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97-450: Tom McGrath explained in an interview that the intention of Madagascar was not to take a political stance on whether "zoos are bad and the wild is better, or that the wild is bad," but to show "the most extreme 'fish out of water' story that (they) could do". McGrath stated "the basic irony to the story is that, you think animals do belong in the wild, but if they're so accustomed to civility, they wouldn't know where food even came from," and

194-403: A Sunday school choir for Thanksgiving , or as a drinking song. Although it has no original connection to Christmas, it became associated with winter and Christmas music in the 1860s and 1870s, and it was featured in a variety of parlor song and college anthologies in the 1880s. It was first recorded in 1889 on an Edison cylinder ; this recording, believed to be the first Christmas record,

291-605: A bobblehead doll. In The Penguins of Madagascar , the bobblehead is nowhere to be seen. In Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted , it is revealed that Skipper, Kowalski, Rico and Private, along with Mason and Phil, have been in Monte Carlo. With Phil dressed as the "King of Versailles," they are able to amass a fortune of jewels, diamonds and gold and plan to buy an aircraft to pick up the "hippies" (Alex, Marty, Gloria, and Melman) in Africa and return to New York. Things change when Alex and

388-414: A motif that has been inserted into recordings of other Christmas songs, most notably at the beginning and end of Bing Crosby 's " It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas "; a guitar passage at the end of Nat King Cole 's " The Christmas Song "; and Clarence Clemons performing a saxophone solo in the middle of Bruce Springsteen 's " Merry Christmas Baby ". A piano is also heard playing these notes at

485-462: A sea lion , and defeating DuBois. The character also appears in a silhouette at the beginning of the film Penguins of Madagascar , and has no dialogues. Marty is a male plains zebra who used to live at the Central Park Zoo, and is a good friend of Alex. He once had an iPod before Alex accidentally broke it. Marty likes seaweed on a stick. Marty is a hopeless optimist ; he usually sees

582-515: A No. 1 hit on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart with a recording of the song. "Jingle Bells" was one of the first songs to broadcast from space , in a Christmas-themed prank by Gemini 6 astronauts Tom Stafford and Wally Schirra . While in space on December 16, 1965, they sent this report to Mission Control : C6: Gemini VII, this is Gemini VI. We have an object, looks like a satellite going from north to south, probably in

679-492: A cannon. Alex tells them why they had to join the circus. Alex convinces his friends and Julien that they were wrong and they decide to go back until DuBois comes. Awakening, Alex realizes they are back in the zoo with iron cage links between them. Luckily the circus came and rescued him. But DuBois is still determined to get Alex's head and is taking Stefano. But Alex saves the day (with Gia's help) by saving Stefano ( Martin Short ),

776-541: A dancing tightrope act that is performed in London. When Melman and his friends are pursued by DuBois, the circus discover their true identities. The character also appears in a silhouette at the beginning of the film Penguins of Madagascar , and has no dialogues. Gloria is a female hippopotamus who resided in the Central Park Zoo as an attraction, all the while being good friends with Alex, Marty, Melman, and becoming

873-671: A day spa. It is found out in "The Penguin Who Loved Me" that they are actually alive and living in Seaville. They see Skipper and the crew, and try to call out to them, but the four agree to never come back to Seaville and swim away, not noticing. In The Penguins of Madagascar , he uses some Italian words such as "Sempre all'erta" (in "Haunted Habitat"), "Bravissimo" (in "The Hidden"), "Attenzione" (in "Crown Fools"), "Eccellente" (in "Kingdom Come"), "Finito!" (in "Popcorn Panic") and "Perfetto" (in "An Elephant Never Forgets"). His Italian pronunciation

970-405: A drifted bank And then we got upsot. |: chorus :| In the next verse (which is often skipped), he falls out of the sleigh and a rival laughs at him: A day or two ago, The story I must tell I went out on the snow, And on my back I fell; A gent was riding by In a one-horse open sleigh, He laughed as there I sprawling lie, But quickly drove away. Ah! |: chorus :| In

1067-560: A fight with his friends they are exposed and are pursued by Captain Chantel DuBois. After cutting DuBois' snare, they fly back to New York until they crash in a train yard . Alex is determined to get back home and tries to fix the plane but fails. Then he persuades Gia ( Jessica Chastain ), a jaguar to let them on the train, with whom he falls in love in first sight. After being let on the train Alex, Marty, Melman and Gloria realized that this

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1164-432: A hippo named Moto Moto. Though she thinks he is the ideal boyfriend at first, she realizes that he only loves her for her enormous stomach, whereas Melman loves her for who she is. Realizing that she loves Melman back, she stops him from sacrificing himself into the volcano, even saying "It's crazy to think that I had to go halfway around the world to find out that the perfect guy for me lived right next door..." and then joins

