Chief Blue Meanie
Encyclopedia
The Chief of the Blue Meanies
is a fictional character from the 1968 animated film Yellow Submarine. A high-pitched, flamboyant character, he is set on ruling Pepperland with fear and oppression. His most heinous of crimes from The Beatles
' point of view, however, is his hatred of music
. He is voiced by Paul Angelis
, who also provided the voice of Ringo Starr
.
The Chief arrives in Pepperland with his army of Meanies and begins his campaign of taking over by firing a massive glass sphere at the Beatles' doubles, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts' Club Band, who play music all day in this colorful world, while all the natives dance and sing and generally behave in a friendly manner towards one another. As the Chief comments, "it can't last". The soundproof glass sphere covers the band, making their music inaudible, and in their panic to run away, the natives are fired at by the Blue Meanies' guns, whose missiles both drain their victims' colour on contact and petrify them. The Chief bombards the natives with various weapons and species of Meanie that vary in their ferocity and eccentricy– anything from Meanies that will eat the toys of young children (as demonstrated when the Beatles' arrival to Pepperland, when a sharp-toothed Meanie, a snapping turtle-turk, consumes a young girl's paper windmill) to reducing the flourishing hills and plants to a land of bare thorns and colourless grass, with the only green existing in the form of giant apples that the "Apple Bonkers" (taller Meanies) drop on peoples' heads.
Later in the film, the Chief engineers the kidnapping of the Beatles' friend and comrade, the Nowhere Man Jeremy Hilary Boob
. When the Beatles finally arrive in Pepperland, the Chief is woken from a brief sleep and is incensed when he sees the hills and trees returning to their proper colours at the sound of their music; he sends his fiercest weapon, "The Dreadful Flying Glove" after the heroes. The Glove is thwarted by John Lennon
's song "All You Need is Love
" and the Chief's army flees, knocking him over in the process.
In a final, petty attempt at retribution, the Chief threatens to tear the newly-freed Nowhere Man into "blue burgers". However, he is humiliated by his magic and ends up sprouting flowers from his nose and body. He flees with the rest of his army, but later contemplates "mixing" with the Beatles – however, at the very end, when the Beatles appear in the flesh to the audience, Lennon says that "Blue Meanies have been found within the vicinity of this theatre".
woolly body (perhaps this is just a fur coat) and massive, paw-like hands with six claws on each. He is taller than most of them, however, and whereas the "common" Blue Meanies wear a hat reminiscent of Mickey Mouse
's ears, his hat looks more like Goofy
's. Also, whereas the "common" Blue Meanies wear orange and yellow striped stockings with mary jane
shoes, he (and his sidekick, "Max") wears jackboots, complete with spur
s: a pale blue boot on the right foot, a navy blue
boot on the left. He has an unpredictable, if not split, personality, which sends him from apparently ladylike and friendly to raging and malicious- though no less buffoonish in either. He has a sidekick, "Max", who is often the victim of his abuse, from being punched to being shot. He also has a Meanie carry around a stool so that he can sit down whenever he likes; presumably, were he to fall on the ground it would be at the stool-carrier's peril. He also states (until the very end, when he starts warming to the Beatles) that "we Meanies only take 'no' for an answer", and gets extremely angry at the sound of the word "yes", even when being answered in the affirmative. Sometimes his own aggression gets the better of him and he needs to be revived with "nasty medicine", which makes him even more eccentric than he already is. He encourages his army of Meanies to be as unpleasant as possible, but later admits that his cousin is "the bluebird of happiness
".
The character's looks and personality was a major influence on the producers of The Powerpuff Girls
, in which one of the villains, an androgynous
devil known as "Him", appears as a constant source of pain and annoyance to the girls, and shares several of the Meanie-Chief's mannerisms. Coincidentally, one episode of the show involves 'Rainbow The Clown', a clown character who ends up transforming into 'Mr. Mime', a mime who drains Townsville of color and turns petrifies everyone (eventually Blossom and Buttercup) until the Girls end up performing a musical number that undos all of the chaos created by Mr. Mime.
The Blue Meanies made background appearances in the South Park
three-part episode "Imaginationland
", in the Viral Video "Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny
", and a brief appearance in the Beatles Music Video "Free as a Bird
".
Blue Meanies (Yellow Submarine)
The Blue Meanies are a fictional army of fierce, if buffoonish, music-hating creatures in the surreal 1968 Beatles film Yellow Submarine. They allegorically represent all the bad people in the world....
is a fictional character from the 1968 animated film Yellow Submarine. A high-pitched, flamboyant character, he is set on ruling Pepperland with fear and oppression. His most heinous of crimes from The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
' point of view, however, is his hatred of music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
. He is voiced by Paul Angelis
Paul Angelis
Paul Angelis is an English actor and writer best known for his role as PC Bannerman in the British television series Z-Cars.He provided the voice of Ringo Starr and the Chief Blue Meanie in the movie Yellow Submarine....
, who also provided the voice of Ringo Starr
Ringo Starr
Richard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...
.
The Chief arrives in Pepperland with his army of Meanies and begins his campaign of taking over by firing a massive glass sphere at the Beatles' doubles, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts' Club Band, who play music all day in this colorful world, while all the natives dance and sing and generally behave in a friendly manner towards one another. As the Chief comments, "it can't last". The soundproof glass sphere covers the band, making their music inaudible, and in their panic to run away, the natives are fired at by the Blue Meanies' guns, whose missiles both drain their victims' colour on contact and petrify them. The Chief bombards the natives with various weapons and species of Meanie that vary in their ferocity and eccentricy– anything from Meanies that will eat the toys of young children (as demonstrated when the Beatles' arrival to Pepperland, when a sharp-toothed Meanie, a snapping turtle-turk, consumes a young girl's paper windmill) to reducing the flourishing hills and plants to a land of bare thorns and colourless grass, with the only green existing in the form of giant apples that the "Apple Bonkers" (taller Meanies) drop on peoples' heads.
Later in the film, the Chief engineers the kidnapping of the Beatles' friend and comrade, the Nowhere Man Jeremy Hilary Boob
Jeremy Hilary Boob
Jeremy Hillary Boob Ph.D. is a fictional character in the animated movie Yellow Submarine . He was voiced by Dick Emery.The Beatles, on their way to save Pepperland from the Blue Meanies, encounter Jeremy, a strange, gopher-like little brown-furred man with a blue face, pink ears and a fluffy,...
. When the Beatles finally arrive in Pepperland, the Chief is woken from a brief sleep and is incensed when he sees the hills and trees returning to their proper colours at the sound of their music; he sends his fiercest weapon, "The Dreadful Flying Glove" after the heroes. The Glove is thwarted by John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
's song "All You Need is Love
All You Need Is Love
"All You Need Is Love" is a song written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. It was first performed by The Beatles on Our World, the first live global television link. Watched by 400 million in 26 countries, the programme was broadcast via satellite on 25 June 1967...
" and the Chief's army flees, knocking him over in the process.
In a final, petty attempt at retribution, the Chief threatens to tear the newly-freed Nowhere Man into "blue burgers". However, he is humiliated by his magic and ends up sprouting flowers from his nose and body. He flees with the rest of his army, but later contemplates "mixing" with the Beatles – however, at the very end, when the Beatles appear in the flesh to the audience, Lennon says that "Blue Meanies have been found within the vicinity of this theatre".
Personal characteristics
Like the majority of the Meanies in his army, the Chief is masked, with yellowed teeth, a navy blueNavy blue
Navy blue is a very dark shade of the color blue which almost appears as black. Navy blue got its name from the dark blue worn by officers in the British Royal Navy since 1748 and subsequently adopted by other navies around the world....
woolly body (perhaps this is just a fur coat) and massive, paw-like hands with six claws on each. He is taller than most of them, however, and whereas the "common" Blue Meanies wear a hat reminiscent of Mickey Mouse
Mickey Mouse
Mickey Mouse is a cartoon character created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks at The Walt Disney Studio. Mickey is an anthropomorphic black mouse and typically wears red shorts, large yellow shoes, and white gloves...
's ears, his hat looks more like Goofy
Goofy
Goofy is a cartoon character created in 1932 at Walt Disney Productions. Goofy is a tall, anthropomorphic dog, and typically wears a turtle neck and vest, with pants, shoes, white gloves, and a tall hat originally designed as a rumpled fedora. Goofy is a close friend of Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck...
's. Also, whereas the "common" Blue Meanies wear orange and yellow striped stockings with mary jane
Mary Jane (shoe)
Mary Jane is an American term for a strap shoe or bar shoe that typically has low heels, broad and rounded closed toes, and a single-buckle strap across the instep and/or around the ankle...
shoes, he (and his sidekick, "Max") wears jackboots, complete with spur
Spur
A spur is a metal tool designed to be worn in pairs on the heels of riding boots for the purpose of directing a horse to move forward or laterally while riding. It is usually used to refine the riding aids and to back up the natural aids . The spur is used in every equestrian discipline...
s: a pale blue boot on the right foot, a navy blue
Navy blue
Navy blue is a very dark shade of the color blue which almost appears as black. Navy blue got its name from the dark blue worn by officers in the British Royal Navy since 1748 and subsequently adopted by other navies around the world....
boot on the left. He has an unpredictable, if not split, personality, which sends him from apparently ladylike and friendly to raging and malicious- though no less buffoonish in either. He has a sidekick, "Max", who is often the victim of his abuse, from being punched to being shot. He also has a Meanie carry around a stool so that he can sit down whenever he likes; presumably, were he to fall on the ground it would be at the stool-carrier's peril. He also states (until the very end, when he starts warming to the Beatles) that "we Meanies only take 'no' for an answer", and gets extremely angry at the sound of the word "yes", even when being answered in the affirmative. Sometimes his own aggression gets the better of him and he needs to be revived with "nasty medicine", which makes him even more eccentric than he already is. He encourages his army of Meanies to be as unpleasant as possible, but later admits that his cousin is "the bluebird of happiness
Bluebird of happiness
The mythology of the bluebird of happiness has deep roots that go back thousands of years. Indigenous cultures across the globe hold similar myths and beliefs about the bluebird. It is a widely accepted symbol of cheerfulness, happiness, prosperity, hearth and home, good health, new births, the...
".
The character's looks and personality was a major influence on the producers of The Powerpuff Girls
The Powerpuff Girls
The Powerpuff Girls is an American animated television series created by animator Craig McCracken and produced by Hanna-Barbera for Cartoon Network...
, in which one of the villains, an androgynous
Androgyny
Androgyny is a term derived from the Greek words ανήρ, stem ανδρ- and γυνή , referring to the combination of masculine and feminine characteristics...
devil known as "Him", appears as a constant source of pain and annoyance to the girls, and shares several of the Meanie-Chief's mannerisms. Coincidentally, one episode of the show involves 'Rainbow The Clown', a clown character who ends up transforming into 'Mr. Mime', a mime who drains Townsville of color and turns petrifies everyone (eventually Blossom and Buttercup) until the Girls end up performing a musical number that undos all of the chaos created by Mr. Mime.
The Blue Meanies made background appearances in the South Park
South Park
South Park is an American animated television series created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone for the Comedy Central television network. Intended for mature audiences, the show has become famous for its crude language, surreal, satirical, and dark humor that lampoons a wide range of topics...
three-part episode "Imaginationland
Imaginationland
"Imaginationland" is a three-part episode of the American animated television series South Park.*Episode I*Episode II*Episode III...
", in the Viral Video "Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny
Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny
The Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny, often shortened to The Ultimate Showdown, is a comical song and video released on December 7, 2005...
", and a brief appearance in the Beatles Music Video "Free as a Bird
Free as a Bird
"Free as a Bird" is a song originally composed and recorded in 1977 as a home demo by John Lennon. In 1995 a studio version of the recording incorporating contributions from Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr was released as a single by The Beatles.The single was released as part of...
".