Harrigan (TV series)
Encyclopedia
Harrigan was a Canadian
children's television series in the 1970s and 1980s. The show starred Barry Dale as Harrigan, a leprechaun
.
Harrigan was produced by Kingston, Ontario
television station CKWS-TV
, and aired across Canada in syndication
.
Part of the theme song
included the words: "H - A - double R - I - G - A - N ... it's Harr-i-gan!"
Portions of the half hour program would involve the title character viewing hand drawn pictures submitted by his loyal fan-base of children by looking into his magical pot of gold. His co-star for these segments was a young lady appropriately named Marigold.
Another segment would have Harrigan sitting with his good puppet friend Mr. Green as they read a book to the children watching.
The character originated at Ottawa's CJOH-TV where it ran for its first two seasons. The leprechaun originally appeared on a children's show called Sandbox at 7 a.m. on the CTV network.
Dale suggested syndicating the television show, a request that the station manager was not willing to do. Lorne Freed of CKWS-TV invited Dale to syndicate Harrigan at his station. Harrigan taped original shows until 1985 and then ran re-runs until 1992.
The Harrigan series won three CanPro Awards, which are the Canadian equivalent of the Emmy Awards for syndicated programs.
The Harrigan show is no longer running due to a technial issue. The show was filmed on large two-inch tapes that eventually wore out. At the time nobody thought to transfer the media to a longer-lasting media.
At CKWS, Dale was also promotions manager and for a time had a lunchtime variety show, but left in a dispute and started Godfatha Pizzas. Customers who recognized Dale and performed the song or a little jig, received an extra slice or topping.
The Dales moved to Arizona in 2001.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
children's television series in the 1970s and 1980s. The show starred Barry Dale as Harrigan, a leprechaun
Leprechaun
A leprechaun is a type of fairy in Irish folklore, usually taking the form of an old man, clad in a red or green coat, who enjoys partaking in mischief. Like other fairy creatures, leprechauns have been linked to the Tuatha Dé Danann of Irish mythology...
.
Harrigan was produced by Kingston, Ontario
Kingston, Ontario
Kingston, Ontario is a Canadian city located in Eastern Ontario where the St. Lawrence River flows out of Lake Ontario. Originally a First Nations settlement called "Katarowki," , growing European exploration in the 17th Century made it an important trading post...
television station CKWS-TV
CKWS-TV
CKWS is an affiliate of the CBC Television Network in Kingston, Ontario, providing coverage to Eastern Ontario from Campbellford to Morrisburg and from Perth to Oswego, New York in the United States....
, and aired across Canada in syndication
Television syndication
In broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast radio shows and television shows by multiple radio stations and television stations, without going through a broadcast network, though the process of syndication may conjure up structures like those of a network itself, by its very...
.
Part of the theme song
Harrigan (song)
"Harrigan" is a song written by George M. Cohan for the 1907 Broadway musical, Fifty Miles From Boston. It celebrates, and to some extent mocks, his own Irish heritage....
included the words: "H - A - double R - I - G - A - N ... it's Harr-i-gan!"
Portions of the half hour program would involve the title character viewing hand drawn pictures submitted by his loyal fan-base of children by looking into his magical pot of gold. His co-star for these segments was a young lady appropriately named Marigold.
Another segment would have Harrigan sitting with his good puppet friend Mr. Green as they read a book to the children watching.
The character originated at Ottawa's CJOH-TV where it ran for its first two seasons. The leprechaun originally appeared on a children's show called Sandbox at 7 a.m. on the CTV network.
Dale suggested syndicating the television show, a request that the station manager was not willing to do. Lorne Freed of CKWS-TV invited Dale to syndicate Harrigan at his station. Harrigan taped original shows until 1985 and then ran re-runs until 1992.
The Harrigan series won three CanPro Awards, which are the Canadian equivalent of the Emmy Awards for syndicated programs.
The Harrigan show is no longer running due to a technial issue. The show was filmed on large two-inch tapes that eventually wore out. At the time nobody thought to transfer the media to a longer-lasting media.
At CKWS, Dale was also promotions manager and for a time had a lunchtime variety show, but left in a dispute and started Godfatha Pizzas. Customers who recognized Dale and performed the song or a little jig, received an extra slice or topping.
The Dales moved to Arizona in 2001.