1261-435: A hole, waiting to die in it. His love for Gloria is deep, and is always a gentleman to her; to Marty and Alex, he's just another one of the "awkward" guys. Melman had a residence at the Central Park Zoo, where he received constant medical treatment for problems that were all psychosomatic. He would undergo MRIs , CAT scans , injections , flu shots , and be put into braces and crutches for no particular purpose at all. In

1358-425: A life of comfort in the zoo. After his tenth birthday had come and gone, meaning that his life was already half over, Marty decided that never having seen the wild, he must travel to the wild, for at least a short time. In the movie, Alex says he's black with white stripes, as he has 30 black, and only 29 white, but this was partly because Alex had to give an explanation as to why he was licking Marty, as he thought he

1455-518: A moment of lucidity, he goes into self-imposed exile, barricading himself in fossa territory. Marty pursues him, unwilling to leave his friend, but is attacked by the fossa, the native predators of Madagascar. Alex works to defend Marty and is later given sushi by the penguins to satiate his hunger. In Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa , Alex encounters his parents, Zuba and Florrie ( Sherri Shepherd ), who are overjoyed to see their son and he becomes co-alpha lion alongside his father. Zuba assumes Alex

1552-660: A place where nearly no lemurs can be found, he states that he cannot set foot in Denmark; when Private questions him on this, he replies by saying "Well, that's private, Private, between me and the Danes." It is later revealed that the incident in question was caused by Hans the Puffin, revolving around a fish fight and top secret documents that made them both public enemy number one. Skipper has mentioned that there used to be two more penguins (Manfredi and Johnson, named for two ill-fated characters in

1649-428: A polar orbit. He's in a very low trajectory traveling from north to south and has a very high climbing ratio. It looks like it might even be a ... Very low. Looks like he might be going to reenter soon. Stand by one ... You might just let me try to pick up that thing. (Music – Jingle Bells – from Spacecraft VI) P7: We got the tune, VI. C6: That was live, VII, not tape. CC: You're too much, VI. The astronauts then produced

1746-409: A salvaged airplane, he screams he is in love with Gloria; but she is asleep and does not hear him. In Africa, Melman is horrified to learn that once a giraffe becomes sick, it has no way to survive and therefore must simply wait in a hole to die. He takes the position of Witch Doctor to cure sick animals, introducing them to Western medicine and giving them longer and better lives. While he proves to be

1843-490: A silhouette at the beginning of the film Penguins of Madagascar , and has no dialogues. Melman Mankiewicz is a male reticulated giraffe . He is a hypochondriac , having doses of medicine for meals and doctor's appointments frequently. He dreams of being a doctor. He is skittish most of the time, but often has moments of profound clarity. His experience being medicated has given him insight regarding how to treat sick or injured animals who might otherwise give up hope and dig

1940-431: A smuggled harmonica and sleigh bells, and with Schirra on the harmonica and Stafford on the bells, broadcast a rendition of "Jingle Bells". The harmonica, shown to the press upon their return, was a Hohner "Little Lady", a tiny harmonica approximately one inch (2.5 cm) long, by 3 ⁄ 8 of an inch (0.95 cm) wide. Music historian James Fuld notes that (as opposed to an adjective ), "the word jingle in

2037-413: A spy for Doctor Blowhole. According to him, there are actually 8 continents, since he counts Atlantis (and appears to believe it is off the coast of Brazil). He once tells Maurice that if he had Skipper's security clearance, he would believe it too. Skipper indicates that he believes that some new arrivals to the zoo could be flying piranha . In the episode "Launchtime," when he asks Kowalski to search for

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2134-461: A substantially different chorus . The progression of descending chords in the original refrain (A ♭ –E ♭ /G–Fm–C–D ♭ –A ♭ /E ♭ –E ♭ –A ♭ ; in Roman numeral analysis, I–V –vi–V/vi–IV–I 4 –V –I) bears some resemblance to that of Pachelbel's Canon . The verses, on

2231-553: A supporter of the Confederacy , dedicated the song to " John P. Ordway , Esq.", an organizer of a blackface minstrel troupe called "Ordway's Aeolians". It is an unsettled question where and when Pierpont originally composed the song that would become known as "Jingle Bells". A plaque at 19 High Street in the center of Medford Square in Medford, Massachusetts , commemorates the "birthplace" of "Jingle Bells", and claims that Pierpont wrote

2328-443: A very good witch doctor, he is informed by another giraffe that Melman has a brown spot on his shoulder, one which the previous Witch Doctor seemed to have gotten and "was gone" two days later. Thinking he only has two days to live, Melman initially waits in a hole, but then takes King Julien's advice and goes to declare his love to Gloria. He finds her on a date with Moto Moto and simply tells him that he had romantic feelings for Gloria

