If you are of a certain age, that word will immediately bring to mind certain images - of a freckle-faced marionette, his human companion, and the other creatures of perhaps the most important and influential children's television show ever.
On Dec 27, 1947, NBC premiered the Howdy Doody Show.
So this diary is dedicated to the immortal exchange with which each show would begin
Buffalo Bob Smith would call out, sometimes as himself, sometimes as the voice of Howdy, "Say, Kids, What Time is it"
And those in the peanut gallery would respond "It's Howdy Doody Time!!!"
Just like this:
There were other marionettes beside the one freckled face one which gave the show its name, with 48 freckles, one for each of the 48 states that existed when the show began. The original Howdy was different, but this was the figure for most of the show, beginning in 1948 through its demise in 1960, a total of 2,543 Episodes. The show initiated NBC's color broadcasting in 1954
Other marionettes included Heidi Doody (Howdy's sister), Mayor Phineas T. Bluster, Dilly Dally, Inspector John J. Fadoozle , Sandra the Witch, Princess Summerfall Winterspring, Capt. and Windy Scuttlebut.
And of course we can never forget Flub-a-Dub, consisting of a duck's bill, a cat's whiskers, a spaniel's ears, a giraffe's neck, a dachshund's body, a seal's flippers, a pig's tail and an elephant's memory.
Then there were the human characters who also appeared on the show: Clarabell the Clown (who communicated by honking horns on his belt and squirting seltzer) J. Corny Cobb and Chief Thunderthud.
Princess Summerfall Winterspring was originally played by an actress, but when Judy Tyler died, she was replaced by a puppet, well before I first saw the show in 1949 when I was 3.
The title of this diary comes from Chief Thunderthud. He was a member of the Ooragnak (Kangaroo spelled backwards) tribe, and that, as he was portrayed by actor Edward Kean, was his greeting.
Clarabell has other important connections for many of us, as she was originally portrayed by one Robert Keeshan until fired by NBC in a salary dispute in 1952. That means when my sister and I were in the Peanut Gallery, circa 1950 or 1951, Keeshan was still on the show.
Five days a week kids all over the nation would tune in to NBC to watch.
And yes, Smith was also a pitchman for the products of the sponsor of his show, so much so that when he was sick and had to stay at home on doctor's orders, the sponsors demanded that he still do their pitches, so a camera crew was set up in his New Rochelle home to allow him to do so.
To give you a sense of the impact of the show, allow me to quote from this piece at the website of the Museum of Broadcasting Communication:
When Howdy ran for President of all the kids, Muir suggested that they offer free campaign buttons. They received 60,000 requests, representing one-third of the American homes with television sets.
Here's some youtube clips from the show. For some of us, these will bring back memories. For others too young to have experienced it, perhaps this will help you understand some of our craziness.
There a lot of videos of clips from the show available. Those of a slightly younger age may remember the show Happy Days, which in 1975 had an episode which was built around Richie Cunningham getting a chance to interview Buffalo Bob. It was an appropriate episode for a show based on the 1950s.
The final episode ended with a shocking moment to those who had followed the show. The final words of the series were spoken by the previously mute Clarabell, and were simply "Goodbye kids."