Pepé Le Pew is an animated character from the Warner Bros. ''

Looney Tunes ''Looney Tunes'' is an American 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. ...

'' and ''

Merrie Melodies ''Merrie Melodies'' is an American animation, animated series of comedy short films produced by Warner Bros. starting in 1931, during the golden age of American animation, and ending in 1969. Then some new cartoons were produced from the late 197 ...

'' series of cartoons, introduced in 1945. Depicted as a French

striped skunk The striped skunk (''Mephitis mephitis'') is a skunk of the genus '' Mephitis'' that occurs across much of North America, including southern Canada, the United States, and northern Mexico. It is currently listed as least concern by the IUCN on ...

, Pepé is constantly on the quest for love. However, his offensive skunk odor and his aggressive pursuit of romance typically cause other characters to run away from him.

Premise

Pepé Le Pew storylines typically involve Pepé in pursuit of a female

black cat A black cat is a domestic cat with black fur that may be a mixed or specific breed, or a common domestic cat of no particular breed. The Cat Fanciers' Association (CFA) recognizes 22 cat breeds that can come with solid black coats. The Bomba ...

, whom Pepé mistakes for a

skunk Skunks are mammals in the family Mephitidae. They are known for their ability to spray a liquid with a strong, unpleasant scent from their anal glands. Different species of skunk vary in appearance from black-and-white to brown, cream or gi ...

("la belle femme skunk fatale"). The cat, who was retroactively named Penelope Pussycat, often has a white stripe painted down her back, usually by accident (such as by squeezing under a fence with wet white paint). Penelope frantically races to get away from him because of his putrid odor, his overly aggressive manner or both, while Pepé hops after her at a leisurely pace.

Settings

The setting is always a mise-en-scène echoing with fractured French. They include Paris in the springtime, the

Matterhorn The (, ; it, Cervino, ; french: Cervin, ; rm, Matterhorn) is a mountain of the Alps, straddling the main watershed and border between Switzerland and Italy. It is a large, near-symmetric pyramidal peak in the extended Monte Rosa area of th ...

, or the little village of N'est-ce Pas in the

French Alps The French Alps are the portions of the Alps mountain range that stand within France, located in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur regions. While some of the ranges of the French Alps are entirely in France, others, such a ...

. The exotic locales, such as Algiers, are drawn from the story of the 1937 film '' Pépé le Moko''. Settings associated in popular culture with romance, such as the

Champs-Élysées The Avenue des Champs-Élysées (, ; ) is an avenue in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, France, long and wide, running between the Place de la Concorde in the east and the Place Charles de Gaulle in the west, where the Arc de Triomphe is l ...

or the

Eiffel Tower The Eiffel Tower ( ; french: links=yes, tour Eiffel ) is a wrought-iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars in Paris, France. It is named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower. Locally nickname ...

, are sometimes present. One episode was in the

Sahara Desert , photo = Sahara real color.jpg , photo_caption = The Sahara taken by Apollo 17 astronauts, 1972 , map = , map_image = , location = , country = , country1 = , ...

, with Pepe seeking to work as a Legionnaire at a French military outpost.

Narcissism

Pepé describes Penelope as lucky to be the object of his affections and uses a romantic paradigm to explain his failures to seduce her. For example, he describes a hammer blow to his head as a form of flirtation rather than rejection. Accordingly, he shows no sign of narcissistic injury or loss of confidence, no matter how many times he is rebuffed.

Reversals

In a role-reversal, the

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment in ...

-winning 1949 short ''

For Scent-imental Reasons ''For Scent-imental Reasons'' is a 1949 Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' short directed by Chuck Jones and written by Michael Maltese. The short was released on November 12, 1949, and stars Pepé Le Pew and Penelope Pussycat. It won the Academy Awa ...

'' ended with an accidentally painted blue (and now terrified) Pepé being pursued by a madly smitten Penelope (who has been dunked in dirty water, leaving her with a ratty appearance and a developing head cold, completely clogging up her nose). It turns out that Pepé's new color is just right for her (plus the fact that the blue paint now covers his putrid scent). Penelope locks him up inside a perfume shop, hiding the key down her chest, and proceeds to chase the now-imprisoned and effectively odorless Pepé. In another short, '' Little Beau Pepé'', Pepé, attempting to find the most arousing

cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...

with which to impress Penelope, sprays a combination of perfumes and colognes upon himself. This resulted in something close to a love potion, leading Penelope to fall madly in love with Pepé in an explosion of hearts. Pepé is revealed to be extremely frightened of overly-affectionate women ("But Madame!"), much to his dismay, as Penelope quickly captures him and smothers him in more love than even ''he'' could imagine. And yet again, in '' Really Scent'', Pepé removes his odor by locking himself in a deodorant plant so Penelope (known in this short as 'Fabrette'; a black cat with an unfortunate marking) would like him (this is also the only episode that Pepé is acutely aware of his own odor, having checked the word "pew" in the dictionary). However, Penelope (who in this picture is actually ''trying'' to have a relationship with Pepé because all the male cats of

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

Limburger cheese factory. Now more forceful and demanding, Penelope quickly corners the terrified Pepé, who, after smelling her new stench, wants nothing more than to escape the amorous female cat. Unfortunately, now ''she'' will not take "no" for an answer and proceeds to chase Pepé off into the distance, with no intention of letting him escape. Although Pepé usually mistakes Penelope for a female skunk, in '' Past Perfumance'', he realizes that she is a cat when her stripe washes off. Undeterred, he proceeds to cover his white stripe with black paint, taking the appearance of a cat before resuming the chase. To emphasize Pepé's cheerful dominance of the situation, Penelope is always mute (or more precisely, makes only natural cat sounds, albeit with a stereotypical "le" before each one) in these stories; only the self-deluded Pepé speaks (several non-recurring human characters are given minimal dialogue, often nothing more than a repulsed "Le pew!").

