RIP Mr. Whipple!

Those of us who grew up in the 60s had a lot of friendly faces in TV commercials telling us the best cat food (Morris for 9 Lives) what to drink (Mrs. Olson for Folgers), what was the best dish soap (Madge for Palmolive), the best paper towel (Rosie for Bounty) or the best washing machine (Maytag Repair Man). & for 21 years there was Mr. Whipple telling us "Please, don't squeeze the Charman!" Dick Wilson (Riccardo DiGuglielmo), the actor who played him passed away Monday at the age of 91. He was the last of the original icons. While they replaced Morris & the Maytag Repair Man, it was never quite the same. The originals were just that, original. Regular people who you knew you could trust. OK, I will admit the bears are cute, just not the same.

Here are a few of the commercials where Mr. Whipple told us to do the 1 thing it was impossible to not do, not squeeze the Charman.

Something tells me there will be a rash of Charman squeezing the next few days. I'm sure Dick Wilson would approve.

Arrivederci paisan!