Cleveland Orenthal Brown Jr. is a fictional character in the
animated television series
An animated series is a set of Animation, animated works with a common series title, usually related to one another. These episodes should typically share the same main characters, some different secondary characters and a basic theme. Series can ...
''
Family Guy
''Family Guy'' is an American animated sitcom originally conceived and created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The show centers around the Griffin family, Griffins, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter Griff ...
'' and its spin-off series ''
The Cleveland Show
''The Cleveland Show'' is an American animated sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane, Richard Appel, and Mike Henry for the Fox Broadcasting Company. A spin-off of ''Family Guy'', the series centers on Cleveland Brown, his new wife Donna Tubbs, a ...
''.
He is the son of
Cleveland Brown
Cleveland Orenthal Brown Sr. is a fictional character from the animated television series ''Family Guy'', and its spin-off series ''The Cleveland Show''. He is a neighbor and friend of the Griffin family and is best known for his mild-mannered ...
and his late ex-wife
Loretta
Loretta is a female given name, the masculine version being Lauro. The name derives its name from the Laurel wreath, laurel tree which is symbolic of victory.
This name is Italian in origin; it was popularized in the United States in the 1930s. It ...
. On ''Family Guy'', he was depicted as slim and hyperactive; however, on ''
The Cleveland Show
''The Cleveland Show'' is an American animated sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane, Richard Appel, and Mike Henry for the Fox Broadcasting Company. A spin-off of ''Family Guy'', the series centers on Cleveland Brown, his new wife Donna Tubbs, a ...
'' he is shown to have undergone a marked transformation, both in terms of a significant increase in weight and a newly subdued personality. He was voiced by
Mike Henry in ''Family Guy'' and by
Kevin Michael Richardson
Kevin Michael Richardson (born October 25, 1964) is an American actor. Known for his distinctively deep voice, he has mostly voiced villainous characters in animation and video games. In film, Richardson voiced Goro in ''Mortal Kombat'' (1995) ...
in ''The Cleveland Show'' and on the character's return to the former show.
At 14 years old, Junior is the only child of
Cleveland
Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
, the stepson of
Donna Tubbs
''Family Guy (franchise), Family Guy'' is an American animated comedy multimedia franchise originally conceived and created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company, primarily based on the animated series ''Family Guy'' (1999–presen ...
, and the stepbrother of
Roberta
''Roberta'' is a musical from 1933 with music by Jerome Kern, and lyrics and book by Otto Harbach. The musical is based on the novel ''Gowns by Roberta'' by Alice Duer Miller. It features the songs " Yesterdays", "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes", "Let ...
and
Rallo Tubbs
''Family Guy (franchise), Family Guy'' is an American animated comedy multimedia franchise originally conceived and created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company, primarily based on the animated series ''Family Guy'' (1999–presen ...
. Upon his parents' divorce, Loretta gave custody of Cleveland Jr. to Cleveland and forced him to move. The two left for California. However, en route, they decided to live in Stoolbend, Virginia, instead, where Cleveland married Donna Tubbs, and Rallo and Roberta became his step-siblings. Junior's most prominent character traits are his laziness, obesity, and low social intelligence (although there are occasional references to him being academically bright).
Role in ''The Cleveland Show''
Cleveland Jr. is a frequent target of weight-related jokes from a variety of characters in the series, in particular his step-brother Rallo. When Rallo met Cleveland Jr. and his father, he would often call them "fat". In the second episode, Cleveland Jr. served as a door in the bathroom so that he could earn his classmates' respect, which angered Cleveland. He also exudes a nervous and overly sensitive nature.
While Junior is not as active as he was in ''Family Guy'', he has other hobbies and interests; he enjoys
science
Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe.
Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...
, playing the
tuba
The tuba (; ) is the lowest-pitched musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, the sound is produced by lip vibrationa buzzinto a mouthpiece. It first appeared in the mid-19th century, making it one of the ne ...
in the Stoolbend High School
school band
A school band is a group of student musicians who rehearse and perform instrumental music together. A concert band is usually under the direction of one or more conductors (band directors). A school band consists of woodwind instruments, brass ...
, and is the leader of a troop of Freedom Scouts, Stoolbend's version of the
Boy Scouts
Boy Scouts may refer to:
* Boy Scout, a participant in the Boy Scout Movement.
* Scouting, also known as the Boy Scout Movement.
* An organisation in the Scouting Movement, although many of these organizations also have female members. There are ...
.
Cleveland Brown Jr. is married to Cecilia, as shown in "Y Tu Junior También", to prevent her deportation.
