Jim Dear is Lady and Tramp's owner, Darling's husband, Jim Jr.'s father, and Aunt Sarah's nephew in Disney's 1955 animated feature film Lady and the Tramp.
Background[]
Development[]
In pre-production, Jim Dear was known as Jim Brown, and Darling was named Elizabeth. These were dropped to highlight Lady's point of view. In a very early version, published as a short story in a 1944 Disney children's anthology, Lady refers to them as "Mister" and "Missis." To maintain a dog's perspective, Jim Dear and Darling's faces are rarely shown. The background artists made models of the interiors of Jim Dear and Darling's house and shot photos and film at a low perspective as a reference to maintain a dog's view.
The film's opening sequence, in which Darling unwraps a hat box on Christmas night and finds Lady inside, is based upon an actual incident in Walt Disney's life when he presented his wife, Lillian, with a Cocker Spaniel puppy as a gift in a hatbox.
Personality[]
Jim Dear and Darling are very loving and caring people, to both other each other and their pets. At first, Jim Dear attempts to be firm with their new puppy, Lady, but he later gives in and allows her to sleep with them after Darling requests it. They appear to be dog-lovers, having adopted two: Tramp and Angel, besides having Lady and Lady and Tramp's puppies.
Appearances[]
Lady and the Tramp[]
In the first film, Jim Dear and Darling are introduced as a young married couple. At Christmas, he presents her with the gift of a Cocker Spaniel puppy, whom she names Lady. That night, they make a bed in the laundry room for her, but she becomes lonely. Darling wishes for her to sleep with them, but Jim Dear remains firm. He finally gives in, though he states that it is just for that night.
A few months later, when Lady is six months old, it is revealed that she now sleeps with Jim Dear and Darling regularly. Realizing that she has grown up, they present her with a collar and license. Later on, it is shown that they have been unintentionally been treating her somewhat coldly. However, she soon learns that they're expecting a baby. After Jim Jr. is born, Jim Dear and Darling introduce Lady to him. Soon after, they leave for a short trip, leaving Lady and Jim Jr. in the care of Aunt Sarah.
They return near the end of the film. Aunt Sarah reveals that a stray dog had been in Jim Jr.'s room and that she had the dogcatcher take him to the pound. After hearing Lady barking, they release her from the cellar, where Aunt Sarah had locked her up. Jim Dear realizes that she is attempting to tell them something, and so he and Darling follow her to Jim Jr.'s room. There, they're able to find a dead rat. They realize that Tramp had been trying to protect Jim Jr. from it.
Jim Dear follows the dogcatcher and retrieves Tramp. He and Darling adopt him, and the following Christmas reveals that he and Lady have a litter of four puppies.
Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp's Adventure[]
Jim Dear and Darling reappear as the owners of Lady, Tramp, and their puppies. After one of them, Scamp, makes a mess in the house, Jim Dear is forced to chain him to a doghouse outside. When he runs away, Jim Dear blames himself and promises he'll never chain him up again. Later on, they take the dogs out on a family picnic, during which Scamp steals a chicken to take to the junkyard dogs. At the end of the film, Jim Dear apologizes to him for chaining him up. Jim Dear and Darling adopt his friend, Angel, whom he had met on the streets.
Live-action appearances[]
Lady and the Tramp (2019)[]
Jim Dear appears in the 2019 live-action remake, played by Thomas Mann. While it is presumed that he has an office job in the animated film, in the remake, he is said to be a musician.
Jim Dear is first seen giving his wife Darling a gift during Christmas Day which the gift his wife receives is a Cocker Spaniel puppy for Christmas, which Darling feels excited about the gift she received. Jim Dear names the puppy "Lady" just before going to bed with his wife. Suddenly, Lady feels very lonely trying to get her owners' attention so that she can sleep with her owners which Jim instead gives Lady her own pillow, but to his wife's request, she tells him to allow their puppy to sleep with their owners but for one night only. The next day, Jim and his wife get their dog ready for the next day while his wife sings "La La Lu" just as Lady receives her collar before exiting the house. When Lady returns home, she spends her new life living with Jim Dear and Darling.
The next day, during a party, Jim is chatting with some guests who are excited that he and his wife are about to have a baby just before Lady approaches Darling receiving a Majolica from Aunt Sarah who is curious to know if the new baby will love it. Jim suddenly hears Lady barking at Tramp, whom she thinks that he is a trespasser just as Jim goes outside to approach Lady, which Elliot, the dogcatcher, talks to him that he is looking for a stray dog (Tramp) to capture and send him to the dog pound; Jim denies, telling him that everything is fine with Lady, except that he tells him about a rat problem in his neighborhood, telling Elliot to take care of the rat, which he tells Jim that he can't as he doesn't associate himself with rodents like these just before Jim returns home.
That night, Jim goes into a discussion with a doctor, telling him if he saw his baby, which the doctor tells him that his baby is the most beautiful baby just as Jim tells his wife about the exciting news that he is going to have a baby, followed by the doctor leaving by himself. The next day, Darling holds her baby daughter while singing a lullaby to her while her husband sits on a rocking chair staring at his baby daughter, Lulu. He then notices Lady barking to get his attention, but Jim tells her that the baby needs some quiet time. After Lady sees the rat escaping via window, she barks to get Jim Dear's attention, but tells her to be quiet and not to wake up Lulu just as he takes Lady outside so she can remain quiet. Later, Jim approaches Aunt Sarah, followed by Jim's wife Darling approaching her holding her baby just as Jim thanks Sarah for watching over their dog just before Lady's owners leave, telling her to behave. Later, Elliot releases Lady from the dog pound to reunite her with Darling and Jim Dear, who take her back him, just as they are very happy to see Lady back, followed by Aunt Sarah approaching Lady's owners just before leaving to attend a very important engagement. When Sarah boasts her thoughts about letting Lady get close to Lulu, Jim becomes a bit upset about her for not getting along with dogs well, just as Darling tells Lady that Aunt Sarah has a point in letting Lady get close to their baby.
After Aunt Sarah leaves, Jim Dear and his wife Darling introduce Lady to their baby Lulu who is part of their family just as Lady gently interacts with Lulu, followed by Lady spending time with her owners with their baby after reuniting with them. Later that night, Jim Dear tells his dog Lady to get inside due to the rain outside, followed by Lady entering her owners' house where they are discussing with Elliot about Tramp, the stray dog who was with Lady just as they continue discussing about the dog. Later when Lady's owners hear Lulu crying, Jim defends Lulu from Tramp. Jim then approaches Elliot who tells him that he has a strict rule on dogs attacking humans just before Jim returns home. Furthermore when Lady returns home, she holds back the broken curtain revealing the rat that Tramp killed to show Jim Dear and Darling, much to their shock. As Jim and Darling ride on their car, they attempt to get Lady back home to protect her from Tramp. Suddenly after Tramp was rescued, Jim and his wife approach Lady who was safe after all, just as Darling urges Elliot to release Tramp who helped protect the baby which he refuses to and after Jim and Darling explain that Tramp has a home, Elliot clears out his bad reputation, allowing them to have Tramp.
During Christmas, Jim welcome Tramp to the family, alongside Darling just as Lady's owners spend Christmas together with Tramp welcomed to the family while Jim's wife Darling sings "Peace On Earth" to Lulu.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Lee Millar, who voiced Jim Dear in the first movie, was the son of actress Verna Felton, who voiced Aunt Sarah in the first film.
