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1[[quoteright:320:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/chillytitle.png]]
2
3''Chilly Willy'' is a cartoon character created by the Creator/WalterLantz Studio. He is a penguin whose original motivation consisted of a desire to find warmth, unable to stand the cold. He had a precursor in Pablo, the Cold-Blooded Penguin, a character with identical motivation. Pablo starred in a segment of ''WesternAnimation/TheThreeCaballeros'' (1944) but was a one-shot character. Animation buffs Giannalberto Bendazzi and Don Markstein dismissed Chilly as a mere [[CaptainErsatz Clone]] of Pablo, but it is unclear whether Lantz was familiar with the earlier character. The idea of a penguin protagonist was reportedly suggested to him by mystery writer Stuart Palmer (1905-1968).
4
5Chilly debuted in the animated short ''Chilly Willy'' (1953), directed by Paul J. Smith. In said cartoon, Chilly tries to sneak onboard a polar schooner to get access to its stove. The ship's mascot, a Saint Bernard dog, has been specifically instructed to let nobody aboard. Their conflicting interests result in some comedic episodes until Chilly gets the dog drunk. The short ends with the former mascot thrown into the brig and Chilly assigned as his replacement. While adequately funny, the short was not particularly successful.
6
7The following year, Lantz assigned another director to the character: Creator/TexAvery, who was asked to make the character work. Avery felt that the problem was Chilly being overly cute; a "little fuzzy wuzzy penguin" was not inherently funny. He resolved to have Chilly's opponents being the funny ones. Avery directed only two Chilly shorts: ''I'm Cold'' (1954) and ''The Legend of Rockabye Point'' (1955). The former had Chilly attempting to steal a fur coat from an Alaska fur factory. He has to face the watchdog, Smedley, in his first appearance. Smedley has a Southern drawl, and a deadpan style of delivering lines. The latter short had Chilly and a polar bear compete in stealing fish from aboard a fishing ship. The bear constantly has to face the teeth of an aggressive bulldog who falls asleep whenever he hears lullabies. Both shorts were considerably funnier than their predecessor.
8
9''Rockabye Point'' was the most successful film of the series, because the script-writer was veteran ''WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes'' storyman Michael Maltese. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Animated Short Film, though it lost to ''Speedy Gonzales'' (1955), a ''[[WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes Merrie Melodies]]'' entry starring WesternAnimation/SpeedyGonzales and WesternAnimation/{{Sylvester the Cat|AndTweetyBird}}. Lantz had reasons to continue the series. Avery was replaced by Alex Lovy, who continued the series in an Avery-like format for most of the 1950s. When Lovy left the Lantz studio, Chilly was handled by other directors, such as Jack Hannah and Sid Marcus, before eventually coming full circle and having Paul J. Smith take over as the sole director in 1967. The series ended with its 50th cartoon short in 1972, but only because the studio itself shut down its operations.
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11Chilly was revived in episodes of ''The New Woody Woodpecker Show'' (1999-2002) but did not return to prominence. The character was an also-ran in the comic book medium. He headlined nine issues from Creator/DellComics between 1956 and 1962, otherwise only receiving stories in the back pages of magazines featuring WesternAnimation/WoodyWoodpecker as their main star.
12
13Not to be confused with Creator/ChillWills.
14
15
16[[folder:Theatrical Cartoon Filmography]]
17!1953
18* ''Chilly Willy'', directed by Paul J. Smith.
19
20!1954
21* ''I'm Cold'', directed by Creator/TexAvery. Smedley's first appearance.
22
23!1955
24* ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfRockabyePoint'', directed by Creator/TexAvery.
25* ''Hot and Cold Penguin'', directed by Alex Lovy. Co-starring Smedley.
26
27!1956
28* ''Room and Wrath'', directed by Alex Lovy. Co-starring Smedley.
29* ''Hold That Rock'', directed by Alex Lovy. Co-starring Smedley.
30
31!1957
32* ''Operation Cold Feet'', directed by Alex Lovy. Co-starring Smedley.
33* ''The Big Snooze'', directed by Alex Lovy. Co-starring Smedley.
34* ''Swiss Miss-Fit'', directed by Alex Lovy. Co-starring Smedley.
35
36!1958
37* ''Polar Pest'', directed by Alex Lovy.
38* ''A Chilly Reception'', directed by Alex Lovy. Co-starring Smedley.
39* ''Little Televillain'', directed by Alex Lovy. Co-starring Smedley.
