GOOF TROOP

GOOF TROOP

(Disney Channel, Syndication, ABC, April 2-December 5, 1992)

Walt Disney Television Animation

MAIN CAST:

Bill Farmer – Goofy, Mayor Baba

Dana Hill – Max Goof

Jim Cummings – Peter Pete, Sr., police chief, Mayor Baba, various

Rob Paulsen – Peter “P.J.” Pete, Jr., Biff Fuddled, Harold Hatchback, Leech, various

April Winchell – Peg Pete, April

Nancy Cartwright – Pistol Pete, Melvin

Frank Welker – Waffles, Chainsaw, Giblet the clown, Bubbles, various

            Disney’s Goofy first debuted in 1932’s Mickey’s Revue. Developed by Art Babbitt, Frank Webb and Jack Kinney, Goofy was typically a good-natured but dim-witted klutz who would be the subject of various pratfalls and moments of slapstick. Initially appearing as an older dog dubbed Dippy Dawg by Webb behind the scenes, he had the beginning designs of the character as he’s most well-known, but minus any bottom clothing. Pinto Colvig supplied what would become Goofy’s signature laugh. His next appearance in The Whoopee Party rendered him younger. After four more essentially cameo appearances in other shorts, Goofy would spend the years between 1935 and 1940 appearing as part of a trio with Mickey Mouse (who was briefly replaced by his dog Pluto) and Donald Duck.

Opening title card to Goofy shorts.

            Goofy and Wilbur in 1939 gave Goofy his first solo starring shot, voiced that time by George Johnson. More came in the 1940s with what became known as The Goofy How To… series of shots, in which Goofy would demonstrate to the audience how to perform a specific task, like sleeping, playing football, or riding a horse. A falling out between Disney and Colvig left Goofy without a voice, which led to the How To… shorts being mostly dialogue-free through a narrator and utilizing recordings of Colvig’s voice or imitators. By the time Colvig returned to the role in 1944, Goofy began appearing in a series of shorts where every character was a different version of Goofy, expanding his role beyond the clumsiness.

Goofy as "George Geef."

            In the 1950s, Walt Disney felt Goofy lost some of his personality with the multiple roles. Looking to restore it, Disney proposed a series of shorts depicting Goofy as a family man dealing with everyday life. Goofy was given a makeover: he was more intelligent, had smaller eyes, and his whole body now matched his face’s coloring with only his head being black. His floppy ears, external teeth and white gloves also came and went in various shorts. While still named Goofy in the opening titles, the narrator usually referred to him as “George Geef” or other names when Goofy portrayed multiple characters.

            After 1965, Goofy’s use was greatly diminished outside of a series of cameos, but his original personality began to resurface. Following Colvig’s death, he was voiced by several actors until Bill Farmer landed the role permanently in 1986. In 1992, Goofy was chosen as the subject of Disney’s next animated television effort. Developed by Peter Montgomery, Goof Troop took inspiration from the 1950s shorts and cast Goofy in the role of a widowed father trying to raise his son, Max (Dana Hill). They moved from a trailer in the city to a big house in the suburbs of Spoonerville (named for layout artist J. Michael Spooner) with their cat Waffles (Frank Welker). Goofy once again got a makeover in the form of slacks, a sweater over a shirt and a bowtie. 

Pete getting ready to run a con on Goofy.

            Goofy’s neighbor was another long-time Disney character: Pete (Jim Cummings). Pete was created in 1925 by Disney and Ub Iwerks and was usually featured as the antagonist of the shorts in which he appeared. In this incarnation, Pete was a former high school classmate of Goofy’s and not only found Goofy an annoyance, but Goofy caused Pete to lose their big football game. Pete was a used car salesman and proprietor of Honest Pete’s Used Cars. Aside from making deals that greatly profited him on his lot, Pete sought nothing more than to get Goofy out of the neighborhood.

 

The Pete family on vacation: P.J., Pete, Pistol and Peg.

