List of Garfield characters

Last updated

This is a list of characters in the Garfield comic strip, created by Jim Davis, organized by category and date of first appearance.

Contents

Main characters

Garfield

First Appearance: June 19, 1978 [1]

Garfield is Jon's 8-year-old orange cat. Some of his personality traits include laziness, cynicism, sarcasm, a hatred of Mondays, a tendency to be annoyed by Jon's dog Odie, active imagination, a love for lasagna, [2] and a hatred for Nermal. [3]

In February 2017, a dispute arose on the talk section of the character's Wikipedia page regarding Garfield's gender. Although other characters have persistently referred to Garfield with male pronouns, owing to comments that the character's creator, Jim Davis, made in 2014 to Mental Floss, the matter of Garfield's gender remains ambiguous. He said, "Garfield is very universal. By virtue of being a cat, really, he's not really male or female or any particular race or nationality, young or old. It gives me a lot more latitude for the humour for the situations." [3]

Jon Arbuckle

First Appearance: June 19, 1978 [1]

Jon Arbuckle is Garfield and Odie's dorky owner.

Lyman

First Appearance: August 7, 1978 [4] Last Appearance:

Lyman is Jon's former roommate and Odie's former owner. He was a main character along with Jon, Odie, and Garfield during the strip's early years. He was one of Jon's best friends from high school and was taken in by Jon when he needed a place to stay. Lyman, not aiming to trouble Jon too much, brought two things with him: a suitcase and Odie, much to Garfield's dismay. However, after the first few years of the strip, Lyman was gradually phased out of the main cast, mainly due to his role as the person that Jon would talk to being taken over by Garfield and Odie before disappearing from the strip entirely. His last regular appearance was in 1983 and he made a final cameo in the tenth anniversary strip. Lyman's fate was left ambiguous by Jim Davis, who offered a variety of often humorous explanations for Lyman's disappearance over the years. Lyman would eventually reappear in the online games Garfield's Scary Scavenger Hunt and Garfield's Scary Scavenger Hunt 2: Donuts of Doom in the early 2000s. In 2012, almost 30 years after his last main appearance in the strip, Lyman's true fate was revealed in The Garfield Show episode "Long Lost Lyman" (season 3) where Lyman is revealed to have become a wildlife photographer who left Jon and his home to go to a country called Franistan. When Jon learns that Lyman disappeared while searching for a mythical Bigfoot-like creature called the Zabadu, Jon, Garfield, and Odie travel to the jungle to find him. Lyman is revealed to in fact be the Zabadu and used the guise of the Zabadu (the Zabadu mantle was passed to Lyman by its creator, an elderly retired doctor named Sam who had since passed away from natural causes who needed someone to take his place) to scare poachers away from the area and takes in Odie again, however, he realizes that Odie misses Jon, Garfield, and the rest of his friends and returns to Jon and Garfield's home to give Odie back to Jon. The episode ends with the quartet hanging out with each other and Lyman promises to visit when can. The "Long Lost Lyman" version of Lyman has round eyes resembling Jon's, rather than the dot-eyes of his traditional comics design, and is voiced by Frank Ferrante. [5]

Odie

First Appearance: August 8, 1978 [6]

Odie is a 5-year-old yellow-furred, brown-eared dog (a beagle in the comics and most animated media and a dachshund in the live-action movies) that resides with Jon and Garfield and is, at times, Garfield's best friend. The name came from a commercial written by Davis, which featured Odie the Village Idiot. Davis liked the name and reused it. [7] Odie's main characteristic is his general "lack of intelligence and naiveté", which allows for Garfield to triumph over him in their prankings. [8] [9] [10] In "one glimpse at Odie's secret life", the dog is shown to be much more sophisticated when alone, and Davis lets "Odie get Garfield back every few months." [9] [10] While Garfield's "playful mistreatment" of Odie is a persistent element of the comic, [9] some strips make it clear that "deep down he knows he loves the little scamp". [10] Odie has been considered a "much-loved", [9] "lovable and adorable" and "fan-favourite" character. Jessica Jalali from Screen Rant saw in Odie and Garfield "an iconic duo that made it hard to separate one from the other". [10] Librarian and cartoonist Katy Kavanagh saw Odie as "the comic relief" used to create humor in opposition to Garfield, who is "represented as the curmudgeon". [11]

In most of his animated appearances, he is voiced by Gregg Berger.

