Tweety Bird was born November 21, 1942.  

He�s the little yellow canary bird that is the eternal target of Sylvester the Cat. Tweety usually benefits from either the intercession of outsiders, such as Granny or one of the generic bulldogs that infest WB cartoons, or just plain cartoon laws of gravity and luck. On occasion, and this was particularly true in his first few cartoons, Tweety would take the offensive in protecting himself.

Tweety was the creation of Bob Clampett, who had a fascination with baby birds he fondly remembered from nature films, as well as a baby picture of himself he remembered rather less fondly. While WB had had similar birds before, Clampett gave the bird a lisping baby voice, a head proportioned like a baby, and a temperament borrowed perhaps from the Red Skelton character of Junior, the Mean Widdle Kid. In his debut in 1942 Merrie Melodies short �A Tale of Two Kitties� and in the follow-ups �Birdy and the Beast� (1944) and �A Gruesome Twosome� (1945). This established Tweety's peculiar and appealing personality; a sweetly innocent nature coupled with a willingness to resort to fairly brutal actions to defend himself against the most dangerous forces of the world -- cats. Tweety shows that he is no helpless little orphan, as he uses gasoline, hand grenades, dynamite and clubs to protect himself.

In 1947, director Friz Freleng was preparing a cartoon featuring his character Sylvester the cat, with a woodpecker that Freleng had used in a previous short. Originally pink, Tweety was changed to yellow, after censors complained. Clampett did some of the early preliminary work on �Tweetie Pie� before turning the project over to Friz Freleng, who steered it to an Oscar-winning cartoon. The cartoon has caused some confusion in the name of the character. Sometimes the character is referred to as Tweety, but other times the character is referred to as Tweetie Pie, muddying the situation. In �Tree Cornered Tweety�, Tweety appears in an Automat window labeled Tweety Pie, right next to the Lemon Pie. Tweety makes a cameo in "No Barking," saying his catch-phrase "I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat." Putty Tat has also been spelled Puddy Tat, which is now the officially endorsed spelling. Mel Blanc recorded a hit song "I Taut I Taw a Puddy-Tat" (words and music by Alan Livingston, Billy May and Warren Foster) in 1950. Tweety and Sylvester became an enduring comedy team and appeared in 41 cartoons over the next 40 years.

As the series continued, Freleng introduced new antagonists to broaden the cat-chasing-bird formula including Granny (Tweety's nearsighted owner) and Spike the Bulldog, who provided the tiny canary with some powerful but little-needed assistance. Tweety's innocent ("I tawt taw a puddy tat!"), lust-hatched view of the world make the contradictory force of his actions hilarious. Neither malicious nor hostile, Tweety dispatched his predators with startling speed and a wallop that surprised and delighted audiences.

Tweety has been a staple of prime time and daytime television animation for over 30 years. He has been the co-star of the Saturday morning series "The Bugs Bunny and Tweety Show" on ABC since 1986. Tweety can also be seen weekdays-on Fox's "Merrie Melodies Starring Bugs Bunny & Friends" and daily on "Looney Tunes on Nickelodeon." A select collection of Tweety's cartoons is also available on videocassettes and laser discs. Tweety is also the spokesperson for "Tweety's Global Patroll, a national education program urging elementary school children to reduce, reuse and recycle.

Joe Alaskey now does the voice of Tweety. Alaskey is also a very talented "on-camera" actor, guest starring on numerous television series, including "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air," "Growing Pains," and "Night Court." He served as the voice of Richard Nixon in the Oscar-winning feature film "Forrest Gump,� as well as the voice of the oh-so-irreverent Daffy Duck, serving as presenter during the 67th Annual Academy Awards ceremony. Alaskey can also he heard as the voice of Stinkie in Steven Spielberg's "Casper."

            Back to Top