Howdy Doody Show
The Howdy Doody Show was a pioneering television program that aired from 1947 to 1960, known for its innovative focus on audience participation. Hosted by Buffalo Bob Smith, the show featured a marionette named Howdy Doody, characterized by his red hair and freckled face, living in the fictional town of Doodyville. The program included a variety of puppet characters, such as Phineas T. Bluster, the mayor, and Clarabell the Clown, who communicated in unique ways. Each episode combined songs, skits, and educational messages, inviting active involvement from the child audience, who would enthusiastically respond to Smith's prompts. Over its run, the show produced approximately 2,500 episodes and became a significant cultural touchstone, influencing future children's programming. Notably, its final episode featured a memorable moment when Clarabell spoke for the first time, bidding farewell to the audience. The Howdy Doody Show also played a crucial role in the rise of children's merchandise, establishing a model that many subsequent shows would follow.
Howdy Doody Show
Identification Children’s television program
Date Aired from 1947 to 1960
Originally broadcast on NBC radio, the Howdy Doody Show became a pioneer television program that entertained children and provided a new medium for merchandizing and advertising.
The Howdy Doody Show was one of the first television programs to prominently feature audience participation. At the beginning of every show, host Buffalo Bob Smith would ask his child audience, which sat in the Peanut Gallery bleachers, “Say kids, what time is it?” The children would shout, “It’s Howdy Doody time!”
The Western-themed Howdy Doody Show took place in the fictional world of Doodyville. Smith supplied voices for Howdy Doody, a red-haired, freckled-face marionette in cowboy clothes. Other puppet characters included Phineas T. Bluster, Doodyville’s mayor and Howdy’s nemesis, and the Flub-a-Dub, a combination of eight animals. Among the notable human figures were Clarabell the Clown, who communicated by honking a horn and squirting a seltzer bottle; Princess Summerfall Winterspring, originally a marionette; and Chief Thunderthud, a foil to Clarabell.
Each show contained songs and skits, educational messages, moral lessons, and active participation from the children in attendance. Approximately 2,500 episodes were aired between 1947 and 1960. On the final show, a silent Clarabell finally spoke: “Good-bye, kids.”
Impact
The Howdy Doody Show created American cultural icons, served as a model for other children’s programs, and dramatically increased merchandising for toys, clothing, and lunch boxes for children.
Bibliography
Davis, Stephen. Say Kids! What Time Is It? Boston: Little, Brown, 1987.
Smith, Buffalo Bob, and Donna McCrohan. Howdy and Me. New York: Plume, 1990.