Brakeman Bill--Pacific Northwest TV Icon

 Brakeman Bill McLain, whose children's program on channel 11  in Tacoma was broadcasted across the Pacific Northwest via cable, passed away at 96.

McLain, whose show did the usual kid's program thing, cartoons and birthday shout-outs, would dress as a railroad brakeman while playing straight man to a wise cracking sock puppet known as Crazy Donkey.  Brakeman Bill had a very friendly demeanor, while seemingly exasperated by Crazy's antics.  

Although the Brakeman Show had been off the air for decades, he still has a Facebook fan club with well over 2 thousand members.  Quite a testimony to the power of his personality. 

Going Strong At 90--Happy Birthday, Brakeman Bill!

With so many of the great local characters slipping away from us, it was great to read Brakeman Bill's 90th birthday.  Bill McLain had a children's program in the 60s and 70s on KTNT which later would become KSTW.  Because the Tacoma based station had no network affiliation at the time, it was broadcast in cable across the state. 
Brakeman Bill would wear overalls and a hat reminiscent of a train worker.  His sidekick was a hand puppet named Crazy Donkey. 

Where Are They Now (1985)?: "Brakeman Bill" McLain (Part Two)

It's kind of  chilling think of a nostalgic "where are they now" piece on Brakeman Bill, running in 1985, almost 30 years ago.  The Brakeman Bill  aired in the afternoon on KTNT channel 11 out of Tacoma.  The station no network affilliation, so it ran mostly reruns, syndicated shows, news, and sports.  It became available by cable in the Walla Walla area, where I grew up, in the late  60s. The station was what was known in the business as a "superstation", since it had no network affiliation, it would run on cable stations throughout the state. 

The Brakeman Bill Show ran in the afternoon, about the time children would come home from school, it featured Bill McLain as a railroad worker with the Puppet Crazy Donkey. As a grown-up, you wonder what a Brakeman would have to do with a donkey.  

My favorite show at the  time on channel 11 was the "Dennis The Menace" reruns.  The show had actually been cancelled years earlier.  Eventually, the station would be known as KSTW, while still remaining a superstation.  It showed the Tacoma Cubs, Puget Sound Loggers, and later on the Seattle Super Sonics and the Seattle Mariners.    We still have channel 11, hear in Maple Valley, but rarely watch it.