Pooky

First Appearance: October 23, 1978[ citation needed ]

Pookie is Garfield's toy bear that was found in a drawer by Garfield. Garfield often carries Pookie around and makes him interact with Jon.

Dr. Liz Wilson

First Appearance: March 14, 1979[ citation needed ]

On Garfield and Friends, Dr. Liz Wilson was voiced by Julie Payne, occasionally appearing in the first two seasons and once in the fourth season. In the live-action/animated movies, she is played by Jennifer Love Hewitt. Her first, albeit brief, television appearance was on the second TV special, Garfield on the Town .

In The Garfield Show , she is once again voiced by Julie Payne.

Nermal

First Appearance: September 3, 1979[ citation needed ]

Nermal is a 7-year-old grey male tabby cat with thick eyelashes. Despite this, he is smaller than most and prefers to call himself "the world's cutest kitten". Nermal was first introduced as Jon's parents' kitten. [12] A recurring theme is Nermal's persistent annoyance at Garfield, which usually results in Garfield retaliating, mostly by attempting to mail Nermal to Abu Dhabi, which he has done over 74 times.

In Garfield and Friends, he is played by Desirée Goyette. In Garfield: The Movie, Nermal is portrayed as a Siamese cat in the neighborhood, and is voiced by David Eigenberg. Nermal is voiced by Jason Marsden in The Garfield Show, as well as in the films Garfield Gets Real , Garfield's Fun Fest , and Garfield's Pet Force .

Arlene

First Appearance: December 17, 1980[ citation needed ]

Arlene is a 9-year-old pink cat with thick eyelashes, large lips, and a gap between her two front teeth. She is Garfield's main love interest and his official girlfriend since 2017 (Jim Davis confirmed in February 2017 that the two were in an official relationship).

In Garfield: The Movie, she appears as a (purple shade) Russian Blue cat, voiced by Debra Messing. In Garfield Gets Real , Garfield's Fun Fest , Garfield's Pet Force , and The Garfield Show , she is played by Audrey Wasilewski.

Squeak

First Appearance: October 30, 1984[ citation needed ]

Squeak is a house mouse who is one of the many mice who live in Jon, Garfield, and Odie's house. He and the rest of the mice in Jon's house are close friends of Garfield's, with Garfield even being the one to give Squeak his name. Garfield and the mice often assist each other with their problems, Garfield often keeping them safe from Jon and other cats and the mice often helping Garfield's various schemes

Squeak is replaced as Garfield's main mouse friend on Garfield and Friends, by a mouse named Floyd (voiced by Gregg Berger) and in the 2004 film by a mouse named Louis (voiced by Nick Cannon). Squeak appears fully in The Garfield Show, voiced by Berger. [13]

Arbuckle Family

Mrs. Arbuckle

First Appearance: February 13, 1980[ citation needed ]

Jon's unnamed mother who runs the Arbuckle farm with Jon's father. She is based on Jim Davis' own mother. She most commonly appears when Jon, Garfield, and Odie visit Jon's childhood home/the Arbuckle family's farm.

Mr. Arbuckle

First Appearance: February 13, 1980[ citation needed ]

Jon's unnamed father who runs the Arbuckle farm with Jon's mother. He is based on Jim Davis' own father. In The Garfield Show , he is voiced by Frank Welker. [14] He most commonly appears when Jon, Garfield, and Odie visit Jon's childhood home/the Arbuckle family's farm.

Aunt Gussie

First Appearance: August 14, 1981[ citation needed ]

Aunt Gussie was a relative of Jon's who he and Garfield would occasionally visit. Although portrayed as a stereotypical old woman, Gussie often indicates that she lives a less-than-reserved lifestyle, such as teaching slamdancing for extra money. She is often mean towards Garfield, at which Garfield comments that Gussie used to double-date with Lizzie Borden. Gussie also harbors a crush on John Travolta.

