The Cool Ghoul - The Character

The Character

The Cool Ghoul's origins date back to 1961, when Von Hoene worked on a WCPO (now WDBZ) radio show called "Bob Smith's Monster Mash". Around that time, The Cool Ghoul started appearing in comedy routines Von Hoene wrote for colleague and puppeteer Larry Smith.

By 1969, Von Hoene had moved into television, working at the fledgling TV station WXIX in Cincinnati. It was at this time that Von Hoene developed a costume for the character. Initially, the character proved to be a little too scary for children, so Von Hoene altered the character to it more silly than scary.

The Cool Ghoul's wig, a bright orange-reddish coiffure, became the trademark for the character. Many years later, Von Hoene was told that it was only the rear half of a wig that costumer Dana Bruce made for a customer who was subsequently killed in a car crash. After the woman's death, the wig had been cut in half - the front from the back - and the front part was reportedly placed on the woman's body in the coffin.