Vance DeBar Colvig Jr. (March 9, 1918 – March 4, 1991) was an American actor and writer. He voiced the Chopper bulldog character on ''

The Yogi Bear Show ''The Yogi Bear Show'' is an American comedy animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions that centers on the misadventures of forest-dwelling bear Yogi in Jellystone Park. The show debuted in syndication on January 30, 1961 ...

''. In the 1980s, he made guest appearances in various films, television series, and music videos.

Career

Colvig began his career as a page at

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

. In the 1940s, he became a writer for such radio shows as ''

Breakfast in Hollywood ''Breakfast in Hollywood'' is a morning radio show created and hosted by Tom Breneman broadcast from 1941 to 1948 on three different radio networks: NBC Radio, NBC, Citadel Media, ABC and Mutual Broadcasting System, Mutual. These unscripted shows ...

'', '' Command Performance'', and ''

Bride and Groom Bride and Groom may refer to: * ''Bride and Groom'' (radio program) (1945-1950), an old-time radio program * ''Bride and Groom'' (TV series) (1951-1958), based on the radio show * Bride and Groom (rock formation) * ''Bride and Groom'' (book), a ...

''. On January 5, 1959, he became the first to portray

Bozo the Clown Bozo the Clown, sometimes billed as "Bozo, The World's Most Famous Clown", is a clown character created for children's entertainment, widely popular in the second half of the 20th century. He was introduced in the United States in 1946, and to te ...

on a franchised Bozo program licensed by

Larry Harmon Lawrence Weiss (January 2, 1925 – July 3, 2008), better known by the stage name Larry Harmon and as his alter ego Bozo the Clown, was an American entertainer.Dennis McLellanLarry Harmon, 83; entrepreneur made Bozo the Clown a star ''Los ...

. In the role his father

Pinto Colvig Vance DeBar Colvig Sr. (September 11, 1892 – October 3, 1967), professionally Pinto Colvig, was an American voice actor, newspaper cartoonist, and circus and vaudeville performer whose schtick was playing the clarinet off-key while mugging. Co ...

first portrayed on

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...

in 1946 and KTTV-TV in Los Angeles in 1949, Vance portrayed the whiteface clown Bozo on KTLA-TV in Los Angeles from 1959 to 1964. His best known cartoon voice is of the bulldog Chopper,

Yakky Doodle Yakky Doodle is a cartoon duck created by Hanna-Barbera Productions for the 1961 series ''The Yogi Bear Show''. Yakky's name is a spoof of "Yankee Doodle". History Yakky Doodle (voiced by Jimmy Weldon using the same buccal speech technique used ...

's best friend and protector on ''

''. He worked mainly as a popular character actor in numerous performances spanning the 1980s; many roles subtly express his clowning talent. He made guest appearances on TV shows including ''

The Golden Girls ''The Golden Girls'' is an American sitcom created by Susan Harris that aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, to May 9, 1992, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes, spanning seven seasons. With an ensemble cast starring Bea Arthur, Betty White ...

'', ''

Hill Street Blues ''Hill Street Blues'' is an American serial police procedural television series that aired on NBC in prime-time from January 15, 1981, to May 12, 1987, for 146 episodes. The show chronicles the lives of the staff of a single police station loca ...

'', and '' St. Elsewhere''. One of his last film roles is as a bum opposite

"Weird Al" Yankovic Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic ( ; born October 23, 1959) is an American singer, musician, songwriter, record producer, actor and author. He is best known for creating comedy songs that make light of pop culture and often parody specifi ...

in the 1989 cult comedy film ''

UHF Ultra high frequency (UHF) is the ITU designation for radio frequencies in the range between 300 megahertz (MHz) and 3 gigahertz (GHz), also known as the decimetre band as the wavelengths range from one meter to one tenth of a meter (on ...

''. He appeared on a 1990 episode of the TV series ''

Night Court ''Night Court'' is an American television sitcom that aired on NBC from January 4, 1984 to May 31, 1992. The setting was the night shift of a Manhattan municipal court presided over by a young, unorthodox judge, Harold "Harry" T. Stone (portray ...

'' playing a bum. He enjoyed playing several characters at

Knott's Berry Farm Knott's Berry Farm is a theme park located in Buena Park, California, owned and operated by Cedar Fair. In 2015, it was the twelfth-most-visited theme park in North America and averages approximately 4 million visitors per year. It features 40 ...

amusement park and at trade shows. He appeared in commercials and music videos. His cameo appearances in music videos include

David Lee Roth David Lee Roth (born October 10, 1954) is an American rock singer. Best known for his wild, energetic stage persona, he was the original lead vocalist of the hard rock band Van Halen across three stints, from 1974 to 1985, in 1996 and again fro ...

's 1985 cover of " Just a Gigolo" as a female cleaner, and

Gregg Allman Gregory LeNoir Allman (December 8, 1947 – May 27, 2017) was an American musician, singer and songwriter. He was known for performing in the Allman Brothers Band. Allman grew up with an interest in rhythm and blues music, and the Allman Br ...

's 1987 "

I'm No Angel ''I'm No Angel'' is a 1933 pre-Code film directed by Wesley Ruggles, and starring Mae West and Cary Grant. West received sole story and screenplay credit. It is one of her films that was not subjected to heavy censorship. Plot Tira (Mae West ...

" as a gas station attendant. He identifies himself by name on the second

Negativland Negativland is an American experimental music band which originated in the San Francisco Bay Area in the late 1970s. They took their name from a Neu! track, while their record label (Seeland Records) is named after another Neu! track. The core ...

album ''Points'' (1981). On the track "A Nice Place to Live", his live remote broadcasts from the Los Angeles and Contra Costa county fairs are sampled.

Personal life

Colvig was married to Virginia G. Arslanian until his death in 1991. They had a son, Vance DeBar Colvig III.Mother and Wife of Vance Colvig -page 3-
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Death

Colvig died March 4, 1991 of cancer at his

Hollywood Hills The Hollywood Hills are a residential neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Geography The Hollywood Hills straddle the Cahuenga Pass within the Santa Monica Mountains. The neighborhood touches Studio City, Univer ...

home, five days before his 73rd birthday.

Select works

Film and television

*''

The Quick Draw McGraw Show ''The Quick Draw McGraw Show'' is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, and their third television series overall after ''The Ruff and Reddy Show'' and ''The Huckleberry Hound Show''. Voice actor Daws But ...

'' (1959, TV Series) - Narrator / Tombstone Jones (voices) *''

'' (1961, TV Series) - Chopper (voice) *''

Death Valley Days ''Death Valley Days'' is an American old-time radio and television anthology series featuring true accounts of the American Old West, particularly the Death Valley country of southeastern California. Created in 1930 by Ruth Woodman, the program ...

'' (1966, TV Series) - Dusty *''

Fred Flintstone and Friends ''Fred Flintstone and Friends'' is an American animated anthology wheel series and a spin-off of ''The Flintstones'' produced by Hanna-Barbera and Columbia Pictures Television that aired in daily first-run syndication from September 12, 1977 to ...

'' (1977-1978, TV Series) *''For the Love of It'' (1980, TV Movie) - Old Hippie *''

American Pop ''American Pop'' is a 1981 American adult animated jukebox musical drama film starring Ron Thompson and produced and directed by Ralph Bakshi. It was the fourth animated feature film to be presented in Dolby sound. The film tells the story of f ...

'' (1981) - Hobo #1 *'' St. Elsewhere'' (1982-1984, TV Series) - Bum / Mr. Pechar *''

Three's a Crowd ''Three's a Crowd'' (also known as ''Three's Company, Too'' in the ''Three's Company'' syndication package) is an American sitcom television series produced as a spin-off continuation of ''Three's Company'' that aired on ABC from September 25 ...

'' (1985, TV Series) - Wino *'' The Boys Next Door'' (1985) - Old Man *''

Amazing Stories ''Amazing Stories'' is an American science fiction magazine launched in April 1926 by Hugo Gernsback's Experimenter Publishing. It was the first magazine devoted solely to science fiction. Science fiction stories had made regular appearances i ...

'' (1985, TV Series) - Vaudevillian #1 *''

My Chauffeur ''My Chauffeur'' is a 1986 American comedy film produced by Crown International Pictures and Marimark Productions starring Deborah Foreman, Sam J. Jones, Howard Hesseman and E.G. Marshall. It was written and directed by David Beaird. The origina ...

