List of Who Framed Roger Rabbit characters
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Contents |
[edit] Eddie Valiant
Edward "Eddie" Valiant is a Californian private investigator, the protagonist of the film. He looks like a composite of Peter Falk of TV's Columbo and film private eye Phillip Marlowe, wearing shiny brown suit and beat-up fedora under a craggy face.
In Who Censored Roger Rabbit?, Eddie Valiant is a fictional Californian private detective hired by comic-book star Roger Rabbit to investigate the workings of Roger's corrupt employers, the DeGreasey Brothers. When Roger is found dead, and his final words having been censored out, Valiant is soon sent on the case of tracking Rogers' murderers. This first incarnation of Eddie is a heavy smoker, has a beard and is active when the book is set (1981), rather than the later, more accepted incarnation of the character.
The 1988 film gave more insight into the character of Eddie Valiant, who was played by Bob Hoskins. Eddie Valiant and his brother Theodore "Teddy" Valiant were sons of a circus clown (shown by the pictures on their desk), who joined the police force and eventually started their own private investigation service, Valiant and Valiant, in 1934, working largely on Toon cases, such as the kidnapping of Donald Duck's nephews in 1937 or clearing Goofy of accusations of espionage in 1940, both seen as newspaper clippings in Valiant's office. However, when Teddy was killed by the then unknown toon form of Judge Doom in 1942, Eddie turned to the bottle, and Valiant disappeared from the public eye. This is also the explanation of why Eddie shows hatred towards toons.
In 1947, R.K. Maroon of Maroon Cartoons paid Valiant to photograph Jessica Rabbit, Roger's wife, quite literally "playing pattycake" with Marvin Acme, owner of Toontown and founder of the Acme Corporation. When Acme is murdered and Roger becomes the prime suspect of the case, Valiant teams up with Roger to find the killer, and soon finds not only Acme's murderer, but the murderer of his own brother. After defeating Doom at Acme Warehouse, Eddie then abandoned his hatred of toons.
In the graphic novel of the film published in 1989 by Marvel Comics, Valiant is the narrator of the story, telling the film through his eyes and in the style of a detective story.
According to Roger Rabbit: The Resurrection of Doom, Valiant tends to consume jellybeans quite a bit as he gave up drinking.
In the sub-sequel to the film, Who P-P-P-Plugged Roger Rabbit?, Valiant has vowed to no longer take any toon cases, but is forced to do so when Baby Herman, Roger Rabbit's co-star, is found dead.
[edit] Inspiration
Valiant's hard-boiled attitude seems to derive from Dick Tracy or other such detectives. In the 1988 film, Valiant was made to portray the film noir detective character usually found in Humphrey Bogart or Alan Ladd, while maintaining the Dick Tracy attitude.
Although little or nothing is heard about the methods employed by Eddie's brother, the items on Teddy's side of the desk in shots of the Valiant and Valiant office suggest that Teddy was based more on Sherlock Holmes, judging by the tobacco pipe and magnifying glass on his desk.
[edit] Roger Rabbit
Roger Rabbit is the titular anthropomorphic rabbit of the film, a frantic over-anxious type who often stutters while screaming. The character first appeared in the book, Who Censored Roger Rabbit? by Gary K. Wolf, which was adapted into the 1988 Academy-Award winning film, Who Framed Roger Rabbit. Mixing both live action and animation to create a believable "toon" universe, Disney studios set up an animation studio in Camden Town, London, whilst the live action was shot at Elstree film studios. Both the animation and live action were then composited by ILM fx studios in LA. In the book, Roger is a sidekick in a popular comic strip called "Baby Herman", his murder is being investigated by a detective named Eddie Valiant and a slowly evaporating stunt doppelganger of himself that he created hours before being shot. In the film version, he is re-envisioned as a 1940's character in animated cartoons and a resident of the fictional Los Angeles enclave, Toontown. He is framed for a murder and seeks out Valiant to help clear his name. In the film, the voice of Roger is performed by comedian Charles Fleischer, who was known for electing to wear an actual rabbit costume on the set to get into the role. One of his famous traits is his voice, "P-b-b-b-b-bleeeease!". He is a white clownish rabbit with a gap between his front teeth, a voice that resonates of Huntz Hall in "The Bowery Boys", a blue Porky Pig-like bowtie with yellow polka dots, a red-haired Bugs Bunny-like head with blue eyes, a pink nose and round-tipped ears, red Goofy-like pants with a green patch behind and yellow Mickey Mouse-like gloves.
