Wilma Flintstone
Encyclopedia
Wilma Anna Flintstone is a fictional character
in the television
animated series The Flintstones
. She was the red-headed wife of caveman
Fred Flintstone
, daughter of Pearl Slaghoople
, mother of Pebbles Flintstone
and a grandmother. Her best friends were her next door neighbors, Betty
and Barney Rubble
.
Wilma's personality was based on that of Alice Kramden, wife of Ralph Kramden on the 1950s television series The Honeymooners
. Thus, much like Alice, Wilma played the strong-willed, level-headed person in her marriage, often criticizing Fred for pursuing his various ill-fated schemes. Wilma would also often be the one to bail out Fred when one of his schemes landed him in trouble.
series The Flintstone Kids
depicts Wilma as a child, the series seems to be mostly apocryphal due to its presenting Wilma as a childhood friend of Fred and Barney (the original series asserted that they met as young adults) as well as using the last name Slaghoople instead of the original Pebbles. Still, the series' depictions that Wilma had younger sisters and that her father—who apparently died by the time Wilma reached adulthood—ran a prehistoric computer business might be taken as valid. Wilma did mention having a married sister in the sixth season.
As a young adult, Wilma worked with Betty as cigarette
girls/waitresses at a resort. There, they first met and fell in love with their future husbands, Fred and Barney (who were working there as bellhops). Wilma's mother, Pearl Pebbles Slaghoople, also met her future son-in-law, and took a disliking toward Fred (and vice-versa), starting a long-lasting rivalry between the two.
Eventually, Wilma and Fred were married, and Wilma became a homemaker
, keeping house with such prehistoric aids as a baby elephant
vacuum cleaner
, pelican
washing machine
, and so forth. She was also a good cook. One of her specialties was Gravelberry Pie - the recipe for which she eventually sold to the Safestone
supermarket chain. Wilma also enjoyed volunteering for various charitable and women's organizations in Bedrock, shopping, and (occasionally) getting to meet the celebrities of their world, including "Stony Curtis"
, "Rock Quarry"
and "Cary Granite"
.
In the original series' third season, Wilma became pregnant, and gave birth to the couple's only child, Pebbles.
When Pebbles was a teenager, Wilma (along with Betty) gained employment as a reporter for one of Bedrock's newspaper
s, the Daily Granite (a spoof of the Daily Planet
of Superman
fame), under the editorial guidance of Lou Granite (a parody of The Mary Tyler Moore Show's
Lou Grant
). While employed there, she shared various adventures with prehistoric superhero
Captain Caveman
, who (in a secret identity
) also worked for the newspaper (a la Clark Kent
).
Later still, after Pebbles grew up and left home, Wilma started a successful catering business with her neighbor and friend Betty, before becoming a grandmother to Pebbles' twin children, Chip and Roxy.
However, later episodes and spin-offs also firmly state her maiden name was indeed "Slaghoople," based upon the name of Wilma's mother in the original series, Pearl Slaghoople
. Flintstones' writer Earl Kress explained the discrepancy as such: "[I]t's just as simple as [Hanna-Barbera] not caring about the continuity." In The Flintstones movie, when Wilma is leaving Fred to live with her Mother, Fred shouts "Come back here, Wilma Slaghoople". ("Sufflehooper" was also used at least once.)
Wilma and Fred's daughter is named "Pebbles" after Wilma's maiden surname.
In the first few episodes of the series, particularly the first episode, Wilma (as is Betty) is portrayed as a domestically abusive wife, throwing a tantrum and physically assaulting her husband (or at least attempting to do so) upon discovering that he and Barney had fooled her and Betty so that they could go bowling, despite the fact that Fred had a bandaged head injury to the point that he and Barney actually run away on the Flintstone Flyer, and even after six hours, she and Betty show no remorse for their behaviour and look forward to hurting their husbands again once they land. Also, in the same episode, she and Betty are shown to be willing to assault their husbands violently in public without second thoughts, demonstrated when they bash Fred and Barney over the heads with their heavy handbags in the bowling alley in front of their teammates and several other players. In subsequent episodes, she is shown to get angry but never harms Fred seriously, often lecturing him or slapping him for his exceptionally bad behaviour. For example, in the 21st episode of Season 2, Wilma can be seen biting Fred's finger when he points at her.
