Artifact of TV History Stolen by a 'Don't Bee'
Romper, bomper, stomper, boo … the magic mirror is missing!
A beloved artifact of children's television history was stolen this month when thieves attacked former "Romper Room" host Mary Ann King in the parking lot of a Hometown Buffet in the City of Industry and sped off with the hand mirror.
"The mirror's been taken…. It's priceless," said Sheriff's Det. Ljot Inglis, who recalled the show from his childhood. "There's not much more we can say."
King, 70, of Hacienda Heights suffered a broken arm, rib and punctured lung in the fray, which occurred Dec. 17. According to police, King was walking to her car after attending a Chamber of Commerce holiday mixer when she heard the roar of a car accelerating behind her.
She told police she had just opened her car door and was about to put her purse and a second black taffeta bag inside when a maroon Honda sped up behind her. A young man with a shaved head was leaning out of the passenger seat and ripped the bags from her grasp. King was hurled to the asphalt as the car sped off.
The black taffeta bag contained the "Romper Room" prop, which actually is an empty mirror frame.
"I'm sure those hoodlums who did this just looked at the mirror and said, 'What in the world is this,' and just discarded it," King said.
As the Los Angeles hostess of "Romper Room" from 1966 to 1976, King entertained millions of children as "Miss Mary Ann
One of the program's trademarks was its ending, when King would hold a hand mirror in front of her face and recite in a mellifluous voice the following incantation: "Romper, bomper, stomper, boo, tell me, tell me, tell me do…." After some brief special effects, which consisted mostly of swirling colors, the camera would show King holding the frame of a hand mirror and looking through it to the camera. She would then recite the names of children whom she pretended to see watching ("I see Mary and Tom and Jeff and all you boys and girls out there.")
Full Story from the LA TImes
Romper, bomper, stomper, boo … the magic mirror is missing!
A beloved artifact of children's television history was stolen this month when thieves attacked former "Romper Room" host Mary Ann King in the parking lot of a Hometown Buffet in the City of Industry and sped off with the hand mirror.
"The mirror's been taken…. It's priceless," said Sheriff's Det. Ljot Inglis, who recalled the show from his childhood. "There's not much more we can say."
King, 70, of Hacienda Heights suffered a broken arm, rib and punctured lung in the fray, which occurred Dec. 17. According to police, King was walking to her car after attending a Chamber of Commerce holiday mixer when she heard the roar of a car accelerating behind her.
She told police she had just opened her car door and was about to put her purse and a second black taffeta bag inside when a maroon Honda sped up behind her. A young man with a shaved head was leaning out of the passenger seat and ripped the bags from her grasp. King was hurled to the asphalt as the car sped off.
The black taffeta bag contained the "Romper Room" prop, which actually is an empty mirror frame.
"I'm sure those hoodlums who did this just looked at the mirror and said, 'What in the world is this,' and just discarded it," King said.
As the Los Angeles hostess of "Romper Room" from 1966 to 1976, King entertained millions of children as "Miss Mary Ann
One of the program's trademarks was its ending, when King would hold a hand mirror in front of her face and recite in a mellifluous voice the following incantation: "Romper, bomper, stomper, boo, tell me, tell me, tell me do…." After some brief special effects, which consisted mostly of swirling colors, the camera would show King holding the frame of a hand mirror and looking through it to the camera. She would then recite the names of children whom she pretended to see watching ("I see Mary and Tom and Jeff and all you boys and girls out there.")
Full Story from the LA TImes
