Chuckles (G.I. Joe)

Chuckles is a fictional character from the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero toyline, comic books and cartoon series. He is the G.I. Joe Team's undercover specialist and debuted in 1987.

Profile
His real name is Philip M. Provost, and his rank is that of sergeant E-5. Chuckles was born in Little Rock, Arkansas.

Chuckles's primary MOS is criminal investigations, and his secondary is intelligence. His first exposure to "hole-and-corner" operations was working for Southeastern Insurance Group in Fort Lauderdale, he then eventually made his way to the US Army's Criminal Investigations Division before joining G.I. Joe. He is known for being so conscientious about keeping up his "cover" that he volunteers for missions no one else wants.

Chuckles is naturally likable, which has made him well suited for undercover operations. His gregarious nature also helps him to earn the trust of his marks, so that they have no idea that he's actually spying on them. Chuckles does this not for any accolades or recognition, for there is no record on file crediting him with the information he provides. He's aware of the consequences of being found out, but he's also confident in his ability to talk his way out of any situation.

Toys
Chuckles was first released as an action figure in 1987.

Chuckles was released as part of the "Operation: Flaming MOTH" set of exclusives sold by the G.I. Joe Collector's Club; his filecard hints he is an expert at faking his own death.

A new version of Chuckles appeared in the 25th anniversary line, as a part of the "Assault on Cobra Island" set.

Marvel Comics
In the Marvel Comics G.I. Joe series, he first appeared in issue #60 (June 1987). As part of a misunderstanding, he arrests the Joe team leader Hawk. It is soon learned that Chuckles, along with Fast Draw, Lt. Falcon and Law and Order were told they were now members of G.I. Joe, without anyone telling the actual G.I. Joe team. The Dreadnoks soon attack, as part of a plan to neutralize a missile aimed at Cobra Island. Thanks to the "new" Joes assistance, Hawk makes them all official members. Chuckles did not gain full security clearance just yet, and as such almost caused an incident, when he arrived at the Utah G.I. Joe base. He was not allowed to know about the USS Defiant, yet managed to uncover many clues to its existence.

Chuckles leads a Joe team consisting of Iceberg, Scarlett and Snake Eyes into the fictional country of Chomo-Lungma. They are sent with a C.I.A. officer to retrieve another agent. The Joes end up helping the local resistance fight against invading Chinese forces. Chuckles spends the next three months fleeing with his team, his pick-up being delayed due to ambushes. As one last team comes for a third and final attempt, Chuckles' squad gets involved with a local conflict yet again. They are safely rescued. The Joes that pick up Chuckles and his team have their own difficulties, as detailed in the next issue.

Chuckles assists Destro, Billy (the son of Cobra Commander) and Zartan in escaping from an attack by Cobra-allied Night Creepers. He then joins up with the Joe Ninja Force, and with the assistance of Wild Bill, everyone raids the Night Creeper Headquarters. They successfully help Destro gain back the Baroness, and remove the Cobra bounty from his head.

Devil's Due
As revealed in the Devil's Due series, Chuckles spends four years infiltrating "Extensive Enterprises", the Cobra front headed up by Tomax and Xamot. Known terrorist Tyler Wingfield steals a mobile biological weapons platform, Duke believes he can use this opportunity to bring Chuckles back in. His cover morphs into others believing he is a genuine traitor, and he ends up in a little-known Federal prison. In a scheme to get Chuckles away from Cobra attention, Blowtorch and Gung-Ho help stage an undercover operation. The two, disguised as prison guards, "kill" Chuckles and escort him to a safe house. Cobra, however, had their own agent in the prison, allowing a raid on the safe house. Chuckles ends up with Tyler Wingfield. He and an innocent airplane pilot are held hostage. This is resolved only when Tyler's mother assaults her son, sending them both plunging to an apparent death.

In the 'Declassified' three parter, set during the Joe's early years, Chuckles is seen as an operative of a 'rival' intelligence agency to the Joe team.

Chuckles is one of the many Joes who assaults Cobra Island, when Serpentor and his "Coil" army take over and cause the second Cobra civil war. Chuckles and Duke fight Serpentor's ally Overlord hand to hand on the beach, where Chuckles is impaled and killed. His name is part of a memorial to fallen Joes located in Arlington.

Novels
Chuckles is a featured character in the second G.I. Joe novel, Divide and Conquer by Margot Becker. Chuckles is also one of the main operatives in the fifth G.I. Joe novel, Jungle Raid by R. L. Stine.

Chuckles is a supporting character in the sixth novel, The Sultan's Secret by Peter Lerangis. He is also featured in the novel Fool's Gold.

The character and his attributes, are discussed in the non-tie-in novel Hacking Harvard.

Sunbow
He appeared in the animated film G.I. Joe: The Movie as a member of G.I. Joe's Rawhides, but had no dialogue.