Beans (Looney Tunes)

Beans
Looney Tunes character
Porky Pig and Beans in Gold Diggers of '49.
First appearance	I Haven't Got a Hat (1935)
Created by	Leon Schlesinger
Voiced by	Billy Bletcher (1935-1936) Tommy Bond (1935-1936, occasional)
Information
Species	Cat

Beans the Cat is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes series of cartoons from 1935-1936. Beans was the third Looney Tunes cartoon character star after Bosko and Buddy. He is voiced by Billy Bletcher and occasionally by Tommy Bond.

History

When the cartoon animators/directors Hugh Harman and Rudy Ising left Leon Schlesinger's studios in 1933, they took their main creation, Bosko, with them. Schlesinger had to rebuild his animation studio for Warner Bros. without so much as a marketable character to draw audiences. In Bosko's absence, Buddy was introduced.

In 1935, animator Friz Freleng attempted to jumpstart the studio with his Merrie Melodies cartoon I Haven't Got a Hat. Its cast consisted of cute animal characters with funny names; e.g., Ham and Ex, Porky and Beans, Oliver Owl, and Little Kitty. Schlesinger hoped that some would catch on with audiences and become bankable stars.

The short was a success. Warners retired Buddy and began to push Beans the Cat as their next cartoon star. In 1935, Beans starred in his first solo Looney Tunes film, A Cartoonist's Nightmare, followed by Hollywood Capers. Beans then began appearing with characters from the cast of I Haven't Got a Hat, most frequently Porky Pig. However, after a number of Porky and Beans outings, it became clear that the character audiences were talking about was Beans's stuttering sidekick, Porky Pig. Beans was voiced at first by Billy Bletcher and sometimes Tommy Bond, and later by Will Ryan.

In April 1936, Beans starred in Westward Whoa, his last cartoon short with the rest of the I Haven't Got A Hat ensemble. This cartoon would be the last appearance for most of these characters. For the rest of this decade, all Looney Tunes starred Porky Pig and his sidekicks, including Gabby Goat and later Daffy Duck.

Filmography

Title	Release date
I Haven't Got a Hat (with Porky Pig)	March 2, 1935
The Country Mouse (cameo with Porky Pig)	July 13, 1935
A Cartoonist's Nightmare	September 14, 1935
Hollywood Capers	October 19, 1935
Gold Diggers of '49 (with Porky Pig)	November 2, 1935
The Fire Alarm (with Ham and Ex)	December 23, 1935
Plane Dippy (cameo)	January 4, 1936
Alpine Antics (with Porky Pig)	January 18, 1936
The Phantom Ship	February 1, 1936
Boom Boom (with Porky Pig)	February 29, 1936
Westward Whoa (with Porky Pig (cameo))	April 25, 1936
Space Jam (cameo)	November 10, 1996