View source for Casper the Friendly Ghost

{{short description|Fictional cartoon ghost}}
{{About|the character|the theatrical shorts|Casper the Friendly Ghost filmography|the feature-length films|Casper the Friendly Ghost in film}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2013}}
{{Infobox character<!--Wikipedia:WikiProjectCartoon-->
| image = Casper (character).png
| first_major = [[The Friendly Ghost]]
| first_date = November 16, 1945
| creator = [[Seymour Reit]]<br>[[Joe Oriolo]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1985/12/27/cartoonist-joseph-d-oriolo-creator-of-casper-the-ghost/ |title=Cartoonist Joseph D. Oriolo, Creator Of Casper The Ghost |website=Chicago Tribune |date=1985-12-27 |access-date=2016-03-04}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-12-27-mn-25486-story.html |title=Man Who Produced First 'Casper' Ghost Film Dies |website=Articles.latimes.com |date=1985-12-27 |access-date=2016-03-05}}</ref><br>Vincent E. Valentine II<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.oldpanamacitybeach.com/2017/12/09/valentine-creator-casper-ghost-early-60s/|title=Creator of "Casper the Ghost" and Jungle Land|date=December 9, 2017}}</ref>
| adapted_by = [[Harvey Comics]]
| voice = [[#Actors who have voiced or portrayed Casper|See voices actors]]
| race = Ghost (deceased human in some versions)
| gender = Male
| title = The Friendly Ghost
| family = [[Ghostly Trio|The Ghostly Trio]] (uncles)
}}
'''Casper the Friendly Ghost''' is a fictional character who serves as the [[protagonist]] of the [[Famous Studios]] theatrical animated cartoon series of the same name. He is a translucent [[ghost]] who is pleasant and personable,<ref name="nytimes_obit">{{cite news | title=Seymour V. Reit, 83, a Creator of Casper the Friendly Ghost | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/12/17/arts/seymour-v-reit-83-a-creator-of-casper-the-friendly-ghost-706876.html | access-date=August 21, 2010 | date=December 17, 2001 | work=[[The New York Times]] | first=Eric P. | last=Nash}}</ref> but often criticized by his three wicked uncles, [[the Ghostly Trio]].

The character was featured in [[Casper the Friendly Ghost filmography|55 theatrical cartoons]] titled ''The Friendly Ghost'' from 1945 to 1959.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=6 June 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/62/mode/2up |pages=63–64}}</ref> The character has been featured in comic books published by [[Harvey Comics]] since 1952,<ref name=Chron>{{cite book |last1=Schelly |first1=William |title=American Comic Book Chronicles: The 1950s |date=2013 |publisher=TwoMorrows Publishing |isbn=9781605490540 |page=61}}</ref> and Harvey purchased the character outright in 1959. Casper became one of Harvey's most popular characters, headlining several comic book titles.

Following Harvey's purchase of the character, he appeared in five television series: ''[[Matty's Funday Funnies]]'' (1959–1961), ''[[The New Casper Cartoon Show]]'' (1963–1970), ''[[Casper and the Angels]]'' (1979), ''[[The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper]]'' (1996–1998) and ''[[Casper's Scare School (TV series)|Casper's Scare School]]'' (2009–2012).<ref>{{cite book |last1=Erickson |first1=Hal |title=Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 |date=2005 |edition=2nd |publisher=McFarland & Co |isbn=978-1476665993 |pages=188–191}}</ref> The character made his theatrical film debut in a live-action adaptation of the series by [[Universal Pictures]]: ''[[Casper (film)|Casper]]'' (1995), to where he became the first computer-generated character to star in a film.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nyfa.edu/student-resources/12-movies-revolutionized-visual-effects/|title=12 Movies That Revolutionized Visual Effects|date=November 20, 2014}}</ref> He would later appear in four [[direct-to-video]] and [[Television film|made-for-TV]] follow-up films.

== Creation ==
Casper was developed by [[Seymour Reit]] and [[Joe Oriolo]], the former devising the idea for the character and the latter providing illustrations.<ref name = "guardian_obit">{{cite news|title=Obituary: Seymour Reit|url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2001/dec/24/guardianobituaries.books|access-date=August 21, 2010|date=December 24, 2001|work=[[The Guardian]]|location=London}}</ref> Initially intended as the basis for a children's storybook, there was at first little interest in their idea and the book went unpublished.

