Last month, I shared the news about my post, “What Hollywood Gets Wrong (and Right!) about Librarians,” published on ALA’s I Love Libraries blog. The news also got shared on their social media channels via Twitter and Facebook, and many people shared comments about their own favorite reel librarians. It was so fun to read everyone’s comments! I also received lots of emails from new readers, sharing their personal favorites and tipping me off to some reel librarians I then added to the site. Below, I have highlighted the new additions. Thank you, readers — enjoy!

Sherman, aka “Swampy,” on Phineas and Ferb (2007-2015, animated series):

Via Twitter, WieBib shared this video from the animated series Phineas and Ferb, featuring Sherman the librarian, who used the stage name “Swampy” when he was a drummer for a band! Steve Zahn voiced this recurring character. I added this series to my TV Shows page.

Librarian on Hilda (2018-2020, animated series):

Via Twitter, Lawrence Bolduc shared this video from the Netflix animated series, Hilda. Kaisa Hammarlund voiced this recurring reel librarian character. I added this series to my TV Shows page.

Penny Adiyodi, Librarian, on The Magicians (2015-2020, USA)

I had already included The Magicians on my TV Shows page, along with the Head Librarian character, Zelda Schiff (played by Mageina Tovah). Via Twitter, Rachel Rawlings alerted me to the additional librarian character at the Library of the Neitherlands, Penny Adiyod (played by Arjun Gupta). I have not yet seen an episode of The Magicians — it began as a series right before we cut off our cable subscription — but I’ve heard good things about it. It’s definitely on my radar to watch.

This video highlights a scene from Season 4 with Zelda, with a “sneak peek” of Penny at the end of the clip.

“A Trip to the Library” scene from the 1963 musical play She Loves Me

George H. emailed me about a “Trip to the Library” scene and song from the 1963 musical play She Loves Me, written by Joe Masteroff, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and music by Jerry Bock. This play is the third (!!!) iteration of the 1937 play Parfumerie by playwright Miklós László, which inspired the 1940 film The Shop Around the Corner, starring James Stewart and Margaret Sullavan; the 1949 musical In the Good Old Summertime, starring Judy Garland and Van Johnson; and the 1998 film You’ve Got Mail, starring Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks.

The “A Trip to the Library” scene and song occurs in Act Two of the musical play. Here is a video of the scene from the 1993 Broadway production of the play:

Citation searching in an episode of The Big Bang Theory (2007-2019):

Bill B. emailed me about a recent episode of The Big Bang Theory TV series, in which Leonard and Raj go to a library to research citations for a scholarly article. This episode, entitled “The Citation Negotiation,” aired in November 2018. I added this episode to my TV Shows page.

I totally agree with Bill when he stated:

They go to the (physical) university library and haul bound volumes off the shelf.  There is nary a hint of using databases for the task.  Very surprising for a seemingly savvy show.

Here’s a promo for this episode:

Librarian in an episode of Mister Peepers (1952-1955)

Via Facebook, Edith A. shared her memories of the librarian in an episode of Mister Peepers, a TV show starring Wally Cox. Here’s how she described it:

My favorite will be the librarian character who did the book check-in or check-out routine on the old Mr. Peepers (Wally Cox) show. […] I will always remember that routine with a smile.

I tracked down the episode and character — Charity Grace played the Librarian in “The Leather Chair” episode, which aired in November 1953 — and added this episode to my TV Shows page.

I couldn’t track down a video of that specific library scene, but here’s a digitally restored excerpt from another episode to enjoy:

Mr. Ambrose on Bob’s Burgers (2011-, animated series)

Rachel K. emailed me about the librarian character, Mr. Ambrose, on the animated series Bob’s Burgers. This character is voiced by comedian Billy Eichner. I added this series to my TV Shows page.

Here’s a clip from an episode about “the strangest librarian ever” … not encouraging words about a reel librarian!

Sean on A Discovery of Witches (2018-)

Steve L. emailed me about this TV series, A Discovery of Witches, based on the first book in the All Souls Trilogy by Deborah Harkness. (It’s been renewed for a second season!) The series is primarily set in the Bodleian Library in Oxford, and the librarian character of Sean is played by Tomiwa Edun. I added this series to my TV Shows page.

Here’s a trailer for the series (which looks AWESOME!):

Mika Coretti in Ninja Assassin (2009)

Megan J. emailed me about the 2009 film, Ninja Assassin, directed by James McTeigue and starring Korean pop star Rain and British actress Naomie Harris as Mika Coretti. I have added this film to my Master List.

Here’s how Megan describes the reel librarian connection:

She [Mika] has discovered that a string of deaths of top ranking officials worldwide has been carried out by the Ozunu which puts her in danger of being killed. Raizo becomes her protector.

At a later point in the film she says to an unconscious Raizo, “I know you can’t hear me, so I’m sure this doesn’t matter but I’m going to say it anyway. I’m just a forensic researcher. It’s like a fancy way of saying I’m a librarian. By myself I can’t do anything to help you, but I wanted to thank you for saving my life. And I hope you can forgive me for this.“

Here’s a trailer for the film:

Continuing the conversation:

Thanks again to everyone who commented or emailed me! Have you seen any of these (new-to-me) reel librarian characters or library scenes? Please leave a comment and share! 🙂