Filmography: Ko-Ko the Clown in Jumping Beans 1922

This post is just the tip of the iceberg... see reason number 7 on our The Top Ten Reasons To Support The A-HAA for links to more great cartoons to study.


Today, I am finally acknowledging a supporter of ASIFA-Hollywood and our Archive that I really should have thanked long ago... Ray Pointer. Ray is an animator and producer who has been dedicated to preserving the history of animation for decades. Through his production company, Inkwell Images, Ray restores and annotates classic animated films from the earliest days of the medium. Without his hard work and research, these wonderful cartoons might be forgotten and unappreciated. Thanks for the great work, Ray!

Here is a 1922 cartoon from his "Out of the Inkwell" DVD collection... Ko-Ko the Clown in "Jumping Beans".




Ko-Ko the Clown in "Jumping Beans" (Fleischer/1922)
(Quicktime 7 / 15.8 megs)

PLEASE NOTE The text and media files on the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive Blog are not to be duplicated, redistributed or hosted on other websites without the prior written permission of the Board of Directors of ASIFA-Hollywood.

Max Fleischer was an important pioneer in the history of animation, and his influence is still being felt. Here, from the brilliant cartoonist Eddie Fitzgerald's blog, Uncle Eddie's Theory Corner is an excerpt from a hilarious "fume-Eddie" comic titled, Out of the Ink Bottle...




Eddie Fitzgerald: Out of the Ink Bottle

If you enjoyed this cartoon, see these previous postings... I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles, Mariutch, Swing, You Sinners, You're Driving Me Crazy, Betty Boop in Snow White, Popeye in Li'l Swee Pea, Grim Natwick in New York, Nat Falk's "How To Make Animated Cartoons" Part One: History of Animation, Part Two: The Cartoon Studios, Part Three: How Cartoons Are Made, Part Four: Drawing For Animation and Part Five: How To Animate.

Archive supporter, Ray Pointer has produced a fantastic collection of rare Out of the Inkwell cartoons on DVD. The set includes beautiful restorations of 29 cartoons, including the one above, along with expertly produced documentary footage explaining the history of the Fleischers. You can order this great set at... InkwellImagesInk.com.

Stephen Worth
Director
ASIFA-Hollywood
Animation Archive
.

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Illustration: Harper Goff in Coronet Magazine

This post is just the tip of the iceberg... see The Top Ten Reasons To Support The A-HAA for more jaw dropping images from classic illustrated books and magazines.


Illustration by Harper Goff
Today, in honor of Presidents Day, we present another batch of illustration from late 40s Coronet magazines. This group of images isn't interesting so much for their style as much as their authenticity. With a clarity of staging reminiscent of production designs for classic motion pictures, these paintings vividly show the value of careful research into period costume, props and decor. The first batch is a history of medicine by Leslie Saalburg. The last is a review of classic children's literature by Douglass Crockwell. But the most interesting is the middle feature, Carl Sandberg's "Blood on the Moon" illustrated by Disney imagineer, Harper Goff.

Harper Goff was born in 1911, and studied art at Chouinard Art Institute. He was an accomplished illustrator, working for Colliers, Esquire and Coronet. Goff was employed as a set designer for Warner Bros on classic films like Sergeant York, Casablanca and Captain Blood. He met Walt Disney in a model train store in London, and was invited on the spot to join the Disney staff.


Goff's first assignment was to storyboard a True Life Adventure story dealing with undersea life, but expanded the idea into a feature film adaptation of Jules Verne's 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea. Goff's designs for the submarine and its plush interiors were the most striking part of the film, resulting in an Oscar for Art Direction and Special Effects. Goff played banjo in the Disney studio Dixieland jazz band, "The Firehouse Five" and was the designer of the World Showcase at Epcot. He passed away in 1993.

MEDICINE ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO
by Leslie Saalburg








SANDBURG'S BLOOD ON THE MOON
By Harper Goff









A TREASURY OF LITERARY CLASSICS
by Douglass Crockwell







Thanks to Rich Borowy for donating these great vintage magazines to the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive.

