Kukla, Fran and Ollie

Many know Kukla, Fran and Ollie from "The CBS Children's Film Festival" but their first series (1947-57) was watched by more adults than children. It counted Orson Welles, John Steinbeck, Tallulah Bankhead and Adlai Stevenson among its fans, and had sponsors like Life magazine and Ford Motor Co., who surely weren't trying to reach children.

Burr Tillstrom said: "KFO is not a children’s show, nor is it a culture-conscious program for intellectual adults.It has a magic that enchants not only those who watch it, but all of us who create it. It attracts all ages and all kinds of minds. If we have any purpose, it is to satirize our lives in a kindly way, to kid some of the little annoyances and foibles that often grow out of proportion in the world today. We comment on what we see, and give our impressions of what we think and feel about contemporary happenings. We don’t try to educate, we don’t claim any philosophical undertones. We only hope to entertain."

All videos © Burr Tillstrom