From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Catbert |
| Dilbert character |
 |
| Catbert |
| Created by |
Scott Adams |
| Information |
| Species |
Cat |
| Gender |
Male |
Catbert is a fictional cat, and the "evil director of human resources" in the Dilbert comic strip. As with Ratbert, he was not a planned regular. In his first appearance from September 12, 1994 to September 16, 1994, he attacked Ratbert and rebooted Dilbert's computer before Dogbert finally kicked him out of the house. Catbert did not wear glasses in this story and his fur was beige. After his introduction, readers of Dilbert enjoyed the character so much that they spontaneously named him "Catbert", encouraging creator Scott Adams to bring him back. He was reintroduced as the "evil director" of human resources, and in a parody of typical cat behavior he "plays" with his "prey". With the help of his "random policy generator", he comes up with sadistic, illogical and often evil policies to enforce on the employees, such as permanently branding employees, banning coffee drinking in the office, requiring employees to schedule sick time before they actually get sick, and making time spent in the bathroom count as "vacation." He often works in tandem with the Pointy-Haired Boss. Catbert typically celebrates the creation of a new evil policy by purring loudly or by doing the "evil dance".
Catbert officially entered the strip on March 20, 1995, when Dogbert hired him to the company to handle "the downsizing". Indeed, downsizing is Catbert's greatest joy, and he has numerous binders on this subject and two that say "hire losers".
He often abuses workers by doing things like sending Wally home for wearing shorts, even though Wally's pants reach his ankles.
The look for Catbert apparently came from a strip earlier on August 6, 1994, where a hairless cat friend of Dogbert showed up at the house. After the cat thanked Dogbert for inviting him over (because hairless cats are usually shunned, he said), Dogbert promptly sprayed him with Hair in a Can, giving him a look that was similar to the eventual look for Catbert.
