The History Of Clarabell

Even after all these years, this picture is still a shocker for all of us that grew up watching ‘Howdy Doody’. To see Clarabell (Bob Keeshan) taking off his makeup is like “seeing mommy kissing Santa Claus”. I can’t imagine what that little boy is thinking but feel fairly sure that he grew up to be a mass murderer ;>).

Being born in 1950, the only Clarabell I would have seen would have been Lou Anderson who played the roll from ’54 till the sign off September 24, 1960. I remember I cried when Clarabell said ‘Goodbye kids’.

Between Keeshan, who left in ’52 and Anderson, was Robert “Nick” Nicholson, who also supplied the voice of Cornelius J. Cobb. Both Anderson and Nicholson were jazz musicians.

Our friend Frank Merklein who was a cameraman on the show, from the first day till the last, told me how Keeshan came to be Clarabell. Although the show debuted December 27, 1947 in 3H as ‘Puppet Playhouse’, Clarabell did not become a character till a few weeks later when the show changed it’s name to ‘Howdy Doody’, which is also when Smith started wearing his Buffalo Bill inspired wardrobe.

Keeshan was the NBC page assigned to the show and had a habit of using hand signals he had picked up the service. Smith quickly realized he needed a sidekick but there was no money for another speaking role so he hired Keeshan to be his “silent partner”. After a few days as Clarabell, Keeshan came up with the idea of a belt box with two horns, one for yes and one for no. The rest, as they say, is history.

Whether Keeshan was let go or quit remains a mystery as there are several versions, but by September 21, 1953, Keeshan was back on the air on WABC-TV, in a new children’s show, ‘Time for Fun’. He played Corny the Clown, and this time he spoke. Later that same year, in addition to Time for Fun, Keeshan began ‘Tinker’s Workshop’, a program aimed at preschoolers, with him playing the grandfather-like Tinker.

Developing ideas from ‘Tinker’s Workshop’, Keeshan and his long-time friend Jack Miller submitted the concept of ‘Captain Kangaroo’ to the CBS network, which was looking for new approaches to children’s television. CBS approved the show, and Keeshan starred as the title character when it premiered on CBS on October 3, 1955. The show was an immediate success, and he served as its host for nearly three decades leaving nine months shy of the 30th anniversary in December of ’84.

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