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Bill the Cat, or Bill D. Cat, is a fictional
cat The cat (''Felis catus'') is a domestic species of small carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae and is commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat to distinguish it from the wild members of ...
appearing in the works of
cartoonist A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comic book illustrators in that they produce both the literary and ...
Berkeley Breathed Guy Berkeley "Berke" Breathed (; born June 21, 1957) is an American cartoonist, children's book author, director, and screenwriter, known for his comic strips ''Bloom County'', '' Outland'', and '' Opus''. ''Bloom County'' earned Breathed the Pu ...
, beginning with the
comic strip A comic strip is a sequence of drawings, often cartoons, arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions. Traditionally, throughout the 20th and into the 21st ...
''
Bloom County ''Bloom County'' is an American comic strip by Berkeley Breathed which originally ran from December 8, 1980, until August 6, 1989. It examined events in politics and culture through the viewpoint of a fanciful small town in Middle America, whe ...
'' in the 1980s and continuing in '' Outland'' and ''
Opus ''Opus'' (pl. ''opera'') is a Latin word meaning "work". Italian equivalents are ''opera'' (singular) and ''opere'' (pl.). Opus or OPUS may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Opus number, (abbr. Op.) specifying order of (usually) publicatio ...
'' in the following decades. Bill also appeared in some of Breathed's illustrated children's books, including ''
A Wish for Wings That Work ''A Wish for Wings That Work: An Opus Christmas Story'' is a children's book by Berkeley Breathed that was published in 1991. It was made into an animated television special that same year. The book and special feature characters from Breathed' ...
'', which was also made into an animated
Christmas television special Christmas themes have long been an inspiration to artists and writers. A prominent aspect of Christian media, the topic first appeared in in literature and Christmas music. Filmmakers have picked up on this wealth of material, with both adaptatio ...
, and also on
greeting card A greeting card is a piece of card stock, usually with an illustration or photo, made of high quality paper featuring an expression of friendship or other sentiment. Although greeting cards are usually given on special occasions such as birthday ...
s and other sundry merchandise. Bill was originally capable of speaking
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...
reasonably well, but storylines featuring an automobile accident, repeated periods of drug abuse, and
brain surgery Neurosurgery or neurological surgery, known in common parlance as brain surgery, is the medical specialty concerned with the surgical treatment of disorders which affect any portion of the nervous system including the brain, spinal cord and peri ...
have since seen the character transition to a nearly
mentally handicapped Intellectual disability (ID), also known as general learning disability in the United Kingdom and formerly mental retardation, Rosa's Law, Pub. L. 111-256124 Stat. 2643(2010). is a generalized neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by signifi ...
mute state in which the cat's most frequent spoken sentiments are "Ack!" and "Thppt!" - the former a result of his regularly choking on hairballs, the latter an approximation of "
blowing a raspberry Blowing a raspberry, strawberry, razzing or making a Bronx cheer, is to make a noise similar to flatulence that may signify derision, real or feigned. It is also used in childhood phonemic play. It is made by placing the tongue between the lips, ...
". The first strip with Bill the Cat announces he is a
parody A parody, also known as a spoof, a satire, a send-up, a take-off, a lampoon, a play on (something), or a caricature, is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satiric or ironic imitation. Often its subj ...
of Jim Davis'
Garfield ''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 ...
. Subsequently,
Milo Bloom Milo Bloom is a fictional character in the American comic strip ''Bloom County''. He was originally the main character, but was soon overshadowed by his best friend Michael Binkley and later on by Opus the penguin. In ''Bloom County'' Milo i ...
appears to fear a visit from
United Feature Syndicate United Feature Syndicate (UFS) is a large American editorial column and comic strip newspaper syndication service based in the United States and established in 1919. Originally part of E. W. Scripps Company, it was part of United Media (along wit ...
's
copyright A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, education ...
lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...
s over Bill's similarities to Garfield. In the December 22, 2015 Facebook version of the comic, it was revealed that Bill the Cat is actually Garfield's son. Breathed has also described Bill as his attempt to create a character so repulsive that it would have absolutely no merchandising potential. But surprisingly, Bill the Cat trinkets and figurines have sold in great quantity, and often appear in the strips. Bill the Cat was also inspired by a colorful economist named Bill Moore. A graduate assistant at the
University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...
during the 1970s, Moore was one of Breathed's teachers. Recognizably wild-eyed (and one legged), Moore also became one of Breathed's friends. His name was further inspired by a local homeless man of Iowa City, Iowa, who was dubbed Bill "The Cat".


