List of Ghostbusters characters

This is a list of fictional characters in the Ghostbusters universe.

Table

Characters	Films			Animated series			Video Game
	Ghostbusters (1984)	Ghostbusters II (1989)	Ghostbusters (2016)	The Real Ghostbusters (1986-1991)	Slimer! and the Real Ghostbusters (1988)	Extreme Ghostbusters (1997)	Ghostbusters: The Video Game (2009)
Peter Venkman	Bill Murray			Lorenzo Music Dave Coulier	Dave Coulier	Dave Coulier (cameo)	Bill Murray
Ray Stantz	Dan Aykroyd			Frank Welker		Frank Welker (cameo)	Dan Aykroyd
Egon Spengler	Harold Ramis			Maurice LaMarche			Harold Ramis
Winston Zeddemore	Ernie Hudson			Arsenio Hall Buster Jones	Buster Jones	Buster Jones (cameo)	Ernie Hudson
Erin Gilbert			Kristen Wiig
Abby Yates			Melissa McCarthy
Jillian Holtzmann			Kate McKinnon
Patty Tolan			Leslie Jones
Janine Melnitz	Annie Potts			Laura Summer Kath Soucie	Kath Soucie	Pat Musick	Annie Potts
Slimer	Ivan Reitman (voice)		Adam Ray	Frank Welker		Billy West	Troy Baker
Louis Tully	Rick Moranis			Rodger Bumpass
Dana Barrett	Sigourney Weaver
Mayor Lenny Clotch	David Margulies				Hal Smith, Maurice LaMarche, Frank Welker, Buster Jones
Walter Peck	William Atherton			Neil Ross			William Atherton
Stay Puft Marshmallow Man	Bill Bryan (suit actor)		Warwick Davis (motion capture)	Frank Welker John Stocker			(misc voices)
Gozer	Slavitza Jovan Paddi Edwards (voice)						(Silent cameo)
Dr. Eleanor Twitty	Alice Drummond						(misc. voices)
Vigo the Carpathian		Wilhelm von Homburg Max von Sydow (voice)					Max von Sydow
Oscar Barrett		William T. Deutschendorf Hank J. Deutschendorf II
Dr. Janosz Poha		Peter MacNicol
Rowan			Neil Casey
Kevin			Chris Hemsworth
Mayor of New York City			Andy García
Hawkins			Michael K. Williams
Rourke			Matt Walsh
Taxi driver			Dan Aykroyd

Note: A gray cell indicates character did not appear in that medium.

Peter Venkman

Peter Venkman is the leader of the Ghostbusters. He is portrayed by Murray in both live action films, and is voiced in the animated series first by the late Music, followed by Coulier. Peter is one of three doctors of parapsychology on the team; he also holds a Ph.D. in psychology. In the movies, he is characterized by his flippant persona, his lackadaisical approach to his profession, and his womanizing demeanor; of the three doctors in the Ghostbusters, he is the least committed to the academic and scientific side of their profession, and tends to regard his field, in the words of his employer in the first film, as "a dodge or hustle".

Raymond Stantz

Raymond "Ray" Stantz, another member of the Ghostbusters, is played by Aykroyd in the films Ghostbusters and Ghostbusters II, and is voiced by Welker in the animated television series The Real Ghostbusters. He is one of the three doctors of parapsychology on the team. Ray is considered the "heart" of the Ghostbusters by the other members of the team. He is an expert on paranormal history and metallurgy. He is characterized by his almost childlike enthusiasm towards his work, and his forthright acceptance of paranormal activity.

Egon Spengler

Egon Spengler is the brains of the Ghostbusters who serves as Peter Venkman's second-in-command, and the creator of the Ghostbusters' equipment along with Raymond Stantz. Lacking much of a personality other than his focus on all things scientific, he is often shown as lacking social skills when dealing with people. Egon is portrayed by Ramis in the films Ghostbusters and Ghostbusters II, and voiced by LaMarche in the animated television series The Real Ghostbusters and later Extreme Ghostbusters. LaMarche was the only voice actor to remain for the entirety of both series. Before the movie was released, American Cinematographer described Egon as "maniacal" based on reading the script.^[1] Ramis credits the part as launching his acting career, as up to that point he had been a director and writer.^[2]

Winston Zeddemore

Winston Zeddemore is played by Hudson in both movies and the 2009 video game, and was voiced by Arsenio Hall in the first season of The Real Ghostbusters. Buster Jones provided Winston's voice in the remaining seasons, and he reprised the role in a cameo on Extreme Ghostbusters. Hudson reportedly auditioned to reprise the role of Winston for the animated series, but he was rejected in favor of Hall. Unlike the other members of the team, Winston is not a scientist with a background in the paranormal; the novelization says that he was in the Marines. He is hired when the Ghostbusters' business begins to pick up. Despite not sharing the educational credentials of his coworkers, Winston often serves as the everyman of the team, acting as a voice of reason and displaying more common sense than the others. In the 2009 video game, Winston claims to have spent time in the Egypt exhibit of the museum while in college, suggesting experience in anthropology or a related science.

