An Interview With Hollywood Actor Paul Winchell

PLEASE EXCUSE THE AUDIO: I REPRODUCED THIS WITH A MICROPHONE TO MY COMPUTER FROM THE ORIGINAL TAPED INTERVIEW. I HAVE OVER 2 HOURS OF INTERIVEWS WITH PAUL. THIS IS A FIRST I'M RELEASING AND HOPEFULLY WILL REMASTER ONCE I HAVE THE RIGHT EQUIPMENT. -- THANKS -- JOHN

--some true facts about paul winchell:

--Winchell was an amateur medical inventor who patented an artificial human heart.

--Ventriloquist star from 1950s and 1960's television and films.

--His puppet side-kicks, Jerry Mahoney and Knucklehead Smiff, are now in the Smithsonian Institution.

--Skilled voice-over artist for many Disney and Hanna-Barbera films.

--Winchell worked for years developing his ideas on artificial hearts and was mentioned in the news stories about the Utah man who got the first artificial heart and later when the Jarvik heart came to the fore. He hold several patents in artificial organ development.

--Named television's most versatile performer by Look magazine in 1952 and 1953.

--Attended Columbia University, then studied and practiced acupuncture and hypnosis.

-Held patents on over 30 devices, a flameless cigarette lighter, an invisible garter belt, a method of breeding Tilapia fish so that poorer countries could feed their citizens, and an indicator to show when frozen food had gone bad after a power outage. As for his major achievement, the artificial heart, which he built in 1963was donated to the University of Utah for research.

--The first implant on a human happened in 1982.Paul Winchell invented the disposable razor which he neglected to get a patent on. when friends told him "Who would buy a razor just to throw it away?" Paul abandoned the idea, later to Winch's dismay, a major razor company proved Paul was right!

--Started his career with a puppet named Terry in 1936 on radio's "Major Bowes Original Amateur Hour," and earned first prize. When Paul was not satisfied with the figure that Frank Marshall had carved for him, It looked like Paul, he created Jerry Mahoney by modifying a stock figure (Noseyboy) from the Frank Marshall's line of dummies.

--His dim-witted Knucklehead Smiff puppet debuted in 1950 on TV's "The Spiedel Show," which was later renamed "What's My Name?" was a Jerry Mahoney that "Winch" later modified himself.

--became the voice for Tigger in 1968 for the Walt Disney Company's Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day (1968) which earned an Academy Award for best animated short. He retired the vocal role after 33 years with "Winnie the Pooh: Seasons of Giving" in 1999 at the age of 76. Jim Cummings, who voiced Pooh since the death of Sterling Holloway, took over the role of Tigger.

--Earned a 1974 Grammy award for Best Children's Recording with "The Most Wonderful Things About Tiggers" from the feature Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too! (1974).

-- He was also nominated for an Annie award for the animated feature _Pooh's Grand Adventure: The Search for Christopher Robin (1997)

--Credits his British born third wife Jean who came up with Tigger's signature phrase "TTFN," or "Ta-ta-for now."

--Other famous cartoon voices over the years included Gargamel in "The Smurfs," the mustache-twirling Dick Dastardly of "Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines" (1969) and Boomer in The Fox and the Hound (1981).

--Published the book "Ventriloquism for Fun and Profit" in 1954.

--He won a $17.8-million jury verdict in his lawsuit against Metromedia Inc. over Metromedia's destruction of the only remaining tapes of his "Winchell-Mahoney Time" (1965) children's television series. Metromedia, which produced the show from 1964 to 1968, erased the 288 tapes in a dispute with Winchell over the syndication rights.

-Died one day before the death of John Fiedler, who was the voice of Piglet in the animated Winnie the Pooh specials and films.

--In 1974, he earned a Grammy Award for best children's recording with "The Most Wonderful Things About Tiggers" from the feature "Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too."

--Recounts, in his autobiography, "Winch," about overcoming a severe childhood stutter, and tells about being severely abused by his mother.