Roger also starred in a comic book series from April 1990 to September 1991 and a spin-off series called Roger Rabbit's Toontown, published from June to October 1991, which featured Roger in the first story and supporting characters like Jessica Rabbit (Roger's voluptuous humanoid wife), Baby Herman (his co-star in Maroon Cartoons), Benny the Cab (Roger's taxicab friend), and The Weasels (Roger's enemies).
In a 1989 ABC special, Mickey Mouse is punished by a sorcerer for his conceited, "everybody loves me" attitude with a curse which results in no-one knowing who he is. Mickey must now wander the real world as an unknown, until he finally learns humility. After the curse is lifted, Roger Rabbit rediscovers Mickey, and is hailed as a hero.
Disney and Amblin Entertainment attempted to resurrect Roger for a sequel. However, a preliminary budget was deemed too large and the film never got past the script stage. Several 3D CGI tests and a 3D CGI rendering of Roger were completed, however, despite the fact that no actual footage was actually shot or completed. However, Frank Marshall, the producer of the first film, told MTV in late 2007 that he would be open to any plans to bring the Roger sequel back in the works[citation needed].
Roger Rabbit was originally going to be the star of the animated series now known as Bonkers. However, because of copyright conflicts between Amblin and Disney, the show was forced to create original characters.
[edit] Legacy
Roger Rabbit made his footprints and handprints with his signature phrase "P-p-p-p-lease" in front of the Chinese theatre at Disney's Hollywood Studios on its opening day along with Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Minnie Mouse, and Goofy.
Roger is also the inspiration for a popular dance move in the early 1990s, called "the Roger Rabbit" due to the floppy movements of the character.
Roger Rabbit is a popular character at Disneyland and Tokyo Disneyland , both of which contain identical versions of the Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin attraction, which opened in 1994 in a new Toon Town section of the park, inspired by the Who Framed Roger Rabbit film and included shops, character houses, and rides. As part of the ride queue, passengers walk through the dark streets of Toon Town and see the shadows of Jessica and the Weasels walk by windows and hear their plot to kidnap her. On this entirely dark-light ride, you board Lenny the Cab, Benny’s cousin, and race through streets, back alleys, and buildings. Roger still appears at Tokyo Disneyland as a meetable character as well.
However, he's hardly heard of at Walt Disney World, Disneyland Resort Paris and Hong Kong Disneyland.
[edit] Jessica Rabbit
Jessica Rabbit is Roger's human cartoon wife in the book and movie. In the book, she was an amoral, up-and-coming star and former comic character, over whom her estranged husband, comic strip star Roger Rabbit, obsessed. She is re-imagined in the film as a sultry, but moral, cartoon singer at a Los Angeles supper club called The Ink and Paint Club. Here, she is one of several suspects in the framing of her husband, who is a famous cartoon star. She is voiced by Kathleen Turner. Amy Irving was cast to sing Peggy Lee's "Why Don't You Do Right" for Jessica's first scene in the movie. She was based on Veronica Lake, and even fashioned her famous "Peek-A-Boo" hairstyle. Jessica is one of the most famous sex symbols on animated screen.[1]
She claims to Eddie Valiant, "I'm not bad, I'm just drawn that way." When asked why she loves Roger, she says, "He makes me laugh."
