Muttley
Encyclopedia
Muttley is a Hanna-Barbera
animated fictional character
created by Iwao Takamoto
and originally voiced by Don Messick
. In the 2000 Wacky Races videogame
he was voiced by Billy West
.
in 1968, as the sidekick
of the accident-prone villain Dick Dastardly
. While Dick was created as the equivalent of Professor Fate from the 1960s movie The Great Race
, Muttley mirrored the film's character of Max Meen. Dick and Muttley were paired together in various later Hanna-Barbera series as bumbling villains. He is a mixed breed dog, identified in the Wacky Races segment "Dash to Delaware" as a mix of bloodhound
, pointer, and hunting dog
.
Muttley does not really talk; his main examples of speech are his trademark "wheezy snicker" (usually at Dick's expense) and a mushy, sotto voce
grumble against an unsympathetic or harsh Dick (usually along the lines of "Sassafrassarassum Rick Rastardly!"). Don Messick had previously used Muttley's distinctive laugh for the character of Griswold in an episode of Top Cat
, then for an embryonic version of Muttley (called 'Mugger') appearing in the 1964 movie Hey There, It's Yogi Bear, as well as for another Hanna-Barbera canine, Precious Pupp
, in 1966. He also repurposed it for Alexandra Cabot's cat Sebastian on Josie and the Pussycats
in 1970.
Muttley (who turned from a "bluish hue" to a "dusty brown") wore only a collar in Wacky Races, but in Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines
he donned a World War I
style aviator's cap and scarf, and served as a flying ace
along with Dastardly and two other pilots as members of the "Vulture Squadron". In this spinoff, he also sported many medals and constantly demanded new ones from Dastardly for following his commands. Similarly, Dastardly frequently ripped medals off Muttley's chest as punishment for his incompetence.
Also in Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines, Muttley gained the ability to fly for a brief period by spinning his tail like a propeller. Muttley also enjoyed his own short segment in the series The Magnificent Muttley, where he would engage in Walter Mitty
-style fantasies.
along with his accomplice, "The Dread Baron," who resembles Dick Dastardly. The Dread Baron and Mumbly later appeared in the TV movie Yogi Bear and the Magical Flight of the Spruce Goose
. It is not certain why Mumbly was retconned as a villain, neither is it certain why he and Dread Baron were apparently used as substitutes for Dastardly and Muttley, especially in the Yogi Bear movie where Paul Winchell voiced the Baron instead of Dastardly (and in the scene where the Baron's crashed plane is shown, it's Dick's plane from Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines
, complete with the "D" on the side). Not to mention that in that story Mumbly had once utilized his tail to fly just like Muttley does in Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines
. The reason most suggested is that the Wacky Races characters (including Dastardly and Muttley) were not fully owned by Hanna-Barbera as the show was a co-production with Heatter-Quigley Productions
.
An early version of the Muttley/Mumbly character appears in the 1964 Hanna-Barbera feature film Hey There, It's Yogi Bear!
. This prototype Muttley ("Mugger") is a mean-spirited dog with a travelling circus who has a penchant for biting his owners on the leg. The character may also have been inspired by the Atom Ant
show's "Precious Pupp
" who was known for laughing the same way. Muttley and his master returned in the Wacky Races video game with Billy West voicing the dog.
Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. was an American animation studio that dominated North American television animation during the second half of the 20th century...
animated fictional character
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
created by Iwao Takamoto
Iwao Takamoto
Iwao Takamoto was a Japanese-American animator, television producer, and film director. He was most famous as being a production and character designer for Hanna-Barbera Productions shows such as Scooby-Doo....
and originally voiced by Don Messick
Don Messick
Donald Earl "Don" Messick was an American voice actor best known for his work for Hanna-Barbera. Perhaps his most well-known voice creations include Scooby-Doo, Papa Smurf, and Dr. Benton Quest....
. In the 2000 Wacky Races videogame
Wacky Races (video game)
was an Atlus platformer for the NES. A Game Boy Color/Dreamcast/PC/PlayStation/PlayStation 2 game of the same name came out in 2000, but was published by Infogrames and was a racing game...
he was voiced by Billy West
Billy West
William Richard "Billy" West is an American voice actor. Born in Detroit but raised in the Roslindale neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, Billy launched his career in the early 1980s performing daily comedic routines on Boston's WBCN. He left the radio station to work on the short-lived revival...
.
Bio
Muttley first appeared in Wacky RacesWacky Races
Wacky Races is an animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera. The series features 11 different cars racing against each other in various road rallies throughout North America, with each driver hoping to win the title of the "World's Wackiest Racer." Wacky Races ran on CBS from September...
in 1968, as the sidekick
Sidekick
A sidekick is a close companion who is generally regarded as subordinate to the one he accompanies. Some well-known fictional sidekicks are Don Quixote's Sancho Panza, Sherlock Holmes' Doctor Watson, The Lone Ranger's Tonto, The Green Hornet's Kato and Batman's Robin.-Origins:The origin of the...
of the accident-prone villain Dick Dastardly
Dick Dastardly
Dick Dastardly is a fictional character and antagonist who appeared in various animated series by Hanna-Barbera Productions. Dastardly's most famous appearances are main character in the series Wacky Races and its spin-off Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines...
. While Dick was created as the equivalent of Professor Fate from the 1960s movie The Great Race
The Great Race
The Great Race is a 1965 slapstick comedy film starring Jack Lemmon, Tony Curtis, and Natalie Wood, directed by Blake Edwards, written by Blake Edwards and Arthur A. Ross, and with music by Henry Mancini and cinematography by Russell Harlan. The supporting cast includes Peter Falk, Keenan Wynn,...
, Muttley mirrored the film's character of Max Meen. Dick and Muttley were paired together in various later Hanna-Barbera series as bumbling villains. He is a mixed breed dog, identified in the Wacky Races segment "Dash to Delaware" as a mix of bloodhound
Bloodhound
The Bloodhound is a large breed of dog which, while originally bred to hunt deer and wild boar, was later bred specifically to track human beings. It is a scenthound, tracking by smell, as opposed to a sighthound, which tracks using vision. It is famed for its ability to discern human odors even...
, pointer, and hunting dog
Hunting dog
A hunting dog refers to any dog who assists humans in hunting. There are several types of hunting dogs developed for various tasks. The major categories of hunting dogs include hounds, terriers, dachshunds, cur type dogs, and gun dogs...
.
Muttley does not really talk; his main examples of speech are his trademark "wheezy snicker" (usually at Dick's expense) and a mushy, sotto voce
Sotto voce
Sotto voce means intentionally lowering one's voice for emphasis. The speaker gives the impression of uttering involuntarily a truth which may surprise, shock, or offend...
grumble against an unsympathetic or harsh Dick (usually along the lines of "Sassafrassarassum Rick Rastardly!"). Don Messick had previously used Muttley's distinctive laugh for the character of Griswold in an episode of Top Cat
Top Cat
Top Cat is a Hanna-Barbera prime time animated television series which ran from September 27, 1961 to April 18, 1962 for a run of 30 episodes on the ABC network. Reruns are played on Cartoon Network's classic animation network Boomerang.-History:...
, then for an embryonic version of Muttley (called 'Mugger') appearing in the 1964 movie Hey There, It's Yogi Bear, as well as for another Hanna-Barbera canine, Precious Pupp
The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show
The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show was an hour-long Saturday morning cartoon produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions from 1965 to 1967 for NBC.-Production:...
, in 1966. He also repurposed it for Alexandra Cabot's cat Sebastian on Josie and the Pussycats
Josie and the Pussycats (TV series)
Josie and the Pussycats is an American animated television series, based upon the Archie Comics comic book series of the same name created by Dan DeCarlo....
in 1970.
