Cartoon Redheads

After posting my "Famous Redheads Throughout History" hub, I got to thinking. I knew there was something missing. But what was it?

Several people made suggestions and left comments concerning people who had been left out, but still, it felt like something still needed to be done. I was at a loss. You ever get that feeling? You are getting ready to do something, and you know you forgot something. You leave the house with a feeling like you forgot about something important. The feeling is a little like that.

Then, last night, as I watched hour after hour of Family Guy, it hit me! Cartoons!! Cartoon redheads!! I was leaving out a very important group of redheads that have been a part of my life since childhood! So, that leads me here. The many ginger-ific cartoon characters and a couple fictional non-cartoons. You will see what I mean.

We all remember those classic cartoons. The ones like The Flintstones and The Jetsons, that have been around forever. I admit, I watched a lot of classic cartoons when I was a kid. I sometimes still do. I don't see anything wrong with that.

Having said that, let's take a look at some of them. The Flintstones gave us not one, but two, beautiful cartoon redheads. The smart and patient, Wilma Flintstone, often had her hands full with her bumbling, not-so-bright husband, Fred. She also had Pebbles, another redhead, to tend to. Pebbles was an adorable, bubbly little girl, who already had Bam-Bam fawning over her.

The Jetsons gave us Jane Jetson, futuristic and classy. She too, had a lot to deal with. A fumbling husband who often got himself into trouble, a teenage daughter and a very bright son. Not to mention Astro, the family's beloved dog. At least Jane had the good luck to have a robot maid to help her out.

Let's not forget a classic comic strip of iconic status. I am talking about the Peanuts cartoon here. Charlie Brown, Snoopy and the rest of the gang. I can't count the number of times I have watched all the Charlie Brown holiday specials. The Christmas one is my favorite. But, do you remember the girl Charlie pined over year after year? She didn't even have a name, and she was rarely seen. "The little red haired girl"; that's all she was ever called, if memory serves me. Such mystery.

Last, but not least, as far as classics go, is a popular favorite even today. Besides a variety of television shows, animated movies, there have also been two live action movies involving this character. Who am I talking about? Daphne Blake of Scooby-Doo, of course! Daphne and the rest of the Scooby Gang have been solving mysteries and chasing ghosts for many, many years. She has held up suprisingly well.

I do admit. I watch a lot of kids' shows. I have a five year old, and my boyfriend has two boys. I get to see a wide range of children's television. Some of it by choice, most of it not so much. Thankfully, my daughter is out-growing the pre-school shows, and moving on to other things.

She used to be a huge fan of Playhouse Disney, on the Disney Channel. She was always asking me if she could watch one show or another. She is a big fan of Winne the Pooh, and there is a new incarnation of that show on The Disney Channel these days. With the help of a little girl named, Darby, Pooh and Tigger solve mysteries. Darby is a cute little cartoon redhead, and the show is decent. I just miss the classic Winne the Pooh that I remember.

Same thing goes for Strawberry Shortcake. She has completely changed from when I was a kid. Her hair isn't even red anymore. For some reason, it's now pink. She wears pink, not red, and she looks nothing like the Strawberry Shortcake from my childhood. It makes me sad in a way, but I guess things change. LOL!

Rugrats is another show that has been around for a while. My sister used to watch Rugrats when she was younger, and it's still on today, though the kids have grown up some. Chuckie is the scared best friend of Tommy on the show. With his glasses and spiky red hair, he fits the classic mold of redheaded children as goofy, nerdy or strange. Still, he is likeable and sweet.

As my daughter gets older, I am sure she will move on to other cartoon shows, aimed at a slightly older audience. Like the crime fighting, Kim Possible, who saves the world, and goes to cheer-leading practice all in the same day. I actually like Kim Possible; it's kinda cute and funny.

Other shows I am sure she will stumble across, if they are still around, that is, are Dexter's Laboratory, with little, redheaded genius, Dexter, constantly at odds with his sister, Dee-Dee, hiding in his lab, creating various strange inventions. Or The Powerpuff Girls, with spunky Blossom, leading the group of super-powered little girls, in an effort to stop the plots of villians of many different sorts.

