List of TaleSpin characters


This is a list of characters in the Disney animated series TaleSpin. TaleSpin was previewed on The Disney Channel in May through July 1990, and premiered in syndication in September of that year.

Higher for Hire

Baloo

Baloo von Bruinwald XIII is the main character of the series, based primarily on the sloth bear from Disney's The Jungle Book, but with a flight cap and a yellow shirt. Although lazy, slobbish, unreliable and always broke, he is also an excellent pilot and capable of the most daring maneuvers in the air. He flies a cargo plane called the Sea Duck. He will also selflessly come to the aid of those in need of help. His irresponsible behavior sometimes jeopardizes important situations, as seen in the episode "Your Baloo's in the Mail" when he fails to mail a winning ticket in the proper way, which puts Rebecca's ability to receive $100,000 in prize money at risk. He also has a penchant for getting into schemes that require him to dress up in drag to suit the situation, such as when he became Rebecca's "female" co-pilot Tan-Margaret in the episode "Feminine Air". Some of his mannerisms survive from The Jungle Book, including his nickname of "Papa Bear" by Kit, which Mowgli had given to him. He also calls Kit "Li'l Britches", as he did with Mowgli. In the first part of the episode "A Bad Reflection on You", Baloo gives his full name as "Baloo Bear" when introducing himself to a guard at Khan Tower. However, in the episode "The Balooest of the Bluebloods", it is revealed that Baloo comes from a prominent noble family and that Baloo's full designation is in fact "Baloo, Baron von Bruinwald XIII". However, he himself had been initially unaware, which raises the possibility that he was adopted. In this episode, he inherited $500 million in the form of an extravagant estate, which was taken from him to settle the matter of his family's impressively long history of owing back taxes, thus restoring the status quo. Baloo only once mentioned any family, in reference to a gramophone record that had belonged to his father. The name "Baloo" comes from the Hindi word for bear: bhālū.
Gilbert replaced Phil Harris, who had originally been hired to reprise his role from The Jungle Book. At 85 years old, Harris had lost some of his comic timing, and producers concluded he would not be able to handle the load of a 65-episode series at his age and condition, nor were they in the position to chauffeur him to and from his home in Palm Springs, California, a two-hour trip in each direction, for each session.

Kit Cloudkicker

Kit Cloudkicker is a 12-year-old brown bear cub and the navigator aboard Baloo's plane, the Sea Duck. His first appearance was in the pilot episode and introductory television movie Plunder & Lightning. He was originally voiced by Alan Roberts who did his voice for 11 episodes that aired as a preview-run before the series' syndicated premiere. R. J. Williams voiced Kit for the rest of the series. His trademarks are a green sweater, a blue and red baseball cap worn backward and his ability to "cloud surf". The baseball cap was a gift to Kit from Baloo, as a sign of friendship and trust. In the episode "Flight School Confidential", Kit's height is revealed to be 3 feet 9 inches.
Having lived with the air pirates under Don Karnage for one year prior to the start of the series, the introductory movie states that he left the air pirates because he "got sick" of them. Kit first encountered Baloo when he crashed into him in Louie's Place, and later rejoined Baloo by grabbing onto the Sea Duck in order to escape from the air pirates because they were trying to catch him. His ambition was to become a pilot and to purchase his own aircraft.
Occasionally showing a selfish streak, Kit sometimes put his dreams ahead of those of his friends. Having lived on his own for most of his life, Kit's distrust of adults was apparent in the show. He warmed to Baloo only after being given the chance to fly the Sea Duck, and even then was ready to leave for greener pastures.
Nevertheless, he looked upon the other members of the "Higher for Hire" company as a surrogate family, affectionately referring to Baloo as "Papa Bear" on occasion. He clearly demonstrated his fondness for Rebecca Cunningham's daughter Molly on a number of occasions throughout the show, having been seen giving Molly piggyback rides, and on one occasion rescuing her on his airfoil. Baloo gives him the same nicknames, such as "Little Britches" that was bestowed on Mowgli from The Jungle Book.
In the episode "Stormy Weather", Kit chastised Baloo saying, "You can't tell me what to do! You're not my dad!" This was a decision Kit would come to regret later in that episode.
Kit had the ability to cloud surf using a crescent shaped metal device called an airfoil and a regular cord attached to the back of the Sea Duck or another plane, thus allowing him to "surf" in a similar fashion to someone wakeboarding or water skiing. It was not made clear where Kit learned this skill, but he demonstrates at numerous times throughout the various episodes that he is incredibly adept at it. He can also use his board to free glide without being towed by a plane. Baloo would often give his permission for Kit to be towed behind the Sea Duck when appropriate, trusting in Kit's skill to let him have some fun. Baloo also had enough confidence in Kit to keep himself safe on the airfoil when separated and under attack, or when Kit had to be outside for something important. Outside such situations however, he did not like Kit to take unnecessary risks, such as doing dangerous tricks or stunts.
It is not exactly known when, where or how Kit was orphaned, but in the associated comics, it was revealed he spent some of his life on the streets and later a village of hobos prior to the series. He also claims that he never knew his parents, which could mean he had lost them when he was too young to remember, such as during infancy. Also his orphaning could be based on the fact that orphans were common during the nineteen-thirties, as the Great Depression was responsible for many children being orphaned, even though no reference to the Great Depression was made in the show.