Muttley (who turned from a "bluish hue" to a "dusty brown") wore only a collar in Wacky Races, but in Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines
Dastardly and Muttley in their Flying Machines
Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines is a cartoon produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions for CBS. Originally the series was broadcast as a Saturday morning cartoon, airing from September 13, 1969 to January 3, 1970...
he donned a World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
style aviator's cap and scarf, and served as a flying ace
Flying ace
A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down several enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The actual number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an "ace" has varied, but is usually considered to be five or more...
along with Dastardly and two other pilots as members of the "Vulture Squadron". In this spinoff, he also sported many medals and constantly demanded new ones from Dastardly for following his commands. Similarly, Dastardly frequently ripped medals off Muttley's chest as punishment for his incompetence.
Also in Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines, Muttley gained the ability to fly for a brief period by spinning his tail like a propeller. Muttley also enjoyed his own short segment in the series The Magnificent Muttley, where he would engage in Walter Mitty
Walter Mitty
Walter Mitty is a fictional character in James Thurber's short story "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty", first published in the New Yorker on March 18, 1939, and in book form in My World and Welcome to It in 1942...
-style fantasies.
Muttley vs. Mumbly
Muttley is sometimes confused with the crime-fighting dog Mumbly from The Mumbly Cartoon Show.. Mumbly looked similar to Muttley and had a similar laugh, but Mumbly had blue fur and wore a trenchcoat. Mumbly later showed up as the captain of the villainous Really Rottens in Laff-a-LympicsLaff-A-Lympics
Laff-A-Lympics was the co-headlining segment, with Scooby-Doo, of the package Saturday morning cartoon series Scooby's All-Star Laff-A-Lympics, produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions. The show was a spoof of the Olympics and the ABC television series Battle of the Network Stars, which debuted one...
along with his accomplice, "The Dread Baron," who resembles Dick Dastardly. The Dread Baron and Mumbly later appeared in the TV movie Yogi Bear and the Magical Flight of the Spruce Goose
Yogi Bear and the Magical Flight of the Spruce Goose
Yogi Bear and the Magical Flight of the Spruce Goose is a 1987 animated movie for television produced by Hanna-Barbera as part of the Hanna-Barbera Superstars 10 series.-Plot:...
. It is not certain why Mumbly was retconned as a villain, neither is it certain why he and Dread Baron were apparently used as substitutes for Dastardly and Muttley, especially in the Yogi Bear movie where Paul Winchell voiced the Baron instead of Dastardly (and in the scene where the Baron's crashed plane is shown, it's Dick's plane from Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines
Dastardly and Muttley in their Flying Machines
Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines is a cartoon produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions for CBS. Originally the series was broadcast as a Saturday morning cartoon, airing from September 13, 1969 to January 3, 1970...
, complete with the "D" on the side). Not to mention that in that story Mumbly had once utilized his tail to fly just like Muttley does in Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines
Dastardly and Muttley in their Flying Machines
Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines is a cartoon produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions for CBS. Originally the series was broadcast as a Saturday morning cartoon, airing from September 13, 1969 to January 3, 1970...
. The reason most suggested is that the Wacky Races characters (including Dastardly and Muttley) were not fully owned by Hanna-Barbera as the show was a co-production with Heatter-Quigley Productions
Heatter-Quigley Productions
Heatter-Quigley Productions was an American television production company that was launched in 1960 by two former television writers, Merrill Heatter and Bob Quigley....
.
An early version of the Muttley/Mumbly character appears in the 1964 Hanna-Barbera feature film Hey There, It's Yogi Bear!
Hey There, It's Yogi Bear!
Hey There, It's Yogi Bear! is a 1964 American animated feature film produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and released by Columbia Pictures. The film stars the voices of Daws Butler, Don Messick, Julie Bennett, and Mel Blanc...
