Who's Your Friend When Things Get Rough?

I remember "H. R. Pufnstuf" playing on Sunday mornings when I was kid.  Being around 1974, it was in syndication.  I always thought it was kind of weird and wasn't one of my favorites, but when you're a kid and it's Sunday morning, pickings are slim.  Now, when it came to Sid & Marty's Krofft's later offering "Land of the Lost", I was completely in.  Dinosaurs, Sleestaks and Pakuni monkey men; what more could you ask for?

A few years ago, I discovered (via another garage sale find) that Six Flags once had a Krofft Puppet Theater and mascots dressed as Pufnstuf characters.  It didn't last long as the Kroffts attempted to open their own theme park, The World of Sid & Marty Krofft,  in 1976.

But I found this odd remnant of their association with Six Flags at an estate sale a few months ago.

Would You Like a Plate with That?

Frankly, I always found Ronald and the gang to be a little creepy.  Their Sid and Marty Krofft-esque features were a little too much for me and apparently for Sid and Marty as well as they sued McDonald's in the 1970's for copyright infringement.  The lawsuit forced McDonald's to retire Big Mac the cop and Mayor McCheese and soften the features of Captain Crook, the Hamburgler and the remaining characters.

These plates must have been offered prior to the settlement as they feature the earlier incarnations.

I bought this plate at the same sale.  It's not McDonald's, but equally creepy.  This plate is from Schnuck's, a local Missori grocery store and dates from 1980 which is about 4 years late for the Spirit of '76 vibe.

The plate is also a tie in with Six Flags over Mid-America and features non-descript characters from the theme park.  I vaguely recall these.  The one with the goggles went with the antique car ride.  The other two look like muppet knockoffs.

I paid 50 cents a piece for the plates.  They're not worth much, so they've been added to the rotation of kids plates in our house.