This is Killer from Don Bluth's
film, "All Dogs Go To Heaven". He is the first bad guy (that I know of)
that Charles Nelson Reilly ever provided the voice for. He's my favorite
Charles Nelson Reilly character above all the others.
Killer first appeared toward the beginning of the first "All Dogs Go To Heaven" film.
His role in the film is a bit small, but you'd really miss it if it wasn't there.
When Carface says "jump", he's the first to ask "how high?". Despite the rotten way his boss treats
him, Killer remains loyal until the end--literally the end of the film. He appeared again in MGM's
"An All Dogs Christmas Carol" still as Carface's faithful punching bag, but we see another side
to Killer in this film. It becomes clear that he's very misunderstood. At first glance, he's a bad guy,
but if you go a little deeper, he's just a submissive old mutt with a good heart.
It is known for a fact that Killer was a fun character to develope for "All
Dogs Go To Heaven". In the words of Gary Goldman, "It was a combination of
Don's character design, David Weiss's writing and the acting performance of
Charles Nelson Reilly that brought Killer together. Don felt that
Charles Nelson Reilly's performance was the real key to perfecting the
character and his personality." Charles Nelson Reilly was the man they wanted
to voice Killer from the very beginning and the character and his voice person
bear some striking similarities--one of which is, of course, the oversized
glasses as well as "the little sprigs of hair on his head". Charles Nelson Reilly was the main influence for Killer's overall personality
as well as his design.
It seems obvious that Charlie has a certain distaste for Killer. I say this because in the song "You Can't Keep A Good Dog Down",
Charlie sings the line "I've known hunger, I've known thirst...Lived the best and seen the worst, but the only way I know to finish
is to finish first..." When he sings "...seen the worst..." he gives Killer a dirty look, suggesting that Carface's sidekick
is "the worst". I pay attention to details and like to read deep into the characters I like, so this is why this information
is here.
I s'pose you might be wondering how I figured out what Killer's middle name is, so I'll tell ya. In the first
film, Charlie's full name is Charlie B. Barkin--ever wonder what name that "B" stands for? The answer is "Burt".
Burt Reynolds voiced Charlie in the first (and best) "All Dogs Go To Heaven" and Don Bluth spoofed him a
little by making his first name Charlie's middle name. So I've come to the conclusion that Killer's middle name
must be the first name of his voice person--Charles Nelson Reilly.
It is now known for a fact that Killer is nothing more than an average mix-breed street
mutt, but I still say some of his features resemble those of the Saluki, so, in my opinion,
a Saluki is somewhere in his family tree, so I'm keepin' the Saluki stuff on his page. :)
Species- Canine
Breed- "A Heinz 57 Mutt"
Age- Senior
Occupation- Sidekick; Henchman
Positive Qualities- Kind at heart, comical personality
Negative Qualities- Cowardly, overly submissive
Identification- Oversized glasses, spike collar, docked tail
Voice Actor- Charles Nelson Reilly
First Appeared In- All Dogs Go To Heaven (1989)
Also Appears In- All Dogs Go To Heaven The Cartoon Series (1996), An All Dogs Christmas Carol (1998)