Phil Johnson passed away at the age of 69 on August 30, 2016. Phil was the puppeteer on The Happy Hour which ran from 1970 to 73 on WTCN, channel 11. Phil performed as “Fred” and the various puppets opposite the host, Henry Novotny. After the cancellation of the show, Phil joined Roger Aswumb as […]
Henry Novotny hosted The Happy Hour on WTCN, Channel 11 from 1970 to 1973. Henry passed away on February 15, 2016 at the age of 80. The Happy Hour was WTCN’s follow up to the Dave Lee Show. It was one of the last of the locally produced children’s shows in the Twin Cities, and […]
Henry Novotny The Happy Hour was WTCN’s follow up to the Dave Lee Show starting in 1970. The program was hosted by Henry Novotny as “Uncle Henry” and featured Phil Johnson as Fred and the program’s puppeteer. Warren Martin was the program announcer. Phil Johnson Phil Johnson remembers, “The WTCN days were almost always fun. […]