Coach Dickie Salmons is the enthusiastic physical education teacher at Freshwater High who's quick to offer motivation or a diagram of the food pyramid. He’s a recurring character in the series. He was voiced by the late Richard Simmons.
Personality[]
He’s very friendly, kind and dramatic he sings a lot for no reason ("Underwater Boy", "The Dark Side of the Fish", "Riding in Cars with Fish").
He used to think his older sister Savannah was always out to compete and overshadow him, until he got to hear his perspective and reconciled with her.
Personal Life[]
Coach Salmons first appeared when he announced the football players of Freshwater High. When Milo tried out for the football team, Coach Salmons saw agility and skill in Milo's audition. He said he was proud of him and that he had a star on his hands. Coach Salmons made Milo "water boy" and believed that it was his destiny. The next day, Milo figured out the game was in the Gecko Tank. Coach Salmons and the football team quickly dehydrated without their water boy, due to the tank being really dry and hot. The Geckos said Coach Salmons could have water if he forfeited the game. Just after, Milo came in and gave everyone water. Thanks to him, the fish won the game. When the team cheered for Milo, he said he owed all his success to Coach Salmons and called him the best coach ever. With that, he drenched him with a bucket full of water. Bea then pointed out that that was the last of the water, making everyone dehydrate ("Underwater Boy").
Coach Salmons came to visit Milo when was faking the dropsy. He decided to sing Milo a song to cheer him up. After he was done singing, he asked Milo if it made him feel better, and Milo said, "not one bit". At the end, Coach Salmons threw a recovery party for Albert Glass when he got cured, and sang his song again ("Dropsy!"). He was once teaching Milo and the girls yoga. When Milo kept failing at the stretches, he asked Coach Salmons why he couldn't do any of the stuff the girls were doing. Coach Salmons patted Milo on the head and told him that it was because the girls were much, much stronger than him. When Milo asked how he could get as big and strong as the girls, Coach Salmons said he just needed to do his exercises and work really, really hard. Later, when Milo grew big and strong, Coach Salmons thought he could cry, amazed that Milo used to be so small, but grew into a "big, strong, petunia" ("Big Fish").
When Milo was hiding and curling into a ball at the gym, trying to call Bea, Coach Salmons thought Milo was a fresh ball, and passed him to Bea. After Bea hit Milo real hard, determined to save Oscar, Coach Salmons called him a "talking volleyball" ("The Dark Side of the Fish"). When Oscar was about to take his driver's test, he found out that Coach Salmons and Mr. Mussels were his driving instructors. Oscar didn't really like this, but got in the car anyways. Mr. Mussels and Coach Salmons told Oscar the rules of his test, and that if he got 3 "dings", he would fail his test. Oscar started driving, and all was well in the beginning until they couldn't figure out how to get back to the DMV. After Oscar got 1 "ding" while he was reading while driving, Coach Salmons started singing with Mr. Mussels, which sort of annoyed Oscar. Oscar then drove out of the tanks, but got another "ding" when he didn't look at the road. Coach Salmons and Mr. Mussels argued a little, but quickly apologized afterwards. Oscar then remembered that Milo spent a lot of time having adventures outside the tanks, so he told Coach Salmons to call Milo. He wasted time by asking Milo a bunch of ridiculous questions, and when he was about to ask Milo for directions, Oscar's cellphone died, so the three were stuck in the car, stranded outside the tanks. Coach Salmons then saw the Burger Bunny restaurant, so he asked Oscar if they could get a meal there. After Coach Salmons finished his drink, he said he needed to use "the little coach's room". Oscar pulled over, but got another "ding" for not using his turn signal, which meant that he failed his driving test. However, right at that moment, Wilford the cat attacked the car. Coach Salmons and Mr. Mussels started panicking, but Oscar remembered what Milo and Bea told him. He parallel parked between two boxes of cat food and they found the DMV. For saving their life, Mr. Mussels and Coach Salmons allowed Oscar to have his driver's license. Oscar took a picture with his two driving instructors and received his license ("Riding in Cars with Fish").
Coach Salmons sang the Cheer-Off Anthem at the "All-species High School cheering squads" competition. Coach Salmons complimented the Freshwater High cheer and the Clamettes cheer routine, and announced the winners of the contest ("We've Got Fish Spirit"). Coach Salmons was shown being really impressed by Bea's dance group in the talent show, saying it was "too good to be true" ("Fish Talent Show").
Coach Salmons had his biggest role in "Camp Camp", when all the students came to his summer camp known as "Camp Camp". Quickly after introducing the students to the camp, Coach Salmons' sister, Savannah, arrived and greeted the students as well as Coach Salmons. She gave him a hug and showed off her camp's kids greeting to Camp Camp. When Savannah left, Coach Salmons was disappointed that she was showing off again. When the students tried to leave Camp Camp because they thought it was lame, Coach Salmons caught them, and when he learned what they were trying to do, he sobbed and ran away. Mr. Mussels told the children why Coach Salmons was so upset, and that in his childhood, Savannah always found a way to do things better than and look better than Coach Salmons. As a result, Coach Salmons always felt like he was in second place every time. When he found his camp, he thought it was a dream come true, until Savannah made her own camp right next to his and won "Best Camp in the Universe" award. The students felt terrible, so they went to Savannah's camp and trashed it, stealing her trophy as well. They brought it to Coach Salmons the next morning, who, when he saw what they had done to the camp, was disappointed in them. Savannah then came over, and asked Coach Salmons what was going on. Coach Salmons told her how he felt, and she said she never felt like it was a competition. At the end, the two camps combined to form "Camp Camp Crystal Waters" and Coach Salmons said it was the greatest summer of his life.
Background information[]
- Along with mussels, salmons can’t be kept as pets, which makes it odd for Coach Salmons to live in a pet shop.
- In human form, Coach Salmons resembles Tobias from The Amazing World of Gumball.
- It’s also implied "Dickie" is his real name due to his sisters nickname.
Appearances[]
- "Underwater Boy" (First appearance, Debut)
- "Dances with Wolf Fish"
- "Milo Gets a Ninja"
- "Dropsy!"
- "Big Fish"
- "The Dark Side Of The Fish"
- "Two Clams in Love"
- "Parasite Fright" (Non-speaking cameo)
- "Riding in Cars with Fish"
- "Milo's Big Idea"
- "Diary of a Lost Fish"
- "Good Morning, Freshwater"
- "We've Got Fish Spirit"
- "Fish School Musical"
- "Fish Talent Show"
- "Hairanoid" (Non-speaking cameo)
- "Merry Fishmas, Milo" (Non-speaking cameo)
- "Milo on the Lam" (Non-speaking cameo)
- "Just One of the Fish"
- "Rock Lobster Yeti"
- "Busy Bea: Rise of the Machines"
- "Little Fish Sunshine"
- "Fish Prom"
- "A Charity Fair to Remember"
- "Glass Man Standing"
- "Pool Party Panic"
- "Hare and Back Again"
- "Hats Amore!"
- "Camp Camp"
- "Algae Day" (Non-speaking cameo)
- "Surfing the Interwet"
- "Milo in a Cup" (Non-speaking cameo)
- "The Big Woo"