While generally a foil to Fred's poor behavior, Wilma was not immune to it herself. She, usually along with Betty Rubble, would occasionally rack up large bills on a charge account or spend her husband's money with reckless abandon. Wilma and Betty would also occasionally plot acts of revenge on their husbands for their oafishness.
She and Fred argue often because of Fred's laziness, and because Fred sometimes flirts with other women. In the 1994
live-action film The Flintstones
, Fred's gorgeous secretary seduces him very often, and Wilma walks in and sees Fred drooling over her half naked body while she sexually entices him. In A Flintstones Christmas Carol, Wilma gets upset at Fred for forgetting Pebbles and being an idiot, but she favors him at the end of the film. In Flintstones: On the Rocks, her and Fred's marriage is not working out and they consider a divorce, but they reconcile at the end.
was the original voice artist of Wilma until her death in 1999. Since then, Tress MacNeille
has taken over as Wilma's voice even when she voiced her in Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law
.
In The Flintstone Kids
, Wilma was voiced by Julie McWhirter Dees
and Elizabeth Lyn Frasier at different points.
In the live-action film The Flintstones
, Wilma was played by Elizabeth Perkins
(although in the film, Vander Pyl made a cameo at Fred's Surprise party for being promoted at the Quarry in the conga line behind Dino
). In the prequel film The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas
, she was played by Kristen Johnston
.
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...
in the television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
animated series The Flintstones
The Flintstones
The Flintstones is an animated, prime-time American television sitcom that screened from September 30, 1960 to April 1, 1966, on ABC. Produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, The Flintstones was about a working class Stone Age man's life with his family and his next-door neighbor and best friend. It...
. She was the red-headed wife of caveman
Caveman
A caveman or troglodyte is a stock character based upon widespread concepts of the way in which early prehistoric humans may have looked and behaved...
Fred Flintstone
Fred Flintstone
Frederick Joseph “Fred” Flintstone, also known as Fred W. Flintstone or Frederick J. Flintstone, is the protagonist of the animated sitcom The Flintstones, which aired during prime-time on ABC during the original series' run from 1960-66. He is the husband of Wilma Flintstone and father of Pebbles...
, daughter of Pearl Slaghoople
Pearl Slaghoople
Pearl Pebble Slaghoople is a fictional character on the animated TV show The Flintstones. She was the mother of Wilma Flintstone, who is married to Fred Flintstone. In the original series, she portrayed Fred's stereotypically antagonistic mother-in-law, acting as a nagging irritant...
, mother of Pebbles Flintstone
Pebbles Flintstone
Pebbles Flintstone is a fictional character, the red-haired daughter of Fred and Wilma Flintstone...
and a grandmother. Her best friends were her next door neighbors, Betty
Betty Rubble
Elizabeth 'Betty' Jean Rubble is a fictional character in the television animated series The Flintstones and its spin-offs and live-action motion pictures. She is the black-haired wife of caveman Barney Rubble and the adoptive mother of Bamm-Bamm Rubble...
and Barney Rubble
Barney Rubble
Bernard "Barney" Rubble is the deuteragonist of the television animated series The Flintstones. He is the diminutive blonde-haired caveman husband of Betty Rubble and father of Bamm-Bamm Rubble...
.
Wilma's personality was based on that of Alice Kramden, wife of Ralph Kramden on the 1950s television series The Honeymooners
The Honeymooners
The Honeymooners is an American situation comedy television show, based on a recurring 1951–'55 sketch of the same name. It originally aired on the DuMont network's Cavalcade of Stars and subsequently on the CBS network's The Jackie Gleason Show hosted by Jackie Gleason, and filmed before a live...
