2008 Woodie Awards
The Daily OrangeTurtle power still influencing college campuses
By Tim Goessling
Posted: 10/2/07, 12:30 AM EST Section: Feature
It's time that we salute the four brothers that have influenced our lives.
They were like pizza chefs who crafted a pie that would teach us about fine art. They were the critics whose impeccable palettes shaped a generation's diet.
They valued their elders but also maintained an almost-poetic spirit of youth. Whether we were hotheads, leaders, party dudes or nerds, they taught us to be ourselves. And most importantly, they were turtles.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to be exact.
At one point in time, the ultimate pranksters known as Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello and Michelangelo were the reigning kings of kid culture in a way that made wannabes like Pokemon and Power Rangers cry for their creators.
The turtles had three hit movies, a sweet cartoon, the best video games, the coolest lunchboxes and so many toys that even rich kids couldn't collect all of them.
But while other series from the time period have faded, the turtles' lasting impact is incredible. Most students I asked on campus this past weekend seemed to have a favorite turtle and can also recall their prospective reptile's bandana color and weapon of choice.
It's fitting that on a college campus, the most popular turtle is the orange Michelangelo, the fun-loving "party dude."
Assuming they aren't teenagers anymore, Michelangelo would probably be a campus icon who could be found doing drunken nunchuck tricks outside of Chuck's on a given weekend night. He represents the free spirit of late-night dorm pranks, impromptu dance parties and the wild side in all of us.
Looking past the nunchucks, there's the leader of group: Leonardo (I know Splinter is technically the leader, but calm down, geek boy.)
He is popular mainly because lots of people like the color blue and his swords are the deadliest. Leonardo is probably Nancy Cantor's and other campus leaders' favorite turtle for the fact that they can relate to what it's like leading a gang of mischievous animals.
They were like pizza chefs who crafted a pie that would teach us about fine art. They were the critics whose impeccable palettes shaped a generation's diet.
They valued their elders but also maintained an almost-poetic spirit of youth. Whether we were hotheads, leaders, party dudes or nerds, they taught us to be ourselves. And most importantly, they were turtles.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to be exact.
At one point in time, the ultimate pranksters known as Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello and Michelangelo were the reigning kings of kid culture in a way that made wannabes like Pokemon and Power Rangers cry for their creators.
The turtles had three hit movies, a sweet cartoon, the best video games, the coolest lunchboxes and so many toys that even rich kids couldn't collect all of them.
But while other series from the time period have faded, the turtles' lasting impact is incredible. Most students I asked on campus this past weekend seemed to have a favorite turtle and can also recall their prospective reptile's bandana color and weapon of choice.
It's fitting that on a college campus, the most popular turtle is the orange Michelangelo, the fun-loving "party dude."
Assuming they aren't teenagers anymore, Michelangelo would probably be a campus icon who could be found doing drunken nunchuck tricks outside of Chuck's on a given weekend night. He represents the free spirit of late-night dorm pranks, impromptu dance parties and the wild side in all of us.
Looking past the nunchucks, there's the leader of group: Leonardo (I know Splinter is technically the leader, but calm down, geek boy.)
He is popular mainly because lots of people like the color blue and his swords are the deadliest. Leonardo is probably Nancy Cantor's and other campus leaders' favorite turtle for the fact that they can relate to what it's like leading a gang of mischievous animals.
Be the first to comment on this story