After the film, Jessica also appeared in the Roger Rabbit/Baby Herman shorts Tummy Trouble as a nurse, Roller Coaster Rabbit as a damsel in distress, and Trail Mix-Up as a park ranger. In Tummy Trouble and Roller Coaster Rabbit she made no impression, but in Trail Mix-Up Roger fantasizes over her, calling her a 'babe in the woods' and panting like a dog. She also appeared frequently in the Roger Rabbit comic book series, and she had her own feature in most issues of Roger Rabbit's Toontown such as "Beauty Parlor Bedlam," where she comes face to face with female weasel counterpart, Winnie.
With the success of the film and upon the opening of Disney's MGM Studios on May 1, 1989,[1] the film's characters featured prominently in the company. After taking the Backlot Tram Tour, various props decorated the streets including two different photo opportunities with Jessica: a glittery cardboard cutout and "The Loony Bin" photo shop which allowed you to take pictures in costume standing next to an actual cartoon drawing of characters from the film. There was also a plethora of merchandise including Jessica Rabbit rub-on stickers called "pressers".[citation needed]
Disagreements between the Disney Company, Amblin Entertainment and Gary Wolf (jointly owning rights to the characters) made it difficult for any merchandise or projects to get off the ground and caused the halt of the short film, Hare in My Soup, and the next film Who Discovered Roger Rabbit.[2] In this prequel, Roger meets his bride-to-be, Jessica Krupnick. A completed score by Alan Silvestri is said to exist as well as test footage and computer generated versions of the characters. Also cancelled was an animated TV series, which was replaced by a show called Bonkers about a feline cop. Many park attractions never got out of development, such as Roger Rabbit's Hollywood.[3]
In 2000, Disney - MGM Studios stopped using any character memorabilia in the park, though some props are still present. Across from the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular show, a Maroon Cartoon sign with Roger, Jessica, and Baby Herman still remains.[citation needed]
[edit] Jessica Rabbit Store
The Jessica Rabbit Store, entitled Jessica's, was once part of Pleasure Island, Disney’s nightclub attraction and shopping area. The store featured nothing but Jessica Rabbit merchandise, from her own signature nightgowns and jewelry to shower curtains and beach towels. A giant two-sided neon Jessica sign with sequined dress and swinging leg sat atop the light purple colored building. A floor to ceiling windowed corner of the store allowed light to shine in during the day. Another corner of the store had a large stage door with Jessica’s name on it. The inside was art deco in style and was very similar to designs used in the films Ink and Paint Club scene. There was a cardboard cutout of Jessica reclining above the cash register area and another of Jessica, Roger, and Benny the Cab. Cast members wore regular uniforms, and there were no special shopping bags or print material for the store other than mention in the Pleasure Island guide map where they invited people to visit. The store was abruptly closed some time in 1992. The large neon Jessica sign was relocated to another area of the park alongside a Pleasure Island Tonight! sign where it stayed for many years until it was removed in June of 2006. Tomart's Disneyana Magazine #66 featured a special article about the store complete with merchandise pictures and interior photos.
[edit] Jessica's appearance on the Car Toon Spin ride
Jessica can first be seen in the beginning tied up in the trunk of Smart Ass Weasel's car and then later with a giant mallet making her escape at the ride's end.
[edit] Judge Doom
Judge Doom is the main antagonist played by Christopher Lloyd in the film. He is the much-feared Judge of Toontown. Despite presiding over a city of Toons, Doom is totally without mirth and passes capital punishment on Toons who break the law, placing them in a chemical vat of turpentine, acetone and benzene (essentially oil, paint thinner, and film dissolver) which he dubs "The Dip". This concoction can dissolve Toons, killing them in such a manner that they stay dead. The Judge employs Toon henchmen (the "Toon Patrol") to assist him in hunting down Roger for the murder of Marvin Acme.
Doom wears a black ensemble which includes a trenchcoat, a fedora, gloves, and rimless yellow-tinted glasses; he also carries a pocketwatch. Doom appears to bear some resemblance to Roland Freisler, the notorious Nazi figure who was also a ruthless judge. The word "doom" descends from Old English "dom", meaning "judgement", making "Judge Doom" redundant, etymologically.
