Cartoon Brew

RICHARD FLEISCHER (1916-2006)

Ray Pointer just informed us that film director, Richard Fleischer, son of animation pioneer, Max Fleischer, passed away in his sleep last evening. He was 89.

Mr. Fleischer, who had just released his teling of his father's career in OUT OF THE INKWELL: MAX FLEISCHER AND THE ANIMATION REVOLUTION, in June had been in failing health for the better part of a year. He leaves behind a most impressive body of work in films including 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA, BARABBAS, FANTASTIC VOYAGE, DR. DOOLITTLE, TORA, TORA, TORA, SOYLENT GREEN, THE JAZZ SINGER (with Neal Diamond), CONAN THE DESTROYER, and RED SONJA.

ANIME ON IFC

Everyone is getting into the anime act. Anime is cool among the kids and teens (thus its presence on Kids WB, Cartoon Network, Toon Disney, Nicktoons, etc.), sci fi fans (Sci-Fi Channel), tech nerds (G4TV), and classic film geeks (TCM). I half-expect to see an anime series start appearing on The Weather Channel soon.

Starting April 1st, The Indepedent Film Channel will begin running Akira Kurosawa's SAMURAI 7 (do you think it was the name "Akira" or "Kurosawa" that attracted them to pick up the show?). To help promote this series, filmmaker Dan Persons has created several “Anime in the USA” mini-documentaries (3 minutes each) for the IFC website. Animation director Kevin Alteri (BATMAN: TAS), producer Frank Gladstone (IDT), anime historian Fred Patten and yours truly (that's my talking head in the frame grab above) participated with our comments and observations. You have to work a bit to find these mini-films, but here are the directions:

Go to IFC.com (or, if for some reason you have trouble bringing that page up, try ifc.com/news); and click on “UNCUT ON DEMAND” at the top of the page. Once the viewer pops up, click on pause to stop the startlingly loud promo clip, click on “SERIES” on the right, then click on “SAMURAI 7.” The two episodes of "Anime In The USA" should be at the very top of the list.

The Wonderful World of Gonorrhea

I didn't think there was any way to top today's post about Disney's venereal disease film.

Alex Kirwan, art director of MY LIFE AS A TEENAGE ROBOT, proved me wrong, by sending over this hilarious 1944 LOOK magazine ad wherein Mickey Mouse fights gonorrhea by experimenting on other mice, and then ends up taking the gonorrhea drug himself. It looks like there's a second page to the ad, based on the numbering, but you'll get the idea. Fridays just don't get any better than this folks.

(click on image for larger version)

Walt Disney Presents...VD Attack Plan

I used to think the most bizarre Disney film was THE STORY OF MENSTRUATION. That was, until I saw VD ATTACK PLAN (1973), an educational short about that most Disney of subjects: venereal diseases. The film was directed by Nine Old Man, Les Clark, and animated by Charlie Downs, who manages to create some really interesting movement for a main character who has no arms or legs. Here's a short article about the film. And you can watch the film below, in its entirety, courtesy of Google Video:

(Thanks, Benjamin Plouffe)

UPA'S TELL TALE HEART

I guess there is no escaping the fact that it's UPA week here at CARTOON BREW and on Amid's CARTOON MODERN (Mike Sporn's Splog has even jumped on the bandwagon).

