In the interview (below) actor Hugh Studebaker is a bit confused, no doubt, but he isn't so confused to remember that Johnny Coons played Rush in either 1945 or 1946 and perhaps both those years and series. (You'll notice that there is no talk of Bill Idelson in this brief interview.)
This was the time after the original series and the series had changed sponsors and networks and had included many "real characters," including Studebaker as Rishigan Fishigan.
