Morris the Cat facts for kids

Morris the Cat is a famous advertising mascot for 9Lives cat food. You can see him on the food packages and in many television commercials. He's known for being a very picky eater!

Who is Morris the Cat?

Morris is a big, orange tabby cat. He is known as "the world's most finicky cat." This means he only likes to eat 9Lives cat food. When someone offers him other brands, he makes funny comments in a voice-over, showing he doesn't want them. Every can of 9Lives cat food even has Morris's special "signature" on it.

Did you know that three different cats have played the role of Morris the Cat over the years?

The First Morris

The very first Morris was found in 1968. He was at the Hinsdale Humane Society, an animal shelter near Chicago. A professional animal trainer named Bob Martwick discovered him.

Morris became famous through the Leo Burnett advertising company. He starred in 58 television commercials between 1969 and 1978. John Erwin was the voice behind Morris's funny comments. Morris even won two PATSY Awards in 1972 and 1973. These awards celebrate amazing animal performers in movies and on TV. The original Morris passed away in 1978.

More Morris Cats

All the cats who have played Morris have been rescue animals. They were adopted from animal shelters or cat rescue groups. After the first Morris, Bob Martwick looked for a year to find the second Morris. He kept the first two Morris cats as his own pets.

Morris stayed very popular into the 1980s. In 1988, the Leo Burnett Company even created a pretend presidential campaign for Morris!

The current Morris lives in Los Angeles with his trainer, Rose Ordile. The Leo Burnett Company stopped working with 9Lives' parent company, Heinz, in 1994.

Morris in Movies and More

Morris the Cat has appeared in more than just commercials!

Movie Star Morris

He made his movie debut in the 1973 film The Long Goodbye with actor Elliott Gould. Morris also starred in the movie Shamus in 1973, alongside Burt Reynolds and Dyan Cannon.

Morris as a Spokescat

Morris also acts as a "spokescat" for important causes. He helps promote being a responsible pet owner. He also encourages people to take good care of their pets' health. Most importantly, he supports adopting pets from animal shelters.

To help with these causes, Morris has "written" three books. They are called The Morris Approach, The Morris Method, and The Morris Prescription. In 1993, People magazine mentioned Morris. He gave a simple "Meow" to honor his friend, the advertising dog Spuds MacKenzie, who had passed away.

In 2006, Morris was shown adopting a kitten named Li'l Mo. Li'l Mo came from a Los Angeles animal shelter. This event kicked off a campaign called Morris' Million Cat Rescue. The goal was to encourage more people to adopt cats.

Morris in British Ads

When Morris first appeared in British TV ads in the late 1970s, a man named Johnny Morris did his voice. Johnny Morris was already famous in the UK for his animal characters on a show called Animal Magic. Because of this, many British viewers thought the cat was named after Johnny Morris himself! Later, British ads for 9Lives featured the voice of Richard Briers.