Art Clokey
I’m putting this here because I’ve seen it nowhere else. It’s actually crazy to see how this man’s death has hardly caused a blip in the media. I only saw this because Stephanie posted it on her Facebook (thanks!). It’s also Asian American related because my son LOVES Gumby. He’s 3.5 years old, and when we got a Gumby video from the library, he watched it until he knew almost every line by heart. Gumby has been around for generations, and he will continue to be around for generations more, forever hanging out with his horse pal Pokey.
Art Clokey, the creator of Gumby, has died. I didn’t know anything about him before this morning, but I can say that his creation still amazes me. Here’s something else that you probably didn’t know:
Despite Gumby’s positive demeanor, his origins stem from tragedy. When Clokey was 9, his father was killed in a car crash. He lived with his mother for a while, but when her second husband made her choose between him and her son, Clokey was sent to an orphanage. Fortunately, he was adopted by a good family. But Clokey wouldn’t forget his father, whose head shape – characterized by a cowlick hairdo – would later provide the inspiration for Gumby’s trademark lopsided head.
Sending your son to an orphanage sounds really bad, but his mother’s situation becomes a bit more understandable when you think about the fact that 89 years ago was 1930, a time when:
1. society didn’t let women work for livable wages
2. the Great Depression was just getting underway
Rest in Peace, Art Clokey.
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