Can you imagine if babies could talk?
No, I'm not talking about "Baby Geniuses". I'm talking about "Rugrats",
one THE best cartoons to ever come out of Nickelodeon.
My name is Maggie for Channel Frederator and this week we're counting down the 107 facts
that you need to know about "Rugrats".
Here’s something to make '90s kids feel old. "Rugrats" premiered on August 11, 1991 and it ended on June 4, 2004,
which is more than ten years ago. That would make the Rugrats… the same age today! Can
you believe they never aged? Lucky babies...
With a 13-year run, Rugrats was the longest running Nicktoon on Nickelodeon until 2015,
when SpongeBob broke its record.
All four of the main babies are voiced by females,
despite three of them being male. Ha! Wait ‘til they find out!
Lil and Phil almost always refer to each other by their full names. Lillian and Phillip.
With the 1998 release of "The Rugrats Movie", Rugrats was the first Nicktoon to get a film.
Angelica’s rendition of "One Way Or Another" will forever live on in my memory.
Along with "Doug" and "The Ren & Stimpy Show", "Rugrats" is one of the original “Nicktoons”.
Chuckie’s appearance is based on that of Mark Mothersbaugh. Whip it real good!
For those of you who are wondering who that is, Mark Mothersbaugh was the composer for
Rugrats" and a whole bunch of other amazing things ranging from Wes Anderson films to
"Clifford the Big Red Dog" to the "Jak and Daxter" video game series.
Fans with keen deductive skills may have figured out where the show takes place. The flag at
the post office and the license plate on the car reveal that the setting is good old California.
Didi is based on Arlene Klasky, one of the creators of Rugrats.
And Stu is based on Gabor Csupo, Klasky’s husband and the other creator of the show.
At 3 years old, Angelica is the oldest of the Rugrats.
She’s followed closely by Susie, then by Chuckie who’s 2, Kimi who’s almost 2,
and Lil, who’s barely older than Phil. And lastly, Tommy and Dil who will wear diapers for all eternity.
"The Rugrats Movie" and the episode "Mother’s Day"
reveal that Chuckie’s mom is deceased, and has been since shortly after he was born.
However, early episodes implied that she was alive. Hmm... I smell a coverup. She probably
got sick of the Rugrats and went to go live on a desert island with Elvis and Tupac.
The Rugrats pilot episode was titled “Tommy Pickles and the Great White Thing”. It never
aired on television, but featured Tommy trying to figure out what “the great white thing”
inside the bathroom was. Hint: It’s what you use after drinking a lot of water.
Or prune juice. And where your fish go to die!
In the aforementioned pilot, Lou Pickles was named Stu Pickles Sr.
Of the three original Nicktoons, Rugrats was the only one in which Billy West was not a voice actor.
Pat Sajak is the only celebrity to guest star as their real life self
in all three original Nicktoons. I feel like Vanna White never got her due you guys.
Tommy is based on the son of Gabor Csupo and Arlene Klasky, Brendon.
Try saying those names five times fast!
When Dr. Lipschitz visits the Pickles, he hums to himself throughout the entire segment.
The tune he’s humming is the German National Anthem.
OF COURSE!
At the start of "Rugrats", Stu is 35 and Lou is 76.
That makes Lou 41 years old when Stu was born.
The Pickle’s live at 1258 North Highland, which was the original address of the Klasky-Csupo,
B production company behind "Rugrats".
Angelica’s cat Fluffy is a white Persian, and 100% evil!
Angelica’s character design is inspired by a girl named Emica,
who was the niece of one of the show’s writers.
Aunt Miriam mistakenly calls Didi a variety of names that include Dolly, Sally, Callie, Ginny, Phoebe, and Fifi.
Grandpa Lou loves the number 15.
The show makes a joke out of this when robot Grandpa says that his batteries functioned fine for fifteen million years.
"Rugrats" had a total of 172 episodes. 227 if you include "All Grown Up"!
That’s over 100 hours of my life that I could have been... doing nothing better.
Rugrats co-creator Arlene Klasky has said
that she never liked Angelica, calling the character a bully. After "The Rugrats Movie",
she had a change of heart. Now she loves Angelica.
(I think she's the only one.)
