Foofur is an American animated children's television series from Kissyfur creator Phil Mendez that was produced by Hanna-Barbera with SEPP International S.A.
Plot
In the town of Willowby, a tall skinny blue
bloodhound named Foofur has taken refuge in a mansion, in 32 Maple Street, which is also his birthplace. In Foofur's group is his niece Rocki, Fencer the Cat, a
bulldog named Louis with his girlfriend, an Old English Sheepdog named Annabell, and a
cocker spaniel named Hazel with her husband, a miniature schnauzer named Fritz-Carlos.
Foofur and his friends, however, have an enemy in a woman named Mrs. Amelia Escrow and her pet Chihuahua named Pepe, who tries to expose Foofur's illegal roommates, but always to no avail. Mrs. Escrow has tried many times to sell the estate, but unbeknownst to her, Foofur and his friends keep the house from being bought, as they also protect their home from rodents like the Rat Brothers who tend to mess with Fencer, other cats like Vinnie and his Cat Pack, and greedy humans.
While trying to stop Mrs. Escrow, Foofur tries to avoid having his friends captured by the Bowser Busters' dog catchers Mel and Harvey. In addition, an Afghan Hound named Burt also antagonizes Foofur and competes with him to win the affection of a basset hound named Dolly.
Characters
Main characters
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Foofur (voiced by Frank Welker) is a blue bloodhound who has taken refuge in a mansion, at 32 Maple Street, which is also his birthplace.
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Rocki (voiced by Christina Lange) is an indigo bloodhound puppy and Foofur's niece.
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Louis (voiced by Dick Gautier) is a street-smart bulldog.
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Annabell (voiced by Susan Tolsky) is a sensitive Old English Sheepdog and Louis' wife.
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Hazel (voiced by Pat Carroll) is a cocker spaniel and Fritz-Carlos' wife.
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Fritz-Carlos (voiced by Jonathan Schmock) is a miniature schnauzer and Hazel's husband.
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Fencer (voiced by Eugene Williams) is a cat with a penchant for the martial arts.
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Mrs. Amelia Escrow (voiced by Susan Silo) is a woman who has tried many times to sell the mansion. Unbeknownst to her, Foofur and his friends keep the house from being bought.
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Pepe (voiced by Don Messick) is Mrs. Amelia Escrow's chihuahua who tries to expose Foofur and his roommates, to no avail.
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Rat Brothers are three rats who antagonize Fencer.
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Sammy (voiced by Chick Vennera) is a thin black rat who is the leader of the Rat Brothers.
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Baby (voiced by Peter Cullen) is a fat violet rat.
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Chucky (voiced by Allan Melvin in most episodes, and by Frank Welker in a few episodes) is a fat pink rat who is the strongest of the Rat Brothers.
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Mel and Harvey (voiced by David Doyle and Michael Bell) are the Bowser Busters dog catchers.
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Vinnie (voiced by Peter Cullen) is the leader of a cat gang and one of the enemies of Foofur and his friends.
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Burt (voiced by William Callaway) is an arrogant Afghan Hound who tries to win Dolly's love.
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Dolly (voiced by Susan Blu) is a basset hound who is the object of Foofur and Burt's affections.
Other characters
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Norris is a beagle puppy who is also a mascot for a dog food company.
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Bertie and Bernie are two beagles belonging to a judge.
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Harry is an easily-scared dog.
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Pam is a Pekingese.
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Celia is a poodle.
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Brenda is a terrier.
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Brigette is a poodle who belongs to Mrs. Escrow's cousin Roberto.
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Lucy is a poodle who lives in a pawn shop.
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Muffy is a poodle.
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Jojo is a Scottish Terrier.
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Sarge is a Doberman Pinscher.
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Dobkins is a St. Bernard.
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Trendy is a Siberian Husky.
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Blaze is a German Shepherd.
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Lorenzo is a dalmatian.
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Otto is a Labrador Retriever.
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Rover Cleveland is an elderly dog.
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Tugboat is Foofur's brother and Rocki's father.
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Phyllis is Foofur's sister.
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Obscura is a cat belonging to a fortune teller.
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Cleo is a violet cat belonging to an archaeologist.
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Willy is a fox kit, who tries to avoid the fox hunters.
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Duke is a singing mouse.
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Killer (voiced by Jerry Houser) is a harmless St. Bernard.
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Brisbane is a dog.
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Big Boombah is a rat and the leader of the Shipyard Rats who is an opportunist.
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Pops is a rat who lives in the Willowby Train Station.
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Buttercup is Mrs. Escrow's pet canary.
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Mr. Mutton is a smuggler from London.
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Kirk is Hazel's old boyfriend, a German Shepherd trained for fire rescues who saves Fritz-Carlos and Rocki's playmate Augie when they're trapped in a burning house.
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Augie is another local dog, Rocki's playmate.
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Ivan is a Russian dog Foofur and Louis interact with in New York City.
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Lulubelle is a female dog initially intended to smuggle jewels, who was replaced by Annabelle.
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Oliver is an English puppy whom Annabelle saves after she ends up in London.
Voice cast
Additional voices
Episode list
Season 1 (1986)
Season 2 (1987–88)
Home media
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, a number of episodes of the series were released on
VHS in the
United States by Celebrity Home Entertainment's Just for Kids label.
Legal activity
Foofur played a role in the case
Nationwide Insurance v. Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois, 116 F.3d 1154 (7th Cir. 1997). The case dealt with an insurer's duty to defend an insured party in light of the insured's intentional acts of property damage. The insured, a drunken college student, spelled out "FOO"—meaning "foo", a word derived from Foofur—on the
artificial turf football field of Memorial Stadium with lighter fluid burning the letters into the turf. He caused $600,000 damage to the AstroTurf. The court held that such an act was not within the
insurance policy's liability coverage.
Reception
In 2014, listing it among twelve 1980s animated series that supposedly did not deserve remembrance,
io9 criticized the series, perceiving its premise to be contrived and remarking that "someone had the gall to think this was 'cool'".
External links
target="_blank" rel="nofollow"> Archived from the original on July 30, 2016.
