Pioneers of Television (2008–…): Season 2, Episode 4 - Local Kids' TV - full transcript
In the early years of U.S. television, virtually every local station had a locally produced program aimed at children. For the most part, they had several things in common: they were broadcast live, operated on a shoestring budget, had a central character (often a clown), included puppets and a live studio audience made up of local children. Shows such as Bozo the Clown (1959) and The Wallace and Ladmo Show (1954) ( also known as the Wallace and Ladmo Show) made celebrities of Chuck McCann, Pat McMahon and Willard Scott. By the 1960s, Jim Henson had his own take on puppets, which he called Muppets, which became nationally known with the advent of Sesame Street (1969). One major innovation was to franchise a children's show for local production. Perhaps the most successful program of this type was Romper Room and Friends (1953) which at its peak was being produced in over 100 locations. For Bill Cosby, his Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids (1972) was the first platform for African-American kids.
Narrator: IN TV'S
PIONEERING DECADES,
NEARLY EVERY TOWN WITH
A TV STATION
HAD ITS OWN
LOCAL KIDS' PROGRAM.
McCann: HE MADE
THOSE PUPPETS LIVE.
THEY WERE ALIVE.
KIDS ARE REALLY SHARP.
THEY WANT TO LAUGH,
AND IF IT'S FUNNY, IT'S FUNNY.
Woman: THERE WAS A FORMULA.
IT WAS A SUCCESSFUL FORMULA.
SOME OF US ARE
ABSOLUTELY ADORABLE.
SOME OF US ARE UGLY,
AND WE LIKE IT THAT WAY.
IT WAS KIND OF LIKE THAT CLOWN
ON "THE SIMPSONS,"
ONLY THIS WAS BEFORE
"THE SIMPSONS."
WHEN YOU SEE BOZO ON TV,
HE'S THAT BIG, AND THEN WHEN YOU
SAW HIM IN LIFE,
HE WAS ME.
Rogers: AND I THOUGHT,
"THIS COULD BE
A WONDERFUL TOOL
FOR EDUCATION."
Narrator: TOGETHER, THEY CREATED
A NEW FORM OF ENTERTAINMENT...
LOCAL TV FOR CHILDREN.
THEY ARE THE PIONEERS
OF TELEVISION.
Man: HOW DO YOU FEEL?
GOOD!
GOOD!
GOOD!
"BOZO'S CIRCUS"
IS ON THE AIR!
Narrator: THEY CREATED
THE CHARACTERS
THAT SHAPED OUR CHILDHOODS.
Ringmaster: WITH BOZO,
THE WORLD'S GREATEST CLOWN!
HEY, BOYS AND GIRLS,
IT'S BOZO!
LET ME INTRODUCE YOU
TO A FRIEND OF MINE.
HERE'S KERMIT.
HI, THERE.
Narrator: GIVEN A BLANK SLATE,
THEY CREATED SOME OF
TELEVISION'S MOST
INVENTIVE PROGRAMS.
BUT YOU'RE NOT
AS UGLY AS YOU LOOK.
OH, THANKS.
HEH-HEH.
MY MOTTO WAS, "DON'T DO WHAT
ANYBODY ELSE IS DOING."
Narrator: THEY ENDURED
THE CHALLENGES
OF LOW BUDGETS
AND IMPOSSIBLE SITUATIONS.
I WENT TO THE SALVATION ARMY
AND I PULLED ALL MY
COSTUMES OUT OF THERE.
IT WASN'T THAT COMPLICATED
IN THOSE DAYS.
ALL YOU... YOU DID...
WHAT YOU SAW IS WHAT YOU GOT.
DOING A KIDS' SHOW IS...
I MEAN, YOU'VE GOT TO BE
ON TOP OF YOUR GAME
AND YOU HAVE TO REALLY
KEEP UP WITH THE KIDS,
BECAUSE THEY'LL TAKE OVER.
ONE OF THE LITTLE BOYS
WAS KIND OF ACTING UP,
AND I HAVE TO THROW THIS IN...
I DON'T BELIEVE
IT WAS LEONARDO DiCAPRlO.
HE CLAIMS THAT HE WAS
KICKED OFF THE SHOW,
BUT WE NEVER DID THAT.
I WAS PLAYING THE BAD GUY,
YOU KNOW?
AND THE KIDS DIDN'T LIKE IT,
AND WHEN I CAME BY,
THEY THREW STONES AT ME,
I SWEAR TO GOODNESS.
I HAD TO RUN FOR MY LIFE!
Narrator: THEY FORGED
A RELATIONSHIP WITH THE AUDIENCE
UNLIKE ANYTHING TELEVISION
HAS EVER SEEN.
Woman: I LOVED IT.
I WOULD HAVE
DONE IT FOR NOTHING,
AND THEY PAID ME.
IT WAS SUCH A JOY,
SINCERELY SO.
I WAS BLESSED TO BE RIGHT PLACED
AT THE RIGHT TIME.
WHEE!
THIS SMALL PIECE OF RUBBER
FILLED WITH HELIUM
IS NOT THE GREATEST THING
IN THE WORLD FOR A KING
TO HAVE FLOATING
AROUND HIS NOSE.
Rogers: I'D JUST LIKE
TO BE REMEMBERED
FOR BEING A COMPASSIONATE
HUMAN BEING
WHO HAPPENED TO BE FORTUNATE
ENOUGH TO BE BORN AT A TIME
WHEN THERE WAS THIS FABULOUS
THING CALLED TELEVISION.
Narrator: IN TIME,
THEIR EFFORTS WOULD GIVE RISE
TO THE NATIONAL CHILDREN'S SHOWS
WE ENJOY TODAY,
BUT THE FOUNDATION WAS LAID
AT LOCAL STATIONS
ACROSS AMERICA.
WELL, I FINALLY MADE IT.
I'VE GOT MY LOUNGING...
MY LOUNGING OUTFIT ON HERE.
THIS IS THE ONE I'M GOING TO
LOUNGE AROUND WITH.
Narrator: IN THE 1950s AND '60s,
LOCAL KIDS' SHOWS
REFLECTED THE COMMUNITY
IN A WAY NO NATIONAL SHOW
EVER COULD.
YOU KNOW, YOU CAN GO
AND SEE HAZEL
OVER AT 909 WEST LAKE STREET.
THAT'S THE UPTOWN PET HOTEL,
AND SHE'S THERE ALL THE TIME,
AIN'T YOU, HAZEL?
COME RIGHT IN HERE.
SHE'S SO GENTLE, YOU KNOW,
YOU CAN PUT YOUR WHOLE HAND
RIGHT IN HER MOUTH AND SHE DON'T
BITE IT OFF OR NOTHING.
AT LEAST NOT YET!
I'VE HEARD PEOPLE
ALL OVER CHICAGOLAND
TRYING TO GET TICKETS
TO THE WORLD SERIES.
HOW IN THE WORLD WOULD YOU TWO
SHOW UP WITH TWO TICKETS
TO TOMORROW'S
WORLD SERIES GAME?
THIS IS GOING TO BE
SOME LITTLE
DUTCH GIRLS.
OH, GEE, THAT'S NEAT!
I'D LOVE TO SEE
SOME DUTCH CHILDREN!
OH, WELL, TERRY,
YOU CAN SEE PEOPLE
FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD
RIGHT HERE.
DUTCHMEN AND FRENCHMEN
AND PEOPLE FROM INDIA OR IRAN.
WHERE SHOULD I
LOOK FOR THEM?
WELL, THE UNITED NATIONS
BUILDING
RIGHT HERE
IN NEW YORK CITY.
IT'S A WONDERFUL PLACE
TO VISIT, TOO.
WE DON'T?
NO, WE DON'T.
WOULD YOU LIKE TO GET THROUGH
A LOT OF MAIL?
YEAH, LET'S GO.
ALL RIGHTY-ROW, RAY.
FROM YOUR FRIEND JOEY,
HOW ABOUT THAT?
♪ JOEY, JOEY, JOEY ♪
JOEY IN CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.
GOOD TOWN, CHICAGO.
Narrator: PERSONALITIES
LIKE RAY RAYNER IN CHICAGO
WERE BELOVED, ALMOST LIKE
A MEMBER OF THE FAMILY.
THEY READ KIDS' LETTERS,
SHOWCASED STUDENT ART...
HERE YOU GO.
HE LIKES TO JUMP UP.
Narrator:
GOOFED AROUND WITH ANIMALS,
AND OFFERED ALL-IMPORTANT
INFORMATION
ABOUT SCHOOL CLOSINGS
ON SNOWY DAYS.
IT WAS A TIME WHEN
KIDS' SHOWS DIDN'T
HAVE TO BE FAST-PACED TO HOLD
A YOUNG PERSON'S ATTENTION.
I ASSUME I TAKE
THIS THING OFF FIRST,
BECAUSE MY FIRST STEP IS TO
"CUT MESH IN HALF LENGTHWISE."
Man: WOULD THE BACK ROW
STAND UP?
HI, EVERYBODY IN THE BACK ROW.
I'M CERTAINLY GLAD TO SEE YOU.
Narrator: FOR A GENERATION
OF AMERICANS,
THE OPPORTUNITY TO ACTUALLY JOIN
THE STUDIO AUDIENCE
OF THEIR FAVORITE SHOW
REMAINS A CHERISHED MEMORY.
King: BECAUSE
ONCE THEY SEE YOU
AND KNOW YOU'RE REAL,
YOU HAVE THEM FOREVER.
YOU'RE NOT JUST SOMEBODY
IN THIS LITTLE BOX.
YOU WOULD WRITE AWAY TO GET
TICKETS SIX MONTHS IN ADVANCE
AND THEN YOUR MOTHER
WOULD DRESS YOU UP
AND THE NEIGHBORS
WOULD GET IN THE CAR,
STATION WAGONS THEN,
AND THEY WOULD ALL SHOW UP
AT THE STUDIO
AND THEY HAD TO WAIT IN LINE
TO GET IN
AND THEY HAD LITTLE
SEATS TO SIT...
IT WAS A TV SHOW THAT
THE KIDS COULD VISIT
AND THEN GO HOME AND WATCH.
WE WERE LIVE, BUT THEY COULD
WATCH THE SHOW DURING THE WEEK.
AND THAT WAS
AN AWFUL LOT OF FUN.
SOMETHING LIKE THIS.
Narrator: FUN IT WAS,
AND NO CITY IN AMERICA
HAD MORE FUN
FOR A LONGER TIME
THAN PHOENIX, ARIZONA.
ALL RIGHT, WHY DON'T YOU
DEMONSTRATE FOR US NOW
THE WAY YOU FIGHT,
THE WAY YOU...
Narrator: THIS PHOENIX
KIDS' PROGRAM
CALLED "WALLACE AND LADMO"
RANKS AMONG
THE MOST POPULAR
LOCAL CHILDREN'S SHOWS
IN THE HISTORY OF
AMERICAN TELEVISION,
BEATING THE COMPETITION
FOR NEARLY 40 YEARS,
A SHOW THAT WASN'T AFRAID
TO LAMPOON ANYTHING.
NOW TRYING TO ATTACK
THE FRAME AND FACE HERE.
OKAY.
CRASH...
YOU CRASH SOMETIMES,
AND A LITTLE KICK.
YOU'RE TOUGH,
YOU ARE TOUGH.
Thompson: IT WAS A FUN JOB.
YEAH, I CAN'T THING OF
ANYTHING CONNECTED TO IT
THAT I DIDN'T LIKE.
OH, OUR SALARIES.
THAT'S THE ONLY THING.
THOSE CHEAPSKATES DOWN THERE
AT CHANNEL 5.
THEY WEREN'T TRYING
TO TEACH US ANYTHING,
THEY WEREN'T TRYING TO
GIVE US ANY MORALS
OR PRESENT ANY LESSONS,
THEY WERE JUST...
IT WAS JUST FOR LAUGHS.
Narrator: THE SERIES BEGAN
IN 1954 WITH JUST WALLACE
DOING BITS BY HIMSELF.
AH! AAAAH!
GLAD TO SEE YOU,
WHERE'VE YOU BEEN?
Narrator: WITHIN A FEW MONTHS,
WALLACE ADDED A SIDEKICK,
LADIMIR KWIATKOWSKI...
LADMO.
LADMO...
WHAT ARE YOU DOING?
WITH AN OCTOPUS.
OH.
WHOSE CHILDLIKE PERSONA
MADE HIM AN INSTANT HIT.
GLAD TO SEE YOU,
HELLO, THERE.
THE SHOW HIT FULL STRIDE
IN 1960 WHEN A YOUNG PAT McMAHON
TUNED IN "WALLACE AND LADMO"
FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME.
McMahon: AND MY
FIRST THOUGHT WAS,
"OH, NOT ANOTHER ONE OF THOSE
LOCAL KIDS' SHOWS
"WHERE SOMEBODY
IN THE SALES DEPARTMENT
"HAS A SOCK ON HIS HAND,
'HELLO, BOYS AND GIRLS, '
AND TELLS EVERYBODY
ABOUT DENTAL HEALTH."
I'M GOING TO TALK ABOUT
SEALTEST ICE CREAM.
Narrator: BUT THEN McMAHON SAW
WALLACE AND LADMO DO SOMETHING
COMPLETELY UNEXPECTED...
THEY RIDICULED THEIR SPONSOR.
GOOD, NOT GREAT,
BUT GOOD, YEAH.
WALLACE WOULD SOMETIMES KIND OF
MAKE FUN OF THE PRODUCT,
OR HE'D TRY AND DROP-KICK IT
SOMEWHERE OR SOMETHING,
AND EVEN AS A LITTLE KID,
YOU KNEW,
"THAT'S JUST NOT RIGHT.
YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED
TO DO THAT."
REALLY APPRECIATE YOU
INVITING ME ON,
BECAUSE I HAVE A HOBBY
THAT IS THE HOBBY OF KINGS.
I AM A PHILATELIST.
TO ASK WHAT THAT IS.
I COLLECT PHILATS.
Narrator: SOON PAT McMAHON
TALKED HIS WAY ONTO THE SHOW,
AND HE NEVER LEFT.
OVER THE DECADES,
WALLACE WOULD CREATE DOZENS
OF FUNNY AND IRREVERENT
CHARACTERS,
AND PAT McMAHON WOULD
BRING THEM TO LIFE.
NOW IT'S TIME FOR SOME OF MY
AWARD-WINNING CAPTIONS.
A SUPERHERO ON
THE "WALLACE AND LADMO" SHOW
NEED ONLY BE TWO THINGS...
NOT SUPER IN ANY WAY
NOR A HERO.
THE...
SEE, I WAS GOING TO
ASK YOU ABOUT... THAT.
I TOLD THE LAUNDRY
NO STARCH.
McMahon: REMEMBER
CAPTAIN SUPER WORE A MASK
THAT WAS COMPLETELY CUT OUT
IN THE MIDDLE
SO THERE WAS NO CHANCE
YOU WOULDN'T RECOGNIZE HIM?
LET'S HAVE A BIG HAND
FOR BOFFO THE CLOWN.
Narrator: LIKE MANY KIDS' SHOWS,
"WALLACE AND LADMO" HAD A CLOWN,
BUT BOFFO DIDN'T FIT
THE USUAL CLOWN MOLD.
THE CHARACTER'S ONLY
REAL MOTIVATION WAS MONEY.
BOFFO, HOW DO YOU PERSONALLY
FEEL ABOUT THE KIDS?
IT'S A BUCK.
ANYBODY CALLS ME,
I'LL SHOW UP.
THEY NEED A CLOWN,
I'M IT.
WHAT ABOUT
THE BIRTHDAY PARTIES?
HOW DO THEY WORK?
YEAH, ACTUALLY,
THAT'S WHERE
YOUR BIG BREAD IS.
YOUR BIRTHDAY PARTIES,
THAT'S WHERE YOU
PICK UP A LOT OF COIN.
I DON'T THINK LAD
OR PAT OR I
EVER THOUGHT
ANY CLOWN WAS FUNNY.
AND SO OUR CLOWN WAS GOING TO BE
A LITTLE DIFFERENT...
HE HATED KIDS.
AS LONG AS THEY KEEP IT DOWN,
AS LONG AS THEY DON'T
SCREAM AND YELL
AND LAUGH AND GIGGLE,
'CAUSE THAT REALLY
FROSTS ME, MAN.
I HAVE HAD IT
UP TO HERE.
I GET, YOU KNOW,
A BUCK AND A HALF,
$2 AN HOUR,
I'M NOT GOING TO PUT UP WITH
A LOT OF JIBBER-JABBER,
YOU KNOW?
I'LL BE THE CLOWN,
YOU BE THE KIDS,
JUST SIT THERE AND SHUT
YOUR MOUTHS, THAT'S ALL.
Narrator: ARIZONA'S
"WALLACE AND LADMO"
SUCCEEDED BECAUSE
ITS HUMOR
APPEALED TO TEENS AND ADULTS
AS WELL AS CHILDREN.
OVER IN LOS ANGELES,
AN INNOVATIVE PUPPET SHOW
WAS ATTRACTING
A SIMILAR AUDIENCE.
HOW'D YOU LIKE TO BE
IN PICTURES,
HAVE YOUR NAME UP IN LIGHTS,
DRIVE A CAR WITH THE STEERING
WHEEL ON THE WRONG SIDE,
WEAR CHARTREUSE
SUEDE WEDGES,
ALL THE BETTER THINGS,
ALL THE BETTER THINGS?
Freberg: IF YOU'D SAY,
"WE'VE CREATED A SHOW THAT
WILL APPEAL TO CHILDREN
AND ADULTS UP TO
DR. ALBERT EINSTEIN,"
YOU KNOW, THEY'D SAY,
"CALL... SECURITY!"
YOU KNOW, "GET THESE GUYS
OUT OF HERE."
BUT ALL I KNOW IS,
THAT'S WHAT WORKED.
YOU'RE NOT AS UGLY
AS YOU LOOK.
OH, THANKS!
HEH-HEH.
Narrator: STARTING IN 1949,
7 OUT OF 10
LOS ANGELES TV VIEWERS
WOULD TUNE IN
TO THIS PROGRAM DAILY.
NUMBERS HIGHER THAN
A MODERN SUPER BOWL,
TO SEE A SHOW CALLED
"TIME FOR BEANY."
SAY, YOU BOYS AIN'T SEEN
A BIG, GIANT,
WHITE GORILLA AROUND,
HAVE YOU?
WHAT DO YOU SAY?
HEY, YOU DIDN'T
ANSWER THE QUESTION.
HUH.
Narrator: "TIME FOR BEANY"
FLOWED FROM THE FERTILE MINDS
OF STAN FREBERG
AND DAWS BUTLER.
YEARS LATER,
FREBERG WOULD CREATE
THE FASTEST-SELLING
COMEDY RECORD OF ALL TIME
AND A STRING OF
FUNNY COMMERCIALS
THAT CHANGED THE DIRECTION
OF AMERICAN ADVERTISING.
BUT BACK IN THE 1940s,
STAN FREBERG WAS AN UNKNOWN.
HIS RISE TO FAME RANKS AMONG
THE MOST IMPROBABLE
IN HOLLYWOOD HISTORY.
I'M RIDING DOWN
HOLLYWOOD BOULEVARD
AND I'M THE LAST
PERSON ON THE BUS,
AND I SEE THE BUS DRIVER
LOOK IN THE MIRROR,
THE REARVIEW MIRROR,
AND SAID,
"WHERE DO YOU WANT TO
GET OFF, KID?"
