| Gremlins | |
|---|---|
 | |
|
Real Name |
Unknown |
|
First Appearance |
Royal Air Force (RAF) Slang (1920s) |
|
Created by |
British Folklore |
Origin[]
A World War II gremlin-themed industrial safety poster.
The Gremlin is a tiny impish creature of mischief and destruction, delighting in causing chaos and mayhem in the US air force just for amusement. With a penchant for sabotaging machinery, particularly airplanes, this small pest embodies the malicious but playful mythical creatures accused of causing mechanical failures during World War II. Use of the term in the sense of a mischievous creature that sabotages aircraft first arose in Royal Air Force (RAF) slang among British pilots stationed in Malta, the Middle East, and India in the 1920s.
During World War II, Gremlins were further popularized among airmen of the Royal Air Force (RAF) units, in particular the men of the high-altitude Photographic Reconnaissance Units (PRU) of RAF Benson, RAF Wick and RAF St Eval. The flight crews blamed gremlins for otherwise inexplicable accidents which sometimes occurred during their flights.
Gremlins were also thought at one point to have enemy sympathies, but investigations revealed that enemy aircraft had similar and equally inexplicable mechanical problems. As such, gremlins were portrayed as equal opportunity tricksters, taking no sides in the conflict, but acting out their mischief from their own self-interest. In reality, the gremlins were a form of "buck passing" or deflecting blame.
Public Domain Comic Appearances[]
- Popular Comics #85-88
Public Domain Film Appearances[]
- Falling Hare (1943)
Notes[]
- In 1943, Bob Clampett directed Falling Hare, a Merrie Melodies cartoon featuring Bugs Bunny. It features Bugs Bunny in conflict with a Gremlin, first at an airfield and then in an airborne plane.
- In Pokémon Sword and Shield, Impidimp and Morgrem are Dark/Fairy type Pokémon based on the gremlin.