Jim Ignatowski
Encyclopedia
The Reverend Jim "Iggy" Ignatowski, played by Christopher Lloyd
, was a fictional character
in the 1970s television series Taxi
. A gentle soul, Jim was, in his own words, "the living embodiment of the sixties". His most noticeable character trait was his extreme "spaced-out" behavior as a result of extensive 1960s drug use.
, although his often-unreliable memory makes this quite open to question. However, he was definitely raised in Boston, Massachusetts as one of three children in a very well-to-do family.
Jim's mother died when he was quite young, leaving Jim's father (later played by Victor Buono
) to raise the family. Being busy with his business, Mr. Caldwell left much of this task to various family servants. This seemed to affect all the Caldwell children in some way: Jim was an extremely uptight and humorless person before he became a drop-out; his brother Tom remained humorless and somewhat mean-spirited throughout his adulthood; and his sister Lila exhibited marked nymphomania.
Jim was his father's favorite child. An excellent student, he attended Harvard. Then a girl he was going out with introduced him to "funny brownies" - containing marijuana - and convinced him to partake. After ingesting these brownies, the transformation within Jim was virtually instantaneous. His term paper on "Plutarch's Lives" was forgotten—in fact, by his second semester at Harvard, he was writing his term papers in fingerpaint. ("The typewriter seemed so impersonal", he explained.) Jim would become part of the counterculture
, and was ordained as a minister with the Church of the Peaceful ("investigated and cleared of all charges"). Around this time, Jim changed his last name to Ignatowski, believing it was "Starchild" spelled backwards.
Jim was thrown out of the Democratic Convention in Chicago
for stealing decorations, and attended Woodstock ("500,000 people...lucky for them I went or it would have only been 499,999"). He said he kept finding God
everywhere--"he kept ditching me". He also spent a year of his life making a macrame
couch, and was once traded from his commune to another commune for two goats and a Donovan album (although which Donovan album was never specified). Jim once claimed that instead of finding Nirvana or God, from his 1960s experiences, it only left him with recurring flashbacks of the original Mouseketeers (especially Cubby) appearing as visions hatching out of seedpods.
, the immigrant cab company mechanic (played by Andy Kaufman
) and a prostitute, so Latka could stay in the United States. Jim appeared again in an early second season episode. He became a regular beginning with the tenth episode of the second season. As the series progressed, the "Reverend" aspect of the character was less frequently referred to.
Jim was a treasure trove of eccentricities, most of which could be traced to after-effects of his 1960s drug intake. He lived in a condemned building; bought a racehorse he renamed Gary (to erase his "slave name") and kept him in his living room; spent a considerable period of time trying to become the "perfect" cabbie only to spend all his earnings on a wall of TVs; and dismantled his van to build a castle for Elaine Nardo (played by Marilu Henner
). He screamed in his sleep, and thought weekends were nine days long because "we switched to the metric system." His drug expertise also allowed him to identify the coca leaves (from which cocaine
is made) in Latka's cookies -- "Southern Peru, '74, before the rains" -- much like a wine taster describing a vintage. His heroes were St. Thomas Aquinas, Mahatma Gandhi
, Alan Alda
, and Louie De Palma (played by Danny DeVito
), who ironically treated him quite poorly and took advantage of him at every opportunity. Jim also admitted to being a fan of the original Star Trek
series, although he strongly believed that the leader of the Romulan
s was portrayed incorrectly.
At one point, his last known address was a 1963 Volkswagen
. As such, when his father died and left him $3,000,000, his family stepped in to keep him from receiving his inheritance. Ultimately, he was able to get his money, and (in the series' last original episode) wound up buying the cabbies' favorite hangout, Mario's, and renaming it Jim's Mario's. Jim also received a cassette
in his father's will. It contained Stevie Wonder
singing "You Are the Sunshine of My Life
".
Jim as a character was not as one-dimensional as one might think. Lloyd was able to add considerable humanity to the part, so that what could have been a one-note caricature of a 60s burnout instead was shown to be a warm caring person with a heart of gold. He also occasionally surprised everybody (especially himself) by exhibiting unexpected talents; for example, he could play the piano masterfully (though he couldn't remember taking lessons).
ranked him number 32 on its '50 Greatest TV Characters of All Time' list.
