Swanky Kong

"Give them a big hand folks! Good evening, I'm Swanky Kong and you're tonight's contestants on my Bonanza! It's easy to play! Just pick a game and you're away!"

- Swanky Kong

Swanky Kong, spelled Swankey Kong on one occasion, is a member of the Kong Family and a game show host. He makes his first appearance in Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest and returns in Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!. He is notable for being a flashy entrepreneur; in his first appearance, he wears a blue coat and has an afro hairstyle. In his second appearance, however, he wears a fancy suit with a matching cane, his hair is covered by a bowler hat, and he appears to be much taller. His face resembles that of Donkey Kong's. He is one of three Kongs who have not made any physical appearances in games not developed by Rare, the others being Kiddy Kong and Chunky Kong.

Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest
In Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest, Swanky hosts an optional game show at Swanky's Bonus Bonanza; here, he provides three quizzes to Diddy and Dixie Kong regarding the game's content, and he requires a fee of Banana Coins if the Kongs want to participate. By successfully answering every question from a quiz, the Kongs are rewarded with extra lives from Swanky.

In the Game Boy Advance version, Candy Kong appears as Swanky's assistant on the show. If Diddy and Dixie complete every quiz, Swanky provides them with a photograph of himself. Therefore, Swanky's role is no longer optional because the Kongs need that photograph to get one of Wrinkly Kong’s Video Game Hero Coins. Also, in the remake, Swanky charges ten Banana Coins if the Kongs want to rematch a boss. During the battle, a timer appears at the top-center of the screen, to keep track of the Kongs' progress. Swanky rewards the Kongs with prizes, based on how well they performed in the boss battle.

Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!
In Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!, Swanky hosts a circus tent called Swanky's Sideshow, where participants can compete in a ball-throwing contest for prizes. Only the upper half of his body is shown, as he is always shown to be inside of a barrel (including in his Dixie Kong's Photo Album photograph). However, Swanky's entire body is shown from his official artwork.

Dixie and Kiddy can pay Swanky with a few bear coins to compete in various throwing contests against Cranky Kong. If the Kongs can get a higher score than Cranky, then Swanky awards them with prizes, including bananas and bear coins. Like the previous game, Swanky's role is optional and is unrelated to the main storyline.

For the Game Boy Advance version, Swanky hosts a different location, Swanky's Dash. He allows Dixie to compete in a virtual reality-type minigame which involves her collecting stars on a rotating landscape (Kiddy cannot participate because he is too young). Swanky's outfit also went unchanged from his previous appearance in Donkey Kong Country 2. When the Kongs win at his first challenge, Swanky rewards them with a Banana Bird and a DK Coin—Dixie is not required to participate in subsequent challenges.

Donkey Konga 2
Swanky Kong makes a few cameos in Donkey Konga 2. In Freestyle Zone, both his artwork from Donkey Kong Country 2 and Donkey Kong Country 3 sometimes appear on-screen as the player is freely drumming. He is also one of the selectable badges after finishing a song or in the Match That Badge! challenge. His badge is not featured in the Japanese version, which instead has a badge of a regular human.

Mario Superstar Baseball
Swanky’s tent from Donkey Kong Country 3 makes a cameo appearance in the Donkey Kong Jungle in Mario Superstar Baseball. Swanky himself appears on a wooden billboard.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Swanky Kong appears in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate as a support spirit, using his original artwork. The battle to unlock him involves battling Donkey Kong, who is easily distracted by items.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie
Swanky Kong makes a cameo appearance in The Super Mario Bros. Movie, where he can be seen on a kart slipping on a Banana Peel dropped by the driver who drives Mario, Princess Peach and Toad to Cranky Kong's palace. In addition to that, in Donkey Kong's promotional poster, Swanky Kong can be seen in the audience at the Great Ring of Kong. The film marks Swanky Kong's first physical appearance in over 17 years since the Game Boy Advance remake of Donkey Kong Country 3.

Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!

 * Instruction booklet (page 16): His show’s on the road now. Play the throwing game to win top quality prizes.
 * Player's Guide (page 9): Swanky Kong is taking his flashy games on the road. Cough up two Bear coins and take a chance on your choice of three different games. If you're playing in two-player mode, you can compete against your teammate. But watch out if you're playing in one-player mode: there's a grumpy old ape running around hustling players for Bear Coins.

Rarewhere: DKC Trilogy Cast List
APPEARS IN: DKC 2, 3

''The second great entrepreneur of the Kong family alongside Funky, Swanky has aimed for a career in showbiz since being bitten by the game show bug further back than he can remember. His original Bonus Bonanza trivia quiz proved popular but led to allegations of favouritism regarding Dixie and Diddy, prompting Swanky to branch out and tour the surrounding lands with a new sideshow featuring a triumphant Cranky as defending champion. Despite his love of competition, Swanky is a generous soul and, true to tradition, never lets anyone walk away empty-handed.