Characters

SpongeBob SquarePants (voiced by Tom Kenny) is a yellow anthropomorphic sea sponge who physically resembles a rectangular cleaning sponge clad in brown short pants, a white collared shirt, and a red tie. He lives in a pineapple house and is employed as a fry cook at a fast food restaurant called the Krusty Krab.^[16] He diligently attends Mrs. Puff’s Boating School but has never passed; his lack of a driver’s license is a running gag throughout the series. He is relentlessly optimistic and enthusiastic toward his job and his friends. SpongeBob’s hobbies include catching jellyfish, blowing bubbles, playing with his best friend Patrick, and unintentionally irritating his neighbor Squidward. He first appears in “Help Wanted“.

Patrick Star (voiced by Bill Fagerbakke) is a pink starfish who lives under a rock and wears flowered swim trunks. His most prominent character trait is his extremely low intelligence. He is best friends with SpongeBob and often unknowingly encourages activities that get the two into trouble.^[16] While typically unemployed throughout the course of the series, Patrick holds various short-term jobs as the storyline of each episode requires. He is generally slow and easy-going but can sometimes get aggressive, much like real starfish.

Squidward Tentacles (voiced by Rodger Bumpass) is an octopus with a large nose who works as a cashier at the Krusty Krab. He is SpongeBob’s next-door neighbor with a dry, sarcastic sense of humor.^[19] He believes himself to be a talented artist and musician, but nobody else recognizes his abilities. He plays the clarinet and often paints self-portraits in different styles, which he hangs up around his moai house. Although he does not like SpongeBob and Patrick, they are oblivious to his animosity and consider him a close friend.