Christopher Lloyd
Christopher Allen Lloyd is an American actor. He is best known for playing Emmett Brown in the Back to the Future trilogy, Uncle Fester in The Addams Family and Addams Family Values, and Judge Doom in Who Framed Roger Rabbit. He played Reverend Jim Ignatowski in the television series Taxi and more...
, was a fictional character
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
in the 1970s television series Taxi
Taxi (TV series)
Taxi was an American sitcom that originally aired from 1978 to 1982 on ABC and from 1982 to 1983 on NBC. The series, which won 18 Emmy Awards, including three for "Outstanding Comedy Series", focuses on the everyday lives of a handful of New York City taxi drivers and their abusive dispatcher...
. A gentle soul, Jim was, in his own words, "the living embodiment of the sixties". His most noticeable character trait was his extreme "spaced-out" behavior as a result of extensive 1960s drug use.
Background
Ignatowski was born James Caldwell. He claimed to have been born in Spokane, WashingtonSpokane, Washington
Spokane is a city located in the Northwestern United States in the state of Washington. It is the largest city of Spokane County of which it is also the county seat, and the metropolitan center of the Inland Northwest region...
, although his often-unreliable memory makes this quite open to question. However, he was definitely raised in Boston, Massachusetts as one of three children in a very well-to-do family.
Jim's mother died when he was quite young, leaving Jim's father (later played by Victor Buono
Victor Buono
Charles Victor Buono was an American actor and comic.-Early life and career:Buono was born in San Diego, California, the son of Myrtle Belle and Victor Francis Buono . His maternal grandmother, Myrtle Glied , was a Vaudeville performer on the Orpheum Circuit...
) to raise the family. Being busy with his business, Mr. Caldwell left much of this task to various family servants. This seemed to affect all the Caldwell children in some way: Jim was an extremely uptight and humorless person before he became a drop-out; his brother Tom remained humorless and somewhat mean-spirited throughout his adulthood; and his sister Lila exhibited marked nymphomania.
Jim was his father's favorite child. An excellent student, he attended Harvard. Then a girl he was going out with introduced him to "funny brownies" - containing marijuana - and convinced him to partake. After ingesting these brownies, the transformation within Jim was virtually instantaneous. His term paper on "Plutarch's Lives" was forgotten—in fact, by his second semester at Harvard, he was writing his term papers in fingerpaint. ("The typewriter seemed so impersonal", he explained.) Jim would become part of the counterculture
Counterculture
Counterculture is a sociological term used to describe the values and norms of behavior of a cultural group, or subculture, that run counter to those of the social mainstream of the day, the cultural equivalent of political opposition. Counterculture can also be described as a group whose behavior...
, and was ordained as a minister with the Church of the Peaceful ("investigated and cleared of all charges"). Around this time, Jim changed his last name to Ignatowski, believing it was "Starchild" spelled backwards.
Jim was thrown out of the Democratic Convention in Chicago
1968 Democratic National Convention
The 1968 Democratic National Convention of the U.S. Democratic Party was held at the International Amphitheatre in Chicago, Illinois, from August 26 to August 29, 1968. Because Democratic President Lyndon Johnson had announced he would not seek a second term, the purpose of the convention was to...
for stealing decorations, and attended Woodstock ("500,000 people...lucky for them I went or it would have only been 499,999"). He said he kept finding God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
everywhere--"he kept ditching me". He also spent a year of his life making a macrame
Macramé
Macramé or macrame is a form of textile-making using knotting rather than weaving or knitting. Its primary knots are the square knot and forms of "hitching": full hitch and double half hitches...
couch, and was once traded from his commune to another commune for two goats and a Donovan album (although which Donovan album was never specified). Jim once claimed that instead of finding Nirvana or God, from his 1960s experiences, it only left him with recurring flashbacks of the original Mouseketeers (especially Cubby) appearing as visions hatching out of seedpods.
On the show
Reverend Jim's first introduction to the crew at the Sunshine Cab Company was a guest appearance in a Season 1 episode, when he presided over a "paper marriage" between Latka GravasLatka Gravas
Latka Gravas is a fictional character on the television sitcom Taxi portrayed by Andy Kaufman. Latka was based on a character Kaufman created known as Foreign Man.-Foreign Man:...
