Arnold (Hey Arnold!)
Encyclopedia
Arnold 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...

 and the titular protagonist in the Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (TV channel)
Nickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...

 animated television series Hey Arnold!
Hey Arnold!
Hey Arnold! is an American animated television series created by Craig Bartlett for Nickelodeon. The show's premise focuses on a fourth grader named Arnold who lives with his grandparents. Episodes center on his experiences navigating big city life while dealing with the problems he and his friends...

. His head is shaped like an American football, thus earning him the nickname "Football-Head", by Helga
Helga G. Pataki
Helga G. Pataki is a fictional character in the Nickelodeon animated television series Hey Arnold!, voiced by Francesca Marie Smith.-Name:...

. Throughout the series' run, he was voiced by at least five different voice actors: J.D. Daniels (who did his voice in the pilot), Toran Caudell
Toran Caudell
Toran Caudell is a former actor, voice actor, and musician from the United States.He played Rod on 7th Heaven, an American television series about a Protestant minister's family living in the fictional town of Glenoak, California....

, Phillip Van Dyke
Phillip Van Dyke
Phillip Van Dyke is an American actor best known for his role as the goblin Luke in the first two of the Halloweentown movie series.-Private life:He was born in San Francisco and currently resides there....

, Spencer Klein (who voiced Arnold in Hey Arnold!: The Movie
Hey Arnold!: The Movie
Hey Arnold!: The Movie is a 2002 animated film based on the 1996-2004 Nickelodeon animated television series Hey Arnold!. The film was released in theaters on June 28, 2002...

 in addition to numerous television episodes), and Alex D. Linz
Alex D. Linz
Alexander David Linz is an American actor who starred in several late 1990s and early 2000s films and television programs as a child actor. His notable film roles include Home Alone 3 and Max Keeble's Big Move ....

. He was created in 1986.

Personality

Arnold is a calm dreamer and an idealist who always tries to see the best in people and to do the right thing. Whenever he sees someone in trouble, Arnold goes out of his way to help them out, even if it is not sensible to do so (an example being when he tried to protect some of his classmates, who had mooned the school principal). Arnold often acts as the stable centre to those around him, whether he is around his (non-biological) family in his paternal grandparents' (Dan Castellaneta
Dan Castellaneta
Daniel Louis "Dan" Castellaneta is an American actor, voice actor, comedian, singer and screenwriter. Noted for his long-running role as Homer Simpson on the animated television series The Simpsons, he voices many other characters on The Simpsons, including Abraham "Grampa" Simpson, Barney Gumble,...

 and Tress MacNeille
Tress MacNeille
Tress MacNeille is an American voice actress best known for providing various voices on the animated series The Simpsons, Futurama, Tiny Toon Adventures, Animaniacs, Disney's House of Mouse, Courage the Cowardly Dog, Rugrats, All Grown Up!, Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers, and Dave the...

) boarding house The Sunset Arms, or around his friends at his school, P.S. 118. He is picked on, especially by Helga, for his trademark football shaped head. He has spikey blonde hair that sticks up and a tiny blue baseball cap that sits on one side of his head. He also appears to wear a red and yellow plaid "skirt" over jeans, though it is later revealed to be the bottom of an undershirt poking out from his sweater. Helga has once compared his eyes to green jellybeans in one of her many love poems about him.

According to the Parents Day and The Journal episodes, Arnold's adventurous parents, anthropologist Miles and physician/botanist Stella, were doing missions in the jungle of San Lorenzo when they disappeared. According to those episodes, Arnold was born while his parents were on an earlier expedition in the jungle to bring medicine to the natives. His birth coincided with the eruption of a nearby volcano, which the locals believed to be an indication that Arnold would one day become a hero of sorts who would save the world from a great danger. Arnold was not told of these events until later in the series when it was revealed by his grandfather. It is unknown how the "prophecy" may have fit into the series had it continued, however it could have been the way he saved his neighborhood in Hey Arnold!: The Movie
Hey Arnold!: The Movie
Hey Arnold!: The Movie is a 2002 animated film based on the 1996-2004 Nickelodeon animated television series Hey Arnold!. The film was released in theaters on June 28, 2002...

.

