Doug Momary & Emmy Jo on Why ‘New Zoo Revue’ Still Resonates 50 Years Later

It’s the New Zoo Revue, coming right at you. If you grew up in the 1970s, you may remember the beloved kids show that ran in first-run syndication for five seasons. The program came from Doug Momary, who along with his wife Emmy Jo (Emily Peden), tackled important life lessons through a fun and digestible way. Each of the almost 200 episodes featured the lovable pair, as well as characters like Freddie the Frog, Charlie the Owl and Henrietta Hippo. 

Despite the series’ run ending in 1977, it continues to impact generations for decades. When the couple’s daughter Joanne set up a Facebook Live with her parents they were watched by 13,000 fans and then 50,000 during a second session. After more than 50 years, Doug and Emmy Jo have felt the love connecting with viewers and even making convention appearances including the San Diego Comic-Con in 2023. 

We sat down with the two to reminisce about the making of New Zoo Revue and why it still resonates today. 

Where did you draw inspiration for the New Zoo Revue? 

Doug Momary: We were kind of at the forefront of kids TV. A time when, as we like to say, it took a right turn. A good turn I think. Some of the other shows at the time like Sesame Street were doing numbers 1,2,3 and A,B,C. That was very important, but Emmy Jo and I thought there was a need for a show about relationships. How do you deal with your brother, your sister, your mom or dad? We kind of approached it from that point of view. 

At what point did you feel this show was resonating and becoming a popular staple of families to watch with their kids? 

Doug: I would say for sure when we were invited to the White House. That was pretty big. When we got a chance to perform back then two times with the Easter Egg Roll and a Christmas party for the children of the foreign diplomats. When we performed, we saw the reaction of the kids. Also, when I went to shopping malls and did live shows with Freddy the Frog and my guitar, the kids were lined up for autographs and parents were telling me how much it meant. That’s when we knew we had something. 

Emily Peden: When it comes to the White House visit, it was for President [Richard] Nixon. Mrs. Nixon hosted the party for the children at Christmas. It was [daughter] Tricia who hosted the Easter Egg Roll. 

Doug: It wasn’t as big as it is now. It was really just our show plus some clowns back at the Easter Egg Roll back then. 

Emily: It’s just thrilling. It’s an honor to even be in the White House. It’s something we will never forget. We did not understand the impact we had on children until our daughter started our Facebook page. We started getting out and meeting some of our New Zoo Revue fans. Many of them are grandparents now. Hearing about the profound effect it had on their lives. It has been really rewarding. 

Doug: We’ve met so many people who said we were their surrogate mom or dad and aunt and uncle because some of them came from a home that was challenging. We are just now learning about that, believe it or not, now 50 years later. 

You had some great performers over the years. Chuck Woolery, who passed away last year, actually played Mr. Dingle in those early days. What do you remember about working with him? 

Emmy: He was just fun. He is wonderful. Chuck was a constant professional and just the nicest guy. We just loved him and appreciated him. 

Doug. He was really witty. We were cracking up on the set because he would go off on his lines and go off on a tangent. We had to bring him back in. You can imagine. Here is a guy in his 20s playing an old man with makeup and everything else. He was having fun with it. This was really his first acting gig from what we understand. It was just a joy to be able to be on stage with him. 

Any fun guest stars you loved working with? Richard Dawson comes to mind for me. 

Doug: Richard Dawson was really fun because he played several different roles. One of them I just love is Sir Clanks A Lot. He was in a knight costume. Emmy Jo and I were just cracking up because we had sound effects with him squeaking. We set him back to his time with an oil can. Things like that was so fun. One of the ones I remember was Henry Mancini, the great composer of wonderful songs. I got to sit in Freddy the Frog’s rowboat with him and talk about composing. I asked him, “Do you have any words of wisdom for a young composer like me?” His response was, “Yeah, just keep writing.” That was fun. I got to tell you Joann was such a crack up too. We could not keep a straight face with her. 

It’s fun to see them in this kind of world and look back on it all these years later. Do you stay in touch with anyone from the show? 

