Quick Draw McGraw

Summary

Quick Draw McGraw is the protagonist and title character of The Quick Draw McGraw Show.[11] He is an anthropomorphic white horse, wearing a red Stetson cowboy hat, a red holster belt, a light blue bandana, and occasionally spurs. He was voiced by Daws Butler.[12] All 45 of his cartoons that originally aired between 1959 and 1961 were written by Michael Maltese, known best for his work at the Warner Bros. cartoon studio. The cartoon was nominated for an Emmy Award in 1960.[13]

Quick Draw McGraw
Quick Draw McGraw character
First appearance"Lamb Chopped" (1959)
Created by
William Hanna
Joseph Barbera
Voiced byDaws Butler (1959–1988)
Gilbert Mack/Don Elliot (Quick Draw McGraw and Huckleberry Hound LP (1959))[1]
Chuck McCann (Wake Up, America! LP (1965))[2][3]
Greg Burson (1989–2002)
Earl Kress (Cartoon Network bumpers, Hanna-Barbera Cartoon Sound FX (1994))[4][5]
Jeff Bergman (Cartoon Network bumper, 2000-present)[6]
Maurice LaMarche (Harvey Birdman: Attorney At Law)
Seth Green (Robot Chicken)
Scott Innes (2003, 2012)[7]
Tom Kenny (Class of 3000)
Billy West (Wacky Races)
Bernardo de Paula (Jellystone!)[8]
In-universe information
AliasThe Whip
El Kabong
SpeciesHorse
GenderMale
OccupationSheriff
FamilyMa McGraw (mother)[9]
ChildrenQuick Draw McGraw Jr. (son)[10]

Character description edit

Quick Draw was usually depicted as a sheriff in a series of short films set in the Old West. Quick Draw was often accompanied by his deputy, a Mexican burro called Baba Looey (also voiced by Daws Butler), who spoke with a Mexican accent and called his partner "Queeks Draw".[14] In the Spanish American version, Quick Draw is named Tiro Loco McGraw, while Baba Looey is named Pepe Trueno. In the Brazilian version, Quick Draw speaks in a Portuguese accent, which along with his Hispanized name (Pepe Legal) would suggest he was either a Texan-American or Mexican cowboy.

Quick Draw satirized the westerns that were popular among the American public at the time. His character was well-intentioned, but somewhat dim. His main catchphrases were "Hold on there!" and "I'll do the thin'in' around here and don't you forget it!" Also if he got hurt he would often say "Ooooh that smarts!" One of the main running gags in the shorts was him accidentally shooting himself with his own six-shooter.

Another featured character was Snuffles, the bloodhound dog that would point to his mouth and "ah-ah-ah-" when he wanted a biscuit, then hug himself, leap up in the air, and float back down after having eaten one. In A Pup Named Scooby-Doo, Scooby follows the same foil as Snuffles when he eats a Scooby snack.[15]

Personality edit

Quick Draw was himself a horse caricature that walked on two legs like a human (as did Baba Looey), and had "hands" that were hooves with thumbs and could hold objects such as guns. This enabled the show's producers to depict him riding into town on a realistic horse, and as seen in the show's opening credits, driving a stagecoach pulled by a whole team of realistic horses. This aspect was made light of in the 1980s made-for-television film The Good, the Bad, and Huckleberry Hound, which featured Quick Draw.

El Kabong edit

 
El Kabong swinging to the rescue.

In certain cases, Quick Draw would also assume the identity of the Spanish masked vigilante El Kabong (a spoof of Zorro).[16] His introduction went as follows – "Of all the heroes in legend and song, there's none as brave as El Kabong". As El Kabong, Quick Draw would attack his foes by swooping down on a rope with the war cry "OLÉ!" and hitting them on the head with an acoustic guitar (after shouting "KABOOOOOONG!"), which is always referred to as a "kabonger", producing a distinctive kabong sound and usually destroying the guitar in the process. The "guitar" was usually drawn as a four strung cuatro. On the cartoon's soundtrack, the "kabong" sound effect was produced by a Foley artist striking the detuned open strings of a cheap acoustic guitar. Comedian Kenny Moore received the nickname of "El Kabong" on some websites due to his infamous assault of a heckler with the guitar he played as part of his act.[17]

Guest appearances in other media edit

In advertisements edit

  • Quick Draw was the mascot for Sugar Smacks in the early 1960s.
  • Quick Draw made a cameo in a MetLife commercial in 2012.

Parodies edit

  • There are references to "El Kabong" in the TV series The CriticJay Sherman's father, Franklin Sherman, imitates El Kabong, swooping from chandeliers dressed similar to Zorro and hitting people over the head with a guitar.
  • In the professional wrestling world, the name "El Kabong" was used by then-Extreme Championship Wrestling commentator Joey Styles to describe when a popular ECW wrestler, New Jack, used an acoustic guitar as a weapon during a match. The act is also used by former World Wrestling Federation employee The Honky Tonk Man, former enhancement talent Quick Draw Rick McGraw, former Total Nonstop Action Wrestling Vice President and wrestler Jeff Jarrett, and current World Wrestling Entertainment wrestler Elias.
  • Noted radio producer Gary Dell'Abate, who has worked for radio "shock jock" Howard Stern since the early 1980s, has been nicknamed "Baba Booey" for many years, after a mispronunciation of Quick Draw McGraw's sidekick, Baba Looey. "Baba Booey" became a catchphrase for Howard Stern fans for decades, usually shouted out in a large crowd.

