February 1963-The beginnings of Ghoulardi..

Warren Guthrie's last year of "Sohio Reporter" would be 1963. It was said that Warren didnt care much for local news..so Doug Adair followed with "City Report" at 11:10 (Which eventually morphed into City Camera News) At this point Norm Wagy would have nightly editorials at 11:15 followed by John Fitzgetald Sports at the odd time of 11:18, followed by the night movie at 11:23.

TV Guide Ad for The early evening WJW-TV Newscast with Doug Adair, followed at 7:10 by John Fitzgerald Sports and CBS News at 7:15.

Advertisement for KYW-3's "Early Show"..The Late afternoon/early evening feature film was a staple of KYW/WKYC-TV 3 from at least 1959-into the early 1970's.

WJW-TV 8-Prime Time Monday Night lineup in early 1963.

TV Guide ad for Woodrow the Woodsman (Clay Conroy)..He started out as a sidekick for "Barnaby" but proved popular enough for his own daily show..

Today we will look at February 1963..Cleveland was involved in a long newspaper strike in 1962-63 which apparently resulted in extra TV News coverage, though not apparent in schedules of the period..There was a TV Guide disclaimer that said that there may be more TV News because of the Strike..

The major programming news of the January-February 1963 period had to be the debut of TV 8 announcer Ernie Anderson's "Ghoulardi" on January 18, 1963. Anderson, a Massachusetts native who had previously hosted "Ernie's Place" Movie series with friend Tom (Tim) Conway till January 1962, was under contract to Channel 8.

A Channel 8 executive saw Anderson emceeing an in-house Christmas party in December '62 and suggested Ernie host a series of Horror Films Channel 8 had just acquired. Costumer Ralph Guilko came up with Ernie's Ghoulardi Costume-Fright wig, Beard and dark glasses..and Ghoulardi was born..

Ernie really put himself into the part..The studio was darkened so you could only see his face..He was so popular that his catchphrases, including "Stay Sick", "Turn Blue", Ova Dey", "Purple Knif" and "Cool It with The Boom Booms" were part of Northeast Ohio's vocabulary long after Ernie was gone..

He really pushed the evelope with Channel 8 brass resulting in constant lectures "Now don't do that again". His biggest uproar came with the 11-episode "Parma Place" skit which ran most of 1966..A dead on spoof of popular ABC series "Peyton Place" Ernie played "John" a "Lake Erie Muckraker" who lived with wife Janet..There was also "Handsome downstairs neighbor" Jerry Kreegle. played by show Producer/engineer Chuck Schodowski (who had to practically be beaten up to appear on the air with Ernie)..Jerry had eyes for Janet, but John seemed oblivious to that fact..

The skits gave rise to several Parma assumptions..Love of polka music, Pink flamingos and White socks..which still are assumptions today..The series made such a hit that the City of Parma put pressure on channel 8 to stop the skits..By this time Ernie was ready to leave Cleveland..He was gone to Los Angeles by November 1966. He became very well known as "The voice of ABC" into the 1990's..He passed away in 1997...

In honor of Anderson and the TV 8 horror host tradition, Big Chuck and Lil John will host "Ghoulardifest IV" at the Holiday Inn Independence on Rockside Road..October 17-19, 2008.

More Info here:

http://www.bigchuckandliljohn.com/forums/index.php?topic=2998.0

Some information from "Ghoulardi:Inside Cleveland TV's Wildest Ride" by Tom Feran and RD Heldenfels..Excellent Read if you can find it.. @1996 Gray and Company, Publishers, Cleveland, Ohio.

TV Guide Listings:
Friday, February 8, 1963 (45 years ago today)

3 KYW NBC Cleveland
5 WEWS ABC Cleveland
8 WJW CBS Cleveland
49 WAKR ABC Akron

5:50
3 News

5:55
3 Farm Fare

6AM
3 Continental Classroom

6:30
3 Continental Classroom-COLOR

6:50
8 Meditation

6:55
8 News

7AM
3 Today
8 College Of The Air

7:30
8 Cluitch Cargo

7:45
8 Rex Humbard

8AM
8 Captain Kangaroo

8:55
5 News

9AM
3Woodrow
5 Western Reserve Telecourse-English
8 B'Wana Don

9:30
3 Felix
5 Romper Room-Miss Barbara
8 Jack LaLanne

9:45
3 Tomorrow's Learning Today

10AM
3 Best Of Groucho
5 Paige Palmer
8 As The World Turns

10:30
3 Play Your Hunch-COLOR-Robert Q. Lewis
8 I Love Lucy

10:45
5 TV Classroom-Social Sudies

10:55
49 News

11AM
3 Price Is Right-COLOR Bill Cullen
5-49 Jane Wyman
8 Dale Young Time-An attempt to compete with Mike Douglas and The One O Clock Club-Didnt last long