Emily: Sadly, some of our cast members have passed on. We had a wonderful reunion back in Philadelphia last year with Sharon Baird, who was the dancer in the Charlie the Owl costume. We are very much in touch with Sharon and thankful for that.

Doug: Many have passed away unfortunately. 

Emily: It’s so sad for me because I wish they, like us, could enjoy the resurgence of the New Zoo Revue and hear how impactful their performances were on so many children. Kids just love Freddy and now they want to show Freddy to their grandchildren. Henrietta was also a big favorite and Charlie. All of them, I wish they could all enjoy what we’re enjoying. 

Doug: Yanco Inone, who played the dancer in Freddy the Frog’s costume, is still living too. Sharon was an original Mouseketeer believe it or not. Back in the day she was on the Mickey Mouse Club. 

Emmy: I used to watch the Mickey Mouse Club and Sharon was my favorite. So, I was thrilled to work with her. 

Has there been any celebrity who has come forward that says they were a fan? 

Emmy: The people that come up to us are folks who grew up with the show and loved it. When we do comic conventions, it’s like a big family reunion. Sometimes they bring their children or grandchildren and we get to hear what their lives are like now. All of them I met are making wonderful contributions to their community. It’s very rewarding because they have taken the lessons Doug put into the show and taken them to heart and lived their lives with kindness and respect for others and it’s just wonderful to see. 

Doug: I will tell you one thing. For years, we kind of put New Zoo on the backburner. I was in Las Vegas with my own production company and doing commercials for the City of Las Vegas. I got a chance to direct The Pointer Sisters and be on stage with them. They were supposed to do a quick promo. .I was told by their manager or someone, “They are not going to give you the time of day.” Not to bother with them. Someone must have told them I was Doug from the New Zoo, and they started singing the theme song in three-part harmony. I got a pretty good performance out of it. 

How was it at San Diego Comic-Con? 

Doug: We were so surprised. The line was almost out the door for our little booth we had. That was our first one. We got a chance to do the biggest one in San Diego. 

Emily: We had no idea how many people would show up. They actually asked us if we could stay for another day because we had such a great turnout. It was amazing. We were still in touch with the folks we met at that Comic-Con and even on our Facebook page they are able to send us private messages. One of them is actually a chemistry teacher in California. We hear from him fairly often, which is fun. 

You did so many episodes, but within a small amount of years. Why do you think the show didn’t stay on longer? 

Doug: It wasn’t personal. We were just the creators and personalities, but had no say in the actual finances or anything like that. 

Emmy: We were just two green kids. 

Doug: We were just told to sign on the dotted line. 

Emily: Doug created it, wrote the songs, made all the storylines. Everything. 

Doug; We weren’t privy to everything. It’s just now we’re able to find out the impact we have. It’s just thrilling for us. If it were up to us, we’d still be doing the show right now. 

Emily: We even have our New Zoo kids send us a huge packet of letters. Over a hundred for sure, letters children had written to us back in the day and we had never responded to them because we never got them. 

Doug: They were all answered by corporate. “Thank you for getting in touch…” Looking at them now has been amazing. 

Where do you think we are in the kid-friendly programming space? 

Doug: I’m actually working on a new show that is relevant for today’s world. It’s called Knights of IT, Guardians of the Digital Realm. It’s about going inside a computer and the challenges children face today on the internet. It’s going to have three songs like New Zoo Revue did. We’re just going to talk to kids through characters and dialogue about being kind to each other on the internet. 

Emily: And being safe on the internet. Things like online bullying and today’s topics. 

Doug; We’re excited about that. As a creator, you never stop creating. 

How long have you been married? 

Emmy: 54 years this year. 

What’s your secret? 

Emily: I think keeping our sense of humor. I think forgiveness in any marriage is very important because it’s two imperfect people coming together and forming a family.. It’s very important to be forgiving of each other. 

Doug: Not taking things too seriously.

Emily: And just being thankful. 

Episodes of New Zoo Revue are available on Amazon Prime Video. For everything about the show, visit the website.