Red Coffee
Encyclopedia
Red Coffey was a voice actor and comedian best known for playing Quacker in the Tom and Jerry
cartoons at MGM
from 1950 to 1957.
Coffey's first role in animation appears to have been in Little Quacker
(released January 7, 1950), and he subsequently was hired to play the little duck in another seven cartoons. After Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera left MGM and opened their own studio in 1957, they hired Coffey to play a duck similar to Quacker in a number of cartoons, such as Slumber Party Smarty and Duck in Luck with Yogi Bear
. However, when Hanna and Barbera turned the character into Yakky Doodle
and gave him his own series in 1961, Los Angeles children's show host Jimmy Weldon
was hired for the role. Coffey finally received a screen credit for the Hanna-Barbera
cartoon This is My Lucky Day starring Loopy De Loop
, but his name was misspelled and internet sites have copied the incorrect spelling.
Coffee was also a nightclub comic, working in an act through the 1950s with Jerry Wallace. Coffey also appeared on KTTV
's The Dude Martin Show and spent 1960 in a company of Olsen and Johnson
's Hellzapoppin, which toured the United States with the Harlem Globetrotters
.
Tom and Jerry
Tom and Jerry are the cat and mouse cartoon characters that were evolved starting in 1939.Tom and Jerry also may refer to:Cartoon works featuring the cat and mouse so named:* The Tom and Jerry Show...
cartoons at MGM
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...
from 1950 to 1957.
Coffey's first role in animation appears to have been in Little Quacker
Little Quacker
Little Quacker is a 1950 one-reel animated cartoon and is the 47th Tom and Jerry short directed by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera and produced by Fred Quimby. It is the first Tom and Jerry short to be released in the 1950s...
(released January 7, 1950), and he subsequently was hired to play the little duck in another seven cartoons. After Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera left MGM and opened their own studio in 1957, they hired Coffey to play a duck similar to Quacker in a number of cartoons, such as Slumber Party Smarty and Duck in Luck with Yogi Bear
Yogi Bear
Yogi Bear is a fictional bear who appears in animated cartoons created by Hanna-Barbera Productions. He made his debut in 1958 as a supporting character in The Huckleberry Hound Show. Yogi Bear was the first breakout character created by Hanna-Barbera, and was eventually more popular than...
. However, when Hanna and Barbera turned the character into Yakky Doodle
Yakky Doodle
Yakky Doodle is a fictional character created by Hanna-Barbera Productions. Yakky's name is an obvious takeoff of Yankee Doodle.-History:...
and gave him his own series in 1961, Los Angeles children's show host Jimmy Weldon
Jimmy Weldon
Jimmy Weldon is an American voice actor, ventriloquist, and former television host.He is best known as the voice of the Hanna-Barbera cartoon character Yakky Doodle Duck and the host and ventriloquist in the locally-produced television series, "The Webster Webfoot Show".-History:Born James Weldon...
was hired for the role. Coffey finally received a screen credit for the Hanna-Barbera
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...
cartoon This is My Lucky Day starring Loopy De Loop
Loopy De Loop
Loopy De Loop was the only theatrical cartoon short series produced by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera after leaving MGM and opening their new Hanna-Barbera Studios...
, but his name was misspelled and internet sites have copied the incorrect spelling.
Coffee was also a nightclub comic, working in an act through the 1950s with Jerry Wallace. Coffey also appeared on KTTV
KTTV
KTTV, channel 11, is an owned-and-operated television station of the News Corporation-owned Fox Broadcasting Company, located in Los Angeles, California. Serving the vast Los Angeles metropolitan area, KTTV is a sister station to KCOP , Los Angeles' MyNetworkTV station...
's The Dude Martin Show and spent 1960 in a company of Olsen and Johnson
Olsen and Johnson
John Sigvard "Ole" Olsen and Harold Ogden "Chic" Johnson were zany American comedians of vaudeville, radio, the Broadway stage, motion pictures and television. Their shows were noted for their crazy blackout gags and orchestrated mayhem...
's Hellzapoppin, which toured the United States with the Harlem Globetrotters
Harlem Globetrotters
The Harlem Globetrotters are an exhibition basketball team that combines athleticism, theater and comedy. The executive offices for the team are currently in downtown Phoenix, Arizona; the team is owned by Shamrock Holdings, which oversees the various investments of the Roy E. Disney family.Over...
.