            Pete was also a family man. His second wife Peg (a play on one of Pete’s names, “Peg-Leg Pete,” and voiced by April Winchell) was a real estate agent who never let Pete get away with any of his antics--especially where Goofy was concerned. Pete’s son P.J. (Rob Paulsen) became Max’s best friend and was an extremely laid-back person. Their daughter Pistol (a play on another Pete name, “Pistol Pete,” and played by Nancy Cartwright) was hyperactive in comparison and talked with a lisp. Pete loved to spoil her with anything she wanted, and often got P.J. blamed for something she did. They had a dog named Chainsaw (Welker) who also had an antagonistic relationship with Waffles.

Peg gets a ticket.

            The series was portrayed largely as a slice of life sitcom, with both families going about their everyday affairs in comedic manners. Much of the comedy came, naturally, from Goofy’s antics as well as Pete’s schemes. Pete would act like a big blowhard with everyone except his wife, who was the only one that could turn him into a mewling and agreeable kitten by shouting him down. Max, who usually played the straight man to Goofy and tried to play things cool, sometimes couldn’t escape his heritage and had his own Goof moments; connecting Max to a father he otherwise was frequently embarrassed about. Despite Pete’s intense hatred of Goofy, and Goofy unknowingly being the bane of his existence, there were moments when the two were almost friendly and did things together. Of course, something would inevitably go wrong to shatter that peace, but they had their moments.

Storyboards for the show.

Goof Troop originally previewed on The Disney Channel in April 20, 1992 through that July before airing as an hour-long preview movie called “Forever Goof” on September 5^th. The episode was later broken up into the episodes “Everything’s Coming Up Goofy” and “Good Neighbor Goof.” It moved to its permanent home in syndication on The Disney Afternoon 2-hour programming block on September 7th. 65 episodes were syndicated while an additional 13 ran on ABC Saturday mornings. A separate Christmas special ran in the fall of 1992 apart from the regular syndicated run. The series was written by Carter Crocker, Mirith J. Colao, Jim Carlson, Steve Cuden, Steve Edelman, Rich Fogel, Karl Geurs, Gary Greenfield, Libby Hinson, Alan Katz, Bob Kushell, Stephen Levi, Julia Lewald, Susan Maddocks, Jymn Magon, Mark McCorkle, Terrence McDonnell, Mark McKain, Dennis Melonas, Cathryn Perdue, Michael Ryan, Jeff Saylor, Bruce Reid Schaefer, Mirith Schilder, Bob Schooley, Jeffrey Scott, Mark Seidenberg, George Shea, Steve Smith, Dean Stefan, Jan Strnad, Bryan Sullivan, Stephen Sustarsic, Laurie Sutton, Carl Swenson, Bruce Talkington, Mallory Tarcher, Chuck Tately, Kent Wadsworth and Marion Wells, with a theme composed by Phil Perry. In order to produce such a large order of episodes, numerous animation facilities were utilized including Wang Film Productions Company, Sunwoo Entertainment, Moving Images International, Kennedy Cartoons, Jade Animation and Walt Disney Animation’s Japan, France and Australia facilities, among others.

            In 1992, Goofy and Max would go on to replace DuckTales characters as part of Mickey’s Magical TV World live stage show at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom. In 1995, Walt Disney Pictures theatrically released A Goofy Movie directed by Kevin Lima. The film took place several years after the series, where Max (now voiced by Jason Marsden) and P.J. were in high school with new best friend, Bobby Zimeruski (Pauly Shore). Although spun-off from the series, Goofy and Pete were restored to their original physical appearances in the classic Disney shorts. Peg, Pistol and the pets were also left out, and the setting was changed from Spoonerville to New York City. In 2000, a direct-to-video sequel, An Extremely Goofy Movie, was released following Max and P.J. as they began college, with Goofy joining them to finish earning his degree. Walt Disney Home Video released Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmas in 1999 on VHS (and DVD the following year), which contained the segment “A Very Goofy Christmas” featuring Goofy, Pete and Max (Shaun Fleming). In 2004, Disneytoon Studios released the sequel Mickey’s Twice Upon a Christmas that featured Goofy and Max (again voiced by Marsden) in “Christmas Maximus,” where an adult Max brings a girl home to meet Goofy.

