| Casper the Friendly Ghost | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Cover ofCasper the Friendly Ghost #34 (July 1955) | |
| First appearance |
|
| Created by | Seymour Reit Joe Oriolo[1][2] Vincent E. Valentine II[3] |
| Adapted by | Harvey Comics |
| Voiced by | See voice actors |
| In-universe information | |
| Race | Ghost (deceased human in some versions) |
| Title | The Friendly Ghost |
| Family | The Ghostly Trio (uncles) |
Casper the Friendly Ghost is a fictional character who serves as theprotagonist of theFamous Studios theatrical animated cartoon series of the same name. He is a translucentghost who is pleasant and personable,[4] but often criticized by his three wicked uncles,the Ghostly Trio.
The character was featured in55 theatrical cartoons titledThe Friendly Ghost from 1945 to 1959.[5] The character has been featured in comic books published byHarvey Comics since 1952,[6] and Harvey purchased the character outright in 1959. Casper became one of Harvey's most popular characters, headlining several comic book titles.
Following Harvey's purchase of the character, he appeared in five television series:Matty's Funday Funnies (1959–1961),The New Casper Cartoon Show (1963–1970),Casper and the Angels (1979),The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper (1996–1998) andCasper's Scare School (2009–2012).[7] The character made his theatrical film debut in a live-action adaptation of the series byUniversal Pictures:Casper (1995), to where he became the first computer-generated character to star in a film.[8] He would later appear in fourdirect-to-video andmade-for-TV follow-up films.
TheApollo 16Command and Service Module was given the call sign "Casper", since its pilotKen Mattingly thought, "there are enough serious things in this flight, so I picked a non-serious name."[9]
The origins of Casper are disputed, with bothSeymour Reit andJoe Oriolo claiming to be the character's creator. According to Oriolo, Casper was created on a Halloween night to assuage his four-year-old daughter Joan'sfear of the dark. He made a cardboard cutout of a friendly ghost and hung it in the backyard tree to show her that not all ghosts are bad.[10]
Though Joan has corroborated this story, Seymour Reit maintains that Casper was born with a short story which he conceived and wrote entirely by himself and gave to Oriolo to illustrate.[10][11] Reit concluded, "Joe [Oriolo] created the actualcartoon of the character - but the concept, series, idea and plotline were mine, prior to Joe's involvement. Joe played an important part, but I was Casper's legit 'Poppa'." [emphasis in original][10]
Reit and Oriolo intended to sell the story to eitherFleischer Studios (where they were both employed as animators) or to a children's storybook publisher, and they eventually lined up a deal withGrosset & Dunlap.[10] When Reit was away on military service duringWorld War II before the book was released, Oriolo sold the rights to the book toFamous Studios (the successor to Fleischer Studios after it was acquired byParamount) for a total of $175. This one-time payment was all that he received, missing out on a share of the revenue earned from the films, comic books and merchandise to come.[12] For his part, Reit received no payment for the book at all.[10]
In the original Famous cartoons, Casper is standing next to a grave inscribed with "Casper", that supports the theory he is indeed a ghost. Originally, stories have shown that his visibility is due to wearing a sheet. In the Casper live-action film, this is not shown and it is implied that he is naturally visible to humans as a white creature.[13]
The Friendly Ghost, the firstNoveltoons short to feature Casper, was released by Paramount in May 1945 with a few differences from the book. In the cartoon adaptation, Casper is a cute ghost-child with aNew York accent who inhabits a haunted house along with a community of adult ghosts who delight in scaring the living. Casper, in contrast, would prefer to make friends with people. He packs up his belongings and goes out into the world, hoping to find friends. However, the animals that he meets (a rooster, a mole, a cat, a mouse namedHerman, and a group of hens) take one horrified look at him, scream: "A ghost!" and run off in the other direction. Distraught, Casper attempts suicide (apparently forgetting that he is already dead) by lying down on a railway track before an oncoming train, before he meets two children named Bonnie and Johnny who become his friends. The children's mother, apparently widowed and impoverished, is frightened of Casper. She later welcomes him into the family after he unintentionally frightens off a greedy landlord, who, unwilling to own a "haunted" house, tears up the mortgage and gives her the house outright. The short ends with the mother kissing Bonnie, Johnny, and Casper as she sends them off to school, with Casper wearing clothing as if he were a living child.
