James Bondy is a Canadian entertainer, best known for his work as the human co-host of the children's show Ribert and Robert's Wonderworld

Ribert and Robert's Wonderworld

Ribert and Robert's Wonderworld is a children's educational television series that is part animated, part live action. It was created by Mike DeVitto...

, which airs on public television.

Background

Born and raised in Windsor, Ontario

Windsor, Ontario

Windsor is the southernmost city in Canada and is located in Southwestern Ontario at the western end of the heavily populated Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. It is within Essex County, Ontario, although administratively separated from the county government. Separated by the Detroit River, Windsor...

, Bondy attended Catholic Central High School

Catholic Central High School (Windsor, Ontario)

Catholic Central High School is a high school in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. It is operated by the Windsor-Essex Catholic District School Board. Catholic Central High School has a diverse, multicultural student body.- History :...

 with early aspirations to become a hockey

Hockey

Hockey is a family of sports in which two teams play against each other by trying to maneuver a ball or a puck into the opponent's goal using a hockey stick.-Etymology:...

 player or a dentist. A high school drama coach noticed the popular, engaging young man and encouraged Bondy to try out for a school play. He was cast in the lead and starred in every school play through graduation. In 1993, Bondy was only one of a handful of men to be accepted into the musical theatre

Musical theatre

Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...

 degree program at the University of Windsor

University of Windsor

The University of Windsor is a public comprehensive and research university in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's southernmost university. It has a student population of approximately 15,000 full-time and part-time undergraduate students and over 1000 graduate students...

. Key roles on the college stage, in local repertory productions, and the Windsor Light Opera Company followed, and Bondy eventually relocated to Toronto

Toronto

Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

 to pursue a professional career.

Early career

Bondy was eventually chosen to help open the Disney's Animal Kingdom

Disney's Animal Kingdom

Disney's Animal Kingdom is an animal theme park located at the Walt Disney World Resort. The fourth park built at the resort, it opened on April 22, 1998, and it is the largest single Disney theme park in the world, covering more than . It is also the first Disney theme park to be themed entirely...

 at Walt Disney World by starring in a production of Disney's Journey into the Jungle Book. After over eight hundred performances, Bondy returned to Windsor, where he would be seen performing in sold-out revues at the casinos in Windsor and across the river in Detroit, Michigan

Detroit, Michigan

Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...

. Bondy would find himself performing on the Renaissance Cruise Lines, headlining high-octane musical revues until the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, forcing him to return to Toronto.

Bondy then gained experience in film, working as an extra and bit player, until he returned to performing aboard cruise ships in 2003, performing for another six months on the Norwegian Cruise Lines.

Ribert and Robert's Wonderworld

During this stint aboard a cruise line, Bondy was approached by the creator of a new children's show. He had seen Bondy perform and was convinced that he found the human co-host he was looking for. When Bondy's contract with the cruise line expired, he began filming episodes of the live-action/animated series Ribert and Robert's Wonderworld

Ribert and Robert's Wonderworld

Ribert and Robert's Wonderworld is a children's educational television series that is part animated, part live action. It was created by Mike DeVitto...

. The series was picked up by American Public Television

American Public Television

American Public Television is the largest syndicator of programming for public television stations in the United States.-History:...

 and can now be seen on over a hundred public television stations in North America.

Music career

In 2004, Bondy recorded an album of Broadway tunes and soft hits, Songs From the Heart.

Personal

• In August 2006, Bondy married the former Jennifer Kaeppel, an actress and dancer. They currently make their home in New York City
  New York City
  New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
  
  , not far from where Ribert and Robert's Wonderworld
  Ribert and Robert's Wonderworld
  Ribert and Robert's Wonderworld is a children's educational television series that is part animated, part live action. It was created by Mike DeVitto...
  
  is produced.
• Bondy is a devoted fan of the Toronto Maple Leafs
  Toronto Maple Leafs
  The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
  
   and Toronto Blue Jays
  Toronto Blue Jays
  The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Blue Jays are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball 's American League ....
  
  .
• Bondy enjoys golf for relaxation.