Mill Creek delivers Howdy Doody to DVD Nov. 4

40 episodes plus interviews in initial five-disc set

By Cheryl Cheng -- Video Business, 6/25/2008

JUNE 25 | It’s Howdy Doody time on Nov. 4.

In a deal with NBC Universal Television, DVD Music and Consumer Products Group, Mill Creek Entertainment will release the classic children’s series The Howdy Doody Show (prebook Oct. 4) in a five-disc deluxe box set.

In addition to 40 episodes from the series, the DVD set, priced at $29.98, also will include rare interviews from the Archive of American Television.

Mill Creek plans to release three initial DVD compilations of the children’s show, which aired on TV from 1947 to 1960, with six more releases to follow in the coming months.

“A generation of Americans grew up watching Howdy Doody. We’re so pleased that through Mill Creek’s deal with NBC, we are able to bring these classic shows to viewers who enjoyed watching Howdy Doody growing up, their children and their grandchildren today on DVD,” said Ian Warfield, president and chief operating officer of Mill Creek.

“We are really excited to release such an iconic TV show like The Howdy Doody Show on DVD from the rich resources of NBC Television Catalog,” said Stacey Ward, director of NBC Universal Television, DVD, Music and Consumer Products Group. “This timeless classic is sure to bring back some fond memories for so many people, and we look forward to introducing more of this series and many others in the months to come.”

The Howdy Doody Show was the first children’s show to air five days a week, the first TV show to be broadcast in color and the first show to air more than 1,000 continuous episodes.