''The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries'' is an American

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 ...

produced by

Warner Bros. Animation Warner Bros. Animation Inc. is an American animation studio which is part of the Warner Bros. Television Studios division of Warner Bros., a flagship of Warner Bros. Discovery. As the successor to Warner Bros. Cartoons, which was active from 1 ...

which aired from September 9, 1995 to February 5, 2000 on

Kids' WB Kids' WB (stylized as Kids' WB!) was an American children's programming service and brand of The WB that aired on the network from September 9, 1995, to September 16, 2006. The block moved to The CW (a result of the merger of Time Warner's The WB ...

. The final episode, containing the segments "The Tail End?" and "This Is the End", was never shown on Kids' WB, not premiering until December 18, 2002, when the show aired in reruns on

Cartoon Network Cartoon Network (often abbreviated as CN) is an American cable television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. It is a part of The Cartoon Network, Inc., a division that also has the broadcasting and production activities of Boomerang, Car ...

. 52 episodes were produced.

Premise

The show follows

Looney Tunes ''Looney Tunes'' is an American Animated cartoon, animated comedy short film series produced by Warner Bros. starting from 1930 to 1969, concurrently with its partner series ''Merrie Melodies'', during the golden age of American animation.

characters

Sylvester Sylvester or Silvester is a name derived from the Latin adjective ''silvestris'' meaning "wooded" or "wild", which derives from the noun ''silva'' meaning "woodland". Classical Latin spells this with ''i''. In Classical Latin, ''y'' represented a ...

and

Tweety Tweety is a yellow canary in the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of animated cartoons. The name "Tweety" is a play on words, as it originally meant "sweetie", along with "tweet" being an English onomatopoeia for th ...

, along with their owner Granny and bulldog

Hector In Greek mythology, Hector (; grc, Ἕκτωρ, Hektōr, label=none, ) is a character in Homer's Iliad. He was a Trojan prince and the greatest warrior for Troy during the Trojan War. Hector led the Trojans and their allies in the defense o ...

(Sylvester's foil in many 1950s era shorts, here given a redesign similar to

Marc Antony Marcus Antonius (14 January 1 August 30 BC), commonly known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman politician and general who played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic from a constitutional republic into the autoc ...

), as they solved mysteries around the world. Sylvester, of course, is still trying to eat Tweety in the meantime, with Hector acting as the bird's bodyguard. The first season was dedicated to the memory of

Friz Freleng Isadore "Friz" Freleng (August 21, 1905May 26, 1995), credited as I. Freleng early in his career, was an American animator, cartoonist, director, producer, and composer known for his work at Warner Bros. Cartoons on the ''Looney Tunes'' and '' ...

, Warner Bros. animator and original creator of the Sylvester and Tweety shorts, who had died at age 88 shortly before the series premiered. The show originally consisted of one case per 23 minute episode, however starting with the second season, the show consisted of two separate 11-minute mysteries. Other ''Looney Tunes'' characters make cameo appearances, including

Daffy Duck Daffy Duck is an animated cartoon fictional character, character created for Warner Bros. Cartoons, Leon Schlesinger Productions by animators Tex Avery and Bob Clampett. Styled as an Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic American black duck, black ...

Yosemite Sam Yosemite Sam ( /joʊˈsɛmɪti/ ''yoh-SEM-ih-tee'') is a cartoon character in the ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of short films produced by Warner Bros. His name is taken from Yosemite National Park. He is an adversary of Bugs ...

Elmer Fudd Elmer J.''Hare Brush'' (1956) Fudd is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. '' Looney Tunes''/'' Merrie Melodies'' series and the archenemy of Bugs Bunny. He has one of the more disputed origins in the Warner Bros. cartoon pantheo ...

, the

Tasmanian Devil The Tasmanian devil (''Sarcophilus harrisii'') (palawa kani: purinina) is a carnivorous marsupial of the family Dasyuridae. Until recently, it was only found on the island state of Tasmania, but it has been reintroduced to New South Wales in ...

