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When meteorologist M.J McDermott retires this week from Channel 13, not many people will remember her early years hosting a kids’ show on Channel 11.

McDermott was the human star of Channel 11鈥檚 Rosco & Ronnie in the early 1990s, prior to heading back to school at the University of Washington to get her atmospheric science degree and become a broadcast meteorologist.

鈥淚 was Ronnie, the delivery person who brought Rosco stuff to his little house there in the woods,鈥� McDermott told 成人X站 Radio. 鈥淚 will never forget working with Rosco T. Raccoon.鈥�

Rosco was a raccoon puppet who lived in a ranger station, dispensing wisdom and wisecracks to a young audience in person and over the air from a perch on a conveniently located window.

鈥淭he hand within Rosco and the voice behind Rosco was Winslow Barger, who is one of the sweetest, most creative people in television,鈥� McDermott said. 鈥淚 loved working with Winslow and doing that kids鈥� show. We were the last children’s show in the market to have a live children audience.鈥�

鈥淓nd of an era,鈥� she added.

Keen TV 鈥渙bservers鈥� 鈥� such as radio historians and other introverts who pay slightly more attention than mere 鈥渧iewers鈥� 鈥� will recall that M.J. was actually the third human host of the show, which was originally called 鈥淩anger Charlie鈥� when it premiered on the longtime Tacoma TV station in the late 1980s, and which then became 鈥淩anger Charlie and Rosco.鈥�

That KSTW made the move to create a new local kids鈥� show in that era 鈥� with its satellite feeds of syndicated programs and ubiquitous toy-driven cartoon franchises 鈥� seems like a counterintuitive throwback. Perhaps it鈥檚 not surprising, then, to learn that credit for making it happen, says Winslow Barger, goes to legendary KSTW kids鈥� TV show host 鈥淏rakeman Bill鈥� McLain, host of a kids鈥� show on KSTW from 1955 to 1975, and later head of promotions for the station.

鈥淗e kicked it off for us and was behind it starting,鈥� Barger told 成人X站 Radio.

Barger also says that before there was 鈥淩onnie鈥� 鈥� that name, by the way, was inspired by Barger鈥檚 childhood friend, Ron Jensen 鈥� there were two different performers who portrayed Ranger Charlie at KSTW.

鈥淭here was Charlie Bird, and then Robin Nicholson, or now,鈥� Barger said. 鈥淎nd they were both great to work with. That’s something I was very lucky about 鈥� every co-host I had was wonderful to work.鈥�

When Charlie #2 Robin Lee Noll left, Rosco T. Raccoon 鈥� with assistance from Barger — helped find a replacement, and reworked the format and name of the show.

鈥淲e were pretty successful up to that point, so it was kind of a big deal鈥� to find a new human host, says Barger. 鈥淲e probably auditioned at least close to 50 people, I think, for it. [M.J.] ended up getting the position. She blew us away. She was very funny.鈥�

鈥淚t was kind of an easy choice,鈥� Barger said.

Like so many thousands of people who grew up in the Puget Sound area in the late 20th century, Barger grew up watching J.P. Patches聽on 成人X站 TV, and the many YouTube clips of 鈥淩osco and Ronnie鈥� reveal a good amount of 鈥淛P DNA.鈥� Rosco and Ronnie showed cartoons and performed slapstick stunts and skits involving members of the young audience gathered in front of the ranger station, and prior to M.J. joining the show, the unseen delivery person who became Ronnie was inspired, says Barger, by Bob Newman鈥檚 鈥淢iss Smith鈥檚 Delivery Service,鈥� as seen on the Patches program.

But, as had also happened a generation earlier, television rules changed in the early 1990s and forced many programs to shift gears. Rosco and Ronnie adapted, dropping the live audience and morphing into producing public service announcements and educational bits about topics such as famous people in history. Production of the show ended in 1995.

It was not long after that when M.J. 鈥� which stands for 鈥淢ary Jean鈥� 鈥� enrolled at the UW to study weather. She was born in Florida, and grew up in many places as an Air Force brat, but always loved science and wanted to be an astronaut. In her first time around at college, M.J. studied theatre at the University of Maryland.

