WILE E. COYOTE TURNS 50 TODAY (SEPT. 16)

WILE E. COYOTE TURNS 50 TODAY (SEPT. 16)

IRVINE, Calif. (Wireless Flash) -- Can you believe Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner are now old enough to have grandchildren? Today marks the 50th birthday of the cartoon characters, who made their debut on September 16, 1949, in a cartoon named "Fast And Furryous." The creator of Wile E. and the Road Runner is animator Chuck Jones, who says his inspiration for Wile E. Coyote came from a Mark Twain article about coyotes. Jones -- who will turn 87 on September 21 -- admits he has something in common with Wile E.: they both are inept when it comes to handling technology. As a result, he says he plans on celebrate the characters' birthdays by "...keeping out of the way of catapults, boulders and anvils from the ACME Corporation."