Movies...I love movies. I will watch just about anything. I have seen terrible movies, incredible movies, and some of the silliest movies ever. Not too often have there been movies involving cartoon redheads. Yes, there have been live action movies that were based on cartoons, that had redheaded characters. That's not what I mean.

There are a couple of exceptions. One is the sexy Jessica Rabbit from Who Framed Roger Rabbit? Long, flowing red hair, curves everywhere, and a sexy, smokey voice; she had more that Roger's cartoon heart thumping in that movie. Even flesh and blood characters were not immune to her...charms.

Another noteable example is the sassy, tough Princess Fiona, from the Shrek movies. Whether she is a human princess or a big, green ogre, she comes across as strong and confident; not the normal damsel in distress that is characteristic of most fairy tales.

Of course, my favorite is the adorable, Ariel from The Little Mermaid. I still wish I could be her. I loved the movie growing up, and I often watch the cartoon show on the Disney Channel with my daughter. She loves Ariel, as well, and has several dolls and various toys to prove it. She will always be my favorite cartoon redhead.

I don't read comic books, and I honestly know little about them, so this took some work. I apologize if I leave any cartoon redheads out. Please feel free to make suggestions as to redheads I can add to this section or others.

Let's start with Batman. No, Batman is not a redhead. I know that. I am talking about the sexy villian, Poison Ivy, with her wild, flaming red hair and a great affinity for plant life. She manages to seduce every warm-blooded man she can in an attempt to get what she wants.

Now, let's make the leap from Batman to Spiderman. Peter Parker, better known as Spiderman, was in love with a redhead. Of course he was! With red hair, and the name Mary Jane, Spiderman was helpless to resist. Mary Jane shows the sweeter, more innocent side of comic book redheads.

Not so sweet and innocent, but still on the side of good, is Jean Grey, from the X-Men. With her amazing mutant powers, she fights evil, and defends other mutants like herself. She is a strong, idependent character fully capable of taking care of herself.

There have also been male comic characters with red hair. The most noteable example is Archie from the Archie comics. Endlessly torn between the adorable and sweet, blonde, Betty and the difficult, but aluring, brunette, Veronica, Archie was engaged in an ongoing struggle that plagues most men.

The only non-comic book addition to this section is the one, the only, Alfred E. Newman. That name may sound familiar to some of you, but where he comes from, should sound familiar to most of you. He was the goofy looking, gap-toothed, coverboy of Mad Magazine.

While most cartoons are seen as kid's stuff, cartoons are quickly becoming socially acceptable forms of entertainment for the adults of the world. From baby boomers to Gen X-er's, cartoons remind us of our youth, but these cartoons are nothing like the Saturday morning cartoons we faithfully watched every day. These tackle more adult topics, full of adult language, violence and sexuality.

Despite what the opening song says, Family Guy is full of violence and sexual jokes. That doesn't mean it isn't a great show. And where would Family Guy be without the sexy and smart mom, Lois Griffin?? The cartoon MILF, as she is often referred to, not only gets Peter's blood pumping. She is also on the receiving end of unrequited love from the talking family dog, Brian, and the stalker-like behavior of everyone's favorite pervert, Quagmire. She definitely deserves the attention!

One of my favorite shows, now quite absent from the television programing is Futurama. It's from the same people who created The Simpsons, but never took off the same way. The show centers around a man by the name of Fry, who after a pizza delivery gone wrong, ended up in the future. Fry is what you expect from a male redheaded character. He's not too bright, he is socially awkward, and like most of the youth of my time, spends a lot of time watching TV and playing video games. Yet, somehow, he is still endearing.

The last redhead in this category comes from a lesser known show on Comedy Central.  That show is Drawn Together, and the character is Princess Clara.  Draw Together is an animated parody of reality shows like Survivor and Big Brother.  Princess Clara closely resembles a princess out of a Walt Disney movie, and sounds that way, as well.  With her super conservative views, and various other interesting characteristics, she often buts heads with the other characters.