Thursday, February 25, 2010

"F" is for "Foghorn Leghorn"

Bonjour from Campagne Maison

Foghorn J. Leghorn

A leghorn is a breed of chicken, and foghorn describes his loud, overbearing voice. Both parts of the name suggest the association with "Senator Claghorn", a blustering Southern Politician who was a regular character on the Fred Allen radio show in the 1930's. One of the most famous of Claghorn's catch-phrases was...."That's a joke...I say, that's a joke, son", which soon become one of Foghorn's famous quotes.

Foghorn is a large, anthropomorphized adult rooster with a strong Virginia accent, a "good ol'boy" speaking style with a penchant for mischief. Many of the story lines involved Foghorn and his canine nemesis, George P. Dog, aka The Barnyard Dawg, engaging in one-upmanship through a series of pranks. Unlike other Looney Tunes rivalries, Foghorn is often the initial aggressor out of self amusement and subsequently on the "losing" end of the gags. Foghorn especially enjoyed taking up a plank of wood, while ambling along humming "Camptown Races" (doo da, doo da) coming to the sleeping Dawg with his front half inside his doghouse, picking up his tail and rapidly whacking his exposed rear end.

Even though Foghorn described her as "looking like 2 miles of bad road", his efforts to woo the widowed hen, Miss Prissy, often found him babysitting her bookish son, Egghead, Jr. Quite the masculine role model, those episodes kept Foghorn busy saying "pay attention when I'm talking to you, boy".

Foghorn was created by Robert McKimson, and was a star in 28 cartoons between 1946 and 1963 in the Golden Age of American animation. All 28 of theses cartoons were directed by McKimson in Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies for Warner Bros. Foghorn's voice was created by Mel Blanc.

http://en.wikipedia.org/ and http://www.stephen-foster-songs/

I am linking up to Jenny Matlock's Alphabe-Thursday. Please grab her button on my sidebar to read all the other great "F" words for today.

Thanks for stopping by the farmhouse for a visit today. We love having company.

Au revoir,



27 comments:

Unknown said...

He always was one of my favorite Looney Tunes characters. Thanks for the insightful post! Great "F"

People Who Know Me Would Say: said...

I'm having a 60's Flashback....F is for flashback!!!!!!

Fabulous F!!!

Kat said...

I love this post! Foghorn Leghorn is one of my favorite cartoon characters. What a lovable buffoon! Thanks for the smile this morning. Kathy

Maggie said...

Hi Jacque,
What a great post, it made me smile as soon as I saw the pic. Didn't know any of this stuff about this cartoon character.
The things you can learn whilst blogging, never ceases to amze me!
~Maggie~

Coralie Cederna Johnson said...

FUNNY and FABULOUS old FOGHORN! Great F post!!! Happy Alphabe-Thursday!

Anonymous said...

Foghorn is my favorite of all time. He always knew just how long the dog's chain was. Most of the time, if not always, the joke was on him. But he was a mentor, too. I say, I say. Pay attention. What a great F day blog. TL

Unknown said...

whoo hoo for foghorn leghorn! your post made me all warm and fuzzy inside

Amy said...

I loved your post! It brought back memories of watching Looney Tunes with my Dad!

Jenny said...

Oh what a F un and in F ormative post.

As PJ wrote...what a F lashback.

I, too, was transported to a simpler time with our little TV set, four little girls gathered around watching and waiting for Dad to call us in to eat the pancakes he had just prepared.

Thank you for this post!

A+

Jo said...

oh thank you for stirring up such fun memories and including all of those informative tidbits!

laterg8r said...

i love foghorn leghorn :D

SquirrelQueen said...

Thanks for the 60's memories, he was one of my favorite cartoon characters in those days.
The Road to Here

Brenda said...

Awesome memories. I can hear Foghorn's voice like it is in the other room. And while I was reading your post I kept thinking of Miss Prissy. You did not disappoint.

Sea Witch said...

Boy, I say Boy!!!! Foghorn along with Yosemite Sam were my two favorite characters that Warners Bros offered. I can watch these cartoons over and over with tears of laughter and watch them again. I am really enjoying your A-Z blog topics Jacque. They are all over the boards and full of interest and joy. Stay warm this weekend, it is already cold in Hotlanta again. Sea Witch

Viki said...

I forgot all about him but now that you mention him, I remember him LOL. He was fun.

Betty said...

Oh yes, I used to enjoy him too.

Brenda said...

Stopping by again to thank you for you sweet comment left at my place. I know how you feel about wanting to work outside when you have so much to do inside. We moved from an older home that we lived in for 28 years and I miss all my different floral beds that I had worked on for so long. There was some things here when we moved but not what I was use to having. So I have digging up, moving and adding for the past two summers. I know you are going to enjoy every minute when its time!

Pondside said...

A friend and I were just last week talking about Foghorn Leghorn - I can't for the life of me remember why we'd be discussing a cartoon character! Anyway, he was one of my favorites, way back when, and i can well remember his distinctive voice.

GardenOfDaisies said...

I do remember this cartoon rooster! It's been a long time.

Amanda Lee said...

I say, I'd forgotten all about Foghorn!

Unknown said...

I used to love watching Foghorn Leghorn :). Thanks for bringing back those memories. :)

mub said...

I had no idea that the roosters name was Foghorn! It was fun to read about the history =)

Sarah said...

Jacque, great post! You always share something interesting and with a touch of humor. I love my visits to Campagne Maison. I didn't know the details about Foghorn Leghorn, but he is a favorite here.
All the best for a great day.....

Grandma Yellow Hair said...

Oh goodness can't believe I had forgotten about this until I saw your post....how funny I remember laughing like crazy at him...
Hope all is well with you....did you enter my giveaway...
Love
Maggie

My Cottage Charm said...

Haven't thought of Looney Tunes for a while, but this was fun! My husband does a perfect Marvin the Martian impression! :)
If you get a moment, mosey on over to my blog and see what I've been up to. :)
Have a great day!
Oh, I found you over on My Romantic Home. :)

Barb said...

Hi Jacque,

Thank you so much for your beautiful comment. It means more than you know.

Foghorn Leghorn is hub's favorite. He actually does a good impression. How sad is that? It actually makes me laugh-he is that good-hehe.

Have a Blessed rest of the week.

big hugs,
Barb

WendyBee said...

What a bit of Americana those old cartoons are! I know it's cliche, but I tell my kids all the time, "They don't make cartoons like they used to!". Every so often, they'll show a few with some commentary on TCM (my favorite cable channel!), and I try to make them watch. They are one of the few things I can get DH to sit and watch with me on that channel.
Thanks for making me smile. I wonder how long I'll go about humming "doo da, doo da...".
WendyBee