Ghoulardi: The Wild Ride of Cleveland's TV Legend » (1ST)

This is the definitive fan's guide to the outrageous and bizarre Ghoulardi TV show and a history of the hoopla that surrounded its brief reign on Cleveland's airwaves.

Who was Ghoulardi? If you grew up watching TV in Cleveland in the 1960s, you definitely remember. If you live in Cleveland today, you hear about him still.

In early 1963, months before the Beatles arrived in America and years before Howard Stern hit the radio airwaves, Cleveland TV actor Ernie Anderson pioneered the modern counter-culture media celebrity: Ghoulardi. His offbeat late-night movie show was so popular locally that it got ratings higher than the Tonight Show, and the Cleveland police department reported a significant decrease in crime during its broadcast.

Ghoulardi continues to capture the hearts and minds of Cleveland's first TV generation and is riding a wave of nostalgia. Ghoulardi creator Ernie Anderson's recent obituary was the front page feature in both of northeast Ohio's major dailies and the lead item on all local TV news shows. Ghoulardi memorabilia are regular set props on the popular TV sitcom The Drew Carey Show. Ghoulardi tee-shirts still sell even though the show has been off the air for more than 30 years.

This book tells the on-screen and behind-the-scenes story of the Ghoulardi show and its unusual creator with biographical sketches, trivia, photos, original scripts, and other memorabilia. Indians Memories