The Daily Ping

This Ping redesign took 7 years and cost $58 million in taxpayer dollars.

August 2nd, 2002

Dr. Fad

Do you remember the Wacky Wallwalker? Sure you do. I remember it being a wonderfully fun toy that also ate away at the paint in my bedroom growing up! The person we have to blame… er, thank… for that invention is a man by the name of Dr. Fad.

I remember Dr. Fad because of his Saturday morning TV show on CBS. It was along the lines of Doctor Doctor in quality, meaning that it wasn’t very good; this also means that it was perfect for kids. On the show, three kids would compete to come up with a new invention that wasn’t just trendy but also useful. There were also the expected segments about the Slinky, the Wallwalker, and so on. The mess turned out to be a strange mixture of Mr. Wizard’s World and Double Dare minus all pretense of originality.

It’s noteworthy that there was a Dr. Fad handheld LCD game in ’89, and that the Dr. has his own quotes gallery (just look at ’em all!) He also wrote a book about fads; if you’re considering creating a wacky wallwalker that also slices potatoes into blue, chocolate-covered french fries, you might want to consult with the good doctor.

Posted in Miscellaneous

Mike McGill September 24, 2006, 11:34 pm

Oh my god!!! I was humming this theme song today and had to see if it was available. I watched this show as a kid when I was living in Oregon and thought it was an Oregon thing, oh no! Dr. Fad is AWESOME!!!!
I truely miss this show. BRING IT BACK!

What is this then?

The Daily Ping is the web's finest compendium of toilet information and Oreo™® research. Too much? Okay, okay, it's a daily opinion column written by two friends. Did we mention we've been doing this for over ten years? Tell me more!

Most Popular Pings