Reptilicus Humanas

 I woke up in the middle of the night with a vision of Wally Gator in my head. As you might imagine, if you are a not also afflicted as I was with late night visions of animated characters, Wally was a cartoon alligator from the Hanna-Barbera Studios back in 1962. 

Certainly there have been plenty of dramatis personae from the minds of Hanna Barbera that were more preeminent in my childhood than Wally and his pals Hardy Har Har and Touché Turtle. Dick Dastardly's dog Muttley comes to mind most readily, but for some reason my visions on this particular night were focused on that cartoon alligator from sixty-plus years ago. 

Why?

I suspect it has something to do with the discussion I was having a couple weeks ago with some colleagues about cartoon animals and their approaches to fashion. Mickey Mouse wears pants, but his pal Donald Duck does not. Donald does not wear shoes, but his gal pal Daisy squeezes her webbed feet into a wide variety of colored pumps. Porky Pig tends to sport a jacket and bow tie, but tends to eschew trousers. Daffy Duck is generally seen in his birthday suit, while Bugs Bunny is a well-known cross-dresser. 

Which brings me to Wally Gator. The first thing that occurred to me is the very unnatural way that his creators chose to have him stand upright, with his head tilted down to approximate the stance of a human being. Then there is the attire. Perhaps borrowed from stablemate Snagglepuss, Mister Gator is gifted with cuffs at his wrists, as well as a collar, perhaps to keep his spine in alignment with the cruel intentions of his animators. This outfit is set off by a hat that seems to have been borrowed from Ed Norton of Honeymooners fame. Perhaps this is some subliminal link to alligators living in the sewers of New York City. 

I don't know. 

But, as you can see, there are plenty of things keeping me awake at night. 

Sweet dreams.