The collection consists of scripts for 1000 episodes of daily children’s TV series The Magic Cottage and includes some production documents and merchandise from the show.

Hal [Harold] Cooper was a prolific television director. His notable works include All in the Family, The Dick Van Dyke Show, I Dream of Jeannie, and Maude. Born on February 23, 1923, he grew up in New York City, attended the University of Michigan and served in WWII as a junior grade lieutenant in the U.S. Naval Reserve. At age 9, Cooper acted for the radio show Rainbow House. He was drawn to the control room and behind-the-scenes work, learning from the show’s producer and director Bob Emery. When Hal was 13 years old, Emery was unable to direct an episode due to illness and he recommended Hal direct. This was Cooper’s first live television broadcast. Cooper started working at the DuMont Television Network in New York, producing, writing, and acting in Your Television Babysitter. His first wife, Pat Meikle, hosted the show. Following its success, Cooper was hired to write and produce The Magic Cottage, which Meikle hosted. Cooper directed and produced many daytime shows from 1950 to 1957, including Search for Tomorrow, the first successful soap opera. Cooper moved to Los Angeles as the television industry shifted west. He found success directing episodes of popular shows, such as Gilligan’s Island and The Brady Bunch, and worked until the mid-1990s. Cooper passed away on April 11, 2014 in Beverly Hills, California, at the age of 91, survived by two daughters, a son, and a grandson.

7.5 Linear Feet, 6 boxes

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