Donovan Patton facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Donovan Patton
Patton in 2024
Born	(1978-03-01) March 1, 1978 (age 47) Naval Air Station Agana, Guam, U.S.
Occupation	Actor television host
Years active	1996–present
Spouse(s)	Jackie Patton
Children	2

Donovan Patton (born March 1, 1978) is an American actor and television host. He is best known for playing Joe, the second host of the popular children's TV show Blue's Clues. He also voiced Bot in Team Umizoomi and CatRat in Gabby's Dollhouse. Besides his work in kids' shows, Donovan has acted in movies, other TV series, and even video games.

Early Life and School

Donovan Patton was born on March 1, 1978, on a U.S. military base in Guam. His dad, Michael Patton, was an Air Force meteorologist, and his mom, Darlene Curtis, worked for a charity. He has an older brother named Casey and a younger half-sister named Annabelle.

When Donovan was three, his parents divorced, and he moved with his mom and brother to Colorado. Later, when he was 12, they moved to Las Vegas. In 1996, he graduated from the Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan, a special school for arts.

Donovan's Acting Journey

Donovan's first acting jobs were in plays by William Shakespeare, like Much Ado About Nothing and Romeo and Juliet. He took acting classes in New York City and worked different small jobs, like a book clerk, to support himself.

Becoming Joe on Blue's Clues

Donovan got his "big break" in 2000 when he was chosen to be the new host of Blue's Clues. He replaced Steve Burns, who was the first host. At the time, Donovan was working as a waiter and actor in New York. He said getting the role of Joe was a "happy accident."

Donovan was picked from 1,500 people who auditioned! He had never seen the show before his audition. He even joked that he got the part because of a funny Christopher Walken impression he did. Steve Burns, the first host, helped train Donovan for the role. Steve told him to think of the show as real acting, not just kids' TV. Donovan took over as host in 2002.

The creators of Blue's Clues said that Donovan's character, Joe, was more like a preschooler. Joe was more likely to "jump into a problem" and try to solve it, which made him very relatable to young viewers. Donovan loved working on the show because he got to "be a kid for twelve hours a day." He stayed on Blue's Clues for 48 episodes until it ended in 2006. He also appeared in its spin-off show, Blue's Room.

Years later, Donovan, along with Steve Burns, returned to the Blue's Clues world! They both appeared in the 2019 revival, Blue's Clues & You!, to help their cousin Josh learn how to take care of Blue. They also starred together in the movie Blue's Big City Adventure in 2022.

Other Cool Roles

After Blue's Clues, Donovan continued his acting career. In 2009, he was cast as the voice of Bot, a robot superhero, on the children's show Team Umizoomi. He found it comforting to work on Team Umizoomi because many of the same people from Blue's Clues were also working on it. This was his first time doing voice-over acting. He said he tried to make Bot's voice sound like the android Data from Star Trek: The Next Generation. Donovan voiced Bot for all four seasons of the show.

More recently, in 2021, Donovan started voicing CatRat on the Netflix show Gabby's Dollhouse.

Even though he's famous for kids' shows, Donovan has also acted in many other projects. He's been in independent films like Lies I Told My Little Sister and The Broken Ones. He's also appeared in TV shows like Blue Bloods and Nurse Jackie.

Donovan has lent his voice to several video games too, including Grand Theft Auto V, Lego Jurassic World, Halo 5: Guardians, and God of War.

Personal Life

Donovan Patton is married to his wife, Jackie, and they have two children. They live in Los Angeles. He also helps out with several charities in New York City, such as Literacy Inc., the Make-a-Wish Foundation, and the Columbia Presbyterian Hospital, which is a large children's hospital.

Filmography

Film

Television

Video Games

Shorts

Video

• Dr. Ice (1996) – Waiter
• It's Joe Time (2002) – Joe
• Blue's Clues: Meet Joe! (2002) – Joe
• Blue's Big Band (2003) – Joe
• Blue's Biggest Stories (2006) – Joe
• Blue's Jobs (2006) – Joe
• Meet Blue's Baby Brother (2006) – Joe
• Blue Takes You to School (2003) – Joe
• Fred's Birthday (2006) – Joe