Variations

Sometimes this formula is varied. In his initial cartoon, ''

Odor-able Kitty ''Odor-able Kitty'' is a 1945 Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' cartoon directed by Chuck Jones. The short was released on January 6, 1945, and was the first appearance of the romantic skunk Pepé Le Pew. The scriptwriter was Tedd Pierce. Jones, a c ...

'', Pepé (who was revealed to be a French-American skunk named Henri in this short) unwittingly pursues a red tabby cat who has intentionally disguised himself as a skunk (complete with the scent of Limburger cheese) in order to scare off a bunch of characters who have mistreated him. '' Scent-imental Over You'' has Pepé pursuing a female

Chihuahua Chihuahua may refer to: Places *Chihuahua (state), a Mexican state **Chihuahua (dog), a breed of dog named after the state **Chihuahua cheese, a type of cheese originating in the state **Chihuahua City, the capital city of the state **Chihuahua Mun ...

who has donned a skunk pelt (mistaking it for a fur coat). In the end, she removes her pelt, revealing that she is a dog. However, he then reveals to the audience that he is a real skunk. In '' Wild Over You'', Pepé attempts to seduce a female

wildcat The wildcat is a species complex comprising two small wild cat species: the European wildcat (''Felis silvestris'') and the African wildcat (''F. lybica''). The European wildcat inhabits forests in Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus, while the ...

who had escaped a zoo (during what is called "Le grande tour du Zoo" at a 1900 exhibition) and painted herself to look like a skunk to escape her keepers. This cartoon is notable for not only diverging from the Pepé/female-black-cat dynamic, but also rather cheekily showing that Pepé likes to be beaten up, considering the wildcat thrashes him numerous times. ''Really Scent'' is also a subversion with Penelope (here called Fabrette) attracted to him from the beginning, removing the need for Pepé to chase her as ''she'' goes to ''him''. But Pepé's scent still causes a problem for her as they try to build a relationship.

Production

Pepé was created at

Warner Bros. Cartoons Warner Bros. Cartoons, Inc. was an American animation studio, serving as the in-house animation division of Warner Bros. during the Golden Age of American animation. One of the most successful animation studios in American media history, it was ...

by animation director

Chuck Jones Charles Martin Jones (September 21, 1912 – February 22, 2002) was an American animator, director, and painter, best known for his work with Warner Bros. Cartoons on the '' Looney Tunes'' and '' Merrie Melodies'' series of shorts. He wrote, pro ...

and writer

Michael Maltese Michael Maltese (February 6, 1908 – February 22, 1981) was an American story man for classic animated cartoon shorts. He is best known for working in the 1950s on a series of '' Merrie Melodies'' cartoons with director Chuck Jones, notably " ...

. Animation producer Eddie Selzer, who was then Jones' bitterest foe at the studio, once profanely commented that no one would laugh at the Pepé cartoons. However, this did not keep Selzer from accepting an award for one of Pepé's pictures several years later. Jones wrote that Pepé was based (loosely) on the personality of his Termite Terrace colleague, writer Tedd Pierce, a self-styled "ladies' man" who reportedly always assumed that his infatuations were reciprocated. In a short documentary film, ''Chuck Jones: Memories of Childhood'', Jones told an interviewer (perhaps jokingly) that Pepé was actually based on himself, except that he was very shy with girls. The 1944 WB short, ''I Got Plenty of Mutton'', directed by Frank Tashlin and written by Melvin Millar, features a hungry wolf dressing up as a ewe to fool a ram guarding a flock of sheep (a gag later adapted by Jones in his

Ralph Wolf and 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 ...

cartoons). The infatuated ram proceeds to aggressively romance the horrified wolf in a style identical to Pepé's, with Mel Blanc using the same faux-French accent and endearments featured in the later Pepé cartoons--the ram even employs the same prancing gait later associated with Pepé for his pursuit. A prototype of Pepé appeared in 1947's '' Bugs Bunny Rides Again'', but sounded similar to

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 star power, and the animators created many crit ...