If you enjoyed this post, see... Casey Strikes Out In Coronet, Bugs Bunny in Coronet Magazine December 1945, Milton Caniff in Coronet Magazine, Dispatch From Disney's Part One and Part Two, Mid 30s Colliers Illustrations, Mid 30s Advertisements, Late 40s Colliers, Lawson Wood: The Monkey Artist, John Held Jr, Ward Kimball in Escapade, Complete Guide To Cartooning On Magazine Cartoons Part One and Part Two, and Rube Goldberg's Side Show.

Stephen Worth
Director
ASIFA-Hollywood
Animation Archive
.

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Pinups: Little Annie Fanny Takes A Trip

This post is just the tip of the iceberg... see reason number 9 on our The Top Ten Reasons To Support The A-HAA for links to more great pinup art.


Today, we continued to work our way through the collection of Playboy magazines that we have been digitizing for the past year or so. Here are two more "Little Annie Fanny" episodes from late 1960s Playboys. If you missed our previous posts on this classic series by Harvey Kurtzman and Will Elder, see the links at the bottom of this post.


The first story up features some great work by a cartoonist we recently profiled, the master caricaturist, Jack Davis. Check out his great crowd scenes on the third and fourth page. Also remarkable are Kurtzman's brilliant layouts for the first two pages (you can feel the pitch and roll of the ship!) and the Mad magazine style final bird's eye view.






The second story up is a different type of trip, with a psychedelic "op art" touch and a full page downshot crowd scene for the climax. The "Little Annie Fanny" series was probably the most elaborately drawn comic strip ever!





Check out these great "Little Annie Fanny" collections at Amazon.com!

As always, let me know in the comments if you'd like to see more about the great cartoonists of Playboy.

If you enjoyed this post, check out our articles on Kurtzman & Elder's Little Annie Fanny, More Little Annie Fannie, Kurtzman Comic Books, Biography: Jack Davis, Early Erich Sokol Cartoons, A Passel Of Sokol, and More Sokol, Jack Cole And Other Great 50s Playboy Cartoonists, Eldon Dedini Part One and Part Two (video interview!), Doug Sneyd and Phil Interlandi, Early Interlandi Playboy Cartoons and Meet Doug Sneyd.

Thanks
Stephen Worth
Director
ASIFA-Hollywood
Animation Archive
.

Stumble It!

Cartoons: Casey Strikes Out In Coronet Magazine

This post is just the tip of the iceberg... see The Top Ten Reasons To Support The A-HAA for more jaw dropping images from classic illustrated books and magazines.


Today, we present another batch of illustration from late 40s Coronet magazines, including work by Douglass Crockett and Vera Bock. Last time, we featured Bugs Bunny. Today, it's Casey At The Bat. Enjoy!









CASEY AT THE BAT






Thanks to Rich Borowy for donating these great vintage magazines to the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive.

If you enjoyed this post, see... Bugs Bunny in Coronet Magazine December 1945, Milton Caniff in Coronet Magazine, Dispatch From Disney's Part One and Part Two, Mid 30s Colliers Illustrations, Mid 30s Advertisements, Late 40s Colliers, Lawson Wood: The Monkey Artist, John Held Jr, Ward Kimball in Escapade, Complete Guide To Cartooning On Magazine Cartoons Part One and Part Two, and Rube Goldberg's Side Show.

Stephen Worth
Director
ASIFA-Hollywood
Animation Archive
.

Stumble It!

Comics: Virgil Partch's Wild, Wild Women Part Four

This post is just the tip of the iceberg... see reason number 2 on our The Top Ten Reasons To Support The A-HAA for links to more great posts about print cartoonists.


It's been quite a while since we posted any comics from Virgil "Vip" Partch's greatest collection of cartoons, The Wild, Wild Women. If you missed our previous postings on this wonderful book, see Virgil Partch's Wild, Wild Women Part One, Part Two and Part Three.
















