|
m 1 archive template merged to {{webarchive}} (WAM)
|
added external link to radio interviews
|
||
| (33 intermediate revisions by 26 users not shown) | |||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
{{short description|Puppeteer}} |
|||
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2022}} |
|||
{{Infobox person |
{{Infobox person |
||
| name = Burr Tillstrom |
| name = Burr Tillstrom |
||
| image = |
| image = Burr Tillstrom Fran Allison Kukla Fran and Ollie 1954.jpg |
||
| imagesize = |
| imagesize = |
||
| caption = Tillstrom with |
| caption = Tillstrom with Kukla, Ollie and Fran Allison, 1954 |
||
| birth_name |
| birth_name = Franklin Burr Tillstrom |
||
| birth_date |
| birth_date = {{birth date|1917|10|13|mf=y}} |
||
| birth_place |
| birth_place = [[Chicago, Illinois]], U.S. |
||
| death_date |
| death_date = {{death date and age|1985|12|6|1917|10|13|mf=y}} |
||
| death_place |
| death_place = [[Palm Springs, California]], U.S. |
||
| occupation = Puppeteer |
|||
| othername = |
| othername = |
||
| years_active |
| years_active = |
||
| spouse = |
| spouse = |
||
| homepage = |
| homepage = |
||
| notable role = |
|||
| academyawards = |
|||
| emmyawards = |
|||
| tonyawards = |
|||
}} |
}} |
||
'''Franklin Burr Tillstrom''' (October 13, 1917 |
'''Franklin Burr Tillstrom''' (October 13, 1917 – December 6, 1985) was a puppeteer and the creator of ''[[Kukla, Fran and Ollie]]''. |
||
==Early life== |
|||
| ⚫ |
Tillstrom |
||
Tillstrom was born in [[Chicago, Illinois]], to Bert and Alice Burr Tillstrom.<ref name=Kukla/> He attended [[Senn High School]] in Chicago and later the [[University of Chicago]].<ref name=Kukla/> While still a freshman, he accepted a job offer from the [[Works Progress Administration|WPA]]-Chicago Parks District Theatre to set up a marionette theater.<ref name=Kukla/> |
|||
==Career== |
|||
| ⚫ |
From 1947 |
||
| ⚫ | Tillstrom turned his attention to puppetry in the early 1930s and created [[Kukla]] in 1936. Kukla remained nameless until the Russian ballerina [[Tamara Toumanova]] referred to him as ''kukla'', the Russian word for "doll".<ref name=Kukla>{{cite journal |url=https://archive.org/stream/r00mac#page/n517/mode/2up |title=Kukla's daddy |date=November 1949 |journal=Radio-TV Mirror |publisher=Macfadden Publications |pages=57, 77–80 |accessdate=August 22, 2016}}</ref> Other famous puppets from Tillstrom's group included Ollie (Oliver J. Dragon), Beulah Witch, Goultar, Cecil Bill, and Fletcher Rabbit.<ref name=Kukla/> In 1939, Tillstrom was invited to present his Kuklapolitan Players at the [[1939 New York World's Fair|New York World's Fair]].<ref name=Kukla/> The following year, [[RCA]] sent him to [[Bermuda]] to perform on the first ship-to-shore broadcast. |
||
| ⚫ | [[File:Burr Tillstrom Fran Allison Kukla Ollie 1968.JPG|thumb|left|150px|Tillstrom and Fran Allison with Kukla and Ollie 1968]] |
||
| ⚫ |
|
||
| ⚫ | From 1947 to 1957, Tillstrom was involved with the ''[[Kukla, Fran and Ollie]]'' show, which starred his puppets and [[Fran Allison]]. It is widely regarded as being the first children's show to appeal to both children and adults, and counted [[Orson Welles]], [[John Steinbeck]], [[Tallulah Bankhead]], [[Adlai Stevenson II|Adlai Stevenson]], and [[James Thurber]] among its many adult fans.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://kukla.tv/fans.html |title=Burr's adult fans |department=Classic Television |website=kukla.tv}}</ref> With only a few exceptions, all of the shows were improvised. |
||
| ⚫ |
|
||
| ⚫ | [[File:Burr Tillstrom Fran Allison Kukla Ollie 1968.JPG|thumb|left|150px|Tillstrom and Fran Allison with Kukla and Ollie, 1968]] |
||
| ⚫ |
In 2013 Tillstrom was inducted into the [[Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame]].<ref>http:// |
||
After the original series ended in 1957, Tillstrom continued to work with the Kuklapolitans. Early in 1958, Tillstrom appeared with the puppets on [[Polly Bergen]]'s short-lived [[NBC]] [[variety show]], ''The Polly Bergen Show''. |
|||
Tillstrom, Kukla and Ollie reunited with Fran Allison to host the ''[[CBS Children's Film Festival]]'' from 1967 to 1977. In 1970, ''Kukla, Fran and Ollie'' appeared on [[National Educational Television]], taped at [[WTTW]] in Chicago, for two seasons. In 1975, ''Kukla, Fran and Ollie'' began another run on television with 13 new episodes. |
|||
