Voiced by Jim Backus, Mr. Magoo is an elderly, wealthy, short-statured retiree who gets into a series of comical situations as a result of his extreme near-sightedness, compounded by his stubborn refusal to admit the problem.

His creation was a collaborative effort; animation director John Hubley is said to have partly based the character on his uncle Harry Woodruff,[3] and W. C. Fields was another source of inspiration.

[5] The usage of the titular ursine paid off, as Magoo became a notable human breakout amongst the much more prominent anthropomorphic animal cartoon characters of his contemporary, alongside his debut short being a box-office success.

[7] Burness scrubbed Magoo of his meanness and left only a few strange comments that made him appear senile or somewhat mad.

[8] Magoo was frequently accompanied in his on-screen escapades with his nephew Waldo, voiced at various times by either Jerry Hausner or Daws Butler.

Side 2, "The Mother Magoo Suite", was a series of musical pieces which included two solos by Marni Nixon.

[9] In 1994, a Sega Mega Drive game starring Mr. Magoo was in development and planned to be published by Millennium Interactive but never released.

[10] In 1997, the live-action comedy film Mr. Magoo, produced by Walt Disney Pictures and starring Leslie Nielsen as the title character,[11] was released in December to overwhelmingly negative critical reception.

It features the voices of Jim Conroy, Chris Parnell, Dylan and Cole Sprouse, and Alyson Stoner.

The cartoons suffered from varying character designs and choppier animation, due to rushed production schedules.

During the UPA television era came Mister Magoo's Christmas Carol, an abbreviated but largely faithful retelling of Charles Dickens' tale.

Also in the 1960s, the Polaner company sold its line of preserves in jars decorated with images of Mr. Magoo which, when empty, could then be used as drinking glasses.

The following Mr. Magoo cartoons were either nominees for, or recipients of, the Academy Award for Best Short Subject (Cartoons): On February 8, 2005, Sony BMG Music Entertainment’s former kids and family entertainment division, Sony Wonder (under license from Classic Media) released The Mr. Magoo Show: Complete DVD Collection.

On December 6, 2011, Sony released the feature film 1001 Arabian Nights on DVD through their Screen Classics manufactured-on-demand (MOD) program, now available through a licensing deal through the Warner Archive Collection.

[28] Originally scheduled for release in 2012, the set was pushed back for two years as Sony remastered some of the cartoons from higher quality sources, including newly discovered elements.