In 1932, a silver lining arrived during the cloud of the Great Depression in Los Angeles, California. To his parents, he was Robert Harold Adkins. In the frantic golden age of 1960's AM radio, a city of teenagers in Portland Oregon would rave to The Beatles and hail the hip messenger named Bob Adkins that served it up on their transister radios. To a generation of baby-boomers in Oregon, he would also and forever be known and remembered as Addie Bobkins, the king of Portland cartoons.
Most of the public wouldn't have known that Adkins did a stint for Uncle Sam in the United States Air Force during the Korean conflict in the early 1950's. When Adkins put his feet back on native soil near the end of 1955, he launched a career in radio and television that led to increasing popularity and identity with local audiences. He had an upbeat persona, wide eyes, an ever-present smile and was pretty handy with an acoustic guitar. This made him a natural with young audiences.
During his career, he landed at several radio stations including stints on stations KLIQ, KWJJ, KXL and KEX. From 1957 to 1961, he introduced audiences to the "peanut gallery" of children's television as the host of the Addie Bobkins Show on KVAL–TV in Eugene. His popularity grew large enough that a larger station and market soon came calling at KPTV-12 in Portland. From 1961 to 1964, he hosted three children's programs on KPTV and also had a radio slot on the most popular station in town at the time: KISN-91 AM. Addie Bobkins delighted kids with fast-paced humor, antics and a wise-cracking beatnik hand puppet named "Weird Beard". And all of this segued between Popeye cartoons, hyperactive kids, Archway cookies and Duncan yo-yo's.
In the fall of 1964, Adkins took a gamble and accepted another television offer bringing him and his family to Hollywood and Los Angeles. His spot on KPTV was filled by "Ramblin Rod" Anders who continued in what would be the longest running show of its kind in America. He didn't stay in California very long. The Northwest had his heart and he and the family eventually returned. Ever a gentleman, he refused to consider displacing Rod Anders when KPTV proposed. Instead, he explored other opportunities in radio. Besides, he was a family man with a wife and two kids.
In the 1970's, he landed at KKEY and pursued a new direction in talk radio. Family life, church and other interests competed with his time. Although he never returned to the limelight and frenetic schedule of his KPTV/KISN years, he was never too far from the limelight and always ready to entertain when called upon.
Ill health prevented him from a longer life. He retired to Marion County and lived at a retirement community in Woodburn. At age 72, Bob Adkins passed away. But a generation of Oregonians will not soon forget their hip KISN pied piper and the childhood friend they had in Addie Bobkins.
Most of the public wouldn't have known that Adkins did a stint for Uncle Sam in the United States Air Force during the Korean conflict in the early 1950's. When Adkins put his feet back on native soil near the end of 1955, he launched a career in radio and television that led to increasing popularity and identity with local audiences. He had an upbeat persona, wide eyes, an ever-present smile and was pretty handy with an acoustic guitar. This made him a natural with young audiences.
During his career, he landed at several radio stations including stints on stations KLIQ, KWJJ, KXL and KEX. From 1957 to 1961, he introduced audiences to the "peanut gallery" of children's television as the host of the Addie Bobkins Show on KVAL–TV in Eugene. His popularity grew large enough that a larger station and market soon came calling at KPTV-12 in Portland. From 1961 to 1964, he hosted three children's programs on KPTV and also had a radio slot on the most popular station in town at the time: KISN-91 AM. Addie Bobkins delighted kids with fast-paced humor, antics and a wise-cracking beatnik hand puppet named "Weird Beard". And all of this segued between Popeye cartoons, hyperactive kids, Archway cookies and Duncan yo-yo's.
In the fall of 1964, Adkins took a gamble and accepted another television offer bringing him and his family to Hollywood and Los Angeles. His spot on KPTV was filled by "Ramblin Rod" Anders who continued in what would be the longest running show of its kind in America. He didn't stay in California very long. The Northwest had his heart and he and the family eventually returned. Ever a gentleman, he refused to consider displacing Rod Anders when KPTV proposed. Instead, he explored other opportunities in radio. Besides, he was a family man with a wife and two kids.
In the 1970's, he landed at KKEY and pursued a new direction in talk radio. Family life, church and other interests competed with his time. Although he never returned to the limelight and frenetic schedule of his KPTV/KISN years, he was never too far from the limelight and always ready to entertain when called upon.
Ill health prevented him from a longer life. He retired to Marion County and lived at a retirement community in Woodburn. At age 72, Bob Adkins passed away. But a generation of Oregonians will not soon forget their hip KISN pied piper and the childhood friend they had in Addie Bobkins.
