spongeBob SquarePants (character)

File: Stephen Hillenburg by Carlos Cazurro.jpg.]]

Stephen Hillenburg first became fascinated with the ocean as a child. He began developing his artistic abilities at a young age. During college, he studied marine biology and minored in art. He planned to return to graduate school and eventually to pursue a master's degree in art. After graduating in 1984 from Humboldt State University, he joined the Ocean Institute, an organization in Dana Point, California, dedicated to educating the public about marine science and maritime history.{{Cite web |url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/arts/spongebob-creator-stephen-hillenburg-dies-of-als-at-57 |title='SpongeBob' creator Stephen Hillenburg dies of ALS at 57 |date=27 November 2018 |website=PBS |language=en |access-date=February 19, 2020 |archive-date=April 17, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230417093232/https://www.pbs.org/newshour/arts/spongebob-creator-stephen-hillenburg-dies-of-als-at-57 |url-status=live }} While he was there, he had the initial idea that would lead to the creation of SpongeBob SquarePants—a comic book titled The Intertidal Zone. The host of the comic was "Bob the Sponge" who, unlike SpongeBob, resembled an actual sea sponge. In 1987, Hillenburg left the institute to pursue an animation career.{{Cite AV media |title=The Origin of SpongeBob SquarePants. SpongeBob SquarePants: The Complete First Season |date=2003 |last=Hillenburg |first=Stephen |publisher=Paramount Home Entertainment |medium=DVD}}

A few years after studying experimental animation at the California Institute of the Arts, Hillenburg met Joe Murray, the creator of Rocko's Modern Life, at an animation festival, and was offered a job as a director of the series.{{Cite AV media |title=The Origin of SpongeBob SquarePants. SpongeBob SquarePants: The Complete First Season |date=2003 |last=Murray |first=Joe |publisher=Paramount Home Entertainment |author-link=Joe Murray (animator) |medium=DVD}}{{Cite web |url=http://www.title14.com/rocko/contributors/murray.html |title=Lisa (Kiczuk) Trainor interviews Joe Murray, creator of Rocko's Modern Life |website=title14.com |publisher=The Rocko's Modern Life FAQ |access-date=March 8, 2014 |archive-date=April 20, 2015 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20150420193919/http://www.title14.com/rocko/contributors/murray.html |url-status=live }} While working on the series, Hillenburg met writer Martin Olson, who saw his previous comic The Intertidal Zone.Archived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/QRPep55zMCE Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20160208193135/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRPep55zMCE Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{Cite interview |interviewer=Nickelodeon |title=SpongeBob SquarePants -- Meet the Creator: Stephen Hillenburg -- Nickelodeon Animation Studio |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRPep55zMCE |access-date=February 19, 2020 |publisher=Nickelodeon |date=July 27, 2015}}{{cbignore}} Olson liked the idea and suggested Hillenburg create a series of marine animals, which spurred his decision to create SpongeBob SquarePants. Hillenburg did not think of making a series based on The Intertidal Zone at the time, later telling Thomas F. Wilson in an interview, "a show... I hadn't even thought about making a show... and it wasn't my show". Hillenburg later claimed it was "the inspiration for the show".{{Cite AV media |url=https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/stephen-hillenburg-artist-and-animator/id477643322?i=1000115912023 |title=Big Pop Fun #28: Stephen Hillenburg, Artist and Animator–Interview |date=May 29, 2012 |people=Wilson, Thomas F. (Interviewer); Hillenburg, Stephen (Interviewee) |publisher=Nerdist Industries |access-date=February 19, 2020 |format=mp3 |medium=Podcast |archive-date=April 17, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230417130356/https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/stephen-hillenburg-artist-and-animator/id477643322?i=1000115912023 |url-status=live }}

Rocko's Modern Life ended in 1996.{{Cite web |url=http://joemurraystudio.com/television/rockos-modern-life/ |title=Rocko's Modern Life |publisher=JoeMurrayStudio.com |access-date=May 21, 2013 |archive-date=June 15, 2013 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130615100743/http://joemurraystudio.com/television/rockos-modern-life/ |url-status=dead }} Shortly afterwards, Hillenburg began working on SpongeBob SquarePants. He began drawing and took some of the show's characters from his comic—like starfish, crab, and sponge. At the time, Hillenburg knew that "everybody was doing buddy shows"—like The Ren & Stimpy Show. He stated, "I can't do a buddy show", so he decided to do a "one character" show instead. He conceived a sponge as the title character because he liked its "versatility... as an animal".{{Cite news |last=Flynn |first=Meagan |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2018/11/28/spongebobs-incredible-journey-bob-sponge-marine-institutes-comic-book-global-stardom/ |title=SpongeBob's incredible journey from 'Bob the Sponge' in a marine institute's comic book to global stardom |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=19 February 2020 |archive-date=January 1, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190101215436/https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2018/11/28/spongebobs-incredible-journey-bob-sponge-marine-institutes-comic-book-global-stardom/ |url-status=live }} Hillenburg derived the character's name from Bob the Sponge, the host of his comic strip The Intertidal Zone, after changing it from SpongeBoy because of trademark issues.

File:SpongeBoy by Stephen Hillenburg.jpg

Hillenburg had made several "horrible impersonations" before he finally conceived of his character.{{Cite news |last=Cavna |first=Michael |url=http://voices.washingtonpost.com/comic-riffs/2009/07/_tom_kenny_who_voices.html |title=The Interview: 'SpongeBob' Creator Stephen Hillenburg |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=July 14, 2009 |archive-date=October 6, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121006111645/http://voices.washingtonpost.com/comic-riffs/2009/07/_tom_kenny_who_voices.html |url-status=dead }} He compared the concept to Laurel and Hardy and Pee-wee Herman saying, "I think SpongeBob [was] born out of my love of Laurel and Hardy shorts. You've got that kind of idiot-buddy situation – that was a huge influence. SpongeBob was inspired by that kind of character: the Innocent – à la Stan Laurel."

The first concept sketch portrayed the character wearing a red hat with a green base and a white business shirt with a tie. SpongeBob's look gradually changed. He also wore brown pants used in the final design. SpongeBob was designed to be a childlike character who was goofy and optimistic in a style similar to that made famous by Jerry Lewis.{{Cite news |last=Strauss |first=Gary |url=https://www.usatoday.com/money/covers/2002-05-17-sponge-bob.htm |title=Life's good for SpongeBob |date=May 17, 2002 |work=USA Today |access-date=November 8, 2008 |archive-date=May 4, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120504090034/http://www.usatoday.com/money/covers/2002-05-17-sponge-bob.htm |url-status=live }}

Originally, the character was to be named SpongeBoy (and the series named SpongeBoy Ahoy!), but this name was already in use for another product.{{Citation |title=The SpongeBoy Mop Doesn't Exist |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qnKtglBqe78 |language=en |access-date=2022-12-24 |archive-date=October 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231005203203/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qnKtglBqe78 |url-status=live }} This was discovered after voice acting for the original seven-minute pilot was recorded. Upon learning this, Hillenburg knew that the character's name still had to contain "Sponge" so viewers would not mistake him for a "Cheese Man". In 1997, he decided to use the name "SpongeBob" with "SquarePants" as a family name, with the latter referring to the character's square shape and having a "nice ring to it".

