Fictional cartoon character
Fictional character
Mr. Magoo
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Mr. Magoo and McBarker from
What's New, Mr. Magoo?
|
First appearance
| "The Ragtime Bear" (1949)
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Created by
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Adapted by
| |
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Portrayed by
| Leslie Nielsen
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Voiced by
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Full name
| J. Quincy Magoo
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Family
|
- Linda (mother)
- Granny (grandmother)
- Tycoon (uncle)
- Waldo (nephew)
|
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Nationality
| American
|
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Alma mater
| Rutgers University
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J. Quincy Magoo
, better known as
Mr. Magoo
, is a fictional
cartoon
character created at the
UPA
animation studio in 1949. Voiced by
Jim Backus
, Mr. Magoo is an elderly, wealthy, short-statured retiree who gets into a series of comical situations as a result of his extreme
near-sightedness
, compounded by his stubborn refusal to admit the problem. However, through uncanny streaks of luck, the situation always seems to work itself out for him, leaving him no worse than before. Bystanders consequently tend to think that he is a
lunatic
, rather than just being near-sighted. In later cartoons, he is also an actor, and generally a competent one, except for his visual impairment.
Magoo
episodes were nominated for the
Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film
three times, and received the award twice, for
When Magoo Flew
(1954) and
Magoo's Puddle Jumper
(1956).
In 2002,
TV Guide
ranked Mr. Magoo number 29 on its "50 Greatest Cartoon Characters of All Time" list.
[2]
History
[
edit
]
Mr. Magoo's first appearance was in the theatrical short cartoon "The Ragtime Bear" (1949), scripted by
Millard Kaufman
. His creation was a collaborative effort; animation director
John Hubley
is said to have partly based the character on his uncle Harry Woodruff,
[3]
and
W. C. Fields
was another source of inspiration.
[
citation needed
]
Columbia
was reluctant to release the short, but did so, only because it included a bear.
[
citation needed
]
However, audiences quickly realized that the real star was Magoo, one of the few "human" cartoon characters ever produced in Hollywood at the time.
[
citation needed
]
The short became a box-office success.
The Magoo character was originally conceived as a mean-spirited reactionary.
[4]
Hubley, who had created Magoo, handed the series completely over to creative director
Pete Burness
. Under Burness, Magoo won two
Academy Awards
for the studio with
When Magoo Flew
(1954) and
Magoo's Puddle Jumper
(1956).
[5]
Burness scrubbed Magoo of his meanness and left only a few strange comments that made him appear senile or somewhat mad. At the same time, art director
Sterling Sturtevant
, one of the few women working in animation at the time, redesigned the character's appearance.
[6]
Magoo was frequently accompanied in his on-screen escapades with his nephew Waldo, voiced at various times by either
Jerry Hausner
or
Daws Butler
.
In 1957, the record album
Magoo in
Hi-Fi
was released. Side 1 consisted of a dialogue between Magoo and Waldo taking place while Magoo was attempting to set up his new
sound system
. Music on the album was composed and conducted by
Dennis Farnon
and his orchestra. Side 2, "The Mother Magoo Suite", was a series of musical pieces which included two solos by
Marni Nixon
.
In 1959, Mr. Magoo starred in
1001 Arabian Nights
, directed by
Jack Kinney
, UPA's first feature-length production.
[7]
In 1994, a
Sega Mega Drive
game starring Mr. Magoo was in development and planned to be published by
Millennium Interactive
but never released.
[8]
In 1997, the live-action comedy film
Mr. Magoo
, produced by Walt Disney Pictures and starring
Leslie Nielsen
as the title character,
[9]
was released in December, earning bad reviews from critics.
[10]
In 2010, a
direct-to-video
action-comedy film based on the character,
Kung Fu Magoo
, was released on DVD on May 11, 2010. It features the voices of
Jim Conroy
,
Chris Parnell
,
Dylan and Cole Sprouse
, and
Alyson Stoner
.
[11]
The film is a Mexican?American co-production, produced by
Classic Media
,
Anima Estudios
, and Santo Domingo Films.
[12]
The film was directed by Andres Couturier. His most recent appearance was in
DreamWorks Animation
's
The Boss Baby
, where he briefly appears on the cover of a comic book.
