The name of Dudley Do-Right's Horse

Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports
1

Cecil answered this question back in 1976 as follows:

A Straight Dope Classic from Cecil’s Storehouse of Human Knowledge
What was the name of Dudley Do-Right’s horse?
April 30, 1976

Dear Cecil:

One evening during an orgy of hard-core trivia, we were suddenly and frustratingly stumped by a truly baffling item. Even the most devoted trivia freaks among our friends drew blanks when we presented them with this one. If you can answer it for us, Cecil, we’ll finally be able to sleep nights. What they hell was the name of Dudley Do-right’s horse?

— The Smithies, Chicago

Dear folks:

Dudley’s horse was named Horse. That’s it — Horse. Bet you could kick yourself, huh? Now you can go back to worrying about the important things in life, like the Middle East situation, world hunger, and where Bullwinkle went to college. Answer on request.

I am here to say that his answer is not correct. However; the only evidence I have is that of an eye-witness. I saw the original episode that gave the name of Dudley’s horse and it was a very specific and blatant event in the episode.
The reason being is that his horse had a fairly sophisticated name. Much contrary to the other names in the series; like Snidely Whiplash, and Nell Fenwick.

The episode announcing the horse’s name only aired once that I know of, either in 1964 or 1965. The only reason I remember it (after years of grappling for the memory) is that the name was the same as another TV person associated with another popular TV show at the time.

The Horse’s name is Maurice. I remembered it because it is the same name as Samantha’s father in the original TV Series: Bewitched, that was on during the same period, and I made that connection at the time.

The reason there is so much controversy about this is that I am not the only one who saw that episode, and because of the interest, (and increased demand) the producers and writers of the Dudley cartoon wouldn’t say one way or the other.

The trivia question first surfaced (or the first time I heard it) back in 1975. Again, without verifiable evidence, I know this doesn’t count for much, but its all I have.

The answer “Horse” came from this lack of verifiable evidence. Not because its what Dudley called him. He referred to him as “my horse”, and Nell and her father, (even Snidely) referred to him as “Dudley’s Horse”, or “your horse” when speaking to Dudley.

So for those who want it, there it is. 45 years later.

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Unfortunately, people’s memories are notoriously poor when it comes to details like this. Without the tape of the show, or one of the writers stepping forth, it’s unlikely that anyone will take this as evidence. Why was it never shown again? Why hasn’t anyone else remembered this factoid from a very popular national show?

This doesn’t make any sense. There is no increased demand nor any financial incentive for anyone involved in the show not to answer this question.

3

So you’re saying that the name of his horse was only revealed once, on a 20-minute show, in the 1960s?

ducks and runs

4

Evidence to the contrary:
The name of the horse is alluded to in Dudley Do Right’s Ripsaw Falls an amusement park attraction at Universal Studios in Orlando. http://www.greatorlandodiscounts.com/ioa/dudley-do-right.htm :

I dunno how famous that phrase is, but I take it as evidence that Dudley’s horse was commonly referred to as… Horse.

5

The only banned episode I know of is “Stokey the Bear”. He’s dressed like Smokey the Bear, but Snidely hypnotizes him to set fires rather than prevent them. Needless to say, the US Forest Service was not amused.

Oh, and Dudley refers to his horse only once in that episode, as “my steed”.

“Maurice” sounds extremely vaguely like a misheard “my horse”. Coincidence?

6

First, I’m skeptical of the claim that any episode of Dudley Do-Right was “only aired once.” These shorts were played over and over and over again when I was a kid. Even the “Stokey the Bear” episode rowrrbazzle mentioned has resurfaced and is widely available on the web. Why, pray tell, would this one particular cartoon have been lost to the ages?

Second, there’s lots of agreement all over the interwebs that the horse was, indeed, named Horse. There does not seem to be any “controversy” about this at all. No mention of Maurice, and nobody but wizardoftrance seems to have a problem with the answer.

It’s possible that the OP remembers a different cartoon animal by that name (though my google-fu finds no candidates), and the mists of time and memory are now erroneously assigning it to Dudley’s horse.
It’s also possible that the OP is trying to yank our chains, for reasons known only to him or her.

7

So his horse spoke of the Pompatus of Love? Interesting.

8

Sorry, wiz. Without a buttload of real evidence, your claim is just so much internet BS.

9

On the other hand, let’s not forget about the Newlywed Game episode, long thought to be merely a legend, where the man identifies the most unusual place they ever made whoopie as “the butt.” I saw threads just like this one about that episode, where a person who claims to have seen it is pooh-poohed by the regulars. Then the tape was found.

wizardoftrance, it’s an interesting anecdote, but without some harder evidence, most people are going to think your memory is mistaken.

10

Do you mean the tape that was never shown during the regular broadcast of the show, meaning that all the people that claimed they saw the original broadcast couldn’t possibly be correct?

11

The column at issue, even though the OP reprints almost all of it anyway: What was the name of Dudley Do-Right’s horse? - The Straight Dope

12

Well, Nell was clearly in love with Horse, not Dudley.

13

There’s got to be a Catherine the Great joke in here somewhere…

14

Tagged as the first Dudley Do Right cartoon, at 4:19, there is an “anomaly” which may or may not indicate that “Horse” had another name.

Apologies for the Indian commercial, couldn’t figure how to chop it out.

15

All I’m seeing is cheap animation and bad voice tracking.