Robert Fransen was one of the early television pioneers in the Twin Cities. He started in radio, writing news for the legendary Cedric Adams back in 1949 and was soon working in the new medium of television. In 1950, he was employed at channel 4 (then WTCN, but now WCCO), in a variety of positions. […]
Captain Daryl on Cartoon Island, starring Daryl Laub, was one of the most popular kid’s shows on Twin Cities television in the late 1950’s. It featured a distinctive, goofy theme which opened and closed the program. Pat Sweeney, one of the leading experts on Minnesota kids shows, has just identified this tune. He was watching […]
Here is a transcript from 1953 of The Night Before Christmas by Clellan Card, known to all of us as Axel on Channel 4. This was apparently sent by Card to listeners of WCCO. Compare this to the version published in 1938, and what was recorded in 1964 Here is the 1964 recording Thanks […]
This photo appeared in TV Times, dated December 21, 1963. It was featured in an article called “Holiday Fare with Local Glare.” Christmas is especially for children — of all ages — and some shows are geared for the younger set. More than 100 children of employees of WTCN (11) will comprise the audience […]
One of the lesser known, and largely forgotten kids shows in the Twin Cities was Hi Jerry with Sister M. Cabrini Bongiovanni. Sister Carbrini was a Catholic nun who combined entertainment and performing with her ministry. Patrick Sweeney remembers the program. “Jerry was a ventriloquist’s dummy and the ventriloquist was a nun named Sister Mary […]
Roger Erickson was a Minnesota broadcast legend. For almost 40 years, he was teamed with Charlie Boone on WCCO radio. Boone and Erickson were well known for their humor, storytelling, and interviews. Roger Erickson passed away on October 30, 2017 at the age of 89. Roger Erickson’s long career included playing Bozo the Clown […]
This is a rare image of Jack McKenna as Sgt. Scotty. McKenna had been a kids show host in Duluth as Captain Q. Sometime around 1962, McKenna joined WTCN, channel 11. I’ve had difficulty finding out any specifics about the show. It may have been a program that ran on Saturday afternoons. […]
Kids grew up watching Casey Jones, Axel, Clancy and Willie, and Grandpa Ken on Minnesota television. Eventually kids become teenagers and their interests change a bit. For me, there were monster movies. The showcase for classic (and not so classic) horror movies was Horror Incorporated, on KSTP, channel 5. The program was […]
Dave Lee produced a coloring book featuring many of his puppets. I’ve been looking for one of these for a while. Thanks to Sandy McManus for sending this along. I’ve done a couple quick photos to share here. I’m not sure when this was produced, but the price on the cover is 39 cents. The […]
Phil Johnson passed away at the age of 69 on August 30, 2016. Phil was the puppeteer on The Happy Hour which ran from 1970 to 73 on WTCN, channel 11. Phil performed as “Fred” and the various puppets opposite the host, Henry Novotny. After the cancellation of the show, Phil joined Roger Aswumb as […]
