LeVar Burton is an actor, a philanthropist, a rainbow advocate, and an all-around good guy. He played Geordie La Forge on Star Trek: The Next Generation, and, in addition to being the finest Chief Engineer in all of Starfleet, taught everyone an important lesson about privacy. (More than once.)
As a children’s literacy advocate, he’s used the world-famous television program Reading Rainbow to bring smiles to the faces and brains of millions of children. And, you may remember, he recently used Kickstarter to raise millions of dollars in order to bring Reading Rainbow into schools free of charge.
Plus, he was pretty good in Roots. So there’s that, as well.
But now, we know him in a slightly different capacity. Ladies and gentlemen, behold: the wonder of acclaimed thespian LeVar Burton, and his forceful, nuanced rendition…of Go the F*** to Sleep.
It really is well-done. Whereas Samuel L. Jackson’s version was all power and no finesse, Burton dances over the delicate moments in between expletives, and then lays into the swear words with all the vigor of King Lear ranting and raving while Goneril and Regan stand coldly by.
The audience of adult-children is a nice touch, too. No sense reading the thing to an empty room. And children have but a nascent understanding of the power of language.
In related news, the audiobook of Louis C.K. reading Go the F*** to Sleep‘s sequel, Wake the F*** Up, It’s Time for School, is scheduled for a Black Friday release. Get your stockings ready.
