Gordon Jump, who died the other day at age 71, was the kind of actor I really like: A guy who worked constantly. He is best remembered for playing the befuddled boss at radio station WKRP in Cincinnati and for succeeding Jesse White as the lonely Maytag repairman. But take a gander at this list of credits over at the Internet Movie Database. The guy was on everything…and that list isn't even close to complete. For example, it omits two pilot-specials he appeared on in 1976-1977 that attempted to turn the Archie comic books into an odd cross of a variety show and a situation comedy. Audrey Landers played Betty, Hillary Thompson played Veronica, Derrell Maury played Jughead and there's a bizarre story about who played the title role of Archie Andrews. (I'll tell it here tomorrow unless I forget.) I was working for the company that produced the shows and while I wasn't assigned to the project, I was the only person on the premises who knew the comics and for some reason, that made the producers think my opinion was worth something. They kept calling me in and asking, "Does this guy look like Moose? Would this actor make a good Dilton Doily?" (I just recalled who played Moose's girl friend, Midge. It was Sue Blu, who has since become one of the top voice directors in the cartoon business.)
One afternoon, they called me in to watch a very nervous actor read some lines as either Archie's father or Mr. Weatherbee. I forget which one it was. I immediately recognized Gordon Jump from an episode of Harry O I'd seen the night before and told him he'd been very good in it. He said, "Well, I'll see what I can do to lower your opinion of me" and everyone in the room laughed. He then proceeded to read the scene with the lady casting director playing Archie…and you could see that all the producers and execs in the room immediately said to themselves, "This is the guy." After he left, they all verbalized their agreement and that was it…except that when the casting concluded a few days later, they still had one role unfilled. Someone suggested that since Jump was so good in the part for which he'd auditioned, he could probably handle this other one. So he was switched from playing Mr. Andrews to Mr. Weatherbee or vice-versa. Whatever it was, no one apparently told Gordon. He showed up for the first day of rehearsal with the wrong part all memorized.
This did not throw him one bit because he was every inch the professional. In fact, the screw-up seemed right in keeping with the kinds of characters he usually played. He took a copy of the script, went off into a corner by himself for fifteen minutes, and came back in the correct role. In his last few years when he taught an acting workshop, he often told that story. Someone who took the course told me that. She also told me it was the best "how to audition" class she ever encountered. Given how often Gordon Jump auditioned and got the job, that's not surprising.
One other thing I should mention: Gordon Jump spoke what was, to me, one of the all-time funniest lines in the history of TV situation comedies. It was…
If you don't know the episode, you can read about it here or, better still, watch for that installment of WKRP. If you do know the episode, you're laughing right this minute.