Let me know in the comments if you'd like to see more by Vip Partch.

For more examples of Virgil Partch's genius, see Virgil Partch's Wild, Wild Women Part One, Part Two and Part Three; Here We Go Again and Man The Beast.

Also see... George Lichty's Grin and Bear It; Milt Gross Sunday Pages Part One, Part Two and Part Three; Basil Wolverton's Powerhouse Pepper; Jim Tyer Funny Animal Comics; and Milton Knight's Great Brown Pericord Motor.

Stephen Worth
Director
ASIFA-Hollywood
Animation Archive
.

Stumble It!

Pinups: A Passel of Sokol

This post is just the tip of the iceberg... see reason number 9 on our The Top Ten Reasons To Support The A-HAA for links to more great pinup art.


Today, we continued to work our way through the collection of Playboy magazines that we have been digitizing for the past year or so. Here is a batch of cartoons by Erich Sokol. We start out with a biographical feature on the cartoonists who worked for Playboy in the mid-1960s.



Next up is a Sokol feature that highlights his remarkable ability to caricature...




And a pile of Sokol cartoons from the late 1950s through the early 70s. Check out the wide variety of colors, the attention to light and the skillful composition in these cartoons...










As always, let me know in the comments if you'd like to see more about the great cartoonists of Playboy.

If you enjoyed this post, check out our articles on Early Erich Sokol Cartoons and More Sokol, Kurtzman & Elder's Little Annie Fanny, Jack Cole And Other Great 50s Playboy Cartoonists, Eldon Dedini Part One and Part Two (video interview!), Doug Sneyd and Phil Interlandi, Early Interlandi Playboy Cartoons and Meet Doug Sneyd.

Thanks
Stephen Worth
Director
ASIFA-Hollywood
Animation Archive

Stumble It!

2007 Review: 1 Carlo Vinci

As the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive completes its second year in operation, it's time to review the accomplishments of the past year. Here's a countdown of the ten most important subjects we've covered in 2007. See if your list matches mine. (View the complete list.) Click on the links to read more on this topic.


From Carlo Vinci: The Training of a Golden Age Animator
August 28th, 2007
NUMBER 1: CARLO VINCI

The history of animation is populated by scores of remarkably talented animators. But Carlo Vinci was much more than just an animator. "Legend" is a word that has been overused in recent times, but when applied to Vinci, it's perfectly apt.

Carlo Vinci was born in New York City in 1906, the only son of Italian immigrants. He showed artistic talent from a very early age, and after graduating from high school, he was awarded a scholarship at the prestigious National Academy of Design. Here he received a full classical arts education. We recently posted the syllabus of his curriculum at the National Academy.


From How To Pick An Animation School December 18th, 2007

The Academy believes firmly in the development of individuality but denies that such development is helped by the ignoring of the universal heritage, the heritage of the graphic manifestations of Man's temperament and impressions. It therefore approves careful consideration of the Art of the past and its correlation with the Art of the present. It encourages progressive experiment admitting the vitality of real Art under and form and condemning only ignorance, insincerity and the contempt which is born of them. -Edwin H. Blashfield, Chair of the National Academy of Design

Around 1933, Vinci joined the staff of Terry-Toons. His classical art training enabled him to advanced to the position of animator in less than a year. In the height of the depression, Vinci was earning $75 a week, a very good salary for the time. His family allowed us to digitize a book that describes the production process at Terry-Toons in the mid 1930s... Nat Falk's How To Make Animated Cartoons.


From Nat Falk's "How Animated Cartoons Are Made"
January 4th, 2007
The next chapter of this fascinating book explains how to animate, with lots of examples of Vinci's amazing animation.


From Nat Falk's "How To Animate" February 3rd, 2007
We also posted a batch of Terry model sheets from Vinci's collection...


...and a cartoon titled "The Temperamental Lion", which features some great Vinci scenes.


