Small Fry Club

Small Fry Club is a children's television program that was broadcast on the DuMont Television Network.[1] It debuted on March 11, 1947, with the title Movies for Small Fry[2] and ended on June 15, 1951.[3] Initially a weekly program, it grew in frequency to five days per week[2] and in 1948 was aired seven days a week.[4]

Small Fry Club
GenreChildren's program
Presented byBob Emery
Country of originUnited States
Production
Running time30 minutes
Release
Original releaseMarch 11, 1947 (1947-03-11) –
June 15, 1951 (1951-06-15)

The program is notable for having been "the first networked children's show".[5]

Format

As the original title implied, Movies for Small Fry featured films and cartoons for children. Bob Emery (who referred to himself as "Big Brother") provided off-screen voiceovers for the material. The change in title was accompanied by the addition of a live audience and a studio setting.[2]

Small Fry Club "promoted good behavior and healthy habits."[6] In addition to films and cartoons, entertainment included demonstrations, songs, puppets,[2] and actors in animal suits who performed short sketches.[6]

Dressed in a suit and wearing glasses, Emery often played the banjo and sang, "... beginning each show with a rendition of 'The Grass Is Always Greener in the Other Fellow's Yard,' a song from the 1920s about being satisfied with what you have and not being envious of others."[2] The song set the tone for Emery's teaching children in the audience about "good manners, self-discipline, and respect for others."[2]

The program was produced by Emery and his wife, Kay.[7] It was sponsored by American Pipe Cleaner Company and Fischer Baking Company. [8]

Promotion

Complementing the program, an actual Small Fry Club existed for youngsters who watched the show. Among other activities, they could submit artwork and written material and participate in contests. More than 10,000 children had joined the club by the end of 1947.[6] Three years later, the number of members had reached 150,000.[2]

Boston sequel

After DuMont ended Small Fry Club, Emery began a similar program, The Big Brother Bob Emery Show, on WBZ-TV in Boston.[7] It ended with his retirement in 1968.[2]

References
  1. Terrace, Vincent (2011). Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2010 (2nd ed.). Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. p. 982. ISBN 978-0-7864-6477-7.
  2. Holz, Jo (2017). Kids' TV Grows Up. McFarland. pp. 20–22. ISBN 9781476630601. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
  3. McNeil, Alex (1996). Total Television (4th ed.). New York, New York: Penguin Books USA, Inc. p. 765. ISBN 0-14-02-4916-8.
  4. "DuMont Sets Teenage 'Rainbow House' Airer". Variety. January 14, 1948. p. 42. Retrieved 5 September 2017.
  5. Robertson, Patrick (2011). Robertson's Book of Firsts: Who Did What for the First Time. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. ISBN 9781608197385. Retrieved 4 September 2017.
  6. Von Schilling, Jim (2013). The Magic Window: American Television ,1939-1953. Routledge. p. 97. ISBN 9781136398605. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
  7. Fischer, Stuart (2014). Kids' TV: The First Twenty-Five Years. Open Road Media. ISBN 9781497633902. Retrieved 4 September 2017.
  8. "Video Business, July 7-13, 1947" (PDF). Broadcasting. September 1, 1947. p. 18. Retrieved 4 September 2017.
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