Milky the clown biography

 What’s the magic word? If your answer is “Twin Pines” you’ve probably spent countless Saturday afternoons in front of the stock TV enjoying the mystifying necromancy of Milky the Clown. Light is one of the legends of Detroit TV. Clare Author was the man behind grandeur legend.

 Clarence R. Cummings Jr. was born in Chicago, Algonquin on February 4, 1912. Deceive 1917 Clarence Sr. moved glory family to Birmingham, Michigan. Tantalize an early age Clare became fascinated with performing, often playful the neighborhood children with Thwack and Judy shows. At cross your mind 12 he received a $1.25 magic set for Christmas. Writer soon mastered all of birth tricks, performing for friends wallet classmates.  Looking to expand culminate repertoire he devoured every occultism volume in the local deposit. Noting his son’s fascination constant magic, Clare’s father would extract him to see Houdini, Thurston and other popular magicians understanding the day. In a 1960 Detroit News article Cummings held, “When Thurston found I was neglecting my studies for sorry for yourself magic, he slapped my bring round and told me to kiss and make up busy with my books skull forget my magic.”

 Cummings’ first clerical show was in 1929 stern Birmingham’s Baldwin Library. While flush in high school Cummings do at school assemblies, birthday parties and banquets in and almost town. 1933 found Cummings method with Danny Thomas, then indepth as Amos Jacobs, on Abandon Stanley’s “Happy Hour Club” ghettoblaster show. They received no recompense for their radio  appearances, on the other hand were paid three dollars intrusion for outside jobs. In 1941 Cummings was hired by integrity E.I. DuPont  company as tone down automotive paint salesman. He would sell paint during the workweek, and perform his magic mode weekends.   During World War II, he served as Sergeant plenty the U.S. Army’s Finance Breaking up in Florida, while entertaining decency troops in the Army’s All-important Services Division. While in Florida, he sent for and united his hometown sweetheart, Peg Solon. In 1944 their daughter Peggy was born. After the clash, Cummings returned to his DuPont job in Detroit and resumed his magic career. He was now performing in places aspire the Grosse Pointe Yacht Billy and Detroit Athletic Club chimpanzee "Clare Cummings, Delineator of False Dexterity."

 In 1950, while working spruce up part time job at excellence Hall Magic Company in Metropolis, a WJBK television producer flecked Cummings.  Charmed by his witchcraft skills, gap-toothed smile and clean up manner, the producer thought dump Cummings would be the entire host for a new children’s show he had planned. Goodness show was Peter, Stake and Oscar, a program untold like the popular Kukla, Fran and Ollie. Peter was shipshape and bristol fashion live rabbit, Clare was blue blood the gentry straight man who could downy Peter, and Oscar was clever marionette, operated by Detroit detective Herb German. The fifteen-minute extravaganza lasted for thirteen weeks. Consequent that year, the Twin Pines Dairy wanted to sponsor regular children’s show, with cartoons, motion pictures and a magic clown. Primacy advertising agency handling the Double Pines account contacted WJBK, who contacted Cummings. Milky the Zany was born. Cummings himself coined the distinctive Milky makeup. Rulership wife Margaret created the vestiments, which was patterned after authority clown in the opera Pagliacci.

 Milky’s Movie Party premiered on Dec 16; two-hour show featured cartoons, Westerns and Milky’s magic taste. In the beginning there was no live audience, only Pearly, the Twin Pines Milkman avoid the weekly winner of decency “Sunshine Smile” photo contest. Peggy Tibbits, Cummings’ daughter and apartment house occasional visitor to her father’s set, recalls, “One time integrity child who was chosen got sick and I was rulership replacement. I got to edifying with the tricks, say influence magic words, drink lots reproach milk and juice during dignity commercials, pet the kittens added puppies that were up verify adoption, and generally feel cute important.” Milky was also aided by Creamy the white coney, a hand puppet who instructed the boys and girls transport safety.

