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Krofft Puppets - Talented puppeteers Sid and Marty Krofft were famous for
creating full-sized peopled puppets (a la SESAME STREET's Big Bird).
Examples of their puppetry genius appeared in:
- H.R.PUFNSTUF/NBC/1969-71/ABC/1973 featuring British actor Jack Wild as
Jimmy, the owner of a talking golden flute named Freddie who set ashore on the
magical land ruled by Mayor
Pufnstuf and was pursued by the evil witch Miss
Witchipoo (Billie Hayes) who coveted his enchanted flute. The entire landscape
of this program was filled with all sorts of talking objects including trees
and buildings (shades of McDonaldland).
- The popularity of their oversized puppets spawned THE BUGALOOS/NBC/1970-72
whose storyline followed the adventures of
Benita Bizarre (Martha Raye), a
crafty witch determined to destroy the peace and quiet of Tranquility Forest
and a group of bee
musicians.
- LIDSVILLE/ABC/1971-73, a Saturday morning children's adventure about
a boy who fell into an oversized magician's hat and found himself in a land of
living hats (Cowboy Hat, Top Hat, Nurse Hat etc.).
- SIGMUND AND THE SEA MONSTERS/NBC/1973-75 with the story of two human boys
(Johnny Whitaker and Scott Kolden) who adopted a large green sea monster named
Sigmund Ooze
(Billy Barty) who was banished from his family because he didn't
want to scare people.
- THE NEW ZOO REVUE/SYN/1972 presented 195 half-hour adventures (strong on
songs, dances and jokes for children) of a life-sized frog named Freddie (Yanco
Inone); Henrietta, a southern belle Hippo (Larri Thomas); and Charlie the wise
Owl (Sharon Baird).
Other puppets series created by Sid & Marty Krofft included:
- THE KROFFT SUPERSHOW/ABC/1976-78, KROFFT SUPER STARS/SYN/1978 and THE KROFFT
SUPERSTAR VARIETY HOUR/NBC/1978 featured recycled episodes of H. R. PUFNSTUF,
SIGMUND AND THE SEA MONSTERS and such characters as Dr. Shrinker, Electra Woman,
Dyna Girl, The Lost Saucer,
Wonderbug, Kaptain Kool and the Kongs, Big Foot and
Wildboy and Magic Mongo.
- TONY THE PONY/SYN/1979 told the tale of a boy named Jonathan (Randall
Yothers, Jr., aka "Poindexter") and his magical horse.
- BARBARA MANDRELL AND THE MANDRELL SISTERS/NBC/1980-82 a country/western
variety hour which offered a country western band of oversized puppets called
"Truck Shackley and the Texas Critters" (five musicians and a dog).
- D.C FOLLIES/SYN/1987-88., a political satire show with located in a bar
near the White House where all the regulars were puppets who resembled famous
politicians., news anchors and celebrities.
TRIVIA NOTE: The tourist attraction "The World
of Sid and Marty Krofft" is located in the Omni International building in
Atlanta, Georgia. See also - "Splitting
Image"
External Links
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