, the Klan had recovered retired that the feline wrong of the Barney costume was African American, truthful they banned their kids from ever watching ‘Barney’ again."

The newsman asked Joyner’s thoughts connected the story, and helium admitted helium "laughed" astatine the idea.

"I said, 'Well actually, erstwhile I work it, I laughed.' And helium says, 'What bash you mean you laughed?'" I said, 'Well, it's the Klan, and I can't alteration their opinion.'"

Joyner besides said helium received racially charged backlash from the KKK. (Desiree Stone; NBC)

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He continued, "Plus what we're trying to bash is correspond love. If someone's trying to correspond hate, the past happening they privation is to love. And if my tegument colour past changes that sentiment for somebody, I can't bash thing astir it due to the fact that that is what it is."

Joyner didn’t fto the negativity get to him, and helium performed successful the Barney costume for 10 years earlier moving to Los Angeles to prosecute different acting work.

The present 61-year-old besides became a tantric massage specializer and spiritual healer.

In 2018, helium told Vice helium utilized his tantra grooming of heavy meditation to get done the agelong acceptable days erstwhile helium would beryllium stuck successful the 70-pound Barney costume for respective hours. He credited the signifier for helping him support "an abundance of joy" portion wearing the costume successful blistery conditions.

"I said, 'Well, it's the Klan and I can't alteration their opinion.'"

WATCH: ‘BARNEY’ DOC DETAILS DARK SIDE OF ONCE-BELOVED DINOSAUR, HOW ACTOR DAVID JOYNER BECAME A TANTRIC SEX HEALER

‘BARNEY’ DOC DETAILS DARK SIDE OF ONCE-BELOVED DINOSAUR, HOW ACTOR DAVID JOYNER BECAME A TANTRIC SEX HEALER

Director Tommy Avallone spoke with Fox News Digital for the show’s 30th day successful 2022 and shared Joyner’s philosophy.

"He explained it to us. It's much than what you deliberation it is with sex. It's meditation. It's vigor work. And erstwhile helium talks astir his meditation and the vigor helium would propulsion from his body, helium tried to propulsion it done — arsenic weird arsenic it sounds — propulsion it done the television. That mode children could consciousness the transportation of Barney."

Avallone stressed that portion galore radical subordinate Joyner’s tantra principles with sex, "that was ne'er happening with Barney." Instead, helium relied connected the "energy enactment and meditation" from his signifier to "heighten Barney's performance" and present joy.

A docuseries titled "I Love You, You Hate Me," released successful 2022, besides delved into the darker broadside of the PBS series.

Stephen White, "Barney & Friends" caput writer, said that contempt the decease threats and backlash, "We were excessively engaged making the amusement to interest that overmuch astir what assorted critics and trolls had to say." (Everett/Shutterstock )

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On the "Generation Barney" podcast, Stephen White, caput writer of the show, said mostly the squad wasn’t excessively acrophobic astir the negativity they received.

"We were excessively engaged making the amusement to interest that overmuch astir what assorted critics and trolls had to say. And we besides knew the integrity of the task we were moving on, which was apical to bottom," White said. 

"The ‘Barney’ assemblage that was making the amusement truly was similar a family. We each knew wherefore we were there. We each wanted to marque a amusement that was genuinely wholesome. So erstwhile we would perceive these criticisms, it was easier to shingle off."