Angelica was created by Rugrats co-creator
Paul Germain, who based her on a bully from his own childhood.
Cheryl Chase had difficulties portraying Angelica’s mean nature. To help her grasp the character,
Steve Viksten, a writer on the show, told her that Angelica was the J.R. Ewing of "Rugrats".
J.R. Ewing is a character from the hit television series "Dallas".
Chuckie’s appearance is similar to that of Chucky, the antagonist of the
"Child’s Play" films. Coincidence? Well enjoy watching the Rugrats for now on in utter fear!
Tommy was voiced by Tami Holbrook in the "Rugrats" pilot episode.
In the series, he’s voiced by E.G. Daily.
Tommy was born premature.
Tommy was walking at 5-6 months, which is quite early.
The average age for a baby to begin walking is around 10 months. Man, those child actors sure do develop fast...
Tommy may be ambidextrous as he’s shown
using either hand to complete tasks on numerous occasions.
Dil and Chuckie are both left-handed.
There are slight differences in Tommy’s hair color between Season 1 and Season 2 of "All Grown Up"!
In Season 1, his hair is a dark purple, but in Season 2, it’s a lighter purple. Oh how Katy Perry of him.
In the "Invader Zim" episode “Plague of Babies”, the character Shnooky, not to be confused
with Snooky, was originally going to be Tommy Pickles, voiced by his official actress E.G. Daily.
However, copyright issues led to Nickelodeon rejecting the use of the Rugrat and the idea was scrapped.
We all know that Tommy’s blue shirt is a part of his signature look,
but he’s actually switched it up a couple of times. Tommy wears an orange shirt three times in the series,
and a red shirt twice. Ooo talk about variety.
Nick Magazine revealed that Phil and Lil were born on March 31st.
In the original series, the twins are fifteen months old.
Only four characters appear in the series finales of both "Rugrats" and "All Grown Up!"
They are Tommy, Dil, Stu, and Didi.
"Rugrats" is the only of the three original Nicktoons not to move on to another network.
Klasky often felt that the babies were acting too old for their age. She also felt that Angelica
was a little too mean. This led to tension between her and the writers. Csupo would mediate, but the writers usually won.
Klasky’s conflict with the writers actually led to the creation of Dr. Lipschitz,
who was a vehicle for them to mock the co-creators actions.
Steven Spielberg has cited "Rugrats" as one of the best animated programs of all time.
He’s called it a “sort of a TV Peanuts of our time.” Though to be fair, Tommy does kind of look like E.T.
So he might have been a little biased.
Rugrats has garnered four Daytime Emmy Awards.
Hey everyone my name is Tim and I'm taking over for Maggie for just a quick second,
to let you know that Channel Frederator is going to be starting a new show pilot soon.
The show is called "Mismatched" and we're going to be pairing people with shows they probably would've never
watch unless we made them. So stay tuned for watching soccer mom's watching cartoon that soccer mom's
would never ever ever ever watch.
"I would rather watch Oprah! Or something more positive, or go outside and look at a tree!"
"Seriously dudes?
"This was intense. Ok..."
It should be fun to see, and I hope you'll check it out when it comes out.
And now, back to Maggie with the facts.
Part of the reason that the babies’ favorite dinosaur, Reptar, was introduced was to serve as social
commentary on the increasing influence of Japanese pop culture in children’s entertainment.
Though I'm still waiting for a crossover with Dragon Ball Z! Reptar! Reptar! Gotta find that Reptar!
Though the babies never age in the original
series, they celebrate three Christmases, one Hanukkah, one Kwanzaa, two Halloweens,
one Thanksgiving, and one Valentine’s Day. It’s like their very own Groundhog Day, minus Groundhog Day.
Dionne Kwan, the voice actress of Kimi Finster,
is legally blind. Her scripts were written in braille.
The recurring character Taffy, the babysitter, was voiced by non other than Amanda Bynes. Amanda please!
Angelica Pickles was number seven in TV Guide’s 50 Greatest Cartoon Characters.
She beat out classic characters like Bart Simpson and even Mickey Mouse!
