Scooby-Doo (character)

History

Writers Joe Ruby and Ken Spears created the original Scooby-Doo series, Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!, for Hanna-Barbera as a part of CBS's 1969–1970 Saturday morning cartoon schedule. Originally titled Mysteries Five, the dog who later became Scooby was originally more of a sidekick character – a bongo-playing dog named "Too Much" whose breed varied between Great Dane and sheepdog between treatments.

By the time the series was pitched to the network as Who's S-S-Scared? in early 1969, Too Much was solidified as a cowardly Great Dane. Both the dog and the series would be renamed Scooby-Doo by Fred Silverman, CBS's head of daytime programming, between its unsuccessful first pitch and the second pitch that earned the show a green light. Silverman stated that he came up with the name from the syllables "doo-be-doo-be-doo" in Frank Sinatra's hit song "Strangers in the Night". Though a similar name was featured in the title of the single "Feelin' So Good (S.K.O.O.B.Y.-D.O.O.)" released just a few months earlier in 1968 by The Archies, a fictional band from the CBS series The Archie Show that was also overseen by Silverman. There was also a character in an unsold TV pilot Swingin' Together, broadcast in 1963 on CBS, named Skooby-doo.

Taking notes from a Hanna-Barbera colleague who was also a breeder of Great Danes, production designer Iwao Takamoto designed the Scooby-Doo character with a sloping chin, spots, a long tail, a sloped back, and bow legs – all traits in direct opposition to those of a prize-winning purebred Great Dane. In defining the personality of the dog, Ruby and Spears looked for inspiration to the characters played by Bob Hope in his horror-comedies – a coward who shows traits of bravery when his friends are in danger. Veteran Hanna-Barbera voice artist Don Messick was the original voice of Scooby and spent decades working on the character.

Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! premiered on CBS on September 13, 1969, at 10:30 a.m. Eastern Time. It ran for two seasons, with a total of 25 episodes. Its final first-run episode aired on October 31, 1970.

Personality

In most incarnations of the series, Scooby is regarded as a unique Great Dane dog who is able to speak in broken English, and usually puts the letter "R" in front of words and noises made. Other incarnations, such as A Pup Named Scooby-Doo, present him as a speech-impaired dog in the larger fictional universe as nobody in Coolsville seems bothered by his speaking ability. In recent years (most notably in Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated), Scooby is able to speak in complete sentences and has more dialogue, though partially retaining his speech impediment. He consistently shows about the same level of intelligence as his friends, while also being subject to the same knack for clumsiness and moments of being dimwitted as well.

Different iterations of the character have been developed and expanded in the various series featuring the characters, many of them contradicting, such as the original series and the recent live-action films where Shaggy and Scooby first meet as older teenagers for the first time. This contradicts the animated series A Pup Named Scooby-Doo, where they know each other from almost infancy, though the films may be seen as having a different continuity altogether than the cartoon products. As an adult canine, Scooby is usually treated as a mix of a pet and a friend by his companions.

In all versions of the character, Scooby and Shaggy share several personality traits, mostly being cowardly and perpetually hungry. Yet their friends (Fred, Daphne, and Velma) encourage them to go after the costumed villains, usually with "Scooby Snacks". The biscuit-like dog treat or cookie snack is usually shaped like a bone or, in later versions of the cartoons, Scooby's dog tag. However, Scooby's inherent loyalty and courage do often force him to take a more heroic stance even without any prodding. Scooby is also extremely ticklish, and this is seen in many of the television series and films.

Scooby has a speech impediment and tends to pronounce most words as if they begin with an "R"; however, most characters are able to understand him almost perfectly. In most iterations, he keeps his sentences relatively short, usually using charades for anything longer than three or four words. His catchphrase, usually howled at the end of every production, is "Scooby-Dooby-Doo!" or "Rooby-Rooby-Roo". Scooby was voiced by Don Messick through Arabian Nights in 1994, after which point Messick quit smoking; quitting smoking changed his voice and prevented him from achieving the same raspy vocal effect (despite Messick's efforts, he suffered a career-ending stroke in 1996 and died in 1997, before any further Scooby-Doo productions were made). Messick is also known for providing the voice of the dogs Astro on The Jetsons and Muttley (who snickered). The characteristic speech impediments of Scooby and Astro are similar, however, of the two voices, Scooby's had a deeper and throatier timbre than Astro's.

