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With
the
departure
of
"Johnny
K"
in 1970,
John
"Tony"
Alexi,
assumed
the
role
of the
successor
Captain
20,
and
also
played
it
as an
astronaut. |
. |
.
His
re-designed helmet
and
uniform looked
less
like a product
of space-age
NASA
and
more like a campy
costume from a
Buck
Rogers serial.
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|
Tony
continued
the
ever-popular
gerbil
races.
This
publicity
shot
depicts
Captain
20
virtually
buried
in viewer
mail.
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|
Ads
like
this
one
from
the Sunday
Post
TV Magazine
of
10/4/70
helped
prime
young
viewer
interest in winning "a
mountain
of toys"
from
"The
Channel
20
Club"
...
"Where
Toys
Are
Free!"
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 |
. |
..
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One
lucky
in-studio
player
gets
to test
WDCA's
"free
toy
policy"
first-hand! |
. |
.
Thirty
years later, Alexi says: "I enjoyed my
time
at WDCA, and especially cherish the
Captain
20 cut-ins, because it gave me a chance to use my improvising skills,
and
develop
a myriad
of characters."
(One
example seen here
is his
loud side-character,
"Mark
Manchester".)
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In June 1972, John Alexi
left WDCA for other areas of
broadcasting and stage. He would become a main
CNN news anchor out of Atlanta, and have his own theater and
theater company.
He studied with some of the
greatest acting teachers in the world, and is an accomplished playwright
as well.
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