Charles Schulz's Garfield are the two most beloved comic strips of all time, and not only did the creators influence each other, but Schulz actually redesigned Davis' creation as a personal favor. This was no one-time change, either, with Davis incorporating Schulz's alteration into what fans would consider Garfield's modern design.
In an interview with Heritage Auctions (included below), Davis discusses how Schulz redesigned his iconic tabby cat. Animating Garfield's first TV special, 1982's Here Comes Garfield, Davis realized that Garfield's design made it impossible for the cartoon cat to dance over the credits as he'd intended.
"I was having a terrible time with it," Davis its, "because he had these tiny little feet and this big round body." Thankfully, Davis quickly discovered that Charles Schulz was just one room over, working on a Peanuts special. Not only did Schulz have the answer - he sketched out the redesign himself.
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Davis explains that the two got talking, and he naturally mentioned his artistic issue to Schulz. The Peanuts creator instantly offered up a solution, with Davis recounting:
He grabbed my paper, and I was like 'AH!' - he's drawing over my sketch - and he said, 'When Snoopy is on all fours, he has little puppy feet, but when he stands up, his back feet get bigger, giving him better balance and nobody ever notices that, but he looks good standing up as well.' So he drew these big cat feet with Garfield standing up, and all of a sudden Garfield was balanced. ... From that day on, he walked, and it was thanks to Charles Schulz.
Schulz's technique is a 'cheat' that relies on art feeling consistent, even when it isn't and doesn't have to be. Details about a character can change from one image to the next, and as long as the reader or viewer doesn't notice, there's no issue. Indeed, cartoon characters can even break physics - for example in the Disney movie Frozen, when Elsa's hair es through her arm in a way that's not physically possible. In this case, Garfield and Snoopy have different designs when they're sitting and standing, but if the difference is subtle enough, fans might never notice.
It's mind-blowing to know that the Peanuts and Garfield creators collaborated, with Schulz ing on an artistic 'cheat' that altered Garfield's modern design. However, it's even more fascinating once you know the other influences that change the character's appearance.
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Garfield's large back feet may be thanks to Schulz, but Davis made even bigger changes over the character's long career. Garfield started off as a 'realistic' cat, but Davis quickly began making changes to turn Garfield into a "better actor," altering his design bit by bit so that he could interact with the world around him. Davis told Heritage Auctions:
That was never intentional. That just kind of happened over time to allow Garfield to do the things he needed to do. To better reach a pie on a high shelf, or better move around.
However, one thing that was intentional was Garfield's features getting bigger and bigger as the years went on. This happened due to a newsprint shortage in 1983, with many of the newspapers carrying Garfield shrinking the comic in order to fit more on each page. Davis didn't want his jokes to get lost with smaller art, making Garfield's eyes and mouth bigger so that his expressions were easy to see, especially for "older readers."
As iconic as Garfield has become, his modern design is a confluence of unlikely circumstances, from Davis working to combat economic pressures to the legendary Peanuts creator Charles Schulz just happening to be next door during a creative crisis. Thankfully, all these events came together to give fans the Garfield who's loved all over the planet.
Source: Heritage Auctions
- Alias
- Garfield
- Created By
- Jim Davis
- POWERS
- Sarcastic humor, Laziness, Gluttony, Manipulation, Ability to outwit others, Strong determination to avoid work
- RELATIONSHIPS
- Jon Arbuckle (owner), Odie (best friend), Liz Wilson (Jon's girlfriend), Nermal (rival), Arlene (love interest), Pooky (teddy bear)
- HISTORY
- Garfield was created by Jim Davis and first appeared in the comic strip on 1978-06-19. Garfield quickly became popular for his sardonic wit, love of lasagna, and disdain for Mondays. Over the years, Garfield's universe expanded to include TV shows, movies, video games, and an extensive array of merchandise. His interactions with Jon, Odie, and other characters provide humorous insights into his lazy and gluttonous lifestyle.
- Franchise
- Garfield
Garfield is the central character in Jim Davis's comic strip, which officially began in 1978 under the same name. Garfield is an orange tabby cat with a love of lasagna and a disdain for Mondays. He tends to torment his owner and dog while trying to secure more food - and quiet.
- Created by
- Charles M. Schulz
- First Film
- The Peanuts Movie
- Cast
- Christopher Shea, Kathy Steinberg, Bill Melendez, Sally Dryer, Peter Robbins, Noah Schnapp, Hadley Belle Miller, Mariel Sheets, Lisa DeFaria, Venus Omega Schultheis
- TV Show(s)
- The Snoopy Show, Peanuts by Schulz
- Movie(s)
- The Peanuts Movie, A Charlie Brown Christmas, A Boy Named Charlie Brown, Charlie Brown's All Stars!, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown
- Character(s)
- Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Lucy van Pelt, Linus van Pelt, Sally Brown, Pig-Pen, Marcie (Peanuts), Peppermint Patty, Woodstock
Created by Charles M. Schulz, Peanuts is a multimedia franchise that began as a comic strip in the 1950s and eventually expanded to include films and a television series. Peanuts follows the daily adventures of the Peanuts gang, with Charlie Brown and his dog Snoopy at the center of them. Aside from the film released in 2015, the franchise also has several Holiday specials that air regularly on U.S. Television during their appropriate seasons.
