Axel was a ratings titan in the Twin Cities, but he didn't start out that way. For the first eight months of its existence, the show was always in second or third place -- and there were only three stations on the air!

The tide began to turn in late December 1954, when WCCO-TV acquired the rights to air the classic "Little Rascals" film shorts. By April 1955, the combination of those rambunctious kids and the screwy Scandinavian resulted in top ratings. For most of the following eleven years, Axel would dominate his time slot.

In January 1965, the show was consigned to the early morning hours, even though it was still top-rated in the afternoon. It wasn't because Axel was losing his audience; in fact, he was in first place. There were two basic reasons for the change: first, the station wanted to attract an adult audience in the period leading up to their all-important evening news; and second, more money could be made by running adult-oriented programming. Unfortunately, by the mid-1960s kids just didn't count for much in the battle for ratings.