Happy Father's Day Google Doodle Brightens Up Dad's Homepage

Google, the world's most popular search engine, has earned quite a reputation for its fun, quirky and unorthodox culture, and its Google Doodles are one of the most public and beloved of those eccentricities that make Google who they are.

Today, Google searchers are treated to a light-hearted, animated take on the classic white, red, yellow, blue and green logo, which has been adapted to make for a fun Father's Day message.

Father's Day -- the annual holiday set aside for children to honor the patriarchs in their family -- is honored in true Silicon Valley tech style in today's animation.

First we are treated to a dad-like image of the Google L relaxing in a chair reading a newspaper with glasses on (clearly there is a lot of personification going on in this sketch.)

Then he is surprised when a small robot rolls in from the left to deliver a #1 mug as a present. Then, his presumed child -- the red Google E -- emerges from behind his chair to startle him yet again, but when the father sees it's just his kid with the remote for the gift-bearing robot, he appears touched and the two join in a hug as a grey Goog scroll in to complete the full name of the company.

It's one of the more creative of the Google Doodles that has been created over the years, so head over to Google.com to check it out for yourself!

Google doodles have been an integral part of the company's tradition for a long time.

Its search engine uses the doodles to spice up the home page on holidays, on the birthdays of famous people, and just for fun. They vary widely in complexity and design, from simple decorations to interactive experiences.

Ever since Google celebrated the annual Burning Man festival in the Nevada desert with a simple doodle on Aug. 30, 1998, the company has had tons of fun with its doodles, honoring everybody and everything from the musician Les Paul, whose doodle featured a playable guitar graphic, to the return to Earth of asteroid explorer Hayabusa in June 2010, which was only displayed in Japan.

First celebrated in Washington state in 1910 as an accompaniment to Mother's Day, Father's Day has become an annual tradition in America. But it didn't gain much traction at first, and was only finally signed into law in 1972, when President Richard Nixon declared that the third Sunday in June would be forever set aside as a celebration of fatherhood.

And it has been a hit since, though many people make fun of the less-than-original gift ideas like ties and mugs (like the one seen in the Google Doodle today) that bored kids often end up getting their dads.

Either way, the holiday is sure to put a smile on your dad's face, so be sure to give him a call tody, and check out Google's homepage to check out the fun Google Doodle.