Before commissioning SpongeBob as a full series, Nickelodeon executives insisted that it would not be popular unless the main character was a child who went to school.{{Cite news |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-82792771.html |title=Stephen Hillenburg created the undersea world of SpongeBob |date=February 12, 2002 |work=Orange County Register |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140610060614/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-82792771.html |archive-date=June 10, 2014}} Stephen Hillenburg recalled in 2012 that Nickelodeon told him, "Our winning formula is animation about kids in school... We want you to put SpongeBob in school." Hillenburg was ready to "walk out" on Nickelodeon and abandon the series since he wanted SpongeBob to be an adult character. He eventually compromised by adding a new character to the main cast, Mrs. Puff, whose occupation as a driving instructor allowed SpongeBob to both appear as an adult and go to school, satisfying both Hillenburg and Nickelodeon. Hillenburg was happy with the compromise and said, "A positive thing for me that came out of it was [how it brought] in a new character, Mrs. Puff, who I love."

Episodes from 2000 and 2001 have given SpongeBob's birthdate as July 14, 1986,{{Cite episode |title=No Free Rides |network=Nickelodeon |series=SpongeBob SquarePants |season=2 |number=10 |airdate=March 7, 2001 |credits=Writers: Aaron Springer, C. H. Greenblatt, Mr. Lawrence}} although his age is left unclear throughout the series.{{Cite episode |title=SpongeBob's Big Birthday Blowout |episode-link=SpongeBob's Big Birthday Blowout |series=SpongeBob SquarePants |season=12 |airdate=July 12, 2019 |credits=Writers: Kaz, Mr. Lawrence}}

SpongeBob has demonstrated an ability to shapeshift, for example into the shape of Texas{{Cite episode |title=Texas |series=SpongeBob SquarePants |season=1 |airdate=March 22, 2000 |credits=Writers: Vincent Waller}} or his friends' faces to humor himself.{{cite web |last1=Handlen |first1=Zack |title=SpongeBob SquarePants built its undersea empire on nonsense and enthusiasm |url=https://www.avclub.com/spongebob-squarepants-built-its-undersea-empire-on-nons-1798266262/amp |website=The A. V. Club |date=February 17, 2014 |access-date=1 February 2022 |archive-date=March 12, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230312090723/https://www.avclub.com/spongebob-squarepants-built-its-undersea-empire-on-nons-1798266262/amp |url-status=live }}

File:Tom Kenny (cropped) in 2014 at New York Comic Con.jpg provides the voice of SpongeBob SquarePants]]

SpongeBob is voiced by veteran voice actor Tom Kenny, who had worked previously with Hillenburg on Rocko's Modern Life. When Hillenburg created SpongeBob SquarePants, he approached Kenny to voice the character.{{Cite web |url=http://www.sptimes.com/2003/03/17/Xpress/SpongeBob__the_excita.shtml |title=SpongeBob: the excitable, absorbent star of Bikini Bottom |last=Orlando |first=Dana |date=March 17, 2003 |access-date=November 8, 2008 |newspaper=St. Petersburg Times |archive-date=December 19, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081219213018/http://www.sptimes.com/2003/03/17/Xpress/SpongeBob__the_excita.shtml |url-status=live }} Hillenburg used Kenny's and other people's personalities while creating SpongeBob's.

Kenny said in an episode of WTF with Marc Maron that the voice was based on a frustrated dwarf actor he encountered while auditioning for a television commercial.{{cite podcast |url=https://www.wtfpod.com/podcast/episodes/episode_324_-_tom_kenny |title=Episode 324 - Tom Kenny |website=WTF with Marc Maron |publisher=WTF with Marc Maron |host=Marc Maron |date=October 15, 2012 |time=1:00:15 - 1:04:05 |access-date=August 10, 2022 |archive-date=October 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231005121456/http://www.wtfpod.com/podcast/episodes/episode_324_-_tom_kenny |url-status=live }}{{subscription required}} Kenny had originally used SpongeBob's voice for a minor background character in Rocko's Modern Life. At first, Kenny forgot the voice because he had used it only on that occasion. Hillenburg remembered it when he was coming up with SpongeBob, however, and played a video clip of the Rocko episode to remind Kenny of the voice. When Hillenburg heard Kenny do the voice, he said, "That's it—I don't want to hear anybody else do the voice. We've got SpongeBob." Kenny recalled that Nickelodeon was unsure of his casting and said, "Well, let's just listen to 100 more people." The network hoped to find a celebrity for the part. Kenny noted: "But one of the advantages of having a strong creator is that the creator can say, 'No, I like that—I don't care about celebrities'." Kenny recalls Hillenburg "let them know that in no uncertain terms." SpongeBob's high-pitched laugh was specifically designed to be unique according to Kenny. They wanted an annoying laugh in the tradition of Popeye and Woody Woodpecker.{{Cite news |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/spongebobs-alter-ego/ |title=SpongeBob's Alter Ego |date=December 27, 2002 |access-date=November 8, 2008 |publisher=CBS News |archive-date=December 20, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081220220843/http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2002/12/27/earlyshow/leisure/celebspot/main534521.shtml?source=search_story |url-status=live }}

Throughout the series, SpongeBob's voice evolved from "low-key" to high-pitched. Kenny said, "I hear the change... It's mostly a question of the pitch."{{Cite news |last=Kenny |first=Tom |url=https://www.hoganmag.com/blog/the-oral-history-of-spongebob-squarepants/ |title=The Oral History of SpongeBob SquarePants |work=Hogan's Alley #17 |access-date=September 21, 2012 |publisher=Bull Moose Publishing Corporation |year=2010 |archive-date=September 30, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230930055007/https://www.hoganmag.com/blog/the-oral-history-of-spongebob-squarepants |url-status=live }} He said that, "It's unconscious on my part" because "I don't wake up and think, 'Hmm, I'm going to change SpongeBob's voice today, just for the hell of it'." He described it as "like erosion: a very slow process. As time goes on, you need to bring him to different places and more places, the more stories and scripts you do." Contrasting first-season episodes to those of the seventh season, Kenny said that "there's a bit of a change [in the voice], but I don't think it's that extreme at all."