In the original Harveytoons animation, Casper has been seen standing next to a grave inscribed with "Casper", that supports the theory he is indeed a ghost. Originally, stories have shown that his visibility is due to wearing a sheet. In the Casper live-action film, this is not shown and it is implied that he is naturally visible to humans as a white creature.<ref>{{Cite web |title=''CASPER'' MAY BE FRIENDLY, BUT HE WAS A PROBLEM TO FILM |url=https://scholar.lib.vt.edu/VA-news/VA-Pilot/issues/1995/vp950523/05240038.htm |access-date=2023-05-04 |website=scholar.lib.vt.edu}}</ref> When Reit was away on military service during World War II before the book was released, Oriolo sold the rights to the book to [[Paramount Pictures]]' [[Famous Studios]] animation division for a total of $175. This one-time payment was all that he received, missing out on a share of the revenue earned from the films, comic books and merchandise to come.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=6 June 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/62/mode/2up |page=63}}</ref>

''[[The Friendly Ghost]]'', the first [[Noveltoons|Noveltoon]] to feature Casper, was released by Paramount in 1945 with a few differences from the book. In the cartoon adaptation, Casper is a cute ghost-child with a [[New York dialect|New York accent]] who inhabits a haunted house along with a community of adult ghosts who delight in scaring the living. Casper, in contrast, is a nonconformist among ghosts: he would prefer to make friends with people. He packs up his belongings and goes out into the world, hoping to find friends. However, the animals that he meets (a rooster, a mole, a cat, a mouse named [[Herman and Katnip|Herman]], and a group of hens) take one horrified look at him, scream: "A ghost!" and run off in the other direction. Distraught, Casper unsuccessfully attempts to commit suicide (apparently forgetting that he is already dead) by lying down on a railway track before an oncoming train, before he meets two children named Bonnie and Johnny who become his friends. The children's mother, apparently widowed and impoverished, at first is frightened of Casper, but later welcomes him into the family after he unintentionally frightens off a greedy landlord, who, unwilling to own a "haunted" house, tears up the mortgage and gives her the house outright. The short ends with the mother kissing Bonnie, Johnny, and Casper as she sends them off to school, with Casper wearing clothing as if he were a living child.

Casper appeared in two more subsequent cartoons, ''[[There's Good Boos To-Night]]'' and ''[[Casper A Haunting We Will Go|A Haunting We Will Go]]''. ''There's Good Boos To-Night'' differs wildly from later Casper cartoons: although the theme of Casper trying to find a friend and failing in these attempts before succeeding also occurs in later cartoons, the tone of this short turns remarkably dark when a hunter and his dogs appear, chasing the little fox cub named Ferdie that Casper has befriended. Although Casper scares the hunter and dogs away, Casper discovers Ferdie dead after a harrowing chase scene. Happily, however, Ferdie returns as a ghost to join his friend Casper in the [[afterlife]].

These three cartoons were initially billed as [[Noveltoons]] before Paramount started the official ''Casper the Friendly Ghost'' series in 1950, and ran the theatrical releases until summer 1959. Most of the entries in the series were relatively the same: Casper (now slightly thinner than the pudgy figure that appeared in the earlier cartoons) escapes from the afterlife of a regular ghost because he finds that scaring people can be tiresome year after year, tries to find friends but inadvertently scares almost everyone, and finally finds a (cute little) friend, whom he saves from some sort of fate, leading to his acceptance by those initially scared of him. Animation historian [[Leonard Maltin]], in his book ''Of Mice and Magic'', said that Casper was "the most monotonous character to invade cartoonland since [[Mighty Mouse]]. It seemed as it every Casper cartoon followed the same story line, with only minor variations.”<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Maltin |first1=Leonard |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xp9PEAAAQBAJ&dq=%E2%80%9CCasper+was+the+most+monotonous+character+to+invade+cartoonland+since+Mighty+Mouse.&pg=PA313 |title=Of Mice and Magic: A History of American Animated Cartoons; Revised and Updated |last2=Beck |first2=Jerry |date=1987-12-01 |publisher=Penguin |isbn=978-0-452-25993-5 |language=en}}</ref>

==Appearances==
===Harvey Comics===
[[File:Casper the Friendly Ghost issue No.1 (March, 1991).jpg|thumb|upright|left|Cover of ''Casper the Friendly Ghost'' #1 (March 1991)]]
Casper was first published in comics form in August 1949 by [[St. John Publications]], running for five issues until September 1951. In 1952, [[Alfred Harvey]], founder and publisher of [[Harvey Comics]] began producing ''Casper'' comic books. Casper first appeared in ''Harvey Comics Hits'' #61 (Oct 1952), and then moved to a solo book with ''Casper the Friendly Ghost'' #7 (December 1952).<ref name="Chron"/> In 1959, Harvey purchased the rights to the character outright.

