Lowly Worm is a fictional character created by Richard Scarry

Richard Scarry

Richard McClure Scarry was a popular American children's author and illustrator who published over 300 books with total sales of over 100 million units worldwide....

; he frequently appears in children's books by Scarry, and is a main character in the animated series The Busy World of Richard Scarry

The Busy World of Richard Scarry

The Busy World of Richard Scarry is a Canadian/French animated children's television series, produced by CINAR Animation and France Animation in association with Paramount Television, which aired from 1994 to 1997, first on Showtime, later on Nickelodeon, and ran for 65 episodes...

and Busytown Mysteries

Busytown Mysteries

Busytown Mysteries, also known as Hurray for Huckle!, is a Canadian animated television series created by Cookie Jar Entertainment. Currently the series airs in Canada as part of the Kids' CBC block on CBC Television, in the United Kingdom on the Tiny Pop channel and in the United States as part of...

. In The Busy World of Richard Scarry he is voiced by Keith Knight

Keith Knight (actor)

Keith Knight was a Canadian actor. He made his screen debut as Larry 'Fink' Finkelstein in the 1979 comedy Meatballs, voiced the White Rabbit in The Care Bears Adventure in Wonderland, and voiced Pigface in the BBC drama Ace Lightning. He was also known for voicing Lowly Worm in The Busy World of...

.

Lowly is an anthropomorphic earthworm

Earthworm

Earthworm is the common name for the largest members of Oligochaeta in the phylum Annelida. In classical systems they were placed in the order Opisthopora, on the basis of the male pores opening posterior to the female pores, even though the internal male segments are anterior to the female...

. He usually wears a Tyrolean hat

Tyrolean hat

The Tyrolean hat is a type of fedora hat named for the Tyrol in the Alps. It is essentially the shape known as the Trilby. Tyrolean hats are made of felt, traditionally having a corded hatband and a feather on the side as trim....

 on his head, which pays homage to the hat which Richard Scarry

Richard Scarry

Richard McClure Scarry was a popular American children's author and illustrator who published over 300 books with total sales of over 100 million units worldwide....

 purchased in St. Anton

St. Anton

Sankt Anton am Arlberg is a village and ski resort in Tyrol, western Austria, with a permanent population of approximately . It is situated at above sea level in the Tyrolean Alps, with Aerial tramways and chairlifts up to . It is also a popular summer resort among trekkers and...

 in 1950 and often wore during visits to his publishers in New York City. Lowly also wears a shoe on the end of his tail, a blue and green tube on his body (intended to resemble a sleeveless shirt and one-legged trousers), and a red bow tie

Bow tie

The bow tie is a type of men's necktie. It consists of a ribbon of fabric tied around the collar in a symmetrical manner such that the two opposite ends form loops. Ready-tied bow ties are available, in which the distinctive bow is sewn into shape and the band around the neck incorporates a clip....

. His best friend is Huckle Cat, he lives in Busytown

Busytown

Busytown is a fictional town inhabited by an assortment of anthropomorphic animals, as depicted in various books by the children's author Richard Scarry. Main characters of these books include the following: Huckle Cat, Lowly Worm, Mr. Frumble, police Sergeant Murphy, Mr...

, and he drives an apple-shaped car. In various episodes of The Busy World of Richard Scarry and in the computer games Richard Scarry's Busytown

Richard Scarry's Busytown

Richard Scarry's Busytown is a Sega Genesis and MS-DOS video game that was released for a younger generation of gamers. This game was based on the television show The Busy World of Richard Scarry that was produced by CINAR and Paramount Television....

and How Things Work in Busytown it is revealed that the car can also fly much like a helicopter

Helicopter

A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...

.

Lowly attends school with Huckle and plays with him and his friends, but also takes part in more adult activities, such as driving a car. Hilda Hippo also has a crush on him, which he's reluctant to return, although he does consider Hilda a good friend.

A Variety

Variety (magazine)

Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...

 reviewer of The Busy World of Richard Scarry describes Lowly as "the real star of the series, with his goofily deprecating name and natty ensemble that includes a bow tie and single sneaker." According to his widow, Lowly was Scarry's favorite fictional creation.

About 500,000 Lowly Worm and Huckle Cat finger puppets, distributed by Taco Bell

Taco Bell

Taco Bell is an American chain of fast-food restaurants based in Irvine, California. A subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc., which serves American-adapted Mexican food. Taco Bell serves tacos, burritos, quesadillas, nachos, other specialty items, and a variety of "Value Menu" items...

in 1993, were voluntarily recalled by Taco Bell following complaints that the puppets had gotten stuck onto children's tongues.