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“ | I'm smarter than the average bear! | „ |
~ Yogi's iconic catchphrase showcasing his arrogance. |
Yogi Bear is the titular main protagonist of the animated series of the same name. Ranger Smith is usually labelled Yogi Bear as a menace and sometimes even Ranger Smith also labelled him as an anti-hero of the animated series. Everyone else likes him. He made his debut in 1958 as a supporting character in The Huckleberry Hound Show. Yogi Bear was the first breakout character created by Hanna-Barbera and was eventually more popular than Huckleberry Hound. In January 1961, he was given his own show, The Yogi Bear Show, sponsored by Kellogg's, which included the segments Snagglepuss and Yakky Doodle.
He was voiced by the late Daws Butler, the late Greg Burson and Billy West. In the live-action film, he was voiced by Dan Aykroyd, who also portrayed Clifford Skridlow and Ray Stantz. In Space Jam A New Legacy and Jellystone, he is voiced by Jeff Bergman, who also voiced Bugs Bunny, Sylvester, and Foghorn Leghorn. In Hey There, It's Yogi Bear!, his singing voice was provided by the late James Darren.
History[]
Hokey Wolf replaced his segment on The Huckleberry Hound Show. Later, a musical animated feature film titled "Hey There, It's Yogi Bear!", was produced in 1964. He was teenage detective at Jellystone Mall in "Yo Yogi". Yogi was one of several Hanna-Barbera characters to have a collar. This allowed animators to keep his body static, redrawing only his head in each frame when he spoke. This reduced the number of drawings needed for a seven-minute cartoon from around 14,000 to around 2,000.
Appearance[]
Yogi is a fully grown brown bear. His fur is (almost) all the same brown tone, including his paws, which generally act and are shaped in the style of more human-like cartoonified hands and feet than realistic bear paws- notably, he stands on two feet at the majority of times as well. His face is the sole exception to his fur color, being a creamy tan color. It's specked with a few black freckles. The pupils of his eyes are also purely black, something not uncommon of cartoon characters (especially of the era.) He wears an iconic green hat that resembles a pinstripe fedora, bearing a black strap across the base. Additionally, he wears a white collar, combined with a tie to match his hat- as aforementioned, this collar was a design technique utilized to allow cheaper, easier animation.
Personality[]
He has an upbeat and optimistic personality. He tends to be smooth-talking, overconfident, assertive and known for his enjoyment in raiding park-goers' picnic baskets with a certain thrill to it. He is also a genius who considers himself to be smarter than the average bear, making him arrogant about his talents and his intellect (which can be a weakness that leads him to trouble or having incompetent moments, especially in the live-action movie; he came across as very silly and misguided, yet he does recover and learn from his mistakes at the end of the movie at the very least).
He is also a mischievous bear who enjoys searching for food in Jellystone Park, even if it meant bothering visitors at the park, much to Mr. Ranger's frustration. Despite being something of a trickster and a liar with some wise moments to him, he is nevertheless strategic, very loyal/honest to Boo Boo (as well as Mr. Ranger) and a charismatic bear (he gets a goofier, clumsier and more comedic personality in the live-action movie).
Live-Action[]
In the 2010 live-action/CGI film Yogi Bear, Yogi, as the titular character, is the main protagonist and focal point of the film.
Yogi, along with best friend Boo-Boo, attempt to steal picnic baskets while the Park Rangers (Smith and Jones) attempt to hinder them. Meanwhile, Mayor R. Brown realizes that Franklin City is facing bankruptcy due to profligate spending on his part. Brown plots with his Chief of Staff to raise money for the town budget, and his upcoming governmental campaign by shutting down Jellystone Park and opening the land to logging.
To save the park, Smith and his love interest Rachel Johnson hold a centennial festival and fireworks show in an attempt to sell season passes. To sabotage the effort, Brown promises Jones the position of head ranger if the funds are not raised. Yogi and Boo-Boo had promised Smith to stay out of sight during the festival, but Jones convinces them otherwise. The bears try to please the crowd with a waterskiing performance, but Yogi inadvertently sets his cape on fire causing fireworks to be launched into the crowd, who flee in panic.