As she was finishing up her meteorology studies at the UW in 2000, M.J. got a TV job doing weekend weather for Northwest Cable News聽and KING 5.

鈥淎nd then, the news director there, Bill Kazarba, came over to Q13,鈥� McDermott said. 鈥淎nd because I wasn’t full time on contract at Northwest Cable News/KING 5, he said, 鈥楧o you want to come over to Q13?鈥� And I said, 鈥榊es.鈥欌��

鈥淎nd so I started here doing weekends in January of 2003,鈥� McDermott said. 鈥淲ow. It’s a long time!鈥�

And M.J. says during that 鈥渓ong time,鈥� morning TV weather has been all about three or four basic things.

鈥淣umber one, I want to make sure people are safe if there’s dangerous weather, and number two, how to make sure people are just prepared for their day,鈥� McDermott said. 鈥淚f it’s going to rain, I want you to go out with your jacket with the hood. I want you to be prepared, and I want kids to be prepared as they go off to school. I want people to know if the roads are icy or [if there鈥檚] fog, they need 鈥� to be reminded to slow down and use your low beams.鈥�

Rain or shine, McDermott is now 62, and is not fond of getting up early in the morning and doing all the hair, makeup, and wardrobe necessary for TV. She鈥檚 not ready to slow down much, but she is ready for a different sleep schedule.

But this doesn鈥檛 mean there aren鈥檛 things M.J. is going to miss about working the early shift at Channel 13.

鈥淪trangely enough, I actually am going to miss seeing the early, early morning sky,鈥� McDermott said. 鈥淚 like going out when I get up in the morning to look at the sky and the weather, and I like the early, early mornings 鈥� but not that 别补谤濒测.鈥�

How early is 鈥渆arly鈥� for M.J. McDermott?

鈥淲hen a viewer asked me what time I get up and I said, 鈥�2:15,鈥� he goes, 鈥極h, that’s almost yesterday,’鈥� McDermott said, laughing. 鈥淸I said], 鈥榊ou know, you’re right. It’s not even today.鈥�

McDermott is respected and admired by the other meteorologists she鈥檚 worked with, and by her colleagues on the other stations. Contacted by 成人X站 Radio, former KING 5 meteorologists Larry Schick and Jeff Renner shared congratulatory messages, as did Kristin Clark of KOMO TV and Nick Allard of 成人X站 7.

And while not a trained meteorologist, there was one more former colleague who wanted to congratulate M.J. McDermott.

鈥淥h, M.J., I just wanted to tell you how excited I am that you鈥檙e retiring,鈥� said Rosco T. Raccoon by phone earlier this week. 鈥淎nd it鈥檚 gonna be really fun, too, because all you have to do is sit around and eat liver pizza all day and you don鈥檛 have to do nothin鈥�. And you can get that husband of yours to take care of manicuring your feet and all those kinds of things. If you want to come visit me at the ranger station, come by any time, OK? Love ya! Good luck on that retirement thing.鈥�

Though she鈥檒l be officially retired as of Thursday morning, M.J. won鈥檛 be hitting the golf course or becoming a habitu茅 of the senior center any time soon. Her next project is a musical that she鈥檚 been working on based on a children鈥檚 book she published a few years ago. The story is about where Frankenstein really went at the end of Mary Shelley鈥檚 novel when he disappears in the frozen reaches of the Arctic, not far from the North Pole. She鈥檚 working with a composer and they鈥檝e recorded a number songs for a show to be called, like McDermott鈥檚 earlier book, Frankenstein Meets Santa.

Meanwhile, M.J.鈥檚 replacement working mornings at Channel 13 is Brian MacMillan, who she has been training during her final days at the station. As far as anyone knows, MacMillan, who most recently worked as a meteorologist in Portland, Oregon, never starred in a children鈥檚 TV show.

But if he did, we鈥檒l have the story here on 成人X站 Radio and MyNorthwest a few decades from now when MacMillan retires.

You can hear Feliks every Wednesday and Friday morning on Seattle鈥檚 Morning News, read more from him鈥�here, and subscribe to The Resident Historian Podcast聽here. If you have a story idea, please email Feliks鈥�here.