For detailed information about this series, see: Heathcliff Wiki
Heathcliff
Heathcliff is a series of comic strips created by George Gately that was also adapted into other media. It used to be owned by McNaught Syndicate, and was later taken over by Creators Syndicate.
The series stars the titular character, an orange cat.
Comics
The original comic strip started in 1973 and was published continuosly up to this day. In the current format a comic panel is published every weekday and on saturdays, plus a comic page on sundays, titled Sunday with Heathcliff.
Some comic books based on the series were also released by Marvel Comics:
- Heathcliff (April, 1985 - February, 1991), ran for 56 issues, plus a special "Giant-sized annual" issue.
- Heathcliff on Star Comics Magazine (December, 1986 - December, 1988), an anthological comic book that ran for 13 issues, but only including reprints of old stories. Heathcliff appeared as the main character on the cover, serving as a mascot for the series.
- Star Comics Presents Heathcliff (January, 1987), a single issue.
- Heathcliff's Funhouse (May, 1987 - November, 1988), ran for 10 issues.
Cinema & TV
The comic strip was adapted into two tv series and a movie:
- Heathcliff (October 4, 1980 – December 5, 1981), animated series created by Ruby-Spears Productions, it ran for two seasons of 13 episodes each, the first alongside an original cartoon called Dingbat and the Creeps, in a container show called Heathcliff and Dingbat, the second season alongside, Marmaduke in the container Heathcliff and Marmaduke.
- Heathcliff (September 5, 1984 – 1988), animated series created by DiC, it ran for two seasons for a total of 86 episodes. Each episode also included an original cartoon called Cats & Co., also known as The Catillac Cats. This series was released on VHS with the title Heathcliff and Cats & Co. and then on DVD as Heathcliff and The Catillac Cats.
- Heathcliff: The Movie (January 17, 1986), animated movie based on DiC's tv series.
Additionally a CGI animated movie has been in development for many years. A trailer called Heathcliff in Bad Kitty was released in 2010, but the movie itself was never released.
Improper spin-offs
Heathcliff's TV shows always aired alongside other shows, and beside Marmaduke, the other two where the original shows Dingbat and the Creeps and The Catillac Cats. Since they were created as different stories than Heathcliff, they can technically be considered series on their own, however since they never received any independent stand-alone releases they're considered improper spin-offs and listed as part of the Heathcliff series on this Wiki.
Dingbat and the Creeps
Dingbat and the Creeps aired alongside the Heathcliff TV series by Ruby-Spears, and it's an horror themed cartoon starring the vampire dog Dingbat and his companions, the skeleton Sparerib and the jack-o-lantern Nobody.
Having very different themes than Heathcliff, the two series didn't interact for the most part, but the main characters do meet during the opening.
The Catillac Cats
The Catillac Cats, or Cats & Co., was created as the second half of the Heathcliff TV series by DiC, starring the titular team of cats: Riff-Raff, Cleo, Hector, Wordsworth and Mungo.
Catillac Cats is connected to Heathcliff since it shares the same setting and some supporting characters as Heathcliff, beside some other references; for details on the interactions between the two series see Catillac Cats X Heathcliff.
Links to other series
| Direction | Series | Date | Description | Type
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Marmaduke | September 12, 1981 | TV shows from both series aired together as the Heathcliff and Marmaduke container show; the two characters also meet during the opening sequence. | 1
|
|
| Gadget | September 1984 | The Inspector Gadget makes a cameo in the Catillac Cat's episode "Harem Cat", while the Catillac Cats make a cameo in an episode of season two of the Inspector Gadget TV series; there are other minor references between the two series. | 1
|
| Top Dog | August 1986 | Heathcliff co-stars in Top Dog #9. | 1
|
|
| Star Comics Magazine | December 1986 | Star Comics Magazine features Heathcliff stories, with the character also appearing on the cover, occasionally interacting with other characters. | 1
|
| Batman | May 1990 | Issue 47 of the Heathcliff comic by Marvel includes a parody of Batman called "Catman". | 3
|
|
| Felix the Cat | September 23, 2015 | A character looking like Felix the Cat appears in Heathcliff comic strips. | 3
|
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| Mark Trail | November 02, 2015 | A Heathcliff comic strip features a reference to Mark Trail. | 2
|
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| Garfield | December 01, 2015 | An image of Garfield appears in a Heathcliff comic strip. | 2
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| Star Wars | December 13, 2015 | The Heathcliff comic strips of December 13th 2015, December 18th 2015, February 23rd 2016 and May 5th 2017 feature references to Star Wars. | 3
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| Sesame Street | January 02, 2016 | Heathcliff meets a character looking like Oscar the Grouch from Sesame Street in the January 2nd and February 9th comic strips. | 3
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| Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs | February 09, 2016 | A character looking like the dwarf Grumpy appears in a Heathcliff comic strip. | 3
|
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| Mighty Mouse | November 26, 2016 | An image of Mighty Mouse appears in a Heathcliff comic strip. | 2
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| Quick Draw McGraw | January 25, 2017 | Characters looking like Quick Draw McGraw and Baba Looey appear in a Heathcliff comic strip. | 3
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| Yogi Bear | January 25, 2017 | A character looking like Snagglepuss appears in a Heathcliff comic strip. | 3
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| Ren & Stimpy | August 22, 2017 | A character looking like Stimpy appears in a Heathcliff comic strip. | 3
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| Looney Tunes | October 09, 2017 | A character looking like Sylvester appears in a Heathcliff comic strip. | 3 |
