Surely there are fewer cats with more recognizable faces than the finicky orange tabby that represented Nine Live Cat foods in his own inimitable feline way for so many years. Morris was an unlikely and rather reluctant star, who got at least the second of his nine lives when he was discovered in a suburban Chicago animal shelter back in 1968. His days were certainly numbered there as an adult stray male named Luck, but there remained an air about him that was different; this lonely tabby had style, personality and panache. It was love at first sight for professional animal trainer, Bob Martwick who immediately adopted him and named him Morris. He then pitched his new companion for a new type of celebrity role for 9 Lives Cat Food to the Leo Burnett Advertising Agency, which used the voice of a man named John Irwin. A star was born and Morris soon became the most recognizable feline in the world!
His fame grew quickly and Americans loved the finicky cat that was always in need of a “ din-din” comprised solely of Purina Cat food. The “Clark Gable of cats” soon moved on to a film career co-starring with Burt Reynolds in “Shamus” in 1973. Ten years later, “Time Magazine” labeled Morris ‘The Feline Burt Reynolds.” (It is anyone’s guess as to how Burt felt about that.) He also made guest appearances o many television shows, signing autographs wherever he went.
As if a film and television career wasn’t enough of a jump for a celebrity cat, Morris also left his mark (paw) on the literary world. In 1980 he came out with the first of three publications that would be associated with his name. “The Morris Approach,” which provided an insider’s guide to general cat care, followed by “The Morris Method,” which was distributed to new pet owners as part of an adoption kit and “The Morris Prescription” which came out in 1986 and concerned cat health care. (He wrote this after attending veterinary school.)
Morris remains one of the most charming food icons of all time, even though several orange tabbys have replaced the original big guy who entered cat heaven in 1975. Even though he lost his bid for the presidency of the United States in 1992, the successors of this orange male tabby continue to reign supreme in the hearts of cat lovers everywhere!
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