According to Fred in Scooby-Doo: Behind the Scenes, the thought of having a dog with an Adam's apple was a little strange, but they got used to it, so when he started talking, it wasn't a big deal. But despite his special gift of speech, he did have his shortcomings like his cowardice. But as Mystery Inc. bonded, he would form a special partnership with Shaggy, comparing themselves to Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. Shaggy says that things just clicked and whenever the gang needs bait for a villain, they would send Shaggy and Scooby in and he says there's no one else he would rather work with. Fred claims that the only thing that scares Scooby more than monsters is a trip to the vet.

Appearance and anatomy

Scooby is brown from head to toe with several distinctive black spots on his upper body and does not seem to have a melanistic mask. He is generally a quadruped but displays bipedal 'human' characteristics occasionally. Scooby also has opposable thumbs and can use his front paws like hands. He has a black nose and wears an off-yellow, diamond-shaped-tagged blue collar with an "SD" (his initials) and has four toes on each foot. Unlike other dogs, Scooby only has one pad on each of his paws, a trait that was added to make it easier to draw in the Scooby-Doo Annuals.

Scooby has a fully prehensile tail he can use to swing from or press buttons. Both his head and tail are malleable and useful as a communication aid or creating a distraction.

Iwao Takamoto, the artist who designed Scooby Doo, first interviewed a Great Dane breeder to identify the most desirable features in pedigree Great Danes. He gave Scooby none of them: "I decided to go the opposite and gave him a hump back, bowed legs, small chin and such. Even his color is wrong."

According to the official magazine that accompanied the 2002 film, Scooby is seven years old.

Voice actors

Don Messick originated the character's speech patterns and provided Scooby-Doo's voice in every Scooby-Doo production from 1969 until his retirement in 1996. Frank Welker (also the voice of Fred since 1969) was approached to take over the role, but was initially reluctant to do so. Voice actor Hadley Kay voiced the character for a brief period in 1997, for two episodes of Johnny Bravo, and a few television commercials. Scott Innes (also the then-voice of Shaggy) voiced Scooby-Doo in the 1998-2001 direct-to-video films and continued to voice the character regularly for video games (such as Scooby-Doo! Night of 100 Frights), toys and some commercials until 2008. Kay was selected by William Hanna to provide the voice of the computer-generated Scooby-Doo in the 2002 live-action film, but was later fired. Innes was also going to voice Scooby in the film, but was replaced with Neil Fanning, who reprised his role for its 2004 sequel. Welker has voiced Scooby since 2002, taking over beginning with What's New, Scooby-Doo? and other spin-offs including the live-action prequels Scooby-Doo! The Mystery Begins and Scooby-Doo! Curse of the Lake Monster, 2020 computer-animated film Scoob!.