Rebecca Cunningham

Rebecca Cunningham is a petite brown bear with long brown hair in a French twist style, usually wears a white turtleneck sweater, and a purple-red jacket and matching slacks. She is nicknamed "Becky", "Beckers", "Beck", and/or "BC" by Baloo which at first she highly resented being called, but soon grew accustomed to with affection. She is an unassumingly attractive, yet shrewd businesswoman with an MBA. Rebecca bought out Baloo's Air Service and his plane in the introductory episode Plunder & Lightning when the pilot failed to pay his bank loan, and renamed the business "Higher for Hire". Although she originally relegated herself to the administrative and sales functions of the business, the series shows she eventually learns to be a capable would-be pilot in her own right. Baloo's laziness and carefree attitude towards his responsibilities often infuriates her explosive temper, despite having some possible feelings toward him at times which does come up as a blistering jealous streak, such as in the episode "A Star is Torn". Rebecca can sometimes be too quick to jump to conclusions and judge people. Rebecca lives with her daughter Molly in an apartment in an upscale part of Cape Suzette, one which incorporates a waterfall in its design. She occasionally concocts outrageous schemes to quickly make extra money, such as when she buys a pig to sniff out truffles instead of a new pontoon which the Sea Duck needs in the episode "The Bigger They Are, the Louder They Oink". She sometimes acts as a maternal figure for Kit Cloudkicker. However, in the episode "It Came from Beneath the Sea Duck", Rebecca's confidence in Kit was put to the test. While Kit was babysitting her daughter Molly, the girl accidentally got separated from him when the wagon she was on rolled down a hill and Kit had to chase it all the way to the docks. When Rebecca heard that her young daughter had been so far from home, she blamed Kit and would not let him explain what happened, accusing him of being "reckless and irresponsible". Later in the episode, her confidence in him was restored when he saved her daughter from a giant squid, and she apologized to him for being too quick to judge him.

Molly Cunningham

Molly Elizabeth Cunningham is Rebecca's yellow-furred, 6-year-old daughter. She is an adventurous child who even at her age, is not afraid to speak her mind just like her mother, who nicknames her "Honey" and "Pumpkin". Molly has a thing for her favorite ice cream brand "Frosty Pep", and sometimes pretends she is "Danger Woman" while seeking adventure along with Kit and Baloo. She carries a doll named "Lucy". She often outwits adversaries much older than her. Her middle name, Elizabeth, is revealed in the episode "Mommy for a Day", and Molly is the only character to have any middle name revealed. Molly has taken a special interest in snow, which is problematic since it never snows in Cape Suzette. No mention was ever made of Molly's father, as series creator Jymn Magon reportedly said that Rebecca is either a widow or divorced, although at a 1998 U.S. fan convention Q&A online chat he did state in roundabout tones that she is actually divorced as originally written in the first TaleSpin press release. However this would clash with the comic The Long Flight Home which, although more centered toward Kit's past, states that her father died.

Wildcat

Wildcat is a clueless and gangly lion who typically wears a mechanic's outfit. Although very childlike, he is ultimately a mechanical genius. For example, he can fix a smashed telephone in under ten seconds. He speaks with a slight lisp. Wildcat has a special place in his heart for dinosaurs as they are his favorite animal. He is also fond of pets and toys. He is honest and truthful, but at times too truthful, much to the annoyance of Baloo.

Air Pirates

Don Karnage

Don Karnage is the leader of a crew of air pirates and captain of the massive hybrid airship, the Iron Vulture, which serves as an airborne aircraft carrier. He is the main antagonist in the series. According to series creator Jymn Magon, he is a wolf, but has orangish-brown fur reminiscent of a fox. He wears a blue Napoleonic-style high-collared captain's tailcoat, a red belt, light bluish-gray pants, and dark-gray boots with gray cuffs. He is armed with a cutlass, which he wears on the left side of his waist, so that he can easily access it with his right hand. He speaks with an accent that is a blend of Spanish, Italian, and French accents. He pronounces /t/ and /d/ as dental consonants rather than the normal English alveolar consonants. He is a skilled pilot and ruthlessly cunning with an oversized ego that makes him blunder with whatever scheme or raid he conducts with his pirates. When dogfighting or raiding, he flies a hybrid fighter plane that appears to be based on a low-wing monoplane but with wings added so that it is actually a triplane. Voice actor Jim Cummings has cited Desi Arnaz's performance as Ricky Ricardo from the TV sitcom I Love Lucy as an inspiration.

Other Pirates

Shere Khan

Shere Khan is a Bengal tiger who also appeared in The Jungle Book, but here stands upright and wears a business suit. He sports retractable claws, which is a rarity in the show. He is sometimes accompanied by an unnamed emaciated tiger "yes-man" office aide. Khan is an extremely wealthy businessman and the head of the corporation Khan Industries which is the dominant economic force in the city of Cape Suzette. Dour, humorless and slightly arrogant because of his wealth and position, he takes enjoyment out of running small companies out of business with a sense of ruthlessness to skirt around the law as he chooses. He also likes to feed tiny insects to the many carnivorous plants he grows in his office. He once even made a deal with Don Karnage and his air pirates to create an artificial oil shortage so he could extort higher prices from the public in the episode "On a Wing and a Bear".
He has a well-armed air force and navy, complete with battleships. This is mainly to protect his shipping and business interests worldwide. However, despite his ruthless and self-interested behavior, Khan is willing to act nobly at times, such as ordering his forces into the air to protect Cape Suzette from air pirate attacks. He is also shown to respect Baloo's piloting skills, most notably in the episode "From Here to Machinery", in which Khan's plane had been ambushed by Don Karnage's air pirates and the robotic pilot refused to deviate from its flight plan due to its programming, causing an arriving Baloo to forcibly remove the robot and take control of the plane in order to engage in his usual dogfight with the pirates, resulting in the reinstatement of his laid off pilots. He also refers to Baloo as "a pilot to be reckoned with" in Plunder & Lightning after Baloo manages to destroy Don Karnage's lightning gun and severely damage the Iron Vulture.
The name "Shere Khan" is derived from Hindi: Shere or Sher, i.e., a lion/tiger, and Khan, i.e., a South Asian title or surname.

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