Johnny Bravo is an American animated sitcom created by Van Partible for Cartoon Network. The second of the network's Cartoon Cartoons, it aired from July 14, 1997, to August 27, 2004. The titular Johnny Bravo (voiced by Jeff Bennett), who is loosely based on Elvis Presley and James Dean, is a blonde-haired sunglasses-wearing, muscular, and dimwitted young man who lives with his mother and attempts to get women to date him, though he always falls short because of his actions. He ends up in bizarre situations and predicaments, often accompanied by celebrity guest characters such as Donny Osmond or Adam West. Throughout its run, the show was known for its adult humor and pop culture references.
Partible pitched the series to Hanna-Barbera's animation showcase What a Cartoon!, basing it on his senior thesis project he produced while attending Loyola Marymount University. A pilot short aired on Cartoon Network in 1995. The series was renewed for a second season in 1999, after Partible was fired, and the show was retooled under the direction of Kirk Tingblad. In 2003, for the series' fourth season, Partible returned and restored the show to its original format and style. In its four seasons, a total of 67 episodes have aired. The first three seasons were produced by Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, while the fourth season was produced by Cartoon Network Studios.
Johnny Bravo was nominated for four Annie Awards, one YoungStar Award, and two Golden Reel Awards. The series helped launch the careers of several animators, including Seth MacFarlane and Butch Hartman. Spin-off media include comic books, DVD and VHS releases, collectible toys, T-shirts with Johnny's well known phrase "Whoa Mama", and video games.
Premise
thumb|left|From left to right: Johnny Bravo, Suzy, and Bunny Bravo.
The series centers on Johnny Bravo (voiced by Jeff Bennett), a blonde-haired sunglasses-wearing, muscular, conceited narcissist and dimwitted self-proclaimed womanizing young man with 1960s surfer vibes, a blonde pompadour and an Elvis Presley-esque voice, apparently of Italian heritage, who lives in Aron City (a nod to Presley's middle name). Episodes typically revolve around him trying to get a woman to go on a date with him, though his advances are usually rejected and result in the woman in question harming him in a comedic way due to his boorish manner. Johnny's companions are Bunny "Momma" Bravo (Brenda Vaccaro), his lively, caring, extroverted, more sensible mother, who wears cat eye sunglasses; and Little Suzy (Mae Whitman), a talkative and intelligent young girl from the neighborhood who likes to agitate Johnny, although he rarely remembers her name.
Recurring characters include Carl Chryniszzswics (Tom Kenny), a geek who idolizes Johnny despite being bullied and bossed around by him; Pops (Larry Drake), the unscrupulous owner of the local diner who provides advice to Johnny, along with food made from atypical ingredients; Master Hamma (Brian Tochi), a Japanese martial arts instructor who teaches Johnny but never considers him a student due to being the weakest and most pathetic student in the dojo; Donny Osmond (himself), a cheery and optimistic teen idol who irritates Johnny; and Jungle Boy (Cody Dorkin), a jungle-dwelling feral child with super strength and the ability to speak to animals.
Much of the series' humor is derived from celebrity guest star appearances and references to popular culture. For example, an episode in season 1 is based around homages to The Twilight Zone, and in another episode, one of the Village People can be seen in the background. Many Hanna-Barbera characters had cameo appearances in the series, including the cast of Scooby-Doo, Speed Buggy, Jabberjaw, Fred Flintstone, Yogi Bear, The Blue Falcon, Black Widow, and Huckleberry Hound.
Adult humor is a frequent presence. In one episode, when Suzy calls Johnny to ask if he wants to come over, Johnny nonchalantly tells her to "[call] back in 15 years when [she is] a co-ed", and in another, when Johnny is hit by a tranquilizer dart and is informed he has only six seconds of consciousness left and to "use it wisely", he immediately pulls out a girlie magazine. In regard to the adult humor, Hartman stated that "being concerned with the content of the episodes wasn't our main focus", and creator Partible remembers: "No one was really watching Cartoon Network ... As far as content, they were pretty lenient on all the kind of things that were going on." Voice actor Jeff Bennett was cast as Johnny, based solely on his young, hyped Elvis impression.
The short, titled Johnny Bravo, was aired on Cartoon Network's animation showcase, World Premiere Toons, as well as from The Brady Bunch episode "Adios, Johnny Bravo", where Greg Brady changes his name to Johnny Bravo in order to sign a record deal.
Original seasons
The popularity of the shorts led to Cartoon Network commissioning a first season of Johnny Bravo, consisting of 13 episodes. The crew of the first season consisted of several writers, animators, and directors from World Premiere Toons, including Seth MacFarlane, Butch Hartman, Steve Marmel, and John McIntyre. Veteran animator Joseph Barbera also served as a creative consultant and mentor for the first season.
It was Hanna-Barbera's first production after Turner Broadcasting System was purchased by Time Warner.
Johnny Bravo premiered on July 14, 1997, and the first season completed production in December of that year.
Retool seasons
After the first season, Johnny Bravo was put on hiatus, until it was picked up for an unexpected second season in 1999. Van Partible was fired during Warner Bros. takeover of Turner Broadcasting and Kirk Tingblad took over as director, leading to a major retooling in the show's visual style, tone, humor, and characters. The show retained this format for the third season.
The series was put on hiatus once again until it was renewed for a fourth season in 2003, which aired in 2004. The final season of the series returned to the humor of the original shorts and first season of the series, with Van Partible returning and co-directing all of the fourth season episodes, although the Jungle Boy character from the first season never returned.
Episodes
Reception and legacy
Johnny Bravo was Cartoon Network's highest-rated program in 1999, garnering a 2.2 rating in households and a 4.4 rating among children aged 6 to 11 years, its target demographic. In 2009, IGN ranked Johnny Bravo No. 71 for its Top 100 Animated Series list.
After the series ended in 2004, the No. 5 Kellogg's Chevrolet was given a special paint scheme with Johnny Bravo on the hood. It was driven by Kyle Busch in the 2005 Sharpie 500 NASCAR race.
On the long lasting impact of the show, writer/director Butch Hartman states: