SpongeBob SquarePants

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This article is about the show.If you want to see the title character click [[SpongeBob SquarePants (character)]]
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This article is about the character.If you want to know about the show,click [[SpongeBob SquarePants (Tv Show)]]
  
SpongeBob SquarePants is an Emmy-nominated American animated television series and media franchise. It is one of Nickelodeon's Nicktoons and is currently the most watched show on Nickelodeon. In 2007, it was named by TIME as one of the greatest television shows of all time.
 
  
Although its original network is Nickelodeon, SpongeBob is now broadcast across the world. It was created by former marine biologist and animator, Stephen Hillenburg, and is produced through his production company, United Plankton Pictures, Inc. SpongeBob has also appeared on sister network MTV2 for a short time in 2006.
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SpongeBob SquarePants is the eponymous character of the Nickelodeon animated series SpongeBob SquarePants. He was designed by marine biologist and animator [[Stephen Hillenburg]], and is voiced by [[Tom Kenny]].
  
The series is set in the Pacific Ocean, in the city of Bikini Bottom and on the surrounding lagoon floor. The pilot episode first aired in the United States on Nickelodeon after the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards on May 1, 1999. The "official" series premiere followed on July 17, 1999 with the second episode, "Bubblestand/Ripped Pants."
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SpongeBob was originally going to be named SpongeBoy, and used to wear a red hat with a green base and a white business shirt with a tie. The name "SpongeBoy" did not make it into the show since the name was already officially trademarked by Bob Burden, creator of Flaming Carrot. Hillenburg later chose the alternative name "SpongeBob". The original name was once referenced in the show by Mr. Krabs' line, "SpongeBoy, me Bob!."[[Image:Example.jpg]]
== Setting ==
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== Appearance and characteristics ==
SpongeBob SquarePants is a sponge who lives in a pineapple under the sea, while his octupus neighbor Squidward Tentacles lives in an Easter Island head. SpongeBob's other neighbor and best friend is a pink starfish named Patrick Star, who lives under a rock. SpongeBob and Patrick live on either side of Squidward, much to Squidward's despair....
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SpongeBob is a porous yellow sponge with large blue eyes, a mouth with prominent front teeth, dimples and freckles. He is also, at times, shown to have hair. He typically wears a white shirt with a red tie and brown square trousers--hence his surname--and black shoes. He replaces the necktie with a bowtie for special occasions. He sleeps sometimes in pajamas, or in underwear.SpongeBob is a sea sponge, but he is drawn to resemble a kitchen sponge, apparently because Hillenburg found this design to be more amusing. Due to his soft, pliable frame, he is capable of shape shifting and has shown a degree of super"human" durability.
  
SpongeBob and his friends live in the underwater city of [[Bikini Bottom]]. Bikini Bottom is like a regular city with a downtown, suburbs, coastal areas, its own airport, bus system, and fair park. Stephen Hillenburg said once that Bikini Bottom was loosely based on Seattle, Washington. A good example of this statement is in the episode Pre-Hibernation Week. Sandy and SpongeBob were fighting on a tall structure called the Sea Needle, referring to the Space Needle, a tall structure in Seattle. Stephen has said that he wants to leave the location of Bikini Bottom to the imagination, claiming that the Baywatch scene was just a reference to his favorite show of all time.
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SpongeBob lives with his pet snail [[Gary]] in a large "pineapple-house". The house has been shown to be edible.
  
SpongeBob's house-pet is a snail named Gary, whose "meow" is similar to a cat. Although Gary only speaks in a few episodes, the characters have shown an ability to understand him. In addition to this, underwater worms bark exactly like dogs, and are kept on chains. Jellyfish are the equivalent of bees; buzzing, stinging with poison (although it appears as an electric shock), and producing delicious "jelly", mocking the name "jellyfish", while still referring to a bee's honey. Fish act as the citizens of the community but, as a rule, are not important characters.
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== Character info ==
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SpongeBob is marked for his cheerful nature. He is kind almost to a fault, and tries his hardest to make friends with those around him. Though he is generally harmless, he can become very dangerous when he puts his mind to a task; when SpongeBob focuses on a job, he will stick to it almost religiously, and go to extreme lengths to accomplish it.
  
