The fantasy world of 11-year-old Doug Funnie (voiced by Billy West) was explored in this whimsical cartoon.
Doug, in his geeky wool sweater and short pants, was the ultimate outsider at the Bluffington School, constantly put upon by leather-jacketed bully Roger (also voiced by Billy West).
Further embarrassment came from the fact that his older sister, Judy (Becca Lish), was a Bohemian free spirit who habitually wore dark glasses and a beret and gave unintelligible one-woman shows billed as “performance art.”
With best friend Skeeter (Fred Newman) and loyal family pooch Porkchop (also Fred Newman), Doug embarked on little adventures designed to salvage his self-respect, or he simply escaped into a fantasy world inhabited by his alter-ego superhero, Quailman.
Despite his visions of failure, Doug usually succeeded in the end by simply using his wits.
Theda (Becca Lish) and Phil (Doug Preis) were his parents, Patti (Constance Shulman) his secret love, Mrs Wingo (Doris Belack) the homeroom teacher, and Mr Bone (Doug Preis) the nutty, yodelling assistant principal.
Nickelodeon failed to renew Doug after 52 episodes had been produced, whereupon Disney picked up the franchise in early 1996, produced new episodes under the titles Brand Spanking New! Dougand Disney’s Doug, and saw them become one of the more popular entries on the ABC Saturday morning lineup, where it ran from September 1996 to September 2001.
Meanwhile, Nick continued to run the older episodes, to strong ratings. In early 1999 a big-screen cinema version, The First Doug Movie, was released.
Doug Funnie/Roger Klotz
Billy West Judy Funnie/Theda Funnie
Becca Lish Phil Funnie/Lamar Bone
Doug Preis Porkchop/Skeeter Valentine/Bud Dink/Grandma Opal
Fred Newman Patti Mayonnaise
Constance Shulman Tippi Dink/Mrs Wingo
Doris Belack Beebe Bluff
Alice Playten Mayor Bob White
Greg Lee Mr Swirly
Bruce Bayley Johnson Loretta LaQuigley
Fran Brill
