Iowa Almanac
Iowa Almanac -- Wednesday, November 20, 2024
From Aunt Fanny to Fran. More from the Iowa Almanac in a moment. It wouldn't be Christmas without Camp Courageous Fruit Cakes, and they're now available in stores across Iowa and at campcarages.org/fruitcakes. Camp Courageous Fruit Cakes are generously filled with cherries, nuts, pineapple, coconut, and just the right amount of cake batter to hold it all together. Best of all, proceeds go to support Camp Courageous near Monticello, Iowa. For a list of stores or to order online, go to campcarages.org/fruitcakes. Frances Allison was born on November 20, 1907 in Le Porte City. Fran graduated from Co. College and was a teacher. But her love of performing led her to WMT Radio's Waterloo Studios, where she became a regular on the air in the 1930s. At the age of 30, she moved to network radio in Chicago as a staff singer and personality on the NBC network. She then became a regular on the Breakfast Club program, and for 25 years, portrayed Aunt Fanny, a small-town gossip. In the earliest days of television in 1947, Bert Hillstrom was asked to put together a puppet show for children. He asked Fran Allison to appear alongside his creations, and Coocla, Fran, and Ollie was born. The show aired throughout the 1950s on NBC and returned for another decade in the late 60s and early 70s on CBS. Fran appeared in other television programs, too, featuring her singing talents, but she's best remembered for her time with a family of puppets. Coocla, Fran, and Ollie were even honored by having a U.S. postage stamp issued with their images on it in 2009, 20 years after Fran's death. She was laid to rest in Cedar Rapids. ♪ Here we are back with you again ♪ ♪ Yes, my gong ♪ ♪ And yes, my gong ♪ ♪ Coocla, Fran ♪ ♪ There will Ollie ♪ ♪ Here we are again ♪ ♪ Here we are again ♪ The only human to appear alongside the Coocla Politin players, Fran Allison, was born in La Porte City on this date in 1907, and that's Iowa Almanac for November 20th. There's more online at IowaAlmanac.com. Until tomorrow, I'm Jeff Stein.