Thursday, August 6, 2009

Let's Have Lunch With Soupy!


I really loved (and still do) Soupy Sales. Once in my travels, I saw him in the San Francisco airport. I thought I just saw God! It was truly a rush!
From 1959-1961, on Saturday's at noon, it was the Lunch With Soupy show. You could have lunch with him right in your living room!
His friends were White Fang. You could only see his big paw because he was the biggest dog in the world. Also, there was Black Tooth, Pookie the Lion, Hippy the Hippo, and Herman the Flea. All of these voices were done by Clyde Adler.
Born Milton Soupman in 1926, his family gave him his nickname. His older brothers were Ham Bone, Chicken Bone and he was Soup Bone, which was shortened to Soupy. Sales came from the name of an Ohio comedian.
While attending grad school, Soupy worked in night clubs as a comedian, singer and dancer. He began his television career with station WKRC-TV with his show, Soupy's Soda Shop. It was TV's first teen dance program.
He was best know for Lunch With Soupy Sales. It was filled with rapid fire jokes and gags and his best known trademark, a pie in the face, He claims to be hit by over 25,000 pies.
Later in his career, Sales had a radio show on WNBG-AM in New York. On New Years Day in 1965, he was upset about having to work. At the end of the show, he told the kids to tiptoe in to their parents bedroom when they were sleeping and take the funny green pieces of paper with the presidents faces on them and send them to him. He in return, would mail them a post card from Puerto Rice. Well, the plan worked and Soupy ended up getting alot of money, which he donated to charity. The station was so upset over the matter and let him go. With so many kids ending up picketing the station, they had no choice but to bring him back.
Howard Sterns had a show at the same station and they did not get along. Sterns cut the strings of Soupy's studio piano just to torture him.
In his career, Soupy did several games shows which I am sure will become future blog posts here. They were, What's My Line, To Tell The Truth, and Hollywood Squares.
No doubt about it, Soupy is one great talent with lots of stories to tell. In fact, you can even follow him on Twitter!

4 comments:

ethelmaepotter! said...

As always, so insightful! I had no idea about the funny story with the money! Thanks for letting us in on Soupy's life.

Nezzy (Cow Patty Surprise) said...

Wow!!! A blast from the past for this original flower child turned farm chick. As Paul Harvey would have said, "thanks for the rest of the story." Have a Blessed evening.

askcherlock said...

Wow, you really brought back some great memories! So glad I stopped by. It was a treat!

Theresa111 said...

Loved watching him get the pie in the face. I always laughed.