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 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 ...

. 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, ABC and Mutual. These unscripted shows were spontaneous and involved much audience partici ...

'', '' 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. 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. C ...

first portrayed on Capitol Records 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'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'', ''

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 in the 1989 cult comedy film '' UHF''. 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'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" 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 co ...

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 Bu ...

'' (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 t ...

'' (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 ...

'' (1985, TV Series) - Vaudevillian #1 *'' My Chauffeur'' (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 mov ...

'' (1988) - Fritz *'' Crime Story'' (1988, TV Series) - Billy Jones *'' Track 29'' (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 Mil ...

'' (1988) - Clownie *'' All's Fair'' (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 and John ...

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

'' (1990, TV Movie) - Dungeon Warden *'' The New Adam-12'' (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