Get Well, Martha Sigall

Our friend Martha Sigall has been in Intensive Care for the last few days. According to her son, Lee:

She was in ICU for four days with septic shock. The origin of her infection is still unknown. She had some damage to major organs. Some of that has improved and some remains. She was transferred to a regular room Saturday, then she had a little setback after midnight with a fever which has since remitted. Sunday was a very tiring day for her. We still don’t know when she will be discharged, and when she does, she will have a long bit of recovery to do. If you don’t know her address, send a private message to me, and I will try to get to my messages from time to time. Spread the word if you know someone who knows Martha. To know her is to love her.

That’s for sure. Martha is one of our last living links to the golden age of animation. She started at Leon Schelesinger’s studio (Warner Bros.) in the 1930s, and later worked for the early UPA, MGM, and inked and painted cels for Bob Clampett, Bill Melendez, Chuck Jones and practically everyone in the business. Her life in animation was recounted in this 2005 book. Recently Martha started a series of You Tube videos recalling her career. Below is the one she posted last month. Get well, Martha – you are the greatest!