Sid Krofft
| Sid Krofft | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Cydus Yolas July 30, 1929 Montreal, Quebec, Canada |
Sid Krofft (born July 30, 1929) is a Canadian/American puppeteer and television producer. He created and produced a wide array of shows and TV series and specials with his brother, Marty, beginning in the 1960s.
Cydus Yolas (later to be known as Sid Krofft) was born in 1929 in Montreal to Peter, a clock salesman, and his wife Mary. Cydus took an interest in puppeteering at an early age. The family moved from Canada to Rhode Island to New York City. By 1937, Sid was staging puppet shows in the family's backyard with paper puppets, and the boy planned to charge peers a penny to view it. When his parents forbade that idea, Sid instead charged friends a button to see the show (decades later, buttons became the standard currency on Living Island of the Krofft TV show H.R. Pufnstuf).
Encouraged by his family, Sid took his act on the road, starring in circuses such as Ringling Brothers at age 15, carnivals and burlesque shows, and he was soon joined by his father, who worked as Sid's apprentice.
By the 1950s, Sid was touring as the opening act for numerous celebrities, including Judy Garland, Liberace, Cyd Charisse and Tony Martin. Sid was in dire need of another puppeteer when he opened for Judy Garland at the Flamingo Hotel, so he asked his younger brother Marty to assist. The two have been business partners ever since, forming Sid and Marty Krofft Productions.
Soon after, Sid got the idea to do an adults-only puppet show, which ultimately came to be known as Les Poupées de Paris. The show was an instant success, and led the Kroffts to the Texas amusement park Six Flags, where a (seemingly) permanent Krofft puppet attraction was erected. Their Six Flags shows caught the attention of Hanna-Barbera, who recruited the Kroffts to design costumes for their latest show, The Banana Splits Adventure Hour.
...
Wikipedia