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Old Man Jenkins is the iconic old man in SpongeBob SquarePants, and I hope he’s around for generations. The show may survive without him, but it may suffer.
While you may learn a little about Old Man Jenkins watching an episode or two, his story doesn’t come together until you catch every episode he’s in — I know I thought he was just an old man in glasses.
But that’s not even Old Man Jenkins. That’s just some old fish that was once called Old Man Jenkins, but that’s not even his name! If you thought that was him, you were just like me. But now it’s time for your enlightenment, which is why I created this Old Man Jenkins guide.
Old Man Jenkins Overview
- Full Name: Old Man Jenkins Jr.
- Age: Unknown
- Home: His house or Shady Shoals Rest Home
- Occupation: Farmer, Sailor, Cannonball man
- First Official Appearance: “The Sponge Who Could Fly”
Old Man Jenkins is an old man that usually sports a beard. He has many skills, with his main profession being a farmer. The real Old Man Jenkins appears in fifteen episodes.
Other Old Man Jenkins (but not the real one) appears in over 50 collectively. But that’s because Old Man Jenkins was once a generic name given to most of the old men on the show.
It wasn’t until Season 3 that the name became attached to just one entity. Now, Old Man Jenkins Jr. is the true Old Man Jenkins, despite his father sharing the same name. Please give it up for Farmer Jenkins.
Every Old Man Jenkins Appearance
Old Man Jenkins appears in many episodes. From season 3 to 13 – his official appearances thus far – he appears in fifteen episodes. Of course, this doesn’t include the episodes whenever another character was called Old Man Jenkins.
Season 3
“The Sponge Who Could Fly,” Episode 59
In this episode, Old Man Jenkins is first called “Farmer Jenkins” when SpongeBob crashes into his grain silo with a biplane. In the episode, it is revealed that Old Man Jenkins is also a sailor and cannonball artist.
His main line in the episode, which he repeats, is, “I told you nothing good would come from city folk and their flying machines!” If that’s not a great line for a t-shirt, I don’t know what is.
Season 5
“Friend or Foe,” Episode 81
We find out in this episode that Old Man Jenkins was a family friend of Mr. Krabs. He even helped them through rough times when they didn’t have enough money to get by.
This extremely revealing episode shows Old Man Jenkins as the first person ever to try the Krabby Patty, which happened to be poison, causing Plankton and Mr. Krabs‘ famous fight to begin.
Season 7
“The Main Drain,” Episode 141
In this episode, The Drain is a large drain that is said to drain the entire ocean if unplugged. SpongeBob and Patrick are told by Old Man Jenkins that the drain exists, but he doesn’t know where it is.
This is an important episode for him because it lets us know that he knows more than most of the citizens of Bikini Bottom. He may act crazy, but he’s been around longer than most.
Season 9
“Séance Shméance,” Episode 187
Old Man Jenkins enters the Krusty Krab in this Halloween special. He orders a Rusty on Rye and gets angry when they don’t have it. SpongeBob consoles him by asking what it looks like. SpongeBob then makes a Rusty on Rye for Old Man Jenkins, which greatly pleases the old man.
Season 11
“The Check-Up,” Episode 217
Old Man Jenkins isn’t the star of this episode, but he does make a cameo appearance in a picture. The picture appears on a fake photo booth that SpongeBob and Squidward make to disguise the X-Ray machine that Mr. Krabs won’t enter.
“High Sea Diving,” Episode 230
This is a special episode for Old Man Jenkins because it is his birthday. He goes sea diving and accidentally floats up to the Great Pacific garbage patch above Bikini Bottom. he tells SpongeBob that he is King Neptune.
SpongeBob uses the junk to make a ladder to help Old Man Jenkins get home. When they get back, the real King Neptune appears and lights Old Man Jenkins on fire for using his name.
“Plankton Paranoia,” Episode 235
Old Man Jenkins makes a cameo appearance at the Chum Bucket for Mr. Krabs‘ surprise party. He doesn’t have a huge part, and you may miss him if you’re not paying close attention.
“Appointment TV,” Episode 238
Old Man Jenkins yells at the crowd, revealing that the amphitheater they were using was his private one. Everyone except for SpongeBob runs away. Old Man Jenkins tells SpongeBob that he felt bad because he wanted to be in the play. SpongeBob lets him join, and they end the episode having a good time.
The secret in this episode is that Old Man Jenkins owns an amphitheater. Does this mean he’s wealthier than a farmer should be? Maybe. Or maybe he inherited it from Old Man Jenkins Sr.’s parents.
“Karen’s Virus,” Episode 238
Old Man Jenkins makes a small appearance dancing at Wagon Wheel while dressed as Walter Haddock. Walter is an old prospector that searched for gold in Bikini Bottom.
Karen is one of my favorite characters on the show, so this episode means something to me. The Wagon Wheel scene was the best scene in the episode, and I’m glad Old Man Jenkins could be part of it.
Season 12
“FarmerBob,” Episode 242
In this episode, SpongeBob and Patrick work a day on Old Man Jenkins’ farm. The entire episode, Old Man Jenkins’ tractor is out of control and makes a mess of the entire farm.
I love this episode because we get to see Jenkins’ skills and his absentmindedness. They balance each other out and remind me of a few farmers I know. However, most good farmers would never leave their tractor running like that.
