User:Stevi000/Franz the Toymaker

Franz the Toymaker Ray Stawiarski

The man we all came to love as 'Franz the Toymaker' was born Raymond Stawiarski on November 22, 1932 at St. Ann's Hospital in Cleveland. He was born to Andrew (b. 1889) and Estelle (b. 1903) and is the middle child of three, with one sister (Valerie b. 1933) living in North Carolina and one (Eugenia b. 1930) here in Cleveland.

Ray lived on Clement Ave. in Cleveland's predominantly Polish East Side and went to South High (Class of '50) and one year at Kent State before going into the Army During the Korean Conflict. While in the Army he was stationed in Alabama and Georgia where he trained the troops and involved in a Jeep accident. When he left the Army after two years, he worked a few years at the Farvel Corporation and Cleveland Worm and Gear, as well as Cleveland's Steel Mills.

After that he went to Ohio State where he took up theater. He stayed for three and a half years, just short of graduating.

While he was going to OSU he also worked at a Columbus television station. He was a combination floor director and grip and also built all of the scenery for shows and sets for news people. He also did a lot of community and university theater work during this time.

In 1960 Ray married Elizabeth Martino (b. 1936) and they had four children; Jeannie, Raymond, Andrew and Edward. They lived on Inchcliff Rd.

There was a children's show on in Columbus at the time, Lucy's Toy Shop. Lucy was a puppeteer. The show was very popular with the kids, but it needed a little "pumping up."

"The host needed someone to talk to and play off of". So the program manager asked Ray to go on the show as a sidekick to Lucy. Ray created the Franz the Toymaker character.

He also was the voice of the Talking Tree at Lucy's Toy Shop. Periodically they would take the tree "on the road" to Christmas events at department stores and children's shows.

The character of Franz the Toymaker was a big hit and eventually he left and had his own Saturday morning show. Of course he was still floor directing and building sets at the time.

The station was a CBS affiliate and CBS decided that there were too many competing children's shows; and although with high rankings and ratings, Franz was taken off the air.

Ray pitched the character to Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Detroit, St. Louis and a few other markets. Pittsburgh and Cleveland showed the most interest and Ray just wasn't fond of Pittsburgh.

It was during this time that Ray and his family moved to Cleveland, or more specifically, to Richmond Heights. From Richmond Heights he moved again, this time to Cleveland Heights on Rumsford in the Forest Hills area.

Ray was on the air in Cleveland from 1962 - 1970.

This time the show was taken off because of a new Federal Government (FCC) regulation that "no children's program could be associated with a commercial product." This virtually killed 65% of children's programming throughout the country.

Franz the Toymaker was experiencing higher ratings than ever before, with 47-52% of available audience. Yet the new regulation took him off the air.

"I tried to treat the kids like little people that simply hadn't learned yet. It was one of the tenets of my show."

He had the children so interested in art and painting that parents wrote him letters saying "stop with the paint already, we have white carpets!" Then in the next show, he'd have to add "Let's be extra neat and not make a mess" when he did his show and the kids listened to him.

After the show went off the air Ray got his real estate license and sold real eatate for awhile.

Itching to go back to Acting Ray moved to New York and tried to make a go of it. He worked as an actor for two years landing small roles and some commercial work and then "New York sent me home".

"If you're living and working in Cleveland and someone offers you a job in New York and even offers you an 80% increase tell them NO. If you can't get at least twice what you make in Cleveland you won't break even."

In 1975 Ray went back to Columbus and reconciled with his ex-wife Elizabeth, but in the end that didn't work out. Eventually he remarried. Ray met and married Virginia Roberts and together they had one child, Andrea.

Ray has just recently retired as a auto broker.

Going back to acting is not completely out of the question for Ray, but there's nothing planned right now.

He loves to golf but admits he's not very good at it. Many years ago he caddied for the likes of Governor Lausche, Tommy Armour and the Freeman Brothers. While at OSU his roommates where avid golfers and insisted that he learn. He's played ever since.

Ray considers writing a book, and will eventually get to it.

His time on Cleveland television may have been short, but it has had a lasting impression on all of us who grew up with him. He ended each show with the phrase ..."Be Good And Schmile At Everybody"

So, if you are wondering whatever happened to Franz the Toymaker, now you know. He is retired and happily living in Columbus. He continues to make people laugh and enjoys being around children.

Most important, he continues to "schmile at everybody" and he makes us all want to schmile back!

submitted by Andrew Stawiarski