Lidsville facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Lidsville |
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| Created by | Sid and Marty Krofft |
| Starring | Butch Patrick Charles Nelson Reilly Billie Hayes |
| Voices of | Lennie Weinrib Joan Gerber Walker Edmiston |
| Country of origin | United States |
| No. of episodes | 17 |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Sid and Marty Krofft |
| Running time | 25 minutes (per episode) |
| Production company(s) | Sid & Marty Krofft Television Productions |
| Distributor | CBS Television Distribution |
| Release | |
| Original network | ABC |
| Original release | September 11, 1971 – September 2, 1973 |
Lidsville is a fun TV show created by Sid and Marty Krofft. It came after their other popular shows, H.R. Pufnstuf (1969) and The Bugaloos (1970). Like those shows, Lidsville mixed real actors in costumes with performers in big mascot outfits. The voices for the mascot characters were added later.
Seventeen episodes of Lidsville were shown on Saturday mornings. The show ran for two seasons, from 1971 to 1973. The opening scenes were filmed at Six Flags Over Texas theme park. The rest of the show was filmed at Paramount Pictures studio in Los Angeles.
Contents
Story of Lidsville
The story of Lidsville begins with a teenage boy named Mark (Butch Patrick). He goes to a magic show by Merlo the Magician. After the show, Mark accidentally falls into Merlo's hat!
He lands in a strange and magical place called Lidsville. This land is full of living hats! Each hat acts and talks like the kind of person who would normally wear it. For example, a cowboy hat acts like a cowboy. Even the houses in Lidsville are shaped like hats!
The main bad guy in Lidsville is an evil magician named Horatio J. HooDoo. He is also played by Charles Nelson Reilly, who plays Merlo. HooDoo is very proud and gets angry easily. He flies around in his special Hatamaran, shooting magic bolts at the good hats of Lidsville. He makes them scared and demands they pay a "Hat Tax."
Mark tries to help the good hats fight back against HooDoo. He also wants to find a way to get back home. HooDoo often tries to get back a genie named Weenie (Billie Hayes) from Mark. Weenie used to be HooDoo's slave. HooDoo also uses his four "Bad Hats" to help him. Mark is seen as a spy by HooDoo. He was captured by the Bad Hats right after he fell into Lidsville. But he escaped with Weenie the Genie.
HooDoo lives in a tall hat-shaped home. He is often annoyed by the music from the Hat Band. His talking decorations, like a parrot and a Skull, also bother him. HooDoo's helpers, the clumsy Raunchy Rabbit and the two-faced Jack of Clubs, also cause him problems. HooDoo watches Lidsville from his home using his "Evil Eye," which is like a TV shaped like an eyeball.
Many episodes show Mark trying to go home, but HooDoo always stops him. Weenie is a genie, but he is very nervous and clumsy. Many of his magic tricks and spells don't work right because he was HooDoo's slave for so long.
In the last episode, HooDoo's mother visits Lidsville. She wants to make sure her son is still evil. Mark still doesn't get to go home at the end of the show. The show also had music, with characters singing songs in many episodes.
Meet the Characters
- Mark (played by Butch Patrick) – He is the main hero of the show. He falls into a magician's hat and ends up in Lidsville.
- Weenie the Genie (played by Billie Hayes) – A friendly genie who becomes Mark's friend.
- Horatio J. HooDoo (played by Charles Nelson Reilly) – The evil magician and the main bad guy. He tries to stop Mark from leaving Lidsville and wants Weenie back.
- Raunchy Rabbit (played by Sharon Baird, voiced by Walker Edmiston) – A silly rabbit who works for HooDoo. He wears a fez.
- Jack of Clubs (voiced by Walker Edmiston) – A walking playing card with two talking heads.
- The Bad Hats – A group of four hats who work for HooDoo.
- Mr. Big (played by Angelo Rossitto, voiced by Lennie Weinrib) – A gangster fedora hat and the leader of the Bad Hats.
- Captain Hooknose (voiced by Lennie Weinrib) – A pirate hat with a hook for a nose.
- Bela (voiced by Walker Edmiston) – A vampire hat.
- Boris (voiced by Walker Edmiston) – An executioner's hood who often carries an axe.
- Imperial Wizard (voiced by Walker Edmiston) – An evil wizard who is HooDoo's boss.
- Rah-Rah (played by Jerry Maren, voiced by Lennie Weinrib) – A football helmet who is a bit clumsy but helpful.
- Madame Ring-a-Ding (voiced by Joan Gerber) – A party hat who plans events in Lidsville.
- Mother Wheels (voiced by Joan Gerber) – An older motorcycle helmet who rides a motorcycle.
- Nursie (voiced by Joan Gerber, played by Joy Campbell) – A nurse's hat who is like Lidsville's doctor.