. When the character of Pepé was more fully developed for cartoons of his own,

Mel Blanc Melvin Jerome Blanc (born Blank ; May 30, 1908July 10, 1989) was an American voice actor and radio personality whose career spanned over 60 years. During the Golden Age of Radio, he provided character voices and vocal sound effects for comedy ra ...

based Pepé's voice on Charles Boyer's Pépé le Moko from '' Algiers'' (1938), a remake of the 1937 French film '' Pépé le Moko''. Blanc's voice for the character closely resembled a voice he had used for "Professor Le Blanc", a harried violin instructor on ''

The Jack Benny Program ''The Jack Benny Program'', starring Jack Benny, is a radio-TV comedy series that ran for more than three decades and is generally regarded as a high-water mark in 20th century American comedy. He played one role throughout his radio and televi ...

''. There have also been theories that Pepé's voice was based on singer

Maurice Chevalier Maurice Auguste Chevalier (; 12 September 1888 – 1 January 1972) was a French singer, actor and entertainer. He is perhaps best known for his signature songs, including " Livin' In The Sunlight", "Valentine", " Louise", "Mimi", and "Thank Heav ...

. In Pepé's short cartoons, a kind of pseudo-French or

Franglais Franglais (; also Frenglish ) is a French blend that referred first to the overuse of English words by French speakers and later to diglossia or the macaronic mixture of French () and English (). Etymology The word ''Franglais'' was first att ...

is spoken and written primarily by adding the French article ''le'' to English words (as in "''le'' skunk ''de'' pew") or by more creative mangling of English expressions and French syntax, such as ''"Sacré maroon!"'', ''"My sweet peanut of brittle"'', ''"Come to me, my little melon-baby collie!"'', ''"Ah, my little darling, it is love at first sight, is it not, no?"'', and ''"It is love at sight first!"'' The writer responsible for these malapropisms was

. An example of dialogue from the Oscar-winning 1949 short ''

'' illustrates the use of French and broken French: :Pepé: (sings) ''Affaire d'amour? Affaire de coeur? Je ne sais quoi, je vive en espoir…'' (sniffs) ''Mmmm m mm… un smell à vous finez…'' (hums) :Gendarme: ''Le kittée quel terrible odeur!'' :Proprietor: ''Allez, Gendarme! Allez! Retournez-moi! This instonce! Oh, pauvre moi, I am ze bankrupt…'' (sobs) :Cat/Penelope: ''Le mew? Le purrrrrrr.'' :Proprietor: ''A-a-ahhh. Le pussy ferocious! Remove zot skunk! Zot cat-pole from ze premises! Avec!'' :Cat/Penelope: (smells skunk) ''Sniff, sniff, sniff-sniff, sniff-sniff.'' :Pepé: ''Quel est?'' (notices cat) ''Ahh! Le belle femme skunk fatale!'' (clicks tongue twice) Pepé Le Pew's cartoons have been translated and dubbed in French. In the French version, the voice of "Pépé ''le putois''" was dubbed by François Tavares, using a heavy Italian accent in a vocal caricature of Yves Montand.

Cameo appearances

Chuck Jones first introduced the character (originally named Stinky) in the 1945 short ''

'' (see " Variations"), in which he was revealed to be a French skunk named Henri who had been speaking in that accent. For the remaining cartoons Jones directed, Pepé retained his accent, nationality, and purported bachelor status throughout, and the object of his pursuit was (almost) always female. A possible second cameo appearance is at the end of ''

Fair and Worm-er ''Fair and Worm-er'' is a 1946 Warner Bros. ''Merrie Melodies'' cartoon directed by Chuck Jones. The short was released on September 28, 1946. The title is a pun on ''Fair and Warmer''. The premise greatly resembles and builds upon that of the 1 ...

'' (Chuck Jones, 1946). This skunk does not speak, but looks identical (or is a close relation) and shares the same mode of travel and a slight variation of Pepé's hopping music. His function here is to chase a string of characters who had all been chasing each other (à la " There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly"). A skunk often identified as Pepé appears in the

Art Davis Arthur David Davis (December 6, 1934 – July 29, 2007) was a double-bassist, known for his work with Thelonious Monk, John Coltrane, Dizzy Gillespie, McCoy Tyner and Max Roach. Biography Davis was born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, United S ...

-directed cartoon '' Odor of the Day'' (1948); in this entry, the theme of romantic pursuit is missing as the skunk (in a non-speaking role, save for a shared "Gesundheit!" at the finish) vies with a male dog for lodging accommodations on a cold winter day. This is one of the two cartoons where the character, if this is indeed Pepé, uses his scent-spray as a deliberate weapon: shot from his tail as if it were a machine gun. The other one is '' Touché and Go'', where he frees himself from the jaws of a shark by releasing his odor into the shark's mouth. Pepé makes a more obvious cameo in ''

Dog Pounded ''Dog Pounded'' is a 1954 (© 1953) Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' animated cartoon short directed by Friz Freleng. The short was released on January 2, 1954, and stars Tweety and Sylvester. The voices were performed by Mel Blanc. The title is a ...

'' (1954), where he is attracted to

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 ...

after the latter tried to get around a pack of guard dogs, in his latest attempt to capture and eat

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 fo ...

, by painting a white stripe down his back (in Pepé's only appearance in a Freleng short). Pepé appears in the 1979 TV special '' Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales'' as a

caroler A carol is a festive song, generally religious but not necessarily connected with Christian church worship, and sometimes accompanied by a dance. A caroller (or caroler) is someone who sings carols, and is said to be carolling (or caroling). T ...

