Scrappy-Doo

Scrappy Doo
Scooby-Doo character
First Episode Appearance	"The Scarab Lives!" (Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo episode, 1979)
Character played by	Lennie Weinrib (1979–1980) Don Messick (1980–1996) Scott Innes (2000–present) J. P. Manoux (2002; Scrappy Rex, Scooby-Doo)
In-universe information
Full name	Scrappy Doo
Species	Dog
Gender	Male
Breed	Great Dane

Scrappy-Doo is a fictional Great Dane puppy created by Hanna-Barbera Productions in 1979, with the catchphrases, "Scrappy Dappy Doo", "Lemme at 'em!" and "Puppy Power!". He is the nephew of Hanna-Barbera cartoon star Scooby-Doo. Scrappy has appeared in a number of the various incarnations of the Scooby-Doo cartoon series. Lennie Weinrib provided his voice for one season in 1979, and from 1980 on it was performed by Don Messick (who also voiced Scooby). In the first live-action theatrical movie, video games, and commercials, he was voiced by Scott Innes. He was created to save the show's ratings which by 1979 had begun to sink to the point of cancellation threats from ABC, who were considering choosing between Scooby-Doo and an unnamed pilot from Ruby-Spears Enterprises which Mark Evanier had also written.

History

Creation

Though Scrappy officially debuted in fall of 1979, there may have been hints of his existence in 1969. The idea of Scrappy actually may not have been all that new to the series, as he "...bore a resemblance to Spears's and Ruby's initial idea for a feisty little dog", which was one of the early ideas for the Scooby-Doo character himself, along with the "big cowardly dog" ultimately chosen. Hints of Scrappy can also be seen in the fact that there were originally six members of mystery inc planned-Mike, Linda, Kelly, Geoff, W.W, and Too Much. It is unknown if one of the personalities was analogous to Scrappy, or which one it would have been. The character was created by Joseph Barbera and developed by writer Mark Evanier, who has acknowledged that Scrappy's personality was largely based on that of the Looney Tunes character Henery Hawk.

Scrappy’s creation officially began in the year of 1978, when Scooby’s ratings were sinking to the point of cancellation threats from ABC. There was only one remaining show slot left, which would either go to Scooby or a pilot from Ruby-Spears Enterprises. Joe Barbera created Scrappy as a “new element” to restore the network’s interest in the show. After various staff members, including Joe Barbera, took some shots at writing the character, which the network found unsatisfactory, Joe Barbera went to Mark Evanier, who wrote for the rival pilot to give a shot at writing Scrappy’s. Evanier agreed, and Joe Barbera and the executives were satisfied with the results, and, by extension, Scrappy, and chose Scooby over the rival pilot, irritating executive producer Joe Ruby.

Mel Blanc was the first choice to voice Scrappy, given his connection to Henery Hawk, but wanted too much money to voice the part. The second consideration was actor Frank Welker, who coined the catchphrase "Puppy Power" during his audition. He would later change this to "Monkey Muscle" for the similar Donkey Kong Jr. character he would voice for TV's Saturday Supercade. The next choice was Messick, who was seen as giving the best audition, but still deemed "the wrong voice". Afterwards, other well-known cartoon voice artists were considered or suggested: Daws Butler, Paul Winchell, Marilyn Schreffler, Howard Morris, Dick Beals and Marshall Efron. Ultimately, Lennie Weinrib was chosen, and after the first season, Messick became the final voice for the rest of the series' run after Weinrib asked for a higher salary. Scrappy-Doo's catchphrase was coined by Frank Welker, the voice of Fred Jones; Welker auditioned to voice Scrappy as a dual role during the character's development (one of several voice actors considered for the role) before Hanna-Barbera settled on Lennie Weinrib, but kept Welker's ad-lib and worked it into several scripts. After one season, Don Messick took over for Weinrib, also as a dual role, as Messick also voiced Scooby at the time.

After his addition to the show proved to be a ratings success, Hanna-Barbera restructured the show as a means of rebooting the franchise, focusing more on Scooby, Shaggy, and Scrappy. The original format of four teenagers and their dog(s) solving faux-supernatural mysteries for a half-hour was eschewed for simpler, more comedic adventures which involved real supernatural villains (the villains in previous Scooby episodes were almost always regular humans in disguise). Scrappy remained an integral part of the Scooby-Doo franchise, on both TV and in Scooby-related licensed products and merchandising, through the end of the 1980s.

