Wednesday, June 29, 2016

Favorite Fictional Character --- Heckle & Jeckle


There are certain characters, dreamed up in bygone eras, that I really don't think would find an audience today.  Some of them are products of their times, created to fit into an era's zeitgeist.  They could be too naive, cute, or innocent to find an audience in today's jaded marketplace.  Or they could play to a stereotype that would not be tolerated in today's world.  Others, and I'm thinking of the characters I'm featuring today when I say this, just may be too abrasive to find refuge in the living rooms of 2016.  I could be wrong, maybe these guys could find an audience, but I'm thinking their shtick would have to be tweaked a bit, maybe a lot.  But even their abrasiveness may find a home. I look at some of what's on TV these days, including cartoons, and I'm amazed by the crassness of it all.  Toilet humor runs amok, and intelligence is downplayed.  If I were a kid of today, I would be watching a whole lot of vintage cartoons, not the drivel being produced now.  When all is said and done, I'm thinking Heckle & Jeckle may be a tad bit too mean spirited enough for today's youth, especially with the way bullying seems to be such a huge issue.  Despite it all, I still love them.  It's impossible to watch a cartoon of theirs, without cracking up.


For those of you who don't know Heckle & Jeckle, it's the two magpies in the picture above.  If you go by their accents, one is English, the other is from New York.  Other than that, I'm not really sure anyone could really tell them apart.  They are both temperamental, brash, antagonistic, sarcastic, and at times, a wee bit mean spirited.  They rarely ever aren't the instigators of their little capers, and often times go on the offensive, long before their "foe" knows what's going on.  They both can be devious in their actions, but that's seems to be Jeckle's forte, more than Heckle.  They are grifters and freeloaders, and damn proud of it.  They look out for themselves, and aren't overly concerned about the damage they inflict. 

Even with all those negative things I just said about them, they are the best of friends and have the other's  back, no matter what.  As with all partnerships, they have their sniping moments, but's it's almost impossible to not see the true friendship and camaraderie between the two of them.  They are loyal to each other, like Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, and if they were real people, they probably would have met a similar fate.  And did I mention, they are frickin hilarious?  Unless I'm gagged, it would be impossible for me to not laugh out loud when I watch them.  I adore them, and if that makes me a mean person, I can live with it.  At least I'm a mean person with a wicked sense of humor. 

3 comments:

Mystica said...

The characters were new to me. I enjoyed the post.

bermudaonion said...

Our son is close to our nephew who is 5 years older. When they were younger and would get to cutting up, I would call them Heckle and Jeckle. I still do some days just for fun.

Yvette said...

Oh, magpies! I kind of always thought of them as crows. I've been meaning to introduce my grandchildren to them, but maybe I ought not. Ha! I love them too.