Garfield (20th Century)

Garfield is the titular protagonist of the long-running franchise of the same name, created by Jim Davis.
== Biography ==
=== Early Life ===
Garfield was born on June 19, 1978, in the kitchen of Mamma Leoni's Italian Restaurant to his mother and his father Vic, weighing 5 lbs. and 6 ounces at birth. Lasagna has been Garfield's favorite food throughout his life, unlike the majority of his family, who were more into mice. The restaurant owner of Mamma Leoni's Italian Restaurant had to choose between keeping Garfield or closing down his restaurant due to a lack of pasta, so Garfield was sold to a pet shop. On the same day as his birth, Jon Arbuckle came to the pet store and had to choose between Garfield, an iguana, and a pet rock. On November 14, 1978, comic strip, Jon quoted, "I love cats. I wanted a cat... So what do I do? I go to the pet store and ask for a cat. What do they give me?... A lasagna with fur and fangs."
=== Garfield: The Movie ===
Garfield, a fat lazy cat who lives with Jon Arbuckle, wakes up from a good night's sleep and awaits a tasty breakfast. Jon is woken by the fat cat with a dogpile. After switching his liver-flavored cat food with Jon's corned beef hash, Garfield spots a pie outside on the neighbor's window. He tricks the Doberman Pinscher Luca to get the pie and tangle his leash around many bushes and ceramic ducks. He also tricks his dimwitted neighbor cat Nermal to tip over a milk bottle, activating a Rube Goldberg device which makes Nermal land into a bucket.
After walking the cul-de-sac, Jon spots a mouse (Louis) and asks Garfield to get it. Garfield refuses and Jon runs after the rodent. He then trips on one of Garfield's toys and says, "What good is it to have a cat, if it can't catch a mouse." Garfield then runs outside and catches up to the mouse. The mouse turns out to be Garfield's best friend Louis and he was warned by Garfield that he should not run around the house when Jon is home. Jon walks out after Garfield and sees Louis in his mouth. Jon is proud of the tabby cat and when he leaves Garfield spits him out and spares his life. He only did it so Jon would not hurt him.
Jon comes home with some food he bought at the store. Garfield pigs out on the lasagna trays and Jon is disappointed. Garfield is brought to the vet (Garfield previously thought he was going to Chuck E Cheese's, Wendy's, Taco Kitty or Olive Garden), with Jon and is checked out at the vet by Liz, a nice and attractive veterinarian who is also Jon's high school crush. She operates Garfield. Garfield comes out of the vet and sees Odie in the car, and Liz ends up asking Jon out.
Garfield is not very happy now that a dog is running amok in the house, sitting in his chair, getting the paper, and sleeping beside Jon when Garfield is not allowed to. To make things worse, Liz shows up and Jon, with Odie, leaves to go to the town dog show, and Garfield chases after them. At the dog show (where Liz is a judge) and where Jon is in the audience with Odie, Garfield unwittingly walks right into the show, is spotted by the dogs competing in the show, and runs away with the dogs in hot pursuit. The music goes on and Odie leaps out of Jon's hands and attempts to dance (just as when Garfield was dancing back at the house). Garfield succeeds in escaping.
Garfield hangs on under Liz's truck on the way back, and Jon and Liz plan a dinner on Sunday. Garfield is very angry because Odie got all the attention. He smacks a ball that starts an unusual Rube Goldberg machine which causes the square shelves above the computer to fall, leaving the house in shambles. Garfield gets kicked out as a punishment and he watches in the windows how much Jon loves Odie. He sleeps on the porch that night and Odie comes out to comfort him. Garfield is touched, but then hops inside and locks the doggy door, and locks Odie out. Odie runs away and ends up found by a sweet old lady, Garfield is rejected from his friends because of this, Arlene quotes to Nermal Garfield is a pig because he let Odie run away.
Garfield sees him and Happy announces that he and Odie are going to New York by train for a big performance. Garfield attempts to show Jon, but the show goes to a Wendy's commercial. Garfield then sets out on a mission to rescue the pup.
In the city, Garfield meets Louis again and the mouse guides the fat cat to the Telegraph Tower. Garfield cannot go in by the doors, so he climbs the vents and finds Odie in Happy's room. Happy comes in and puts on an inhumane mind-control electro-shock collar that with a press of a button, Odie gets a small shock and performs a backflip. Happy then head to the Train Station and Garfield follows behind. The tabby is caught by Animal Control and is thrown in the pound. Jon sees Liz at a clothing store and tells Liz that Garfield has run away too. The couple goes and investigates. Finding a found poster of Odie, the two find the old lady, who tells them that Odie is Happy Chapman's dog. The two drive to Telegraph Tower.
Garfield, at the pound, meets Persnikitty, Happy's last show cat that he threw inside the pound. A family arrives to take a cat home for a pet. Persnikitty, Garfield, and 3 other cats are taken and lined up behind a wall. The little girl picks Persnikitty. The old show cat tells Garfield that he will press the red button (which opens all the cages) to escape. All the caged up animals run like mad cows out in the city.
