Gordon Jump

Born Alexander Gordon Jump, in Dayton, Ohio, Jump wanted to be an actor since he saw his first Western film as a child. Jump's father was an unsuccessful actor. Jump graduated from Centreville High School in 1951 and enrolled into Otterbein College in Westerville, Ohio. He graduated from Otterbein in 1955. In 1957, Jump graduated with a degree in journalism from Kansas State University, where he was a member of Kappa Sigma Fraternity and worked for KSDB, the Kansas State student radio station. He began his career working at radio and television stations in Manhattan, and then in 1959 moved to Topeka, Kansas. There, he did the weather on WIBW-TV; in 1960, he performed on the station's weekday after-school children's program as "Wib the Clown," then had to change clothes quickly and wipe off the clown makeup in order to report the weather on the local evening news, which followed.[2]

In September 1961 he returned to Dayton and joined WLWD (now WDTN) as the station's director of special broadcast services. He continued as a producer and on-air personality at WLWD, hosting Gordon Jump's Fun Time, a popular show for younger children, and High Time, a variety series, before moving to Los Angeles in 1963 to pursue acting.

Jump's first break on television was a guest role in the series Daniel Boone. During the 1960s, he landed minor roles in television on such shows as Get Smart, Lancer, Here Come the Brides, and Green Acres. He also guest-starred in a number of series during the 1970s including The Rockford Files, A Touch of Grace, Paul Sand in Friends and Lovers, The Incredible Hulk (in an October 1978 episode called "Ricky"), The Lost Saucer, Starsky & Hutch, Lou Grant, Kojak, The Bionic Woman, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, and The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries. He had a brief speaking role as a farmer in the 1976 television movie Sybil.

In the 1960s, Jump converted to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Subsequently, he acted in several church-sanctioned instructional and educational productions, including When Thou Art Converted (1967), Pioneers In Petticoats (1969,) What About Thad? (1970), a marriage-advice film, and as the Apostle Peter in a 1969 film used as part of the LDS temple ceremonies. Jump would return to LDS films with a small role in the 2002 comedy The Singles Ward.

In 1978, he landed his signature role of Arthur "Big Guy" Carlson on the situation comedy WKRP in Cincinnati, portraying a bumbling radio station manager whose main qualification for the job is being the son of the station's owner.

After WKRP in Cincinnati folded in 1982, Jump made an appearance on a two-part episode of Diff'rent Strokes, cast as Mr. Horton, the owner of a bicycle shop who attempts to molest series protagonist Arnold Jackson and his friend, Dudley Ramsey. He later hosted the PBS series Make Yourself at Home, taught voice classes, and made frequent appearances on the hit television show Growing Pains playing Joanna Kerns's father. Jump also enjoyed working in theater.

In 1989, Jump took over the Maytag repairman role from Jesse White. In the 1990s, Jump starred in a short-lived revival of WKRP in Cincinnati entitled The New WKRP in Cincinnati. He also appeared in the ninth and final season of Seinfeld, in which he played George Costanza's boss at a playground equipment company over two episodes. Jump's last movie role was in the 2004 film Changing of the Guard, released after his death.

Jump died on September 22, 2003 from pulmonary fibrosis, leading to respiratory failure at his home near Los Angeles, California.[3]

Gordon Jump was the surveyor on season 4 episode 12 of Green Acres 1968, "How to Get from Hooterville to Pixley Without Moving".

Gordon Jump was Mayor Tilly on an episode of Murder She Wrote called "If The Frame Fits" in 1986

• Gordon Jump at IMDb
• The MSN Entertainment entry on Jump
• The USA Today Obituary on Jump
• Kansas State Historical Society biography of Gordon Jump
• Gordon Jump at Find a Grave
• Gordon Jump papers, MSS 3711 at L. Tom Perry Special Collections, Brigham Young University