J. P. Patches

The J.P. Patches Show

The J.P. Patches Show was one of the longer-running locally produced children's television programs in the United States, having appeared on KIRO-TV in Seattle from 1958 to 1981. The show was live, unrehearsed improv with rarely more than two live actors on screen (Wedes and Bob Newman) but with frequent contributions from the sound effects man and off-camera crew.

J.P. Patches hosted his show twice a day every weekday for 13 years (plus Saturdays), then for the next 8 years did the morning show only, and finally for the last 2 years appeared on Saturday mornings only—for a total of over 10,000 hours of on-air time. The show premiered on April 5, 1958, as the second program ever broadcast by KIRO-TV, the first being a telecast of the explosion of Ripple Rock in Seymour Narrows, British Columbia, Canada. The show was immensely popular in the Puget Sound area and southwestern British Columbia, with children as well as their parents, who enjoyed J.P.'s frequent use of double entendre and sly subversiveness. Two generations of viewers grew up as "Patches Pals", sharing the joyful zany antics of J.P. with their kids. At the peak of its run, the Emmy-winning program had a viewership of over 100,000 in its local markets.

The J.P. Patches Show competed with two other local children's shows, Captain Puget on KOMO-TV, and Wunda Wunda and King's Klubhouse, both on KING-TV. Captain Kangaroo, CBS's own long-running children's show, saw its first half-hour preempted by KIRO-TV in favor of J.P. Patches.

After the TV show stopped airing, Wedes continued to portray J.P. at many public and private events over the years despite suffering in later years from incurable (but in remission) blood cancer. In particular J.P. spent many hours visiting sick children at Seattle Children's Hospital in Laurelhurst, for which Wedes never asked to be paid. In 2011, citing poor health, Wedes announced that he expected his final public appearance to be September 17, 2011. On July 22, 2012, Chris Wedes died after a long battle with multiple myeloma, a form of blood cancer. He was 84.

Premise

J.P. was the "Mayor of the City Dump", where he lived in a shack, the inside of which was the appropriately rough but colorfully-furnished studio set (currently on display at Seattle's Fremont Museum). He welcomed frequent guests: Seattle boy scout and girl scout troops, various local and national celebrities, and his cast of supporting characters: Sturdley the Bookworm, Esmerelda (portrayed by a Raggedy Ann doll), Ketchikan the Animal Man (a sort of Jack Hanna character), Boris S. Wort (the "second meanest man in the world"), LeRoy Frump (a character obviously based on Art Carney's Ed Norton), Tikey Turkey (a rubber chicken), Grandpa Tick Tock (a grandfather clock with an elderly face where the pendulum would be), The Swami of Pastrami, Ggoorrsstt the Friendly Frpl (a one-eyed brown shag carpet), Miss Smith (a motorcycle riding delivery woman who told mostly awful jokes), Superclown (a JP like superhero), J.P.'s evil counterpart P. J. Scratches (per official site I.M. Rags), and J.P.'s girlfriend, Gertrude. Virtually the entire supporting cast, male and female, human or non-human, was played by the versatile Bob Newman.

The city dump where J.P. lived is thought to be the Montlake Landfill, which was a real city dump from 1926 to 1966, but since 1972 has been athletic fields, a parking lot, and the Union Bay Natural Area of the University of Washington in the University District.

ICU2TV

J.P. announced the birthdays of selected Patches Pals by "viewing" them on his "ICU2TV" set (a cardboard prop that created the appearance that J.P. was looking at you from inside your television). He predicted where a gift might be hidden in the child's house with amazing accuracy (perhaps with the never-mentioned assistance of a postcard from a parent). The sound effect used was the same, distinctive ringtone of Cramden's "presidential hotline" telephone in Our Man Flint.

Origin

Broadcaster Daryl Laub created the J.P. Patches character in 1953 for WTCN-TV in Minneapolis, but when he left WTCN in 1955 for KSTP-TV, Chris Wedes (pronounced WEE-dus) took over the character from that point on. Wedes appeared on several WTCN programs. Besides J.P., his most notable character was Joe the Cook on WTCN's Lunch with Casey. Wedes brought J.P. with him when he moved to Seattle in 1958 to become KIRO-TV's first floor director. In addition to the long-running TV show, J.P. Patches made frequent fundraising appearances for local charities. He was a common sight at Children's Hospital, visiting sick kids and promoting the work of the hospital.

Late for the Interurban statue

On August 17, 2008 a bronze statue of J.P. and Gertrude was unveiled on North 34th Street, about 250 feet east of the intersection with Fremont Avenue North, in the Fremont section of Seattle. The unveiling date was to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the J.P. Patches show. The statue is called Late for the Interurban by sculptor Kevin Pettelle and is approximately 250 feet east of Waiting for the Interurban. The unveiling was attended by hundreds of Patches' Pals, including Washington Governor Christine Gregoire, Congressman Jim McDermott, King County Executive Ron Sims, and several members of the county and city councils; both Chris Wedes (J. P. Patches) and Bob Newman (Gertrude) were present. The event was emceed by Pat Cashman, and the keynote address was given by Wedes' 16-year-old granddaughter, Christina Frost.

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