JP Patches Statue 7/31/12

The recent death of local cultural icon J. P. Patches has reminded me of other children’s TV shows I watched devotedly in the 1960s.  Shari Lewis, Stan Boreson, Brakeman Bill, Captain Puget and Wunda Wunda were all entertaining and educational.

Wunda Wunda was the persona of Ruth Prins who was hired by Seattle’s KING-TV.  She wore a harlequin’s clown outfit (adorable) and told a story on every episode.  Back in the day, my mother was too busy with siblings and housework to take me to the local library.  But I had Wunda Wunda who told stories and showed illustrations on-the-air.  Later, we moved closer to a public library, and I knew all about libraries thanks to Wunda Wunda.

And Shari Lewis was much more than a puppeteer.  She wrote several books. I discovered them in the 1980s while I scoured the library shelves for cub scout activities.

Books that were read on these shows provided great reading fun for the children who watched them, many of them rushing to their local libraries to find the books.  History of Ruth Prin and her influence on the reading habits of young children can be found here http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=9355.

Books and material on these wonderful shows can still be found in libraries today, including my own library here at WSH where some of Stan Boreson’s and Shari Lewis’s material can be found on the shelf. The Washington State Library also carries a DVD, J.P. Patches Show and book J.P. Patches, Northwest Icon by Chris Wedes.  Many people remember their childhood shows and the books that were read on them.

Western State Hosptial

To re-new interest in the WSH Library, we began the year by participating in ILS Snapshot Day 1-11-11 and all branches shared stories and pictures on the State Library website.  A month later, a WSH Library newsletter was introduced on campus to highlight the collection’s offerings.  Starting mid-year, classes at the hospital treatment centers were entertained with a weekly show-n-tell—poetry—storytelling format library programming.  District #28 Rep. Troy Kelley accepted an invitation to visit the library and WSH history museum.  The Library is a major supporter of the hospital’s historical heritage and hosted a WSH Museum open-house in September.

In the spirit of thrift,  Eastern and Western State Hospital staff wrote to certain publishers to seek in-kind donations.  The donations received were shared with all 12 ILS branches.  The Forest Institute donated good quality psych education videos to the WSH Library.  Branches shared equipment and materials to maximize shelf-life.  WSH Staff and patients donated books, DVDs, music CDs and artwork throughout the year.