. Thus, much like Alice, Wilma played the strong-willed, level-headed person in her marriage, often criticizing Fred for pursuing his various ill-fated schemes. Wilma would also often be the one to bail out Fred when one of his schemes landed him in trouble.
Fictional character biography
While the mid-1980s spin-offSpin-off (media)
In media, a spin-off is a radio program, television program, video game, or any narrative work, derived from one or more already existing works, that focuses, in particular, in more detail on one aspect of that original work...
series The Flintstone Kids
The Flintstone Kids
The Flintstone Kids is a 30-minute animated television series spin-off of The Flintstones which followed the adventures of Fred, Barney, Wilma, and Betty as children with their pet Dino.-Premise:...
depicts Wilma as a child, the series seems to be mostly apocryphal due to its presenting Wilma as a childhood friend of Fred and Barney (the original series asserted that they met as young adults) as well as using the last name Slaghoople instead of the original Pebbles. Still, the series' depictions that Wilma had younger sisters and that her father—who apparently died by the time Wilma reached adulthood—ran a prehistoric computer business might be taken as valid. Wilma did mention having a married sister in the sixth season.
As a young adult, Wilma worked with Betty as cigarette
Cigarette
A cigarette is a small roll of finely cut tobacco leaves wrapped in a cylinder of thin paper for smoking. The cigarette is ignited at one end and allowed to smoulder; its smoke is inhaled from the other end, which is held in or to the mouth and in some cases a cigarette holder may be used as well...
girls/waitresses at a resort. There, they first met and fell in love with their future husbands, Fred and Barney (who were working there as bellhops). Wilma's mother, Pearl Pebbles Slaghoople, also met her future son-in-law, and took a disliking toward Fred (and vice-versa), starting a long-lasting rivalry between the two.
Eventually, Wilma and Fred were married, and Wilma became a homemaker
Homemaker
Homemaking is a mainly American term for the management of a home, otherwise known as housework, housekeeping or household management...
, keeping house with such prehistoric aids as a baby elephant
Elephant
Elephants are large land mammals in two extant genera of the family Elephantidae: Elephas and Loxodonta, with the third genus Mammuthus extinct...
vacuum cleaner
Vacuum cleaner
A vacuum cleaner, commonly referred to as a "vacuum," is a device that uses an air pump to create a partial vacuum to suck up dust and dirt, usually from floors, and optionally from other surfaces as well. The dirt is collected by either a dustbag or a cyclone for later disposal...
, pelican
Pelican
A pelican, derived from the Greek word πελεκυς pelekys is a large water bird with a large throat pouch, belonging to the bird family Pelecanidae....
washing machine
Washing machine
A washing machine is a machine designed to wash laundry, such as clothing, towels and sheets...
, and so forth. She was also a good cook. One of her specialties was Gravelberry Pie - the recipe for which she eventually sold to the Safestone
Safeway Inc.
Safeway Inc. , a Fortune 500 company, is North America's second largest supermarket chain after The Kroger Co., with, as of December 2010, 1,694 stores located throughout the western and central United States and western Canada. It also operates some stores in the Mid-Atlantic region of the Eastern...
supermarket chain. Wilma also enjoyed volunteering for various charitable and women's organizations in Bedrock, shopping, and (occasionally) getting to meet the celebrities of their world, including "Stony Curtis"
Tony Curtis
Tony Curtis was an American film actor whose career spanned six decades, but had his greatest popularity during the 1950s and early 1960s. He acted in over 100 films in roles covering a wide range of genres, from light comedy to serious drama...
, "Rock Quarry"
Rock Hudson
Roy Harold Scherer, Jr., later Roy Harold Fitzgerald , known professionally as Rock Hudson, was an American film and television actor, recognized as a romantic leading man during the 1950s and 1960s, most notably in several romantic comedies with Doris Day.Hudson was voted "Star of the Year",...
and "Cary Granite"
Cary Grant
Archibald Alexander Leach , better known by his stage name Cary Grant, was an English actor who later took U.S. citizenship...
.
In the original series' third season, Wilma became pregnant, and gave birth to the couple's only child, Pebbles.