We will be screening UPA's classic THE TELL TALE HEART (1953) on Sunday evening at the Egyptian. It's a masterpiece for several reasons—the storytelling in limited animation, James Mason's powerful vocal track and, of course, Paul Julian's incredible colors, layouts, and paintings. THE TELL TALE HEART was filmed in 3-D, but for reasons lost to time, was not released this way. (No 3-D prints or dual negatives have ever been found—I suspect they never got to Columbia Pictures in the first place. Perhaps some unopened UPA storage locker in Burbank contains the missing negative.) By 1953 the UPA studio was at its height artistically, and was the darling of the critics (and the Academy) for starting an artistic revolution—moving Hollywood cartoons away from rounded Disney animals to angular human characters and modern design. THE TELL TALE HEART was certainly something different. Not since Fleischer's SUPERMAN series had animated shorts tackled a dramatic story. This was not only a drama—it was an Edgar Allen Poe horror film. And the media took notice—most notably with a four-page story in Time Magazine and a four-page color spread in LIFE. Columbia gave it a full scale publicity push, with newspaper advertising (above) and a modest trade campaign for the Oscar. THE TELL TALE HEART was nominated for an Academy Award, but lost to Disney's "UPA-influenced" TOOT WHISTLE PLUNK AND BOOM. The casting of a major A-list Hollywood actor, James Mason, was certainly a coup for UPA, and speaks to the studio's status as an industry player at that time. Only Disney had used such stunt casting in the past, and mainly for their feature films.

TELL TALE HEART built on the innovations of GERALD MCBOING BOING, ROOTY TOOT TOOT, and the creation of Mr. Magoo. While it didn't lead to further dramatic Hollywood cartoon shorts, its influence is still felt in numerous ways, in numereous international and independent films produced since. And that's why it's a classic.

The film can be seen this Sunday at the UPA Tribute at the Egyptian Theatre in LA.

Posted by JERRY at 08:20 AM

ASIFA'S "CARTOONS" MAGAZINE NO. 2

In addition to discounts and/or free admission to local animation events, ASIFA members (of any chapter in the U.S. or worldwide) also recieve a great new magazine edited by the Ottawa Animation Festival's Chris Robinson. The second issue of CARTOONS, The International Journal of Animation (published by John Libbey, dated Winter 2005) has just arrived in my mailbox. This new edition has 64 color glossy pages of worthwhile articles, reviews and images, including excellent pieces on Dana Parker by John Canemaker, Bob Clampett by Martin Goodman, and a review of Mind Game by Andre Coutu. There are informative articles about animation in Agentina, Israel, China, stories about filmmakers Jean Image, Zagreb's Bordo Dovnikovic and much much more.

Kudos to Libbey and Robinson for creating such a superb package. It's another great reason to join ASIFA. With seven local chapters in the U.S., and twenty more groups internationally, ASIFA sponsors international festivals (like Zagreb and Annecy), the ANNIE Awards, an animation archive, informative websites, and a worldwide linked community. Local Hollywood members get free DVDs and exclusive screenings of virtually all new animated features. The price of the yearly membership pays for itself. Now with CARTOONS, a free first class publication not available for sale anywhere, a membership in ASIFA seems vital. For more information on joining your local area group, click here.

UPA Addendum

Just a quick note to follow-up on Jerry's post below. Prior to the screening, there will be a private reception at the Egyptian Theatre from 4:30-5:30. If anybody wishes to mingle with the UPA veterans in a more intimate setting, you can attend the reception by RSVP'ing by this Saturday to Tee Bosustow: bosumedia [at] yahoo.com. The cost is $15 and can be paid at the door.

UPA SUNDAY

You all probably know this already (and I'm sure we'll remind you once again over the weekend) but Brewmasters Jerry and Amid will be participating in the big ASIFA-Hollywood / American Cinematheque UPA Tribute this Sunday at the Egyptian Theatre on Hollywood Blvd. The fun begins at 6pm when we will be screening 35mm prints of rare commercials, industrials, TV productions, behind the scenes footage and Scope prints of classic theatrical cartoons (including ROOTY TOOT TOOT and TELL TALE HEART). We will have panels featuring UPA veterans (Bill Melendez, Willis Pyle, Alan Zaslove, Fred Crippen, Sam Clayberger) and guest animators (Mark Kausler, Pixar's Lou Romano). ASIFA members will recieve a discount on admission. Advance tickets are on sale at the box office now. See you there!