Character biography

Born the illegitimate kitten of Jim Davis'
Garfield ''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 ...
, Bill the Cat's character was raised in
Dubuque, Iowa Dubuque (, ) is the county seat of Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, located along the Mississippi River. At the time of the 2020 census, the population of Dubuque was 59,667. The city lies at the junction of Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin, a r ...
, left for New York to become a film star and left his girlfriend, Sally, behind. Some of Bill the Cat's film roles include the leads in ''Orangestoke: The Legend of Bill, Lord of the Monkeys'' and ''Terms of Bill's Endearment'' (references to the films '' Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes'' and ''
Terms of Endearment ''Terms of Endearment'' is a 1983 American family comedy-drama film directed, written, and produced by James L. Brooks, adapted from Larry McMurtry's 1975 novel of the same name. It stars Debra Winger, Shirley MacLaine, Jack Nicholson, Dann ...
''). During this period, he drank heavily, used illegal
drugs A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via inhalat ...
, and " free-based
Tender Vittles Tender Vittles was a brand of semi-moist cat food manufactured by Nestlé Nestlé S.A. (; ; ) is a Swiss multinational food and drink processing conglomerate corporation headquartered in Vevey, Vaud, Switzerland. It is the largest publicly ...
" until his friends helped him to recover. On September 30, 1983, Bill drove his
Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello, Italy. Founded by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988) in 1939 from the Alfa Romeo racing division as ''Auto Avio Costruzioni'', the company built its first car in ...
into a
cactus A cactus (, or less commonly, cactus) is a member of the plant family Cactaceae, a family comprising about 127 genera with some 1750 known species of the order Caryophyllales. The word ''cactus'' derives, through Latin, from the Ancient Greek ...
at 140 miles per hour, dying instantly in the crash (the media, not wishing to divulge the true nature of Bill's death, claimed that he died of
acne Acne, also known as ''acne vulgaris'', is a long-term skin condition that occurs when dead skin cells and oil from the skin clog hair follicles. Typical features of the condition include blackheads or whiteheads, pimples, oily skin, and ...
). The only part of Bill that was salvaged from the wreckage was his tongue, which young genius
Oliver Wendell Jones Oliver Wendell Jones is a fictional character in ''Bloom County'', '' Outland'' and ''Opus'', three comic strips by American cartoonist Berkeley Breathed. The character was named for United States Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, ...
used to clone Bill and bring him back to life. In the latter months of 1984, Bill's bid for the American presidency was effectively ruined by his decision to run off and join (and end up leading) the Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh cult in
Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...
, only to be "rescued" and deprogrammed several weeks later by a humorous application of the
Ludovico technique ''A Clockwork Orange'' is a dystopian satirical black comedy novel by English writer Anthony Burgess, published in 1962. It is set in a near-future society that has a youth subculture of extreme violence. The teenage protagonist, Alex, narrates ...
(by forcing him to watch reruns of '' Leave It to Beaver''); this was ultimately unsuccessful and Bill was sent off to the Betty Ford Center. In the video ''
A Wish for Wings That Work ''A Wish for Wings That Work: An Opus Christmas Story'' is a children's book by Berkeley Breathed that was published in 1991. It was made into an animated television special that same year. The book and special feature characters from Breathed' ...
'' Opus professes to have saved Bill from a lab where his brains had been replaced with tater tots. Bill spent time as an unintelligible rock star who sang and played "electric tongue" with his heavy metal band
Deathtöngue ''Bloom County'' is an American comic strip by Berkeley Breathed which originally ran from December 8, 1980, until August 6, 1989. It examined events in politics and culture through the viewpoint of a fanciful small town in Middle America, whe ...
, later Billy and the Boingers. Bill got rich when their song "U-Stink-But-I-♥-U" became a
jingle A jingle is a short song or tune used in advertising and for other commercial uses. Jingles are a form of sound branding. A jingle contains one or more hooks and meaning that explicitly promote the product or service being advertised, usually t ...
for
Wheat Thins Wheat Thins is a brand of baked whole grain snack food crackers distributed in the United States and Canada by Mondelez International. The product is also available in Australia through wholesaler USA Foods. Vegetable Thins, Oat Thins, Pita Th ...
, but he did not share the wealth with his bandmates. Although Bill was the front-cat of Billy and the Boingers, the band excluded him and disbanded when it became public that he spent his nights staying up late, reading the
Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...
with a
nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 599. The term is o ...
. After this incident, Bill became the
televangelist Televangelism ( tele- "distance" and "evangelism," meaning " ministry," sometimes called teleministry) is the use of media, specifically radio and television, to communicate Christianity. Televangelists are ministers, whether official or self-pr ...
"Fundamentally Oral Bill", parodying (and, in the ''Bloom County'' universe, rivaling) real-life televangelists such as Jimmy Swaggart,
Jim Bakker James Orsen Bakker (; born January 2, 1940) is an American televangelist and convicted fraudster. Between 1974 and 1987, Bakker hosted the television program '' The PTL Club'' and its cable television platform, the PTL Satellite Network, with ...
and
