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December 27, 2022 1:16 am  #1


75 Yrs. Ago Tuesday: Howdy Doody Premieres On NBC

It's an anniversary that only a few of us can possibly remember - the premiere of Howdy Doody on NBC. I wasn't born when the show began way back on this date (Dec. 27, 1947) but I do dimly recall it just before it went off the air in 1960, when Clarabell The Clown spoke for the first and only time on screen. (The TV Guide listing for that historic broadcast is shown below.)

In this wonderful article, Toronto TV critic and author Bill Brioux looks back at the first real kids TV show and the fact it became so popular in its '47 debut that it spawned a Canadian version after we finally got television in this country some five years later. 

Some here, myself included, may remember when the show briefly became a sensation on college campuses in the 70s, driven by a wave of graduating Baby Boomers who remembered it as a daily part of their childhood. It allowed creator "Buffalo" Bob Smith to start touring universities and colleges with a show honouring the legacy. There were even a few LPs released of both old and new material (the covers are pictured below.) And a new syndicated Howdy Doody was created with an aged Smith as the centerpiece with the original puppet. But by then, the magic had long gone and modern kids weren't having any of it. 

The revival was short-lived, but it's what I remember best.

So kids, what time is it? It's 75 years later to the day. But to some, it seems like only yesterday. 

Howdy Doody at 75: Celebrating the Legacy of Television’s First Hit Series 




 

December 27, 2022 1:19 am  #2


Re: 75 Yrs. Ago Tuesday: Howdy Doody Premieres On NBC

Here's the final scene with Clarabell's famous last words. Still sends a shiver up my spine all these years later. 

     Thread Starter
 

December 27, 2022 11:08 am  #3


Re: 75 Yrs. Ago Tuesday: Howdy Doody Premieres On NBC

In the article, Brioux mentions that the original puppet was hideous and replaced. What he doesn't say is that the original designer got into a huge dispute over merchandising with Bob Smith, took the marionette and walked out just hours before the show was set to start. And that's why they had to make excuses for where "Howdy" went. 

He wasn't wrong about the grotesqueness of the original puppet. Here's a look at what the first H.D. looked like. It would have been enough to scare kids away!

