SpongeBob is an innocent, and people respond to an innocent. I don't think it matters if you're young or old. — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share Image
SpongeBob is a kid living an adult life. He has a job. Kids think being a fry cook is a great job. — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share Image
When SpongeBob's perseverance shines through, and you root for him - that's when the show is working. — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share Image
SpongeBob represents idiocy. He is dumb. Patrick is dumb. Mr. Krabs is greedy. Squidward is a snob and vain. — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share Image
I think the source of SpongeBob's humour is classic, and that's always appealing. — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share Image
SpongeBob is just made of cellulose, but he has parents who are natural sponges - he got the square gene. — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share Image
A natural sponge is not as funny. A square sponge also fit that squeaky-clean idea I was going for. — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share Image
I never really imagined a show about a sponge going past our first season. I thought maybe we'd have a cult following,… — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share Image
SpongeBob is a complete innocent - not an idiot. SpongeBob never fully realizes how stupid Patrick is. They're whipping themselves up into… — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share Image
A sponge is a funny animal to center a show on. At first, I drew a few natural sponges - amorphous shapes,… — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share Image
I do think that the attitude of the show is about tolerance. Everybody is different, and the show embraces that. The character… — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share Image
In the show, the whole point of the fast food - the fact that SpongeBob loves being part of the fast-food chain… — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share Image
I'm hoping that fans will enjoy finally having a 'SpongeBob' comic book from me. All the stories will be original and always… — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share Image
I drew these natural sponges for a while and gave them googly eyes, and it didn't come together until I drew a… — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share Image
When you set out to do a show about a sponge, you can't anticipate this kind of craze. We just try to… — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share Image
The main thing about SpongeBob is that he celebrates innocence. His outlook on life is very optimistic and earnest, and I think… — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share Image
Twentysomethings thank me for their childhood... SpongeBob lives at the bottom of the sea, but he brings a lot of great stuff… — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share Image
When I pitched the show, I made this special seashell. You could pick it up and hear me singing, 'Spongeboy, Spongeboy!' I also made… — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share
I eventually thought of SpongeBob, but he needed a last name - SquarePants came to mind. — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share
I was just looking at a packet that had SpongeBob thong underwear, so it goes farther than I would imagine. — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share
Laurel and Hardy are among my strongest influences, and I think they're perfect examples of two naive, kid-like characters that are still funny today.… — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share
Anyone who knows me knows that I will continue to work on 'SpongeBob SquarePants' and my other passions for as long as I am… — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share
On TV, it is more efficient to use voice-over people because it is really hard to get celebrity voices to recur in a series. — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share
In the show, the whole point of the fast food - the fact that SpongeBob loves being part of the fast-food chain and that… — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share
I studied marine biology, even taught marine science before I got into animation, so I had an interest in that field and those animals. — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share
When you set out to do a show about a sponge, you can't anticipate this kind of craze. We just try to make ourselves… — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share
Everybody's got some fascination with undersea life, don't you think? — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share
The characters are likable. Even the villainous Plankton - he's still flawed, and you still root for him, in a way, and the style… — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share
I knew I wanted to create a character who was nerdy and kind of square, so when I drew a square sponge, everything came… — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share
I thought, well, what about a show that stars undersea creatures, and some of the ones you rarely see animated. So, from there, I… — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share
Most sponges in the ocean are sedentary: They attach themselves to a rock and sit and filter-feed the rest of their lives and reproduce,… — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share
I was always interested in the ocean and also in art. I had to figure out how to put the two together, but painting… — Stephen Hillenburg Copy Share