Oral Roberts Granville Oral Roberts (January 24, 1918 â€“ December 15, 2009) was an American Charismatic Christian televangelist, ordained in both the Pentecostal Holiness and United Methodist churches. He is considered one of the forerunners of t ...
. Bill was accused of treason for sending secrets to the
Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
with the unwitting assistance of his lover
Jeane Kirkpatrick Jeane Duane Kirkpatrick (née Jordan; November 19, 1926December 7, 2006) was an American diplomat and political scientist who played a major role in the foreign policy of the Ronald Reagan administration. An ardent anticommunist, she was a lo ...
. Secrets he sold included: Secret
antiperspirant A deodorant is a substance applied to the body to prevent or mask body odor due to bacterial breakdown of perspiration or vaginal secretions, for example in the armpits, groin, or feet. A subclass of deodorants, called antiperspirants, preven ...
, the secret formula of Coke, the secret of the Sierra Madre, and the secret of
George Bush George Bush most commonly refers to: * George H. W. Bush (1924–2018), 41st president of the United States and father of the 43rd president * George W. Bush (born 1946), 43rd president of the United States and son of the 41st president Georg ...
's appeal (the secret being that he does not have any appeal). He was exchanged to the Soviets for accused spy
Cutter John Cutter John is a fictional character in the 1980s comic strip ''Bloom County'' by Berke Breathed. Cutter, a Vietnam War veteran using a wheelchair due to paraplegia from a war injury, was one of the county's most well-liked citizens. Despite ...
. While in Russia, he was responsible for the
Chernobyl nuclear disaster The Chernobyl disaster was a nuclear accident that occurred on 26 April 1986 at the No. 4 reactor in the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, near the city of Pripyat in the north of the Ukrainian SSR in the Soviet Union. It is one of only two nucl ...
, and was traded back soon afterward. The reason he stated for returning to the US was, as he put it, "to make some dough," although this reason was edited by Milo into the more PR-friendly "to once again walk the green grass of freedom." Bill the Cat twice won the National Radical Meadow Party's nomination to run for
President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
, in 1984 and 1988, despite being dead in the first instance, and despite having a vocabulary that mainly consisted of "Aack!" He lost twice, once because of coughing up a fur ball on
Connie Chung Constance Yu-Hwa Chung (born August 20, 1946) is an American journalist. She has been an anchor and reporter for the U.S. television news networks NBC, CBS, ABC, CNN, and MSNBC. Some of her more famous interview subjects include Claus von BÃ ...
, not to mention several scandals, including an unauthorized biography written by
Albert Goldman Albert Harry Goldman (April 15, 1927 – March 28, 1994) was an American academic and author. Goldman wrote about the culture and personalities of the American music industry both in books and as a contributor to magazines. He is best known f ...
exposing him as a vegesexual, and a
Bartles & Jaymes Bartles & Jaymes is a flavored wine cooler and malt beverage line produced by the E & J Gallo Winery in the United States, introduced in 1985, and available in various fruit flavors. TV commercials The product line is remembered for its folksy t ...
junkie. The second was plagued with scandals. In spite of this political affiliation, he embarked on a torrid love affair with
Jeane Kirkpatrick Jeane Duane Kirkpatrick (née Jordan; November 19, 1926December 7, 2006) was an American diplomat and political scientist who played a major role in the foreign policy of the Ronald Reagan administration. An ardent anticommunist, she was a lo ...
, then was later used as the primary source for an llegal_cat-sweat-based_
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(who had been hit with his yacht's anchor while sunbathing in New York Harbor). Bill the Cat returned to comics in Berkeley Breathed's now canceled strip, ''
Opus ''Opus'' (pl. ''opera'') is a Latin word meaning "work". Italian equivalents are ''opera'' (singular) and ''opere'' (pl.). Opus or OPUS may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Opus number, (abbr. Op.) specifying order of (usually) publicatio ...
'', which ran from November 23, 2003, through November 2, 2008. Given Bill's ostensible death and revival by tongue
cloning Cloning is the process of producing individual organisms with identical or virtually identical DNA, either by natural or artificial means. In nature, some organisms produce clones through asexual reproduction. In the field of biotechnology, cl ...
(à la '' Sleeper''), his carcass was suggested as the source of the recent
BSE BSE may refer to: Medicine * Bovine spongiform encephalopathy, also known as mad cow disease, a neurodegenerative disease of cattle * Breast self-examination Stock exchanges * Bahrain Stock Exchange, Bahrain * Baku Stock Exchange, Azerbaijan * B ...
(aka "Mad Cow Disease") epidemic. Later, he was chosen as the new
mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...
of Bloom County. He got the message when he was playing Garfield at a mall promotion (the child in his lap asked her father if Garfield had died). Mayoral efforts for Bill and Opus involved forcing low-jeans teenagers to wear suspenders. Bill, however, lost an election a few months later because of an affair with
Paris Hilton Paris Whitney Hilton (born February 17, 1981) is an American media personality, businesswoman, socialite, model, and entertainer. Born in New York City, and raised there and in Beverly Hills, California, she is a great-granddaughter of Conra ...
. Bill the Cat currently appears on Breathed's personal Facebook page. He and Opus ran for POTUS in the 2016 election. Their primary issue was the return of "two spaces after a period." Following the 2016 election, a new ''Bloom County'' strip ran on Breathed's page which saw Opus giving a speech to Bill about the importance of staying close to family in the face of massive changes, as family was where everything stayed exactly the same. Bill responds in perfect English, "So irrevocably true."


