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highplainsdem

(62,918 posts)
Mon Apr 13, 2026, 07:48 PM Apr 13

Sid Krofft, Co-Creator of Mind-Blowing Kids TV Shows, Dies at 96 [View all]

Source: Hollywood Reporter

Sid Krofft, the wildly imaginative puppeteer who teamed with his younger brother Marty to build an entertainment empire behind such trippy TV shows as The Banana Splits Adventure Hour, H.R. Pufnstuf and Land of the Lost, has died. He was 96.

Krofft, eight years older than Marty and the creative force of their business, died Friday in his sleep at the Los Angeles home of friend and business partner Kelly Killian. Marty died in November 2023 at age 86.

-snip-

The next year, NBC asked them to create a Saturday morning kids show, and they came up with H.R. Pufnstuf, about a shipwrecked boy (Jimmy, played by Jack Wild) who lands on a magical island. The title character, Pufnstuf, was a revamp of Luther, a friendly dragon that they had created for a show at the 1968 HemisFair in San Antonio.

-snip-

Pufnstuf‘s psychedelic sets and costumes were a big hit with college kids, and The Beatles asked for a full set of episode tapes to be sent to them in England. The look of the show prompted many whispers that the brothers took drugs (pot for sure, maybe LSD as well?), something Marty denied.

-snip-


Read more: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/sid-krofft-dead-hr-pufnstuf-marty-krofft-1236562633/





RIP...and thank you for those brilliant kids shows.

26 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
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... BumRushDaShow Apr 13 #1
Holy shit, I am getting really old. edbermac Apr 13 #7
All during that time, the Banama Splits was pretty much the only thing I watched by them BumRushDaShow Apr 14 #21
..... chowder66 Apr 13 #2
There will never be another creative team like the Kroffts OrwellwasRight Apr 13 #3
Don't forget Lidsville starring Eddie Munster (Butch Patrick) and Charles Nelson Reilly Wiz Imp Apr 13 #4
I loved Lidsville! ybbor Apr 13 #6
Rec for Lidsville - a place where everyone has flipped their lid Intractable Apr 13 #8
Is that Ruth Gordon? maxsolomon Apr 14 #22
You mean the genie? Wiz Imp Apr 14 #23
Yeah the genie. Billie Hayes. maxsolomon Apr 14 #24
The Kroffts were frequent flyers at DU. I just had a thread a few days ago about a program of theirs. NT mahatmakanejeeves Apr 13 #5
OMG! That was Martha Ray in the Bugaloos show! Ilsa Apr 13 #15
... littlemissmartypants Apr 13 #9
RIP....HR Puff n Stuff gave me nightmares when I was a kid neverforget Apr 13 #10
I still remember the theme song which turns into a Ilsa Apr 13 #16
The theme song! How could I forget? neverforget Apr 13 #17
Requiescat in pace, good soul. niyad Apr 13 #11
"" AllaN01Bear Apr 13 #12
They did a show geared to adults on prime time TV. One skit involved Nancy & Ronald Reagan . . . Journeyman Apr 13 #13
RIP area51 Apr 13 #14
I still watch their shows... IthinkThereforeIAM Apr 14 #18
"Dr. Shrinker" and "Electra Woman and Dyna Girl" were Saturday morning favorites of mine half-a-century or so ago. artemisia1 Apr 14 #19
The stuff was psychedelic gold! I loved those shows! RIP. IrishAfricanAmerican Apr 14 #20
The Krofft's also produced some "normal" TV shows as well including Wiz Imp Apr 14 #25
May he rest in peace LetMyPeopleVote Apr 14 #26
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