- Twirly (voiced by Joan Gerber) – A beanie hat who is the youngest and can fly using his propeller.
- Colonel Poom (played by Felix Silla, voiced by Lennie Weinrib) – A pith helmet who is a brave explorer and leader of the good hats.
- Mr. Chow (voiced by Lennie Weinrib) – A chef's toque and Lidsville's best cook.
- Pierre LeSewer (voiced by Lennie Weinrib) – A human who lives in the Lidsville sewers.
- Scorchy (voiced by Lennie Weinrib) – A talking fire hydrant with a firefighter's hat. He is Lidsville's warning system.
- Tex (voiced by Lennie Weinrib) – A cowboy hat.
- Tonsilini (played by Van Snowden, voiced by Lennie Weinrib) – An opera-singing hat who sings all his words.
- Hiram (voiced by Walker Edmiston) – A farmer's straw hat.
- Little Ben (voiced by Joan Gerber) – A talking piglet that Hiram carries.
- Admiral Scuttlebutt (voiced by Walker Edmiston) – A green admiral's bicorne who talks in old navy sayings.
- Big Chief Sitting Duck (voiced by Walker Edmiston) – A feathered Indian chief's hat.
Episode Guide
Season 1 & 2: 1971-1973
| Episode | Title | Airdate | |
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| 1 | "World in a Hat" | September 11, 1971 | |
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Mark falls into a magician's hat and finds a magical world. The evil HooDoo thinks Mark is a spy.
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| 2 | "Show Me the Way to Go Home" | TBC | |
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Mark and Weenie the Genie try to find The Golden Ladder to go home. HooDoo tries to stop them.
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| 3 | "Fly Now, Vacuum Later" | TBC | |
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Mark tries to escape on a magic carpet. HooDoo sends a giant vacuum cleaner to catch him.
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| 4 | "Weenie, Weenie, Where's Our Genie?" | TBC | |
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Weenie runs away. HooDoo kidnaps Nursie and Scorchy to get Weenie back.
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| 5 | "Let's Hear it for Whizzo" | TBC | |
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HooDoo kicks people out of Lidsville. Mark pretends to be a rival wizard and challenges HooDoo to a magic fight.
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| 6 | "Is There a Mayor in the House?" | TBC | |
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Mark suggests the citizens elect a mayor. HooDoo tries to cheat in the election.
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| 7 | "Take Me to Your Rabbit" | TBC | |
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Raunchy Rabbit gets HooDoo's magic powers after lightning strikes them.
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| 8 | "Have I Got a Girl For HooDoo" | TBC | |
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HooDoo tries to get a date with Wilhelmina W. Witchiepoo from H.R. Pufnstuf. Mark tries to break them up.
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| 9 | "Mark and the Beanstalk" | TBC | |
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A magic beanstalk grows in Lidsville. HooDoo disguises himself as Mark to escape to the real world.
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| 10 | "Turn in Your Turban, You're Through" | TBC | |
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HooDoo gives Mark Weenie's magic powers and makes Mark his servant.
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| 11 | "Alias, the Imperial Wizard" | TBC | |
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HooDoo crashes Weenie's birthday party and kidnaps some good hats to plan a party for the Imperial Wizard.
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| 12 | "A Little HooDoo Goes a Long Way" | TBC | |
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The Bad Hats try to take over from HooDoo. Weenie gets sick with the Ali Baba Virus.
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| 13 | "Oh, Brother" | TBC | |
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HooDoo's good twin brother, Bruce, arrives while HooDoo is away, causing confusion.
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| 14 | "HooDoo Who?" | TBC | |
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HooDoo loses his memory. The Bad Hats cause trouble when he can't remember who he is.
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| 15 | "The Old Hat Home" | TBC | |
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HooDoo crashes a charity event and turns all the good hats into senior citizens.
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| 16 | "The Great Brain Robbery" | TBC | |
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HooDoo tricks the good hats into his "Brain Wash" machine to create an army.
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| 17 | "Mommy Hoo Doo" | TBC | |
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HooDoo's mother visits Lidsville. Everyone tries to convince her that HooDoo is still bad.
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Comics and Movies
Lidsville Comics
Gold Key Comics made five comic books about Lidsville. These comics had new stories and also retold some of the TV episodes.
Lidsville Movie Plans
On January 31, 2011, DreamWorks Animation announced they were planning to make a 3-D animated musical movie based on Lidsville. The movie was going to be directed by Conrad Vernon. The music was planned to be written by Alan Menken, who wrote music for many Walt Disney Animation Studios films.
In 2013, Alan Menken said that Lidsville was "underway." The song lyrics were to be written by Glenn Slater. However, in 2016, Sid Krofft said that the movie idea didn't work out. He explained that they wanted it to be a big musical, but the movie studio went in a "strange direction."
