Howdy Doody 40 Complete Episodes a happy blast from the past

By April MacIntyre Nov 12, 2008, 2:50 GMT

A moment of deep affection and praise for an iconic American children's show from the fifties that was before my time, but is still part of a vague memory of how simple life appeared to be for so many. 

Howdy Doody was the poster boy for American innocence and was an archetype for the modern character Woody from Pixar's "Toy Story."

In conjunction with NBC Universal, Mill Creek has just released two different Howdy Doody sets. The five-disc set contains 40 episodes, including the final one where Clarabelle speaks. November 4th is the street date when you can choose from a 20-episode set, or a 40-episode set with extras

Seeing this thoughtfully produced and presented 5 disc-set of Howdy Doody on DVD was also a bittersweet moment for me too; Sandy Howard, a prolific producer who worked on Howdy Doody as a director at age nineteen, recently passed away.  Sandy later produced the Captain Kangaroo show, and years later he produced the "Man Called Horse" films. He was a handsome, kind and larger than life man who I was lucky to have met and known.

Sandy Howard, R.I.P.

Mill Creek released the 5-DVD set titled The Howdy Doody Show - 40 Episodes (1949-1952) which is available at various retail sources, including Amazon.  Also released is The Howdy Doody Show - The Best Of: 20 Episodes (1949-1952).

Both of these DVD collections will feature full-length episodes, complete with the commercials, chosen by fans from among the 2343 episodes made during the show's long run.  On the bigger package, interviews on the bonus disc are provided by the Archive of American Television.

This collection is a must-own for classic television, or people who just want to go back in time and smile a bit.

If you remember or want to experience some great old TV, Howdy Doody, his cousin Heidi, Buffalo Bob Smith, Clarabell the Clown, Chief Thunderthud, Princess Summerfall Winterspring and Mayor Phineas T. Bluster are all waiting to entertain you once again in this lovely collection.

Bonus Features:

A Photo Memories Book containing 32 collectible photos from the NBC vault!
Interviews with Bob Keeshan, Eddie Kean, E. Roger Muir, Bob Smith and more!
Transcripts of the Entire Interviews
Howdy Doody Historical and Interactive Timeline
A fantastic photo gallery
3 Bonus Episodes:
- 5th Anniversary episode with guest Fred Allen
- 8th Anniversary episode with guest Gabby Hayes
- Famous 1960 1-hour (color) farewell episode where Clarabell speaks