Mutts is a daily
comic stripA comic strip is a sequence of cartoons that tells a story, often humorous, though adventures and soap opera-like dramas are also prevalent. They are written and drawn by a comics artist or cartoonist, and many are published on a recurring basis in newspapers and on the Internet.In the UK and the...
created by
Patrick McDonnellPatrick McDonnell is the creator of the daily comic strip Mutts.In 1994 McDonnell created the comic strip MUTTS which now appears in over 700 newspapers and 20 countries...
in 1994 based on the day-to-day adventures of two
house petsA pet is an animal kept for companionship and enjoyment or a household animal, as opposed to livestock, laboratory animals, working animals or sport animals, which are kept for economic reasons. The most popular pets are noted for their loyal or playful characteristics, for their attractive...
: a dog named Earl and a cat named Mooch. Earl and Mooch interact with each other, their human owners, and a large cast of neighborhood animals.
Charles M. SchulzCharles Monroe Schulz was an American cartoonist best known worldwide for his Peanuts comic strip.-Early life and education:...
, the creator of
PeanutsPeanuts is a syndicated daily and Sunday comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz, which ran from October 2, 1950, to February 13, 2000 , continuing in reruns afterward...
, was a fan of this strip, saying that it's "one of best comic strips of all time."
The strip centers on the relationship between Mooch, a cat, and his
best friend and neighbor Earl, a dog.
Mutts is a daily
comic stripA comic strip is a sequence of cartoons that tells a story, often humorous, though adventures and soap opera-like dramas are also prevalent. They are written and drawn by a comics artist or cartoonist, and many are published on a recurring basis in newspapers and on the Internet.In the UK and the...
created by
Patrick McDonnellPatrick McDonnell is the creator of the daily comic strip Mutts.In 1994 McDonnell created the comic strip MUTTS which now appears in over 700 newspapers and 20 countries...
in 1994 based on the day-to-day adventures of two
house petsA pet is an animal kept for companionship and enjoyment or a household animal, as opposed to livestock, laboratory animals, working animals or sport animals, which are kept for economic reasons. The most popular pets are noted for their loyal or playful characteristics, for their attractive...
: a dog named Earl and a cat named Mooch. Earl and Mooch interact with each other, their human owners, and a large cast of neighborhood animals.
Charles M. SchulzCharles Monroe Schulz was an American cartoonist best known worldwide for his Peanuts comic strip.-Early life and education:...
, the creator of
PeanutsPeanuts is a syndicated daily and Sunday comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz, which ran from October 2, 1950, to February 13, 2000 , continuing in reruns afterward...
, was a fan of this strip, saying that it's "one of best comic strips of all time."
Main characters
The strip centers on the relationship between Mooch, a cat, and his
best friend and neighbor Earl, a dog. Their friendship focuses on the
differences between cats and dogs as pets and friends: Earl is friendly, loves the company of his human companion and loves to play outside; Mooch is often indifferent to his human companions, except for being fed, and prefers to stay inside and play by himself.
Earl
Earl is an innocent
Jack Russell terrierThe Jack Russell Terrier is a small, principally white-bodied, smooth- or rough-coated terrier that has its origins in fox hunting. The name "Jack Russell" has been used over the years to describe a wide array of small white terriers, but now after a drawn-out legal battle, the JRTCA and its...
who lives with his human companion Ozzie, a bachelor. They love
spending time together and taking frequent walks. Earl often
howls in loneliness when Ozzie is away from home. Earl spends much of
his free time with Mooch, either inside or wandering
around town visiting other domesticated and wild animals. He loves to
eat both human food and his own dog food. Often, he verbalizes his thoughts via thought balloons when Ozzie is around.
Mooch
Mooch, also known as "Moochie" by Millie, is a curious black cat who lives next door to Earl with his human companions Millie and
Frank and a pet fish named Sid. Mooch is somewhat reclusive,
sometimes preferring to stay inside and nap, or
play with his little pink sock, rather than go outside with
Earl. He has a lisp that causes him to insert an
sh into
words, such as
yesh (yes),
shmilk (
milkMilk is an opaque white liquid produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It provides the primary source of nutrition for young mammals before they are able to digest other types of food. The early lactation milk is known as colostrum, and carries the mother's antibodies to the baby. It can reduce...
), and
shmousie (mousie) (The other cats in this strip also used this lisp). He frequently
shnubs his food, much to Millie's chagrin, dislikes car rides, and, like Earl, eats human food at every opportunity. He frequently "borrows" a little girl's "Bobbie Doll" toy car. Mooch owns a small bathrobe he wears from time to time; while wearing the robe, he quotes the Dude from
The Big LebowskiThe Big Lebowski is a 1998 American comedy film written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. Jeff Bridges stars as Jeffrey Lebowski, an unemployed Los Angeles slacker and avid bowler, who refers to himself as "The Dude"....
. Often, he verbalizes his thoughts via thought balloons when Millie and Frank are around.
In 2005, Earl and Mooch appeared as guests in Blondie and Dagwood's 75th anniversary in the comic strip Blondie.
Other characters
Animals
- Bip and Bop - Two squirrels who like bonking ground-dwellers with nuts
- Chickpea and Chickpea's brother - Two former shelter stories kitties; the two are indistinguishable
- Crabby - An unhappy crab who speaks with frequent expletives (denoted by stars and typographical symbols). He claims to have gone on many adventures, such as on a pirate ship, inside a whale, and even meeting the Popeye
Popeye the Sailor is a fictional hero famous for appearing in comic strips and animated films as well as numerous television shows. He was created by Elzie Crisler Segar, and first appeared in the daily King Features comic strip Thimble Theatre on January 17, 1929...
cast.
- Guard Dog - A fierce-looking canine perpetually chained up in his yard
- King Crab - The crabbiest of them all. Ruler of all he sees (since he's at the bottom of the ocean, however, he can't see anything).
- Lollipop- Crabby's soft-shell wife
- McGarry - A bird who lives at the shore and tries to get Crabby not to swear
- Mussels Marinara - A mussel that's always talking about its "mussels" (muscles). Crabby's buddy.
- Noodles - An alley cat friend of Shtinky
- Philippe - A bird always wooing his love, Phoebe
- Shnelly - The house cat for whose love Mooch and Noodles fight; only the top of her head is seen through her owner's window
- Shphinx - One of Mooch's alter egos, obsessed with answering riddles
- Shtinky Puddin (aka Jules) - A little kitty with a short memory and a very wealthy human companion. He wants to save the world and often speaks out about animal rights
Animal rights, also referred to as animal liberation, is the idea that the most basic interests of animals should be afforded the same consideration as the similar interests of humans...
, especially saving the Tigers.
- Sid - An unhappy fish in Mooch's house who wishes to be free
- Speed-o (aka Little Earl) - Mooch's pet snail obsessed with walking Mooch
- Sourpuss - An unhappy kitty who hates Mondays and usually hides under his owner's sofa
- Tom-Tom - A former shelter stories cat
- Woofie - The big, energetic dog that "wuvs" everything and everyone. He speaks in broken English. He often omits the "l" or "r" and replace them with "w" in words, such as "wuv" (love; in phonetical style
Phonetics is a branch of linguistics that comprises the study of the sounds of human speech. It is concerned with the physical properties of speech sounds , and their physiological production, auditory perception, and neurophysiological status.Phonetics was studied as early as 2500 years ago in...
) and "vawentine" (valentineValentine may refer to:*One of 3 recognized Catholic Saint Valentines or one of 11 recognized martyrs named Valentine.*The legendary Saint Valentine as particularly associated with Valentine's Day.*A card or gift given on Valentine's Day....
). He also refers to himself in a third personThird person may refer to:* A grammatical person, he, she, and they in the English language* Third-person narrative, a perspective in storytelling...
, such as "Woofie wuvs wuv".
Humans
- Doozy - A little girl who loves animals
- Bushy - Doozy's best friend and a hero to Tom-Tom
- Butchie - The owner of Fatty Snax Deli who tries to stop Mooch and Earl from eating his food
- Millie - Mooch's owner
- Frank - Millie's husband
- Ozzie - Earl's owner
- Dr. Woo - A veterinarian often seen with Ozzie
Recurring story lines
From time-to-time there are special sets of daily comic strips, such as Shelter Stories (which focuses on animals in shelters) and Animal Idol (a parody of
American IdolAmerican Idol is a reality competition to find new solo musical talent, created by Simon Fuller. It debuted on June 11, 2002 on the Fox network, and has since become one of the most popular shows on American television...
