Happy Felton's Knothole Gang

[BayRidgeBrooklyn]

I recently purchased a dvd of a 1956 kinescope - "Happy Felton's Knothole Gang" produced by Rare Sports Films. This was a live half-hour pre-game show from Ebbets Field, whereby "Happy" and one of the Dodger players gave an on-field "tryout" to three local Little Leaguers. Great stuff!

Does anyone have any recollections of this show? Please tell.

[Aa3rt]

Check out this thread (http://www.baseball-fever.com/showthread.php?t=21102) from 2004 with a discussion of the Happy Felton Show, including the reminiscences of someone who was on the show.

[MATHA531]

Happy Felton's Knothole gang was a Brooklyn Dodger produced pre game show before every home game telecast on free television channel 9 (and all Diodger home games were televised in that era for free on channel 9)...it was sponsored by the mutual savings banks of Brooklyn (as opposed to the commercial banks) and worked like this...

Three baseball players of the same age playing the same position from 3 different sandlot baseball programs in Brooklyn...for example you could have 3 9 year old pitchers from little leagues in Brooklyn...they were interviewed for a few minutes by Happy Felton, given a Brooklyn Dodger cap and a yearbook and then one of the Dodgers worked them out...for example in the above example if there were 3 9 year old pitchers, Campy would work them out...if it were 3 catchers, one of the pitchers would work them out...and at the end select the player he thought was best in the workout. The winner was then given the opportunity to choose one of the Dodgers to meet with next game and then spend time in the Dodger dugout with the players. The show ended with the winning player from the previous game interviewing his favorite Dodger and disappearing with him into the Dodger dugout.

I saw a reprint of one of the shows a few years agon on ESPN classic.

It, like so much else, was a big money maker for the fat slob which contributed to the huge profits which weren't enough for him to keep the franchise where it beloned.

[musial6]

http://www.tvparty.com/lostny2happy.html

[musial6]

http://www.gerritsenmemories.com/ubb/Forum7/HTML/000023.html

[musial6]

http://www.alsegundo.com/thismonth/thismontharchive3.html

[EbtsFldGuy]

It is true that we discussed Happy Felton on an earlier thread, but no one ever solved the mystery of what happened to Happy after the team moved west.

Does anyone out there know the answer?

[tonypug]

Happy Felton started a prodection compant that did pre and post game shows for several major league teams . Happy himself did the Brooklyn Dodger shows and he had ex major leaguers hosting the other shows. I am trying to find what I have filed away about Happ Felton. There was no reson for Happy to go to LA, they didn't televise their games, the first couple of years. O'Malley thought he was going to have pay per view, which is one of the reasons he moved.

[MATHA531]

Both of those links are so full of misinformation it isn't funny. My description above is absolutely the way the show worked....it was a pre game show before Brooklyn Dodger home telecasts and since the Dodgers televised every home gane on channel 9 it was telecast either during afternoons, evening, Sunday's whatever (only before the first game for a Sunday doubleheader.)...There were 3 contestants not 5 as somebody claimed. It was only held at Ebbets Field...as a matter of fact it was telecast from the Dodger bullpen which was in foul territory along the right field line (since it was only 297 to the right field fair pole (as Warner Wolf would say of course it's the fair pole, if the ball hits it, it's a fair ball) just in front of the right field wall. It was telecast up through the last telecast from Ebbets Field the night Danny McDevit shut out the Pirates, the last major league game that was ever to be played in Brooklyn by the true Dodgers...the winner of that last contest is still probably waiting to collect his prize (a visit with his favorite Dodger,some time in the Dodger dugout and then through the clubhouse)....normally the Dodger telecasts began each season with the Friday afternoon exhibition game against the Yankees the Friday before the season began (the Brooks and Yanks then played Saturday and Sunday at Yankee Stadium)....

Trust me, this information is 100% correct.

[tonypug]

Matha, most of what you write is true. But the show was pulled several weeks before the end of the season. I still remember clearly getting ready to watch the show one afternoon before school was back in session and the Joe Franklin show was still on. I thought maybe it was raining in Brooklyn, but no the game was played. In the newspaper the next day there was a two line story about the show being cancelled. Other then that, everything you say is how I remember it.

[MATHA531]

Just to finish the thought...the post game show on Channel 9 after Brooklyn home games was also hosted by Happy Felton and called "Talk to the Stars." A member of each team sat with him and answer calls phoned in by witnesses (the callers were pre screened...I know that...I sent in my mom's name one time and they called her before the game and told her she would be one of the callers after the game...I told her what to ask. We got a carton of cigarettes (unfortunately mom was a big smoker plus 2 general admissin tickets to an upcoming Dodger game!

On weekends on channel 9, following Talk to the Stars, there was a post post game show hosted by a fellow named Harry Wismer, later to be of New York Titan (actually Titans of New York) fame and sponsored by General Tire which just so happened to own channel 9.

[MATHA531]

Sorry Tony...but in all due respect to you, you're memory is not correct. The show was telecast through the last night at Ebbets Field and I remember Felton saying to the winner that night, "Well we'll see what happens."

I have great memories of things like that and am 1000% sure I am correct on this.