"All Grown Up!" is the only "Rugrats" spinoff
to make it on air, but there were two others in the works. One would follow the family
of Susie Carmichael as they moved to Atlanta, and the other, titled Preschool Daze, would
have focused on the preschool days of Angelica and Susie. The first was never picked up,
and the second, Preschool Daze, only had four episodes produced in a noticeably different
style from that of the original series. These episodes were shelved before eventually being released on DVD.
Gabor Csupo and Arlene Klasky created Rugrats
in 1989. At the time, they were animators for The Simpsons.
Csupo and Klasky based the show’s concepts on their own observations of their children.
They submitted it to Nickelodeon, who had just announced their line of animated shows called Nicktoons.
The original unaired pilot for Rugrats only
featured the babies Tommy, Phil, and Lil. Chuckie and Angelica were later added for the series debut.
In 1994, Rugrats was cancelled after 65 episodes.
Between 1995 and 1996, two holiday specials were aired to critical acclaim. The positive
feedback prompted Nickelodeon to renew the series and commission the first film. Rugrats
made its return to television in 1997, with the film being released shortly after in the following year.
Rugrats Go Wild, the third Rugrats film, was
a crossover with The Wild Thornberries. Originally planned as a three-part special, but it was shelved
and later redeveloped as a feature film.
From 1997 to 2001, there was a Macy’s Thanksgiving
Day Parade balloon of Tommy and Chuckie mounted on Spike. It was Nickelodeon’s first balloon
in the parade, and the first balloon in the history of the parade to feature three characters.
The Rugrats Movie was the first non-Disney animated film to gross over $100 million at
the box office, making the Rugrats the richest babies of all time.
Dil’s full name is Dylan Prescott Pickles.
At one point, it was planned for his first name to be Dilbert. Bleh, "Dilbert"...
In theaters, "The Rugrats Movie" was preceded
by that CatDog short "Fetch"! The DVD and VHS releases of the film featured the CatDog short
"Winslow’s Documentary" instead.
Arlene Klasky has said that Rugrats was inspired
by a simple question she asked herself. “If babies could talk, what would they say?”
She also found herself wondering about “the logic that drove tiny humans to desperately
want to stick their hands in the toilet.” And normal-sized humans. [clears throat] Moving on...
Christine Cavanaugh voiced Chuckie Finster
for over a decade. She was also the actress behind other well-loved characters such as
Dexter from "Dexter’s Laboratory" and "Babe" the pig from the film of the same name.
She passed away in December 2014 at the age of 51.
Elizabeth Daily, the voice of Tommy Pickles, once recorded lines for the show while in labor.
Uh, woah! That is commitment to her work.
In 1998, The Washington Post ran a Rugrats
comic strip for the Jewish New Year featuring Grandpa Boris reciting the Mourner’s Kaddish.
The Anti-Defamation League was not pleased and pushed back against the use of the prayer.
They also declared Boris’ appearance “reminiscent of Nazi-era depictions of Jews.” Nickelodeon
apologized and promised to stop running the strip, or any strips featuring Boris.
Nickelodeon’s former president Herb Scannell once expressed to The New York Times that
“in some ways this is our Mickey Mouse.” This being Rugrats.
He also summed up the show’s appeal by noting that “It’s tough to be a kid in an adult
world. Kids don’t always get it right and adults don’t always have all the answers.
In that sense, it’s a manifesto of the Nickelodeon philosophy.”
Chuckie is ticklish on his foot. He might want to get that checked out.
Because Kira has legally adopted Chuckie as her son, and Chas has legally adopted Kimi
as his daughter, the two babies are technically not stepsiblings. In the eyes of the law,
they’re just siblings.
The Behind the Scenes for "Rugrats in Paris"
reveals that Chuckie was originally going to sing “I Want a Mom” himself, but the
legendary Cyndi Lauper ended up beating him out. She comes out on top time every time, doesn't she?
This may be a little TMI, but did you know Chuckie has freckles on his bottom?
There are moments in both the series and the
"Rugrats in Paris" film that imply that Susie and Chuckie have crushes on each other. In
fact, both have asked the other out to a dance.
Angelica is the only Rugrat to have remained an only child throughout the franchise. There
is that cat that kind of looks like her, though.
