One Of TV’s Most Memorable Moments…Clarabell’s Goodbye

One Of TV’s Most Memorable Moments…Clarabell’s Goodbye

Until those awful days in Dallas in 1963, September 24, 1960 was television’s most memorable moment…at least for us kids who watched ‘Howdy Doody’ every Saturday morning.

Although the show went color on September 12, 1955 from Studio 3K, this is the only color footage of the show I have ever seen. For many years, this tape was lost but was finally found and restored.

The final episode was a special hour long show and in this ultra rare clip, we see the beginning and end, and even hear audio from the control room crew at the very top as they prepared for Episode 2,343…the grand finale. Notice on the ending promos, ‘The Sheri Lewis Show’ was the replacement for Howdy.

Lou Anderson, the third and final actor to play Clarabell, has a surprise for us, and that was the episode title…”Clarabell’s Big Surprise”.

Just as I remember where I was on November 23, 1963, I remember this. I was 10 years old, laying on the couch in our Atlanta home, still dressed in my pajamas. When Clarabell spoke, there was tear in my eye. Some good friends were gone.

What about you? Where were you and how did you feel that morning?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJ6ybvlsb4s

Broadcasted on September 24, 1960. The hour-long episode was mostly a fond look-back at all the highlights of the show’s past, but in the midst of it all, Cl…

Source