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Now, you shouldn’t have done that, little friend. You just might have hurt me. Fact is, you might have killed me!
~ Horatio Quaxton.

Horatio Quaxton is the main antagonist of the 1967 Disney live-action film The Gnome-Mobile. He is the greedy owner of a freak show, whom, after learning of the existence of gnomes by eavesdropping on D.J. Mulrooney and his grandchildren, kidnaps the gnomes in the hopes of making it rich.

He was portrayed by the late Sean McClory.

Personality[]

Quaxton is a greedy, smooth-talking and unscrupulous businessman. He’s devious and dishonest, even going so far as to lie to a child, thus giving him the window of opportunity to kidnap the gnomes when they’re left unprotected. He’s also temperamental, as shown when persuasion fails with Jasper the gnome, thus leading him to resort to violence and threats.

Appearance[]

Quaxton is a stocky man with dark hair, fair skin and gray eyes. He wears a dark brown bowler hat, a brown plaid blazer with a red corsage pinned to the left breast, a dark reddish brown vest, a white undershirt with light grey stripes, a checkered bow tie, light tan pants, cream socks and black shoes.

Role in the film[]

Quaxton is first seen driving up to the hotel where D.J., Elizabeth, Rodney, Knobby and Jasper, (the latter two hidden inside a picnic basket), where begins to set up posters for his freak show, “Quaxton’s Academy of Fantastic Freaks.” While in the lobby, he happens upon Rodney, to whom he gives some tickets. As D.J. checks in at the front desk, at the mention of his name from the desk clerk, Knobby, realizing who he’s in the company of, (due to an old grudge) becomes angry and begins screaming hysterically. His screaming attracts the attention of Quaxton. D.J. beckons his grandson to turn up the volume on his radio to try and drown out Knobby. The clerk urgently gives them the key to their room and beckons the bellhop to show them to their room. Quaxton comes over and questions the noises emitting from the basket, but D.J. brushes him off by telling them that the basket contains “rare Abyssinian geese, that make sounds just like people.” Suspicious, Quaxton secretly follows them.

Once inside their room and alone with the gnomes, D.J. and the children release Jasper and Knobby. As D.J. and Knobby argue, Quaxton, unseen, peeks through the window. Upon seeing the gnomes, he begins to get an idea. After D.J. leaves in a huff, with Rodney tagging along, Quaxton calls Elizabeth from the lobby, telling her that D.J. and Rodney are caught in a bad accident, prompting a worried Elizabeth to abandon the gnomes and go after them. This gives Quaxton the opportunity to sneak in, trap the gnomes in the picnic basket and then drive away in his car.

Later on, Quaxton returns to his woodland cabin with some food for the gnomes, but he catches them in the act of escaping through a window. While Knobby is lucky enough to get away, Jasper on the other hand is caught by Quaxton. He tries to escape through the front door, but Quaxton rushes over and traps him. He tries to persuade Jasper to join him, stating that because Knobby is much too old, he and Jasper could split one million dollars, just for the two of them. But Jasper refuses, even threatening Quaxton with a six-shooter hanging over the mantel. He attempts to fire the gun, but no shot is heard. He tries again, only this time, a shot is fired, leaving a hole in Quaxton’s hat. This enrages Quaxton, who tries to catch Jasper with a butterfly net, only for Jasper to jump repeatedly on his hat, getting it stuck on his head. As Quaxton tries to get the hat off, Jasper throws a jug at the window causing it to break and tries to escape. But Quaxton, having removed the hat, snags him with a fishing pole and reels him in.

At that moment, D.J. and the kids arrive to rescue the gnomes. As Quaxton is heard inside threatening Jasper and attempting to catch the gnome in his net, D.J. breaks down the door and stops him. Quaxton tries explaining that he wasn’t trying to hurt Jasper, but a furious D.J. grabs him by his coat and hangs him from the antlers of a moose head on the wall. Quaxton protests that the gnomes belong to him, reminding D.J. of his and Knobby’s previous argument. As D.J., Jasper and the kids rush out to find Knobby, Quaxton pleads with D.J., saying they could come to a business arrangement, but it’s too late. He pathetically moans and sobs over the loss of the gnomes. He is not seen again for the remainder of the film.

Gallery[]

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