He has a love for music, particularly jazz. He is seen in one episode discussing with his friends various sound systems, owning himself, an advanced sound system. He also taught himself to play harmonica
Harmonica
The harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...

 and has played it a few times throughout Seasons 1 and 2. His room contains interesting technology such as a remote control that controls everything in his room and a couch that can rotate into and out of the wall when needed. His entire ceiling comprises several skylights as well.

In the episode, "Married", it is revealed his favorite number is 5 and his favorite color is blue
Blue
Blue is a colour, the perception of which is evoked by light having a spectrum dominated by energy with a wavelength of roughly 440–490 nm. It is considered one of the additive primary colours. On the HSV Colour Wheel, the complement of blue is yellow; that is, a colour corresponding to an equal...

.

Relationships

Arnold has had two major crushes in the series: sixth-grader Ruth MacDougal (through most of season 1), and with a classmate named Lila Sawyer (who was introduced in season 2). His crush with Ruth ended in Arnold's Valentine after going on a date with her, where he decided that she was not really interesting and came to realize he never knew much about her himself; his crush on Lila ended when she did not approve of his hanging out with his best friend Gerald's younger sister, Timberly in Timberly Loves Arnold. In the episode Crush On Teacher Arnold develops a crush on his substitute teacher Miss Felter and Arnold thought she had a crush on him too. The crush on her ended at the end of the episode when Arnold found out that Miss Felter did not actually have a crush on him and it was just a misunderstanding. Miss Felter's partner's name was also Arnold, whom she refers to earlier in the episode, hence the confusion.

In the episode 6th Grade Girls, two "older" 6th grade girls named Connie and Maria ask Arnold and Gerald to be their dates for an upcoming dance in an attempt to teach their jerky boyfriends a lesson. Arnold is unsure, but Gerald convinces him to go along with it. At the dance, the girls leave to go to the bathroom, at which point the girls' boyfriends threaten them and attempt to beat them up. Before this can happen however, Connie and Maria return and intervene, sending the boys to wait for them at the bus stop. It is at this point that the girls "break up" with them, though they do kiss each of them on the cheek before leaving.

Arnold also has a summer crush in the "Summer Love" special with a girl named Summer. Summer is an aspiring actress who already has a boyfriend but pretends to be interested in Arnold because of his art skills in making great sandcastles. There is a "babe watch" (which is poking fun of the show "Bay Watch") competition that is awards the winners of the Sand Castle competition a main role in an episode. Arnold finds out Summer is using him with the help of Helga, and Arnold and Helga both end up acting for "Babe Watch" and they share their second kiss in the series.

Arnold's most catalytic relationship is with his classmate Helga Pataki. Unbeknownst to Arnold, Helga is secretly in love with him, though to keep these feelings secret she verbally abuses Arnold so he will never come to that conclusion. As such, Arnold has a more or less, tolerant feeling towards Helga. He states throughout the series that even though she acts bad she really is a good person. Good examples of this are shown in 'Married', near the end of Arnold's dream when he confronts Helga, and 'Patty vs. Helga' whereby Arnold explains to Patty that the reason Helga is mean is that she's insecure of her own feelings, hoping she will not beat Helga up.

In the movie on the series, Arnold finds out that Deep Voice, a stranger who helps Gerald and him throughout the movie, is actually Helga. This surprising him as her father would make a lot of money from the demolition of their neighborhood, making her rich. So after constantly questioning her, Helga tells Arnold of her feelings for him and she kisses him. Later on, at the end of the movie, the two of them agree it was all just in the 'heat of the moment'
Denial
Denial is a defense mechanism postulated by Sigmund Freud, in which a person is faced with a fact that is too uncomfortable to accept and rejects it instead, insisting that it is not true despite what may be overwhelming evidence.The subject may use:* simple denial: deny the reality of the...

.

According to series creator Craig Bartlett, had the canceled "Jungle Adventure" sequel been animated, Arnold would have returned Helga's feelings with a kiss of his own, with his best friend interrupting the moment. The two would have also dated prior to the proposed, but ultimately aborted MTV spin-off The Patakis, where they would have broken up, though they were to remain friends, with Helga sending Arnold letters of her life in a new location. Craig Bartlett did say that even though "The Patakis" was never aired, Arnold and Helga are meant for one another. He just wanted to keep Arnold out of the way for a short while so Helga can be the main attraction. He had an idea that she would eventually run away to visit him. But even at the end Helga and Arnold were going to get back with one another. Unfortunately, Nick at Nite and MTV decided not to air it so Craig Bartlett never got to fully write everything out. Considering The Patakis was canceled, it remains unclear whether or not this development remains canonical.

Arnold's best friend is Gerald Johansen, whose relationship dates as far back as pre-school. The pair have a distinct handshake
Handshake
A handshake is a short ritual in which two people grasp one of each other's like hands, in most cases accompanied by a brief up and down movement of the grasped hands.-History:...

 consisting of putting their hands together and wiggling their thumbs back and forth.

History

Arnold was created in 1988 by Craig Bartlett, who was also responsible for the clay-animated Penny shorts on CBS's Pee-wee's Playhouse
Pee-wee's Playhouse
Pee-wee's Playhouse is an American children's television program starring Paul Reubens as the child-like Pee-wee Herman. The show was developed from Reubens' popular stage show and the one-off TV special The Pee-wee Herman Show, produced for HBO, which was similar in style but featured much more...

. The original Arnold was visualized as a kid with a vivid imagination, who always wore a prep-school uniform (though he attended public school) and a cap, and was rendered in clay in a series of shorts, one of them televised in the 1990s on Sesame Street
Sesame Street
Sesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The...

, and continued to air there, even after the Nick version debuted.

In 1991, the Arnold comic stories, written and drawn by Bartlett (who's also a comic book artist), were published in Simpsons Illustrated
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...

magazine (Bartlett is the brother-in-law of Matt Groening
Matt Groening
Matthew Abram "Matt" Groening is an American cartoonist, screenwriter, and producer. He is the creator of the comic strip Life in Hell as well as two successful television series, The Simpsons and Futurama....

, creator of The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...

).

The familiar, cel-animated Arnold came about in the mid-1990s when Nick picked up the new series. Apart from the animation style, Nick's Arnold now wears a sweater, with his plaid shirt untucked (resembling a kilt
Kilt
The kilt is a knee-length garment with pleats at the rear, originating in the traditional dress of men and boys in the Scottish Highlands of the 16th century. Since the 19th century it has become associated with the wider culture of Scotland in general, or with Celtic heritage even more broadly...

). Only Arnold's beloved cap remained from the original wardrobe.

Last name

Arnold's last name has never been revealed on the show. With the exception of a few secondary characters (including Sid and Brainy), the only other notable characters whose surnames are unknown are Arnold's grandparents. They presumably have the same last name as Arnold, since in "Parents Day" and "The Journal" it is revealed they are his father's parents. The mystery surrounding Arnold's full name became a running gag on the show, by the last name almost being revealed, then someone or something interrupting or otherwise preventing it from being heard (much like the location of the "secret spot" on Rocket Power
Rocket Power
Rocket Power is an American animated television series that aired on Nickelodeon.-Premise:Rocket Power involves the daily situations of a group of best friends named Oswald "Otto" Rocket, Regina "Reggie" Rocket, Maurice "Twister" Rodriguez, and Sam "Squid" Dullard, as they live in the fictional...

, Fez's home country on That 70s Show, Timmy Turner's parents' names on The Fairly Odd Parents, the Krabby Patty secret formula on SpongeBob SquarePants
SpongeBob SquarePants
SpongeBob SquarePants is an American animated television series, created by marine biologist and animator Stephen Hillenburg. Much of the series centers on the exploits and adventures of the title character and his various friends in the underwater city of "Bikini Bottom"...

, what is under Double D's hat in Ed, Edd n Eddy
Ed, Edd n Eddy
Ed, Edd n Eddy is an original animated television series created by Danny Antonucci and produced by Canadian-based a.k.a. Cartoon. It premiered on Cartoon Network on January 4, 1999. Ed, Edd n Eddy was one of Cartoon Network's longest running and most successful franchises and the longest-running...

, the Janitor's name on Scrubs
Scrubs (TV series)
Scrubs is an American medical comedy-drama television series created in 2001 by Bill Lawrence and produced by ABC Studios. The show follows the lives of several employees of the fictional Sacred Heart, a teaching hospital. It features fast-paced screenplay, slapstick, and surreal vignettes...

, the state Springfield is in on The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...

, the name of El Chavo, Pat
Pat (Saturday Night Live)
Pat was an androgynous fictional character created and performed by Julia Sweeney for the American sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live, and later featured in the film It's Pat...