. Pepé makes a cameo in the 1994 Super NES video game '' Bugs Bunny: Rabbit Rampage'', based on several Bugs Bunny cartoons. He is seen in the audience along with several other Looney Tunes characters when Bugs fights Toro the Bull and the Crusher in different stages. Pepé is waving a pennant reading "El Toro" or "Le Crusher", dependent on the stage.

Later appearances

Pepé appeared with several other Looney Tunes characters in

Filmation Filmation Associates was an American production company that produced animation and live-action programming for television from 1963 until 1989. Located in Reseda, California, the animation studio was founded in 1962. Filmation's founders and p ...

's 1972 made-for-TV special '' Daffy Duck and Porky Pig Meet the Groovie Goolies''. In the King Arthur film Daffy Duck's studio was producing in the story, Pepé played assistant to

Mordred Mordred or Modred (; Welsh: ''Medraut'' or ''Medrawt'') is a figure who is variously portrayed in the legend of King Arthur. The earliest known mention of a possibly historical Medraut is in the Welsh chronicle ''Annales Cambriae'', wherein h ...

(played by

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 Bu ...

). Pepé was going to have a cameo in ''

Who Framed Roger Rabbit ''Who Framed Roger Rabbit'' is a 1988 American Live-action animated film, live-action/animated comedy film, comedy mystery film directed by Robert Zemeckis, produced by Frank Marshall (filmmaker), Frank Marshall and Robert Watts, and loosely ad ...

'', but was later dropped for unknown reasons. Pepé made several cameo appearances on the 1990 series ''

Tiny Toon Adventures ''Tiny Toon Adventures'' is an American animated comedy television series that was broadcast from September 14, 1990, to December 6, 1992. It was the first collaborative effort of Steven Spielberg's Amblin Television and Warner Bros. Animation ...

'' (voiced by

Greg Burson Gregory Lewis Burson (June 29, 1949 – July 22, 2008) was an American voice actor. He was best known as a replacement for voice actors Daws Butler and Mel Blanc following their deaths in 1988 and 1989, respectively. Career Burson was trained b ...

) as a professor at Acme Looniversity and the mentor to the female skunk character Fifi La Fume. He appeared briefly in "The Looney Beginning" and had a more extended cameo in "It's a Wonderful Tiny Toon Adventures Christmas Special". The segment "Out of Odor" from the episode "Viewer Mail Day" saw character Elmyra disguise herself as Pepé in an attempt to lure Fifi into a trap, only to have Fifi begin aggressively wooing her. Pepé also made cameo appearances in the ''

Histeria! ''Histeria!'' is an American animated series created by Tom Ruegger and produced by Warner Bros. Animation. Unlike other animated series produced by Warner Bros. in the 1990s, ''Histeria!'' was an explicitly educational program created to ...

'' episode "When America Was Young" and in the Goodfeathers segment, "We're No Pigeons", on ''

Animaniacs ''Animaniacs'' is an American Animated series, animated Comedy television, comedy Musical film, musical television series created by Tom Ruegger for Fox Broadcasting Company's Fox Kids block in 1993, before moving to The WB in 1995, as part o ...

''. In the 1995 animated short '' Carrotblanca'', 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 su ...

homage Homage (Old English) or Hommage (French) may refer to: History *Homage (feudal) /ˈhɒmɪdʒ/, the medieval oath of allegiance *Commendation ceremony, medieval homage ceremony Arts *Homage (arts) /oʊˈmɑʒ/, an allusion or imitation by one arti ...

of the classic film '' Casablanca'', both Pepé and Penelope appear: Pepé (voiced again by Greg Burson) as Captain Renault and Penelope (voiced by

Tress MacNeille Teressa Claire MacNeille (née Payne; born June 20, 1951) is an American voice actress, whose credits include voicing Dot Warner on the animated television series '' Animaniacs'', Babs Bunny on '' Tiny Toon Adventures'', Chip and Gadget Hackwren ...

) as "Kitty Ketty" (modeled after

Ingrid Bergman Ingrid Bergman (29 August 191529 August 1982) was a Swedish actress who starred in a variety of European and American films, television movies, and plays.Obituary '' Variety'', 1 September 1982. With a career spanning five decades, she is ofte ...

's performance as Ilsa). Unlike the character's other appearances in cartoons, Penelope (as Kitty) has extensive speaking parts in ''Carrotblanca''. In ''

The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries ''The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries'' is an American animated television series produced by Warner Bros. Animation which aired from September 9, 1995 to February 5, 2000 on Kids' WB. The final episode, containing the segments "The Tail End?" an ...

'', in the episode, "Platinum Wheel of Fortune", when

gets a white stripe on his back, a skunk immediately falls in love with him. This is not Pepé, but a similar character identified as "Pitu Le Pew" (voiced by

Jeff Bennett Jeffrey Glenn Bennett (born October 2, 1962) is an American voice actor who voiced Johnny Bravo in the eponymous television series, Dexter's Dad in ''Dexter's Laboratory'', Brooklyn in '' Gargoyles'' and Kowalski in the ''Penguins of Madagascar' ...

