Before Star Trek, William Shatner Starred In This Extremely Obscure Western Series

There are some things "Star Trek" fans may not know about William Shatner. For example, long before he boldly explored the final frontier as Captain James T. Kirk, the actor appeared on "The Canadian Howdy Doody Show," a spin-off of an influential Western children's program that aired on NBC in the U.S. from 1947 until 1960.

Set in the fictional town of Doodyville, the original "Howdy Doody" centered around host Buffalo Bob (Robert Emil Schmidt) and a cast of marionettes — led by the title puppet — as they performed skits, sang songs, and taught moral lessons. The Canadian version is similar, albeit with fresh hosts and characters. Shatner portrayed Ranger Bob, one of the hosts.

"The Canadian Howdy Doody" didn't enjoy the same success as the U.S. version — which was one of the longest-running shows in history for a hot minute back in the day — and you'd be hard-pressed to find it nowadays. However, the series enjoyed a solid five-year run on CBC from 1954 until 1959 before fading into obscurity. What's more, it seems that Shatner has erased his time as Ranger Bob from his memory.

Every actor needs to pay the bills, and William Shatner was no different when he was first starting out. He didn't join the cast of "Howdy Doody" expecting to light the world on fire, but it was one of the only gigs he could get in Canada in the 1950s. Just don't expect the actor to share any interesting details about his time working on the children's show.

"I've heard many times that I did 'Howdy Doody,' but the whole experience is wiped out of my head," Shatner told Pioneers of Television in 2011. "If I were on a stand with my hand on the Bible, I'd say, 'No, I've never done Howdy Doody,' but apparently I did ... I must have been striving to survive as a young actor in Canada at that time ... 'Howdy Doody' must have been my survival mode."

Fortunately, Shatner found fame and fortune later on. A few years after "Howdy Doody" ended, he helped change the face of sci-fi forever by starring in all three seasons of "Star Trek: The Original Series." While "Star Trek" wasn't an overnight success, the sci-fi adventure series has since evolved into one of the most iconic franchises of all time.