Linda Gunderson

Adult Young Linda Gunderson Background information Feature films Rio Rio 2 Shorts Novelization Video games Rio (DS Version) Voice Sofia Scarpa Saldanha (youth) Leslie Mann (adult) Character information Species Human Gender Female Alias Lady (r. by Fernando) American Lady (r. by Fernando) Tree-hugger (r. by Big Boss) Occupation Feather/Hair/ Skin color Fair skin Red hair Eyes Green Friends Blu (animal companion) Tulio (husband) Fernando (adoptive son) Jewel Tiago Carla Bia Enemies Fate Living Likes Dislikes Quote "Cheese and sprinkles!"

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Linda Gunderson is Blu's former owner and best friend. She formerly lived and worked in her own bookstore, Blue Macaw Books, in Moose Lake, Minnesota, and now lives and works in the Livraria Blu book store in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil where she's happily married to her sweetheart, Tulio.

She is the secondary protagonist of Rio and Rio 2. The adult Linda is voiced by Leslie Mann, while the film director's daughter, Sofia Scarpa Saldanha, voiced the younger Linda.

Bio

Rio

Linda is first seen as a little girl, discovering the crate containing Blu (a baby Spix's Macaw), which had fallen out of a pet store truck and onto the side of the road. She takes the cold, frightened chick in her hands, and promises to take care of him. Over the next fifteen years, Linda keeps Blu as a pet, throwing him birthday parties, taking him with her to spelling bees (and winning), and even to her high school prom.

Pictures of young Linda and Blu.

One day an Ornithologist from Brazil named Tulio Monteiro enters the store and tells Linda that Blu is the last male of his kind, and that she must take him to Rio de Janeiro so he can mate with the last female and "save the species."

Linda is initially reluctant at first, but later agrees. She and Blu take a plane to Rio, where Tulio takes them to his aviary, where the female macaw (Jewel) is.

Linda with Blu

Linda and Tulio watch Blu and Jewel through cameras and think that its "going well" so they give them some privacy and go to a restaurant, where they find themselves becoming attracted to one another.

However, the dinner is interrupted by a phone call to Tulio explaining that Blu and Jewel were stolen. Distraught, Linda blames Tulio for the birdnapping, and spends all night handing out "lost" posters.

In the morning, a boy named Fernando tells them that he knows where Blu and Jewel are. He leads them to the smugglers' hideout, where they learn they are going to recapture Blu and Jewel, and use Carnival as a cover to get the captured birds to the airport.

Linda and Tulio go to Carnival, where they disguise themselves as dancers to get in. Linda accidentally gets onto a float - misunderstood as one of the performers by a Carnival organizer - and was told to "shake her tushie," but then spots Blu as he goes into the smugglers' float. As the parade continued, Linda tried her best to get down from the float ,and she and Tulio eventually broke free from the crowd and other performers.

Stealing one of the vacant floats, Linda and Tulio follow the smugglers to the airport, but arrive too late to stop their plane from taking off.

Giving up hope, Linda sits on the float with Tulio and Fernando, her head bowed in sorrow as the sun rises. A while later, Fernando sees Blu flying (to Linda's amazement), and carrying the injured Jewel in his talons. She looks on as Tulio tends to Jewel's injury. Later, Linda and Tulio open the Blu Bird Sanctuary where Linda lets Blu go into the jungle with Jewel, sharing a final "fist bump" with him. As he flies off, Linda declares "That's my big, brave boy."

During the final song, "Real in Rio," Linda was seen hang-gliding over the jungle with Tulio, flying alongside Blu, Jewel, and their three chicks, Bia, Carla, and Tiago.

Over the credits, Linda, Tulio and Fernando] are shown to have come together as a family of sorts, even opening a Brazilian version of Linda's bookstore, Livraria Blu.

Rio 2

Now happily married to Tulio, Linda and her husband venture into the Amazon for an expedition, and to re-release a Marbled Wood Quail into the wild. Linda paddles the boat, exhausted as Tulio is filming the surroundings and not paddling. Linda tries to coax the shy Wood quail out of her cage, which eventually works (aided by Tulio's attempts at bird talk, which seem to frighten the quail), and the quail reunites with it's fellows. The quail then begins hopping and chirping, which Linda thinks is a warning. Tulio dismisses this, but it is later proved true as Linda spots rapids up ahead. The boat makes a wild journey down the rapids and then over a waterfall.

