Ryan's Alter Ego (Meet Dr. Osborne Bum)

ABOUT

Dr. Osborne Bum is a character I created in junior high school and further developed while attending high school. The story progressed over a four-year period and included aspects of Steve Irwin, Chris Farley, The Three Stooges, (hence, the opening logos which are modeled after Columbia, the studio that housed The Stooges) The Looney Tunes and The Ren & Stimpy Show.

CHARACTER HISTORY & CREATION

Dr. Bum is depicted at three, different ages throughout his life: 32, 67 and 92. Osborne Bum can appear articulate and intelligent or senile and wacky, depending on the stage of his life. There is a long story behind the character. He has a PhD in Zoology and hosts a show, along with another zoologist named Dr. John (Jack) Mac, called "Wild Discovery," after the defunct show with the same name from the Discovery Channel. I called the channel, The Explorer Channel. From ages 32 to 67, Dr. Bum went on expeditions to a place known as Acromeglia—which was taken from a Ren & Stimpy cartoon episode. My former high school friends would play the parts of the animals he would encounter. We used their first names for the names of each species, basically to make fun of our very low budget. I got the idea from the Tree Geezer in the same Ren & Stimpy cartoon. It was like mixing Steve Irwin's animal encounters with a Ren & Stimpy mind-set.

At the age of 67, a much fatter, bumbling Dr. Osborne Bum retired from his expeditions. He began hosting a variety show called, Osborne Bum & His Big Fat Bum. This show covered a wide range of topics and featured Osborne's two brothers, as well. Each week, Dr. Bum would discuss his former adventures, as well as political events, the art of cooking, hunting, fishing, and bird watching--which resulted in the death of the bird, instead of simply watching it. This show was derived from the combined influences of Chris Farley, The Three Stooges and The Looney Tunes.

By the age of 87, Dr. Bum, became a loud, senile, gray-haired, grumpy, old man and ended his program. After being broadcast for twenty years, he was too old and senile to keep it going. He was then given another show to fill in an empty time-slot on public television entitled, Osborne Bum On Talk. That program was like a late-night talk show, gone horribly wrong. Osborne would be trying to interview a guest, but something always seemed to prevent it from going smoothly. In one episode, his stage crew would repeatedly shut off the main set lights and shine a bright stage light in his face. Another common occurrence was paying off security and attempting to "take over the show." Sometimes Osborne would be plagued by both predicaments at the same time. Dr. Bum continued to host the show for the next five years, until he reached the age of 92, when he retired from public life. He died five years later at age 98.

CHARACTER BREAKDOWN

Dr. Osborne Bum (Age 32) a.k.a. "The Young Osborne Bum": The very first Osborne Bum character was created from my imagination while filming with a few friends. On the morning of April 19, 1998, we were fooling around with my new video camera. We started referring to one of the guys as a species that had a defense mechanism of highly toxic methane gas. We pretended that some of the other kids were the natives of the land. While I was filming, I stated, "We are in the eastern part of South Africa, mind you. Very strange jungles. I am your host, Osborne Bum." My guess is as good as anybody's, as to where, why, or how the name came to me. It was an epiphany. Osborne Bum was born. Originally, the character was silly, with a speech impediment, and spoke in a high-pitched voice. I later dropped the speech impediment and gave him a much more serious and well-educated tone.

Dr. Osborne Bum (Age 67) a.k.a. "The Middle Osborne Bum": Bear in mind, the middle Dr. Bum was actually the last one I came up with in order of creation, after "The Old Osborne Bum" -- see next section. The old one had two different revisions--the latter of which was created after the middle one. The Middle Dr. Bum was first introduced while filming a movie called The Geezer Part II (see Dr. Bum (Age 92) for The Geezer Part I). I decided to make sort of a prequel to The Geezer, with Osborne appearing younger than the old one, but older than the young one. The Geezer series was comprised of Osborne recollecting his adventures from years past, with a heavy-set, balding, bumbling, half-senile Dr. Bum. That particular Dr. Bum was also the first to be featured wearing his trademark red skullcap to hide his baldness.

Dr. Osborne Bum (Age 92) a.k.a. "The Old Osborne Bum": Later the same month, The Geezer Part I was produced. Time-wise, it was filmed closed to the video in which the original version of the first Dr. Bum was formed. The first version of the old Osborne Bum depicted characteristics similar to the original version of the young one, such as the high-pitched voice and speech impediment. While I eventually removed those mannerisms from the young Dr. Bum, I changed the old one's persona, as well. This occurred about a year after the birth of the original character in 1999. The very first time the old one made an appearance he wore a black robe with a red sash. Other standards in his appearance are his trademark coke bottle glasses, a very long beard, and a white strip of hair, which I simply placed on the top of my head. His look was totally revamped, with the exception of the robe and sash. He then donned the cap-- which had been previously introduced with the middle one--only he was completely bald on the top of his head. To compensate for his baldness, he grew his hair exceptionally long on the sides, causing him to resemble Larry Fine of The Three Stooges. His beard was also a bit shorter than originally depicted. Osborne's personality had greatly changed from the original old one, as well. The old Dr. Bum became a loud, grumpy, boisterous, senile old kook, who had no patience for anything or anyone.

Note: The original reason all three Dr. Bums are able to appear simultaneously is due to a mutation. A big-foot type of Cyclops creature bit Dr Bum, while on a hunting expedition with Dr. Mac. He mutated into half-man, half-beast and roamed the forests and jungles of Acromeglia for 20 years. He was later found, at the age of 87, and restored to normal by his former assistant. This occurred when Dr. Bum was attacked with a nuclear weapon, in order to prevent him from destroying a particular species in Acromeglia. He was not only restored to normal, but by splicing his genes, he was split into three separate versions of himself at varying ages. I am currently reworking this part of the story to make better sense. I will be writing a new, updated explanation about how Dr. Bum manages to appear alongside two other versions of his character. Stay Tuned!

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