Topo Gigio

Updated on Oct 06, 2024

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Movie The Magic World of Topo Gigio Similar Dr Chapatín, Hijitus, Mighty Mouse, Popeye, Speedy Gonzales

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Topo Gigio ([ˈtɔːpo ˈdʒiːdʒo]) was the lead character of a children's puppet show on Italian and Spanish television in the early 1960s. The character, created in 1958 by artist Maria Perego, debuted on Italian television in 1959 and has been customarily voiced by actor Giuseppe "Peppino" Mazzullo and later Davide Garbolino. The Italian nickname "Gigi" is a derivative of Luigi ("Louis"), so Topo Gigio could be translated as Louie Mouse.

Topo Gigio Topo Gigio Official Site Story Chapter XIII

Topo Gigio, a soft foam mouse with dreamy eyes and a friendly, childish personality, was very popular in Italy for many years—not only on TV, but also in children's magazines, such as the classical Corriere dei Piccoli, animated cartoons, merchandising, and movies. In 1963, the character's popularity spread to the world after being featured on The Ed Sullivan Show in the US.

Today, Topo Gigio still has a cohort of faithful fans, and has become an icon of Italian and Spanish pop culture. He performs regularly at Zecchino d'Oro festival and other programs created by Antoniano and RAI. In 1965, a feature-length motion picture The Magic World of Topo Gigio was released internationally.

Topo Gigio 78 Best images about TOPO GIGIO on Pinterest The 1960s Sunday

The puppet has made appearances and has a fan base in many other countries—including Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Ecuador, Guatemala, Japan, Mexico, Nicaragua, Honduras, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Romania, Uruguay, Venezuela, and the former Yugoslavia.

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The puppet made several appearances on UK TV on ITV's Sunday Night at the London Palladium in the 1960s, and his wistful persona endeared him to British viewers of all ages.

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Topo gigio and friends the ed sullivan show

Television

Topo Gigio Topo Gigio Official Site Story Chapter IV

Topo Gigio was created in 1958, by the artist "Madame" Maria Perego, and starred in a children's television show in Italy, in the early 1960s. He remains a fixture of Italian pop culture and still performs regularly at festivals in Italy.

He was immensely popular in his home country and became a worldwide sensation after his recurring appearance, beginning in 1963, on The Ed Sullivan Show, in the United States. Created by a troupe of Italian puppeteers, it took four people to bring the 10-inch-tall (25 cm) character to life: three to manipulate him, and one to create his voice. The puppet stood in a special "limbo" black art stage with black velvet curtains, designed to absorb as much ambient light as possible, which helped hide the puppeteers, who were also dressed in black from head to toe. Each puppeteer operated a different part of Gigio's foam rubber body by using several wooden dowel rods (also painted black). The illusion was quite remarkable, since unlike traditional hand puppets, Topo Gigio could actually appear to walk on his feet, sing, make subtle hand gestures, and even walk up Ed Sullivan's arm and perch on his shoulder. Careful lighting and TV camera adjustment made the "black art" illusion perfect for the television audience, though on at least one appearance, Ed asked the puppeteers to come out and take a bow, revealing their black-clad appearance (though deftly hiding Gigio's mechanisms to conceal the secret). In more than fifty appearances on the show, the mouse would appear on stage and greet Sullivan with, "Hello, Eddie!". Gigio would occasionally talk about his girlfriend, Rosie. Gigio ended his weekly visits by crooning to the host, "Eddie, kiss me goodnight!" (pronounced as "Keesa me goo'night!"). Topo Gigio closed Sullivan's final show in 1971.

During the first half of the 1960s (especially in 1964), Topo Gigio also appeared in a TV music show presented by the British singer Chris Howland, both in Austria and Germany.

Also in the early 1960s, in Austria, Mike Molto had a special small show to help the advertising industry. (Austrian television advertising first started in 1959.)

In Spanish America, Topo Gigio became a smash hit in 1968, widely remembered even now, featuring Braulio Castillo, Raúl Astor (Raúl Ignacio Spangenberg), and later, Julio Alemán. The show was produced in Peru and then in Mexico. The character still appears in Italian and Spanish speaking territories.

A 1969, color television show especially for children in Austria and Switzerland was called Cappuccetto and Her Adventures with her friends Lupo Lupone, Professor Lhotko, a fox, some other animals of the forest, her grandmother, and a music band with five little mushrooms playing on guitars and singing.

The character was also introduced in Japan, South America, and Spain. Topo Gigio, a Japanese animated television series produced by Nippon Animation, aired in Japan for two seasons, in 1988.

Films

The character has starred in several feature films, including:

The feature film The Magic World of Topo Gigio (1965)

Topo Gigio and the Missile War (1967), a Japanese-Italian international co-production film directed by Kon Ichikawa

Music

Topo Gigio had several LPs with songs sung by Gabriel Garzón.

Spokesperson and mascot

He is "the spokes-mouse" for the United Nations.

Topo Gigio has been the official mascot of the Uruguayan club Huracán Buceo since 1968.

References

Topo Gigio Wikipedia

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