). More recently, some strips have poked fun at
The Big LebowskiThe Big Lebowski is a 1998 American comedy film written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. Jeff Bridges stars as Jeffrey Lebowski, an unemployed Los Angeles slacker and avid bowler, who refers to himself as "The Dude"....
, featuring Mooch as the Dude, with different characters quoting lines from other characters from the film. Every summer, Earl and Mooch and their families visit the Jersey Shore, where they are joined by Crabby, Mussels Marinara and McGarry. From time to time, Mooch drapes a towel over his head, and delivers oracles as The Shphinx, and in the fall, Bip and Bop embark on their campaign of dropping nuts on ground-dwellers' heads.
Animal welfare and animal rights
On occasion, McDonnell devotes the strip for a week or so to
animal welfareAnimal welfare, the health and well-being of animals, represents a systematic concern for people who believe that nonhuman animals are sentient beings that deserve consideration, respect, and care...
issues, especially the adoption of pets from
animal shelterAn animal shelter is a facility that houses homeless, lost or abandoned animals; primarily a large variety of dogs and cats.The animal is kept at the shelter until it is either reclaimed by an owner, adopted by a new owner, or placed with another organization...
s. Themes include Farm Animal Awareness Week and Shelter Stories, where pet adoption as well as pet shelter life is focused on. McDonnell also created artwork for the second generation
New JerseyNew Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered on the north by New York, and to the east by the Hudson River, Upper New York Bay, the Kill Van Kull, Newark Bay, the Arthur Kill, Raritan Bay, Sandy Hook Bay, Westchester County, New York City, Long Island, and...
Animal Friendly optional
license plateIn the United States, license plates are issued by an agency of the state or territorial government, and in the case of the District of Columbia the District government. Some Native American tribes also issue plates. The U.S. federal government issues plates only for its own vehicle fleet and for...
first issued in 2001. A portion of the revenue from the plates goes to the New Jersey State Department of Health's Animal Population Control Program. Also, he speaks out (usually using Shtinky) about numerous animal rights causes, including seal clubbing, whale hunting and most of all, saving the tigers.
Sunday title panels
Sunday strips are coloured and their title panels are usually a tribute to a famous comic strip, a work of art or another subject, among which one can find tributes to
FlashThe Flash is a name shared by several fictional comic book superheroes from the DC Comics universe. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert, the original Flash first appeared in Flash Comics #1 ....
#1,
DalíDALI may refer to:* Danish Audiophile Loudspeaker Industries* The "Distance-matrix ALIgnment" algorithm used in the FSSP database on structurally similar proteins* Digital Addressable Lighting Interface* Dartmouth Assessment of Lifestyle Index...
's
The Persistence of MemoryLa persistencia de la memoria or The Persistence of Memory – also known by some as Melting Clocks – is the most famous painting by artist Salvador Dalí....
,
Elvis PresleyElvis Aaron Presley was an American singer and actor. A cultural icon, he is commonly known simply as Elvis and is also sometimes referred to as The King of Rock 'n' Roll or The King....
,
Trout Mask ReplicaTrout Mask Replica is the third studio album by Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band, released in June, 1969. The album was produced by Frank Zappa, a friend and former schoolmate of Beefheart, and was originally released on Zappa's Straight Records imprint...
and Magritte's
GolcondaGolconda is an oil painting on canvas by Belgian surrealist René Magritte, painted in 1953. It is currently housed at the Menil collection in Houston, Texas....
, to name but a few.
Title Panel Tributes
Annual collections
Black-and-white reproductions of full year's strips (until 2005).
- Mutts (July 1996) ISBN 978-083621025-5
- Cats & Dogs (October 1997) ISBN 978-083623732-0
- More Shtuff (September 1998) ISBN 978-083626823-2
- Yesh! (April 1999
April 1999 was a month with thirty days.The following events also occurred during the month:...
) ISBN 978-083628286-3
- Our Mutts (August 2000
August 2000 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December-----Events:* August 8 - Confederate submarine H.L. Hunley is raised to the surface after 136 years on the ocean floor....
) ISBN 978-074070456-7
- A Little Look-See (April 2001
April 2001 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December-----Events:*April 1**An EP-3E United States Navy spyplane collides with a Chinese People's Liberation Army fighter jet...
) ISBN 978-074071394-1
- What Now (September 2002
September 2002 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December- September 1, 2002 :...
