Doug

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Originating with an unpublished book Doug Got a New Pair of Shoes by artist and series creator Jim Jinkins and writer Joe Aaron, the 1991 animated series Doug emerged on the Nickelodeon TV channel, where it remained until being picked up by Disney Channel/ABC from 1996 to 1999.

The series takes place in the fictitious town of Bluffington (where Doug and his family had moved from Bloatsburg) and deals with the life and imagination of title character, grade-schooler and diarist Doug Funnie, his dog Porkchop, and good friends Skeeter Valentine and Patti Mayonnaise.

Doug's older sister, Judy, is a constant source of conflict. She is a dramatic actor who always wears a purple beret and sunglasses.

A theme in the series is Doug's alternate comic book persona, Quailman. He has a belt worn around his head, and briefs over his pants, but is otherwise identical to Doug. Skeeter has an analogous character named the Silver Skeeter.

Doug's imagination as he reacts to various situations in his life helps to provide premises for the stories, ala Walter Mitty. One episode dealing with a visit to his dentist, for example, contains homages to Goldfinger and Marathon Man.

Notable in the series' character design is the frequent use of unusual names and skin colors. Doug is of standard Caucasian tone, whereas Skeeter is blue, Patti is orange, and bad boy Roger Klotz is green.

Other characters include:

Ms. Wingo, Doug's elementary school teacher"
Bud Dink, Doug's annoying, spend-thrify neighbour
Tippy Dink, his wife, and later Mayor of Bluffington
Bee Bee Bluff, a spoiled, rich friend of Patti's
Mr. Bluff, the richest man in town
Mr. White, the corrupt mayor, who later gets tossed out of office and becomes the highschool principal
Willy White, the ex-mayor's stupid son
Al and Moo Sleech, genius, yet socially inept twin brothers
Mr. Bone, the elementary school vice-principal, later promoted to the same job at the higschool
Mr. Buttsavage- the never-seen elementary school principal
The Beets, a Beatles-esque rock and roll band that later break up and go solo

"Original" Doug ran for three seasons on Nickelodeon. The series was then bought by Disney, and several new seasons, featuring Doug and friends as highschoolers, was shown on ABC's One Saturday Morning under the title "Brand Spanking New Doug."

Doug episodes are usually in the form of two, 15-minute shorts, rather than one, long 30 minute show. Overall, 166 episodes were produced.

In 1999 a full-length animated film was released, entitled "Doug's 1st Movie."

External links

Episode Guide at TVTome.com