Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner are fictional characters from the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of animated cartoons, first appearing in 1949 in the theatrical short Fast and Furry-ous. In each subject, the cunning, devious and constantly hungry coyote repeatedly attempts to catch and eat the roadrunner, but is humorously unsuccessful. Instead of animal instinct, the coyote deploys absurdly complex schemes and devices to try to catch his prey. They comically backfire, with the coyote invariably getting injured in slapstick fashion. Many of the items for these contrivances are mail-ordered, primarily from the Acme Corporation, but occasionally from other companies. The characters were created for Warner Bros. Cartoons in 1948 by Chuck Jones and writer Michael Maltese, with Maltese also setting the template for their adventures. The characters star in a long-running series of theatrical cartoon shorts (the first 16 of which were written by Maltese) and occasional made-for-television cartoons. Originally meant to parody chase-cartoon characters such as Tom and Jerry, they became popular in their own right. By 2014, 49 cartoons had been made featuring the characters (including four CGI shorts), the majority by Jones. A feature film revolving around Wile E. Coyote, Coyote vs. Acme, was released in 2026. TV Guide included Wile E. Coyote in its 2013 list of "The 60 Nastiest Villains of All Time".