). However, he does say, "What can I say, Pepé Le Pew is my third cousin. It runs in the family." Pepé would later appear in the episode "Is Paris Stinking" (voiced once again by Greg Burson), where he pursues Sylvester who is unintentionally dressed in drag. Pepé would appear once more in ''

Tweety's High-Flying Adventure ''Tweety's High-Flying Adventure'' is a 2000 American animated musical slapstick comedy film produced by Tom Minton and James T. Walker, written by Tom Minton, Tim Cahill and Julie McNally, and directed by James T. Walker, Karl Toerge, Charles Vi ...

'' (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 dea ...

), falling in love with both Sylvester and Penelope (Sylvester had gotten a white stripe on his back from Penelope while they fought over

). Pepé was, at one point, integral to the storyline for the movie '' Looney Tunes: Back in Action'' (voiced by

Bruce Lanoil Bruce Lanoil (born July 5, 1960) is an American puppeteer who works for The Jim Henson Company and for The Walt Disney Company. He frequently works with puppeteer David Alan Barclay. Early life Lanoil was born in Brooklyn, New York, on July 5, ...

). Originally, once

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 ''Mer ...

Daffy Duck Daffy Duck is an animated cartoon character created for Leon Schlesinger Productions by animators Tex Avery and Bob Clampett. Styled as an anthropomorphic black duck, he has appeared in cartoon series such as ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melo ...

, DJ, and Kate arrived in Paris, Pepé was to give them a mission briefing inside a gift shop. Perhaps because of the group receiving their equipment in Area 52, Pepé's scene was cut, and in the final film, he plays only a bit part, dressed like a police officer, who tries to help DJ (played by

Brendan Fraser Brendan James Fraser ( ; born December 3, 1968) is an American-Canadian actor known for his leading roles in blockbusters, comedies, and dramatic films. Having graduated from the Cornish College of the Arts in 1990, he made his film debut in '' ...

) after Kate (played by

Jenna Elfman Jennifer Mary Elfman (née Butala, born 1971) is an American actress. She is best known for her leading role as Dharma on the ABC sitcom '' Dharma & Greg'' (1997–2002), for which she received the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Telev ...

) is kidnapped. However, some unused animation of him and Penelope appears during the end credits, thus giving viewers a rare glimpse at his cut scene, and his cut scene appears in the movie's print adaptations. Pepé also appears in ''

Space Jam ''Space Jam'' is a 1996 American live-action/animated sports comedy film directed by Joe Pytka, with animation sequences directed by Bruce W. Smith and Tony Cervone, and written by Leo Benvenuti, Steve Rudnick, Timothy Harris, and Hersch ...

'' (voiced by

Maurice LaMarche Maurice LaMarche (born March 30, 1958) is a Canadian voice actor, comedian, and impressionist. He has voiced the Brain in ''Animaniacs'' as well as its spin-off ''Pinky and the Brain'', Big Bob in '' Hey Arnold!'' (1996–2004), and a variety of ...

), where his voice has curiously been changed into an approximation of

, as opposed to more traditional vocalization. In ''

Loonatics Unleashed ''Loonatics Unleashed'' is an American superhero animated television series produced by Warner Bros. Animation that ran on Kids' WB for two seasons from 2005 to 2007 in the United States. The series was based/inspired on the ''Looney Tunes'' ...

'', a human based on Pepé Le Pew called Pierre Le Pew (voiced by Maurice LaMarche) has appeared as one of the villains of the second season of the show. Additionally, Pepé and Penelope Pussycat appear as cameos in a display of Otto the Odd in the episode "The Hunter". In the episode "The World is My Circus", Lexi Bunny complains that "this Pepé Le Pew look is definitely not me" after being mutated into a skunk-like creature. Pepé also appeared on the 2006 direct-to-DVD movie ''

Bah, Humduck! A Looney Tunes Christmas ''Bah, Humduck! A Looney Tunes Christmas'' (also known as ''Looney Tunes: Bah Humduck'') is a 2006 animated direct-to-DVD Christmas comedy film starring the Looney Tunes characters, directed by Charles Visser, produced by Warner Bros. Animation ...

'' (voiced again by Joe Alaskey) as one of Daffy's employees. A 2009 Valentine's Day-themed

AT&T AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered at Whitacre Tower in Downtown Dallas, Texas. It is the world's largest telecommunications company by revenue and the third largest provider of mobile tel ...

commercial brings Pepé (voiced once again by Joe Alaskey) and Penelope's relationship up to date, depicting Penelope not as repulsed by Pepé, but madly in love with him. The commercial begins with Penelope deliberately painting a white stripe on her own back; when her cell phone rings and displays Pepé's picture, Penelope's lovestruck beating heart bulges beneath her chest in a classic cartoon image. A baby version of Pepé Le Pew appeared in ''

Baby Looney Tunes ''Baby Looney Tunes'' is an American animated television series depicting toddler versions of ''Looney Tunes'' characters. It was produced by Warner Bros. Animation. The series focused on real world problems and morals that children may relate ...