I SAID, "I WANT TO GET OFF IN
THE MIDDLE OF HOLLYWOOD!"
PSSSSSH,
HITS THE BRAKES.
I SAID, "IS THIS
THE MIDDLE OF HOLLYWOOD?"
HE SAID, "KID, THIS IS
AS MIDDLE AS IT GETS."
DOORS OPEN,
I GET OFF THE BUS.
THERE'S A THREE-STORY
BUILDING THERE, OKAY?
I WALK IN THE LOBBY,
I THOUGHT,
"I WONDER IF THERE
POSSIBLY COULD BE
A TALENT AGENT
IN THIS BUILDING."
I WALK IN AND I SEE A CLEANERS,
INVISIBLE WEAVING,
SECOND FLOOR,
"STARS OF TOMORROW
TALENT AGENCY."
I SAID, "THAT'S ME!"
"STARS OF TOMORROW,"
THAT'S ME.
SO I GET IN THIS
CREAKY ELEVATOR...
GOING UP TO
THE SECOND FLOOR.
NOW I WALK IN,
"STARS OF TOMORROW" ON THE DOOR,
AND A LITTLE SHORT GUY
WITH A CIGAR SAYS,
"YES, CAN WE HELP YOU?"
I SAID, "YES"...
"I'D LIKE TO SEE YOU ABOUT
SOME REPRESENTATION."
HE SAID, "WELL,
WHAT DO YOU DO?"
I SAID, "WELL, I DO
ALL KIND OF VOICES."
"AND TH... TH... TH... TH...
THAT'S ALL, FOLKS."
HE SAYS,
"HOLD IT RIGHT THERE."
WALKS INTO THE PHONE,
CALLS A MAN
NAMED JOHN BURTON
AT WARNER BROS. CARTOONS.
SAYS, "YES, HI.
"I'M BRINGING A TALENTED
YOUNG MAN OVER TO...
"YOU HAVE TO HEAR HIM DO
THESE VARIOUS VOICES.
"YES, I KNOW YOU HAVE MEL BLANC,
"BUT MEL BLANC CAN'T DO ALL
THE VOICES IN THE WORLD.
HIS NAME IS STAN FREBERG
AND I'M COMING RIGHT OVER."
HUNG UP THE PHONE.
SO I WAS SCARED TO DEATH,
YOU KNOW, 18 YEARS OLD.
SO NOW JOHN BURTON SAYS,
"OKAY, THIS IS
"A TALENTED YOUNG MAN
WE JUST DISCOVERED.
GO AHEAD, STAN."
SO NOW I START
TO DO THE VOICES.
NOW, THE MINUTE THEY START
TO LAUGH, I KNOW I'M OKAY.
FRITZ FRELENG
WALKS UP TO ME,
A LITTLE GUY, AND HE SAYS,
"WHY HAVEN'T WE HEARD
OF YOU BEFORE, STAN?"
I SAID, "I DON'T KNOW,
I'VE BEEN AROUND, YOU KNOW."
HE SAID, "OH, I DIDN'T MEAN THAT
THE WAY IT SOUNDED.
I MEAN I'M SURE YOU DIDN'T
JUST GET OFF THE BUS."
THAT'S A TRUE...
TRUE STORY.
♪ AND A ROW-DODY-DODY
DOE-DODY-DODY ♪
♪ SUNNY SIDE UP,
A DOE-DODY-DODY ♪
Narrator: CARTOONS OF THE 1940s
WERE SEEN ONLY IN THEATERS.
STAN FREBERG HADN'T THOUGHT
MUCH ABOUT TELEVISION.
UNTIL A WARM EVENING IN 1949,
WHEN VETERAN ANIMATOR
BOB CLAMPETT
INVITED FREBERG OVER
TO HIS GARAGE.
CLAMPETT EXPLAINED THAT
HE WANTED TO CREATE
A PUPPET SHOW FOR TV.
HE ASKED FREBERG
AND FELLOW ACTOR DAWS BUTLER
IF THEY'D LIKE TO
DO THE VOICES.
THEN CLAMPETT
SHOWED THE TWO ACTORS
HIS MAKESHIFT PUPPET STUDIO.
OUT IN THE GARAGE
BEHIND CLAMPETT'S HOUSE,
OKAY, AND DAWS AND I SAID,
"WHERE ARE THE PUPPETEERS?"
WE THOUGHT WE WERE JUST
GOING TO DO THE VOICES.
AND CLAMPETT SAID TO US,
"YOU'RE THE PUPPETEERS."
I SAID, "WE'RE THE PUPPETEERS?"
I SAID TO DAWS, "IT'S CALLED
ON-THE-JOB TRAINING."
Narrator: OVER
THE NEXT FEW WEEKS,
EXECUTIVES FROM
FOUR TV STATIONS
MADE THE PILGRIMAGE
TO BOB CLAMPETT'S GARAGE
TO WATCH FREBERG AND BUTLER.
LATE ON A FRIDAY NIGHT,
KTLA BOUGHT THE IDEA.
Man: CECIL IS MAKING
THE TRANSFORMATION FROM HIS...
Narrator: THREE DAYS LATER,
IT WAS ON THE AIR...
Man: HE OUGHT TO BE APPEARING
ALMOST ANY MINUTE NOW.
Narrator: THE PREMIER
OF "TIME FOR BEANY."
HI, EVERYBODY.
Narrator: "TIME FOR BEANY" AIRED
LIVE FIVE DAYS A WEEK
FOR FIVE YEARS,
ESTABLISHING ITSELF
AS THE MOST POPULAR CHILDREN'S
SHOW IN LOS ANGELES.
ADULTS ENJOYED IT TOO,
INCLUDING THE SMARTEST MIND
OF THE 20th CENTURY...
ALBERT EINSTEIN.
Freberg: ONE DAY HE STOOD UP
IN A MEETING AND SAID,
"GENTLEMEN"... HE KEPT LOOKING
AT HIS POCKET WATCH,
AND HE SAID, "GENTLEMEN,
YOU WILL HAVE TO EXCUSE ME.
IT'S TIME FOR BEANY
AND CECIL."
Narrator: ON THE OTHER SIDE
OF THE COUNTRY,
A YOUNG TEENAGER WAS ENAMORED
WITH STAN FREBERG'S WORK...
THE HUMOR, THE ATTITUDE,
THE EDGINESS.
WHILE STILL IN HIGH SCHOOL,
HE BEGAN PERFORMING
ON LOCAL TV SHOWS
IN WASHINGTON, D.C.,
INCLUDING A KIDS' PROGRAM
HOSTED BY WILLARD SCOTT.
Scott: I WAS FARMER WILLARD,
AND THERE WAS A KID THERE
WHO WAS 16 YEARS OLD
WHO'D BROUGHT A BAG,
LITERALLY LIKE A BURGLAR,
SECOND-STORY BURGLAR'S BAG,
OF LITTLE THINGS,
AND HE CALLED THEM "MUPPETS."
AND THAT WAS THE FIRST SHOW
THAT JIM HENSON EVER DID.
Narrator: JIM HENSON
AND HIS WIFE-TO-BE JANE
SOON GOT THEIR OWN SHOW,
"SAM AND FRIENDS,"
AIRING EVERY NIGHT
IN WASHINGTON, D.C.
Announcer: "SAM AND FRIENDS!"
THE PLATTER THEY'RE PLAYING
ON THIS TV SHOW
SEEMS TO HAVE GOTTEN STUCK.
MAYBE IF I JUST HIT
THE TELEVISION LIKE THIS...
Narrator: TV PUPPETEERS USED
A TRADITIONAL PUPPET THEATER,
BUT HENSON WAS AMONG
THE FIRST TO UNDERSTAND
THE POTENTIAL OF THE NEW MEDIUM.
THE TV FRAME WAS HIS STAGE,
WHICH MEANT PUPPETS COULD
MOVE IN WAYS
THEY NEVER HAD BEFORE.
SOME OF US ARE
ABSOLUTELY ADORABLE.
SOME OF US ARE UGLY,
AND WE LIKE IT THAT WAY.
Narrator: HENSON'S INNOVATIONS
DIDN'T END THERE.
HE USED SOFT MATERIALS
SO THAT HIS CHARACTERS
COULD BE MORE EXPRESSIVE,
HE ADDED CONTROL RODS
RATHER THAN STRINGS
FOR MORE PRECISE MOVEMENT,
AND HE EXTENDED HIS PUPPETRY
TO INCLUDE
LIFE-SIZED CHARACTERS.
GRADUALLY HIS
CHARACTERS EVOLVED,
FROM SAM TO ROWLF
TO HIS TRADEMARK,
KERMIT THE FROG.
Scott: AND THEY ALL REALLY WERE
A LITTLE PART OF JIM,
'CAUSE KERMIT
REALLY IS JIM HENSON.
KERMIT WAS HIS SOUL,
HIS SPIRIT, HIS LOVE.
HE WAS JUST A GENTLE SOUL.
I WANT THE CHEAP STUFF!
CHEAP, CHEAP, CHEAP!
SORRY, BUT THAT OTHER COFFEE'S
FOR THE BIRDS.
Narrator: THROUGHOUT
THE '50s AND '60s,
JIM HENSON MADE
A GOOD LIVING IN PUPPETRY...
PRIMARILY THROUGH COMMERCIALS.
WANT A CUP OF
WILKINS COFFEE?
WHAT'LL MR. WILKINS DO
IF I DON'T?
OH, HE'LL PROBABLY
PUT HIS FOOT DOWN.
Narrator: IN THE LATE 1960s,
PUBLIC TELEVISION PRODUCER
JOAN GANZ COONEY WAS
LOOKING FOR A PUPPETEER
FOR A NEW SERIES
SHE WAS DEVELOPING
CALLED "THE PRESCHOOL EDUCATION
TELEVISION SHOW."
AN ASSOCIATE MADE A SUGGESTION.
SHE CALLED AND SAID,
"YOU'VE GOT TO GO TO
"THE JOHNNY VICTOR THEATER
AND SEE A SCREENING
OF A REEL OF COMMERCIALS
BY SOMEONE NAMED JIM HENSON."
AND I WENT AND I REMEMBER
JUST FALLING IN...
ALMOST FALLING IN THE AISLE
LAUGHING AT THESE
CHINESE FOOD COMMERCIALS
AND WONDER BREAD COMMERCIALS
AND SO ON THAT HE HAD DONE.
HERE, HOLD THIS.
OH, BOY,
HE'S A HOT SALESMAN.
Narrator: COONEY ASKED HENSON
IF HE WOULD CREATE
THE PUPPETS FOR
HER NEW SERIES
WHICH WOULD SOON HAVE
A MUCH CATCHIER NAME...
"SESAME STREET."
BUT JIM HENSON
WAS NOT INTERESTED.
NOT AT FIRST.
HE SAW PUPPETRY
AS AN ART FORM
THAT TAPPED
ADULT SENSIBILITIES.
REACHING CHILDREN
WAS FAR OFF HIS RADAR.
IN TIME, HE CAME TO SEE
THE UNIQUE VALUE
OF THE "SESAME STREET" PROJECT,
AND HE GOT ONBOARD
WHOLEHEARTEDLY.
I CALL MY BATHTUB "ROSIE."
ERNIE, WHY DO YOU CALL
YOUR BATHTUB "ROSIE"?
WHAT'S THAT?
I SAID, WHY DO YOU CALL
YOUR BATHTUB "ROSIE"?
BECAUSE EVERY TIME
I TAKE A BATH,
I LIVE A RING AROUND ROSIE.
Narrator: JIM HENSON'S ABILITY
TO ENGAGE CHILDREN AND ADULTS
WAS PITCH-PERFECT
FOR "SESAME STREET."
THE SERIES WENT ON TO BECOME
THE MOST INNOVATIVE
AND SUCCESSFUL NATIONAL
CHILDREN'S PROGRAM
OF ALL TIME.
A WIDE RANGE
OF GIFTED PEOPLE
SHARE CREDIT FOR
"SESAME STREET'S" SUCCESS,
BUT JIM HENSON'S CHARACTERS
WERE PIVOTAL...
CHARACTERS THAT MADE THEIR DEBUT
ON A LOCAL TV SHOW
IN WASHINGTON, D.C.
JIM HENSON'S HIP,
FAST-PACED STYLE
WAS A SHARP CONTRAST TO ANOTHER
LOCAL TV PUPPETEER
WHO WOULD ALSO GO ON TO BECOME
A NATIONAL STAR...
AMERICA'S FAVORITE NEIGHBOR,
FRED ROGERS.
♪ IT'S A BEAUTIFUL DAY
IN THIS NEIGHBORHOOD ♪
♪ A BEAUTIFUL DAY
FOR A NEIGHBOR ♪
♪ WOULD YOU BE MINE? ♪
♪ COULD YOU BE MINE? ♪
♪ IT'S A NEIGHBORLY... ♪
Narrator: FRED ROGERS ORIGINALLY
PLANNED TO BECOME A MINISTER,
BUT THE FIRST TIME
HE SAW A TV,
HIS LIFE CHANGED COURSE.
I SAW THIS NEW THING
CALLED TELEVISION,
AND I SAW PEOPLE THROWING PIES
IN EACH OTHER'S FACES,
AND I THOUGHT,
"THIS COULD BE A WONDERFUL
TOOL FOR EDUCATION.
WHY IS IT BEING
USED THIS WAY?"
IT REALLY DOESN'T...
REALLY DOESN'T MATTER,
'CAUSE THEY'RE NOT
GOING TO SEE JUST...
WE'LL JUST CUT IN
ON THAT...
Narrator: EARLY ON,
ROGERS GOT A JOB
ON A LOCAL KIDS' SHOW
IN PITTSBURGH.
HE WASN'T ON-CAMERA,
BUT HE DID NEARLY
EVERYTHING ELSE ON THE SHOW
CALLED "CHILDREN'S CORNER."
AND THAT'S WHY I STARTED
WEARING TENNIS SHOES,
THOSE SNEAKERS,
BECAUSE I DIDN'T
WANT TO MAKE NOISE
AS I WOULD RUN
ACROSS THE STUDIO.
SO I WAS ALWAYS
IN THOSE SNEAKERS.
Narrator: ALTHOUGH ROGERS'S FACE
WAS NEVER SEEN ON
"CHILDREN'S CORNER,"
HE DID VOICE ALL THE PUPPETS,
INCLUDING KING FRIDAY.
ROW, ROW, ROW YOUR BOAT?
MM-HMM.
OH, YOU MUST MEAN...
♪ ROW, ROW, ROW YOUR BOAT
GENTLY DOWN THE STREAM ♪
OH, YEAH, I THOUGHT
YOU MUST MEAN
PROPEL, PROPEL,
PROPEL YOUR CRAFT.
YES, I GUESS THAT'S
WHAT I MEAN, SURE.
IT'S, ♪ PROPEL, PROPEL,
PROPEL YOUR CRAFT ♪
♪ GENTLY DOWN
LIQUID SOLUTION ♪
♪ ECSTATICALLY, ECSTATICALLY,
ECSTATICALLY, ECSTATICALLY ♪
♪ EXISTENCE IS
BUT AN ILLUSION ♪
Narrator: BY THE EARLY 1960s,
ROGERS GOT HIS OWN SHOW.
THIS TIME HE WAS
IN FRONT OF THE CAMERA
AS HIMSELF,
A CARING, REASSURING VOICE,
THE POLAR OPPOSITE OF NEARLY
EVERYTHING ELSE IN TV.
HE STAYED ON FOR MORE
THAN 30 YEARS.
♪ IT'S A BEAUTIFUL DAY IN
THIS NEIGHBORHOOD ♪
♪ A BEAUTIFUL DAY
FOR A NEIGHBOR ♪
Rogers: I'D JUST LIKE TO BE
REMEMBERED FOR BEING A...
COMPASSIONATE HUMAN BEING
WHO HAPPENED TO BE
FORTUNATE ENOUGH
TO BE BORN AT A TIME
WHEN THERE WAS THIS
FABULOUS THING
CALLED TELEVISION.
Narrator: IN THE 1950s
AND '60s,
NEARLY EVERY LOCAL
KIDS' TV SHOW HAD PUPPETS.
PUPPETS WERE VERY SUCCESSFUL
IN THOSE DAYS.
PUPPETS REALLY
LAUNCHED TELEVISION.
Narrator: IN NEW YORK,
CHUCK McCANN REACHED AN AUDIENCE
THAT DWARFED MOST OTHER
LOCAL KIDS' SHOWS,
STARTING WITH A SERIES
CALLED "PUPPET HOTEL" IN 1960.
PUPPETS WORK FROM A HAND
DOWN TO A HEART.
THERE'S A BIG,
BIG DIFFERENCE.
THERE'S A REALITY
THAT COMES OUT OF THIS,
AND IT'S BEAUTIFUL TO WATCH
WHEN YOU SEE SOMEBODY
WHO KNOWS WHAT THEY'RE DOING
WORKING PUPPETS.
Narrator: OVER THE NEXT DECADE,
McCANN EXPANDED HIS COMEDY
TO INCLUDE A WIDE RANGE
OF CHARACTERS AND SKITS.
BECAUSE DAYTIME TV
WAS CONSIDERED UNPROFITABLE,
McCANN WAS GIVEN FREE REIN.
AND HE TOOK FULL ADVANTAGE
OF ONE OF TV'S
MOST WIDE-OPEN,
CREATIVE ARENAS.
HI, FRIENDS.
THANK YOU, THANK YOU,
THANK YOU.
HI, ONCE AGAIN, TO SEE DINKY
AND DUNKY, YES, SIR.
McCann: I USED TO GET UP
IN THE MORNING,
AND I WALKED TO THE STUDIO NOT
KNOWING WHAT I WAS GOING TO DO.
HOW ARE YOU DOING,
DINKY?
GOOD, WHERE'S DUNKY?
RIGHT HERE.
I WENT TO THE SALVATION ARMY
AND I PULLED ALL MY COSTUMES
OUT OF THERE,
AND I USED TO GO
INTO THE GARBAGE
ON PARK AVENUE ON THURSDAY
WHEN THEY REMOVED IT
AND I'D FIND, YOU KNOW,
HAIR DRYERS AND STUFF,
AND I'D SAY, "HEY,
I COULD DO A THING WITH THIS."
Narrator: LIKE MANY OTHER
SUCCESSFUL KIDS' HOSTS,
CHUCK McCANN DIDN'T NECESSARILY
AIM HIS SHOWS AT CHILDREN.
I JUST WENT IN AND DID
WHAT I THOUGHT WAS FUNNY.
WITH KIDS,
WHEN YOU DO A KIDS' SHOW,
YOU DON'T WANT
TO TALK DOWN TO THEM,
AND I... I NEVER...
I NEVER...
NEVER WANTED TO DO THAT.
I ALWAYS FELT THAT IF I
DID WHAT WAS FUNNY,
THE KIDS WOULD SENSE THAT.
♪ HERE AND I'M ♪
♪ FINE AND DANDY ♪
YOU DON'T MIND IF I
HAVE MY LUNCH?
NO... ALL RIGHT.
