Little Audrey
Encyclopedia
Little Audrey is a fictional character
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...

, appearing in Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...

' Famous Studios
Famous Studios
Famous Studios was the animation division of the film studio Paramount Pictures from 1942 to 1967. Famous was founded as a successor company to Fleischer Studios, after Paramount acquired the aforementioned studio and ousted its founders, Max and Dave Fleischer, in 1941...

 cartoons from 1947 to 1958. She is considered a variation of the better-known Little Lulu
Little Lulu
"Little Lulu" is the nickname for Lulu Moppett, a comic strip character created in the mid-1930s by Marjorie Henderson Buell. The character debuted in The Saturday Evening Post on February 23, 1935 in a single panel, appearing as a flower girl at a wedding and strewing the aisle with banana peels...

, devised after Paramount decided not to renew the license on Marjorie Henderson Buell's comic strip character. Despite some superficial similarities between the two characters, the Famous animators were at pains to design Audrey in contrast to Lulu, adopting an entirely different color scheme and employing the stylistic conventions common to Famous Studios' later '40s repertoire, as opposed to Buell's individualistic rendering of Little Lulu. Little Audrey was voiced by Mae Questel
Mae Questel
Mae Questel was an American actress and vocal artist best known for providing the voices for the animated characters, Betty Boop and Olive Oyl. She began in vaudeville, and played occasional small roles in films and television later in her career, most notably the role of Aunt Bethany in 1989's...

, who had also voiced Little Lulu
Little Lulu
"Little Lulu" is the nickname for Lulu Moppett, a comic strip character created in the mid-1930s by Marjorie Henderson Buell. The character debuted in The Saturday Evening Post on February 23, 1935 in a single panel, appearing as a flower girl at a wedding and strewing the aisle with banana peels...

, as well as most of Paramount's other major female cartoon characters including Betty Boop
Betty Boop
Betty Boop is an animated cartoon character created by Max Fleischer, with help from animators including Grim Natwick. She originally appeared in the Talkartoon and Betty Boop film series, which were produced by Fleischer Studios and released by Paramount Pictures. She has also been featured in...

 and Olive Oyl
Olive Oyl
Olive Oyl is a cartoon character created by Elzie Crisler Segar in 1919 for his comic strip Thimble Theatre. The strip was later renamed Popeye after the sailor character that became the most popular member of the cast; however Olive Oyl was a main character for 10 years before Popeye's 1929...

.

Animated cartoons

According to most sources, Audrey first appeared in the Noveltoon Santa's Surprise (1947), where she was the most prominent member of a multicultural child cast, and was briefly seen in the January 1948 Popeye
Popeye
Popeye the Sailor is a cartoon fictional character created by Elzie Crisler Segar, who has appeared in comic strips and animated cartoons in the cinema as well as on television. He first appeared in the daily King Features comic strip Thimble Theatre on January 17, 1929...

cartoon Olive Oyl for President
Olive Oyl for President
Olive Oyl for President is a 1948 entry in the Popeye the Sailor animated short subject series, produced by Famous Studios and released on January 30, 1948 by Paramount Pictures...

. Her first starring vehicle was the Noveltoons short Butterscotch and Soda, released July 16, 1948. In common with many animated shorts of the period, child-like fantasy played an important role in Audrey's early cartoons, which often used dream sequences as the basis of the storylines. In this way, Audrey could ride the clouds with Mother Goose (Goofy Goofy Gander, 1950), attend a wedding in Cakeland (Tarts and Flowers, also 1950), or face an underwater tribunal of outraged catfish (The Seapreme Court, 1954). Slapstick humor crept into the series with the release of Surf Bored (1953), which pitted the precocious little girl against a hulking but ultimately brainless life guard. A total of sixteen Noveltoons starring Audrey were produced for theatrical release sets in 1900s, several of which were re-packaged for television from the late 50s on.

