The final Cartoon Dump of 2011 is here! Your last chance this year to see some of the worst cartoons ever made, and also dive into the Dump’s mixture of sketches, songs and the stand up comedy of our special holiday guests Chris Hardwick, Wayne Federman and Jay London!

Join our regular cast: TV’s Frank Conniff as Moodsy, the Clinically Depressed Owl, Erica Doering as Compost Brite, J. Elvis Weinstein as Dumpster Diver Dan, Kristin Ariggo as Cue Card Goddess and me – your host, Jerry Beck – at the infamous Steve Allen Theatre – tonight at 8pm!

Where? The Steve Allen Theater, 4773 Hollywood Blvd. • Free Parking! • Advanced Tickets here • Phone: (323) 666-9797 • Map & Directions

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I just received Profiles In History’s latest auction catalog: Icons of Animation and its pretty incredible. Above are a few of the offerings that caused me to do a Tex Avery double take: a rare cel from one of The Flintstones sponsor bumper for Winston cigarettes; pencil animation from MGM’s Bosko and The Pirates (1937); and a cache of production photos from the Kinex stop motion studio – the one above from The Cannibal Isle (1927). Priceless stuff!

The Icons of Animation auction takes place on Saturday December 17th at The Paley Center in Beverly Hills. Van Eaton Galleries will be displaying the material in advance preview, December 9th through 16th (10am to 6pm each day). Their are literally hundreds of Disney items ranging from cels from The Band Concert (1935) to Mary Blair originals from Alice in Wonderland (1951). Lots of stuff for every taste, from Gulliver’s Travels cels to Leon Schlesinger Bugs Bunny comic strips… check out the entire catalog online here.

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Click thumbnails below to enlarge images – L to R: a pan cel from Tezuka’s Astro Boy; The Icons of Animation catalog with the earliest surviving color Mickey Mouse Cel on the cover (note the green trunks!); and an incredibly rare cel set up from Iwerks’ Balloonland (1934):

Yes, I plugged this last week and will be plugging it frequently the next ten days… Cartoon Brew’s first animation festival starts December 1st at The Cinefamily in Los Angeles. Be there! Here’s a trailer:

Hot on the heels of this week’s CTN Expo, animators and animation fans will be treated to the L.A. based Animation Breakdown festival at The Cinefamily (in Hollywood). Cartoon Brew and Animation Block Party are co-presenting this 6 day festival that celebrates the greatest in international animation, old and new, shorts and features.

Highlights include an advance screening of Pixar’s new short La Luna (with director Enrico Casarosa in person), new films by the Brothers Quay and Spike Jonze; live in-person appearances from animator Don Hertfzeldt, comics and cartoon creator Brad Neely (China IL), a cast & crew reunion of Cartoon Network’s Space Ghost: Coast to Coast and Frank Zappa’s legendary go-to claymation freakster, Bruce Bickford. An extensive 35mm retrospective of Polish animation is planned, with prints being flown in from Europe; and Cartoon Network will present world-premeire of Pen Ward and Thomas Herpich’s short Thank You.

Other events include:

- Rare 35mm restorations of Disney’s Laugh-O-Grams, Walt Disney’s long-lost silent era shorts, presented by Brewmaster Jerry Beck.
- Don Hertzfeldt in person for the LA premiere of his new film It’s Such A Beautiful Day
- Space Ghost: Coast to Coast cast & crew reunion and panel, C. Martin Croker and Andy Merrill in person.
- Pixar’s La Luna with director Enrico Casarosa in person for an advance screening and behind the scenes presentation.

All this and more (to be announced). For information and tickets (seating is limited) visit cinefamily.org.

My buddy Oscar Grillo will be attending the CTN Expo this weekend. That alone will be worth the the trip from anywhere. Oscar is one of the most incredible artists and animators you’ll ever meet – and this is one of his rare appearances in the US. Learn from the master – he’ll be speaking on stage one-on-one with Eric Goldberg on Sunday (at 1pm) and doing demonstrations, signings and other workshops all through the weekend.