Fred Moore photos

Jenny Lerew has posted some wonderful rare photos of master animator Fred Moore. She writes that she'll soon be posting a lot more Moore-related goodies on her blog Blackwing Diaries. To do my part, here's a late-1930s gag drawing by Tom Oreb of Ward Kimball (left) and Freddie Moore, documenting some long-forgotten moment at the Disney studio:

Annecy 2006 Selections Announced

The Annecy International Animation Festival announced this week their film selections for the 2006 edition, which takes place June 5- 10. Two hundred and sixty films were selected for competition and panorama screenings out of 1732 films submitted. A complete list of selected films can be found HERE.

A Cartoon Fan at the Associated Press

Kudos to the anonymous writer at the Associated Press who managed to sneak in a subtle Warner Bros. cartoon reference into the title of this news article.

Good Lord!

Nobody does a better job of parodying "retro" styles of animation than J.J. Sedelmaier. He's done it time and time again from his Filmation-style AMBIGUOUSLY GAY DUO shorts to commercials like the '50s-style Home Savings Bank ad to his revival of the 1970s interstitial series SCHOOLHOUSE ROCK. The genius of these works is that they're never so over-the-top as to be instantly obvious as parody. This faithfulness (and reverence) to the original source material is exactly what makes the new works so funny. A perfect example of this can be found in Sedelmaier's latest commercial, a 45-second spot that spoofs the classic theatrical ad "Let's All Go To The Lobby". J.J. kindly sent over a copy of the spot to share with CartoonBrew readers:

Because the spot was produced for the Fellowship Bible Church, the marching popcorn box, candy bar and soda cup featured in the original "Lobby" short have been replaced by a cross, a Bible, a cup of wine and a communion wafer. "The idea was to make it look like it was produced in the late '40s, and add little things that would appear in the context of that era’s visual language, while having some fun with it," says Sedelmaier. "The original was most likely produced by moonlighting animators who probably weren't much better than third-string. Now it's become a style unto itself."

The piece was conceived by Jeff Hopfer, a creative group head and art director at Dallas-based The Richards Group and a longtime member of the church. The film theatre analogy is quite appropriate for the Fellowship Bible Church, which recently completed an 18-month project to remodel what had been a three-screen multiplex into a tabernacle that can accommodate 1,200 worshippers. The church's real lobby is now equipped with industrial-size urns serving 20 coffee flavors and cabaret tables.

A lot of effort was put into capturing the quality of an older piece of animation. From a press release about the commercial:

The creative team wants to give the film a vintage feel, so Hopfer has arranged to output the finished digitally produced animation to film and have Sedelmaier scratch it up, add dust, and distress it manually before transferring it back to digital video—a low-tech technique he’s employed in the past on other projects, including the Episcopal Church spot he did with Hopfer in the ‘90s, the Speed Racer spot he did for Volkswagen through Arnold Worldwide, and the classic “Home Savings Bank” commercial produced for Chiat-Day. In this particular case, J.J. added bad tape splices to cause the film to jump slightly as it travels through the film gate.

Commercial credits are as follows: J.J. Sedelmaier, director/producer; Dave Lovelace, production manager and animator; Dan Madia and Claire Widman, storyboard and design; John Bonarrigo, animation and design; Steve Jackett, animation and assisting; Gene DiCiccio, design and assisting; and Heather Krumm, models, backgrounds and assisting. For more about Sedelmaier's work, read this great interview with him at HOGAN'S ALLEY.

VAN EATON ANIMATION EVENT

Wednesday night (3/22) at the Van Eaton Galleries in Sherman Oaks, H.B. Lewis will be on hand to discuss his work in illustration and animation. His credits include character design for Pixar (CARS and RATATOUILLE), Walt Disney Feature Animation (TARZAN and TREASURE PLANET), DreamWorks Animation (MADAGASCAR, OVER THE HEDGE) and Blue Sky/Fox Animation (ICE AGE and ROBOTS). You must RSVP to attend (818) 788-2357. Click here for more info.

