Mulligan Stew (TV series)

Overview

The series centered on the adventures of Mulligan Stew (also referred to as the "Stews" or the "Mulligan Stew Force"), a five-piece rock band consisting of five school-aged children: Maggie, the group's keyboardist (a preteen girl played by Sherry Wright); Micky, a guitarist (a younger girl played by Mion Hahm); Mike, the band's drummer (a preteen boy played by Steven Einbender); Manny, another guitarist (a preteen boy played by Benjamin Sands); and the group's leader and lead singer, Mulligan (a younger boy played by Larry Friedman). The comic elements of the storyline were provided by the various encounters the kids have while learning about and proclaiming good nutritional habits. The kids were accompanied, assisted, and at times loosely supervised by an adult, Wilbur Dooright (played by Barry Michlin, who later had a minor career in movies and TV), a mild-mannered, and somewhat bumbling, accountant who in some of the episodes gives the kids their orders from "upstairs" (similar to Mission: Impossible), assumed to be a secret governmental organization. A recurring gag involved Wilbur constantly getting a pie thrown in his face. The kids gathered in their clubhouse, located in the basement of a brownstone apartment house, which featured a kitchen, a shortwave radio, a microscope for scientific research, and a rehearsal space where they played their music. References to 4-H activities, including a 4-H Fair, were made in some of the episodes, though it is not explicitly made clear whether or not the Mulligan Stew members were also members of 4-H.

"4-4-3-2" balanced diet message

An integral and ubiquitous part of the program's message was the "4-4-3-2" balanced diet program, part of the standard USDA nutrition guidelines/recommendations promoted during the 1960s and 1970s. The use of dietary supplements was strongly discouraged; it was taught that all nutritional needs, including the proper intake of vitamins, minerals, fats and carbohydrates, could be adequately obtained solely by adhering to a balanced diet, with appropriate servings from the "basic four" food groups. This message was enthusiastically repeated by the children several times per episode. (The "basic four" food groups were updated by USDA in subsequent decades by the 1990s-era "Food Guide Pyramid" and the current "MyPlate" nutritional guidelines program.)

Production and development

Mulligan Stew was developed in early 1971 by the USDA Extension Service, and filmed by the USDA Motion Picture Service (which for many years prior produced educational cinematic films and TV programs for public viewing). Mulligan Stew was developed based on plan and design proposals by Developmental Committees, Iowa State University Extension Service 4-H Nutrition Television Programs. The Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) provided a grant to produce the series. (4-H is the official youth outreach and development program of the land-grant universities' Cooperative Extension Services and USDA.)

The target audience of the program was older elementary school students, fourth through sixth grade.

Eleanor Wilson, the national 4-H TV coordinator at the time, was tapped to be the series' technical advisor. Wilson subcontracted with Iowa State University to develop an outline of educational concepts for the series. USDA Extension then hired Ira Klugerman to direct the series. Klugerman, who came from a background of children's television at WQED in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, came up with the title and general treatment for the series. V. "Buddy" Renfro was the credited producer.

Production began on location in southeast Washington, DC in 1971 (the opening sequence was filmed at RFK Stadium). Other filming locations included major production partner Michigan State University's home base of Lansing, Michigan, and on location for one episode at Johnson Space Center in Houston. The low budget of the project proved to be a significant challenge, as well as the unique challenges of working with child actors.

The producers wanted the style of the series to reflect trends begun in other popular and innovative TV shows such as Sesame Street and Laugh-In. Puppetry and animation were frequently used. Sometimes one or two of the kids would conduct "man-on-the-street" interviews, asking ordinary citizens about nutrition-related topics. All of the music, including the theme song and the various songs sung by the kids during an episode (many times in musical "romps" reminiscent of the ones seen on The Monkees TV series), were composed and arranged by Washington, DC musician and recording engineer Paul Brier, and performed by a rock combo credited on screen as "The Eye".

Mulligan Stew premiered on October 4, 1972, during the National 4-H Week at the National 4-H Center in Washington, DC. The program was considered a success, especially by previous standards for television outreach sponsored by 4-H. The series had a moderate impact on kids making better choices in what they ate, and provided 4-H with a sizable marketing, promotional and public relations boost. Thanks in part to the popularity of Mulligan Stew, 4-H membership was boosted to an all-time high in 1974, and it remained on the air (in reruns) until 1981.

Cast members

Several guest stars made appearances, either as part of the main storyline or in brief segments, but none of these actors were credited on-screen. Ordinary citizens were interviewed by the kids in selected segments of some episodes in a "man on the street" format.