In 1932, a silver lining arrived during the cloud of the Great Depression in Los Angeles, California. To his parents, he was Robert Harold Adkins. In the frantic golden age of 1960's AM radio, a city of teenagers in Portland Oregon would rave to The Beatles and hail the hip messenger named Bob Adkins that served it up on their transister radios. To a generation of baby-boomers in Oregon, he would also and forever be known and remembered as Addie Bobkins, the king of Portland cartoons.
Most of the public wouldn't have known that Adkins did a stint for Uncle Sam in the United States Air Force during the Korean conflict in the early 1950's. When Adkins put his feet back on native soil near the end of 1955, he launched a career in radio and television that led to increasing popularity and identity with local audiences. He had an upbeat persona, wide eyes, an ever-present smile and was pretty handy with an acoustic guitar. This made him a natural with young audiences.
During his career, he landed at several radio stations including stints on stations KLIQ, KWJJ, KXL and KEX. From 1957 to 1961, he introduced audiences to the "peanut gallery" of children's television as the host of the Addie Bobkins Show on KVAL–TV in Eugene. His popularity grew large enough that a larger station and market soon came calling at KPTV-12 in Portland. From 1961 to 1964, he hosted three children's programs on KPTV and also had a radio slot on the most popular station in town at the time: KISN-91 AM. Addie Bobkins delighted kids with fast-paced humor, antics and a wise-cracking beatnik hand puppet named "Weird Beard". And all of this segued between Popeye cartoons, hyperactive kids, Archway cookies and Duncan yo-yo's.
In the fall of 1964, Adkins took a gamble and accepted another television offer bringing him and his family to Hollywood and Los Angeles. His spot on KPTV was filled by "Ramblin Rod" Anders who continued in what would be the longest running show of its kind in America. He didn't stay in California very long. The Northwest had his heart and he and the family eventually returned. Ever a gentleman, he refused to consider displacing Rod Anders when KPTV proposed. Instead, he explored other opportunities in radio. Besides, he was a family man with a wife and two kids.
In the 1970's, he landed at KKEY and pursued a new direction in talk radio. Family life, church and other interests competed with his time. Although he never returned to the limelight and frenetic schedule of his KPTV/KISN years, he was never too far from the limelight and always ready to entertain when called upon.
Ill health prevented him from a longer life. He retired to Marion County and lived at a retirement community in Woodburn. At age 72, Bob Adkins passed away. But a generation of Oregonians will not soon forget their hip KISN pied piper and the childhood friend they had in Addie Bobkins.
Most of the public wouldn't have known that Adkins did a stint for Uncle Sam in the United States Air Force during the Korean conflict in the early 1950's. When Adkins put his feet back on native soil near the end of 1955, he launched a career in radio and television that led to increasing popularity and identity with local audiences. He had an upbeat persona, wide eyes, an ever-present smile and was pretty handy with an acoustic guitar. This made him a natural with young audiences.
During his career, he landed at several radio stations including stints on stations KLIQ, KWJJ, KXL and KEX. From 1957 to 1961, he introduced audiences to the "peanut gallery" of children's television as the host of the Addie Bobkins Show on KVAL–TV in Eugene. His popularity grew large enough that a larger station and market soon came calling at KPTV-12 in Portland. From 1961 to 1964, he hosted three children's programs on KPTV and also had a radio slot on the most popular station in town at the time: KISN-91 AM. Addie Bobkins delighted kids with fast-paced humor, antics and a wise-cracking beatnik hand puppet named "Weird Beard". And all of this segued between Popeye cartoons, hyperactive kids, Archway cookies and Duncan yo-yo's.
In the fall of 1964, Adkins took a gamble and accepted another television offer bringing him and his family to Hollywood and Los Angeles. His spot on KPTV was filled by "Ramblin Rod" Anders who continued in what would be the longest running show of its kind in America. He didn't stay in California very long. The Northwest had his heart and he and the family eventually returned. Ever a gentleman, he refused to consider displacing Rod Anders when KPTV proposed. Instead, he explored other opportunities in radio. Besides, he was a family man with a wife and two kids.
In the 1970's, he landed at KKEY and pursued a new direction in talk radio. Family life, church and other interests competed with his time. Although he never returned to the limelight and frenetic schedule of his KPTV/KISN years, he was never too far from the limelight and always ready to entertain when called upon.
Ill health prevented him from a longer life. He retired to Marion County and lived at a retirement community in Woodburn. At age 72, Bob Adkins passed away. But a generation of Oregonians will not soon forget their hip KISN pied piper and the childhood friend they had in Addie Bobkins.
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