| ⚫ | In 1977, The ''Kukla and Ollie Retrospective Stage Show'' tours began, a creation of the Artist-in-Residence program at [[Hope College]]. In 1978, Kukla, Burr and Ollie joined the Broadway cast of ''[[Side by Side by Sondheim]]'', a revue of [[Stephen Sondheim]] songs.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://kukla.tv/sondheim.html |title=Side by Side by Sondheim |website=kukla.tv}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://kukla.tv/men.html |title=Tillstrom and the Kuklapolitans |website=kukla.tv}}</ref> |
||
[[File:Grave of Burr Tillstrom (1917–1985) at Rosehill Cemetery, Chicago.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Tillstrom's grave at Rosehill Cemetery]] |
|||
Tillstrom continued to perform with his Kuklapolitan Players until his death at age 68 in [[Palm Springs, California]] on December 6, 1985. He was found sitting in a chair near his swimming pool and appeared to have died from natural causes.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/107578046/burr-tillstrom-creator-of-tvs-kukla/ |title=Burr Tillstrom, Creator of TV's 'Kukla, Fran and Ollie,' Dies |first=Peter H. |last=King |newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]] |pages=41, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/107578161/burr-tillstrom-creator-of-tvs-kukla/ 44] |date=1985-12-07 |access-date=2022-08-14 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> He was buried at Rosehill Cemetery in Chicago. His papers are held at the Chicago History Museum.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Durica |first=Paul |date=December 12, 2023 |title=Exploring the Burr Tillstrom Papers at the Chicago History Museum |url=https://www.chicagohistory.org/exploring-the-burr-tillstrom-papers-at-the-chicago-history-museum/ |access-date=December 13, 2023 |website=Chicago History Museum}}</ref> |
|||
==Honors== |
|||
| ⚫ | On March 23, 1986, Burr Tillstrom was inducted into the [[Television Academy Hall of Fame]] for his creativity and innovation in the medium.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://kukla.tv/fame.html |title=Burr's induction into the Television Academy Hall of Fame |website=kukla.tv}}</ref> The [[Saugatuck, Michigan|Saugatuck Douglas Art Club]] in [[Saugatuck, Michigan]] (the location of Tillstrom's longtime summer home) dedicated a memorial to Tillstrom in 1988.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://kukla.tv/tribute.html |title=Burr Tillstrom tribute |website=kukla.tv}}</ref> The Burr Tillstrom Collection and Archives are maintained at the [[Chicago History Museum]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.chicagohs.org/planavisit/aboutcollection/oralhistory/?searchterm=tillstrom |title=Oral History, Film, and Video |website=Chicago History Museum |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110609193357/http://www.chicagohs.org/planavisit/aboutcollection/oralhistory/?searchterm=tillstrom |archive-date=June 9, 2011 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> |
||
| ⚫ | In 2013 Tillstrom was inducted into the [[Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://chicagolgbthalloffame.org/tillstrom-burr/ |title=BURR TILLSTROM – Chicago LGBT Hall of Fame |accessdate=2020-12-13}}</ref> |
||
==References== |
==References== |
||
| Line 36: | Line 50: | ||
==External links== |
==External links== |
||
{{commons category}} |
{{commons category}} |
||
*[http://www.richsamuels.com/nbcmm/burr.html A Memoir of Burr Tillstrom] |
* [http://www.richsamuels.com/nbcmm/burr.html A Memoir of Burr Tillstrom] |
||
* [http://kukla.tv The Kuklapolitan Website and DVDs] |
* [http://kukla.tv The Kuklapolitan Website and DVDs] |
||
* [https://collections.carli.illinois.edu/digital/collection/chm_fa/id/1329/rec/1 Inventory of the Burr Tillstrom Papers] |
|||
* [https://studsterkel.wfmt.com/search?query=Burr+Tillstrom Studs Terkel interviews of Burr Tillstrom] |
|||
{{1986 Television Hall of Fame|state=expanded}} |
{{1986 Television Hall of Fame|state=expanded}} |
||
{{Chicago Children's Television}} |
{{Chicago Children's Television}} |
||
{{Chicago LGBT Hall of Fame}} |
|||
{{Authority control}} |
{{Authority control}} |
||
| Line 51: | Line 68: | ||
[[Category:Burials at Rosehill Cemetery]] |
[[Category:Burials at Rosehill Cemetery]] |
||
[[Category:Peabody Award winners]] |
[[Category:Peabody Award winners]] |
||
[[Category: |
[[Category:Entertainers from Chicago]] |
||
[[Category:LGBT people from Illinois]] |
[[Category:LGBT people from Illinois]] |
||
[[Category:People from Saugatuck, Michigan]] |
|||
[[Category:20th-century American LGBT people]] |
|||
Burr Tillstrom
| |
|---|---|
Tillstrom with Kukla, Ollie and Fran Allison, 1954
| |
| Born | Franklin Burr Tillstrom (1917-10-13)October 13, 1917
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
|
| Died | December 6, 1985(1985-12-06) (aged 68)
Palm Springs, California, U.S.