Merchandise edit

  • McFarlane Toys produced a figure of Quick Draw McGraw as El Kabong as part of their Hanna-Barbera toy line.
  • In 1991, Hi-Tec Software published a licensed Quick Draw McGraw video game.

References in popular music edit

Quick Draw McGraw is referred to in Busta Rhymes' songs "So Hardcore" and "Everything Remains Raw". He is also referred to in MF Doom's Viktor Vaughn song "Modern Day Mugging". Lil Wayne refers to Quick Draw McGraw in his songs "Fireman" and "What's Wrong With Them?" Quick Draw McGraw is also referred to in House of Pain's song "Boom Shalock Lock Boom (Butch Vig Mix)". The song appeared on the EP, Shamrocks and Shenanigans. The Game's "One Blood (Remix)" refers to Quick Draw McGraw.

Other References edit

In the English versions of the Nintendo DS, Android, and iOS versions of Dragon Quest IV, one of Tsarevna Alena's tournament opponents is named Quick Draw McGore.[22]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "Golden Records First (and Last) Cartoon Music Compilation". cartoonresearch.com. Archived from the original on 13 April 2021. Retrieved 3 April 2021.
  2. ^ "Chuck McCann, Yogi Bear And His Friends - Wake Up America! (1965, Vinyl)". Discogs. 1965. Archived from the original on February 24, 2021. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  3. ^ "Fitness vs. Fatness (Part 9): Ask What You Can Chew For Your Country". cartoonresearch.com. Archived from the original on 3 June 2021. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  4. ^ "Cartoon Network (1994) - Talking Toon Commercial". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-12-20. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  5. ^ "No Artist – Hanna-Barbera Cartoon Sound FX (1994, CD)". Discogs. 1994. Archived from the original on May 8, 2021. Retrieved May 8, 2021.
  6. ^ No Shoes, No Shirt, No Service: Cartoon Network Bumper, archived from the original on 2022-09-20, retrieved 2022-09-16
  7. ^ "Scott Innes". scoobyaddicts.com. Archived from the original on 2022-10-30. Retrieved 2020-04-18.
  8. ^ a b Hemmert, Kylie (June 24, 2021). "Jellystone!: Hanna-Barbera Characters Return in HBO Max Original Animated Series". Comingsoon.net. Archived from the original on October 26, 2021. Retrieved June 24, 2021.
  9. ^ Quickdraw McGraw - "Gun Shy Gal", season 2, episode 12.
  10. ^ Quickdraw McGraw - "El Kabong, Jr.", season 2, episode 13.
  11. ^ Perlmutter, David (2018). The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 486. ISBN 978-1538103739.
  12. ^ Sennett, Ted (1989). The Art of Hanna-Barbera: Fifty Years of Creativity. Studio. p. 73. ISBN 978-0670829781. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  13. ^ "HB Screen Gems Emmys". Variety. Screen Gems: 38. June 1, 1960. Archived from the original on 3 November 2015. Retrieved 10 November 2015. Outstanding program achievement in the field of children's programming
  14. ^ Rovin, Jeff (1991). The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Cartoon Animals. Prentice Hall Press. p. 217. ISBN 0-13-275561-0. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
  15. ^ Woolery, George W. (1983). Children's Television: The First Thirty-Five Years, 1946-1981, Part 1: Animated Cartoon Series. Scarecrow Press. pp. 232-234. ISBN 0-8108-1557-5. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
  16. ^ Hyatt, Wesley (1997). The Encyclopedia of Daytime Television. Watson-Guptill Publications. p. 354. ISBN 978-0823083152. Retrieved 19 March 2020.
  17. ^ Scapelliti, Christopher (15 April 2020). "Guitar-Smashing Comedian Kenny Moore Recalls Infamous Heckling Moment". Guitar Player. Archived from the original on 25 July 2022. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  18. ^ a b c d e "Quick Draw McGraw Voices (Hanna-Barbera Classics)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved February 28, 2024. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its opening and/or closing credits and/or other reliable sources of information.
  19. ^ "HBO Max Sets New Looney Tunes, Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Robert Zemeckis Hybrid Series 'Tooned Out', More for Kids & Family Slate". 29 October 2019. Archived from the original on 7 May 2020. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  20. ^ "Jellystone! I Official Trailer I HBO Max Family". YouTube. June 24, 2021. Archived from the original on 2021-12-20. Retrieved June 24, 2021.
  21. ^ Freitag, Lee (September 22, 2023). "Teen Titans Go! Clip Celebrates 100 Years of Warner Bros". CBR. Retrieved February 28, 2024.
  22. ^ "Quick Draw McGore - Dragon Quest Wiki". Dragon Quest Wiki. Retrieved September 28, 2006.

External links edit