Once upon a time, when the world was full of colorful flowers and gianttrees spread their arms far above the green meadows, when birds sang fromthe towers of elegant castles and knights battled bravely for their Kingsthere lived a frog named Fargo Frog.
One day Fargo hopped deep into the forest looking for flies. He was sointent on his pursuit of one particular fly that he didn't notice that hehad gone further into the forest than he had ever gone before. He didn'tnotice that the trees had begun to change, that the tall, strong oaks hadbeen replaced with the tangled branches and twisted vines of the ForbiddenForest. It wasn't until the soft bird songs had given way to the wail ofthe wind and the cackle of ravens that he looked up. And then he heard avoice so crackly and hoarse that he wouldn't have believed it had come froma human being if he hadn't set eyes on her himself. There, in front of him,was the ugliest woman he had ever seen.
"Aye! You are such an ugly green color and you are walking in my garden,"she cried. The long black hairs on her nose twitched as she spoke. "Howdare something so hideous tread among my bulbs and plants."Her laugh was so shrill and dry that Fargo tucked his head in his arms to block itout. "You will pay for this mistake!" she wailed.
"I - I didn't mean to enter..." began Fargo.
But the old woman didn't listen. She stretched out a pointy finger andflicked it at Fargo's ear. "You would make a fine addition to my stock ofingredients for my potions." She scratched her hairy nose. "Mmmm, but thatwould be too kind a fate for you. No! You will learn your lesson the hardway."
Fargo swallowed hard. The old woman pulled a long twisted stick from hercape. Raising her shoulders toward her ears and waving the stick wildlyabove her tangled hair, she uttered the words:
"Green is a color so ugly and bland
I can't have it ruining the face of this land
Be gone color green, be gone blue and red
make everything brown, make every thing dead.Orange will turn black, pink will turn grey
for treading near witches,
Here's the price you must pay.
Each day a new color will wither and fade,
replaced by drab brown or a lovely grey shade.Horrid lavender and mauve, hideous rose,
there'll be no more color where anything grows.
Starting with you, you green little squirt..."
She pointed her stick directly at Fargo.
"I'm turning YOU into the color of dirt."
A plume of purple smoke suddenly filled the air. Fargo's eyes burned.When the smoke dissipated, a tear fell to the ground. From head to eachwebbed toe, Fargo was brown. He had to wiggle his toes to see where theyended and where the brown earth began.
"Marvelous," cried the old woman. "I've outdone myself with thisone. This is a spell so powerful that it would take the King to undo it.But he will never know how. And even if he did find out the magic words,the Royal Majesty would never be caught dead wrapping his tongue aroundsuch silly words as 'Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru'." The witch broke into a cackleso long, so loud, so hideous that Fargo hopped as fast as he could out ofthe woods.
Each day, just as the wicked witch had said, a different color faded fromthe landscape. The colorful cherry blossoms changed to black; the white andgold daisies turned grey; the grass faded to brown.
I have to tell the King, thought Fargo. I must somehow get him to say themagic words 'Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru' before everything beautiful isdestroyed. But getting in to see the King was not a matter to be takenlightly. The stone walls of the castle were built high and thick, higherthan ever a frog could leap. And the castle was surrounded by a giant moat.Inside the wooden gate were guards with strict orders to allow no-onein who did not already have an appointment to speak with the King.
Fargo sighed and sat down on a grey lily-pad to think. But hisconcentration was broken. .
"My flowers, what is wrong with you? Why are you turning brown? I havegiven you water and worms for your soil, and yet you are dying. I don'tknow what to do." A heavy sigh escaped from the lips of a young girl."Everything in my Father's kingdom is dying." And then she began to cry.
Upon hearing these last words, Fargo immediately hopped into the girl'sbasket. For if her father was the King, then she must be the Princess, andthat meant she would eventually be going back inside the palace walls.
And indeed she did; whereupon Fargo jumped from the basket and began thetask of finding the King.
"But how am I ever going to find him in this maze?" Fargo sighed. For dayshe hopped up one set of stairs and down another set of stairs. Each time hefound himself up at the top of a lookout tower or in one of the manygigantic ballrooms. Fargo skid across the marble floor of the throne room,but the King was not on his throne. He leapt into the dining room, but theKing was not at his supper. He hid in the velvet drapery of the music hall,but the King was not there being entertained by the court musicians.
He leapt here, he leapt there. One leap even found him in the cook'skitchen, but the King was not there either. "Mildred, how many times do Ihave to tell you to sweep the dirt from around the cupboard doors," thecook hollered. Fargo found himself suddenly swept up in a bundle of pricklystraw and flung into a hallway against yet another grand staircase.
"You will carry the King's warm milk to his chambers. You will turn downhis bedding, you will draw his bath." A tall, long-faced man stood at thefoot of the steps spewing out orders to a line of maidens. Of course, thought Fargo. TheKing's bed chambers! He hopped up onto the bed tray andslipped quietly under the napkin.