On television and in popular culture
[
edit
]
In the 1960s, UPA turned its attention to television, and began producing the series
Mister Magoo
for the character. Because UPA had shut down its animation studio in 1959, the animation for these cartoons was done by
Jack Kinney Productions
and
Larry Harmon Pictures
. The cartoons suffered from varying character designs and choppier animation, due to rushed production schedules. Magoo's nephew Waldo (voiced, as in most of the theatrical cartoons, by Jerry Hausner) was seldom seen with his uncle, now appearing in his own episodes, introduced by a brief phone conversation from Magoo's point of view, which acted as a teaser. The Waldo episodes also featured a slick-talking con man named Prezly, and always ended with a return to Magoo saying, "Oh, that Waldo and Prezly. What'll they be up to next? Hee hee hee!"
Magoo's houseboy Cholly (i.e., "Charlie") took up a lot of Waldo's slack. Cholly was an Asian stereotype with huge buck teeth and comically fractured English pronunciation. Despite his stereotyped appearance and voice, he nonetheless usually plays
straight man
to Magoo's shenanigans, rather than being a source of humor on his own. He is the "sane" one of the pair. His resourcefulness often saves Magoo from danger.
Still other cartoons featured Tycoon Magoo, voiced by
Mel Blanc
, and his bumbling assistant Worcestershire.
During the UPA television era came
Mister Magoo's Christmas Carol
, an abbreviated but largely faithful retelling of
Charles Dickens' tale
. It was the first ever animated Christmas special made for television and the first hour-long animated TV special and is considered to be a holiday classic of the 1960s, ranking alongside
A Charlie Brown Christmas
and
How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
.
[13]
The special inspired the production of an animated TV series titled
The Famous Adventures of Mr. Magoo
, which placed Magoo as an actor in other well-known stories. After an introduction in Magoo's backstage
dressing room
, Magoo was depicted in such roles as
The Count of Monte Cristo
,
Merlin
in an upbeat retelling of the story of
King Arthur
,
Friar Tuck
in
Robin Hood
, and
Puck
in
A Midsummer Night's Dream
.
In 1970, Mr. Magoo starred as Uncle Sam in the TV special
Uncle Sam Magoo
.
In the late 1970s, Mr. Magoo appeared in a new Saturday morning
CBS
television series called
What's New, Mr. Magoo?
This series was made under license by the
DePatie?Freleng
studio, as UPA had by this time ceased in-house cartoon production.
Mr. Magoo was planned to have a cameo in the 1988 film
Who Framed Roger Rabbit
, but was later dropped for unknown reasons.
Nickelodeon
's
Weinerville
anthologizes most of his shorts.
In 1997, Mr. Magoo was portrayed by
Leslie Nielsen
in a live-action
Mr. Magoo
feature film. It failed to find critical or popular success, and some support groups for the
disabled
, including the
National Federation of the Blind
, protested it on behalf of the blind and sight-impaired.
[14]
A Mexican-U.S. animated feature,
Kung-Fu Magoo
, was released as a direct-to-DVD release in 2010 and made its TV debut on Disney XD in 2011.
Mr. Magoo helped advertise the
General Electric
line of products throughout the 1950s and 1960s,
[15]
sometimes under the name J. Quincy Magoo.
[16]
In 2005, Mr. Magoo became the
spokesman
of the optical retail store Sterling Optical. Magoo also was featured in a series of commercials for
Stag Beer
in the 1960s. Also in the 1960s, the Polaner company sold its line of preserves in jars decorated with images of Mr. Magoo which, when empty, could then be used as drinking glasses.
ASI Entertainment
[17]
has used Mr. Magoo cartoons to "warm up" audiences when testing television comedy pilots.
[18]
[19]
Mr. Magoo is an
alumnus
of
Rutgers University
, Class of 1928. The reason behind this is that his creators wanted him to be "a college alumnus who was still fired up with the old school spirit [and they felt] Rutgers was the embodiment of the 'old school tie' in America.".
[20]
He was definitely in a fraternity, since he would often shout out, "Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Rho ? Rutgers, Rutgers, Go ? Go ? Go!"
In 2012, Mr. Magoo appeared in
MetLife
's "Everyone" commercial during
Super Bowl XLVI
.
Another television series, simply titled
Mr. Magoo
, began airing in 2018.
[21]
Produced by the company
Xilam
, this series depicts a younger looking Magoo and his pet dog named Mr. Cat (because it meows), who replaces McBarker, the dog depicted in earlier cartoons.
[22]
Characters
[
edit
]
- Mr. Quincy Magoo
(voiced by
Jim Backus
) ? An elderly man whose eyesight is failing, although he either does not know it or is too stubborn to admit it and/or do anything about it.
