# Chippendales and Chip 'n' Dale's Rescue Rangers - any connection? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 18, 2003, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chippendales-and-chip-n-dales-rescue-rangers-any-connection/149530 "2003-01-18T20:36:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![jonfromdenver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/82dd89/32.png) [@jonfromdenver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jonfromdenver)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2003, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chippendales-and-chip-n-dales-rescue-rangers-any-connection/149530/21 "2003-01-22T19:20:38Z")
> [@](#): > > _Originally posted by Esprix_ > And how do you tell them apart? > > Chip has a black nose - like a chocolate chip! (Dale has a red nose.) It is also easy to tell them apart by their behavior–Dale is portrayed as a total dumbass and Chip is always mad at him for being stupid (at least in the old cartoons–I’m not too familiar with Rescue Rangers). And Goodman as Baloo? I don’t know if I like that idea. Not that I like the idea of Disney cartoon sequels in the first place. ---
**Author:** ![tanstaafl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ba8739/32.png) [@tanstaafl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tanstaafl)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2003, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chippendales-and-chip-n-dales-rescue-rangers-any-connection/149530/22 "2003-01-22T20:18:30Z")
Just as a further comment, in one of their cartoons Chip and Dale’s tree is cut down, hauled to a factory and made into furniture. They eventually get the furniture back into the forest and stack it up where their tree was. Now, was the tree made into Chippendale style furniture? That may be the connection. ---
**Author:** ![chukhung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e79b87/32.png) [@chukhung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chukhung)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2003, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chippendales-and-chip-n-dales-rescue-rangers-any-connection/149530/23 "2003-01-22T20:47:23Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by mobo85 \* > \*\*That’s right. Their first appearance with names was in a 1947 cartoon called…_Chip ‘n’ Dale._ \*\* So who came first, Chip an’ Dale from Disney or the Goofy Gophers (Mac ‘n’ Tosh) from Warner Brothers? ---
**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 22, 2003, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chippendales-and-chip-n-dales-rescue-rangers-any-connection/149530/24 "2003-01-22T21:04:17Z")
We just came back from Disney World, and I think there was some talk about “Chip ‘n’ Dale Dancers”, which would be Disney riffing on the name similarity. Also a rare tie-in to adult stuff – but if you’ve been to PLeasure Island (with things like Jessica Rabbit’s Lingerie Shop), you know they’ve dabbled in that a bit. ---
**Author:** ![pipper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c2a13f/32.png) [@pipper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pipper)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2003, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chippendales-and-chip-n-dales-rescue-rangers-any-connection/149530/25 "2003-01-22T21:14:13Z")
Do they still run around saying “indubitably?” ---
**Author:** ![gonzoron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a6a055/32.png) [@gonzoron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzoron)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2003, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chippendales-and-chip-n-dales-rescue-rangers-any-connection/149530/26 "2003-01-22T21:39:20Z")
Oh, and Monterey Jack’s a mouse, by the way, not a chipmunk. ---
**Author:** ![Olentzero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90ced4/32.png) [@Olentzero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Olentzero)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2003, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chippendales-and-chip-n-dales-rescue-rangers-any-connection/149530/27 "2003-01-22T21:49:57Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by pipper \* > \*\*Do they still run around saying “indubitably?” \*\* Those are the Warner Brothers chipmunks (I seem to recall they’ve also been classed as gophers). Chip ‘n’ Dale talk in squeaky, sped-up voices while the WB rodents talk like Quentin Crisp. ---
**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2003, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chippendales-and-chip-n-dales-rescue-rangers-any-connection/149530/28 "2003-01-22T22:53:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by amarinth \* > \*\*Personally, I don’t think they quite succeeded … \*\* Possibly… but how else would you interpretively dance cabinetmaking? \*\* [/QUOTE] Thy’renot dancing _cabinetmaking_, they’re dancing _furniture refinishing_. You know… Stripping. \ ---
**Author:** ![Jinx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Jinx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinx)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chippendales-and-chip-n-dales-rescue-rangers-any-connection/149530/29 "2003-01-23T00:45:34Z")
Of course, there’s the lesser-known twin termites, Chip ‘n’ Dale, who terrorize the neighborwood!!! 😉 But, seriously… I have a postcard of Chip ‘n’ Dale from Disney Tokyo where they are identifed as Chip and Chop. Why the change in name? Is it just a poor translation? - Jinx ---
