Cowboys have found their way into every form of entertainment and art, so it’s no surprise they’ve inspired a host of cartoon characters. Here are the top 15 cartoon cowboys that have captured the imagination all over the world.
15. Calamity Jane
Calamity Jane was an actual person in the American West long before she became a cartoon icon. In the 1997–1998 film The Legend of Calamity Jane, she embarks on a crazy series of animated adventures filled with bandits, runaway trains, and lots of chaos.
Jane is capable of handling a rifle, a whip, and a stubborn opponent. Joe Presto and her longtime buddy Wild Bill Hickok are also helping her. The drama makes terrific use of its larger-than-life protagonist, but history fans shouldn’t anticipate a biography.
14. Marshal Moo Montana
A cowboy who is a cow, too? That joke is taken to heart in Wild West C.O.W.-Boys of Moo Mesa (1992–1993). Cowtown is shielded from a constant stream of criminals by a gang of cow law enforcement officers led by Marshal Moo Montana.
Moo Montana is voiced by Pat Fraley, who previously provided the voice of BraveStarr. This animation knew precisely how ridiculous it intended to be, from the western jokes to the image of a bull riding a horse.
13. Sheriff Callie
Image Source: IMDb
In the town of Nice and Friendly Corners, Sheriff Callie maintains order. That name tells you quite a bit about Sheriff Callie’s Wild West (2013–2017). The show substitutes music and little issues that young viewers may relate to for nasty shootouts.
Callie, a calico cat with a pink bonnet and a talent for lending a hand to her neighbors, is voiced by Mandy Moore. Her deputy Peck and a cactus named Toby are often close by when a lesson needs learning.
12. Pecos Bill
Before Disney brought Pecos Bill to the big screen in Melody Time (1948), he was already a legendary figure. Raised by coyotes, he develops into a cowboy whose adventures become more outrageous with each story.
His horse is named Widowmaker, and a tornado is apparently just another thing to ride. The story seems like a narrative told over a campfire by someone who doesn’t let reality get in the way of a good yarn.
11. The Lone Ranger
Before receiving his own animated series, the masked rider was a radio and live-action celebrity. He and Tonto were dispatched by The Lone Ranger (1966–1969) to pursue outlaws who were occasionally far wilder than typical cattle thieves.
Silver is still there, of course, and so is the hero’s taste for helping individuals who are in trouble. The cartoon provides the typical western action a unique touch by incorporating some strange creatures and inventions.
10. Ricochet Rabbit
Copyright: Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.
A few sheriffs arrive in town on horseback, and Ricochet Rabbit bounces. The speedy star of Ricochet Rabbit & Droop-a-Long (1964–1965) moves so fast that he ricochets off the walls while chasing crooks.
Droop-a-Long Coyote, his deputy, adopts a slower pace. Even though it seems tough to keep up with the sheriff, they form a great comedic duo.
9. Wylie Burp
Wylie Burp is an old lawdog who Fievel has long idolized in An American Tail: Fievel Goes West (1991). Even though Wylie is a little past his prime, he still understands the value of confronting bullies.
James Stewart gives the sheriff his voice, bringing a bit of real western movie history to this tale of mice and cats. Additionally, Wylie assists Tiger in learning how to behave like a dog, which requires patience.
8. Quick Draw McGraw
Copyright: Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.
Quick Draw McGraw is a horse who works as a sheriff, which raises a few eyebrows about how the Old West operates. His devoted sidekick Baba Looey frequently had a greater grasp of the problem than Quick Draw throughout the 1959–1961 run of his show.
He transforms into El Kabong, a masked hero who uses a guitar as a weapon, when the assignment requires him to wear a disguise. When it hits a villain’s head, you can probably anticipate what sound it makes.
7. Rango
Rango starts as a pet chameleon with a talent for making things up. His tales are compelling enough to get him a sheriff’s badge once he arrives in the dusty town of Dirt. Maintaining it is another story.
In the 2011 western Rango, which has bizarre desert creatures and even stranger faces, Johnny Depp plays the voice of the unlikely lawman. The film won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, and Rango earns his place among the best of the bunch.
6. Jessie
Woody isn’t the only toy in the neighborhood with a cowboy hat. When Jessie, the yodeling cowgirl from Woody’s Roundup, first appears in Toy Story 2 (1999), she is eager to get started. There’s more to her than all that energy.
Jessie is anxious about putting her faith in a new youngster since she recalls being abandoned by her previous owner, Emily. Joan Cusack’s performance makes both sides of the character effortless to love.
5. Marshal BraveStarr
On the planet of New Texas, there is the frontier outpost of Fort Kerium. Kerium is a crystal used for powering starships, which brought many prospectors to the planet, and a lot of outlaws. Marshal BraveStarr was drafted in, a man with animal spirit powers; the ears of the wolf, the eyes of the hawk, the speed of the puma, and the strength of the bear.
Along with his techno horse Thirty/Thirty, who can stand on two legs and fire a cannon called Sara Jane, BraveStarr fights the forces of evil. This late-80s cartoon series was the last television series produced by Filmation, which had previously had success with Ghostbusters and He-Man and the Masters of the Universe.
4. Lucky Luke
Lucky Luke is a pastiche of gunfighter stories that became popular during the 40s and 50s. Belgian artist Morris worked in collaboration with many writers, including René Goscinny, the writer of another popular strip hero, Asterix.
Lucky Luke would embark on adventures in his famous white hat and cowboy boots, often whistling into the sunset when the action was over. Morris passed away in 2001; however, Lucky Luke still rides in to save the day, continuing the story that began in 1946.
3. Desperate Dan
As with Lucky Luke, Desperate Dan has the longevity that continues today. Desperate Dan first appeared in the pages of The Dandy in 1937. He can lift a cow with one hand and has to sleep on a bed of rubble because he’s so strong and tough.
Even his beard is as strong as he needs to shave with a blow torch. He has gone through various changes over the years since he was originally drawn by Dudley D. Watkins, but he’s still loved by millions. The big softy!
2. Yosemite Sam
Yosemite Sam is a red-headed, fiery-tempered, short gunslinger who never gets things to go his way. Created by Friz Freleng in 1945, Yosemite Sam was created as a hapless foil for cartoon wiseguy Bugs Bunny.
Although he was often seen bedecked in cowboy boots and a ten-gallon hat to accentuate his small frame, Yosemite Sam has always appeared as a pirate, a prison guard, a royal cook, a Roman legionary, and more. Curiously, he always wears his black bandit mask no matter what guise he’s seen in.
1. Woody
There’s no doubt that the Toy Story franchise is one of the most successful in animated cinema history. There’s something about the appeal of the toys that come to life that works with children and adults. This success has a lot to do with the film’s intelligent scripts, but also its lead actors, with Tim Allen voicing space toy Buzz Lightyear and award-winning actor Tom Hanks as cowboy doll Woody.
It’s believed that Paul Newman was originally approached to voice Woody, but it’s hard to imagine anyone other than Hanks playing the lovable drawstring cowboy.
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