♪ I'M FINE AND DANDY ♪
♪ FINE AND DANDY,
I'M FINE AND DANDY ♪
♪ AND I LOVE YOU ♪
♪ OH... MMM ♪
♪ MMM MMM MMM ♪
♪ FINE AND DANDY ♪
♪ FINE AND DANDY ♪
Narrator: BY 1969,
CHUCK McCANN HAD LEFT
HIS NEW YORK CHILDREN'S SHOW
TO EMBARK ON AN ACTING
CAREER IN HOLLYWOOD.
THE TRANSITION FROM LOCAL
CHILDREN'S HOST
TO NATIONAL CELEBRITY
WAS NOT UNCOMMON.
DOZENS OF OTHER WELL-KNOWN STARS
CAN TRACE THEIR ROOTS
TO KIDS' TV SHOWS.
MERV GRIFFIN HOSTED MIAMI'S
"LUCKY DUCK SHOW."
TED KNIGHT STARRED ON
"CHILDREN'S THEATER"
IN PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND.
"THE SOUPY SALES SHOW"
BEGAN IN DETROIT
AND EVENTUALLY WENT NATIONAL.
ADAM WEST GOT HIS START ON
"THE KINI POPO SHOW" IN HAWAII.
"THE KINI POPO SHOW,"
WHICH MEANS IN HAWAIIAN
"ON THE BALL,"
AND THAT WAS MY EXPOSURE
TO DOING A KIDS' SHOW.
WE DID EVERYTHING WE COULD
TO ENTERTAIN PEOPLE
EARLY IN THE MORNING
FOR ABOUT...
I THINK IT WAS
A TWO-HOUR SHOW,
AND, YOU KNOW, THAT MEANS YOU
HAVE A CHIMPANZEE AS A SIDEKICK.
Narrator: WILLARD SCOTT HOSTED
THREE DIFFERENT KIDS' SHOWS
IN WASHINGTON, D.C.
THE WORST SHOW I EVER DID
IN MY LIFE, IN MY OPINION,
WAS THE BEST SHOW
I EVER DID IN MY LIFE.
WE HAD MORE FUN,
IT WAS CALLED "COMMANDER RETRO,"
AND I USED MY BASSET HOUND,
HE WAS DR. STRANGEDOG.
WE'D TAKE
A FIRE EXTINGUISHER
AND SHOOT IT OFF
IN FRONT OF THE LENS
TO MAKE IT LOOK LIKE
A ROCKET ENGINE,
AND THEN AS THAT
THING CLEARED UP,
YOU SAW THE MOON'S SURFACE
COME TO...
AND WE WOULD JUST ALL
RAISE IT UP OFF THE FLOOR,
BUT IT LOOKED LIKE
WE WERE LANDING.
AND OF COURSE YOU'D
SEE CHARLIE...
ONE OF THE STAGEHANDS
WAS HANGING ON TO IT.
Narrator: WHILE MANY PERFORMERS
LEARNED THEIR CRAFT
ON CHILDREN'S SHOWS
AND THEN MOVED ON,
OTHERS MADE
THE DECISION TO STAY.
IN PHOENIX, THE STARS OF
THE POPULAR
"WALLACE AND LADMO SHOW"
FACED A KEY DECISION IN 1963...
WHEN ONE OF THE SHOW'S STARS,
PAT McMAHON,
DID A SKIT,
A PARODY OF THE BEATLES,
THAT WAS JUST
A LITTLE TOO GOOD.
♪ WELL, I GOT A GIRL
NAMED BONEY MARONEY ♪
♪ BOP SHOO BOP SHOO BOP BOP
SHOO BOP ♪
Narrator:
CALLED "HUB CAP & THE WHEELS,"
PAT McMAHON'S JOKE BAND
ACTUALLY SCORED
A REAL HIT RECORD.
♪ YOU OUGHTTA SEE HER ROCK
WITH HER BLUE JEANS ON ♪
McMahon: AND IT
BEAT THE BEATLES
ON THE LOCAL CHARTS.
IT WAS THE FIRST TIME THAT
ANYBODY HAD BEEN AT NUMBER ONE
IN THAT PERIOD OF TIME
EXCEPT THE BEATLES.
WELL, WE HAD NO IDEA
WHAT TO DO WITH THAT.
Narrator: SOON,
HUB CAP & THE WHEELS
WERE MAKING NATIONAL
TV APPEARANCES.
CAPITOL RECORDS SIGNED THEM
TO A RECORDING CONTRACT.
A MOVIE WAS PLANNED.
PAT McMAHON
HAD A CHOICE TO MAKE...
TEEN HEARTTHROB IN HOLLYWOOD
OR BACK TO THE KIDS' SHOW
IN PHOENIX.
♪ WHEN I SAY THAT DIRTY WORD ♪
AND IT WAS SO TOTALLY SURREAL
THAT WE SAID,
"OKAY, WAIT A MINUTE,
GUYS, WHAT DO YOU WANT TO DO?
"DO YOU WANT TO BE
45-YEAR-OLD WHEELS,
OR DO YOU WANT TO DO
'THE WALLACE SHOW'?"
AND WE JUST LOVED
DOING THE SHOW.
WE JUST LOVED DOING
"THE WALLACE AND LADMO SHOW,"
SO THEY LET US OUT
OF OUR CONTRACT.
Narrator: McMAHON RETURNED
TO PHOENIX,
AND "THE WALLACE AND LADMO SHOW"
WOULD SETTLE INTO
A DECADES-LONG REIGN AS ONE OF
THE MOST BELOVED
LOCAL KIDS' PROGRAMS ANYWHERE.
ANYONE WHO GREW UP
IN PHOENIX LIKE ME
CAME HOME FROM SCHOOL, 4:00,
YOU GOT A LITTLE SNACK,
CLICKED ON THE TV,
AND YOU WATCHED
"WALLACE AND LADMO."
I LIVED IN PHOENIX, ARIZONA
FOR OVER A DECADE,
AND I WATCHED THEM EVERY DAY,
AND EVEN WHEN I GREW UP
AND I WAS SUPPOSED TO BE
TOO OLD TO WATCH THEM,
I STILL WATCHED THEM,
BECAUSE THEY WERE VERY HIP.
THEY ALWAYS KEPT
ABREAST OF THE TIMES
AND THEY WERE VERY HIP.
THEY WERE
THE "SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE"
BEFORE "SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE."
THEY WERE THE "SECOND CITY"
BEFORE "SECOND CITY."
LADMO FLAKES!
THE BREAKFAST CEREAL
FOR KIDS WHO DON'T
LIKE CEREAL,
AND THAT'S THE AMAZING PART...
THERE'S NO CEREAL AT ALL
IN THE BOX!
EACH AND EVERY PACKAGE
OF LADMO FLAKES
IS FILLED TO THE BRIM WITH...
♪ DA DA DA DA DA DUM! ♪
PRIZES,
TOYS, PREMIUMS! IMAGINE!
Narrator: THE SHOW
WAS SO POPULAR,
IT EVEN SPAWNED A CHAIN OF
DRIVE-IN RESTAURANTS.
THE IDEA MADE SENSE...
BOTH FAST FOOD
AND KIDS' TV WERE BOOMING.
IN THE MID-1950s,
FAST FOOD FRANCHISES
BEGAN TO TAKE HOLD.
IN RETROSPECT, THE CONCEPT
SEEMS REMARKABLY SIMPLE...
A SUCCESS IN ONE CITY
HAS A GOOD CHANCE
OF SUCCEEDING
IN EVERY CITY.
AS HAMBURGER STANDS BEGAN
SPROUTING UP AROUND THE COUNTRY,
A FEW ENTERPRISING TV PRODUCERS
THOUGHT FRANCHISING
MIGHT ALSO WORK IN
CHILDREN'S TELEVISION.
THE FIRST PERSON TO PUT
A PLAN INTO ACTION
WAS NANCY CLASTER,
WHO, WITH HER HUSBAND BURT,
CREATED "ROMPER ROOM."
Manderfield:
SHE IMPRESSED ME BECAUSE
SHE REALLY KNEW
WHAT SHE WAS DOING.
SHE JUST HAD A FIRM CONTROL
ON THE WHOLE THING.
SHE KNEW EXACTLY WHAT TO DO
AND HOW TO DO IT.
NOW, WE'RE GOING TO
FOLD OUR HANDS AND SAY,
"GOD IS GREAT, GOD IS GOOD.
"LET US THANK HIM
FOR OUR FOOD.
AMEN."
THANK YOU, BOYS AND GIRLS,
NOW YOU MAY HELP
YOURSELVES TO COOKIES
AND TO YOUR REFRESHMENTS.
Narrator: AIMED SQUARELY
AT PRESCHOOLERS,
"ROMPER ROOM" WAS A MIX OF
GAMES, SONGS, AND MORAL LESSONS.
MOST CITIES HAD
THEIR OWN LOCAL HOST,
TRAINED BY CLASTER AT HER
BALTIMORE FACILITY.
IT WAS MISS MARY ANN
IN LOS ANGELES,
MISS BEVERLY IN CHICAGO,
AND MISS MARLENE IN
GREEN BAY, WISCONSIN,
MORE THAN 100 IN ALL.
EACH HOSTESS WAS A REAL PERSON,
AND WE WERE OUT
IN THE COMMUNITY.
I NEVER MISSED A PARADE,
AND IF THEY CALLED ME
TO BE IN A PARADE, "YES,
YOU JUST TELL ME WHERE IT IS."
BECAUSE I KNEW
EVERY PLACE I WENT
THAT I WOULD HAVE MORE VIEWERS.
Narrator: EACH HOSTESS
CAREFULLY FOLLOWED
THE SAME SCRIPTS, SONGS,
AND ACTIVITIES,
ALL PREPARED BY NANCY CLASTER.
Serrano: THE CLASTERS
WERE VERY, VERY STRICT
ON HOW ALL
THE "ROMPER ROOM" TEACHERS
NEEDED TO BEHAVE,
HOW WE DRESSED,
HOW WE TALKED,
HOW WE INTROED THINGS,
THE WAY WE RELATED
TO THE CHILDREN.
THERE WAS A FORMULA.
IT WAS A SUCCESSFUL FORMULA.
YOU WEREN'T SUPPOSED
TO DIVERT FROM
THE GUIDELINES
THAT THEY GAVE YOU.
EVERYTHING WAS SUPPOSED
TO BE DONE JUST SO.
Narrator: DESPITE
THE UNIFORMITY,
"ROMPER ROOM"
WAS A LOCAL SHOW,
AND EACH VERSION
REFLECTED ITS COMMUNITY.
FRIENDS AT HOME,
WE HAVE A STORY FOR YOU,
UN CUENTO,
ES UN "CUENTO DE UN COCODRILO,"
"THE STORY OF THE CROCODILE."
Serrano: CULTURALLY
I WAS A WHOLE DIFFERENT
"ROMPER ROOM" TEACHER,
SO MADE SURE THAT WE HAD
AFRICAN AMERICAN CHILDREN,
LATINO, ASIAN,
WHITE CHILDREN,
CHILDREN OF ALL KINDS OF
CULTURAL BACKGROUNDS.
YOU KNOW, THIS WAS THE MID-'70s,
SO WE HAD BOY...
I HAD A BOY THERE NAMED RAINBOW.
WE HAD, YOU KNOW,
GIRLS NAMED FREE.
Narrator: THE CHILDREN
IN THE STUDIO
WERE REGULAR KIDS
FROM THE LOCAL COMMUNITY
WHO CAME IN FOR A WEEK
TO CREATE A MEMORY
THAT LASTED A LIFETIME.
YOU COULD SIGN UP
FOR "ROMPER ROOM."
YOU COULD JUST GO IN
LIKE A CIVILIAN
AND GET ON "ROMPER ROOM."
SO WE WENT DOWN TO
"ROMPER ROOM"
AND MY... WE SIGNED UP
FOR "ROMPER ROOM,"
MISS MARY WAS MY TEACHER,
AND NORMALLY YOU
DID IT FOR A WEEK,
AND I LIKED IT SO MUCH
AND I GUESS THEY LIKED ME
THAT I DID IT FOR TWO WEEKS.
I WAS A... WHAT WAS IT,
"DO BEE."
THERE WAS "DO BEES"
AND "DON'T BEES."
I WAS A "DO BEE."
Narrator: BECAUSE
"ROMPER ROOM" WAS LIVE
WITH THREE-
AND FOUR-YEAR-OLDS,
ANYTHING COULD HAPPEN.
IN LOS ANGELES,
MISS MARY ANN
LIKED TO BRING ANIMALS
INTO THE STUDIO.
WHEN A YOUNG LION
MADE A VISIT,
A TECHNICIAN THOUGHT IT WOULD BE
FUN TO PLAY THE SOUND
OF A ROARING ADULT LION.
AND THAT LION WENT BERSERK.
HE THOUGHT IT WAS
THE CALL OF THE WILD
OR THE CALL OF HIS MOTHER,
BUT HE WENT RIGHT
FOR THE CAMERAMAN.
I'VE NEVER SEEN THEM
MOVE THOSE CAMERAS SO FAST
IN ALL MY LIFE.
THEY GOT UP ON THE RISERS
WITH THE PARENTS
IN THE BACK OF THE STUDIO,
AND THIS LION'S GOING,
RAH, RAH, I SAID,
"YOU KNOW WHAT, BOYS AND GIRLS?
"I THINK THAT LION IS LOOKING
FOR THE CALL OF HIS MOTHER,
"AND WHILE HE CONTINUES LOOKING,
LET'S PUT ON OUR MAGIC EYES
AND SEE WHAT'S COMING
OUR WAY RIGHT NOW."
TWO MINUTES OF
FILMED COMMERCIAL.
AND I'LL LOOK FOR YOU
IN A MAGIC MIRROR,
SO HERE I GO.
ROMPER, BOMPER,
STOMPER BOO.
TELL ME, TELL ME...
Narrator: "ROMPER ROOM'S"
TRADEMARK SEGMENT
WAS THE MAGIC MIRROR,
WHICH SEEMED TO MAKE IT POSSIBLE
FOR THE HOSTESS
TO SEE CHILDREN AT HOME
THROUGH THE TV.
YOUNGSTERS PATIENTLY WAITED
FOR THEIR NAME TO BE CALLED.
ROMPER, BOMPER,
STOMPER BOO.
ROMPER,
BOMPER, STOMPER BOO.
TELL ME, TELL ME,
TELL ME, DO,
MAGIC MIRROR,
TELL ME TODAY,
DID ALL MY FRIENDS
HAVE FUN AT PLAY?
I SEE MARCHAND AND AMANDA.
I SEE NASTORA AND ANDREA.
I SEE ROBERT AND MAY,
LeSEAN, LEO, LAUREN, AND CAROL.
THERE'S MARTIN,
JUNIOR, AND YOU,
AND I'LL SEE YOU
ALL AGAIN TOMORROW
ON "ROMPER ROOM" SCHOOL.
AND I'LL SEE YOU TOMORROW
AT 9:00
IN THE "ROMPER ROOM" SCHOOL.
Narrator: THE ORGANIZATION
AND DISCIPLINE OF "ROMPER ROOM"
PROVIDED A SHARP CONTRAST
TO THE OTHER BIG HIT
IN FRANCHISED KIDS'
TELEVISION...
A MANIC CLOWN CALLED BOZO.
BOZO PREDATES TELEVISION.
Bozo: OUR SKY ROCKET SHIP
HAS TAKEN...
Narrator: SHORTLY AFTER
WORLD WAR II,
THE CHARACTER EMERGED AS
A STORYTELLING RECORD
AND READ-ALONG BOOK.
Bozo: AND HERE WE ARE
IN SUNNY ITALY.
Narrator: IN THE MID-1950s,
LARRY HARMON
BOUGHT THE CHARACTER
AND EMBARKED ON
THE MOST AGGRESSIVE
FRANCHISING EFFORT
IN KIDS' TV HISTORY.
Scott: LARRY HARMON
WAS LARRY HARMON
WAS BOZO WAS BOZO
WAS LARRY HARMON.
THERE WAS NO DIFFERENCE.
I MEAN, HE WAS THE MOST...
HE WAS A KID.
HE WAS A 40-YEAR-OLD KID
WHEN I MET HIM.
HE WAS A 90-YEAR-OLD
KID WHEN HE PASSED AWAY.
HE WOULD DO TV APPEARANCES
SOMETIMES VERY EARLY
IN THE MORNING,
SO HE HAD TO SLEEP
WITH HIS MAKEUP ON,
AND I REMEMBER
THE FIRST TIME HE DID IT,
AND I TURNED OVER,
AND I'M LOOKING AT
THE BOZO FACE,
AND I JUST THOUGHT,
"WHERE AM I?
"WHAT'S HAPPENING TO ME?
I'M SLEEPING WITH
THIS CLOWN."
Narrator: HARMON USED
BOZO'S POPULARITY
AS A SPRINGBOARD TO A WIDE RANGE
OF UNLIKELY PERSONAL ADVENTURES,
INCLUDING A JOURNEY
TO NEW GUINEA
AND A RIDE ON NASA'S
WEIGHTLESS FLIGHTS,
ALL AS BOZO.
OH!
AH!
Narrator: EVENTUALLY,
MORE THAN 100 BOZOS
ACROSS THE COUNTRY PUT ON
THE DISTINCTIVE CLOWN MAKEUP
FIVE DAYS A WEEK,
FOLLOWING THE LOOK REFINED
BY LARRY HARMON.
Harmon: NO SMOKING,
NO DRINKING, NO WOMANIZING,
NEVER SHOW SKIN.
YOU CAN NEVER HAVE SKIN,
BECAUSE THE CHILD
SHOULD THINK OF BOZO
AS BOZO,
NOT A PERSON UNDERNEATH.
HEY!
Narrator: THE BOZOS
WERE NOT CLONES.
EACH WAS A REFLECTION
OF THE MAN UNDER THE MAKEUP,
INCLUDING FRANK AVRUCH
IN BOSTON,
BOB BELL IN CHICAGO,
AND WILLARD SCOTT
IN WASHINGTON, D.C.
Scott: IT REALLY GOT TO ME.
I'D TREMBLE SOMETIMES
TRYING TO PUT THAT MAKEUP ON
'CAUSE IT WAS SO...
IT WAS EXHAUSTING.
OH, WAIT, HERE'S A FELLA,
THANK YOU, OKAY.
I DIDN'T THINK YOU WERE
EVER GONNA GET DOWN HERE.
YOU'RE CHUCKY, RIGHT?
YEAH.
WHAT A NICE SMILE.
Narrator: UNLIKE MANY
KIDS' SHOW HOSTS, BOZO WAS
CONSTANTLY INTERACTING
WITH A FULL STUDIO
OF OVEREXCITED YOUNGSTERS.
BECAUSE IT WAS A LIVE SHOW,
EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED
GOT ON THE AIR,
INCLUDING THE TIME ONE BOY
TOOK A SWING AT WILLARD SCOTT.
Scott: AND THEN HE
GAVE ME A BAT AND THEN HE...
AND THEN HE...
I FELL OVER BECAUSE
HE WAS A BIG KID,
AND THEN HE SAT ON MY CHEST
AND STARTED BEATING ME UP
AND THEY HAD TO PULL HIM OFF.
SO THERE ARE HAZARDS
WITH THE SHOW.
