On an otherwise normal day, a portal opens in a mysterious tree hidden in the very corners of a California redwood forest. Jonathan walks through the trunk and tumbles into the mystical, magical land of Once Upon a Time. Mr. Reginald T. Hedgehog, who’s out on his daily walk around his hovel, encounters this lost human. The two discover their kinship and begin their quest to bring joy and understanding to others through stories. As the sun sets behind the Cliffhanger mountains, they set sail across the Fantasea in pursuit of their first storytelling adventures!

Cue the confetti, it’s our 50th episode! For almost two years, we’ve been building our fictional “Once Upon a Time” universe—a place filled with Imagination where Jonathan and Mr. Redge take you on a journey of curiosity and acceptance – through fairy tales with a geeky twist, the histories of hidden heroes, and now, Dorktales lore stories! Our lore stories take you deeper into our anything-is-possible world-building. The Magical Doorway—our very first lore story–was inspired by our listener friend, Gael who asked, “How did Mr. Jonathan and Mr. Redge meet?”CONVERSATION STARTERS: A lore story is an opportunity to build fantastical immersive worlds, explain backstories, and breathe life into our expansive imaginations. After listening to this story, here are some questions you can ask:

• What was your favorite part of learning about the land of Once Upon a Time?
• If you were able to visit, what would you like to do there? 
• If you lived in an imaginary land, what would it be called? 

MORE CONVERSATION STARTERS AND ACTIVITIES: Grab our FREE Dorktales+ Portal for cool conversation starters, social-emotional guides, use-your-imagination activities, themed playlists and more: jonincharacter.com/portal

Go to the episode webpage: https://jonincharacter.com/the-magical-doorway   MR. REDGE’S HOTLINE ALERT! Our friend Jack from the Jack to the Future Podcast celebrated our 50th episode with us! He called our hotline because he’s curious to find out what Jonathan and Mr. Redge think about the future of storytelling and where they get all of their ideas. Learn more about Jack: https://linktr.ee/JtothefutureYOUR KIDS’ QUESTIONS could earn a shout out, inspire a future episode, or get featured in our Mr. Redge’s Hotline segment! Ways to contact us: https://jonincharacter.com/contact-the-podcast/Visit the Dorktales Storytime Podcast website: https://jonincharacter.com/dorktales-storytime-podcast/CREDITS: This episode has been a Jonincharacter production. Today’s story was written by Molly Murphy and performed by Jonathan C

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Now, go be the hero of your own story and we’ll see you next once-upon-a-time!