, the immigrant cab company mechanic (played by Andy Kaufman
Andy Kaufman
Andrew Geoffrey "Andy" Kaufman was an American entertainer, actor and performance artist. While often referred to as a comedian, Kaufman did not consider himself one...
) and a prostitute, so Latka could stay in the United States. Jim appeared again in an early second season episode. He became a regular beginning with the tenth episode of the second season. As the series progressed, the "Reverend" aspect of the character was less frequently referred to.
Jim was a treasure trove of eccentricities, most of which could be traced to after-effects of his 1960s drug intake. He lived in a condemned building; bought a racehorse he renamed Gary (to erase his "slave name") and kept him in his living room; spent a considerable period of time trying to become the "perfect" cabbie only to spend all his earnings on a wall of TVs; and dismantled his van to build a castle for Elaine Nardo (played by Marilu Henner
Marilu Henner
Mary Lucy Denise "Marilu" Henner is an American actress, producer and author. She is best known for her role as Elaine O'Connor Nardo on the sitcom Taxi from 1978 to 1983.-Early life:...
). He screamed in his sleep, and thought weekends were nine days long because "we switched to the metric system." His drug expertise also allowed him to identify the coca leaves (from which cocaine
Cocaine
Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...
is made) in Latka's cookies -- "Southern Peru, '74, before the rains" -- much like a wine taster describing a vintage. His heroes were St. Thomas Aquinas, Mahatma Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi , pronounced . 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) was the pre-eminent political and ideological leader of India during the Indian independence movement...
, Alan Alda
Alan Alda
Alphonso Joseph D'Abruzzo , better known as Alan Alda, is an American actor, director, screenwriter, and author. A six-time Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award winner, he is best known for his role as Hawkeye Pierce in the TV series M*A*S*H...
, and Louie De Palma (played by Danny DeVito
Danny DeVito
Daniel Michael DeVito, Jr. , better known as Danny DeVito, is an American actor, comedian, director and producer. He first gained prominence for his portrayal of Louie De Palma on the ABC and NBC television series Taxi , for which he won a Golden Globe and an Emmy.DeVito and his wife, Rhea Perlman,...
), who ironically treated him quite poorly and took advantage of him at every opportunity. Jim also admitted to being a fan of the original Star Trek
Star Trek
Star Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
series, although he strongly believed that the leader of the Romulan
Romulan
The Romulans are a fictional alien race in the Star Trek universe. First appearing in the original Star Trek series in the 1966 episode "Balance of Terror", they have since made appearances in all the main later Star Trek series: The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager...
s was portrayed incorrectly.
At one point, his last known address was a 1963 Volkswagen
Volkswagen
Volkswagen is a German automobile manufacturer and is the original and biggest-selling marque of the Volkswagen Group, which now also owns the Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, SEAT, and Škoda marques and the truck manufacturer Scania.Volkswagen means "people's car" in German, where it is...
. As such, when his father died and left him $3,000,000, his family stepped in to keep him from receiving his inheritance. Ultimately, he was able to get his money, and (in the series' last original episode) wound up buying the cabbies' favorite hangout, Mario's, and renaming it Jim's Mario's. Jim also received a cassette
Compact Cassette
The Compact Cassette, often referred to as audio cassette, cassette tape, cassette, or simply tape, is a magnetic tape sound recording format. It was designed originally for dictation, but improvements in fidelity led the Compact Cassette to supplant the Stereo 8-track cartridge and reel-to-reel...
in his father's will. It contained Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder
Stevland Hardaway Morris , better known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and activist...
singing "You Are the Sunshine of My Life
You Are the Sunshine of My Life
"You Are the Sunshine of My Life" is a 1973 pop single released by Stevie Wonder. The song became Wonder's third number-one pop single on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and his first number one on the easy listening chart. It won Wonder a Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. This song was...
".
Jim as a character was not as one-dimensional as one might think. Lloyd was able to add considerable humanity to the part, so that what could have been a one-note caricature of a 60s burnout instead was shown to be a warm caring person with a heart of gold. He also occasionally surprised everybody (especially himself) by exhibiting unexpected talents; for example, he could play the piano masterfully (though he couldn't remember taking lessons).
Reception
In 1999 TV GuideTV Guide
TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
ranked him number 32 on its '50 Greatest TV Characters of All Time' list.