Huey, Dewey and Louie

Huey, Dewey and Louie (respectively translated as Hugo, Paco and Luis and in some old versions such as Huguito, Dieguito and Luisito for Latin America; and Juanito , Jaimito and Jorgito for Spain) are a trio of white ducks that are protagonists of cartoons and comics produced by The Walt Disney Company.

They were created by screenwriter Tomas Fourmantin and cartoonist Al Taliaferro, and first appeared on October 17, 1937 on the Sunday page Donald Duck. His first animated short was Donald's Nephews ( Donald's nephews ), released on April 15, 1938.

They are nephews of Donald Duck, and sons of Della Pato, and —according to cartoonist Don Rosa— of Daisy's brother. In the animated short Donald's Nephews , Donald's sister, referred to as Dumbella , sent her three children to visit her brother her for just one day. However, in the comics the triplets temporarily moved in with Donald until his father returned from the hospital (he was the victim of a firecracker that his children put under his chair). After this episode, both in the comics and in the animated shorts, his parents were never referred to again, and Donald eventually adopted his nephews.

The triplets were extremely mischievous at first - one might even say wild. But they improved a lot in their behavior thanks to Abuela Pato - a very kind but firm woman - and the Junior Woodchucks (Jóvenes Stores in Spain and part of Latin America; Jóvenes Cortapalos in Chilean comics) - a youth organization similar to the Boy Scouts. Grandma and the Junior Woodchucks showed the ducklings that it is possible to use energies in positive and constructive ways, without causing disaster.

Initially, the triplets were indistinguishable from one another, and were created to act as one character. This was reflected when one of the brothers began a sentence and the other two completed the idea as if they shared a single mind. In addition to the red, blue, and green colors used in the clothing, yellow, orange, violet, and black were also used—interchangeably, according to the criteria of each artist. Starting in the 1980s, specific colors began to be used in their hats and clothing for a better identification of the characters: Huey (Hugo/Juanito) wears red, Dewey (Paco/Jaimito) in blue and Louie (Luis/Jorgito) in green.

Animation

In the animated shorts, the three brothers were very mischievous, taking it upon themselves to prank and tease Donald. In contrast, in the comics developed by Al Taliaferro and Carl Barks, their behavior was less rebellious, and they accompanied and helped their uncle Donald and their great-uncle Scrooge McDuck ("Uncle Gilito" in Spain, "Rico McDuck" in Latin America) in most of his adventures.

Huey, Dewey, and Louie were cast in several animated shorts, beginning with Donald's Nephews, released in 1938. Thereafter, they starred in the following shorts, television series, and films:

Between 1987 and 1990, they starred in the animated television series DuckTales, in which they accompanied their great-uncle Scrooge McDuck on his adventures, while his Uncle Donald was enlisted in the Army. The trio's personality was based on the one originally created in the comics.

Donald's nephews returned to animation in 1996, in the television series Quack Pack, with a more adolescent appearance and different personalities: Huey became the leader of the group, Dewey a computer genius and Louie into a sports lover. After the series ended, the triplets returned to their original ages in subsequent series and films.

In the DuckTales reboot they were given different personalities with Huey being the leader and the smartest, Louie a somewhat capricious boy who creates plans and strategy, and Dewey having an adventurous spirit and wanting to go adventure all the time.

Comics

In the comics, Huey, Dewey, and Louie accompany their Uncle Donald and Great-Uncle Scrooge McDuck (Rico McDuck) on most of their adventures. They are also part of an organization similar to the Boy Scouts, the Little Beavers or Jóvenes Castores (in the Spanish version; it was also rendered as Cortapalos in the American translation the Junior Woodchucks), which included the use of the Junior Woodchucks Guidebook, a book containing information on any subject possible, intended especially for outdoor activities. Several manuals were published during the 1970s. A recurring joke in Carl Barks' comics is to include comprehensive information on extremely obscure subjects in the Manual and then point out that not even the world's leading experts on the subject have such detailed information. The book thus becomes a kind of sum absolute of universal knowledge, and, more recently, the term Junior Woodchucks Guidebook has become common as an affectionate nickname for the English Wikipedia.

According to cartoonist Don Rosa (creator of an unofficial Disney continuity), the triplets were born around 1940 in Duckburg. True to his humorous style, Rosa occasionally made subtle references to the unrevealed mystery of the three brothers' lives: What happened to their parents?. In her epic comic series, Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck, Rosa depicted the first meeting between Scrooge McDuck (Rico McDuck/Gilito McDuck), Donald, and his nephews, saying: "I'm not used to relatives, either! The few I had seem to have... disappeared!" ("I'm not used to relatives! The few I had seem to have... disappeared"). Huey, Dewey, and Louie replied: "We know how that feels, uncle Scrooge!"").

Comics List

Voices

The voices in the original English version were provided by the following actors:

• In original animated shorts: Clarence Nash
• In the animated series Patoaventuras: Russi Taylor
• In the animated series Quack Pack: Jeannie Elias (Huey), Pamela Segall (Dewey), and Elizabeth Daily (Louie)
• In the animated series House of Mouse and Mickey Mouse Works: Tony Anselmo
• In the reboot Patoaventuras 2017: Danny Pudi (Huey), Ben Schwartz (Dewey) and Bobby Moynihan (Louie)

The voices in the Latin version were provided by the following actors:

• In original animated shorts: Clarence Nash
• In the animated series Patoaventuras: (Huey): Rommy Mendoza (initiation) María Fernanda Morales (record of the series), (Dewey): Rossy Aguirre (initiation) María Fernanda Morales (record of the series), (Louie): Araceli de León (initiation) María Fernanda Morales (record of the series)
• In the animated series Quack Pack: Marcela Bordes (Huey), Ana Grinta (Dewey), Erika Robledo (Louie)
• In the animated series House of Mouse and Mickey Mouse Works: María Fernanda Morales
• In the reboot Patoaventuras 2017: Dalí González (Huey), José Luis Piedra (Dewey), Marc Winslow (Louie)

In Spain, as of the 1990s they have always been bent by Isatxa Mengíbar in all its appearances in short films, films and series that have been bent in the country. With the only exception of Quack Pack , where she only put voice to Louie, while Sara Vivas played Huey, and Chelo Vivares to Dewey.

Origin of names

According to one of its creators, Al Taliaferro, their names owe their origin to two American political figures and an entertainer of the time:

• Huey was named after Huey Long, governor and then senator from Louisiana.
• Dewey by Thomas E. Dewey, Governor of New York State.
• Louie by Louie Schmitt, animator who participated in the animated films Snow White and the seven dwarfs and Bambi.

In the 2017 TV series DuckTales, the full names of the three ducks were revealed:

• Huey = Huebert Duck
• Dewey = Dewford Duck
• Louie = Llewellyn Duck

Huey, Dewey and Louie, in other languages

Carl Barks at a signing session in Finland in 1994; at the bottom, you see Scrooge McDuck and the three ducks.

In English the three names rhyme, since they are pronounced [ˈhjui] (jiúi), [ˈdui] (dúi) and [ˈlui] (lúi).