Anyone here remember JP Patches?

... you do if you're over 40 and grew up in Western Washington!

I was going through some older pix in the computer and found these. A couple years
ago, as a surprise, I hired JP Patches to come to our house to entertain us for my
wife's birthday party.

It was SUCH A BLAST!! We had around 100 people over - you mention that JP Patches
is going to be at your house, and folks come out of the woodwork! He stayed about
2 hours, and did a lot of really silly games, and silly contests, and then we all just devolved
into "... so tell us whatever happened to the "I See You Too TV" (was stolen from the
set when the show ended); what's Gertrude up to; what was your favorite episode..."
a zillion questions and anecdotes from JP... THAT was the really fun part!

It was just a blast. Anyway, just saw these pix and wanted to share among the NW
folks who might know who JP Patches is.

Note in the second-to-last pic, the young guy on the sofa is texting, while the 50-somethings
by the window are in rapt attention!

Jedi

Must have been 2007 or 2006 based on the fact I have hair and I ain't that fat these days!
Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

Yup. Every morning for years, just before going to school.
Also, that nutcase Bob Newman who played Gertrude (Miss City Dump), Boris S. Wart, Ketchican the Animal Man and Miss Smith Delivery......................

Patches Pals Unite!!
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

Sturdley the bookworm, Senobia the wicked witch, grandpa tick tock, mr Anouncer-man, Miss Smith, from the Miss Smith Delivery Service, Tikey Turkey, Boris S Wart, the second meanest man in the world, Ketchikan the Animal Man, Gorst the friendly Phurple, Griswold, Paddy Wagon, Swami of Pastrami, The Count...hmmmmm that is all I can remember at the moment. Never heard of JP, who's that Jedi?

 

LOL... oh, just some old clown dude


Jedi

 

Don't forget Esmerelda, Grand Father Clock

The I.C.U.TOO.T.V.

 

Has he forgotten how to smile? Looks kinda like he's suffering from 'roids.

I remember JP, and Cap'n Puget, and Brakeman Bill, and Stan Boreson. I had Robert O. Smith (Doctor Zingrr) over to my house once when I was young, after I won a prize in a Channel 13 Monster Movie contest.

 

I remember him, and I grew up in Eastern WA. Did he seem genuinely pleased that he still had so many fans? I would think that it would warm his heart, but you never know.

 

Ah, give him a break, he's got to be close to 90.

 

Whoa... Never heard of him, but now I am going to have to check underneath my bed tonight... Something about clowns...

 

I will add that yeah, he's OLD. But he was a HOOT from beginning to end. He
showed up in a new BMW and I was out there to greet him.... I was kind of staring,
because after all it was JP PATCHES, in MY DRIVEWAY! He said, "what? I sold the
clown car... Beemers are better"

Inside he was just as "double entendre" as he was when we were kids - doing little
asides and "inside jokes" - and trying hard not to laugh at his own jokes/silliness when
the group was all cracking up.

And yes, he LOVED having the crowd - probably 80 - maybe more - in our fairly
large living room / kitchen - it was PACKED. And at times he had us all near tears
we were laughing so hard.

I only wish the photos captured more of that - I was the video guy, and someone
else took the few photos we have, and alas had NO sense for "timing" in when to shoot.

Jedi

 

Yep I remember him too! Thanks for sharing and putting a smile on my face!

 

DJ, it was Grandpa TICK TOCK! (and I posted that)

And I remember the ICU TV Set....I was so upset every birthday that he never wished me a Happy Birthday....apparently my mom didn't have time to call the station.

 

Speaking of the TV, he was really kind of sad about it. He wanted to keep it as a
memento of the show, and the day they shot the last show, he asked the producers
or whomever if he could keep it - they said "sure"... except that someone had
already beat him to it and it was gone.

I like to think that some skankwad in Seattle met some foul doom for stealing an
old clown's special TV set .... I've always kept an eye out for it on the long-odds
chance it shows up in some antique store in the area.

Jedi

 

Thank you for bringing back some really great memories, i used to watch that show everyday before school and he even wished me a Happy B-day which i was so excited for. I have had the honor to meet him and gertrude twice in my life. So thank you again for making my day.

What has happened to TV since?

 

Thanks for the clarification. My memories are from the early 60's and a little foggy.
What great programming, goofy jokes and classic OLD cartoons, some from the 40's.
Good wholesome fun.

A relative of Bob Newman, (Gertrude), was my boss for a while in the 90's. The first time I heard his voice I thought I was hearing Gertrude! Uncanny!
I asked and sure enough, Bob was his Uncle.
He then opened his desk and handed me an autographed picture black-and-white of JP and Gertrude. I still have it here at work.

 

I grew up on JP Patches (real name Chris Wedes.)

I'll never forget when I was 9 years old my dad was shopping for a new car and we went into Michael's Buick in Bellevue, and JP Patches was doing a live appearance. My dad walked up to him and said "Hi Chris" and JP Patches said "Hi Arny"...

..."OH MY GOD" I thought. "My dad knows JP Patches. HE IS SO COOL!!!"

My dad also knew Bill The Beer Man really well, as well as some other NW institutions. Yup, my dad is cool.

 

Nothing's creepier than a clown. I'm just sayin'.

 

You are right Sammy your dad is a great man, i really enjoy talking to him at either RTC or at Belles. He has some real interesting stories and i enjoy listening to them.

 

UPDATE: I heard on the radio this morning that JP officially retired yesterday
and will not ever do his clown act again.

Sad, but golly he's pretty old - good for him on his retirement. I'm so glad we
got to have him right here in our house a few years ago. I still have my
autographed JP bobble head, still in the box

Long live Chris Wedes aka JP Patches!

Jedi

 

Indeed...........clowns can be scary/creepy.

 

I think that a lot of J.P.Patches humor was waisted on the kids because it was way above them sometimes. I watched with my little kids( Spasso) and laughed at all of his jokes. Bob 's(Gertrude) family sort of disowned him because of his doing the goofy TV thing.
Next Saturday and Sunday I will be doing my goofy thing at the Fresh Paint Art show...not as funny as JP tho.

 

He was a morning staple in our house when we lived on Bainbridge in the early 60's. I'm pretty sure that one phase of the show every morning meant that it was time to head to the school bus stop.
The world would be a much better place now if local broadcasting meant locally produced shows out of the studios every day rather than recycled reruns and infomercials.

Thanks for sharing this one. I think my sister did get her photo on there one year on her birthday. She even got to go to Uncle Jimmy's Clubhouse here in Yakima a few years earlier while I had to watch her on it at home when I got off the school bus.