Dana Barrett

In the first movie, Dana Barrett is a single musician, living in the building which will become the gateway to a Sumerian god. Dana is singled out early for unwelcome paranormal attention by the movie's main villain, and seeks the help of the Ghostbusters after seeing their advertisement on television. She is possessed by the demon Zuul who along with Vinz Clortho opens the interdimensional gate to bring Gozer to Earth in the first film. She promptly attracts the romantic attention of Venkman, whose flippant behavior causes her to doubt her decision to seek aid from the Ghostbusters. Dana is portrayed by Weaver in the films Ghostbusters and Ghostbusters II. In the sequel, she is a divorced mother of an eight-month-old boy named Oscar. It is immediately made clear that Venkman is neither the ex-husband nor the boy's father. At the time of this movie, Dana is working as a restorationist at a museum. By leading to her infant son becoming the target of a supernatural force, this job becomes the vehicle by which the Ghostbusters re-enter her life and come into contact with the movie's main villain. She is also a neighbor of Louis Tully in the first movie.

Janine Melnitz

Janine Melnitz, the Ghostbusters's secretary, is played by Potts in both movies, and is voiced by Laura Summer and Kathy Soucie in The Real Ghostbusters and Pat Musick in Extreme Ghostbusters. Janine has occasionally worn the Ghostbusters uniform and used ghost-catching equipment in the animated series. During the first film, Janine often flirted with Egon but none of her advances were returned in kind. She later dated Louis Tully in the sequel.

Louis Tully

Louis Tully is a nerdy accountant and a neighbor of Dana Barrett, played by Moranis in Ghostbusters and Ghostbusters II and voiced by Rodger Bumpass in the Slimer! And the Real Ghostbusters animated series. He is possessed by the demon Vinz Clortho, who, along with Zuul, opens the interdimensional gate to bring Gozer to Earth in the first film. In Ghostbusters II, he is revealed to have earned a law degree at night school, representing the Ghostbusters at their trial and taking up permanent employment with them when they reestablish their business. In addition, he seeks to become the fifth Ghostbuster. He later borrows a Ghostbuster jumpsuit and proton pack to attempt to help defeat Vigo the Carpathian. After the release of Ghostbusters II, Louis became a semi-regular character on Slimer! And the Real Ghostbusters as the Ghostbusters' legal and financial adviser. Ghostbusters, like many films on which Moranis has worked, had him improvising some of his lines.^[3]

Slimer

Slimer is a translucent green blob creature, with two skinny arms, no feet, and several chins. In the first movie, Slimer was voiced by director Reitman, while Welker voiced the green ghost in The Real Ghostbusters. In the 1989 sequel Ghostbusters II, Robin Shelby performed Slimer and Reitman again voiced Slimer but most of the footage shot was not used. In the late 1990s cartoon Extreme Ghostbusters, Slimer's voice was provided by Billy West. Troy Baker voices Slimer in the 2009 video game, though with the sound effects used in the first movie. Aykroyd reportedly referred to Slimer as "The Ghost of John Belushi".

In the script for Ghostbusters, Slimer is never called by any name, but is described as a "focused, non-terminal repeating phantasm or a class 5 full roaming vapor". The creature's original title was "The Onionhead Ghost", which the film crew dubbed him for the horrible odor he used to scare a couple in a scene cut from the original movie. Slimer’s personality is one of tremendous gluttony, and he is referred to as a "disgusting blob". In the movies, he is not named and is portrayed as an antagonist. In the cartoon, he is known as Slimer, is able to speak, and demonstrates a child’s intelligence and intense loyalty to Ray and the Ghostbusters with the personality of a dog. His role in the series is explained in the episode "Citizen Ghost", which primarily consists of a flashback to the immediate aftermath of the movie, where Slimer returned to the firehouse as the Ghostbusters were the first people to show any interest in him, the team 'adopting' him as a means of testing ghosts and an ally after he helped them defeat ectoplasmic manifestations of themselves that had manifested from their old uniforms after the uniforms were exposed to ghostly energies from the containment unit. In the Marvel UK comics of the Real Ghostbusters, Slimer had his own half-page sketch, in which Slimer's past life was covered; he was originally called King Remils, a greedy, obese monarch who had died of heart failure.

Slimer's popularity soared from the subsequent spin-off animated television series The Real Ghostbusters. Slimer later starred in his own Slimer! cartoons when The Real Ghostbusters was extended to a one-hour format. SLIMER! was briefly published by NOW Comics, a defunct Chicago firm. Artists included Mitch O'Connell and Mark Braun. Writers included Larry Parr who also wrote for the animated series. Slimer also appeared as a representative of The Real Ghostbusters in the animated anti-drug television special Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue. Slimer was also the mascot for the Hi-C flavor "Ecto Cooler", which came out shortly after The Real Ghostbusters, and was colored green. Slimer remained on the box well after the Real Ghostbusters was cancelled; but in 1997 the drink was renamed "Shoutin' Orange Tangergreen", and Slimer was removed. Slimer also had a toothpaste named after him.

Ivo Shandor

Ivo Shandor is a major figure in the continuity, mentioned in the first movie and serving as the primary antagonist in the 2009 video game. He is an insane physician and an architect of some renown during the early 20th century with a penchant for performing macabre and unnecessary surgeries. The aftermath of the first World War convinces Shandor that humanity is beyond saving. He sets up a cult of Gozer worshipers, eventually numbering almost one thousand, in the 1920s with his ancestral island home on the Hudson River as the center of it. Using his connections to International Steel's chairman and other corrupt company owners, Shandor designs 55 Central Park West as a means to summon Gozer to bring about the end of the world. Shandor also develops a mandala across the city, with the New York Public Library, the Museum of Natural History, the Sedgewick Hotel, and Shandor Island (before it sank) as key nodes protected by his most loyal followers: Azetlor the Collector, the Museum Chairman, the Spider Witch, and a captured, otherworldly sloar that generates a steady stream of black slime used to power the Mandala system and Shandor's island lab.

Shandor's original scheme comes to fruition during the events of the first film in the 1980s, when the sufficient energy collected causes Gozer's minions to physically manifest in preparation for their master's coming. The Ghostbusters foil Gozer's entry and neutralize it. As revealed in the video game, Shandor is responsible for the events of Ghostbusters II, as the slime produced on his island finds its way into an abandoned city subway line, causing a wave of ghosts to surface and strengthening the spirit of Vigo the Carpathian. Shandor finally makes an appearance in Ghostbusters: The Video Game. By 1991, Shandor possesses the body of Mayor Jack Mulligan and makes Peck head of PCOC to hinder the Ghostbusters while he uses his only living descendant, Dr. Ilyssa Selwyn, to invoke the nodes of his mandala and revive Gozer. After once again being defeated by the Ghostbusters and failing to capture Ilyssa, Shandor becomes further disillusioned of Gozer, and decides to use the mandala to merge the ghost world with the real world in order to become a god himself, taking on a form similar to a massive Jesus Christ covered in molten rock. The Ghostbusters destroy Ivo Shandor once and for all by crossing the streams after following him into the ghost world.

Gozer

Gozer the Gozerian, also known as "The Destructor", "Volguus Zildrohar" and "The Traveler", is a sadistic Sumerian shapeshifting god who is the primary antagonist of the first film. As the game sequel covered, cults worshipping Gozer and his minions arose around 6000 BC before being banished from this dimension by the Babylonian god Tiamat following a protracted conflict between their followers. Entering into any given dimension, Gozer uses the thoughts of those who witness his arrival to assume a fixed form within that plane of existence. Gozer's arrival is set in motion in the 1920s by the actions of Ivo Shandor and comes to fruition in 1984, when his minions Zuul and Vinz Clortho open the portal for their master to enter on top of the building Shandor designed. Though originally in the form of an androgynous humanoid, Gozer uses Ray's accidental thought to assume the form of the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man before being conquered.

The Stay Puft Marshmallow Man

The Stay Puft Marshmallow Man, mascot for the fictional company Stay Puft Marshmallows, becomes the chosen form of Gozer after Stantz thinks about something he says is harmless. Stay Puft also makes appearances in the animated series The Real Ghostbusters as a friendly ghost, and returns to attack New York in Ghostbusters: The Video Game. Stay Puft was inspired by Peter O'Boyle, a security guard at Columbia Pictures whom director Reitman met filming his previous movie, Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone. According to Sam Delaney of The Guardian, "Stay Puft's familiar mascot combined elements of real life brand ambassadors Bibendum (aka the Michelin tire man) and the Pillsbury Dough Boy."^[4] The costume was created by Bill Bryan using miniatures, optical compositing and Bryan himself in a latex suit.^[5]

Vigo

Vigo the Carpathian, his full name "Prince Vigo von Homburg Deutschendorf", is the main antagonist of the second film. In life, Vigo is a sadistic tyrant of Carpathia, self-described as the "Scourge of Carpathia" and "the Sorrow of Moldavia". Born in 1505, Vigo was expert in sorcery and black magic. He enjoyed an unnaturally long life (fueled by black magic to give him immortality) which comes to an equally unnatural end when in the year 1610 he is "poisoned, stabbed, shot, hanged, stretched, disemboweled, drawn and quartered" by his own people before being decapitated. Even this does not kill him instantly - as Spengler notes that "just before his head died" he vowed to return saying "death is but a door, time is but a window, I will return".