'' (1986) - Doolittle *'' Odd Jobs'' (1986) - Chairman *'' Barfly'' (1986) - Alcoholic Man *''

Yogi's Treasure Hunt ''Yogi's Treasure Hunt'' (originally titled ''The Funtastic Treasure Hunt'') is an American animated television series and the fifth entry in the ''Yogi Bear'' franchise produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, featuring Yogi Bear and various other ...

'' (1986-1987, TV Series) - Chopper (voice) *''

Maid to Order ''Maid to Order'' is a 1987 American comedy/fantasy film. It is a variation on the Cinderella formula, where the fairy godmother is not the means to a better life for the heroine, but rather the nemesis. Rather than doing so out of malice, thoug ...

'' (1987) - Man with Newspaper *'' Dudes'' (1987) - Hezekiah *'' Boys Will Be Boys'' (1987, TV Series) *''

Pass the Ammo ''Pass the Ammo'' is a 1987 American comedy film starring Bill Paxton, Annie Potts, Linda Kozlowski and Tim Curry. The film is a spoof of televangelism released right after the real-life scandals related to Jim Bakker and Jimmy Swaggart. The movi ...

'' (1988) - Fritz *'' Crime Story'' (1988, TV Series) - Billy Jones *''

Track 29 ''Track 29'' is a 1988 psychological drama film directed by Nicolas Roeg and starring Theresa Russell, Gary Oldman, Colleen Camp, Sandra Bernhard, Seymour Cassel, and Christopher Lloyd. It was produced by George Harrison's HandMade Films with Ri ...

'' (1988) - Me. Ennis *''

Mortuary Academy ''Mortuary Academy'' is a 1988 American comedy film starring Christopher Atkins and Perry Lang. The film was released on DVD in full screen with no extras in 2005. Plot summary Sam (Christopher Atkins) and Max Grimm (Perry Lang) inherit the Grimm ...

'' (1988) - Uncle Willard *''

Arizona Heat The Arizona Heat was a women's softball team based in Tucson, Arizona. From the 2004 season, it played as a member of National Pro Fastpitch. The team's home games were played at historic Hi Corbett Field. Six of the players on the 2006 roster p ...

'' (1988) - Mr. Gordon *''

Big Top Pee-wee ''Big Top Pee-wee'' is a 1988 American comedy film directed by Randal Kleiser. A stand-alone sequel to '' Pee-wee's Big Adventure'' (1985), the film stars Paul Reubens as Pee-wee Herman with Susan Tyrrell, Kris Kristofferson, Penelope Ann Miller ...

'' (1988) - Clownie *''

All's Fair ''All's Fair'' is an American television sitcom from Norman Lear that aired one season on CBS from 1976 to 1977. The series co-starred Richard Crenna as a conservative political columnist and Bernadette Peters as a liberal photographer, and th ...

'' (1989) - Old Man *''

Hard Time on Planet Earth ''Hard Time on Planet Earth'' is an American science fiction television series that aired on CBS as a midseason replacement from March 1 to June 21, 1989. Airing for 13 episodes, the series starred Martin Kove and was created by Jim Thomas (scree ...

'' (1989, TV Series) - Fan #2 *''

'' (1989) - Bum *''

'' (1990, TV Series) - Bum *''

Mother Goose Rock 'n' Rhyme ''Mother Goose Rock 'n' Rhyme'' (also known as ''Shelley Duvall's Mother Goose Rock 'n' Rhyme'' or ''Shelley Duvall's Rock in Rhymeland'') is a 1990 American musical television film that aired on the Disney Channel. The film stars Shelley Duvall a ...

'' (1990, TV Movie) - Dungeon Warden *''

The New Adam-12 ''Adam-12'' (also known as ''The New Adam-12'') is a Broadcast syndication, syndicated revival of the Adam-12, 1968–1975 series of the same name. Like the original, this program focused on the daily jobs and lives of two police officers whose p ...

'' (1991, TV Series) - Wino *'' Boris and Natasha: The Movie'' (1992, TV Movie) - One-Eyed Man (final film role, posthumous release)

Radio

*''

'' (1941–1948) - Writer *'' Command Performance'' (1942–1949) - Writer *''

'' (1945–1950) - Writer

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Colvig, Vance 1918 births 1991 deaths 20th-century American male actors American male film actors American male television actors American male voice actors American radio writers Deaths from cancer in California Male actors from Los Angeles Male actors from San Francisco