     Thread Starter
 

December 27, 2022 5:52 pm  #4


Re: 75 Yrs. Ago Tuesday: Howdy Doody Premieres On NBC

Of course in Canada back then, we had to have our own version - so we had Timber Tom (Tom Kneebone) instead of Buffalo Bob.  But Clarabelle, Mr. Bluster Dilly Dally and Howdy were all there as well.  Even legendary actor James Doohan (Star Trek's Scotty) was on the Canadian version briefly as was Captain Kirk himself, William Shatner.The Canadian Howdy Doody Show=small[edit]The Canadian Howdy Doody Show was produced by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, and first aired on November 15, 1954. The CBC built its own Doodyville in a Toronto studio, and the show was set in Canada’s north. It was more low-budget than its American counterpart, with less raucous plots and fewer villainous villains, as well as a more educational orientation.Most of the puppet characters, including Phineas T. Bluster, the cranky mayor and chief killjoy of Doodyville, Dilly Dally, a foolish carpenter who was usually the butt of Bluster's plots, Flub-a-dub, a beast with a duck's head, cat's whiskers, and the parts of several other animals, Heidi Doody, Howdy's sister, and Howdy himself, of course, were retained from the U.S. production.But It had some major differences from its American cousin. Other puppets included Percival, a parrot, and Mr. X, who zipped through time and space in his "whatsis box." The show had Howdy and Clarabell, but most of the human performers differed in the CBC version. There was no Buffalo Bob, for instance. The show's host was Timber Tom, a forest ranger, played by Peter Mews.Mews later appeared in the films The UnforeseenFolio and First Performance. He also appeared on television in the 1954 production of Delilah, and the 1974 mini-series The National Dream. One of his most notable works was as Matthew Cuthbert in the Charlottetown Festival’s production of Anne of Green Gables, which he played for over twenty years. Peter Mews died on November 24, 1984, at the age of 63.Clarabell was played by Alfie Scopp. Like the American Clarabell, he communicated in mime, by honking horns on his belt, and by squirting seltzer.Scopp was born in London England in 1919, and came to Canada with his family when they immigrated to Montreal. Scopp has had a long and glorious career in both television and film. One of his most notable roles was the bookseller Avram in the 1971 film Fiddler on the Roof. He is also known for being the voice of “Charlie-in-the-Box” on the 1964 television Christmas special, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.Toby Tarnow played Princess Pan of the Forest, generally referred to as Pan. Tarnow was born in Gravelbourg Saskatchewan in 1937. She started studying acting at the Lorne Green Academy of Radio Arts at the age of eight, and by the age of ten she was already performing professionally on CBC radio. In 1954, she became the first actress to play Anne in the live televised production of the musical adaptation of Anne of Green Gables.Following her role as Princess Pan on Howdy Doody, she had a recurring role on the CBC children’s program Mr. Dressup (the spinoff from Fred Rogers’ Misterrogers, after he took his neighborhood to Pittsburgh).  Tarnow’s wide career encompassed radio, television, film, theater, and writing.After moving to the United States she founded the Riverbend School of Theater Arts for the Boys and Girls Club in New Hampshire. In 2010 she was awarded the Children and Youth Theater Award by the New Hampshire Theater Awards.Barbara Hamilton was Willow the Witch, an absent-minded white witch with a good heart. Known for her work on Canadian stage and television, she was once labelled the funniest woman in Canada.Born in Kingston Ontario, Hamilton attended the University of Toronto before embarking on a career in theatre arts. Her first big break came with a role in Arsenic and Old Lace at Toronto's historic Royal Alexandra Theatre. From there, she went on to perform in theatres across the country, in works that ranged from classical tragedies to modern comedies.She originated the role of Marilla Cuthbert in both the Canadian and London West End productions of Anne of Green Gables, and was later a regular on the CBC’s Road to Avonlea, and appeared in many other roles in film and television.[citation needed]Larry Mann played good-natured pirate Cap'n Scuttlebutt. In Canada, the Cap’n was a live character, unlike the American Cap’n, which was a puppet. Mann was also the voice of Flub-a-Dub on the show.Larry Mann was one of those character actors whose face and acting you’d always recognize. Born in Toronto on December 18, 1922, Mann was a disc jockey on radio station 1050 CHUM before he began his acting career. In his four decades of performing, Mann’s many credits included Get SmartGunsmokeThe Man from UncleHill Street Blues, and The Dukes of Hazzard, to mention just a few of his TV appearances. Two of his most prominent movie roles were In the Heat of the Night (1967) and The Sting (1973). Larry Mann died in Los Angeles California on January 6, 2014, at the age of 91.Another famous person that appeared on the Canadian Howdy was the famous singer and later Broadway star Robert Goulet. He played the character Trapper Pierre.The Canadian show had one other Princess, named Haida, who had the powers of a Medicine Man. The character was played by actress Caryl McBain. Other characters on the show included Jean Cavall as Papa La Touke and Drew Thompson as Mendel Mason.Some sources credit James Doohan (Scotty on the original Star Trek) as being the first host of the show, playing Ranger Bill for a short time at the beginning of the series. As the story goes, after the chief forest ranger called him away to fight a forest fire in November 1954, Timber Tom, played by Peter Mews, took his place. However, in his autobiography Doohan never credits himself in the role. And the show’s first public episode was November 15, so his time on the show was probably very short-lived.Another actress started out playing Princess Pan in 1954. That was Maxine Miller, who later went on to play Nurse Farmer in the first three seasons of Misterrogers, the previously mentioned Canadian precursor to Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood in the U.S. She has since appeared in over 120 movies and television shows.A young William Shatner (later to go on to fame as Star Trek’s Captain Kirk). would in 1954 be featured on the show as the character Ranger Bob.[34][/url]One of the shows characters was named Mr. X. Not to be confused with the American Howdy Doody character with the same name, the Canadian Mr. X would teach history to the children watching. To do so, he would travel through space and time in what he called his “Whatsis Box”.The actors who voiced the different puppet characters on the Canadian Howdy Doody Show included Claude Rae (Howdy Doody, Phineas T. Bluster and Mr. X), Jacqueline White (Howdy Doody), Norma MacMillan (Heidi Doody), Donna Miller (Prunella Bluster and Heidi Doody), and Jack Mather (Dilly Dally, Percival Parrot, and other characters). And Larry Mann, who already had experience working with puppets with CBC’s Uncle Chichimus, was the voice of Flub-a-dub. The puppeteers who worked the strings were Hal and Renée Marquette.In addition to the adventures of the citizens of Doodyville and the Peanut Gallery, the show also featured film presentation on nature or travel. The scripts were adapted by Cliff Braggins, who also wrote music for the show. Quentin Maclean provided organ music. The program was produced by Paddy Sampson. After nearly five years on the air, the CBC decided to cancel the show to develop children's programming of its own. The Canadian Howdy Doody’s last broadcast was on June 26, 1959.[url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howdy_Doody#cite_note-35][35][/url][url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howdy_Doody#cite_note-36][36][/url][url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howdy_Doody#cite_note-37][37]

