Big Jon and Sparkie chronicles the light-hearted, comic adventures of the title characters and their friends and associates. "Big Jon" is Jon Arthur, who voices almost all the characters in the show, including the impish Sparkie, who is sometimes described as "an elf who wants to be a boy," but seems all boy to me.

Regular characters include Mayor Plumpfront; Daffodil Dilly, the mayor's fiancee, whose kidnapping forms a long story arc; and Yukie Butcha, a taxi driver who moonlights as a private eye. Many of the episodes feature humorous wordplay and whimsical issues, such as why, for example, a ship's bell chimes twice for 1 o'clock (and for five other o'clocks), whereas a regular clock chimes only one time for only two o'clocks (1:00 a. m. and 1:00 p. m.).

The show originated on WSAI in Cincinnati and went national on ABC, airing from 1950 til 1958. After its debut as a half-hour show, Big Jon and Sparkie quickly settled into a quarter-hour format airing weekdays. Big Jon and Sparkie also appeared in a two-hour Saturday morning show called No School Today, also targeted towards kids, but which gained a strong adult following because its light-hearted spirit. Big Jon and Sparkie also gave rise to a short-lived comic book.

I found this a surprisingly fun listen. For more information, see the Old Time Radio Catalog.