Steampipe Alley

I have to agree with the poster who felt the show was light years ahead of any Nickelodeon fare. In fact, in a strange way, this very New Yawk weekend show, which aired on a local channel and only to a few markets but to a very large audience, reminded me at times of those wonderful old New Yawk weekend kids shows on a local channel with Sonny Fox, like Wonderama and The Sonny Fox Show. Mario Cantone was the glue that held everything together, a sort of short, chubby Pee Wee Herman. Steampipe Alley was half game show, half comedy skits. I had the pleasure of meeting and chatting with Mr. Cantone at an event in New Yawk some years later (although he wasn't particularly thrilled when I brought up Steampipe Alley; maybe it was just too many years in the past for a guy who has clearly moved on to bigger and better things). I just saw him again on the Comedy Central roast of Joan Rivers. He is a truly funny guy and a gifted impressionist.

"Steampipe Alley" was one of the coolest kids programs around for its time. It aired on Sundays on Channel 9 in the NYC Metro, Northern New Jersey and Western Connecticut markets. I remember spending many Sundays watching the show and its fun games. While the production values had much to be desired, Mario Cantone's charisma and child-like enthusiasm as host/ringmaster made the show a lot of fun.

The show was highly irrelevant and fun - it featured kids from local elementary schools competing against one another for prizes and also featured some funny comedy skits. The best part was seeing some of the kids' teacher participating in the show. As a matter of fact, the most memorable segment was the one where kids actually got to throw pies at their teachers' heads! The show was light years ahead of Nickelodeon in the kids' gaming show genre. Granted, Steampipe Alley lacked the high production values and buckets of non-toxic green slime, but it will always be a part of my youth.

This show is such a forgotten gem in my mind. I can't believe I ever forgot this. My brother and I used to sit in front of the TV and watch this incredible show. I don't remember much about this except for the big race two contestants would have at the end. What made me laugh was that no one ever lost. LOL.