            In 1992, Burger King offered four toys based on the show in its Kids’ Meals. They were pull-back toys of the male cast being dragged away by their bowling balls. In 1994, they were again featured in a Disney Afternoon promotion for beach toys. In 1993, Pizza Hut had a promotion where they offered Goof Troop gear with their personal pan pizzas. Figurines of the characters were released through Kellogg’s cereals and from Bullyland in Germany. In 1994, Kellogg’s Rice Krispies offered Goof Troop magic tricks on the boxes. Justoys released a line of bendy Bendems featuring Goofy, Max, P.J. and Pistol both separately and as a box set. In 2011, Disney Vinylmation, a line of character figures available from Disney Parks made to resemble Mickey Mouse despite the character depicted, produced a series of Disney Afternoon figures. Goofy and Max were released for the Goof Troop set.

The Goof Troop video game.

            Capcom released a game based on the series in 1993 for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, where Goofy and Max had to rescue Pete and P.J. from pirates (notably, it would be the first game designed by Shinji Mikami who would go on to create Capcom’s Resident Evil series). That year, View-Master released a 3-slide set for the show while Aladdin Industries produced a plastic lunchbox. Little Golden Books published two books based on the show: Great Egg-Spectations and Goin’ Gold-Fishing. Goof Troop was featured in Marvel Comics’ Disney Afternoon comic as well as a strip in Disney Adventures magazine, and had one new story in Disney’s Colossal Comics Collection #9.

The wide-release of Goof Troop vol. 1 3-disc set.

            In 1993, three VHS collections were released containing two episodes each. “Have Yourself a Goofy Little Christmas” was released with the Darkwing Duck episode “It’s a Wonderful Leaf” on the Happy Holidays with Darkwing and Goofy VHS. In 2006, Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment released Goof Troop: Volume 1 on DVD which contained three of the episodes previously released on VHS. The DVD of A Goofy Movie included the episode “Calling All Goofs” as a bonus feature, but minus the series’ intro. Disney Movie Club released an exclusive DVD called Have Yourself A Goofy Little Christmas that contained the Christmas special. In 2013, the Movie Club released two collections of 27 episodes each which later became widely available in the beginning of 2015. In 2019, it became one of the launch titles for the streaming service Disney+.

EPISODE GUIDE (preview dates not available):

“Everything’s Coming Up Goofy / Good Neighbor Goof” (9/5/92) – Goof and Max move to Spoonerville next to Goofy’s old classmate Pete and fireworks fly between the dads.

“Axed by Addition” (9/7/92) – Fearing a grounding over a bad report card, P.J. decides to live it up on his last day of freedom.

“Unreal Estate” (9/8/92) – Having used the handyman money on a new fish finder, Pete hires Goofy to paint one of Peg’s real estate listings.

“You Camp Take It With You” (9/9/92) – Peg feels Pete and Goofy should spend time with the boys over summer vacation and they decide to take the boys camping.

“Midnight Movie Madness” (9/10/92) – Max and P.J. are terrified by a scary movie, and Pete decides to have some fun and take advantage of that fear.

“Counterfeit Goof” (9/11/92) – Pete hires Goofy and Max to wallpaper his house, and Goofy ends up with some counterfeit money he uses to buy more supplies.

“O, R-V, I N-V U” (9/14/92) – To get on Pete’s good side, Max helps him design his dream RV and ends up becoming better friends with Pete at the expense of P.J.

“Meanwhile, Back at the Ramp” (9/15/92) – Max’s embarrassment that Goofy had never won an award prompts Goofy to volunteer to ride Pete’s colossal promotional half-pipe at his lot.

“Close Encounters of the Weird Mime” (9/16/92) – Max and P.J.’s science project leads everyone to believe Spoonerville is being invaded.

“Slightly Dinghy” (9/17/92) – Max decides to use a fishing trip to look for buried treasure.

“Cabana Fever” (9/18/92) – Pete decides to take a vacation away from Goofy, but Goofy ends up vacationing on the same island.

“Where There’s Smoke, There’s Goof” (9/21/92) – Goofy becomes a fireman.

“Date With Destiny” (9/22/92) – Peg enlists Pete to find Goofy’s ideal match, but being unable to do so sets Goofy on an unsuspecting maintenance woman.

“Hot Air” (9/23/92) – Pistol gains a desire for flight while Goofy and Max mess up Pete’s new commercial.

“Take Me Out of the Ball Game” (9/24/92) – Pete and Goofy force their boys to play little league baseball.

