The Dorothy Do Show Cast and Crew
In this article, we will be discussing a topic which has been a long time coming! That’s right! We are, with the support of the Mast Foundation, detailing the characters which appeared in the Dorothy Do show! Thank you so much to our sponsors who made this possible and lent original production art from their collection!
During the puppet show's run, one would regularly see the following ten characters! Let’s take a look at them one by one!
Captain Littaker concept art, provided by the Mast Foundation
An illustration of Captain Littaker, a hulking block of a man with a big beard, captains’ hat, and coat. He merrily plays the accordion while sitting on a wooden box set next to a lantern.
Captain Littaker
A gruff but gentle individual encountered by Dorothy Do on his travels in the third book of the Deep Blue series, Captain Littaker is one of the most well-known characters in the entire series aside from its titular star. The Captain was a captain only in name, for he was the only inhabitant of his small traveling ship. He would often stop for meetings with Dorothy while the two were out on the waves. In fact, the character would never be encountered on any island that Dorothy visited only encountering the sailor during sailing scenes. This was a very curious choice by Barbara. It might have been done to help balance the number of characters in any given scene.
Captain Littaker was a smart and compassionate character with knowledge rivaling that of the Historian, for while the Historian was book smart and intelligent in the history of places, Littaker had the knowledge required to survive at sea. He knew when to set sail and when to hunker down for the night. He is the one who taught Dorothy to fight,although this would only be mentioned in the books. He had a rivalry with Brightfin who allegedly ate his favorite boot many years ago and has been sailing the Deep Blue ever since in pursuit of the serpent.
He was a member of the army who fled his duties for some reason.
Captain Littaker boat concept, provided by the Mast Foundation
Black and white photo of a model sheet. It shows the side, above, back, and front views of a small paddle steamer. The ship has two tiers, the second tier having multiple large windows. The partially-covered paddle sits at the middle-back of the ship, as do three smokestacks of varying heights.
Brightfin concept art, provided by the Mast Foundation
Illustration of Brightfin, a sea serpent with a patch covered body and blocky teeth, leaning down to Dorothy Do’s boat in order to greet the merry sailor.
Brightfin
While we’ve talked about Brightfin on the site previously, we will refresh your knowledge with this summary. Introduced in the original novels, then later adapted into a puppet for the show, Brightfin (also referred to as “The Dragon”) was characterized as a large moody creature that hardly got along with anyone other than Dorothy. Despite his large and intimidating appearance, a lot of the destruction caused by this character was unintentional rather than pure malice. His scales were said to grant wishes, and due to this he often had to avoid sailors and treasure hunters. Dorothy returned one of his scales and for this reason he earned the sea serpent’s favor.
Map Keeper concept art, provided by the Mast Foundation
Model sheet of Mapkeeper, a woman with an ocean patterned dress and glasses, she wears a satchel and carries a book beneath her arm. The page lists several important details of her puppet design such as “Skirt can be removed and replaced with different maps, rolls up like a scroll”
Mapkeeper
The stern and well-mannered guide of Dorothy Do and her crew, this character originated as a minor character from the original book series, appearing in book number two. Barbara felt that there was more to be explored with her character, and as such when deciding the roster for her show picked her out of the lineup for recurring characters. The Mapkeeper was a character who lived to chart and map the corners of the world and was happy to lend her maps to anyone with a trustworthy face and a desire to travel. Unfortunately, she would often be duped into sharing her maps with the Hang Glider, whose self-professed charm always seemed to fool her. To her dismay he would often end up losing her maps or otherwise damage them.
The Mapkeeper worked in conjunction with the Historian to teach Dorothy about important things, like how to travel to other places and discover new countries, which is most of why she was important at all in the story. Otherwise, she really didn’t have a big role to play.
Hang Glider concept art, provided by the Mast Foundation
Concept sketches of the Hang glider, a gangly man with long socks and a casual summer outfit, in one sketch he carries a hang glider, and the page makes notes of his fused legs to make posing easier. The man wears a very lazy unaware expression and has a watch on each wrist in order to hide the seams of his puppet design.
Hang Glider
The silliest member of the crew, the Hang Glider was most known for routinely causing problems in many episodes by crashing his hang glider into islands and needing to be saved by Dorothy Do. He was a real laugh! He was also incredibly hard to impress.
Sea Biscuit, Comic Cover
Cover for a Dorothy Do comic book, distributed by Well Comics. It shows Dorothy Do, a sailor puppet, riding on a large seal that also wears a sailor hat and has a fish in its mouth. They are in the ocean and a ship can be seen in the distance.
Seabiscuit
The loyal animal companion of Dorothy Do, Seabiscuit the seal was always by the sailor’s side. Seabiscuit was introduced as a character for the Dorothy Do television show, to give Dorothy someone to talk to during his adventures. Although never stated in the show, the comics later establish that Dorothy found Seabiscuit as a pup. rescuing him from a seal hunter who wanted to turn Seabiscuit into a coat. Dorothy raised the baby seal with so much affection that he grew larger than any other, big enough for Dorothy to ride through the waves on his back. Despite being a cute and cuddly animal, Seabiscuit was never treated as a pet, instead he was Dorothy's best friend and equal.
Seabiscuit was generally very playful and carefree, chasing birds floating on the water and performing tricks to make Dorothy laugh when he was sad. He was quick to help when help was needed (although his flippers and size sometimes caused more trouble) and loved to sunbathe on the deck of the ship during the pair's downtime. However, just like a real seal, he could quickly turn fierce when he or Dorothy were in danger, and during fights could take on whole hordes of bad guys by himself.
Historian concept art, provided by the Mast Foundation
Concept art of the Historian, a surprised looking heavyset man with a vest, dress pants, bow tie, and coat that reaches above his ankles. He holds a pocket watch and wears glasses which frame a roundish face. He has rosey cheeks and thinning hair.
Historian
Introduced in the very first book of the Deep Blue Series, the Historian was a timid, stuttering, and curious man who knew many things about the places visited by Dorothy during his travels. He would often be at the main setting of the chapter or episode by the time Dorothy arrived and would serve as exposition for the current conflicts or background of these locations. He knew the one true history of the world.
The Floaters concept art, provided by the Mast Foundation
Concept art of three cackling skeletons half submerged in ocean water and holding onto a piece of driftwood.
The Floaters
One of the most long lasting and memorable additions to the show was the presence of the Floaters, skeletons of long dead sailors who typically floated alongside Dorothy’s ship. During scene transitions they narrated the journey in a barber shop like manner, being taken and also setting the mood for the new location. These characters were an entirely new addition to the show that were not present in the books, however Barbara was notably enthused about their inclusion as it offered the presence of more music in her passion project.
Captain Cadaver storybook art, provided by the Mast Foundation
Art of a maniacal looking pirate with braided gold hair and a bloody black pirate’s hat. Her clothing is tattered and her teeth chipped and disjointed. Her upper face is hidden in shadows and her eyes are two simple luminous white orbs.
Captain Cadaver
The bane of the Deep Blue, Captain Cadaver was a character so ferocious that she scared an entire generation of children and parents alike, she was an evil pirate.
Cook concept art, provided by the Mast Foundation
Concept art of a stocky woman called “The Cook” she wears an apron, chef’s hat, long pants, and has curly hair. She is drawn standing confidently, turned around, and with design notes accounting for her puppet limbs. The art says, “The Cook” “Dorothy Do and the Deep Blue” and makes notes about her hair being wooden and hollow to not add weight. Additionally, the page notes her legs being removable for better puppetry during cooking scenes.
Cook
A boisterous but air headed woman, The Cook appeared first in the books and later became a regular on the television show. Characterized as a little clueless but extremely passionate about her work, she put 100% into everything she did,even when she wasn’t entirely sure what she was doing. Dorothy would frequent her tavern which took the form of a large pot floating in the ocean, often getting roped into helping the Cook in the kitchen or tracking down rare ingredients for her food. Her segments began when the pot tipped over, panning inside to reveal her tavern. The Cook was famous for her ability to always make something delicious no matter how odd or limited her supplies, often trying bold, new flavours and ingredients to surprise her patrons. She’d encourage her friends to “try it before you decide you don’t like it,” Despite her food being made of weird things like raw octopus or algae.
Cook’s Tavern concept art, provided by the Mast Foundation
Watercolor painting of The Cook's tavern. A large pot sits atop rolling waves, smoke pouring out from the pot and joining the clouds in the sky. Two silhouetted birds fly above.
Cook’s Tavern concept art, provided by the Mast Foundation
Pen and ink drawing of The Cook in her tavern. She stands behind a tall countertop, surrounded by other packed counters with one side holding cookware, and the other with a pot on the stove. Various dried ingredients hang above her, as does a simple wooden sign. The whole image is framed by a pot, denoted by the rim encasing her and the handles present on either side.
Dorothy Do show concept art, provided by the Mast Foundation
Concept art of Dorothy Do standing aboard a wooden ship located on a set with hanging curtains, he’s gesturing his hand outwards towards the waves.
Puppets
The puppets for the Dorothy Do and the Deep Blue show were marvelous pieces of art, leaps ahead of other shows of the time in terms of technology and craftsmanship. Building the puppets and making them move was something akin to magic. What? The humans were wooden marionettes, and the animals were cloth hand and rod puppets.
Dorothy Ship concept, provided by the Mast Foundation
Black and white photo of a model sheet. It shows the side, above, back, and front views of a small pirate ship. This model sheet includes the front and side views of the wheel. The ship itself has 5 flags (one at the front, one mast, one on the crows nest, and two at the back), and 6 (visible) windows (four along the hull, and two for the captain's quarters.)
Interesting fact from the Mast Foundation: For some reason, Dorothy never flew a proper flag; The sails were always a blank cloth!