Doll:Howdy Doody

Many baby boomers remember "The Howdy Doody Show" as one of the early TV shows that appeared on weekdays and, later, on Saturday mornings from 1947 to 1960. The show featured a marionette of the title character and other residents of Doodyville--Howdy's sister Heidi Doody, Mayor Phineas T. Bluster, Dilly Dally, Flub-a-Dub, Princess SummerFall-WinterSpring, and others. The host, Buffalo Bob, and his sidekick, a mute clown named Clarabell, entertained a Peanut Gallery, on-stage bleachers, filled with young onlookers who shouted out answers to Buffalo Bob's questions in unison and sang the show's theme song, thus providing one of the first series to feature audience participation as a show staple. The popularity of the show supported the production of enough Howdy Doody-related toys, dolls, and other products to fill a 24-page catalogue in 1954. Comic books, Sunday comic strips, Little Golden books, clothing, and breakfast cereal premiums satisfied kids' cravings for the red-headed, befreckled puppet, his many friends, and his show.