Starting in 1950, Rootie Kazootie brought puppet fun and sing-a-longs to the first TV generation, those brave souls who operation a television without a remote control. Think on that horror for a while.

Rootie Tootie was the star of the show, always playing his magic 'kazootie.' He was an average little boy, full of vim and vigor and very fond of sports. He had plenty of friends to share the stage with, like Polka Dottie, El Squeako Mouse and Gala Poochie Pup, his loyal dog. There was a villain as well, the dastardly Poison Zoomack whose main goal was to steal the magic kazootie and Dottie's polka dots.

The show's human host was "Big Todd" Russell (well, compared to hand puppets, who would look big?) who led the whole company in song and staged various skits. Rootie Kazootie included a studio audience full of children who could interact with Russell and the puppets during a segment called "Quiz-a-Rootie," answering simple questions and winning prizes.

Rootie and the gang became very popular with the kiddies at home and stayed on the air for four years, for 15 minutes on weekdays and in a half-hour format on the weekend.