The Pinky Lee Show

Pinky Lee was a real treat for kids. He was sort of an early Pee Wee Herman in many ways in that he appeared as a grown-up kid himself doing child-like activities as a child-man, not as an adult leading children the way say Buffalo Bob Smith did on the fabulous "Howdy Doody Show." Even his props were copied on "Pee-Wee's Playhouse."

I watched this show every chance I got when I arrived home from school. As I remember it came on just before the "Howdy Doody Show" and just after "The Gabby Hayes Show." It and Gabby's show each lasted 15 minutes. "Howdy Doody" lasted thirty minutes, as I remember. Pinky had a "Peanut Gallery" of his own, not quite as elaborate as Buffalo Bob's. Molly Bee and Roberta Shore in their early teens helped him and as I recall also sang.

Pinky was a multi-talented performer who could sing, dance, tell jokes, and play a variety of musical instruments. He also looked and talked funny. His vaudeville experience was a plus. His antics bordered on the frenetic, again similar to Pee Wee Herman's persona. Pinky was also a master at pantomime.

Though Pinky had real talent, he never received the recognition he deserved. One reason, he was well ahead of his times as is indicative of the later success of Pee Wee Herman. I'll always remember Pinky as one of my favorite personalities from the early days of television.

I remember this show as a kid. Mainly because Pinky Lee was hysterically running around the whole time, out of breath but still wheezing out his songs and banter as if he were an overwound toy mouse. He never stood still for a second. I also had a board game spinoff, called something like "Pinky Lee's Hidden Treasure Chest," which turned out to have little plastic wieners in it -- somehow very appropriate. He actually collapsed onstage during one of the shows, and for a long time people believed he had gone to his reward on camera. It was around the time that Jackie Gleason slipped and broke his leg on his live show, which I also happened to see.