About

Franklin the Turtle is a series children's book by Canadian author Paulette Bourgeois and illustrated by Brenda Clark. The books follow the eponymous young turtle as he learns lessons of early childhood at school, with family and around town. The books have been adapted into two animated television series: 1997's Franklin and 2011's CGI-animated Franklin and Friends.

History

Books

The first Franklin the Turtle book, Franklin in the Dark was released on August 11th, 1987. Since his debut, there have been more than 50 Franklin books and collections released.^[1]

Franklin

The first television series based on the books, Franklin, first aired on November 3rd, 1997. The show ran for six seasons, ending on August 9th 2004 after 78 episodes (opening credits below, left.

Franklin & Friends

Franklin and Friends, a second series based on the books, was a CGI animated series that premiered on March 4th, 2011 (opening credits below, right).^[2] The series lasted two seasons and 24 episodes.

Reception

Common Sense Media^[3] gave the first television series five stars, calling it "responsible TV; great for preschoolers."

Related Memes

Danklin

Danklin refers to a series of image edits of the children's book and television character Franklin the Turtle, typically recontextualizing him with bloodshot eyes, as a drug user and as a drug dealer.

Book Cover Parodies

Examples of Franklin book cover parodies date back as far as 2016 but grew in popularity in 2018.^[6][7] On March 20th, 2018, Redditor ^[4] Moonbeam_My_Banshee posted a parody Franklin book cover on the /r/dankmemes subreddit. The post (shown below) featured Franklin dancing with a goose and the title "Franlin Ends a Race War." Within two three days, the post received more than 200 points (87% upvoted).

Two days later, Redditor^[5] DaHyro posted another parody in /r/dankmemes. The post (shown below, left) features Franklin sick in bed and the title "Franklin Has The Big Gay." Within 24 hours, the post received more than 1,400 points (96% upvoted).

Over the next 24 hours, more Redditors on /r/dankmemes posted parodies (examples below, center and right).

YouTube Remixes

Episodes of the Franklin television series has been a popular source for YouTube videos. On October 15th, 2008, YouTuber Trevor Richardson uploaded a video called "Franklin the Turtle – Audio Dubbing." The post (shown below) featured an episode of Franklin with the audio replaced for humorous effect. Within 10 years, the video received more than 97,000 views.

Two years later, on August 25th, 2010, YouTuber fiddledick uploaded a video entitled "Franklin Does Some Crazy Shit," which overdubs an episode with explicit language. Within eight years, the post (shown below, left) received more than 41,000 views.

On May 24th, 2015, YouTuber Merfish posted a video remake of the Franklin opening credits, using the character Franklin from Grand Theft Auto. The post (shown below, right) received more than 127,000 views in three years.

Pete Hegseth's "Franklin The Turtle Targets Narco Terrorists" Meme

Pete Hegseth's "Franklin Targets Narco Terrorists" Post, also known as Pete Hegseth's "Franklin The Turtle" Meme, is a controversial X / Twitter post made by Pete Hegseth, the United States Secretary of War (Defense), sharing an AI-generated parody of a Franklin The Turtle book titled, "Franklin Targets Narco Terrorists," depicting Franklin aiming a bazooka down at boats full of narco terrorists from a military helicopter (meant to reference strikes against alleged drug traffickers in Venezuela). The post was made on November 30th, 2025, and inspired significant discourse online, including further Franklin parodies and backlash. In response, the publisher behind Franklin, Kids Can Press, released a statement condemning the use of the character in this way.

Search Interest

External References