When the film first introduces Judge Doom, Lt. Santino confides to Eddie Valiant that Doom bought the election. Later, at the Terminal Bar, Doom uses the "Shave and a Haircut" trick to lure Roger out, then prepares to execute him. After a brief scuffle inside the bar, the Judge orders the weasels to capture Roger and Eddie Valiant. Roger realizes he's in trouble with Doom after him, and begs Eddie to hide him. When Eddie learns that studio head R.K. Maroon is connected to the plot to frame Roger, Eddie interrogates him, but Maroon pleads that he is "a dead man" if he confesses. Just as Maroon is about to spill everything, he is killed by an unseen gunman who nearly shoots Eddie as well.
Upon chasing the killer to Toontown, Eddie catches Jessica Rabbit, thinking she's the murderer, but Jessica reveals that Judge Doom was the one who killed Acme and Maroon. At the film's climax, Doom traps Eddie, Jessica, and Roger in the Acme Factory to explain his scheme: Erase Toontown from the map using a giant, mobile vat of dip linked to a high-pressure water cannon, and then build a freeway over it. Doom then plans to retire from being a judge and control all the profits from the new road system. Doom also reveals that he is the sole shareholder of the Cloverleaf corporation, and confesses that he bought the trolley car company for the sole purpose of putting it out of production. He then orders Jessica and Roger to be tied up and raised into the air via skyhook to be sprayed by the dip cannon.
Valiant distracts the weasels using hilarious antics to make them laugh themselves to death, then attempts to rescue Roger and Jessica when he is interrupted by Doom. The two men then square off, dueling with various ACME props. During the fight, Judge Doom is run over by a steamroller, but does not die as expected. As the steamroller crushes him, Doom's body is flattened into a flimsy paper-thin shape, revealing himself to be a Toon wearing an assortment of fake, but live props such as fake eyeballs, false teeth and a rubber mask in order to disguise his Toon body. After he reinflates, he shows his red toon eyes and talks in a high squeaky voice, and Eddie recognizes Doom as the bank robber in Toontown long ago who murdered his brother, Teddy Valiant, thus triggering his hatred towards Toons and explaining how Doom managed to buy the judicial election and the trolley car company.
Doom, with an evil grin, sprouts a cartoon anvil and an extendable toon buzzsaw from his hand, attempting to kill Eddie. In the end, Eddie proves to be too clever for the evil Toon, using his own dip concoction to dissolve him, leaving behind his human disguise. Doom melts and burns away screaming before he dies. A crowd of various Toons then surround his burned empty suit and melted face and wonder what kind of Toon he was. It hasn't been revealed what type of Toon he was, or if he was one specific type of Toon at all, but the Toons seem to agree that they don't need to know, and decide to live happily ever after when the will of Marvin Acme suddenly appears in Roger's possession, granting full ownership to the citizens of Toontown.
[edit] Graphic novel version
In the graphic novel Roger Rabbit: The Resurrection of Doom, it is explained that Doom was originally, a toon named Baron von Rotten, who took up the role of playing the antagonist in movies, until an accident in which Von Rotten suffers a concussion, and awakens believing he is a real villain. Von Rotten thus begins his crime career, robbing the First National Bank of Toon Town, then killing Theodore 'Teddy' Valiant by dropping a piano on his head, and spreading the stolen money all over the town in order to buy the election for Judge of Toon Town, assuming the new name of Judge Doom.
[edit] Powers and abilities
In his human guise, Doom uses his skull-headed swordstick and ACME products to fight Valiant. While in his toon form, he has evil red eyes and a squeaky voice, and is able to produce an arsenal of tools from his body which he can employ as weapons, including a buzzsaw and an anvil. He uses springs in his feet to jump far distances, and (like most toons) can survive anything but his own dip, which dissolves him to his death.
[edit] Baby Herman
Baby Herman is Roger's major co-star in the animated shorts in which they appear. Baby Herman's mother, Mrs. Herman (voiced by April Winchell) makes an appearance at the beginning of Who Framed Roger Rabbit and its spin-off short films, however, she is only shown from the waist down, but her arms are visible.
Herman and Roger Rabbit comprised an Abbott and Costello-like comedy team for the (equally fictitious) Maroon Cartoons studio in the 1940s. A typical Roger/Baby Herman cartoon consists of Roger being given responsibility for Baby Herman's well-being; Herman immediately begins crawling through a number of dangerous situations from which Roger must rescue him. In the process, Roger suffers extravagant injuries and humiliations reminiscent of those in classic Tex Avery cartoons while Baby Herman remains unscathed. For both book adaptations, Baby Herman was murdered, leaving behind a doppleganger for Eddie Valiant to help solve the crime.
In the film, Baby Herman's role was significantly downplayed. In one scene, he is tipping off Eddie about the whereabouts of Marvin Acme's will and is the first toon on the scene at the Acme Factory after Valiant's battle with Judge Doom.
Despite his name, "Baby Herman" is actually a middle-aged, cigar-smoking toon who happens to look like an infant. While filming "in character", he speaks baby talk in a typical baby's voice provided by April Winchell; off-camera, he has a loud, gravelly voice provided by Lou Hirsch. Animation director Richard Williams loved the character of "adult" Baby Herman so much that he animated all of the scenes of the character in the film.
[edit] Benny the Cab
Benny the Cab is a cab that services the Los Angeles of the film. He is voiced in all appearances by Charles Fleischer with a deep rumbling voice somewhere between Lord Buckley and Barry White. His license plate reads BENNY.
In the original story, Who Censored Roger Rabbit?. Benny was a Beetle and had a minor role as a trader in second-hand items. The character Nails from the 1992 film Cool World bears some resemblance to the description of this version of Benny.
The Walt Disney Company and Amblin Entertainment improved and expanded on Benny for the movie Who Framed Roger Rabbit. In the movie, Benny is an anthropomorphized colorful yellow Volkswagen Beetle-style taxi cab that takes Roger where he needs to go. Unlike most of the prominent supporting characters in the movie, Benny doesn't appear in the cartoon shorts (although an anthropomorphic ambulance that appears briefly in the Tummy Trouble short does have some resemblance to Benny). He does appear in the Roger Rabbit comic book and had his own feature once in the second issue of Roger Rabbit's Toontown. Benny also has made occasional appearances on the newer House of Mouse series as a guest.
At Disneyland, the attraction Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin has guests ride a spinning cabs made to resemble Benny.
[edit] Toon Patrol
 |
This section may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Please improve this article if you can (May 2008). |
The Toon Patrol is a group of anthropomorphic cartoon weasels that serve as henchmen to Judge Doom.
The Toon Patrol were the law officers of Toontown that Judge Doom hired to arrest Roger Rabbit for the murder of Marvin Acme. The weasels love to laugh at the misery of others, including each other, and love anything grim and dark. They, like every other toon character, are invincible to most physical bodily harm and are able to go without suffering any longterm physical damage except prolonged laughter, which is lethal to them.
The Toon Patrol's paddy wagon that is seen in the movie is a Dodge Humpback. Two of its most notable passengers to take a ride "downtown" include Benny the Cab and Eddie Valiant (in a deleted scene.) During the character designing, the weasels and their switchblades were modeled after the weasels in the 1949 cartoon Disney's The Wind in the Willows. The weasels make an appearance in the Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin ride at Disneyland Resort.
- Smart Ass (AKA Smart Guy or Smarty) (voiced by David Lander) - The leader of the weasels, very sarcastic and ranked a sergeant by Judge Doom. He has brown fur and wears a light pink double breasted zoot suit coat with a gold chain in the left pocket,a white dress shirt with a darkish pink tie with a jewel on it, a light pink zoot hat and a darkish pink band and spats on his feet. His weapon of choice is a revolver, though he is also seen threatening Eddie Valiant with a switchblade at the bar. Smart Ass is the straight-man of the group, possessing the most self control and the least "toonish" attitude, although he also enjoys a good laugh like his fellow weasels. He commits a malapropism almost every time he speaks, such as when he says that a tip on Roger's whereabouts has been "corrugated" (correlated) by several sources. Smart Ass is the third weasel to die, being kicked in the groin by Eddie Valiant after disagreeing with a song lyric and sent flying into the dip mixer on the Dip Machine.
