| Winky Dink And You |
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| CATEGORIES ABOUT WINKY DINK AND YOU | |
| cbs network shows | |
| childrens television series | |
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Hailed by Microsoft mogul Bill Gates as "the first interactive TV show", the show's central gimmick was the use of a "magic drawing screen", which was essentially a large piece of erasable Cellophane which stuck to the television screen via static electricity. A kit containing the screen and various crayons could be purchased through the mail for 50 cents. At a climactic scene in every Winky Dink short, Winky would arrive upon a scene which contained a Connect The Dot picture. He would then prompt the children at home to complete the picture, and the finished result would help him continue the story. Some examples include drawing a bridge to cross a river, or a cage to trap a dangerous lion. Another use of the interactive screen was to send secret messages to the viewers at home. A screen would appear, showing only the vertical lines of the letters of the secret message, which viewers at home would quickly trace onto their magic screen. A second screen would reveal the horizontal lines, which would complete the message. The show was wildly successful due to this pioneering interactive marketing scheme, and Winky Dink was one of television's most popular characters during the 1950s. The show was revived again in Syndication for 65 episodes beginng in 1969 and ending in 1973. However, the show's production was halted despite its modest popularity due to concerns about radiation in television sets affecting children. In the 1990s, a new "Winky Dink Kit" emerged on the market, containing a magic screen, crayons, and all-new digitized ''Winky Dink and You'' episodes. |
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