Hobos - Term of endearment used by TV host Craig Ferguson when he refers to the members of his studio audence on THE LATE LATE NIGHT WITH CRAIG FERGUSON/CBS/2005+. It was implied (by Craig) that his show is so bad that the only way he can get people to attend his show was to search the streets for homeless hobos and offer them an insentive to participate, like free chicken (which he never really gives them).

Hole-in-the-Wall Gang, The - Outlaw gang on the western series THE LONE RANGER/ABC/1949-57. Lead by Butch Cavendish, the Hole-in-the-Wall-Gang was responsible for ambushing six Texas Rangers at Bryant's Gap. Fortunately, one "lone" ranger John Reid (Clayton Moore) survived to bring them to justice. This gang debuted on the radio in 1933. TRIVIA NOTE: The Hole-in-the-Wall-Gang was the name of the real-life gang led by Butch Cavendish in the 1890s. Also known as the "The Wild Bunch" its members included Butch Cassidy (a.k.a. "Robert Leroy Parker"), The Sundance Kid (a.k.a. "Harry Longbaugh") and Kid Curry (a.k.a. "Harvey Logan").

Honeybee - On the sitcom THE LIFE OF RILEY/NBC/1949-58, Chester A. Riley's sarcastic next-door neighbor Jim Gillis (Tom D'Andrea) affectionately referred to his wife (Gloria Blondell) as "Honeybee." On the sitcom ROLLERGIRLS/NBC/1978 a dizzy blonde named Honey Bee Novak (Marcy Hanson), was a member of an all-girl roller derby team called The Pittsburgh Pitts. See also - MUSIC & MUSICIANS:"The Mosquitoes"

Hoosier Hot Shot - Humorist Herb Shriner was known as the "Hoosier Hot Shot." He become popular on radio in the late 1940s for his backwoods stories about rural country life in Indiana (the land of the Hoosiers). His easygoing jokes and philosophizing was likened to the legendary Will Rogers. He starred on the comedy variety series THE HERB SHRINER SHOW/CBS/ABC/1949-52 & 56 and hosted the quiz audience participation series TWO FOR THE MONEY/NBC/CBS/1952-57. When Herb first started in show business he played a harmonica in a vaudeville house. When his lips got tired, he'd start to tell stories to the audience. Eventually, his stories became the main focus of his act. Herb Shriner's son, Wil Shriner Jr., a successful humorist in his own rite, had his own syndicated talk show THE WIL SHRINER SHOW from 1987-88. TRIVIA NOTE: The "Hoosier Hot Shots" was the name of a country western music combo originated by Rudy Trietsch that debuted on radio in Fort Wayne, Indiana and later became regulars on the radio program THE NATIONAL BARN DANCE in 1935. Their trademark oponing was "Are you ready, Hezzi?"

Hopalong Cassidy - William Boyd starred as the silver-haired western hero Hopalong Cassidy who championed the cause of justice in the Old West. He was assisted by sidekicks Gabby Hayes/Andy Clyde in his "B" movies (reedited for TV) and Red Connors (Edgar Buchanan) on the television series HOPALONG CASSIDY/NBC/1949. Hoppy derived his nickname from his creator, New York writer Clarence E. Mulford (1883-1956) who originally conceived his hero in the novel Bar-20 (1907) as a tough, tobacco-chewing, hard-drinking cowboy with a limp, hence "Hopalong." However, when William Boyd took the reigns of the character, he cleaned up the foul-mouthed western star and transformed him into a pristine cowboy hero dressed in black who rode tall in the saddle atop a white horse named Topper. About the only thing he didn't discard was his name "Hopalong." The limp was explained away with a simple healing of his leg. William Boyd purchased the rights to his own films in the 1940s and subsequently received seventy million dollars when he sold his feature film rights to television.

Hoss - The family nickname of Eric Cartwright (Dan Blocker), a large, 280-pound but gentle rancher's son on the western drama BONANZA/NBC/1959-73. Hoss was the second child of Ben Cartwright (Lorne Greene) who lived on the Ponderosa Ranch near Virginia City in the Nevada Territory of the late 19th century. As Eric once said, "Most people just call me Hoss." His nickname was derived from an old Swedish mountain expression which meant "big, friendly man." His uncle Gunnar had suggested the name to Ben's second wife, Inger Borgstrom (Inga Swenson) who was killed by Indians soon after Hoss' birth. On the NBC TV-Movie Bonanza: The Return (1993) the hefty actor Brian Leckner played the role of Josh Cartwright. His resemblance to Dan Blocker earned him the nickname "Hoss" when he played high school football.

