Black Cat

Coat
Any cat whose fur is a single color, including black, is known as a "solid" or "self". A "solid
black" cat may be coal black, grayish black, or brownish black. Most solid colored cats result
from a recessive gene that suppresses the tabby pattern. Sometimes the tabby pattern is not
completely suppressed; faint markings may appear in certain lights, even on a solid black cat. A
cat having black fur with white roots is known as a "black smoke."
Black cats can also "rust" in sunlight, the coat turning a lighter brownish shade.

A black cat "rusting" (coat turning a lighter brown shade) in sunlight

In addition to the Bombay, The Cat Fanciers' Association allows solid black as a color option in
21 other breeds. The color description for those breeds is:
Black: dense coal black, sound from roots to tip of fur. Free from any tinge of rust on the
tips. Nose leather: black. Paw pads: black or brown.
The exceptions are:

Oriental - EBONY: dense coal black. Free from any tinge of rust on tips or smoke
undercoat. Nose leather: black. Paw pads: black or brown.
Sphynx - BLACK: black. One level tone from nose to tip of tail. Nose leather: black. Paw
pads: black or brown.
Ragamuffin - Although black is not specifically mentioned, the standard allows for "any
color, with or without white," so technically speaking, an all-black Ragamuffin would be
allowed under the breed standard.

Historical associations
Superstition, prejudice, bringer of good or bad luck
The character Behemoth in "The Master and Margarita", an enormous black cat (said to be as
large as a hog), capable of standing on two legs and talking, and has a penchant for chess, vodka
and pistols.
The folklore surrounding black cats varies from culture to culture. In Great Britain, black cats are
seen as lucky and are often given in token form to brides. The Scottish believe that a strange
black cat's arrival to the home signifies prosperity. In Celtic mythology, a fairy known as the Cat
Sth takes the form of a black cat. Black cats are also considered good luck in Japan.[3]
Furthermore, it is believed that a lady who owns a black cat will have many suitors.[4] However
in Western history, black cats have often been looked upon as a symbol of evil omens,
specifically being suspected of being the familiars of witches, and so most of western and
southern Europe considers the black cat a symbol of bad luck, especially if one crosses paths
with a person, which is believed to be an omen of misfortune and death. In Germany, some
believe that black cats crossing a person's path from right to left, is a bad omen. But from left to
right, the cat is granting favorable times.
The gambling world is afraid of black cats: it is believed that if, while traveling to a casino, a
black cat crosses a gambler's road or path, that person should not go to the casino; most players
believe that black cats bring bad luck.
The black cat in folklore has been able to change into human shape to act as a spy or courier for
witches or demons. When the Pilgrims arrived at Plymouth Rock, they brought with them a
devout faith in the Bible. They also brought a deepening suspicion of anything deemed of the
devil and were a deeply suspicious group. They viewed the black cat as a companion, or a
familiar to witches. Anyone caught with a black cat would be severely punished or even killed.
They viewed the black cat as part demon and part sorcery. During the Middle Ages, these
superstitions led people to kill black cats. This had the unintended consequence of increasing the
rat population and the spread of the Black Death (bubonic plague) and other diseases carried by
rodents. There is no evidence from England of regular large-scale massacres of "satanic" cats, or
of burning them in midsummer bonfires, as sometimes occurred elsewhere in Europe.
However, the supernatural powers ascribed to black cats were sometimes viewed positively, for
example sailors considering a "ship's cat" would want a black one because it would bring good
luck. Sometimes, fishermen's wives would keep black cats at home too, in the hope that they
would be able to use their influence to protect their husbands at sea (see Ship's cat). The view of
black cats being favorable creatures is attributed specifically to the Egyptian goddess Bast (or

