Mayor (The Nightmare Before Christmas)
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The Mayor (known by no other name) is a fictional character who appears in the film The Nightmare Before Christmas. He is voiced by Glenn Shadix.
[edit] Description and Role in the story
He is the mayor of Halloween Town (as his title suggests), and is depicted as a short, fat man wearing an impossibly tall top hat, a spider bolo tie, and a ribbon of office that says "Mayor" on it. His cone-shaped head has two faces. One face is flesh-colored, rosy-cheeked, and smiling; the other face is pale, white, and frowning. Depending on the Mayor's mood, his head will swivel around to display the appropriate face with a loud clicking sound; the other face, when not in use, has its eyes closed and is considered dormant. This split personality is likely inspired by Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, and is a literal interpretation of the phrase "two-faced politicians".
Despite his office, the Mayor apparently has very little actual authority in the day-to-day running of the town, especially in planning for Halloween. This is attested when he arrives at Jack Skellington's house to discuss some plans with him, not knowing that Jack is not home. When Jack does not answer, the Mayor quickly gets hysterical and yells, more to himself than anyone, "Jack, please, I'm only an elected official! I can't make decisions by myself!". Nonetheless, the Mayor seems to enjoy his position. He apparently owns the only automobile in town; a hearse-like car called the "Mayor-mobile" that is equipped with a loudspeaker for making announcements and a black, cat-shaped hood ornament that sounds a siren when its tail is cranked.
The Mayor supports Jack and helps him in his quest to bring his own version of Christmas to the world, despite his secret misgivings about it. When Jack is apparently killed by the US Army, the Mayor openly admits he had a bad feeling about "this Christmas thing," and sorrowfully goes off in his Mayor-mobile to make the announcement throughout Halloween Town and the surrounding countryside that "the king of Halloween has been blown to smithereens". Later he is told by Lock, Shock, and Barrel that Jack is in fact alive, and comes to retrieve him and Sally after Oogie Boogie has been defeated.
[edit] Video games
In Kingdom Hearts, the Mayor is voiced by Jeff Bennett, but Shadix reprises his role in Kingdom Hearts II. His Japanese voice actor is Tōru Ōhira. His role in both games is fairly minor. In the first game, he helps Jack and Sora find an ingredient they need for the heart Doctor Finklestein is making. In the second game, he tries to stop two Heartless outbreaks by yelling at the Heartless through his megaphone, but has no success.
In The Nightmare Before Christmas: Oogie's Revenge, the Mayor is seen in the opening cutscene, congratulating Jack on another "horrible" Halloween. He is later seen in the level "Mayor's Madhouse", where Jack rescues him from a cage hanging from the roof of his house. While Jack goes to Christmas Town, the Mayor frees the other holiday leaders. Glenn Shadix reprises his role of the Mayor of Halloween Town.
