DUMB CARTOON CHARACTERS

I thought I'd take a stab at answering three questions that come up in cartoonists' conversations. The first is, "How dumb should a cartoon character be?" 

The obvious answer is,"VERY dumb! The dumber the better!" That sounds right to me, but when you think about it, most dumb characters to date haven't been completely stupid. 

Okay,  I admit that Tex's dog in "Screwy Truant" comes close, and so does Beaky Buzzard...but I think I detect a few brain cells even in those characters.

Dumb characters aren't usually completely stupid. They're proud to be dumb. 

 

They're both eager and stupid. They can't wait to get out of bed in the morning and do dumb things. Maybe totally dumb is the wrong way to go...but I admit that nothing else is as funny.

I don't hear any comments so I'll move on to the second question..."Should dumb characters slouch?"

When you think about it, very few live action comedians slouch.

 In the main, they have pretty good posture.

Even the Python 'Gumbies" (above) don't slouch to much.

Classic dumb characters, the kind you see in one-panel print cartoons often slouch, but when you animate them...or in the case of live action, film them...giving them a slouch makes them appear lethargic and without goals. That can't be right.

No, in the main dumb characters shouldn't slouch. Er...okay, Beaky Buzzard slouched, and I don't have an answer for that.

The last question has to do with slouching when seated..."Are eager-stupid characters permitted to slouch when seated?" The answer to that is "Yes!" My proof for that is...well, they just are, that's all. It's my blog, and there's an end to it!

Space limits prevent me from addressing other pressing questions like..."How close should stupid characters stand when talking to each other?"

And "Do stupid people have equally stupid friends? Are they loners? Do they like to hang around intelligent foils?" These are important questions but we'll have to return to them another time.

DUMB ANIMATION CHARACTERS

Here's (above) the classic dumbell design favored by Tex Avery. It works great.

IMO Clampett's version of dumb is even better. He always adds some other trait to the stupidity. Like Clampett's Beaky Buzzard: he's dumb but he thinks he's smart.

That long, deliberately awkward neck allows for some great poses.

When humans try to do what Beaky does (above) it doesn't look right. The girl above looks pitiable rather than funny. 

According to the chart above, Beaky's "S" shaped torso is actually a deformity. It's called "Thoracic Kyphosis." 

This cat (above) from Clampett's "Kitty Kornered" has a different ailment: Lumbar Lordosis!

You could argue that Donald has a pear-shaped body because he's a duck, but what's Mickey's excuse? Lumbar Lordosis strikes again! Goofy appears to have Thoracic Kyphosis accompanied by Buckle Leg.

Knock kneed and bow legged characters abound in animation. Sometimes they walk almost normal then settle into their deformity when they relax in place.

Not all unusual alignments are problematic. Here (above) Tex's wolf shows a waist that's situated high, immediately under his rib cage. It works...in fact it looks good.

Here's (above) proof that Tex didn't make up the rib cage waist. Some people bend that way.