Jiminy Cricket

Jiminy Cricket is an animated cartoon character who first appeared in the 1940 Walt Disney animated film Pinocchio. He became conscious and verbal through the magic of Blue Fairy in order to serve as the official conscience for Pinocchio, as well as a comic foil who accompanies him on his adventures.

Jiminy Cricket's voice was originally performed by singer Cliff Edwards, who voiced the character for Disney through the 1960s. After Edwards' death, Eddie Carroll replaced him as the voice of Jiminy.

After Pinocchio, Jiminy he appeared in Fun and Fancy Free as the host of the cartoon segments. He also hosted many Disney television specials. In a recurring segment of the children's television series Mickey Mouse Club, he taught a generation how to spell e-n-c-y-c-l-o-p-e-d-i-a.

In the 1960s and 1970s, Jiminy Cricket appeared in numerous safety films aimed at grade-school-aged audiences. He advised children how to steer clear of dangerous traffic, sharp objects, strangers, exposed electrical lines, and so forth. In each short, he sang the refrain:

I'm no fool, no sirree!
I'm gonna live to be 33 (then 43, 53, etc., up to 103)
I play safe for you and me
'Cause I'm no fool!

He was also among the numerous Disney characters to appear in the television series House of Mouse, and most recently appeared in the video game Kingdom Hearts, as the chronicler to Sora's travels and writes pages about the figures they meet, good or bad.

"Jiminy Cricket!" is also an expletive euphemism for Jesus Christ. The name of the character, in fact, was based upon the exclamation (which itself was uttered in Pinocchio's immediate predecessor, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs).