Hector the Cat
Encyclopedia
Hector the Cat is a fictional cat
and mascot
created to aid the teaching of road safety to children in Australia. Educational material relating to the character was developed by the Australian Department of Transport in association with state and territory road authorities. "Hector's road safety song" became well known in Australia when it was shown as a public service announcement on television. The blue and yellow striped cat first appeared on a school calendar in 1971 with a storyline that he had lost eight of his nine lives due to "ignorance of road safety practices". This was followed by a short instructional film. In subsequent years other characters were introduced in calendars, instructional films, and comic book
s including Millie, his girlfriend (1973), Uncle Tom (1974), Hector and Millie's three kittens (1975) and his space friend Ding Dong (1982).
A study in 1978 found that, although children enjoyed the characters and stories, the material had a number of inadequacies. It stressed that road safety research findings and child development
theory would need to considered for any future development.
The character is currently used by the Northern Territory Transport Group to promote road awareness to children in the Northern Territory
, with a newly released song "Stop, Look, Listen, Think" launched in 2010 as part of his Road Safety Show.
Cat
The cat , also known as the domestic cat or housecat to distinguish it from other felids and felines, is a small, usually furry, domesticated, carnivorous mammal that is valued by humans for its companionship and for its ability to hunt vermin and household pests...
and mascot
Mascot
The term mascot – defined as a term for any person, animal, or object thought to bring luck – colloquially includes anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name...
created to aid the teaching of road safety to children in Australia. Educational material relating to the character was developed by the Australian Department of Transport in association with state and territory road authorities. "Hector's road safety song" became well known in Australia when it was shown as a public service announcement on television. The blue and yellow striped cat first appeared on a school calendar in 1971 with a storyline that he had lost eight of his nine lives due to "ignorance of road safety practices". This was followed by a short instructional film. In subsequent years other characters were introduced in calendars, instructional films, and comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
s including Millie, his girlfriend (1973), Uncle Tom (1974), Hector and Millie's three kittens (1975) and his space friend Ding Dong (1982).
A study in 1978 found that, although children enjoyed the characters and stories, the material had a number of inadequacies. It stressed that road safety research findings and child development
Child development
Child development stages describe theoretical milestones of child development. Many stage models of development have been proposed, used as working concepts and in some cases asserted as nativist theories....
theory would need to considered for any future development.
The character is currently used by the Northern Territory Transport Group to promote road awareness to children in the Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
, with a newly released song "Stop, Look, Listen, Think" launched in 2010 as part of his Road Safety Show.