When Pebbles was a teenager, Wilma (along with Betty) gained employment as a reporter for one of Bedrock's newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
s, the Daily Granite (a spoof of the Daily Planet
Daily Planet
The Daily Planet is a fictional broadsheet newspaper in the , appearing mostly in the stories of Superman. The building's original features were based upon the AT&T Huron Road Building in Cleveland, Ohio...
of Superman
Superman
Superman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
fame), under the editorial guidance of Lou Granite (a parody of The Mary Tyler Moore Show's
The Mary Tyler Moore Show
The Mary Tyler Moore Show is an American television sitcom created by James L. Brooks and Allan Burns that aired on CBS from 1970 to 1977...
Lou Grant
Lou Grant (fictional character)
Lou Grant is a fictional character played by Edward Asner in two television series produced by MTM Enterprises for CBS. The first was Mary Tyler Moore , in which the character was the news director at the fictional television station WJM-TV...
). While employed there, she shared various adventures with prehistoric superhero
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
Captain Caveman
Captain Caveman and the Teen Angels
Captain Caveman and the Teen Angels is an animated series created by Joe Ruby and Ken Spears and produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions from September 10, 1977 to June 21, 1980 on ABC....
, who (in a secret identity
Secret identity
A secret identity is an element of fiction wherein a character develops a separate persona , while keeping their true identity hidden. The character also may wear a disguise...
) also worked for the newspaper (a la Clark Kent
Clark Kent
Clark Kent is a fictional character created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. Appearing regularly in stories published by DC Comics, he debuted in Action Comics #1 and serves as the civilian and secret identity of the superhero Superman....
).
Later still, after Pebbles grew up and left home, Wilma started a successful catering business with her neighbor and friend Betty, before becoming a grandmother to Pebbles' twin children, Chip and Roxy.
Maiden name controversy: Pebble or Slaghoople?
Wilma's maiden name has been a source of dispute. Several early episodes in the original series clearly stated Wilma's maiden name was "Pebble." In the episode "The Entertainer" (P-44), Wilma's old friend Greta Gravel remembers her as "Wilma Pebble". Again, in "Dial S for Suspicion" (P-74), one of Wilma's old boyfriends Rodney Whetstone calls her "Wilma Pebble."However, later episodes and spin-offs also firmly state her maiden name was indeed "Slaghoople," based upon the name of Wilma's mother in the original series, Pearl Slaghoople
Pearl Slaghoople
Pearl Pebble Slaghoople is a fictional character on the animated TV show The Flintstones. She was the mother of Wilma Flintstone, who is married to Fred Flintstone. In the original series, she portrayed Fred's stereotypically antagonistic mother-in-law, acting as a nagging irritant...
. Flintstones' writer Earl Kress explained the discrepancy as such: "[I]t's just as simple as [Hanna-Barbera] not caring about the continuity." In The Flintstones movie, when Wilma is leaving Fred to live with her Mother, Fred shouts "Come back here, Wilma Slaghoople". ("Sufflehooper" was also used at least once.)
Wilma and Fred's daughter is named "Pebbles" after Wilma's maiden surname.
Marriage
Wilma loves Fred very much, but he isn't easy to get on with. She knows his heart is in the right place and he tries his hardest to be a loving Husband and Father to the family.In the first few episodes of the series, particularly the first episode, Wilma (as is Betty) is portrayed as a domestically abusive wife, throwing a tantrum and physically assaulting her husband (or at least attempting to do so) upon discovering that he and Barney had fooled her and Betty so that they could go bowling, despite the fact that Fred had a bandaged head injury to the point that he and Barney actually run away on the Flintstone Flyer, and even after six hours, she and Betty show no remorse for their behaviour and look forward to hurting their husbands again once they land. Also, in the same episode, she and Betty are shown to be willing to assault their husbands violently in public without second thoughts, demonstrated when they bash Fred and Barney over the heads with their heavy handbags in the bowling alley in front of their teammates and several other players. In subsequent episodes, she is shown to get angry but never harms Fred seriously, often lecturing him or slapping him for his exceptionally bad behaviour. For example, in the 21st episode of Season 2, Wilma can be seen biting Fred's finger when he points at her.
