Doctor Who: Jon Pertwee

The Third Doctor: Jon Pertwee
Pertwee The Man
Jon Pertwee the son of Roland Pertwee, a famous actor and playwright, was born July 9, 1919. Jon's real name was Jean Roland Perthuis (pronounced Pertwee) de Leillevault. He went on to star in the radio comedy The Navy Lark as well as staring in three of the popular "Carry On ..." films. (These films were take off of some big films of the time, e.g., "Carry on Cleo" was a take-off of Cleopatra starring Elizabeth and Richard, of course.) Pertwee also played in stage production of There's A Girl In My Soup on Broadway. In 1969 after finding out that Patrick Troughton was leaving Doctor Who, Jon had his agent contact the BBC about the role of the Doctor. As it turned out, BBC had already had Jon in mind and, both William Hartnell and Patrick Troughton were long time friends of the now third regeneration of the good Doctor.

Pertwee The Doctor
Jon Pertwee played the Doctor as a man-of-action versus Troughton's clown. (However, it must be remembered that up until the third regeneration, the series was considered by BBC as a children's show. Clearly, adult science fiction fanatics were drawn to Doctor Who by now and Jon regenerated accordingly.) The series took a whole new turn during his tenure. The Doctor was Earth bound; and, in exile by the Time Lords. He was now a member of the paramilitary force U.N.I.T as their scientific adviser. The show was now done in color and the budget was expanded. Pertwee (a colorful and energetic man and always interested in motor cycles, autos and speed boats) brought many of his own ideas to the show, including the flying-saucer-like Whomobile. Pertwee first stepped into the role in 1970 and played the Doctor until 1974.

Long after Mr. Pertwee left the show he always fondly remembered his time as the Doctor. He appeared at many of the Doctor Who Conventions and frequently made public appearances in costume. He returned to role for the twentieth anniversary special The Five Doctors in 1983 and for the 1993 thirtieth anniversary special Dimensions in Time, which was produced for the BBC's annual "Children in Need" telethon. He also starred as the Doctor in a stage production, The Ultimate Adventure, and radio drama, The Paradise of Death.

The End Of An Era
Jon Pertwee, actor, comedian, and entertainer, died in his sleep of an apparent heart attack on May 20th, 1996 while in New York visiting a friend. He was 77.

The Old Kunnel remembers many a Sunday evening spent watching the "Doctor Who" episode that was recorded the previous Saturday night. Jon's interpretation of this famous character a far cry from the Tom Baker versions he'd seen as a long ago introduction to the "Doctor Who" series. The Old Kunnel was first introduced to Doctor Three in "The Five Doctors." I knew a bit about the fact that he was exiled to Earth and was the scientific advisor for UNIT under Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart. Nothing could prepare me for the wonder and amazement I felt as I watched each of his early episodes or the sadness I felt as I watched his regeneration at the end of Planet of the Spiders. This last episode, BTW, is generally credited with being Jon's best at age 54.

The ol'Kunnel will always have a special place in his heart for the Doctor as played by the late Jon Pertwee.