Monster of the Day #3336

Bill Jackson passed away the other day at the age of 86. That will be of import almost entirely to Chicago natives of a certain age–my age, to be exact. Back in the day, because of the powerhouse WGN–arguably the most influential independent TV station in the country back in the ’60s and early ’70s–Chicago was blessed with a slate of classic local weekday kids’ shows. Bozo the Clown was syndicated nationally, and pretty much everyone my age also grew up watching Ray Rayner and the Garfield Goose show.

Those shows were great, but eventually the upstart, cheapie UHF station–turn that dial, kids–WFLD Channel 32 challenged WGN with BJ and Dirty Dragon. The WGN hosts all seemed like kindly uncles, affectionate but (except for Rayner) a bit stiff, in their ’60s suits and ties. BJ, or Bill Jackson, was hipper, more in line with Jerry G. Bishop’s hippie-inflected Svengoolie. Indeed, Svengoolie filled in for Jackson on the odd week when Jackson was on vacation or whatnot.

I doubt you care, but there are clips of BJ and Dirty Dragon on YouTube. I once saw as a tyke one of his life stage shows of the program. Bill Jackson brought a lot of joy to a lot of kids. That is no mean legacy. Rest in Peace, BJ.

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Beckoning Chasm

Being the host of a kid’s show requires a very special talent. You can’t be too arch, and being too condescending will guarantee your failure.
Eric Hinkle

May he rest in peace.

Out in my neck of the woods the kiddie shows and their hosts included Captain Kangaroo, Sally Starr, and something I vaguely remember called Hatchy Milatchy or the like.
bgbear_rnh

Today’s kids get “Blippi”. We do not need more immature adults.
bgbear_rnh

From southern California we had Sheriff John and Hobo Kelly.
Eric Hinkle

Never heard of them before but they sound like they were fun.
Eric Hinkle

What the heck is ‘Blippi’?
bgbear_rnh

Something that started on the internet/youtube and looks like a parody but kids like him.
Gamera977

RIP, sounds like they were pretty cool shows. We had only syndicated stuff like Mr. Rodgers and Capt. Kangaroo here. Still remember them fondly though.
Beckoning Chasm

Sounds like a social media thing, like TikTok or Twitch. “Hi fans, watch me play Reversi on Blippi!”
Eric Hinkle

The main thing about him I found online was some rant about how he wasn’t teaching children about the fragility of nature (I.e., we’re all going to die in five years, that sort of thing) and the dishonesty of capitalism and so forth.

So he must have some good points.
thunderclancat

He’s not bad, my 3 year old nephew likes him, he seems to be able to keep kids engaged in the subject, and he never seems to talk down to children. I did see an episode where he went into the woods and he advised treating nature with respect and not littering, and such like common sense. I don’t know if he’d be my first choice if I had a kid(heaven forbid) but you can do a heck of a lot worse.
The Rev.

Our local guy was Tim Poppen with “Puppin’s Place.” They came to perform at our local firehouse one time, and regularly had “Puppin’s in the Park” during the summer. I was heartbroken when he took a job in Des Moines and ended the show…but thrilled when he later came back to host the weekday afternoon cartoon block. A friend went and got a signed photo for me while I was in college, and it’s one of my most prized possessions.
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