Casper went on to headline a large number of comic book series, as well as appearing in back up stories and guest appearances in other titles. The ''Casper'' series inspired three popular spin-offs: ''[[Spooky the Tuff Little Ghost]]'', ''[[Wendy the Good Little Witch]]'', and ''[[Ghostly Trio|The Ghostly Trio]]''. Casper's titles include:

{{div col|colwidth=20em}}
* ''Casper''
* ''Casper Adventure Digest''
* ''Casper and...''
* ''Casper and Friends''
* ''Casper and Friends Magazine''
* ''Casper and Nightmare''
* ''Casper and Spooky''
* ''Casper and The Ghostly Trio''
* ''[[Casper: A Spirited Beginning]]'' (film adaptation)
* ''Casper Big Book''
* ''Casper Digest''
* ''Casper Digest Stories''
* ''Casper Digest Winners''
* ''Casper Enchanted Tales Digest''
* ''Casper Ghostland''
* ''Casper Giant Size''
* ''Casper Halloween Trick or Treat''
* ''Casper in Space''
* ''Casper in 3-D''
* ''Casper Magazine''
* ''Casper Movie Adaptation''
* ''Casper Space Ship''
* ''Casper's Ghostland''
* ''Casper's Scare School''
* ''Casper's Haunted Christmas''
* ''Casper Special''
* ''Casper Strange Ghost Stories''
* ''Casper, the Friendly Ghost''
* ''Casper TV Showtime''
* ''Famous TV Funday Funnies''
* ''The Friendly Ghost, Casper''
* ''Harvey Two-Pack''
* ''Nightmare and Casper''
* ''Richie Rich and Casper''
* ''Richie Rich, Casper, and Wendy''
* ''[[TV Casper and Company]]''
* ''[[Casper and the Spectrals]]''
{{div col end}}

In 2009, a new ''Casper'' comic was published, called ''[[Casper and the Spectrals]]'' by Arden Entertainment. Much like ''[[The Man of Steel (comics)|The Man of Steel]]'' and ''[[Batman: Year One]]'' did with their respective characters, it revamped Casper and several other Harvey characters for a new audience. After selling 6,400 copies of the first comic, the last two issues were published in 2010. Comic book publisher American Mythology picked up the ''Casper the Friendly Ghost'' title, and has also published ''Casper & Wendy'' and ''Casper & Hot Stuff''. 

===Television===
Casper has starred in five television shows:<ref name=Perlmutter>{{cite book |last1=Perlmutter |first1=David |title=The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows |date=2018 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=978-1538103739 |pages=114–116}}</ref>

* ''[[Matty's Funday Funnies]]'' (1959–1961)
* ''[[The New Casper Cartoon Show]]'' (1963–1970)
* ''[[Casper and the Angels]]'' (1979)
* ''[[The Harveytoons Show]]'' (known in the UK as '' [[Casper and Friends]]'') (1990–1994)
* ''[[The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper]]'' (1996–1998)
* ''[[Casper's Scare School (TV series)|Casper's Scare School]]'' (2009–2012)

After Harvey bought the rights to Casper and many other Famous properties in 1959 (including [[Herman and Katnip]], [[Little Audrey]], and [[Baby Huey]]), they began broadcasting the post-September 1950 theatrical Famous shorts on a television show sponsored by [[Mattel|Mattel Toys]] titled ''[[Matty's Funday Funnies]]'' on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] in 1959 which introduced the [[Barbie]] [[doll]] to the public. The other Famous produced Casper cartoons had already been acquired by television distributor [[U.M. & M. TV Corporation]] in 1956. U.M. & M. retitled just "A Haunting We Will Go", but credited "Featuring Casper The Friendly Ghost" as "Featuring Casper's Friendly Ghost".

New cartoons were created for ''[[The New Casper Cartoon Show]]'' in 1963, also on ABC. The original Casper cartoons were syndicated under the title ''[[The Harveytoons Show|Harveytoons]]'' (initially repackaged as ''Casper and Company'') in 1963 and ran continuously until the mid-90s. Casper has remained popular in reruns and merchandising.

[[Hanna-Barbera Productions]] also gave Casper two holiday specials, ''[[Casper's First Christmas]]'' (which also starred [[Yogi Bear]], [[Huckleberry Hound]], [[Snagglepuss]], [[Quick Draw McGraw]], [[Augie Doggie and Doggie Daddy]]) and ''[[Casper's Halloween Special]]'' (aka ''Casper Saves Halloween''), and also the [[Saturday morning cartoon]] series ''[[Casper and the Angels]]'' (an animated takeoff on two live-action hit shows ''Charlie's Angels'' and ''CHiPS'') in the autumn of 1979, all on [[NBC]]. Also featured on the NBC version was a big ghost named Hairy Scary (voiced by John Stephenson). None of Casper's original co-stars appeared in the show.

Between 1990 and 1994, Casper appeared in ''[[The Harveytoons Show]]'' which was known as ''Casper and Friends'' in the UK.<ref name=Woolery>{{cite book |last1=Woolery |first1=George W. |title=Children's Television: The First Thirty-Five Years, 1946-1981 |date=1983 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |isbn=0-8108-1557-5  |url=https://archive.org/details/childrenstelevis0000wool/page/64/mode/2up |access-date=14 March 2020 |pages=65–67}}</ref> This show featured other [[Harvey Comics]] characters and series including: [[Little Audrey]], [[Harvey Comics|Tommy Tortoise and Moe Hare]], [[Baby Huey]], [[Herman and Katnip]], [[Buzzy the Crow]], [[Modern Madcaps]], Possum Pearl, Professor Schmatlz, Jeeper and Creeper and others.<ref name=Woolery/> The show consisted of [[Famous Studios]]-produced cartoons from 1950 to 1964 and each episode of the series included three full cartoons and one "ToonTake" segment.<ref name=Woolery/>

In 1996, [[Amblin Entertainment]] and [[Universal Animation Studios|Universal Cartoon Studios]] created a new ''Casper'' series for [[Fox Kids]] called ''[[The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper]]'', based on the 1995 feature, that lasted two years and was never seen on television again after 1998.

