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| Tweety | |
|---|---|
| Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies character | |
 Tweety in the Friz Freleng design. This is also his current appearance. | |
| First appearance | A Tale of Two Kitties (November 21, 1942; 83 years ago (1942-11-21)) (as Orson) Birdy and the Beast (August 19, 1944; 81 years ago (1944-08-19)) (as Tweety) |
| Created by | Bob Clampett |
| Designed by |
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| Voiced by |
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| Developed by | |
| In-universe information | |
| Alias | Tweety Bird Tweety Pie |
| Species | Domestic canary Generic bird (originally) |
| Gender | Male |
| Significantother | Aoogah |
| Relatives | Tweetums (Loonatics Unleashed) |
| Nationality | American |
| Eyes | Blue |
Tweety is a fictionalcartoon character, a yellowcanary bird in theWarner Bros.Looney Tunes andMerrie Melodies series of animated cartoons.[3][4] His characteristics are based onRed Skelton's famous "Junior the Mean Widdle Kid".[5] He appeared in 46 cartoons during thegolden age, made between 1942 and 1964.[6]
Despite the perceptions that people may hold, owing to the long eyelashes and high-pitched voice (whichMel Blanc provided), Tweety is male[7][8][9] although his ambiguity was played with. For example, in the cartoon "Snow Business",[10] whenGranny entered a room containing Tweety andSylvester she said: "Here I am, boys!". Another confirmation that Tweety is male comes from the cartoonGreedy for Tweety in which during a hospital stay, Granny (portrayed as a nurse) utters "Oh the poor little Tweety bird, let's makes him a little more comfortable", as she adjusts his bed. Nonetheless, a 1952 cartoon was entitledAin'tShe Tweet. His species has been ambiguous across various depictions; although originally and often portrayed as a youngcanary, he is also frequently called a rare and valuable "tweety bird" as a plot device, and once called "the only living specimen". Nevertheless, thetitle song ofThe Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries directly states that he is a canary. His shape more closely suggests that of ababy bird, which is what he was during his early appearances (although the "baby bird" aspect has been used in a few later cartoons as a plot device). The yellow feathers were added, but otherwise he retained the baby-bird shape.
In his early appearances inBob Clampett cartoons, Tweety is a very aggressive character who tries anything to foil his feline adversary, even kicking the cat when he is down. One example of a malicious moment is in the cartoonBirdy and the Beast, where a cat chases Tweety by flying until he remembers that cats cannot fly, causing him to fall. Tweety says sympathetically, "Awww, the poor kitty cat! He faw down and go (in a loud, tough, masculine voice) BOOM!!" and then grins mischievously. A similar use of that voice is inA Tale Of Two Kitties when Tweety, wearing anair raid warden's helmet, suddenly yells "Turn out those lights!"
Tweety's aggressive nature was also initially characterized byFriz Freleng when he began directing the series, but would later be toned-down to instead have him be portrayed as a cutesy bird usually going about his business, and doing little to thwart Sylvester's ill-conceived plots, allowing them to simply collapse on their own; he became even less aggressive when Granny was introduced, but occasionally Tweety still showed a malicious side when egged on. Despite this, in comparison with other majorLooney Tunes protagonists such asBugs Bunny andFoghorn Leghorn, Tweety was not given a completecharacter arc, instead embodying the "innocent child" role offsetting the motives of his superior Sylvester and their guardian figure.
