David the Gnome - Tiny woodland creature featured on the animated children's series THE WORLD OF DAVID THE GNOME/NIK/1987-88.

David the Gnome (voice of Tom Bosley) is a 275-years-old bearded wood gnome and a healer of things. He lives in a tree and protects his family and forest friends from the wicked trolls living nearby.

When trouble came, David always tried to solve problems using a peaceful solution, if possible. David the Gnome traveled through the woods on a fox named Swift who was summoned by whistling.

Other characters included David's 200-year-old wife, Lisa (Jane Woods), Holler (A.J. Henderson), Susan (Barbera Pogemiller), King (Richard Dumont), Pit (Adrian Knight), Pat (Rob Roy), and Pot (Marc Denis).

The 26-episode series (a Cinar Films Production in association with Miramax Films and B.R.B. International, S.A.) was based on the popular books "The Gnomes" and "The Secret of the Gnomes" written by Dutch authors Rien Poortvliet and Wil Huygen.

The series was narrated by Christopher Plummer and later aired on the Learning Channel from 1996-1998. It began with the theme song lyrics:

Look around you.
There are many things to see,
That some would say could never be.
These things I know.
It's true and I will tell you so.
They are there to see, if you believe.

Trolls and wizards
and fairy kings,
Birds that talk and fish that sing.
And if your heart is true,
Then you will find them too.
In every wish and dream and happy home,
You will find a Kingdom of the Gnomes.
 

In the original books that inspired the series, David the Gnome announced:

"My name is David and I am a wood gnome...I am only 15 cm tall, but my cap makes me look much taller. I wear a red one so that my friends the birds don't mistake me for a mouse as I scurry through the forest after nightfall...We gnomes are small and light and can move through the woodlands remarkably quickly, jumping over obstacles with the greatest of ease. The animals are our neighbors and our neighborhood is the world. Even if nobody sees us, we are watching you!"