George Cruikshank's original engraving of the Artful Dodger (center), here introducing Oliver (right) to Fagin (left). It can be argued that Cruikshank originated the Dodger's trademark top hat -- Dickets never specifically describes the hat.

Harry Eden as the Artful Dodger in Roman Polanski's Oliver Twist.

Jack Wild as the Artful Dodger in Oliver!, the musical.

The Artful Dodger is a character in the Charles Dickens novel Oliver Twist. The Dodger (whose real name is Jack Dawkins) is a pickpocket, and so-called by his skill and cunning in that respect. As a result he has become the leader of the gang of child criminals, trained by the elderly Fagin. Dickens describes him thusly: Image File history File links Size of this preview: 686 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (1391 × 1216 pixel, file size: 1. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 686 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (1391 × 1216 pixel, file size: 1. ... Portrait of George Cruikshank Wood engraving published in Harpers Weekly newspaper March 16, 1878 A Young George Cruikshank George Cruikshank (September 27, 1792—February 1, 1878) was an English caricaturist and book illustrator. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Harry Eden as Paul from Pure (2002) Harry Eden (born December 12, 1989 in London) is an English actor who became noted for his role as Nibs in the 2003 movie version of Peter Pan. ... Roman Polański (born August 18, 1933) is an Academy Award winning film director, writer, actor, producer. ... Oliver Twist is a 2005 film directed by Roman Polański. ... Image File history File links Dodger. ... Image File history File links Dodger. ... Jack Wild (30 September 1952 – 2 March 2006) was an English actor who achieved fame for his roles in both stage and screen productions of the Lionel Bart musical Oliver!. For the latter performance (playing the Artful Dodger), he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor at the... Oliver! is an Academy Award winning film and 1968 musical film directed by Carol Reed and based on the stage musical Oliver!. Both the film and play are based on the famous Charles Dickens novel Oliver Twist. ... “Dickens” redirects here. ... A novel (from French nouvelle Italian novella, new) is an extended, generally fictional narrative, typically in prose. ... Oliver Twist (1838) is Charles Dickens second novel. ... Pickpocketing is a crime, a form of larceny which involves the stealing of money and valuables off the person of a victim without them noticing. ... for other uses please see Crime (disambiguation) A crime is an act that violates a political or moral law. ... Fagin is a fictional character in the Charles Dickens novel Oliver Twist. ...

He was a snub-nosed, flat-browed, common-faced boy enough; and as dirty a juvenile as one would wish to see; but he had about him all the airs and manners of a man. He was short of his age: with rather bow-legs, and little, sharp, ugly eyes. His hat was stuck on the top of his head so lightly, that it threatened to fall off every moment--and would have done so, very often, if the wearer had not had a knack of every now and then giving his head a sudden twitch, which brought it back to its old place again. He wore a man's coat, which reached nearly to his heels. He had turned the cuffs back, half-way up his arm, to get his hands out of the sleeves: apparently with the ultimated view of thrusting them into the pockets of his corduroy trousers; for there he kept them. He was, altogether, as roystering and swaggering a young gentleman as ever stood four feet six, or something less, in the bluchers.

Ultimately The Dodger is caught with a stolen silver snuff box on his person, convicted as a "lifer", and "sent abroad" (to Australia).

The nickname "Artful Dodger" is still commonly used to refer to someone who is good at avoiding responsibility or the consequences of his or her actions. "Artful Dodger" is also Cockney rhyming slang for "lodger". Cockney rhyming slang (sometimes initialized as CRS) is a form of English slang which originated in the East End of London. ... Lodger is a 1979 album by David Bowie. ...

Dickens had first used a similar term in his previous novel, The Pickwick Papers. At the close of Chapter 16, Sam Weller refers to the recent schemes of Mr Jingle: "Reg'lar do, sir; artful dodge." The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club, better known as The Pickwick Papers, is the first novel by Charles Dickens. ...

