Marvin the Martian

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Marvin the Martian
Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies character
First appearanceHaredevil Hare (July 24, 1948; 75 years ago (1948-07-24))
Created byChuck Jones
Voiced by
In-universe information
AliasMarvin Martian
Species
K-9
(alien dog)

Marvin the Martian is an

helmet and skirt. The character has been voiced by Mel Blanc, Joe Alaskey, Bob Bergen and Eric Bauza
, among others.

The character first appeared as an antagonist in the 1948 Bugs Bunny cartoon Haredevil Hare.[1] He went on to appear in four more cartoons produced between 1952 and 1963.[2]

Conception and creation

Marvin's design was based on the Hoplite style of armor usually worn by the Roman god Mars. "That was the uniform that Mars wore — that helmet and skirt. We thought putting it on this ant-like creature might be funny. But since he had no mouth, we had to convey that he was speaking totally through his movements. It demanded a kind of expressive body mechanics."[3]

Marvin was never named in the original shorts – he was referred to as the Commander of Flying Saucer X-2 in The Hasty Hare in 1952, and sometimes referred to as "Antwerp" in promotional material or other projects like the live stage show version of Bugs Bunny in Space. However, in 1979, once the character attracted merchandising interest, the name "Marvin" was selected for The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie.[4]

Marvin appeared in five theatrical cartoons from 1948 to 1963:

Voice actors

History

Marvin hails from the planet

K-9", and sometimes by other creatures (one gag, first used in Hare-Way to the Stars
(1958), being candy-sized "Instant Martians" that become full-size on addition of drops of water).

Marvin wears a

Chuck Taylor All-Stars brand. The helmet and skirt that he wears are green and his suit is red (in a few of the original shorts, his suit was green and the helmet and skirt golden). His head is a black sphere with only eyes for features. The curved crest of his helmet appears, with the push-broom-like upper section, to comically resemble the helm of an ancient Greek hoplite, or the galea of a Roman centurion. The appearance of the combination of Marvin's head and helmet led to Bugs Bunny referring to him as a "bowling ball wearing a spittoon" in one short. Marvin speaks with a soft, nasally voice, and often speaks technobabble. He is also known for his trademark quotes "Where's the kaboom? There was supposed to be an Earth-shattering kaboom!", "Isn't that lovely?", and "This makes me very angry, very angry indeed." (which is usually followed by him huffing and puffing). His voice sounds similar to the one used for Claude Cat
.

On numerous occasions, Marvin has tried to destroy the Earth with his "Illudium Q-36 Explosive Space Modulator" (sometimes pronounced "Illudium Pu-36" or "Uranium Pu-36").

.

Later appearances

He has appeared in three animated shows - as a toddler in Baby Looney Tunes, as a primary antagonist in the Duck Dodgers television series and as a supporting character in The Looney Tunes Show.

  • In
    Oh Where Has My Little Dog Gone?
    "), and made appearances in a few other music videos.
  • In Duck Dodgers, he is a Martian commander in service of the Martian Queen Tyr'ahnee. This show reused his original name from The Hasty Hare (although the opening credits list him as Marvin playing Commander X-2, in the same way as Daffy is playing Duck Dodgers).
  • Marvin the Martian appears in The Looney Tunes Show episode "Reunion" and appeared in the "Merrie Melodies" short "I'm a Martian", voiced by Eric Bauza. Here, he is described as a former classmate of Daffy's who has been plotting to destroy Earth since graduation. The episode also has a flashback, in which it is revealed that the yellow headdress on the top of his helmet is actually his hair, showing that in high school (before he started wearing the helmet) he kept it down.

Over a decade prior to any of these, he guest-starred in a

Marcia the Martian
.

He was also in a

The Sylvester and Tweety Mysteries
("What's the Frequency, Kitty?").

Marvin also made appearances on

Mindy and Buttons short subject, "Cat on a Hot Steel Beam" (which also featured the cute kitten Pussyfoot) and in "Star Warners", along with his dog K-9, and most recently in a MetLife
commercial.

Cartoon Network also created a 2-minute filler piece featuring Marvin, entitled "Mars Forever" by Fantastic Plastic Machine. It's a disco-style video combining clips of Marvin and Bugs Bunny from their encounters in "Haredevil Hare", "Hare-Way to the Stars", as well as bits of "Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century" and "Rocket-Bye Baby".

