Deputy Dawg is a

Terrytoons Terrytoons was an American animation studio in New Rochelle, New York, that produced animated cartoons for theatrical release from 1929 to 1973 (and briefly returned between 1987 and 1996 for television in name only). Terrytoons was founded by P ...

cartoon A cartoon is a type of visual art that is typically drawn, frequently animated, in an unrealistic or semi-realistic style. The specific meaning has evolved over time, but the modern usage usually refers to either: an image or series of imag ...

character, featured on the animated

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

series of the same name that aired from 1960 to 1964.

Background

The character of Deputy Dawg originated in 1959 as part of a projected series entitled ''Possible Possum,'' intended as a component of the '' Captain Kangaroo Show''. Larz Bourne came up with the series concept and drew the first storyboards. Midway through production, the project was overhauled as a standalone series; Deputy Dawg became the star, and "Possible" was rechristened Muskie Muskrat, to avoid comparisons with Walt Kelly's comic strip character Pogo Possum. A later, less Kelly-inspired Terrytoons character would eventually take the Possible Possum name. ''The Deputy Dawg Show'' first ran weekly from January 1, 1960 to December 31, 1964. Each episode has a Deputy Dawg cartoon, followed by Sidney the Elephant. The British television debut came on

BBC Television BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1927. It produced television programmes from its own studios from 193 ...

on August 31, 1963. The cartoons are between four and six minutes long, and were packaged three at a time and shown as a half-hour program. The show was produced by CBS and was the professional animation debut of

Ralph Bakshi Ralph Bakshi (born October 29, 1938) is an American animator and filmmaker. In the 1970s, he established an alternative to mainstream animation through independent and adult-oriented productions. Between 1972 and 1992, he directed nine theatric ...

(as animator) of adult animation fame. There were also six additional titles that were released theatrically and were not part of the original TV package. The cartoons originally featured Deputy Dawg, an anthropomorphic dog, as a

deputy sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...

in Florida, though as the episodes progressed, the location changed to Mississippi, and later to Tennessee. The other main characters are the "varmints" Muskie Muskrat, Ty Coon, Vincent van Gopher, and Pig Newton, as well as Dawg's boss the Sheriff and his wife Mrs. Deputy. A wilder addition to the cast was the "space varmint" Astronut, a mischievous alien visitor who was later given his own spin-off show. Deputy Dawg was voiced by

Dayton Allen Dayton Allen (born Dayton Allen Bolke; September 24, 1919 – November 11, 2004) was an American comedian and voice actor. He was one of the "men in the street" on ''The Steve Allen Show''. His catchphrase was "Why not, Bubbe?" (pronounced "whooo ...

, a prolific

voice actor Voice acting is the art of performing voice-overs to present a character or provide information to an audience. Performers are called voice actors/actresses, voice artists, dubbing artists, voice talent, voice-over artists, or voice-over talen ...

who voiced many

characters in television and theatrical shorts in the 1950s and 1960s. Much of the comedy in the cartoons is

sight gag In comedy, a visual gag or sight gag is anything which conveys its humour visually, often without words being used at all. The gag may involve a physical impossibility or an unexpected occurrence. The humor is caused by alternative interpretation ...

/action-based, with additional humor provided by comical dialects and stereotypical

southern Southern may refer to: Businesses * China Southern Airlines, airline based in Guangzhou, China * Southern Airways, defunct US airline * Southern Air, air cargo transportation company based in Norwalk, Connecticut, US * Southern Airways Express, M ...

characteristics. Many storylines involve Deputy Dawg battling with peculiar locals and trying to please the Sheriff, as well as protecting his produce from Muskie and Vince. However, most of Muskie's and Vince's crimes are not taken very seriously, enabling Deputy Dawg to pal around with them when they are not causing trouble. The trio often engage in their favorite pastime, fishing for

catfish Catfish (or catfishes; order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the three largest species alive, ...

. Musical direction was by Terrytoons standby Philip A. Scheib (April 14, 1894–April 1969), who at the time had recently worked on the Oscar-nominated Terrytoons shorts ''Sidney's Family Tree'' (1958) and ''The Juggler of Our Lady'' (1958). The ''Deputy Dawg'' musical accompaniment often features a distinctive bass harmonica. Deputy Dawg later appeared in episodes of the 1987 series '' Mighty Mouse: The New Adventures''. Deputy Dawg also appeared in the 1999 pilot ''Curbside''.

Home video

Children's Video issued "Terrytoons Good Guys" compilation VHS tapes in 1985 which included one Deputy Dawg cartoon per tape. Video Treasures issued five "Deputy Dawg" VHS tapes in 1989. The tape catalogue numbers are listed below for the titles released.

Episode guide

Season 1 (1960)

Season 2 (1961–1962)

Season 3 (1963-1964)

Credits

*Direction: Art Bartsch,

Bob Kuwahara Rokuro "Bob" Kuwahara (August 12, 1901 – 1964) was a Japanese-born American animator best known for his work with Walt Disney and Terrytoons between the 1930s and 1960s. Kuwahara was born in Tokyo on August 12, 1901, and his family moved to the U ...

, Connie Rasinski, Dave Tendlar, Mannie Davis, Ralph Bakshi *Story Supervisor: Tom Morrison *Stories: Larz Bourne, Eli Bauer, Bob Kuwahara, Al Bertino, Dick Kinney *Animation: Cosmo Anzilotti,

, Doug Crane, Mannie Davis, Eddie Donnelly, Dick Hall, John Gentilella, Larry Silverman *Design and Layout Supervisor: Art Bartsch *Design and Layout: Martin Strudler, John Zago *Backgrounds: Bill Focht, Bill Hilliker *Music: Phil Scheib *Voices:

*Photography: George Davis, Ted Moskowitz, Joseph Rasinski *Editing: George McAvoy, Jack MacConnell *Production Manager: Frank Schudde *Executive Producer: Bill Weiss

References

External links

*{{IMDb title, id=0204767, title=Deputy Dawg
''Deputy Dawg'' at Toonopedia
1960s American animated television series 1970s American animated television series 1960 American television series debuts 1972 American television series endings 1960s American police comedy television series 1970s American police comedy television series American children's animated comedy television series Animated television series about dogs CBS original programming Fictional characters from Tennessee Anthropomorphic dogs Fictional police officers NBC original programming Television series by CBS Studios Terrytoons characters Male characters in animation Television shows adapted into comics Television series by Terrytoons First-run syndicated television programs in the United States Television shows set in Florida Television shows set in Mississippi Television shows set in Tennessee