15 Beloved Cartoon Characters That Are Based On Real-Life People

Cartoons were the most wonderful part of our childhood. It made our childhood days much exciting. We went on several adventures with them, they actually made our golden childhood days probably the best one. Apart from all the excitement and laughter they taught us many valuable life lessons. From showing courage to supporting your buddies, and to never loose faith upon yourself, they gave us the best values.

Studies show that a kid who watch more cartoons have a great imaginary thinking and tends to interact more in the society.

But when it comes to bring those cartoons characters in our life, it’s a very difficult task. It requires a lot of extraordinary imagination and exceptional creativity to bring it on a big screen. It’s all the result of hard work of those artist who spends countless hours working.

You will be surprised to know that the animated creatures we see are based on real life characters. So let’s take a look at the most beloved cartoon characters that are based on real life people.

1. Ariel from “The Little Mermaid” – Inspiration: Alyssa Milano

The character of Ariel from “The Little Mermaid” has been inspired from a beautiful child actress Alyssa Milano. She is a famous actress of the very hit show “Who’s the boss”. The bold red hair and the bubbly personality of Alyssa has been copied by Ariel of Disney.

2. The Vultures in “The Jungle Book” – Inspiration: The Beatles

Remember those hilarious vultures in Disney’s 1967 flick, “The Jungle Book”, who sing “That’s What Friends Are For” and speak with Liverpool-esque accents? They were based on a band of four singers, The Beatles.

3. Edna Mode from “The Incredibles” – Inspiration: Edith Head

One of the superhero character from “The Incredibles” was also based on a lifestyle legend Edith Head. She is basically a costume designer and had won eight academy award.

4. Belle from “Beauty and the Beast” – Inspiration: Sherri Stoner

Sherri Stoner was both, a writer and producer of Disney. In 90’s she became famous for her animated hits like Tiny Toon Adventure, Animaniacs which became an inspiration of designing Belle of Beauty And The Beast.

5. Aladdin from “Aladdin” – Inspiration: Tom Cruise

The expressive eyebrows and adorable smile of Aladdin has been taken from Tom Cruise. We all are aware about this famous star.

6. Pocahontas in “Pocahontas” – Inspiration: Irene Bedard

Irene Bedard is a Native American actress who not only provided an inspiration for the character of Pocahontas, a Disney film but also voiced it. The character and Irene resemble almost similar to each other.

7. Snow White in “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” – Inspiration: Marge Champion

One of the Disney’ iconic film, “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”, was cast on one of the famous actress and model in 30’s and 40’s Marge Champion.

8. Milhouse Van Houten in “The Simpsons” – Inspiration: Paul Pfeiffer

The character of Milhouse van in “The Wonder Years” was modeled after a famous child actor Paul Pfeiffer. We can of course see his goofy glasses and that shaky voice apart than the blue hair.

9. Ursula from “The Little Mermaid” – Inspiration: Divine

The character of sea evil Ursula was based on queen Divine (real name: Harris Glenn Milstead) who was famous in early 70’s films like “Mondo Trasho” and “Pink Flamingos”.

10. Betty Boop from “Betty Boop” – Inspiration: Helen Kane

The actress Helen Kane was cast for one of the earliest famous cartoon Betty Boop.

11. Eric Cartman in “South Park” – Inspiration: Archie Bunker

The character of Eric Cartman on South Park was inspired by a famous man Archie Bunker who did great series hits in 70’s.

12. Shrek in “Shrek” – Inspiration: Maurice Tillet

Ogre Shrek is based on the French boxer Maurice Tillet. Maurice was suffering from acromegaly which resulted in overgrown and thick bones. Shrek is inspired from him only.

13. Popeye in “Popeye the Sailor” – Inspiration: Frank “Rocky” Fiegel

Frank “Rocky” Fiegel was a tough guy from Popeye creator E.C. Segar’s hometown. He was known for taking several opponents at the same time.

14. Genie in “Aladdin” – Inspiration: Robin Williams

Genie in Aladdin was specifically written with Robin Williams in mind. Directors of Aladdin had told their animator to create Genie to look like Robin.

15. Captain Hook in “Peter Pan” – Inspiration: Hans Conried

Captain hook from Disney Peter Pan is undoubtedly one of the most memorable characters. Hans Conried was the voice behind Captain Hook and had also worked as the live action model for Captain Hook.

Also read: 15 Famous Cartoon Characters Who Looks Similar To These Real Life Celebrities