She was the only character in the Noveltoons series to have their own theme song with vocals ("Little Audrey Says", by Winston Sharples
Winston Sharples
Winston Singleton Sharples was a composer known for his work with animated short subjects, especially those created by the animation department at Paramount Pictures...

 and Buddy Kaye). Some other characters (and certain one-shots) in the series had their own themes, but were entirely instrumental. Two other Noveltoons spin-offs, Casper the Friendly Ghost
Casper the Friendly Ghost
Casper the Friendly Ghost is the protagonist of the Famous Studios theatrical animated cartoon series of the same name. As his name indicates, he is a ghost, but is quite personable...

and Herman and Katnip
Herman and Katnip
Herman and Katnip are a duo of cartoon characters . From 1944 to September 1950, Herman appeared without Katnip, who made his first appearance in November 1950 with Mice Meeting You. The two characters continued to star in animated cartoons by Famous Studios until 1959...

had their own vocal themes, but only after leaving the Noveltoons series.

Television era

The pre-October 1950 Little Audrey Noveltoons were sold to television distributor U.M.&M. T.V. Corp.
U.M.&M. T.V. Corp.
U.M.&M. T.V. Corp. is best known as the original purchaser of Paramount Pictures' pre-October 1950 shorts and cartoons...

 in 1956. Only two Little Audrey cartoons were syndicated with U.M.&M. titles. National Telefilm Associates
National Telefilm Associates
National Telefilm Associates was an independent distribution company that handled reissues of American film libraries, including much of Paramount Pictures' animated and short-subjects library.-History:...

 completed the refilming of the titles to the other Little Audrey cartoons that were sold to U.M.&M. The post-September 1950 cartoons would be sold to Harvey Comics
Harvey Comics
Harvey Comics was an American comic book publisher, founded in New York City by Alfred Harvey in 1941, after buying out the small publisher Brookwood Publications. His brothers Robert B...

, when they acquired the rights to the character in 1959. Some prints of Little Audrey cartoons survive with their Paramount "spinning star" openings intact.

Meanwhile, Olive Oyl for President would be sold along with the rest of the Popeye series to Associated Artists Productions
Associated Artists Productions
Associated Artists Productions was a distributor of theatrical feature films and short subjects for television. It existed from 1953 to 1958. It was later folded into United Artists. The former a.a.p. library was later owned by MGM/UA Entertainment and then Turner Entertainment. Turner continues...

. In fact, the cartoon's closing music would be used as the theme for the company's closing logo from the Popeye cartoons originally released in Technicolor
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...

, just as the cartoon's opening theme (which actually was on most color releases from 1943 to early 1948) would be used on the a.a.p. opening logo for these cartoons.

Comic strip

Animation historian Jerry Beck
Jerry Beck
Jerry Beck is a well-known animation historian, with ten books and numerous articles to his credit. He is also an animation producer, an industry consultant to Warner Bros., and has been an executive with Nickelodeon and Disney....

 notes Famous Studios animator Steve Mufatti drew a short-lived "Little Audrey" comic strip in 1951 syndicated by King Features
King Features Syndicate
King Features Syndicate, a print syndication company owned by The Hearst Corporation, distributes about 150 comic strips, newspaper columns, editorial cartoons, puzzles and games to nearly 5000 newspapers worldwide...

. These strips were also reprinted in 1952-55 Harvey Comics. http://www.cartoonresearch.com/paramount.html

Comic books

Little Audrey was never as successful as Famous' best known creation, Casper the Friendly Ghost
Casper the Friendly Ghost
Casper the Friendly Ghost is the protagonist of the Famous Studios theatrical animated cartoon series of the same name. As his name indicates, he is a ghost, but is quite personable...

