| The Original Letter People
This article is about the original 1969 - 1996 Letter People
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Miss I is a "letter girl", one of the 5 women characters representing the vowels. Her sound is the same sound that starts Itchy Itch. This was the first iteration of her character used in the classroom programs until 1974 (Needs confirmation), including the TV show. Her trait was changed to a more positive/pleasant one of "incredible inventor" starting in 1974. (Needs confirmation)
Itchy Itch[]
“Little Miss I is quite a sight,
Her itching is an awful fright.
Nothing can make her itching stop,
And so she has a wiggle hop.”
Miss I is very fond of itching daily. Nothing, not even any medical treatment, can be uses to cure her itch. In the TV series, it is revels that she has an invisible fairy companion named "Itchy Itch" (who is named after Miss I's characteristic), who tickles her when she hears a word that starts with her sound.
In her 1968 design, Miss I has red-orange skin, along with a wide-open mouth and crossed eyes. She has long curly hair in yellow, blue, purple, and green, donning a pink bow. Her dress is blue with purple polka dots and long puff sleeves. She also wears multi-colored shoes.
In 1973, Miss I's design was simplified for the Alpha Time program. In this design she has yellow skin, blue eyes, a pink bow, blue hair on both sides, the same blue dress with pink polka dots, and purple shoes.
In the TV show, Miss I is the owner of the Itsy-Witsy Ice Cream Parlor and also performs there in a Carmen Miranda-inspired costume. Her personality is more similar to the female characters in classic film noir, since her episode is done in that style. Her usual appearance is with dark green skin, black hair tied in a bun and accented by a blue floral hair clip, and she wears a light blue polka-dotted dress with lots of ruffles. Itchy Itch also appears as a transparent gloved hand.
Incredible Inventor[]
“Ms. I is very, very bright⏤
She's been inventing day and night!
Imaginative ideas pop into her head
And she never stops thinking till it's time for bed.”
In 1974, Miss I's characteristic was changed to "Incredible Inventor" as a more positive trait, due to parents' complaints that it was cruel to have a Letter Person itching all day. This was the same reason Miss O was changed from "obstinate" to an "optimistic optimist".
Her appearance is almost identical to her original design, but now she has pink skin, purple lips, eyes directed upward, and, instead of itching, now points up with her right hand as if she has developed an idea. Her bow is also removed. Miss I's design based on the original one was oddly kept as it is (especially in the Read-to-Me and Fables from the Letter People books). Yet some re-releases of the soundtrack show a recolored version of the Incredible Inventor artwork.