Huey, Dewey, and Louie Duck are young white duck triplets who are the nephews of Donald Duck. Known for their mischievous natures and wisecracking personas, the trio have become some of the most iconic Disney characters of all time, making numerous appearances outside their comic debut, often paired with Donald, though they've been paired with their great uncle Scrooge McDuck very often in both comics and animation as well, made mostly popular due to the success of the classic television series DuckTales.
Character Background[]
Huey, Dewey, and Louie are the sons of Donald's sister Della Duck; in Donald's Nephews, their mother is instead named Dumbella. In the original theatrical shorts, they were originally sent to visit Donald for only one day; in the comics, the three were sent to stay with Donald on a temporary basis until their father came back from the hospital (the boys ended up sending him there after a practical joke of putting firecrackers under his chair). In both the comics and animated shorts, the boys' parents were never heard from or referred to again after these instances, resulting in the boys ending up permanently living with Donald, in keeping with Disney's usual elimination of characters' parents. All four of them live in the city of Duckburg in the state of Calisota.
The boys are noted for having both identical appearances and personalities in most appearances, with the three sometimes shown as finishing each other's sentences as a running joke. In the theatrical shorts, Huey, Dewey and Louie would often behave in a rambunctious manner, sometimes committing retaliation or revenge on their uncle Donald for something he did to them. In the comics, however, as developed by Al Taliaferro and Carl Barks, the boys are usually depicted in a more well-behaved manner, usually helping their uncle Donald and great-uncle Scrooge McDuck in the adventure at hand. In the early Barks comics, the ducklings were still wild and unruly, but their characters improved considerably due to their membership in the Junior Woodchucks and the good influence of their wise old great-grandmother Elvira Coot "Grandma" Duck.
Personalities[]
Huey, Dewey, and Louie are Donald Duck's mischievous nephews. While they each have a distinct character trait, they share some similarities. All three are shown to be crafty and troublesome and usually think alike. In some earlier cartoons, they would often argue amongst themselves and have been shown to whine and cry. All three also share joy in tormenting Donald for their own amusement. However, this is sometimes an act of revenge from a prank committed by Donald instead. In the comics, they are children (maybe 10 or 11 years old), always suppose to be exactly similar, for the physic and the spirit (they sometimes think the same thing on the same moments). On the contrary, in Quack Pack, they are older (near 12-13-14 years old), then are teenagers, and aren't triplets, so they have distinct personalities.
Huey[]
Huey is the oldest and leader of the trio and the bravest of the bunch. Huey is never afraid of a challenge and never backs down. Huey makes sure Dewey's plans are in line and makes sure Louie doesn't fall behind. He wears a red shirt. Although ultimately kind, he is often seen as a troublemaker in the group.
Dewey[]
Dewey is the brains of the trio. Dewey is very smart and well-organized. Dewey loves to think of new ideas and ways to have fun. On occasion, he shows he has the talents of an inventor as well. Dewey is shown to have leadership potential as he took control as leader on a few occasions. He wears a blue shirt.
In early cartoons, Dewey would sport a tangerine shirt instead of his now-trademark blue, which didn't appear in Dewey's animation days until DuckTales.
Louie[]
Louie is the nicest of the trio. He is gentle, carefree, laid-back, and notices things others miss easily. Louie is not very loud like his brothers. He can sometimes be absent-minded and a little bumbling, but is shown to be just as clever as his brothers.
While Louie wore his now-trademark green shirt in the earliest of cartoons, he sometimes sported a yellow shirt.
Later Appearances[]
Duck Tales[]
They later starred in the 1987 animated television series DuckTales, in which they appeared in adventures with their great-uncle Scrooge McDuck (due to Donald having enlisted in the U.S. Navy). The boys' personalities were mainly based on their comic book appearances as opposed to the ones in the theatrical shorts. The series focuses on the boys' life with Scrooge while Donald is off serving in the Navy.