Voiced by

• Don Messick (1969–1996)
• Frank Welker (1979, 1996–1997, 2002–present; Scooby Goes Hollywood (as Baby Scooby-Doo), What's New, Scooby-Doo?, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Looney Tunes: Back in Action, Shaggy & Scooby-Doo Get a Clue!, Scooby-Doo! The Mystery Begins, Scooby-Doo! Curse of the Lake Monster, Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated, Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Be Cool, Scooby-Doo!, Scooby-Doo! The Museum of Mysteries, Scooby-Doo and Guess Who?, Scoob!, various direct-to-DVD films, specials, video games, and commercials)
• Unknown (1981–1985, 1991; Canada's Wonderland live shows, Hanna-Barbera Land live shows, 1984 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, Hanna-Barbera Fun!, Looking for a Home, ABC Family Fun Fair, Ice Capades)
• Keith Scott (1981, 1997; Pauls commercial, Hanna-Barbera Gala Celebrity Nite)
• Allan Melvin (1982; Yogi's Picnic)
• Bill Farmer (1989–1990; ABC Family Fun Fair)
• Greg Burson (1997; PrimeStar commercial, one line in Johnny Bravo)
• Hadley Kay (1997–1998; Johnny Bravo, commercials)
• Scott Innes (1998–2008, 2017–2020; Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island, Scooby-Doo and the Witch's Ghost, The Scooby-Doo Project, Scooby-Doo and the Alien Invaders, Scooby-Doo's Haunted Mansion, Scooby-Doo and the Cyber Chase, Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law, Scooby-Doo (original cut), Scooby-Doo! Playmobil Mini Mysteries, various video games, specials, talking toys, and commercials)
• Marc Silk (1998, 2002–2009, 2015–present; Radio 1 Breakfast, Cartoon Network UK and Ireland bumpers, Boomerang UK and Ireland bumpers, CITV bumpers, Adidas commercial, Scooby-Doo! and the Pirate Ghost - Live on Stage commercial, Lego Scooby-Doo! commercial)
• John Nagle (2001; Scooby-Doo! in Stagefright - Live on Stage)
• David Droxler (2001; Scooby-Doo! in Stagefright - Live on Stage)
• Pierre-Marc Diennet (2001; Scooby-Doo! in Stagefright - Live on Stage)
• Kenny James (2001; phone message)
• Neil Fanning (2002–2004; Scooby-Doo, Scooby-Doo Spooky Coaster, Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed, Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed – The Video Game)
• J. P. Manoux (2004; Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed (as Scooby Brainiac))
• James Arnold Taylor (2004; additional lines in Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed)
• Jeff Bergman (2004; Boomerang UK bumper)
• Danny Bage (2009; Scooby-Doo! and the Pirate Ghost - Live on Stage)
• Jess Harnell (2012; Big Top Scooby-Doo! (as Human Scooby-Doo))

Portrayed by

• David Droxler (2001; Scooby-Doo! in Stagefright - Live on Stage)
• Pierre-Marc Diennet (2001; Scooby-Doo! in Stagefright - Live on Stage)
• Jamie Brown (2009; Scooby-Doo! and the Pirate Ghost - Live on Stage)
• Cody Collier (2013; Scooby-Doo Live! Musical Mysteries)
• Eddie Arnold (2014; Scooby-Doo Live! The Mystery Of The Pyramid)
• Joe Goldie (2016; Scooby-Doo Live! Musical Mysteries)
• Clement Chaboche (2020; Scooby-Doo! and the Lost City of Gold)
• Gabriela Jovian-Mazon (2022; Scooby-Doo! and the Lost City of Gold)

Voiced by in unofficial material

• Seth MacFarlane (1999; Family Guy)
• Mark Hamill (2001; Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back)
• Dave Coulier (2005; Robot Chicken)
• Seth Green (2007–2019; Robot Chicken)
• James Arnold Taylor (2007; Drawn Together)
• Scott McCord (2008; Yin Yang Yo!)
• Kevin Shinick (2011; Mad)
• Mikey Day (2012; Mad)
• Andrew Dismukes (2024; Saturday Night Live)