SpongeBob, who is absorbent, yellow, and porous, works as a fry cook at the [[Krusty Krab]], a fast-food restaurant, with Squidward as the cashier. The Krusty Krab is owned by Eugene H. Krabs (Mr. Krabs). Sheldon J. Plankton (commonly referred to as "Plankton") is Mr. Krabs's arch enemy who owns a low-rank fast-food restaurant called The Chum Bucket across the street from the Krusty Krab. The Chum Bucket has almost never had a customer, and Plankton spends most of his time plotting to steal the recipe for Mr. Krabs's popular Krabby Patty burgers. Only in the movie does he succeed; the formula is never actually revealed to the audience. Plankton's computer wife, Karen, alternately helps him in his schemes or bickers with him.
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SpongeBob is an adult, but he has a very childlike manner--he is not ashamed of enjoying things associated with young children, such as cartoons and homemade cookies. He cries about the littlest things in almost all episodes. He cannot discern sarcasm very well, and is very literal-minded. Despite these traits and his lack of physical strength, SpongeBob considers himself very tough and mature, and has attempted--and failed--to prove his "manliness" on many occasions.
  
Sandy Cheeks is another friend of SpongeBob. She is a squirrel that lives in an underwater dome in Bikini Bottom. She was sent there by her bosses, chimpanzees. Sandy has a Texas accent and is also from there. When not inside her tree-dome, she wears an astronaut-like suit. Sandy, just like a normal squirrel, hibernates once a year, as seen in a few episodes such as Prehibernation Week and Survival of the Idiots. She secretly loves SpongeBob as much as SpongeBob loves her.
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SpongeBob has a career as a fry cook at the [[Krusty Krab]] restaurant. In spite of his meager salary (he once claimed that he is forced to pay his own boss) and the restaurant's poor working conditions, he is very proud of his trade. He is highly skilled at his job, and has won the Employee of the Month award three hundred seventy-four times. As such, he is highly favored by his boss, [[Mr. Krabs]], with whom he has a twisted avuncular relationship; SpongeBob often follows Krabs's orders against his own better judgment.
  