“The Ballad of Filthy Muck,” Episode 243
Old Man Jenkins randomly shows up in this episode. He tells everyone that he isn’t afraid of Filthy Muck because he is too old to have a sense of smell. So he seems quite brave.
That is until Patrick drops a towel he was wearing after cleaning up. It turns out he does seem to be afraid of naked Patrick. But then again, Patrick is big, scary, and pink.
“Senior Discount,” Episode 251
Old Man Jenkins seems to be deterring other customers at the Krusty Krab. Mr. Krabs tries his best to make Jenkins leave. To get him to leave, Mr. Krabs ends up getting Old Man Jenkins’ father.
What’s funny is that Mr. Krabs says Old Man Jenkins always ruins his business. But we’ve seen him at the Krusty Krab before, and nothing has happened. The inconsistency is funny.
“The Ghost of Plankton,” Episode 259
Old Man Jenkins makes a small appearance at Plankton’s funeral. Of course, it was all a ruse to steal the Krabby Patty Secret Formula, but supportive Old Man Jenkins didn’t know that.
It may seem strange that Old Man Jenkins appears at Plankton’s funeral. But if you think about it, you may remember that he was the first to try Plankton and Mr. Krabs‘ patty, so he must have been close to both.
“Hiccup Plague,” Episode 261
Old Man Jenkins makes fun of Bubble Bass whenever the latter complains about having the hiccups. He says that back in the olden days, hiccups could “turn people inside out.”
The running gag surrounding Old Man Jenkins is a play on the common trait of old people – in movies particularly – of talking about how bad things were back in their day.
Season 13
“A Place for Pets,” Episode 268
The iconic episode shows Old Man Jenkins with his pet worm hog – who looks just like Mrs. Wormsley – eating at the Krusty Krab. The premise of the episode is that Mr. Krabs learns that pets are better targets than their owners.
This episode is great for Mr. Krabs fans because it shows many of his traits. One thing you may not notice is that the worm that Jenkins has is likely the offspring of Mrs. Wormsley from “Pet or Pests.”
Different Old Man Jenkins
There are multiple instances when the name Old Man Jenkins is used for old men that are not the real Old Man Jenkins. The old men often don’t have a name but are credited.
Most of the time, old fish are given tags such as Incidental 86. This makes it easier for the writers to communicate with each other and share who will appear in the animations.
Original Old Man Jenkins (Old Man Walker)
Old Man Walker is the original fish that is called Old Man Jenkins. He is also known as Incidental 83. His first appearance is in “Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy,” and to this day, he appears even more often than the real Old Man Jenkins.
Old Man Walker has never had a feature episode, but he does appear in many episodes as the most popular old man in the series. You can recognize him by his round glasses and yellow scales.
Wheelchair Old Man Jenkins (Incidental 86)
Wheelchair Old Man appears in more episodes than Old Man Jenkins, but not by much. That said, he doesn’t get as much screen time because he almost always appears in a cameo.
He resides at Shady Shoals Rest Home or the Rusty Krab. He’s the only old man without a home that was shown in the series. You can recognize him by his wheelchair because his scale color isn’t consistent.
Blue Old Man Jenkins (Incidental 91)
The blue old man named Incidental 91 actually appeared orange as an older kid and blue again as a little kid. He appears in many episodes but almost always with a cameo appearance. He doesn’t even have a name.
Even though he only has cameo appearances, he’s the only old man that is shown as a kid in the series. He is also known to be intelligent because he’s a biologist who has studied since he was a kid.
FAQs
Answer: There are so many entities called Old Man Jenkins because it was originally a generic old man name on SpongeBob SquarePants. In Season 3, this changed when the bearded old man became the official Old Man Jenkins.
Answer: Old Man Jenkins’ age is never hinted at. He is older than Mr. Krabs, but his father is also alive. So this makes it more difficult to determine his age. Also, he’s a fish, and SpongeBob doesn’t follow the laws of nature.
Answer: John Gegenhuber and Dee Bradley Baker have both played Old Man Jenkins. It was originally Baker, but as of High Sea Diving, John Gegenhuber has played the iconic old fish.
Answer: Very Old Man Jenkins Sr. (his official name) is Old Man Jenkins’ father. He appears when Mr. Krabs and Old Man Jenkins’ families face off in “Senior Discount.” The appearance went over well, so he may return.
Answer: Yes. While his kids never make an appearance, a picture of Old Man Jenkins’ skateboarding grandson appears in “Senior Discount.” So we can assume he has at least one child.
Old Man Jenkins Story Isn’t Over
Old Man Jenkins isn’t disappearing from SpongeBob lore anytime soon. Because the series is ongoing and Old Man Jenkins was in Season 13, it is easy to assume that he’ll return in the next season of SpongeBob SquarePants.
Although he isn’t a main character, I feel that Old Man Jenkins adds a lot to the show. If he had never existed, we wouldn’t miss him. But because we’ve gotten to know him, Bikini Bottom wouldn’t be the same without him.
After all, who would have helped Mr. Krabs through poverty? Who would have stood up against Filthy Muck? And who would have taught SpongeBob how to farm? Old Man Jenkins may be behind the scenes of more than we know.
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