Clyde Crashcup

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Clyde Crashcup
Alvin and the Chipmunks character
Clyde Crashcup.webp
First appearance The Alvin Show (1961)
Last appearance The Chipmunks Go to the movies (1990)
Created by Ross Bagdasarian
Voiced by
In-universe information
GenderMale
Occupation

Clyde Crashcup is a fictional character from the early 1960s animated television series The Alvin Show . He is a scientist in a white coat who tends to "invent" things that have already been invented; his experiments invariably fail. [1] He usually invented by penciling the concept in air, with the picture becoming the actual object. The character has also appeared in comics and other Alvin and the Chipmunks works after The Alvin Show.

Contents

Creation

Clyde Crashcup was created by Ross Bagdasarian. He is voiced by Shepard Menken mimicking the enunciation of Richard Haydn's nasal-voiced character Edwin Carp. Clyde had one of the four segments of each episode of The Alvin Show, and the Chipmunks starred in the other three (two of which were musical segments).

Character details

Crashcup is a scientist in a white coat whose experiments invariably fail. His was the only voice heard in many of the episodes because the other main character in the series was his assistant Leonardo, who only whispered into Clyde's ear. [a]

Clyde Crashcup was primarily an inventor rather than a researcher, although he tended to "invent" things that had already been invented. However, in one episode, he built a functioning time machine. He typically would invent something by taking a pencil out of his lab coat's pocket and drawing a picture in midair of his conception: the picture would then become the actual object. With the release of "This Is Your Life Clyde CrashCup" it shows him for the first time of wearing black pants and black bowtie and a grey shirt.

Clyde's catchphrase was to break down the name of his invention into its metonymic elements to explain his thought process. For example, when asked to justify the invention of the telephone, he would say "That's 'tele-' for tele and '-phone' for phone: telephone."

In one episode, Clyde invented a wife, voiced by June Foray.

Other media

Episodes (1961–1962)

#Clyde CrashcupOriginal air date
1Clyde Crashcup Invents BaseballOctober 4, 1961
2Clyde Crashcup Invents the BathtubOctober 11, 1961
3Clyde Crashcup Invents the WifeOctober 18, 1961
4Clyde Crashcup Invents the BabyOctober 25, 1961
5Clyde Crashcup Invents ElectricityNovember 1, 1961
6Clyde Crashcup Invents MusicNovember 8, 1961
7Clyde Crashcup Invents the WestNovember 15, 1961
8Clyde Crashcup Invents the StoveNovember 22, 1961
9Clyde Crashcup Invents JokesNovember 29, 1961
10Clyde Crashcup Invents FlightDecember 6, 1961
11Clyde Crashcup Invents First AidDecember 13, 1961
12Clyde Crashcup Invents Ancient EgyptDecember 20, 1961
13Clyde Crashcup Invents Self-PreservationDecember 27, 1961
14Clyde Crashcup Invents Physical FitnessJanuary 3, 1962
15Clyde Crashcup Invents the ChairJanuary 10, 1962
16Clyde Crashcup Invents the BedJanuary 17, 1962
17Clyde Crashcup Invents the TelephoneJanuary 24, 1962
18Clyde Crashcup Invents the Time MachineJanuary 31, 1962
19Clyde Crashcup Invents Do-It YourselfFebruary 7, 1962
20Clyde Crashcup Invents the ShoeFebruary 14, 1962
21Clyde Crashcup Invents GlassFebruary 21, 1962
22This is Your Life, Clyde Crashcup!February 28, 1962
23Clyde Crashcup Invents the BoatMarch 7, 1962
24Clyde Crashcup Invents CrashcuplandMarch 14, 1962
25Clyde Crashcup Invents BirthdaysMarch 21, 1962
26Clyde Crashcup Invents Self-DefenseMarch 28, 1962

Notes

  1. In one episode, Clyde invented a wife, who is voiced by June Foray—portrayer of Rocket J. Squirrel in Rocky and Bullwinkle , among many characters.
    In the episode "Crashcup Invents the Birthday Party", Foray provided the (all too audible) voice for the mother of Crashcup's inaudible assistant Leonardo.

References

  1. Markstein, Don. "Clyde Crashcup". Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Retrieved 2 April 2020.