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MGM apparently decided that the best way to celebrate Pink Panther’s 40th anniversary was to hire pop illustrator Shag to redesign him so that the character no longer has the slightest suggestion of appeal or charm. If you’re familiar with Shag’s contrived beatnik-tiki-mod-lounge paintings, then his redesign (or perhaps more appropriately, un-design) should be nothing surprising – stiffly and blandly drawn, awkward angularity, no sense of weight, and little flow or rhythm between the shapes. Somehow this utter contempt for draftsmanship, passing under the banner of “style”, translates to “hip” and “cool”. What’s sad is that now corporations are exhibiting the same lack of taste as the individuals who purchase his paintings, and seeking him out to ruin classic cartoon characters. There are countless artists out there with unique styles, and the draftsmanship skills to back it up, who could have re-interpreted the Pink Panther in myriad interesting ways. Instead, Shag’s insipid renderings of the Pink Panther now adorn New York City storefronts, all sorts of print advertising, and the official Pink Panther website. For the record, I’ve never met Shag and have nothing against him personally, but it angers me to see somebody who can barely hold a pencil ruin the legacy of terrific artists like Panther designer Hawley Pratt, animators Ken Harris and Bob Matz, and directors like Gerry Chiniquy, Friz Freleng and Richard Williams.

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The Making of Fritz the Cat

April 5, 2004 12:21 am

Mike Barrier has posted the first part of a very long 1972 article about Ralph Bakshi and the production of his first feature FRITZ THE CAT. The piece was originally published in FUNNYWORLD #14. Check out the article at MichaelBarrier.com. An interesting bit of trivia about historical accuracy: while FRITZ THE CAT is recognized as the first X-rated animated feature, it was not the first X-rated piece of animation released theatrically in the US. The 1971 live-action feature THE TELEPHONE BOOK features a lengthy animated sequence, which though explicit is, like FRITZ, fairly tame by today’s standards. The animation was directed and designed by Len Glasser’s NY studio Stars & Stripes Productions Forever, whose outfit also produced some of the funniest and most inventive TV commercials of the Sixties and Seventies.

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EBAY FIND

April 4, 2004 10:57 pm

I’m not sure this is worth $60, but it sure is cool. A 1952 letter from MGM Cartoon producer Fred Quimby, on nifty MGM Tom & Jerry stationery.
Check it out on eBay.

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TODAY’S ANIMATED FEATURES

April 2, 2004 5:45 am

It’s a big day in Los Angeles, as two oddball 2-D animated features open in local area theatres.HOME ON THE RANGE is Disney’s final film in a series of traditional hand drawn features dating back to SNOW WHITE in 1937. Even if they revive the animation studio someday in the future, this film will be noted as the last of the original line. I liked it, but the reviews have been luke warm. Roger Ebert was not impressed.TAMALA 2010 opens at the Nuart Theatre in West L.A. – it’s a bizarro Japanese anime, sort of a “Hello Kitty” from Hell. Vitagraph Films (American Cinematheque) is putting this cool looking picture in art theatres across the U.S.

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BREW RADIO

April 1, 2004 11:12 am

Brewmmaster Jerry Beck will appear Friday morning on The Connection, a live, daily call-in show that airs on NPR stations nationwide. The program will be broadcast on April 2, from 11am-12noon Eastern Time (8 – 9 am Pacific). It can be heard live on numerous stations nationwide (check here) or on the web. The show will be available on The Connection’s website archive.
Beck will be discussing the future of hand drawn animation in film.

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