The role of the Artful Dodger has been played by several notable performers. British actor Anthony Newley played the character in an adaptation of the story for a 1948 motion picture. The role was amplified in the musical Oliver!, and was first played by Martin Horsey (actor/ director & author of "L'Chaim"), and later by Tony Robinson (actor - eg Baldrick in "Blackadder",& presenter of "Timeteam" etc), Davy Jones (of "The Monkees" etc), Steve Marriott ("The Small Faces" etc), & Phil Collins("Genesis" etc), among others. Elijah Wood also portrayed the character, and most recently he was played by Harry Eden in Roman Polanski's big-budget version of the story, which saw release in 2005. Anthony George Newley (born on September 24, 1931 in the London Borough of Hackney; died on April 14, 1999) was an English actor, singer and songwriter. ... Oliver Twist (1948) is the second of David Leans two film adaptations of Charles Dickens novels. ... Musical theater (or theatre) is a form of theatre combining music, songs, dance, and spoken dialogue. ... Oliver! is a British musical, with music and lyrics by Lionel Bart. ... Tony Robinson (born 15 August 1946) is an English actor, broadcaster and political campaigner, known for playing the part of Baldrick in the BBC TV series Blackadder and for hosting a number of shows on Channel 4, the most noteworthy being Time Team. ... Davy Jones, 1967 Davy Jones, an actor and singer, was born David Thomas Jones on December 30, 1945 in Manchester, England. ... Steve Marriott (30 January 1947 in Upton, East London, – 20 April 1991 in Arkesden, Essex. ... Small Faces were a British mod group formed in 1965[1] by Steve Marriott, Ronnie Lane, Kenney Jones, and Jimmy Winston (who was soon replaced by Ian McLagan). ... Philip David Charles Collins (born January 30, 1951 in Chiswick, London) is an English singer, songwriter, drummer and actor. ... Elijah Jordan Wood (born January 28, 1981) is an American actor. ... Harry Eden as Paul from Pure (2002) Harry Eden (born December 12, 1989 in London) is an English actor who became noted for his role as Nibs in the 2003 movie version of Peter Pan. ... Roman Polański (born August 18, 1933) is an Academy Award winning film director, writer, actor, producer. ... Oliver Twist is a 2005 film directed by Roman Polański. ...

In the 1968 film Oliver!, Jack Wild played the role and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.^[1] Oliver! is an Academy Award winning film and 1968 musical film directed by Carol Reed and based on the stage musical Oliver!. Both the film and play are based on the famous Charles Dickens novel Oliver Twist. ... Jack Wild (30 September 1952 – 2 March 2006) was an English actor who achieved fame for his roles in both stage and screen productions of the Lionel Bart musical Oliver!. For the latter performance (playing the Artful Dodger), he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor at the...

Other "notables" to have played the role (in amateur production) include Ben Elton and Robbie Williams. Benjamin Charles Elton (born 3 May 1959) is an English comedian, writer and director. ... For footballers with the same name, see Robbie Williams (footballer). ...

In Walt Disney's version of Oliver Twist, Oliver and Company, the character of the Artful Dodger was changed to a streetwise anthropomorphic mutt simply named Dodger. The voice was provided by famed musician Billy Joel. For the company founded by Disney, see The Walt Disney Company. ... Oliver and Company is a 1988 animated feature film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation. ... Anthropomorphism, also referred to as personification or prosopopeia, is the attribution of human characteristics to inanimate objects, animals, forces of nature, and others. ... Mutt has more than one meaning: When referring to a dog, mutt means a mixed-breed dog with parents from different breeds. ... William Martin Billy Joel (born May 9, 1949) is an American singer, pianist, songwriter, composer and musician. ...

In 2003's Twist, a modern-day retelling of the story, the Artful Dodger (who goes by "Dodge" in this version) is played by Nick Stahl. The film is told from his point of view. The film Twist was released in 2003 and is a retelling of Charles Dickens classic novel. ... Stahl at the Terminator 3 premier. ...

Artful Dodger is also a popular British jean company created by the late 1990's. It is based on the classic Oliver Twist character and costs are in the neighborhood of $200-$900 a pair.

References