# Cartoon voices inspired by celebrities. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 18, 2018, 7:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cartoon-voices-inspired-by-celebrities/819823 "2018-08-18T07:35:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2019, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cartoon-voices-inspired-by-celebrities/819823/81 "2019-01-23T13:57:32Z")
In _a Tale of Two Kittys_ – the cartoon that introduced Tweety to the world – the titular kitties are obvious parodies of Abbott and Costello, imitating their vocal mannerisms and behavior, and with practically the same names. (Tweety was based in part on Red Skelton’s “mean Widdle Kid” persona). Peter Lorre was imitated in more than one Warner Brothers cartoon – the fish who commits suicide in _Horton Hatches the Egg_ because, having seen Horton perched on the nest on a boat, “I’ve seen everything”. He also plays the Mad Scientist in _Haire-Raising Hare_ who "owns’ the furry orange monster who was later called “Gossamer” (or “Rudolph”) I always thought that was odd. Although Lorre has played a lot of weird roles, including a Sorceror (Corman’s _The Raven_) and “mad” doctors (in _Mad Love_ and, for laughs, “Dr. Einstein” in _Arsenic and Old Lace_), he has never, to my knowledge, played a “traditional” Mad Scientist. ---
**Author:** ![BwanaBob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bwanabob/32/2985_2.png) [@BwanaBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BwanaBob)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2019, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cartoon-voices-inspired-by-celebrities/819823/82 "2019-01-23T18:47:50Z")
Another voice inspired by Cary Grant was from the animated Dick Tracy show in the 60’s. One of the detectives working for Tracey was Hemlock Holmes, a bulldog who wore an English policeman (bobby) hat. His voice was pure Cary Grant. ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2019, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cartoon-voices-inspired-by-celebrities/819823/83 "2019-01-23T19:19:19Z")
Interesting that this gets resurrected - to provide an answer in another thread [just yesterday](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=869246) I had re-watched the Bugs Bunny cartoon [A-Lad-In His Lamp](https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2fbz2c), so I was going to post in here that Mel Blanc was obviously doing a Jim Backus impression for the voice of the Genie. Turns out after [looking it up](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A-Lad-In_His_Lamp) that it was, in fact, Jim Backus providing that voice, in one of his first professional roles. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2019, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cartoon-voices-inspired-by-celebrities/819823/84 "2019-01-24T00:52:01Z")
In _ **Racketeer Rabbit** _ (1946), Mel Blanc did Edward G Robinson, Peter Lorre, and George Raft. https://www.dailymotion.com/embed/video/x2fbwbt ---
**Author:** ![caligulathegod](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/caligulathegod/32/9685_2.png) [@caligulathegod](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/caligulathegod)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2019, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cartoon-voices-inspired-by-celebrities/819823/85 "2019-01-26T04:12:36Z")
I was researching the Tweety Bird being based upon Red Skelton, as that had never occurred to me before, and found a new one I’d missed.[Elmer Fudd was originally](https://youtu.be/z4pu83HO0FY?t=99) a character called [Egghead](https://youtu.be/QfvB5qyyjxk) and the voice was Joe Penner, who sounds like a cross between Pee Wee Herman and Howard Morris. At least I had assumed it was Joe Penner, which would put him outside the rules (celebs providing the voice themselves), but it turns out that it was just an impersonation by Dave Weber. Joe Penner was famous for the “[Hyuck yuck](http://www.craighodgkins.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/PennerVallee.mp3)” laugh and his catchphrases “Wanna buy a duck?” and “Oh, you naaasty man.” [Here’s another cartoon that did the Joe Penner imitation](https://youtu.be/ztA0AJxHqQ8). It amazes me no one ever got sued for the wholesale stealing the cartoons did of established celebrity voices that went beyond one-shot jokes, not to mention shameless stealing of catchphrase punchlines. I have acquired a full collection of all 1000 Warner Brothers cartoons and am trying to watch them in sequence (OMG, are the first 60 or so racist.). They really leaned heavily on familiar radio show punchlines to steal a laugh. ---
**Author:** ![furryman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/furryman/32/99_2.png) [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2019, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cartoon-voices-inspired-by-celebrities/819823/86 "2019-01-26T19:24:31Z")
> [@caligulathegod](#): > > I was researching the Tweety Bird being based upon Red Skelton, as that had never occurred to me before, and found a new one I’d missed.[Elmer Fudd was originally](https://youtu.be/z4pu83HO0FY?t=99) a character called [Egghead](https://youtu.be/QfvB5qyyjxk) and the voice was Joe Penner, who sounds like a cross between Pee Wee Herman and Howard Morris. At least I had assumed it was Joe Penner, which would put him outside the rules (celebs providing the voice themselves), but it turns out that it was just an impersonation by Dave Weber. Joe Penner was famous for the “[Hyuck yuck](http://www.craighodgkins.