Appearances in other media

• Scooby-Doo has appeared in Johnny Bravo in the episodes "Bravo Dooby-Doo" and "'Twas the Night" during the first season, voiced both times by Hadley Kay. He was originally going to be voiced by Greg Burson, but was replaced with Kay due to the executives at Cartoon Network thinking that he did not sound enough like Scooby.
• In the Animaniacs episode "Back In Style", Yakko, Wakko, and Dot are loaned off to limited animation television cartoons, including a Scooby-Doo parody named Uhuru, Where Are You?. They scare and ride the show's canine star, Uhuru (voiced by Frank Welker), and injure the cast by playing fake rock and roll music.
• Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back has a brief scene where the title characters hitch a ride in the Mystery Machine with Scooby and the gang. Scooby was voiced by Mark Hamill.
• Scooby-Doo and Shaggy make an appearance in the Sabrina the Teenage Witch live action series episode "Sabrina Unplugged".
• Scooby and Shaggy make a cameo appearance in the 2003 live-action/animated film Looney Tunes: Back in Action, where Shaggy berates Matthew Lillard over his portrayal of Shaggy in the 2002 live-action film and threatens to "come after" him if he screws up in the sequel.
• Scooby-Doo was once impersonated by David Beckham in a 2004 Adidas commercial in the United Kingdom.
• Scooby-Doo appears in the Robot Chicken episode "Operation: Rich in Spirit", voiced by Dave Coulier (who previously imitated Scooby's voice in Full House). He is amongst the Mystery Inc. members who end up killed by Jason Voorhees except Velma. Seth Green voices him in the episode "Ban on the Fun" when in the segment that spoofs Laff-A-Lympics in the style of the Munich massacre. This time, Scooby did not get killed.
• In the Yin Yang Yo! episode "Slumber Party of Doom", Scooby and Shaggy make two cameo appearances where they complain about Yin and Yang stealing their montages. Scooby is colored gray instead of brown.
• Scooby-Doo and Shaggy both appeared in "The Official BBC Children in Need Medley" in 2009.
• Scooby-Doo and the Mystery Inc. gang appear in the second part of the Batman: The Brave and the Bold episode "Bat-Mite Presents: Batman's Strangest Cases", in which they team up with Batman and Robin to rescue Weird Al, who was kidnapped by the Joker and the Penguin.
• Scooby and Shaggy make a non-speaking cameo in Teen Titans Go! episode, "I See You" when Cyborg and Beast Boy were rapping. In the episode "The Cruel Giggling Ghoul", each Titan assumes the role of a Scooby Gang member (with Beast Boy as Scooby) to investigate a mystery at a spooky amusement park, with the help of LeBron James. Scooby later appears in the crossover episode "Cartoon Feud" along with Shaggy, Fred, Daphne and Velma, where Control Freak forces them to compete in Family Feud, with Frank Welker reprising the role of Scooby. They later appear in the episodes "Intro" and "Warner Bros. 100th Anniversary".
• In the episode "Saturday Morning Fun Pit" (7ACV19), on the Futurama series, Bender is re-conceived as a parody of Scooby-Doo, and named Bendee Boo.
• Scooby-Doo is a playable character alongside Shaggy in the crossover video game Lego Dimensions. His character includes a large sandwich called the "Scooby Snack". Frank Welker reprises the role.
• Scooby, along with the other four members of Mystery Inc., appears throughout the 16th episode of the 13th season of Supernatural entitled "Scoobynatural" when the two lead protagonists, Sam Winchester and his brother Dean Winchester, and their accomplice, Castiel, are transported into an episode of Scooby-Doo; the Supernatural episode itself is a crossover between the two franchises, with Frank Welker voicing Scooby-Doo in the episode.
• Scooby-Doo appears in the 2021 film Space Jam: A New Legacy. His design is the same from the 2020 film, Scoob!.
• Scooby-Doo makes a non-speaking cameo appearance in Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms, where he is seen alongside Shaggy in his "Ultra Instinct Shaggy" form in the Warner Bros. Animation logo after the latter grabs Scorpion by the neck and pulls him into the Netherrealm.
• Scooby-Doo makes a non-speaking appearance in Jellystone! in the episode "Frankenhooky", where he and the Mystery Inc. Gang stop the Ghost Chasers from attacking Yogi Bear and Boo-Boo at an abandoned cheese theme park.
• Scooby-Doo appears in Fortnite during 2025's Fortnitemares. He appears with other members of Mystery Incorporated and was added to the game October 10.

Reception

Casey Kasem, the original voice actor for Shaggy Rogers, said that Scooby is "the star of the show—the Shaquille O'Neal of the show." Kasem explained, "People love animals more than they love people. Am I right or wrong? They give more love to their pets than they give to people. Scooby is vulnerable and lovable and not brave, and very much like the kids who watch. But like kids, he likes to think that he's brave."