Grandma Arbuckle

First Appearance: January 25, 1982[ citation needed ]

Jon's grandmother appears in Garfield's Thanksgiving and A Garfield Christmas Special, in which she is voiced by Pat Carroll.

Doc Boy

First Appearance: May 17, 1983[ citation needed ]

Doc "Doc Boy" Arbuckle is Jon's younger brother (and only known sibling). He is named after and based on Jim Davis' own younger brother Dave "Doc Boy" Davis. In his first appearance, his mother mentions that Doc Boy recently moved back in with his parents and works on the farm as a hired hand. In The Garfield Show Doc Boy is shown to have moved out and now has his own farm, with a comic appearance in 2022 implying that he still now lives alone (Doc Boy appears in a video call with Jon, Odie, Garfield, & Liz, Arlene, Nermal, Squeak & Guido, and his and Jon's parents on his own camera, implying he no longer lives with his parents as they appear on a separate webcam). He also starts dating another woman named Gloria.

In both A Garfield Christmas Special and The Garfield Show, he is voiced by David Lander. [15] .[ citation needed ]

Garfield's family

Sonja

Garfield's mother first appeared in the animated specials Garfield on the Town and Garfield: His 9 Lives. She has since made several cameos in the comic strip, including a December 1984 story that is a loose adaptation of Garfield on the Town . She also appeared once on Garfield and Friends, in an episode called "The Garfield Rap." Sandi Huge provided her voice in the specials.

Vic

Victor "Vic" Sr. is the father of Garfield, who was introduced in the The Garfield Movie. Unlike his son, Vic is more of a outdoor cat who's very adventurous,

Garfield's grandfather

First Appearance: November 10, 1980[ citation needed ]

Garfield's grandpa first appeared in the strip on November 10, 1980.

In Garfield on the Town, a different-looking, rougher maternal grandfather is seen living with his daughter. Whether the comic strip's version is Garfield's paternal grandfather has not been explicitly clarified.[ citation needed ]

Minor recurring characters

Herman Post

First Appearance: July 19, 1978[ citation needed ]

Jon Arbuckle's mailman is a character seen in the first four seasons of Garfield and Friends. In "The Mail Animal", he is fired because his boss, the postmaster, perceives him as being weak-willed. However, Garfield treats the postmaster even worse, resulting in the postmaster begging Post to return to work.

In The Garfield Show episode "Mailman Blues", he goes on vacation to Hawaii. Before Post goes on vacation, he warns his replacement, Stu, about Garfield, describing him as a "monster". While Herman Post is on his vacation, Garfield torments Stu. However, Stu quits, and Herman returns early only after receiving a raise. He reveals that this has happened every year for 13 years.

In Garfield and Friends, the mailman is voiced by Gregg Berger. [13]

Irma

First Appearance: June 9, 1979[ citation needed ]

Binky the Clown

First Appearance: September 17, 1986[ citation needed ]

A television personality noted for his extremely loud and piercing greetings, most notably "HEEEEEEEY, KIDS!" He appears to be a parody of Bozo the Clown, and in the cartoons shares an exaggerated raspy voice with the Bob Bell portrayal of Bozo. He is often compared to Krusty the Clown from The Simpsons, who is also portrayed with an exaggeratedly raspy voice, based on Bell's. [16]

The character first appeared in the animated TV special Garfield's Halloween Adventure .

He was first mentioned in the comic strip on March 13, 1985. Other clowns are seen prior to this mention, but appear to be different characters. Binky was first seen in the comics on September 15, 1986, then appeared in person on September 17, 1986.

The Big Vicious Dog/Luca

First Appearance: September 12, 1995[ citation needed ] A large guard dog who lives in Garfield's neighborhood who despite often coming into conflict with and harassing Garfield, is shown to be friendly with him. In the 2004 movie, he is a black Doberman Pinscher named Luca and voiced by Brad Garrett and has the same frenemy relationship with Garfield that he does in the comic.

