Popular segment on the American television show, House Party, in which host Art Linkletter interviewed children live in the studio. The hilarity usually came from the child being way too honest (Linkletter: "What does your dad do around the house to help your mom? Boy: "He makes cocktails.") or from the children's innocent yet cock-eyed logic ("Don't ever throw food under the table if there's not a dog under there or it'll rot.").
The segment ran once a week for 14 years, from 1952 to 1966. In 1957, Linkletter published a book with the same title, featuring quotes from the best of these segments. Illustrations were by Charles M. Schulz.
In 1973, Tammy Wynette released an LP (Epic BN-31937)
with the same name. The Billy Sherrill-Glenn Sutton tune on the album was not meant to be funny, but appropriated the phrase for Tammy to sing about her four year old kids talking about marital strife and divorce.
The phrase is currently trademarked by LMNO Productions, which produced a television show on CBS of that name from 1998 to 2000. This expanded the segment to a full thirty minutes, and was hosted by Bill Cosby, with regular appearances by Linkletter.
Sources:
David Lambert. "Review of House Party - The Very Best of Art Linkletter's Kids Say the Darndest Things"TVShowsonDVD.com. August 6, 2005. <http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/newsitem.cfm?NewsID=3855> (8 August 2005)
Art Linkletter. "Kids Say the Darndest Things: Unplugged." USANext.org. <http://www.usanext.org/full_story.cfm?article_id=76&category_id=4> (8 August 2005)
Gary Mussell. "Our Fifteen Minutes of Fame
on Art Linkletter's House Party." Gary Mussell Personal Web site. <http://www.vcnet.com/garym/linkletter/hparty.html> (8 August 2005)