From "The Temperamental Lion" January 6th, 2007
John Kricfalusi and I visited Carlo's widow, Margaret Vinci last June. While we were there, she shared a bundle of notes that Carlo had sent her when they were courting. Since they lived on opposite sides of the city, they could only be together one day a week. Between visits, he sent her a note every day in the mail, and on each one was a cartoon commenting on the happenings of the day...


From Carlo Vinci Notes June 5th, 2007
Back in September, a 19 year old aspiring cartoonist named Bruce Watkinson wrote in to say...

The post that blew my mind the most was Carlo Vinci: The Training of a Golden Age Animator, especially the following quote: "Vinci's job was to animate, but his occupation was ARTIST. The same was true of most of the other great talents in animation- Marc Davis, Milt Kahl, Grim Natwick... The reason they were great animators was because they were great artists." Now I’m doing my damn best to be the best, to best the best, and maybe one day to teach what I know to anyone who is interested.

From Carlo Vinci: Training of a Golden Age Animator June 5th, 2007
I agree with Bruce. The most important post of this past year was Carlo Vinci: Training of a Golden Age Animator. Carlo Vinci left behind a lot more than just classic cartoons. He left behind a legacy that will inspire and enlighten artists for generations to come.

Stephen Worth
Director
ASIFA-Hollywood
Animation Archive
.

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2007 Review: 3 Clair Weeks

As the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive completes its second year in operation, it's time to review the accomplishments of the past year. Here's a countdown of the ten most important subjects we've covered in 2007. See if your list matches mine. (View the complete list.) Click on the links to read more on this topic.


From Clair Weeks' Goodbye Book 1952 February 1st, 2007
NUMBER 3: CLAIR WEEKS

The ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive owes a tremendous debt of gratitude to the family of Disney animator, Clair Weeks. Weeks was a missionary's son, born in India, who moved to America in the early 30s and ended up working as an assistant animator on Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Here is the book Weeks was given when he applied for work as an artist at Disney...


From the Disney Artist Tryout Book February 6th, 2007
Weeks' wife made a scrapbook of material related to Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and the family recently donated it to the permanent collection of the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive...


From Clair Weeks' Snow White Scrapbook December 21st, 2007
After the success of Snow White, Disney relocated his studio to a newly built facility in Burbank. Here is a magazine from Clair Weeks' scrapbook detailing the building of the studio...


From History: The Building of the Disney Studio April 27th, 2007
Weeks was Marc Davis's assistant on Bambi, working closely with him on the animation of the animals in the forest. During the production of the film, Disney instituted a training program where the artists studied animals from life. Here is a collection of Weeks' animal studies...


From Instruction: Clair Weeks Animal Studies March 2nd, 2007
During WWII, Weeks took a leave from the Disney Studios to serve in the military. To keep him informed about the activities at the studio in his absence, Disney sent him this pamphlet...


From Dispatch From Disney's 1943 Part One
July 11th, 2007 and Part Two July 26th, 2007
Weeks returned to the studio after the War and was soon promoted to animator. He worked on Tinkerbell in Peter Pan, but decided to leave the studio to travel the world in 1952. Upon his departure, he was presented with this book, containing autographs and sketches from the entire staff...


From Clair Weeks' Goodbye Book 1952 February 1st, 2007
In 1956, Weeks was invited by Information Films of Bombay, India to set up the country's first animation studio as part of the American Technical Cooperation Mission. Weeks' pioneering influence is still felt in the burgeoning animation business in India...


From Clair Weeks- Pioneer of Indian Animation August 17th, 2007
Many thanks to the family of Clair Weeks for sharing his fascinating story with us.

Go To Number 2 on the list of Top Ten Subjects of 2007

Stephen Worth
Director
ASIFA-Hollywood
Animation Archive
.

Stumble It!

2007 Review: 4 Advice For CGI Animators

As the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive completes its second year in operation, it's time to review the accomplishments of the past year. Here's a countdown of the ten most important subjects we've covered in 2007. See if your list matches mine. (View the complete list.) Click on the link to read more on this topic.


