Odie

Odie
Garfield character
Odie in his "leaping" position
First appearance	Garfield comic strip (August 8, 1978)
Created by	Jim Davis
Portrayed by	Tyler and Chloe (Live-Action)
Voiced by	Gregg Berger (1982–present)
Information
Species	Beagle
Gender	Male
Family	Lyman (former owner), Jon Arbuckle, Garfield, Tyrone, Toto, Dotty and Spotty,Shelly, Mama, Pappy, Gavin, Kevin
Birthday	August 8, 1978

Odie is a fictional character, who appears in the Jim Davis comic strip Garfield. He has also appeared in Garfield and Friends, The Garfield Show, as well as two live-action/computer-animated feature films, and three fully CGI films.

Odie first appears in the comics as a kind, slightly unintelligent, yellow-furred, brown-eared dog (however between his first appearance and September 1979 his ears were black). In the live-action/animated films based on the Garfield franchise, he is depicted as a wire-haired dachshund/terrier mix. In the comic of August 26, 2007, Garfield describes Odie's species as "purebred clown" after trying to find out what kind of dog Odie is with the help of a book.

Odie usually has a large tongue and slobbers in his appearances. After October 1997, he began walking on two feet, instead of all fours, just like Garfield, though this was demonstrated as early as 1989 (on the television specials, Odie's first appearance on two feet was in the 1987 Garfield Goes Hollywood). Also by this time his whiskers disappeared, but he was still depicted as a puppy, yet older than Nermal. In the feature film adaptation Garfield: The Movie, Odie's ability to walk, and more importantly dance on two legs earns him a lot of attention, and is a major plot point throughout the film.

In the television series, Odie's appearance is usually announced by the sound of a cavalry's bugling.

Odie was based on a car dealership commercial written by Jim Davis, which featured Odie the Village Idiot. Davis liked the name Odie and decided to use it again. When Garfield was first submitted, Davis called Odie "Spot". He then visited cartoonist Mort Walker to show him his strips, and Walker told Davis "I had a dog named Spot". When Davis asked "Really?", Walker replied "Yes, in Boner's Ark, one of my comic strips". Davis said "Oops!" and changed Odie's name. Odie first appeared in the strip on August 8, 1978; the date is considered his birthday. There has been only one comic strip that celebrates Odie's birthday, in 1995. He was originally a pet to Jon Arbuckle's roommate Lyman, but Lyman disappeared from the series after about five years (with the exception of a one-panel cameo appearance in the strip for Garfield's 10th birthday). The book and television special, Garfield: His 9 Lives, retcons Odie's origins, saying that Jon bought him at a pet store. However this was later retconned itself as in The Garfield Show Lyman returned in the special 4-part episode "Long Lost Lyman" where he was clearly established as Odie's original owner and his long absence was also explained.