BROKEBACK MOUSE

It had to happen, after years of gossip.

(Thanks, Joe D.)

BLUM BLUM

One more piece of rare animation to point out today, and this one is an incredible treat. BLUM BLUM was the student film of Duane Crowther (1928-1998), who was one of the best commercial animators of the 1950s. He made this film when he was only twenty years old at UCLA. I wrote about the film back in 2004 HERE and HERE.

The film was posted by Steve Moore, who has directed a number of films in recent years that I've enjoyed, including the kooky Disney short REDUX RIDING HOOD and his personal film THE INDESCRIBABLE NTH. Steve tells me that he's going to be posting all sorts of rare films on his site, including student shorts from when he was at CalArts in the early-1980s, by the likes of Chris Sanders, Kirk Wise, Kevin Lima, Brenda Chapman, Ralph Eggleston and Tony Fucile.

Classic Japanese Animation

Check out these two examples of super-rare (and perhaps, unintentionally funny) Japanese cartoons from the first half of the 20th century:

Ikuo Oishi's UGOKIE-KO-RI-NO-TATEHIKI (FOX AND ASIAN RACCOON CHEAT EACH OTHER) - 1933

Kenzo Masaoka's KUMO-TO-CHURIPPU (SPIDER AND TULIP) - 1943

(Thanks, Chuck Thompson)

The Films of Carmen D'Avino

Again, thanks to the Internet, it's possible to discover the work of an animator whose work is otherwise inaccessible nowadays. North County Public Radio has a terrific website about experimental animator/filmmaker Carmen D'Avino. The site has audio interviews with him, as well as complete Quicktimes of nine of his films, including the Oscar-nominated animated short PIANISSIMO (1963) and the Oscar-nominated short documentary THE BACKGROUND (1973). To find out more about D'Avino, check out the interview with him in Robert Russett and Cecile Starr's out-of-print EXPERIMENTAL ANIMATION: ORIGINS OF A NEW ART.
(Thanks, Karl Cohen)

JIM TYER VIDEO CLIPS

Dr. Strange-Q has posted a set of great Jim Tyer animation clips from old Terrytoon cartoons on YOU TUBE. Below is a great "shrink take" from a Mighty Mouse cartoon.

The Latest At Disney Feature

The Animation Guild's ever-reliable Steve Hulett has a brief update on some of the recent developments at Disney Feature. Impressively, Disney has been able to reassign around 75% of the crew that was working on the canned TOY STORY III, with the remaining 25% laid off.

Mark Newgarden's WE ALL DIE ALONE

I've been meaning to write about cartoonist/animation artist Mark Newgarden's new book WE ALL DIE ALONE (Fantagraphics), a beautifully designed, laugh-packed anthology of his career-to-date that collects his print cartoons from the 1980s and '90s among many other things. Yesterday's NEW YORK TIMES published a piece on Mark's book that serves as a solid introduction to what makes his work so unique:

"Why isn't humor funny?" was a working title for "We All Die Alone," Mr. Newgarden said. "That's what a lot of the work is exploring." He recalled the desolate world of stand-up comedians he has known. "I have a friend who's a very physical comedian, and his life has been about literally hurting himself onstage in order to get laughs," he said. "He embodies that desperation, that willingness to do anything because, somehow, he has convinced himself that this is his purpose in life: to make people laugh."

In his interview with Mr. Nadel, Mr. Newgarden provides an oblique explanation, in the form of a childhood reminiscence, of the roots of his obsession. He recalls watching the Three Stooges on television, laughing uproariously at their "magnificent abuse," when his grandfather would barrel into the room and rant: "How can you laugh? Those men are dead! Those men are dead!"

"That made it all much funnier," he says.

Use BugMeNot to bypass NY TIMES registration.
(link via HarryMcCracken.com)