Bob McAllister, the lively host of “Wonderama,” a three-hour
Sunday morning children’s show of the 1960s and ’70s, died of
lung cancer July 21 at his home in Manhattan. He was 63.
“Wonderama,” a mix of cartoons, music, games and contests, had
been on the air 12 years when McAllister replaced Sonny Fox as
host in 1967. Using his background as a magician, his
ventriloquist’s dummy named Chauncey and even his own dog,
Ralph, McAllister made the show his own until it was canceled by
Metromedia in 1977.  McAllister, who began performing magic and
ventriloquism as a child, was rewarded with Chauncey in high
school for good grades, and the dummy stayed with him through
his early career. In 1953, McAllister appeared on and won Ted
Mack’s “Amateur Hour.” He went on to host children’s TV shows in
Norfolk, Va., and Baltimore before joining “Wonderama.”
McAllister used his “Wonderama” theme song, “Kids Are People,
Too” as the name for his next show, which debuted on ABC in
1978. The show went on to win an Emmy, but McA