 

December 27, 2022 6:27 pm  #5


Re: 75 Yrs. Ago Tuesday: Howdy Doody Premieres On NBC

I think the article above is from Wikipedia, and it contains some interesting facts - including the tie to CHUM. The formatting didn't quite work in Doug's post, so here it is in a more legible form. 

--------------------------------- 

Of course in Canada back then, we had to have our own version - so we had Timber Tom (Tom Kneebone) instead of Buffalo Bob.  But Clarabelle, Mr. Bluster Dilly Dally and Howdy were all there as well.  Even legendary actor James Doohan (Star Trek's Scotty) was on the Canadian version briefly as was Captain Kirk himself, William Shatner.

The Canadian Howdy Doody Show was produced by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, and first aired on November 15, 1954. The CBC built its own Doodyville in a Toronto studio, and the show was set in Canada’s north. It was more low-budget than its American counterpart, with less raucous plots and fewer villainous villains, as well as a more educational orientation.

Most of the puppet characters, including Phineas T. Bluster, the cranky mayor and chief killjoy of Doodyville, Dilly Dally, a foolish carpenter who was usually the butt of Bluster's plots, Flub-a-dub, a beast with a duck's head, cat's whiskers, and the parts of several other animals, Heidi Doody, Howdy's sister, and Howdy himself, of course, were retained from the U.S. production.

But It had some major differences from its American cousin. Other puppets included Percival, a parrot, and Mr. X, who zipped through time and space in his "whatsis box." The show had Howdy and Clarabell, but most of the human performers differed in the CBC version. There was no Buffalo Bob, for instance. The show's host was Timber Tom, a forest ranger, played by Peter Mews.

Mews later appeared in the films The UnforeseenFolio and First Performance. He also appeared on television in the 1954 production of Delilah, and the 1974 mini-series The National Dream. One of his most notable works was as Matthew Cuthbert in the Charlottetown Festival’s production of Anne of Green Gables, which he played for over twenty years. Peter Mews died on November 24, 1984, at the age of 63.

Clarabell was played by Alfie Scopp. Like the American Clarabell, he communicated in mime, by honking horns on his belt, and by squirting seltzer.

Scopp was born in London England in 1919, and came to Canada with his family when they immigrated to Montreal. Scopp has had a long and glorious career in both television and film. One of his most notable roles was the bookseller Avram in the 1971 film Fiddler on the Roof. He is also known for being the voice of “Charlie-in-the-Box” on the 1964 television Christmas special, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.

Toby Tarnow played Princess Pan of the Forest, generally referred to as Pan. Tarnow was born in Gravelbourg Saskatchewan in 1937. She started studying acting at the Lorne Green Academy of Radio Arts at the age of eight, and by the age of ten she was already performing professionally on CBC radio. In 1954, she became the first actress to play Anne in the live televised production of the musical adaptation of Anne of Green Gables.

Following her role as Princess Pan on Howdy Doody, she had a recurring role on the CBC children’s program Mr. Dressup (the spinoff from Fred Rogers' Misterrogers, after he took his neighborhood to Pittsburgh).  Tarnow’s wide career encompassed radio, television, film, theater, and writing.

