Rocket J. Squirrel
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Rocket J. Squirrel, usually called by the nickname "Rocky," is the name of the flying squirrel sidekick of the cartoon moose Bullwinkle in the 1959-1964 animated television series Rocky and His Friends and The Bullwinkle Show (both shows often referred to collectively as Rocky and Bullwinkle), produced by Jay Ward. Both Rocky and Bullwinkle were given the middle initial "J" in reference to Ward.
Rocky's personality was meant to be that of an upstanding, if slightly naive, all-American youth. As the brains of the "moose and squirrel" duo, Rocky often was shown as coming up with creative solutions to the various situations the duo found themselves in on their adventures. However, he is no less gullible toward Boris Badenov's and Natasha Fatale's disguises than Bullwinkle. The best he can do is to occasionally remark, "Those two look familiar!"
Besides his cleverness, Rocky also made extensive use in the series of his ability to fly, which was presented with, appropriate to his full name, a jet engine sound effect (the original opening of Rocky and His Friends introduces Rocky as "that Jet Age aerial ace," complete with Rocky performing an air show for a crowd of spectators). Some episodes presented this ability as limited to gliding (similar to a real flying squirrel), while others presented it as similar to that of Superman (hovering in mid-air, carrying objects, etc.).
Rocky shared a house with his best friend, Bullwinkle, in the fictional small town of Frostbite Falls, Minnesota, a parody of the real-life American town of International Falls, Minnesota.
Rocky's most frequently used catch phrase was "hokey smoke!"
Veteran cartoon voice artist June Foray was the voice of Rocky.
External links
- Hokey Smoke! Rocky and Bullwinkle (http://bullwinkle.toonzone.net)