Criticism

Scrappy was initially seen as a “good idea” by Saturday Morning Review. Though he did have his critics, he was a well loved character who showed up on merchandise and reruns, but in later years, the presence of Scrappy-Doo has been criticized as on the various Scooby-Doo series of the 1980s. Before the internet, there was very little indication that Scrappy wasn’t well liked. Mark Evanier stated that it seemed that people loved Scrappy, with the ratings going up immediately after his introduction, saving the show. Although, creators of Scooby-Doo, Joe Ruby and Ken Spears, who would later go on to found and work as producers at Ruby-Spears Enterprises, were also not fond of Scrappy, with Joe Ruby, producer of the show that lost to Scooby, even sarcastically calling Mark Evanier to "congratulate" him for helping Scooby survive over their new pilot. However, in 1988, according to Tom Ruegger, the Scooby franchise, which had been experimenting with the supernatural format all throughout the '80s, decided to return to its roots with A Pup Named Scooby-Doo. The same year also saw the release of Scooby-Doo and the Reluctant Werewolf the last major Scooby media featuring Scrappy as a major protagonist. However, it is clear from later articles that Gen-Xers did have a bone to pick with Scrappy, whose main source of ire was the unconfirmed yet long held belief that Scrappy was the direct cause of radically changing the format. It is unknown where this rumor originated from, though the earliest example of it in circulation is in Jim Corkis and John Cawley's Encyclopedia of Cartoon Superstars, where Cawley states, "However, the addition of Scrappy eliminated the majority of the regular cast." Cawley, when questioned on this statement responded, "And as for fluctuation of the mystery inc, it was often done just to 'freshen' the series and make it look new. It's why some series had real monsters... and some didn't. You might say they just kept 're-booting' the show as time went on." When Archie gained the rights to Hanna-Barbera in 1995, both Bill Vallely and Mike Kirschenbaum, two writers for the series, both acknowledged that Scrappy was hated, and even attempted to remake his personality in response to that, according to Kirschenbaum, but "the animosity was too great" and Scrappy got the boot from the series midway. After Archie Comics concluded as a series, DC Comics picked up rights and produced Scooby-Doo for some time after that, and, possibly taking their cue from Archie, continued with Scrappy being gone.

Cartoon Network

Cartoon Network gained the rights to Scooby around 1995 and promptly set about making it its most shown franchise via reruns of various series. Scooby, which had been dormant for the last few years aside from comics, soon became quite heavily rerun over the place. Around 1997, an anti-Scrappy Ribbon began to circulate, which was pinned to webpages at the bottom. In the small group of intense Scooby fans, it gained popularity and was advertised in various webrings, coagulating in the beginning hatedom.

Soon after in 1998, Jon Hein published his Jump the Shark website, a site dedicated to complaining about unwelcome changes to beloved shows, the very thing that Scrappy was blamed for. Scrappy was by and by entered in on the Scooby-Doo section and was voted as the top JTS cause by approximately 1500 people. His website gained newspaper coverage by Maureen Dowd, in September 1998, who published an opinion article entitled "Scrappy-Doo Spoiled Scooby-Doo", though Scrappy actually featured very little in the article and said article was written with a political punchline in mind, word picked up and Jump the Shark (and Scrappy's presence in it) were soon republished from 1998 to 2001 in newspapers across the country under various titles, some of which included Scrappy and some of which did not.

1999 was the earliest mention of the "Scrappy Stinks!" game by Cartoon Network, who had acquired the rights to Scooby a mere two years before. Though Scrappy had been eliminated from the comics, he was still popular enough to be the star of a "Cartoon Network Presents" feature.

At midnight, of October 31, 1999, Cartoon Network aired several promos over the gang's disappearance. One was a promo involving the gang being frightened of Scrappy. Scrappy was first mentioned to be in the live-action movie in April 2000. It is uncertain whether he was the villain or not. It was around this time that Cartoon Network began showing the first negative appearances of Scrappy in the form of promos.

Character biography

Scrappy has a contradicted origin. Originally as shown in the introduction of the series, Scrappy only met his Uncle Scooby as a puppy. However, the December 1980 episode of Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo ("Scrappy's Birthday") depicts Scrappy-Doo's birth with both Scooby and Shaggy in attendance. Born at St. Bernard's Hospital to Scooby-Doo's sister Ruby-Doo on December 20, 1980, Scrappy went on to grow up in New York. Some time after this, Scrappy was sent to live with Scooby on the road for unknown reasons. Scrappy idolizes his uncle Scooby and would often assist Scooby and his friends in solving mysteries (Scrappy saves Scooby several times from monsters when they were looking for the rest of the gang). In Scooby-Doo Meets the Boo Brothers, Scooby-Doo and the Ghoul School, and Scooby-Doo and the Reluctant Werewolf, Scrappy is more toned down, as he is less feisty and a little more cowardly, but still much braver than Scooby and Shaggy. In all three movies, he sometimes serves as the brains of the trio, figuring out the clues and where to go next.

