Snoopy

Snoopy

Snoopy is America’s favourite comic strip character and toy, first created by Charles Schulz. Charles Schulz was a famous artist and illustrator who initiated the Daisy Hill Puppy Farm in which Snoopy was one of the characters. This artist produced these characters as a way to epitomize his boyhood years. Snoopy was a composite of two of his childhood dogs which were named Snooky and Spike. The first appearance of Snoopy as a character in this episode of the Daisy Hill Puppy Farm was in 1950. This was only two days after the strip was premiered.

The first edition in which Snoopy premiered, the dog was made to act like it was a neighbourhood dog and not as Charlie Brown’s dog. In the two years that followed it remained a silent figure in these strips until Schulz revolutionized the appearance of Snoopy. It is 1952 that Snoopy was seen to verbalize his thoughts. This the illustrator Schulz did by introducing a thought balloon. This way the fans of Snoopy could be made aware of all that the dog was thinking. Schulz used this technique in all the subsequent strips that followed from that year on.

In addition to the readers being privy to what Snoopy was thinking. Schulz made it possible for the human characters in the strip Peanuts to be able to read and respond to Snoopy by reading his thoughts and then replying. During the animation of the Peanut strip, Snoopy was not made to talk, but his thoughts were portrayed through his growls, sobs, laughter and pantomime. Although an exception was made when Snoopy was cast in “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown and Snoopy!” This was a musical in which the Snoopy character’s thoughts were made known using voiceovers. These voiceovers were done by Robert Towers and Cam Clarke respectively.

It is after Snoopy became attached to Charlie Brown that its popularity hit the roof. It is during this time that his quirkiness became more noticeable. Snoopy’s peculiarity involved him sleeping on top of his doghouse, pretending that he was a pilot for a WWI plane, and he even befriended a yellow bird.

Over the years the Snoopy character has been developed into an intricate character that has more than his shares of likes and dislikes. Some of the things that Snoopy likes are root beer and pizza, and bones. His dislikes range from his hate of candy to being claustrophobic in weeds that are very high. It is not only these complex characteristics of Snoopy that has endeared him to many people. This dog has been known to have the uncanny instincts of hearing when someone was peeling a banana or eating marshmallows and the fact that he can use his ears to fly. He also has the ability to speak French and Serbo-Croatian. All these features of Snoopy are what have made him become more of a pop culture in Americas history.

Snoopy is one cartoon toy character who has shown amazing staying power in the history of comic strip characters and he has been able to maintain his likeability. Moreover, he is now being produced as great toys for all the enthusiasts of this character. He is the most revered cartoon toy creation of all times and is now more of a classic cult, which will not see its death anytime soon.