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Mark Ritts

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Puppeteer

The Resume

    (June 16, 1946-December 7, 2009)
    Born in West Chester, Pennsylvania
    Puppeteer/actor/TV producer, director and screenwriter
    Portrayed Lester the Rat on Beakman's World (1992-98)
    Operated and voiced Kino, the puppet co-host of PBS's 'Storytime' (1994-97)
    Co-wrote the parenting book 'Mom I Hate You! Children's Provocative Communication: What It Means and What to Do About It' (2003)

Why he might be annoying:

    He thought Lester was a puppet he would operate before discovering that he was going to be wearing a rat suit.
    As Lester, he sported a constantly changing array of tattoos on his bare arms.
    When he won a local Los Angeles Emmy as best host for Storytime, he dropped and broke the statuette.

Why he might not be annoying:

    His parents, Paul and Mary, were also puppeteers and he got his show biz start working as an assistant for their TV appearances.
    Beakman's World co-star Paul Zaloom said, 'He was the Costello to my Abbott.'
    He said about Storytime, 'There have been many, many occasions where I have felt like pinching myself. I'm back there with this little puppet on my arm thinking, 'Good Lord! You're doing a scene with Kirk Douglas.''

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 10 Votes: 70.0% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 4 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 12 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 11 Votes: 72.73% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 16 Votes: 62.50% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 13 Votes: 69.23% Annoying
    In 2010, Out of 143 Votes: 69.23% Annoying
    In 2009, Out of 140 Votes: 37.14% Annoying