ECP 319: Kukla, Fran and Ollie - "Special Sound Effect"
Fran and Beulah search for the perfect pop
What I watched: An episode of the early children's show Kukla, Fran and Ollie. The series starred the titular Fran Allison, with all other roles being played by series creator and puppeteer Burr Tilstrom. "Oliver Dragon, Interior Decorator" was directed by Lewis Gomavitz and aired on Thursday, November 2, 1950 at 7:00 PM on NBC. Video is available on the official KFO YouTube channel.
What happened: Kukla is stealing Jack Fascinatao’s job, playing the opening theme on a miniature piano. Both he and Ollie have great hats as they act out a Casablanca-style bar scene. Kukla plays a blues song to suit Ollie’s mood. This is followed by a conversation between the women of the show, as Fran, Madame Oglepuss, and Beulah Witch are all consumed by a problem with the sound effects for today’s production.
Fran shows off the first thing she’s been looking at, a sliding vial which makes a popping noise. She can’t quite make it work. Beulah shows off her idea: just hitting the stage with a hammer. Fran thinks it’s not subtle enough. Her next solution is the “do-all”, a gear on a stand. Beulah leaves to get her book, which leaves the do-all open for Fletcher to mess with it. He’s trying to find something to grind his turkey. Fran likes the sound of it, but Fletcher runs away with the do-all.
Ollie and Fran meet up to discuss their problems with the blues and sound effects respectively. Fran tries to treat this by blowing up a paper bag and popping it, as if it was the hiccups. Ollie seems offended. Kukla talks to Fran and admits he wasn’t really playing the piano earlier. Scandal!
Beulah is looking for her missing do-all, and accuses Cecil Bill. He gives her a weird touch on the face, and makes a popping sound. This turns out to be the exact sound that Fran and Beulah are looking for. They narrow Cecil Bill and try to get him to do it again, but he can’t do it if he’s not scared. Fran comes up with an elaborate device used by Jack and “Gommy” to make a popping sound, but it turns out not to be what they’re looking for.
The stage clears, and Dolores pops up. Fran tries to coax another word out of her, but they’re interrupted by Lynwood, who’s complaining about missing her cotton candy. Dolores is also able to make the popping noise, but can only do it once before losing it. Fran and Kukla launch into a song about Sealtest ice cream, set to the tone of “Pop Goes the Weasel”, featuring a bravura Ollie solo. The problem is that they don’t have a “pop”, which is what they’ve been looking for all episode. Fran decides to just clap her hands and it’s a reasonable facsimile of a pop.
Madame Oglepuss finally appears on-stage in full feather, delivering her own highly dignified solo recommending ice cream soda. Look, I keep telling you, it’s an ice cream float. She also gives some instruction for the recipe, which is mostly highlighted by her pronunciation of “syrup.” Ollie receives a captain’s hat, and it’s enough to snap him out of the blues. Better than any anti-depressant. Fran sings about following your dreams, such as getting a cool hat.
What I thought: The foley artist is not someone who gets a lot of love. I don’t put him in the abbreviated credit listing at the top of the article. He’s way down at the bottom of the credits, when the ushers are already trying to nudge you out of the theatre. But there’s a romance to the old, practical craft of foley – slapping meat together for a punch, rubbing cloth to convey movement – that no digital sound effect can match.
“Special Sound Effect” gives viewers a little taste of that creative process, as Fran and the rest of the Kuklapolitans try to come up with a sound that can mimic the pop and fizz of an ice cream float. Of course, we’re not told what they’re trying to do as viewers, so there’s a little bit of a puzzle to be solved as we try to figure out just what it is they’re trying to replicate. I can easily imagine kids testing out different ways to make sounds after the show.
This is also the second episode in a row where the sponsor seems central to Kukla, Fran, and Ollie, as opposed to an aside. Last week’s Detroit-centric episode understandable had a Ford focus (pun intended), and here the climax of the story, such as it is, is a jingle for Sealtest ice cream. I’m sure that this is something of a blip and the show is not about to become a product placement bonanza, but it does showcase that, despite its gentle atmosphere, KFO was also a business that ultimately needed to make money. After all, those sound effects don’t pay for themselves.
Coming up next: We flip the dial over to ABC for The Lone Ranger in “The Squire.” Maybe he meets a knight?
Great post! But you've got Mercedes mixed up with Lynwood King, who was the show's human floor director.