2425-414: Is lost , but an 1898 recording - also from Edison Records - survives. James Lord Pierpont originally copyrighted the song with the name "The One Horse Open Sleigh" on September 16, 1857. The songwriting credit given was "Song and Chorus written and composed by J. Pierpont." Possibly intended as a drinking song, it didn't become a Christmas song until decades after it was first performed. Pierpont, later

2522-478: Is ) to ride and sing A sleighing song tonight. |: chorus :| Jingle bells, jingle bells, Jingle all the way; Oh! what joy ( fun ) it is to ride In a one-horse open sleigh. A day or two ago I tho't I'd take a ride And soon Miss Fannie Bright Was seated by my side. The horse was lean and lank Misfortune seemed his lot He got into a drifted bank And we— ( then ) we got upsot. The original 1857 version of "Jingle Bells" featured

2619-409: Is a major character in the first film, but Kowalski, Rico, and Private are supporting characters and don't talk much until The Madagascar Penguins in a Christmas Caper . All four penguins have major roles in the first sequel and supporting roles in the second sequel. Skipper is the leader of the adélie penguins (despite their color-schemes not matching the real species) and is the main character in

2716-415: Is able to make amends by picking Marty out of the herd (later revealed to be due to the bite mark left on his backside from the previous film, and the fact that he is black with white stripes, while the other zebras are all white with black stripes.) Marty accompanies his friend to unblock a dam set by stranded New Yorkers in the jungle (which causes the watering hole to dry up). When Alex is caught, Marty gets

2813-452: Is always bait because he "is gullible and expendable," but later becomes upset when Private is eaten. Although Skipper's plans and theories often serve as jokes, his most unorthodox theories are sometimes proven true; the Blowhole existence is the most extreme example of this. Doctor Blowhole is first mentioned in "Eclipsed", when Skipper brings up his plan to extinguish the sun; this is because

2910-502: Is an exceptionally capable fighter. He's also very strong, as seen in "Launchtime." In "Crown Fools," he states that he had taken down an angry walrus with "a wing and a prayer and another wing". However, in "Needle Point", it is revealed that he has a fear of needles , so in later episodes if he's injured he's treated with medical cream or the like. Generally, he is a straight man, displaying a very stereotypical general personality when not in battle: he's been shown waking his men up early in

3007-428: Is and to treat her right. When the watering hole dries up and King Julien decides to sacrifice an animal for the water gods, Melman offers himself. He is saved at the last moment, when Gloria tells him that she loves him back, and the two become a couple; it becomes apparent the "brown spot" was not fatal (the previous Witch Doctor is found alive and well, the brown spot in fact being a natural giraffe spot); however, there

List of Madagascar (franchise) characters - Misplaced Pages Continue

3104-417: Is asked by Private if they should tell Alex and his friends that the ship is out of gas. Skipper declines, telling his troupe to "Just smile and wave, boys. Smile and wave." In Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa , Skipper and the penguins salvage a crashed airplane to fly back to New York. They fix the plane when it crashes in Africa with the help of "more thumbs" (Mason and Phil). At the end of the movie, he marries

3201-460: Is commonly interpreted to mean a certain kind of bell. Jingle Bells Dashing through the snow In a one-horse open sleigh O'er the fields we go Laughing all the way Bells on bob tail ring Making spirits bright What fun it is to ride and sing A sleighing song tonight! Oh! Jingle bells, jingle bells, Jingle all the way. Oh! what fun it is to ride In a one-horse open sleigh. Hey! Jingle bells, jingle bells, Jingle all

3298-509: Is confused at the lettering on the crate where they are being held and orders Mason to read it; Mason's companion Phil reads it. According to the box, they are all bound for a wildlife preserve in Africa, despite the cold climate penguins need. Skipper orders Rico to pick the lock on the crate where they are held, whereupon the four penguins knock out the crew and take command of the ship, commandeering it to reach Antarctica. Skipper and his mates finally reach Antarctica and are sorely disappointed by

3395-502: Is found by humans who renamed him Alex and took him to the Central Park Zoo. In Madagascar , after Marty, Alex's best friend, leaves in an effort to take a train to the wild, Alex, Gloria the Hippopotamus (voiced by Jada Pinkett Smith ), and Melman the Giraffe (voiced by David Schwimmer ) pursue him and are shot with tranquilizer darts by humans. The animal-rights activists pressure

3492-580: Is known for the DreamWorks animated film Madagascar , which he co-wrote and directed with Eric Darnell while voicing the character of Skipper the Penguin . The film spawned two direct sequels . along with a spin-off animated series and film based on the penguins in which McGrath reprised his role as Skipper. McGrath also directed the DreamWorks animated films Megamind (2010) and The Boss Baby (2017),

