Lidsville
Encyclopedia
Lidsville was Sid and Marty Krofft
's third television show following H.R. Pufnstuf
(1969) and The Bugaloos
(1970). As did its predecessors, the series combined two types of characters: conventional actors in makeup filmed alongside performers in full mascot costumes, whose voices were dubbed in post-production. Seventeen episodes aired on Saturday mornings for two seasons, 1971–1973. The opening was shot at Six Flags Over Texas
.
series, Hattytown Tales
, produced by Hattyland Enterprises & FilmFair Ltd. in 1969, which used an almost identical concept but different characters and was produced in claymation.
Like predecessors H.R. Pufnstuf
and The Bugaloos
, Lidsville ran for only one season (1971–1972), with reruns airing the following year (1972–1973). Also like H.R. Pufnstuf, Lidsvilles title and subject matter were often interpreted as references to drug use: the word "lid" is slang for a hat or cap (as in "flip your lid"), but "lid" is also early-1970s slang for an ounce of marijuana
.
Like most children's television shows of the era, Lidsville contained a laugh track
.
The complete series was released on DVD
in the United States
in January 2005. Extra features in the set included interviews with Charles Nelson Reilly, Butch Patrick and Billie Hayes. They also provided commentary on some of the episodes.
) who fell into the hat of Merlo the Magician (Charles Nelson Reilly
) and arrived in Lidsville, a land of living hats. The hats on the show are depicted as having the same characteristics as the humans who would normally wear them. For example, a cowboy
hat would act and speak like a cowboy. The characters' houses were also hat-shaped.
The villain of the show was a magician named Horatio J. HooDoo (also played by Charles Nelson Reilly in a magician's costume and make-up). Among other notable characters were Raunchy Rabbit
(Sharon Baird
in mascot, but voiced by Walker Edmiston
), Weenie the Genie
(Billie Hayes
who also reprised her H.R. Pufnstuf
role, Witchiepoo, in one episode), and Rah-Rah the football
helmet (portrayed by Jerry Maren
, voiced by Lennie Weinrib
).
The vain, short-tempered, but somewhat naive HooDoo flew around in his Hatamaran, blasting the good citizens of Lidsville with bolts of magic (referred to as "zapping") and keeping them in fear, demanding that they pay him their Hat Checks. Mark helped the good hats resist as he attempted to find a way back home. HooDoo, trying to reclaim control of the androgynous Weenie from Mark, often enlisted the services of four Bad Hats consisting of Mr. Big, Captain Hooknose, Bela the Vampire
's Cowl, and Boris the Executioner's Hood. In his high hat home, HooDoo was besieged by the taunting music of the Hat Band, as well as all of his talking knicknacks (the parrot
, Mr. Skull, the mounted alligator
head, the sawed-in-half lady, to list only a few). HooDoo also experienced further aggravation at the hands of his aides, the dim Raunchy Rabbit and his two-faced card guard, Jack of Clubs (a walking deck of playing cards). HooDoo watched the action going on in downtown Lidsville from his hat home by using his Evil Eye, a device similar to a TV set, but resembling an eyeball. He also had a hot hatline phone. The show relied on an endless array of puns based on hats.
Many of the episodes were about Mark trying to get back home, but the evil HooDoo prevented him from leaving. Weenie, being a nervous bumbler, was, in fact, a genie, but many of the tricks and spells didn't work right anymore after being a slave to HooDoo for so long. In the show's final episode, scenes from some of the past episodes were featured, as HooDoo's mother had paid a visit to find out what has been going on in Lidsville. Unfortunately for Mark, he did not return home at the end.
Music was also a part of the show, with songs being performed by the characters in several episodes.
An armored Knight named Sir Rip Van Helmet, and the Red-Hooded Hatpeckers.
is adapting Lidsville to make a 3-D
animated musical. The feature will be directed by Conrad Vernon
, the co-director of Shrek 2
and Monsters vs. Aliens
, and the music will be composed by Alan Menken
, the person famous for composing many of Disney's greatest animated features. Menken stated that, "The songs will be an homage to '60s psychedelic concept-album rock." The release date is not yet set.