'', voiced by

Terry Klassen Terry Klassen is a Canadian voice actor, ADR director and writer. Before animation, Klassen worked in radio in Winnipeg (CITI-FM), Toronto (Q107), Calgary (CFAC), Portage la Prairie (CFRY) and part-time at CFOX and CFMI. In animation, he is best ...

. In the episode "New Cat in Town", everyone thought that he was a cat. Sylvester was the only one who knew the truth. When Daffy was playing with a laptop, Sylvester removed the battery because he was afraid that everybody would avoid him. We also see a grown-up version of him on the laptop. In another episode, titled "Stop and Smell Up the Flowers", Pepé Le Pew is shown to be good friends with a baby Gossamer and seemed slightly older than his previous appearance. Pepé Le Pew has appeared in ''

The Looney Tunes Show ''The Looney Tunes Show'' is an American animated sitcom produced by Warner Bros. Animation that ran from May 3, 2011, through November 2, 2013, on Cartoon Network. The series consists of two seasons, each containing 26 episodes, and features ...

'' episode "Members Only", voiced by

René Auberjonois René Murat Auberjonois (; June 1, 1940 – December 8, 2019) was an American actor and director. He was best known for portraying Odo on ''Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'' (1993–1999). He first achieved fame as a stage actor, winning the Tony A ...

in season one and by

Jeff Bergman Jeffrey Bergman (born July 10, 1960) is an American voice actor and impressionist who has provided the modern-day voices of various classic cartoon characters, most notably with ''Looney Tunes'' and Hanna-Barbera. Bergman was the first to repla ...

in season two. He was present at the arranged marriage of Bugs Bunny and

Lola Bunny Lola Bunny is a ''Looney Tunes'' cartoon character portrayed as an anthropomorphic female rabbit created by Warner Bros. Pictures. She is generally depicted as Bugs Bunny's girlfriend. She first appeared in the 1996 film ''Space Jam''. Devel ...

, in which Lola eventually fell in love with Pepé. He also made a short cameo appearance with Penelope Pussycat in the Merrie Melodies segment "Cock of the Walk" sung by Foghorn Leghorn. He appeared in his own music video "Skunk Funk" in the 16th episode "That's My Baby". He also appeared again in another Merrie Melodies segment "You Like/I Like" sung by Mac and Tosh. His first appearance in the second season was in the second episode entitled "You've Got Hate Mail", reading a hate-filled email accidentally sent by

. He also had a short appearance in the Christmas special "A Christmas Carol" where he takes part in the song "Christmas Rules." In "Gribbler's Quest," Pepé Le Pew is shown to be in the same group therapy with Daffy Duck, Marvin the Martian, and Yosemite Sam. Pepé made a cameo in a

MetLife MetLife, Inc. is the Holding company, holding corporation for the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company (MLIC), better known as MetLife, and its affiliates. MetLife is among the largest global providers of insurance, Annuity (US financial produc ...

commercial in 2012 titled "Everyone". He is seen standing in the forest, then sees his love interest Penelope Pussycat riding on the back of

Battle Cat Cringer is a fictional large cat in the ''Masters of the Universe'' franchise. He has green and orange striped fur, similar to that of a tiger (although his species is not truly known), and is Prince Adam’s feline companion. Whenever Adam tr ...

with

He-Man He-Man is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the sword and planet ''Masters of the Universe'' franchise, which includes a toy line, several animated television series, comic books and a feature film. He-Man is characterized by ...

, and immediately hops after her. Pepé appeared in '' Looney Tunes: Rabbits Run'', voiced again by Jeff Bergman, as the head of a major

perfumery Perfume (, ; french: parfum) is a mixture of fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agreeable scent. The ...

for whom Lola wants to create a signature scent. Pepé also appeared in ''

New Looney Tunes ''New Looney Tunes'', originally titled ''Wabbit: A Looney Tunes Production'' in the US and ''Bugs!'' in some markets for its first season, is an American animated television series from Warner Bros. Animation based on the characters from ''Loon ...

'' (formerly called ''Wabbit''), voiced by

Eric Bauza Eric Bauza (born December 7, 1979) is a Canadian-American voice actor and comedian. His most-known roles include Stimpy on '' Ren and Stimpy "Adult Party Cartoon"'', Foop on ''The Fairly OddParents'' and its reboot '' Fairly Odder'', Thunderbolt ...

, in the role of a

James Bond The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional Secret Intelligence Service, British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 19 ...

-like

secret agent Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tangibl ...

. Pepé makes a cameo in the ''

Looney Tunes Cartoons ''Looney Tunes Cartoons'' is an American animated television series developed by Peter Browngardt and produced by Warner Bros. Animation, based on the characters from ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies''. The series made its worldwide de ...

'' episode "Happy Birthday Bugs Bunny!". The character was removed in the Annecy Festival 60th-anniversary version of the episode. He made a cameo appearance in the ''

'' reboot's second season episode "Yakko Amakko". The character appeared in the video games '' The Bugs Bunny Birthday Blowout'', '' Bugs Bunny Rabbit Rampage'', ''

'', '' Bugs Bunny: Crazy Castle 3'', ''Bugs Bunny: Crazy Castle 4'', '' Looney Tunes: Back in Action'', '' Looney Tunes: Acme Arsenal'', and ''Looney Tunes: World of Mayhem''.