Hubert and Reba

Hubert and Reba are an elderly couple who live near Jon. Hubert is often portrayed as an older man, while Reba is often either unseen or tending to household chores. The couple made an appearance in Here Comes Garfield . In the animated cartoon, Hubert is portrayed as hostile towards Garfield and Odie, after Garfield tore up their yard and knocked flowers and dirt on Hubert's head. He calls the animal shelter personnel to remove them. In the strips, Hubert is less hostile towards Garfield.[ citation needed ]

The Buddy Bears

A trio of bears that sing and appear in multiple episodes of Garfield and Friends. They are named Billy, Bobby and Bertie Buddy Bear. Their appearances usually involve them trying to educate their viewers and other characters, such as agreements, friendship and sweetness, but they are usually disturbing and contradictory at best. They have their own in-universe TV show called the Buddy Bears Show.

Related Research Articles

<i>Garfield</i> Comic strip created by Jim Davis

Garfield is an American comic strip created by Jim Davis. Originally published locally as Jon in 1976, then in nationwide syndication from 1978 as Garfield, it chronicles the life of the title character Garfield the cat, his human owner Jon Arbuckle, and Odie the dog. As of 2013, it was syndicated in roughly 2,580 newspapers and journals and held the Guinness World Record for being the world's most widely syndicated comic strip.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jim Davis (cartoonist)</span> American cartoonist and creator of Garfield (born 1945)

James Robert Davis is an American cartoonist, screenwriter, and producer. He is best known as the creator of the comic strips Garfield and U.S. Acres. Published since 1978, Garfield is one of the world's most widely syndicated comic strips. Davis's other comics work includes Tumbleweeds, Gnorm Gnat, and Mr. Potato Head.

<i>Garfield: The Movie</i> 2004 animated/live-action film by Peter Hewitt

Garfield: The Movie is a 2004 American comedy film based on Jim Davis' comic strip Garfield. Directed by Peter Hewitt and written by Joel Cohen and Alec Sokolow, it stars Breckin Meyer as Jon Arbuckle, Jennifer Love Hewitt as Dr. Liz Wilson and features Bill Murray as the voice of Garfield, who was created with computer-generated imagery.

<i>Garfield and Friends</i> American animated television series with characters from the Garfield and U.S. Acres comic strips

Garfield and Friends is an American animated television series based on the comic strip Garfield by Jim Davis. The show aired on CBS as part of its Saturday morning children's lineup from September 17, 1988 to December 10, 1994.

<i>Gnorm Gnat</i> American comic strip

Gnorm Gnat is an American gag-a-day comic strip by Jim Davis based on fictional insects, with the primary focus on a gnat named Gnorm. The strip appeared in The Pendleton Times in Pendleton, Indiana, the only newspaper to publish the strip, from 1973 to 1975, but failure to take the character to mainstream success led Davis to instead create the comic strip Garfield. Mike Peters, creator of Mother Goose and Grimm, has said that Gnorm Gnat is now a part of "cartoon folklore" as a failure that paved the way for major success.

Here Comes Garfield is a 1982 animated television special based on the comic strip Garfield by Jim Davis. It was the first half-hour Garfield TV special. It is directed by Phil Roman and features Lorenzo Music as the voice of Garfield the house cat, as well as the voices of Sandy Kenyon, Henry Corden and Gregg Berger.

<i>Garfield on the Town</i> 1983 Garfield TV special

Garfield on the Town is a 1983 animated television special, directed by Phil Roman and based on the Garfield comic strip by Jim Davis. It once again starred Lorenzo Music as the voice of Garfield, and also featured the voices of Thom Huge, Gregg Berger and Julie Payne.

<i>Garfields Halloween Adventure</i> 1985 American TV special

Garfield's Halloween Adventure is a 1985 American animated television special based on the Garfield comic strip. It is directed by Phil Roman and written by Garfield creator Jim Davis, and features the voices of Lorenzo Music, Thom Huge, Gregg Berger and C. Lindsay Workman. It originally aired on CBS on October 30, 1985.

<i>Garfield in Paradise</i> American TV series or program

Garfield in Paradise is a 1986 animated television special directed by Phil Roman, based on the Garfield comic strip by Jim Davis. It features Lorenzo Music as the voice of Garfield the house cat, other regulars Thom Huge and Gregg Berger, and guest star Wolfman Jack. It originally aired on CBS on May 27, 1986.