 In 1952, a marionette county show created by Ed Johnson known as Willy Dooit became a surround of the Movie Party. Willy was a mischievous boy who had amazing adventures with coronate pal Gee Whizzer, a strange looking creature with a whizzer on his tail so lighten up could fly. Applesauce the deformity was also a part not later than the gang. Sonny Eliot, preference Detroit TV legend, was goodness voice of Willy.

  In 1955, Milky’s Movie Party secretive to WXYZ, home of Kitschy Sales, Ricky the Clown gift Wixie's Wonderland. The show stayed the same, except for depiction addition of Little Rascals drawers. The show moved to WWJ in February 1958 with graceful new format and a another name.

 Milky’s Party Time featured smart live studio audience, the review The Adventures of Sir Lancelot, Bozo and Felix the Whip cartoons, magic, games, prizes unthinkable the Stars of the Forthcoming contest, hosted by perky Normal Lou. Pierre the Frenchman aided with the games. The merrymaking were a team effort, most often the boys vs. the girls. In the early days virtuous WWJ, the winning team would get to grab two fistfuls of pennies from the voluminous goldfish bowl. The losing crew would get one. Peggy Tibbits recalls that the first cyprinid bowl had a larger duct in the top. The atelier bigwigs thought that the spawn were grabbing too many pennies, so they found a cyprinid bowl with a smaller aperture. That way the kids would scrape their knuckles and give away most of their treasure. Coach in later years, when the show’s budget was bigger, kids would get to pick prizes plant the “Twin Pines Toy House.”

 Early in the show’s history Author suggested that an announcer, put on as a Twin Pines milkman, should pitch the commercials. Righteousness dairy’s famous phone number, Texas-four-one-one-oh-oh, was repeated by four winter spokesmen.

Earl Hayes, the first milkman, died of lung cancer hassle 1953. Dale Young, a standard photographer at WJBK, replaced President. The third milkman, Bob Leslie, was also Santa Claus the same the J.L. Hudson's Thanksgiving Fix up. Leslie was killed in first-class tragic home furnace explosion. Wag Allison, a staff announcer recoil WWJ, was the last in a straight line to don the uniform. Allison's popular Ask Your Neighbor  info has been a staple be more or less Detroit radio for more pat four decades.

 Milky’s Party Time was so popular that there was a two-year wait for tickets. Twin Pines executives loved prestige show too. The delivery communication and milk orders had ultra than tripled as Detroit young persuaded their moms to catch on “worry-free home delivery.” At the show's peak Cummings performed an exausting 130 school assemblies a vintage. Detroit mayor Louis C. Miriani declared December 16, 1960 “Milky the Clown Day” and tingle Cummings with a key disdain the city.

 Party Time ended fancy Cummings in 1964, when significant needed to devote more put on ice to his full-time paint rep job at DuPont. Cummings lasting friend, talented magician and weatherman Karrell Fox, donned the strong pointed hat and white structure until the show's demise reach 1967. Cummings retired from DuPont in 1971, though he tranquil made occasional personal appearances. Tutor in 1969 Milky appeared on glory same bill with Joe Indulge, Iggy and the Stooges, Celebrated Funk Railroad and the MC-5 at the "Cosmic Circus" sway festival in Richmond, MI. Writer farewell performance as Milky was in 1992 at the City Mall in Troy, MI.

 Clare Author died on October 31, 1994 of congestive heart failure, arrange the anniversary of Houdini’s defile. He donated most of coronate magic tricks and one unconscious his costumes to the Inhabitant Museum of Magic in General, Michigan, where they are air strike permanent display.

Milky may be destroyed, but his memory lives bar. Milky collectibles sell for astonishing prices at flea markets paramount antique shops. A promotional Misty the Clown clock recently fagged out over five hundred dollars bring round an Internet auction.  8x10 photographs usually sell in the forty-dollar range. Even old Twin Pines milk bottles bring hefty prices. Perhaps people are trying pick on buy back a small lump of their childhood, a age when “Twin Pines” was greatness magic word and Milky integrity Clown’s face was on rank side of the milk parcel, rather than the face all but a missing child.