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THE OFFICIAL WEBSITE OF SEATTLE'S FAVORITE CLOWN!
The remaining cast of characters not (visibly) played by Bob Newman was rounded out by puppets, props, audio clips and offscreen voices. Amazingly enough, though, they were just as well loved and a part of the show as any other character. Some started as a one-time skit and were drawn into part of the regular cast. Others only made brief appearances or were not, uh... politically correct and were retired.
Heard, but never seen, Mr. Announcer Man (Hal Willard) greeted us every morning and gave the weather forecast (inside and outside). He was introduced by J.P. (after donning his Radar Ears) to the tune of In the Mood and tested J.P.'s knowledge daily with a "by the way" question.
A permanent fixture of the city dump, Grandpa TickTock was responsible for waking J.P. every morning (usually with a squirt of water and an explosion).
Originally, Grandpa TickTock had a much smaller clock, but many kids in the viewing audience would use it to know when it was time to leave for school and some parents complained that they couldn't read the time on their tiny black and white TV sets. So, the smaller clock was replaced with a larger, easier to read clock.
A clock of few words, when he did speak it was Chris Wedes who provided the voice. The cameraman would pan down to the clock's mouth as Chris would speak his lines out of the camera's view and then pan back up to J.P. when it was his turn to speak. The floor director would operate the mouth.
Grandpa TickTock is now in retirement at a private residence with occasional appearances at local museums.
Chris does Grandpa TickTock's voice:
It's kind of amazing that J.P. was able to turn an inanimate rubber chicken into a character that almost every child could recognize. And, although he auditioned for the part, Bob Newman did not play Tikey Turkey.
Tikey was originally named "Kevin Turkey" however, after complaints came in that kids named "Kevin" were starting to get teased, Chris, being the compassionate person that he was, changed his name. "Tikey" was Chris's nickname given by his mother when he was little.
Tikey always slept in the oven.
Esmerelda speaks!
A vocal, Raggedy Ann doll whose laugh or cry could always be heard on the set. She was later joined by her smaller sister, Isoldi. At the end of each show, J.P. would send Esmerelda (and the rest of us!) off to catch the school bus.
A loyal, but inactive dog, Griswald licked J.P.'s face every morning before he woke. Don't confuse Griswald with Snarly, Boris S. Wort's dog who looks exactly like Griswald, but is evil!
Griswald speaks!
Sturdley had an insatiable appetite for paper and would consume, literally, any book placed on his bookshelf. Played by Jack Armstrong and Bob Newman.
J.P.'s froggy friend. Croaky voice by Bob Newman.
Carmen was Boris S. Wort's pet dragon. All we ever saw of Carmen was her vent-like nose. Above, J.P. and Ketchican trick Carmen into thawing out some frozen frpl fodder.
Carmen speaks!
The Tepokity Bird bounced around behind J.P. during the weather report. J.P. was always trying to catch it.
The sound of The Tepokity Bird:
Gertrude's pet pigs. Named, of course, after the neighbors in I Love Lucy.
Fred and Ethel:
Guardian Elephant looked very similar to Carmen the Dragon ( Hmmmm...)
Guardian Elephant speaks!
Heard but never seen (thank goodness!), Native American Chief Moon Ray's voice was a recording of the Lord's Prayer in Sioux.
JP and Gertrude talk about how Chief Moon Ray's voice was a jab at Seattle Police Chief Raymond:
And, last but not least...
Orphaned son of planet Kronkton, Never seen in the company of J.P. hmmm...
Boris suspects J.P. is SuperKlown:
Director Joe Towey meets SuperKlown:
