Helga Pataki
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Helga G. Pataki | |
|---|---|
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| First appearance | Downtown as Fruits |
| Information | |
| Species | Human |
| Gender | Female |
| Age | 9 |
| Occupation | student |
| Family | Big Bob Pataki (father) Miriam Pataki (mother) Olga Pataki (sister) |
| Relationships | Arnold (in possible future) |
| Portrayed by | Francesca Marie Smith |
| Created by | Craig Bartlett |
Helga Geraldine Pataki is a fictional character in the Nickelodeon animated television series Hey Arnold!. She is voiced by Francesca Marie Smith. She is based on former Gov. of NY, George Pataki.
Helga is a tomboy as evidenced by her interest in playing contact sports - with exceptional emphasis on the word 'contact' - alongside her male classmates and blatant lack of femininity (among other things). She is also very cynical and something of a bully, bossing around her fourth-grade classmates with an iron fist (especially her best friend, Phoebe). Arnold is a classmate she particularly picks on, claiming on several occasions to “abhor his very existence” and calling him names (mainly football-head).
However, she is secretly in love with Arnold to the point of obsession (sometimes escalating into an implied sexual attraction), keeping a shrine and volumes of love poetry dedicated to him hidden within her bedroom closet. Various episodes have her going to the extreme to prevent her secret from being exposed. One such example is the episode “Helga Blabs it All” in which, under the influence of entonox (laughing gas) from a dental filling, she leaves a love declaration on Arnold’s answering machine. After beating up and taking the clothes of a “Campfire Lass” (equivalent to a girl scout), she pretends to be selling cookies in order to gain entry to Arnold's house and steal the tape before he can hear it. In one of the show's most noteworthy episodes, "Helga on the Couch", she actually discusses her obsession with another person, the school psychiatrist (voiced by Kathy Baker). Almost unanimously the most memorable scene of the entire series, Helga finally confesses her love after being caught helping Arnold, by Arnold, in Hey Arnold!: The Movie.
Helga has bright, blond hair tied into long pigtails; a thick, black unibrow; and usually wears a large, pink bow tied into her hair as well as a pink overall/dress. In the pilot and clay animation shorts, Helga wore a pink dress that had sleeves and a white collar. In certain episodes of the real series, she can be seen wearing her original dress.
Helga is extremely intelligent. In one episode where the class takes a standardized exam, it is eventually revealed that Helga achieved a perfect score on the test unlike anyone else.
Helga has a very dysfunctional family. Her father "Big" Bob Pataki (Maurice LaMarche), a successful pager salesman, rarely notices her existence (and hinted to have beaten her, thus making Helga a victim of child abuse), favoring her over-achiever, neurotic college-aged sister Olga (Nika Frost), whom Helga hates. Her mother Miriam (Kath Soucie) is often found being depressed, struggling to stay conscious, making “smoothies,” drinking coffee, and giving off various other hints of being an alcoholic. Therefore it is not great surprise that Helga lashes out at the world.
For a while, a spin-off of Hey Arnold! was planned. It was going to be called “The Patakis” and would be based on Helga and her family a few years in the future. Nickelodeon didn’t like the idea as it would be too “dark” for Nick-at-Night. MTV considered the idea, but ultimately decided that it was too similar to their own show Daria and couldn’t really afford to do another like it.
According to the show's creator, Craig Bartlett, her first name is a 'contraction' for "Hell Girl."