After moving to the United States she founded the Riverbend School of Theater Arts for the Boys and Girls Club in New Hampshire. In 2010 she was awarded the Children and Youth Theater Award by the New Hampshire Theater Awards.

Barbara Hamilton was Willow the Witch, an absent-minded white witch with a good heart. Known for her work on Canadian stage and television, she was once labelled the funniest woman in Canada. Born in Kingston Ontario, Hamilton attended the University of Toronto before embarking on a career in theatre arts. Her first big break came with a role in Arsenic and Old Lace at Toronto's historic Royal Alexandra Theatre. From there, she went on to perform in theatres across the country, in works that ranged from classical tragedies to modern comedies.

She originated the role of Marilla Cuthbert in both the Canadian and London West End productions of Anne of Green Gables, and was later a regular on the CBC’s Road to Avonlea, and appeared in many other roles in film and television.

Larry Mann played good-natured pirate Cap'n Scuttlebutt. In Canada, the Cap’n was a live character, unlike the American Cap’n, which was a puppet. Mann was also the voice of Flub-a-Dub on the show. Larry Mann was one of those character actors whose face and acting you’d always recognize. Born in Toronto on December 18, 1922, Mann was a disc jockey on radio station 1050 CHUM before he began his acting career. In his four decades of performing, Mann’s many credits included Get SmartGunsmokeMan from UncleHill Street Blues, and The Dukes of Hazzard, to mention just a few of his TV appearances.

Two of his most prominent movie roles were In the Heat of the Night(1967) and The Sting (1973). Larry Mann died in Los Angeles California on January 6, 2014, at the age of 91.

Another famous person that appeared on the Canadian Howdy was the famous singer and later Broadway star Robert Goulet. He played the character Trapper Pierre.

The Canadian show had one other Princess, named Haida, who had the powers of a Medicine Man. The character was played by actress Caryl McBain. Other characters on the show included Jean Cavall as Papa La Touke and Drew Thompson as Mendel Mason.

Some sources credit James Doohan (Scotty on the original Star Trek) as being the first host of the show, playing Ranger Bill for a short time at the beginning of the series. As the story goes, after the chief forest ranger called him away to fight a forest fire in November 1954, Timber Tom, played by Peter Mews, took his place. However, in his autobiography Doohan never credits himself in the role. And the show’s first public episode was November 15, so his time on the show was probably very short-lived.

Another actress started out playing Princess Pan in 1954. That was Maxine Miller, who later went on to play Nurse Farmer in the first three seasons of Misterrogers, the previously mentioned Canadian precursor to Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood in the U.S. She has since appeared in over 120 movies and television shows.

A young William Shatner (later to go on to fame as Star Trek’s Captain Kirk). would in 1954 be featured on the show as the character Ranger Bob.

One of the shows characters was named Mr. X. Not to be confused with the American Howdy Doody character with the same name, the Canadian Mr. X would teach history to the children watching. To do so, he would travel through space and time in what he called his “Whatsis Box”.

The actors who voiced the different puppet characters on the Canadian Howdy Doody Show included Claude Rae (Howdy Doody, Phineas T. Bluster and Mr. X), Jacqueline White (Howdy Doody), Norma MacMillan (Heidi Doody), Donna Miller (Prunella Bluster and Heidi Doody), and Jack Mather (Dilly Dally, Percival Parrot, and other characters). And Larry Mann, who already had experience working with puppets with CBC’s Uncle Chichimus, was the voice of Flub-a-dub. The puppeteers who worked the strings were Hal and Renée Marquette.

In addition to the adventures of the citizens of Doodyville and the Peanut Gallery, the show also featured film presentation on nature or travel. The scripts were adapted by Cliff Braggins, who also wrote music for the show. Quentin Maclean provided organ music. The program was produced by Paddy Sampson. After nearly five years on the air, the CBC decided to cancel the show to develop children's programming of its own. The Canadian Howdy Doody’s last broadcast was on June 26, 1959.

     Thread Starter