11:30
3 Concentration-Hugh Downs
5-49 Yours for a Song-Bert Parks

Noon
3 News
5 News-Randy Culver
8 Love Of Life
49 Tennessee Ernie Ford

12:10
5 Noon Show-Captain Penny

12:15
5 King Leonardo

12:25
8 CBS News-Harry Reasoner

12:30
3 Mike Douglas-Guest Hostess Gypsy Rose Lee
5 Noon Show-Continued
8 Search For Tomorrow
49 Father Knows Best

12:45
8 Guiding Light

1PM
5 One O Clock Club-Dorothy Fuldheim, Bill Gordon
8 Adventures In Paradise
49 Movie-The Search Part 2 1948

2PM
3 Merv Griffin-COLOR-Variety
8 Password-Allen Ludden
49 Day In Court

2:25
49 ABC News-Alex Dreier

2:30
5-49 Seven Keys-Jack Narz
8 House Party-Linkletter

2:55
3 NBC News-Floyd Kalber

3PM
3 Loretta Young
5-49 Queen For A Day-Jack Bailey
8 To Tell The Truth-Bud Collyer

3:25
8 CBS News-Douglas Edwards

3:30
3 Young Dr. Malone
5-49 Who Do You Trust-Woody Woodbury
8 Millionaire

4PM
3 Match Game-Gene Rayburn
5 Love That Bob!
8 Secret Storm
49 American Bandstand

4:25
3 NBC News-Sander Vanocur

4:30
3 Barnaby, Popeye and Friends-Linn Sheldon
5-49 Discovery 63 Live
8 Edge Of Night

4:55
5-49 American Newsstand-Bill Lord

5PM
5 Five O Clock Show-Captain Penny
8 Mickey Mouse Club
49 Movie-Luxury Liner 1933

5:05
3 Movie-Singing Guns 1950

5:15
5 Rocky and Friends

5:30
5 Five O Clock Show-Continued
8 Movie-King Of The Jungle 1933

6PM
8 News-Ken Armstrong

6:05
8 Movie-Continued

6:30
3 News-Bill Jorgensen
5 Dorothy Fuldheim
49 Salute To Mental Health

6:40
3 Weather-Dick Goddard

6:45
3 NBC News-Huntley/Brinkley
5 News-Tom Field
49 ABC News-Ron Cochran

6:55
5 Weather-Carolyn Johnson
8 Weather-Howard Hoffman

6:57
8 TV Editorial-Norman Wagy

7PM
3 Quick Draw McGraw
5 Jeff's Collie (Lassie)
8 City Camera-Doug Adair
49 News-Jack Fitzgibbons

7:10
8 Sports-John Fitzgerald

7:15
8 CBS News-Walter Cronkite
49 Weather-Bill McKay

7:30
3 International Showtime-Don Ameche
5 Gallant Men
8 Rawhide
49 Winston Churchill

8PM
49 Father Knows Best

8:30
3 Arms And The Man-SPECIAL
A play presented by the Cleveland Playhouse Road Company..Produced by Dennis Maguire and Directed by Bertram Tanswell. An example of different, eclectic programming Westinghouse presented locally..Pre-empted Mitch Miller and Price Is Right

5-49 Flintstones
8 Route 66

9PM
5 I'm Dickens He's Fenster-Comedy
49 Movie-The Razor's Edge 1946

9:30
5 77 Sunset Sttrip
8 Alfred Hitchcock

10PM
3 Jack Paar-COLOR with The Smothers Brothers, Jackie Mason and Oscar Levant

10:30
5 Third Man
8 Eyewitness

11PM
3 News-Bill Jorgensen
5 News-Tom Field, Joel Daly
8 Warren Guthrie News-Sohio Reporter
49 ABC News-Bill Shadel

11:10
3 Weather-Dick Goddard
8 City Report-Doug Adair
49 Local News

11:15
3 Steve Allen
5 Johnny Carson-COLOR
8 TV Editorial-Norman Wagy
49 Movie-The Man From Dakota 1940

11:18
8 Sports-John Fitzgerald

11:23
8 Movie-Attack Of The Crab Monsters 1957-Ghoulardi (His fourth week)

12:45
3 Movie-Lightning Anne (English-American) 1954

12:58
8 Movie-Adventures of Sherlock Holmes 1939 First in the Rathbone/Bruce Series

1AM
5 News