So is Dopey special-needs? I mean I know things were different in the 30's particularly given political correctness and cultural sensitivity but as a kid I thought he was like a baby brother to the other dwarfs because he didn't have beards. Now watching as an adult I wonder, um, is this suggesting what I think it is? And I know it's a MOVIE so if it helps - what was the inspiration for how his character behaves?
shareI think he is more silly than mentally challenged.
------------------
Check out the blog:
http://animatedmoviegoddess.blogspot.com/
i thought he was just a very young dwarf
He can't be super young because he appears to be full grown (for a dwarf).
------------------
Check out the blog:
http://animatedmoviegoddess.blogspot.com/
without the beard, he must have been. the beards seemed like a staple for a fully grown dwarf
shareHe has some very deep vocal effects though. Maybe the other dwarfs shave him or he's a rare breed a beardless dwarf.
------------------
Check out the blog:
http://animatedmoviegoddess.blogspot.com/
maybe he's a eunuch dwarf? :p
shareDopey is actually half dwarf. He's taller than the rest and much younger. He resembles one who is 'Dopey' because he is going through that awkward growth spurt that every young man must go through, puberty.
Dopey seems like a child to me but I looked up some history for you from https://disney.fandom.com/wiki/Dopey
"After someone suggested that Dopey should move like burlesque comedian Eddie Collins, Collins himself was filmed performing actions for Dopey. This helped to define the character's personality. Mel Blanc, known for his voice work in Looney Tunes was hired to voice Dopey, but he was dropped when Dopey was decided to be mute. A similar event would happen with Gideon from Pinocchio." - https://disney.fandom.com/wiki/Dopey
In the book "Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life" I remember a different account of the development of the character:
They were trying to distinguish the characters from each other and when someone did a storyboard of the sleeping scene. The animator had an idea that he would act like a little dog having a nightmare. Someone suggested that Dopey could be like Pluto in human form and that helped the animator understand how to approach the character.
Yeah...Dopey is a fucking retard.
share