Sorry for the late notice. There is a sale today at Clars Auction Gallery that is offering several lots from the estate of Preston Blair. Among the material being offered is (click thumbnails below to see enlarged image): original art to pages of his essential Walter Foster Animation book, several autographed copies of the same, the storyboards for Journey Back To Oz, rare magazine articles on Red Hot Riding Hood, cels and production art from his commercial films, as well as this transparancy negative (pictured above, flipped to positive) for the rare original titles of Columbia’s 1930s Krazy Kat cartoons. If you act fast you may still be able to place a bid on some of these items. If not you can, like me, simply enjoy some of these images online.

(Thanks, Robert Forman)

“Yo! You down wit’ dis? Listen up, I hear Cupid got some new dope powers…” Man, I love classic cartoon posters, but this one from 1917 is not only ugly, unappealing and racist (click image at left to enlarge), but it seemingly anticipates hip-hop slang from 90 years into the future. The word “dope” on this one-sheet poster is indeed a drug reference: for a new love potion - which Cupid in the cartoon uses to create mischief. The word “Powers” is not part of the film’s title, its the name of the series (A Pat “Powers Cartoon Comedy”). The text is so poorly laid out it, it can be read the wrong way (at least, by me). I found this poster while browsing at Moviegoods.com, they are selling this repro for $19.99 - the original would be worth thousands. For the record, Pat Sullivan’s Cupid Gets Some New Dope (1917) features his character Sammy Jonsin as “Cupid”. Two years later, Sullivan would find lasting success with the creation of Felix the Cat.

If you think the U.S. has a monopoly on ruining its classic cartoon stars… have you seen Little Lulu´s Brazilian-made comics revival as a teenager?

Here is more info (in Portuguese) and pictures. Check out the slim Tubby - according to this info, Tubby left his violin to lead a rock band, Annie is the gang’s geek and a videogame freak, Gloria is a fashion expert and Alvin has become a skater and surfer.

(Thanks, Alfons Moline)

Funny, the things you find for sale on the Internet. Got a spare $2 million? If so, you can afford Max Fleischer’s house in Miami. From the seller’s listing:

Designed in 1936 by Albert Anis for Winter Residence of famous cartoonist, Max Fleischer, creator of Superman, Popeye and Betty Boop… John F. Kennedy once visited this house… it’s full of history.

Full of history? I’m wondering if the basement is filled with cels from Gulliver or Mr. Bug. Obviously the house has been renovated and not much of original is left - however the shelves in the kitchen do look like something Grampy might’ve installed. Click here and check it out.

Remember that rare Leon Schlesinger merchandising manual we posted about a year ago? Here’s how one Looney Tunes licensee used it. Dan Goodsell recently posted these rare ice cream packages (click thumbnails below to view enlarged image of each) on flickr. Dig the blue hairy Daffy Duck, the early still-evolving Elmer and note the fact they chose to use the obscure Fluffnums (from Tashlin’s Porky’s Romance) and “Patrick” Parrot (from Avery’s I Wanna Be a Sailor) as representative Looney Tunes.

Frankly, I learn almost as much about old cartoons from their merchandising as I do from watching the cartoons themselves. Thanks to Dan Goodsell for continuing his archeology in this area of research. Check Dan’s blog regularly for new finds - and updates on Mr. Toast.

(Thanks, Billie Towser)

I always love an excuse to post an obscure Walter Lantz cartoon from the 1930s featuring swing music, rotoscoped dancers and un-P.C. stereotypes, set against the backdrop of an animation studio. The excuse this time is a Lantz in-house memo (below left - click thumbnail to enlarge) that collector Eric Calande just sent me. Lantz asks the staff (”Dear Gang”) to contribute gags to this cartoon, with prizes ranging from $2 to $10 for the best ideas. Note that the memo is dated September 26th 1938 and the cartoon was released January 23rd 1939. From board to screen in four months!? Perhaps the rush to cash in on “a fad” necessitated a production crunch. Also note the set up to this premise pre-dates Friz Freleng’s Looney Tune You Ought To Be In Pictures by a year.

Though the Jitterbug character never reappeared, the concept of this cartoon was the basis for several other swing music cartoons, and the forerunner of the Swing Symphonies series Lantz initiated in 1941. Despite the title card, this was not an Oswald Rabbit cartoon - it was actually one of Lantz’s miscellaneous Cartune series (it was released to TV in the 1950s in the Oswald television package). Frame grabs from the original titles are posted below (click thumbnails to enlarge)

John McElwee over at the Greenbriar Picture Shows blog has posted a fascinating overview of Paramount’s Superman cartoons. Despite the wide acclaim and Oscar nomination that greeted the first short, McElwee finds quotes from regional theatre managers who just couldn’t take the character - and the idea of dramatic adventure cartoons - seriously. The piece is liberally illustrated with trade ads, pressbook pages and news clippings even I hadn’t seen before. Well worth a look.

About a year ago, Milton Knight sent us a link to a excerpt from a rare series of Egyptian cartoons created in the 1930s by the pioneering Frenkel Brothers. Knight has just found a complete “Mish-Mish” cartoon on You Tube, from a broadcast on Serge Bromberg’s Cartoon Factory a few years ago. In the interests of animation history, I think it’s worth a look.

Of this film, Knight notes “the pirating of the Van Beuren Tom & Jerry’s Wot a Night and In the Bag, both soundtracks and animation.” I’ll note (or warn you of) the ethnic and racial stereotypes — and the crude animation, which I find entertaining; strangely hypnotic and bizarre, in a good way.

If you want more Frenkel Brothers goodness, here’s a 40-second clip compiled from several other of their films.