Do you know how these TV characters got their nicknames?

Remember why they are called Hawkeye, Radar and Bones?

 

From the Skipper to Hot Lips, some TV characters are best known by their nicknames. Some of the most memorable characters — Fonzie, Ponch, Hoss — were known by their nicknames. The meanings of those were pretty easy to figure out

But perhaps you have wondered how the following characters got their nicknames. See if you remember — or can guess! Good luck!

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  1. How did "Gopher" on The Love Boat get his nickname?
     Image: The Everett Collection
  2. How did "Radar" on M*A*S*H get his nickname?
     Image: The Everett Collection
  3. Sticking with M*A*S*H, how did "Hawkeye" get his nickname?
     Image: The Everett Collection
  4. How did "Beaver" get his nickname?
     Image: The Everett Collection
  5. Why is Leonard McCoy called "Bones" on Star Trek?
  6. Why is Aunt Bee called "Bee" on The Andy Griffith Show?
     Image: The Everett Collection
  7. How did Potsie get his nickname on Happy Days? (He explained it in the sixth episode.)
     Image: The Everett Collection
  8. In the episode "The Interview Show," Tootie explains how she got her nickname on The Facts of Life. What was the reason?
  9. Why is Captain Kangaroo called "Kangaroo"?
     Image: The Everett Collection
  10. How did Rerun get his name on What's Happening!!
     Image: The Everett Collection
  11. How did Faceman get his nickname on The A-Team?
     Image: The Everett Collection
  12. How did Venus Flytrap get his name on WKRP in Cincinnati?
     Image: The Everett Collection
  13. How did the character Huggy Bear get his name?
     Image: The Everett Collection

Do you know how these TV characters got their nicknames?

Your Result...

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65 Comments

Adamtwelvia 4 months ago
Hey, not too bad. I just guessed at most.
STTOS 26 months ago
You got 13 out of 13 - Impressive stuff! You sure know your TV trivia! Now THAT'S more like it. Knew most of them but took an educated guesses on #s 8 and 13. I guess I guessed correctly.
RedjacArbez 32 months ago
Number 7 is false...."Potsie" explained he like to bang on pots and pans as a kid so his mom called him "POTSIE"
rycki1138 RedjacArbez 29 months ago
Actually he said he got the name because he used to make pots out of clay when he was a kid, so his mother called him "Potsie". He said this in the episode "The Deadly Dares".
WordsmithWorks 37 months ago
11/13. If "Bee" was short for "Beatrice," why wasn't her name spelled "Bea?"
DerekBird 39 months ago
You got 11 out of 13
Impressive stuff! You sure know your TV trivia!
MMeans1 39 months ago
11/13. Lots of good guesses, lol
RobertM 51 months ago
#11's wrong--he WAS a master of disguise!
MMeans1 RobertM 39 months ago
Col. John "Hannibal" Smith, a B-movie actor and leader of the A-Team, was the master of disguise. Face was the conman who 'scammed' stuff for the team :)
Kaydee 59 months ago
4/13 Obviously I missed the episodes where they explain how they got their nicknames.
DavidBarker 59 months ago
7 of 13...
djw1120 DavidBarker 59 months ago
Me too.
I guess I don't watch enough television.
STTOS 59 months ago
You got 13 out of 13 - Impressive stuff! You sure know your TV trivia! Knew most of them and took educated guesses on #8 and #13 and guessed right.
Moverfan 59 months ago
Venus was actually supposed to be Venus Rising (yes, it's based on his birth sign, but it was Andy's idea). When he arrived at the station, he got a little nervous and introduced himself as Venus Flytrap ("the plant that eats bugs"). Mama Carlson will do that to a person...
JDnHuntsvilleAL Kelle 59 months ago
NO. When he first walks in on the meeting ANDY introduces him as "Venus Flytrap." In a later episode which recreates the moment and adds additional scenes Andy admits "it just slipped out."
Moverfan JDnHuntsvilleAL 39 months ago
I've seen that flahback episode I don't know how many times (it opens with Andy and Venus playing Hide The Chair) and it was years before I realized Catol Bruce had reshot all the scenes from the pilot--which features Sylvia Sidney.
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