Jimmy Weldon

Jimmy Weldon was an American retired voice actor, ventriloquist, and former television host. He was best known for voicing the character of Yakky Doodle.

Weldon died on July 6, 2023 at the age of 99.

20th century

 * The Yogi Bear Show (1961-62)
 * Yakky Doodle (32 episodes)
 * Yakky Doodle ("Live and Lion," 1961)
 * Yakky Doodle ("Yogi's Birthday Party," 1961)
 * Yogi Bear's All-Star Comedy Christmas Caper (1982)
 * Zoo keeper #2
 * Yakky Doodle

Other roles
Weldon was the host and ventriloquist in the locally produced television series The Webster Webfoot Show, in which he did performing acts with his puppet Webster Webfoot. He developed the character while he began his career in 1946 as a disc jockey at KWCO, the radio station which began its operations shortly after he returned home following World War II. He was the first announcer hired at this new radio station. In 1948, Weldon moved to Duncan, Oklahoma, where he performed on KRHD for two more years. WFAA in Dallas, Texas recruited Weldon as an entertainer, where Webster became a television personality on April 4, 1950, on The Webster Webfoot Show, produced locally by station WFAA-TV.

With the help of singing cowboy Jimmy Wakely, Weldon eventually moved to Hollywood, California on September 5, 1952, joining KCOP-TV (now KCOP), Channel 13, to continue his television career. He was then hired by producer Ralph Edwards to become co-hosts of a children's game show titled Funny Boners, a junior version of his Truth or Consequences radio and television shows, which aired on NBC. In 1956, Weldon moved to Fresno, California, which began a career in the San Joaquin Valley at KFRE-TV. This was interrupted, however, when NBC executives called them to New York to replace Shari Lewis on the Hi, Mom show on NBC station, WRCA-TV, Channel 4. In 1959, Channel 13 in Hollywood once again became his television home, until he was called back to the San Joaquin Valley in 1961. He continued performing their show on KJEO-TV, Channel 47, in Fresno, California, throughout the 1960s. During this time, Weldon and Webster also did TV shows in Salinas and Bakersfield, California, flying their airplane from city to city for those shows.

Weldon also appeared in episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Dragnet, The Waltons, S.W.A.T., B.J. and the Bear, Dallas, The Rockford Files, Diff’rent Strokes and It’s a Living.

His last on-screen credit was in an episode of the Disney XD show The 7D, "Bing Bong Beans!", in which he voiced the salesman Beansie McBean-Bean.

Behind the scenes

 * Yakky Doodle's voice was based on Weldon's character of Webster Webfoot.
 * Weldon was a WWII veteran and helped liberate the Buchenwald concentration camp under Gen. George S. Patton. He also had a YouTube channel named Jimmy's Lecture, in which he mainly documented stories from his time in the United States Army.