Prior to the show’s first cancellation,
Angelica was quite the menace. After its revival, it seems that she was softened to cater to
younger audiences. And me, she used to give me nightmares. No joke.
Angelica hates coconuts and baked apples.
Remind me not to invite her to my caribbean-themed Thanksgiving.
In All Grown Up! Angelica is in the 7th grade. I guess it's not really all grown up. Can't even drive yet.
Rugrats loves those in mouth camera shots.
Phil is the Rugrat to have had the most of them! Quite the prestigious record.
On the other end of the spectrum, Lil and Susie have only had inner mouth shots once each.
In "All Grown Up!", only three characters get
the in-mouth shot treatment. Angelica, Dil, and Spike.
Phil is a mere two seconds younger than Lil, which is like two years in baby time.
In The Rugrats Movie, it’s revealed by Tommy that Phil poops an awful lot.
Though Phil says he only has three teeth, a shot of him biting down on a hose shows
him with about eight. This leads us to believe that Phil i wearing dentures.
Phil is quite the lady killer. In addition to going out with Wally Ramon, he had an unnamed
girlfriend starting with Season 5 of All Grown Up!
The episode “I Do” suggests that Lil may like Chuckie. Guess Susie has some competition.
Lil loves to sing and dance. Oh and also eat bugs.
Spike doesn’t talk much in the series. Probably
because he’s a dog. He has spoken on occasion, though. Once, he was even voiced by Bruce Willis!
"Are you talking to me?" I wish my dog talked like Bruce Willis.
Another actor who has voiced Spike is Michael Bell. Bell is better known for playing Drew, Chas, and Boris.
When Spike’s collar tag is shown in the series, there are no symbols or words on it.
Well gee, that’s a surefire way to get a lost dog back home safe.
"Rugrats Go Wild" reveals that Spike thinks of the babies like they’re his own.
Dil is one of two Rugrats to debut in a Rugrats movie.
The second is, of course, Kimi.
When he’s older, Dil has the red hair of
his mother, but the unusual interests of his father.
Dil believes in aliens, but doesn’t find them frightening. The shape of his head leads me to believe he could be one.
Actually, there’s a reason for that. Dil
was accidentally dropped on his head when he was a baby. The culprits? Phil and Lil. Of course.
Kimi is the only Rugrat to never have an in-mouth camera shot.
What are you hiding Kimi? HUH? WHAT ARE YOU HIDING?!
Kimi only cries in three episodes. What a tough girl. They are "Cuddly Bunny", "The Big Sneeze", and "Cynthia
Comes Alive". If the last episode is anything like what it implies, I can see why she’d be crying.
Once again, Angelica gave me nightmares.
Kimi’s biological father is Hiro Watanabe.
He lives in Japan and has one other daughter who is Kimi’s half-sister.
Kimi’s half sister is named Kiki. I’m sensing a theme here.
Susie is the only female Rugrat to wear lipstick.
Susie is voiced by Cree Summer, who you may
also recognize as Numbah 5 from Codename: Kids Next Door, Princess Kida from Atlantis:
The Lost Empire, or Valeria Grey from Danny Phantom. There’s a lot more roles where
that came from so look her up! She does live-action too guys.
There were two episodes where Cree was unable to voice Susie. Instead, E.G. Daily stood in for her.
Susie has the most siblings out of all the
Rugrats. She has two older brothers and an older sister. And probably a lot of hand-me-downs.
Susie and Kimi are the only Rugrats who aren’t shown as “baby babies.”
It’s been shown or explained how each Rugrat began walking, but there are two exceptions
to this. Susie and Kimi’s first steps have yet to be revealed.
Hopefully they'll show them in the "E True Hollywood Story of Susie and Kimi: Life Behind the Rugrats Fame"
The "All Grown Up!" opening song is sung by Susie’s voice actress.
Like her friend Lil, Susie is interested in dancing. In All Grown Up!, she takes hip-hop dance lessons.
Rugrats is the first and only Nickelodeon series to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
It was received in 2001 for the show’s 10th anniversary.
That was 107 facts that you need to know about "Rugrats". If you like the video, make sure
that you click some of the links on this page to watch more.
Check in the description below for all our references and make sure you tune in every Tuesday and Thursday for a brand new 107.
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