O.J.

**O.J.** (an abbreviation of Old Jones) is Captain Star's third and oldest tug. He is indeed capable of a variety of tasks, but is sometimes restricted by his age and mechanical condition. However at the end of the episode Quarantine he was taken to Lucky's Yard to receive a new engine and the problem was resolved.

He speaks with a South Welsh accent.

## Biography

O.J. is the only paddle-driven tug left in Bigg City Port. He can be described as slow, but versatile. As Captain Star once said in *Quarantine*, "He'd given many years of good service, but time was catching up on him."

Prior to an overhaul during the Year of the Heat Wave, Old Jones's aged engine was the cause for a number of mishaps, including an accident that resulted in the sinking of the Fultan Ferry. O.J.'s weakness and age has often placed him on the receiving end of jokes and insults from the Star Fleet and Z-Stacks alike (mostly the Z-Stacks and Top Hat). For a period, he was the primary target of Burke and Blair, the evil-minded scrap dealers who attempted on a number of occasions to persuade Captain Star into selling O.J. and his engine for a cheap price. But after O.J.'s quick thinking prevented Ten Cents from having to enter quarantine, Captain Star sent O.J. to Lucky's Yard and the scavengers on their way.

## Personality

As the Star Fleet's wise elder, O.J. possesses unbeatable wisdom. He has extensive knowledge and experience of harbour life and manoeuvres, and because of this, Captain Star often places him in charge of large operations, such as ocean liner docking manoeuvres. On various occasions, O.J. has demonstrated his ability to devise swift and clever strategies to help himself and his fellow Stars out of predicaments. He does not stand for nonsense, and is quick to correct the younger tugs if they make mistakes. Despite his occasionally harsh approach, O.J. cares for his fellow Stars as a grandparent would for their grandchildren. In addition to being wise, O.J. is also quite sharp, like in Sunshine where he admitted that he was suspicious as to why Zorran showed up almost instantly after Sunshine lost control with the Duchess, or in Quarantine where he suspected foul play when Nantucket lowered his quarantine flag even though there was no coast guard in sight.

O.J. is always seen with glasses on in the TV series. In *Mistaken Identity*, it is revealed that his vision is limited without them. In the annual story, he loses them and bumps into a solid object. The fact that it's dark out and foggy doesn't help matters. He decides to stay put as he can't seem to get around the obstacle and falls asleep only to be towed to Burke and Blair's scrapyard by Zip and Zug by mistake. Fortunately, everything turned out fine thanks to Zorran, albeit unknowingly.

## Technical Details

### Basis

A possible basis for O.J. is the Eppleton Hall, built by Hepple & Co of South Shields in 1914. Eppleton Hall originally worked in 1914 for the Lambton and Hetton Collieries Ltd. She later worked for France Fenwick, Wear and Tyne Ltd until 1964, and after fifteen years was donated to the USA National Park Service. She is still afloat at Hyde Street Pier, San Francisco, to this day.

### Livery

O.J. is painted in the Star Fleet's corporate livery. This consists of a black hull, a yellow superstructure and an American flag-styled red, white and blue funnel. He also has a brown mast, red paddle-wheels and white paddle-wheel housings. His name is painted on the sides of his bow in white and he has the number "3" on his funnel. He wears a light brown boater hat with a red band on it.

## Appearances

### Episodes

* Sunshine
* Trapped
* Regatta
* Munitions
* High Tide
* Quarantine
* Ghosts
* Jinxed
* High Winds
* Up River
* Bigg Freeze

### Books and Annuals

* Kidnapped
* Run Aground (*cameo*)
* Nothing to Declare
* O.J.'s Bad Day
* Loading Grain
* Mistaken Identity
* The Race
* Ship In Distress (*mentioned*)
* Naval Manoeuvres
* Quarantine
* Ten Cents' Busy Day

## Voice Actors

* Timothy Bateson
* Masaaki Tsukada (*Japan*)
* Pauli Virta (*Finland*)

## Trivia

* His model, along with original hat, smokestack, wheelhouse, and face, was sold to the Star Tugs Company (formerly The Star Tugs Trust).
	+ Though at the moment, he is painted in the Lakesider III livery, as seen in Thomas & Friends.
* O.J. is the only Star Fleet member to appear on Thomas & Friends, albeit in a different livery with his face removed.
* In Salty's Lighthouse, O.J.'s name was changed to "Otis" in order to avoid confusion with O.J. Simpson whose trial was a controversial topic at the time in the United States.
* He is one of the two members of the Star Fleet to wear glasses, Hercules is the other.

## Merchandise

* Port Set (*discontinued*)
* Kabaya Stamp (*discontinued*)
* Waddingtons Puzzles (*discontinued*)
* Pins Badge (*discontinued*)
* Thimbles (*discontinued*)

**Bigg City Port**

*\** **Television Series** *only* | *\*\** **Annuals** *only* | *~~---~~ Cut*