Fargo waited while the King washed and shaved and dressed and finallycrawled under the bed sheets and closed his eyes. Soon the sheets beganmoving up and down, up and down with regular, heavy breaths. Fargo hadpositioned himself in the folds of the King's pillow. He crept close to theKing's ear and whispered the magic words. "Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru." TheKing's chest continued to move up and down, up and down."Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru," Fargo repeated louder. The King rustled under hissheets and brushed at his ear. Fargo repeated the magic words. "FribbedyFropidy-Fru." Suddenly the King gave a snort and opened one eye, but he didnot say the magic words.
"What is all that noise?" said the King, cocking his head. Fargo could hearit too, a far off crying echoing through the walls of the palace. It wasthe same sound that he had heard every night since he had come to thepalace, and each night it grew louder. There was no use in whispering themagic words again, the King was already throwing on his dressing gown andheading for the door.
"How can I sleep with all this noise?" hollered the King. "What is it?"
"It is the Princess," answered the long-faced attendant. "She cries day andnight because the trees are losing their leaves, and the meadows areturning brown. She is afraid that nothing in the gardens will ever growagain."
"I cannot have my daughter so sad," said the King. "And I need to have somequiet around here so I can get some sleep and attend to my royal duties."He glanced at the writing table. "Take a memo. 'I, the King, hereby declarethat the first man that stops my daughter from crying will take her as hisbride'."
News of the proclamation spread fast; all of the eligible young men in theKingdom lined up outside the palace gates. One by one they were let in; oneby one they were dismissed. For all their jokes, riddles, songs, dances,juggling, tickling, stories and funny faces, none of them could dry thetears of the Princess.
"Isn't there anyone who can make her stop crying?" demanded the King. Heput his head in his hands, facing the floor.
"I believe I can."
"Who said that?" the King glanced around.
" Here, on the floor in front of you. Allow me to introduce myself YourMajesty. I am Fargo Frog."
"You are nothing but a dirty brown frog. How can you help my daughter. No,I won't hear of it. A thing as ugly as you will surely make her cry all themore."
"You really have nothing to lose, so you should at least let me try,"croaked Fargo. Fargo thought the King ugly too! But after all the Kinghadn't slept in days.
Fargo hopped to the window where the Princess sat gazing at the drab,grey-brown landscape and cleared his throat. He tapped his brown webbedfoot on the window sill and began to sing.
When the day's got you down,
'cause the world's turning brown,
and your crying your eyes till their blue,
then kick up your feet,
feel the rhythm and beat
of the Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru.Sing Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru
Sing Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru
Clap your hands when you sing
and the world will be spring
sing Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru.
As Fargo sang and tapped his toes, a crowd began gathering outside theKing's court. The King scrunched up his face and scratched his head "Wherehave I heard that before?"
When Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru is cried out,
The world will no longer be brown.
The earth will turn green,
A sight to be seen,
And a smile will bloom from your frown.Sing Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru,
Sing Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru,
Shout the words, let them ring,
Like a bird on a wing,
Just sing Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru.
Soon the room was filled with music. The maidens began chanting, thelong-faced man began stamping, the jester began strumming his guitar,outside the King's guards began singing along.
To re-color the land,
The means are at hand,
Cry Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru,
Three simple words,
Paint the trees and the birds,
Back to the good and the true.Sing Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru.
Sing Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru,
Shout the words, let them ring,
From the lips of the King,
That's Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru.
But through all the music and merriment, the Princess continued to cry andbawl out the window.
"Enough," cried the King. "Stop this nonsense. You have failed with yoursilly Wobbily Gobbily Goo song, so out with you."
"That's Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru," corrected Fargo.
"Frobbily Bobbily Shoe," said the King.
"Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru," said Fargo. "Fribbedy - Fropidy - Fru"
"I don't care what you call it," said the King. "Blobbily Frobbily Doo,Slobbily Plobbily Poo, Floppidy Glopidy Glue."
"Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru,"cried Fargo. "Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru," cried the maidens, and the long-facedman and the guards outside.
"Alright, Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru," yelled the King. "Now go!"
As soon as the King uttered the magic words, the Princess turned from thewindow, a wide grin on her wet face. No tears fell from her eyes. "LookDaddy," she said and pointed out the window.
The ground outside had lost it's brown hue and was now green and lush. Theflowers in the garden below were popping with pink and lavender. A cheer ofjoy rose from the palace walls. The princess looked down at Fargo who hadturned an emerald shade of green and gave him a kiss.
The King, of course, was true to his word and Fargo was wed to theprincess, who's favorite game happened to be leap-frog, so they got alongjust fine. The King had a bit of trouble adjusting to a green son-in-law;he continued to be grumpy whenever he saw him. But every once in a whileFargo could hear the King humming 'Fribbedy-Fropidy-Fru,' and he kneweverything would end happily ever after!