3589-596: Is later able to rejoin his friends as they attempt to head back to the zoo, but the boat the penguins used was 'out of gas'. Marty, along with his friends, has only a few small cameos in The Madagascar Penguins in a Christmas Caper . He, Alex, and Gloria are seen at the beginning decorating Melman's neck with Christmas lights. At the end, he, his friends, and almost all the other zoo animals are seen singing their own version of "Jingle Bells". In Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa , Marty (along with Alex, Melman, Gloria,

3686-426: Is not a fierce warrior. The next day, the watering hole is shown to be dried up and Alex leaves with Marty to find out the cause. They leave the safety of the reserve, prompting Zuba to follow Alex and bring him back. Alex discovers that the stranded New Yorkers had created a dam, and through the use of dancing, he is recognized by the attacking New Yorkers. With the help of others, the dam is destroyed and they return to

3783-423: Is not a scene where Melman is told of this. It is assumed that he figured it out when his "time" came and went and he was fine. He was last seen dancing off into the sunset with Gloria, Alex and Marty. In Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted , Melman and Gloria are still together. They and the other animals go to Monte Carlo to find the penguins. Once inside the hotel, Melman, Alex and Marty argue over who should be

3880-471: Is not perfect. In "The Falcon and the Snow Job," Skipper falls for a female Peregrine falcon named Kitka and they date for a while. Skipper breaks up with her after it is revealed that she had swallowed Fred the squirrel, and in subsequent episodes, she wasn't heard from or mentioned. Tom McGrath (animator) Thomas McGrath (born August 7, 1964) is an American voice actor, animator and filmmaker. He

3977-477: Is often the subject of parody . "Jingle Bells, Batman Smells" has been a well-known parody since the mid-1960s, with many variations on the lyrics. It has been referenced several times in official Batman media, notably appearing in the second episode of Batman: The Animated Series , " Christmas with the Joker ". It also appears in the first episode of The Simpsons , " Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire ", which led

List of Madagascar (franchise) characters - Misplaced Pages Continue

4074-467: Is strong after hearing he is the "King" of New York and arranges a rite of passage into the pride. Makunga ( Alec Baldwin ), Zuba's rival, persuades Alex to challenge Teetsi during the Alex's rite of passage . Teetsi was revealed to be a bulky, strong lion and Alex is quickly defeated by him. To keep from banishing Alex, Zuba transfers his control to Makunga, and in turn, he, Florrie, and Alex are banished. Zuba soon grows unaccepting of Alex after realizing he

4171-545: The Grand Central Terminal station to take a Metro North train and go to Connecticut , where Marty heard wide open spaces were found. Gloria urged both Alex and Melman to come with her to find Marty and bring him back before any people would notice. They were found, regardless, along with Mason and Phil, the two chimps, and a troupe of secretive penguins, all ending up tranquilized with darts. When they all came to, they found themselves in crates bound for Africa. When

4268-688: The Modernaires on vocals had a No. 5 hit on the Billboard pop singles chart with a big band arrangement of "Jingle Bells" on RCA Victor as Bluebird 11353-A. In 1943, Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters recorded "Jingle Bells" as Decca 23281 which reached No. 19 on the charts and sold over a million copies. In 1951, Les Paul had a No. 10 hit with a multi-tracked version on guitar. In 2001, House of Mouse version, sung by Wayne Allwine , Russi Taylor , and Bill Farmer . In 2006, Kimberley Locke had

4365-451: The Southern hemisphere , making reference to a Holden ute and Kelpie . " Jingle Bell Rock " by Bobby Helms pays homage to "Jingle Bells", directly referencing the source song's lyrics, but with a different melody. Originally recorded and released by Helms in a rockabilly style, "Jingle Bell Rock" has itself since become a Christmas standard. The first notes in the chorus have become

4462-457: The World War II prisoner-of-war saga Stalag 17 ) in addition to himself and the other three; and these claims have never been adequately explained. When they're brought up, it's usually as a warning or an aside remark, as they died in the past during a mission. In "The Hidden", he mentions that they died during a mission when they were attacked by "flying piranhas" and that they had to "bury what

4559-503: The 2021 sequel The Boss Baby: Family Business . Jingle Bells " Jingle Bells " is one of the most commonly sung Christmas songs in the world. It was written in 1850 by James Lord Pierpont at Simpson Tavern in Medford, Massachusetts. It was published under the title " The One Horse Open Sleigh " in September 1857. It has been claimed that it was originally written to be sung by

4656-513: The Central Park Zoo, Melman was used to his cushy life taking pills and undergoing treatments. One night, Marty the Zebra escaped and Melman immediately informed Alex of this. In a flashback in Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa , there is a hint that he had a crush on Gloria as a child (as he felt jealous when she comments that Alex is cute). When the animals nearly die trying to fly back to New York in