Marvin has also appeared in a number of video games. He served as the main antagonist in the

CN Fridays
intro.

Marvin was also cast as the referee in Space Jam (though he did not stay to referee the whole game due to Bupkus beating him up), and then later had a major role in Looney Tunes: Back in Action where he was hired by the ACME chairman (Steve Martin), to finish DJ (Brendan Fraser) and the gang at Area 52. In the film's climax, he reappears to bring the Blue Monkey diamond to the ACME satellite, but is thwarted by Bugs (who he duels in a parody of Obi-Wan Kenobi and Jango Fett in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones) and Daffy (who arrives as Duck Dodgers to save Bugs after he is exhausted from the battle).

Marvin appeared in the Looney Tunes version of A Christmas Carol, Bah, Humduck! A Looney Tunes Christmas as an employee at Daffy Duck's "Lucky Duck Super Store". Marvin was homesick for his planet, Mars, and wanted to go back for Christmas (but also mentions that he is planning to destroy the Earth as well). At first, Daffy does not let him take Christmas off, since he expects the employees to work on Christmas Day. After being visited by the abrasive yet well-intentioned Christmas ghosts, Daffy is redeemed, and as part of a surprise Christmas celebration, gives Marvin a rocket that will go faster than the speed of light, allowing him to make it to Mars by yesterday.

Marvin is the main antagonist in Looney Tunes: Rabbits Run. In the film, he plots to turn the Earth invisible and sends his henchman Cecil Turtle (who posed as a government agent) and a pair of disguised Instant Martians to get Lola Bunny's perfume which is able to turn anything invisible. However, his plan is fooled by Bugs Bunny, who gets Marvin to accidentally destroying his lair (and Mars as a whole).

In nearly all of his appearances, Marvin is shown using a small pistol that fires either bubbles of pliable plastic or energy beams, and he is seen in Duck Dodgers and the Return of the 24½th Century, with Gossamer, a hairy red monster, as his assistant.

Marvin's descendant Melvin (voiced by Joe Alaskey) appeared as a one-time antagonist in Loonatics Unleashed.

Marvin is a minor character in Space Jam: A New Legacy, voiced by Eric Bauza, where he appears alongside K-9 after Bugs claims Tune World in the name of the Earth. Marvin arrives to claim Tune World in the name of Mars, though Bugs tricks him into thinking that Tune World is in the clear. Bugs hijacks Marvin's ship and retreats with LeBron James to find the other Tunes. A recurring gag is that Marvin gets knocked out by the hatch of his ship everytime he regains consciousness.

Marvin appears in the preschool series Bugs Bunny Builders, debuting in the episode Blast Off.

