MEMORIES:
PHOTOS:
Cast:
Miss Frances...Dr. Frances Horwich
Release History:
12/22/52 - 12/28/56 NBC
When producer Reinald Werrenrath’s three-year-old daughter saw the opening sequence of his new kids’ show, she exclaimed “Ding dong school.” And that became the name of the show.
The show, just like real school, started with a bell, and Dr. Frances Horwich was everybody’s favorite preschool teacher. The host of this educational program, Miss Frances was popular not only with kids, but with parents, sponsors, and NBC as well. The former chair of Roosevelt College of Education and an expert in children's education, Miss Frances would speak to kids as if she were right there in the room, ending her lessons and demonstrations with comments like “Wasn’t that fun?” or “What do you think?” and waiting for the answer from the kids at home.
The show taught children how to finger paint, mold clay, and cut paper, and Miss Francis would read and sing to the kids. She would use dolls to teach lessons as well, including Susie and Raggedy Andy, puppets Lucky the Rabbit and Jocko the Monkey, and her goldfish named Wynken, Blynken and Nod.
After airing for two years, the Ding Dong School started broadcasting in color, and Dr. Horwich was promoted to supervisor of NBC’s children’s programming. But the time was short-lived – two years after that the network decided to focus their efforts elsewhere, looking at more profitable shows such as The Price Is Right.
Frustrated, Horwich resigned from her position at the network with the statement, "with the lack of teachers and shortage of schools, many boys and girls are attending classes on a half-day basis. Ding Dong School filled a need." As owner of the rights to the show, she moved the production to L.A. where she taped another 130 episodes. Kids weren’t getting out of school that easily.
