From Slobokan’s Site o’ Schtuff, quoting an AP story:

Lew Anderson, who captivated young baby boomers as the Howdy Doody Show’s final Clarabell the Clown, has died at the age of 84.

The musician and actor died Sunday in Hawthorne of complications of prostate cancer, said his son, Christopher Anderson.

Long mute as Clarabell, Anderson broke the clown’s silence in the show’s final episode in 1960. With trembling lips and a visible tear in his eye, he spoke the show’s final words: “Goodbye, kids.”

I’m one of the baby boomer’s who knew Clarabelle, as well as Buffalo Bob, Howdy Doody, and others on the show, and derived much enjoyment from them as a child. A far cry from so-called “children’s shows” of today, Howdy Doody actually exemplified traits that a parent might want a child to grow up and have.

The world is a little worse off today, and a little sadder.

TD