State Historical Society’s Decision To Preserve Iconic Puppet Causes Outcry

Floppy on Display at the State Historical Museum in Des Moines

Des Moines, Iowa – A central Iowa icon looks to be out of the spotlight, at least for awhile, says the Iowa Historical Society of Iowa Media Relations Jeff Morgan.

Floppy entertained kids for 30 years in Central Iowa, appearing on WHO-TV starting in 1957, telling jokes and sharing his beeping nose until Duane Ellett passed away.

The family of Duane Ellett then donated Floppy and many of his puppet friends to the State Historical Society, and they have since been on display for the past 20 years. “As with all of our artifacts that are in our permanent collection, we need to take them down and give them assessment and give them the conservation and preservation treatments that they need,” Morgan explains. He says that 20 years of being on display is a long time, “especially considering Floppy is a textile artifact made from balsa wood and cloth.”

A new exhibit will replace the ‘Floppy’ exhibit on July 19, 2013. It will be called ‘Riding Through History’, which will explore the history of cycling in Iowa and will have a strong RAGBRAI component to the display.

Fans of Floppy have been outspoken and are concerned that their beloved childhood memory will not see the light of day again, and will be relegated to a storage bin in the basement of the State Historical Society. Morgan explained that after the upcoming cycling exhibit is done, the society will be evaluating a long term exhibition and programming plan. “More conversations about what that will look like will be developed,” says Morgan.

Oskaloosa News readers had a chance to chime in with their opinions on the matter. Most were like Michelle Dickerson saying “Leave Floppy alone. Let him stay.”

Rebekah Rupprecht added, “I am all for taking him down for preservation but I think they need to give the public a release date for the preserved Floppy. Not, maybe someday he will come back out. He was a big part of many lives, including mine. Don’t keep him boxed up in the basement to “save” him.”

The decision to take Floppy down and preserve the display caused a growing Facebook group devoted to saving the display. I questioned Morgan about the outcry and if this was something the museum was expecting.

Morgan talked about the number of Floppy Film Festivals that sold out over the years. “That drew incredible interest,” Morgan said. “We know that fans of Floppy have a very strong personal connection to Mr. Ellett and Floppy and his friends and that they have very powerful and strong childhood memories of those experiences of watching the show on television or interacting with Mr. Ellett and Floppy in person. That’s a pretty strong testimonial to how powerful our personal connection to history can be.”

Dianna Klinker, an Oskaloosa News reader, added, “While Floppy was a huge part of my childhood and I wish the kids today had something similar, he wasn’t a part of every child’s life. Other areas of Iowa had different shows. Maybe they should create a display that celebrates all of these local shows.”

For now, Floppy has been taken down, but many an Iowan awaits their beloved Floppy’s return.