RIP - "Wallace"

    Bill Thompson (l.), better known as Wallace of  The Wallace and Ladmo Show, passed away yesterday at the age of 82.

    For you non-Phoenicians, TW&LS was a local afternoon kid's show that aired from 1954 to 1989.  That's 36 years, an enormous amount of time for such a venue.  Ladmo (r.) passed away in 1994.  AFAIK, Gerald (center, played by Pat McMahon) is still alive and kicking.

    The show was enormously popular in its heyday, with kids going into near ecstasy if they could get on the show and receive a Ladmo Bag.

    And no, I was never on it, being an adult when I moved here.  But I used to play pinball at the bowling alley where Ladmo bowled in a league.  And it was a lot of fun to say to whatever stranger was on the machine next to me, "Psst.  Hey buddy!  That's Ladmo over there!"  It was always met with initial disbelief, followed by prolonged staring, and then strange looks at me for pointing it out.

   FWIW, the show itself and Ladmo have their own Wikipedia entries.  But neither Wallace nor Gerald do.  Somebody really needs to do something about this.