40
41!1959
42* ''Robinson Gruesome'', directed by Alex Lovy. Co-starring Smedley.
43* ''Yukon Have It'', directed by Alex Lovy. Co-starring Smedley and WesternAnimation/WoodyWoodpecker foe Dapper Denver Dooley (as "Caribou Lou").
44
45!1960
46* ''Fish Hooked'', directed by Paul J. Smith. Co-starring Smedley.
47
48!1961
49* ''Clash and Carry'', directed by Jack Hannah. Co-starring WesternAnimation/WoodyWoodpecker foe, Wally Walrus.
50* ''St. Moritz Blitz'', directed by Paul J. Smith. Co-starring Smedley.
51* ''Tricky Trout'', directed by Jack Hannah. Wally Walrus' final appearance in a Walter Lantz cartune.
52
53!1962
54* ''Mackerel Moocher'', directed by Jack Hannah.
55
56!1963
57* ''Fish and Chips'', directed by Jack Hannah. Co-starring Smedley.
58* ''Salmon Loafer'', directed by Sid Marcus. Co-starring Smedley.
59* ''Pesky Pelican'', directed by Sid Marcus.
60
61!1964
62* ''Deep-Freeze Squeeze'', directed by Sid Marcus. Co-starring Smedley.
63* ''Lighthouse-Keeping Blues'', directed by Sid Marcus. Co-starring Smedley.
64* ''Ski-Napper'', directed by Sid Marcus. Co-starring Smedley.
65
66!1965
67* ''Fractured Friendship'', directed by Sid Marcus. Co-starring Smedley.
68* ''Half Baked Alaska'', directed by Sid Marcus. Co-starring Smedley.
69* ''Pesty Guest'', directed by Sid Marcus. Co-starring Smedley.
70
71!1966
72* ''Snow Place Like Home'', directed by Paul J. Smith. Co-starring Smedley.
73* ''South Pole Pals'', directed by Paul J. Smith. Co-starring Smedley.
74* ''Polar Fright'', directed by Paul J. Smith. Maxie the Polar Bear's debut.
75* ''Teeny Weeny Meany'', directed by Sid Marcus. Co-starring Smedley.
76
77!1967
78* ''Operation Shanghai'', directed by Sid Marcus. Co-starring Smedley.
79* ''Vicious Viking'', directed by Paul J. Smith. Co-starring Smedley.
80* ''Hot Time on Ice'', directed by Paul J. Smith. Co-starring Smedley.
81* ''Chilly And The Woodchopper'', directed by Paul J. Smith. Co-starring Smedley.
82* ''Chilly Chums'', directed by Paul J. Smith. Co-starring Maxie. Woody Woodpecker makes a cameo.
83
84!1968
85* ''Under Sea Dogs'', directed by Paul J. Smith. Co-starring Maxie.
86* ''Highway Hecklers'', directed by Paul J. Smith. Colonel Pot Shot's debut.
87* ''Chiller Dillers'', directed by Paul J. Smith. Co-starring Maxie.
88
89!1969
90* ''Project Reject'', directed by Paul J. Smith. Co-starring Smedley.
91* ''Chilly and the Looney Gooney'', directed by Paul J. Smith. Co-starring Colonel Pot Shot and Looney Gooney's debut.
92* ''Sleepy Time Bear'', directed by Paul J. Smith. Co-starring Maxie.
93
94!1970
95* ''Gooney's Goofy Landings'', directed by Paul J. Smith. Co-starring Maxie and Looney Gooney.
96* ''Chilly's Ice Folly'', directed by Paul J. Smith. Co-starring Maxie.
97* ''Chilly's Cold War'', directed by Paul J. Smith. Co-starring Smedley and Colonel Pot Shot.
98
99!1971
100* ''A Gooney is Born'', directed by Paul J. Smith. Co-starring Looney Gooney and Colonel Pot Shot.
101* ''Airlift A La Carte'', directed by Paul J. Smith. The only time Smedley, Maxie, and Looney Gooney all appear together in the same cartoon
102* ''Chilly's Hide-A-Way'', directed by Paul J. Smith. Co-starring Smedley and Colonel Pot Shot.
103
104!1972
105* ''The Rude Intruder'', directed by Paul J. Smith. Final Chilly Willy cartoon. Co-starring Maxie.
106[[/folder]]
107----
108!!Tropes Related to the Original Theatrical Cartoons:
109* AngryGuardDog: Averted. Smedley is essentially a guard dog in most of his roles. He is rarely actually angry, mostly calm and determined. Played straight in ''The Legend of Rockabye Point'', however.
