The character first appeared as an antagonist in the 1948Bugs Bunny cartoonHaredevil Hare.[1] He went on to appear in four more cartoons produced between 1952 and 1963.[2]
Marvin's design was based on theHoplite style of armor, usually worn by the Roman godMars. "That was the uniform that Mars wore — that helmet and skirt. We thought putting it on thisant-like creature might be funny. But since he had no mouth, we had to convey that he was speaking totally through his movements. It demanded a kind of expressive body mechanics."[3]
Marvin was never named in the original shorts — he was referred to as the Commander of Flying Saucer X-2 inThe Hasty Hare in 1952, and sometimes referred to as "Antwerp" in promotional material or other projects like the live stage show version ofBugs Bunny in Space. However, in 1979, once the character attracted merchandising interest, the name "Marvin" was selected forThe Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie.[4]
Marvin appeared in five theatrical cartoons from 1948 to 1963:
Marvin hails from the planetMars, but is often found elsewhere. He is often accompanied by his dog "K-9", and sometimes by other creatures: One gag, first used inHare-Way to the Stars (1958), involved candy-sized "Instant Martians" that become full-size upon addition of drops of water.
Marvin wears aRoman soldier's uniform, with basketball shoes resembling theChuck Taylor All-Stars brand. The helmet and skirt that he wears are green and his suit is red (in a few of the original shorts, his suit was green and the helmet and skirt golden). His head is a black sphere with only eyes for features. The curved crest of his helmet appears, with thepush-broom-like upper section, to comically resemble the helm of an ancient Greekhoplite, or thegalea of a Romancenturion. The appearance of the combination of Marvin's head and helmet led to Bugs Bunny referring to him as a "bowling ball wearing aspittoon" in one short. Marvin speaks with a soft, nasally voice, and often speakstechnobabble. He is also known for his trademark quotes "Where's the kaboom? There was supposed to be an Earth-shattering kaboom!", "Isn't that lovely?", and "This makes me very angry, very angry indeed." (which is usually followed by him huffing and puffing). His voice sounds similar to the one used forClaude Cat.
On numerous occasions, Marvin has tried to destroy the Earth with his "Illudium Q-36 Explosive Space Modulator" (sometimes pronounced "Illudium Pu-36" or "Uranium Pu-36").[41] The original reference to "Uranium Pu-36" was changed to "Illudium PU-36" in subsequent cartoons. The "Pu" is a reference toplutonium. Marvin always laboriously over-pronounces the name of the device, which resembles a stick ofdynamite, in order to avoid any possibility of confusing it with some other similar form of explosive technology.[42] Marvin attempts to destroy the Earth because, he reasons, "it obstructs my view ofVenus"; he has been trying to destroy the Earth for more than two millennia, suggesting that members of his species, and possibly Martian creatures in general, have extremely long lifespans. Marvin is consistently foiled by Bugs Bunny. He has battled for space territory,Planet X, withDaffy Duck, a.k.a.Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century.
InBaby Looney Tunes, Baby Marvin shares a lot of similarities with his adult counterpart. His helmet, however, sports a propeller rather than a push-broom. Also, his shoes are smaller in proportion. He appears in the episode entitled "War of the Weirds" as a visitor toGranny's house. Throughout most of the episode, he is nonverbal as he is too shy to talk to the babies; he fidgets and mumbles when Baby Bugs and Baby Taz try to talk to him. He tries to make friends, but he is shunned and ridiculed by the babies (except forBaby Taz) for being "weird". The babies still shun and play tricks on him, until he cries. Baby Taz courageously befriends him and speaks on his behalf. He fixes Baby Bugs' broken toy rocket and is able to talk when Baby Bugs offered to play his toy. The babies feel guilty for being unfriendly and they eventually befriend him. He is mainly featured in the songOh Where Has My Martian Gone? (based on the children's song "Oh Where Has My Little Dog Gone?"), and made appearances in a few other music videos.
InDuck Dodgers, he is a Martian commander in service of the Martian Queen Tyr'ahnee. This show reused his original name fromThe Hasty Hare (although the opening credits list him as Marvin playing Commander X-2, in the same way as Daffy is playingDuck Dodgers).
Marvin the Martian appears inThe Looney Tunes Show episode "Reunion" and appeared in the "Merrie Melodies" short "I'm a Martian", voiced byEric Bauza. Here, he is described as a former classmate of Daffy's who has been plotting to destroy Earth since graduation. The episode also has a flashback, in which it is revealed that the yellow headdress on the top of his helmet is actually his hair, showing that in high school (before he started wearing the helmet) he kept it down.
Over a decade prior to any of these, he guest-starred in aTiny Toon Adventures segment titled "Duck Dodgers Jr.", where he was accompanied by an apprentice namedMarcia the Martian.
Marvin also made appearances onAnimaniacs, notably in theMindy and Buttons short subject, "Cat on a Hot Steel Beam" (which also featured the cute kittenPussyfoot) and in "Star Warners", along with his dog K-9, and most recently in aMetLife commercial.