Hot Lips - Major Margaret Houlihan (Loretta Swit), the humorless, career Army nurse on the military comedy M*A*S*H/CBS/1972-83 earned the nickname "Hot Lips" because of her passionate, extracurricular activities with married Army doctor Major Frank Burns (Larry Linville) stationed at the 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital during the Korean War. Her "Hot Lips" sobriquet originated in the movie M*A*S*H (1970) when actress Sally Kellerman played the movie role of Margaret Houlihan. During a wild romp with Captain Frank Burns (Robert Duvall), Margaret screamed "Oh Frank, my lips are hot...kiss my hot lips." Unfortunately, for both Margaret and Frank their steamy interlude was broadcast over the camp's loudspeaker via a microphone planted under Margaret's army cot. Henceforth, she was known as "Hot Lips." During the 1977-78 season Margaret married (and later divorced) Colonel Donald Penobscott. Margaret's father (Andrew Duggan) was nicknamed "Howitzer" Al Houlihan by his military cronies.

House Doctor, The - The professional nickname of Ron Hazelton a master craftsman and cabinet maker who hosts his own syndicated home improvement series THE HOUSE DOCTOR that aired on the Home and Garden Television Network. In September 1996, Hazelton joined the staff of GOOD MORNING AMERICA as an authority in the home improvement field covering such topics as bathroom tiling projects to outdoor landscapes beautification. In addition, Mr. Hazelton also appeared on the Lifetime Channel program OUR HOME; as a expert for Popular Mechanics on the Discovery Channel; contributed to KGO-TV's Channel 7 News; and a column in the San Francisco Examiner; as well as a radio talk show guest on KGO's HOME SHOW, the Carey Brothers, nationally syndicated ON THE HOUSE and WXYT's ASK THE HANDYMAN.

Hulk, The - Alter ego of research scientist Dr. David Bruce Banner (Bill Bixby) on the fantasy adventure THE INCREDIBLE HULK/CBS/1978-82. Accidentally exposed to a massive dose of gamma radiation during special stress experiments, Dr. Banner's body underwent a massive transformation. He found that when he became angry, his metabolism raced wildly, expanded his muscular shape threefold, and turned him into a huge green-skinned giant known as the Incredible Hulk. Hoping to find a cure which would exorcise this green demon within, Dr. Banner wandered the roads of America, often laboring as an itinerant worker to supply him with food and clothing. Clothing was an important issue with our scientist/vagabond. When he turned into the Hulk, his pulsing new muscles damaged much of his wardrobe. After the seizure wore off, he was left half naked and with no memory of his actions. On his trail was the relentless investigative reporter Jack McGee (Jack Colvin) who hoped to discover the true identity of this rampaging monster. Muscleman Lou Ferrigno played the part of Dr. Banner while he was the Incredible Hulk. The 1988 TV-movie The Return of the Incredible Hulk followed the further research of Dr. David Banner as he hoped to find a cure to his affliction. The movie introduced Thor, a long dead Norse god brought back to life by evoking the powers of his mighty war hammer. The 1989 the NBC TV-movie The Trial of the Incredible Hulk introduced Daredevil. The 1990 TV-movie The Death of the Incredible Hulk finally killed off the green menace along with David Banner. Created by artist Jack Kirby and writer Stan Lee, The Hulk character debuted in Marvel comics in May, 1962 when Dr. David Banner was caught at Ground Zero in an explosive blast of a gamma bomb as he attempted to rescue young Rick Jones from the detonation.

Human Joke Machine, The - Nightclub nickname of comedian Morey Amsterdam who was best know for his role as Buddy Sorrell, the wisecracking TV gag writer on the sitcom THE DICK VAN DYKE SHOW/CBS/1991-66. His 72-year career took him from vaudeville, to radio, movies and his own variety show THE MOREY AMSTERDAM SHOW/CBS/DUM/1948-50. Morey Amsterdam died of a heart attack at 87 in October 27, 1996. His long-time friend Dick Van Dyke said "When Morey died, a hundred thousand jokes went with him."

Human Termite, The - One of the strangest "Ripley's, Believe It or Not" type personalities to surface on television during the 1950s was the young vegetarian, Joe "Iron Jaw" Interleggi. Blessed with a powerful set of mandibles, he opened bottles with his teeth and ate wood on guest spots of the NBC's THE TONIGHT SHOW with Steve Allen who referred to him as "The Human Termite." He also appeared as a contestant on YOU BET YOUR LIFE/NBC/1950-61 where lifted host Groucho Marx off the ground with his teeth. Marx was seated on a piano bench at the time.

Hunter, The  See - SPY GUYS & SECRET ORGANIZATIONS

Hurricane - The nickname of Randolph J. "Hurricane" Spencer on the adventure THUNDER IN PARADISE/SYN/1994-95. Hurricane was an Ex-Navy SEAL who charged $5000 per day plus expenses for assignments given to him by the Navy and others. His chief means of defense: a super-powered high-tech speedboat named "Thunder."

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