Instead of cars, the residents of Bikini Bottom drive boats. SpongeBob is still in boating school after failing the driving test over thirty-eight times. Once, during an episode set in a wilderness area, Patrick questions how a camp fire is possible on the lagoon bottom. As soon as the question is asked, the fire is immediately extinguished with a sizzle. A flurry of bubbles accompanies actions in many of the episodes to remind the viewer that the setting is underwater. Ironically, when there is a separate body of water underwater, such as a swimming pool or lagoon, a non-car boat must be used to cross it because both SpongeBob and Patrick cannot swim, they must be taught by Larry the Lobster.
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SpongeBob's best friends are the dimwitted [[Patrick Star]] and [[Sandy Cheeks]], whom he often attempts to best in fights and competitions. He has an awkward relationship with his neighbor [[Squidward Tentacles]], who despises SpongeBob, though the sponge views him as very close friend and cannot be convinced otherwise. Squidward receives the brunt of the consequences of SpongeBob's actions, often by being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
== Characters ==
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*[[SpongeBob SquarePants]] — A very friendly and funny sponge that loves jellyfishing. He works at the Krusty Krab as the fry-cook.
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*[[Patrick Star]] — SpongeBob's best friend, a dimwitted, pink starfish.
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*[[Sandy Cheeks]] — A clever Texas squirrel that has to wear an oxygen tank to breathe underwater. SpongeBob has a crush on her.
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*[[Eugene H. Krabs]] — A crab that is in charge of the Krusty Krab restaurant, where SpongeBob works. He is addicted to money and is selfish and greedy.
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*[[Pearl Krabs]] — Mr. Krabs's teenage daughter. She is a whale who acts like a stereotypical American teenage girl. Her father thinks he's spoiling her when quite frankly he is doing the opposite.
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*[[Squidward Tentacles]] — SpongeBob's next door neighbor and co-worker at the Krusty Krab, where he is the cashier. He hates SpongeBob and Patrick, and openly displays his hatred towards them, not that they ever truly understood. He believes he is an amazing artist and clarinet player, but quite the opposite in reality.
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*[[Gary]] the Snail — SpongeBob's pet, his only sound is a "meow", similar to a cat. In fact, he is considered to be a sea cat, like a worm is considered a sea dog.
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*[[Sheldon J. Plankton]] - A small plankton who is Mr. Krabs arch rival. He intends on getting the secret Krabby Patty formula and putting the Krusty Krab out of business.
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*[[Mrs. Puff]] — Widowed, husband captured and turned into a pufferfish lamp. SpongeBob's pufferfish boating teacher. Mrs. Puff is eager to get SpongeBob out of her class.
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*[[Mermaid Man]] and [[Barnacle Boy]] — Old, retired and foolish superheroes who are adored by Spongebob and Patrick.
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*[[Larry the Lobster]] — Buff, good-looking and well-fit lobster, usually found at Goo Lagoon, Bikini Bottom's local beach.
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*[[Perch Perkins]] - The Bikini Bottom TV Reporter.
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== Popularity ==
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SpongeBob SquarePants is the only cartoon to consistently make the Top 10 list in the Nielsen ratings, and is the first "low budget" Nickelodeon cartoon, according to the network, to become extremely popular. Low-budget cartoons had not garnered as much esteem as higher-rated (and higher-budgeted) shows, such as Rugrats, although when SpongeBob aired in 1999, it had gained a significant enough number of viewers in the ratings to be considered popular, eventually becoming more popular than Rugrats had ever been. SpongeBob follows other Nickelodeon shows that have attracted "older" followers: The Ren & Stimpy Show, Rocko's Modern Life, the Kablam! skits, Action League Now! and The Angry Beavers. Other shows have followed in this trend as well: Invader Zim and The Fairly OddParents won a similar fan base when they aired in 2001, and the latter is now second only to SpongeBob in popularity, while the former was cancelled despite gaining a cult following. The show debuted in 1999, and during that time, DragonBall Z and Pokémon were still the biggest crazes. SpongeBob did not gain its popularity until around 2000, and it has remained popular since then. It has extremely high ratings on tv.com scoring an average of 9.0.
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== Broad appeal ==
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SpongeBob is one in a long line of cartoons that is designed to appeal to adults as well as children. This has a lot to do with the absurd way underwater life and situations are represented, and with the situations, references, and words used, which younger viewers might not understand. Certain innuendos also are intended to go over younger viewers' heads. For example, SpongeBob tried to show his grandma that he was a mature adult by wearing sideburns and a derby, and listening to 'free form jazz' or when Squidward tricked Spongebob and Patrick into thinking he was a ghost, a coral reef sculpted like Toulouse-Lautrec's can-can girls stands in the background (leading to a pun by Squidward), are jokes most children would not understand. Numerous marine biology in-jokes are woven into the show. There are also often complex ironic scenarios that need close attention.
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While many newer cartoons revolve around pre-adolescents with strange lives and feature many pop-culture references (e.g. The Fairly OddParents), SpongeBob chooses to go for a formula that was used in highly successful older Nick cartoons such as Ren and Stimpy and Rocko's Modern Life, with non-human young adults in crazy, unrealistic situations, with minimal pop culture references.
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SpongeBob is an enthusiastic practitioner of karate. His level of skill varies between episodes; at times he can can defeat Sandy with ease, and at others he is incompetent.
  
