Hey Kids! ~ What Time is it?

The Howdy Doody show was the pioneer of childrens Televison in the 1950’s, and many other shows followed in the same pattern. The first program was filmed at NBC network in Rockefeller Center. The show was created by, E.Roger Muir in 1947 to 1960.

Buffalo Bill Smith created Howdy Doody when he was a announcer on ABC radio, when there was a great demand for the Howdy Doody visual character for television puppeteer, Frank Paris was asked to create the Howdy Doody Puppet.

The show was originally to be a circus tent, but it was changed to a western town, Buffalo Bob wore cowboy cloths as well as Howdy Doody and the name Howdy Doody’s name was created from the expression, “Howdy Do,” as the show grew more poplar, it fast became a merchandising toy in high demand and no time was wasted by Department stores, and toy makers!

There was a dispute between Bob Smith who owned the rights to the character and Frank Paris who created the puppet and as the network worked around the dispute they hired Walt Disney animator, Mel Shaw and his partner Bob Dawson to design a new original and with designer Velma Wayne a more appealing puppet that is remembered today as the original Howdy Doody.

Interesting fact about Howdy is that he was designed as a freckle-faced boy with 48 freckles that represented each of the States of the union at the time.

Photo Credit: Roy Erickson, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons