Fremont - J.P. Patches

Photo by:  Vicki Phebus

J.P. Patches Bronze Statue

My friend JoAnn told my sister, Vicki that one of her friends creates bronze statues and was having an exhibit at the Schack Art Center in Everett, WA.  She asked if we would like to go visit the exhibit with her.  This artist's name is Kevin Pettelle and not only is he an internationally acclaimed artist, he was named artist of the year at Schack Art Center.  This exhibit featured his celebrations of the human form.  The three of us visited the Art Center at 2917 Hoyt Avenue in Everett.  It is not only a gallery, but a home and loft space for various artists.  I will feature this gallery in a future blog.  The show was absolutely fascinating, and both Vicki and I became fans as well.  

In the course of tour conversation we learned Kevin had been commissioned for a number of public statues.  One of the them is the statue of J.P. Patches located just east of the Waiting for the Interurban statue on 34th Ave in Fremont.  So, of course, we made arrangements for the three of us to visit this statue, after being so impressed with the exhibit.

J.P. Patches was a clown portrayed by Seattle entertainer Chris Wedes. The J.P. Patches Show was one of the longer-running locally-produced children's television programs in the United States, having appeared on Seattle TV station KIRO channel 7 from 1958 to 1981. The show was live, unrehearsed improv with rarely more than two live actors on screen,  Chris Wedes as Patches and Bob Newman as his girlfriend, Gertrude.  It did, however, have frequent contributions from the sound effects man and the off-camera crew.

Photo by:  Vicki Phebus

 J.P.'s friend Gertrude 

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.  

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.

On July 22, 2012, Chris Wedes died after a long battle with multiple myeloma, a form of blood cancer. He was 84. 

Photo by:  Vicki Phebus

While visiting, JoAnn told us there was a message written in Bronze under Gertrude's skirt.  Of course, I had to climb down there and check it out.  She's right!  There is a secret message written down there.  Be sure to check it out.  

Vicki and I were so impressed we went to visit some of the other public statues Kevin Pettelle has created.  I will feature those in future blogs and give you a little more information about this amazing artist.  In the meantime you can check out his other creations at his website:  http://www.soulinbronze.com/