Criticism

The character's antics have been criticized due to his antics being perceived as normalizing

rape culture Rape culture is a setting, studied by several sociological theories, in which rape is pervasive and normalized due to societal attitudes about gender and sexuality. Behaviors commonly associated with rape culture include victim blaming, slut- ...

, and perpetuating stereotypes of French culture. Amber E. George, in her 2017 essay "Pride or Prejudice? Exploring Issues of Queerness, Speciesism, and Disability in Warner Bros. Looney Tunes", describes Pepé's actions towards Penelope Pussycat as " sexual harassment,

stalking Stalking is unwanted and/or repeated surveillance by an individual or group toward another person. Stalking behaviors are interrelated to harassment and intimidation and may include following the victim in person or monitoring them. The ter ...

, and

abuse Abuse is the improper usage or treatment of a thing, often to unfairly or improperly gain benefit. Abuse can come in many forms, such as: physical or verbal maltreatment, injury, assault, violation, rape, unjust practices, crimes, or other t ...

" and noted that Pepé's qualities mock the French people and their culture. In a 2021 column for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', Charles M. Blow wrote that Pepé normalized rape culture. Linda Jones Clough, the daughter of Pepé's creator, says she does not think anyone would watch Pepé cartoons and be inspired to rape someone, but she saw the choice to give him a break for a while as an appropriate decision. Clough also suggested something that reflected her father's vision, to write him as a job-seeker who keeps getting rejected, but changes up his routine thinking he is perfect. Gabriel Iglesias, voice of

Speedy Gonzales Speedy Gonzales is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of cartoons. He is portrayed as "The Fastest Mouse in all Mexico" with his major traits being the ability to run extremely fast ...

in ''Space Jam: A New Legacy'', said that he could not say that he ever saw the character in a negative light and that growing up watching the original cartoons, he said that it was just from a different time. At the

Academy Museum of Motion Pictures The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures is a museum in Los Angeles, California constructed by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), which is devoted to the history, science, and cultural impact of the film industry. It is the f ...

, a slideshow named "Woman in U.S. Animation" shows cartoons that shows "imagery that implies sexual assault", including Pepé Le Pew. In March 2021, as a result of controversy surrounding the character, Pepé Le Pew was reported to be removed from modern Warner Bros. projects until further notice, starting with '' Space Jam: A New Legacy''. However, the character has been seen in later projects.

Mark Evanier Mark Stephen Evanier (; born March 2, 1952) is an American comic book and television writer, known for his work on the animated TV series '' Garfield and Friends'' and on the comic book '' Groo the Wanderer''. He is also known for his columns and ...

observed that even Pepé's co-creator Maltese "wasn't (...) too fond of him", and reported Maltese's claim that later Pepé cartoons were the result of the success of the first one.Skunked!
by

, at NewsFromME.com; published March 9, 2021; retrieved March 11, 2021

Potential feature film adaptation

In October 2010, it was reported that

Mike Myers Michael John Myers Order of Canada, OC (born May 25, 1963) is a Canadian actor, comedian, screenwriter, and producer. His accolades include seven MTV Movie & TV Awards, MTV Awards, a Primetime Emmy Awards, Primetime Emmy Award, and a Screen Acto ...

would voice Pepé Le Pew in a feature-length live-action/animated film based on the character, although no information about this project has surfaced since. In July 2016, it was revealed at

San Diego Comic-Con 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 ...

that Max Landis was writing a fully-animated Pepé Le Pew feature film for Warner Bros. There has been no new information since then due to sexual assault allegations against Landis in 2017, and a report that the character has not yet been planned to appear in future Warner Bros. productions leaves the feature film in doubt.

In popular culture

Pepé Le Pew was referenced in the song "

Beeswax Beeswax (''cera alba'') is a natural wax produced by honey bees of the genus ''Apis''. The wax is formed into scales by eight wax-producing glands in the abdominal segments of worker bees, which discard it in or at the hive. The hive workers ...

" by popular American rock band

Nirvana ( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lamp Richard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colombo. ...

. On April 3, 2021, an SNL cold opening aired called "Oops, You Did It Again" (a pun on the

Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the "Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...

song " Oops!... I Did It Again"), which stars celebrities acting as controversial figures including

Kate McKinnon Kate McKinnon Berthold (born January 6, 1984) is an American actress, comedian, and writer. She is known for her character work and celebrity impressions on the sketch comedy series '' Saturday Night Live'' (2012–2022), of which she was a ca ...

playing a cigar smoking Le Pew.

Voice actors

(1945–1989) * Gilbert Mack (

Golden Records Golden Records was a Simon & Schuster record label based in New York City. It was conceived and founded in 1948 by the Grammy Award-winning children's music producer, Arthur Shimkin, then a new recruit in the S&S business department. Shimkin ...

records, ''Bugs Bunny Songfest'') *

(''Bugs Bunny's 50th Birthday Spectacular'', ''Bugs Bunny's Lunar Tunes'',

Boomerang A boomerang () is a thrown tool, typically constructed with aerofoil sections and designed to spin about an axis perpendicular to the direction of its flight. A returning boomerang is designed to return to the thrower, while a non-returning b ...

bumper, ''

'' (season 2), '' Looney Tunes: Rabbits Run'') *

Noel Blanc Noel Barton Blanc (born October 19, 1938) is an American commercial producer and retired voice actor. He is the son of the late cartoon voice actor, Mel Blanc. Early life and career Blanc was born on October 19, 1938 in Los Angeles, Californ ...