Don Bluth, Gary Goldman, Ralph McQuarrie, Andrea Deja, Ron Clements, John Musker, Nancy Beiman, Tony White, William Stout, Stephen Silver, Bill Plympton, Florian Satzinger, Louie Del Carmen, Kevin Deters and Stevie Wermers are among the dozens of incredible guests who will explain it all. With over 150 planned sessions, a sold-out exhibit floor, book signings, gallery shows, live demonstrations, sneak peak screenings, networking… and, of course, The Cartoon Brew Over-Flow Lounge (stop by and have a drink!). You’ll probably find me there.

If you haven’t already, Register Now (save a few bucks by using the Cartoon Brew discount code: CBREWX11). For even more info on the CTN Expo, click here.

To celebrate the release of the new Saul Bass biography, Art of the Title created this nifty visual guide to some of Bass’s most celebrated title sequences.

There’s a Saul Bass tribute at MoMA in a few hours with the book’s author Pat Kirkham along with Kyle Cooper and Chip Kidd. Tickets for non-MoMA members are at the door so get there early.

Also, now would be a good time to point out that Universe will be re-issuing Saul Bass’s only (and nearly impossible to find) illustrated children’s book next February. Henri’s Walk to Paris, written by Lenore Klein, was released in 1962. I had a copy of the book for a few years, and found it so unenjoyable that I got rid of it. It struck me as being a failure as an illustrated storybook, and my ex-library copy confirmed that—it had rarely been checked out in decades.

It surprised me that I disliked the book as much as I did because Bass had a sense of humor (and his very able and funny collaborator Art Goodman worked on the book, too). But, the book’s illustrations are excessively formalized and austere (the curse of design for design’s sake), with none of the warmth, humor or vitality that the story required. Using minimalist graphics in a children’s book is a tricky task to begin with, but it’s possible to do it well. Graphic designer Paul Rand pulled it off more successfully in titles like Sparkle and Spin and Little 1. Or simply look to the master of super-stylized children’s book illustration, Abner Graboff. In spite of its shortcomings, if you’re a Bass fan, you’ll probably want a copy of the book, and now it’s easier to find than ever before.

(Thanks, Short of the Week for the video link)

We all remember Ren and Stimpy, but where is the love for Disney’s The Shnookums and Meat Funny Cartoon Show?

The American Cinematheque at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood will remedy this situation when it holds Kopptoberfest: A Tribute To Bill Kopp on Saturday night November 12th. It’s a fund raiser for the Cinematheque, with Kopp in person and numerous clips from his work including episodes of Eek! The Cat, Toonsylvania, his violent retelling of the Three Little Pigs from Tales From The Crypt, Roger Rabbit in Roller Coaster Rabbit, as well as scenes from his live action features and Oscar-winning student films. Prior to the screening, hand-painted animation cells will be sold, with all proceeds going to the American Cinematheque.

Voice actors Brad Garrett, Tom Kenny, Jess Harnell, animator Jeff DeGrandis and producer Margaret Loesch will join Kopp on stage in a panel discussion. It’s FREE admission (with suggested donation of $10.) and starts at 7:30pm at The Egyptian Theatre, 6712 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, CA. For more information, click here. For a refresher on Shookums and Meat, see video below:

Tonight at 8pm is that tribute to UPA I told you about last week. Its the latest subject of my Animation Tuesday screenings, held each month at the former Silent Movie Theatre on Fairfax (near Melrose Ave). Tonight we will be running gorgeous 35mm prints on the big screen direct from the studio vault (Thank you, Sony) of some the UPA’s true classics and oddities — including their acclaimed adaptation Edgar Allen Poe’s The Tell Tale Heart, Oscar winner When Magoo Flew (in wide screen CinemaScope), and rarely shown The Jaywalker, Willie The Kid and Fudget’s Budget (pictured above) – and more (ever seen a Dick Tracy in 35mm?). Plus: a special surprise guest voice actress in-person (hint: she narrates one of UPA’s greatest shorts). Info and tickets: click here.