- Waldo
(voiced by
Jerry Hausner
from 1949 to 1955 and in the 1960s series,
Daws Butler
from 1956 to 1959 and on the 1957 record album
Magoo in Hi-Fi
, and
Casey Kasem
in the 1970s series) ? Mr. Magoo's nephew.
- Bowser
- Mr. Magoo's dog (actually a
Siamese cat
) in the 1960s cartoons.
- McBarker
(voiced by
Bob Ogle
) ? Mr. Magoo's dog in the 1970s cartoon series
What's New, Mr. Magoo?
A talking white
Bulldog
, he shares his owner's facial features and poor eyesight.
- Mother Magoo
(voiced first by
Henny Backus
in "Meet Mother Magoo" (1956), then
June Foray
) ? Mr. Magoo's "Momma", Linda.
[23]
- Grandma "Granny" Magoo
.
- Charlie
(voiced by
Benny Rubin
) ? Mr. Magoo's
houseboy
. Charlie's depiction as an Asian stereotype was controversial. The character was prone to unusual misuses of English, such as referring to himself in the third person as "Cholly", and calling Mr. Magoo "Missuh Magloo" and "Bloss" instead of "Boss". In the late 1960s, episodes featuring Charlie were dropped from the series and his character was never seen, referred to or even mentioned again. A version of the series that runs on the Christian network
KTV
retains Charlie, but dubs over his ethnic-sounding voice track.
- Prezly
(voiced by
Daws Butler
) ? Waldo's "partner in crime" in the 1960s cartoons.
- Wheeler and Dealer
? Two children Mr. Magoo occasionally babysits in
The Mister Magoo Show
(1960?1961).
- Tycoon Magoo
(voiced by
Mel Blanc
) ? Mr. Magoo's rich uncle. His catchphrase is "Worcestershire, get in here!"
- Worcestershire
(voiced by Mel Blanc) ? Tycoon Magoo's butler, who is always trying to prevent Mr. Magoo from ruining Tycoon Magoo's property.
- Additional character voices were provided by
Paul Frees
,
Frank Nelson
and
Mel Blanc
, among others.
Theatrical cartoon shorts
[
edit
]
The following Mr. Magoo cartoons were either nominees for, or recipients of, the
Academy Award for Best Short Subject (Cartoons)
:
- 1950: "Trouble Indemnity"
- 1952: "Pink and Blue Blues"
- 1954: "When Magoo Flew" (winner)
- 1956: "Magoo's Puddle Jumper" (winner)
Home media
[
edit
]
On February 8, 2005,
Sony BMG Music Entertainment
’s former kids and family entertainment division,
Sony Wonder
(under license from
Classic Media
) released
The Mr. Magoo Show: Complete DVD Collection
.
[24]
This four-disc set featured all 26 uncut episodes of the 1960 series, digitally remastered from original film prints and presented in its original broadcast presentation and order, as well as bonus features. This release has been discontinued and is now out of print.
On November 8, 2011,
Shout! Factory
(under license from Classic Media) released
Mr. Magoo: The Television Collection 1960?1977
on DVD in Region 1.
[25]
This 11-disc collection contains all the episodes from all three Mr. Magoo television series, including all 26 episodes of
The Mister Magoo Show
, all 26 episodes of
The Famous Adventures of Mr. Magoo
, all 16 episodes of
What's New, Mister Magoo?
, and the prime-time TV special
Uncle Sam Magoo
, as well as several bonus features.
On December 6, 2011, Sony released the feature film
1001 Arabian Nights
on DVD through their Screen Classics manufactured-on-demand (MOD) program, now available through a licensing deal through the
Warner Archive Collection
.
In 2011, animation historian
Jerry Beck
announced the release of a Shout! Factory boxed set of the Mr. Magoo theatrical (UPA) shorts, under license from Sony.
[26]
Originally scheduled for release in 2012, the set was pushed back for two years as Sony remastered some of the cartoons from higher quality sources, including newly discovered elements.
[27]
The four-disc
Mr. Magoo Theatrical Collection
, containing all 53 of the Mr. Magoo theatrical shorts distributed by Columbia through 1959, and the 1959 theatrical film
1001 Arabian Nights
, was released on April 22, 2014.
[28]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Barnes, Mike (June 8, 2016).
"Willis Pyle, Famed Animator on 'Pinocchio' and 'Mr. Magoo,' Dies at 101"
.
The Hollywood Reporter
. Retrieved
June 28,
2016
.
- ^
TV Guide Book of Lists
. Running Press. 2007. p. 158.
ISBN
978-0-7624-3007-9
.