References

References

1. (2005). "Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003". McFarland & Co.
2. Shostak, Stu (February 5, 2012). "[http://www.stusshow.com/archives.php Interview with Joe Ruby and Ken Spears] {{Webarchive. link. (April 4, 2019". ''Stu's Show.'' Retrieved March 18, 2013.)
3. Ruby and Spears (2002).
4. (January 30, 2020). "Fred Silverman, TV executive came up with 'Scooby-Doo,' and championed 'All in the Family,' has died".
5. [http://www.cinema.com/articles/976/scooby-doo-scooby-history.phtml Scooby-Doo: Scooby History] {{Webarchive. link. (February 1, 2010 Cinema.com)
6. "10 sweet things you never knew about the Archies".
7. Eury, Michael. (August 8, 2018). "Back Issue #107". TwoMorrows Publishing.
8. (May 20, 2010). "Swingin' Together (Unsold Pilot)". Television Obscurities.
9. (2006). Interview with Iwao Takamoto. ''Eerie Mystery of Scooby-Doo and Dynomutt's History'' [documentary featurette from ''The Scooby-Doo/Dynomutt Hour: The Complete Series'' DVD bonus features]. New York, Los Angeles, CA: Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc. Excerpt: "The Great Dane was supposed to be the biggest dog around ... and there was a woman [at the studio] who actually bred and reared Great Danes. So, she came over, and spent a solid hour describing all of the positive things that makes a prize-winning Great Dane. And I selected about five things, I think, and went in the opposite direction. For instance, a good, strong straight back, so I sloped his back. A strong chin, so I under-swung his chin ... and I think straight hind legs she mentioned. So I bowed them ..."
10. ''Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!: The Complete 1st and 2nd Seasons'': "Scooby-Doo Facts" interior
11. (January 9, 2007). "Scooby-Doo creator dies aged 81". [[BBC]].
12. Evanier, Mark. (November 21, 1997). "POV: Don Messick". Comics Buyer's Guide.
13. (September 13, 2019). "'Scooby-Doo' at 50: Original cartoon voice talks spinoffs, pot jokes and who's the gang's stealth MVP". Yahoo!.
14. (June 22, 2010). "JOHNNY BRAVO AND SCOOBY DOO".
15. "DEMOS".
16. Liebenson, Donald. (September 24, 1998). "Barking Up A New Tree". Chicago Tribune.
17. Kay, Hadley. (August 27, 2020). "Talk Like That Podcast Episode 2: Talk Like Hadley Kay". Spreaker.
18. "Scott Innes Recording for Scooby-Doo (2002)".
19. (June 10, 2023). "The Neil Fanning Interview: Scooby-Doo in Scooby-Doo 2002 and Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed!". YouTube.
20. Associated Press. (March 25, 2004). "The voice behind Scooby-Doo". TODAY.
21. "About Me". Scooby-Doo Neil Fanning.
22. (April 30, 2024). "The ''Scooby-Doo'' Movie Cast: Where Are They Now?".
23. "Scooby-Doo".
24. "Scooby-Doo (Baby)".
25. "Scooby-Doo! The Museum of Mysteries".
26. (May 29, 2019). "Scooby-Doo Burger King commercial (1996)". YouTube.
27. (January 20, 2023). "AnimatedFaces Cartoons on Twitter: "Cartoon Network Asia 1997 advert featuring Shaggy (Casey Kasem) and Scooby Doo (Frank Welker), animation by Animata Singapore".". Twitter.
28. "Hanna-Barbera Gala Celebrity Nite".
29. "ABC Family Fun Fair".
30. "Scooby-Doo".
31. "Scooby-Doo's Haunted Mansion".
32. (July 7, 2002). "Why I'm barking mad; Scott Innes started out imitating his canine hero in the playground. Now he makes his living by providing the voice for the cartoon mutt - as well as hundreds of Scooby toys.".