♪ SOME PEOPLE
SELL INSURANCE ♪
♪ TO MINIMIZE YOUR STRIFE ♪
♪ THERE MAY BE
AN OCCURRENCE ♪
♪ WHEN POLICEMEN
SAVE YOUR LIFE ♪
Narrator: CHICAGO'S VERSION
OF "BOZO'S CIRCUS"
RANKS AS THE MOST POPULAR
LOCAL CHILDREN'S SHOW
IN TV HISTORY,
A CHERISHED HOUR
OF GAMES, SONGS,
AND LAUGHS,
ON THE AIR FOR
MORE THAN 40 YEARS.
YOU SEE HOW THAT WORKS?
THAT'S REALLY CLEVER.
NOW WHAT NUMBER DID YOU SAY
WAS ON THE OTHER SIDE?
WELL, IT'S OBVIOUS,
YOU'VE ALREADY SHOWN ME.
NOW I KNOW THERE'S ONLY
TWO ON THAT SIDE.
NO,
THERE'S THREE OVER THERE.
YOU SEE THAT,
HOW THAT WORKS, COOKY?
HE HAD SORT OF
A RASPY VOICE LIKE THAT.
YOU KNOW,
THAT WAS ONE OF THE SHOWS
I ENJOYED WATCHING AS A KID
WAS "THE BOZO THE CLOWN SHOW."
NOW, HOW MANY WOULD YOU SAY
WAS ON THE OTHER SIDE?
WELL, YOU SHOWED ME ALREADY,
I KNOW THERE'S FIVE
ON THE OTHER SIDE.
UH-HUH-HUH,
SORRY ABOUT THAT, PAL.
OH!
COOKY, LOOK AT THIS!
AW, A LITTLE BABY
KITTY CAT!
HE MUST'VE HEARD HIS SONG
AND COME OVER TO PLAY WITH US.
NICE JOB.
HOLD IT, HOLD IT,
WHOA, WHOA.
OH, IT'S AMAZING
HOW THOSE LITTLE...
IT...
IT'S AMAZING HOW
THOSE LITTLE CLAWS
GO RIGHT THROUGH
TO YOUR SKIN.
Castellaneta:
KRUSTY THE CLOWN.
NOW, KRUSTY THE CLOWN WAS
BASED ON THE BOZO THE CLOWN
I HAD IN CHICAGO,
AND I REMEMBER
BOB BELL'S VOICE,
AND YOU'RE JUST DOING
THESE THINGS ON THE FLY, SO,
I JUST DID THAT.
THAT WAS THE VOICE.
Narrator: MOST BOZOS MADE
PUBLIC APPEARANCES
AT PARADES, SCHOOLS,
AND GRAND OPENINGS.
IN WASHINGTON, D.C.,
THE LOCAL McDONALD'S
HIRED WILLARD SCOTT AS BOZO
IN AN ATTEMPT TO
ATTRACT CUSTOMERS.
IT WORKED.
BOZO'S ARRIVAL AT McDONALD'S
SPARKED MAYHEM.
ROADS HAD TO BE CLOSED,
EXTRA POLICE CALLED OUT,
BECAUSE THOUSANDS WANTED
TO SEE THEIR HERO.
I HAD MAKEUP ON MY FACE
AND THEN I'D HAVE
THIS HUGE, 900-POUND SUIT,
AND IT WAS 100° AND WE WERE
DOING AN APPEARANCE OUT IN,
YOU KNOW, SOME McDONALD'S
HAMBURGER PLACE,
AND I NEVER DID DEEP SIX
OR FALL OVER,
BUT I THOUGHT A COUPLE
OF TIMES I WOULD.
I... WHAT DO YOU CALL IT,
YOU HYPERVENTILATE?
Narrator: WHEN THE BOZO SHOW
WAS CANCELLED
IN THE WASHINGTON MARKET,
THE LOCAL McDONALD'S RESTAURANTS
WERE LEFT WITHOUT
THEIR BEST PITCHMAN.
McDONALD'S CAME TO ME
AND ASKED ME,
YOU KNOW, IF I'D LIKE TO
KEEP WORKING FOR THEM,
AND OF COURSE I SAID, "SURE,"
AND THEY SAID,
"WELL, WHAT DO YOU
THINK WE SHOULD DO?"
I SAID, "OH, IT'S OBVIOUS...
WE SHOULD HAVE OUR OWN CLOWN."
Narrator: THE NEW CLOWN
WILLARD SCOTT CAME UP WITH
WAS RONALD... RONALD McDONALD.
BASICALLY, I MEAN, THERE WAS
AN AWFUL LOT OF BOZO IN RONALD,
YOU KNOW, THE LAUGH
AND THE WARMTH AND EVERYTHING.
Narrator: IN RONALD'S
FIRST INCARNATION,
THE COSTUME REFLECTED
HIS SINGULAR ROLE
AS HAMBURGER SALESMAN.
Scott: IT WAS
THE MOST COMMERCIAL...
THE GAUDIEST THING
YOU'VE EVER SEEN.
THERE WAS A BIG, WIDE,
BLUE BELT AROUND MY MIDDLE,
AND IT HAD A LITTLE
SPRING IN IT,
AND WE'D PUT TWO OR THREE
HAMBURGERS...
FAKE HAMBURGERS...
AND WHEN YOU PRESSED
MY BELLY BUTTON,
THE HAMBURGER WOULD POP OUT,
AND THEN WE HAD A HAT,
IT WAS MADE OF STYROFOAM,
AND IN THE HAT WE HAD
A MILKSHAKE AND FRIES.
SO IT WAS PRETTY COMMERCIAL.
Narrator: THE CROSSOVER
FROM KIDS' SHOW HOST
TO COMMERCIAL PITCHMAN WASN'T
UNIQUE TO BOZO AND RONALD.
ALL ACROSS AMERICA,
CHILDREN'S TV HOSTS
WERE SELLING PRODUCTS.
Axel: SO, KIDS, YOU BE SURE
AND TELL YOUR MOM ABOUT
THESE NABISCO WHEAT HONEYS
THAT ARE SO GOOD TO EAT
AND SO GOOD FOR YOU,
WILL YOU?
NOW IT'S THE SENSATIONAL NEW
FIRE CHIEF SPEAKERS HAT.
EASY TO GET FROM
ANY TEXACO DEALER
FOR $3.98, BUT ONLY...
Narrator: AT FIRST
IT SEEMED INNOCENT TO HAVE
A LOCAL HOST MENTION
A FEW TOYS.
BECAUSE THE CHILDREN
WANT TO PARTICIPATE WITH YOU,
AND IF THAT ITEM
THAT I'M USING,
THAT TAMBOURINE OR THE DRUM,
IS AVAILABLE,
IT'S ALL RIGHT TO TELL THEM
WHERE THEY CAN BUY IT,
DON'T YOU THINK?
Narrator:
AS THE HAWKING INCREASED,
CRITICISM BEGAN TO MOUNT.
REMIND MOM TO BE SURE AND GET
SEVERAL PACKAGES
OF MICKELBERRY'S
PLUMP AND JUICY FRANKS TODAY.
BECAUSE THIS IS THE MILK
THAT'S GOOD FOR YA.
IT HAS THE FRESH-FROM-THE-FARM
FLAVOR, YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN?
SEE 'EM GO?
THOSE BUBBLES ARE AVAILABLE
IN WHAT WE CALL
THE BUBBALOON GAME,
AND IT'S AVAILABLE AT
TOYLAND FOR 98 CENTS.
THAT'S ALL IT COSTS.
DID YOU EVER STOP TO THINK
HOW MANY TIMES A DAY
YOU COULD EAT BREAD?
Narrator: IN 1968,
A SUBURBAN MOTHER
NAMED PEGGY CHARREN
GATHERED A FEW FRIENDS
IN HER LIVING ROOM
TO TALK ABOUT WAYS
TO FIGHT THE GROWING
COMMERCIALISM
OF KIDS' TV SHOWS.
SHE CALLED HER GROUP "ACTION
FOR CHILDREN'S TELEVISION,"
AND WITHIN TWO YEARS,
THEY WERE TESTIFYING
BEFORE THE FEDERAL
COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
AND SPEARHEADING MAJOR CHANGES
IN BROADCASTING LAW,
INCLUDING THE PASSAGE
OF A LANDMARK RULE
THAT PROHIBITED
KIDS' TV HOSTS
FROM SELLING PRODUCTS
ON THEIR SHOWS.
AROUND THE SAME TIME,
COMEDIAN BILL COSBY
TURNED HIS ATTENTION
TO CHILDREN'S TELEVISION.
HE DIDN'T LIKE WHAT HE SAW.
THAT TV SET DOESN'T PLAY
CHILDREN STORIES
THE WAY IT OUGHT TO
BECAUSE THEY WON'T
PAY THE PRICE UNLESS
SOME DOLL COMES OUT OF IT,
SOME TOY COMES OUT
THAT THEY CAN
PUT IN THE STORE
AND HAVE THE LITTLE CHILDREN
TO A GROWN-UP,
"I WANT THAT, I WANT THAT,"
ALL THE PEOPLE BUY IT
AND GIVE IT TO THEM.
Narrator: COSBY TOOK ACTION.
EARNING A PH.D. IN EDUCATION,
WRITING HIS DISSERTATION
ON THE UNTAPPED POTENTIAL
OF CHILDREN'S TV,
COSBY WANTED TO DEMONSTRATE
THAT COMMERCIAL STATIONS
COULD PRODUCE A QUALITY
PROGRAM FOR KIDS,
A SHOW THAT HAD
EDUCATIONAL VALUE
AND GOT GOOD RATINGS.
HIS BREAKTHROUGH SERIES
WAS CALLED
"FAT ALBERT
AND THE COSBY KIDS."
HEY, HEY, HEY!
IT'S FAT ALBERT!
AND I'M...
Man: THEY BECAME STORIES
AND CONTENT AREAS THAT
REGARDLESS OF WHO YOU WERE
OR WHERE YOU LIVED,
THERE WAS SOMETHING
IN THOSE STORIES
THAT YOU COULD TAKE AWAY.
THAT YOU COULD TAKE AWAY FROM
THE PROGRAM
AND APPLY TO YOUR OWN LIFE.
NOT ONLY WAS THE SHOW
THE KIND OF SHOW
THAT EVERYBODY
THOUGHT WOULD FAIL,
BUT IT GOT HUMONGOUS NUMBERS.
WE GOT 60 SHARES AT 12:00
SATURDAY MORNING,
AND THAT WAS A LOT, EVEN THEN.
Narrator: BILL COSBY
DEMONSTRATED THAT
A CHILDREN'S SHOW
WITH EDUCATIONAL CONTENT
COULD SUCCEED ON
COMMERCIAL TELEVISION.
KID'S TV DIDN'T
HAVE TO SINK TO
SHAMELESS PRODUCT SHILLING
TO SUCCEED.
CBS WAS STUNNED
WHEN "FAT ALBERT"
BECAME A MAJOR SUCCESS.
THERE WASN'T ANYTHING
IN PARTICULAR
THAT THEY COULD SELL.
IT WAS STILL
ALMOST AN ALBATROSS,
THIS SHOW.
TWO THINGS...
IT WAS A KIDS' SHOW.
NUMBER TWO, IT WAS BLACK,
TO PEOPLE IN THE NETWORK,
TO PEOPLE
IN ADVERTISING,
AND SO EVEN THOUGH WE WERE
WHIPPING MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL,
THERE WASN'T...
YOU KNOW, I THINK CBS AT THAT
TIME WAS LOOKING AROUND
OVER THEIR SHOULDER
FOR SOMETHING ELSE
TO COME ALONG,
BUT, MAN, WE DID...
YES, I'M PROUD.
Narrator: BY THE LATE 1970s,
LOCAL KIDS' TV SHOWS
WERE ON THE DECLINE.
THE NEW LAWS
BANNING HOST SELLING
HAD CUT DEEPLY INTO
THE BOTTOM LINE,
AND CHEAPER SYNDICATED FARE
WAS NOW WIDELY AVAILABLE.
THE ERA OF THE HOMETOWN
TV COWBOYS AND PIRATES
AND CLOWNS HAD COME TO
AN END... ALMOST.
COME IN!
Narrator: IN PHOENIX,
"THE WALLACE AND LADMO SHOW"
WAS BUCKING THE TREND,
STILL GOING STRONG
THROUGH THE 1980s.
ONE KEY TO THE SHOW'S
CONTINUING SUCCESS
WAS A CHARACTER NAMED GERALD.
THAT WAS YOUR
RESPONSIBILITY.
YOU INVITED THESE
LITTLE JERKS DOWN HERE,
YOU GOT 'EM OUT OF THE ALLEY
WHERE THEY USUALLY HANG OUT.
THOSE ARE CUB SCOUTS,
BOY!
Narrator: PLAYED BY
PAT McMAHON,
GERALD WAS
A SELF-IMPORTANT SNOB
WHO AUDIENCES LOVED TO HATE.
Narrator:
WHILE MOST KIDS' SHOWS HAD
A FRIENDLY HERO,
VERY FEW HAD A VILLAIN,
AND ON "WALLACE AND LADMO,"
THE VILLAIN HAD GIRLISH HAIR,
WORE SHORT PANTS,
AND ANNOYED EVERYONE.
WHAT ARE YOU
TALKING ABOUT?
I DIDN'T KNOW YOU WERE IN
THE BOY SCOUTS.
BITE YOUR TONGUE,
I'M NOT A BOY SCOUT.
GIRL SCOUTS?
BOY SCOUTS ARE FOR ORDINARY,
COMMON KIDS.
I AM A CHILD GUIDE.
THAT'S FOR RICH KIDS.
AS YOU KNOW, I'M VERY,
VERY WEALTHY.
YEAH?
Narrator: WHEN
THE GERALD CHARACTER
MADE HIS FIRST APPEARANCE,
IN 1963,
NO ONE WAS SURE IF
HE WOULD CATCH ON,
UNTIL GERALD APPEARED ON
A SATURDAY STAGE SHOW,
AN EVENT THAT GOT
OUT OF CONTROL.
HE WAS A BRAT, AND IT WAS
FUN TO BOO HIM.
GERALD CAME OUT AND READ
THE RULES TO THE KIDS.
DO NOT LOOK AT HIM
DIRECTLY IN THE EYE.
DO NOT SPEAK TO HIM
UNLESS HE SPEAKS FIRST.
IF THIS CROWD DOES NOT TREAT ME
LIKE THE STAR I AM,
I'M WALKING OFF THIS STAGE
AND GOING HOME.
BOO!
BOO!
BOO!
IT WAS A HUGE CROWD.
THEY WERE REALLY MAD.
McMahon: SOMEBODY WITH
A BIZARRE SENSE OF HUMOR
HAD PASSED OUT PICKLES,
AND A NINE-YEAR-OLD
WITH A GIGANTIC GHERKIN
CAN BE A VERY DANGEROUS
PART OF YOUR AUDIENCE.
THEY ATTACKED THE STAGE,
TRYING TO GET AT GERALD.
AND THE KIDS
WERE HYSTERICAL.
AND THEY BEGAN THROWING THINGS
AND CHARGING THE STAGE,
AND THEY TORE PART OF
THE STAGE DOWN.
PART OF THE PLATFORM CAME DOWN,
SO WE THOUGHT,
"WE'D BETTER PUT HIM
IN THE TRUCK."
I REMEMBER SOMEBODY ESCORTING ME
TO THE CAB OF A PICKUP TRUCK
THAT WAS BEHIND THE STAGE,
AND THE KIDS BEGAN TO ROCK
THE THING BACK AND FORTH.
AND THE KIDS START
ROCKING THE TRUCK.
IT WAS A PICKUP TRUCK.
AND YOU COULD
SEE HIM IN THERE...
AND, BY THE WAY,
WALL AND LAD WERE ON
WHAT WAS LEFT OF THE STAGE
LAUGHING HYSTERICALLY POINTING
AND THINKING,
"WAIT, WE COULD DO THIS
EVERY WEEKEND!"
SO I SAID TO LAD,
"GEEZ, I THINK WE'RE
"ONTO SOMETHING HERE
WITH... WITH...
"THIS GUY'S REALLY TERRIBLE.
"THEY REALLY HATE HIM.
THIS IS WONDERFUL!"
Narrator: THE SHOW NOW HAD
ITS ARCH-VILLAIN,
A PERFECT COUNTERPOINT
TO THE LIKABLE LADMO.
HE WAS THE GREATEST THING
WE EVER HAD ON THE SHOW.
McMahon: IS THERE
ANY BETTER EXAMPLE
OF HOW NOT TO BEHAVE?
AND IF YOU DO BEHAVE THAT WAY,
LOOK WHAT HE GETS.
EVERYBODY DESPISES HIM.
YOU KNOW WHAT YOU'RE MISSING
RIGHT NOW ON PBS? HUH?
NO.
I COULD BE HOME WATCHING
"THE LIFECYCLE OF
THE SNOWSHOE HARE,"
BUT NO, NO.
Narrator: EVENTUALLY THE STARS
OF "WALLACE AND LADMO" RETIRED,
AND THE SHOW
ENDED ITS RUN IN 1989,
AS POPULAR AS EVER.
I HAVE A POEM THAT
I'D LIKE TO RECITE.
A POEM?
GERALD HAS A POEM.
OH...
WAIT A MINUTE,
HOLD IT.
GERALD, WE HAVE TO KEEP
THE PACE OF THE SHOW MOVING.
Narrator: TODAY, THE ERA OF
LOCAL KIDS' TV MAY BE OVER,
BUT FOR A GENERATION
OF VIEWERS,
THE SHOWS ARE
A CHERISHED MEMORY.
WHATEVER THE INFLUENCES ARE
WHEN THEY'RE THAT SMALL,
THEY'RE GOING TO GO WITH THEM
FOR THE REST OF THEIR LIVES.
YOU DON'T REALIZE
THE IMPACT THAT YOU HAVE
DOING A TELEVISION SHOW,
ESPECIALLY A CHILDREN'S
TELEVISION SHOW,
AND IT JUST TOUCHED MY HEART.
I DIDN'T TALK DOWN TO THEM.
I DIDN'T GO,
"THEN THE MAN WENT"...
YOU KNOW,
I DID A COMEDY SHOW.
THE KIDS ARE...
THEY'RE PRETTY SMART,
AND YOU DON'T WANT
TO TALK DOWN TO THEM.
BECAUSE KIDS
ARE REALLY SHARP,
AND THEY'RE...
THEY WANT TO LAUGH,
AND IF IT'S FUNNY,
IT'S FUNNY.
I USE MYSELF AS A YARDSTICK
FOR WHAT'S FUNNY,
AND I... HOPEFULLY
MILLIONS OF OTHER PEOPLE
HAVE THOUGHT IT WAS FUNNY TOO,
OVER THE YEARS, YEAH.
BUT A SHOW YOU CAN GO SEE
AND HAVE BREYERS
ICE CREAM AFTERWARDS
AND SIT DOWN WITH
YOUR HERO, BOZO?
I MEAN, THAT WAS
A GREAT MOMENT.
I THINK ALL OF US WHO
WORKED ON THAT SHOW
AND EVERYONE WHO WATCHED IT
PRETTY MUCH KNEW THAT AN ERA
WAS COMING TO AN END,
THAT WE WOULD NEVER SEE
ANYTHING LIKE THIS AGAIN.