Character
Creation
Cleveland Jr. debuted in the ''Family Guy''
season 2 Season 2 may refer to:
* ''Season 2'' (Infinite album)
* '' 2econd Season''
See also
*
{{disambig ...
episode "
Love Thy Trophy
The second season of ''Family Guy'' first aired on the Fox network in 21 episodes from September 23, 1999, to August 1, 2000. The series follows the dysfunctional Griffin family—father Peter, mother Lois, daughter Meg, son Chris, baby Stewie ...
", but only made a handful more appearances thereafter. He was presumably taken into Loretta's custody after she divorced Cleveland in "
The Cleveland–Loretta Quagmire
"The Cleveland–Loretta Quagmire" is the fifth episode of the fourth season of the American animated television series ''Family Guy''. This episode marks the final appearance of Loretta, until the season 7 episode, " Love, Blactually". In the e ...
" and has since undergone a major character reinvention upon becoming a leading character in ''The Cleveland Show''. After Cleveland and Loretta's divorce is finalized in the
pilot episode of ''The Cleveland Show'', Junior is placed in Cleveland's custody, and they move out of
Quahog, Rhode Island
Quahog ( ) is a fictional city in the U.S. state of Rhode Island that serves as the primary setting of the American animated sitcom ''Family Guy'' and other related media. The Griffin family, the Browns, the Swansons, and Glenn Quagmire live on ...
to
Stoolbend, Virginia
''The Cleveland Show'' is an American animated sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane, Richard Appel, and Mike Henry (voice actor), Mike Henry for the Fox Broadcasting Company. A Spin-off (media), spin-off of ''Family Guy'', the series centers on Cle ...
where Cleveland rekindles a relationship with, and subsequently marries, his high school sweetheart, Donna Tubbs.
Design
In ''Family Guy'' Cleveland Jr. is an active child of average size, but in ''The Cleveland Show'' he has aged, gained weight, appears potentially smarter, and wears glasses. In ''Family Guy'', he wears a purple T-shirt, blue jeans and white sneakers, but in ''The Cleveland Show'', he wears a red T-shirt, blue shorts, sneakers and glasses. He is also notably shorter, as ''Family Guy'' shows him to be of average height for his age, while in ''The Cleveland Show'', he appears to be no more than 5 ft. at the age of 14.
Cleveland Jr. was a minor character who had a short time with
Peter Griffin
Peter Löwenbräu Griffin, born Justin Peter Griffin, is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the American animated sitcom ''Family Guy''. He is voiced by the series' creator, Seth MacFarlane, and first appeared on television, alon ...
in the episode, "
Fore Father
The second season of '' Family Guy'' first aired on the Fox network in 21 episodes from September 23, 1999, to August 1, 2000. The series follows the dysfunctional Griffin family—father Peter, mother Lois, daughter Meg, son Chris, baby Stew ...
", where he showed a talent for playing
golf
Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible.
Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...
. After that episode, he made short appearances later in the show, with his last on ''Family Guy'', until 2010 at his father's supposed funeral, along with Loretta.
Voice
![Kevin Michael Richardson by Gage Skidmore 4](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9b/Kevin_Michael_Richardson_by_Gage_Skidmore_4.jpg)
Junior's voice is provided by
Kevin Michael Richardson
Kevin Michael Richardson (born October 25, 1964) is an American actor. Known for his distinctively deep voice, he has mostly voiced villainous characters in animation and video games. In film, Richardson voiced Goro in ''Mortal Kombat'' (1995) ...
, who voices other characters on ''The Cleveland Show'', including Lester Krinklesac, Julius, and P-Hound. In ''Family Guy'', Junior's voice is provided by
Mike Henry.
Richardson stated that he describes voicing Cleveland Jr. as "a character he did on ''
ER'' named Patrick, who was mentally impaired and wore a football helmet."
Before the show aired in 2009, the show's panel appeared at the 2009
Comic Con International
San Diego Comic-Con International is a comic book convention and nonprofit multi-genre entertainment event held annually in San Diego, California since 1970. The name, as given on its website, is Comic-Con International: San Diego; but it is co ...
, and held a discussion about the show. When describing Junior's change in physical appearance and age,
Mike Henry said "Cleveland Jr. really didn't have much to him and so he didn't appear for a while and so we sort of aged him up and made room for
Rallo to be the younger one for a while."
The show's creators later gave an explanation of Junior's altered look in "
A Rodent Like This".
References
External links
Official ''The Cleveland Show'' website on FOX.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Cleveland Jr.
Disney animated characters
Family Guy characters
The Cleveland Show characters
Black characters in animation
Fictional African-American people
Child characters in animated television series
Fictional characters from Rhode Island
Television characters introduced in 2000
Animated human characters
Atheism in television
Teenage characters in television
Male characters in animated series
Characters created by Seth MacFarlane