[musial6]

http://www.brooklyn.net/my_bklyn/my_bklyn_282.html

[tonypug]

Sorry Tony...but in all due respect to you, you're memory is not correct. The show was telecast through the last night at Ebbets Field and I remember Felton saying to the winner that night, "Well we'll see what happens."

I have great memories of things like that and am 1000% sure I am correct on this.
I feel equally as strong about my memeory. I will try to find out. Either way, it still brings back good memories. Do you remember the name of the show Happy Felton did in 156-1957 before road games? It was something Press Box. It was pre-recorde and Felton wore a suit and interviewed some of the sports writers and talked about the game.

[tonypug]

I have just checked the TV listings fir the month of September,1957 in the New York Times and they have the Happy Felton show listed right until the final home game against Pittsburgh on a Tuesday night. So I apologize to Matha for doubting him.

[MATHA531]

These shows were indeed prerecorded (video tape was not yet in wide use..they were I think they were called kaleidescopes)....Felton talked to various writers and went through their pennant predictions which they submitted before the season started....sometimes doing this in July was quite funny! This show were only on before road night games during the week.

[tonypug]

These shows were indeed prerecorded (video tape was not yet in wide use..they were I think they were called kaleidescopes)....Felton talked to various writers and went through their pennant predictions which they submitted before the season started....sometimes doing this in July was quite funny! This show were only on before road night games during the week.
When the writers made their pennant predictions it was called going out on a limb. They had a picture of a tree branch and the writers name and prediction. Felton also had a kids quiz show on saturday mornings. He would have two baseball players as captains for two teams of kids.

[strummer]

As i recall the "after the game show", he had one player from each team and they answered 3 questions on baseball sent in on postcards from the fans and then picked the best question. The one who sent the best question received a prize of a Benrus Citation watch. I won one. The kids on our block chipped in and bought a library full of baseball books and then flooded him with questions and by the end of the summer, almost all of us had a watch.

[EbtsFldGuy]

Interesting discussion, guys, but still the puzzling question:

What happened to Happy after 1957?

[musial6]

On April 10, 1959, Happy played the part of Dr. Gavin on an Ellery Queen TV episode, "The Lecture." Lee Philips played Ellery.

[musial6]

Happy was born on November 30, 1907 in Bellevue, Pennsylvania and died on October 21, 1964, in (I think) New York. Incidentally, in 1956 he hosted the last season of "Stop the Music" on ABC.

[DODGER DEB]

Wasn't Happy a bandleader in the late 30's and early 40's? I seem to recall reading something about that.

c.

[musial6]

Wasn't Happy a bandleader in the late 30's and early 40's? I seem to recall reading something about that.

c.


He was a bandleader and a superb clarinetist. Like Mario Lanza, he ate himself to death.

[musial6]

P.S.

The group's theme song was "I Want to Be Happy."

[DODGER DEB]

P.S.

The group's theme song was "I Want to Be Happy."

Interesting......and sad!

Thanks for the info, musial6.

c.

[CaliforniaCajun]

Happy Felton's Knothole gang was a Brooklyn Dodger produced pre game show before every home game telecast on free television channel 9 (and all Diodger home games were televised in that era for free on channel 9)...it was sponsored by the mutual savings banks of Brooklyn (as opposed to the commercial banks) and worked like this...

Three baseball players of the same age playing the same position from 3 different sandlot baseball programs in Brooklyn...for example you could have 3 9 year old pitchers from little leagues in Brooklyn...they were interviewed for a few minutes by Happy Felton, given a Brooklyn Dodger cap and a yearbook and then one of the Dodgers worked them out...for example in the above example if there were 3 9 year old pitchers, Campy would work them out...if it were 3 catchers, one of the pitchers would work them out...and at the end select the player he thought was best in the workout. The winner was then given the opportunity to choose one of the Dodgers to meet with next game and then spend time in the Dodger dugout with the players. The show ended with the winning player from the previous game interviewing his favorite Dodger and disappearing with him into the Dodger dugout.

I saw a reprint of one of the shows a few years agon on ESPN classic.

It, like so much else, was a big money maker for the fat slob which contributed to the huge profits which weren't enough for him to keep the franchise where it beloned.

I grew up in the Los Angeles area and the fat slob hardly ever televised Dodger games in the 60s. One year it was the games in San Francisco only, another it was every Sunday the Dodgers were on the road.

As I have stated many times, I don't think the Dodgers would have left and changed my primary allegiance to the Angels after I found out what had happened. It's so ironic that the Dodgers are trying to portray the Angels as the carpetbaggers with their name change. The Angels are the L.A. original.

[BayRidgeBrooklyn]

...C'mon Yooz Guys! What happened ta Happy afta 1957?

[musial6]

...C'mon Yooz Guys! What happened ta Happy afta 1957?

Go to page one.

[brooklyn ray]

I recently purchased a dvd of a 1956 kinescope - "Happy Felton's Knothole Gang" produced by Rare Sports Films. This was a live half-hour pre-game show from Ebbets Field, whereby "Happy" and one of the Dodger players gave an on-field "tryout" to three local Little Leaguers. Great stuff!