Bob Clampett created the character that would become Tweety in the 1942 shortA Tale of Two Kitties, pitting him against two hungry cats namedBabbit and Catstello (based on the famous comediansAbbott and Costello).[11] On the original model sheet, Tweety was named Orson, which was also the name of a bird character from an earlier Clampett cartoonWacky Blackout.[12]
Tweety was originally created not as adomestic canary, but as a generic (and wild) baby bird in an outdoor nest: naked (pink), jowly, and also far more aggressive and saucy, as opposed to the later, better-known version of him as a less hot-tempered (but still somewhat ornery) yellow canary. In the documentaryBugs Bunny: Superstar, animator Clampett stated that Tweety had been based "on my own naked baby picture."[13] Clampett did two more shorts with the "naked genius", as aJimmy Durante-ish cat once called him inA Gruesome Twosome. The second Tweety short,Birdy and the Beast, finally bestowed the baby bird with his new name, and gave him his blue eyes. After the first three cartoons, censors declared that the character was nude, and they made the studio paint him yellow to make it look as if he was covered in feathers.[14] The change made Tweety look like a regular yellowdomestic canary.[4]
Many ofMel Blanc's characters are known for speech impediments. One of Tweety's most noticeable is that /s/, /k/, and /g/ are changed to /t/, /d/, or (final s) /θ/; for example, "pussy cat" comes out as "putty tat", later rendered "puddy tat", "Granny" comes out as "Dwanny" and "sweetie pie" comes out as "tweetie pie" (a phonological pattern referred to as 'fronting'), hence his name. He also has trouble withliquid consonants: as withElmer Fudd, /l/ and /r/ come out as /w/. Some of his cartoons feature him singing a song about himself, "I'm a tweet wittow biwd in a diwded tage; Tweety'th my name but I don't know my age, I don't have to wuwy and dat is dat; I'm tafe in hewe fwom dat ol' putty tat". (Translation: "I'm a sweet little bird in a gilded cage; Tweety’s my name but I don’t know my age, I don’t have to worry and that is that; I’m safe in here from that old pussy cat") Aside from this speech impediment, Tweety's voice is that ofBugs Bunny, one speed up (ifThe Old Grey Hare, which depicts Bugs as an infant, is any indication of that); the only difference is that Bugs does not have trouble pronouncing /s/, /k/ and /g/ as mentioned above.
Clampett began work on a short that would pit Tweety against a then-unnamed, lisping black and white cat created byFriz Freleng in 1946. However, Clampett left the studio before going into full production on the short (which had a storyboard produced, where it was titled "Fat Rat and the Stupid Cat"[15]), however Freleng would use Tweety in his own separate project. Freleng toned Tweety down and gave him a cuter appearance, resulting in his long-lashed blue-pupil eyes and yellow feathers. Clampett mentions inBugs Bunny: Superstar that the feathers were added to satisfy censors who objected to the naked bird. The first short to team Tweety and the cat, later namedSylvester, was 1947'sTweetie Pie, which won Warner Bros. its firstAcademy Award for Best Short Subject.[16]
Sylvester and Tweety proved to be one of the most notable pairings in animation history. Most of their cartoons followed a standard formula:
In a few of the cartoons, Sylvester does manage to briefly eat Tweety up with a gulp. However, either Granny or another character makes him spit Tweety out right away. In the 1952 Christmas-themed shortGift Wrapped, Sylvester was also briefly eaten by Hector the Bulldog, and forced by Granny to spit him out; as punishment, both Sylvester and Hector were tied up with their mouths gagged shut.
In 1951, Mel Blanc (withBilly May's orchestra) had a hit single with "I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat", a song performed in character by Tweety and featuring Sylvester. In the lyrics Sylvester sings "I'd like to eat that Thweetie Pie when he leaves his cage", implying that Tweety's name is actually Sweetie Pie. Later the name "Sweetie Pie" was applied to the young, pink female canary in theTiny Toon Adventures animated TV series of the early 1990s.
From 1945 until the original Warner Bros. Cartoons studio closed, Freleng had almost exclusive use of Tweety at the Warner cartoon studio (much likeYosemite Sam), with the exception of a brief cameo inNo Barking in 1954, directed by Chuck Jones (that year, Freleng usedPepé Le Pew, a Jones character, for the only time in his career and the only time in a Tweety short,Dog Pounded).
Tweety had a cameo role in the 1988 filmWho Framed Roger Rabbit, makingEddie Valiant (Bob Hoskins) fall from aflag pole by playing "This Little Piggy" with Valiant's fingers and releasing his grip. The scene is essentially a re-creation of a gag fromA Tale of Two Kitties, with Valiant replacing Catstello as Tweety's victim. He also appears near the end of the film alongside other animated characters. This was the last timeMel Blanc voiced Tweety.
During the 1990s, Tweety also starred in the animated TV seriesThe Sylvester and Tweety Mysteries,[16] in which Granny ran a detective agency with the assistance of Tweety,Sylvester and Hector. In the series, Tweety has the starring role and is voiced byJoe Alaskey. The storyline carries into the 2000 direct-to-video feature-length animated filmTweety's High-Flying Adventure, where Joe Alaskey reprises his role. Tweety's prototype, Orson, also made an appearance in the series.
Tweety also appears inTiny Toon Adventures as the mentor of Sweetie Pie, and one of the faculty at Acme Looniversity. He was voiced byJeff Bergman for most of his appearances andBob Bergen in "Animaniacs".
In the 1995 cartoon shortCarrotblanca, a parody/homage toCasablanca, Tweety appeared as "Usmarte", a parody of the character Ugarte played byPeter Lorre in the original film. In several sequences, Tweety was speaking and laughing in character like Peter Lorre. He also does theLooney Tunes ending instead ofPorky Pig orBugs Bunny. This is also notable for being a rare instance where Tweety plays a villain character. Bob Bergen voices the role again.
In 1996, Tweety (voiced by Bob Bergen again) appeared in the feature film,Space Jam, with legendary basketball playerMichael Jordan.
In 2001, a younger version of Tweety appeared onBaby Looney Tunes, thus coming full circle from his earliest appearances. Here he was voiced by Sam Vincent.
In 2003, Tweety (voiced byEric Goldberg) made two appearances inLooney Tunes: Back in Action, although in one of those appearances this "Tweety" was actually theTasmanian Devil in disguise.[17]
In 2011, Tweety was featured, with hisLooney Tunes co-stars, inCartoon Network's seriesThe Looney Tunes Show.[18] He is voiced byJeff Bergman. He appeared in the episode "Ridiculous Journey", where he and Sylvester work together with Taz to get back home to Granny andBugs Bunny. He had been revealed to have fought in World War II alongside a young Granny. Sylvester also asked him how old he was, to which Tweety replied, "I'll never tell". Sylvester then asked if Tweety would at least tell him if he (Tweety) was a boy or a girl. Tweety whispered into his ear and Sylvester had a surprised expression and said "Huh, I was wrong".
Tweety appeared as a major character inNew Looney Tunes andLooney Tunes Cartoons, where his designs were based on his Bob Clampett Cartoons while still maintaining his yellow feathers. His personality reverts him to being more violent and abusive in nature while being toned down to retain his cute facade. He was voiced by Bob Bergen inNew Looney Tunes.Looney Tunes Cartoons is the first time thatEric Bauza voices Tweety.
On February 17, 2021, it was announced Tweety would star inTweety Mysteries which would have been similar toThe Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries.[19] The series would have been a live-action/animated hybrid aimed towards girls and would have aired onCartoon Network.[20][21] However, the series never got off the ground as Cartoon Network announced all live-action productions were scrapped in December 2022.[22]
Tweety next appeared inSpace Jam: A New Legacy, which was released on July 16, 2021. He was voiced by Bob Bergen.[23]
Tweety starred in a direct-to-video filmKing Tweety, which was released on June 14, 2022.[24][25] He was voiced by Eric Bauza.
Tweety appears in the preschool seriesBugs Bunny Builders which aired as part ofCartoonito onCartoon Network andHBO Max on July 25, 2022.[26][27] In the series, similar toBaby Looney Tunes and the finale ofThe Sylvester and Tweety Mysteries, he is friends with Sylvester. Eric Bauza reprised his role fromLooney Tunes Cartoons.
Tweety and Sylvester have been used to endorse products such asMiracle Whip dressing andMCI Communications long distance.[16] In 1998, theUnited States Post Office honored Tweety and Sylvester with a 32-cent postage stamp.[28] Tweety also appears in products produced by Warner Brothers Studios.
British artistBanksy's 2008 New York art installationThe Village Pet Store and Charcoal Grill featuresTweety, ananimatronic sculpture of an aged and molting version of the character.[29] In honor of Tweety's 80th anniversary,Warner Bros. Discovery unveiled 80 themed murals done by artists from around the world.[30]
Western Publications produced a comic book about Tweety and Sylvester entitledTweety and Sylvester, first inDell ComicsFour Color series #406, 489, and 524, then in their own title fromDell Comics (#4–37, 1954–1962), then later fromGold Key Comics (#1–102, 1963–1972).
In 2017, Tweety appeared in theDC Comics special, Catwoman/ Tweety and Sylvester, where Tweety teams up withBlack Canary, who he just calls "bwonde wady".[31]
Voice artistMel Blanc originated the character's voice.[33] After theGolden Age of American Animation came to an end, Blanc continued to voice the character in TV specials, commercials, music recordings, and films, such as 1988'sWho Framed Roger Rabbit, which was one of Blanc's final projects as Tweety. Before and after Blanc's death in 1989, several voice actors have provided the voice in his stead. These voice actors are:
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