Linn Sheldon (September 20, 1919 – April 23, 2006) was a
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S ...
-based
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
children's television
Children's television series (or children's television shows) are television programs designed for children, normally scheduled for broadcast during the morning and afternoon when children are awake. They can sometimes run during the early evenin ...
host and actor, best known for his character "Barnaby," which was seen in Cleveland for over 30 years.
Biography
Born Linn Richard Sheldon in
Norwalk, Ohio
Norwalk is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Huron County. The population was 17,012 at the 2010 census. The city is the center of the Norwalk Micropolitan Statistical Area and part of the Cleveland-Akron-Canton Combined ...
, Sheldon had spent the majority of his childhood either homeless or in foster care. He served in the
U.S. Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...
during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, returning to his hometown and working as a nightclub act, later starting on
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S ...
television
Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...
in 1948. He became a well-known local radio and television personality in the Cleveland market, especially as the host of the children's show ''Barnaby''.
Barnaby
The character "Barnaby" was originally an elf with pointy ears, with a straw hat who lived in the "Enchanted Forest" and showed cartoons (mostly "
Popeye
Popeye the Sailor Man is a fictional cartoon character created by Elzie Crisler Segar.Woodrow the Woodsman" - became popular in his own right and was spun off into his own series).
"Barnaby" aired on Cleveland
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
affiliate KYW (now WKYC) channel 3 from 1957-1967. Sheldon would then reprise the character on then upstart independent Cleveland station
WUAB
WUAB (channel 43) is a television station licensed to Lorain, Ohio, United States, serving the Cleveland area as an affiliate of The CW. It is owned by Gray Television alongside low-power Telemundo affiliate WTCL-LD (channel 6) and Shaker Hei ...
channel 43 (which is now Cleveland's CW affiliate).
"Barnaby" aired on channel 43 from 1969 until 1990. The character was modified a bit in this new incarnation. He went from being an elf to more of a kindly older gentleman, who wore his trademark straw hat, an ascot, a blue blazer, and khaki slacks. The program also switched from taking place in the "Enchanted Forest" to Barnaby's cottage (and towards the end, "Barnaby Park", which resembled a typical suburban park complete with park benches).
"
Casper the Friendly Ghost
Casper the Friendly Ghost is the protagonist of the Famous Studios theatrical animated cartoon series of the same name. He is a pleasant, personable and translucent ghost, but often criticized by his three wicked uncles, the Ghostly Trio.
The ...
" cartoons became a fixture during Barnaby's WUAB tenure, as well as puppet characters such as:
* "Long John" - the world's only invisible parrot (an empty birdcage which Sheldon supplied a voice for)
* "Clyde" - a little fellow who idolized Barnaby and wore a straw hat and sunglasses
* "O.T. the Other Terrestrial" - an alien character that was created in the early '80s due to the popularity of the film ''
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' (or simply ''E.T.'') is a 1982 American science fiction film produced and directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Melissa Mathison. It tells the story of Elliott, a boy who befriends an extraterrestrial, d ...
''
* "Ranger Rupert" - a dog puppet who was the park ranger at Barnaby Park.
The theme music for "Barnaby" was "A La Claire Fontaine," an arrangement by
Robert Farnon
Robert Joseph Farnon CM (24 July 191723 April 2005) was a Canadian-born composer, conductor, musical arranger and trumpet player. As well as being a composer of original works (often in the light music genre), he was commissioned by film and ...
of an old French lullaby.
Sheldon would famously end the show with: "If anybody calls, tell them Barnaby said hello. And tell them that I think you are the nicest person in the whole world... Just you." As a result, the character is remembered for the
catchphrase
A catchphrase (alternatively spelled catch phrase) is a phrase or expression recognized by its repeated utterance. Such phrases often originate in popular culture and in the arts, and typically spread through word of mouth and a variety of mass ...
"Tell them Barnaby said Hello."
During his entire time as "Barnaby," Sheldon would frequently make personal appearances, especially in hospitals, to entertain and cheer up sick children.
Sheldon made headlines in 1975 when he sought treatment for alcoholism.
During the '70s and into the early 1980s, Sheldon (while also doing ''Barnaby'') co-hosted a daily morning talk show titled ''43 A.M.'', which was WUAB's version of the popular '' Morning Exchange'' airing on rival
WEWS
WEWS-TV (channel 5) is a television station in Cleveland, Ohio, United States, affiliated with ABC. It has been owned by the E. W. Scripps Company since its inception in 1946, making it one of two stations that have been built and signed on by ...
(Cleveland's ABC affiliate).
Sheldon ended his run as "Barnaby" in 1990 and went into retirement. He released his memoir ''Barnaby and Me'' in 2003 and died in Lakewood, Ohio on April 23, 2006.Sheldon profile - Cleveland Seniors.com /ref>
References
Further reading
Sheldon, Linn (2004). ''Barnaby and Me''. Cleveland, OH: Gray & Company, Publishers.
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Sheldon, Linn
1919 births
2006 deaths
Television personalities from Cleveland
People from Norwalk, Ohio
American male actors
American children's television presenters
United States Army personnel of World War II