Here’s a heads up on two unusual animation screenings on Friday night, March 2nd—one in New York, the other in Los Angeles.

In New York, Marv Newland is appearing in person a retrospective of his amazing International Rocketship short films. The screening includes such classics as Lupo The Butcher, Anijam, Pink Komkommer and many more - projected in 35mm! This event will occur at the Two Boots Pioneer Theatre on East 3rd Street near Avenue A, at 7pm.

In L.A. Laemmle’s Sunset 5 in West Hollywood is screening the independent stop motion feature Blood Tea and Red String. Since filmmaker Christiane Cegavske lives in L.A. there’s an excellent chance she’ll be there in person. It plays at midnight on both Friday March 2nd and Saturday March 3rd.

There’s an interview with Nickelodeon development exec Peter Gal in the new issue of Animation Magazine and I’d been debating about whether I should make a post about it here on Cartoon Brew. Well, John Kricfalusi saved me the trouble by doing a post about the Gal interview tonight. Unlike John, I don’t have any personal history with Gal. I also have nothing against him, but I was still quite annoyed by the piece. The classic line in the interview: When Gal is asked about the “Do’s and Don’ts of Pitching,” he offers this golden nugget, “Listen to my comments and feedback and really think about them.” I’m not sure if that’s one of the do’s or don’ts.

Man, I can’t wait for this one! Ammo Books is getting ready to release what could become one of the must-have books of recent times: a humongous monograph on mid-century illustration legend Charley Harper. The project was initiated by fashion designer Todd Oldham who discovered Harper’s work in 2001 and has been collaborating with Harper since then to put together this book. What’s particularly exciting is that it looks like Ammo and Oldham are doing this right: the format is huge (17×12 inches) and if the cover is any indication, it’s going to be packed with visual goodness. As far as I know, Harper never worked in animation, but his work has inspired countless animation artists from 1950s-era designer Cliff Roberts to Samurai Jack background painter Scott Wills. Animator Nate Pacheco was even trying to translate Harper’s designer into Flash animation last year.

The 420-page hardcover book is scheduled for release in June, and retails for a steep $200 but is only $126 at Amazon. There are also four limited edition versions of the book (each $400) which come with a silkscreen print.

Here’s more about the book from the Ammo website:

Charley Harper is an American original. At 84, Charley continues to make art in his studio in his hometown of Cincinnati, Ohio. He is beloved for his delightful, graphic and often humorous illustrations of nature, animals, insects and people alike. Charley likes to say, that when he paints a bird, he doesn’t count all the feathers in the wings – he just counts the wings. Minimal realism, he calls it, and his unique and precise style continues to resonate and inspire his admirers.

Charley Harper - An Illustrated Life, showcases his illustrations that appeared from 1950-1975 in the Ford Times magazines, as well as in books such as the beloved “The Giant Golden Book of Biology� in 1961, “Betty Crocker’s Dinner for Two� in 1961, and “ The Animal Kingdom� in 1968, among many others. His well loved book “Birds and Words�, first published in 1974, is considered a classic.

To see a preview of the type of art that will be in the book, check out this nice online collection of Harper’s work.

In fall 2005, two story artists at Pixar—Ronnie del Carmen and Enrico Casarosa—joined forces with Japanese illustrator Tadahiro Uesugi to put on an exhibit of paintings and drawings. They called it “Three Trees Make a Forest.” Now, Gingko Press has released a beautiful book collecting the artwork from that show.

Unlike many art shows that take place nowadays, there wasn’t a specific theme or high-concept driving this show. It was simply an opportunity for three artists who respect and admire each other’s work to exhibit together. The results are unpretentious and lovely. Uesugi, Casarosa and del Carmen each have their own distinct stylistic approaches, but their work also shares a lot in common, from their fearless use of digital tools over traditional media to the contemplative serenity that surfaces in all their art.

Another trait shared by the three is the brilliant simplicity and directness of their work. One of my favorite pieces in the book is del Carmen’s “Nina Yellow on Blue,” a gouache that appears modest in execution yet offers so much in terms of composition, color and design. There are similar pieces throughout the book by all three participants; pieces displaying an effortless confidence that belies the years of hard work and artistic practice required to achieve such results.

Three Trees Make a Forest is available on Amazon for $16.50. Also, the fine folks at Gingko Press have given us two copies of the book to give away to readers. We’ll post a trivia question this Monday at 1pm (Pacific time); check back then for your chance to win a copy.

Cool McCool was not a great cartoon show. In fact, it was downright poor. Created by Bob Kane (of Batman and Courageous Cat fame), and produced by King Features’ Al Brodax (Yellow Submarine), it originally aired on NBC Saturday mornings in 1966. It’s not bad enough to qualify for my Comic Con Worst Cartoons screenings, and it’s neither good enough to recommend. I could never warm up to the character - I think it’s either his phony mustasche or his lame Jack Benny personality, or perhaps his outdated appearance of what a spy should be. It just doesn’t quite work. This clip on You Tube will give you a taste. A boxed set of the complete series on DVD comes out on March 13th (they sent me an advance copy) and, sadly, I cannot recommend it.

I say “sadly” because the DVD is practically a tribute to my favorite New York City kid-show host Chuck McCann. Chuck (pictured in the center, above) did almost all the voices on the show - and he’s great. Bob McFadden (left, was McCool) and Carol Corbett (right, another New York kiddie show host) did all the other voices and the set features commentary, interviews, classic clips and bonus material all paying tribute to McCann (perhaps best known outside of New York as the voice of Sonny and Gramps in those Cocoa Puffs commercials - and his co-starring role on Far Out Space Nuts). If you grew up watching McCann in the 1960s you might want this DVD just to relive some cherished memories with an old friend. Otherwise, you can forget it.

As a follow-up to yesterday’s image of Mickey Mouse Liver Paste, Brew reader Michael Levine sent in this picture of Popeye Paté from Spain.

I’m often critical of the contemporary animation industry, but my criticisms are nothing compared to this new blog called Anibation Fantasy [site was taken down on 2/27/07]. The author of the blog has decided to remain anonymous, though he says he’s an Annie Award-winning artist who’s been in the industry for over twenty-five years. The writing on the blog certainly sounds like that of a grizzled industry veteran who’s seen it all. It’s hard to go wrong with a blog that has the tagline “I work in animation. I am in hell.” and offers post titles like “WHY THE ANIMATION INDUSTRY IS DOOMED,” “THE ANNIE AWARDS ARE A JOKE,” “HORRIBLE CARTOONS THAT EVERYBODY LOVES,” and “ANGRY WOMEN ARE RUINING ANIMATION.”

This was posted on Boing Boing but I couldn’t resist linking to it here. Mickey Mouse Liver Paste from Croatia. Yecch!