Mister Ed
Mister Ed is an American television sitcom produced by Filmways that first aired in syndication from January 5 to July 2, 1961, and then on CBS from October 1, 1961, to February 6, 1966. The show's title character is a talking horse, originally appearing in short stories by Walter R. Brooks.
Mister Ed is one of the few series to debut in syndication and be picked up by a major network for prime time.
Beginnings
The Mister Ed show concept was derived from a series of short stories by children's author Walter R. Brooks, which began with The Talking Horse in the September 18, 1937, issue of Liberty magazine. Brooks is otherwise best known for the Freddy the Pig series of children's novels, which likewise featured talking animals that interact with humans. Sonia Chernus, secretary to director Arthur Lubin, introduced Lubin to the Brooks stories and is credited with developing the concept for television.
The show's concept resembles that of the Francis the Talking Mule movies in which an equine title character talks, but only to one person, thus causing a variety of opportunities and frustrations. The first six Francis films (1950–55) were also directed by Lubin.
Podcasts:
Mr. Ed
"Hello, I'm Mr. Ed."
A horse is a horse, of course, of course,
And no one can talk to a horse, of course,
That is, of course, unless the horse
Is the famous Mr. Ed.
Go right to the source and ask the horse.
He'll give you the answer that you'll endorse.
He's always on a steady course.
Talk to Mr. Ed.
People yackety yack a streak
And waste your time of day.
But Mr. Ed will never speak
Unless he has something to say.
A horse is a horse, of course, of course,
And this one will talk till his voice is hoarse.
You never heard of a talking horse?
Well, listen to this:
"I am Mr. Ed."