usually (and very easily) outwits. Another dog named Chauncey, unlike Spike, is friendly and lovable, and constantly licks Heathcliff's face. An occasional visitor is Heathcliff's father Pops Heathcliff who wears a black and white striped prison uniform. In recent times, Heathcliff comic strips often have repetitive themes like bubble gum floating, comic strip or celebrity cameos, helmets, robots, an ape called the Garbage Ape, etc., with readers finding it weird or mistakenly interpreting it as an inside joke. In other media Comic books Starting in 1985, Star Comics, an imprint of Marvel Comics, began producing comic books titled Heathcliff. The series ran for 56 issues, changing to the Marvel Comics brand with issue #23. Star Comics added an additional spin-off title in 1987 called Heathcliff's Funhouse (which also switched over to Marvel with issue #6). It was a combination of new material and reprinted stories that first appeared in the original Heathcliff title. In the comics, Heathcliff had a far better relationship with Mr. Nutmeg, and much of his adventures were done with Mr. Nutmeg's grandson. Heathcliff's reputation for adventurism was even noted by the local police, who recruited him for a sting operation against a gang of cats stealing purses, in exchange for them forgiving the fact Heathcliff swiped shellfish, of course. Within the Marvel Comics multiverse, Heathcliff's reality is designated as Earth-85481. Heathcliff: The Trickest Cat in the Town (1 issue, Marvel Books) Heathcliff the Fish Bandit (1 issue, Marvel Books) Heathcliff Goes to Hollywood (1 issue, Marvel Books) Heathcliff in Outer Space (1 issue, Marvel Books) Heathcliff (56 issues, Star/Marvel) Heathcliff Annual (1 issue, Star) Heathcliff's Funhouse (10 issues, Star/Marvel) Heathcliff Spring Special (1 issue, Marvel UK) Star Comics Presents: Heathcliff (1 issue, ashcan) Star Comics Magazine (AKA Star Comics Digest) (13 issues, Star) Animated series Two animated TV series based on the strip, both simply named Heathcliff, were created. Although Heathcliff does not speak in the comic strip, both animated versions of the character were voiced by Mel Blanc. Heathcliff was one of the last original characters Blanc would voice before his death in 1989. The first Heathcliff was produced by Ruby-Spears Productions and debuted in 1980. The first season featured segments with Dingbat and the Creeps (Dingbat is the vampire dog (Frank Welker) accompanied by Spare Rib the skeleton and Nobody the jack-o-lantern who were both voiced by Don Messick), which were created by Ruby-Spears