It was a dark (and possibly stormy) night, May 1st to be exact, when our young mackerel tabby tuxedo girl Cookie forced her way out of a window and ran heatedly into the ebon eve.
She returned in July somewhat rounder, and on August 25th of that year, Cookie gave birth to five beautiful boys hereafter known as “The Lads”. They grew to be fine young men, each with their own special skills and roles in the household. Jack, the firstborn, would later become Boss Cat of the house.
Manny was full of energy and athletic ability, climbing into the rafters of the kitchen ceiling and being coaxed down only by a chair offered to him at human head height! In his youth, he was known as Circus Cat, but now spends the majority of his time in our meditation room contemplating……….whatever it is he’s contemplating! He is one content cat I think we could all learn alot from.
Mr. Wuggums came out next – the sweetest little tuxedo boy you’ve ever seen with a tiny white stripe on his mouth (milkmouth) – his milkmouth is the origin of his unique voice, which we’ll present to you once Xanawu Studios moves from silent film to talkies! His voice, looks and varied interests (did you know he likes to go shopping or have hot tea with lemon?) made him the instant celebrity of the litter – the face of the group!
Phineas, the fourth lad, was quite the adventurer – a savvy, David Niven type who was always quick to give his affection with a heartfelt nudge or a high five. His favorite word was “What?” and would use it often, gaining him the job of badly timed backing vocalist for Mr. Wuggums’ songs. Sadly, Phin passed away in 2019 – the “Fin” title card at the end of each feature length film or special production is a tribute to him. His exuberance and enthusiasm will be missed.
Dizzy was born last and instantly faced challenges – he was stuck in Cookie’s “oven” and couldn’t come out! Good thing Mommy was there to midwife! Dizzy was born with a white birth sac and has special powers of healing and shamanism. He monitors the peace level of the household and leads us in prayer when the spirit moves him.
When Wuggie and the lads were young, the lyrics to the song “Santa Claus’ Party” were changed to “Mr. Wuggums’ Party”
“Come on everybody to Mr. Wuggums’ party,
there’s lots of toys for girls and boys and plenty of fun in store.
You don’t need a ticket to Mr. Wuggums’ party,
Jack and Phin will let you in and Manny and Diz will pour.Mr. Wuggums’ Party
A scratching post so high it pokes right through the sky
and Mr. Wu is there to call ‘Merry Christmas to you all!'”
Later it became a commercial in my mind, like the promo for a Dean Martin Christmas special, so I started thinking of songs each of the cats could do, and different guest spots and cameos.
A series of events taught me to understand how important each moment spent with loved ones is, so when we finally had a good video camera I swore I’d put this trailer together for his Christmas special. It was so damn cute it just turned into a whole movie without the guest spots of (“The Jacksons“….”Sleeve and Edie”, etc.). That Christmas set was the inspiration for all of Mr. Wuggums’ feature length films to come, each taking place in Mr. Wuggums’ world – Xanawu.
….and I found out I like to make sets for cats out of cardboard and edit footage – who knew?
Thus Xanawu studios was born – we hope to delight you with our feline films for many years to come!
Michelle Griffin, Catmom