In 2009, [[MoonScoop Group]], in association with [[Classic Media]], [[TF1]] and DQ, produced a TV show named ''[[Casper's Scare School (TV series)|Casper's Scare School]]'', based on the [[Casper's Scare School|film of the same name]].

In 2020, Casper appeared in a supporting role in the "Scare Bud" episode of ''[[Harvey Girls Forever!]]'', a series based on Harvey Comics characters.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/tv/2019/12/11/netflix-january-2020-new-grace-and-frankie-sabrina/4386946002/|title = Netflix's January 2020 list: 'Grace and Frankie', 'Sabrina' and 'The Goop Lab'|website=[[USA Today]]}}</ref>

A new live-action television series is in the works at [[Peacock (streaming service)|Peacock]], co-produced between [[Universal Content Productions]] and [[DreamWorks Animation]] with [[Wu Kai-yu]] writing and executive producing.<ref>{{cite web |title='Casper the Friendly Ghost' Live-Action Series in Development at Peacock|url=https://collider.com/casper-series-live-action-peacock/|work=[[Collider (website)|Collider]]|first=Ryan|last=O'Rourke|date=April 11, 2022|access-date=April 11, 2022}}</ref>

===Films===
{{main|Casper the Friendly Ghost in film}}
The [[Famous Studios]] version of Casper was one of many characters considered to appear in the 1988 film ''[[Who Framed Roger Rabbit]]''. Casper would have appeared at Marvin Acme's funeral, rising from Acme's grave as his coffin is lowered, scaring away the mourners. The funeral scene was storyboarded but cut before being animated.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://jimhillmedia.com/editor_in_chief1/b/jim_hill/archive/2014/05/08/storyboards-reveal-what-marvin-acme-s-funeral-in-quot-who-framed-roger-rabbit-quot-would-have-looked-like.aspx|title=Storyboards reveal what Marvin Acme's funeral in "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" would have looked like|first=Jim|last=Hill|website=jimhillmedia.com|date=May 8, 2014}}</ref>

Numerous ''Casper'' cartoons were released on home video by [[Universal Pictures|Universal Studios]] (via [[MCA Inc.]]), which also adopted the friendly ghost into a [[live-action]] [[feature film]] titled ''[[Casper (film)|Casper]]'' in 1995, where he and his wicked uncles, [[the Ghostly Trio]], were rendered via [[computer animation]], which initially created the first CGI lead character in a film. The film constructed a [[back-story]] for the character and is the only time in the series that the question of his death has been addressed. According to the film, Casper was a twelve-year-old boy living in Whipstaff Manor with his [[inventor]] father J.T. McFadden until he died from [[pneumonia]] after playing out in the cold until it was past nightfall. Two live-action direct-to-video follow-ups to the film, ''[[Casper: A Spirited Beginning]]'' and ''[[Casper Meets Wendy]]'' (which introduced [[Hilary Duff]] as fellow Harvey Comics character [[Wendy the Good Little Witch]]), were made. They were followed by ''[[Casper's Haunted Christmas]]'' (starring Spooky and Poil from the comics), and ''[[Casper's Scare School]]'', which were done entirely in [[Computer-generated imagery|CGI]] with no live-action elements.

In 2001, [[Harvey Entertainment]] was acquired by [[DreamWorks Classics|Classic Media]] which, until 2012, licensed the Harvey properties including Casper.<ref>{{cite news|title= Harvey Entertainment And Classic Media Amend Sale Agreement|work= [[Animation World Network]]|url= http://www.awn.com/news/business/harvey-entertainment-and-classic-media-amend-sale-agreement|access-date=May 18, 2012}}</ref>

Casper made a cameo in a [[MetLife]] commercial along with several other cartoon characters in 2012. Later that same year, Classic Media was acquired by [[DreamWorks Animation]], which in turn would be acquired by [[NBCUniversal]] in 2016, and thus [[Universal Pictures|Universal Studios]], the producer of the original live-action feature film, now manages the rights to the character and other related characters in addition to regaining the rights to ''Casper's Haunted Christmas'' (which Universal itself originally released in late 2000). However, ''Casper Meets Wendy'' is currently owned by [[The Walt Disney Company]] through [[BVS Entertainment]] and [[20th Television]].

