As a child, I watched anyone who would show me cartoons, but I was a Tom Hatten fan more ardently than I was a fan of Engineer Bill or Sheriff John, to name the era’s two other great local kids’ show hosts. For one thing, I always knew him as Tom Hatten, while it takes a visit to the Internet to remind me that Engineer Bill was William Stulla and Sheriff John, John Rovick. Where others in his line were often costumed characters, his television persona was lightly applied. That he was dressed in Navy whites, though it certainly related to "Popeye," seemed incidental; it was just something he looked good in. He was youthful and fit and handsome, relatable, like a particularly cool teacher or camp counselor.

Source: Los Angeles Times March 18, 2019 01:06 UTC