Part of the show's appeal has to do with the childlike nature of SpongeBob and his best friend, Patrick Star, both of whom are adults but display an innocence typical of human children. However, the characters are not immune from more adult avocations, including rock musicianship in a stadium performance, reminiscent of a hard rock concert, or Patrick turning to SpongeBob after they had nurtured a baby clam, holding his arms out saying "Lets have another".
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A recurring joke in the series reveals that SpongeBob is incapable of getting his driver's license. He has attended Mrs. Puff's boating school for many years, and each year, manages to fail his driving test. SpongeBob attributes this to nervousness behind the wheel; despite knowing how to drive, he loses his composure when driving, often ending up in a car accident.
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== SpongeBob's Family ==
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*Grandma SquarePants
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*Grandpa SquarePants
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*Mrs. SquarePants (mother)
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*Mr. SquarePants (father)
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*Uncle Cap'n Blue SquarePants
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*Uncle Sherm SquarePants
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*Cousin Todd SquarePants
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*[[Cousin BlackJack SquarePants]]
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*Cousin Stanley S. SquarePants
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== Controversy ==
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The creators of Spongebob Squarepants have been attacked by some evangelical groups in the US because they see the character SpongeBob as homosexual, ever since the episode Rock-A-Bye-Bivalve, in which Patrick and Spongebob were parenting a baby scallop.
  
Unlike the Nickelodeon network, SpongeBob features well-known independent musicians who contribute to its soundtrack. Alternative rock bands such as Wilco, The Shins, The Flaming Lips and Ween (who have contributed two original songs to the show and their 1997 song "Ocean Man" to the movie soundtrack), as well as metal bands Pantera, Motörhead and Twisted Sister have made appearances on the show and movies soundtracks, and heavy metal group Metallica even released a T-shirt featuring cartoon versions of themselves playing live with the characters SpongeBob and Patrick. British rock singer David Bowie announced that he will be a special guest on the SpongeBob SquarePants episode Atlantis SquarePantis airing November 12, 2007.
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James Dobson of Focus on the Family accused the makers of a video in which SpongeBob appears with other cartoon characters meant to promote diversity and tolerance as promoting homosexuality. Creator of the character, Stephen Hillenburg, has denied that Spongebob is gay and has said that he is in fact asexual.
  
The TV movie Atlantis SquarePantis referenced numerous other movies or stories. David Bowie's character Lord Royal Highness (with his upper class accent) and the locals looked remarkably like the Blue Meanies (Yellow Submarine) - quite fitting for an underwater adventure. When the characters arrived at his habitat, he fell down as he proceeded down the red carpet (as Willy Wonka did in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (film), before leading them on a tour. A case can also be made for the yellow road used in the tour and a reference to Wizard of Oz - along with the movie being a musical.
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Dobson later clarified his comments by saying his original complaints were not with the video, but with the We Are Family Foundation, who he says make available pro-homosexual material on their website. After the controversy, John H. Thomas, the United Church of Christ's general minister and president said they would welcome SpongeBob into their ministry. He said, "Jesus didn't turn people away. Neither do we."
 
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The show became so popular with teenagers and adults that the series was broadcast on MTV and featured on Spike TV. A quote by Patrick ("It's gonna rock!" from the episode Mid-Life Crustacean) has been used as a promotional tag-line for rock stations. Ren and Stimpy, among others, had followed a similar path. The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, released on November 19, 2004, features a cameo appearance by actor David Hasselhoff, in a parody of his role from the Baywatch TV series.
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Revision as of 08:48, 27 November 2007

This article is about the character.If you want to know about the show,click SpongeBob SquarePants (Tv Show)


SpongeBob SquarePants is the eponymous character of the Nickelodeon animated series SpongeBob SquarePants. He was designed by marine biologist and animator Stephen Hillenburg, and is voiced by Tom Kenny.