In 2019, Casper made an appearance in a [[GEICO]] commercial.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.ispot.tv/ad/oiRb/geico-casper|title=GEICO Car Insurance TV Commercial, 'Movie Night With Casper the Friendly Ghost'|website=iSpot.tv}}</ref>

== Actors who have voiced or portrayed Casper ==
* Alan Shay, [[Cecil Roy]] and Gwen Davies voiced Casper in the majority of the Famous Studios cartoons.
* [[Anne Lloyd]] provided the voice in [[Golden Records]]' ''Casper the Friendly Ghost and The Little Ghost's Dance'' in 1951.<ref name="Goldren Record">{{cite web|title=78 RPM - Golden Records - USA - R61|url=https://www.45worlds.com/78rpm/record/r61|publisher=45worlds|accessdate=March 3, 2021}}</ref>
* [[June Foray]] provided the voice for [[Mattel|Mattel's]] Talking Casper the Friendly Ghost Doll in 1961.<ref name="Mattel 1">{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYsu-KzbT3Q&t=36s|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211117/KYsu-KzbT3Q| archive-date=2021-11-17|url-status=live|title=VINTAGE MATTEL TALKING CASPER DOLL COMMERCIAL|date=September 21, 2012 |publisher=YouTube|access-date=November 27, 2020}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref name="Mattel 2">{{cite web|title=1961 Talking "Casper, the Friendly Ghost" Doll|url=https://www.facebook.com/toysfromanotherera/videos/1154481941394730/|publisher=Facebook|access-date=November 27, 2020}}</ref>
* [[Norma MacMillan]] and [[Ginny Tyler]] provided the voice in ''[[The New Casper Cartoon Show]]''.
* [[Julie McWhirter]] provided the voice in ''[[Casper and the Angels]]'', ''[[Casper's Halloween Special]]'' and ''[[Casper's First Christmas]]''.
* [[Joanna Ruiz]] provided the voice for a British dub in 1991.<ref name="Joanna Ruiz 1">{{cite web|title=Joanna Ruiz|url=https://www.sueterryvoices.com/artist/joanna-ruiz|publisher=Sue Terry Voices|access-date=June 25, 2021}}</ref><ref name="Joanna Ruiz 2">{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8w-ZcIDsnI|title=Joanna Ruiz's Voices ~ Through the Years|date=September 15, 2023 |publisher=YouTube|access-date=February 18, 2024}}</ref>
* Christopher Miron Allport voiced Casper in an early 1990s [[Target Corporation|Target]] commercial.<ref name="Target">{{Cite web|url=https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/commercials/Target/|title=Target|website=Behind The Voice Actors|language=en-US|access-date=2020-12-08}}</ref><ref name="Resume">{{Cite web|title=Chris Resume PoSH|url=http://allportproductions.com/images/Chris_Resume_PoSH.pdf|publisher=Allport Productions|access-date=December 8, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160328094643/http://allportproductions.com/images/Chris_Resume_PoSH.pdf|archive-date=March 28, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>
* [[Malachi Pearson]] voiced the character in the 1995 film ''[[Casper (film)|Casper]]'' and ''[[The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper]]'' (1996–1998).
* [[Devon Sawa]] is the only actor to ever have played the character in live-action, portraying him in a sequence from the 1995 film in which Casper was temporarily brought back to life.
* [[April Winchell]] voiced Casper as a baby in ''The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper'' episode "Three Ghosts and a Baby".<ref name="Baby">{{Cite web|url=https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/tv-shows/The-Spooktacular-New-Adventures-of-Casper/Casper-Baby/|title=Voice of Casper (Baby) in The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper|website=Behind The Voice Actors|language=en-US|access-date=2020-12-08}}</ref>
* [[Lani Minella]] voiced Casper in ''Casper: The Interactive Adventure''.
* [[Jeremy Foley (actor)|Jeremy Foley]] voiced the character in ''[[Casper: A Spirited Beginning]]'' and ''[[Casper Meets Wendy]]''.
* Siobhan Moore and Paul Tiesler played Casper in ''Casper: The Musical''.<ref name="Casper Musical 1">{{Cite web|title=Casper the Musical live on stage in London|url=https://www.thisistheatre.com/londonshows/casper.html|publisher=thisistheatre.com|access-date=3 May 2023}}</ref><ref name="Casper Musical 2">{{Cite web|title=Casper: The Musical|date=June 28, 2001 |url=https://variety.com/2001/legit/reviews/casper-the-musical-1200468616/|publisher=Variety|access-date=May 3, 2023}}</ref>
* [[Brendon Ryan Barrett]] provided the voice in ''[[Casper's Haunted Christmas]]''.
* [[Devon Werkheiser]] voiced Casper in ''[[Casper's Scare School]]''.
* [[Carolyn Hennesy]] voiced Casper in ''[[Casper: Friends Around the World]]'' and ''[[Casper: Spirit Dimensions]]''
* Oliver Stern voiced Casper in a [[GEICO]] commercial in 2019.<ref name="GEICO">{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RclVQ-Usric&t=8s|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211117/RclVQ-Usric| archive-date=2021-11-17|url-status=live|title=Casper the Friendly Ghost GEICO Insurance New Commercial|date=September 29, 2019 |publisher=YouTube|access-date=November 27, 2020}}{{cbignore}}</ref>
* Jack Theodore Kruse played Casper in ''Casper the Friendly Musical''.<ref name="Casper Musical 3">{{Cite web|title=Casper the Friendly Musical|url=https://thechildrenstheatre.com/shows/casper-the-friendly-musical/|publisher=The Children's Theatre|access-date=May 3, 2023}}</ref>
* [[Bobby Moynihan]] voiced Casper in the fourth season of ''[[Harvey Girls Forever!]]''

== Friends/supporting characters ==
{{div col|colwidth=20em}}
* Johnny and Bonnie ("The Friendly Ghost")
* Ferdie Fox ("There's Good Boo's Tonight")
* Dudley Duck ("A Haunting We Will Go")
* [[Wendy the Good Little Witch]]
* [[Ghostly Trio|Ghostly Trio (Casper's uncles): Stretch, Fatso and Stinkie]] 
* The Witch Sisters (Wendy's aunties): Thelma, Velma and Zelma (sometimes)<ref>[https://www.comics.org/issue/202370/ "Where Have Our Friends Gone?", ''The Friendly Ghost, Casper'' #212 (September 1980) Harvey, 1958 Series]</ref>
* Archibald the Talking [[Wishing well|Wishing Well]]
* [[Hot Stuff the Little Devil]]
* Nightmare the Ghost Horse
* [[Spooky the Tuff Little Ghost]]
* Poil The Ghost, Spooky's Girlfriend
* Gned Gnome
* Gnewton Gnome<ref>[https://www.comics.org/issue/202370/ The Friendly Ghost, Casper #212 (September 1980), Harvey, 1958 series]</ref>
* Gnorman Gnome<ref>[https://www.comics.org/issue/202270/ The Friendly Ghost, Casper #112 (December 1967), Harvey, 1958 series]</ref>
* Sohini
* Arruda
* [[Richie Rich (comics)|Richie Rich]] (occasionally)<ref>[http://nealpolitan.blogspot.com/2015/01/crossover-review-richie-rich-and-casper.html "Crossover Review: Richie Rich and Casper", ''Overthought'', January 5, 2015]</ref>
* [[Little Audrey]]
* [[Little Dot]] (''[[Harvey Girls Forever!]]'')
* [[Little Lotta]] (''[[Harvey Girls Forever!]]'')
* Hairy Scary (''[[Casper and the Angels]]'', ''[[Casper's Halloween Special]]'' and ''[[Casper's First Christmas]]'')
* Mini and Maxi (''[[Casper and the Angels]]'')
* Nerdly and Fungo (''[[Casper and the Angels]]'')
* The Commander (''[[Casper and the Angels]]'')
* [[Yogi Bear]] (''[[Casper's First Christmas]]'')
* [[Boo-Boo Bear]] (''[[Casper's First Christmas]]'')
* [[Santa Claus]] (''[[Casper's First Christmas]]'')
* [[Huckleberry Hound]] (''[[Casper's First Christmas]]'')
* [[Snagglepuss]] (''[[Casper's First Christmas]]'')
* [[Quick-Draw McGraw]] (''[[Casper's First Christmas]]'')
* [[Augie Doggie and Doggie Daddy]] (''[[Casper's First Christmas]]'')
* Kat Harvey (''[[Casper (film)|Casper]]'' and ''[[The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper]]'')
* Dr. James Harvey (''[[Casper (film)|Casper]]'' and ''[[The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper]]'')
* Amelia Harvey (''[[Casper (film)|Casper]]'')
* Chris Carson (''[[Casper: A Spirited Beginning]]'')
* Tim Carson (''[[Casper: A Spirited Beginning]]'')
* Sheila Fistergraff (''[[Casper: A Spirited Beginning]]'')
* Jennifer (''[[Casper: A Spirited Beginning]]'')
* The Oracle in the Mirror (''[[Casper Meets Wendy]]'')
* Holly Jollimore (''[[Casper's Haunted Christmas]]'')
* Jimmy Bradley (''[[Casper's Scare School|Casper's Scare School (film)]]'' and ''[[Casper's Scare School (TV series)]]'')
* Ra (''[[Casper's Scare School|Casper's Scare School (film)]]'', ''[[Casper's Scare School (video game)]]'', ''[[Casper's Scare School (TV series)]]'' and ''Casper's Scare School (comics)'')
* Mantha the Zombie (''[[Casper's Scare School|Casper's Scare School (film)]]'', ''[[Casper's Scare School (video game)]]'', ''[[Casper's Scare School (TV series)]]'' and ''Casper's Scare School (comics)'')
* Professor Phinieas Field (''[[Casper and the Spectrals]]'')
* Eloise "Ellie" Essex (''[[Casper and the Spectrals]]'')
* Hot Stuff's family (nameless parents and brother, ''[[Casper and the Spectrals]]'')
{{div col end}}