A Garfield Christmas Special is a 1987 American animated television special based on the Garfield comic strip, created by Jim Davis. It is directed by Phil Roman and stars Lorenzo Music as the voice of Garfield the house cat, as well as Thom Huge, Gregg Berger, Julie Payne, Pat Harrington Jr., David L. Lander and Pat Carroll. The special is about Garfield spending Christmas with the Arbuckle family on their farm, and discovering the true meaning of Christmas.

<i>Garfield Gets a Life</i> 1991 Garfield TV special

Garfield Gets a Life is a 1991 animated television special based on the Garfield comic strip written by Jim Davis. It features Lorenzo Music as the voice of Garfield. The special was first broadcast on May 8, 1991, on CBS. It was nominated for Outstanding Animated Program at the 43rd Primetime Emmy Awards. It was the final in the series of twelve Garfield television specials, in spite of the success of Garfield and Friends as CBS cancelled new animated specials in 1990. It is the only CBS Garfield special directed by John Sparey instead of Phil Roman, although the latter served as producer.

<i>Garfields Thanksgiving</i> 1989 Garfield TV special

Garfield's Thanksgiving is a 1989 American animated television special based on the Garfield comic strip. It once again featured Lorenzo Music as the voice of Garfield. The special was first broadcast on November 22, 1989, on CBS and was nominated for Outstanding Animated Program at the 42nd Primetime Emmy Awards. The events of the special take place during the second season of Garfield and Friends. It has been released on both VHS and DVD home video. On overseas DVD copies of Garfield's Holiday Celebrations, this special is replaced with Garfield in the Rough.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Garfield (character)</span> Fictional cartoon cat

Garfield is a fictional cat and the protagonist of the comic strip of the same name, created by Jim Davis. Garfield is portrayed as a lazy, fat, and cynical orange tabby Persian cat. He is noted for his love of lasagna and sleeping, and his hatred of Mondays, Nermal, and exercise.

<i>Garfield: Big Fat Hairy Deal</i> 1987 video game

Garfield: Big Fat Hairy Deal is a 1987 computer game for the Atari ST, ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC and the Amiga based on the comic strip Garfield. It is the second video game based on Jim Davis' Garfield comics to be released, following 1986's Create with Garfield.

<i>Garfield Gets Real</i> 2007 American film

Garfield Gets Real is a 2007 American direct-to-video animated comedy film based on the comic strip Garfield. It was produced by Paws, Inc. in cooperation with Davis Entertainment, and The Animation Picture Company and distributed by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment. It was written by Garfield's creator Jim Davis, who started working on the script in the autumn of 1996. This was the first fully animated Garfield production since the 1991 television special Garfield Gets a Life, and the season finale of Garfield and Friends. The DVD was shipped to stores on August 9, 2007. Gregg Berger, an actor from the original series, reprises his role of Odie, but Garfield was voiced by veteran voice actor Frank Welker, since the original actor Lorenzo Music died six years earlier in 2001 and Jon is voiced by Wally Wingert, as Thom Huge retired that same year. The film received unfavorable reviews.

Garfield Minus Garfield is a webcomic by Dan Walsh. Each strip of Garfield Minus Garfield is an edit of a comic strip from the comic Garfield, removing all instances of Garfield. Jim Davis, the creator of Garfield, approved of the project, and an official Garfield book was published by his company. It was mainly edited comics by Walsh, with some comics contributed by Davis.

<i>Garfields Fun Fest</i> 2008 American film

Garfield's Fun Fest is a 2008 animated comedy film based on the comic strip Garfield. It was produced by Paws, Inc., in cooperation with The Animation Picture Company. It was written by Garfield's creator Jim Davis as a sequel to Garfield Gets Real. The film was released on DVD in the United States on August 5, 2008, by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, and was pre-sold internationally by sales representative Velvet Octopus. It was later followed by a third film, Garfield's Pet Force, in 2009.