Narrator: WHILE
THE PROGRAMS THEMSELVES
ARE ALL BUT GONE,
THE LEGACY OF THE LOCAL
CHILDREN'S TV SHOWS CONTINUES,
WOVEN INTO THE FABRIC OF
THE NATIONAL CONSCIOUSNESS,
A PART OF OUR LIVES EVERY DAY,
THANKS TO THE PIONEERS
OF TELEVISION.
FOR MORE INSIDER FEATURES
ABOUT YOUR FAVORITE TV STARS,
STORIES YOU WON'T
HEAR ANYWHERE ELSE,
PIONEERING DECADES,
NEARLY EVERY TOWN WITH
A TV STATION
HAD ITS OWN
LOCAL KIDS' PROGRAM.
McCann: HE MADE
THOSE PUPPETS LIVE.
THEY WERE ALIVE.
KIDS ARE REALLY SHARP.
THEY WANT TO LAUGH,
AND IF IT'S FUNNY, IT'S FUNNY.
Woman: THERE WAS A FORMULA.
IT WAS A SUCCESSFUL FORMULA.
SOME OF US ARE
ABSOLUTELY ADORABLE.
SOME OF US ARE UGLY,
AND WE LIKE IT THAT WAY.
IT WAS KIND OF LIKE THAT CLOWN
ON "THE SIMPSONS,"
ONLY THIS WAS BEFORE
"THE SIMPSONS."
WHEN YOU SEE BOZO ON TV,
HE'S THAT BIG, AND THEN WHEN YOU
SAW HIM IN LIFE,
HE WAS ME.
Rogers: AND I THOUGHT,
"THIS COULD BE
A WONDERFUL TOOL
FOR EDUCATION."
Narrator: TOGETHER, THEY CREATED
A NEW FORM OF ENTERTAINMENT...
LOCAL TV FOR CHILDREN.
THEY ARE THE PIONEERS
OF TELEVISION.
Man: HOW DO YOU FEEL?
GOOD!
GOOD!
GOOD!
"BOZO'S CIRCUS"
IS ON THE AIR!
Narrator: THEY CREATED
THE CHARACTERS
THAT SHAPED OUR CHILDHOODS.
Ringmaster: WITH BOZO,
THE WORLD'S GREATEST CLOWN!
HEY, BOYS AND GIRLS,
IT'S BOZO!
LET ME INTRODUCE YOU
TO A FRIEND OF MINE.
HERE'S KERMIT.
HI, THERE.
Narrator: GIVEN A BLANK SLATE,
THEY CREATED SOME OF
TELEVISION'S MOST
INVENTIVE PROGRAMS.
BUT YOU'RE NOT
AS UGLY AS YOU LOOK.
OH, THANKS.
HEH-HEH.
MY MOTTO WAS, "DON'T DO WHAT
ANYBODY ELSE IS DOING."
Narrator: THEY ENDURED
THE CHALLENGES
OF LOW BUDGETS
AND IMPOSSIBLE SITUATIONS.
I WENT TO THE SALVATION ARMY
AND I PULLED ALL MY
COSTUMES OUT OF THERE.
IT WASN'T THAT COMPLICATED
IN THOSE DAYS.
ALL YOU... YOU DID...
WHAT YOU SAW IS WHAT YOU GOT.
DOING A KIDS' SHOW IS...
I MEAN, YOU'VE GOT TO BE
ON TOP OF YOUR GAME
AND YOU HAVE TO REALLY
KEEP UP WITH THE KIDS,
BECAUSE THEY'LL TAKE OVER.
ONE OF THE LITTLE BOYS
WAS KIND OF ACTING UP,
AND I HAVE TO THROW THIS IN...
I DON'T BELIEVE
IT WAS LEONARDO DiCAPRlO.
HE CLAIMS THAT HE WAS
KICKED OFF THE SHOW,
BUT WE NEVER DID THAT.
I WAS PLAYING THE BAD GUY,
YOU KNOW?
AND THE KIDS DIDN'T LIKE IT,
AND WHEN I CAME BY,
THEY THREW STONES AT ME,
I SWEAR TO GOODNESS.
I HAD TO RUN FOR MY LIFE!
Narrator: THEY FORGED
A RELATIONSHIP WITH THE AUDIENCE
UNLIKE ANYTHING TELEVISION
HAS EVER SEEN.
Woman: I LOVED IT.
I WOULD HAVE
DONE IT FOR NOTHING,
AND THEY PAID ME.
IT WAS SUCH A JOY,
SINCERELY SO.
I WAS BLESSED TO BE RIGHT PLACED
AT THE RIGHT TIME.
WHEE!
THIS SMALL PIECE OF RUBBER
FILLED WITH HELIUM
IS NOT THE GREATEST THING
IN THE WORLD FOR A KING
TO HAVE FLOATING
AROUND HIS NOSE.
Rogers: I'D JUST LIKE
TO BE REMEMBERED
FOR BEING A COMPASSIONATE
HUMAN BEING
WHO HAPPENED TO BE FORTUNATE
ENOUGH TO BE BORN AT A TIME
WHEN THERE WAS THIS FABULOUS
THING CALLED TELEVISION.
Narrator: IN TIME,
THEIR EFFORTS WOULD GIVE RISE
TO THE NATIONAL CHILDREN'S SHOWS
WE ENJOY TODAY,
BUT THE FOUNDATION WAS LAID
AT LOCAL STATIONS
ACROSS AMERICA.
WELL, I FINALLY MADE IT.
I'VE GOT MY LOUNGING...
MY LOUNGING OUTFIT ON HERE.
THIS IS THE ONE I'M GOING TO
LOUNGE AROUND WITH.
Narrator: IN THE 1950s AND '60s,
LOCAL KIDS' SHOWS
REFLECTED THE COMMUNITY
IN A WAY NO NATIONAL SHOW
EVER COULD.
YOU KNOW, YOU CAN GO
AND SEE HAZEL
OVER AT 909 WEST LAKE STREET.
THAT'S THE UPTOWN PET HOTEL,
AND SHE'S THERE ALL THE TIME,
AIN'T YOU, HAZEL?
COME RIGHT IN HERE.
SHE'S SO GENTLE, YOU KNOW,
YOU CAN PUT YOUR WHOLE HAND
RIGHT IN HER MOUTH AND SHE DON'T
BITE IT OFF OR NOTHING.
AT LEAST NOT YET!
I'VE HEARD PEOPLE
ALL OVER CHICAGOLAND
TRYING TO GET TICKETS
TO THE WORLD SERIES.
HOW IN THE WORLD WOULD YOU TWO
SHOW UP WITH TWO TICKETS
TO TOMORROW'S
WORLD SERIES GAME?
THIS IS GOING TO BE
SOME LITTLE
DUTCH GIRLS.
OH, GEE, THAT'S NEAT!
I'D LOVE TO SEE
SOME DUTCH CHILDREN!
OH, WELL, TERRY,
YOU CAN SEE PEOPLE
FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD
RIGHT HERE.
DUTCHMEN AND FRENCHMEN
AND PEOPLE FROM INDIA OR IRAN.
WHERE SHOULD I
LOOK FOR THEM?
WELL, THE UNITED NATIONS
BUILDING
RIGHT HERE
IN NEW YORK CITY.
IT'S A WONDERFUL PLACE
TO VISIT, TOO.
WE DON'T?
NO, WE DON'T.
WOULD YOU LIKE TO GET THROUGH
A LOT OF MAIL?
YEAH, LET'S GO.
ALL RIGHTY-ROW, RAY.
FROM YOUR FRIEND JOEY,
HOW ABOUT THAT?
♪ JOEY, JOEY, JOEY ♪
JOEY IN CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.
GOOD TOWN, CHICAGO.
Narrator: PERSONALITIES
LIKE RAY RAYNER IN CHICAGO
WERE BELOVED, ALMOST LIKE
A MEMBER OF THE FAMILY.
THEY READ KIDS' LETTERS,
SHOWCASED STUDENT ART...
HERE YOU GO.
HE LIKES TO JUMP UP.
Narrator:
GOOFED AROUND WITH ANIMALS,
AND OFFERED ALL-IMPORTANT
INFORMATION
ABOUT SCHOOL CLOSINGS
ON SNOWY DAYS.
IT WAS A TIME WHEN
KIDS' SHOWS DIDN'T
HAVE TO BE FAST-PACED TO HOLD
A YOUNG PERSON'S ATTENTION.
I ASSUME I TAKE
THIS THING OFF FIRST,
BECAUSE MY FIRST STEP IS TO
"CUT MESH IN HALF LENGTHWISE."
Man: WOULD THE BACK ROW
STAND UP?
HI, EVERYBODY IN THE BACK ROW.
I'M CERTAINLY GLAD TO SEE YOU.
Narrator: FOR A GENERATION
OF AMERICANS,
THE OPPORTUNITY TO ACTUALLY JOIN
THE STUDIO AUDIENCE
OF THEIR FAVORITE SHOW
REMAINS A CHERISHED MEMORY.
King: BECAUSE
ONCE THEY SEE YOU
AND KNOW YOU'RE REAL,
YOU HAVE THEM FOREVER.
YOU'RE NOT JUST SOMEBODY
IN THIS LITTLE BOX.
YOU WOULD WRITE AWAY TO GET
TICKETS SIX MONTHS IN ADVANCE
AND THEN YOUR MOTHER
WOULD DRESS YOU UP
AND THE NEIGHBORS
WOULD GET IN THE CAR,
STATION WAGONS THEN,
AND THEY WOULD ALL SHOW UP
AT THE STUDIO
AND THEY HAD TO WAIT IN LINE
TO GET IN
AND THEY HAD LITTLE
SEATS TO SIT...
IT WAS A TV SHOW THAT
THE KIDS COULD VISIT
AND THEN GO HOME AND WATCH.
WE WERE LIVE, BUT THEY COULD
WATCH THE SHOW DURING THE WEEK.
AND THAT WAS
AN AWFUL LOT OF FUN.
SOMETHING LIKE THIS.
Narrator: FUN IT WAS,
AND NO CITY IN AMERICA
HAD MORE FUN
FOR A LONGER TIME
THAN PHOENIX, ARIZONA.
ALL RIGHT, WHY DON'T YOU
DEMONSTRATE FOR US NOW
THE WAY YOU FIGHT,
THE WAY YOU...
Narrator: THIS PHOENIX
KIDS' PROGRAM
CALLED "WALLACE AND LADMO"
RANKS AMONG
THE MOST POPULAR
LOCAL CHILDREN'S SHOWS
IN THE HISTORY OF
AMERICAN TELEVISION,
BEATING THE COMPETITION
FOR NEARLY 40 YEARS,
A SHOW THAT WASN'T AFRAID
TO LAMPOON ANYTHING.
NOW TRYING TO ATTACK
THE FRAME AND FACE HERE.
OKAY.
CRASH...
YOU CRASH SOMETIMES,
AND A LITTLE KICK.
YOU'RE TOUGH,
YOU ARE TOUGH.
Thompson: IT WAS A FUN JOB.
YEAH, I CAN'T THING OF
ANYTHING CONNECTED TO IT
THAT I DIDN'T LIKE.
OH, OUR SALARIES.
THAT'S THE ONLY THING.
THOSE CHEAPSKATES DOWN THERE
AT CHANNEL 5.
THEY WEREN'T TRYING
TO TEACH US ANYTHING,
THEY WEREN'T TRYING TO
GIVE US ANY MORALS
OR PRESENT ANY LESSONS,
THEY WERE JUST...
IT WAS JUST FOR LAUGHS.
Narrator: THE SERIES BEGAN
IN 1954 WITH JUST WALLACE
DOING BITS BY HIMSELF.
AH! AAAAH!
GLAD TO SEE YOU,
WHERE'VE YOU BEEN?
Narrator: WITHIN A FEW MONTHS,
WALLACE ADDED A SIDEKICK,
LADIMIR KWIATKOWSKI...
LADMO.
LADMO...
WHAT ARE YOU DOING?
WITH AN OCTOPUS.
OH.
WHOSE CHILDLIKE PERSONA
MADE HIM AN INSTANT HIT.
GLAD TO SEE YOU,
HELLO, THERE.
THE SHOW HIT FULL STRIDE
IN 1960 WHEN A YOUNG PAT McMAHON
TUNED IN "WALLACE AND LADMO"
FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME.
McMahon: AND MY
FIRST THOUGHT WAS,
"OH, NOT ANOTHER ONE OF THOSE
LOCAL KIDS' SHOWS
"WHERE SOMEBODY
IN THE SALES DEPARTMENT
"HAS A SOCK ON HIS HAND,
'HELLO, BOYS AND GIRLS, '
AND TELLS EVERYBODY
ABOUT DENTAL HEALTH."
I'M GOING TO TALK ABOUT
SEALTEST ICE CREAM.
Narrator: BUT THEN McMAHON SAW
WALLACE AND LADMO DO SOMETHING
COMPLETELY UNEXPECTED...
THEY RIDICULED THEIR SPONSOR.
GOOD, NOT GREAT,
BUT GOOD, YEAH.
WALLACE WOULD SOMETIMES KIND OF
MAKE FUN OF THE PRODUCT,
OR HE'D TRY AND DROP-KICK IT
SOMEWHERE OR SOMETHING,
AND EVEN AS A LITTLE KID,
YOU KNEW,
"THAT'S JUST NOT RIGHT.
YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED
TO DO THAT."
REALLY APPRECIATE YOU
INVITING ME ON,
BECAUSE I HAVE A HOBBY
THAT IS THE HOBBY OF KINGS.
I AM A PHILATELIST.
TO ASK WHAT THAT IS.
I COLLECT PHILATS.
Narrator: SOON PAT McMAHON
TALKED HIS WAY ONTO THE SHOW,
AND HE NEVER LEFT.
OVER THE DECADES,
WALLACE WOULD CREATE DOZENS
OF FUNNY AND IRREVERENT
CHARACTERS,
AND PAT McMAHON WOULD
BRING THEM TO LIFE.
NOW IT'S TIME FOR SOME OF MY
AWARD-WINNING CAPTIONS.
A SUPERHERO ON
THE "WALLACE AND LADMO" SHOW
NEED ONLY BE TWO THINGS...
NOT SUPER IN ANY WAY
NOR A HERO.
THE...
SEE, I WAS GOING TO
ASK YOU ABOUT... THAT.
I TOLD THE LAUNDRY
NO STARCH.
McMahon: REMEMBER
CAPTAIN SUPER WORE A MASK
THAT WAS COMPLETELY CUT OUT
IN THE MIDDLE
SO THERE WAS NO CHANCE
YOU WOULDN'T RECOGNIZE HIM?
LET'S HAVE A BIG HAND
FOR BOFFO THE CLOWN.
Narrator: LIKE MANY KIDS' SHOWS,
"WALLACE AND LADMO" HAD A CLOWN,
BUT BOFFO DIDN'T FIT
THE USUAL CLOWN MOLD.
THE CHARACTER'S ONLY
REAL MOTIVATION WAS MONEY.
BOFFO, HOW DO YOU PERSONALLY
FEEL ABOUT THE KIDS?
IT'S A BUCK.
ANYBODY CALLS ME,
I'LL SHOW UP.
THEY NEED A CLOWN,
I'M IT.
WHAT ABOUT
THE BIRTHDAY PARTIES?
HOW DO THEY WORK?
YEAH, ACTUALLY,
THAT'S WHERE
YOUR BIG BREAD IS.
YOUR BIRTHDAY PARTIES,
THAT'S WHERE YOU
PICK UP A LOT OF COIN.
I DON'T THINK LAD
OR PAT OR I
EVER THOUGHT
ANY CLOWN WAS FUNNY.
AND SO OUR CLOWN WAS GOING TO BE
A LITTLE DIFFERENT...
HE HATED KIDS.
AS LONG AS THEY KEEP IT DOWN,
AS LONG AS THEY DON'T
SCREAM AND YELL
AND LAUGH AND GIGGLE,
'CAUSE THAT REALLY
FROSTS ME, MAN.
I HAVE HAD IT
UP TO HERE.
I GET, YOU KNOW,
A BUCK AND A HALF,
$2 AN HOUR,
I'M NOT GOING TO PUT UP WITH
A LOT OF JIBBER-JABBER,
YOU KNOW?
I'LL BE THE CLOWN,
YOU BE THE KIDS,
JUST SIT THERE AND SHUT
YOUR MOUTHS, THAT'S ALL.
Narrator: ARIZONA'S
"WALLACE AND LADMO"
SUCCEEDED BECAUSE
ITS HUMOR
APPEALED TO TEENS AND ADULTS
AS WELL AS CHILDREN.
OVER IN LOS ANGELES,
AN INNOVATIVE PUPPET SHOW
WAS ATTRACTING
A SIMILAR AUDIENCE.
HOW'D YOU LIKE TO BE
IN PICTURES,
HAVE YOUR NAME UP IN LIGHTS,
DRIVE A CAR WITH THE STEERING
WHEEL ON THE WRONG SIDE,
WEAR CHARTREUSE
SUEDE WEDGES,
ALL THE BETTER THINGS,
ALL THE BETTER THINGS?
Freberg: IF YOU'D SAY,
"WE'VE CREATED A SHOW THAT
WILL APPEAL TO CHILDREN
AND ADULTS UP TO
DR. ALBERT EINSTEIN,"
YOU KNOW, THEY'D SAY,
"CALL... SECURITY!"
YOU KNOW, "GET THESE GUYS
OUT OF HERE."
BUT ALL I KNOW IS,
THAT'S WHAT WORKED.
YOU'RE NOT AS UGLY
AS YOU LOOK.
OH, THANKS!
HEH-HEH.
Narrator: STARTING IN 1949,
7 OUT OF 10
LOS ANGELES TV VIEWERS
WOULD TUNE IN
TO THIS PROGRAM DAILY.
NUMBERS HIGHER THAN
A MODERN SUPER BOWL,
TO SEE A SHOW CALLED
"TIME FOR BEANY."
SAY, YOU BOYS AIN'T SEEN
A BIG, GIANT,
WHITE GORILLA AROUND,
HAVE YOU?
WHAT DO YOU SAY?
HEY, YOU DIDN'T
ANSWER THE QUESTION.
HUH.
Narrator: "TIME FOR BEANY"
FLOWED FROM THE FERTILE MINDS
OF STAN FREBERG
AND DAWS BUTLER.
YEARS LATER,
FREBERG WOULD CREATE
THE FASTEST-SELLING
COMEDY RECORD OF ALL TIME
AND A STRING OF
FUNNY COMMERCIALS
THAT CHANGED THE DIRECTION
OF AMERICAN ADVERTISING.
BUT BACK IN THE 1940s,
STAN FREBERG WAS AN UNKNOWN.
HIS RISE TO FAME RANKS AMONG
THE MOST IMPROBABLE
IN HOLLYWOOD HISTORY.
I'M RIDING DOWN
HOLLYWOOD BOULEVARD
AND I'M THE LAST
PERSON ON THE BUS,
AND I SEE THE BUS DRIVER
LOOK IN THE MIRROR,
THE REARVIEW MIRROR,
AND SAID,
"WHERE DO YOU WANT TO
GET OFF, KID?"
I SAID, "I WANT TO GET OFF IN
THE MIDDLE OF HOLLYWOOD!"
PSSSSSH,
HITS THE BRAKES.
I SAID, "IS THIS
THE MIDDLE OF HOLLYWOOD?"
HE SAID, "KID, THIS IS
AS MIDDLE AS IT GETS."