Throughout the course of the series, the boys come to know various characters such as Launchpad McQuack(Scrooge's personal pilot and bumbling sidekick) Gyro Gearloose (a wacky inventor who's convoluted inventions constantly cause mayhem in Duckburg) Scrooge's maid Mrs. Bleakly and her granddaughter Webby. With all these characters, the boys create strong, family-oriented bonds that last the entire series. Specifically with Webby, who acts as the "honorary niece" at times, with the young girl duckling even referring to Scrooge as "Uncle Scrooge", like the boys. Even so, Huey, Dewey, and Louie have often expressed dislike in having Webby tag along on their adventures.
They also meet several of Scrooge's enemies and are often their targets in the villains' plots to overtake Scrooge—Magica De Spell (a wicked sorceress) is one of the many antagonists, along with Scrooge's rival Flintheart Glomgold and, most notably, the infamous Beagle Boys, who are some of the more bumbling foes the boys face, though they still cause a great threat to McDuck's fortune due to their enormously large family.
In 1990, the boys starred alongside Scrooge in DuckTales the Movie: Treasure of the Lost Lamp. In this film, the boys must help Scrooge defeat a powerful wizard named Merlock in his quest to dominate the world through the use of a genie's magic.
Quack Pack[]
Huey, Dewey, and Louie also starred in the 1990's series Quack Pack, in which the three were portrayed as teenagers and their full names were given as Hubert, Deuteronomy, and Louis Duck. In Quack Pack, the boys were given more distinct personalities, with Huey being something of a ladies' man, Dewey as a computer whiz and Louie as comic book freak. Most episodes revolved around the boys' mischievous nature and often getting into trouble with their Uncle Donald.
In some episodes, including the series's pilot, the boys would become their superhero alter egos known as "The T Squad". Huey had the ability of super speed, Dewey had incredible intelligence and psychic powers and Louie held the power of super strength. The hero forms were provided by their great-uncle Ludwig Von Drake.
This series is the only time the three ducks are cast as teenagers, and speak with "normal" voices, as opposed to the "duck voices" (like Donald Duck) in other appearances.
Mickey Mouse Works[]
In Mickey Mouse Works, the boys played recurring roles. Like their original classic cartoon appearances, the boys would often battle Donald. In the series, they were voiced by Tony Anselmo.
In "Donald's Rocket Ruckus", the boys attempted to ride an attraction they were too short for.
In "Survival of the Woodchucks", they followed the guidelines of the Junior Woodchucks, but retaliated against Donald when they learned that he didn't pass the survival test.
One of their most notable appearances in the series is in "Mickey's Remedy", where they were babysat by Mickey while Donald went out. They tricked Mickey into spoiling them usntil Mickey learned of their trick. As punishment, Mickey had the boys believe that they were dying until they promised to change their ways.
Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas[]
Huey, Dewey and Louie appeared in the 1999 direct-to-video film, once again voiced by Russi Taylor.
In the film, the boys star in a segment where they wish for Christmas every day. The first two days were great, but became extremely annoying afterwards. When they try to fix time, they sabotage Christmas in order to mix things up. Despite this, they ended up destroying and ruining Christmas. To redeem themselves, they make sure the next day became the greatest Christmas they ever had. This fixed the balance and Christmas was finally over.
They later appear during the grand finale, singing Christmas carols with the other characters.
House of Mouse[]
In House of Mouse, the boys served as the club's band, first calling themselves the Quackstreet Boys (an obvious parody of the Backstreet Boys). They then changed their name to the Splashing Pumpkins (parodying the Smashing Pumpkins), but went back to being the Quackstreet Boys in later episodes. Other names have been used as well, such as QuackWerk, Plymouth Rock and Kid Duck. Like in Mickey Mouse Works, they were voiced by Tony Anselmo, though a few episodes had them looking similar to how they looked in Quack Pack.
The boys' biggest role in the series was in the episode "Music Day", which showed the boys breaking up after arguing over a photo shoot, forcing Mickey, Donald and Goofy to try to reunite them before the show ends.
In "Pete's House of Villains", when the club was briefly taken over by Pete, they were replaced by the Three Little Wolves.
They also appear trapped in the club with the other characters in Mickey's Magical Christmas: Snowed in at the House of Mouse.
