'The First Snow of Fraggle Rock' special airs Dec. 5 on Apple TV

John Tartaglia grew up watching the 1980s series “Fraggle Rock.”

The show was an escape and the lessons learned from the series became a part of his life.

Fast-forward four decades, and Tartaglia is bringing the Fraggles to a new generation.

“I grew up watching the original series and it was what literally started my entire career,” Tartaglia says. “I saw ‘Fraggle Rock,’ and I was like, ‘That’s what I want to do.’ To get a chance now to live in this world and wake up in the morning, and it’s part of my every day, it’s my responsibility and it’s my privilege to continue that forward.”

Tartaglia says being part of the series is “kind of like hanging out with old friends that have always been there from your childhood.”

“Fraggle Rock” is a children’s musical fantasy puppet television series about interconnected societies of Muppet creatures, which were created by Jim Henson.

The story is set in the house belonging to a woman named Doc and her dog Sprocket. Inside the home, there is a hole that leads into Fraggle Rock. The Fraggles — Gobo, Mokey, Wembley, Boober and Red — live their lives within Fraggle Rock, experiencing different adventures along the way, interacting with Doozers and avoiding the Gorgs while harvesting radishes.

The original series premiered in 1983 and ran for five seasons.In 2022, Apple TV began airing the series revival called “Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock.”

On Friday, Dec. 5, “The First Snow of Fraggle Rock,” will premiere on Apple TV.

According to Apple TV, in the standalone special, the Fraggles eagerly await the first snow of the season and all the traditions it brings. When only a single snowflake arrives and Gobo, voiced and puppeteered by Tartaglia, can’t write the yearly holiday song everyone is expecting, the season is thrown off course.

Gobo journeys to the human world — or as the Fraggles refer to it, “Outer Space” — to find some unexpected musical inspiration.

Being involved with “Fraggle Rock,” Tartaglia says he’s learned many lessons from Gobo.

“Gobo has made me braver as a person,” he says. “Playing a character that is all about bravery and not being afraid of what’s down the tunnel has changed me. I can definitely be that person who’s a little bit afraid of the unknown. Gobo isn’t afraid of things going wrong, he will be fine and faces it head on and together with people. I think also getting to play a character that is so joyful and makes people so happy has made me value him even more. He’s made me happier and braver.”

The first snow has taken more than 40 years to get to Fraggle Rock and Tartaglia is excited to be part of it.

He describes the filming as “beautiful.”

“The snow scene is one of the last things we shot for the special,” he says. “It was a day where we were all there. There were 25 puppeteers on set, full crew. It was our biggest set and they had these snow machines hooked up. A lot of the reaction you see in the special is genuine because it really looked that magical and felt that special.”

Tartaglia wants audiences to enjoy the magic that they’ve created, as they keep Henson’s vision alive.

“I know a lot of my moral compass as a human has an awareness of the importance of community, tolerance, diversity, environmentalism and understanding,” he says. “Everything is so much bigger than you. In the original series, that was exactly what those stories were about. I still think we need those lessons. As a new generation grows up on ‘Fraggle Rock,’ it helps build that community of understanding.”

'The First Snow of Fraggle Rock' special airs Dec. 5 on Apple TV