The Hellhound, also sometimes referred to as the Wolf is a canine character appearing in the Haunted Mansion attractions in California, Florida and Tokyo Disneyland.
Appearances[]
Haunted Mansion[]
The Hellhound's presence is felt as soon as you enter the Mansion's grounds as it's howls can be heard throughout the attraction, starting in the queue. The Hound doesn't physically appear until the Graveyard scene where it is shown on a hilltop near the Phantom Five, howling at the moon.
Haunted Mansion Holiday[]
During Haunted Mansion Holiday, the Hellhound plays tug-of-war with one of Jack's skeleton reindeer.
Liberty Belle Riverboat[]
Up until 2011, the dog's undead howling could be heard from the riverboats along the Rivers of America. The river-bend from which it could be heard was fittingly called, "Howling Dog Bend" and was located directly adjacent to the Haunted Mansion.
Other Appearances[]
Ghost Gallery[]
Similarly to the Phineas, Ezra and Gus, the Hellhound's semi-official name comes from the Ghost Gallery where he was said to have been Master Gracey's pet dog who was named the Grand Stygian Hellhound of the Hudson or Hellhound for short. Hellhound's main purpose in the mansion was to stay in the cemetery, and howl to the general area which was safe so that no-one accidentally wanders over into the estate's quicksand-like mud pits.
The dog died in 1942 when Little Leota moved Hellhound to a different location as part of a plot to murder three of the mansion's servants in the mud-pits, however after being chained to a new tree, lightning struck the tree and killed Hellhound. Hellhound was also the father of the ghost dog Loki, the grandfather of the caretaker's dog, and a descendant of the prison dog from Pirates of the Caribbean.
Tales from the Haunted Mansion[]
In Tales from the Haunted Mansion Volume II: Midnight at Madame Leota's, the Hellhound is the shapeshifter form of the vampire, Count Lupescu. This takes it's cues from Bram Stoker's Dracula where the titular vampire can transform into a wolf.
Trivia[]
- Due to the skeletal appearance of the animal it is difficult to make out it's species, and it is largely assumed to be a grey wolf.
- The sound of the Howling Dog heard outside the attraction is attributed to a werewolf named Bisclavret in the SLG Comics.
- It is possible that Hellhound in part served as the inspiration for the Phantom Manor character Goliath as they share a similar physical appearance.
- A miniature figure of Hellhound appears on the Collector's desk in the pre-show video of Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission BREAKOUT! at Disney California Adventure.[1]