# Which grown-up characters had something that seemed unacceptably childish? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 13, 2015, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307 "2015-12-13T05:00:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![oara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/b77776/32.png) [@oara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/oara)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307/1 "2015-12-13T05:00:54Z")
Shirley Feeney had Boo-Boo Kitty, and I couldn’t buy the idea that a grown-up would have that awful thing. Cliff Huxtable had pajamas very similar to those that my mother had bought for me, but he was a grown man and pajamas were for kids. Actually, it might be more interesting to think of stuff that we totally didn’t have the perspective to see as incongruous at all, but I for one can’t think of anything right now. ---
**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:** [December 13, 2015, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307/2 "2015-12-13T05:03:42Z")
Radar O’Reilly had a teddy bear. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307/3 "2015-12-13T05:11:12Z")
I was always kinda disturbed by the holodeck in STNG. It’s the 23rd century, they’re flying around the galaxy in a starship, and the height of adult entertainment is LARPing? ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307/4 "2015-12-13T05:17:28Z")
On “Cheers”, Diane kept in her bedroom a menagerie of stuffed animals that she each gave a name to. ---
**Author:** ![oara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/b77776/32.png) [@oara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/oara)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307/5 "2015-12-13T05:59:05Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > I was always kinda disturbed by the holodeck in STNG. It’s the 23rd century, they’re flying around the galaxy in a starship, and the height of adult entertainment is LARPing? At the time, the holodeck seemed cool to me in principle, but I’d feel pissed off that they always used it for something lame and ordinary like being a western or playing cards or I can’t think of what else now. Like the writers wanted to have an ordinary sitcom instead. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 6:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307/6 "2015-12-13T06:42:42Z")
> [@oara](#): > > Shirley Feeney had Boo-Boo Kitty, and I couldn’t buy the idea that a grown-up would have that awful thing. This would make an interesting poll. ---
**Author:** ![epbrown01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7ba0ec/32.png) [@epbrown01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/epbrown01)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 10:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307/7 "2015-12-13T10:02:10Z")
I don’t know about the rest of the male characters choices, but Leonard on TBBT and his superhero underwear is not just childish, it’s kinda creepy. If everyone else has them - and Sheldon seems likely - that’s creepy too. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307/8 "2015-12-13T12:09:14Z")
Mr. Howell on Gilligan’s Island had a teddy bear. It always struck me as one step too ridiculous even for that show. ---
**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:** [December 13, 2015, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307/9 "2015-12-13T12:52:30Z")
Steven Taylor from classic **Doctor Who** had a teddy bear. He had been stuck alone on a planet and he used it like Wilson in \*\* Cast Away\*\*. ---
**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:** [December 13, 2015, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307/10 "2015-12-13T13:45:58Z")
Not _too_ childish but, Kojak had those lollipops, like he was trying to quit smoking or something. ---
**Author:** ![SirRay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cc9497/32.png) [@SirRay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SirRay)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307/11 "2015-12-13T14:08:15Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > Not _too_ childish but, Kojak had those lollipops, like he was trying to quit smoking or something. Yeah, that was the idea (_from wiki_) > [@](#): > > trying to quit smoking became common in the 1970s. To cut down on his own habit, Kojak began using lollipops as a substitute ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307/12 "2015-12-13T16:41:58Z")
> [@epbrown01](#): > > I don’t know about the rest of the male characters choices, but Leonard on TBBT and his superhero underwear is not just childish, it’s kinda creepy. If everyone else has them - and Sheldon seems likely - that’s creepy too. Many of the male clothing choices on TBBT seem childish. In the early seasons I would have sworn that Howard’s outfits were adult Garanimals, and wondered if that was the only way he was able to dress himself. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307/13 "2015-12-13T17:20:13Z")
Petrocelli (I think I watched this show once) was always sucking on Life Savers. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307/14 "2015-12-13T17:21:34Z")
Penny on _ **TBBT** _ also has a collection of stuffed animals. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307/15 "2015-12-13T17:25:31Z")
In addition to many other quirks, Maynard G Krebs collected tinfoil and petrified frogs. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307/16 "2015-12-13T17:42:47Z")
> [@epbrown01](#): > > I don’t know about the rest of the male characters choices, but Leonard on TBBT and his superhero underwear is not just childish, it’s kinda creepy. If everyone else has them - and Sheldon seems likely - that’s creepy too. Isn’t the whole point of the show laughing at grown men for being into childish things? ---
**Author:** ![MrAtoz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MrAtoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrAtoz)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307/17 "2015-12-13T17:45:40Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Penny on _ **TBBT** _ also has a collection of stuffed animals. There was an episode where Sheldon pointed out her hypocrisy in making fun of the guys for their “stupid and childish” collectibles when she herself collects Care Bears, Beanie Babies, My Little Ponies, and Hello Kitty. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307/18 "2015-12-13T21:12:54Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > Mr. Howell on Gilligan’s Island had a teddy bear. It always struck me as one step too ridiculous even for that show. Gilligan not only had a lucky rabbit’s foot, he actually believed it worked. Of course it did, just not in the way he had hoped. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307/19 "2015-12-13T21:16:55Z")
> [@epbrown01](#): > > I don’t know about the rest of the male characters choices, but Leonard on TBBT and his superhero underwear is not just childish, it’s kinda creepy. If everyone else has them - and Sheldon seems likely - that’s creepy too. Superhero underwear is sold in adult sizes in every Target, Walmart, and Kmart in this country. ---
**Author:** ![Ranger\_Jeff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranger_jeff/32/2065_2.png) [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307/20 "2015-12-13T21:24:07Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Gilligan not only had a lucky rabbit’s foot, he actually believed it worked. Of course it did, just not in the way he had hoped. I believe it was Rincewind the Wizzard who once declared, “My middle name is ‘Luck’. Mind you, my first name is ‘Bad’.” [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-grown-up-characters-had-something-that-seemed-unacceptably-childish/740307.md?page=2)