Ventriloquist Paul Winchell (center) along with dummies
Jerry Mahoney (left) and Knucklehead Smiff (right) were
seen on Winchell – Mahoney Time, a syndicated children’s
TV show that aired from 1965 to 1968. Paul’s then wife,
actress Nina Russel who was the shows writer.
On February 28, 1949, a puppet show called TIME FOR BEANY
debuted on KTLA-TV in Los Angeles. It became a huge success
and went national on the Paramount Television Network (PTN)
from 1950 to 1955. The show was created by animator Bob
Clampett, who later made it into the animated series BEANY
AND CECIL. Principal voice actors were Daws Butler and
comedian Stan Freberg.
Main characters Beany Boy and Cecil, The Seasick Sea Serpent.
Daws Butler is pictured with puppet’s Captain Horatio Huffen Puff and Beany, while Stan Freberg, background, has Cecil and the caped
villian, Dishonest John. Butler later became the voice of Hanna-
Barbera’s animated characters Yogi Bear, Quick Draw McGraw
and Huckle Berry Hound.
Daws Butler (1976) Recent pic of Stan Freberg
It was on this date in 1947 that one of the worlds wealthiest and most
influential aviators in history, Howard Hughes, piloted the largest
aircraft ever made. It was called the Hercules H-4 and was largely
made of wood , thus nicknamed… “The Spruce Goose.” It’s one
and only flight lasted for about a minute for a little over a mile at
70 feet above Long Beach Harbor in California. The airplane is
now part of the Evergreen Aviation Museum in McMinnville, Or.