(''You Rang?'' answering machine messages) *

(''

'', '' Looney Tunes River Ride'', '' The Toonite Show Starring Bugs Bunny'', ''Have Yourself a Looney Tunes Christmas'', '' Carrotblanca'', ''

The Sylvester and Tweety Mysteries ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in E ...

'', ''Bugs & Friends Sing Elvis'', MCI commercials, ''Bugs Bunny's Learning Adventures'', ''The Royal Mallard'') * Keith Scott ('' Spectacular Light and Sound Show Illuminanza'', ''The Looney Tunes Radio Show'', ''Looney Rock'')"Keith Scott-"The One-Man Crowd""
Retrieved October 1, 2020. *

(''

'') *

('' Tweety's High Flying Adventure'', ''The Looney Tunes Kwazy Christmas'', ''

'',

commercial,

TomTom TomTom N.V. is a Dutch multinational developer and creator of location technology and consumer electronics. Founded in 1991 and headquartered in Amsterdam, TomTom released its first generation of satellite navigation devices to market in 2004 ...

''Looney Tunes'' GPS) *

Billy West William Richard Werstine (born April 16, 1952), known professionally as Billy West, is an American voice actor. His voice roles include Bugs Bunny in the 1996 film ''Space Jam'' and several subsequent projects, the title characters of ''Doug'' ...

(''

Looney Tunes Racing ''Looney Tunes Racing'' is a kart racing video game released for the PlayStation and Game Boy Color and published by Infogrames. It was released in 2000 in North America and in 2001 in Europe. Gameplay ''Looney Tunes Racing'' features different ...

'', '' Looney Tunes: Space Race'', '' Looney Tunes: Back in Action – The Video Game'') *

(''

'') *

('' Looney Tunes: Back in Action'') *

(''A Looney Tunes Sing-A-Long Christmas'') *

(''

'' (season 1)) *

Kevin Shinick Kevin Thomas Shinick ( ; born March 19, 1969) is an American writer, producer, director and actor, as well as a comic book creator. Shinick received an Emmy award for his work on the stop motion animated series ''Robot Chicken'', and an Emmy nom ...

('' Mad'') *

(''

'', ''Looney Tunes: World of Mayhem'',

Converse Converse may refer to: Mathematics and logic * Converse (logic), the result of reversing the two parts of a definite or implicational statement ** Converse implication, the converse of a material implication ** Converse nonimplication, a logical ...

commercials, ''

'', '' Space Jam: A New Legacy'' (deleted scene), '' Animaniacs'')

Filmography

;Shorts (1945–1962): All 18 shorts directed by

unless otherwise indicated. # ''

'' (1945) (only appearance and mention of Pepé Le Pew's wife) # ''

'' (1946) (brief appearance; the skunk in this short may or may not be Pepé) # '' Scent-imental Over You'' (1947) (only time Pepé chases a dog instead of a cat) # '' Odor of the Day'' (1948) (directed by Arthur Davis) # ''

'' (1949) (

Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film The Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film is an award given by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) as part of the annual Academy Awards, or Oscars, since the 5th Academy Awards (with different names), covering the year ...

) # '' Scent-imental Romeo'' (1951) # '' Little Beau Pepé'' (1952) # '' Wild Over You'' (1953) # ''

'' (1954) (cameo in a Sylvester and Tweety cartoon; directed by

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 ' ...

) # ''

The Cats Bah ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'' (1954) # '' Past Perfumance'' (1955) # '' Two Scent's Worth'' (1955) # '' Heaven Scent'' (1956) # '' Touché and Go'' (1957) # '' Really Scent'' (1959) (directed by

Abe Levitow Abraham Levitow (July 2, 1922 – May 8, 1975) was an American animator who worked at Warner Bros. Cartoons, UPA and MGM Animation/Visual Arts. He is best known for his work under Chuck Jones' direction. Career Levitow was born in Los Angele ...

with Jones' animation unit) # '' Who Scent You?'' (1960) # '' A Scent of the Matterhorn'' (1961) (credited as M. Charl Jones) # '' Louvre Come Back to Me!'' (1962)

Notes

References

Bibliography

External links

LooneyTunes.com
*All abou
Pepé Le Pew
on

Official Website {{DEFAULTSORT:Pepe Le Pew Film characters introduced in 1945 Fictional anthropomorphic characters Fictional French people Looney Tunes characters Fictional skunks Ethnic humour Male characters in animation Film controversies Obscenity controversies in animation Obscenity controversies in film Anthropomorphic mammals

Premise

Settings

Narcissism

Reversals

Variations

Production

Cameo appearances

Later appearances

Criticism

Potential feature film adaptation

In popular culture

Voice actors

Filmography

See also

Notes

References

Bibliography

External links