Bastet), the cat goddess. Egyptian households believed they could gain favor from Bastet by
hosting black cats in their household. This view was held in the early 17th century by the English
monarch Charles I. Upon the death of his treasured pet black cat, he is said to have lamented that
his luck was gone. True to his claim, he was arrested the very next day and charged with high
treason.
Pirates of the 18th century believed that a black cat would bring different kinds of luck. If a black
cat walks towards someone, that person will have bad luck. If a black cat walks away from
someone then that person will have good luck. If a black cat walks onto a ship and then walks off
it, the ship is doomed to sink on its next trip. Black cats have been found to have lower odds of
adoption in American shelters compared to other colors except brown, although black animals in
general take more time to find homes Some shelters also suspend or limit adoptions of black cats
around Halloween for fear they will be tortured, or used as "living decorations" for the holiday
and then abandoned. However, in the history of humane work, no one has ever documented any
relationship between adopting black cats, and cats being killed or injured. When such killings are
reported, forensic evidence has pointed to natural predators, such as coyotes, eagles, or raptors as
the likely cause.[15] August 17 is "Black Cat Appreciation Day".
In the early days of television in the United States, many stations located on VHF channel 13
used a black cat as a mascot in order to make sport of being located on an "unlucky" channel
number.

Anarcho-syndicalism

The black cat of the Industrial Workers of the World, also adopted as a symbol by anarchosyndicalists
Since the 1880s, the color black has been associated with anarchism. The black cat, in an alert,
fighting stance was later adopted as an anarchist symbol.
More specifically, the black catoften called the "sab cat" or "sabo-tabby"[19]is associated
with anarcho-syndicalism, a branch of anarchism that focuses on labor organizing (see Wildcat
strike).

In testimony before the court in a 1918 trial of Industrial Workers of the World leaders, Ralph
Chaplin, who is generally credited with creating the IWW's black cat symbol, stated that the
black cat "was commonly used by the boys as representing the idea of sabotage. The idea being
to frighten the employer by the mention of the name sabotage, or by putting a black cat
somewhere around. You know if you saw a black cat go across your path you would think, if you
were superstitious, you are going to have a little bad luck. The idea of sabotage is to use a little
black cat on the boss."[20]

Black cats in culture

Bohemian culture
Thophile Steinlen's advertisement for the tour of the Chat Noir cabaret
Le Chat Noir (French for "The Black Cat") was a 19th-century cabaret in the Montmartre
district of Paris. It was opened on 18 November 1881 at 84 Boulevard Rouchechouart by
the artist Rodolphe Salis, and closed in 1897.
The Black Cat Cafe in San Francisco was a beat and gay bar which was open from the
repeal of Prohibition in 1933 until February 1964.

Literature

"The Black Cat" is an 1843 short story by American author Edgar Allan Poe.
In the 2002 children's novel Coraline by Neil Gaiman, one of the characters is a black cat
who acts as a wise yet snide guide to the protagonist, a girl called Coraline. He claims to
have an ability to move between worlds at will, and chooses to because the creator of the
world he can cross into hates him.

The children's novel Sophie's Tom by Dick King-Smith features a black cat, who the
protagonist names Tom early on in the book. However, at the very end of the story, the
cat gives birth to four kittens, revealing "him" to be a female.

In the Warriors series, Scourge is a black cat who is the leader of Bloodclan.

In Patricia Coombs's Dorrie the Little Witch children's book series, the title character has
a black cat named Gink.

In Bulgakov's Master and Margarita Black Cat named Behemoth is in Devil's retinue

Comics

Black Cat, a Marvel Comics character.

Black Cat, a Harvey Comics character.

El Gato Negro (Spanish for "The Black Cat"), an Azteca Productions character.

Sabrina, The Teenage Witch has a black magical talking cat named Salem.

Emily the Strange has four black cats: Mystery, Miles, Neechee, and Sabbath.[22]

Shakira, a supporting character in the DC Comics series The Warlord, is a shapeshifter

who transforms into a small black cat sporting a golden, spiked collar.

Dream appears as a black cat in the story "A Dream of a Thousand Cats" in Neil
Gaiman's The Sandman series.

Agatha Harkness, a Marvel Comics character, was a witch with a black cat familiar
named Ebony.

Manga and anime

In Neighborhood Story, Gokinjo Monogatari's female main character, Mikako Kouda has
a black cat named Kuro.
Kutsushita Nyanko (Japanese for "SocksCat") is a traveling black cat that wears white
socks. The character was created by San-X.

Black Cat is a manga and anime featuring an assassin/bounty hunter named Train
Heartnet who is nicknamed "Black Cat". The series is written and illustrated by Kentaro
Yabuki

Luna is a female black cat character in the anime series Sailor Moon.

Kiki's Delivery Service has a talking black cat called Jiji, who is Kiki's companion and
best friend.

A tiny black cat named Kuroneko (Black Cat) can be seen in every episode of the anime
series Trigun.

Yoruichi Shihin, a female soul reaper in the manga and anime series Bleach takes a
black cat form.

The Darker than Black series features a character named Mao who has lost his human
original body and now resides within that of a black cat.

Bernkastel, a fictional witch from the series Umineko no Naku Koro ni is seen turning
into a black cat with a purple bow on her tail.

In Soul Eater, Blair is a black cat with unusually strong magic and is able to turn into a
busty woman dressed as a stereotypical witch.

Tsukuyomi: Moon Phase features a black cat, Haiji, as the main character Hazuki's
guardian spirit.

FLCL features a tiny black cat named Takkun who is found near a river bank.

Film

Felix the Cat, the first world-famous animated film character, is a black cat; early
cartoons occasionally showed humans perceiving him as unlucky. In A Hungry Hoodoo

(1920), Felix experiences bad luck on Friday the 13th and believes he is himself jinxed
by his color.
The Black Cat (1934) and (1941) versions

The Black Cat (1961 film) and The Black Cat (1981 film), both based on "The Black Cat"
short story (1843) by Edgar Allan Poe.

Black Cat, White Cat (1998 film)

The talking black cat from Hocus Pocus was named "Binx" after Thackery Binx, the boy
who was turned into a cat by witches.

In The Zimmer Twins, one of the main characters, 13, is an anthropomorphic black cat.

Military

The Black Cat Squadron was a squadron of the Republic of China Air Force that flew the
U-2 surveillance plane out of Taoyuan Airbase in northern Taiwan, from 1961 to 1974.[25]
During World War II, squadrons of Consolidated PBY Catalina flying boats painted black
for night attack operations against the Japanese in the South Pacific were known
affectionately by their crews as "Black Cats."[26][27]

Songs

"Black Cat" is a popular Russian song by Yury Saulsky and Mikhail Tanich.[28]
"Black Cat" by Gentle Giant appears on the Acquiring the Taste (1971) album.

"An Cat Dubh" by U2 on their 1980 album Boy means "black cat" in Irish.

"Black Cat" is a Billboard Hot 100 No.1 song by Janet Jackson and appears on the Janet
Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814 (1989) album.

"The Black Cat" a song introduced in 1980 by Play School, an Australian children's
animation of a cat named Blacky. Barbara Frawley was the original presenter of the
series.

"Black Cat" by Psychic TV appears on the Trip Reset (1996) album.

"Black Cat" by Broadcast appears on the Tender Buttons (2005) album.

"Black Cat" by Mayday Parade appears on the A Lesson in Romantics (2007) album.

"Black Cat" by Ladytron appears on the Velocifero (2008) album.

"Black Cat" by Ziggy Marley on Love Is My Religion (2006) album.

Sports

On September 9, 1969, the Chicago Cubs and New York Mets faced each other at Shea
Stadium. The Cubs' division lead over the Mets, as high as 8.5 games in mid-August, had
dropped to just 1.5 games, and this game was considered to be critical. Midway through

the game, fans surreptitiously released a black cat onto the field. The cat headed straight
for the Cubs' Ron Santo in the on-deck circle, then made a beeline for the Cubs' dugout
where it seemed to stare down all of the players. Cubs manager Leo Durocher's
superstitions were borne out, as the Cubs not only lost that game, but much of the rest of
the season, as they would post an 8-17 record for the month and ultimately lose the
National League East to the Mets by eight games.
The nickname/mascot name of Premier League club Sunderland A.F.C. is the "Black
Cats."

The sports teams at Bay City High School in Bay City, Texas are nicknamed the "Black
Cats".

The Australian Football League club, Geelong, has been nicknamed the "Cats" since
1923 after a suggestion by The Herald newspaper that a black cat would give the
unsuccessful team more luck.[29]