4753-529: The English lyrics. Both songs celebrate winter fun, as in the English version. The French song, titled "Vive le vent" ("Long Live the Wind"), was written by Francis Blanche and contains references to Father Time , Baby New Year , and New Year's Day . There are several German versions of "Jingle Bells", including Roy Black 's "Ein kleiner weißer Schneemann". Like many simple, catchy, and popular melodies, "Jingle Bells"

4850-477: The Revenge of Dr. Blowhole." Wally Wingert reprises his role from the first video game. In the show, he appeared as a hallucination "spirit guide" to help Skipper, whose memories had been stolen by the evil dolphin known as Dr. Blowhole. At first, Skipper thought he was very talkative and annoying, but soon he accepted his guidance, especially when he had to face Blowhole when he got back to New York City. A running gag in

4947-470: The TV show. His head is flatter than those of the other three penguins. Like the rest of the penguins, he has no idea what is expected of the penguin species, other than to "smile and wave." At one point, Private used a bird biology book to tell the other penguins how to act, but since the penguins usually need the chimpanzees Phil and Mason to translate for them, it was unclear how either he or Private were able to read

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5044-429: The animals were meant to "love the zoo and to love where they are because they've got" 5,000 square feet (460 m) "right off Fifth Avenue". McGrath also described, during the research of Madagascar, they "found these crazy, weird animals that were already cartoons in their own right." Alex (born Alakay ) is a male African lion . He's happy, go-lucky and is best friends with Marty (voiced by Chris Rock ). He's

5141-543: The animals, and send them on a ship to a wildlife preserve in Kenya . The penguins take over the ship and the four friends are washed up on the shores of Madagascar . Once on the island, Marty had his dream fulfilled. Marty sets up a "bar" on the island, known as "Casa del Wild" (English: Home of the Wild ). Alex gets mad at Marty for getting them shipped to the wild, but he later apologizes to Marty and actually begins to enjoy himself on

5238-463: The barren, desolate terrain. Skipper has the ship return quickly from the South Pole, where it crashes into the beaches of Madagascar and a much warmer climate. Upon arriving, he and the other three encounter Gloria and Melman, and see that Alex and Marty are gone. Skipper decides to help rescue Marty from the grim fate of being eaten by the native fossa (possibly as gratitude for Marty's silence regarding

5335-475: The biology book, which is presumably written in English. His sidekicks, Kowalski, Rico, and Private don't talk much until The Madagascar Penguins in a Christmas Caper . In the first Madagascar movie, Skipper is the handsome mastermind with an attractive voice, and the brains behind the plot to escape the confines of the zoo and leave for Antarctica. Kowalski, Rico, and Private are his accomplices in this plot. They dig under their enclosure until they reach Marty

5432-452: The brighter side of many things, taking every situation in stride. He strives to be unique, which proves difficult when he meets his own kind in Africa, who look and act almost exactly the same. Marty is best friends with Alex and the two are rarely at odds. His carefree lifestyle tends to get on the nerves of his friends, but mostly serves to impress them; he is the one who helps hold the group together when things seem to get down. Marty lived

5529-590: The challenge to Teetsi and is spanked by Nana in Madagascar gives him the impression he is a horrible fighter, but this is not true, because (in the Nana case), she only gets Alex by surprise, but was more visible when in Madagascar 2 , he has a short fight against Nana. Alex is shown to have a superhuman level of physical strength, seeing that he broke the zoo's public telephone, and lifts Melman, Marty and Gloria with relative ease. Alex made another appearance in "The Return of

5626-471: The consequences brought upon by his impulsive actions, such as sacrificing his and the other's lives at the Zoo (the one safe place they called home) and the misfortune he caused his best friend, Marty comes to truly regret his birthday wish. However, after learning of the penguins having hijacked a boat and are offering the zoo animals a trip back home, Marty immediately runs after Alex in hopes to save his friend. Alex

5723-430: The episode is that Skipper's friends are confused and convinced he's crazy when they see him talk to Alex, since only Skipper can see him. After Dr. Blowhole was defeated, Alex's spirit guide form disappeared. In Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted , it opens on Alex's birthday and after a present from his friends of a mud New York he is determined to get the penguins from Monte Carlo . Alex creates four phases and after

5820-403: The escape). It is Skipper who helps to distract the fossa while Marty is recovered, and also helps fight off a number of them. Skipper notices later on that Alex is still hungry, not having been able to eat steak, and has Rico prepare sushi for Alex. Skipper then relinquishes control of the ship to Alex, as he no longer needs it, and proceeds to sunbathe on the tropical beaches in comfort. Skipper

