Penguins are popular around the world primarily for their unusually upright, waddling pace, their magnificent swimming ability, and (compared to other birds) lack of fear toward humans.Their striking black and white plumage is often likened to a
tuxedo suit and generates humorous remarks about the bird being "well dressed".The bird is typically depicted as a friendly and comical figure, with considerable personal dignity despite its physical limitations. Perhaps in reaction to this cutesy stereotype, fictional penguins are occasionally presented as grouchy or even sinister. The popular
Sanrio character
Badtz Maru is an example, being cute yet somewhat surly. The
1960s television
cartoon character
Tennessee Tuxedo would often escape the confines of his zoo with his partner, Chumley the
walrus. In the children's movie
Madagascar, the penguins are cast as
soldiers. In the animated series
Wallace and Gromit a penguin called
Feathers McGraw disguises himself as a chicken with a red rubber glove. Penguins are often portrayed as friendly and smart as well. Another example is in the anime
Neon Genesis Evangelion, which features a warm-water penguin named
Pen Pen.
Penguins experienced a resurgence in the mid-
2000s thanks to films like
March of the Penguins,
Madagascar,
Happy Feet, and
Surf's Up. This article is licensed under the
GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the
Wikipedia article "Penguins in popular culture". This entry is a fragment of a larger work. Link may die if entry is finally removed or merged.
# posted by Cliff Pickover @ 8:00 AM