Cleveland Vintage Blog — Culture
The Enduring Appeal of Cleveland's Ghoulardi
Ghoulardi's Shock Theater ran from January 13th of 1963 until its abrupt end in December of 1966 on local Cleveland channel 8 (WJW TV). I say abrupt because at the time of his departure, Ghoulardi’s popularity during late-night Friday nights was soaring and at its peak even included hosting Saturday afternoon’s Masterpiece Theater and the weekday children's program Laurel, Ghoulardi and Hardy.
Late-night movie hosts at the time typically portrayed themselves as vampires or mad scientists. Anderson wanted something different, so the idea for a wisecracking “hipster” ahead of his time in a long lab coat, Van Dyke beard, bad wig and glasses was born.