On Laugh-In, Johnson's roles included lecherous Tyrone (hitting on Ruth Buzzi) and guru Rabbi Shankar, but his breakout character was a stereotyped German soldier. Patterned after movie Nazis, Johnson's Wolfgang was a staple of the series, with his catchphrase "Verrry interesting." In 1970, Johnson appeared as Wolfgang in Sesame Street inserts. However, his appearances attracted controversy. Protest letters to Children's Television Workshop ranged from a German woman, incensed by what she termed "perjorative stereotyping," to another woman who "[couldn't] forget the war." As Patricia Tornburgh of the CTW Information Department noted, by January 1971, "Artie Johnson's soldier has yet to attract any favorable comments."