Mickey's Twice Upon a Christmas[]
In this film, they realize they have not been perfect angels during the year. In order to gain presents, they leave home and have a grand adventure in Santa Claus' workshop in The North Pole. They once again ruin Christmas, but redeem themselves by saving it again. When they finally find the list's room, instead of writing their names on it, they write Scrooge's. Due to their good deeds, they receive presents and a Thank You note from Santa himself.
The boys reappear at the end of the film, singing Christmas carols with the other characters in Mickey's house.
Cameos[]
Huey, Dewey and Louie appear in the opening animated intro to The Mickey Mouse Club. Unlike most of the shorts, they all wear blue shirts and red caps.
In Mickey's Christmas Carol, the boys make a cameo appearance trimming a Christmas tree during Fezziwig's party.
In the 1988 film Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Huey, Dewey, & Louie appear in a picture on a newspaper clipping in Eddie Valiant's office, describing how Eddie and his now-deceased brother Teddy saved them from an unknown kidnapper.
Role in the Comics[]
Within the comics, Huey, Dewey, and Louie often play a major role in most stories involving either their uncle Donald or great-uncle Scrooge McDuck, accompanying them on most of their adventures. Also seen in the comics is the boys' membership in a Boy Scouts of America-like organization called the Junior Woodchucks, including their use of the Junior Woodchucks Guidebook—a manual containing all manner of information on virtually every subject possible (however, there are some resources, such as the ancient libraries of Tralla La, that hold information not found in the guidebook). This excellent youth organization, which has twin goals of preserving knowledge and preserving the environment, was instrumental in transforming the three brothers from little hellions to upstanding young ducks.
True to his jocular style, Duck comic artist and writer Don Rosa occasionally made subtle references as to what became of the nephews' parents. In his 1990s comic serial The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck, Rosa pictures how Scrooge first met Donald and his nephews, saying "I'm not used to relatives, either! The few I had seem to have... disappeared!" Huey, Dewey and Louie answer "We know how that feels, Unca Scrooge!"
In the 2014 comic 80 is prachtig, a Dutch Disney comic published in honor of Donald's 80th anniversary, it was finally explained what became of the nephews' mother. An astronaut, Della left her children with her brother Donald before leaving for a space trip.The story was written by Evert Geradts and drawn by Maximino Tortajada Aguilar.
Disney Parks[]
In spite of being major characters in the Donald Duck cartoons and comics, Huey, Dewey, and Louie rarely make live appearances at the Disney theme parks. However, in recent years, they've been making far more appearances, specifically during special events. The park versions of the characters were notably featured in the Sing-Along Songs videos The Twelve Days of Christmas, Campout at Walt Disney World and Happy Haunting Party at Disneyland. They also appear in the Disney's Magical Express bus videos.
On the Disney Dream and Disney Fantasy cruise ships, Huey, Dewey & Louie are the hosts of The AquaLab. The AquaLab is an interactive water playground for children and the sister activity to the popular AquaDuck that the boys created as a gift for Donald.
In Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom, the trio have their own spell card called "Huey, Dewey & Louie's Snowfort Barricade". This card was only available to guests that attended Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party in 2013.
Some of the attractions and parades they've appeared in currently and over the years are Mickey Mouse Revue, Disney's Fantillusion, Twelve Days of Christmas inDisneyland Paris, and various other holiday related events mostly throughout Disneyland Paris and Tokyo Disneyland.
Trivia[]
- A few comics accidentally feature a fourth nephew. He is often dubbed as Fooey or Phooey, the nephews' 'long-lost brother'.
- Strangely, it's not ever shown how Huey, Dewey, and Louie ever got to Traverse Town if Disney Castle wasn't destroyed. Plus, it's unknown why they wouldn't be at Disney Castle in Kingdom Hearts II, but instead at Hollow Bastion, yet they do tell Ventus that they're going to save up Munny to go on a big adventure.
- Typical of cartoon characters, Huey, Dewey, and Louie never appear to age, even where the story they're involved in shows characters around them to age like Max Goof (though they appeared in House of Mouse while appearing at older ages) or Sora from the Kingdom Hearts series.
Credit[]
- Disney Wiki