THE ADVENTURES OF LUCKY PUP / FOODINI THE GREAT

THE ADVENTURES OF LUCKY PUP / FOODINI, THE GREAT

(CBS, ABC, August 23, 1948-June 23, 1951)

CBS Television, ABC Television

           

Created by puppeteers Hope and Morey Bunin, The Adventures of Lucky Pup was a 15-minute show based around a cute dog (Hope) that inherited $5 million from the estate of a circus queen. Pup’s fortune was under constant threat from an evil magician named Foodini (Morey), and his dim-witted associate, Pinhead (Hope).

            The Adventures of Lucky Pup debuted on CBS on August 23, 1948, with Doris Brown serving as hostess and the only on-air human character. The series aired live on the east coast, with kinescopes recorded for later broadcast in markets further west. While the series was successful, the audience’s interest began to shift from the “goody goody” Pup towards the entertaining interactions of Foodini and Pinhead. When Brown left the show after getting married, the show was cancelled by CBS. ABC picked up a retooled version that focused on Foodini and Pinhead and renamed Foodini, the Great. The series ended its run in the summer of 1951, while kinescopes of the program were shown on Saturday mornings through the winter.