Pepé Le Pew Pepé Le Pew is an animated character from the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of cartoons, introduced in 1945. Depicted as a French striped skunk, Pepé is constantly on the quest for love. However, his offensive ...

Beaky Buzzard Beaky Buzzard is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' and '' Merrie Melodies'' series of cartoons. He is a young turkey vulture (sometimes called a "buzzard" in the United States) with black body feathers and a white ...

Babbit and Catstello Babbit and Catsello are fictional characters, based on the comedic duo Abbott and Costello, that appeared in Warner Bros. animated cartoons. The characters appeared in three cartoons between 1942 and 1946. Overview Although the short, fat characte ...

Hubie and Bertie Hubie and Bertie are animated cartoon rodent characters in the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of cartoons. Hubie and Bertie represent some of animator Chuck Jones' earliest work that was intended to be funny rather t ...

Foghorn Leghorn Foghorn Leghorn is a cartoon rooster who appears in ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' cartoons and films from Warner Bros. Animation. He was created by Robert McKimson, and starred in 29 cartoons from 1946 to 1964 in the golden age of A ...

Witch Hazel Witch-hazels or witch hazels (''Hamamelis'') are a genus of flowering plants in the family Hamamelidaceae, with three species in North America ('' H. ovalis'', '' H. virginiana'', and '' H. vernalis''), and one each in Japan ('' H.&nb ...

Michigan J. Frog Michigan J. Frog is an animated cartoon character from the Warner Bros.' ''Merrie Melodies'' film series. Originally a one-shot character, his only appearance during the original run of the ''Merrie Melodies'' series was as the star of ''One Fro ...

Rocky and Mugsy The '' Looney Tunes'' and '' Merrie Melodies'' series of animated shorts released by Warner Bros. feature a range of characters which are listed and briefly detailed here. Major characters from the franchise include Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Elmer ...

Marvin the Martian Marvin the Martian is an extraterrestrial character from Warner Bros.' ''Looney Tunes'' and '' Merrie Melodies'' cartoons. He frequently appears as a villain in cartoons and video games, and wears a helmet and skirt. The character has been voice ...

Hippety Hopper Hippety Hopper is a young kangaroo character in the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' series of cartoons. Robert McKimson introduced Hippety Hopper in ''Hop, Look and Listen'' (1948), which established the pattern for future Hippety Hopper cartoons. ...

Gossamer Gossamer most commonly refers to: * Fine spider silk used by spiderlings for Ballooning (spider), ballooning or kiting * Gossamer (fabric), very light, sheer, gauze-like fabric Gossamer may also refer to: Technology * Gossamer Condor, the fi ...

, Count Blood Count,

Sam Sheepdog Ralph Wolf and Sam Sheepdog are characters in a series of animated cartoons in the Warner Bros. '' Looney Tunes'' and '' Merrie Melodies'' cartoons. The characters were created by Chuck Jones. Ralph Wolf has virtually the same character design ...

Cecil Turtle Cecil Turtle is a fictional character in the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' and '' Merrie Melodies'' series of films. Though he made only three theatrical appearances, Cecil has the unusual distinction in that he is one of the very few characters w ...

Nasty Canasta Nasty Canasta is a cartoon character and antagonist of the '' Merrie Melodies'' and '' Looney Tunes'' series who made appearances in three cartoons. Created by animator Chuck Jones, Canasta is depicted as a tough, hulking, and brutish-looking o ...

, the Crusher,

Pete Puma The ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of animated shorts released by Warner Bros. feature a range of characters which are listed and briefly detailed here. Major characters from the franchise include Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Elmer Fud ...

Merlin the Magic Mouse Merlin the Magic Mouse is an animated cartoon mouse, who starred in five Warner Bros. '' Looney Tunes'' shorts late in the series, from 1967 to 1969. The first cartoon was '' Merlin the Magic Mouse'', directed by Alex Lovy. In 1967, Jack L. War ...