Personality and characteristics

Scrappy, from his very first appearance, has been shown to be quite courageous, charging attacking monsters with little worry to his own safety. He also did not take kindly to those insulting his Uncle Scooby or Shaggy. With a highly energetic and brave personality, despite his small size, Scrappy was the exact opposite of his uncle; Scrappy would usually insist on trying to directly fight the various monsters Scooby and his associates encountered and generally have to be dragged away by Scooby. Related to this, one of Scrappy's catchphrases was, "Lemme at 'em! Lemme at 'em! I'll splat 'em! I'll rock 'em and sock 'em!" Another of Scrappy-Doo's catchphrases is, "Ta dadada ta daaa! Puppy power!". He is also quite strong, capable of smashing down solid rock walls and carrying both Scooby and Shaggy over his head seemingly without effort. Later episodes showed he had an adventurous streak and was oblivious to his two caretakers not sharing such a trait. He was almost always happy and rarely sad, fitting with the show's light-hearted tone. As time grew on, he became more reserved and opted to help find clues instead of fighting, though he was still feisty and brave throughout his run.

Voices

• Lennie Weinrib (1979–1980)
• Don Messick (1980–1988)
• Scott Innes (2002)
• J.P. Manoux (2002; Scrappy Rex in the live-action film)

Scooby-Doo series and films featuring Scrappy-Doo

Television series

• Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo (1979–1980)
• The Richie Rich/Scooby-Doo Show (1980–1982)
• The Scooby & Scrappy-Doo/Puppy Hour (1982–1983)
• The New Scooby and Scrappy-Doo Show / The New Scooby-Doo Mysteries (1983–1984)
• Scary Scooby Funnies (package show) (1984–1985)
• The 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo (1985)
• Scooby's Mystery Funhouse (package show) (1985–1986)
• Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated (2011) (cameo)

Television films

• Scooby-Doo Meets the Boo Brothers (1987)
• Scooby-Doo and the Ghoul School (1988)
• Scooby-Doo and the Reluctant Werewolf (1988)
• Scooby-Doo! and the Goblin King (2008) (cameo)

Crossovers

• Supernatural – "Scoobynatural" (2018) (cameo)

Feature films

• Scooby-Doo (2002)

Other Appearances

• The 1995 Archie Comics series, the first to feature him as a main character. His characterization was markedly different than his cartoon self. Under the main writer, Mike Kirschenbaum, who was using an outlet for DC Follies he was selfish, cowardly, and irresponsible.
• He was the star of the 24th issue of the Cartoon Network Presents comic book series.
• The first live-action Scooby-Doo film — Scrappy wants revenge on Mystery Inc. for abandoning him years earlier. While in a bar reminiscing, Velma tells another patron that the gang kicked Scrappy out of their ranks because he peed on Daphne and demanded to be the new leader. Velma also claims that Scrappy was not really a puppy but rather had a glandular disorder. In the course of the film, it is revealed that he is seeking to summon a demon army that he can use to rule the world, with the ritual requiring him to absorb a purely good soul to unleash the full power of his army, with Scrappy selecting Scooby as the final sacrifice. However, his ego causes him to call in the rest of the Mystery Inc. crew to witness his triumph despite them having gone their separate ways two years ago, with the gang rallying to defeat Scrappy's plan and save Scooby by disrupting the ritual. At the conclusion of the film, Velma says that Scrappy's full name is Scrappy Cornelius Doo.
• Interestingly, Scrappy was not the villain in an earlier draft around March 2000 (that role went to Don Knotts) and the first hint of his involvement in the plot at all didn't come until a month later, an interview with James Gunn in April 2000 Other original ideas for the villain included the Old Man Smithers, the villain from the beginning of the film. According to the DVD commentary, choosing the villain of the movie was a problematic part of production, as the makers didn't feel comfortable simply giving the role to an "anonymous monster", and that the ending was in "bits and pieces" and the "confinements forced them to be creative." The ultimate decision to have the villain be Scrappy was embraced by the writer of the script, James Gunn, the screenwriter for the first 2002 feature film, who has stated numerous times that he loathes the character. "There is a Scrappy, because he exists in the cartoon, so we have to acknowledge him." He said in an interview shortly prior to the release of Scooby-Doo. He also said on Scrappy, "I hate Scrappy's guts. We all hate Scrappy's guts. Our whole goal was to destroy Scrappy forever." Despite previously stating that he felt that "kids didn't care" he did later note with some dismay on two separate occasions that kids reacted poorly to the development, admitting he didn't understand how popular Scrappy was with five and six year olds. "I still think it was funny that Scrappy was the villain", Gunn explained in an interview with Cinefantastique, "But there are kids out there who were really upset."
• The 2008 movie Scooby-Doo! and the Goblin King has a scene in which a monstrous Mystery Machine crashes through a carnival stand containing dolls of Scrappy and running over them. Like all the previous and current direct-to-video movies, Scrappy never made an appearance.
• In An Evening with the Scooby Gang, a bonus feature on the Aloha, Scooby-Doo! DVD, Fred mentions a sixth member of the gang, to the gang's shock and dismay. Shaggy mentions they were not supposed to talk about Scrappy. Freddy was talking about the Mystery Machine.
• In the 2011 Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated episode "The Siren's Song", Fred and Daphne come across a statue of Scrappy in the Crystal Cove Haunted Museum among the statues of their defeated foes. Daphne remarks she has never seen his statue before. Fred pulls her away and reminds her that they all promised never to speak of him again, once again a reference to his unpopularity, along with the fact that he had not appeared in any Scooby-Doo cartoons or films in the latest decades as a consequence of it. Scrappy also appeared with a statue of Flim Flam.
• Scrappy made a quick "Easter Egg" appearance in the "Scoobynatural" episode of the TV series Supernatural.
• Scrappy was part of the storyline in DC Comics Scooby Apocalypse. However, this was in-name-only.
• In the 2019 film Scooby-Doo! and the Curse of the 13th Ghost, which concludes "The 13 Ghosts of Scooby Doo" series; but despite his actual involvement of the show, Scrappy's entire presence was absent in the film, even within the opening credit recap montage at the start of the movie. Near the climax of the movie, Flim Flam makes a comment about Scrappy, to which Velma responds with "What's a Scrappy?"