5917-407: The exploding elephant foot." They are also mentioned by Private, who claims that they mistook the hind end of a beluga whale for an escape tunnel. In "Maurice at Peace," it is implied that they were accidentally smothered by the others due to a misinterpretation of a message which actually said to smother them with affection. In "Smotherly Love," it is mentioned that they died a very relaxing death in

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6014-455: The island. Unfortunately, his enjoyment brings on his killer instincts, causing him to attack the resident lemurs and his friends, including Marty. Alex does not "go savage" for long, and after regaining his senses, he runs away from his friends out of regret. Soon after that, Marty learns the hard way that the wild is not what it seems to be, and how hard it really is for many animals to live there with so many predators and other dangers. Realizing

6111-459: The last verse, after relating his experience, he gives advice to a friend to pick up some girls, find a faster horse, and take off at full speed: Now the ground is white Go it while you're young, Take the girls tonight and sing this sleighing song; Just get a bobtailed bay Two forty as his speed Hitch him to an open sleigh And snap! You'll take the lead. |: chorus :| Notes to lyrics The two first stanzas and chorus of

6208-719: The latter of which received an Academy Award and Golden Globe Award nomination. McGrath returned as director for its 2021 sequel . McGrath was born and raised in Lynnwood, Washington . He studied Industrial Design at the University of Washington and graduated from the Character Animation program at Cal Arts . McGrath's experience in both television and feature animation includes work as an animator on Cool World and Space Jam , storyboard artist and director for seasons 3-5 of The Ren and Stimpy Show , and storyboard artist on

6305-490: The latter's girlfriend as of Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa . Gloria comically serves as the height and weight of the gang, both intentionally and in situations she accidentally falls into. She is often serious with what she is talking about and the guys are careful not to get on her nerves. As a hippopotamus, Gloria is another animal in the Central Park Zoo and was one of the many attractions, drawing crowds that enjoyed seeing her swim about in her water tank. She would also receive

6402-471: The leader of the group. They are crushed by Gloria's weight and they fall into the casino. Whilst escaping the hotel with the other animals, they are pursued by DuBois. On the way they lose DuBois and manage to reach the Hotel Ambassador. While boarding the plane, Melman is grabbed by the neck when DuBois appears. Alex with a little help from Mort, cuts the rope and saves Melman. Above the skies of France,

6499-489: The leader of the squad of penguin characters, Skipper . He reprised his role as Skipper and co-directed and co-wrote the sequel, Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa , and co-directed Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted . He worked on The Penguins of Madagascar , a spin-off TV series, as a creative consultant and as the voice of Skipper. He directed Megamind , released in November 2010. In 2017, he directed The Boss Baby and

6596-418: The lemurs, and the penguins) finds himself stranded in Africa after a failed attempt at flying to New York. There, he joins a herd of zebra that all look and sound exactly like him. While he enjoys this new lifestyle at first, he quickly becomes depressed when it becomes evident he has no individuality in a herd. Marty also becomes upset when Alex is unable to tell him apart from the other zebras. Ultimately, Alex

6693-572: The live action film Cats & Dogs . He worked as a storyboard artist, concept artist and prop and set designer for How the Grinch Stole Christmas . McGrath also stepped in on Flushed Away by Aardman , the creators of The Curse of the Were-Rabbit , to help make improvements prior to its release. McGrath made his film directing debut as the co-director and co-writer of Madagascar along with Eric Darnell , where he also voiced

6790-460: The mayor of Savannah. Pierpont remained in Savannah and never returned north. The double meaning of "upsot" was thought humorous, as a sleigh ride gave an unescorted couple a rare chance to be together, unchaperoned, in distant woods or fields, with all the opportunities that afforded. This "upset", a term Pierpont transposed to "upsot", became the climactic component of a sleigh-ride outing within

6887-421: The morning for training, has given them trials on being able to work without him a number of times, and has been shown to being very hard-boiled. He is, though, soft on his men at times, properly rewarding them and even showing fear and worry when he knows they're in danger. He becomes especially upset when he believes one of them to be dead. He often tries to hide this part, as he once told Private that he (Private)

6984-407: The movie). As a cub, Alex was born on an African wildlife reserve, and was named Alakay. He was the only son of the alpha lion, Zuba (voiced by Bernie Mac ), and was constantly given lessons on hunting, though he displayed no interest in the activity. During one of the sessions, Alex was captured by poachers , but the crate he was contained in fell into a river and eventually floated to New York. He

7081-460: The original 1857 lyrics differed slightly from those known today. It is unknown who replaced the words with those of the modern version. Underlined lyrics are the removed lyrics from the original version. Bold lyrics are the new lyrics in the current version. Dashing thro' the snow, In a one-horse open sleigh, O'er the hills ( fields ) we go, Laughing all the way; Bells on bob tail ring, Making spirits bright, Oh what sport ( What fun it

