Like the greatness that is The Rugrats, Hey Arnold!, and Aaahh!!! Real Monsters, Doug was an animated hit in the 90s. The premise of the show was about an 11-year-old boy named Doug Funnie who takes the audience on these fantastic made-up visions in his head; visions that would never happen to a regular guy like him. After moving to a new town (Bluffington), Doug meets his best friend Skeeter and a life-long crush, Patti Mayonaise. We’re also introduced to his loving parents, dramatic sister, and fellow classmates along the way.
Running for seven seasons, 90s kids loved following Doug on his imaginary quests. After all, didn’t we all have an active imagination as kids? The famous show ended 20 years ago (!) in 1999, so we’re taking a closer look at some behind-the-scenes magic we didn’t know about Doug.
THE SHOW WAS CREATED AFTER THE CREATOR HAD A TOUGH TIME IN LIFE
Jim Jinkins was the creator and developer of Doug. Like many animated shows on Nickelodeon at the time, the show took us on a journey of a young boy’s life where he’s faced with obstacles.
In real life, Jinkins was also going through his own obstacles. After a hard breakup and multiple health issues, Jinkins began creating sketches of cartoons. He first created the fake city of Bluffington and tried creating a children’s book of the same idea. However, most publishers denied the book idea.
CHARACTERS WERE BASED ON REAL PEOPLE
We all loved the many characters in Doug. From Doug himself to Skeeter to Roger to Beebe Bluff to the Dinks — they were all so unique, reminding us of people we actually grew up with. Likewise, Jim Jinkins did, in fact, grow up with people like these characters, which is why he designed them as such. And yes, this includes Patti (more on this later).
THEY WERE DIFFERENT COLORS FOR A REASON
One cool attribute the characters of Doug had going for them was that they were all different colors. Skeeter was blue, Roger was green, Patti was brown — Doug truly normalized the fact that people can be all different shapes and colors.
After having one too many margaritas, Jinkins admitted to giving each character their own color scheme. Roger, in particular, was green just like Doug’s teacher, Mrs. Wingo. How come? To move away from the theory that green associates with bad behavior. Just because Roger was green and bad didn’t mean Mrs. Wingo was also bad just because she was green.
DISNEY BOUGHT DOUG FROM NICKELODEON
From 1991 to 1994, Nickelodeon owned and aired Doug. In 1996, however, Disney then obtained the rights to Doug and tried to separate their version from Nickelodeon’s version by calling it Brand Spanking New! Doug and Disney’s Doug. Just like with Nickelodeon, Doug was a hit on Disney and launched into many merchandising and branding opportunities. Disney’s Doug did change a few things, however, like moving their age from around 11-11.5 years old to 12-12.5 years old.
DOES JUDY REMIND YOU OF ANYONE?
Who can forget Judy Funnie, Doug’s older and cooler sister. Unlike Doug, Judy was outspoken and trendier than Doug could ever be. She always wore dark colors, wore a cool beret, and was very theatrical.
So where did the inspiration for Judy come from? Shakespeare. Jinkins noted that if Shakespeare had a sister, Judy Funnie would be pretty dang similar, which is why the show has her reading his plays so much.
ROGER GOT MEANER AS TIME WENT ON
Every kid’s show has a resident bad boy and Roger Klotz was that guy on Doug. Roger picks on everyone but he really gets a thrill bullying poor Doug. If you watch the series over again, you’ll notice that Roger kind of gets meaner as time goes on (even though the two eventually become pals). When Disney bought Doug, they took it upon themselves to make him more of a bully than Nickelodeon painted him as.
DOUG AND PATTI NEVER MADE IT WORK
Patti Mayonaise and Doug Funnie had a sweet friendship (although Doug wanted more from the relationship). They frequently gave each other compliments and did sweet things for another. We even see Patti give him a kiss on the cheek at one point!
In the last episode of the series, we see Patti ask Doug out on a date, which made all Doug fans’ heart soar. In real life, though, Jim Jinkins says Doug and Patti don’t end up together. You see, Patti was created from his real-life crush growing up. As an adult, Jinkins and his crush became acquainted but it was too late: his “Patti” was already married.
DOUG ORIGINATED IN A GRAPEFRUIT COMMERCIAL FIRST
Remember when most publishers turned Jim Jinkins down for his Doug children’s book? Well, before Nickelodeon and Disney bought the idea of his fantasy town and his band of characters, the Florida Grapefruit Growers liked the look of Doug and used him in one of their commercials for grapefruit juice! Who knew Doug would be such a popular guy outside of Bluffington.
DOUG’S 1ST MOVIE WAS SUPPOSED TO BE DIRECT TO VIDEO
In 1999, after the show ended, Doug had its first movie come out: Doug’s 1st Movie. The premise of the movie is that Doug and Skeeter discover a horrifying monster in the local lake. After getting to know the monster, they become friends with it. The real problem wasn’t the monster, it was the fact that Beebe’s father and his company were polluting the lake.
The movie was supposed to go directly to home-video but they decided to put it in theaters after seeing how well the 1998 movie for the Rugrats did. With a $5 million budget, the film earned $19 million in box offices.
THE REAL REASON WHY BILLY WEST LEFT
Famed voice-actor, Billy West, has worked on a ton of popular animated shows. However, he was also the voice of Doug from the show’s inception in 1991. He ended his long run with Doug after Disney bought the series and wanted him, essentially, working more. He was asked to be the voice of Doug and eight other characters without higher compensation. Considering West lived in New York and recording took place in California, the change from Nickelodeon to Disney wasn’t worth it and he left the series.