In the early years of U.S. television, virtually every local station had a locally produced program aimed at children. For the most part, they had several things in common: they were broadcast live, operated on a shoestring budget, had a central character (often a clown), included puppets and a live studio audience made up of local children. Shows such as
Bozo the Clown (1959) and
The Wallace and Ladmo Show (1954) ( also known as the Wallace and Ladmo Show) made celebrities of
Chuck McCann,
Pat McMahon and
Willard Scott. By the 1960s,
Jim Henson had his own take on puppets, which he called Muppets, which became nationally known with the advent of
Sesame Street (1969). One major innovation was to franchise a children's show for local production. Perhaps the most successful program of this type was
Romper Room (1953) which at its peak was being produced in over 100 locations. For
Bill Cosby, his
Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids (1972) was the first platform for African-American kids.
—garykmcd