When SpongeBob SquarePants was prepared for broadcast in languages other than English, the voice actors dubbing SpongeBob's voice used Kenny's rendition of the character as a starting point but added unique elements. For example, in the French version of the series, SpongeBob speaks with a slight Daffy Duck-style lisp.{{Cite interview |url=http://www.thepeoplespeakradio.net/archives/mp3/tps-2006-12-05-kenny.mp3 |title=Tom Kenny: Voice of SpongeBob SquarePants - Interview |date=December 5, 2006 |last=Farhat |first=Basima |publisher=The People Speak Radio |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110724101824/http://www.thepeoplespeakradio.net/archives/mp3/tps-2006-12-05-kenny.mp3 |archive-date=July 24, 2011 |format=mp3 |medium=Radio production |url-status=dead}}

In early 2021, SpongeBob became one of the popular character voices available on 15.ai, an artificial intelligence text-to-speech web application that allowed users to generate speech in the voices of fictional characters.{{cite web |last=Zwiezen |first=Zack |date=January 18, 2021 |title=Website Lets You Make GLaDOS Say Whatever You Want |url=https://kotaku.com/this-website-lets-you-make-glados-say-whatever-you-want-1846062835 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210117164748/https://kotaku.com/this-website-lets-you-make-glados-say-whatever-you-want-1846062835 |archive-date=January 17, 2021 |access-date=December 18, 2024 |website=Kotaku}} Critics reported that the application replicated SpongeBob's voice particularly well, with Natalie Clayton of PC Gamer noting that the character's distinctive shrill voice was convincingly recreated through the application.{{cite web |last=Clayton |first=Natalie |date=January 19, 2021 |title=Make the cast of TF2 recite old memes with this AI text-to-speech tool |url=https://www.pcgamer.com/make-the-cast-of-tf2-recite-old-memes-with-this-ai-text-to-speech-tool |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210119133726/https://www.pcgamer.com/make-the-cast-of-tf2-recite-old-memes-with-this-ai-text-to-speech-tool/ |archive-date=January 19, 2021 |access-date=December 18, 2024 |website=PC Gamer}} The technology allowed fans to create content featuring SpongeBob saying custom phrases, which Peter Paltridge of Anime Superhero News described as "nearly indistinguishable from actual human speech" in its more sophisticated implementations.{{cite web |last=Paltridge |first=Peter |url=https://animesuperhero.com/this-website-will-say-whatever-you-type-in-spongebobs-voice/ |title=This Website Will Say Whatever You Type In Spongebob's Voice |website=Anime Superhero News |access-date=December 22, 2024 |date=January 18, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211017003838/https://animesuperhero.com/this-website-will-say-whatever-you-type-in-spongebobs-voice/ |archive-date=October 17, 2021}}

SpongeBob is a good-natured, naive, and enthusiastic sea sponge. In The SpongeBob Musical, his exact species of animal is identified: Aplysina fistularis, a yellow tube sponge that is common in open waters.{{Cite AV media |title=The SpongeBob Musical |date=June 7, 2016 |last=Kyle Jarrow |type=Broadway musical |language=English |publisher=Tina Landau |quote=French Narrator: This fruit is home to one of the most fascinating sea creatures of all—Aplysina fistularis, the yellow sponge.}} He resides in the undersea city of Bikini Bottom with other anthropomorphic aquatic creatures. He works as a fry cook at a local fast food restaurant, the Krusty Krab, to which he is obsessively attached, showing devotion to it above other restaurants.{{Cite episode |title=Help Wanted |series=SpongeBob SquarePants |network=Nickelodeon |season=1 |number=1 |airdate=May 1, 1999 |credits=Writers: Stephen Hillenburg, Derek Drymon, Tim Hill}} His boss is Eugene Krabs, a greedy crab who nonetheless becomes a father figure to SpongeBob.{{Cite episode |title=Spy Buddies |series=SpongeBob SquarePants |network=Nickelodeon |season=4 |number=84a |airdate=July 23, 2007 |credits=Writers: Luke Brookshier, Tom King, Dani Michaeli}} Squidward Tentacles, an octopus,{{Cite web |url=https://www.mtv.com/news/f2s9pv/squidward-not-squid |title=Squidward Is Not A Squid And Your Whole Life Is a Lie |publisher=MTV |access-date=February 19, 2020 |archive-date=July 7, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230707183241/https://www.mtv.com/news/f2s9pv/squidward-not-squid |url-status=dead }} and SpongeBob's ill-tempered, snobbish neighbor, works as the restaurant's cashier. SpongeBob's hobbies include fishing for jellyfish, practicing karate with his friend Sandy Cheeks (a squirrel from Texas),{{Cite episode |title=Karate Choppers |series=SpongeBob SquarePants |network=Nickelodeon |season=1 |number=14b |airdate=December 31, 1999 |credits=Writers: Aaron Springer, Erik Wiese, Merriwether Williams}} and blowing bubbles.{{Cite episode |title=The Secret Box |series=SpongeBob SquarePants |network=Nickelodeon |season=2 |number=35a |airdate=September 7, 2001 |credits=Writers: Walt Dohrn, Paul Tibbitt, Merriwether Williams}}

SpongeBob is often seen hanging around with his best friend, starfish Patrick Star, one of his neighbors. SpongeBob SquarePants lives in a submerged pineapple with his pet snail, Gary. His often-overt optimistic attitude makes him ignorant to negativity from others. He believes, for instance, that Squidward Tentacles enjoys his company even though he was clearly annoyed by SpongeBob's behavior in most scenarios.{{Cite episode |title=Dying for Pie |series=SpongeBob SquarePants |network=Nickelodeon |season=2 |number=24a |airdate=December 28, 2000 |credits=Writers: Aaron Springer, C. H. Greenblatt, Merriwether Williams}} SpongeBob's greatest goal in life is to obtain his driver's license from Mrs. Puff's boating school, but he often panics and crashes when driving a boat, failing the course multiple times.{{Cite episode |title=Mrs. Puff, You're Fired |series=SpongeBob SquarePants |network=Nickelodeon |date=April 1, 2006 |season=4 |number=69b |credits=Writers: Casey Alexander, Chris Mitchell, Tim Hill}}