At the train station, Happy places Odie in the luggage cart and sit down for lunch. Garfield just misses the train by seconds. Garfield sneaks into the control room and messes with the commands. The tracks get rearranged that all the trains are on the same tracks. Just when the trains are about to collide, Garfield stops all the trains with the press of a certain button. Garfield climbs in the luggage cart after the train returns to the station. He reunites with Odie.
Happy see Garfield and Odie walk out and is shocked. He runs out and chases them into the station's luggage halls, traps the two animals, and threatens Odie with the shock collar. Garfield jumps to the rescue and Happy throws the tabby on some luggage. Garfield gets up and is greeted by the pound animals. They have come to help. The animals corner Happy, and Garfield gives orders to attack and place the shock collar on Happy's neck. The pound animals leave and Garfield and Odie finish off Happy with two shocks of the collar. Jon and Liz arrive, and Jon furiously punches Chapman for stealing Garfield and Odie. Jon promises the cat and dog to never leave them out of his sight. Chapman gets arrested and Garfield's now known as a hero.
Garfield learns friendship and love, and they live as a big happy family. But all that changes when he intentionally pushes Odie off his chair over and over again.
The film closes with Garfield singing and dancing to James Brown's "I Got You (I Feel Good)." He does a split and is stuck on the floor. As the credits roll, with the pics from the movie scene, Garfield is heard in the background asking Odie for ice.
=== Garfield: A Tale of Two Kitties ===
When Jon learns that Liz needs to go to London, he packs his bags and goes to London as well, trying to surprise her. Odie and Garfield are put in a kennel; they manage to break out and empty Jon's suitcase to make room for themselves. Soon they end up lost in the Big City, as they set out to find Jon; they also anger a Royal Guard when Odie urinates on his leg.
Meanwhile, Prince XII, a cat, has just been selected as the successor of Lady Elanor's estate. Dargis, her nephew, who is now angry that the cat has inherited his estate, attempts to get rid of Prince. Prince is thrown into the river, ends up in the London Sewers, and is found by Jon while Garfield is mistaken as Prince and is picked up by Smithee the Servant.
Soon, Dargis attempts to kill Garfield (assumed to be Prince) with help from his dog, Rommel. Thinking that the cat is now dead, he invites the solicitors to make his inheritance official. Garfield and Prince eventually meet and team up to fight back. Dargis eventually sees Prince and Garfield and attempts to chase them, ending up ragged clothed and exhausted. He threatens the solicitors and Lady Westminster with a crossbow, but he is finally bit in the bottom by Odie, who has arrived at the scene attempting to recover Garfield. In the end, Smithee and the police arrive. Dargis is arrested and Liz and Jon get engaged.
=== Garfield 3 ===
Garfield 3 was announced after the release of the animated film. and would be released in 2026 on the anniversary Garfield: A Tale of Two Kitties was released in 2006.
== Personality ==
Garfield is an overweight, bipedal orange tabby cat noted for his laziness, sarcasm, arrogance, selfishness, and intense passion for food—particularly lasagna and most other foods made from flour. He dislikes raisins and (sometimes) anchovy pizza.
Garfield lives with his nerdy, socially awkward owner Jon Arbuckle and Jon's dimwitted pet dog Odie, and derives pleasure from satirically mocking the stupid actions performed by the two. Garfield seems to abhor Odie, and derives joy from causing him physical harm or insulting him, such as kicking him off tables, seldom showing empathy for the beagle. Odie shows Garfield no belligerence of any kind and never deliberately causes him harm (though Odie does occasionally prank Garfield and has made fun of his weight and, more recently, his age.) Garfield despises him nonetheless and is apt to make rude and sassy comments based on Odie's apparent lack of intelligence. Garfield also frequently insults and pokes fun at Jon for his nerdy behavior and unpopularity with women, along with his unconventional and eccentric fashion sense.
Despite his sometimes selfishness and sheer laziness, Garfield loves both Odie and Jon, as well as his beloved teddy bear Pooky, who is frequently seen in his Garfield's arms or close to him.
In the Garfield live action film duology, he has a passion towards dancing and listening to music.
== Physical Appearance ==
Over the years, Garfield's appearance has changed greatly. In the first couple of years of the strip, he looked more like a real Exotic Shorthair cat and was fatter. Over time, Garfield started to get smaller and less morbidly obese. He also started gaining more human tendencies such as walking on two feet (previously he walked on all fours) but has remained silent for the rest of the strip. He also has three toes on his feet. Despite the changes, Garfield has always remained an orange tabby over the years.
== Talking ==
Starting with the live-action films, Garfield's mouth now moves when he has dialogue, though humans cannot still hear his dialogue.
