SUPER CIRCUS VOLUME 1--SPECIAL EDITION
(approx 60 min)
Remember Super Adventure TerryToon? CIRCUS? And all of those commercials for Marx toys from the late 1950's onward? They and SUPER CIRCUS all had one thing in common--Claude Kirchner, one of the most popular and well-liked television kids show hosts (from 1949 thru the end of the 1960's) this side of Walt Disney.
SUPER CIRCUS started in Chicago during 1949 as an experiment in children's entertainment--there wasn't a lot of stuff on tv for kids back then, and nobody seemed sure whether television should educate or entertain younger viewers.
Ira & Claude Kirchner
SUPER CIRCUS was the first syndicated variety/entertainment show aimed at younger viewers to achieve mass success--it was soon seen in every major city in the country, and it started spate of circus-type shows (BIG TOP CIRCUS was the best known of them).
Three Musketeers and Snickers Bars were the original sponsors, and with their success ad agencies formed a long line with clients (including Canada Dry and--yes!--MAYPO!!!!) ready to pay for time on the show. What were they buying?
Well, there was Mary Hartline, the leader of the SUPER CIRCUS band and general foil for the show's three resident clowns, Cliffy, Scampy, and Nicky--between the four of them, and the guest artists (usually an animal act or acrobatic team), there was enough action and laughter to fill each 60 minute SUPER CIRCUS show to bursting.
Parents soon found that, unlike the MICKY MOUSE CLUB (which came along much later), SUPER CIRCUS was not only fun for their children, but for them as well (those clowns were genuinely funny. When they and Mary Hartline got a good sketch, it was as funny as an I LOVE LUCY episode pitched to kids).
The fathers appreciated Mary Hartline--who was prettier than any kids show hostess had a right to be--probably more than their kids did, and the mothers tolerated that knowing that their kids had something genuinely entertaining to watch.
And at the center of it all was Claude Kirchner, the tall, lanky, good-natured former radio announcer, who was so popular with kids that he could never get away from children's television, and even sold his voice-over talents to Marx, which used him in every one of their commercials for over a decade.
Kirchner was also the host of the lesser known children's shows SCRUB CLUB and MARX MAGIC MIDWAY.
This Special Edition of SUPER CIRCUS features highlights from the original program, interspersed with an on camera interview done by Kirchner at VIDEO RESOURCES-NEW YORK's studios in 1991, shortly before his death, in which he recalled the creation of SUPER CIRCUS and the other shows he hosted, his long-time relationship with Marx Toys, and the nature of the television and advertising businesses.
Highlights from the original show include Mary Hartline and the clowns plugging Snickers bars, Hartline leading the band in "Waiting For the Robert E. Lee," Scampy, Cliffy, Mary, and Nicky in the sword-in-the-magic-box routine, and a gymnastics trio putting on an exhibition.
Also featured is a test clip that Kirchner did in the early 1970's for a revival of TERRYTOON CIRCUS called CARTOON CIRCUS, featuring his hand-puppet companion Clownie.
SUPER CIRCUS Volume 2
(approx 60 min)
Mary Hartline
1950
An acrobatic/contortionist act is followed by the presentation of a service award to the show by an organization of disabled veterans; Mary Hartline leads the band in a medley of patriotic marches and other tunes.
Cliffy, Nicky and Scampy create chaos with a haywire X-Ray machine at the Clown Clinic, with Mary Hartline as the nurse; and an acrobatic and trapeze acts entertains us.
KIn the second show, a team of high-wire artists and acrobats performs, followed by Mary Hartline and Nicky and Scampy trying to cure Cliffy the Clown's sleepwalking; and a trained seal act (with a guest pelican) performs.
The sponsor for both shows is Snickers.
SUPER CIRCUS Volume 3
(approx 60 min)
A pair of man and woman dancing acrobats lead into a sketch in which Mary Hartline is driven crazy by Cliffy, Scampy, and Nicky as they did for uranium outside of her window; the cast celebrates Scampy's birthday, and a trapeze quartet entertains the crowd.
In the second show, an acrobatric clown performs a drunk sketch as part of a trapeze number; Mary Hartline leads the band.
Mary Hartline tries to figure out who sent her a tiny little note; and a trained dog act performs.
Sponsors on the two shows are Snickers, Mars Bars, and Kelloggs, with cartoon commercials and on-air plugs for all of them.
SUPER CIRCUS Volume 4
(approx 60 min)
Highlights of the first show includes a clown acrobatic act, a haunted house sketch featuring Mary Hartline and Cliffy, Nicky, and Scampy, and a performance by the All American Boys Acrobatic Company on chairs, tables, and teeterboard.
The second show features the Ming Sing Acrobatic Company, a contortionist ensemble, Mary Hartline leading the band in "The Road To Mandalay," and Pat Anthony and His 13 Untrained Lions.
Kelloggs is the sponsor for both shows, and the show's stars Claude Kirschner and Mary Hartline plug the company's cereals, with special guest football great Tom Harmon (father of actor Mark) hosting a Kelloggs Orange Bowl Contest.
Back to the Kids Shows Listing Page
Next Page
Back to TelevisionToys.com
SUPER CIRCUS Volume 2
(approx 60 min)
1950
SUPER CIRCUS Volume 3
(approx 60 min)
A pair of man and woman dancing acrobats lead into a sketch in which Mary Hartline is driven crazy by Cliffy, Scampy, and Nicky as they did for uranium outside of her window; the cast celebrates Scampy's birthday, and a trapeze quartet entertains the crowd.
SUPER CIRCUS Volume 4
(approx 60 min)
Highlights of the first show includes a clown acrobatic act, a haunted house sketch featuring Mary Hartline and Cliffy, Nicky, and Scampy, and a performance by the All American Boys Acrobatic Company on chairs, tables, and teeterboard.