Top 10 Cartoon Characters
By: Paul Venier
If you are anything like me or half of the population, you have loved
cartoons growing up and most probably still do. If you are saying to yourself,
"Nah, I am too old for cartoons anymore", then you are probably forgetting that
The Simpsons and The Family Guy are cartoons that have become Primtetime Shows
for adults but are still cartoons nonetheless. Looney Toons are still my
favorites of all time and far as I am concerned, Mel Blanc was a voice and sound
genius. With all that being said, I will go through some of my favorites of all
time and then compose my absolute favorite Top 10.
The Road Runner with Wile E. Coyote have always made me
laugh. And even though I don't want to ever see Wile E. Coyote catch The
Roadrunner, I still can't help but feel sorry for him in the end. His sad facial
expressions when he realizes that the rug has been pulled out from under him, so
to speak, is priceless. By now you would have thought that he wouldn't buy any
more stuff from ACME. Foghorn Leghorn is terrific. That voice
and the way he is always duped by The baby Chicken Hawk kills me....I say son,
it just kills me!
Yosemite Sam is a great voice also. Loud and overbearing.
And let's not forget about that terrific mustache and attitude. Bugs
Bunny is an unbelievable great cartoon character. Mel Blanc said he
came up with the voice by blending a Brooklyn and Bronx accent. Bugs was The
Groucho Marx of the Cartoon World. Conniving, slick, insulting, clever,
sarcastic and knew how to manipulate his foes to his advantage.
Elmer Fudd was the perfect target for Bugs Bunny. Always
being outsmarted and even with his threatening gun in hand, he was still no
match for the superior rabbit...that little wascal! Sylvester &
Tweety Bird were also the case of the villain after the innocent one
and the innocent one always winning, leaving us still feeling sorry for villain.
The same formula as The Road Runner, just different characters. Tweety was just
so cute and Sylvester was always getting put outside by the old woman.
Porky Pig was a fantastic voice characterization by Mel
Blanc with that stuttering delivery. And where would Looney Toons be without
that famous, "That's All Folks!" Of course, Porky took a little longer to say
that. Jessica Rabbit had to be the most beautiful cartoon ever
conceived. If ever it was possible to have desires for something not real, she
would be the epitome of those yearnings. I expect that many a young lad had many
sleepless nights conjuring up images of her in their dreams. I am sure that
older lads did also.
Mickey Mouse has to be mentioned just for being one of the
pioneers of the cartoon universe. He was around before there was even sound and
then evolved with the help of Walt Disney's voice and vision.
Daffy Duck was terrific and always second best to Bugs. They
had a love/hate relationship that was epic and classic. Daffy was so excitable
and insecure. Homer Simpson is one of the best cartoon
characters of the modern era. The show was originally a spin off of The Tracy
Ullman Show and it has survived for around 20 years now............Doh! The
dialogue is very adult, clever and smart and the show has won an extremely large
audience over the years and deservedly so.
Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble were The Prehistoric
Jackie Gleason and Art Carney of The Honeymooners. Wilma was definitely Alice.
The amazing thing to me was that Fred had a car in that era and Ralph never had
one in the 50's. SpongeBob Squarepants is another today cartoon
that is very hip and adult oriented and yet still for kids at the same time.
Very funny for any age.
My honorable mentions are Popeye, Huckelberry Hound, Mighty Mouse, Baby Huey,
The Vulture, Felix The Cat, Bluto, Rocky & Bullwinkle, Heckle & Jeckle,
Goofy, Jimmeny Cricket, Beavis & Butthead, Mr. Magoo, Yogi Bear & Boo
Boo, Woody Woodpecker, Boris & Natasha, Alvin and The Chipmunks, Taz the
Tazmanian Devil, Betty Boop, Underdog and Toms & Jerry.
So after all of that, here it is:
My Favorite Top 10 TV Cartoon Characters
1. Bugs Bunny
2. Daffy Duck
3. The Road Runner & Wile E. Coyote
4. Foghorn
Leghorn
5. Sylvester & Tweety Bird
6. Elmer Fudd
7. Yosemite Sam
8. Fred Flintstone & Barney Rubble
9. Homer Simpson
10. Jessica
Rabbit
As I said before, I am very partial to The Looney Toons Characters and
especially to Mel Blancs characterizations of them. I also favor the older
cartoons to the newer ones. I don't know if it is because of my childhood
memories or because I feel they are just better. I am not really sure if I am
objective enough or not but it is, after all, My Top 10 Favorites. What
are yours?
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