Sugar Bear

There are people like Mel Blanc and Paul Frees and Hal Smith and June Foray who you’ll hear in cartoons all over the place. Then there are others who seem to show up in one animated series and that’s it.

Gerry Matthews was one of them.

Matthews didn’t seem to need more than one character to earn a living. He was the voice of Sugar Bear on the Linus the Lionhearted series and on the Post cereal commercials. He was kind of a mystery man otherwise.

Well, before that he was an actor on the stage, television and night clubs.

Here’s a bit of a profile from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram of March 27, 1961. It’s one of those local-boys-makes-good pieces.

OFTEN GETS JUVENILE ROLES
Waco Comic Hit in New York
BY WILLIAM WOLF
NEW YORK, March 26 — Comic performer Gerry Matthews, who hails from Waco, is the son of Harold J. Matthews, who as former head of the Texas Youth Development Council, led the state's program for aiding juvenile delinquents.
Gerry has frequently been cast in the role of juvenile delinquent in various parts he has performed on television.
"In fact, you might say I used to be something of a delinquent myself," Gerry joked citing some exploits of his impetuous youth. His flair for having fun while he was going to school has been productively channeled into a growing career in which he is becoming known for his ability at off-beat humor.
CURRENTLY he is performing in a new musical revue, "Dressed to the Nines," at Julius Monk's oddly named "Upstairs at the Downstairs" supper club.
Gerry was stretched in exhaustion on a dressing room cot before his second show one night. All day long he had been busy taping a special "Play of the Week" musical for television. He had come to the club to perform his two shows, and then was due back at 2 a m at the television studio to continue working on the taping. But as tired as he was, the idea of talking for a Texas newspaper appealed to him.
Born in Waco, Gerry moved to Houston as a youth. He has uncles and aunts, Mr. and Mrs. Latham Downs, and Mr. and Mrs. Wesley Downs, currently residing in Waco. His parents now live in Austin.
IT WAS WHILE going to high school in Houston that Gerry's performing talent began to show itself. As he explained: "In high school, if you're not an athlete or a scholar, it’s a little hard to get attention. I was neither. I got a longing to do variety shows, got a lot of laughs and became very popular."
This continued at the University of Texas, where he struck up some important friendships with young men who have since brought a major Texas contribution to the New York theater. He became pals with Tom Jones, Harvey Schmidt and Ward Baker and they decided to have a try at show business in New York one day.
All have made good on their intentions. Jones, Schmidt and Baker succeeded by presenting one of the most successful of off-Broadway shows a musical called "The Fantasticks." Jones and Schmidt wrote the "Play of the Week" revue in which Matthews recently appeared, and much of their material has been used at the Monk club.
AFTER PERFORMING in Houston and touring Texas, Gerry got a job with the Penthouse Theater in Chicago, where he met Tom Poston, who since has risen to TV and stage fame as a result of his work on the Steve Allen show. Gerry, Tom Jones and Poston worked up a night club act and got their first break with it at the Reuben Bleu in New York.
Matthews has had considerable TV work, including appearances on the Kraft, Studio One, Kaiser Aluminum, Red Buttons, Imogene Coca and Garry Moore shows. He has demonstrated his ability to do numbers of a serious mood as well as clown through such skits as a Japanese-type version of "Casey at the Bat" and frenetic rock and roll numbers.
"I believe the trend is now away from the old-fashioned stand-up comic," he observes. "That's corny. People now look for more complete well-rounded humor."
NOW A FAMILY man, Gerry is married to a Brooklyn girl. He and his wife Dolores have a son, 3, and live near West Point N.Y., which is a substantial commuting distance from the city.
He has special praise and gratitude for Monk, who has earned a reputation in New York for introducing new talent. As Gerry puts it: "He is the only man who would take completely unknown people. audition you. and make you feel like a human being. He helps you. His genius is picking out potential talent and giving you the right material. He has brought me to where I am today."

What’s Matthews doing today? Sugar Bear’s nemesis was Granny Goodwitch, played by Ruth Buzzi, who chucked show biz and moved to Texas. Matthews chucked show biz, too. He left New York in the late ‘80s and moved to Walla Walla, Washington where, at almost age 90, he runs The Museum of Un-Natural History, an odd and quirky place. You can read about it here. We hope Mr. Matthews is enjoying good health, as it sounds like he’s enjoying life.