Jon Arbuckle
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Jonathan Q. "Jon" Arbuckle is a fictional character from the Garfield comic strips and animated cartoons drawn and written by Jim Davis. Jon is the owner of Garfield and Odie, a total nerd, and a clumsy individual. He is the primary fodder and conversation partner to Garfield and is often the butt of his jokes.
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[edit] History
His full name has been revealed as Jonathan Q. Arbuckle (the "Q" might stand for "Quack!") in a Christmas strip. His birthday has been revealed to be July 28, 1951 (the same month and day as that of Jim Davis). It is rumored that Jon is based on a former member of the Garfield staff, Brian Strater, art director for merchandising in the early 1980's. While this information is unverified by Davis or Strater, the resemblance is uncanny [1]. Jon tells Garfield that he is 29 years old in December 23, 1980 (he makes a joke that he would be 30, but he was sick a year). This would make Jon's birthdate July 28, 1951, and his current age 56 years old (however, like most characters in comic strips and animated cartoons, Jon never seems to age). It has also been shown in the animated show Garfield and Friends that Jon has an ancestor from Italy, whose name was Tony Arbuckli, which shows that Jon is either Italian or partially Italian. In addition, several episodes of the show suggested that Jon and his pets live in Muncie, Indiana, which is also where Jim Davis is based. Jon is known to wear contact lenses in the strip. His favorite musicstyle is Polka, and he plays the accordion.
[edit] Dating
He is extremely pathetic in the world of dating and coolness. He is constantly striking out when trying to get dates with women, perhaps due to his ridiculous pick-up lines, some of which border on sexual harassment (said to a woman in the grocery store: "You must be today's special, because you're making me hungry!") or due to his loud and flashy outfits, as well as extolling the virtues of stamp collecting. His biggest crush is Dr. Liz Wilson, Garfield and Odie's vet, who has gone out with him a few times, though the dates are usually unsuccessful. However, after finally being able to get a date with his other long-time crush Ellen (who was suffering from amnesia and forgot who Jon was), he saw Liz at the same restaurant with another man. After expressing the depths of his feelings for Liz, she responded that she cared for Jon also, and the two seem to finally be a couple (for now). Previously, Jon has had a couple of very rare successes with women, with Owooda in the TV special Garfield in Paradise and with Mona (sort of) in the TV special Garfield Gets a Life.
[edit] Career
He makes his living as a cartoonist. This reference has not been seen in the comic strip since its early days, but Garfield and Friends does show him several times in his job as a cartoonist. Jon manages to make enough money to keep Garfield well fed – no easy feat. Often, Jon, as well as Garfield, gets bored, and comes up with "fun" ways to cure boredom (such as buying new socks, clipping his toenails, or playing "Guess the Burp" with Garfield). Jon yells his famous catchphrase "GARFIELD!", whenever he's angry and annoyed at Garfield.
[edit] Other media
Jon Arbuckle was voiced by Thom Huge in Garfield and Friends and several animated television specials. Breckin Meyer portrayed the role of Jon Arbuckle in the live-action films.
| Garfield |
|---|
| Characters |
| Garfield | Jon Arbuckle | Odie | List of Garfield characters |
| Television specials |
| A Garfield Christmas | Garfield Gets a Life | Garfield Goes Hollywood | Garfield in Paradise | Garfield in the Rough | Garfield on the Town | Garfield's Babes and Bullets | Garfield's Feline Fantasies | Garfield's Halloween Adventure | Garfield's Thanksgiving | Garfield: His 9 Lives | Here Comes Garfield |
| Video games |
| Garfield: Big Fat Hairy Deal | Garfield: A Winter's Tail | Garfield: A Week of Garfield | Garfield Labyrinth | Garfield: Caught in the Act | Garfield: The Search for Pooky | Garfield & His Nine Lives | Garfield Bound for Home |
| Films |
| Garfield | Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties |
| Other media |
| Am I Cool or What? | Garfield As Himself | Garfield and Friends | List of Garfield and Friends episodes | Garfield's Holiday Celebrations |
| Other |
| Jim Davis | U.S. Acres |