Cartoon Network also created a 2-minute filler piece featuring Marvin, entitled "Mars Forever" byFantastic Plastic Machine. It's a disco-style video combining clips of Marvin and Bugs Bunny from their encounters in "Haredevil Hare", "Hare-Way to the Stars", as well as bits of "Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century" and "Rocket-Bye Baby".
Marvin was also cast as the referee inSpace Jam (though he did not stay to referee the whole game due to Bupkus beating him up), and then later had a major role inLooney Tunes: Back in Action where he was hired by the ACME chairman (Steve Martin), to finish DJ (Brendan Fraser) and the gang at Area 52. In the film's climax, he reappears to bring the Blue Monkey diamond to the ACME satellite, but is thwarted by Bugs (who he duels in a parody ofObi-Wan Kenobi andJango Fett inStar Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones) and Daffy (who arrives asDuck Dodgers to save Bugs after he is exhausted from the battle).
In 2000–2001, Marvin appeared in a series of3D-animated "webisode" shorts created with Pulse 3D at Pulse Entertainment.[43][44] The shorts were animated by Blake Porch, Ed Gregor, Fred Cabral, Michael Shahan, Erik Morgansen, Letia Lewis,[45] and Geerte Frenken,[46] with sound design by Peter Stone.[47][48]
Marvin appeared in the Looney Tunes version ofA Christmas Carol,Bah, Humduck! A Looney Tunes Christmas as an employee at Daffy Duck's "Lucky Duck Super Store". Marvin was homesick for his planet, Mars, and wanted to go back for Christmas (but also mentions that he is planning to destroy the Earth as well). At first, Daffy does not let him take Christmas off, since he expects the employees to work on Christmas Day. After being visited by the abrasive yet well-intentioned Christmas ghosts, Daffy is redeemed, and as part of a surprise Christmas celebration, gives Marvin a rocket that will go faster than the speed of light, allowing him to make it to Mars by yesterday.
Marvin is the main antagonist inLooney Tunes: Rabbits Run. In the film, he plots to turn the Earth invisible and sends his henchmanCecil Turtle (who posed as a government agent) and a pair of disguised Instant Martians to getLola Bunny's perfume which is able to turn anything invisible. However, his plan is fooled by Bugs Bunny, who gets Marvin to accidentally destroy his lair (and Mars as a whole).
In nearly all of his appearances, Marvin is shown using a raygun that fires either bubbles of pliable plastic or energy beams, and he is seen inDuck Dodgers and the Return of the 24½th Century, withGossamer, a hairy red monster, as his assistant.
Marvin made a brief cameo in the 2003–2007CN Fridays intro.
Marvin is a minor character inSpace Jam: A New Legacy, voiced byEric Bauza, where he appears alongside K-9 after Bugs claims Tune World in the name of the Earth. Marvin arrives to claim Tune World in the name of Mars, though Bugs tricks him into thinking that Tune World is in the clear. Bugs hijacks Marvin's ship and retreats withLeBron James to find the other Tunes. A recurring gag is that Marvin gets knocked out by the hatch of his ship every time he regains consciousness.
Marvin appears in the preschool seriesBugs Bunny Builders, debuting in the episode "Blast Off".
Marvin appears as a playable character in the video gameMultiversus as a projectile based character who uses his rayguns and a Martian ship that fires rockets.
On July 29, 2008,Warner Bros. andAlcon Entertainment announced plans for a live action/animated film starringMike Myers as the voice of Marvin andChristopher Lee asSanta Claus. The film would have involved Marvin trying to destroy the Earth duringChristmas by becoming a competitor of Santa Claus but being prevented from accomplishing his goal when Santa wraps him inside a gift box. Alcon compared the project to other films such asRacing Stripes andMy Dog Skip.[49] It was initially scheduled for an October 7, 2011, release, but the movie was latertaken off the schedule and no word on it has been heard since. Test footage of the film and theEddie Murphy vehicleHong Kong Phooey was leaked on December 28, 2012.[50]
^Beck, Jerry; Friedwald, Will (1989).Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies: A Complete Illustrated Guide to the Warner Bros. Cartoons. Henry Holt and Co. p. 187.ISBN0-8050-0894-2.
^"Carols by Candlelight". National Boys Choir of Australia. December 24, 2013. Archived fromthe original on October 29, 2020. RetrievedNovember 16, 2020.
^Differences of opinion exist regarding the correct pronunciation; Chuck Jones rendered the modulator's name as Q-36 in print inChuck Amuck : The Life and Times of an Animated Cartoonist (New York: Farrar Straus & Giroux, 1989;ISBN0-374-12348-9), p. 213.
^Adamson, Joe (1990). Bugs Bunny: 50 Years and Only One Grey Hare. Henry Holt.ISBN0-8050-1855-7
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