Does anyone have any recollections of this show? Please tell.

Do I have recollections? I was on the show as a teenager. Been searching
for ages hoping to find some old footage to show my grandchildren.
Any suggestions?

[brooklyn ray]

:baseball:Do I have recollections? I was on the show as a teenager. Been searching
for ages hoping to find some old footage to show my grandchildren.
Any suggestions?

[dodger dynamo]

actually "kinescopes" were shot with a film camera from a tv screen recieving the transmission, sometimes in another room, sometimes just off camera and sometimes even further way. Tv transmission wasn't a coast to coast proposition then (not enough broadcasting power and primitive recievers by today's standards) A filmed show such as I love lucy, took the live filmed episode and re-broadcast it in the different time zones. the Filmed show was of a much higher quality than a "kinescope" which explains why they have a beveled look. So Many just weren't saved, after they showed them somewhere else most times only once. (the reason for kinescoping in the first place) Then no one knew from re-runs. "a terrible shame" as shows like happy felton's knot hole gang have been mostly lost to time. Johnny Jupiter is another casualty of this practice. Jackie gleason however saved his kinescopes and before he died released his lost "honeymooner episodes". I miss happy felton's show, it would be great to see it again. battlin bake, the dodger dynamo

[Aa3rt]

Do I have recollections? I was on the show as a teenager. Been searching for ages hoping to find some old footage to show my grandchildren. Any suggestions?

brooklyn ray-An Internet search yielded this link:

http://www.raresportsfilms.com/1956brook.html

It appears that it will cost you about $30.00 for a video.

[Spirit of '55]

Friends:

Unfortunately, TV moguls have considered kinescoped shows largely unworthy of rescue. Old Black and White shows and movies don't bring in advertising dollars. I have a DVD of Game 5 of the '55 World Series by Rare Sports Films, and several innings are missing because the corresponding kinescopes were destroyed.

A lot of the locally-produced shows of the '50s and '60s were kinescoped since it was cheaper, but storage space was always an issue. I know that the old Winchell-Mahoney Show (WNEW circa 1965-66) kinescopes were destroyed only a few years ago, because their destruction made the news! You'd think that something newsworthy might be worth preserving, but apparently not. I can remember watching Winchell-Mahoney on the Night The Lights Went Out, since that was the first thing that shut down.

I've seen a few clips of Happy Felton---boy, what time capsule pieces those are! I wish more were available. What a great kids' show---kind of like "Baseball Make-A-Wish."

You'd never get a show like that today, you'd get "The Steroid Hour with Barry Bonds---Special Guest Star Roger Clemens" (A Quinn Martin Production---Remember THOSE? Act III? And why'd they always spell "Epilogue" as "Epilog"?) :shrug:

I'm sorry Happy ate himself to death. Not a happy way to live. Or die. :homeplate:

[JOVE23]

Heck, even The Tonight Shows with Steve Allen and Jack Paar are mostly lost to history. Johnny Carson's 1st 10 years in New York (before he decided to...well, you know) were also wiped by NBC.

And obviously, the 1955 World Series was a casualty, although not entirely.

[BayRidgeBrooklyn]

Hello Brooklyn Ray.

As a ballplayer who had the privilege of working out with Dem Bums at Ebbets Field, I hope you will share with us the details of that experience.

Regarding RareSportsFilms.com, we have Mr. Doak Ewing to thank for single-handedly finding, restoring, and reproducing many lost treasures.

And Ray, you can also find that 1956 Knothole Gang episode (and other cool Brooklyn Dodgers stuff) through dugout-memories.com.

[Pollo]

I was actually on that show. My memory fails me but I think it was in 1949 or 1950. I won the contest after having received catches thrown to me by Duke Snyder. I wish I could find a recording of my appearance. I also remember that the Amsterdam News in New York City covered the show and showed a picture of me. That too, I'd love to be able to find. I did contact the Amsterdam News and got weird instructions for tracking down the archives. Any help would be appreciated.

[Pollo]

We seem to be in a similar position. When I get a chance, I'll try to get to the archives of the Amsterdam News to at least get a picture of me that I can show my grandchildren.
Good luck

[Pollo]

For historical purposes, here's what I remember about my appearance on the show. Actually, I seem to recall I appeared twice but I may be wrong. We were in the right-field corner of Ebbets Field. I went into the outfield and caught balls tossed to me by Duke Snyder. I remember I had to ask Duke a question about baseball. I think I said something to him about his having hit four home runs in the same game. If anyone knows when and if Snyder hit four homers in the same game, it may help pinpoint the date of my appearance. As a retired old guy, I should have time to get back to the Amsterdam News archives for a picture. Nice recollecting with you.

[Pollo]

Me again. It must have been in 1950. I checked some stats and Snider hit three home runs in the same game in May 1950. I must have asked him what he thought of the possibility of hitting four. I think Happy Felton told me to ask him that question. Please, any feedback or information would be appreciated, especially from the two other guys who appeared with me.

[musial6]

Snider hit three consecutive homers against the Phillies in the first game of a Memorial Day (May 30) twinbill in 1950.