Appearances in other media

Scrappy appears in A Yabba Dabba Doo Celebration as a respected part of the large family of classic Hanna-Barbera characters. He is the only Scooby member besides Shaggy and Scooby but does not have any lines.

Scrappy-Doo appeared in a few Cartoon Network commercial bumpers, reflecting his fall in popularity. One such has him loitering outside Cartoon Network's main office, ranting about how the other CN cartoon characters are getting better treatment than him, despite his having been created long before them. The bumper ends with Scrappy responding to the network's tagline ("The best place for cartoons") with "Not for me! Not for me, man!" Shaggy appears in the bumper.

Another one had him and Flim Flam standing alone in the rain and getting splashed by mud by passing traffic, ending with the pair dejectedly slinking off.

Scrappy-Doo is a recurring gag in Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law. He first appears at the end of "Shaggy Busted" to utter his catchphrase, only to be cut-off halfway when Avenger grabs Scrappy in his talons. From then on, Scrappy's corpse appears in various episodes, usually being carried around by Avenger.

In another he appears in a locker room with Astro from The Jetsons, Dino, Courage the Cowardly Dog and Droopy complaining about how his uncle gets more fame than any of them. Daphne and Scooby appear in the bumper.

He appears in the "Laff-A-Munich" skit in the Robot Chicken episode "Ban on the Fun". In the skit, Scrappy is kicked into a lake by Blue Falcon.

He also appears in the Drawn Together episode "Lost in Parking Space, Part Two", wherein he and several other cartoon characters are brutally tortured.

In the Family Guy movie Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story, Chris Griffin was required by his mother, Lois Griffin, to mention the fourth member of Sex and the City, he could not come up with the correct answer, he instead took a wild and very inaccurate guess by saying it was Scrappy-Doo. In the episode "Meg Stinks!", Brian Griffin is forced to sleep outside (due to getting sprayed by a skunk) and states his nephew Scrappy Brian did not even make it through the night. It then cuts to a scene depicting a puppy resembling Brian, who inquires about a noise in the bushes, Brian would rather ignore it, but Scrappy Brian shouts Scrappy-Doo's catchphrase, "Let me at 'em", and charges and is eaten by a velociraptor. Brian notes he told his sister, "This was not a good weekend". On the soundtrack album, Family Guy: Live in Vegas, Jason Alexander reports that Scrappy is the product of a drunken encounter between Scooby-Doo and Daphne.

In October of the years 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011, he was made the King of Boomerroyalty in which each weekend despite being infamous, the channel "Boomerang" showed 2-hour installments of Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo and The New Scooby and Scrappy-Doo Show all month.

In the series finale of Batman: The Brave and the Bold "Mitefall!", Bat-Mite attempts to get the show cancelled and introduces a thinly-veiled analogy to Scrappy in Punchichi, the nephew of Ace the Bat-Hound. Scrappy had been added for opposite reasons.

During one of Cartoon Network's commercials promoting its 20th anniversary Bugs Bunny was taking a group photo of various cartoon characters, with Scrappy-Doo being among them. Before the picture was taken, Jake from Adventure Time elongated his body to push Scrappy out of the picture to which Scrappy says "Hey!" in frustration and has the last line in the commercial. This was obviously a reference to his unpopularity, and Cartoon Network continues to exploit this.

See also

• Cousin Oliver
• Jar-Jar Binks
• Jumping the Shark

External links

• "Scrappy Days", Mark Evanier's recollections of the creation of Scrappy-Doo
• The Scooby Story: The Facts on Scrappy