Casper appeared in two more Noveltoons shorts,There's Good Boos To-Night andA Haunting We Will Go, released in 1948 and 1949 respectively, even though Famous Studios's president and general manager Sam Buchwald had already given approval for Casper to have his own series.[10] In these cartoons Casper's appearance was cuter and more infantile than in his debut cartoon; head animatorMyron Waldman has claimed credit for the redesign.[10]There's Good Boos To-Night differs wildly from later Casper cartoons: although the theme of Casper trying to find a friend and failing in these attempts before succeeding also occurs in later cartoons, the tone of this short turns remarkably dark when a hunter and his dogs appear, chasing the little fox cub named Ferdie that Casper has befriended. Although Casper scares the hunter and dogs away, Casper discovers Ferdie dead after a harrowing chase scene.[10] Ferdie returns as a ghost to join his friend Casper in theafterlife.
These three cartoons were initially billed as Noveltoon shorts before Paramount started the officialCasper the Friendly Ghost series in 1950, which ran until 1959. Most of the entries in the series were relatively the same: Casper (now slightly thinner than the pudgy figure that appeared in the earlier cartoons) escapes from the afterlife of a regular ghost because he finds that scaring people can be tiresome year after year, tries to find friends but inadvertently scares almost everyone, and finally finds a (cute little) friend, whom he saves from some sort of fate, leading to his acceptance by those initially scared of him. Animation historianLeonard Maltin, in his bookOf Mice and Magic, criticized the series for its reliance on repetition, saying that Casper was "the most monotonous character to invade cartoonland sinceMighty Mouse. It seemed as it every Casper cartoon followed the same story line, with only minor variations."[14] One of the animators,Lee Mishkin, similarly complained, "With the Casper series, you never knew what picture you were working on because they were all exactly the same."[10]
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Casper was first published in comics form in August 1949 bySt. John Publications, running for five issues until September 1951. In 1952,Alfred Harvey, founder and publisher ofHarvey Comics began producingCasper comic books. Casper appeared inHarvey Comics Hits #61 (Oct 1952), and then moved to a solo book withCasper the Friendly Ghost #7 (December 1952),[6] picking up the numbering from the St. John Publications series.[10] The series was written and edited bySid Jacobson and drawn byWarren Kremer, who broke from the formula established in the cartoons by redesigning Casper to have feet, avoiding undue emphasis on the fact that Casper was a dead child, giving Casper a supporting cast of friends, and creating stories in which Casper used his powers to do good.[10] In 1959, Harvey purchased the rights to the character outright.
Casper went on to headline a large number of comic book series, as well as appearing in back up stories and guest appearances in other titles. Many of the characters introduced in the comic book series went on to appear in the Casper cartoons.[10] TheCasper series inspired three popular spin-offs:Spooky the Tuff Little Ghost,Wendy the Good Little Witch, andThe Ghostly Trio. Casper's titles include:
In 2009, a newCasper comic was published, calledCasper and the Spectrals by Arden Entertainment. Much likeThe Man of Steel andBatman: Year One did with their respective characters, it revamped Casper and several other Harvey characters for a new audience. After selling 6,400 copies of the first comic, the last two issues were published in 2010. Comic book publisher American Mythology picked up theCasper the Friendly Ghost title, and has also publishedCasper & Wendy andCasper & Hot Stuff.
Casper has starred in five television shows:[15]
After Harvey bought the rights to Casper and many other Famous properties in 1959 (includingHerman and Katnip,Little Audrey, andBaby Huey), they began broadcasting the post-September 1950 theatrical Famous shorts on a television show sponsored byMattel Toys titledMatty's Funday Funnies onABC in 1959 which introduced theBarbiedoll to the public. The other Famous produced Casper cartoons had already been acquired by television distributorU.M. & M. TV Corporation in 1956. U.M. & M. retitled just "A Haunting We Will Go", but credited "Featuring Casper The Friendly Ghost" as "Featuring Casper's Friendly Ghost".