Sid and Marty Krofft
Sid Krofft and Marty Krofft , are a sibling team of television producers who were influential in children's television and variety show programs in the USA, particularly throughout the 1970s and early 1980s....
's third television show following H.R. Pufnstuf
H.R. Pufnstuf
H.R. Pufnstuf was a children's television series produced by Sid and Marty Krofft in the United States. It was the first Krofft live-action, life-size puppet program. The seventeen episodes were originally broadcast September 6, 1969 to September 4, 1971...
(1969) and The Bugaloos
The Bugaloos
The Bugaloos is an American children's television series produced by brothers Sid and Marty Krofft, airing on NBC on Saturday mornings from 1970 to 1972. The show featured a musical group composed of four British-accented teenagers, who lived in fictional Tranquility Forest...
(1970). As did its predecessors, the series combined two types of characters: conventional actors in makeup filmed alongside performers in full mascot costumes, whose voices were dubbed in post-production. Seventeen episodes aired on Saturday mornings for two seasons, 1971–1973. The opening was shot at Six Flags Over Texas
Six Flags Over Texas
Six Flags Over Texas is a major amusement park located in Arlington, Texas , east of Fort Worth and about west of Dallas. It is the oldest park of the Six Flags chain. The park opened on August 5, 1961 following just a year of construction and an initial investment of US$10 million by real estate...
.
Production
Lidsville resembles an earlier BritishUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
series, Hattytown Tales
Hattytown Tales
Hattytown Tales was a 52-episode stop motion children's television series produced by FilmFair for Thames Television. It aired in the United Kingdom between 1969 and 1973. Creator and writer Keith Chatfield narrated the series, and Ivor Wood directed it...
, produced by Hattyland Enterprises & FilmFair Ltd. in 1969, which used an almost identical concept but different characters and was produced in claymation.
Like predecessors H.R. Pufnstuf
H.R. Pufnstuf
H.R. Pufnstuf was a children's television series produced by Sid and Marty Krofft in the United States. It was the first Krofft live-action, life-size puppet program. The seventeen episodes were originally broadcast September 6, 1969 to September 4, 1971...
and The Bugaloos
The Bugaloos
The Bugaloos is an American children's television series produced by brothers Sid and Marty Krofft, airing on NBC on Saturday mornings from 1970 to 1972. The show featured a musical group composed of four British-accented teenagers, who lived in fictional Tranquility Forest...
, Lidsville ran for only one season (1971–1972), with reruns airing the following year (1972–1973). Also like H.R. Pufnstuf, Lidsvilles title and subject matter were often interpreted as references to drug use: the word "lid" is slang for a hat or cap (as in "flip your lid"), but "lid" is also early-1970s slang for an ounce of marijuana
Cannabis (drug)
Cannabis, also known as marijuana among many other names, refers to any number of preparations of the Cannabis plant intended for use as a psychoactive drug or for medicinal purposes. The English term marijuana comes from the Mexican Spanish word marihuana...
.
Like most children's television shows of the era, Lidsville contained a laugh track
Laugh track
A laugh track is a separate soundtrack invented by Charles "Charley" Douglass, with the artificial sound of audience laughter, made to be inserted into television programming of comedy shows and sitcoms.The term "laugh track" does not apply to the genuine audience laughter on shows that shoot in...
.
The complete series was released on DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in January 2005. Extra features in the set included interviews with Charles Nelson Reilly, Butch Patrick and Billie Hayes. They also provided commentary on some of the episodes.
Plot
The show involved a teenage boy named Mark (Butch PatrickButch Patrick
Butch Patrick is a former American child actor. He is widely known for his role on the TV show The Munsters where he played Eddie Munster, the son of Herman and Lily Munster...
) who fell into the hat of Merlo the Magician (Charles Nelson Reilly
Charles Nelson Reilly
Charles Nelson Reilly was an American actor, comedian, director and drama teacher known for his comedic roles in theater, movies, children's television, animated cartoons, and as a panelist on the game show Match Game....