== Enemies ==
{{div col|colwidth=30em}}
* Unnamed Greedy Landlord ("The Friendly Ghost")
* An unnamed fox and duck hunter and his two hunting dogs ("There's Good Boo's Tonight" and "A Haunting We Will Go")
* Winifred The Witch (''[[Casper's Halloween Special]]'')
* Screech The Ghost (''[[Casper's Halloween Special]]'')
* [[Kibosh (Casper the Friendly Ghost)|Kibosh The Ghost]] (arch-enemy, ''[[Casper: A Spirited Beginning]]'', ''Casper: Activity Center'', ''[[Casper's Haunted Christmas]]'', ''Casper: Friends Around the World'', ''[[Casper: Spirit Dimensions]]'', ''[[Casper's Scare School|Casper's Scare School (film)]]'', ''[[Casper's Scare School (TV series)]]'' and ''[[Casper's Scare School (video game)#Casper's Scare School: Classroom Capers|Casper's Scare School: Classroom Capers]]'')
* Snivel The Ghost (''[[Casper: A Spirited Beginning]]'', ''Casper: Activity Center'' and ''[[Casper's Haunted Christmas]]'')
* The Wizard (''[[Casper: Spirit Dimensions]]'')
* Four Dragons (''[[Casper: Spirit Dimensions]]'')
* Krank (''[[Casper: Spirit Dimensions]]'')
* Doctor Deranged (''[[Casper: Spirit Dimensions]]'')
* Captain Pegleg Potbelly (''[[Casper: Spirit Dimensions]]'')
* [[Ghostly Trio|Ghostly Trio (Casper's uncles): Stretch, Fatso and Stinkie]] (sometimes)
* The Witch Sisters (Wendy's aunties): Thelma, Velma and Zelma (sometimes)<ref>[https://www.comics.org/issue/202270/ "Wow! What a Whammy!", ''The Friendly Ghost, Casper'' #112 (December 1967), Harvey, 1958 Series]</ref>
* Catherine "Carrigan" Crittenden (''[[Casper (film)|Casper]]'')
* Paul "Dibs" Plutzker (''[[Casper (film)|Casper]]'')
* Bill Case (''[[Casper: A Spirited Beginning]]'')
* Brock Lee (''[[Casper: A Spirited Beginning]]'')
* Danny (''[[Casper: A Spirited Beginning]]'')
* Leon (''[[Casper: A Spirited Beginning]]'')
* Jennifer (''[[Casper: A Spirited Beginning]]'') (sometimes)
* Desmond Spellman (''[[Casper Meets Wendy]]'')
* Vincent and Jules (''[[Casper Meets Wendy]]'')
* Josh Jackman and his unnamed friend (''[[Casper Meets Wendy]]'')
* Alder and Dash (''[[Casper's Scare School|Casper's Scare School (film)]]'' and ''[[Casper's Scare School (TV series)]]'')
* Thatch (''[[Casper's Scare School|Casper's Scare School (film)]]'', ''[[Casper's Scare School (video game)]]'', ''[[Casper's Scare School (TV series)]]'' and ''Casper's Scare School (comics)'')
* Volbragg (''[[Casper and the Spectrals]]'')
{{div col end}}

== Home media ==
In 2011, [[Shout! Factory]] released a DVD set titled ''Casper The Friendly Ghost: The Complete Collection 1945-1963'' which contains ''The Friendly Ghost'', ''There's Good Boos To-Night'', ''A Haunting We Will Go'', 55 theatrical cartoons, and all 26 episodes of ''The New Casper Cartoon Show''.

== Video games ==
=== ''Casper'' ===
{{main|Casper (video game)}}
Several video games were based on [[Casper (film)|the 1995 film]] for PC, [[Super Nintendo Entertainment System]], [[Game Boy]], [[Sega Saturn]], [[3DO Interactive Multiplayer|3DO]], [[PlayStation (console)|PlayStation]], and [[Game Boy Color]]. In subsequent years Windows 95 and Game Boy Advance games were released serving as sequels to the film.

=== ''Casper: A Spirited Beginning Activity Center'' ===
Developed by [[Take-Two Licensing|Sound Source Interactive]], published by [[WayForward|WayForward Technologies]] and released in 1998 for PC, it is based on [[Casper: A Spirited Beginning|the film of the same name]] and is similar in format to ''[[Disney's Activity Center]]''. Set at Ghost Central Station, the player earns Casper coins by completing Casper's Spinning Squares, Stretch's Memory Game, Fatso's Kitchen, Stinkie's Goo Toss and Snivel's Mix & Match. The player must collect at least 15 Casper coins from these five games to unlock Kibosh's Magic Puzzle.

