George Liquor

Infobox character
colour = skyblue
name = George Liquor


caption = George Liquor from "The Ren and Stimpy Show"
first =
last =
species = Human
gender = Male
family = Jimmy the Idiot Boy (Nephew)
Slab (Nephew)
Ernie (Nephew)
Frank Liquor (Brother)
spouse = Mable Liquor (Deceased)
friends = Harvey Whiteman
The Lord
enemies =
episode =
portrayer = Michael Pataki
Harris Peet
creator = John Kricfalusi

George Liquor (also known as George Liquor, Americancite web | last= Kricfalusi | first= John | author-link= John K |date=April 12, 2007 | title= George Liquor Storybible | url= http://johnkstuff.blogspot.com/2007/04/george-liquor-storybible.html | accessdate= 2007-12-28] ), most famous for his appearances on The Ren and Stimpy Show, is a cartoon character created by John Kricfalusi and is a mascot for Kricfalusi's defunct animation studio, Spümcø. Kricfalusi created George Liquor as a patriotic, outspoken, politically conservative character. Kricfalusi described Liquor as his favorite character to animate.cite web | last= Goodman | first= Martin | author-link= |date=September 01, 2004 | title= "When Cartoons Were Cartoony:" John Kricfalusi Presents | url= http://mag.awn.com/index.php?ltype=pageone&article_no=2214&page=1 | accessdate= 2007-12-28]

George was voiced by Harris Peet in his first starring episode of "The Ren and Stimpy Show"cite episode |title = Man's Best Friend (opening credits) |series = Ren and Stimpy Adult Party Cartoon |serieslink= Ren and Stimpy Adult Party Cartoon |network = Spike TV |airdate = 2003-06-23 |season = 1 |number = Special] and has been voiced by Michael Pataki since.cite web | last= Kricfalusi | first= John | author-link= John K |date=March 01, 2007 | title= Meet George Liquor - direct to video and online cartoons | url= http://johnkstuff.blogspot.com/2006/12/meet-george-liquor-direct-to-video-and.html | accessdate= 2008-01-01] George Liquor appeared in episodes of "The Ren and Stimpy Show", the episodes of "The Goddamn George Liquor Program", comic books, webcomics, internet cartoons, and advertisements. According to Kricfalusi's blog, a new webtoon starring George is currently in development. It will be sponsored by Pontiac Vibe.cite web | last= Kricfalusi | first= John | author-link= John K |date=March 20, 2008 | title= George Liquor Pilot Sketches | url= http://johnkstuff.blogspot.com/2008/03/george-liquor-pilot-sketches.html | accessdate= 2008-04-14]

Character

Kricfalusi described George Liquor as "the greatest American" who is so conservative "that he thinks the Republicans are , and tries to teach Jimmy how to be "a Real Man". [Citation| last = Turczyn | first = Coury | title = Looney 'Toons | date = January 25, 1996 | work = Metro Pulse | publisher = Pop Cult Magazine | year = | url = http://www.popcultmag.com/obsessions/profilesingreatness/spumco/spumco1.html | accessdate = ]

Liquor lives in the fictional city of Decentville, USA.cite web | last= Kricfalusi | first= John | author-link= John K |date=October 31, 2007 | title= GEORGE LIQUOR'S CARTOONY TYPE VARIETY SHOW | url= http://johnkpitch.blogspot.com/2007/10/george-liquors-cartoony-type-variety.html | accessdate= 2007-12-30] George strongly believes in discipline and corporal punishment; his motto is "it's discipline that begets love". In the two episodes of "The Ren and Stimpy Show" in which he starred, George treats Ren and Stimpy strictly and tried to make them as disciplined as possible.cite episode |title = Big Baby Scam/Dog Show |series = The Ren and Stimpy Show|serieslink= The Ren and Stimpy Show |network = Nickelodeon |airdate = 1992-12-12 |season = 2 |number = 6] cite episode |title = Man's Best Friend |series = Ren and Stimpy Adult Party Cartoon |serieslink= Ren and Stimpy Adult Party Cartoon |network = Spike TV |airdate = 2003-06-23 |season = 1 |number = Special] In an issue of "Comic Book", Liquor questions how parents can love their children without spanking them.