|
| Occupation | Puppeteer |
Franklin Burr Tillstrom (October 13, 1917 – December 6, 1985) was a puppeteer and the creator of Kukla, Fran and Ollie.
Tillstrom was born in Chicago, Illinois, to Bert and Alice Burr Tillstrom.[1] He attended Senn High School in Chicago and later the University of Chicago.[1] While still a freshman, he accepted a job offer from the WPA-Chicago Parks District Theatre to set up a marionette theater.[1]
Tillstrom turned his attention to puppetry in the early 1930s and created Kukla in 1936. Kukla remained nameless until the Russian ballerina Tamara Toumanova referred to him as kukla, the Russian word for "doll".[1] Other famous puppets from Tillstrom's group included Ollie (Oliver J. Dragon), Beulah Witch, Goultar, Cecil Bill, and Fletcher Rabbit.[1] In 1939, Tillstrom was invited to present his Kuklapolitan Players at the New York World's Fair.[1] The following year, RCA sent him to Bermuda to perform on the first ship-to-shore broadcast.
From 1947 to 1957, Tillstrom was involved with the Kukla, Fran and Ollie show, which starred his puppets and Fran Allison. It is widely regarded as being the first children's show to appeal to both children and adults, and counted Orson Welles, John Steinbeck, Tallulah Bankhead, Adlai Stevenson, and James Thurber among its many adult fans.[2] With only a few exceptions, all of the shows were improvised.
After the original series ended in 1957, Tillstrom continued to work with the Kuklapolitans. Early in 1958, Tillstrom appeared with the puppets on Polly Bergen's short-lived NBC variety show, The Polly Bergen Show.
Tillstrom, Kukla and Ollie reunited with Fran Allison to host the CBS Children's Film Festival from 1967 to 1977. In 1970, Kukla, Fran and Ollie appeared on National Educational Television, taped at WTTW in Chicago, for two seasons. In 1975, Kukla, Fran and Ollie began another run on television with 13 new episodes.
In 1977, The Kukla and Ollie Retrospective Stage Show tours began, a creation of the Artist-in-Residence program at Hope College. In 1978, Kukla, Burr and Ollie joined the Broadway cast of Side by Side by Sondheim, a revue of Stephen Sondheim songs.[3][4]
Tillstrom continued to perform with his Kuklapolitan Players until his death at age 68 in Palm Springs, California on December 6, 1985. He was found sitting in a chair near his swimming pool and appeared to have died from natural causes.[5] He was buried at Rosehill Cemetery in Chicago. His papers are held at the Chicago History Museum.[6]
On March 23, 1986, Burr Tillstrom was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame for his creativity and innovation in the medium.[7] The Saugatuck Douglas Art ClubinSaugatuck, Michigan (the location of Tillstrom's longtime summer home) dedicated a memorial to Tillstrom in 1988.[8] The Burr Tillstrom Collection and Archives are maintained at the Chicago History Museum.[9]
In 2013 Tillstrom was inducted into the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame.[10]
|
Television Hall of Fame Class of 1986
| |
|---|---|
|
| International |
|
|---|---|
| National |
|
| Artists |
|
| Other |
|
