The evolution of Woody Woodpecker's design.
| Image | Design Appearance | Notes |
|---|---|---|
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Knock Knock (1940) | In Woody Woodpecker's first appearance in the Andy Panda cartoon Knock Knock. Designed by Alex Lovy, Woody's original design is distinguished by it's unusually grotesque appearance, with his thick, featherless legs, long needle bill, sagging chin, scruffy feathers, garish color pallet and a lack of gloves. |
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Ace in the Hole (1942) | Woody's drooping chin was removed, his bill was shorter, his buck teeth started disappearing, he became about the size of a baseball bat, and the number of toes he had were both four and six, the color of his soles also changed from a bright to dark orange. And he became more appealing. |
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Ration Bored (1943) | In the 1943 cartoon Ration Bored, Woody wears gloves and get blue tail feathers for the first time. His buck teeth was now completely gone, and officially had two toes. |
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The Barber of Seville (1944) | Woody was given his first overhaul by animator Emery Hawkins and art director Art Heinemann. Woody's buck teeth and bulky legs were removed in favour for a streamlined, appealing and cuter design. Futhermore, his legs are now blue and his color palette was simplified. This was the last appearance of Woody's green eyes until 1947. |
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The Beach Nut (1944) | Woody's neck color was changed from blue to red to match his head color and now has blue eyes. Additionally, he is depicted wearing white swimming trunks in The Beach Nut. His bill and feet would now be a pale yellow. |
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Ski for Two (1944) | The first depiction of Woody Woodpecker's design from The Beach Nut without wearing any clothing, prior to wearing his winter cap. |
  Note Woody Woodpecker's gray colored soles. |
Musical Moments from Chopin (1947) | Woody's green eyes are restored. The sole of Woody's feet are also colored grey, but this change remained temporary until later in the year. |
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Well Oiled (1947) | Woody was futher redesigned by director Dick Lundy. His design became more polished, with the sole of his feet were colored yellow again. |
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The Mad Hatter (1948) | Woody is given a redesign by former Disney animator, Fred Moore in The Mad Hatter. His top-knot continues to be slanted backwards, but occasionally it is slanted fowards. Woody's neck and height were also increased in length. |
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Destination Moon (1950) | Walter Lantz animator, Laverne Harding gave Woody another major redesign originating from the 1950 film, Destination Moon. Woody was made cuter and smaller, with his beak becoming shorter. His top-knot was slanted fowards from this cartoon onwards until The New Woody Woodpecker Show in 1999, where his crest would be tilted backwards again. The nostrils on his bill became inconsistent until they were removed permanently in 1952. This design of Woody was first used in the main series in Puny Express (1951) |
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Wicket Wacky (1951) | Harding's design of Woody continued to be remodeled, becoming more sweeter and smaller. Moreover, the color of Woody's gloves were changed from white to yellow. |
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Woodpecker in the Rough (1952) | Woody's gloves are now white again. |
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What's Sweepin' (1953) | The outline surrounding Woody's irises are removed. He is wearing a white wings uniform in the 1953 cartoon, What's Sweepin'. |
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Buccaneer Woodpecker (1953) | The first depiction of Woody Woodpecker's 1953 design without wearing any clothing or costumes. |
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Convict Concerto (1954) | Throughout 1954, Woody's appearance futher became cuter, smaller and stylized. Beginning in Convict Concerto, the outline around his irises would be redrawn. |
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The Tree Medic (1955) | As a result of decreased budgets and influence from the uprising United Productions of America, Woody Woodpecker's detail was simplified. His green eyes were replaced with simple black eyes, thicker eyebrows and an angular design. |
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The New Woody Woodpecker Show (1999-2002) | In the New Woody Woodpecker Show, Woody is reverted back to his Dick Lundy design of the late 1940's. His top-knot is slanted backwards again and his green eyes are restored. |
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Woody Woodpecker (2017) | In the Woody Woodpecker film, Woody is animated in CGI animation and returns to his 1950's design. His crest is facing fowards and his height is reduced again. Moreover, Woody gains freckles on his beak. |
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Woody Woodpecker (2018 series) series 1-2 | The design of Woody Woodpecker in the Woody Woodpecker (2018 series) is based off the 2017 movie. Woody returns to his 2D animated form and loses his beak freckles and the outlines surrounding his eyes. Futhermore, one of his eyebrows are floating off from his head. |
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Woody Woodpecker (2018 series) series 3 | As of series 3 of the Woody Woodpecker 2018 series, Woody's design was refined to become more appealing and cute. His beak became larger, his body pear-shaped, his eyes smaller, eyebrows aligned more realistically and his feet more cartooney. |