. This prototype Muttley ("Mugger") is a mean-spirited dog with a travelling circus who has a penchant for biting his owners on the leg. The character may also have been inspired by the Atom Ant
Atom Ant
Atom Ant is a cartoon ant and superhero, created by Hanna-Barbera in 1965. Atom costarred in The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show...
show's "Precious Pupp
The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show
The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show was an hour-long Saturday morning cartoon produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions from 1965 to 1967 for NBC.-Production:...
" who was known for laughing the same way. Muttley and his master returned in the Wacky Races video game with Billy West voicing the dog.
Other appearances
- Muttley and Dick Dastardly also starred as the villains in Yogi's Treasure HuntYogi's Treasure HuntYogi's Treasure Hunt is a segment that kicked-off in 1985 as the first of the programming block, The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera. It also ran as a regular series in syndication from 1985 to 1988.-Plot:...
in their submarine the SS. Dirty Tricks. - In the "Fender Bender 500" segment of Wake, Rattle, and RollWake, Rattle, and RollWake, Rattle, and Roll is a live-action/animated television show produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and Four Point Entertainment that premiered in the fall of 1990. The show's title was inspired by the song "Shake, Rattle and Roll"...
, he and Dick Dastardly are paired up as they were in the "Wacky Races." - Muttley appeared as a teenager in Yo Yogi!Yo Yogi!Yo Yogi! is an animated series first aired on NBC on Saturday mornings during the 1991-92 season. It is, to date, the last television series to feature or star Yogi Bear. It is also the last Hanna-Barbera show to premiere on NBC to this date...
alongside Dick Dastardly - Muttley was in the movie Hey There, It's Yogi Bear!Hey There, It's Yogi Bear!Hey There, It's Yogi Bear! is a 1964 American animated feature film produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and released by Columbia Pictures. The film stars the voices of Daws Butler, Don Messick, Julie Bennett, and Mel Blanc...
. - In the Duck DodgersDuck Dodgers (TV series)Duck Dodgers is an American animated television series, based on the classic cartoon short Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century, produced by Warner Bros. Animation from 2003 to 2005. The series aired on Cartoon Network and starred Daffy Duck as the titular character...
episode "MMORPD," one of the forms that Duck Dodgers turns himself into is Muttley. In this brief appearance, Muttley's vocal effects are done by Joe AlaskeyJoe AlaskeyJoseph "Joe" Alaskey is an American actor, comedian, and voice artist, credited as one of the successors of Mel Blanc in impersonating the voices of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and other characters from Warner Bros. cartoons. He was born in Watervliet, New York.-Other work:Alaskey has also done voices...
. - Muttley has made at least one brief appearance in DynomuttDynomutt, Dog WonderDynomutt, Dog Wonder is an American animated television series produced for Saturday mornings by Hanna-Barbera about a Batman-esque super hero, the Blue Falcon and his assistant, a bumbling yet generally effective robot dog Dynomutt, who could produce a seemingly infinite number of mechanical...
.
Cultural references
- In the Family GuyFamily GuyFamily Guy is an American animated television series created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series centers on the Griffins, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter and Lois; their children Meg, Chris, and Stewie; and their anthropomorphic pet dog Brian...
episode "April in Quahog" BrianBrian GriffinBrian Griffin is a character from the animated television series Family Guy. He is voiced by Seth MacFarlane and first appeared on television, along with the rest of the family, in a 15-minute short on December 20, 1998. Brian was created and designed by MacFarlane himself...
(with the hat and shawl of Muttley) imitates the laugh of Muttley after PeterPeter GriffinPeter Griffin is a fictional character and the protagonist of the animated comedy series Family Guy and the patriarch of the Griffin family. He is voiced by cartoonist Seth MacFarlane and first appeared on television, along with the rest of the family in the 15-minute short on December 20, 1998....
says: "It sucks. Even the vending machines are out of order".