Straight From the Horse’s Mouth

Mister Ed Adds to the Legend of Hollywood Center Studios

The sixties were indisputably the Golden Age of the television sit com and many of the era's most popular shows were shot at Hollywood Center Studios. Green Acres, Petticoat Junction and The Beverly Hillbillies were among the many comedy series produced on the lot.

Another was Mister Ed, which ran on CBS for five years beginning in 1961. Perhaps because it starred an animal, Mister Ed may be the subject of more urban legends than any show of its time. One such story insists that Mister Ed was actually played by a zebra. In fact, the show's star was a palomino gelding named Bamboo Harvester. The story may have its roots in an episode where Ed impersonates a zebra while visiting a zoo.

In 1986, a preacher from Ohio claimed that the familiar Mister Ed theme song, when played backwards, delivered a satanic message. There followed a mass burning of Mister Ed records. Jay Livingston who wrote and performed the song was untroubled by the rumor, noting that he received the same royalty payment whether the song was played forward or reverse.

But by far the most speculation centered on how the producers got the horse to talk. Alan Young, who played Wilbur Post, Ed's owner, on the series, is said to be the source of the most popular theory, that a wad of peanut butter was inserted between the horse's cheek and gum. Others, however, insist that a nylon bit was used to get Ed to move his head and lips in the manner of a marionette. Fans have scrutinized videos of the show for evidence of these mysterious strings. A third theory, attributed to none other than George Burns (who produced the show's pilot) has it that small electric shocks were used to stimulate the horse to move its lips.

According to Young, the problem was not getting Mister Ed to talk; it was getting him to stop. The talented Bamboo Harvester, which purportedly was able to open doors, untie knots, wave a flag and even answer the phone, got the idea that humans liked seeing him move his lips. The obliging animal began performing the action whenever the cameras rolled. His trainer eventually developed a technique using a riding crop to signal the horse to keep his lips sealed.

The show was shot on Stage Six at Hollywood Center Studios, at the time known as Hollywood General Services Studios. A stable area was provided the star of the show behind the stage and right next to a small dressing room building that lacked air-conditioning. One can only imagine the conditions on the many hot, breezeless days during the production season.

The adjacent Stage Five was often used to position a rear screen projector, which shot through an opening between the two stages to provide a background process shot for the long-running series. There also appears to have been a plumbed collection system for the "convenience" of Bamboo Harvester built under the stage floor at strategic points. Many of these archeological finds were discovered during recent renovations of the stages.