) and arrived in Lidsville, a land of living hats. The hats on the show are depicted as having the same characteristics as the humans who would normally wear them. For example, a cowboy
Cowboy
A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the vaquero traditions of northern Mexico and became a figure of...
hat would act and speak like a cowboy. The characters' houses were also hat-shaped.
The villain of the show was a magician named Horatio J. HooDoo (also played by Charles Nelson Reilly in a magician's costume and make-up). Among other notable characters were Raunchy Rabbit
Rabbit
Rabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha, found in several parts of the world...
(Sharon Baird
Sharon Baird
Sharon Baird is an American actress and dancer who is best known for having been a Mouseketeer.-Early life:Sharon Baird was born in Seattle, Washington to Eldon Baird, an aerospace worker, and Nikki Marcus, a future talent agent. She has one younger brother, Jimmy Baird, also a former child actor...
in mascot, but voiced by Walker Edmiston
Walker Edmiston
-Career:Walker Edmiston was an American character actor and voice-over artist who was born in St. Louis, Missouri. Edmiston appeared on various television programs in character roles during the 1950s – 1970s, such as Gunsmoke, Mission: Impossible, Knots Landing, and The Dukes of Hazzard, all...
), Weenie the Genie
Jinn
Jinn are supernatural beings in Arab folklore and Islamic teachings.Jinn may also refer to:* Jinn , a Japanese band* Qui-Gon Jinn, a character in the Star Wars universe...
(Billie Hayes
Billie Hayes
Billie Hayes is an American actress best known for her comic portrayal as Witchie-poo on the Sid and Marty Krofft television series H.R. Pufnstuf. Her characteristic cackle and animated physicality were notable during the show's 17-episode run in 1969–70...
who also reprised her H.R. Pufnstuf
H.R. Pufnstuf
H.R. Pufnstuf was a children's television series produced by Sid and Marty Krofft in the United States. It was the first Krofft live-action, life-size puppet program. The seventeen episodes were originally broadcast September 6, 1969 to September 4, 1971...
role, Witchiepoo, in one episode), and Rah-Rah the football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
helmet (portrayed by Jerry Maren
Jerry Maren
Jerry Maren is an American actor and one of only three confirmed surviving dwarf munchkins from the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz. The other two surviving munchkin cast members are Margaret Williams Pellegrini and Ruth Robinson Duccini, making Maren the last surviving male Munchkin from the...
, voiced by Lennie Weinrib
Lennie Weinrib
Lennie Weinrib was an American actor, voice actor and writer. He is best known for playing the title role in the children's television show H.R...
).
The vain, short-tempered, but somewhat naive HooDoo flew around in his Hatamaran, blasting the good citizens of Lidsville with bolts of magic (referred to as "zapping") and keeping them in fear, demanding that they pay him their Hat Checks. Mark helped the good hats resist as he attempted to find a way back home. HooDoo, trying to reclaim control of the androgynous Weenie from Mark, often enlisted the services of four Bad Hats consisting of Mr. Big, Captain Hooknose, Bela the Vampire
Vampire
Vampires are mythological or folkloric beings who subsist by feeding on the life essence of living creatures, regardless of whether they are undead or a living person...
's Cowl, and Boris the Executioner's Hood. In his high hat home, HooDoo was besieged by the taunting music of the Hat Band, as well as all of his talking knicknacks (the parrot
Parrot
Parrots, also known as psittacines , are birds of the roughly 372 species in 86 genera that make up the order Psittaciformes, found in most tropical and subtropical regions. The order is subdivided into three families: the Psittacidae , the Cacatuidae and the Strigopidae...
, Mr. Skull, the mounted alligator
Alligator
An alligator is a crocodilian in the genus Alligator of the family Alligatoridae. There are two extant alligator species: the American alligator and the Chinese alligator ....
head, the sawed-in-half lady, to list only a few). HooDoo also experienced further aggravation at the hands of his aides, the dim Raunchy Rabbit and his two-faced card guard, Jack of Clubs (a walking deck of playing cards). HooDoo watched the action going on in downtown Lidsville from his hat home by using his Evil Eye, a device similar to a TV set, but resembling an eyeball. He also had a hot hatline phone. The show relied on an endless array of puns based on hats.
