John Avery Whittaker
Main Character on Adventures in Odyssey
John
Avery Whittaker is one of the more well-known residents of Odyssey, and
everyone calls him Whit. Mr. Whittaker doesn't particularly like being
called "Whit" by the kids at Whit's End, his shop, but that
attitude seems to have changed a bit over the years. Mr.
Whittaker opened up Whit's End, an ice cream and discovery emporium because of his
late wife, Jenny Whittaker. John is an old man, strong in his Christian
beliefs, and uses Whit's End as his ministry. His ministry has now
reached into Connellsville with a Whit's End in the Oswald
Heights section of town. Having two versions of Whit's End proves to be stressful
on John, but he hires new employees to help relieve the stress. Whit is
also an inventor, his major inventions being the Imagination Station, the
Room of Consequence, and the Transmuter. His closest friend is Tom Riley,
and they share some amazing adventures throughout the series.
Mr.
Whittaker resides in his mediocre home, along with his son
Jason
Whittaker, who
stays with him as well. Mr. Whittaker does not believe in valuing the
things of this world so he continues to live modestly in an average
home. As the founder of the Universal Press Foundation, Whit has helped
compile information for an encyclopedia. Whit enjoys writing short stories in
his spare time and has published a few books, as well as articles
printed in the Odyssey Times newspaper.
Mr.
Whittaker left for an archeological expedition to the Middle East when
Eugene
Meltsner and
Bernard
Walton were
taking a road trip to California. While in the Middle East, Mr. Whittaker
had some exciting archaeological adventures, and eventually Whit came back to
run Whit's End again.
In
his early days, John Avery Whittaker earned a purple heart award from President
Roosevelt for his act of bravery saving an Englishman named Reginald Duffield. Also, Mr. Whittaker worked with the National Security Agency for
some time with Tasha
Forbes. However, from
his conversations with Connie, he doesn't like to talk about that aspect
of his past.
Throughout his many years of running
Whit's End, he has discovered that the kids keep coming for the
timelessness of the shop and not necessarily the inventions. He learned
his lesson when he tried to enhance the Whit's End experience by
revamping and renaming his store to The W.E. Whit's ministry at Whit's
End has opened up many other opportunities for ministry, including
little league, Kids Radio broadcasts, teaching children about the Bible,
and many more.
Whit has certainly had his share of peril
on the show. Mr. Whittaker lost his son Jerry to the Vietnam war. Jerry
is survived by Jason and Jana Whittaker, Whit's two other children.
Also, Whit suffered a mild heart attack, discovered a fully clothed
skeleton in the basement of Whit's End, and other minor details. He has
had run-ins with Dr. Regis Blackgaard, heard news of Whit's End's
foreclosure during his archaeological days, and even had to endure a
world-threatening, mind controlling plot by Novacom.
Although Mr. Whittaker is able to
communicate with the kids who visit Whit's End, his downfall seems to be
his lack of strong relationships with his very own family. Communication
barriers have barred the Whittaker household for years.
-
John Avery Whittaker first appeared in
the Adventures in Odyssey episode
Whit's Flop and
has been on the show pretty consistently ever since (with the
exception of his traveling to the middle east).
-
Mr. Whittaker has been played by two
actors: Hal Smith and
Paul Herlinger. Hal
Smith's passing left the AIO team at a loss of Odyssey's main
character. Eventually, the show picked up Paul Herlinger, who has
been an amazing stand-in ever since.
-
Whit's Imagination Station invention
has taken on many forms over the years. Originally, the Station
could only hold one person per adventure. However, it eventually
held two people, and currently, the Imagination Station can hold up
to ten people.
-
Mr. Whittaker is a die-hard Andy
Griffith fan. He even keeps an autographed photo of him in the
safe at Whit's End.
Back to Citizens of
Odyssey