After Jellystone is shut down, Smith is forced to stay in Evergreen Park, a small urban enclave choked with litter and pollution. Seeing that their home is in danger of being destroyed, Yogi and Boo-Boo travel to Evergreen Park where they and Smith figure out Brown's plan. They all return to Jellystone with Rachel where they learn that Boo-Boo's pet turtle is a rare and endangered species known as a "frog mouthed" turtle.
The Chief of Staff learns about the turtle and since the park cannot be destroyed if the turtle is living there according to the law, sends Jones to kidnap it. On the day that Brown is planning a press conference to begin the destruction of the park, Smith, Rachel and the bears rescue the turtle and try to bring it to the media's attention. Jones, learning that he had been deceived by Mayor Brown, has a change of heart and helps the team bring the turtle to the press conference. At the press conference, Rachel reveals that she had installed a hidden camera in Boo-Boo's bow tie which had captured Brown admitting to his plan. Smith hooks up the camera to the big screen Brown is using for his press conference and shows the video. When the turtle is revealed to the citizens as an endangered species, the police arrest Brown.
Jellystone Park is reopened and becomes a great success while Smith is reappointed head ranger and he and Jones admit their feelings for each other. After they kiss however, they discover Yogi and Boo-Boo are back to stealing picnic baskets once again and chase them.
Voice Actor[]
He was originally voiced by Daws Butler (who also voiced other characters such as Huckleberry Hound, Wally Gator, Quick-Draw McGraw, Snooper and Blabber, Dixie, Mr. Jinks, Scooby-Dum, Reddy, Hokey Wolf, Augie Doggie, Peter Potamus, Baba Looey, Lippy the Lion, Elroy Jetson, and Peter Perfect) in the series and other series he appeared in until his death in 1988. After Butler's death, Greg Burson took over the role.
In the live action movie, however, Yogi was voiced by Dan Aykroyd.
In 2021 of Jellystone, Yogi was voiced by Jeff Bergman (who also voiced other characters such as Mr. Jinks, Wally Gator, and Lippy the Lion in the same series).
Quotes[]
- "Hey Boo Boo."
- "Hello there, Mr. Ranger, sir."
- "Hey hey hey hey."
- "Let's go steal a pic-a-nic basket."
- "Sir, I can see you like this lady. But your courting rituals need work. What you need to do is follow her around, for two days making snorting sounds, then fight any male that looks at her, and then of course, urinate on her to make on her as your territory. Works every time."
- "But I liked where you were going with it Boo Boo, I was hooked!"
- "Now try to film from flattering angles, if you know what I mean. Picnic baskets may be delicious on the lips, but there are lifetimes on the hips."
Trivia[]
- Before his appearance in the Scooby Team Up comics Yogi was the leader of the Yogi Yahooey's while Scooby was the leader of the Scooby Doobies in the Laff-a-Lympics. He also had cameos in Scooby-Doo cartoons before the Team Up comics.
- A picture of Yogi Bear can be seen in the original Powerpuff Girls episode Shotgun Wedding. His photo cameo is shown on a chart of bears when Professor Utonium is trying to find out what Fuzzy Lumpkin is.
- In the What's New Scooby-Doo episode Reef Grief Shaggy mentions that he thought Yoga was named after Yogi Bear.
- According to Boo-Boo, Yogi weights up to 1800lb.
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Heroes | ||
Yogi Bear | Boo-Boo Bear | Cindy Bear | Huckleberry Hound | Mr. Jinks | Snagglepuss | Augie Doggie and Doggie Daddy | El Kabong | Bobbie Looey | Magilla Gorilla | Jabberjaw | Squiddly Diddly | Wally Gator | Peter Potamus | Loopy De Loop | Touché Turtle | Yippee, Yappee, and Yahooey | Yakky Doodle | Pixie and Dixie | Top Cat and His Gang (Benny the Ball, Choo-Choo, Brain, Fancy-Fancy and Spooky) | Lippy the Lion and Hardy Har Har | Captain Caveman | The Hillbilly Bears (Paw Rugg, Maw Rugg, Floral Rugg, Shag Rugg) |