In popular culture

The launch patch for the Spirit Mars Rover, featuring Marvin the Martian.
  • Marvin's likeness appears in miniature on the
    Spirit
    rover on Mars as well as on the mission launch patch.
  • Marvin appears in the
    Wile E. Coyote
    .
  • Marvin appears in two
    Toot Goes Bollywood
    ".
  • He appears in the FBI lineup with other TV aliens in "The Springfield Files", an episode of The Simpsons, wearing a purple helmet and skirt. He also appears in the episode "Love Is a Many-Splintered Thing" where he was shown in a fighting video game, Mixed Martian Arts.[39]
  • He appeared in 1993 Nike commercial as the antagonist who had stolen all of the Earth's supply of Michael Jordan Air Jordan sneakers, and both Bugs Bunny and Michael Jordan defeat him and his instant Martians to reclaim the shoes.
  • In a deleted scene on the Futurama episode "That Darn Katz!", Marvin is seen as a student in Mars University.
  • An early cover art proposal for Big Black's 1986 Atomizer album, eventually discarded due to legal problems, included Marvin pointing a raygun at the Earth.[40]
  • Marvin makes a cameo appearance in the 1988 feature film Who Framed Roger Rabbit, set in 1947, even though his first cartoon appearance was during the following year.
  • Rapper
    Lil' Wayne references the characters at the beginning of his verse in the 2009 song "Forever" where he says, "Okay, hello it's the Martian, Space Jam Jordan's". He references the shoes Marvin wears in the 1996 film Space Jam, which also starred NBA player Michael Jordan
    .
  • Marvin also makes a cameo appearance in episode 14 of the cartoon series Animaniacs when Buttons reaches the moon.
  • Marvin appears in a background shot during the movie Close Encounters of the Third Kind, shown on a television in lead character Roy Neary's living room. The segment shown is from the feature cartoon, Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century.
  • The Illudium PU-36 explosive space modulator is referenced in several songs, including T-Pain's "Time Machine," as well as Ludacris's "Mouthing Off."
  • In the pilot episode of the TV series Weird Science, Lisa comments that she would have a lot more power had Wyatt installed a "Neutronian space modulator" before her creation.
  • NHL Buffalo Sabres Goalie Patrick Lalime's goaltender mask features Marvin the Martian on the front.
  • In the
    Minerva Mink
    . K-9 is sleeping next to them.
  • Marvin briefly appears in Diane Duane's 2010 novel A Wizard of Mars, when one of the main characters gets caught in a spell that brings their stereotypes of Mars into existence.
  • According to Steven Spielberg, he is waiting for George Lucas to admit that Marvin's design was the influence for Darth Vader from Lucas' Star Wars.
  • Marvin appeared in a MAD News segment, letting his sink run water on Mars.
  • Reach Records artist PRo referenced Marvin the Martian and the space modulator in his song "Mission to Mars" from His 2011 album "Dying to Live".
  • In the
    War of the Worlds
    -style prank.
  • During the
    Trojan Marching Band
    's Drum major.
  • In 2009 Bi-Mart Membership stores in Oregon sold University of Oregon vs. University of Southern California buttons featuring Marvin the Martian as the Trojan "Mascot."
  • In a MetLife commercial that aired during the 2012 Super Bowl, Marvin made a cameo in the ad.
  • In Peter David's 1991 Star Trek novel The Rift, the Calligarians have a device called "The Illidium Pew-36 Explosive Space Modulator," a direct reference to Marvin's Earth-shattering device.
  • A figurine of Marvin appears on the space shuttle in the film Gravity.
  • Marvin appears in the 1995 film
    Clueless when Travis tells Tai that he wants to cover his skateboard with pictures of Marvin, and she says she can draw him.[41]
  • Phish guitarist Trey Anastasio frequently wore a Marvin the Martian T-shirt onstage between 1993 and 1997.[42]
  • Marvin served as the mascot for the
    USCGC Hornbeam (WLB-394), a 180-foot United States Coast Guard buoy tender
    .
  • Marvin appears as a player's avatar in Steven Spielberg's 2018 film Ready Player One.[43][44]
  • Marvin from Daddy Day Care (2003) frequently wears a Marvin the Martian T-shirt.
  • Xenia Rubinos's 2013 Magic Trix album cover features a naked person sitting in a chair with Marvin's head overlying theirs.[45]
  • In the 2016 video game Titanfall 2, there is a banner design titled "Where's the Kaboom?" that depicts a robot called MRVN (pronounced Marvin), whose color palette is changed to mirror Marvin's, wearing his signature helmet.
  • Marvin will be featured as a playable character in the second season of MultiVersus.
  • When a young Hank Green would hack into early websites he would add a small image of Marvin the Martian to the webpage. Mentioned in an episode of his podcast Dear Hank and John.

Cancelled film adaptation

On July 29, 2008,

Mike Myers as the voice of Marvin and Christopher Lee as Santa Claus. The film would have involved Marvin trying to destroy the Earth during Christmas by becoming a competitor of Santa Claus but being prevented from accomplishing his goal when Santa wraps him inside a gift box. Alcon compared the project to other films such as Racing Stripes and My Dog Skip.[46] It was initially scheduled for an October 7, 2011, release, but the movie was later taken off the schedule and no word on it has been heard since. Test footage of the film and the Eddie Murphy vehicle Hong Kong Phooey was leaked on December 28, 2012.[47]