Many of the episodes were about Mark trying to get back home, but the evil HooDoo prevented him from leaving. Weenie, being a nervous bumbler, was, in fact, a genie, but many of the tricks and spells didn't work right anymore after being a slave to HooDoo for so long. In the show's final episode, scenes from some of the past episodes were featured, as HooDoo's mother had paid a visit to find out what has been going on in Lidsville. Unfortunately for Mark, he did not return home at the end.
Music was also a part of the show, with songs being performed by the characters in several episodes.
Season 1 & 2: 1971-1973
| Episode | Title |
|---|
Cast
- Butch PatrickButch PatrickButch Patrick is a former American child actor. He is widely known for his role on the TV show The Munsters where he played Eddie Munster, the son of Herman and Lily Munster...
- Mark - Billie HayesBillie HayesBillie Hayes is an American actress best known for her comic portrayal as Witchie-poo on the Sid and Marty Krofft television series H.R. Pufnstuf. Her characteristic cackle and animated physicality were notable during the show's 17-episode run in 1969–70...
- Weenie the Genie - Charles Nelson ReillyCharles Nelson ReillyCharles Nelson Reilly was an American actor, comedian, director and drama teacher known for his comedic roles in theater, movies, children's television, animated cartoons, and as a panelist on the game show Match Game....
- Horatio J. HooDoo - Sharon BairdSharon BairdSharon Baird is an American actress and dancer who is best known for having been a Mouseketeer.-Early life:Sharon Baird was born in Seattle, Washington to Eldon Baird, an aerospace worker, and Nikki Marcus, a future talent agent. She has one younger brother, Jimmy Baird, also a former child actor...
- Raunchy Rabbit - Joy Campbell -
- Buddy Douglas -
- Jerry MarenJerry MarenJerry Maren is an American actor and one of only three confirmed surviving dwarf munchkins from the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz. The other two surviving munchkin cast members are Margaret Williams Pellegrini and Ruth Robinson Duccini, making Maren the last surviving male Munchkin from the...
- Rah-Rah the Football Helmet - Angelo RossittoAngelo RossittoAngelo Rossitto was an American actor. He had dwarfism and was 2'11" tall.Rossitto was discovered by John Barrymore and made his screen debut opposite Barrymore in The Beloved Rogue . He appeared in the then controversial 1932 film Freaks directed by Tod Browning. He appeared in another...
- Mr. Big - Hommy Stewart -
- Van Snowden - Tonsilini
- Felix SillaFelix SillaFelix Anthony Silla is an Italian film and television actor and stuntman, best known for his role as "Cousin Itt" on television's The Addams Family, and many other classic character roles.- Biography and career overview :...
- Colonel Poom - The Hermine Midgets -
Voice cast
- Walker EdmistonWalker Edmiston-Career:Walker Edmiston was an American character actor and voice-over artist who was born in St. Louis, Missouri. Edmiston appeared on various television programs in character roles during the 1950s – 1970s, such as Gunsmoke, Mission: Impossible, Knots Landing, and The Dukes of Hazzard, all...
- Admiral Scuttlebutt, Bela the Vampire's Cowl, Big Chief Sitting Duck, Boris the Executioner's Hood, Hiram the Farmer's Hat, Hoo Doo's Parrot, Raunchy Rabbit, Jack of Clubs - Joan GerberJoan GerberJoan Gerber is an American voice actress for a variety of cartoons.- Filmography :* 1959: Matty's Funday Funnies : Additional Voices...
- Madame Ring-a-Ding, Mother Wheels, Nursie, Sawed-in-Half Lady, Twirly - Lennie WeinribLennie WeinribLennie Weinrib was an American actor, voice actor and writer. He is best known for playing the title role in the children's television show H.R...
- Colonel Poom, Captain Hooknose, Mr. Big, Mr. Chow, Pierre LeSewer, Rah-Rah the Football Helmet, Scorchy the Fireman's Hat, Tex, Tonsilini
Other media
- The show was parodied by HBO late night comedy program Mr. ShowMr. ShowMr. Show with Bob and David is an American sketch comedy series featuring former Saturday Night Live writer/actor Bob Odenkirk and stand up comedian/actor David Cross...
