Wikipedia

Wally Walrus

Not to be confused with Wally the Walrus.

Wally Walrus is an animated cartoon character created by Walter Lantz and James Culhane. He'd appeared in several films produced by Walter Lantz Productions from the 1940s through the 1960s.[5]

Wally Walrus
First appearanceThe Beach Nut
(1944)
Created byWalter Lantz[1]
James Culhane
Voiced byJack Mather (1944–1949)
Lee Sweetland (1944)[2]
Will Wright (1946)
Hans Conried (1946)
Walker Edmiston (1947)
Herb Lytton (1947)[3]
Harry E. Lang (1948–1953)
Mel Blanc (1948–1955)[4]
Nestor Paiva (1953)
Dallas McKennon (1953)
Paul Frees (1961)
Daws Butler (1962–1964)
Billy West (1999–2002; 2017)
Tom Kenny (2018–present)
Years active
  • 1944–present
In-universe information
SpeciesWalrus
GenderMale
Significant otherWendy Walrus
RelativesWilly Walrus (nephew)
NationalitySwedish

Wally first appeared in The Beach Nut (1944), and was the first major recurring foil to Woody Woodpecker since his inception, before he was more-or-less replaced by Buzz Buzzard in the late 40's. Nevertheless, Wally has appeared frequently in Woody-related media since then.

History

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Wally is an anthropomorphic walrus. In most of his appearances, he speaks with a pronounced Swedish accent, and is rather slow-witted and prone to anger when provoked. He often hums My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean to himself. He is depicted most frequently as one of Woody Woodpecker's main foils, sharing the same dynamic with him as with Buzz Buzzard.[6]

Wally was voiced in his original appearance and subsequent others by Jack Mather, who voiced The Cisco Kid on radio. Lantz stock player William Wright gave him a growly, non-Swedish voice in The Reckless Driver (1946). Wally also appeared with Andy Panda in Dog Tax Dodgers (1948), and with Chilly Willy in Clash and Carry (1961) and Tricky Trout (1961); in the latter two shorts he was voiced by Paul Frees.

The character's appearance changed somewhat over the years, with a complexion that ranged from dark to light flesh-tone and variously sized tusks, which Wally would be drawn with or without. A frequent animation error in The New Woody Woodpecker Show was to draw Wally's mouth separate from his tusks so it appeared they were protruding from his nostrils.

A character resembling Wally appeared in a cameo during the final scene of Who Framed Roger Rabbit, and is featured in various print media and merchandise.

Wally is a regular character on The New Woody Woodpecker Show, voiced by Billy West.

A character parodying Wally Walrus appears as a cameo in the fifth season of Samurai Jack on Adult Swim, and is once again voiced by Billy West using a similar voice to his other character Zoidberg on Futurama.

Wally Walrus appears in the 2018 Woody Woodpecker series, voiced by Tom Kenny. In the series, Wally has a girlfriend named Wendy Walrus.[7]

Wally Walrus appears in the 2024 film Woody Woodpecker Goes to Camp, voiced again by Tom Kenny.[8]

Appearances

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See also: Wally Walrus filmography

References

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  1. ^ "Walter Lantz, 93, the Creator Of Woody Woodpecker, Is Dead". The New York Times. Retrieved 2011-11-22.
  2. ^ ""GUESS WHO??" Voice Artists in the Woody Woodpecker Cartoons". cartoonresearch.com. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
  3. ^ Amidi, Amid (25 March 2013). "This is What A Woody Woodpecker Radio Show Would Have Sounded Like". Cartoon Brew. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
  4. ^ "A Birthday Look at Mel Blanc's Woody Woodpecker Records". cartoonresearch.com. 29 May 2018. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
  5. ^ Lenburg, Jeff (2006). Who's Who in Animated Cartoons. New York: Applause Theatre & Cinema Books. ISBN 9781557836717.
  6. ^ Rovin, Jeff (1991). The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Cartoon Animals. Prentice Hall Press. pp. 281–282. ISBN 0-13-275561-0. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
  7. ^ "Universal is Producing New Woody Woodpecker Shorts for Youtube". 23 November 2018.
  8. ^ "Watch: Teaser for Netflix's 'Woody Woodpecker Goes to Camp' Flaps Its Wings". 29 March 2024.
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