**Author:** ![Jinx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Jinx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinx)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chippendales-and-chip-n-dales-rescue-rangers-any-connection/149530/30 "2003-01-23T00:48:50Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by jonfromdenver \* > **It is also easy to tell them apart by their behavior–Dale is portrayed as a total dumbass and Chip is always mad at him for being stupid (at least in the old cartoons–I’m not too familiar with Rescue Rangers).** Yeah, Disney picks up in the classic style by attributing these two chipmunks with similar characteristics as the original. But Dale isn’t really a dumbass…you just have to have an appreciation for his carefree nature! - Jinx ---
**Author:** ![Jinx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Jinx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinx)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chippendales-and-chip-n-dales-rescue-rangers-any-connection/149530/31 "2003-01-23T00:51:26Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by chukhung \* > **…the Goofy Gophers (Mac ‘n’ Tosh) from Warner Brothers?** How did you come to know the Goofy Gophers on a first name basis? I never knew they had names! Is it mentioned in any cartoon, or just in a book on WB cartoon history like “50 Years and Only One Gray Hare”? - Jinx ---
**Author:** ![chukhung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e79b87/32.png) [@chukhung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chukhung)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chippendales-and-chip-n-dales-rescue-rangers-any-connection/149530/32 "2003-01-23T01:32:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Jinx \* > **How did you come to know the Goofy Gophers on a first name basis?** There’s more information about the Gophers here, [http://members.tripod.com/~Nymh/info.htm](http://members.tripod.com/~Nymh/info.htm) > [@](#): > > As far as their names go, my best guess is that WB was trying to be cute. I have heard, though I don’t know if it is rumor or fact, that the gophers were a spoof of Disney’s recently created charactors, Chip & Dale, so it’s no surprise that their names would be derived in the same manner. Chip & Dale = chippendale, Mac & Tosh = macintosh, which was the name for a raincoat or an apple. I’m not sure from which source the names were derived. Since the first “real” Goofy Gophers short came out in 1947 (the same year as the first Chip an’ Dale cartoon), I’m wondering which studio was first in coming up with the idea of a rodent duo with a pair of “cute” names. Hence my previous query. ---
**Author:** ![Olentzero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90ced4/32.png) [@Olentzero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Olentzero)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chippendales-and-chip-n-dales-rescue-rangers-any-connection/149530/33 "2003-01-23T15:27:43Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by chukhung \* > **Since the first “real” Goofy Gophers short came out in 1947 (the same year as the first Chip an’ Dale cartoon), I’m wondering which studio was first in coming up with the idea of a rodent duo with a pair of “cute” names.** I’ve seen books that listed WB cartoons in order by release date; surely there are similar books for Disney’s cartoons. The best bet would be to compare release dates - if there’s enough of a gap between them, we can be pretty sure who stole from (or parodied) whom. ---
**Author:** ![chukhung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e79b87/32.png) [@chukhung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chukhung)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chippendales-and-chip-n-dales-rescue-rangers-any-connection/149530/34 "2003-01-23T16:01:48Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Olentzero \* > \*\*The best bet would be to compare release dates - if there’s enough of a gap between them, we can be pretty sure who stole from (or parodied) whom. \*\* After some searching, I stumbled across, The Big Cartoon Database at [http://www.bcdb.com](http://www.bcdb.com). According to that source, _Goofy Gophers_ was originally released on January 25, 1947 while _Chip an’ Dale_ was originally released over ten months later, on November 28, 1947. That makes it look like the Gophers have priority. However, in the “Production Notes” section for _Chip an’ Dale_ it says > [@](#): > > Although they appeared in two previous shorts, this is the first short in which the two chipmunks are referred to by name. So, who knows. Maybe the chipmunks had names prior to '47 which were known only among the animation community in Hollywood (and copied by Warner Brothers). But the Goofy Gophers had antecedents as well. There was a Leon Schlesinger short, _Gopher Goofy_, released in 1942 that featured “Virgil” and “Small Gopher” from Brooklyn(!). According to the BCDB, > [@](#): > > The characters were reworked by Art Davis in 1947 to become The Goofy Gophers. So at this point, I’ve got no idea who “stole from (or parodied) whom.” ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chippendales-and-chip-n-dales-rescue-rangers-any-connection/149530/35 "2003-01-23T17:25:29Z")
The chipmunks now known as Chip and Dale first appeared in 1943’s _Private Pluto_. But that still puts them one year behind the Warner gophers as they appeared in _Gopher Goofy_. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2003, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chippendales-and-chip-n-dales-rescue-rangers-any-connection/149530/36 "2003-01-23T18:03:55Z")
> [@](#): > > _tanstaafl says:_ Just as a further comment, in one of their cartoons Chip and Dale’s tree is cut down, hauled to a factory and made into furniture. They eventually get the furniture back into the forest and stack it up where their tree was. This wasn’t Chip ‘n’ Dale, this was the Goofy Gophers, in [_Lumber Jerks_](http://us.imdb.com/Details?0048320) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chippendales-and-chip-n-dales-rescue-rangers-any-connection/149530.md?page=1)