Slinky Dog

### Aliases

Slink (often)Slinkykins (once by Hamm)Stretchy Dog (by Buzz)Spring-weiner (Black Friday reel only)Springy Dog (by Jessie and Ken)Little Doggie (once by Lotso)

## Appearances

### Portrayed by

Nicholas Nunez/Gabi Epstein (Toy Story: The Musical)Jim Varney (1995-1999)Darryl Kurylo (Toy Story Racer)Blake Clark (2010-present)

### Appears in

Toy StoryToy Story 2Toy Story 3Toy Story 4Buzz Lightyear of Star Command: The Adventure Begins (Cameo in the CGI prologue)Hawaiian VacationThs Partysaurus-RexSmall FryPixar PopcornToy Story: Animated StoryBookToy Story: Activity CenterToy Story: The Video GameToy Story 2: The Video GameToy Story RacerToy Story 3: The Video GameDisney InfinityDisney Crossy RoadDisney Magic KingdomsDisney Heroes: Battle ModeDisney Sorcerer's Arena (upcoming)

### Debut

Toy Story

Slinky Dog (better known as Slinky or by his nickname Slink) is a supporting character in the Disney•Pixar Toy Story franchise. He is a wooden toy dachshund who speaks with a graveled Southern accent. He is extremely loyal to Woody and is often the first to side with him.

## Background

The earliest draft of Toy Story featured a slinky caterpillar who had never seen a child before. He is rescued from a toy collector and joins the main protagonists on their adventure before ending up at a kindergarten in the end. During rewrites, the character was changed to a dog, most likely to be more appealing.

Slinky was originally depicted as a long-suffering, abused right hand of Woody, and was also one of the most unpopular toys

among Andy's collection. According to Woody, the only reason Slinky wasn't hauled off to Goodwill, much less is actually played with by Andy, was because of Woody. Eventually, after Woody not only attempted gruesome but formerly against Buzz Lightyear, as well as being severely insulted by Woody when he hesitantly spoke up against what Woody did, he turned against his former master by telling the other toys to throw him out the window just as he had done to Buzz. This concept, as well as Slinky's overall demeanor, was changed after the infamous Black Friday viewing of the film that resulted in it receiving an extensive redo.

## Personality

Slinky acts very much so like an actual dog. He is nice, playful, likes to be pet, growls or barks at something he doesn't like, hides when afraid, and is very loyal to Woody, who is shown to reciprocate his feelings and is often seen petting him, comforting him, and playing checkers with him. This sometimes leads to him looking like a kiss-up towards Woody (something the toys make fun of, especially in the original film). Due to his older-looking appearance, he is seen to be very relaxed and calm but admits in the third film, "I might be old, but I still got a spring in my step!".

## Trivia

* He had larger eyebrows in the first two films. However, his eyebrows are quite trim in the third and fourth film.
* Slinky is made of wood with articulating legs and head, unlike the real life toy which is made of plastic and stands completely still.
* At one point in Toy Story 2, Slinky says, "I may not be a smart dog, but I know what roadkill is." This is a reference to the quote, "I'm not a smart man, but I know what love is," from the 1994 film Forrest Gump, which starred Tom Hanks, the voice of Woody, as the main character.
* Slinky Dog is based on Slinky, a pull toy by James Industries, which was popular in the 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s. With the permission of James Industries, Slinky Dog was partially redesigned for the film by Pixar artist Bud Luckey to make him more appealing as an animated character.
* In the first two films, Slinky was voiced by the late Jim Varney, who died shortly after Toy Story 2 was released worldwide due to lung cancer in 2000. Since then, Blake Clark has lent his voice to Slinky.
* Clark previously recorded lines for Slinky for the 2001 Disney On Ice show, Disney·Pixar's Toy Story 2.
* During the recording process for Toy Story 3, Clark disclosed that, prior to Varney's death, he had been good friends with Clark, having met on the set of Fast Food, thus making the transition a lot easier.
* Slinky Dog does not physically appear in Kingdom Hearts III, but he was mentioned by Rex as one of Andy's toys to be taken by the Heartless and Organization XIII.
* His catchphrase "Golly bob-howdy!" is a tribute to Jim Varney's most popular character, Ernest P. Worrell.
* Originally, Slinky Dog was intended to be one of Andy's more unpopular toys and the least played with, with Woody effectively being the only reason Slinky was not hauled off to goodwill, with Woody pointing this out when demanding that Slinky force the other toys off the bed after throwing Buzz out of the window. This backstory, however, was cut out after the scene in question nearly resulted in Toy Story being shut down on Black Friday.