After surviving the fall, Tulio searches for Linda, and the two reunite with a hug. They are distracted by a squawk, and a fast-flying blue bird suddenly dives past them, destroying the camera and losing one of it's feathers. Tulio identifies it as a Spix's macaw's feather, to his and Linda's joy. Later, Linda and Tulio are on the news, which is seen by Blu, Jewel, and their kids, Bia, Carla, and Tiago. Jewel decides to take the family to the Amazon, to help Linda and Tulio find the Spix's macaws.

Blu and the family arrive in the Amazon, unknowingly close to Linda and Tulio. Linda is attempting to pin down the position of the Spix's macaws, believing them to be close to the Brazil nut trees and the waterfalls. Blu is suddenly grabbed by a bird, and his squawks capture Linda and Tulio's attention, who frantically head in the direction of the sound. Linda worries that it sounded like Blu, but Tulio doubts this, believing Blu to be in Rio. Linda wakes up later that night, thinking that somebody is outside, but sees that it is a tamarin.

Blu mentions Linda to Eduardo, who is angry when he finds out that Blu was once a pet. Blu protests that Linda raised him and is family, but Eduardo is still angry. Blu manages to find Linda and Tulio's coordinates on his GPS, stating to Jewel that they are really close. Jewel is hesitant at the thought of the tribe being discovered, and says that they are better off alone.

Linda and Tulio discover loggers cutting down some trees. Tulio tries to stop her, but Linda confronts them angrily. Tulio drags Linda away, but the two then realize that it is a trap (the loggers have been planning to kidnap them in order to stop their logging activity being disturbed). Linda flees when Tulio tells her to, running into the jungle as she is pursuited by the loggers. Linda manages to escape, but is eventually caught and tied to a tree with Tulio.

Blu goes to Linda and Tulio's campsite to say goodbye, but then realizes that something is wrong. He sees that the site has been attacked, and becomes frantic. Roberto confronts Blu, but a bulldozer runs over the campsite. Blu sends Roberto to warn the tribe, then goes to find Linda and Tulio. Later, still tied to the tree, Linda and Tulio maneuver into a position where they can hold hands. Tulio apologises for getting Linda into their situation, but Linda responds by telling him there's no she'd rather be than with him. Linda then sees Blu. She makes bird sounds to catch his attention, and Blu frees them from the tree. Linda and Tulio try to stop the loggers from cutting down some trees, blocking the way. Linda and Tulio are then delighted and shocked to see hundreds of Spix's macaws in the trees behind them.

During the ensuing melee, a logger in a tree harvester attempts to run over Eduardo, but Linda crashes into it with a bulldozer. Linda does a victory dance afterwards, joyful. Afterwards, Linda and Tulio go back on the news with Blu, announcing that the Spix's macaw tribe's residence has become a sanctuary, safe from loggers and other dangers.

Appearance

Linda is a slender woman with short red hair. She wears circular shaped glasses, a light blue shirt, tan pants, white socks and black shoes. She used to have pigtails when she was a little girl. She is 25 years old.

Personality

Linda is initially very bookish and quiet, and very devoted and protective of Blu. When she discovers Blu has been kidnapped, she angrily turns on Tulio, blaming him for everything. She seems to be quite trusting; When Fernando tells her that he knows where Blu is, she instantly believes him. During the search, Linda shows herself capable of daring feats, such as driving a motorcycle (claiming it is "just like driving a snowmobile") and hijacking a Carnival float, later attempting to ram the smugglers' plane with it.

When she first met Tulio, Linda seemed nervous by him saying he would be with her during the trip to Rio. When they had dinner together, she was flattered by his complimenting her eyes. When they donned blue macaw costumes in order to sneak into Carnival, they became even more attracted to each other. During the film's final scene, Linda and Tulio seem to have become an actual couple, suggested by their holding hands.