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/PennerVallee.mp3)” laugh and his catchphrases “Wanna buy a duck?” and “Oh, you naaasty man.” > [Here’s another cartoon that did the Joe Penner imitation](https://youtu.be/ztA0AJxHqQ8). > > It amazes me no one ever got sued for the wholesale stealing the cartoons did of established celebrity voices that went beyond one-shot jokes, not to mention shameless stealing of catchphrase punchlines. I have acquired a full collection of all 1000 Warner Brothers cartoons and am trying to watch them in sequence (OMG, are the first 60 or so racist.). They really leaned heavily on familiar radio show punchlines to steal a laugh. I think back then everybody stole from everybody else. There’s a story about how some famous singer sues Max Fletcher for Betty Boop because their singing styles were similar. Supposedly Max showed that there were at least a dozen other singers who sang in the same style. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2019, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cartoon-voices-inspired-by-celebrities/819823/87 "2019-01-26T19:39:53Z")
The Blue-Haired Lawyer on The Simpsons is based Roy Cohn, at least voice-wise. ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2019, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cartoon-voices-inspired-by-celebrities/819823/88 "2019-01-26T23:43:26Z")
> [@furryman](#): > > I think back then everybody stole from everybody else. There’s a story about how some famous singer sues Max Fletcher for Betty Boop because their singing styles were similar. Supposedly Max showed that there were at least a dozen other singers who sang in the same style. It was Helen Kane. Not only did the Fleischers make Betty Boop sound like her, they made Betty look like her. [Here’s Helen Kane singing I Wanna Be Loved by You](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hclK-UKJNgk). If you follow the link, you’ll see what she looked like, as well as hear what she sounded like. Kane sued the Fleischers for stealing her likeness. It turned out that Kane’s act was based largely on a black singer who called herself “Baby Esther.” Esther was a Harlem jazz singer who had a babyish voice and used the phrase “boop oop a doop” in her scatting. Kane lost the suit as a result of this. I guess Baby Esther could have sued the Fleischers, especially after the Fleischers used her to prove that Helen Kane was merely a copier herself. I don’t know how that would have come out. ---
**Author:** ![JB99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/439d5e/32.png) [@JB99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JB99)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2019, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cartoon-voices-inspired-by-celebrities/819823/89 "2019-01-27T02:10:54Z")
GI Joe - Shipwreck = Jack Nicholson ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2019, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cartoon-voices-inspired-by-celebrities/819823/90 "2019-01-27T02:16:03Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > Heck, I’d say it’s Billy West as Phil Hartman as William Shatner as Captain Kirk. Yeah, I was about to say that he is definitely doing Phil Hartman to some extent. He’s even said so. ---
**Author:** ![caligulathegod](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/caligulathegod/32/9685_2.png) [@caligulathegod](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/caligulathegod)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2019, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cartoon-voices-inspired-by-celebrities/819823/91 "2019-01-27T02:43:47Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > Yeah, I was about to say that he is definitely doing Phil Hartman to some extent. He’s even said so. Yeah, I mentioned it in the post after that (post 69). > [@](#): > > Zapp Brannigan’s character is based upon William Shatner, but his voice is actually Billy West’s tribute to Phil Hartman doing an old-time announcer voice. In his words: “Phil Hartman was supposed to do that character, and I was imitating Phil Hartman. I knew Phil Hartman; when I came to work with him on some commercials and stuff out here in Hollywood, we both had this real fascination and love for these big, old-time dumb announcers. You know, the guys who have their balls in a wheelbarrow and think that every word is so precious that it’s hard to give birth to it, like everything comes out in four syllables instead of one. Guys who think far and away that of everything else in this universe, he loves his voice. So that’s what was going on with him. He’s modeled after a couple of big dumb announcers I knew.” He never did that pause thing that Shatner is famous for doing. Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![MrKnowItAll](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrknowitall/32/87_2.png) [@MrKnowItAll](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrKnowItAll)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2019, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cartoon-voices-inspired-by-celebrities/819823/92 "2019-01-27T05:29:24Z")
Don’t forget how often Joe Besser’s manchild character was copied for one-off characters for years. My favorite was when Bugs berates Fudd for hunting rabbits with an elephant gun and that he should be hunting elephants. Suddenly there’s a huge elephant there: “If you do, I’ll give you **such** a pinch!” ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2019, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cartoon-voices-inspired-by-celebrities/819823/93 "2019-01-27T07:02:25Z")
Sad sack salesman Gil- Jack Lemmon. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cartoon-voices-inspired-by-celebrities/819823.md?page=4)