''Canyon Kid's Corner'' was an American live children's television series, airing on

KCAU-TV KCAU-TV (channel 9) is a television station in Sioux City, Iowa, United States, affiliated with ABC and owned by Nexstar Media Group. The station's studios are located on Gordon Drive in Sioux City, and its transmitter is located near Hinton, ...

Sioux City, Iowa Sioux City () is a city in Woodbury and Plymouth counties in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 85,797 in the 2020 census, making it the fourth-largest city in Iowa. The bulk of the city is in Woodbury County, ...

, from 1953 to 1985. The show was one of the two pioneers of children's programming in Iowa.

Format

''Canyon Kid's Corner'' was hosted by Jim Henry, who worked on the show for 32 years; Henry once explained that the show was intended as both entertainment and instruction for children, teaching them to "get some sense of how to live right" through principles like respecting one's parents and kindness to one's friends. Anywhere from 15 to 20 children would be featured live on the show. During the show's first month, Henry wore a cowboy hat and a tie. Though he played a cowboy, Henry had a

Brooklyn accent The sound system of New York City English is popularly known as a New York accent. The New York metropolitan accent is one of the most recognizable accents of the United States, largely due to its popular stereotypes and portrayal in radio ...

; he explained to the children that the accent came from "the canyons created by the tall buildings in New York City". Children in Sioux City often appeared on ''Canyon Kid's Corner'' for their birthday; sometimes they came on the show with friends or Scout troopmates, and each Tuesday would feature the pets of the show's guests. ''Canyon Kid's Corner'' held a drawing contest every Wednesday, and children would give performances every Thursday in dance, song, and music.

Production

Jim Henry was from

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Kings County is the most populous Administrative divisions of New York (state)#County, county in the State of New York, ...

; he moved to Sioux City after he was stationed there during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. ''Canyon Kid's Corner'' began airing as part of KVTV's original lineup, on March 29, 1953. The producers wanted a host for a children's television series. Henry wanted the show to be similar to a club for children that would normally be in someone's backyard. Henry auditioned for the role in cowboy-like clothing and he came up with the name Canyon Kid. Despite KVTV liking Henry's audition, the producers wanted a better name for the show, although the name was never changed for the entire 32-year run. Henry said, Originally a daily afternoon show, it was moved to 7:30 a.m. when KVTV (by then known as KCAU-TV) sought to increase the audience of its early evening newscasts by airing ''

The Mike Douglas Show ''The Mike Douglas Show'' was an American daytime television talk show that was hosted by Mike Douglas. It began as a local program in Cleveland before being carried on other stations owned by Westinghouse Broadcasting. The show went into natio ...

''. By 1978, it was airing weekly on Sundays at noon. Throughout the show's entire run, around 75,000 children appeared as guests; it was considered a pioneer of children's programming in Iowa alongside '' The Magic Window''. The show helped launch the career of musician

Tommy Bolin Thomas Richard Bolin (August 1, 1951 – December 4, 1976) was an American guitarist and songwriter who played with Zephyr (from 1969 to 1971), The James Gang (from 1973 to 1974), and Deep Purple (from 1975 to 1976), in addition to maintaining a ...

. In November 1985, KCAU-TV was sold to

Citadel Communications Citadel Communications Ltd. is an American private broadcasting company. It is based in Bronxville, New York and owns 1 low-power television station on which it operates a regional 24-hour cable news channel. The company was founded in 1982 by ...

; ''Canyon Kid's Corner'' was axed after Henry—who also doubled as the station's promotions manager—was fired, along with 21 other staffers, as part of a house-cleaning effort by the new ownership. Canyon Kid's recognized vest was hung at a Sioux City

Applebee's Applebee's Restaurants LLC. is an American company that develops, franchises, and operates the Applebee's Neighborhood Grill + Bar restaurant chain. The Applebee's concept focuses on casual dining, with mainstream American dishes such as salad ...

restaurant, while Henry went on to become an insurance agent. Following Henry's death in February 2014 at 89, the Orpheum Theatre in Sioux City held a tribute to Henry on their marquee due to his role in shaping the show.

Note

References

External links

Canyon Kid , TV Iowans Grew Up On
via YouTube *{{IMDb title , 9311284 , Canyon Kid's Corner 1953 American television series debuts 1985 American television series endings American children's education television series Sioux City, Iowa 1953 establishments in Iowa 1985 disestablishments in Iowa