<i>Garfields Pet Force</i> 2009 animated film directed by Mark A.Z. Dippé

Garfield's Pet Force is a 2009 animated superhero comedy film based on characters from the Jim Davis comic strip Garfield and loosely based on the Pet Force novel series. It is the third and final installment of the trilogy, following Garfield Gets Real and Garfield's Fun Fest. It was released on DVD and Blu-ray Disc in the United States on June 16, 2009, by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, while it was pre-sold overseas by sales representative Velvet Octopus. It was written by Garfield creator Jim Davis. It was released theatrically in 3-D in select countries such as Poland, Italy and Spain, and became the most profitable film in the trilogy. It is the last Garfield film to be distributed by 20th Century Fox, ten years prior to Nickelodeon's acquisition of Paws, Inc. in August 2019, as well as the 2024 film The Garfield Movie, distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing under their Columbia Pictures label.

<i>The Garfield Show</i> French-American animated television series

The Garfield Show is a CGI animated television series produced by Dargaud Media and Paws, Inc. It is based on the American Garfield comic strip created by Jim Davis. The animated series focuses on a new series of adventures for the characters of Garfield, Odie, and their owner Jon Arbuckle, alongside staple characters from the strip and a number of unique additions for the program. Both Davis and producer Mark Evanier, who previously wrote episodes for the 1988 original cartoon animated series Garfield and Friends, co-wrote stories for the program, with the cast including Frank Welker, Wally Wingert, Julie Payne, Jason Marsden and Gregg Berger. Welker and Berger had previously voiced various characters in Garfield and Friends.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jon Arbuckle</span> Character from the Garfield comic strip

Jonathan Q. "Jon" Arbuckle is a fictional character from the Garfield comic strip by Jim Davis. He also appears in the animated television series Garfield and Friends and The Garfield Show, two live-action/animated feature films, and four fully animated films.

References

  1. 1 2 Davis, Jim (June 19, 1978). "Garfield by Jim Davis for June 19, 1978". GoComics. Retrieved November 6, 2022.
  2. ↑ Oguri, Austin (August 11, 2022). "The Simplistic Charm of Garfield: An In-Depth Analysis of this Cool Cat's Success Story". Hollywood Insider. Archived from the original on November 27, 2022. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
  3. 1 2 Feldman, Brian (March 1, 2017). "Congress Has Entered the War Over Garfield's Gender". New York . Archived from the original on November 13, 2018. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
  4. ↑ "Garfield by Jim Davis for August 07, 1978 | GoComics.com". GoComics. 1978-08-07. Retrieved 2023-08-04.
  5. ↑ "Garfield: Episodenführer der TV-Serie (3.Staffel)". fernsehserien.de. 2012. Retrieved November 5, 2022.
  6. ↑ Davis, Jim (2005). Odie Unleashed!: Garfield Lets the Dog Out. Ballantine Books. p. Introduction. ISBN   0-345-46464-8. Odie was introduced into the Garfield comic strip on August 8, 1978
  7. ↑ Character profile (click on Odie) Archived 2007-11-02 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ↑ Bellomo, Mark (2010). "Comic-Strip King: Garfield". Totally Tubular '80s Toys. Krause Publications. ISBN   978-1-4402-1282-6.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Booker, M. Keith, ed. (2014). "Garfield". Comics Through Time - A History of Icons, Idols and Ideas. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN   9798216063285.
  10. 1 2 3 4 Jalali, Jessica (2023-10-20). "10 Funniest Garfield Comics Starring Odie". Screen Rant . Retrieved 2023-11-22.
  11. ↑ Kavanagh, Katy (2013). "Incorporating cartoons in an academic library: Spicing up LibGuides graphically at East Carolina University". College & Research Libraries News. 74 (7): 358–373. Retrieved November 21, 2023.
  12. ↑ "Garfield Daily Comic Strip on September 3, 1979". Garfield by Jim Davis. Archived from the original on September 1, 2016. Retrieved November 4, 2016.
  13. 1 2 "Gregg Berger (visual voices guide)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved 2022-06-17.
  14. ↑ "Frank Welker (visual voices guide)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved 2022-06-17.
  15. ↑ "David L Lander (visual voices guide)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved June 17, 2022.
  16. ↑ Joe Rhodes (October 21, 2000). "Flash! 24 Simpsons Stars Reveal Themselves". TV Guide .
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.