In other media

In the 2021 film '' The Suicide Squad'', the character of
Weasel Weasels are mammals of the genus ''Mustela'' of the family Mustelidae. The genus ''Mustela'' includes the least weasels, polecats, stoats, ferrets and European mink. Members of this genus are small, active predators, with long and slender bo ...
, portrayed by
Sean Gunn Sean Gunn (born May 22, 1974) is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Kirk Gleason on The WB series ''Gilmore Girls'' (2000–2007), and Kraglin Obfonteri in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In this role, he has been in the films ''Gu ...
, was based on several aspects of Bill the Cat. In the 2000 music video for
The Real Slim Shady "The Real Slim Shady" is a song by American rapper Eminem from his third album ''The Marshall Mathers LP'' (2000). It was released as the lead single a month before the album's release. "The Real Slim Shady" was Eminem's first song to reach numb ...
by
Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINÆŽM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in middle America and is critically acclai ...
, two mental hospital patients are shown fighting over a Bill the Cat plushie.


References


Further reading

* Rovin, Jeff. ''The Illustrated History of Cartoon Animals''. New York: Prentice Hall, 1991. . {{Authority control Bloom County characters Comics characters introduced in 1982 Anthropomorphic cats Comics about cats Fictional candidates for President of the United States Fictional criminals Fictional characters from Iowa