Breakfast Time (1957 TV program) facts for kids

Breakfast Time was a super popular TV show for kids in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It aired on WFIL-TV (Channel 6) from 1957 to 1963. The show was hosted by a friendly local TV and radio star named Bill "Wee Willie" Webber. He made mornings fun for everyone!

The show was on weekdays from 7:45 AM to 9:00 AM. On Saturdays, you could watch it from 9:00 AM to 10:00 AM. Breakfast Time was the top-rated morning TV show in Philadelphia for many years.

What Was on Breakfast Time?

Breakfast Time was a mix of fun for kids and useful info for adults. Bill Webber played awesome cartoons that kids loved. He also shared news, sports, and weather updates for grown-ups. Sometimes, he would interview guests or do funny comedy bits. He even gave time checks so everyone knew what time it was!

Favorite Cartoons

Kids tuning in to Breakfast Time got to see some of the best cartoons around. These included classic characters like Bugs Bunny, Porky Pig, and Daffy Duck. You could also watch Sylvester the Cat and Tweety Bird. Many of these were famous Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons.

Other popular shows featured were Popeye the Sailor and Felix the Cat. The show also featured funny shorts with The Three Stooges. Sometimes, they even showed adventure series like Ramar of the Jungle.

Fun Characters on the Show

Breakfast Time had some unique characters that made the show special.

Elmo WiffleWeather

One character was Elmo WiffleWeather. He was a toy clown who rode a unicycle! Elmo would ride down a high wire to deliver the weather report. It was a fun and silly way to get the daily forecast.

Mr. Chix from Channel 6

Another funny character was Mr. Chix from Channel 6. This was actually Bill Webber's chin! Eyes were drawn on his chin, and it was attached to a puppet. Using mirrors, the image was flipped upside down, making his chin look like a talking face. It was a clever trick that kids found hilarious.

The Show's Theme Song

The catchy theme song for Breakfast Time was a piece of music called Bugler's Holiday. It was composed by Leroy Anderson. The lively tune helped start everyone's day with a smile.

How Was Breakfast Time Made?

Breakfast Time was one of the first TV shows to use a new technology called videotape. Before videotape, TV shows were often recorded using a method called kinescope. Kinescopes were basically films of a TV screen, and the quality wasn't always great.

Videotape allowed for much better recordings. It was a big step forward in television production. A famous inventor named Vladimir K. Zworykin even came to supervise an early test of this new technology for the show. He worked for RCA, a big electronics company, and came from their lab in Camden, New Jersey.

One of the videotapes from January 1963 has actually survived! You can sometimes find parts of it online in video playlists. This lets us see a piece of television history.