Natasha Fatale
Natasha Fatale | |
---|---|
Rocky and His Friends The Bullwinkle Show character | |
From left to right, Boris Badenov, Natasha Fatale, and Fearless Leader. | |
Portrayed by |
Sally Kellerman (1992 film) Rene Russo (2000 film) |
Voiced by |
June Foray (1959-present) Lauri Fraser (2014 short film) |
Information | |
Gender | Female |
Occupation |
spy criminal |
Affiliation |
Boris Badenov Mr. Big Fearless Leader |
Significant other(s) | Boris Badenov |
Natasha Fatale is the secondary antagonist of the 1959-1964 animated cartoons Rocky and His Friends and The Bullwinkle Show, collectively referred to as The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show. She was voiced by June Foray.
Character overview
Natasha is a spy for the fictional country of Pottsylvania, and takes orders from the nation's leader, Fearless Leader (and occasionally the rarely seen Mr. Big). Natasha usually serves as an assistant or accomplice to her fellow spy, Boris Badenov.[1] Like Boris, Natasha also delights in performing various criminal misdeeds. She seems to be a bit more intelligent, or at least more thoughtful, than Boris, and often points out flaws in his plans or voices slight contempt for his bungling, to which his customary reply was "Sharrup you mouth, Natasha." Also, Natasha does say "SHARRUP YOUR MOUTH!!!!" to Boris in one episode, as their car goes over a cliff in The Treasure of Monte Zoom.
Her past is something of a mystery. According to the Rialto Theater's Moosebill for "Downhill: The Musical" (a special table of contents insert created for the DVD box set Rocky and Bullwinkle & Friends, The Third Season), Natasha is supposedly the only child of Axis Sally and Count Dracula. A former Miss Transylvania, she was expelled from college for subversive activities at a local cemetery. She traveled from Transylvania to the United States at the age of 19, landing in New York, where she spent two years posing for Charles Addams and as the party girl who pops out of the big cake at embalmers' stag parties. She met Boris Badenov in 1948, when they were both arrested for throwing rocks at Girl Scouts hawking Girl Scout Cookies. Boris was immediately smitten with her charms, and they have been partners in crime ever since. In her spare time, Natasha raises tarantulas and is the National Chairman of the Society to Restore The Real Meaning of Halloween.
In one Rocky and Bullwinkle Short Natasha, Boris and Peter Peachfuzz were in a musical contest judged by Rocket J. Squirrel; Natasha plays the balinka; when Boris sneered at Natasha for playing such a "malady", Natasha "crowned" Borris with the instrument; when Natasha won a trophy Boris again sneered at Natasha claiming the last time she "took" something, she got 90 days in jail; again Natasha "crowned" Boris with the trophy!
Usually, Natasha's and Boris's misdeeds are thwarted by Rocky the Flying Squirrel and Bullwinkle the Moose. She refers to them collectively as "Moose and Squirrel."
Natasha is almost always shown in a purple dress, but in the last season it is often red.
Natasha often appeared in the "Rocky and Bullwinkle Fan Club" segments, and appeared in two "Mr. Know-it-All" segments, "How to be a Beatnik" and "How to Teach a Mean Bully a Lesson at the beach." Only four Rocky and Bullwinkle storylines do not feature Natasha.
Catchphrases
Natasha's main catchphrase is referring to everyone as "dollink" — that is, "darling" as spoken with her thick Pottsylvanian accent (a mock-Russian accent) — an homage to actress-socialite Zsa Zsa Gabor and her habit of calling everyone "darling" (or in her Hungarian accent, "dahlink").
Name
Natasha's last name is a pun on the phrase femme fatale, with emphasis on the "fatal" part; in keeping with that, Natasha was drawn as a shapely, attractive looking woman. However, in nearly all episodes, the character is identified only as Natasha, with no surname.
She is apocryphally known as "Natasha Nogoodnik". However, she is identified in the series premiere by her proper name by the show's narrator, making "Fatale" her canonical and correct surname. However, either or both may be a nom de Guerre.
In other media
- In the 1992 Showtimes Network film Boris and Natasha: The Movie, she was portrayed by Sally Kellerman.
- In the 2000 theatrical film The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle, the live-action Natasha was portrayed by Rene Russo.
- In the 2014 3D DreamWorks Animation short film Rocky & Bullwinkle, Lauri Fraser provided the voice for Natasha. Ironically, Natasha's original voice actor, June Foray, reprised her role as Rocky but not as Natasha.
References
- ↑ Browne, Ray Broadus; Browne, Pat. The Guide to United States Popular Culture. Popular Press. p. 122. ISBN 9780879728212. Retrieved May 23, 2016.