Remembering Jimmy Weldon
Remembering WWII veteran & entertainer Jimmy Weldon
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Episode #794 of Hometown Heroes, airing July 15-20, 2023, pays tribute to World War II veteran and entertainer Jimmy Weldon, who passed away July 6, 2023, just two months shy of his 100th birthday. Weldon, who served with the 1270th Engineer Combat Battalion in Europe during World War II, provided the voice for the memorable character “Yakky Doodle” on Hanna-Barbera’s Yogi Bear Show, and maintained the ability to tap into that talent, as we learned when he shared his story in a two-part interview with Hometown Heroes in 2016:
92-year-old WWII veteran Jimmy Weldon can still deliver a voice millions of Americans remember well. You’ll hear Jimmy’s story this weekend on Hometown Heroes.
Posted by Hometown Heroes Radio on Wednesday, March 16, 2016
Jimmy Weldon saluting the flag at American Legion Post 43 (photo from https://www.hollywoodpost43.org/)
A celebration of Jimmy’s life is being planned for American Legion Post 43 in Hollywood, CA, where he was proud to wear the title of Chaplain Emeritus. The post hopes to honor Weldon on what would have been his 100th birthday in September. You can read more about his life and legacy in this obituary from the Hollywood Reporter. He passed away in Paso Robles, CA, where he had moved after many decades in Burbank, filling his final decade with countless inspirational speeches through his non-profit, the Center for Youth Patriotism.
Born in Texas and raised in Oklahoma, Jimmy was one of three brothers to serve in World War II. He trained with the 146th Engineer Combat Battalion at Camp Swift in Texas, but left that assignment after a test qualified him for service as a pilot, navigator, or bombardier in the Army Air Corps.
The 146th would end up on Normandy’s Omaha Beach on June 6, 1944, losing 35 men from the battalion on D-Day. Jimmy found himself at Maxwell Field in Alabama, but three days before he was to begin pre-flight training, he was pulled out to rejoin the engineers.
Jimmy Weldon during World War II.
The Battle of the Bulge had begun, and replacements were needed right away. He went overseas with the 1270th Engineer Combat Battalion, heading first to Weston-super-Mare in England, then across to France, arriving in March, 1945. He helped construct pontoon bridges and clear minefields before an experience that would end up looming larger in his military memories than any other.
“I’ll never forget when we went through Buchenwald Concentration Camp,” he says. “We saw these people laying on these wooden slabs, reaching out under there trying to say ‘Thank you.'”
This episode of Hometown Heroes features more of what Weldon witnessed at Buchenwald, and why it was so hard to fathom the gravity and horror of what had happened there. You’ll also hear Weldon share two memorable encounters in the years since, including one chance meeting with a survivor of Buchenwald.
Jimmy’s late wife, Muriel, was an accomplished actress. They met in England after WWII.
He kept his performance skills sharp while overseas, emceeing programs when celebrities like Mickey Rooney would come through on USO tours. You’ll hear about how he met his wife, Muriel, in England after the war ended, how he ended up at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, and how a young man born Ivy Laverne Shinn came up with the name “Jimmy Weldon.” The duck voice he had practiced as a young boy in Oklahoma would take on new life as “Webster Webfoot” on radio and television, leading to his chance to bring “Yakky Doodle” to life for millions around the world. Gifted with an incredible memory to complement his unique personality and limitless enthusiasm, Weldon delivered countless motivational speeches and touched even more lives through his book, Go Get ‘Em Tiger: Becoming the Person You Want to Be.
Jimmy often related the story of his deathbed conversation with Muriel in 1988, joked about not knowing where she was, but lovingly longed for a heavenly reunion his friends know he’s now experiencing. His love for America colored each of his public appearances, often including a recitation of “Old Glory,” which you’ll hear him perform on Hometown Heroes, and can watch via video below:
The final words you’ll hear in this tribute episode express a sentiment that energized Jimmy Weldon as he lit up room after room with his passion for patriotism.
“How blessed we are to live in a country, greatest that was ever designed,” you’ll hear in his imitable voice. “Our freedoms we take for granted, yet we don’t really realize how blessed we are.”
To my favorite duck “Webster Webfoot”. I watched him in the early 1960’s. Well my parents apartments were down the street from J.C. Penny’s. I found out I begged my mother to take me. We arrived late and Jimmy Weldon was putting the puppet duck away. I walked up to him with a handful of pennies and said give these pennies to Webster Webfoot! Behind my back Jimmy handed them back to my mother… True story! I remember going to see him but didn’t know the real details until later in life as told by my mother and sister… RIP Webster Webfoot! RIP Jimmy Weldon! Thank you sir!