# When You Were a Kid, What TV Character Did You Identify With/Want to Be? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 29, 2011, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158 "2011-10-29T05:18:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![PapSett](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecc23a/32.png) [@PapSett](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PapSett)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158/1 "2011-10-29T05:18:52Z")
Title pretty much sums it up. For me, I strongly identified with Ellie May Clampett from the Beverly Hillbillies because of our mutual love of ‘critters’. I _so_ wanted to be her, with her exotic pets, and thought she was SO pretty! I would have also loved to be Samantha Stevens from Bewitched. I thought she was beyond pretty and wouldn’t it be fun to have her power?? ---
**Author:** ![Alice\_The\_Goon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Alice\_The\_Goon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alice_The_Goon)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158/2 "2011-10-29T05:51:56Z")
Jamie Sommers, the bionic woman. ---
**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:** [October 29, 2011, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158/3 "2011-10-29T05:55:33Z")
I wanted to be Jonny Quest and James West. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158/4 "2011-10-29T06:06:56Z")
Perry Mason ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 7:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158/5 "2011-10-29T07:08:24Z")
(50’s kid speaking) ZORRO !!! ---
**Author:** ![Batsinma\_Belfry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ea5d25/32.png) [@Batsinma\_Belfry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Batsinma_Belfry)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 7:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158/6 "2011-10-29T07:18:01Z")
> [@PapSett](#): > > Title pretty much sums it up. > > For me, I strongly identified with Ellie May Clampett from the Beverly Hillbillies because of our mutual love of ‘critters’. I _so_ wanted to be her, with her exotic pets, and thought she was SO pretty! That’s my answer as well. I identified with her mostly because of her accent, but also the critters. ---
**Author:** ![Onomatopoeia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/onomatopoeia/32/4145_2.png) [@Onomatopoeia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onomatopoeia)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 7:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158/7 "2011-10-29T07:38:12Z")
Charlie Brown. I didn’t want to be him, but I definitely identified with him. It didn’t help that my mother bought me a Charlie Brown lunchbox with matching thermos, and an actual Charlie Brown polo shirt, with the unmistakable horizontal, black jagged stripe. Man, I loved that shirt.☹ ---
**Author:** ![PandaBear77](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@PandaBear77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PandaBear77)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 7:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158/8 "2011-10-29T07:49:55Z")
I wanted to be Murphy Brown minus the whole liberalism/single motherhood thing. I wanted to be a journalist at the time, so yeah. Murphy was badass. ---
**Author:** ![MostlyClueless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@MostlyClueless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MostlyClueless)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 8:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158/9 "2011-10-29T08:47:21Z")
“Howlin’ mad” Murdock. No wonder I turned out so well. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 8:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158/10 "2011-10-29T08:50:30Z")
Danny Partridge, or any character played by Johnny Whittaker. ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 9:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158/11 "2011-10-29T09:27:15Z")
Characters - Robin, Doogie Actors - Ricky Schroeder, NPH ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 10:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158/12 "2011-10-29T10:18:57Z")
Batman (Adam West version) ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158/13 "2011-10-29T11:07:48Z")
Spock, logically. ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 12:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158/14 "2011-10-29T12:00:07Z")
I wanted to be Laura Petrie; feared I would be Millie Helper; but knew really I would end up as Sally Rogers. And so I did! ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158/15 "2011-10-29T12:09:29Z")
Bunny Rabbit on Captain Kangaroo. Maybe that’s where I got the habit of slamming my forehead on the counter to emphasize my point. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158/16 "2011-10-29T12:14:33Z")
Mostly I wanted to be Mr. Spock. I really didn’t want to be ANY of the females that were portrayed on TV, not that I can recall right now, anyway. In my peer group, it was common for the kids to declare which actor/character from TV shows and movies that they wanted to be. And I was always the weird one who didn’t identify with a female, I identified with males. Yes, I’m heterosexual, and female…I just didn’t want to be a stereotypical ditzy female. ---
**Author:** ![Erdosain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/erdosain/32/7284_2.png) [@Erdosain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Erdosain)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158/17 "2011-10-29T12:20:07Z")
[B. A. Baracus](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B._A._Baracus). Only without the fear of flying. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158/18 "2011-10-29T12:25:00Z")
I wanted to be a Walton child. I wanted a functional family desperately. ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158/19 "2011-10-29T12:29:06Z")
Wanted to be: Batman (Adam West) Captain Kirk Identified with: Fat Albert & kinda Dr. Van Helsing. ---
**Author:** ![Stauderhorse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce7236/32.png) [@Stauderhorse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stauderhorse)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158/20 "2011-10-29T13:18:30Z")
The titular character from Hey Arnold! He was so cool and collected and had passion for a lot of different things. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-you-were-a-kid-what-tv-character-did-you-identify-with-want-to-be/601158.md?page=2)