Carlton Buell

Carlton Buell is the boy next door, the Malones' neighbor and Johnny's best friend. He and Beany eventually wed and have two children, Mary Liz and Mister.

From Image Cascade Publishing's page:

The boy next door. Johnny's best friend. Always faithful and loyal to the Malones. Son of Judge Buell. Kind hearted and principled. Slow to anger. "Carlton Buell, with his stubby blond hair, his shy, unassuming grin, was a comfortable person. 'Don't tell any of the teachers my father is a judge,' he used to warn Johnny, 'or they'll expect me to be smarter than I am.'" Later worked as program director of Lilac Way, a community center for disadvantaged children. Carlton was often seen rounding up paraphernalia for Lilac Way's baseball team or helping the young Lilac Way boys (the Bombshells) secure lawn-mowing jobs in the neighborhood. Always generous yet firm with the often pilfering natures of the boys.

"He walked with an easy stride. His blond crewcut would, before the summer was over, be lighter than his ruddy, tanned face. She had seen him so often with her brother Johnny, who was tall and lanky, that she had always thought of Carlton as short and stocky. But he wasn't." (Five feet, eleven inches.)