, the

Goofy Gophers The Goofy Gophers are animated cartoon characters in Warner Bros.' ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of cartoons. The gophers are small and brown with tan bellies and buck teeth. They both have British accents. Unnamed in the theatri ...

Hugo the Abominable Snowman Hugo the Abominable Snowman is a character in the ''Looney Tunes'' franchise. Personality Hugo is a large, rather naive, and easily fooled Yeti, abominable snowman who really likes bunny rabbits. He likes to name his pets "George" and tried on tw ...

, and the Road Runner. The latter-day Warner Bros. character, Cool Cat, also appears in some form of cameo in almost every episode, and his nemesis,

Colonel Rimfire Cool Cat is a fictional cartoon character created by director Alex Lovy for Warner Bros.-Seven Arts Animation. He was the final star of the original Warner Bros. theatrical cartoons. His first appearance was in an eponymous short in 1967. He ...

, makes several appearances.

Bugs Bunny Bugs Bunny is an animated cartoon character created in the late 1930s by Leon Schlesinger Productions (later Warner Bros. Cartoons) and voiced originally by Mel Blanc. Bugs is best known for his starring roles in the '' Looney Tunes'' and '' ...

Porky Pig Porky Pig is an animated character in the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of cartoons. He was the first character created by the studio to draw audiences based on his celebrity, star power, and the animators created ma ...

, and

Wile E. Coyote Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner are a duo of cartoon characters from the ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of animated cartoons, first appearing in 1949 in the theatrical cartoon short ''Fast and Furry-ous''. In each episode, t ...

are the only most prominent characters to not appear in the series. The final episode of the series never aired on Kids' WB, but did air on

on December 18, 2002.

Episodes

Characters

(voiced by

Joe Alaskey Joseph Francis Alaskey III (April 17, 1952 – February 3, 2016) was an American actor, voice actor, broadcaster, impressionist and stand-up comedian. Alaskey was one of Mel Blanc's successors at the Warner Bros. Animation studio until his deat ...

) – Sylvester acts as narrator throughout the episodes, and continually tries to devour Tweety for his supper, though he is always thwarted by Hector or Tweety's craftiness. Despite their never-ending feud, the pair manage to get along for the most part, and Sylvester will defend Tweety when someone else tries to harm the canary. Sylvester also unwittingly discovers many clues, claiming as the narrator to have knowledge of the case (though this is probably bluster). Besides chasing Tweety, Sylvester often explores the surroundings, leading him to sometimes be in awkward situations (i.e. being chased by a male cousin of Pepe Le Pew, Pitu Le Pew or using Granny's umbrella to pierce a villain's blimp). Through these situations, the baritone and tenor singing, lisping

Tuxedo cat Black tie is a semi-formal Western dress code for evening events, originating in British and American conventions for attire in the 19th century. In British English, the dress code is often referred to synecdochically by its principal element fo ...

endures all manner of pain and suffering, but comes out none the worse for wear. Sylvester is allergic to wool and is jealous of Tweety. *

(voiced by Joe Alaskey) – A cute but sadistic

yellow canary The yellow canary (''Crithagra flaviventris'') is a small passerine bird in the finch family. It is a resident breeder in much of the western and central regions of southern Africa and has been introduced to Ascension and St Helena islands. T ...

. Tweety is often trying to escape Sylvester by foiling him through either his flying, clever timing, or his bodyguard, Hector. Tweety usually stays with Granny and is responsible for some major clues. Despite his feud with Sylvester, the pair will team up if Granny is threatened and can work together very well. Tweety also serves as a source of ironic humor at times, usually in reference to Sylvester's foiled attempts to eat him. The show also harks back to Tweety's earlier shorts by

Bob Clampett Robert Emerson Clampett Sr. (May 8, 1913 – May 2, 1984) was an American animator, director, producer and puppeteer. He was best known for his work on the '' Looney Tunes'' animated series from Warner Bros. as well as the television shows '' ...