=== ''Casper: Friends Around the World'' ===
{{Video game reviews
|Allgame={{rating|2.5|5}}<ref>{{cite web|last=Woods|first=Nick|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141115003543/http://www.allgame.com/game.php?id=25658&tab=review|archive-date=November 15, 2014|url=http://www.allgame.com/game.php?id=25658&tab=review|title=Casper: Friends Around the World|work=[[AllGame]]|access-date=October 23, 2020|url-status=dead}}</ref>
|OPMUK=4/10<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Bickham|first=Al|date=April 2001|title=Casper: Friends Around the World|magazine=[[Official UK PlayStation Magazine]]|issue=70|page=105}}</ref>
}}
Developed by [[Realtime Associates]], published by [[Sound Source Interactive]] in the United States and [[TDK Mediactive]] in Europe, this game was released in 2000 on PlayStation. It is a mostly [[Side-scrolling video game|2D side-scrolling]] platform game with occasional forward and backward movements. The evil Kibosh has invented a device to send Casper's human friends to a place where they "would not have a ghost of a chance of being found" and has hypnotized the Ghostly Trio into doing his bidding. However Casper finds a page from a map of Hollywood giving him a clue on where to start his quest to find his friends and the three missing pieces for Kibosh's imprisoning device to get them back home safely. The game is played across ten levels set around the world with 40 friendship crystals on each level to collect in order to advance to the bonus level at the end.

=== ''Casper: Spirit Dimensions'' ===
{{main|Casper: Spirit Dimensions}}
Developed by [[Lucky Chicken Games]] and published by [[TDK Mediactive]], it was the first [[3D computer graphics|3D game]], to have a movable game camera, based on Casper. It was released in 2001 for [[PlayStation 2]] and in 2002 for [[GameCube]]. The evil Kibosh has taken over the Spirit World and is intent on also taking over the mortal world. Meanwhile, [[Wendy the Good Little Witch]] summons Casper, the only remaining free ghost, and opens the portals to the Spirit Dimensions to help in their only chance to defeat Kibosh.

=== ''Casper and the Ghostly Trio'' ===
{{main|Casper and the Ghostly Trio (video game)}}
Developed by Data Design Interactive and published by [[Mastertronic Group#Blast! Entertainment|Blast! Entertainment]], it was released in 2007 on PlayStation 2. It is a 3D game in which Casper has legs and is affected by gravity though he can glide, unlike his flying ability in ''Spirit Dimensions''. The Ghostly Trio have kidnapped Wendy the Good Little Witch in an attempt to use her magic to create a potion that would give them the power to rule Ghostland. Wendy manages to use her magic to get the message across to Casper who must find his way through six levels to rescue her. At the end of the first five levels is a bonus stage in which Casper must collect as many jewels as he can while avoiding the Trio's lightning which is chasing him.

=== ''Casper's Scare School'' ===
{{main|Casper's Scare School (video game)}}
Developed by Data Design Interactive for PlayStation 2 and Nikitova Games for the Nintendo DS, it is based on the animated film and TV series of the same name released in 2008 and 2009.

=== ''Casper's Scare School: Spooky Sports Day'' ===
Developed in 2009 by [[The Code Monkeys]] for [[Wii]], [[Nintendo DS]] and [[iOS]].

==Copyright status==
As a result of a lawsuit between Harvey and [[Columbia Pictures]] in 1984, a court determined that a lapsed copyright had allowed Fatso, Casper's sidekick, to enter the public domain. Former Disney researcher Gregory S. Brown later discovered that Harvey had failed to renew other copyrights covering the company's ghosts, including Casper.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Menn |first=Joseph |date=2008-08-22 |title=Whose mouse is it anyway? |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2008-aug-22-fi-mickey22-story.html |access-date=2024-09-08 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref> As of 2016, [[Comcast]] (the parent company of [[NBCUniversal]]) currently owns the rights to Casper the Friendly Ghost through its subsidiary, [[DreamWorks Classics]] ([[DreamWorks Animation]]).

== See also ==
{{Portal|Cartoons}}
* [[Ghost story|Ghost stories]]
* [[Homer the Happy Ghost]]
* [[Timmy the Timid Ghost]]
* [[List of ghosts]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{cite web|title=Casper the Friendly Ghost|url=http://classics.dreamworksanimation.com/?portfolio=project-title-12|website=Dreamworks Classics|access-date=May 24, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140414100046/http://classics.dreamworksanimation.com/?portfolio=project-title-12|archive-date=April 14, 2014 |url-status=dead}}
* {{cite web|title=Casper the Friendly Ghost|url=http://www.classicmedia.tv/harvey/characters/casper.html|website=Harvey Entertainment|access-date=11 June 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060510171305/http://www.classicmedia.tv/harvey/characters/casper.html|archive-date=May 10, 2006}}
* [http://www.toonopedia.com/casper.htm Don Markstein's Toonopedia]

{{Casper the Friendly Ghost}}
{{Famous Studios}}
{{Ghosts}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Casper The Friendly Ghost}}
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