's gender from the Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...

sketch "It's Pat
It's Pat
It's Pat, also known as It's Pat: The Movie, is a 1994 comedy film directed by Adam Bernstein and starring Julia Sweeney, Dave Foley, Charles Rocket, and Kathy Griffin...

", and Ms. Bellum's face on the Powerpuff Girls). Some notable occasions when the name is almost revealed include:
  • In a commercial for the show that aired in the early part of the show's run, Arnold talks to the viewer
    Fourth wall
    The fourth wall is the imaginary "wall" at the front of the stage in a traditional three-walled box set in a proscenium theatre, through which the audience sees the action in the world of the play...

     to straighten out some facts about himself (such as the revelation that his notable red outerwear is a shirt, not a skirt). He ends with, "And yes, I do have a last name. It's..." at which point the screen turns into static and the sound cuts off, because the camera's batteries run out.
  • In the episode "Fighting Families" Arnold wins the school's raffle drawing for the chance to be on the game show
    Game show
    A game show is a type of radio or television program in which members of the public, television personalities or celebrities, sometimes as part of a team, play a game which involves answering questions or solving puzzles usually for money and/or prizes...

     Fighting Families. The lady doing the drawing announces, "The winner is Arnold...hm, there seems to be a smudge over the last name." Here it is revealed that Arnold is the only one in the school with this first name, thus making his surname somewhat unnecessary.
  • A similar instance to the one above occurs in "Eugene, Eugene!", where Tim Curry
    Tim Curry
    Timothy James "Tim" Curry is a British actor, singer, composer and voice actor, known for his work in a diverse range of theatre, film and television productions. He currently resides in Los Angeles, California....

    's character is casting the school kids for an upcoming play, and says, "I can't read my own handwriting", when he's casting Arnold as the villain. However, that scene did at least reveal Lila's last name (Sawyer, as mentioned above).
  • In one episode, "Crush on Teacher", in which Helga
    Helga G. Pataki
    Helga G. Pataki is a fictional character in the Nickelodeon animated television series Hey Arnold!, voiced by Francesca Marie Smith.-Name:...

     does one of her many passionate monologues about her love for Arnold, she says that she would one day like to become "Mrs. Arnold...wait, what is his last name?", revealing that she is just as clueless as the viewer.
  • In the episode "The Journal", Phil is reading the part of Miles's journal that recounts his and Stella's wedding. He gets to the part when they are pronounced "Mr. and Mrs...." at which point Grandma interrupts with a loud burp.
  • In the episode "Married", Helga dreams that she is married to Arnold, and that she is the President. In her opening speech, she introduces Arnold as "Arnold Pataki."
  • Series creator Craig Bartlett had been planning to finally reveal his last name in a second Feature film
    Feature film
    In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...

     for the series, which would also deal with his search to find his parents. Craig mentioned in a subsequent online chat: "I had an idea for the Jungle Movie (how Bartlett refers to the planned film), in the opening scene, a man comes to the door of the boarding house, and Arnold signs his name. Right, that's how you find out." However, problems between Bartlett and Nickelodeon
    Nickelodeon (TV channel)
    Nickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...

    , as well as the low gross of the first film, led to the cancellation of this second film.


In 2006 in an online chat with Hey Arnold! fans, Bartlett revealed that Arnold's grandpa used his last name throughout the series, almost confirming that Arnold's last name is "Shortman" (a transcript of this chat can be found here). Craig also mentioned that Arnold's second name most likely is "Phillip".
  • In some episodes, other characters can be seen referring to Arnold as "Shortman" (In the beginning of Arnold Visits Arnie, Helga is telling the other characters their positions in a game of baseball she is quoted saying "Looks like you're on Shortstop, Shortman.")
  • In a commercial for Hey Arnold, where Bartlett is interviewed, Bartlett promises that Arnold's last name will be revealed, and that the audience has been hearing his name throughout the entire series. Grandpa frequently calls Arnold "Shortman."

Birth Date

During the seasons of "Hey Arnold" they never revealed his birthday. But during the episode, "Married!" Arnold takes a marriage test and finds out he is going to marry Helga. During the test, one of the questions is his birth day number, He responds the 7th. Also in the "Mugged" episode on Arnold's bus pass it says yes under the header Born.
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