While generally a foil to Fred's poor behavior, Wilma was not immune to it herself. She, usually along with Betty Rubble, would occasionally rack up large bills on a charge account or spend her husband's money with reckless abandon. Wilma and Betty would also occasionally plot acts of revenge on their husbands for their oafishness.
She and Fred argue often because of Fred's laziness, and because Fred sometimes flirts with other women. In the 1994
1994 in film
1994 was a significant year in film.The top grosser worldwide was The Lion King, which to date stands as the highest-grossing traditionally-animated film of all time...
live-action film The Flintstones
The Flintstones (film)
The Flintstones is a 1994 American live-action comedy film based on the Hanna-Barbera cartoon television series of the same name about a Stone-Age man, his family and his best friend. The film was directed by Brian Levant, written by Tom S. Parker, Jim Jennewein and Steven E...
, Fred's gorgeous secretary seduces him very often, and Wilma walks in and sees Fred drooling over her half naked body while she sexually entices him. In A Flintstones Christmas Carol, Wilma gets upset at Fred for forgetting Pebbles and being an idiot, but she favors him at the end of the film. In Flintstones: On the Rocks, her and Fred's marriage is not working out and they consider a divorce, but they reconcile at the end.
Portrayal
Jean Vander PylJean Vander Pyl
Jean Vander Pyl was an American actress on radio, television and movies. Although her career spanned many decades, she is best remembered as the voice of Wilma Flintstone from the Hanna-Barbera cartoon The Flintstones...
was the original voice artist of Wilma until her death in 1999. Since then, 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...
has taken over as Wilma's voice even when she voiced her in Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law
Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law
Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law is an American animated television series comedy created by Williams Street and produced by Cartoon Network Studios that aired on Cartoon Network during its Adult Swim late night programming block. The series' pilot first aired in 2000, and later became a series in...
.
In The Flintstone Kids
The Flintstone Kids
The Flintstone Kids is a 30-minute animated television series spin-off of The Flintstones which followed the adventures of Fred, Barney, Wilma, and Betty as children with their pet Dino.-Premise:...
, Wilma was voiced by Julie McWhirter Dees
Julie McWhirter
Julie McWhirter is an Indiana-born voice actress and impressionist best known for her work as Kanga in "Winnie the Pooh and a Day for Eeyore". Her voice acting also includes numerous Hanna-Barbera cartoons, such as Jeannie, Jabberjaw, Casper and the Angels, Drak Pack and The Smurfs...
and Elizabeth Lyn Frasier at different points.
In the live-action film The Flintstones
The Flintstones (film)
The Flintstones is a 1994 American live-action comedy film based on the Hanna-Barbera cartoon television series of the same name about a Stone-Age man, his family and his best friend. The film was directed by Brian Levant, written by Tom S. Parker, Jim Jennewein and Steven E...
, Wilma was played by Elizabeth Perkins
Elizabeth Perkins
Elizabeth Ann Perkins is an American actress. Her film roles have included Big, The Flintstones, Miracle on 34th Street, About Last Night..., and Avalon...
(although in the film, Vander Pyl made a cameo at Fred's Surprise party for being promoted at the Quarry in the conga line behind Dino
Dino
Dino may refer to:* slang term for a dinosaur* Dean "Dino" Martin , American singer and actor* Dino , one of the Graiai* Japanese professional wrestler who uses the name Danshoku Dino...
). In the prequel film The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas
The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas
The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas is a 2000 comedy film and prequel to 1994's The Flintstones based on the hit cartoon series of the same name, produced by Amblin Entertainment and Hanna-Barbera and distributed by Universal Studios...
, she was played by Kristen Johnston
Kristen Johnston
Kristen Johnston is an American stage, film, and television actress. She may be most famous for her role as Sally Solomon in the television series 3rd Rock from the Sun...
.