Trivia

• Linda initially blames Tulio for Blu's birdnapping and yells at him in bird language. For some reason, while she was screaming in bird language, she believed she swore, and added "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to curse."
• In Carnival, when she was on top of the float, she said her catchphrase "Cheese and sprinkles." This is how Blu got it.
• In Moose Lake, she was the owner of a bookstore "Blu Macaw Books". In Rio, she is a caretaker in a sanctuary to protect the jungle.
• In the intro and ending, Blu and Linda were seen doing a fist bump.
• During the intro credits, there were photos of Linda and Blu being "Spelling Bee Champion" and "Prom Memories."
• She has her own bedroom in her bookstore. In fact, her home is on the second floor, while the store itself is on the first.
• When it comes the Spix Macaw, she is attracted to their brains, but not by their fancy feathers, as she describes it.
• In the intro of the movie, Linda is wearing glasses as a child and due to seeing Blu. It is shown she suffers from Myopia, also known as nearsightedness.
• She and Blu lived together for 15 years.
• In the ending credits, there was a photo of Linda, Tulio, and Fernando riding a three seat tandem bicycle.
• She and Tulio look very similar to the main characters, Sam and Flint, from the movie Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.
• Linda has a mother, but her name and appearance is not known, as Linda talked to her by phone in her bookstore at the beginning of the movie.
• Linda gave Blu sunscreen and rubbed it on his beak, so he wouldn't get "beakburn". The word is based off of "sunburn."
• Linda has wide eyes, like of an owl Tulio mentioned, which was his favorite bird.
• In Rio 2, she joins Tulio in protecting wildlife. They are the ones who discover evidence of other Blue Macaws in the Amazon.
• In Rio 2, she is married to Tulio. However, it is unknown if she changed her last name to "Monteiro," or if she kept her own last name.

Skills

• Speaking bird language
• Driving
  • Seen driving a motorcycle
  • Seen driving a Carnival float.
  • Claims to be able to drive a snowmobile
• Hang Gliding (seen in ending credits)
• Bicycling along with Tulio and Fernando (shown in ending credits)

Quotes

Quotes from Rio

• Linda: "I'll take care of you."
• Linda: "Stupid clock."
• Linda: "Good morning, Blu."
• Linda: "Tyler 'Blu' Gunderson, you know these vitamins are good for you."
• Linda: "Ooh, what's this? Gotcha."
• Linda: "Yes, mom, I'd love to visit, but who would take care of Blu?"
• Linda: "Mom, they don't have kennels for parrots."
• Linda: "Here's your hot chocolate, Blu. Just how you like it."
• Linda: "Are you alright?"
• Linda: "Are you looking for some books?"
• Linda: "Doctor of Ornithology."
• Linda: "Sure, when can she come over?"
• Linda: "Oh no, no, no, no, I never let Blu out of my sight, he needs me."
• Linda: "Blu is very particular and.. we have a routine here and we're not that big on travel."
• Linda: "Heck, he doesn't even fly."
• Linda: "Have a safe flight."
• Linda: "I promised I'd always look out for you, didn't I?"
• Linda: "What's going on here?"
• Linda: "Is she a performer?"
• Linda: "So, where's Jewel?"
• Linda: "Wow, that was fast."
• Linda: "I'm not so sure I should leave Blu here alone."
• Linda: "Well obviously, I'm a blue macaw kind of gal."
• Linda: "Actually, it's the brains I'm more attracted to. I'm not so impressed by fancy feathers."
• Linda: "Oh Blu, we should have never left Moose Lake."
• Linda: "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to curse."
• Linda: "We're doomed."
• Linda: "Excuse me sir, have you seen my bird?"
• Linda: "I have to trust him, I don't have a choice."
• Linda: "But, Fernando, I trusted you."
• Linda: "It's just like driving a snow-mobile."
• Linda: "We don't shake our tushies in Minnesota."
• Linda: "I saw Blu! He's riding on a bulldog!"
• Linda: "We'll see about that!"
• Linda: "It's Blu! Look Tulio, it's Blu! And he's flying. My Blu is flying! He's flying."
• Linda: (repeated line) "That's my big brave boy."

Quotes from Rio 2

• Linda: "Oh, how pretty..."
• Linda: "No, spit it out!"
• Linda: "I think she's trying to warn us..."
• Linda: "Tulio, look!"
• Linda: "Paddle now!
• Linda: "Make up your mind, Tulio!"
• Linda: "Hi, Blu!"
• Linda: "Tulio, They're cutting down the forest."
• Linda: "There are rare birds around here, you can't cut down these trees!"
• Linda: "Blu!"
• Linda: "What are you doing here? this is dangerous!"
• Linda: "Pick on someone your own size!"
• Linda: "And together we will make sure this place stay safe."
• Linda: "As bad as this is."

Gallery

Main article: Linda Gunderson/Gallery