What was your childhood like; family, friends, etc? Did any of these
later influence your career decisions or even characters in your
productions?
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I had a great childhood in a much more innocent atmosphere than
children have today. It is no accident that I made Cartoon Town a
simple little village - in many ways it mirrored my home town. And,
yes, many of my puppet characters took on some of the more eccentric
characteristics of people I knew there.
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What was your favorite cartoons and cartoon characters, and did any
of them influence your creations?
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I loved newspaper comic strips and comic books. My favorite comic
strip was Al Capps' " Lil' Abner " , and my favorite comic books were
from Disney. When I was nine years old I use to copy ( not trace )
the covers of the Donald Duck comics. Many years later I became a
close friend of Jack Hannah, the director of the Donald Duck film
shorts. Among the many influences on the development of my
characters, both Al Capp and Walt Disney, very different in style
and substance, rank quite high on the list.
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Where did you go to school and/or how did you learn your skills?
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I graduated from the University of Missouri's School of Journalism
with a major in tv production. Tv was in its beginning phases when
I was in college, and I switched from advertising to this incredible
new wonderment that appeared in a box in your living room. The
journalism school helped me develop writing skills, and I had been
enjoying cartooning from a very young age. My interest in puppetry,
however, came much later.
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What have been the highlights of your long and incredible career?
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Highlights? More than space allows, but included would be graduating
from college; serving my army stint as a writer, director, and staff
artist for the Armed Forces Radio & Television Service in Hollywood;
eventually coming to the big city of Chicago; twice winning the
National Association of Television Program Executives' award for the
best locally produced children's television show in America;
Gigglesnort going into national and international syndication; and
being overwhelmed by the " Evening with Bill Jackson " presented at
the Chicago Museum of Broadcast Communications.
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The shows I get asked about all the time are "Gigglesnort Hotel",
"BJ and the Dirty Dragon", and "Cartoon Town". Could you tell us a
little bit about each show, what inspired you to make them, and what
your experiences working on the shows were like?
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Cartoon Town came first. For it I added some new characters to my
cadre ( Mother Plumtree, The Old Professor, Wally & Weird, etc. ) and,
as mentioned above, created a little town reminiscent of the little
towns from my childhood. The puppet characters were combinations of
people I had known and to some degree aspects of my own personality.
Weird was based on someone I knew in Chicago. Dirty Dragon was based
on a good friend I had in Indianapolis. Into the Cartoon Town
setting, I poured as much creative fun as I could: Whozit, Drawing to
Music, The Blob, The Lemon Joke Kid, the serials, Faces in Clouds,
Hokey Theatre Players, The Thumptwangers, and other efforts. When the
station changed my time slot, I changed Cartoon Town to The B.J. &
Dirty Dragon Show and made it a live audience show patterned after the
stage shows I had done. It was not successful, and after a short
period The B.J. & Dirty Dragon Show kept its name, but returned to
the Cartoon Town format, this time with two puppeteers in tow who
added immensely to the production of show. The Gigglesnort Hotel
was influenced by John Cleese's Fawlty Towers show, and was my effort
at the " worthwhile " programming demanded by the F.C.C. Each show
had a character-building theme, and I tried to present that theme in
the most fun way possible, using many of the characters I had
developed for Cartoon Town. Doing these shows was the most demanding
challenge I've ever had - and the most fun I ever had in my
professional life.
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Where exactly did you get your ideas from for these shows?
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My imagination is the cornerstone of everything I create, and I've had
a vivid imagination since childhood - one of God's blessings.
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Of all of your productions, what was the one you enjoyed working on
the most?
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I immensely enjoyed working on Gigglesnort, but the answer is Cartoon
Town, because for Gigglesnort to qualify for F.C.C. approval as
worthwhile programming, I had to stick to one theme, but for Cartoon
Town I could allow my imagination to present a variety of things.
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Was there anyone that you have enjoyed working with the most during
your career? Who were they and why was it such a great experience?
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I've enjoyed working with a great many people: directors, puppeteers,
engineers, stagehands, you name it. Certain people stand out, but to
name them might imply disparagement of others, and I don't want to do
that.
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Your shows have developed a huge cult following, with not only people
who originally watched the shows, but new generations who are seeing
them for the first time. Did you ever think they would get so popular?
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No. I am very touched and appreciative that there are people who
harbor such fond memories of my efforts and I'm delighted when I hear
that parents are now introducing my shows to their children. Think
about that. How many parents introduce shows to their kids?
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Have you thought about doing new projects, or do you have any in
the making?
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I pitched my last children's show presentation in the mid 1980's. The
era of locally produced children's shows was over and the networks
were not and are not interested in children's television. I am
not "teachy " enough for PBS and am not considered worthy enough for
Nickelodeon. I am not working on anything for commercial consumption,
but I have a heck of a lot of fun creating " stuff " for myself, my
family, and my friends.
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What is your outlook on children’s television today, and how it
compares to the shows you grew up with and the shows you created?
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I'm not up on today's television for children, because it's mostly
cartoons that don't seem to interest me. I do regret that some
programs portray parents as buffoons, and what used to be considered
smart-aleck talk is thought to be humorous. In that regard, there's
a huge difference between my shows and today's offerings.
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Looking back on your career, is there anything you would have done
differently, or added to your long list of accomplishments?
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I would not have done much differently, but I would have loved to have
done everything better. The truth is, I think I was just getting
warmed up when the era ended.
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Based on everything you’ve seen and done in the business, what sort
of advice could you give those who aspire to also become successful
in children’s programming?
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I have no idea how to become successful in children's tv programming
today other than to say that whereever you find that rare animal being
pursued, insert yourself into its environment; get in the door in any
position and work from within. And pursue it only if you thoroughly
enjoy it. To be successful at any creative effort, it must not be a
job, it must be a passion.
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Absolutely perfect! I can't express what a privilege it was being able
to do this interview with Bill. He has made a lasting impression,
not only in children's television, but in the lives of the people
who grew up watching him. He is an amazing person who will always
be remembered. Thank you for this.
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