Throughout SpongeBob SquarePants{{'}} first run, SpongeBob became instantly popular with both children and adults. In June 2010, Entertainment Weekly named him one of the "100 Greatest Characters of the Last 20 Years".{{Cite magazine |url=http://popwatch.ew.com/2010/06/01/100-greatest-characters-of-last-20-years-full-list/ |title=The 100 Greatest Characters of the Last 20 Years: Here's our full list! |last=Vary |first=Adam B. |date=June 1, 2010 |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |access-date=July 7, 2012 |archive-date=October 12, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131012051715/http://popwatch.ew.com/2010/06/01/100-greatest-characters-of-last-20-years-full-list/ |url-status=live }} TV Guide listed SpongeBob SquarePants at number nine on its "50 Greatest Cartoon Characters of All Time" list.{{Cite news |url=http://archives.cnn.com/2002/SHOWBIZ/TV/07/30/cartoon.characters.list/ |title=TV Guide's 50 greatest cartoon characters of all time |date=July 30, 2002 |work=TV Guide |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100318065041/http://archives.cnn.com/2002/SHOWBIZ/TV/07/30/cartoon.characters.list |archive-date=March 18, 2010}}

James Poniewozik of Time magazine considered the character "the anti-Bart Simpson, temperamentally and physically: his head is as squared-off and neat as Bart's is unruly, and he has a personality to match–conscientious, optimistic and blind to the faults in the world and those around him."{{Cite magazine |last=Poniewozik |first=James |url=http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,187600,00.html |title=Soaking Up Attention |date=December 9, 2011 |magazine=Time magazine |access-date=December 27, 2013 |archive-date=December 29, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131229004630/http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0%2C9171%2C187600%2C00.html |url-status=live }} The New York Times critic Joyce Millman said, "His relentless good cheer would be irritating if he weren't so darned lovable and his world so excellently strange... Like Pee-wee's Playhouse, SpongeBob joyfully dances on the fine line between childhood and adulthood, guilelessness and camp, the warped and the sweet."{{Cite news |last=Millman |first=Joyce |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/07/08/arts/television-radio-the-gentle-world-of-a-joyful-sponge.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm |title=The Gentle World Of a Joyful Sponge |date=July 8, 2001 |work=The New York Times |access-date=December 27, 2013 |archive-date=January 15, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140115064047/http://www.nytimes.com/2001/07/08/arts/television-radio-the-gentle-world-of-a-joyful-sponge.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm |url-status=live }} Robert Thompson, a professor of communications and director of the Center for the Study of Popular Television at Syracuse University, told The New York Times:

There is something kind of unique about [SpongeBob]. It seems to be a refreshing breath from the pre-irony era. There's no sense of the elbow-in-rib, a tongue-in-cheek aesthetic that so permeates the rest of American culture–including kids' shows like the Rugrats. I think what's subversive about it is it's so incredibly naive–deliberately. Because there's nothing in it that's trying to be hip or cool or anything else, hipness can be grafted onto it.{{Cite news |last=Zeller |first=Tom Jr. |url=https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/learning/students/pop/20020722snapmonday.html |title=How to Succeed Without Attitude |date=July 21, 2002 |work=The New York Times |access-date=20 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200104020846/https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/learning/students/pop/20020722snapmonday.html |archive-date=January 4, 2020 |author-link=Tom Zeller, Jr.}}

In a 2007 interview with TV Guide, Barack Obama named SpongeBob his favorite TV character, saying that he watched SpongeBob SquarePants with his daughters.{{Cite web |url=http://www.tvguide.com/news/obamas-favorite-tv-1004874.aspx |title=What's on Obama's Must-See TV List? |last=Eng |first=Joyce |date=August 8, 2009 |website=TV Guide |access-date=April 28, 2013 |archive-date=April 11, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090411092515/http://www.tvguide.com/news/obamas-favorite-tv-1004874.aspx |url-status=live }}{{Cite news |url=http://in.reuters.com/article/television-spongebob-idINN1319626220090713 |title=From Bikini Bottom to pop icon; SpongeBob turns 10 |date=July 14, 2009 |work=Reuters |access-date=April 28, 2013 |archive-date=December 26, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151226125203/http://in.reuters.com/article/television-spongebob-idINN1319626220090713 |url-status=dead }}

In 2005, a promotional video which showed SpongeBob, along with other characters from children's shows, singing to promote diversity and tolerance{{Cite news |last=BBC Staff |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4190699.stm |title=US right attacks SpongeBob video |date=January 20, 2005 |work=BBC News |access-date=June 11, 2007 |archive-date=March 15, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090315035331/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4190699.stm |url-status=live }} was criticized by a Christian fundamentalist group in the United States because they felt the SpongeBob character was being used as an advocate for homosexuality, despite the video containing "no reference to sex, sexual lifestyle or sexual identity."{{Cite news |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna6852828 |title=Will Spongebob make you gay? |access-date=January 21, 2005 |publisher=NBC News |archive-date=March 27, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130327024711/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/6852828 |url-status=live }}{{Cite news |url=https://www.usatoday.com/life/television/2005-01-22-kids-video_x.htm |title=Spongebob, Muppets and the Sister Sledge writer suffer criticism |date=January 22, 2005 |work=USA Today |access-date=June 11, 2007 |agency=Associated Press |author-link=Associated Press |archive-date=February 4, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120204112303/http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/2005-01-22-kids-video_x.htm |url-status=live }} James Dobson of Focus on the Family accused the video's makers of promoting homosexuality because a gay rights group had sponsored the video.

The incident led to the question whether SpongeBob is a homosexual character. In 2002, when SpongeBob's popularity with gay men grew, Hillenburg denied the suggestion. He clarified that he considers the character to be "somewhat asexual."{{Cite news |last=BBC Staff |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/tv_and_radio/2313221.stm |title=Camp cartoon star 'is not gay' |date=October 9, 2002 |work=BBC News |access-date=June 11, 2007 |archive-date=November 7, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151107044940/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/tv_and_radio/2313221.stm |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |url=http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,1021976,00.html |title=SpongeBob Asexual, Not Gay: Creator |last=Silverman |first=Stephen M. |date=January 28, 2005 |website=People |access-date=August 26, 2009 |archive-date=March 20, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080320034827/http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,1021976,00.html |url-status=dead }} The term "asexual" was specifically used when discussing the character's sexual orientation rather than the context of exclusive asexual reproduction.{{Cite web |url=http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,1021976,00.html |title=SpongeBob Asexual, Not Gay: Creator |last=Silverman |first=Stephen M. |date=January 28, 2005 |website=People |access-date=August 26, 2009 |archive-date=March 20, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080320034827/http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,1021976,00.html |url-status=dead }} SpongeBob's exact species is the Aplysina fistularis sponge,{{cite web |last1=Senior |first1=Mark |title=The SpongeBob Musical at the Southbank Centre review: rarely gets above water |url=https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/theatre/the-spongebob-musical-review-queen-elizabeth-hall-b1098640.html |website=The Standard|date=August 4, 2023 }} a species of sponge capable of sexual reproduction in addition to asexual reproduction.{{cite web |title=Yellow Tube Sponge |url=https://oceana.org/marine-life/yellow-tube-sponge/ |website=Oceana |access-date=August 23, 2024 |archive-date=April 8, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240408084500/https://oceana.org/marine-life/yellow-tube-sponge/ |url-status=live }} The character also has two biological parents.{{cite web |last1=Tyler |first1=Adrienne |title=Who Is SpongeBob SquarePants' Family? Other Members & Backstory Explained |url=https://screenrant.com/spongebob-squarepants-family-members-history-characters-explained/ |website=ScreenRant|date=August 4, 2020 }} After Dobson's comments on the alleged pro-gay content of the show, Hillenburg repeated his assertion that sexual preference was never considered during the creation of the show.{{Cite news |url=http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=22&art_id=vn20050129114540161C803463 |title=SpongeBob isn't gay or straight, creator says |date=January 29, 2005 |agency=Reuters |access-date=November 9, 2008 |archive-date=July 16, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100716063448/http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=22&art_id=vn20050129114540161C803463 |url-status=live }} Tom Kenny and other production members were shocked and surprised that such an issue had arisen.

