Little Audrey facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Little Audrey |
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| First appearance | Noveltoon Santa's Surprise (December 5, 1947) |
| Created by | Seymour Kneitel Bill Tytla (design) |
| Portrayed by | Mae Questel Tiffany Taubman Stephanie Lemelin |
| Information | |
| Aliases | Audrey Smith |
| Species | Human |
| Gender | Female |
| Relatives | Mrs. Smith (mother) Suzie (cousin) Grandma (grandmother) Pal (dog) Patches (brother) |
| Nationality | American |
Little Audrey (full name: Audrey Smith) is a fun cartoon character. She first appeared in comics a long time ago, in the early 1900s. Later, she starred in her own cartoon series from 1947 to 1958. These cartoons were made by Paramount Pictures' Famous Studios.
Audrey is a bit like another famous cartoon character called Little Lulu. Paramount Pictures decided to create Audrey after they stopped making cartoons about Little Lulu. Even though they look a little similar, the artists made sure Audrey had her own unique look. She had different colors and a different drawing style. A talented artist named Bill Tytla designed Little Audrey. He was inspired by his own daughter!
The voice of Little Audrey was done by Mae Questel. She also voiced other famous cartoon characters like Betty Boop and Olive Oyl from the Popeye cartoons.
Contents
Audrey's Story
Before she became a star in the Famous Studios cartoons in 1947, Little Audrey was already known. She appeared in many short, funny stories, some even from the time of the First World War.
Little Audrey Jokes
Little Audrey was famous for silly jokes! These jokes were short, funny tales where something usually went wrong. But Little Audrey would just "laugh and laugh" no matter what happened.
Here's a famous example:
One day, Li'l Audrey was playing with matches. Her mother told her to stop before someone got hurt. But Li'l Audrey was very stubborn and kept playing. Eventually, she burned their house down.
"Oh, Li'l Audrey, you are sure going to get in trouble when your father comes home!" said her mother.
But Li'l Audrey just laughed and laughed, because she knew her father had come home early to take a nap.
Another joke from the 1930s goes like this:
Little Audrey's mother asked her to buy some groceries at the Safeway store. Little Audrey laughed and laughed because she knew there was no safe way.
Audrey's Cartoons
Audrey first appeared in a cartoon called Santa's Surprise in 1947. She was one of the main children helping Santa. Her first cartoon where she was the star was Butterscotch and Soda, released in 1948.
In her early cartoons, Audrey often had amazing dream adventures. She might go to a wedding in Cakeland or ride on clouds with Mother Goose. Sometimes, she even faced a court of angry fish underwater! Later, her cartoons also had funny, silly humor where she might go against a big, clumsy lifeguard.
A total of 16 cartoons starring Little Audrey were made for movie theaters. Many of these were later shown on TV. Little Audrey was special because she was the only character in her cartoon series to have her own theme song with singing!
Over the years, the rights to Audrey's cartoons changed hands. Today, many of her cartoons are owned by DreamWorks Animation, which is part of NBCUniversal.
Audrey also appears in a newer animated series called Harvey Girls Forever!. In this show, Little Audrey looks more modern. She has brown hair, like in the old comics, instead of red hair like in the cartoons. In Harvey Girls Forever!, Audrey is a tomboy and very energetic.
About the Character
Little Audrey's full last name is Smith.
She usually has reddish-brown hair tied in three pigtails with ribbons. She wears a small dress with puffy sleeves, white ankle socks, and black Mary Jane shoes. In her early cartoons, her dress and ribbons were blue. But by the time she appeared in Harvey Comics, they were red. In Harvey Street Kids, she wears a pink shirt with jeans.
Audrey has a cousin named Suzie and a brother nicknamed "Patches." She also has a dog named Pal.
Audrey in Other Media
While the Little Audrey jokes were popular for a long time, the cartoon and comic book character had her own adventures.
Comic Books
Little Audrey was not as famous as Casper the Friendly Ghost, but she was very popular in comic books. Her first comic book series started in 1948. These comics focused more on funny everyday situations than on fantasy. The drawings looked a lot like the original cartoon character.
In 1952, Harvey Comics started publishing Little Audrey comics. At first, they followed the cartoon style. But in the mid-1950s, Audrey's look was changed to fit Harvey Comics' own style. New characters were added, like Melvin Wisenheimer, her mischievous rival and friend, and Tiny, an imaginative young boy. The stories often showed Audrey dealing with her parents, teachers, and other grown-ups.
Harvey Comics bought the rights to all of Famous Studios' characters, including Little Audrey, in 1958. This is when the "classic" Audrey look, with her signature red dress, became well-known. By 1960, Little Audrey was the most famous female character from Harvey Comics because she was in comics, cartoons, and even newspaper strips for a short time. However, other characters like Little Dot, Wendy the Good Little Witch, and Little Lotta later became more popular.
Later comic series were called Playful Little Audrey and Little Audrey & Melvin. In Little Audrey & Melvin, Audrey and Melvin became less like enemies and more like friends.
Little Audrey starred in several of her own comic book titles and also appeared in other comics like Richie Rich and Casper. Her comics continued until 1976. Since then, she has appeared in a few TV shows and videos, like The Richie Rich Show (1996).
Audrey's Famous Studios Cartoons
Here are some of the cartoons Little Audrey starred in:
- Santa's Surprise (1947): Audrey and other kids from around the world sneak into Santa's sleigh. They clean his house while he sleeps, leaving him a note to remember them next year!
- Olive Oyl for President (1948): Audrey has a small appearance in this Popeye cartoon.
- Butterscotch and Soda (1948): Audrey is sent to her room for wanting candy instead of lunch. She dreams of a candy land, eats too much, and gets a stomach ache, which makes her not want sweets anymore.
- The Lost Dream (1949): Audrey dreams about how dreams are made and can't resist opening a forbidden door.
- Song of the Birds (1949): Audrey shoots down a baby bird with her air rifle and feels terrible. She tries to make amends with the other birds.
- Tarts and Flowers (1950): While her gingerbread cake bakes, Audrey dreams of a wedding between a Gingerbread Man and an Angel Food Cake, almost ruined by a Devil's Food Cake.
- Goofy Goofy Gander (1950): Audrey shrinks and dreams that Mother Goose Land is in danger from comic book villains.
- Hold the Lion Please (1951): Audrey wants a pet but can't afford one. She befriends a lion at the zoo, who scares everyone in town.
- Audrey the Rainmaker (1951): Audrey wishes it would "never rain again." Her wish comes true, causing a drought. She must ask the Rainmaker to let it rain again.
- Law and Audrey (1952): Audrey plays baseball and accidentally bothers a policeman. She later saves him from drowning.
- The Case of the Cockeyed Canary (1952): Audrey dreams she's a detective solving the mystery of a "murdered" bird.
- Surf Bored (1953): Audrey takes her dog Pal to the beach, even though dogs aren't allowed. She ends up rescuing the lifeguard from a giant octopus!
- The Seapreme Court (1954): Audrey falls asleep while fishing and dreams she's on trial in an underwater fish court for catching fish.
- Dizzy Dishes (1955): While using a machine to wash dishes, Audrey dreams of aliens with the power to make things disappear. Only she can stop them!
- Little Audrey Riding Hood (1955): Audrey takes a cake to Grandma's house. A burglar is hiding there, and Audrey has to deal with him until Grandma arrives.
- Fishing Tackler (1957): Audrey and Pal try to have a peaceful day fishing while avoiding a strict truant officer.
- Dawg Gawn (1958): Pal wants to go to school with Audrey. Audrey later has to rescue Pal from a mean dogcatcher.
See also
In Spanish: Little Audrey para niños
