H.R. Pufnstuf Cookie
This marvelous H.R. Pufnstuf Cookie was made by Hey Sweet Cakes. It features H.R. Pufnstuf holding Freddy the flute. If Freddy is around, I’m guessing Witchiepoo is somewhere nearby.
When I was little, Saturday morning was a time for cartoons. Sid and Marty Krofft, the creators of H.R. Pufnstuf, changed that forever. They were puppeteers who were hired by Hanna-Barbera to design the characters and sets for the beloved TV show Banana Splits.
The Banana Splits was a ground breaking kids show that mixed kids, people in costumes, muppets and cartoons. This may not sound innovate these days, but you’ve got to put the show into context. The Banana Splits actually predates the greatest kids show ever made, Sesame Street, by a few months. I loved The Banana Splits as a kid. I last saw the Fleegle, Bingo, Drooper and Snorky in the late 60s or early 70s, but I can still sing every word of their catchy theme song, The Tra La La Song ( also known as One Banana, Two Banana).
The success of the Banana Splits enabled Sid and Marty Krofft to create their own company which specialized in classic Saturday morning TV shows that featured kids interacting in a world filled with elaborate costumes, sets, and muppets.
In addition to H.R. Pufnstuf, they worked a bunch of TV series including the amazing Land of the Lost (a weekly serial that mixed dinosaurs and science fiction), Sigmund and the Sea Monsters, Far Out Space Nuts (with Bob Denver (aka Gilligan) – “I said Lunch, not Launch”.), Electra Woman and Dyna Girl, and Pryor’s Place. They also worked on popular variety shows like Donny & Marie, The Brady Bunch Hour, and Barbara Mandrell and the Mandrell Sisters.
H.R. Pufnstuf is special because it was the first series that Sid and Marty Krofft made after they left Hanna-Barbera and unlike The Banana Splits, there was no cartoon segments in the show. The whole series took place in the magical world that Kroffts created. The series had four main characters – Jimmy a little boy, Jimmy’s talking flute – Freddy, H.R. Pufnstuf (who was the Mayor of the island) and Witchiepoo. Many of the plots involved Witchiepoo trying to steal Freddy the flute. When it was first broadcast there was nothing else like it on TV and because of this it is still remembered fondly by many people including me.