Dobson later said that his comments were taken out of context and that his original complaints were not with SpongeBob or any of the characters in the video but with the organization that sponsored it, the We Are Family Foundation. Dobson noted that the foundation had posted pro-homosexual material on its website, but later removed it.{{Cite web |url=https://www.christianpost.com/news/dobson-clarifies-pro-gay-spongebob-video-controversy-20875/ |title=Dobson clarifies Pro-Gay SpongeBob Video Controversy |last=Chang |first=Pauline J. |date=January 28, 2005 |access-date=May 9, 2018 |newspaper=The Christian Post |archive-date=July 21, 2012 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120721232727/http://www.christianpost.com/article/20050128/20875.htm |url-status=live }} After the controversy, John H. Thomas, the United Church of Christ's general minister and president, said they would welcome SpongeBob into their ministry. He said, "Jesus didn't turn people away. Neither do we."{{Cite web |url=http://www.nbr.co.nz/home/column_article.asp?id=11260&cid=1&cname=Media |title=Ministry celebrates SpongeBob: Gay, happy, yellow, orange, whatever, he's welcome |last=Till |first=Francis |date=February 4, 2005 |website=National Business Review |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070627121737/http://www.nbr.co.nz/home/column_article.asp?id=11260&cid=1&cname=Media |archive-date=June 27, 2007 |df=mdy-all}}

Jeffrey P. Dennis, author of the journal article "The Same Thing We Do Every Night: Signifying Same-Sex Desire in Television Cartoons", argued that SpongeBob and Sandy are not romantically in love while adding that he believed that SpongeBob and Patrick "are paired with arguably erotic intensity." Dennis noted the two are "not consistently coded as romantic partners," since they live in separate residences, and have distinct groups of friends but claimed that in the series, "the possibility of same-sex desire is never excluded."Dennis, Jeffrey P. "[http://www.icce.rug.nl/~soundscapes/VOLUME06/Queertoons.shtml The Same Thing We Do Every Night: Signifying Same-Sex Desire in Television Cartoons] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200925124217/http://www.icce.rug.nl/~soundscapes/VOLUME06/Queertoons.shtml |date=September 25, 2020 }}." Journal of Popular Film & Television. Fall 2003. Volume 31, Issue 3. 132–140. 9p, 3bw. Within the PDF document the source info is on p. 137 (6/10) Martin Goodman of Animation World Magazine described Dennis's comments regarding SpongeBob and Patrick as "interesting".{{Cite web |url=http://www.awn.com/articles/drtoon/deconstruction-zone-part-2/page/4%2C1 |title=Deconstruction Zone — Part 2 |last=Goodman |first=Martin |date=March 10, 2004 |website=Animation World Network |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100413110918/http://www.awn.com/articles/drtoon/deconstruction-zone-part-2/page/4%2C1 |archive-date=April 13, 2010}}

In April 2009, in a tie-in partnership with Burger King and Nickelodeon, Burger King released an advertisement featuring SpongeBob and Sir Mix-a-Lot singing "Baby Got Back".{{Cite web |url=http://voices.yahoo.com/spongebob-sir-mix-lot-burger-king-offensive-commercial-3094448.html |title=Spongebob + Sir Mix-A-Lot + Burger King = Offensive Commercial? |last=Ekberg |first=Aida |date=April 15, 2009 |publisher=Yahoo! |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131209042535/http://voices.yahoo.com/spongebob-sir-mix-lot-burger-king-offensive-commercial-3094448.html?cat=33 |archive-date=December 9, 2013}} Parents and the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood (CCFC) protested the ad for being sexist and inappropriately sexual, considering that SpongeBob's audience includes preschoolers.{{Cite press release |title=CCFC to Nickelodeon: Did You Approve the SpongeBob SquareButt Burger King Commercial? |date=April 9, 2009 |publisher=Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood |url=http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2009/04/09-15 |last1=Golin |first1=Josh |access-date=May 21, 2013 |archive-date=April 19, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090419205831/http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2009/04/09-15 |url-status=dead }} CCFC director Susan Linn said the usage of SpongeBob promoting sexualized images of women was "utterly reprehensible".{{Cite web |url=http://jezebel.com/5203677/spongebob-meets-sir-mix+a+lot-in-new-burger-king-ads |title=SpongeBob Meets Sir Mix-A-Lot In New Burger King Ads |last=Kelleher |first=Katy |date=April 8, 2009 |publisher=Jezebel |access-date=May 21, 2013 |archive-date=December 3, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203022518/http://jezebel.com/5203677/spongebob-meets-sir-mix+a+lot-in-new-burger-king-ads |url-status=dead }}{{Cite web |url=http://shine.yahoo.com/parenting/is-the-sir-mix-a-lot-burger-king-commercial-too-much-for-kids-444044.html |title=Is the Sir Mix-a-Lot Burger King commercial too much for kids? |last=Douglas |first=Joanna |date=April 8, 2009 |publisher=Yahoo! |access-date=May 21, 2013 |archive-date=April 16, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140416202924/https://shine.yahoo.com/parenting/is-the-sir-mix-a-lot-burger-king-commercial-too-much-for-kids-444044.html |url-status=live }} In an official statement released by Burger King, the company claimed the campaign was aimed at parents.{{Cite news |last=Newman |first=Craig |url=http://blogs.suntimes.com/shinyobjects/2009/04/burger-king-pushes-flat-butts-and-spongebob-to-kids-hires-buttheads-to-do-it.html |title=Burger King pushes flat butts and SpongeBob to kids, hires buttheads to do it |date=April 13, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141111003615/http://blogs.suntimes.com/shinyobjects/2009/04/burger-king-pushes-flat-butts-and-spongebob-to-kids-hires-buttheads-to-do-it.html |archive-date=November 11, 2014 |publisher=Suntimes}}

