Dinky Doodle

Dinky was a standard boy character, sporting a flat cap, a striped shirt, and dark shorts. He and his dog Weakheart appeared alongside Lantz himself (as the cartoonist) in a series of cartoons that combined live-action and animation, similar in style to Max Fleischer's Out of the Inkwell series.^[2] Walter Lantz not only acted in this series, but also wrote and directed it.^[3] The character of Weakheart, Dinky's black and white pet dog, was based on the 1920s canine film star Strongheart.^[4] The series was mainly silent, with some scenes having a gibberish sound when someone talked. Some scenes had sound effects for objects and animal sounds. A few episodes were parodies to fairytale stories such as the Pied Piper and Jack and the Beanstalk. Even the first episode was a parody to the story of Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp.^[5]

The character enjoyed a degree of popularity among audiences. Contemporaneous reviews stated that Dinky Doodle had become a famous figure in the cinema world and was loved by millions,^[6] but was retired from the screen in 1926.^[7]

An average short would be about eight minutes long and would consist of Dinky and Weakheart hanging out with Walter Lantz in his apartment. A problem would arise and Lantz would get Dinky and Weakheart to deal with it. The story would then have them go on a wacky and fun adventure where it would then cause an even bigger problem in the end, mainly for Lantz. Whether that be them leading a giant into Lantz's apartment and having him fight him, or they think they lead a bunch of mice away and then they show up to tackle Lantz.