DOORS OPEN,
I GET OFF THE BUS.
THERE'S A THREE-STORY
BUILDING THERE, OKAY?
I WALK IN THE LOBBY,
I THOUGHT,
"I WONDER IF THERE
POSSIBLY COULD BE
A TALENT AGENT
IN THIS BUILDING."
I WALK IN AND I SEE A CLEANERS,
INVISIBLE WEAVING,
SECOND FLOOR,
"STARS OF TOMORROW
TALENT AGENCY."
I SAID, "THAT'S ME!"
"STARS OF TOMORROW,"
THAT'S ME.
SO I GET IN THIS
CREAKY ELEVATOR...
GOING UP TO
THE SECOND FLOOR.
NOW I WALK IN,
"STARS OF TOMORROW" ON THE DOOR,
AND A LITTLE SHORT GUY
WITH A CIGAR SAYS,
"YES, CAN WE HELP YOU?"
I SAID, "YES"...
"I'D LIKE TO SEE YOU ABOUT
SOME REPRESENTATION."
HE SAID, "WELL,
WHAT DO YOU DO?"
I SAID, "WELL, I DO
ALL KIND OF VOICES."
"AND TH... TH... TH... TH...
THAT'S ALL, FOLKS."
HE SAYS,
"HOLD IT RIGHT THERE."
WALKS INTO THE PHONE,
CALLS A MAN
NAMED JOHN BURTON
AT WARNER BROS. CARTOONS.
SAYS, "YES, HI.
"I'M BRINGING A TALENTED
YOUNG MAN OVER TO...
"YOU HAVE TO HEAR HIM DO
THESE VARIOUS VOICES.
"YES, I KNOW YOU HAVE MEL BLANC,
"BUT MEL BLANC CAN'T DO ALL
THE VOICES IN THE WORLD.
HIS NAME IS STAN FREBERG
AND I'M COMING RIGHT OVER."
HUNG UP THE PHONE.
SO I WAS SCARED TO DEATH,
YOU KNOW, 18 YEARS OLD.
SO NOW JOHN BURTON SAYS,
"OKAY, THIS IS
"A TALENTED YOUNG MAN
WE JUST DISCOVERED.
GO AHEAD, STAN."
SO NOW I START
TO DO THE VOICES.
NOW, THE MINUTE THEY START
TO LAUGH, I KNOW I'M OKAY.
FRITZ FRELENG
WALKS UP TO ME,
A LITTLE GUY, AND HE SAYS,
"WHY HAVEN'T WE HEARD
OF YOU BEFORE, STAN?"
I SAID, "I DON'T KNOW,
I'VE BEEN AROUND, YOU KNOW."
HE SAID, "OH, I DIDN'T MEAN THAT
THE WAY IT SOUNDED.
I MEAN I'M SURE YOU DIDN'T
JUST GET OFF THE BUS."
THAT'S A TRUE...
TRUE STORY.
♪ AND A ROW-DODY-DODY
DOE-DODY-DODY ♪
♪ SUNNY SIDE UP,
A DOE-DODY-DODY ♪
Narrator: CARTOONS OF THE 1940s
WERE SEEN ONLY IN THEATERS.
STAN FREBERG HADN'T THOUGHT
MUCH ABOUT TELEVISION.
UNTIL A WARM EVENING IN 1949,
WHEN VETERAN ANIMATOR
BOB CLAMPETT
INVITED FREBERG OVER
TO HIS GARAGE.
CLAMPETT EXPLAINED THAT
HE WANTED TO CREATE
A PUPPET SHOW FOR TV.
HE ASKED FREBERG
AND FELLOW ACTOR DAWS BUTLER
IF THEY'D LIKE TO
DO THE VOICES.
THEN CLAMPETT
SHOWED THE TWO ACTORS
HIS MAKESHIFT PUPPET STUDIO.
OUT IN THE GARAGE
BEHIND CLAMPETT'S HOUSE,
OKAY, AND DAWS AND I SAID,
"WHERE ARE THE PUPPETEERS?"
WE THOUGHT WE WERE JUST
GOING TO DO THE VOICES.
AND CLAMPETT SAID TO US,
"YOU'RE THE PUPPETEERS."
I SAID, "WE'RE THE PUPPETEERS?"
I SAID TO DAWS, "IT'S CALLED
ON-THE-JOB TRAINING."
Narrator: OVER
THE NEXT FEW WEEKS,
EXECUTIVES FROM
FOUR TV STATIONS
MADE THE PILGRIMAGE
TO BOB CLAMPETT'S GARAGE
TO WATCH FREBERG AND BUTLER.
LATE ON A FRIDAY NIGHT,
KTLA BOUGHT THE IDEA.
Man: CECIL IS MAKING
THE TRANSFORMATION FROM HIS...
Narrator: THREE DAYS LATER,
IT WAS ON THE AIR...
Man: HE OUGHT TO BE APPEARING
ALMOST ANY MINUTE NOW.
Narrator: THE PREMIER
OF "TIME FOR BEANY."
HI, EVERYBODY.
Narrator: "TIME FOR BEANY" AIRED
LIVE FIVE DAYS A WEEK
FOR FIVE YEARS,
ESTABLISHING ITSELF
AS THE MOST POPULAR CHILDREN'S
SHOW IN LOS ANGELES.
ADULTS ENJOYED IT TOO,
INCLUDING THE SMARTEST MIND
OF THE 20th CENTURY...
ALBERT EINSTEIN.
Freberg: ONE DAY HE STOOD UP
IN A MEETING AND SAID,
"GENTLEMEN"... HE KEPT LOOKING
AT HIS POCKET WATCH,
AND HE SAID, "GENTLEMEN,
YOU WILL HAVE TO EXCUSE ME.
IT'S TIME FOR BEANY
AND CECIL."
Narrator: ON THE OTHER SIDE
OF THE COUNTRY,
A YOUNG TEENAGER WAS ENAMORED
WITH STAN FREBERG'S WORK...
THE HUMOR, THE ATTITUDE,
THE EDGINESS.
WHILE STILL IN HIGH SCHOOL,
HE BEGAN PERFORMING
ON LOCAL TV SHOWS
IN WASHINGTON, D.C.,
INCLUDING A KIDS' PROGRAM
HOSTED BY WILLARD SCOTT.
Scott: I WAS FARMER WILLARD,
AND THERE WAS A KID THERE
WHO WAS 16 YEARS OLD
WHO'D BROUGHT A BAG,
LITERALLY LIKE A BURGLAR,
SECOND-STORY BURGLAR'S BAG,
OF LITTLE THINGS,
AND HE CALLED THEM "MUPPETS."
AND THAT WAS THE FIRST SHOW
THAT JIM HENSON EVER DID.
Narrator: JIM HENSON
AND HIS WIFE-TO-BE JANE
SOON GOT THEIR OWN SHOW,
"SAM AND FRIENDS,"
AIRING EVERY NIGHT
IN WASHINGTON, D.C.
Announcer: "SAM AND FRIENDS!"
THE PLATTER THEY'RE PLAYING
ON THIS TV SHOW
SEEMS TO HAVE GOTTEN STUCK.
MAYBE IF I JUST HIT
THE TELEVISION LIKE THIS...
Narrator: TV PUPPETEERS USED
A TRADITIONAL PUPPET THEATER,
BUT HENSON WAS AMONG
THE FIRST TO UNDERSTAND
THE POTENTIAL OF THE NEW MEDIUM.
THE TV FRAME WAS HIS STAGE,
WHICH MEANT PUPPETS COULD
MOVE IN WAYS
THEY NEVER HAD BEFORE.
SOME OF US ARE
ABSOLUTELY ADORABLE.
SOME OF US ARE UGLY,
AND WE LIKE IT THAT WAY.
Narrator: HENSON'S INNOVATIONS
DIDN'T END THERE.
HE USED SOFT MATERIALS
SO THAT HIS CHARACTERS
COULD BE MORE EXPRESSIVE,
HE ADDED CONTROL RODS
RATHER THAN STRINGS
FOR MORE PRECISE MOVEMENT,
AND HE EXTENDED HIS PUPPETRY
TO INCLUDE
LIFE-SIZED CHARACTERS.
GRADUALLY HIS
CHARACTERS EVOLVED,
FROM SAM TO ROWLF
TO HIS TRADEMARK,
KERMIT THE FROG.
Scott: AND THEY ALL REALLY WERE
A LITTLE PART OF JIM,
'CAUSE KERMIT
REALLY IS JIM HENSON.
KERMIT WAS HIS SOUL,
HIS SPIRIT, HIS LOVE.
HE WAS JUST A GENTLE SOUL.
I WANT THE CHEAP STUFF!
CHEAP, CHEAP, CHEAP!
SORRY, BUT THAT OTHER COFFEE'S
FOR THE BIRDS.
Narrator: THROUGHOUT
THE '50s AND '60s,
JIM HENSON MADE
A GOOD LIVING IN PUPPETRY...
PRIMARILY THROUGH COMMERCIALS.
WANT A CUP OF
WILKINS COFFEE?
WHAT'LL MR. WILKINS DO
IF I DON'T?
OH, HE'LL PROBABLY
PUT HIS FOOT DOWN.
Narrator: IN THE LATE 1960s,
PUBLIC TELEVISION PRODUCER
JOAN GANZ COONEY WAS
LOOKING FOR A PUPPETEER
FOR A NEW SERIES
SHE WAS DEVELOPING
CALLED "THE PRESCHOOL EDUCATION
TELEVISION SHOW."
AN ASSOCIATE MADE A SUGGESTION.
SHE CALLED AND SAID,
"YOU'VE GOT TO GO TO
"THE JOHNNY VICTOR THEATER
AND SEE A SCREENING
OF A REEL OF COMMERCIALS
BY SOMEONE NAMED JIM HENSON."
AND I WENT AND I REMEMBER
JUST FALLING IN...
ALMOST FALLING IN THE AISLE
LAUGHING AT THESE
CHINESE FOOD COMMERCIALS
AND WONDER BREAD COMMERCIALS
AND SO ON THAT HE HAD DONE.
HERE, HOLD THIS.
OH, BOY,
HE'S A HOT SALESMAN.
Narrator: COONEY ASKED HENSON
IF HE WOULD CREATE
THE PUPPETS FOR
HER NEW SERIES
WHICH WOULD SOON HAVE
A MUCH CATCHIER NAME...
"SESAME STREET."
BUT JIM HENSON
WAS NOT INTERESTED.
NOT AT FIRST.
HE SAW PUPPETRY
AS AN ART FORM
THAT TAPPED
ADULT SENSIBILITIES.
REACHING CHILDREN
WAS FAR OFF HIS RADAR.
IN TIME, HE CAME TO SEE
THE UNIQUE VALUE
OF THE "SESAME STREET" PROJECT,
AND HE GOT ONBOARD
WHOLEHEARTEDLY.
I CALL MY BATHTUB "ROSIE."
ERNIE, WHY DO YOU CALL
YOUR BATHTUB "ROSIE"?
WHAT'S THAT?
I SAID, WHY DO YOU CALL
YOUR BATHTUB "ROSIE"?
BECAUSE EVERY TIME
I TAKE A BATH,
I LIVE A RING AROUND ROSIE.
Narrator: JIM HENSON'S ABILITY
TO ENGAGE CHILDREN AND ADULTS
WAS PITCH-PERFECT
FOR "SESAME STREET."
THE SERIES WENT ON TO BECOME
THE MOST INNOVATIVE
AND SUCCESSFUL NATIONAL
CHILDREN'S PROGRAM
OF ALL TIME.
A WIDE RANGE
OF GIFTED PEOPLE
SHARE CREDIT FOR
"SESAME STREET'S" SUCCESS,
BUT JIM HENSON'S CHARACTERS
WERE PIVOTAL...
CHARACTERS THAT MADE THEIR DEBUT
ON A LOCAL TV SHOW
IN WASHINGTON, D.C.
JIM HENSON'S HIP,
FAST-PACED STYLE
WAS A SHARP CONTRAST TO ANOTHER
LOCAL TV PUPPETEER
WHO WOULD ALSO GO ON TO BECOME
A NATIONAL STAR...
AMERICA'S FAVORITE NEIGHBOR,
FRED ROGERS.
♪ IT'S A BEAUTIFUL DAY
IN THIS NEIGHBORHOOD ♪
♪ A BEAUTIFUL DAY
FOR A NEIGHBOR ♪
♪ WOULD YOU BE MINE? ♪
♪ COULD YOU BE MINE? ♪
♪ IT'S A NEIGHBORLY... ♪
Narrator: FRED ROGERS ORIGINALLY
PLANNED TO BECOME A MINISTER,
BUT THE FIRST TIME
HE SAW A TV,
HIS LIFE CHANGED COURSE.
I SAW THIS NEW THING
CALLED TELEVISION,
AND I SAW PEOPLE THROWING PIES
IN EACH OTHER'S FACES,
AND I THOUGHT,
"THIS COULD BE A WONDERFUL
TOOL FOR EDUCATION.
WHY IS IT BEING
USED THIS WAY?"
IT REALLY DOESN'T...
REALLY DOESN'T MATTER,
'CAUSE THEY'RE NOT
GOING TO SEE JUST...
WE'LL JUST CUT IN
ON THAT...
Narrator: EARLY ON,
ROGERS GOT A JOB
ON A LOCAL KIDS' SHOW
IN PITTSBURGH.
HE WASN'T ON-CAMERA,
BUT HE DID NEARLY
EVERYTHING ELSE ON THE SHOW
CALLED "CHILDREN'S CORNER."
AND THAT'S WHY I STARTED
WEARING TENNIS SHOES,
THOSE SNEAKERS,
BECAUSE I DIDN'T
WANT TO MAKE NOISE
AS I WOULD RUN
ACROSS THE STUDIO.
SO I WAS ALWAYS
IN THOSE SNEAKERS.
Narrator: ALTHOUGH ROGERS'S FACE
WAS NEVER SEEN ON
"CHILDREN'S CORNER,"
HE DID VOICE ALL THE PUPPETS,
INCLUDING KING FRIDAY.
ROW, ROW, ROW YOUR BOAT?
MM-HMM.
OH, YOU MUST MEAN...
♪ ROW, ROW, ROW YOUR BOAT
GENTLY DOWN THE STREAM ♪
OH, YEAH, I THOUGHT
YOU MUST MEAN
PROPEL, PROPEL,
PROPEL YOUR CRAFT.
YES, I GUESS THAT'S
WHAT I MEAN, SURE.
IT'S, ♪ PROPEL, PROPEL,
PROPEL YOUR CRAFT ♪
♪ GENTLY DOWN
LIQUID SOLUTION ♪
♪ ECSTATICALLY, ECSTATICALLY,
ECSTATICALLY, ECSTATICALLY ♪
♪ EXISTENCE IS
BUT AN ILLUSION ♪
Narrator: BY THE EARLY 1960s,
ROGERS GOT HIS OWN SHOW.
THIS TIME HE WAS
IN FRONT OF THE CAMERA
AS HIMSELF,
A CARING, REASSURING VOICE,
THE POLAR OPPOSITE OF NEARLY
EVERYTHING ELSE IN TV.
HE STAYED ON FOR MORE
THAN 30 YEARS.
♪ IT'S A BEAUTIFUL DAY IN
THIS NEIGHBORHOOD ♪
♪ A BEAUTIFUL DAY
FOR A NEIGHBOR ♪
Rogers: I'D JUST LIKE TO BE
REMEMBERED FOR BEING A...
COMPASSIONATE HUMAN BEING
WHO HAPPENED TO BE
FORTUNATE ENOUGH
TO BE BORN AT A TIME
WHEN THERE WAS THIS
FABULOUS THING
CALLED TELEVISION.
Narrator: IN THE 1950s
AND '60s,
NEARLY EVERY LOCAL
KIDS' TV SHOW HAD PUPPETS.
PUPPETS WERE VERY SUCCESSFUL
IN THOSE DAYS.
PUPPETS REALLY
LAUNCHED TELEVISION.
Narrator: IN NEW YORK,
CHUCK McCANN REACHED AN AUDIENCE
THAT DWARFED MOST OTHER
LOCAL KIDS' SHOWS,
STARTING WITH A SERIES
CALLED "PUPPET HOTEL" IN 1960.
PUPPETS WORK FROM A HAND
DOWN TO A HEART.
THERE'S A BIG,
BIG DIFFERENCE.
THERE'S A REALITY
THAT COMES OUT OF THIS,
AND IT'S BEAUTIFUL TO WATCH
WHEN YOU SEE SOMEBODY
WHO KNOWS WHAT THEY'RE DOING
WORKING PUPPETS.
Narrator: OVER THE NEXT DECADE,
McCANN EXPANDED HIS COMEDY
TO INCLUDE A WIDE RANGE
OF CHARACTERS AND SKITS.
BECAUSE DAYTIME TV
WAS CONSIDERED UNPROFITABLE,
McCANN WAS GIVEN FREE REIN.
AND HE TOOK FULL ADVANTAGE
OF ONE OF TV'S
MOST WIDE-OPEN,
CREATIVE ARENAS.
HI, FRIENDS.
THANK YOU, THANK YOU,
THANK YOU.
HI, ONCE AGAIN, TO SEE DINKY
AND DUNKY, YES, SIR.
McCann: I USED TO GET UP
IN THE MORNING,
AND I WALKED TO THE STUDIO NOT
KNOWING WHAT I WAS GOING TO DO.
HOW ARE YOU DOING,
DINKY?
GOOD, WHERE'S DUNKY?
RIGHT HERE.
I WENT TO THE SALVATION ARMY
AND I PULLED ALL MY COSTUMES
OUT OF THERE,
AND I USED TO GO
INTO THE GARBAGE
ON PARK AVENUE ON THURSDAY
WHEN THEY REMOVED IT
AND I'D FIND, YOU KNOW,
HAIR DRYERS AND STUFF,
AND I'D SAY, "HEY,
I COULD DO A THING WITH THIS."
Narrator: LIKE MANY OTHER
SUCCESSFUL KIDS' HOSTS,
CHUCK McCANN DIDN'T NECESSARILY
AIM HIS SHOWS AT CHILDREN.
I JUST WENT IN AND DID
WHAT I THOUGHT WAS FUNNY.
WITH KIDS,
WHEN YOU DO A KIDS' SHOW,
YOU DON'T WANT
TO TALK DOWN TO THEM,
AND I... I NEVER...
I NEVER...
NEVER WANTED TO DO THAT.
I ALWAYS FELT THAT IF I
DID WHAT WAS FUNNY,
THE KIDS WOULD SENSE THAT.
♪ HERE AND I'M ♪
♪ FINE AND DANDY ♪
YOU DON'T MIND IF I
HAVE MY LUNCH?
NO... ALL RIGHT.
♪ I'M FINE AND DANDY ♪
♪ FINE AND DANDY,
I'M FINE AND DANDY ♪
♪ AND I LOVE YOU ♪
♪ OH... MMM ♪
♪ MMM MMM MMM ♪
♪ FINE AND DANDY ♪
♪ FINE AND DANDY ♪
Narrator: BY 1969,
CHUCK McCANN HAD LEFT
HIS NEW YORK CHILDREN'S SHOW
TO EMBARK ON AN ACTING
CAREER IN HOLLYWOOD.