) ISBN 978-074072321-6
- I Want To Be The Kitty! (April 2003
April 2003 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December-April 1, 2003:* Hong Kong movie and Cantopop star Leslie Cheung commits suicide at the age of 46....
) ISBN 978-074076197-3
- Dog-Eared (September 2004
September 2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December
See also: September 2004 in sports-Events:...
) ISBN 978-074074740-3
- Who Let The Cat Out? (April 2005
April 2005 : ← - January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December - →April 2005 : ← - January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December - →April 2005 : ← - January - February - March...
) ISBN 978-074075006-9
Sundays collections
Large-format color reproductions of Sunday strips (until 2005).
- Mutts Sundays (September 1999
September 1999 was a month with thirty days.The following events also occurred during the month:...
) ISBN 978-074070010-1
- Sunday Mornings (August 2001
August 2001 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December-----Events:* August 1 - Law goes into effect in Germany legalizing same-sex registered partnerships....
) ISBN 978-074071853-3
- Sunday Afternoons (April 2004
2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December-Events:2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December-Events:...
) ISBN 978-074074141-8
- Sunday Evenings (September 2005
-Portal:Current events:- News collections and sources :* Wikipedia:News collections and sources.* Wikipedia:News sources - This has much of the same material organized in a hierarchical manner to help encourage NPOV in our news reporting....
) ISBN 978-074075535-4
Treasury collections
Large-format, dailies in black-and-white, Sunday in color (after 2005).
- Everyday Mutts: A Comic Strip Treasury (September 2006
September 2006 was marked by a controversy surrounding statements made by Pope Benedict XVI regarding Islam, during the same week as the fifth anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Steve Irwin, star of The Crocodile Hunter, died early in the month due to a stingray attack...
) ISBN 978-074076197-3
- Animal Friendly: A Mutts Treasury (May 2007
May 2007 is the fifth month of that year. It began on a Tuesday and 31 days later, ended on a Thursday.-International holidays:* May 1 - May Day * May 1 - Labour Day * May 1 - Maharashtra State Day * May 1 - Labour Day...
) ISBN 978-074076556-8
- Call of the Wild: A Mutts Treasury (August 2008
August 2008 was the eighth month of the leap year. It began on a Friday and ended after 31 days on a Sunday.-Portal:Current events:This is an archived version of Wikipedia's Current events Portal from August 2008....
) ISBN 978-074077099-9
- Stop and Smell the Roses (March 2009
March 2009 was the third month of the current year. It began on a Sunday and ended after 31 days on a Tuesday.-Portal:Current events:This is an archived version of Wikipedia's Current events Portal from March 2009....
) ISBN 9780740781469
Miscellaneous
- Mutts Little Big Book (1998) ISBN 978-083626980-2
- Mutts: The Comic Art of Patrick McDonnell (2003) ISBN 978-081094616-3 (retrospective
Retrospective generally means to take a look back at events that already have taken place. For example, the term is used in medicine, describing a look back at a patient's medical history or lifestyle....
)
- Mutts: The gift of nothing (2005) ISBN 978-031611488-2
- Mutts: Just like Heaven (2005) ISBN 978-031611493-6
- Mutts: Hug time (2007) ISBN 978-031611494-3
- The Best of Mutts (October 2007
October 2007 is the tenth month of that year. It began on a Monday and 31 days later, ended on a Wednesday.- International holidays :* October 2 - Gandhi Jayanti * October 3 - Last 3rd of Ramadan which includes Laylat al-Qadr...
) ISBN 978-074076844-6
- Shelter Stories: Love. Guaranteed. (April 2008
April 2008 was the fourth month of the leap year. It began on a Tuesday and ended after 30 days on a Wednesday.-International holidays and other major events:* April 1 - April Fools' Day...
)
- South (September 2008
September 2008 was the ninth month of the leap year. It began on a Monday and ended after 30 days on a Tuesday.-Portal:Current events:This is an archived version of Wikipedia's Current events Portal from September 2008....
)
Mutts in other languages
- Iceland: Kjölturakkar
- Denmark: Mis Og Fister
- Sweden: Morrgan & Klös
- Norway: Pels og poter ("Fur and paws")
- Finland: Kamut ("Pals")
- Austria: Milou & Filou
- Brazil: Au Miau
- Estonian: Krantsid ("Dogs")
- France: Earl & Mooch
- German: Mutts - Tiere sind auch nur Menschen ("Animals are just people, too")
External links