A number of “original” Howdy Doody marionettes have surfaced within the last few years. But exactly what is an original might be an open question. Velma Dawson was commissioned by NBC in 1948 to create the original Howdy Doody. In a recent conversation with Ms. Dawson she only remembered making 2 Howdy Doody puppets. One was used in the television series and the other was turned into Inspector Fadoozle by Scott Brinker who worked on the show. The Inspector was recently sold at a Leland auction along with numerous items from the Rufus Rose Estate.

In 1952 he took over from Rhoda Mann, the first operator of Howdy. After the show ended, Rose was given custody of the puppets and upon his death his “original” Howdy was left to the Detroit Institute of Art and was subject to a litigated contest of the will by surviving members of the Rose family. The museum won and, there that Howdy resides. At that time Ms. Dawson identified the puppet in question as one of the ones she made though she maintains that the body is probably mostly of Rose’s construction. This appears to account for the two “originals” made by Velma Dawson.

Recently, at auction, a puppet used in the Canadian version of the show was sold along with a so-called “spare” Howdy. While it seems that our Howdy is not one of the “original” two, it is certainly the nearest thing to what Howdy really was like when the show was in its prime. Another Howdy is in the Smithsonian - sometimes referred to as “photo Doody” as he was used for still photography in various advertising campaigns. The puppets in the Detroit Art Institute and the Smithsonian have both been refurbished and touched up over the years. The Detroit puppet has what is most likely an entirely newer body made by Rose. To view this puppet go to http://www.dia.org/information/howdy.htm on the internet. To see the Smithsonian’s Howdy go to http://www.smithsonianlegacies.si.edu/objectdescription.cfm?ID=14 .

The Howdy we will be selling definitely dates to the period before Rose and is in “as used” condition with a rich patina of age. His wooden cowboy boots are pre-Rose being of solid wood and not jointed for dancing purposes as were the later puppets by Rose. Also the gloved hands appear identical to those on Inspector Fadoozle. Rose re-styled the hands on the later puppets. When I talked with Ms. Dawson she said her Howdy hands were always covered in brown to simulate gloves, these are the hands on our Howdy and on Fadoozle, one of the “originals”. For comparison see the catalog for Lelands.com Americana auction which closed on May 17, 2002. It pictures both the Canadian Howdy (which did not have articulated eyes) and Inspector Fadoozle. It can be assumed that, over the years “spare” Doody’s were made, first by Scott Brinker, then later by Rose. A “spare” Howdy by Rose was also sold in the Leland’s sale - also totally restored.

Our Howdy was given to the present owner by Milt Neil, the original designer of many of the denizens of Doodyville. In the early 1970’s there were plans afoot to revive the Howdy Doody show. The present owner, an accomplished mechanical engineer, was given this puppet in order to create internal electro-mechanical devices to operate the mouth and eyes by remote control. As any fan of Doodyville knows, the planned revival never took place. When the project fell through, our consignor asked Mr. Neil what to do with the puppet and was told to keep it as a souvenir.

While it has not yet been proven whether this Howdy ever actually appeared on the show, there is wear on his boots which is suggestive of such use. What is clear is that this is probably the earliest Howdy that will ever be offered for sale at auction and it is a Howdy as near to the original as exists since it was not subject to constant refurbishment over the years that gives the other surviving puppets their almost “new” appearance.

SOLD FOR $23,100