# "He's a real actor? I remember him from that kids' show!" **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 17, 2021, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759 "2021-01-17T22:51:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2021, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759/1 "2021-01-17T22:51:21Z")
This one is about recognizing someone from a kids’ show (Saturday morning, ideally) turning up in a “real” (Prime Time, ideally) program. For example, when “The Love Boat” started, I recognized Gopher (Fred Grandy) as being “that guy from Monster Squad” ([Monster Squad - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monster_Squad)) - a program about the night watchman at a wax museum who helped the wax versions of classic monsters to fight crime. Please post your own examples… ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2021, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759/2 "2021-01-17T22:56:04Z")
Morgan Freeman. I first knew him from being in the cast of the PBS educational series _The Electric Company_ in the early 1970s, when I was a little kid. Then, in the late '80s and early '90s, he finally started getting big movie roles, but I kept thinking about him as Easy Reader, his Electric Company character, and asking “What about Naomi?” [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/nnT4zzHz2BQ/hqdefault.jpg) ](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/nnT4zzHz2BQ/hqdefault.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2021, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759/3 "2021-01-17T23:32:32Z")
Not quite the same maybe, but I remember reading Robert Reed was sorely put out that he would probably forever be known as Mr. Brady on _The Brady Bunch_ and not as the serious actor he considered himself. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2021, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759/4 "2021-01-17T23:41:43Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Morgan Freeman. I first knew him from being in the cast of the PBS educational series _The Electric Company_ in the early 1970s, when I was a little kid. Then, in the late '80s and early '90s, he finally started getting big movie roles, but I kept thinking about him as Easy Reader, his Electric Company character, and asking “What about Naomi?” A behind-the-scenes example from The Electric Company; the show creator and head writer was Paul Dooley, the actor who was the father in Sixteen Candles and Breaking Away. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2021, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759/5 "2021-01-17T23:53:56Z")
Paul Dooley! I may remember him from “A Mighty Wind” and from being one of the more peculiar judges on “The Practice.” Another example. I was watching “Sleeper” some years back and one guy looked very familiar - because he was Spencer Milligan - Rick Marshall of “The Land of the Lost.” ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2021, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759/6 "2021-01-17T23:54:34Z")
Robert Reed, with a mustache and a British accent, showed up on Wonder Woman in the 1970s. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2021, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759/7 "2021-01-18T00:09:34Z")
_Pee Wee’s Playhouse_, which is considered a cult show for adults now, did run (1986-90) on CBS’s Saturday morning kids’ shows line-up. And of course it featured early roles for Laurence Fishburne, Phil Hartman, and _Law and Order_’s S. Epatha Merkerson. ETA: great minds think alike? ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2021, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759/8 "2021-01-18T00:09:48Z")
Lawrence Fishburn as Cowboy Curtis in _Pee Wee’s Playhouse_ [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3VdDIHJkbQ) ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2021, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759/9 "2021-01-18T01:55:42Z")
Not an actor, but, speaking of The Electric Company, that was my first exposure to Tom Lehrer. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/91BQqdNOUxs/hqdefault.jpg "Tom Lehrer - "Silent E"") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91BQqdNOUxs) ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2021, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759/10 "2021-01-18T03:14:17Z")
Kind of the opposite, but see if you recognize a future children’s show host in this video: [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/-cHVfynwev4/hqdefault.jpg "Worst Girlfriend In The World - Therapy") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-cHVfynwev4) ---
**Author:** ![ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chockfullofheadygoodness/32/511_2.png) [@ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2021, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759/11 "2021-01-18T03:14:22Z")
When BBC America was having one their many many Star Trek:The Next Generation marathons, my son asked about Geordi “Is that the Reading Rainbow guy?” ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2021, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759/12 "2021-01-18T03:20:40Z")
Another kind of opposite: Tim Matheson from TV and movies and National Lampoon magazine was the original voice of Jonny Quest – his name was spelled differently. (How did he do that voice at the age of 17?) ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2021, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759/13 "2021-01-18T20:57:15Z")
Dendarii Dame notes that Deidre Hall (of Emergency and Days of Our Lives) was in “Electrawoman and DynaGirl” first… ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2021, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759/14 "2021-01-18T21:08:07Z")
George Carlin is a foul-mouthed standup comic?! But he played Mr. Conductor on “Shining Time Station”! ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2021, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759/15 "2021-01-18T21:20:47Z")
Ringo Starrr played him as well. ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2021, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759/16 "2021-01-18T22:09:43Z")
> [@ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](#): > > When BBC America was having one their many many Star Trek:The Next Generation marathons, my son asked about Geordi “Is that the Reading Rainbow guy?” I did the same thing back when _ST:TNG_ originally aired. Come to think of it, I think that was the first time I realized actors could play more than one role. I was old enough to understand that the people on TV were actors, but I think I thought the actors on TV just played the same part their entire career. When I saw the guy from _Reading Rainbow_ on _Star Trek_ it clicked that actors can be in more than one show and play more than just one role. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2021, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759/17 "2021-01-18T22:20:43Z")
You mean the guy from _Roots_? ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2021, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759/18 "2021-01-18T22:23:36Z")
I think you can figure out approximately how old someone is by whether they think of LeVar Burton as the guy from _Roots_, the guy from _Reading Rainbow_, or Geordi from _Star Trek, The Next Generation_. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2021, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759/19 "2021-01-18T22:39:14Z")
Yep (that’s what I was getting at). I think of him as Geordi, first, because I was 12 or so when Roots was shown and didn’t watch it. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2021, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759/20 "2021-01-18T23:28:59Z")
> [@WildaBeast](#): > > I think you can figure out approximately how old someone is by whether they think of LeVar Burton as the guy from _Roots_ , the guy from _Reading Rainbow_ , or Geordi from _Star Trek, The Next Generation_ . Are you talking about the guy on _Perception_? He was in other stuff? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hes-a-real-actor-i-remember-him-from-that-kids-show/930759.md?page=2)