“Wrecks, Lies & Videotape” (9/25/92) – Pete steals Max’s tape of Goofy for “America’s Most Painful Home Videos” to win the show’s prize.

“Max-imum Protection” (9/28/92) – Max is afraid of burglars, and when Goofy refuses to get a security system Max decides to stay at Pete’s house with his new high-tech system.

“Goofin’ Hood and His Melancholy Men” (9/29/92) – Max’s dislike of violin lessons has Goofy telling him about their musician ancestor Goofy Knobknees, aka Goofin’ Hood.

“Leader of the Pack” (9/30/92) – Max enlists the help of his cousin Debbie to retake the Behemoth Burger Stand from the Pharoah Gang.

“Inspector Goofy” (10/1/92) – Pete convinces Goofy to become an inspector in order to get a competitor shut down, but it backfires when Pete’s lot is found full of violations.

“Shake, Rattle & Goof” (10/2/92) – A shyster record executive finds he can make a profit over the boys’ band.

“Terminal Pete” (10/5/92) – A doctor’s joke leaves Pete believing he’s going to die.

“Fool’s Gold” (10/6/92) – When Chainsaw brings home gold in her fur Pete enlists Goofy’s help in finding it.

“Cat’s Entertainment” (10/7/92) – Pete tricks Goofy into giving up Waffles in order to use him in a get rich quick scheme.

“Waste Makes Haste” (10/8/92) – Pete and Goofy start a recycling tournament to see who can earn the most money.

“The Ungoofables” (10/9/92) – Max’s irresponsibility causes Goofy to tell him the lesson their relative Elliot Goof learned by being a responsible secret agent.

“All the Goof That’s Fit to Print” (10/12/92) – Pete starts a newspaper to advertise his lot, but his picture ends up being crossed with one of an alien made by Max.

“To Heir is Human” (10/13/92) – Pete makes P.J. work the lot so he can take a vacation.

“Hallow-Weenies” (10/14/92) – Pete acquires a haunted mansion.

“Tub Be or Not Tub Be” (10/15/92) – Pete uses an unknowing P.J. to spy on Goofy’s tub racer in order to get an advantage over him.

“Major Goof” (10/16/92) – Pete wants to outdo his competitor with a patriotic campaign, but first must get rid of his uncle-in-law Major Bob Sparrowhawk.

“A Goof of the People” (10/19/92) – Goofy and Pete both run for mayor when pollution becomes a major problem in town.

“Goof Under My Roof” (10/20/92) – Pete discovers a survey that declares he actually owns half of Goofy’s property.

“Goodbye, Mr. Goofy” (10/23/92) – Goofy loses his mortgage money and Peg lets them stay at their house until they can recover it.

“Lethal Goofin’” (10/26/92) – Max and P.J. become the new school safety patrolmen and the school bullies are looking to take them down.

“Frankengoof” (10/27/92) – Goofy inherits Frankengoof Castle, and Pete uses his resemblance to the Frankengoof monster to scare Goofy.

“E Equals MC Goof” (10/28/92) – Goofy mixes up his resume with Max’s science report and is mistaken for a rocket scientist.

“Pete’s Day at the Races” (10/29/92) – Pete wins a race horse in a game of poker.

“In Goof We Trust” (10/30/92) – Pete decides to use Goofy’s reputation as the most honest man in town to sell more cars.

“And Baby Makes Three” (11/2/92) – Fearing a new arrival to the family, P.J. and Pistol enlist Max’s help to make Pete hate the idea of having a new baby.

“The Incredible Bulk” (11/3/92) – Pete registers Goofy to wrestle champion Bulk Brogan.

“Mrs. Spoonerville” (11/4/92) – Pete changes his ways in order to win a house-cleaning competition.

“For Pete’s Sake” (11/5/92) – Pete tricks Goofy into thinking he wrecked his hedge clipper, and Goofy’s half-read apology note leaves Pete thinking someone’s after him.

“Big City Blues” (11/6/92) – Pete and Goofy follow Max and P.J. downtown.

“Rally Round the Goof” (11/9/92) – Pete decides Goofy will be the good luck charm he needs to win the Spoonerville 500.

“Window Pains” (11/10/92) – Peg’s new window washing job causes friction with Pete over who makes more money.