== Intelligence/Food Consumption ==
For a cat, Garfield has high intelligence to the point of an average human. He is capable of reading and writing and can operate an array of basic electronics such as TVs, telephones, voice recorders, computers (with a mouse, not the touch-pad), etc. He can communicate with elephants, humans (understand, but not talk to), dogs, mice, other animals, mythical creatures, and the viewer. He can write with a goose feather or by dipping his claws into a bottle of ink. He can also operate basic machinery in case of an emergency.
== Relationships ==
=== Garfield and Jon ===
While Garfield loves his owner Jon, this does not stop him from pulling numerous practical jokes on him, as well as other mischievous acts.
Being the obsessive eater he is, Garfield frequently eats Jon's food when he is not looking. Even when Jon is on his guard, Garfield manages to take his food in other, more ingenious ways, such as cutting holes through the table. Other times, when Jon tries to work out a truce with Garfield to stop him from eating his food, Garfield often ignores Jon's offers and eats his food instead. Often times, Garfield even takes Jon's food and adds it to his own cat food.
When Jon is asleep, Garfield often goes to extreme measures to wake him up. This has included hopping on his stomach.
=== Garfield and Odie ===
Garfield frequently harasses Odie, his house-mate. Garfield enjoys kicking Odie off the table when he is not looking. He also likes to trick Odie into performing a stupid act, like chasing non-existent objects or getting him to chase his tail around in circles with no end. Despite this, Garfield does care for Odie and his well being to the point where he would put his life on the line to ensure his safety.
=== Garfield and Nermal ===
In the CGI movies, Garfield openly displays irritation with Nermal when he is there to intentionally annoy him and others.
=== Garfield and Arlene ===
In the CGI movies, Garfield and Arlene act more romantically interested in one another. Arlene sometimes believes he could do better.
=== Garfield and Dogs ===
Besides kicking Odie off the table, when outside, Garfield enjoys teasing other dogs. They are usually chained up or smaller in size than him. He occasionally faces the misfortune of the chain or rope not being securely tied, (resulting in Garfield being chased and/or injured by the dog), or the dogs are not as small or weak as they seem. 
=== Others ===
Garfield can also be a rude slob, with almost no manners. Among the rude things he likes to do is burp very loudly. On two occasions, Garfield goes out of his way to burp louder than Jon does; when Jon states that not everything is a contest, Garfield replies "Said the loser."
== Trivia ==
* The 3D model for Garfield the cat was created using computer-generated imagery; all other animal roles were real.
* The teaser trailer for the film, released in late 2003, further parodied the scene by having Garfield wear sunglasses and playing the song "Old Time Rock and Roll" by Bob Seger.
* In the movie Zombieland, Garfield: The Movie is referenced when Bill Murray mentions the film as possibly his biggest regret.
* In the sequel Zombieland: Double Tap, posters promoting the fictional film Garfield: Flabby Tabby are shown around the mall where Columbus finds Madison.
* The choice for Garfield's voice was based on the character's attitude, as opposed to mimicking Lorenzo Music's voice.
* Jack Nicholson was considered as the voice of Garfield; he was the only candidate besides Bill Murray for the role.
* In the comic strip and animated series, Garfield is portrayed as an extremely lazy cat, seen mostly sleeping or eating. In the movie, Garfield can be seen dancing, running, jumping, and making a lot of other movements. This was also noted in Garfield and Friends.
* In the film, its sequel, the DTV animated films, The Garfield Show, and The Garfield Movie, Garfield's mouth moves when he is talking. In contrast, the previous 2D versions of Garfield only talk through thought balloons and voice-over. Despite this, no humans can understand what he or any other animal is saying.
* The novelization of the film concludes with Jon, Liz, Garfield and Odie flying back from London to the U.S. in first class. Jon and Liz later realize that Garfield and Prince have switched places prior to boarding, with the real Garfield back at Carlyle Castle, enjoying the royal status.
* The novelization also includes two scenes exclusively shown in the extended version of the film. The first is where Lord Dargis takes a morning swim in the pool before the reading of the will, only for a group of ducks to interrupt his swim. The second scene is a pool party Garfield hosts with the barnyard animals that Dargis sees just as he was trying to have tea with Abby.
* When Garfield is first served a meal at Carlyle Castle, he wonders if he is on Fear Factor.
* Garfield alludes to The Silence of the Lambs when he talks about eating Odie's liver "with some fava beans and a nice chianti".
* Garfield's song in the castle is a variation of "Movin' on Up", the theme song of The Jeffersons.
* At one point Garfield insults Preston by calling him "Fruit Loops", a reference to the Froot Loops cereal mascot Toucan Sam.
* Garfield and Prince parody the mirror scene from the Marx Brothers film Duck Soup.
== Gallery ==
See: Garfield (20th Century)/Gallery
Category:Live Action Characters
Category:Garfield
Category:Characters
Category:Cats
Category:Tabby Cats
Category:Persian Cats
Category:Orange Characters