Howdy Doody Autographs
Howdy Doody is an American children's television program (with circus and Western frontier themes) that was created and produced by Victor F. Campbell and E. Roger Muir. It was broadcast on the NBC television network in the United States from December 27, 1947, until September 24, 1960. It was a pioneer of children's programming and set the pattern for many similar shows. One of the first television series produced at NBC in Rockefeller Center, in Studio 3A, it pioneered color production in 1956 and NBC (then owned by RCA Television) used the show to promote color television sets in the late 1950s.
Buffalo Bob Smith created Howdy Doody during his days as a radio announcer on WNBC. At that time, Howdy Doody was only a voice Smith performed on the radio. When Smith made an appearance on NBC's television program Puppet Playhouse on December 27, 1947, the reception for the character was great enough to begin a demand for a visual character for television. Frank Paris, a puppeteer whose puppets appeared on the program, was asked to create a Howdy Doody puppet.
Bob Smith, the show's host, was dubbed "Buffalo Bob" early in the show's run (a reference to the historical American frontier character Buffalo Bill as well as to Smith's hometown of Buffalo, New York). At first the set was supposed to be a circus tent, but it was soon changed to a western town. Smith wore cowboy garb, as did the puppet. The name of the puppet "star" was derived from the expression "howdy doody"/"howdy do," a commonplace corruption of the phrase "How do you do?" used in the Western United States and in Britain as well (e.g. "Here's a howdy-do" from The Mikado). (The straightforward use of that expression was also in the theme song's lyrics.) Smith, who had gotten his start as a singing radio personality in Buffalo, frequently used music in the program. Cast members Lew Anderson and Robert "Nick" Nicholson were both experienced jazz musicians.
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Current items with a signature of Howdy Doody
These are the most current items with a signature of Howdy Doody that were listed on eBay and on other online stores - click here for more items.
Traded items with a signature of Howdy Doody
The most expensive item with a signature of Howdy Doody (Howdy Doody Buffalo Bob Letter with original envelop and signed postcard!) was sold in May 2026 for $1,007.01 while the cheapest item (Rhoda Mann signed/autographed card HOWDY DOODY) found a new owner for $1.79 in August 2013. The month with the most items sold (9) was May 2025 with an average selling price of $79.00 for an autographed item of Howdy Doody. Sold items reached their highest average selling price in September 2013 with $150.00 and the month that saw the lowest prices with $1.79 was August 2013. In average, an autographed item from Howdy Doody is worth $40.92.
Most recently, these items with a signature of Howdy Doody were sold on eBay - click here for more items.