- Greasy (voiced by Charles Fleischer) - The alleged runner-up for leader, and the most eager to fight of the weasels. Greasy is Puerto-Rican, having long greasy black hair and dark brown fur. Wearing a green zoot suit styled trench coat along with spectator shoes, green Zoot pants hiked up all the way to his chest partially obscuring a pink tie and a white dress shirt, also wearing a tall green zoot hat, he appropriately resembles a zoot suit gangster from the L.A. Zoot Suit Riots of the 1940s. Greasy wields a switchblade as his weapon of choice, although he is also seen with a semi-automatic pistol while investigating Eddie's office. Despite the fact that he mostly speaks English with a strong Spanish accent, he is only heard cursing in Spanish after he springs a bear trap in the top of Jessica Rabbit's dress and when Roger shoots through a storm drain into the Acme Factory, propelling him and Roger up towards the ceiling. He is the second-to-last weasel to die when he loses control of his laughter and throws himself out of the cab of the Dip Machine.
- Psycho (voiced by Charles Fleischer) - The most insane and mentally unstable of the group of weasels. He has a shrilling laugh and high-pitched voice. Psycho wears an unbuckled "Canadian Long Jacket" straitjacket. His muzzle is unnaturally white, suggesting that he has a pale complexion. He has blue eyes with yellow and white swirls characterizing his psychoticness. His fur is unkempt by the hairline, giving it a spiky appearance. His weapon of choice is a barbershop straight razor. He is the last weasel to die as a result of laughing to the point of losing his footing and dying while falling into the giant rotating brush of the Dip Machine. Although he was dead, he still proved a threat as his rising soul turned the already activated Dip Cannon back towards Roger and Jessica.
- Wheezy (voiced by June Foray) - The smoking weasel. Wheezy is the only weasel with blue fur, a slight deviation from his brown-furred compatriots. He is dressed in a wrinkled dress shirt, black vest, greyish-white bowler cap littered with cigarettes, loose black tie, and has long, nicotine stained fingernails. The cigarettes in his hat suggest that he is a chain-smoker. However, he is not the only smoker in the group, as Smart Ass can be seen puffing on a cigar during the first on-screen appearance of the group inside the Acme Factory. With his weapon of choice being a Tommy gun, he seems to bear the most resemblance to the typical mobster. He is the second weasel to die by a combination of laughter and too much smoking, the latter made evident by the voluminous amounts of smoke he coughs up. He also was reluctant to give up his soul as he is seen struggling to pull it back into his body, but to no avail.
- Stupid (voiced by Fred Newman) - The dumbest of the weasels. He wears a horizontally striped blue and white t-shirt, a red beanie with a propeller on top, and white tennis shoes that are constantly untied. He has a pigeon-toed stance, and his weapon of choice is a baseball bat with a nail through the top. Stupid is also the strongest of the weasels, and is used mainly for heavy lifting and hard labor. He is also overweight, while the other weasels are slim. Even though he possesses below-average intelligence, that does not mean he is incapable of speaking as he manages without effort one on-screen line. He is the first weasel to die as a result of losing control over his laughter.
- Slimy & Flasher (no voicework completed) - Two weasels that were eliminated from the final cut of the film, due to producers consenting to the idea that they would not be suitable for younger movie-goers. Slimy was a weasel who puked slime and carried a blackjack as a weapon. Flasher wore a dirty trenchcoat as his name implies, but did not carry a visible weapon. Both conceptual arts can be viewed on the second disk of the 15th anniversary DVD edition of Who Framed Roger Rabbit.
[edit] References
- ^ THE LAST MOVIE STAR from Entertainment Weekly.
- ^ Jim Hill : The Sad Tail ... I mean "Tale" ... of the stalled Roger Rabbit sequel
- ^ Jim Hill : Why For?
|
||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||
