Pinocchio (1968 TV program)

"Pinocchio" was a 90-minute musical version of Carlo Collodi's classic story. It aired on NBC on December 8, 1968 as part of the Hallmark Hall of Fame series.

Peter Noone, lead singer of Herman's Hermits, played Pinocchio and Burl Ives was cast as Geppetto. Walter Marks wrote the songs, and the script was adapted by Ernest Kinoy.

Production notes

The program was filmed at NBC's Brooklyn Studio.

Noone was fitted with a fake nose that initially was problematic for the production staff. Richard Lewine, the show's producer, described the problem to "TV Guide":

"Since we didn't want to cheat the audience out of seeing it grow, we hired Bil Baird to create one. Bil stood behind Pinocchio, out of camera range, holding the end of a rod that attached to the nose. When he pushed the rod, the nose, made from expandable material, lengthened. It worked beautifully," Lewine said.

"But when we went on camera, we discovered that you could see the separation between the fake nose and Peter's real one. Two hours of work with the make-up man solved the problem, but it was worrisome," he said.

Broadcast

NBC aired the special on Sunday, December 8, 1968 at 7 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. It pre-empted two regular shows on NBC's schedule, "The New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" and "Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color".

Cast

* Burl Ives — Geppetto
* Peter Noone — Pinocchio
* Anita Gillette — Blue Fairy
* Mort Marshall — Cat
* Jack Fletcher — Fox
* Ned Wertimer — Farmer Whale
* Charlotte Rae — Rosa Whale
* Pierre Epstein — Weasel

ongs

* "Chip Off The Old Block"
* "Wonderful World, Hello"
* "Beautiful People"
* "Little Bad Habits"
* "Walk With Him"
* "You Could Get To Like It"
* "It's A Dog's Life"
* "Too Soon"

References

* (1968, December 7-13). "TV Guide", Wisconsin Edition, pp. 10-11, A-24