Catbus
(referred to in the film as  ねこのバス, Neko no basu) is a fictional supporting character in the Studio Ghibli film My Neighbor Totoro, directed by Hayao Miyazaki. It is a large, grinning, twelve-legged cat with a large bushy tail and a hollow body that serves as a bus, with windows and seats covered with fur. The character's popularity has led to a spinoff short film, toys for children, an art car, and an exhibit in the Ghibli Museum. Catbus is believed to be based on the Japanese bakeneko (化け猫, “changed cat”), an ancient urban legend where cats that grow old learn to shapeshift. In the original Japanese version of My Neighbor Totoro, Catbus is voiced by Naoko Matsui, whilst in the Disney English release, Catbus is voiced by Frank Welker, and by voice actor Carl Macek in the Streamline Pictures release. Character description 

In My Neighbor Totoro, Catbus is depicted as a large, twelve-legged creature with a cat's head, a furry bus-like body, and a large tail. Its eyes can function as headlights and rectangular openings along its body act as windows. In the film, Catbus changes its shape to form doors for passengers to board. Its hollow interior walls and seats are covered in fur. Its fur is orange with brown stripes running around its back, forehead, legs, sides, and tail. There is a destination sign on its rear that shifts to match its current destination. Mice with glowing eyes are taped next to the destination sign to serve as taillights. It has a large grin at all times, likely inspired by the Cheshire Cat from the 1951 Disney film Alice in Wonderland. Catbus can appear and disappear at will and travel to any destination that its passengers desire. Media 

Catbus was featured in the short 13-minute film Mei and the Kittenbus, which is shown only in the Ghibli Museum. In the film, Mei, the younger sister from the original film, meets the offspring of the Catbus, named Kittenbus. It is just large enough for Mei to fit inside, and can stir up dust devils. They fly into the forest with many other cat-based vehicles, including different types of buses and Cattrains, which carry O-Totoro and other forest spirits to a Catliner, which is depicted as an ancient cat. Mei meets O-Totoro and befriends the Catliner, before returning in the Kittenbus to her home. Catbus, along with many of Miyazaki's characters, was parodied on the "Married to the Blob" episode of The Simpsons. One of the art cars at Burning Man was a Catbus. In the video game Persona 5, Morgana can turn himself into a bus. He explains that the reason he can do this in the Metaverse is that the Japanese public has familiarity with cats transforming into buses "for some reason", referencing Catbus. An unofficial gravity racer version of the Catbus featured in the London 2019 edition of the Red Bull Soapbox Race. The 'Team Totoro' vehicle negotiated jumps and other obstacles at speeds over 30 miles per hour to complete the Alexandra Palace course. A car resembling Catbus briefly appears in the Cars Toons short "Tokyo Mater". Catbus was used as a design base for the six-legged sky bison Appa on Avatar: The Last Airbender. Merchandise 
Catbus has been turned into a popular plush toy and toy vehicle. Many chain fashion stores, such as Hot Topic, sell merchandise with designs of Catbus and other well-known characters from Studio Ghibli films. Other references 
The velvet worm species Eoperipatus totoro, discovered in 2007, was named by the scientists because of its resemblance to the Catbus. In the Ghibli Museum in Mitaka, Japan, there is an exhibit of a large plush Catbus, which can be played with and entered by children 12 years and under. Catbus has been referenced by Anthrocon staff when mentioning its hotel shuttle service from remote hotels in Pittsburgh. Commenters have suggested that in this instance, "CATbus" would be for "Circulating Anthropomorphic Transit bus". See also 
 List of fictional cats
 Appa (character) – the flying bison companion of Aang in Avatar: The Last Airbender

References

Further reading

External links 
 My Neighbor Totoro at Nausicaa.net
 Mei and the Kittenbus at Nausicaa.net
 Gallery of Bake Neko art
 Ghibli Museum website

Fantasy anime and manga characters
Fictional cats
Fictional vehicles
Film characters introduced in 1988
Studio Ghibli