--Was the voice for the "scrubbing bubbles" mascot for Dow Bathroom Cleaner, and after Dow sold its consumer products line to S.C. Johnson, the product was renamed to Scrubbing Bubbles.

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• paul
• winchell
• interview
• 1950's
• 1960's
• 1970's
• inventor
• cartoons
• hanna
• barbara
• winnie
• the
• pooh
• tigger

[jdrangers]

Thanks for this ''Winch'' was a real genius.Didn't he live in PalmSprings,or Sun City,in his later years?..Thanks!

[johnswackyworld]

@jdrangers palm springs

[classicandmore]

Excellent video. Great job.

[johnswackyworld]

thanks..just wish i could have it in better quality..in time in time! -- john

[CadillacL]

Even if we didn't know Paul voiced Tigger, you can sure tell in his speaking voice. Thanks for posting this :)

[JubalCalif]

What a delightful interview to listen to. I loved the late great Paul Winchell. What an incredibly gifter entertainer. I went to his website a few years ago (he was still alive then). For free anyone could download a book from his site about religon that he had written. Very intriguing work. A very intelligent man. It's amazing that he was able to overcome the abuse of his childhood. THANKS so very much for sharing this with us! May all your wishes & dreams come true in the New Year! :)

[telewatcher89]

@WrestlingHeretic I don't see how your opinion is supposed to "help" me, but I do see that you see me as a trator to the cause. I don't think it's great that the media has to shove the gay agenda down everyone's throats. Call it what you will, but I don't care for that kind of liberal garbage. People choose to be gay, we get it! But I wouldn't call that type of lifestyle normal. Also from looking at another post I see what your excuse is, but I deny and despise the gay agenda propaganda.

[WrestlingHeretic]

@telewatcher89

Paul Winchell was a rigid old man when he said this. I wonder what your excuse is. I agree that toilet humor is all too pervasive in TV and movies. But to equate toilet humor with the basic fact of human gayness just reveals the degree of your homophobia. I think it's great that gay people are presented in television as normal, everyday people. You know why? Because gay people are normal, everyday people. Hope that helps.

[WrestlingHeretic]

@Billyogiant

I deny God because I deny that imaginary supernatural characters are real. I can't imagine anything more confused than a nation in which 95% of people believe in the existence of something whose existence has actually not one iota of proof. Then, moreover, in the name of this sky superhero, denying proven facts that have mountains of evidence--- denying the fact of evolution, the fact that the earth is millions of years old, etc. By the way, Tigger isn't real either. HTH.

[ironbuttermilk]

@telewatcher89 Gays Do have it hard (no pun intended). One of the reasons is that it is much harder to find a good, long term relationship. Part of the problem is sheer numbers. Less people are Gay (by Alot!) so there's less potential partners from which to choose. Gay people have statistically far less chance of finding lasting love than heterosexuals do, and this can be quite depressing. The moral degradation of Western Culture is a pity, but it is not the fault of higher Gay acceptance IMHO.

[telewatcher89]

@ironbuttermilk I know certain groups of people always will get offended no matter what, but Mr. Winchell is right, morals seem to disappear as each year goes on. Just look at the trash that's on TV nowdays, the majority of it is sex based toilet humor. It also seems like at least one prime time show has to have a gay person in it. (Modern Family, Glee, How I met your mother, etc..) And nowdays if you don't agree that gays don't have it hard, you're a trator to the cause and must appologize.

[ironbuttermilk]

@matthwe3468 He specifically mentioned the people going up to San Francisco to get married, so that's what I was referring to.

[matthwe3468]

You got speaking to Dick Dastardly

[matthwe3468]

@ironbuttermilk He said GUYS!

[Kindsbach99]

I loved his TV show s a child and am impressed that he became a great heart surgeon and invented the mechanical heart.

[hare7777]

Fascinating interview.... kinda funny to hear his comments about the new voice of Tigger. :-) Interesting that he was talking about Internet and even predicting the spread of streaming videos... truly a very intelligent man who kept up with the times.