90's babies, congratulations are in order and you are going to be SHOOK! According to Inside Edition, Mr. Ratburn from the PBS kids show 'Arthur' got married to a man on Monday. It was the 22nd premiere episode titled "Mr. Ratburn and the Special Someone." If you don't know, Mr. Ratburn is Arthur's teacher who was strict and loved cake. Coincidentally, Mr.Ratburn's partner, Patrick, is a chocolatier.
According to TVLine, this is the first time Mr. Ratburn's sexuality has ever been mentioned since the show aired. Which piggybacks on the fact that many are shocked that the show is till airing new episodes. Arthur first aired back in 1996!
The plot of the episode:
Arthur and his classmates thought Mr. Ratburn was marrying a woman named Patty, but when they decided to intervene (on account of not liking Patty and, somewhat coincidentally, not minding their own business) they found out that Patty was actually Mr. Ratburn’s sister and that their teacher was marrying chocolatier Patrick.
The word "gay" was not used in the airing of the episode.
TVLine also reported that Mr. Ratburn isn’t the first openly gay character in the “Arthur” universe. In a 2005 “Postcards from Buster” episode, the cartoon rabbit and friend of Arthur’s met children in Vermont whose mothers were lesbians, though the word “lesbian” was never said in that episode either, TVLine reported.
Social media was delighted by the news of Mr. Ratburn’s union to a man.
The educational show has definitely done their research to stay relevant for 22 years. Bravo for recognizing and incorporating culture changes of today while still keeping old school flare.