, but the character had considerable success in printed form. The first Little Audrey comic book series was St. John Publications
St. John Publications
St. John Publications was an American publisher of magazines and comic books. During its short existence , St. John's comic books established several industry firsts. Founded by Archer St. John , the firm was located in Manhattan at 545 Fifth Avenue. After the St...

 from April 1948 to May 1952. Featuring stories which depended more on situation comedy than on fantasy, the comics featured artwork done in a style approximating the original Famous character designs (most of them by Steve Muffati). The series met with moderate success on the newsstand, running for approximately twenty-four issues until Little Audrey was licensed by Harvey Comics
Harvey Comics
Harvey Comics was an American comic book publisher, founded in New York City by Alfred Harvey in 1941, after buying out the small publisher Brookwood Publications. His brothers Robert B...

 in 1952.

Initially, Harvey's comic-book version closely followed its animated template, but the character was redesigned during the mid-fifties to conform more closely to the company's in-house style. The general storyline was simultaneously overhauled to provide Audrey with supporting characters such as Melvin Wisenheimer, her ugly, prankish archrival, and Tiny, a young black
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...

 boy. Domestic comedy gradually took over the scripts, as Audrey was shown in conflict with parents, teachers, and other authority figures.

Harvey purchased the rights to all of Famous' original properties - Little Audrey included - in 1958, also acquiring the rights to the post-1950 Audrey cartoons. It was during this time that the "definitive" Audrey came into being, taking on the signature red dress and appearance most often associated with the character. By 1960, Little Audrey was the best known of Harvey's female characters due to her multi-media presence (comic books, television/theatrical animation and - briefly - newspaper strips), although her popularity was later eclipsed by the company's other female characters, Little Dot
Little Dot
Little Dot was a comic book character published by Harvey Comics between 1949 and 1982, and then sporadically until 1994. A little girl obsessed with dots, spots, and round, colorful objects, she first appeared in 1949 as a supporting feature in Sad Sack and by 1953 was given her own series,...

, Wendy the Good Little Witch
Wendy the Good Little Witch
Wendy the Good Little Witch is a fictional comic book character from Harvey Comics. Wendy was introduced as a back-up feature as well as a companion for Casper in Casper the Friendly Ghost #20, May 1954. Soon, she was trialed in Harvey Hits, starting with #7. After a total of six appearances, she...

 and Little Lotta
Little Lotta
Little Lotta is a fictional character published by Harvey Comics from 1953 to 1972, and then sporadically until 1993. A contemporary of Little Audrey, Little Dot and Wendy the Good Little Witch, she was one of Harvey's best-known female characters during the 1960s and featured in many of the...

.

Later comic series were titled Playful Little Audrey and Little Audrey & Melvin. In the latter, Audrey and Melvin become less antagonistic and Audrey demonstrates affections for and jealousy towards him, much like Little Lulu had tone with Tubby Tompkins.

During her most successful period, Audrey starred in at least four of her own titles and was a back-up feature in Richie Rich, Casper, and Dot. The character lasted until 1976, when an industry-wide distribution slump brought an end to most of Harvey's line and most children's comics in general. Since that time, the character has undergone several revivals and made scattered television and video appearances, most notably in The Richie Rich Show
Richie Rich (1996 TV series)
Richie Rich is an animated television series produced by Harvey Films, Saban Entertainment, Film Roman, Universal Studios, and distributed by Claster Television. It aired for one season, and also includes select Harveytoons shorts...

(1996) and Baby Huey's Great Easter Adventure (1998).

"Little Audrey" jokes

Little Audrey jokes were in circulation in the 1930s, according to B.A. Botkin in his book A Treasury of American Folktales (1944):
Little Audrey is a folk-lore character about whom thousands of nonsensical short tales during the past five or six years — have been told. Sometimes Little Audrey parades as Little Emma or Little Gertrude, but she usually is recognizable by a catch phrase 'she just laughed and laughed'. The amusing incident is typically a catastrophe. Little Audrey sees the humor in any situation.

As the character audrey frequently ends her Noveltoon animations by laughing hysterically, it seems likely she is based on this folklore that precedes the animations.

