Autographed photo of Buffalo Bob and Howdy Doody
date: label: date made
content: 1950s
notes: label: Description (Brief)
content: Autographed photograph of "Buffalo" Bob Smith and Howdy Doody. The black and white photo is signed to Bill - Sydney William Spry - who was a fan of the show and collector of Howdy Doody memorabilia throughout his life.
label: Description (Brief)
content: The Howdy Doody Show was one of the most popular and influential children's television programs in American history. Creator "Buffalo" Bob Smith created and voiced the character on radio before transitioning to television, where he performed alongside puppeteers who operated the Howdy Doody marionette and other characters. The show, which aired on NBC from 1947 to 1960, had a playhouse-style variety format, with puppet and human characters interacting in skits and songs in front of a “peanut gallery” of children. Additional characters – all citizens of the Western-themed “Doodyville” included Clarabell the Clown, Phineas T. Bluster, Princess Summerfall Winterspring, Dilly Dally, and Flub-a-Dub.
label: Description (Brief)
content: The Howdy Doody Show was immediately successful and was NBC's first daily show to be extended to five days a week. Even before the advent of Nielsen ratings, Howdy Doody demonstrated its ability to draw an audience both for NBC and for possible advertisers. When Howdy ran for "President of all the kids" in 1948, the show offered free campaign buttons for anyone who wrote in with a self-addressed, stamped envelope. They received well over 60,000 requests, representing one-third of the American homes with television sets and many more than the households able to see the NBC network at that time. Within a week their advertising time was sold out to major advertisers such as Colgate Palmolive Company. Over the course of the series Buffalo Bob Smith and Howdy did in-show commercials for Wonder Bread, Campbell Soup, Hostess Twinkies, and other sponsors new to television who learned the power of marketing to children.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States
topic: label: Subject
content: Children's television programs
label: Subject
content: Television
setName: label: See more items in
content: Culture and the Arts: Entertainment
label: See more items in
content: Popular Entertainment
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Erin Spry in memory of Sidney W. Spry
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 2021.0175.04
label: accession number
content: 2021.0175
label: catalog number
content: 2021.0175.04
objectType: label: Object Name
content: photograph
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: paper (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 5 5/16 in x 4 in; 13.5255 cm x 10.16 cm