New cartoons were created forThe New Casper Cartoon Show in 1963, also on ABC. The original Casper cartoons were syndicated under the titleHarveytoons (initially repackaged asCasper and Company) in 1963 and ran continuously until the mid-90s. Casper has remained popular in reruns and merchandising.
Hanna-Barbera Productions also gave Casper two holiday specials,Casper's First Christmas (which also starredYogi Bear,Huckleberry Hound,Snagglepuss,Quick Draw McGraw,Augie Doggie and Doggie Daddy) andCasper's Halloween Special (akaCasper Saves Halloween), and also theSaturday morning cartoon seriesCasper and the Angels (an animated takeoff on two live-action hit showsCharlie's Angels andCHiPS) in the autumn of 1979, all onNBC. Also featured on the NBC version was a big ghost named Hairy Scary (voiced by John Stephenson). None of Casper's original co-stars appeared in the show.
Between 1990 and 1994, Casper appeared inThe Harveytoons Show which was known asCasper and Friends in the UK.[16] This show featured otherHarvey Comics characters and series including:Little Audrey,Tommy Tortoise and Moe Hare,Baby Huey,Herman and Katnip,Buzzy the Crow,Modern Madcaps, Possum Pearl, Professor Schmatlz, Jeeper and Creeper and others.[16] The show consisted ofFamous Studios-produced cartoons from 1950 to 1964 and each episode of the series included three full cartoons and one "ToonTake" segment.[16]
In 1996,Amblin Entertainment andUniversal Cartoon Studios created a newCasper series forFox Kids calledThe Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper, based on the 1995 feature, that lasted two years and was never seen on television again after 1998.
In 2009,MoonScoop Group, in association withClassic Media,TF1 and DQ, produced a TV show namedCasper's Scare School, based on thefilm of the same name.
In 2020, Casper appeared in a supporting role in the "Scare Bud" episode ofHarvey Girls Forever!, a series based on Harvey Comics characters.[17]
A new live-action television series was announced to be in development atPeacock, co-produced betweenUniversal Content Productions andDreamWorks Animation withWu Kai-yu writing and executive producing.[18] There has been no new information since then.
Casper can be seen onCasper and Company onMeTV Toons weekdays.
TheFamous Studios version of Casper was one of many characters considered to appear in the 1988 filmWho Framed Roger Rabbit. Casper would have appeared at Marvin Acme's funeral, rising from Acme's grave as his coffin is lowered, scaring away the mourners. The funeral scene was storyboarded but cut before being animated.[19]
NumerousCasper cartoons were released on home video byUniversal Studios (viaMCA Inc.), which also adopted the friendly ghost into alive-actionfeature film titledCasper in 1995, where he and his wicked uncles,the Ghostly Trio, were rendered viacomputer animation, which initially created the first CGI lead character in a film. The film constructed aback-story for the character and is the only time in the series that the question of his death has been addressed. According to the film, Casper was a twelve-year-old boy living in Whipstaff Manor with hisinventor father J.T. McFadden until he died frompneumonia after playing out in the cold until it was past nightfall. Two live-action direct-to-video follow-ups to the film,Casper: A Spirited Beginning andCasper Meets Wendy (which introducedHilary Duff as fellow Harvey Comics characterWendy the Good Little Witch), were made. They were followed byCasper's Haunted Christmas (starring Spooky and Poil from the comics), andCasper's Scare School, which were done entirely inCGI with no live-action elements.
In 2001,Harvey Entertainment was acquired byClassic Media which, until 2012, licensed the Harvey properties including Casper.[20]
Casper made a cameo in aMetLife commercial along with several other cartoon characters in 2012. Later that same year, Classic Media was acquired byDreamWorks Animation. In 2013, DreamWorks Animation announced that they were developing a computer-animated reboot film based on theHarvey Comics character of the same name.[21]Simon Wells, who at one point was previously attached to write and direct the unproduced sequel to the live-action film,[22] was attached to write and direct this adaptation, with writing duoJohn Altschuler andDave Krinsky (King of the Hill,Blades of Glory) to co-write the film's script along with.[23] It was set to be DreamWorks' second attempt at an animated film based on characters from theClassic Media library followingMr. Peabody & Sherman, but nothing came of it since its announcement. Concept art for an unproduced film was posted by animator Danny Williams in December 2023, stating that the pitch "never went anywhere".[24] Two years afterwards, the Casper character and any and all of Harvey Comics characters would be acquired byNBCUniversal in 2016, and thusUniversal Pictures, the producer of the original live-action feature film, now manages the rights to the character and other related characters in addition to regaining the rights toCasper's Haunted Christmas (which Universal itself originally released in late 2000). However,Casper Meets Wendy is currently owned byThe Walt Disney Company throughBVS Entertainment and20th Television.