See also

References

  1. .
  2. . Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  3. ^ Korkis, Jim. "The Return of Duck Dodgers". Outré. 1 (7): 25.
  4. . p. 134
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Voice(s) of Marvin the Martian". Behind the Voice Actors. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  6. ^ "The Further Adventures of Marvin the Martian (1984 Scanimate Short)". YouTube. Retrieved October 31, 2020.
  7. ^ "Bugs & Friends Sing Elvis". VGMdb. Retrieved November 26, 2021.
  8. ^ "Various – Crash! Bang! Boom! The Best Of WB Sound FX (2000, CD)". Discogs. August 15, 2000. Retrieved October 28, 2023.
  9. ^ "Bugs Bunny: Rabbit Rampage". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  10. ^ "Acme Animation Factory". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  11. ^ "Bugs Bunny Wacky World Games". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  12. ^ "Looney Tunes B-Ball". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  13. ^ "Tazos". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  14. ^ "Westfield". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  15. ^ "'CLASSROOM CAPERS'". Alastair Fleming Associates. Retrieved December 7, 2020.
  16. ^ "That Wascally Wabbit". Archived from the original on March 17, 2012. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  17. ^ "The Day I Met Bugs Bunny". Ian Heydon. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
  18. ^ "Looney Tunes Christmas Carols". K-Zone. Retrieved November 16, 2020.
  19. ^ "Carols by Candlelight". National Boys Choir of Australia. December 24, 2013. Retrieved November 16, 2020.
  20. ^ "Keith Scott: Down Under's Voice Over Marvel". Animation World Network. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  21. ^ "Keith Scott". Grace Gibson Shop. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  22. ^ "Keith Scott-"The One-Man Crowd"". Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  23. ^ "Rover Finds Life On Mars". YouTube. Retrieved November 30, 2019.
  24. ^ Monger, James. "A Looney Tunes Sing-A-Long Christmas". AllMusic. Retrieved November 26, 2021.
  25. ^ Eric Bauza Voice Demo Reel 2013, retrieved March 22, 2024
  26. ^ "Converse". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved January 28, 2024.
  27. ^ "Ani-Mayhem". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved January 14, 2022.
  28. ^ "Bugs & Daffy's Thanksgiving Road Trip". Spotify. Retrieved November 22, 2021.
  29. ^ "Marvin the Martian is coming to MultiVersus today". Video Games Chronicle. November 21, 2022. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
  30. ^ Dar, Taimur (April 17, 2023). "Marvin the Martian and more Looney Tunes to appear in new episodes of BUGS BUNNY BUILDERS". Comics Beat. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
  31. ^ "I don't often voice video games... but when I do... PINBALL MACHINE!!!". Twitter. @Bauza. Retrieved December 12, 2023.
  32. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "AT&T Launches Looney Tunes 5G Experience". YouTube. AT&T. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
  33. ^ "Looney Tunes 5G Experience is now open to limited access at the AT&T Experience Store in Dallas". Twitter. @Bauza. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
  34. ^ "Are you talking to me? Azure AI brings iconic characters to life with Custom Neural Voice". The Official Microsoft Blog. February 3, 2021. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
  35. ^ "Microsoft Azure AI is Bringing Iconic Characters to Life with the Help of Custom Neural Voice and 5G Network". MarkTechPost. February 14, 2021. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
  36. ^ a b "Voice(s) of Marvin the Martian in Mad". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  37. ), p. 213.
  38. ^ "Mixed Martian Arts". Wikisimpsons. Retrieved March 5, 2024.
  39. ^ "Big Black: Atomizer". Dementlieu.com. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
  40. ^ "The 10 Most Important Questions Asked by Tai in 'Clueless'". Thought Catalog. September 14, 2013. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
  41. ^ "Photographic image" (PJPG). Welcometonow.files.wordpress.com. Retrieved August 24, 2017.
  42. ^ Here Are All the References In Ready Player One, By Abraham Riesman, Mar. 28, 2018, vulture.com
  43. ^ Steven Spielberg's 'Ready Player One' visually striking but emotionally unfulfilling, By Bill Goodykoontz, USA TODAY NETWORK, Mar. 28, 2018
  44. ^ "Xenia Rubinos: las cosas que tararea Marvin The Martian". VICE Magazine. August 8, 2013. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
  45. ^ McNary, Dave (July 29, 2008). "WB to develop 'Marvin the Martian'". Variety. Retrieved July 30, 2008.
  46. Huffington Post
    . December 28, 2012. Retrieved December 28, 2012.

External links