In June 2020, Nickelodeon shared a tweet in celebration of Pride Month, featuring SpongeBob SquarePants wearing a rainbow-colored tie. Along with SpongeBob, the tweet included photos of transgender actor Michael D. Cohen, who plays Schwoz Schwartz on Henry Danger, and Korra from the Avatar spin-off show The Legend of Korra, who is depicted as being in a same-sex relationship. Some users online interpreted the post as being the network's way of quietly announcing that the character was gay; series creator Hillenburg has previously stated he considered SpongeBob to be asexual.{{Cite web|url=https://heavy.com/entertainment/2020/06/spongebob-squarepants-gay-asexual-nickelodeon-twitter/|title=Did Nickelodeon Reveal SpongeBob SquarePants Is Gay?|first=Emily|last=Bicks|date=June 13, 2020|access-date=July 3, 2020|archive-date=June 15, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200615030531/https://heavy.com/entertainment/2020/06/spongebob-squarepants-gay-asexual-nickelodeon-twitter/|url-status=live}}

File: Wax Museum Plus (6344827249).jpg,
in Dublin, Ireland]]

Throughout SpongeBob SquarePants{{'}} run, the SpongeBob character became very popular with viewers of all ages. His popularity spread from Nickelodeon's original demographic of two- to eleven-year-olds, to teenagers and adults,{{Cite news |last=Park |first=Michael Y. |url=https://www.foxnews.com/story/spongebob-hotpants |title=SpongeBob HotPants? |date=October 9, 2002 |access-date=November 9, 2008 |publisher=Fox News Channel |archive-date=March 8, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080308065521/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,65225,00.html |url-status=live }} was popular on college campuses and with celebrities such as Sigourney Weaver and Bruce Willis.{{Cite news |last=Imperiale Wellons |first=Nancy |url=http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-8350623_ITM |title=SpongeBob cartoon proves its hip to be SquarePants. |date=May 1, 2001 |work=Orlando Sentinel |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081219062257/http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-8350623_ITM |archive-date=December 19, 2008}} Salon.com's Stephanie Zacharek feels that the unadulterated innocence of SpongeBob is what makes him so appealing.{{Cite news |last=Zacharek |first=Stephanie |url=http://dir.salon.com/story/ent/movies/review/2004/11/19/spongebob/index.html |title=The SpongeBob Squarepants Movie |date=September 19, 2004 |work=Salon |access-date=November 8, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081221175800/http://dir.salon.com/story/ent/movies/review/2004/11/19/spongebob/index.html |archive-date=December 21, 2008 |df=mdy-all}} Since at least 2002, SpongeBob became popular with gay men due to his "flamboyant lifestyle and tolerant attitude", despite Stephen Hillenburg asserting he is asexual.{{Cite magazine |last=Susman |first=Gary |url=https://ew.com/article/2002/10/01/spongebob-gay/ |title=Under the Surface |date=October 9, 2002 |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |access-date=November 8, 2008 |archive-date=January 30, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080130075256/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,363124,00.html |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |title=SpongeBob Asexual, Not Gay: Creator |url=https://people.com/celebrity/spongebob-asexual-not-gay-creator/ |access-date=2024-08-17 |website=Peoplemag |language=en}}

File:Spongiforma squarepantsii 151595.jpg is a species of fungi named after SpongeBob SquarePants]]

In July 2009, the Madame Tussauds wax museum in New York unveiled a wax sculpture of SpongeBob,{{Cite web |url=http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/hockey/vancouver-canucks/Happy+Birthday+SpongeBob+SquarePants/1821200/story.html |title=Happy Birthday, SpongeBob SquarePants! |last=Worboy |first=Martha |website=vancouversun.com |publisher=Vancouver Sun |access-date=4 January 2020 |archive-date=January 4, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200104023957/http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/hockey/vancouver-canucks/Happy+Birthday+SpongeBob+SquarePants/1821200/story.html |url-status=live }} the first fictional character to be featured there. In May 2011, a new species of mushroom, Spongiforma squarepantsii, named after SpongeBob, was described in the journal Mycologia.{{Cite journal |vauthors=Desjardin DE, Peay KB, Bruns TD |date=May 10, 2011 |title=Spongiforma squarepantsii, a new species of gasteroid bolete from Borneo |journal=Mycologia |volume=103 |issue=5 |pages=1119–23 |doi=10.3852/10-433 |pmid=21558499|s2cid=15849227 | issn=0027-5514 }} The authors note that the hymenium, when viewed using scanning electron microscopy, somewhat resembles a "seafloor covered with tube sponges, reminiscent of the fictitious home of SpongeBob." Although the epithet was originally rejected by Mycologia{{'}}s editors as "too frivolous", the authors insisted that "we could name it whatever we liked."{{Cite news |last=GrrlScientist |url=https://www.theguardian.com/science/punctuated-equilibrium/2011/jun/22/2 |title=The new fungus from Bikini Bottom |date=June 22, 2011 |access-date=October 5, 2011 |publisher=Punctuated Equilibrium, The Guardian |location=London |archive-date=October 27, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111027194237/http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/punctuated-equilibrium/2011/jun/22/2 |url-status=live }} Since 2004, SpongeBob has appeared as a balloon in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.{{Cite web |last=Leopold |first=Todd |date=2015-11-25 |title=5 fun facts you may not know about the history of Macy's parade |url=https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/macys-thanksgiving-day-parade-feat/index.html |access-date=2024-04-25 |website=CNN |language=en}}