(in fact, Tweety meets his old self in the episode Seeing Double, depicted as a separate character called Orson, Tweety's prototype) and he is not above malice towards "''dat bad old putty tat''". * Granny (voiced by

June Foray June Foray (born June Lucille Forer; September 18, 1917 – July 26, 2017) was an American voice actress. She was best known as the voice of such animated characters as Rocky the Flying Squirrel, Natasha Fatale, Nell Fenwick, Lucifer from Disney' ...

) – A practical old fashioned world-renowned detective, Granny travels the globe with Sylvester and Tweety, attending events such as races or canary contest and is often called upon by the locals to solve a crime. However, there have been attempts to frame Granny, causing some difficulty in finding clues. She is overprotective of Tweety, and will not hesitate to give Sylvester a good whack on the head. She sometimes calls upon the cat to investigate clues or defend the group while they sleep, though, showing signs of obvious trust. Granny is good natured mostly, but can become stern. With Granny as the main detective of the show, she bears similarity to

Miss Marple Miss Marple is a fictional character in Agatha Christie's crime novels and short stories. Jane Marple lives in the village of St. Mary Mead and acts as an amateur consulting detective. Often characterized as an elderly spinster, she is one of Chr ...

. *

(voiced by

Frank Welker Franklin Wendell Welker (born March 12, 1946) is an American voice actor. He began his career in the 1960s, and holds over 860 film, television, and video game credits as of 2022, making him one of the most prolific voice actors of all time. With ...

) – Granny's pet

bulldog The Bulldog is a British breed of dog of mastiff type. It may also be known as the English Bulldog or British Bulldog. It is of medium size, a muscular, hefty dog with a wrinkled face and a distinctive pushed-in nose.Warner Home Video Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Inc. (formerly known as Warner Home Video and WCI Home Video and sometimes credited as Warner Home Entertainment) is the home video distribution division of Warner Bros. It was founded in 1978 as WCI Home Video ...

released The Complete First Season of ''The Sylvester and Tweety Mysteries'' on DVD in Region 1. This release comes exactly 13 years since the premiere of the show. No further DVD releases have been announced. Three episodes from season 1 are included as bonus features in the

direct-to-video Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, TV series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strategy was p ...

film ''King Tweety''.

Awards and nominations

The series was nominated multiple times for a

Daytime Emmy Award The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York–based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences ...

in the category Special Class Animated Program. The series won two

Annie Award The Annie Awards are accolades which the Los Angeles branch of the International Animated Film Association, ASIFA-Hollywood, has presented each year since 1972 to recognize excellence in animation shown in cinema and television. Originally desi ...

s in the category of voice acting for

in the role of Granny.

Legacy

On February 17, 2021, it was announced Tweety would have starred in ''Tweety Mysteries'', similar in concept to ''The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries'' except that the series would have been a live-action/animation hybrid. However the series was scrapped in December 2022.https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/cartoon-network-warner-bros-discovery-animation-batwheels-1235453151/

References

External links

Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries
-

(Archive) *
''The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries''
at

Don Markstein's Toonopedia Don Markstein's Toonopedia (subtitled A Vast Repository of Toonological Knowledge) is an online encyclopedia of print cartoons, comic strips and animation, initiated February 13, 2001. Donald D. Markstein, the sole writer and editor of Toonopedi ...

Archived
from the original on January 1, 2018. {{DEFAULTSORT:Sylvester and Tweety Mysteries, The 1995 American television series debuts 2002 American television series endings 1990s American animated television series 2000s American animated television series 1990s American mystery television series 2000s American mystery television series Kids' WB original shows Looney Tunes television series Television series by Warner Bros. Television Studios American animated television spin-offs Television series by Warner Bros. Animation American detective television series The WB original programming American children's animated adventure television series American children's animated comedy television series American children's animated mystery television series Animated television series about birds Animated television series about cats Animated television series about dogs Annie Award winners