THE TRANSITION FROM LOCAL
CHILDREN'S HOST
TO NATIONAL CELEBRITY
WAS NOT UNCOMMON.
DOZENS OF OTHER WELL-KNOWN STARS
CAN TRACE THEIR ROOTS
TO KIDS' TV SHOWS.
MERV GRIFFIN HOSTED MIAMI'S
"LUCKY DUCK SHOW."
TED KNIGHT STARRED ON
"CHILDREN'S THEATER"
IN PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND.
"THE SOUPY SALES SHOW"
BEGAN IN DETROIT
AND EVENTUALLY WENT NATIONAL.
ADAM WEST GOT HIS START ON
"THE KINI POPO SHOW" IN HAWAII.
"THE KINI POPO SHOW,"
WHICH MEANS IN HAWAIIAN
"ON THE BALL,"
AND THAT WAS MY EXPOSURE
TO DOING A KIDS' SHOW.
WE DID EVERYTHING WE COULD
TO ENTERTAIN PEOPLE
EARLY IN THE MORNING
FOR ABOUT...
I THINK IT WAS
A TWO-HOUR SHOW,
AND, YOU KNOW, THAT MEANS YOU
HAVE A CHIMPANZEE AS A SIDEKICK.
Narrator: WILLARD SCOTT HOSTED
THREE DIFFERENT KIDS' SHOWS
IN WASHINGTON, D.C.
THE WORST SHOW I EVER DID
IN MY LIFE, IN MY OPINION,
WAS THE BEST SHOW
I EVER DID IN MY LIFE.
WE HAD MORE FUN,
IT WAS CALLED "COMMANDER RETRO,"
AND I USED MY BASSET HOUND,
HE WAS DR. STRANGEDOG.
WE'D TAKE
A FIRE EXTINGUISHER
AND SHOOT IT OFF
IN FRONT OF THE LENS
TO MAKE IT LOOK LIKE
A ROCKET ENGINE,
AND THEN AS THAT
THING CLEARED UP,
YOU SAW THE MOON'S SURFACE
COME TO...
AND WE WOULD JUST ALL
RAISE IT UP OFF THE FLOOR,
BUT IT LOOKED LIKE
WE WERE LANDING.
AND OF COURSE YOU'D
SEE CHARLIE...
ONE OF THE STAGEHANDS
WAS HANGING ON TO IT.
Narrator: WHILE MANY PERFORMERS
LEARNED THEIR CRAFT
ON CHILDREN'S SHOWS
AND THEN MOVED ON,
OTHERS MADE
THE DECISION TO STAY.
IN PHOENIX, THE STARS OF
THE POPULAR
"WALLACE AND LADMO SHOW"
FACED A KEY DECISION IN 1963...
WHEN ONE OF THE SHOW'S STARS,
PAT McMAHON,
DID A SKIT,
A PARODY OF THE BEATLES,
THAT WAS JUST
A LITTLE TOO GOOD.
♪ WELL, I GOT A GIRL
NAMED BONEY MARONEY ♪
♪ BOP SHOO BOP SHOO BOP BOP
SHOO BOP ♪
Narrator:
CALLED "HUB CAP & THE WHEELS,"
PAT McMAHON'S JOKE BAND
ACTUALLY SCORED
A REAL HIT RECORD.
♪ YOU OUGHTTA SEE HER ROCK
WITH HER BLUE JEANS ON ♪
McMahon: AND IT
BEAT THE BEATLES
ON THE LOCAL CHARTS.
IT WAS THE FIRST TIME THAT
ANYBODY HAD BEEN AT NUMBER ONE
IN THAT PERIOD OF TIME
EXCEPT THE BEATLES.
WELL, WE HAD NO IDEA
WHAT TO DO WITH THAT.
Narrator: SOON,
HUB CAP & THE WHEELS
WERE MAKING NATIONAL
TV APPEARANCES.
CAPITOL RECORDS SIGNED THEM
TO A RECORDING CONTRACT.
A MOVIE WAS PLANNED.
PAT McMAHON
HAD A CHOICE TO MAKE...
TEEN HEARTTHROB IN HOLLYWOOD
OR BACK TO THE KIDS' SHOW
IN PHOENIX.
♪ WHEN I SAY THAT DIRTY WORD ♪
AND IT WAS SO TOTALLY SURREAL
THAT WE SAID,
"OKAY, WAIT A MINUTE,
GUYS, WHAT DO YOU WANT TO DO?
"DO YOU WANT TO BE
45-YEAR-OLD WHEELS,
OR DO YOU WANT TO DO
'THE WALLACE SHOW'?"
AND WE JUST LOVED
DOING THE SHOW.
WE JUST LOVED DOING
"THE WALLACE AND LADMO SHOW,"
SO THEY LET US OUT
OF OUR CONTRACT.
Narrator: McMAHON RETURNED
TO PHOENIX,
AND "THE WALLACE AND LADMO SHOW"
WOULD SETTLE INTO
A DECADES-LONG REIGN AS ONE OF
THE MOST BELOVED
LOCAL KIDS' PROGRAMS ANYWHERE.
ANYONE WHO GREW UP
IN PHOENIX LIKE ME
CAME HOME FROM SCHOOL, 4:00,
YOU GOT A LITTLE SNACK,
CLICKED ON THE TV,
AND YOU WATCHED
"WALLACE AND LADMO."
I LIVED IN PHOENIX, ARIZONA
FOR OVER A DECADE,
AND I WATCHED THEM EVERY DAY,
AND EVEN WHEN I GREW UP
AND I WAS SUPPOSED TO BE
TOO OLD TO WATCH THEM,
I STILL WATCHED THEM,
BECAUSE THEY WERE VERY HIP.
THEY ALWAYS KEPT
ABREAST OF THE TIMES
AND THEY WERE VERY HIP.
THEY WERE
THE "SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE"
BEFORE "SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE."
THEY WERE THE "SECOND CITY"
BEFORE "SECOND CITY."
LADMO FLAKES!
THE BREAKFAST CEREAL
FOR KIDS WHO DON'T
LIKE CEREAL,
AND THAT'S THE AMAZING PART...
THERE'S NO CEREAL AT ALL
IN THE BOX!
EACH AND EVERY PACKAGE
OF LADMO FLAKES
IS FILLED TO THE BRIM WITH...
♪ DA DA DA DA DA DUM! ♪
PRIZES,
TOYS, PREMIUMS! IMAGINE!
Narrator: THE SHOW
WAS SO POPULAR,
IT EVEN SPAWNED A CHAIN OF
DRIVE-IN RESTAURANTS.
THE IDEA MADE SENSE...
BOTH FAST FOOD
AND KIDS' TV WERE BOOMING.
IN THE MID-1950s,
FAST FOOD FRANCHISES
BEGAN TO TAKE HOLD.
IN RETROSPECT, THE CONCEPT
SEEMS REMARKABLY SIMPLE...
A SUCCESS IN ONE CITY
HAS A GOOD CHANCE
OF SUCCEEDING
IN EVERY CITY.
AS HAMBURGER STANDS BEGAN
SPROUTING UP AROUND THE COUNTRY,
A FEW ENTERPRISING TV PRODUCERS
THOUGHT FRANCHISING
MIGHT ALSO WORK IN
CHILDREN'S TELEVISION.
THE FIRST PERSON TO PUT
A PLAN INTO ACTION
WAS NANCY CLASTER,
WHO, WITH HER HUSBAND BURT,
CREATED "ROMPER ROOM."
Manderfield:
SHE IMPRESSED ME BECAUSE
SHE REALLY KNEW
WHAT SHE WAS DOING.
SHE JUST HAD A FIRM CONTROL
ON THE WHOLE THING.
SHE KNEW EXACTLY WHAT TO DO
AND HOW TO DO IT.
NOW, WE'RE GOING TO
FOLD OUR HANDS AND SAY,
"GOD IS GREAT, GOD IS GOOD.
"LET US THANK HIM
FOR OUR FOOD.
AMEN."
THANK YOU, BOYS AND GIRLS,
NOW YOU MAY HELP
YOURSELVES TO COOKIES
AND TO YOUR REFRESHMENTS.
Narrator: AIMED SQUARELY
AT PRESCHOOLERS,
"ROMPER ROOM" WAS A MIX OF
GAMES, SONGS, AND MORAL LESSONS.
MOST CITIES HAD
THEIR OWN LOCAL HOST,
TRAINED BY CLASTER AT HER
BALTIMORE FACILITY.
IT WAS MISS MARY ANN
IN LOS ANGELES,
MISS BEVERLY IN CHICAGO,
AND MISS MARLENE IN
GREEN BAY, WISCONSIN,
MORE THAN 100 IN ALL.
EACH HOSTESS WAS A REAL PERSON,
AND WE WERE OUT
IN THE COMMUNITY.
I NEVER MISSED A PARADE,
AND IF THEY CALLED ME
TO BE IN A PARADE, "YES,
YOU JUST TELL ME WHERE IT IS."
BECAUSE I KNEW
EVERY PLACE I WENT
THAT I WOULD HAVE MORE VIEWERS.
Narrator: EACH HOSTESS
CAREFULLY FOLLOWED
THE SAME SCRIPTS, SONGS,
AND ACTIVITIES,
ALL PREPARED BY NANCY CLASTER.
Serrano: THE CLASTERS
WERE VERY, VERY STRICT
ON HOW ALL
THE "ROMPER ROOM" TEACHERS
NEEDED TO BEHAVE,
HOW WE DRESSED,
HOW WE TALKED,
HOW WE INTROED THINGS,
THE WAY WE RELATED
TO THE CHILDREN.
THERE WAS A FORMULA.
IT WAS A SUCCESSFUL FORMULA.
YOU WEREN'T SUPPOSED
TO DIVERT FROM
THE GUIDELINES
THAT THEY GAVE YOU.
EVERYTHING WAS SUPPOSED
TO BE DONE JUST SO.
Narrator: DESPITE
THE UNIFORMITY,
"ROMPER ROOM"
WAS A LOCAL SHOW,
AND EACH VERSION
REFLECTED ITS COMMUNITY.
FRIENDS AT HOME,
WE HAVE A STORY FOR YOU,
UN CUENTO,
ES UN "CUENTO DE UN COCODRILO,"
"THE STORY OF THE CROCODILE."
Serrano: CULTURALLY
I WAS A WHOLE DIFFERENT
"ROMPER ROOM" TEACHER,
SO MADE SURE THAT WE HAD
AFRICAN AMERICAN CHILDREN,
LATINO, ASIAN,
WHITE CHILDREN,
CHILDREN OF ALL KINDS OF
CULTURAL BACKGROUNDS.
YOU KNOW, THIS WAS THE MID-'70s,
SO WE HAD BOY...
I HAD A BOY THERE NAMED RAINBOW.
WE HAD, YOU KNOW,
GIRLS NAMED FREE.
Narrator: THE CHILDREN
IN THE STUDIO
WERE REGULAR KIDS
FROM THE LOCAL COMMUNITY
WHO CAME IN FOR A WEEK
TO CREATE A MEMORY
THAT LASTED A LIFETIME.
YOU COULD SIGN UP
FOR "ROMPER ROOM."
YOU COULD JUST GO IN
LIKE A CIVILIAN
AND GET ON "ROMPER ROOM."
SO WE WENT DOWN TO
"ROMPER ROOM"
AND MY... WE SIGNED UP
FOR "ROMPER ROOM,"
MISS MARY WAS MY TEACHER,
AND NORMALLY YOU
DID IT FOR A WEEK,
AND I LIKED IT SO MUCH
AND I GUESS THEY LIKED ME
THAT I DID IT FOR TWO WEEKS.
I WAS A... WHAT WAS IT,
"DO BEE."
THERE WAS "DO BEES"
AND "DON'T BEES."
I WAS A "DO BEE."
Narrator: BECAUSE
"ROMPER ROOM" WAS LIVE
WITH THREE-
AND FOUR-YEAR-OLDS,
ANYTHING COULD HAPPEN.
IN LOS ANGELES,
MISS MARY ANN
LIKED TO BRING ANIMALS
INTO THE STUDIO.
WHEN A YOUNG LION
MADE A VISIT,
A TECHNICIAN THOUGHT IT WOULD BE
FUN TO PLAY THE SOUND
OF A ROARING ADULT LION.
AND THAT LION WENT BERSERK.
HE THOUGHT IT WAS
THE CALL OF THE WILD
OR THE CALL OF HIS MOTHER,
BUT HE WENT RIGHT
FOR THE CAMERAMAN.
I'VE NEVER SEEN THEM
MOVE THOSE CAMERAS SO FAST
IN ALL MY LIFE.
THEY GOT UP ON THE RISERS
WITH THE PARENTS
IN THE BACK OF THE STUDIO,
AND THIS LION'S GOING,
RAH, RAH, I SAID,
"YOU KNOW WHAT, BOYS AND GIRLS?
"I THINK THAT LION IS LOOKING
FOR THE CALL OF HIS MOTHER,
"AND WHILE HE CONTINUES LOOKING,
LET'S PUT ON OUR MAGIC EYES
AND SEE WHAT'S COMING
OUR WAY RIGHT NOW."
TWO MINUTES OF
FILMED COMMERCIAL.
AND I'LL LOOK FOR YOU
IN A MAGIC MIRROR,
SO HERE I GO.
ROMPER, BOMPER,
STOMPER BOO.
TELL ME, TELL ME...
Narrator: "ROMPER ROOM'S"
TRADEMARK SEGMENT
WAS THE MAGIC MIRROR,
WHICH SEEMED TO MAKE IT POSSIBLE
FOR THE HOSTESS
TO SEE CHILDREN AT HOME
THROUGH THE TV.
YOUNGSTERS PATIENTLY WAITED
FOR THEIR NAME TO BE CALLED.
ROMPER, BOMPER,
STOMPER BOO.
ROMPER,
BOMPER, STOMPER BOO.
TELL ME, TELL ME,
TELL ME, DO,
MAGIC MIRROR,
TELL ME TODAY,
DID ALL MY FRIENDS
HAVE FUN AT PLAY?
I SEE MARCHAND AND AMANDA.
I SEE NASTORA AND ANDREA.
I SEE ROBERT AND MAY,
LeSEAN, LEO, LAUREN, AND CAROL.
THERE'S MARTIN,
JUNIOR, AND YOU,
AND I'LL SEE YOU
ALL AGAIN TOMORROW
ON "ROMPER ROOM" SCHOOL.
AND I'LL SEE YOU TOMORROW
AT 9:00
IN THE "ROMPER ROOM" SCHOOL.
Narrator: THE ORGANIZATION
AND DISCIPLINE OF "ROMPER ROOM"
PROVIDED A SHARP CONTRAST
TO THE OTHER BIG HIT
IN FRANCHISED KIDS'
TELEVISION...
A MANIC CLOWN CALLED BOZO.
BOZO PREDATES TELEVISION.
Bozo: OUR SKY ROCKET SHIP
HAS TAKEN...
Narrator: SHORTLY AFTER
WORLD WAR II,
THE CHARACTER EMERGED AS
A STORYTELLING RECORD
AND READ-ALONG BOOK.
Bozo: AND HERE WE ARE
IN SUNNY ITALY.
Narrator: IN THE MID-1950s,
LARRY HARMON
BOUGHT THE CHARACTER
AND EMBARKED ON
THE MOST AGGRESSIVE
FRANCHISING EFFORT
IN KIDS' TV HISTORY.
Scott: LARRY HARMON
WAS LARRY HARMON
WAS BOZO WAS BOZO
WAS LARRY HARMON.
THERE WAS NO DIFFERENCE.
I MEAN, HE WAS THE MOST...
HE WAS A KID.
HE WAS A 40-YEAR-OLD KID
WHEN I MET HIM.
HE WAS A 90-YEAR-OLD
KID WHEN HE PASSED AWAY.
HE WOULD DO TV APPEARANCES
SOMETIMES VERY EARLY
IN THE MORNING,
SO HE HAD TO SLEEP
WITH HIS MAKEUP ON,
AND I REMEMBER
THE FIRST TIME HE DID IT,
AND I TURNED OVER,
AND I'M LOOKING AT
THE BOZO FACE,
AND I JUST THOUGHT,
"WHERE AM I?
"WHAT'S HAPPENING TO ME?
I'M SLEEPING WITH
THIS CLOWN."
Narrator: HARMON USED
BOZO'S POPULARITY
AS A SPRINGBOARD TO A WIDE RANGE
OF UNLIKELY PERSONAL ADVENTURES,
INCLUDING A JOURNEY
TO NEW GUINEA
AND A RIDE ON NASA'S
WEIGHTLESS FLIGHTS,
ALL AS BOZO.
OH!
AH!
Narrator: EVENTUALLY,
MORE THAN 100 BOZOS
ACROSS THE COUNTRY PUT ON
THE DISTINCTIVE CLOWN MAKEUP
FIVE DAYS A WEEK,
FOLLOWING THE LOOK REFINED
BY LARRY HARMON.
Harmon: NO SMOKING,
NO DRINKING, NO WOMANIZING,
NEVER SHOW SKIN.
YOU CAN NEVER HAVE SKIN,
BECAUSE THE CHILD
SHOULD THINK OF BOZO
AS BOZO,
NOT A PERSON UNDERNEATH.
HEY!
Narrator: THE BOZOS
WERE NOT CLONES.
EACH WAS A REFLECTION
OF THE MAN UNDER THE MAKEUP,
INCLUDING FRANK AVRUCH
IN BOSTON,
BOB BELL IN CHICAGO,
AND WILLARD SCOTT
IN WASHINGTON, D.C.
Scott: IT REALLY GOT TO ME.
I'D TREMBLE SOMETIMES
TRYING TO PUT THAT MAKEUP ON
'CAUSE IT WAS SO...
IT WAS EXHAUSTING.
OH, WAIT, HERE'S A FELLA,
THANK YOU, OKAY.
I DIDN'T THINK YOU WERE
EVER GONNA GET DOWN HERE.
YOU'RE CHUCKY, RIGHT?
YEAH.
WHAT A NICE SMILE.
Narrator: UNLIKE MANY
KIDS' SHOW HOSTS, BOZO WAS
CONSTANTLY INTERACTING
WITH A FULL STUDIO
OF OVEREXCITED YOUNGSTERS.
BECAUSE IT WAS A LIVE SHOW,
EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED
GOT ON THE AIR,
INCLUDING THE TIME ONE BOY
TOOK A SWING AT WILLARD SCOTT.
Scott: AND THEN HE
GAVE ME A BAT AND THEN HE...
AND THEN HE...
I FELL OVER BECAUSE
HE WAS A BIG KID,
AND THEN HE SAT ON MY CHEST
AND STARTED BEATING ME UP
AND THEY HAD TO PULL HIM OFF.
SO THERE ARE HAZARDS
WITH THE SHOW.
♪ SOME PEOPLE
SELL INSURANCE ♪
♪ TO MINIMIZE YOUR STRIFE ♪
♪ THERE MAY BE
AN OCCURRENCE ♪
♪ WHEN POLICEMEN
SAVE YOUR LIFE ♪
Narrator: CHICAGO'S VERSION
OF "BOZO'S CIRCUS"
RANKS AS THE MOST POPULAR
LOCAL CHILDREN'S SHOW
IN TV HISTORY,
A CHERISHED HOUR
OF GAMES, SONGS,
AND LAUGHS,
ON THE AIR FOR
MORE THAN 40 YEARS.