In 1914, Max Fleischer invented the rotoscope as a time and labor saving way of producing animation. He soon came to realize that although the device was a great aid in effects and technical animation, it was a poor substitute for character animation.



In 1986, engineer Ernie Blood developed motion capture techniques as a time and labor saving way of producing animation. A decade and several mocap features later, many CGI animators are coming to the same realization that Max Fleischer and his staff had more than a half century ago.

NUMBER 4: ADVICE FOR CG ANIMATORS

One of the principle purposes of this website is to provide the link between animation of the past and animation of the future. The principles that brought Pinocchio and Bugs Bunny to life are the same principles that should be used to create current computer animated characters. This is not a website devoted to promoting hand drawn animation. This is a website devoted to promoting animation.


Bakshi Phone Doodle
Ralph Bakshi is a monumental force in the world of animation. I convinced him to come out of retirement to speak directly to the CGI guys in the trenches and share his viewpoint on the current state of animation. Ralph has an uncanny knack for kicking your ass in a way that makes you want to say "thank you!" afterwards. These two articles are Bakshi at his best.

There are no sides here, only techniques. The important thing is to do something more than just sell dolls and hamburgers, or get the best table at some bullshit restaurant. Stop crying. Go out and do something. Starve to death if you have to. It's honorable. -Ralph Bakshi

Bakshi Speaks To CGI Animators August 13th, 2007

Bakshi On 2D vs. 3D August 31st, 2007

A few weeks ago, I stuck my own head on the chopping block with a post titled, CGI Animators Should THINK Like Artists. I received some flak from an industry pro who said, "You take an all-or-nothing approach, where everything ever done in CG animation is crap, and everyone making these films are dopes." Well, that isn't what I'm actually saying... Crappy animation is crappy animation, no matter what technique is used to create it. And a lot of great artists are working on crappy CG films. The problem isn't that CG animation sucks and the people making it are dopes... It's that the current crop of CG features don't come close to scratching the surface of what's possible using the medium.


In the late teens and early 20's, hand drawn animation was in the same place CG is today. Everyone was focused on developing technical processes and filing patents on techniques. The drawings were realistic and stiff, the stories were simplistic, and they recycled cliched formulas and stock animation without a great deal of variety. Audiences didn't mind, because they were amused by the novelty of drawings that moved. But the novelty eventually wore off.

The medium had to advance itself creatively to survive, and animators like Otto Messmer and Bill Nolan stepped up to the bat to pioneer personality animation, the Fleischers developed musical timing, and Walt Disney codified the fundamental principles of animation like overlapping action, follow through and squash and stretch. We can learn a lot from the past. Motion libraries and rotoscoping were a dead end in 1925 and they're a dead end now. Earl Hurd's patent for the cel system didn't make cartoons any more entertaining, and neither do new techniques for rendering fur or water in CG. The thing that makes cartoons better is to utilize the unique aspects of the medium to tell new and original stories in an expressive and creative way.


In this article, I use an illustrated book from a century ago to attempt to show how the reference on this website is relevant to artists working in the field of computer animation...

CGI Animators Should THINK Like Artists
November 28th, 2007

I ask every animator who walks through the doors of the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive for the same favor... Use the resources I'm sharing with you to make animation that people like me who love animation would want to watch. That goes the same for animators who use a computer as it does those who use a pencil. Take Ralph's advice to tell fresh and original stories, and my advice to think like an artist, and you can't go wrong.

Go To Number 3 on the list of Top Ten Subjects of 2007

Stephen Worth
Director
ASIFA-Hollywood
Animation Archive
.

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2007 Review: 6 Milton Caniff

As the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive completes its second year in operation, it's time to review the accomplishments of the past year. Here's a countdown of the ten most important subjects we've covered in 2007. See if your list matches mine. (View the complete list.) Click on the links to read more on this topic.