.
- Gold Key ComicsGold Key ComicsGold Key Comics was an imprint of Western Publishing created for comic books distributed to newsstands. Also known as Whitman Comics, Gold Key operated from 1962 to 1984.-History:...
published five issues of a Lidsville comic book. The books were a mix of new stories as well as re-workings of some of the television episodes. Although the comics were faithful to the TV series, there were some major differences:- Weenie the Genie was made less of a bumbler. In the comic, it was strictly stated that he could not work any magic unless Mark first rubbed the ring.
- Boris the Executioner's hood made NO appearances in the comics at all outside of cover photos, although the rest of the Bad Hats appeared regularly.
- HooDoo's flunky, Jack of Clubs, was only regulated to cameo appearances and never drawn the same way each issue.He was also depicted as a single card, rather than a deck.
- Mommy HooDoo, who appeared in the show as a plump, matronly woman, was depicted in the comics as an emaciated hag with steel wool hair.
- Lidsville's population was expanded on a bit, as new characters were introduced. Most notably a bird named Hooty Hatowl, a Town Crier hat, Toulouse the artistic painter's beret,The Cap people,
An armored Knight named Sir Rip Van Helmet, and the Red-Hooded Hatpeckers.
- Lidsville was also part of the Ice CapadesIce CapadesThe Ice Capades was a traveling entertainment show featuring theatrical performances involving ice skating. Shows often featured former Olympicand National Champion figure skaters who had retired from amateur competition....
during the early 1970s.
- At the beginning of "Jose Chung's 'Doomsday Defense,'" an episode of MillenniumMillennium (TV series)Millennium is an American television series created by Chris Carter, creator of The X-Files. Millennium aired on the Fox Network from 1996 to 1999. The series was filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia, though most episodes were ostensibly set in or around Seattle, Washington...
, the writer Chung (played by Charles Nelson Reilly), mentions that he had a part in a "brilliant, award-winning film" as a small clip of HooDoo is played on-screen.
Film
On January 31, 2011, it was announced that DreamWorks AnimationDreamWorks Animation
DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc. is an American animation studio based in Glendale, California that creates animated feature films, television program and online virtual worlds...
is adapting Lidsville to make a 3-D
3-D film
A 3-D film or S3D film is a motion picture that enhances the illusion of depth perception...
animated musical. The feature will be directed by Conrad Vernon
Conrad Vernon
Conrad Vernon IV is an American director, writer, and voice actor, best known for his work on the DreamWorks animated films Shrek 2 and Monsters vs...
, the co-director of Shrek 2
Shrek 2
Shrek 2 is a 2004 American computer-animated fantasy comedy film, produced by DreamWorks Animation and directed by Andrew Adamson, Kelly Asbury and Conrad Vernon. It is the second installment in the Shrek film series and the sequel to 2001's Shrek...
and Monsters vs. Aliens
Monsters vs. Aliens
Monsters vs. Aliens is a 2009 American computer-animated 3-D science fiction film produced by DreamWorks Animation and distributed by Paramount Pictures...
, and the music will be composed by Alan Menken
Alan Menken
Alan Menken is an American musical theatre and film composer and pianist.Menken is best known for his numerous scores for films produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios. His scores for The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and Pocahontas have each won him two Academy Awards...
, the person famous for composing many of Disney's greatest animated features. Menken stated that, "The songs will be an homage to '60s psychedelic concept-album rock." The release date is not yet set.
External links
Audio
- Operation Space Nut - Audio: Clips (WAV)
- Stuck in the '70s - Audio: Butch Patrick Interview (Embedded in page WAV)
Video
- Room 34 - Video/Audio: Opening/Closing/Hat Band (Quicktime/MP3)
- Rhino - Video: Intro (Quicktime, Real Player and Windows Media)
- IFILM - Video: First 8 Minutes (Quicktime, Real Player and Windows Media)
- Rotten Tomatoes - Video: First 8 Minutes (Quicktime, Real Player and Windows Media)
- Robotkid - Video: Lidsville Remix (Quicktime)