The character also became a fashion trend. In 2008, American fashion designer Marc Jacobs donned a SpongeBob tattoo on his right arm. He explained that, "I just worked with Richard Prince on the collaboration for Louis Vuitton and Richard has done a series of paintings of SpongeBob. He had brought up in our conversation how he saw the artistic value of SpongeBob as the cartoon and I kind of liked it, so I did it." He added that "It's funny."{{Cite web |url=http://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/style/articles/2010-08/03/gq-grooming-marc-jacobs-exclusive-interview-for-bang-fragrance |title=Marc Jacobs exclusive! |last=Harrison |first=Jodie |date=August 3, 2010 |website=GQ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140308102758/http://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/style/articles/2010-08/03/gq-grooming-marc-jacobs-exclusive-interview-for-bang-fragrance |archive-date=March 8, 2014 |access-date=March 8, 2014 |df=mdy-all}} In the same year, A Bathing Ape released SpongeBob-themed shoes.{{Cite web |url=http://www.bbcicecream.com/2009/01/26/to-croc-or-not-to-croc/ |title=To Croc or Not To Croc? |publisher=Billionaire Boys Club |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131215073428/http://www.bbcicecream.com/2009/01/26/to-croc-or-not-to-croc/ |archive-date=December 15, 2013 |df=mdy-all}} Singer Pharrell Williams backed a line of SpongeBob T-shirts and shoes targeted at hip adults. In 2014, the character was among the popular culture icons referenced by American fashion designer Jeremy Scott in his Moschino debut collection at the Milan Fashion Week.{{Cite news |last=Denley |first=Susan |url=http://www.latimes.com/fashion/alltherage/la-ar-jeremy-scott-moschino-spongebob-20140220,0,5270445.story#axzz2vLb9zMX0 |title=Jeremy Scott for Moschino taps SpongeBob, Budweiser and Hershey's |date=February 21, 2014 |work=Los Angeles Times |access-date=March 8, 2014 |archive-date=October 10, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231010131000/https://www.latimes.com/fashion/alltherage/la-ar-jeremy-scott-moschino-spongebob-20140220-story.html#axzz2vLb9zMX0 |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |last=Davis |first=Allison P. |date=February 20, 2014 |title=SpongeBob and McDonald's Made Cameos in Jeremy Scott's Moschino Debut |url=http://nymag.com/thecut/2014/02/spongebob-mcdonalds-were-in-the-moschino-show.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140224021042/http://nymag.com/thecut/2014/02/spongebob-mcdonalds-were-in-the-moschino-show.html |archive-date=February 24, 2014 |access-date=March 8, 2014 |publisher=The Cut}}

In Egypt's Tahrir Square, after the Egyptian Revolution of 2011, SpongeBob became a fashion phenomenon, appearing on various merchandise items from hijabs to boxer shorts.{{Cite news |last=Kingsley |first=Patrick |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/shortcuts/2013/may/27/spongebob-squarepants-egypt-cartoon-fame |title=How SpongeBob SquarePants became massive in Egypt |date=May 27, 2013 |work=The Guardian |access-date=June 11, 2013 |location=London |archive-date=August 7, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807125447/https://www.theguardian.com/world/shortcuts/2013/may/27/spongebob-squarepants-egypt-cartoon-fame |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |url=https://www.vice.com/read/spongebob-squarepants-egypts-new-revolutionary-symbol |title=Is SpongeBob SquarePants the New Che Guevara? |last=Malsin |first=Jared |date=January 15, 2013 |website=Vice |access-date=June 11, 2013 |archive-date=January 16, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116151008/https://www.vice.com/read/spongebob-squarepants-egypts-new-revolutionary-symbol |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |url=http://english.alarabiya.net/en/life-style/variety/2013/05/28/Meet-Egypt-s-latest-Tahrir-icon-SpongeBob-SquarePants.html |title=Meet Egypt's unusual Tahrir icon: SpongeBob SquarePants |date=May 28, 2013 |website=Al Arabiya|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130528173047/http://english.alarabiya.net/en/life-style/variety/2013/05/28/Meet-Egypt-s-latest-Tahrir-icon-SpongeBob-SquarePants.html |archive-date=May 28, 2013 |df=mdy-all}} The phenomenon led to the creation of the Tumblr project called "SpongeBob on the Nile", founded by American students Andrew Leber and Elisabeth Jaquette, that attempts to document every appearance of SpongeBob in Egypt.{{Cite web |url=http://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/blog/spongebob-squarepants-middle-east-egypt/#.Ubbv5ucwe5I |title=SpongeBob SquarePants takes over the Middle East |last=Cormack |first=Raphael |date=March 26, 2013 |website=Prospect |access-date=June 11, 2013 |archive-date=June 6, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130606164927/http://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/blog/spongebob-squarepants-middle-east-egypt/#.Ubbv5ucwe5I |url-status=dead }} Sherief Elkeshta cited the phenomenon in an essay about the incoherent state of politics in Egypt in an independent monthly paper titled Midan Masr. He wrote, "Why isn't he [SpongeBob] at least holding a Molotov cocktail? Or raising a fist?"{{Cite web |url=http://www.midanmasr.com/en/article.aspx?ArticleID=208 |title=Brooklyn, Egypt, And SpongeBob |website=Midan Masr |access-date=June 11, 2013 |archive-date=January 21, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130121172006/http://www.midanmasr.com/en/article.aspx?ArticleID=208 |url-status=dead }} The phenomenon has even spread to Libya, where a Libyan rebel in SpongeBob dress was photographed celebrating the revolution.{{Cite web |url=http://tavernkeepers.com/the-new-mascot-of-egypt-spongebob-squarepants/ |title=The New Mascot of Egypt: Spongebob Squarepants |date=May 28, 2013 |website=Tavern Keepers |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130615083050/http://tavernkeepers.com/the-new-mascot-of-egypt-spongebob-squarepants/ |archive-date=June 15, 2013}}

During a panel at a fan convention in 2024, Kenny recounted a moment from a previous convention when he was asked by a neurodivergent fan whether "SpongeBob himself [is] autistic as a character", to which he responded "Yes, of course he is. [...] That's his superpower, the same way that's your superpower."{{Cite web |date=2024-07-24 |title='Of course' SpongeBob has autism, voice actor Tom Kenny says. 'That's his superpower' |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2024-07-24/spongebob-squarepants-autism-tom-kenny-superpower |access-date=2024-08-17 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |date=2024-07-23 |title=SpongeBob Squarepants is 'autistic', voice actor says |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/spongebob-squarepants-autistic-tom-kenny-voice-b2584770.html |access-date=2024-07-24 |website=The Independent |language=en}} Video footage of this account went viral, prompting Kenny to clarify during an interview with Entertainment Weekly at the convention three days later that he did not intend for this to be an official public statement about the character, and called it a "private moment that I had with a fan, but it seems like it's been empowering and helpful to people out there."{{Cite magazine |date=2024-07-26 |title=Tom Kenny reflects on saying SpongeBob SquarePants is autistic: 'I never meant for it to go public' |url=https://ew.com/tom-kenny-reflects-on-saying-spongebob-squarepants-is-autistic-8684643 |access-date=2024-08-16 |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |language=en}} A decade prior, on the WTF with Marc Maron podcast, Kenny described SpongeBob as being "a little autistic. Obsessed with his job, very hardworking, gets really really deep into something." Fans on online forums have noted other behavior exhibited by SpongeBob can be interpreted as signs of neurodivergence, such as "meltdowns, blindness to sarcasm and inability to read social cues". Other SpongeBob voice actors, including Mr. Lawrence and Clancy Brown, have agreed that the character of SpongeBob connects with autistic children and adults "at every level of the spectrum".{{Cite web |last=Comments |first=Joshua Stone {{!}} |date=2017-07-31 |title=The 'SpongeBob' Cast Discusses Why The Show Speaks To Autistic Kids |url=https://bleedingcool.com/tv/spongebob-squarepants-sdcc-interview/ |access-date=2024-08-17 |website=bleedingcool.com |language=en}}

