John Avery Whittaker (Whit) Trivia Quiz

Answer: Paul Herlinger

Hal Smith was the first to voice Whit, which he did from the first episode of "Adventure in Odyssey" in 1987, all the way until his death in 1994. Whit was temporarily written out of the series by having him go on an archaeological trip to the Middle East.
Paul Herlinger became the second person to voice Whit from 1996 to 2008 (until Paul quit due to health issues). Unlike when Hal died, Whit was not temporarily written out of the series.
Andre Stokja took over the role of voicing Whit in 2009.
Walker Edminston provided the voice of Tom Riley and Bart Rathbone (along with some minor characters) but not Whit.

Answer: Scotland

Whit was born in Aberdeen, Scotland. The year of Whit's birth was unknown but believed to be in the 1920s, since Whit was at a very young age when he fought in World War II. Although born in Scotland, Whit didn't have a Scottish accent. At a young age, Whit and his family moved to the United States. Very little was known about Whit's early life.

Answer: Navy

Whit was a signalman in the Navy during World War II. The ship he was on was called the USS Irongate. During the war, he became friends with Lieutenant Reginald Duffield. Whit discussed his faith with Duffield and some point after that, Duffield became a Christian. During one of the battles, part of Whit's right ear got blown off.

He also received a bullet wound in his leg after saving Duffield's life.

Answer: son

Jerry Whittaker was Whit's oldest son who died in the Vietnam War. Jerry felt that he had to go to Vietnam, even though his brother, Jason, didn't want him to do so. After his death, Jerry's mother (Jenny) decided to go into volunteer work. Also, Whit unintentionally started favoring his other son, Jason, causing Whit's daughter, Jana, to feel left out.

Answer: Yes

Connie had been planning from some time to take a trip to Los Angeles, California, and she was finally able to do so in the episode "Connie". On the train to Los Angeles and in the city itself, Connie met a Christian named Mrs. Nelson. In Los Angeles, Connie also met Pamela, who has become a Christian since the last time the two met. Both Pamela and Mrs. Nelson talked with Connie in hopes that she would become a Christian.

After much thought, Connie decided to do so. When Connie came back to Odyssey, she asked Whit to help her pray and become a Christian.

Answer: Fiona Donneral

On one particular Thanksgiving, Whit told those assembled the story about how he became a Christian and how he was thankful for his step-mother, Fiona Donneral, who helped him during the events that led to him becoming a Christian. Whit's birth mother had died, and his father, Harold, remarried to Fiona who was a Christian. One day when Whit and Fiona rode horses, Fiona was knocked out by a branch and lost her sight.

This devastated Whit who was surprised how Fiona could deal with this. She replied that it was her Christian faith that allowed her to do this and talked to Whit about Christianity.

Not only did Fiona help Whit become a Christian, she helped him get over his mother's death and convinced him to start reading his Bible every day.

Answer: The Andy Griffith Show

In the episode "Hold Up!", Whit's End was held up by a robber, Hank Murray. During the hold up, Hank asked for an autographed picture of Andy Griffith. Connie responded to this by mentioning Whit's a huge fan of the show. This was a reference to the fact that Hal Smith (who voiced Whit at the time) had a role on "The Andy Griffith Show" as Otis Campbell.

Answer: Jenny Whittaker

Whit's wife, Jenny Whittaker, persuaded Whit to buy what would eventually become Whit's End. She wanted a place of discovery and of adventure where people could learn about the Bible, perform plays, and take part in arts and crafts, but in Jenny's mind, the most important thing was that it was a place where kids could be kids. Jenny died before Whit made the deal.

However, Whit went along with his wife's plan after receiving what he believed to be a sign from God.

Answer: True

Among other talents, Whit was also an inventor. One of his inventions (perhaps his most famous) was the Imagination Station. This device allowed people to experience Biblical stories as if the people were actually a part of the story. The first person to experience a virtual trip in the Imagination Station was a person named Digger Digwillow who experienced the death and resurrection of Jesus. Eventually, the trips would not only include Biblical stories but historical ones as well, such as the American Revolution.

Answer: to perform random acts of kindness

Whit formed a group of young people called the Israelites, led by Billy McPherson. Their job was to perform random acts of kindness to strangers anonymously (either at night or when their assigned people were away). This gang eventually went their separate ways and was disbanded.

However, when Rodney Rathbone and his gang (called the Bones of Rath) started vandalizing Odyssey, one of Whit's friends, Jack Allen, decided to revive the Israelites.