33. (November 6, 2023). "The Many Character Voices of Marc Silk". YouTube.
34. (January 25, 2012). "Scooby-Doo and Friends Week on Boomerang". YouTube.
35. "Voice(s) of Scooby-Doo in Boomerang".
36. "CITV".
37. (28 July 2002). "Yoikes, Scooby ...you've got a Brummie voice!; HOW MARC BECAME THE MAN BEHIND CARTOON TOP DOG.".
38. (December 10, 2017). "Marc Silk - Voice Actor - The Big Showreel 2017". YouTube.
39. (2003-03-05). "The Velma Chronicles: Character adds smarts, sensibility to 'Scooby-Doo' production".
40. (April 4, 2003). "What's new, Scooby- Doo? Almost zilch". Los Angeles Times.
41. (August 23, 2019). "Jen Taylor & Kenny James - The Voices of Cortana and Bowser - Game On Expo 2019". YouTube.
42. (August 24, 2025). "Unmasked History of Scooby-Doo Episode 35: Interview with Neil Fanning". YouTube.
43. "Brainiac Scooby".
44. "Resume".
45. (May 12, 2017). "Brief Boomerang UK Continuity and Adverts (April 2005)". YouTube.
46. "Jeff Bergman's Voicelist".
47. "About Me". DannyBage.co.uk.
48. (2009-03-20). "Scooby-Doo and the Pirate Ghost, Mayflower, Southampton".
49. "SCOOBY-DOO LIVE! MUSICAL MYSTERIES Comes to Houston, 6/1 & 2". Broadway World.com.
50. "Cast announced for Scooby-Doo on stage". Official London Theatre.
51. "Scooby-Doo musical – London cast unmasked". Musical Theatre Review.
52. "Scooby-Doo! and the Lost City of Gold - Cast". MONLOVE.
53. "Voice of Scooby-Doo in Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back".
54. "Voice(s) of Scooby-Doo in Robot Chicken".
55. (April 22, 2017). "Scooby-Doo References in Drawn Together". YouTube.
56. (February 10, 2024). "Scooby-Doo! Reference in Yin Yang Yo!". YouTube.
57. (May 18, 2024). "Scooby-Doo - SNL". YouTube.
58. "Van Partible on Recording Sessions for Bravo Dooby-Doo". Facebook.
59. (May 14, 2025). "Cartoons About Cartoons (Part 35)". Cartoon Research.
60. (December 22, 2019). "Sabrina the Teenage Witch - Sabrina Meets Shaggy and Scooby-Doo (2002)". YouTube.
61. "Looney Tunes: Back in Action (2003) - IMDb".
62. "Beckham and Scooby-Doo team up". [[The New Zealand Herald]].
63. (April 11, 2012). "Becks and Scooby's cartoon caper". The Standard.
64. (2009-12-03). "Kay Talks About His Instant Classic". Bolton Journal.
65. (19 November 2021). "Explaining Peter Kay's 'The Official Children in Need Medley' (Retrospective)". YouTube.
66. "The stakes are high in this round of family feud... battle of the network stars! Don't miss the all NEW Teen Titans GO! and Scooby crossover special TONIGHT at 6p! (October 4, 2019)". Facebook.
67. (July 18, 2013). "Futurama: "Saturday Morning Fun Pit" Review". IGN.
68. "LEGO DIMENSIONS". TT Games.
69. (August 18, 2015). "Lego Dimensions Scooby-Doo Trailer - Game-Play & Cartoon Short". YouTube.
70. Turchiano, Danielle. (March 21, 2018). "How 'Supernatural's' 'Scooby-Doo' Crossover Came To Be".
71. Tangcay, Jazz. (July 16, 2021). "Every 'Space Jam' Cameo We Spied, From 'Game of Thrones' to 'Harry Potter'".
72. (August 31, 2021). "New Mortal Kombat movie canonizes Ultra Instinct Shaggy".
73. "Dragon Ball Super: Ultra Instinct Shaggy Just Became Canon". Anime.
74. (October 9, 2025). "Fortnitemares 2025: A Terrifying New Cast of Horror Icons". [[Epic Games]].
75. link. (October 24, 2012." ''[[Newsweek]]''. June 14, 2002. Available at ''[[Lexis-Nexis]]''.)