SpongeBob's translated well into related merchandise sales. In 2002, SpongeBob SquarePants dolls sold at a rate of 75,000 per week, which was faster than Tickle Me Elmo dolls were selling at the time. SpongeBob was popular in Japan, specifically with Japanese women. Nickelodeon's parent company Viacom purposefully targeted its marketing at women there as a way to build the SpongeBob SquarePants brand. Skeptics initially doubted that SpongeBob could be popular in Japan as the character's design is very different from the already popular designs for Hello Kitty and Pikachu.{{Cite news |last=Kageyama |first=Yuri |url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2007/01/24/entertainment/e091755S47.DTL |title=SpongeBob Goes Trendy to Win Japan Fans |date=January 24, 2007 |work=San Francisco Chronicle |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090405192838/http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=%2Fn%2Fa%2F2007%2F01%2F24%2Fentertainment%2Fe091755S47.DTL |archive-date=April 5, 2009}} The character inspired a soap-filled sponge product manufactured by SpongeTech.{{Cite news |last=Cohen |first=Melanie |url=https://blogs.wsj.com/bankruptcy/2010/07/13/spongetech-strikes-out-in-bankruptcy/?KEYWORDS=SpongeBob+SquarePants+%28character%29 |title=SpongeTech Strikes Out in Bankruptcy |date=July 13, 2010 |access-date=July 13, 2010 |publisher=The Wall Street Journal blogs |archive-date=October 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231005122224/https://www.wsj.com/articles/BL-BANKB-13521 |url-status=live }}

In early 2009, the Simmons Jewelry Co. released a $75,000 diamond pendant as part of a SpongeBob collection.{{Cite news |last=Huff |first=Richard |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv-movies/spongebob-squarepants-nickelodeon-longest-running-shows-decade-article-1.435311 |title='SpongeBob SquarePants' one of Nickelodeon's longest-running shows after nearly a decade |work=New York Daily News |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130121072606/http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv-movies/spongebob-squarepants-nickelodeon-longest-running-shows-decade-article-1.435311 |archive-date=January 21, 2013}}

On May 17, 2013, Build-A-Bear Workshop introduced a new SpongeBob SquarePants collection in stores and online in North America.{{Cite web |url=http://blog.al.com/bargain-mom/2013/04/build_a_bear_spongebob_square.html |title=Build A Bear SpongeBob Square Pants coming May 17 |last=Dedman |first=Christie |date=April 4, 2013 |publisher=AL.com |access-date=May 24, 2013 |archive-date=May 6, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130506014538/http://blog.al.com/bargain-mom/2013/04/build_a_bear_spongebob_square.html |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |url=http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20130515005084/en/Build-A-Bear-Workshop-Splash-SpongeBob-SquarePants-Collection |title=Build-A-Bear Workshop Makes a Splash with New SpongeBob SquarePants Collection |date=May 15, 2013 |publisher=Business Wire |access-date=May 24, 2013 |archive-date=September 27, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130927193812/http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20130515005084/en/Build-A-Bear-Workshop-Splash-SpongeBob-SquarePants-Collection |url-status=live }}

SpongeBob also inspired an automobile design. On July 13, 2013, Toyota, with Nickelodeon, unveiled plans for a SpongeBob-inspired Toyota Highlander.{{Cite web |last=Burden |first=Melissa |date=July 12, 2013 |title=Toyota creates one-of-a-kind SpongeBob Highlander |url=http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20130712/AUTO0104/307120114/1361/Toyota-creates-one-of-a-kind-SpongeBob-Highlander |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130713100514/http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20130712/AUTO0104/307120114/1361/Toyota-creates-one-of-a-kind-SpongeBob-Highlander |archive-date=July 13, 2013 |access-date=July 13, 2013 |website=Detroit News}} The 2014 Toyota Highlander concept vehicle was launched as part of a SpongeBob Day promotion at that day's game between the Giants and Padres in San Diego,{{Cite magazine |url=http://family-room.ew.com/2013/07/12/spongebob-squarepants-concept-vehicle/ |title=SpongeBob SquareCar! Check out the cartoon's new wheels |last=Busis |first=Hillary |date=July 12, 2013 |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |access-date=July 13, 2013 |archive-date=July 14, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130714103855/http://family-room.ew.com/2013/07/12/spongebob-squarepants-concept-vehicle/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |url=http://www.autoevolution.com/toyota-blog/toyota-to-unveil-2014-highlander-spongebob-edition-video-63013.html |title=Toyota to Unveil 2014 Highlander SpongeBob Edition [Video] |last=Brindusescu |first=Gabriel |date=July 12, 2013 |website=Auto Evolution |access-date=July 13, 2013 |archive-date=July 14, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130714083356/http://www.autoevolution.com/toyota-blog/toyota-to-unveil-2014-highlander-spongebob-edition-video-63013.html |url-status=live }} and subsequently visited seven U.S. locations including the Nickelodeon Suites Resort Orlando in Florida.{{Cite web |url=http://www.motorward.com/2013/07/spongebob-themed-toyota-highlander-by-nickelodeon/ |title=SpongeBob-Themed Toyota Highlander by Nickelodeon |last=Barari |first=Arman |date=July 13, 2013 |publisher=Motor Ward |access-date=July 13, 2013 |archive-date=July 15, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130715112340/http://www.motorward.com/2013/07/spongebob-themed-toyota-highlander-by-nickelodeon/ |url-status=dead }}

{{notelist}}

{{Reflist|refs=

{{harvnb|Banks|2004|page=9}}

{{harvnb|Banks|2004|page=31}}

{{harvnb|Banks|2004|page=53}}

{{harvnb|Neuwirth|2003|page=50–51}}

}}

{{refbegin}}

• {{Cite book |last=Banks |first=Steven |title=SpongeBob Exposed! The Insider's Guide to SpongeBob SquarePants |date=September 24, 2004 |publisher=Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon |others=Schigiel, Gregg (illustrator) |isbn=978-0-689-86870-2 }}
• {{Cite book |last=Neuwirth |first=Allan |url=https://archive.org/details/makintoonsinside0000neuw |title=Makin' Toons: Inside the Most Popular Animated TV Shows and Movies |publisher=Allworth Press |year=2003 |isbn=978-1-58115-269-2 |url-access=registration}}

{{refend}}

• [http://toonopedia.com/spongbob.htm SpongeBob SquarePants] at Don Markstein's Toonopedia. [https://archive.today/20240528055820/https://www.webcitation.org/6sZaZmQAJ?url=http://toonopedia.com/spongbob.htm Archived] from the original on August 8, 2017.

{{SpongeBob SquarePants}}

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