Vigo's spirit is eventually transferred into a life size portrait which makes its way to the restoration department of the Manhattan Museum of Art in 1989, the setting for the Ghostbusters II movie. Using the psychomagnetheric mood slime to become active, Vigo manipulates the art gallery's curator, Dr. Janosz Poha (Peter MacNicol), into finding him a child (Dana's son Oscar) whose body he can inhabit. His plan is ultimately foiled by the Ghostbusters' use of the positive mood slime.

In Ghostbusters: The Video Game, the portrait of Vigo is stored in the Ghostbusters' firehouse. Though no longer a threat, Vigo enjoys insulting and taunting anybody who approaches him. He also makes cryptic predictions based on real-world history, as the game's release post-dates the time period of the game by nearly two decades.

It has been widely speculated, although never confirmed, that the character of Vigo was based on Prince Vlad/Count Dracula from Bram Stoker's novel Dracula.

Dr. Eleanor Twitty

The Grey Lady is the first ghost encountered by the original three Ghostbusters (Ray, Egon, and Peter) while they are investigating paranormal activity at the New York Public Library. When they attempt to touch her, she transforms into a much larger and more frightening form, and causes the trio to flee the library in terror. Though they do not catch her, they get a scan of her and use the information to construct their containment grid and ghost catching equipment, allowing the creation of their ghost-catching business.

She returns in the 2009 video game, where much of her history is revealed, and the Ghostbusters uncover the tragic story of her death. She was once Dr. Eleanor Twitty, the head librarian of the NYC Public Library in the 1920s, and overseer of its collection of ancient artifacts, stone tablets, long-forgotten tomes, and rare books. In March 1924, she goes missing, and the police are unable to find her. They discover that she has been murdered by philologist Edmund Hoover, The Collector, who seduces her to get to the rare books in her care, specifically the Gozerian Codex. In the video game, the Ghostbusters discover her reading the Codex before capturing her. Due to the ease of the capture, they state that she must have wanted them to recover the Codex to aid them in defeating The Collector.

Kylie Griffin

Kylie Griffin was first introduced as one of the next generation of Ghostbusters in Extreme Ghostbusters. She is the first female Ghostbuster (unless Janine Melnitz is counted). She is the unofficial leader of her group and carries the ghost trap on her back. She becomes involved with the Ghostbusters after enrolling in Egon Spengler's course at City College of New York. As part of Extreme Ghostbusters, Kylie is featured in the video games Extreme Ghostbusters for the Game Boy Color, Extreme Ghostbusters: Code Ecto-1 for Game Boy Advance and Extreme Ghostbusters: The Ultimate Invasion for the PlayStation. She was also the basis of several action figures from Trendmasters. Kylie is widely regarded as the fan favorite of Extreme Ghostbusters.^[6][7]

Kylie reappears as a supporting character in IDW Publishing's Ghostbusters comic. She first appears in issue 5 in 2012 as the manager of Ray Stantz's occult book shop. In November 2012, it was announced that Kylie would be made an official Ghostbuster in issues beginning in February 2013.^[8][9]

References

1. "Interview: Jean-Marc Lofficier". Proton Charging.com. October 9, 1998. Retrieved August 14, 2007.
2. Quint (November 17, 2005). "Quint chats with Harold Ramis about ICE HARVEST, GHOSTBUSTERS and much more!!!". Ain't It Cool News. Retrieved August 13, 2007.
3. "Interview: Rick Moranis". IGN. May 27, 2006. Retrieved August 16, 2007.
4. Delaney, Sam (July 26, 2007). "Brand designs". The Guardian (London). Retrieved August 13, 2007.
5. Vince Lambolito (February 3, 2003). "Our Top 20 FX Suits!". Cardboard Monocle. Archived from the original on July 16, 2007. Retrieved August 13, 2007.
6. Burlingame, Ross (14 November 2012). "IDW’s Ghostbusters Get Extreme in February". comicbook.com. Retrieved 25 November 2012.
7. "Top Animated Hotties". UGO Networks. 2 December 2008. Retrieved 25 November 2012.
8. Rex, Generator (15 February 2012). "God Bless you IDW.". Scans Daily. Retrieved 25 November 2012.
9. Goellner, Caleb (15 November 2012). "'Ghostbusters' Gets New Recruits This February In IDW's Ongoing Series". Comics Alliance. Retrieved 25 November 2012.

External links