In 2019, Casper made an appearance in aGEICO commercial.[25] In April 2022, a live-action/animated TV series forPeacock was announced, withWu Kai-yu being the showrunner.[18] As of 2025 the show is still in development and no news has been heard on it since then.
In 2011,Shout! Factory released a DVD set titledCasper The Friendly Ghost: The Complete Collection 1945-1963 which containsThe Friendly Ghost,There's Good Boos To-Night,A Haunting We Will Go, 55 theatrical cartoons, and all 26 episodes ofThe New Casper Cartoon Show.
Several video games were based onthe 1995 film for PC,Super Nintendo Entertainment System,Game Boy,Sega Saturn,3DO,PlayStation, andGame Boy Color. In subsequent years Windows 95 and Game Boy Advance games were released serving as sequels to the film.
Developed bySound Source Interactive, published byWayForward Technologies and released in 1998 for PC, it is based onthe film of the same name and is similar in format toDisney's Activity Center. Set at Ghost Central Station, the player earns Casper coins by completing Casper's Spinning Squares, Stretch's Memory Game, Fatso's Kitchen, Stinkie's Goo Toss and Snivel's Mix & Match. The player must collect at least 15 Casper coins from these five games to unlock Kibosh's Magic Puzzle.
| Publication | Score |
|---|---|
| AllGame |    [45] |
| PlayStation Official Magazine – UK | 4/10[46] |
Developed byRealtime Associates, published bySound Source Interactive in the United States andTDK Mediactive in Europe, this game was released in 2000 on PlayStation. It is a mostly2D side-scrolling platform game with occasional forward and backward movements. The evil Kibosh has invented a device to send Casper's human friends to a place where they "would not have a ghost of a chance of being found" and has hypnotized the Ghostly Trio into doing his bidding. However Casper finds a page from a map of Hollywood giving him a clue on where to start his quest to find his friends and the three missing pieces for Kibosh's imprisoning device to get them back home safely. The game is played across ten levels set around the world with 40 friendship crystals on each level to collect in order to advance to the bonus level at the end.
Developed byLucky Chicken Games and published byTDK Mediactive, it was the first3D game, to have a movable game camera, based on Casper. It was released in 2001 forPlayStation 2 and in 2002 forGameCube. The evil Kibosh has taken over the Spirit World and is intent on also taking over the mortal world. Meanwhile,Wendy the Good Little Witch summons Casper, the only remaining free ghost, and opens the portals to the Spirit Dimensions to help in their only chance to defeat Kibosh.
Developed by Data Design Interactive and published byBlast! Entertainment, it was released in 2007 on PlayStation 2. It is a 3D game in which Casper has legs and is affected by gravity though he can glide, unlike his flying ability inSpirit Dimensions. The Ghostly Trio have kidnapped Wendy the Good Little Witch in an attempt to use her magic to create a potion that would give them the power to rule Ghostland. Wendy manages to use her magic to get the message across to Casper who must find his way through six levels to rescue her. At the end of the first five levels is a bonus stage in which Casper must collect as many jewels as he can while avoiding the Trio's lightning which is chasing him.
Developed by Data Design Interactive for PlayStation 2 and Nikitova Games for the Nintendo DS, it is based on the animated film and TV series of the same name released in 2008 and 2009.
Developed in 2009 byThe Code Monkeys forWii,Nintendo DS andiOS.
As a result of a lawsuit between Harvey andColumbia Pictures in 1984, a court determined that a lapsed copyright had allowed Fatso, Casper's brother/uncle, to enter the public domain. Former Disney researcher Gregory S. Brown later discovered that Harvey had failed to renew other copyrights covering the company's ghosts, including Casper.[47]
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