Sometimes I have no idea where I get the idea for a short story but I can tell you exactly what inspired “Professor Pie is Going to Die” in the May/June issue of AHMM. It was “Mr. Jolly Gets His Jollies,” by Tim Baker, which appeared in the January/February issue three years earlier.
Do I hear you mumbling the word “plagiarism?” Shame on you for such skepticism. While Baker’s story was terrific I didn’t touch his plot at all.
No, what connected for me was the name of one of the characters, J.P. Corguts, and the illustration by Kelly Denato, which included a clown. Together they made me think of J.P. Patches.
If you grew up in the Seattle area during a certain era it is likely that The J.P. Patches Show was your favorite TV program. From 1958 to 1981 Chris Wedes, in clown makeup, played “the Mayor of the Town Dump.” Along with Bob Newman who played his girlfriend Gertrude they entertained a generation of kids and after the show went off the air they continued to perform at charity events and children’s hospitals. They were so beloved that there is even a statue of them in Fremont, Seattle’s most eccentric neighborhood.
I grew up in New Jersey so I had never heard of Patches until I moved to Washington and he was off the air by then, but I was raised on similar shows from New York (Sandy Becker, Sonny Fox, Soupy Sales, etc.)
But once Tim Baker’s story made me remember Patches it got me thinking: I couldn’t recall any mystery stories about local children’s show hosts. I decided to write about an actor who played one such beloved character.
You can find on the Internet a list of thousands of local TV kids shows from around the nation and the hosts of many of them had titles of respect: Officer Joe, Miss Becky, and so on. I got halfway through the list before I got tired of writing them down: Admiral, Commodore, Skipper, Captain, Sergeant, Sheriff, Deputy, Marshal, Ranger, Mother, and Grandpa, plus enough Uncles and Aunts to crowd a family reunion.
So my character became Professor Pie. Many years after the show leaves the air the actor who played him returns to the city of his fame for a nostalgia fair, only to discover that someone very much doesn’t want him there.
I hope Patches and Gertrude never faced such danger.
Trace Evidence 
Your story brought back memories, not just of the kids’ shows I grew up with (Romper Room comes to mind, but I can’t remember the lady’s name), but of conventions where many actors squeezed out a little retirement income by letting grown-up fans relive the experience. They were invariably polite and patient. Never dead! Though some looked like they’d sell their soul for a drink.
Our local TV show host was Icky Twerp. LOL. He also played host on Nightmare Theatre. This was in Central Texas in the 60’s, at least. I was lucky to visit the studio where it was filmed AND got my first tooth pulled on the same day–the day before I entered first grade. GREAT memories! Thank you for sparking a little inspiration today! Bobbi C.