Easily recognized by his trademark lisp and high-energy antics, his signature costume was a loud plaid suit with baggy checkered pants and an undersized hat.

In 1950, he had his own 30-minute primetime variety television series on NBC, The Pinky Lee Show, featuring vaudevillians and burlesque comics.

[5][6] An Emmy-nominated afternoon children's program that spawned later imitators such as Pee-Wee's Playhouse, it was followed each day by the popular Howdy Doody Show.

Others in the cast: Betty Jane Howarth, Jimmy Brown, Molly Bee, Jack McCoy, Mel Koontz, Cindy Sue, Susabelle, Ken Mayer, Isabel Dwan, Sidney Fields, Margie Lizst, Milton Newberger and Jymme Shore.

[9] Adding to the show's bounce and style was its musical director and master organist Gaylord Carter, who underscored every moment with appropriate accompaniment.

[11] His normal antics were so energetic that apparently the cameraman and the show's director assumed the fall an ad lib part of his performance.

The "Peanut Gallery", an audience usually composed almost entirely of pre-adolescent children who were coached by a staff member, continued their enthusiastic cheering and applause from the on-stage bleachers.

[15] In 1963, Lee attempted a return to kids' TV, hosting a local children's comedy program on KABC-TV in Los Angeles.

[16] This series was nationally syndicated for the 1964–65 TV seasons, but the program fell prey to creative interference from the show's producers and station management.