Creation

George was created by Kricfalusi in 1979 immediately after Kricfalusi saw a building with a sign that read, "George Liquor". Kricfalusi said that the name "George Liquor" was "the coolest name [he] ever heard". According to Kricfalusi's blog, Kricfalusi's father greatly influenced the personality of George. He said that both Liquor and his father are similar in that "George and my Dad believe strongly in discipline and order and rules. (Especially their own!)"cite web | last= Kricfalusi | first= John | author-link= John K |date=October 30, 2007 | title= Happy Birthday Dad! | url= http://johnkstuff.blogspot.com/2007/10/happy-birthday-dad.html | accessdate= 2007-12-20] Kricfalusi intended for George Liquor to be an integral character in "The Ren and Stimpy Show"; Kricfalusi created Ren and Stimpy as Liquor's and Jimmy's pets.Citation | last= Rivera | first= Jason | author-link= |date=April 2000 | year= | title= An Interview with: John Kricfalusi | periodical= Chimera | issue= 4 | pages= | url= http://www.geocities.com/jasonchimera/Johnk | accessdate= 2007-12-27] cite book| last = Lenburg| first = Jeff| title = Who's Who in Animated Cartoons| publisher = Hal Leonard| date = 2006| pages = 192| url = http://books.google.com/books?id=FVShFCjVzvIC&pg=PA192-IA7&lpg=PA192-IA7&dq=%22George+Liquor%22+unfunny&source=web&ots=TZU8FggYK_&sig=iVrlq5YR8fau-itvIg9ViSdR5a8#PPA192-IA8,M1| isbn = 155783671X]

On "The Ren and Stimpy Show"

George Liquor’s first official appearances were in episodes of "The Ren and Stimpy Show". "The Ren and Stimpy Show" was a cartoon series that Kricfalusi created, sold to the channel Nickelodeon, and directed at his studio, Spümcø. Liquor starred in the episodes "Dog Show" and "Man's Best Friend" and made brief cameos in the episodes "The Boy Who Cried Rat" and "Robin Höek". According to Kricfalusi, Liquor only appeared in a few episodes because those in charge of Nickelodeon at the time hated the character. Ren and Stimpy animator Bill Wray described Liquor as a character that Nickelodeon "never liked" because the name "Liquor" both was a reference to alcohol and sounded like the words "lick her"."Bill Wray." "David Anthony Kraft's Comics Interview" #122. 1993. 7.] Wray said that Nickelodeon disapproved of George but did not forbid Kricfalusi from using the character."Bill Wray." "David Anthony Kraft's Comics Interview" #122. 1993. 6.]

In one of Liquor's starring roles, in the episode "Dog Show", George put characters Ren and Stimpy through a painful process of making the two into perfect pets for a dog show. Before the episode was broadcast, it was censored so that George's last name, "Liquor", was cut from the soundtrack.cite book| last = Cohen| first = Karl| title = Forbidden Animation: Censored Cartoons and Blacklisted Animators in America| publisher = McFarland| date = | pages = 149| isbn = 0786420324] According to "Forbidden Animation: Censored Cartoons And Blacklisted Animators in America", Nickelodeon has not officially explained why the name "Liquor" name was cut from broadcasting. Liquor's other major appearance, the episode "Man's Best Friend", was banned from Nickelodeon and was not shown on television for years because of its content. In the episode, George makes threats and angry demands to Ren and Stimpy, and in the end of the episode, Ren beats George with an oar. In addition to missing deadlines for Nickelodeon and making too many controversial cartoons,cite web | last= Houle | first= Zachary | author-link= |date= | title= John K on Montreal and Ottawa Locals and more... | url= http://www.tvparty.com/johnk.html | accessdate= 2008-01-12] Kricfalusi said that the episode "Man's Best Friend" was the episode of "The Ren and Stimpy Show" that got him and the Spumco staff fired from the series. Kricfalusi said that "Man's Best Friend" was actually approved for broadcasting by both Standards and Practices and Nickelodeon administrators, but the Nickelodeon staff declined to broadcast the episode when network executives saw the finished product. Wray stated that the episode was "all finished and ready to go" before the cancellation. The episode aired on Spike TV in 2003 as part of "Ren and Stimpy Adult Party Cartoon". When Nickelodeon fired Kricfalusi, the network gave him the rights to use George Liquor because the network employees did not like the character. The arrangement with the network also granted Kricfalusi the rights to Jimmy the Hapless Idiot Boy.

In "Comic Book"

After Nickelodeon, George Liquor and Jimmy The Idiot Boy starred in "Comic Book", a Spümcø comic book series. The comic book series also had appearances of the various characters who regularly interacted with George and Jimmy.cite web | title = Interviews: John Kricfalusi and Jim Smith | url= http://www.darkhorse.com/news/interviews.php?id=606 | accessdate= 2008-01-01] The series was launched at Marvel, but Kricfalusi decided to move the series to Dark Horse Comics, as "Marvel wanted to maintain its corporate image, so we moved to Dark Horse, where they have no social conscience".cite press release| title =John Kricfalusi| publisher = DarkHorse.com| url =http://www.darkhorse.com/news/pressrelease.php?id=122| accessdate =2008-01-01] The series was written and drawn by Spümcø co-founders Kricfalusi and Jim Smith and other members of the original Spümcø staff. While with Marvel, "Comic Book" was nominated for an Eisner Award for Best Humor Publication. One story in the first issue of the Dark Horse's "Comic Book", "George Liquor's Fishing Show", was later made into a webcomic with sound that was featured on the Spümcø website.Citation |date= December 1999 | year= | title= Internet & Interactive | periodical= Animation World Magazine | issue= 4.9 | pages= | url= http://www.awn.com/mag/issue4.09/4.09pages/4.09internet.php3| accessdate= 2008-01-01]

On "The Goddamn George Liquor Program"

George Liquor starred in the Flash Internet cartoon series, "The Goddamn George Liquor Program", created by Kricfalusi. Premiering on October 15, 1997,cite web | title = In His Way, John K. Will Challenge the World | publisher = WIRED | url = http://www.wired.com/culture/lifestyle/news/1997/10/7566 |accessdate = 2008-01-01] cite web | title = John K's Guide to Surviving the End of Television | publisher = Cold Hard Flash| url = http://www.coldhardflash.com/2007/04/john-ks-guide-to-surviving-end-of.html |date = April 23, 2007 |accessdate = 2008-01-01] "The Goddamn George Liquor Program" was the first cartoon series to be produced exclusively for the Internet.cite web | title = 27th Annual Annie Award Nominee Showcase: Goddamn George Liquor Program | publisher = AWM.com | url = http://www.awn.com/annieawards/george.php3 |accessdate = 2007-12-14] George appeared on the series with his nephew, Jimmy The Idiot Boy; Jimmy's cousins, Slab and Ernie; Jimmy's love interest, Sody Pop; and George and Jimmy's pet dog, Dirty Dog. Without the control of a network, the series could be made as Kricfalusi wanted. Spümcø produced eight one-minute shorts.cite web | title = Flashimation: The Context and Culture of Web Animation| publisher = | url = http://old.siggraph.org/artdesign/gallery/S06/paper1.pdf |accessdate = 2008-02-06] In 1999, "The Goddamn George Liquor Program" won an Annie Award for "Outstanding Achievement in an Animated Interactive Production".cite web | title = ASIFA-Hollywood's 27th Annual Annie Awards | publisher = ASIFA Hollywood | url = http://www.asifa-hollywood.org/annies99.html |accessdate = 2007-12-14]

In advertisements

After being fired from "The Ren and Stimpy Show", John Kricfalusi used George Liquor in Macromedia Flash advertisements in hopes of creating a series with direct sponsorship without a network.cite web | last= Kricfalusi | first= John | author-link= John K |date=December 11, 2006 | title= Direct Sponsorship 2 | url= http://johnkstuff.blogspot.com/2006/12/direct-sponsorship-2.html | accessdate= 2008-01-01] Kricfalusi began with free advertisements that he made for Tower Records in 1997. George Liquor has been used in John Kricfalusi's advertisements for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, and is currently used in ads for the internet communication service Raketu. To animate the advertisements, Kricfalusi used Macromedia Flash.

References

External links

* [http://johnkstuff.blogspot.com/ Creator John Kricafalusi's blog]
* [http://johnkstuff.blogspot.com/2007/04/george-liquor-storybible.html George Liquor Bible part 1]
* [http://johnkstuff.blogspot.com/2007/04/george-liquor-bible-2-more-characters.html George Liquor Bible part 2]