Anchorage Kids Shows and Hosts We Grew Up With

Anchorage kids shows and hosts were a memorable part of growing up local, from Mother Moose and HiJinks to KoKo the KENI Klown, the Buckaroo Show, and Romper Room.

What made them last was how familiar they felt, with local personalities, studio kids, and routines you waited for every weekday.

Below, the page revisits the hosts, cartoons, and behind-the-scenes memories that made these shows feel like home.

You can add your memories and comments below.

If you grew up in Anchorage, it only takes a few names to snap you back to weekdays in front of the TV: The Old Sourdough, Miss Northern Lights, KoKo, Sheriff John, and the Romper Room teacher.

Anchorage kids shows and hosts were more than programs you watched—they were local rituals, with familiar faces, studio guests you might know, and catchphrases that stayed with you.

This page brings those shows back through photos, names, and the little details only local kids would remember.

Mike and Mary Jane Narrate This Page

Our Anchorage Kid's Shows and Hosts Brought Us Together

They were shows we could relate to. We enjoyed the hosts, characters, and the cartoons some shows presented. And occasionally, we could see our friends and neighbors on the shows.

What fun for Anchorage kids.

Mother Moose

The little girl in the picture above is Nikki. She’s the daughter of Mike and Mary Jane of Anchorage Memories. And of course, you know Mother Moose.

In the 1970s, “Mother Moose” premiered on KTVA channel 11, and Anchorage TV screens were never the same.

Every weekday, Anchorage kids would gather around the TV to hear this:

“It’s Mother Moose, it’s Mother Moose, there by the cabin in the spruce. Miss Northern Lights the eye delights, and into the cabin the gang invites.”

It was a fun and exciting time as kids listened to the Old Sourdough (Larry Beck) tell his tales of Alaska, while Miss Northern Lights (Carol) showed us fun crafts.

And of course, there she was, Mother Moose herself.

Besides everyone’s favorite Moose lady, there were other characters to enjoy.

Remember “Gorp,” “Glacier Gruff,” “Oil Finch,” and “Wrangell Worm”?

And who could forget those wonderful "Rocky and Bullwinkle" cartoons.

HiJinks with Frank Feeman

There isn’t much out there about this Anchorage kids’ show, but maybe you remember it.

It was called “HiJinks,” and the man in front of the camera in the picture above is the host, Frank Feeman.

Notice the bow ties?

Frank Feeman would wear a little tiny bow tie one day, then the next day he would have a huge bow tie with flashing lights.

HiJinks actually got started on KFIA-TV channel 2, which later became KENI-TV and is now KTUU channel 2.

The show was a lot of fun. Do you remember HiJinks? Were you on the show? Tell us about it.

The Buckaroo Show with Sheriff John

Sheriff John (third from the right) welcomed us every weekday in the 1960s on KTVA channel 11 for the western-themed Buckaroo Show.

This fun Anchorage kids' show featured games, puppets, and cartoons.

In the later years of the show, there was also a character named Deputy Dick and a silly jailhouse.

BONUS

The Buckaroo set was a log cabin and later on it was used as the cabin in the spruce on the Mother Moose TV Show.

Koko the KENI Klown

In the photo above is Jim Zoller and his sister Barbara.

photo courtesy of Jim Zoller

Weekdays on KENI-TV channel 2, KoKo the KENI Klown (Dick Randlett) had fun with studio audiences and his Kartoon Karnival.

Anchorage kids were glued to their television sets to watch KoKo, Chu Chu the clown, episodes of the Mickey Mouse show, and short Warner Brothers cartoons.

Mary Jane of Anchorage Memories was also on the show.

Karen has this memory:

“My father, Ralph Walker, was an engineer who helped to build and run many of the radio stations in Alaska. We lived at KENI and were often available as audience members for KoKo the clowns show.”

Pictured above is the 1963 Shrine Circus Queen, Leslie Waldron, with KoKo the KENI Klown. KoKo is the second person on the right, and Chu Chu is on the left.

BONUS

Do you remember Kiddie Land, the fun place for rides and that wonderful mini train?

Kiddie Land was created by Dick Rand (KoKo) and Les Fetrow (Chu Chu the clown).

Romper Room

photo courtesy of Monica Hall (seated far left)

Carolyn Guess is next to Monica in the picture above.

“Romper stomper, bomper, boo, tell me, tell me, tell me do. Magic Mirror, tell me today, did all my friends have fun at play?”

When you watched Romper Room on KTVA channel 11, you hoped the Romper Room teacher would see you through that “Magic Mirror.” Did she?

OK, I have to ask.

Were you a “Do Bee” or were you a “Don’t Bee”?

A look at part of the Romper Room set in the studios of KTVA.

BONUS

Here is a fun Romper Room “behind the scenes” story.

When the Romper Room teacher (Miss Neilia) did the Magic Mirror, she held up a small hand mirror decorated with sparkles.

After saying, “Romper stomper, bomper, boo, tell me, tell me, tell me do. Magic Mirror, tell me today, did all my friends have fun at play?” the TV control room would go to a film that looked like a kaleidoscope.

While that film was being shown, the teacher would switch to the mirror she could “see through.”

One day, Miss Neilia was doing the Magic Mirror. We went to the film, and she changed mirrors. And just when we came back to her, a little boy sitting next to Miss Neilia said, “I saw what you did, you switched mirrors.”

After the show, Miss Neilia and the crew had a good laugh.

Through the Magic Window

by Michael Dougherty of Anchorage Memories

While there are no pictures, other than the one above, and no information online, this Anchorage Kid's show and host is well worth mentioning.

The show consisted of the host, Ethel Oliver, sitting in a chair next to a small table. On the table was a monkey puppet on a small stand, and a children's book or two.

Before I go any further, I need to tell you that me, my brother Tom and sister Anna were in our teens when we first discovered this show on KTVA channel 11 one afternoon.

Little did my brother Tom and I know that a few years later, when we both worked at KTVA, we would have the privilege of working on Through the Magic Window with Ethel Oliver. 

On the show, Ethel would read a book and show the pictures to the camera, so the home viewers could enjoy them too. She would also put the monkey puppet over her hand and then have a conversation with the monkey about the story she just read.

The show was a very simple one, and as you watch, you could tell that Ethel Oliver loved children. She was a nice lady and my brother and I loved working on her show.

Anchorage Kid's Shows and Hosts

Ok, do you have your PJ sandwich and chocolate milk? 

What were your favorite Anchorage Kid’s Shows?

You can add your stories and comments below.