YOU SEE HOW THAT WORKS?
THAT'S REALLY CLEVER.
NOW WHAT NUMBER DID YOU SAY
WAS ON THE OTHER SIDE?
WELL, IT'S OBVIOUS,
YOU'VE ALREADY SHOWN ME.
NOW I KNOW THERE'S ONLY
TWO ON THAT SIDE.
NO,
THERE'S THREE OVER THERE.
YOU SEE THAT,
HOW THAT WORKS, COOKY?
HE HAD SORT OF
A RASPY VOICE LIKE THAT.
YOU KNOW,
THAT WAS ONE OF THE SHOWS
I ENJOYED WATCHING AS A KID
WAS "THE BOZO THE CLOWN SHOW."
NOW, HOW MANY WOULD YOU SAY
WAS ON THE OTHER SIDE?
WELL, YOU SHOWED ME ALREADY,
I KNOW THERE'S FIVE
ON THE OTHER SIDE.
UH-HUH-HUH,
SORRY ABOUT THAT, PAL.
OH!
COOKY, LOOK AT THIS!
AW, A LITTLE BABY
KITTY CAT!
HE MUST'VE HEARD HIS SONG
AND COME OVER TO PLAY WITH US.
NICE JOB.
HOLD IT, HOLD IT,
WHOA, WHOA.
OH, IT'S AMAZING
HOW THOSE LITTLE...
IT...
IT'S AMAZING HOW
THOSE LITTLE CLAWS
GO RIGHT THROUGH
TO YOUR SKIN.
Castellaneta:
KRUSTY THE CLOWN.
NOW, KRUSTY THE CLOWN WAS
BASED ON THE BOZO THE CLOWN
I HAD IN CHICAGO,
AND I REMEMBER
BOB BELL'S VOICE,
AND YOU'RE JUST DOING
THESE THINGS ON THE FLY, SO,
I JUST DID THAT.
THAT WAS THE VOICE.
Narrator: MOST BOZOS MADE
PUBLIC APPEARANCES
AT PARADES, SCHOOLS,
AND GRAND OPENINGS.
IN WASHINGTON, D.C.,
THE LOCAL McDONALD'S
HIRED WILLARD SCOTT AS BOZO
IN AN ATTEMPT TO
ATTRACT CUSTOMERS.
IT WORKED.
BOZO'S ARRIVAL AT McDONALD'S
SPARKED MAYHEM.
ROADS HAD TO BE CLOSED,
EXTRA POLICE CALLED OUT,
BECAUSE THOUSANDS WANTED
TO SEE THEIR HERO.
I HAD MAKEUP ON MY FACE
AND THEN I'D HAVE
THIS HUGE, 900-POUND SUIT,
AND IT WAS 100° AND WE WERE
DOING AN APPEARANCE OUT IN,
YOU KNOW, SOME McDONALD'S
HAMBURGER PLACE,
AND I NEVER DID DEEP SIX
OR FALL OVER,
BUT I THOUGHT A COUPLE
OF TIMES I WOULD.
I... WHAT DO YOU CALL IT,
YOU HYPERVENTILATE?
Narrator: WHEN THE BOZO SHOW
WAS CANCELLED
IN THE WASHINGTON MARKET,
THE LOCAL McDONALD'S RESTAURANTS
WERE LEFT WITHOUT
THEIR BEST PITCHMAN.
McDONALD'S CAME TO ME
AND ASKED ME,
YOU KNOW, IF I'D LIKE TO
KEEP WORKING FOR THEM,
AND OF COURSE I SAID, "SURE,"
AND THEY SAID,
"WELL, WHAT DO YOU
THINK WE SHOULD DO?"
I SAID, "OH, IT'S OBVIOUS...
WE SHOULD HAVE OUR OWN CLOWN."
Narrator: THE NEW CLOWN
WILLARD SCOTT CAME UP WITH
WAS RONALD... RONALD McDONALD.
BASICALLY, I MEAN, THERE WAS
AN AWFUL LOT OF BOZO IN RONALD,
YOU KNOW, THE LAUGH
AND THE WARMTH AND EVERYTHING.
Narrator: IN RONALD'S
FIRST INCARNATION,
THE COSTUME REFLECTED
HIS SINGULAR ROLE
AS HAMBURGER SALESMAN.
Scott: IT WAS
THE MOST COMMERCIAL...
THE GAUDIEST THING
YOU'VE EVER SEEN.
THERE WAS A BIG, WIDE,
BLUE BELT AROUND MY MIDDLE,
AND IT HAD A LITTLE
SPRING IN IT,
AND WE'D PUT TWO OR THREE
HAMBURGERS...
FAKE HAMBURGERS...
AND WHEN YOU PRESSED
MY BELLY BUTTON,
THE HAMBURGER WOULD POP OUT,
AND THEN WE HAD A HAT,
IT WAS MADE OF STYROFOAM,
AND IN THE HAT WE HAD
A MILKSHAKE AND FRIES.
SO IT WAS PRETTY COMMERCIAL.
Narrator: THE CROSSOVER
FROM KIDS' SHOW HOST
TO COMMERCIAL PITCHMAN WASN'T
UNIQUE TO BOZO AND RONALD.
ALL ACROSS AMERICA,
CHILDREN'S TV HOSTS
WERE SELLING PRODUCTS.
Axel: SO, KIDS, YOU BE SURE
AND TELL YOUR MOM ABOUT
THESE NABISCO WHEAT HONEYS
THAT ARE SO GOOD TO EAT
AND SO GOOD FOR YOU,
WILL YOU?
NOW IT'S THE SENSATIONAL NEW
FIRE CHIEF SPEAKERS HAT.
EASY TO GET FROM
ANY TEXACO DEALER
FOR $3.98, BUT ONLY...
Narrator: AT FIRST
IT SEEMED INNOCENT TO HAVE
A LOCAL HOST MENTION
A FEW TOYS.
BECAUSE THE CHILDREN
WANT TO PARTICIPATE WITH YOU,
AND IF THAT ITEM
THAT I'M USING,
THAT TAMBOURINE OR THE DRUM,
IS AVAILABLE,
IT'S ALL RIGHT TO TELL THEM
WHERE THEY CAN BUY IT,
DON'T YOU THINK?
Narrator:
AS THE HAWKING INCREASED,
CRITICISM BEGAN TO MOUNT.
REMIND MOM TO BE SURE AND GET
SEVERAL PACKAGES
OF MICKELBERRY'S
PLUMP AND JUICY FRANKS TODAY.
BECAUSE THIS IS THE MILK
THAT'S GOOD FOR YA.
IT HAS THE FRESH-FROM-THE-FARM
FLAVOR, YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN?
SEE 'EM GO?
THOSE BUBBLES ARE AVAILABLE
IN WHAT WE CALL
THE BUBBALOON GAME,
AND IT'S AVAILABLE AT
TOYLAND FOR 98 CENTS.
THAT'S ALL IT COSTS.
DID YOU EVER STOP TO THINK
HOW MANY TIMES A DAY
YOU COULD EAT BREAD?
Narrator: IN 1968,
A SUBURBAN MOTHER
NAMED PEGGY CHARREN
GATHERED A FEW FRIENDS
IN HER LIVING ROOM
TO TALK ABOUT WAYS
TO FIGHT THE GROWING
COMMERCIALISM
OF KIDS' TV SHOWS.
SHE CALLED HER GROUP "ACTION
FOR CHILDREN'S TELEVISION,"
AND WITHIN TWO YEARS,
THEY WERE TESTIFYING
BEFORE THE FEDERAL
COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
AND SPEARHEADING MAJOR CHANGES
IN BROADCASTING LAW,
INCLUDING THE PASSAGE
OF A LANDMARK RULE
THAT PROHIBITED
KIDS' TV HOSTS
FROM SELLING PRODUCTS
ON THEIR SHOWS.
AROUND THE SAME TIME,
COMEDIAN BILL COSBY
TURNED HIS ATTENTION
TO CHILDREN'S TELEVISION.
HE DIDN'T LIKE WHAT HE SAW.
THAT TV SET DOESN'T PLAY
CHILDREN STORIES
THE WAY IT OUGHT TO
BECAUSE THEY WON'T
PAY THE PRICE UNLESS
SOME DOLL COMES OUT OF IT,
SOME TOY COMES OUT
THAT THEY CAN
PUT IN THE STORE
AND HAVE THE LITTLE CHILDREN
TO A GROWN-UP,
"I WANT THAT, I WANT THAT,"
ALL THE PEOPLE BUY IT
AND GIVE IT TO THEM.
Narrator: COSBY TOOK ACTION.
EARNING A PH.D. IN EDUCATION,
WRITING HIS DISSERTATION
ON THE UNTAPPED POTENTIAL
OF CHILDREN'S TV,
COSBY WANTED TO DEMONSTRATE
THAT COMMERCIAL STATIONS
COULD PRODUCE A QUALITY
PROGRAM FOR KIDS,
A SHOW THAT HAD
EDUCATIONAL VALUE
AND GOT GOOD RATINGS.
HIS BREAKTHROUGH SERIES
WAS CALLED
"FAT ALBERT
AND THE COSBY KIDS."
HEY, HEY, HEY!
IT'S FAT ALBERT!
AND I'M...
Man: THEY BECAME STORIES
AND CONTENT AREAS THAT
REGARDLESS OF WHO YOU WERE
OR WHERE YOU LIVED,
THERE WAS SOMETHING
IN THOSE STORIES
THAT YOU COULD TAKE AWAY.
THAT YOU COULD TAKE AWAY FROM
THE PROGRAM
AND APPLY TO YOUR OWN LIFE.
NOT ONLY WAS THE SHOW
THE KIND OF SHOW
THAT EVERYBODY
THOUGHT WOULD FAIL,
BUT IT GOT HUMONGOUS NUMBERS.
WE GOT 60 SHARES AT 12:00
SATURDAY MORNING,
AND THAT WAS A LOT, EVEN THEN.
Narrator: BILL COSBY
DEMONSTRATED THAT
A CHILDREN'S SHOW
WITH EDUCATIONAL CONTENT
COULD SUCCEED ON
COMMERCIAL TELEVISION.
KID'S TV DIDN'T
HAVE TO SINK TO
SHAMELESS PRODUCT SHILLING
TO SUCCEED.
CBS WAS STUNNED
WHEN "FAT ALBERT"
BECAME A MAJOR SUCCESS.
THERE WASN'T ANYTHING
IN PARTICULAR
THAT THEY COULD SELL.
IT WAS STILL
ALMOST AN ALBATROSS,
THIS SHOW.
TWO THINGS...
IT WAS A KIDS' SHOW.
NUMBER TWO, IT WAS BLACK,
TO PEOPLE IN THE NETWORK,
TO PEOPLE
IN ADVERTISING,
AND SO EVEN THOUGH WE WERE
WHIPPING MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL,
THERE WASN'T...
YOU KNOW, I THINK CBS AT THAT
TIME WAS LOOKING AROUND
OVER THEIR SHOULDER
FOR SOMETHING ELSE
TO COME ALONG,
BUT, MAN, WE DID...
YES, I'M PROUD.
Narrator: BY THE LATE 1970s,
LOCAL KIDS' TV SHOWS
WERE ON THE DECLINE.
THE NEW LAWS
BANNING HOST SELLING
HAD CUT DEEPLY INTO
THE BOTTOM LINE,
AND CHEAPER SYNDICATED FARE
WAS NOW WIDELY AVAILABLE.
THE ERA OF THE HOMETOWN
TV COWBOYS AND PIRATES
AND CLOWNS HAD COME TO
AN END... ALMOST.
COME IN!
Narrator: IN PHOENIX,
"THE WALLACE AND LADMO SHOW"
WAS BUCKING THE TREND,
STILL GOING STRONG
THROUGH THE 1980s.
ONE KEY TO THE SHOW'S
CONTINUING SUCCESS
WAS A CHARACTER NAMED GERALD.
THAT WAS YOUR
RESPONSIBILITY.
YOU INVITED THESE
LITTLE JERKS DOWN HERE,
YOU GOT 'EM OUT OF THE ALLEY
WHERE THEY USUALLY HANG OUT.
THOSE ARE CUB SCOUTS,
BOY!
Narrator: PLAYED BY
PAT McMAHON,
GERALD WAS
A SELF-IMPORTANT SNOB
WHO AUDIENCES LOVED TO HATE.
Narrator:
WHILE MOST KIDS' SHOWS HAD
A FRIENDLY HERO,
VERY FEW HAD A VILLAIN,
AND ON "WALLACE AND LADMO,"
THE VILLAIN HAD GIRLISH HAIR,
WORE SHORT PANTS,
AND ANNOYED EVERYONE.
WHAT ARE YOU
TALKING ABOUT?
I DIDN'T KNOW YOU WERE IN
THE BOY SCOUTS.
BITE YOUR TONGUE,
I'M NOT A BOY SCOUT.
GIRL SCOUTS?
BOY SCOUTS ARE FOR ORDINARY,
COMMON KIDS.
I AM A CHILD GUIDE.
THAT'S FOR RICH KIDS.
AS YOU KNOW, I'M VERY,
VERY WEALTHY.
YEAH?
Narrator: WHEN
THE GERALD CHARACTER
MADE HIS FIRST APPEARANCE,
IN 1963,
NO ONE WAS SURE IF
HE WOULD CATCH ON,
UNTIL GERALD APPEARED ON
A SATURDAY STAGE SHOW,
AN EVENT THAT GOT
OUT OF CONTROL.
HE WAS A BRAT, AND IT WAS
FUN TO BOO HIM.
GERALD CAME OUT AND READ
THE RULES TO THE KIDS.
DO NOT LOOK AT HIM
DIRECTLY IN THE EYE.
DO NOT SPEAK TO HIM
UNLESS HE SPEAKS FIRST.
IF THIS CROWD DOES NOT TREAT ME
LIKE THE STAR I AM,
I'M WALKING OFF THIS STAGE
AND GOING HOME.
BOO!
BOO!
BOO!
IT WAS A HUGE CROWD.
THEY WERE REALLY MAD.
McMahon: SOMEBODY WITH
A BIZARRE SENSE OF HUMOR
HAD PASSED OUT PICKLES,
AND A NINE-YEAR-OLD
WITH A GIGANTIC GHERKIN
CAN BE A VERY DANGEROUS
PART OF YOUR AUDIENCE.
THEY ATTACKED THE STAGE,
TRYING TO GET AT GERALD.
AND THE KIDS
WERE HYSTERICAL.
AND THEY BEGAN THROWING THINGS
AND CHARGING THE STAGE,
AND THEY TORE PART OF
THE STAGE DOWN.
PART OF THE PLATFORM CAME DOWN,
SO WE THOUGHT,
"WE'D BETTER PUT HIM
IN THE TRUCK."
I REMEMBER SOMEBODY ESCORTING ME
TO THE CAB OF A PICKUP TRUCK
THAT WAS BEHIND THE STAGE,
AND THE KIDS BEGAN TO ROCK
THE THING BACK AND FORTH.
AND THE KIDS START
ROCKING THE TRUCK.
IT WAS A PICKUP TRUCK.
AND YOU COULD
SEE HIM IN THERE...
AND, BY THE WAY,
WALL AND LAD WERE ON
WHAT WAS LEFT OF THE STAGE
LAUGHING HYSTERICALLY POINTING
AND THINKING,
"WAIT, WE COULD DO THIS
EVERY WEEKEND!"
SO I SAID TO LAD,
"GEEZ, I THINK WE'RE
"ONTO SOMETHING HERE
WITH... WITH...
"THIS GUY'S REALLY TERRIBLE.
"THEY REALLY HATE HIM.
THIS IS WONDERFUL!"
Narrator: THE SHOW NOW HAD
ITS ARCH-VILLAIN,
A PERFECT COUNTERPOINT
TO THE LIKABLE LADMO.
HE WAS THE GREATEST THING
WE EVER HAD ON THE SHOW.
McMahon: IS THERE
ANY BETTER EXAMPLE
OF HOW NOT TO BEHAVE?
AND IF YOU DO BEHAVE THAT WAY,
LOOK WHAT HE GETS.
EVERYBODY DESPISES HIM.
YOU KNOW WHAT YOU'RE MISSING
RIGHT NOW ON PBS? HUH?
NO.
I COULD BE HOME WATCHING
"THE LIFECYCLE OF
THE SNOWSHOE HARE,"
BUT NO, NO.
Narrator: EVENTUALLY THE STARS
OF "WALLACE AND LADMO" RETIRED,
AND THE SHOW
ENDED ITS RUN IN 1989,
AS POPULAR AS EVER.
I HAVE A POEM THAT
I'D LIKE TO RECITE.
A POEM?
GERALD HAS A POEM.
OH...
WAIT A MINUTE,
HOLD IT.
GERALD, WE HAVE TO KEEP
THE PACE OF THE SHOW MOVING.
Narrator: TODAY, THE ERA OF
LOCAL KIDS' TV MAY BE OVER,
BUT FOR A GENERATION
OF VIEWERS,
THE SHOWS ARE
A CHERISHED MEMORY.
WHATEVER THE INFLUENCES ARE
WHEN THEY'RE THAT SMALL,
THEY'RE GOING TO GO WITH THEM
FOR THE REST OF THEIR LIVES.
YOU DON'T REALIZE
THE IMPACT THAT YOU HAVE
DOING A TELEVISION SHOW,
ESPECIALLY A CHILDREN'S
TELEVISION SHOW,
AND IT JUST TOUCHED MY HEART.
I DIDN'T TALK DOWN TO THEM.
I DIDN'T GO,
"THEN THE MAN WENT"...
YOU KNOW,
I DID A COMEDY SHOW.
THE KIDS ARE...
THEY'RE PRETTY SMART,
AND YOU DON'T WANT
TO TALK DOWN TO THEM.
BECAUSE KIDS
ARE REALLY SHARP,
AND THEY'RE...
THEY WANT TO LAUGH,
AND IF IT'S FUNNY,
IT'S FUNNY.
I USE MYSELF AS A YARDSTICK
FOR WHAT'S FUNNY,
AND I... HOPEFULLY
MILLIONS OF OTHER PEOPLE
HAVE THOUGHT IT WAS FUNNY TOO,
OVER THE YEARS, YEAH.
BUT A SHOW YOU CAN GO SEE
AND HAVE BREYERS
ICE CREAM AFTERWARDS
AND SIT DOWN WITH
YOUR HERO, BOZO?
I MEAN, THAT WAS
A GREAT MOMENT.
I THINK ALL OF US WHO
WORKED ON THAT SHOW
AND EVERYONE WHO WATCHED IT
PRETTY MUCH KNEW THAT AN ERA
WAS COMING TO AN END,
THAT WE WOULD NEVER SEE
ANYTHING LIKE THIS AGAIN.
Narrator: WHILE
THE PROGRAMS THEMSELVES
ARE ALL BUT GONE,
THE LEGACY OF THE LOCAL
CHILDREN'S TV SHOWS CONTINUES,
WOVEN INTO THE FABRIC OF
THE NATIONAL CONSCIOUSNESS,
A PART OF OUR LIVES EVERY DAY,
THANKS TO THE PIONEERS
OF TELEVISION.
FOR MORE INSIDER FEATURES
ABOUT YOUR FAVORITE TV STARS,
STORIES YOU WON'T
HEAR ANYWHERE ELSE,