An interesting aside

Issue #75 of Playful Little Audrey (April, 1968), containing the story "The ETC Sitter," indicates that Little Audrey's last name is Smith. This is confirmed in "Little Audrey and Melvin and The Secret of Silent Island" where Audrey's friend Lucretia (visiting her uncle Bruce Bagley) refers to Audrey's mother as "Mrs. Smith".

The comic "Little Audrey and Melvin and Cousin Suzie's Dance Party" reveals that she has a cousin named Suzie who has a friend named Bubu.

Appearance

Little Audrey has brown hair with ribbons. She wears a little dress with puffed sleeves, white ankle socks, and black Mary Jane
Mary Jane (shoe)
Mary Jane is an American term for a strap shoe or bar shoe that typically has low heels, broad and rounded closed toes, and a single-buckle strap across the instep and/or around the ankle...

 shoes.

In the short subjects the dress and ribbons are blue, but by the time of her Harvey comics runs they are red.

Famous Studios filmography

All cartoons listed are entires in the Noveltoons
Noveltoons
Noveltoons was an anthology series of animated cartoons produced by Paramount Pictures' Famous Studios from 1943 to the close of the studio in 1967. Casper the Friendly Ghost, Herman and Katnip, Little Audrey, and Baby Huey all got their start from this series...

series unless otherwise noted. Credited directors for each short are noted.
Title Director Release date Summary
Santa's Surprise Seymour Kneitel
Seymour Kneitel
Seymour Kneitel was an American animator. He is best known for his work with Fleischer Studios and its successor, Famous Studios.-Early years:...

December 5, 1947 As Santa delivers presents to Audrey and some other children, they slip into his sleigh to repay him by cleaning up his house, often with a clumsy Dutch boy's antics.
Olive Oyl for President
Olive Oyl for President
Olive Oyl for President is a 1948 entry in the Popeye the Sailor animated short subject series, produced by Famous Studios and released on January 30, 1948 by Paramount Pictures...


Popeye the Sailor series
Isadore Sparber
Isadore Sparber
Isadore Sparber was an American storyboard artist, writer, director and producer of animated films. He is best known for his work with Fleischer Studios and its successor, Famous Studios. His work appeared with different versions of his name including Izzy Sparber, I...

January 30, 1948 Audrey appears briefly in a sequence where she's seen pushing a baby carriage, while licking a gigantic ice cream cone nestled inside of it.
Butterscotch and Soda Seymour Kneitel July 16, 1948 Audrey is confined to her room
Child time-out
A time-out involves temporarily separating a child from an environment where inappropriate behavior has occurred, and is intended to give an over-excited child time to calm down and thereby discouraging such behavior. It is an educational and parenting technique recommended by some pediatricians...

 by her family's maid for wanting to eat candy instead of a nutritionally balanced lunch. She then dreams about going to a candy land, feasting on every scrumptious confection imaginable, and getting sick to her stomach while candy monsters narrate her painful plight in song, admonishing her for the pig she's made of herself
Overeating
Overeating generally refers to the long-term consumption of excess food in relation to the energy that an organism expends , leading to weight gainingand often obesity. It may be regarded as an eating disorder....

, which eventually puts her off sweets.
The Lost Dream Bill Tytla
Bill Tytla
Vladimir Peter "Bill" Tytla was one of the original Disney animators and is considered by many to be the best character animator to work during The Golden Age of Hollywood animation...

March 18, 1949 Audrey has dreams about how dreams are made and cannot resist the temptation to open the Black Door.
Song of the Birds Bill Tytla November 18, 1949 Audrey is enjoying her air rifle, until she shoots down a baby bird and is filled with remorse until she sees it survived. The other birds, however, don't believe she's sincere about her reformation (even after she destroys the rifle), until the baby bird proves it. A remake of a March 1, 1935 Max Fleischer
Max Fleischer
Max Fleischer was an American animator. He was a pioneer in the development of the animated cartoon and served as the head of Fleischer Studios...

