Snoopy's brother "Ugly" Olaf
Olaf (originally called Ugly Olaf), is a minor animal character in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz. He is a brother of Snoopy. Olaf is much fatter than his siblings, a factor which may have contributed to him getting his nickname Ugly Olaf. However, beneath his fat exterior lies a sharp wit.
History
Olaf's first appearance in the strip from January 19, 1989.
Olaf's face is first shown in the strip from January 24, 1989.
Olaf was first mentioned in a January 16, 1989 comic, as part of a storyline where Lucy suggests submitting Snoopy or one of his siblings (such as Spike, who declines) into an "Ugly Dog" contest. He made his first in-strip appearance, although covered in a paper sack, in the January 19 comic. He is first depicted unmasked in the following January 24 comic, when he finds out he won the contest, much to his displeasure. Many of Olaf's early appearances feature gags related to his ugliness. For example, Olaf says that he once belonged to a family whose car license plate read "Our other dog is a golden retriever".
Olaf's favorite book is Joe Bunny which his mother used to read to him.
Olaf returned in a February 1994 storyline where he, Andy, and Spike come to visit Snoopy in the hospital. Following this, he and Andy were shown living together on a farm in May 1994, where they spend most of their days leaning against the barn and asking each other questions about life. In June 1997, they arrive at Snoopy's house, having moved out of the farm, and ask for help finding a new home. After spending a few days looking for a new owner, Snoopy suggests they move in with Spike out in Needles. The pair proceed to get hopelessly lost (at one point even passing by Spike and not seeing him) and periodically return to Snoopy's house at least once a year all the way until the strip's final year. During their occasional visits, they frequently have run-ins with Rerun van Pelt who tries to adopt them as his dogs and usually getting foiled by his mother. These instances were adapted in the 2003 special I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown.
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Olaf, wearing a red cap, appears with Snoopy and the rest of his siblings in the 1991 animated cartoon, Snoopy's Reunion.
Olaf proves himself to have the most sharp-witted, wriest sense of humor out of all of Snoopy's brothers several times, but notably while a discussion about the afterlife takes place while Snoopy is having an operation. Andy asks if Olaf thinks fish go to heaven, and Olaf shoots back "not if they've been bad fish." His lovable, roly-poly appearance is the perfect contrast to his sharp wit.
The Peanuts animated television specials Snoopy's Reunion and I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown feature appearances by Olaf. In Snoopy's Reunion, his "instrument" is a jar that he blows on to produce a bass line.
Snoopy's impression of Olaf while flying with Fifi
Trivia
- Olaf resembles the sheep costume that Peppermint Patty is forced to wear against her will for her part in the Christmas play, as seen in a series of comic strips from December 1984 and in the 1992 TV special It's Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown.
- Olaf, much like most of the Peanuts cast, dislikes coconut.