- ^
Letter from Hubley
. Kaufman claimed in a
2007 interview
that the character was based on
his
uncle.
- ^
Arnold, Mark (2015).
Think Pink: The Story of DePatie-Freleng
. BearManor Media. p. 441.
ISBN
978-1593931698
.
- ^
Lenburg, Jeff (1999).
The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons
. Checkmark Books. pp. 111?112.
ISBN
0-8160-3831-7
. Retrieved
June 6,
2020
.
- ^
Abraham, Adam (2012).
When Magoo Flew: The Rise And Fall Of Animation Studio UPA
, Wesleyan University Press.
ISBN
978-0819569141
. Retrieved 28 Aug 2022.
- ^
Maltin, Leonard (1987).
Of Mice and Magic: A History of American Animated Cartoons
. New American Library. p. 341.
ISBN
0-452-25993-2
.
- ^
"GameSpy - PreViews: Mr Magoo"
.
Mega Zone
. No. 36. Elwood, Vic.: Megazone Publications. February 1994. p. 15.
- ^
"
'Mr. Magoo' Blunders Into Live-Action"
.
Los Angeles Times
. Retrieved
June 3,
2012
.
- ^
"Mr. Magoo (film)"
.
Chicago Sun-Times
. Archived from
the original
on February 14, 2013
. Retrieved
June 3,
2012
.
- ^
DeMott, Rick (October 12, 2010).
"Disney XD Picks Up 'Kung Fu Magoo' Feature"
.
Animation World Network
. Retrieved
March 10,
2014
.
- ^
O'Boyle, Michael (February 12, 2008).
"Anima, Classic to do 'Magoo'
"
.
Variety
. Retrieved
January 21,
2010
.
- ^
Hill, Jim (November 28, 2006).
"Scrooge U: Part VI ? Magoo's a musical miser"
. JimHillMedia.com
. Retrieved
December 25,
2006
.
- ^
Anderson, John (December 24, 1997).
"
'Mr. Magoo' Blunders Into Live-Action"
.
Los Angeles Times
. Retrieved
May 22,
2014
.
- ^
General Electric advertisement featuring Mr. Magoo
Archived
April 28, 2008, at the
Wayback Machine
.
Life
Magazine December 14, 1959
- ^
James A. Cox,
A Century of Light
, 1979, p. 122, 126
- ^
"Retrieved October 6, 2011"
. Asientertainment.com. Archived from
the original
on March 5, 2011
. Retrieved
June 13,
2012
.
- ^
"Retrieved October 6, 2011"
. August 13, 1985
. Retrieved
June 13,
2012
.
- ^
Twitchell, James B. (1993).
Retrieved October 6, 2011
. Columbia University Press.
ISBN
9780231078313
. Retrieved
June 13,
2012
.
- ^
Rutgers timeline
Archived
January 6, 2008, at the
Wayback Machine
Rutgers University. Retrieved January 5, 2008.
- ^
Sobre Miguel.
"Conheca algumas estreias para dezembro de 2018 no canal SIC K (sicgold.blogspot.com)"
.
- ^
"Mr Magoo returns in France | News | C21Media"
.
www.c21media.net
.
- ^
"A Mr. Magoo Biography by Josh and Ed Shapiro"
(PDF)
. Retrieved
June 13,
2012
.
- ^
"Mr. Magoo Show: The Complete Collection: Jim Backus, Joan Gardner, Marvin Miller, Paul Frees, Dal McKennon, Howard Morris, Julie Bennett, Everett Sloane, Shepard Menken, Robie Lester, Morey Amsterdam, Dick Beals: Movies & TV"
.
Amazon
. February 8, 2005
. Retrieved
June 13,
2012
.
- ^
"Mr. Magoo DVD news: Box Art and Contents for Mr. Magoo on TV Collection: 1960?1977"
. TVShowsOnDVD.com. Archived from
the original
on October 20, 2012
. Retrieved
June 13,
2012
.
- ^
Shostak, Stu (08-11-2011). "
Interview with Jerry Beck
".
Stu's Show
. Retrieved 06-30-2014.
- ^
Shostak, Stu (03-20-2014). "
Interview with Jerry Beck
".
Stu's Show.
Retrieved 06-30-2014.
- ^
Galbraith, Stewart IV (April 22, 2014).
"Review of "'Mr. Magoo- The Theatrical Collection: 1949?1959"
"
.
DVD Talk
. Retrieved
June 30,
2014
.
External links
[
edit
]
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- First-run
- animated
- series
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- First-run
- live action
- series
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Rebroadcasts
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Related
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