From Milton Caniff And Norman Rockwell In Coronet Magazine September 11th, 2007
NUMBER 6: MILTON CANIFF

This year, we were very fortunate to be able to digitize and share artwork from the estate of comic legend, Milton Caniff. Archive supporter, John Ellis is producing a series of DVDs of the classic TV series, Steve Canyon, and generously agreed to share his research on Caniff and Steve Canyon with the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive.


Milton Caniff in his studio ca. 1947
(click for a larger view)
Ellis shared his thoughts about Caniff with us in our first post on the subject, Milton Caniff's Steve Canyon Dalies...

Milton Caniff has been referred to as "The Rembrandt of the Comic Strip", and oft by himself as "an Armchair Marco Polo", but in fact this whirlwind of a comic strip innovator and writer was essentially a sincerely nice man who loved to draw. Yes this gentleman born in Hillsboro Ohio in 1907 created and drew Terry and The Pirates from 1934 to 1946, which absolutely set the standard for the adventure comic strip. True, he raised the bar with Steve Canyon, which unlike Terry, he owned lock stock and barrel from the first daily strip in January 1947 through to June 1988, the final installment published shortly after his death. Absolutely he worked rain or shine, seven days/strips a week for 54 years, even from his hospital bed, the deadlines never ended.

From Milton Caniff's Steve Canyon Dalies March 28th, 2007
In his article, "Detour Guide For An Armchair Marco Polo" from Gene Byrnes' Complete Guide To Cartooning Caniff writes...

There has been a tendency recently for artists to automatically assume they cannot write their own stories because they see so many double by-lines. I contend that any man who can invent pictures can invent situations and dialogue. In fact, it should be easier for the artist to pilot his own action because he is not likely to write himself into one of those undrawable dilemmas in manuscripts about which illustrators have complained for years.

Milton Caniff with Jack Benny from
Milton Caniff- A Remembrance May 30th, 2007
Caniff's nephew, Harry Grant Guyton shared some of his memories of his "Uncle Milt"...

Of course Milton Caniff was a stickler for accuracy, but his fans were eagle-eyed. I was with him at Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico. He climbed into the cockpit of a fighter plane (an F-104 I believe), and spent maybe five minutes in it. That evening, he used it in Steve Canyon. He had committed the control panel in that cockpit to memory, and months later when the strip was published, he received numerous letters saying that had Steve been flying as high as Milt implied in the strip, one of the gauge readings was wrong.

From Milton Caniff And Norman Rockwell
In Coronet Magazine September 11th, 2007
MORE CANIFF ARTICLES

• Byrnes' Complete Guide To Cartooning Part One March 6th, 2007


• More Steve Canyon Dalies May 30th, 2007


• Parody- Steve Crevace in Whack! Comics May 8th, 2007


• Comic Artists At Work: People On Paper (MGM/1945) April 19th, 2007

John Ellis promises more great material on Milton Caniff in the coming year. You can find out information about the Steve Canyon TV series at his blog...

Steve Canyon on DVD

Go To Number 5 on the list of Top Ten Subjects of 2007

Stephen Worth
Director
ASIFA-Hollywood
Animation Archive
.

Stumble It!

2007 Review: 8 Writing Cartoons

As the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive completes its second year in operation, it's time to review the accomplishments of the past year. Here's a countdown of the ten most important subjects we've covered in 2007. See if your list matches mine. (View the complete list.) Click on the link to see more on this topic.



NUMBER 8: WRITING CARTOONS

One of the best things to happen to animation in the past few years is the growth of blogging among animation professionals. Topics that used to be discussed only in obscure trade journals or at private symposiums are now discussed publicly on the internet, where participants from all over the world can benefit from the exchange of information.

One of the principle catalysts for discussion on the net is John Kricfalusi's blog, All Kinds of Stuff. A series of John's posts on writing for animation created a wave of comment across the "blogosphere". A prominent cartoon scriptwriter vehemently disagreed with John's opinion that cartoons should be written by cartoonists, not scriptwriters. But when he was asked to name his favorite golden age cartoon writer, the scriptwriter was unable to come up with a single name... This isn'