7178-461: The other animals in rescuing Alex from Nana. Gloria returns in Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted with Melman, the couple finds their way as they contribute to the circus' success with a spectacular tightrope act. The character also appears in a silhouette at the beginning of the film Penguins of Madagascar , and has no dialogues. The Penguins are a group of NYC adélie penguin spies. Skipper

7275-462: The other animals to help rescue him. In Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted , Marty joins the circus along with the others. His circus act is cannon along with Stefano the Sea Lion . In the middle of the film, Marty loves his afro. At the end of the film, it is shown that Marty is dancing in his afro (along with the others) to the tune "Afro Circus / I like to Move it". The character also appears in

7372-452: The other hand, have mostly the same melody (with some minor simplifications) in modern renditions as they did in 1857. The origin of the simpler, modern refrain is unknown, but it dates back at least 1898, when the oldest surviving phonograph recording of the song was released through Edison Records . The "Jingle Bells" tune is used in French and German songs, although the lyrics are unrelated to

7469-402: The others rush to Monte Casino, believing that the penguins have abandoned them. Skipper later uses the fortune to help the gang become part of a traveling circus. Skipper is one of the four main characters of The Penguins of Madagascar . In the show, many things are revealed about him and it expands on his character from the movies. In multiple episodes it is shown that Skipper knows karate and

7566-409: The penguins hijack the ship, the crates fall into the ocean and wash up on the island of Madagascar. After some confusion, they start to set up their own society and attract the attention of a lemur colony. In Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa , Gloria expresses a desire to join in the zoo breeding program, in the hopes of getting a mate. When the animals crash land in Africa, she attracts the attention of

7663-500: The plane's engine fails and it crash lands into a suburban rail yard. Whilst running from the authorities who are closing in on them, Melman gives Alex the idea of boarding the train containing the circus. Upon arrival in Rome, Melman and the group realize how terrible the circus was. En route to London, Melman and the others are discussing how terrible the circus was before Alex tells them about his newfound inspiration. Melman and Gloria create

7760-421: The preserve. His father learns to respect his habits, and they remain in Africa instead of flying home with the penguins. In The Madagascar Penguins in a Christmas Caper , a stuffed animal Alex is seen briefly and its head is quickly dismembered by Nana's toy poodle, Mr. Chew. Alex has small cameos with his friends celebrating Christmas and singing an alternate version of " Jingle Bells ". The fact that Alex loses

7857-484: The series to be misattributed with creating the parody. Parodies or novelty versions of "Jingle Bells" have been recorded by many artists, and include Yogi Yorgesson 's "Yingle Bells", Da Yoopers ' " Rusty Chevrolet ", Bucko and Champs ' "Aussie Jingle Bells", The Three Stooges ' "Jingle Bell Drag", and Jeff Dunham 's "Jingle Bombs", performed in his " Achmed the Dead Terrorist " sketch. Another popular spoof of

7954-676: The sleigh narrative. James Lord Pierpont's 1857 composition "Jingle Bells" became one of the most performed and most recognizable secular holiday songs ever written, not only in the United States, but around the world. In recognition of this achievement, James Lord Pierpont was voted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame . "Jingle Bells" was first recorded by banjoist Will Lyle on October 30, 1889 (attested A T E Wangemann Logbook, p. 114), on an Edison cylinder , but no surviving copies are known to exist. The earliest surviving vocal recording

8051-704: The song is "Pumpkin Bells", a "Pumpkin Carol" which celebrates Halloween and the "Great Pumpkin". It originated in The Peanuts Book of Pumpkin Carols , a booklet based on the Peanuts comic strip and published by Hallmark Cards in the 1960s. The Australian "Aussie Jingle Bells" written by Colin Buchanan , broadly translates the idea of the original song to the summertime Christmas of

8148-508: The song solely as a financial enterprise: "Everything about the song is churned out and copied from other people and lines from other songs—there's nothing original about it." By the time the song was released and copyrighted, Pierpont had relocated to Savannah, Georgia , to serve as organist and music director of that city's Unitarian Church (now Unitarian Universalist), where his brother, Rev. John Pierpont Jr., served as minister. In August 1857, Pierpont married Eliza Jane Purse, daughter of

8245-470: The song there in 1850, at what was then the Simpson Tavern. Previous local history narratives claim the song was inspired by the town's popular sleigh races during the 19th century. The song was republished in 1859 by Oliver Ditson and Company, 277 Washington Street, Boston, with the new title "Jingle Bells; or, The One Horse Open Sleigh". Its sheet music cover featured a drawing of sleigh bells around

