Because of the show’s western themes and the fact that Bill Smith hailed from Buffalo, New York, the star got the nickname Buffalo Bill, which stuck with him for the remainder of his career.
During the first year, Frank Paris, the puppet creator, became increasingly frustrated with the fact that Bill owned the rights to the puppet. When Paris was approached by Macy’s department store, which wanted to pay him to create replicas for kids, he angrily stole the puppet and ran away from the studio.
The producers and Buffalo Bill thought on their feet and aired an episode in which Howdy Doody followed the campaign trail around the US and, on his trip, decided to get plastic surgery.
When the new puppet, made by Velma Wayne Dawson and Mel Shaw, was ready, he looked a whole lot better than the one Paris made. And this new puppet is actually what most fans consider the original puppet of the show.
There were many popular characters on the show, along with Howdy Doody, such as Phineas T. Bluster, Inspector John J. Fadoozle, and Clarabell, the mute clown.
The Howdy Doody show was produced in black and white until 1955, when technicolor was finally available for the program.
Children around the country loved watching Howdy Doody after school and eventually on Saturday mornings, and the characters became a beloved part of their toy collections. Howdy Doody dolls, bags, and paraphernalia were prevalent in every family home throughout the 1950s.
