Thursday, May 25, 2006

Whatever Happened To...Freddie The Frog

Henrietta Hippo was funny and a flirt, and Charlie the Owl was pretty smart. But Freddie the Frog (in the green, far right) was dah man on New Zoo Review.


Our friend Doug and his helper, Emmy Jo, knew it, and they were gracious enough to let the spotlight shine each week where it belonged, on Freddie.

NZR has been syndicated nationally since 1972. After original episodes concluded Henrietta and Charlie continued their efforts to educate children, while Doug and Emmy Jo joined a commune in New Mexico.

Fearing he would be typecast as a kid show actor, Freddie made some controversial commercials before fading into obscurity. His latest, which came during his darkest period in 1987, was quite possibly his most creative effort.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

LOL! And I remember Jo Ann Pflugh (pronounciation? spelling?) was on this show and she was Chuck Woolery's girlfriend! I loved this show and the theme song.

The Film Geek said...

Yep...I think playing Mr. Dingle on NZR was Wollery's big break.

Barbie Girl said...

Those critters in that picture scare me a bit.

The Film Geek said...

Hey Leigh Ann! Thanks for stopping by. Gotta link to your site soon.

larryosaurus said...

What in the hell are you people talking about?!?! I've never seen or heard of this. I consider myself a master of the arcane reference but you my friend have baffled even me.
Cheers!

Anonymous said...

I can't believe Film Geek and I are the only ones who remember NZR. Why this one hasn't made it too dvd yet baffles me.

I also liked "Wheel of Fortune" better when "Mr. Dingle" hosted it. Back in the day, the show required you to buy stuff like ceramic porcelain greyhounds on your shopping spree.

The Film Geek said...

Jackie: in my 20s I sometimes wondered if the NZR was somehow just a dream I had as a kid...LOL. If you click on the link and listen to the theme song, it MIGHT ring a bell for ya. Then again, maybe not.

Hoyt: Season 1 IS on DVD. You can order it through Amazon. By the way, I discovered the actress who played Henrietta Hippo was Larri Thomas. Google search "Larri Thomas pics" and see how beautiful this woman was in the day. She looked like Marilyn Monroe.

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