Something About 'SpongeBob' Whispers 'Gay' to Many Men

Wall Street Journal ^ | October 8, 2002 | SALLY BEATTY

[gcruse]

He lives in a pineapple under the sea, in a town called Bikini Bottom. His best friend is an exuberant pink starfish named Patrick. His name is SpongeBob SquarePants, the absorbent yellow star of the most highly rated kids show on TV.

[Havisham]

Something says gay to men? My suitably sheltered 11-year old daughter called out Sponge Bob's orientation at the Target store two years ago, at least.

[Jeff Chandler]

LAST thing it is is a silly kids show, which is why it is so incredibly popular (cause parents like it to).

Like the works of William Shakespeare and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Spongebob Squarepants is written on many levels.

Or am I overstating the case?

[Lancey Howard]

SpongeBob is the best cartoon on TV (not counting The Simpsons and Family Guy and Hey, Arnold). SpongeBob is a fry cook. Fry cooks are not gay. Now SpongeBob's pet snail - - the snail who meows like a cat and is named Gary - - he might be gay. And I'm pretty sure that Sandy, the squirrel who lives in Bikini Bottom, is a lesbian. Mr Krab is definitely not gay, and neither is his niece, Pearl. Squidward and Patrick are platonic, I bet. And that boating teacher who ended up in jail because of SpongeBob's poor driving? She is a spinster. A spinster, for sure.

[Jeff Chandler]

Sandy can't be a lesbian. She's from Texas.

[katana]

Everybody's entitled to their opinion, but the popularity of the show does indicate that a lot of people think the it is hilarious, and I'm one of them.

As far as the "sexuality" of the characters is concerned, I've never caught the slightest hint that it was an issue. Sponge Bob's two best friends are a male starfish named Patrick who has weight and severe IQ deficit problems, and a female squirrel named Sandy who is a proud and loyal Texas girl. Between the two, the one that seems to come closest to a love or at least a "crush" interest is Sandy.

Personally, I'm getting really sick and tired of gays claiming innocuous entertainment as somehow exclusively their own. If they find the show funny (I think it's a scream) that's fine. But trying to insert their perversity, especially into childrens' entertainment, is infuriating. It's a not-so-subtle attempt to insinuate themselves with kids. Again, it's not the show itself, it's crap like this article that makes me angry.

[Ladybug1]

I like Spongebob. Spongebob isn't gay, just lovebly clueless.

[Lancey Howard]

Sandy can't be a lesbian. She's from Texas.

Right you are. I stand corrected.

[Jeff Chandler]

Spongebob isn't gay, just lovebly clueless.

Not as clueless as Patrick.

[Physicist]

Sandy can't be a lesbian. She's from Texas.

Two words: Molly Ivins.

[WileyC]

Just because gay guys like something doesn't make it 'gay', per se. Kids like Superman, but that doesn't make them Kryptonian! =)

Yeah, I watch the show with my kids and there was one episode with a gay reference. But it was a joke people! (If you're really interested in the details, read below.) I find that many of the cleverest cartoons have a mix of jokes, some aimed at kids and others at the adults, with a broad middle range that can appeal to either age group.

Anyway, it isn't corrupted, it isn't out to destroy the morals of your kids (or your neighbor's kids if you don't have any) and, while a bit mindless, really is good, clean fun.

For those who give a darn...
The gay reference was in an episode where Spongebob and his friend Patrick were in an athletic competition to see who was the best fry cook of the year. The final bout was a wrestling match where the characters (normally physical wimps) were exaggerated so that they had outlandish muscles. They decided to be friends afterwards and walked off hand in hand in a classic 'gay muscle guys at beach' pose.

[RJCogburn]

Wow! Have I missed out on popular culture since my kids grew up. Thanks for bringing me up to date.

And I thought I was cool watching the Simpsons.

[MJM59]

Wow, I did not know that cartoons had the capacity for this much evil. To me, it seems that everything in this world of a creative or entertainment nature is always being scrutinized for some lame reason or another. A pathetic waste of time.

[ArneFufkin]

What manner of kooky cartoon adventures can a sponge have? He soaks up the flood just before it destroys the village? Who are his sidekicks? What kind of kitchen cleaning product is Patrick?

Hollywood spends millions creating, producing and broadcasting shows about witty, care-free gay characters. They spend more millions manipulating PR to derail any speculative discussion of THEIR real-life gayness.

Hughes, Geffen, Gallin, Diller, Wenner, Griffin, Sheinbloom, Bronfman, Coward ... the second Darren on bewitched ... half the CAA and Morris agents ... nah. Nothing to see.

[RJCogburn]

Why do you dweebs choose the names you do?

Whoa, there, Pilgrim. Now you are entering the world of pop psychology. Trying to curry favor, perhaps?

[RepubMommy]

I do not watch cartoons, but Spongebob is the exception. I love this show, and watch it with my daugher and nephews all the time. I have never, ever wondered about the characters sexuality. Anyone that does has a screw loose somewhere.

We watch it here also. I never thought anything of it either. Wasn't there som hype a while ago that Bert and Ernie were supposed to be gay? How ridiculous.

[RabidBartender]

"Siezing an accepted cultural icon to deflect scrutiny from oneself would seem to me to be some sort of pathology, the work of a person utterly devoid of their own persona."

But seizing an accepted cultural icon to entice young children to one's lifestyle could be a motive. They cannot reproduce, so they recruit.

[PBRSTREETGANG]

Is Spongebob more or less gay than Mr. Rogers?

[general_re]

Alas, my son is too young to appreciate the Spongebob-Buckaroo Banzai connection as I do, but I imagine you would understand ;)

[ArneFufkin]

The greatest philosopher of our times is Bugs Bunny

Yes he was. He espoused ongoing social commentary. Cartoon characters have always conducted politically incorrect patter and satire. Bugs regularly pierced the third wall and offered asides and insights on the status of the cartoon to the viewer. I actually think Groucho lifted that out of the box vehicle from the Warner cartoonists and applied it to movie farces. It was great stuff. Bugs was always busting on someone or something.

He was a world class horny little devil, too.

[Xenalyte]

SpongeBob is the best cartoon on TV (not counting The Simpsons and Family Guy and Hey, Arnold).

Sniffle, sniffle . . . I really miss Family Guy. Like The Tick, it was far too cool to last.