 Color Classic
Color Classics
Color Classics were a series of animated short subjects produced by Fleischer Studios for Paramount Pictures from 1934 to 1941 as a competitor to Walt Disney's Silly Symphonies. As the name implies, all of the shorts were made in color, with the first entry in the series, Poor Cinderella, being the...

of the same name. (Actually The Song of the Birds, the 'the' was dropped)
Tarts and Flowers Bill Tytla May 26, 1950 While waiting for her cookies to bake, Audrey dreams about a marriage between the Gingerbread Man and Angel Cake about to terminated by the Devil Cake.
Goofy Goofy Gander Bill Tytla August 18, 1950 When Audrey is sitting in the corner for not paying attention, she dreams about the Mother Goose Land about to be threatened by a couple of comic book crooks.
Hold the Lion Please Isadore Sparber August 27, 1951 Audrey really wants a pet, but she can't afford one. At the zoo she tries to get a baby kangaroo and seal but their mothers won' let her. Audrey then befriends a lion, who scares away the townspeople.
Audrey the Rainmaker Isadore Sparber October 26, 1951 Audrey is so annoyed by the rain, she wishes strongly it wouldn't rain again. She dreams that drought hits the continent hard that she seeks the Rainmaker for help.
Law and Audrey Isadore Sparber May 23, 1952 Audrey plays baseball with Pal, but she hurts and angers a police man several times, that he chases her, but Audrey rescues him from drowning in a pond.
The Case of the Cockeyed Canary Seymour Kneitel December 19, 1952 Audrey dreams she's a detective (complete with Deerstalker hat) on a case of murdered Cock Robin. She chases the suspect; a cuckoo bird (a caricature of Harpo Marx
Harpo Marx
Adolph "Harpo" Marx was an American comedian and film star. He was the second oldest of the Marx Brothers. His comic style was influenced by clown and pantomime traditions. He wore a curly reddish wig, and never spoke during performances...

). Mary Canary confesses that she only shot Robin with a cupid arrow.
Surf Bored Isadore Sparber July 17, 1953 Audrey takes Pal to the beach regardless that dogs are not allowed. As Audrey tries to incessantly keep Pal, she has to rescue the life guard from a giant octopus.
The Seapreme Court Seymour Kneitel January 29, 1954 While fishing Audrey goes to the seabed and is tried a criminal in a fish court of murder. When she is to be sentenced to the eel-lectric chair, she tries to escape and finds that it was a dream.
Dizzy Dishes Isadore Sparber February 4, 1955 While using her contraption to wash dishes for her, Audrey dreams about aliens with the power to disintegrate. Only Audrey with her superweapons can stop them.
Little Audrey Riding Hood Seymour Kneitel October 14, 1955 Audrey is sent to take a cake to Grandma. At Grandma's house, a burglar is robbing the place, but has to hide in bed from Audrey. Once uncovered, the burglar chases Audrey until Grandma comes to her rescue.
Fishing Tackler Isadore Sparber March 29, 1957 Audrey and her dog Pal try to spend a peaceful day fishing, while avoiding the mean old truant officer.
Dawg Gawn Seymour Kneitel December 12, 1958 Pal so much wants to go to school with Audrey, but she shoos him away. Audrey then has to rescue Pal from a sadistic dogcatcher.


These episodes were rebroadcast as The Harveytoons Show
The Harveytoons Show
The Harveytoons Show is a television series presenting theatrical animated cartoons produced from October 1950 until March 1962 and produced by Famous Studios, featuring Harvey Comics characters and series including: Casper the Friendly Ghost, Little Audrey, Tommy Tortoise and Moe Hare, Baby Huey,...

 (aka Casper and Friends) which currently airs on Teletoon Retro
Teletoon Retro
Teletoon Retro is a Canadian English language Category B specialty channel based on the Teletoon programming block Teletoon Retro. The service consists of animation series from Canada and around the world, all of which commenced production at least 10 years prior to their exhibition...

.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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