Merlin the Magic Mouse
{{short description|Warner Bros. theatrical cartoon character}}
{{Infobox character
| name = {{nowrap|Merlin the Magic Mouse}}
and {{nowrap|Second Banana}}
| series = Looney Tunes
| image = Merlin the Magic Mouse and Second Banana.jpg
| caption =
| first = Merlin the Magic Mouse (1967)
| creator = Alex Lovy
| designer = Jaime Diaz
| voice = Daws Butler (1967)
Larry Storch (1968–1969)
JP Karliak (2023–present)
| species = Mouse
| gender = Male
}}
Merlin the Magic Mouse is an animated cartoon mouse who starred in five Warner Bros. Looney Tunes shorts late in the series, from 1967 to 1969.{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=6 June 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/104/mode/2up |page=104}} The first cartoon was Merlin the Magic Mouse, directed by Alex Lovy.
In 1967, Jack L. Warner reorganized the Warner Bros. animation department and hired Lovy away from Hanna-Barbera Productions to create new characters for Warner Bros. The two that Lovy came up with were Merlin the Magic Mouse and Cool Cat.{{cite book |last1=Maltin |first1=Leonard |title=Of Mice and Magic: A History of American Animated Cartoons |date=1987 |publisher=Plume |isbn=0-452-25993-2 |edition=Revised |page=276}}
History
Merlin was a nightclub magician (he usually preferred to be called a prestidigitator, though he could never pronounce this correctly) who traveled around for work.{{cite book |last1=Rovin |first1=Jeff |title=The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Cartoon Animals |date=1991 |publisher=Prentice Hall Press |isbn=0-13-275561-0 |access-date=8 April 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/illustratedencyc00rovi/page/166/mode/2up/ |page=166}} Much of the humor of the character derived from the fact that, while he was often regarded as a cheap stage magician, he knew some very real and powerful magic tricks. His magic words were typically "Atascadero Escondido!" Merlin also has a sidekick, appropriately named Second Banana, which is a slang term for a magician's assistant.
Daws Butler provided the voice of Merlin and Second Banana in the first short, Merlin the Magic Mouse; Larry Storch performed the voices for the other four films.[http://www.toonopedia.com/merlin_m.htm Merlin the Magic Mouse] at Don Markstein's Toonopedia. [https://archive.today/20240527181334/https://www.webcitation.org/6fLnDeHnA?url=http://www.toonopedia.com/merlin_m.htm Archived] from the original on February 17, 2016. Merlin's vocal mannerisms are based on that of W.C. Fields.
He was featured in Tiny Toons Looniversity, voiced by J. P. Karliak.{{cite web | url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt28106456/ | title=Extra, So Extra | website=IMDb }}
Titles
- Merlin the Magic Mouse (1967)
- Hocus Pocus Powwow (1968)
- Feud with a Dude (1968)
- Fistic Mystic (1969)
- Shamrock and Roll (1969)
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb title|qid=Q6819801|title=Merlin the Magic Mouse}}
- {{IMDb title|qid=Q16251396|title=Hocus Pocus Powwow}}
- {{IMDb title|qid=Q128789867|title=Feud with a Dude}}
- {{IMDb title|qid=Q128789869|title=Fistic Mystic}}
- {{IMDb title|qid=Q128789871|title=Shamrock and Roll}}
{{Looney Tunes & Merrie Melodies}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Merlin The Magic Mouse}}
Category:Fictional characters who use magic
Category:Anthropomorphic mice and rats
Category:Fictional stage magicians
Category:Looney Tunes characters
Category:Male characters in animation
Category:Cultural depictions of W. C. Fields
Category:Film characters introduced in 1967
{{looney-tunes-stub}}