Petunia Pig
Looney Tunes character
First appearancePorky's Romance (1937)
Created byFrank Tashlin
Voiced byShirley Reed (1937–1939)[1]
Mel Blanc (1937,[1] 1973–1974)[2]
Bonnie Baker (1948)[3]
Gilbert Mack (1955)[4]
Jay Scheimer (1972)
June Foray (1976–1982)
Vera Baudey (1984)[5][6]
Desirée Goyette (1986)
Grey DeLisle (2001–2004)
Chiara Zanni (Baby Looney Tunes; 2002–2005)
Jodi Benson (2004)
Katy Mixon (2013)
Jessica DiCicco (2018–2020)
Eric Bauza (2018)
Lara Jill Miller (2021–2023)
Alex Cazares (2022–present)[7]
Candi Milo (2024)[8][9]
Developed byBob Clampett
David Gemmill
Caroline Director[10]
In-universe information
SpeciesDomestic pig
GenderFemale
Significant otherPorky Pig

Petunia Pig is an animated cartoon character in the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons from Warner Bros. She looks much like her significant other, Porky Pig, except that she wears a dress and has pigtailed black hair.[11]

Biography

Petunia was introduced by animator Frank Tashlin in the 1937 short Porky's Romance.[12] The film is arguably a parody of Mickey's Nightmare, a 1932 Walt Disney cartoon; whereas Mickey Mouse dreams of a marriage made difficult by dozens of annoying kids, Porky's nightmare-marriage also involves a scornful Petunia treating him badly. Tashlin adopted Petunia as a regular member of Porky's entourage and featured her in two more cartoons: The Case of the Stuttering Pig and Porky's Double Trouble, both in 1937.

Bob Clampett was the only other Warner director to utilize Petunia after Tashlin left the studio in 1938. He first featured her in Porky's Picnic, a 1939 film that sees Porky tormented by his nephew Pinkie. Pinkie and Porky's encounters are always out of sight of Petunia, of course, so she blames Porky for everything that goes wrong as a result of Pinkie's activity. Petunia's largest role came in Clampett's 1939 short Naughty Neighbors.[13] The film borrows elements from both the famous feud between the Hatfields and McCoys as well as Romeo and Juliet as Porky and Petunia's love for each other is stymied by their respective hillbilly families' mutual hatred.

As Porky's popularity was eclipsed in the late 1930s and early 1940s by brasher characters like Daffy Duck and Bugs Bunny, he was relegated to a supporting player himself in new Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies shorts. Petunia, already a bit player to Porky's lead, fared much worse. Her tenure as a Warner Bros. player was mostly over.

She still appeared frequently in Warner's merchandising, however, with a major presence in comic books for the entire 1941-1984 run of Western Publishing Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies Comics, Porky Pig, and various other titles. Largely appearing in Porky's stories, she occasionally co-starred with Bugs Bunny as well or—occasionally—had a story of her own, though infrequently. Pinkie, renamed Cicero for the comics, was depicted as being Petunia's young cousin as well as Porky's nephew. Petunia was portrayed in the comics as a determined, bossy, and occasionally pretentious character similar to the early Tashlin depiction, though with a genuine affection towards Porky. In early years, she was often rivals with Bugs, who enjoyed pranking and humbling her.

Later appearances

Nevertheless, in modern years Petunia has appeared in multiple new roles:

References

  1. ^ a b Scott, Keith (2022). Cartoon Voices of the Golden Age, 1930-70. ISBN 979-8-88771-010-5.
  2. ^ "“Bugs Bunny in Storyland”: The Good, The Bad & the Bugs". Retrieved 2019-10-30.
  3. ^ ""Bugs Bunny Sings" on Capitol Records". Retrieved 2017-11-22.
  4. ^ "Golden Records’ “Bugs Bunny Songfest” (1961)". Retrieved 2020-08-08.
  5. ^ "Bugs Bunny – This Is It (1984, Vinyl)". Discogs. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  6. ^ "This Is It". YouTube. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  7. ^ Milligan, Mercedes (14 June 2022). "Trailer: 'Bugs Bunny Builders' Breaks Ground on Cartoonito July 25". Animation Magazine.
  8. ^ "THE DAY THE EARTH BLEW UP - GFM Animation". GFM Animation. Archived from the original on 6 November 2023. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
  9. ^ https://variety.com/2023/film/global/looney-tunes-movie-the-day-the-earth-blew-up-warner-bros-animation-gfm-1235769149/
  10. ^ Director, Caroline (2021-04-28). "More Looney Tunes tomorrow on HBO Max - Had a lot of fun writing/boarding for Petunia and her little squirrel friend!". Twitter. Retrieved 2021-11-25.
  11. ^ Rovin, Jeff (1991). The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Cartoon Animals. Prentice Hall Press. p. 204. ISBN 0-13-275561-0. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
  12. ^ Beck, Jerry; Friedwald, Will (1989). Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies: A Complete Illustrated Guide to the Warner Bros. Cartoons. Henry Holt and Co. p. 55. ISBN 0-8050-0894-2.
  13. ^ Beck, Jerry; Friedwald, Will (1989). Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies: A Complete Illustrated Guide to the Warner Bros. Cartoons. Henry Holt and Co. p. 93. ISBN 0-8050-0894-2.
  14. ^ Hill, Jim (8 May 2014). "Storyboards reveal what Marvin Acme's funeral in "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" would have looked like". jimhillmedia.com. Archived from the original on May 14, 2021. Retrieved 3 August 2020.
  15. ^ Jacobs, Mira (2021-04-28). "Looney Tunes Cartoons Debuts Shorts for Petunia Pig and The Gremlin". CBR. Retrieved 2021-11-26.
  16. ^ "Trailer: 'Bugs Bunny Builders' Breaks Ground on Cartoonito July 25". 14 June 2022.

External links

Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies
Petunia Pig in animation
Categories