110* BadBoss: Smedley tends to have a different boss in each episode. But they all have common points in being verbally abusive to him, several were physically abusive, and Colonel Pot Shot seemed eager to shoot at his employee. A common joke of the series is that Smedley is trying to rationalize and excuse their behavior.
111* BalloonBurstingBird: In ''Fractured Friendship'', Chilly gets [[TheCameo Woody Woodpecker]] to peck a hole in Smedley’s hot air balloon.
112* BearyFunny: Maxie the Polar Bear is cute and funny, rather than a large predator.
113* BullyBulldog: The guard dog in ''The Legend of Rockabye Point''.
114* CaptainObvious: Smedley tended to do this a lot. His first appearance has him react to Chilly's theft of a fox fur right in front of him with "I think that was a fur thief" and to Chilly's repeated attempts to steal his tail with "He's got my tail" and "He's got my tail again".
115* CartoonPenguin: Chilly's design is a typical cartoon penguin, having a black body with a white face and orange or yellow bill.
116* {{Expy}}: Smedley is based on a wolf character Avery developed at MGM, debuting in the WesternAnimation/{{Droopy}} short ''The Three Little Pups'', who had a Southern Drawl and a calm demeanor. The same character was also the inspiration for WesternAnimation/HuckleberryHound. All three characters were voiced by Creator/DawsButler.
117* FreezeSneeze: Happens to Willy in his first appearance, and presumbably several of the subsequent ones.
118* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: In the short "I'm Cold", in Chilly lives in a village called "Colder'nell"; [[https://productioncode.dhwritings.com/multipleframes_productioncode.php Section V of the Hays Code]] specifically forbade the word 'Hell'.
119* GreatWhiteHunter: Colonel Pot Shot. He has a vast collection of stuffed animals, each a trophy from a previous hunting expedition.
120* GrowlingGut: Featured prominently in ''Deep-Freeze Squeeze'', and experienced by both Chilly Willy and Smedley Dog. As an indication that the characters are starving.
121* HairTriggerTemper: Colonel Pot Shot. With the name of the trope specifically mentioned in his description.
122* IronicFear: Toyed with. Chilly hates the cold, and is always in fear of freezing to death. He is a penguin.
123* LaughingGas: One short has "Bring 'Em Back Alive" Clive throws a laughing gas bomb in Max's direction, but the polar bear (who isn't so dumb) returns the bomb to the hunter's hands. Chilly kicks Clive, forcing him to swallow the gas bomb. The hunter feels the gas bomb's effect, and he begins to laugh.
124* MisplacedWildlife: Chilly is a penguin in Alaska.
125* MoreTeethThanTheOsmondFamily: The bulldog from ''The Legend of Rockabye Point''. Also Smedley when yawning in ''I'm Cold''.
126* MusicSoothesTheSavageBeast: The plot of ''The Legend of Rock-a-bye Point'' concerns a polar bear trying to get fish from a fishing boat, getting the AngryGuardDog off his back by putting him to sleep with a lullaby, while Chilly sabotages him at every turn.
127* PeculiarPenguin: Unlike other penguins, Chilly often goes out of his way to find ways to be warm.
128* PolarBearsAndPenguins: Chilly's opponent from ''The Legend of Rockabye Point'' is a polar bear. Later shorts introduced Chilli's best friend, Maxie the Polar Bear.
129* RhymingNames: Chilly Willy.
130* RoguesGalleryTransplant: Wally Walrus, normally a Woody Woodpecker foe, showed up in the 1961 shorts ''Tricky Trout'' and ''Clash and Carry''. Odd, considering he hadn't shown up in a short since 1953!
131* ScriptSwap: In ''The Legend of Rockabye Point'', Chilly puts a clarinet on the sleeping guard dog's mouth, causing it to make noise as he snores and waking him up. The polar bear gets him back to sleep by pulling out the sheet music for ''Rock-a-Bye, Baby'' and playing it on the clarinet. Chilly then switches the sheet with one for circus music, waking the dog up again.
132* StockAnimalDiet: When Chilly is after food instead of warmth, the food tends to be fish.
133* ThermalDissident: Penguins in animation are usually shown preferring to be in the cold; Chilly is a notable exception.
134* TheVoiceless: Chilly has a voice in his original appearance, but he is completely silent in the two shorts by Creator/TexAvery. In subsequent shorts, Chilly would either have regular conversations or stay silent for the duration.

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