SpongeBob was originally going to be named SpongeBoy, and used to wear a red hat with a green base and a white business shirt with a tie. The name "SpongeBoy" did not make it into the show since the name was already officially trademarked by Bob Burden, creator of Flaming Carrot. Hillenburg later chose the alternative name "SpongeBob". The original name was once referenced in the show by Mr. Krabs' line, "SpongeBoy, me Bob!."Example.jpg

Contents

Appearance and characteristics

SpongeBob is a porous yellow sponge with large blue eyes, a mouth with prominent front teeth, dimples and freckles. He is also, at times, shown to have hair. He typically wears a white shirt with a red tie and brown square trousers--hence his surname--and black shoes. He replaces the necktie with a bowtie for special occasions. He sleeps sometimes in pajamas, or in underwear.SpongeBob is a sea sponge, but he is drawn to resemble a kitchen sponge, apparently because Hillenburg found this design to be more amusing. Due to his soft, pliable frame, he is capable of shape shifting and has shown a degree of super"human" durability.

SpongeBob lives with his pet snail Gary in a large "pineapple-house". The house has been shown to be edible.

Character info

SpongeBob is marked for his cheerful nature. He is kind almost to a fault, and tries his hardest to make friends with those around him. Though he is generally harmless, he can become very dangerous when he puts his mind to a task; when SpongeBob focuses on a job, he will stick to it almost religiously, and go to extreme lengths to accomplish it.

SpongeBob is an adult, but he has a very childlike manner--he is not ashamed of enjoying things associated with young children, such as cartoons and homemade cookies. He cries about the littlest things in almost all episodes. He cannot discern sarcasm very well, and is very literal-minded. Despite these traits and his lack of physical strength, SpongeBob considers himself very tough and mature, and has attempted--and failed--to prove his "manliness" on many occasions.

SpongeBob has a career as a fry cook at the Krusty Krab restaurant. In spite of his meager salary (he once claimed that he is forced to pay his own boss) and the restaurant's poor working conditions, he is very proud of his trade. He is highly skilled at his job, and has won the Employee of the Month award three hundred seventy-four times. As such, he is highly favored by his boss, Mr. Krabs, with whom he has a twisted avuncular relationship; SpongeBob often follows Krabs's orders against his own better judgment.

SpongeBob's best friends are the dimwitted Patrick Star and Sandy Cheeks, whom he often attempts to best in fights and competitions. He has an awkward relationship with his neighbor Squidward Tentacles, who despises SpongeBob, though the sponge views him as very close friend and cannot be convinced otherwise. Squidward receives the brunt of the consequences of SpongeBob's actions, often by being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

SpongeBob is an enthusiastic practitioner of karate. His level of skill varies between episodes; at times he can can defeat Sandy with ease, and at others he is incompetent.

A recurring joke in the series reveals that SpongeBob is incapable of getting his driver's license. He has attended Mrs. Puff's boating school for many years, and each year, manages to fail his driving test. SpongeBob attributes this to nervousness behind the wheel; despite knowing how to drive, he loses his composure when driving, often ending up in a car accident.

SpongeBob's Family

  • Grandma SquarePants
  • Grandpa SquarePants
  • Mrs. SquarePants (mother)
  • Mr. SquarePants (father)
  • Uncle Cap'n Blue SquarePants
  • Uncle Sherm SquarePants
  • Cousin Todd SquarePants
  • Cousin BlackJack SquarePants
  • Cousin Stanley S. SquarePants

Controversy

The creators of Spongebob Squarepants have been attacked by some evangelical groups in the US because they see the character SpongeBob as homosexual, ever since the episode Rock-A-Bye-Bivalve, in which Patrick and Spongebob were parenting a baby scallop.

James Dobson of Focus on the Family accused the makers of a video in which SpongeBob appears with other cartoon characters meant to promote diversity and tolerance as promoting homosexuality. Creator of the character, Stephen Hillenburg, has denied that Spongebob is gay and has said that he is in fact asexual.

Dobson later clarified his comments by saying his original complaints were not with the video, but with the We Are Family Foundation, who he says make available pro-homosexual material on their website. After the controversy, John H. Thomas, the United Church of Christ's general minister and president said they would welcome SpongeBob into their ministry. He said, "Jesus didn't turn people away. Neither do we."

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