“Nightmare on Goof Street” (11/11/92) – Pete steals Goofy’s prize of a home remodeling only to learn they were con artists who stole parts of his house instead.

“Where There’s a Will, There’s a Goof” (11/12/92) – Pete and Goofy pose as brothers to gain an inheritance.

“Winter Blunderland” (11/13/92) – Goofy plays Bigfoot for Pete’s promotion which attracts the attention of the real Bigfoot.

“Gymnauseum” (11/16/92) – Pete gets in shape so he can outclass the man he fears will steal his wife away.

“Come Fly With Me” (11/17/92) – Max mucks with Pete’s computer, which zaps him when Pete goes to use it and changes Pete into a fly.

“As Goof Would Have It” (11/18/92) – Pete cons a diet food company by using a picture of Goofy as his “after” picture.

“Calling All Goofs” (11/19/92) – Pete makes it so Goofy is unable to attend his family reunion, so Peg brings the family reunion to Goofy.

“Buddy Building” (11/20/92) – As Pete and a rival look for a celebrity to promote their businesses, Max is afraid he’s losing his friend to the new physically fit kid in town.

“Dr. Horatio’s Magic Orchestra” (11/23/92) – Pete won a magical musical band that played a tune he detests, and no matter how hard he tries he can’t get rid of it.

“Goofs of a Feather” (11/24/92) – Feeling guilt over killing a duck, Pete takes in the rest of the ducks.

“Goof Fellas” (11/25/92) – Goofy and Pete end up in witness protection, but it’s hard to hide Goofy’s antics.

“The Good, the Bad & the Goofy” (11/26/92) – Pete thinks Goofy is a jinx as he’s plagued by perpetual bad luck.

“Educating Goofy” (11/27/92) – When Max doesn’t take his education seriously, Goofy goes back to finish school.

“Peg o’ the Jungle” (11/30/92) – Peg tries to rekindle Pete’s romantic feelings.

“Partners in Grime” (12/1/92) – Pete is determined to make a profit on the food truck he was conned into buying.

“A Pizza the Action” (12/2/92) – Pete tries to pawn a failing pizza franchise onto Goofy, who’s determined to revive it.

“To Catch a Goof” (12/3/92) – A burglar is loose in town, Pete goes on a diet, and Goofy takes up ninja training.

“Gunfight at the Okie Dokie Corral” (12/4/92) – Max’s refusal to wear his new glasses prompts Goofy to tell him about their ancestory Mopalong Goofy.

“Queasy Rider” (9/12/92) – Max fixes up Goofy’s old motorcycle and encounters a mean biker gang.

“Maximum Insecurity” (9/19/92) – Teaching Leech a lesson about stealing gets Max and P.J. framed for it themselves.

“Puppy Love” (9/26/92) – P.J. falls for the new girl at school and stumbles through trying to ask her to the dance.

“Great Egg-Spectations” (10/3/92) – Max finds an egg that hatches into a baby dinosaur.

“Three Ring Bind” (10/10/92) – Pistol rescues a bad circus’ animals and brings them home.

“Pistolgeist” (10/17/92) –

“Bringin’ on the Rain” (10/24/92) – Wanting to grow a garden to win a competition during a draught, Pete steals Goofy’s water.

“Talent to the Max” (10/31/92) – Max is about to give up on his magic act when a magician’s hat greatly improves his act.

“Tee for Two” (11/7/92) – Pete is anxious to tear down a miniature golf course and Peg is ready to fight him to stave it.

“Goofin’ Up the Social Ladder” (11/14/92) – Peg wants to change her family’s ways and live a high-class lifestyle.

“Sherlock Goof” (11/21/92) – Max trying to catch a mouse for a pet encourages Goofy to tell him about Sherlock Goof, an exterminator-turned-detective who partnered with a mouse.

“From Air to Eternity” (11/28/92) – P.J. is afraid to confess to Pete that he’s afraid of heights.

“Clan of the Cave Goof” (12/5/92) – To encourage Max to go to the dentist, Goofy tells him about their ancestor Caveman Goof.

Special:

“Have Yourself a Goofy Little Christmas” (11/5/92) – Sick of Goofy blowing up his house every year, Pete takes his family away to Asperin, Colorado for the holidays.

Originally posted in 2015. Updated in 2020.