Slim Goodbody

When I was a kid, I had a toy called "The Visible Man."  It was a model of a man with no skin.  You had to assemble the skeleton and put all of the organs in place (sadly, no penis), I guess to teach you anatomy.















During the 1970s, actor John Burstein got the idea of becoming a human "Visible Man."  He painted muscles and organs onto a leotard, and as Slim Goodbody, set out to teach kids about anatomy.

As you can see, the effect was rather disgusting, and the guy had no physique.  But at least he sported a rather noticeable bulge.















There are actually several different suits, with different organs and muscles on display.

Slim Goodbody struck a nerve with parents looking for educational programming, and soon he was appearing on the morning kidvid Captain Kangaroo twice a week.

He branched out from anatomy to nutrition, exercise, and personal hygiene, and eventually to such hot topics as bullying and environmentalism.

 In 1980 he got his own PBS series, Inside Story.  Plus he appeared in a series of books and educational films.




Slim became so busy that, for seven years, there were two of him.  While John Burstein concentrated on the tv series, actor and mime Bill Bowers played Slim Goodbody at schools, hospitals, and public events.

Burstein still performs as Slim Goodbody all over the United States and Canada.

Though outrageously fey in his Slim persona, Burstein is straight.  Bowers is gay.