8342-462: The star attraction at zoo but learns to adapt to the wild. He is a dancer by nature, often impressing others with his aerobatic feats. He does tend to be a little self-absorbed, often not seeing the problems of others above his own. Alex enjoys his life at the zoo and has plenty of friends and is surprised when hearing Marty's wish to leave and live in the wild (or run free in Connecticut as stated in

8439-503: The star treatment as one of the zoo's main attractions and attend Marty's birthday party. At this party, Marty announced his wish upon blowing out the candles on his cake: to go to the wild. Gloria, Alex and Melman tried to have Marty come to his senses by telling him life out in the wilds was savage and difficult, whereas life in the zoos was adequate. Marty was unhappy at hearing this, and Gloria told Alex to go to console Marty. Later that night, Marty acted out his wish and headed straight for

8536-443: The sun was covered by a solar eclipse and, before Mason, Phil, and Kowalski mentioned it, Skipper believed he finally succeeded. Skipper being paranoid often comes up due to his theories, and whether or not he's right depends on the episode. Often, those around him refuse to follow along, mostly Marlene because she believes Skipper overreacts. He often comes up with theories without basis on new arrivals, usually flying piranha or being

8633-468: The title and opening phrase is apparently an imperative verb ." In the winter in New England in pre-automobile days, it was common to adorn horses' harnesses with straps bearing bells as a way to avoid collisions at blind intersections, since a horse-drawn sleigh in snow produces almost no audible noise. The rhythm of the tune apparently mimics that of a trotting horse's bells; however, " jingle bells "

8730-561: The title. Sleigh bells were strapped across the horse to make the jingle, jangle sound. "Jingle Bells" was first performed on September 15, 1857, at Ordway Hall in Boston by blackface minstrel performer Johnny Pell. The song was in the then-popular style or genre of "sleighing songs". Pierpont's lyrics are strikingly similar to lines from many other popular sleigh-riding songs of the time; researcher Kyna Hamill argued that this, along with his constant need for money, led him to compose and release

8827-434: The way; Oh! what fun it is to ride In a one-horse open sleigh. Although less well-known than the opening, the remaining verses depict high-speed youthful fun. In the second verse, the narrator takes a ride with a girl and loses control of the sleigh: A day or two ago I thought I'd take a ride And soon, Miss Fanny Bright Was seated by my side, The horse was lean and lank Misfortune seemed his lot He got into

8924-442: The zebra, thinking it to be the South Pole. Skipper explains to Marty that they are attempting to escape the zoo because penguins do not belong there in captivity. He then orders his accomplices to continue tunneling. Late that night, Skipper and the other penguins are caught by a SWAT team , as are six other animals found outside the zoo. The penguins are tranquilized and put into a crate to be transferred. When they awake, Skipper

9021-403: The zoo into releasing them back into the wild, but on the ship to the preserve, Alex and his friends fall into the ocean. They wash ashore on Madagascar , and, while Marty is excited to be free, Alex wishes to go home. He grows very hungry after days of being unable to eat, not realizing that steak is animal flesh. Hunger drives Alex into a crazed state, and after almost killing Marty in hunger, in

9118-508: Was a ticket home. After a performance in Rome, he gives a pep talk and has the circus spiced up to get the circus promoter for a tour in America. Stefano told Alex why Vitaly ( Bryan Cranston ) the Siberian tiger was grouchy. Alex teaches Gia trapeze, and they begin to fall deeply in love. The London performance was better and they go to America. DuBois came to "take home" Alex but gets shot out of

9215-440: Was left of them with a teaspoon". In "A Kipper for Skipper," when Skipper states that "relatively few penguins get left behind", as the others point out that Manfredi, Johnson, and another penguin were. In "Roger Dodger," he tells Rico that he would take him out if he had to and tells him "just ask Manfredi and Johnson." In "An Elephant Never Forgets," he tells them that while he was training Private that Manfredi and Johnson "fell for

9312-646: Was made by the Edison Male Quartette in 1898, also on an Edison cylinder (and 1898 Columbia brown wax 4090), as part of a 'Christmas' medley titled "Sleigh Ride Party". In 1902, the Hayden Quartet recorded "Jingle Bells". The song became a Christmas favorite in the early twentieth century. In 1935, Benny Goodman and His Orchestra reached No. 18 on the charts with their Swing or big band recording of "Jingle Bells". In 1941, Glenn Miller and His Orchestra with Tex Beneke , Marion Hutton , Ernie Caceres , and

9409-470: Was the steak in his dream. The film begins on Marty's 10th birthday (middle-aged for a zebra). His friends try to give him a great birthday, but somehow, Marty wants more. He escapes the Central Park Zoo , where he had lived for the past ten years, and makes a dash for the wild. His friends, Alex, Melman, and Gloria, flag him down, but as they are about to take him back to the zoo, police officers and animal control officers appear in all directions, tranquilize

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