Interview: Bob Givens-Walt And The War

UPDATE: Nearly two hours of this interview have now been made available exclusively to members of ASIFA-Hollywood. Members, please check your email for downloading instructions.


Here is the second part of our interview with the legendary layout man, Bob Givens. Will Finn, Mike Fontanelli, JoJo Baptista, Michael Woodside and I were treated to nearly three hours of fabulous stories relating to his six decades in the animation business, and we are sharing his great stories with you here on the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive blog.

You'll notice that the kinds of stories that Bob relates here are quite different from what you might have read. When I first met Bob, I asked him if he had read any of the books written on the subject of animation history. He was blunt. "A lot of it is bologna. Those books are written by people who weren't there... people who have never set foot in an animation studio." This is a sentiment that I've heard expressed by a lot of the "old timers" I've had the privilege of being able to speak to. But not many of them are left. We're all lucky to have this opportunity to virtually sit at the feet of a "golden age" animator and hear about his experiences in his own words.

Here is the first clip for today...

Bob Givens On The War And Censorship (11.11.08)
(Quicktime 7 / 9 minutes / 20.8 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.

I have also posted a choice clip to YouTube so you can post it to your own blogs and send it to friends...

Bob Givens on Working For Walt (11.11.08)
(YouTube / 10 minutes)

Feel free to embed this YouTube video in your own blog or website. Please link back to the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive blog in case your readers would like more information.

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Over the next couple of weeks, we will be making available extended segments of this interview exclusively for members of ASIFA-Hollywood. The first two hours are now available for downloading. ASIFA members, please see your email box for downloading instructions. If you aren't a member yet, you should be.

Many thanks to Bob Givens for sharing his experiences with us, to Mike Fontanelli and Will Finn for taking time out of their busy schedules to speak with Bob, and to Michael Woodside and JoJo Baptista for producing this video.

In case you missed it, check out... Bob Givens Interview Part One: Grand Old Man Of Animation

Stephen Worth
Director
ASIFA-Hollywood
Animation Archive
.

Stumble It!

Interview: Bob Givens- Grand Old Man of Animation

UPDATE: A 50 minute extended version of this interview has just been made available to members of ASIFA-Hollywood. Members, please check your email for downloading instructions.


This week, we were very fortunate to host a visit to the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive by the legendary layout artist, Bob Givens. Will Finn, Mike Fontanelli, JoJo Baptista, Michael Woodside and I were treated to nearly three hours of fabulous stories relating to his six decades in the animation business.


At Warner Bros, Bob designed the character models for the first true Bugs Bunny cartoon, "A Wild Hare", as well as providing background layouts for countless Jones, Freleng, Avery and McKimson cartoons.


Givens' career continued to flourish throughout the television era. He worked on the first TV cartoon, Jay Ward's Crusader Rabbit, as well as Clampett's Beany & Cecil, Post Cereal's Linus the Lionhearted and Hanna Barbera's The Flintstones. Along with Bernie Gruver, Givens designed the classic "Raid Bug" spots for Cascade, and continued to work steadily into his 80s, retiring in 2001 after laying out Chuck Jones' Timber Wolf.


Here is a segment of the interview where Bob discusses his television career...


Bob Givens' Television Career (11.11.08)
(Quicktime 7 / 10 minutes / 24.4 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.

I have also posted another clip from this interview to YouTube. This one relates to Bob's work at Warner Bros...


Bob Givens on Warner Bros (11.11.08)
(YouTube / 10 minutes)

Feel free to embed this YouTube video in your own blog or website. Please link back to the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive blog in case your readers would like more information.

Over the next couple of weeks, we will be making available extended segments of this interview exclusively for members of ASIFA-Hollywood. The first 50 minute video file is now available for downloading. ASIFA members, please see your email box for downloading instructions. If you aren't a member yet, you should be.

Many thanks to Bob Givens for sharing his experiences with us, to Mike Fontanelli and Will Finn for taking time out of their busy schedules to speak with Bob, and to Michael Woodside and JoJo Baptista for producing this video.

Will Finn posts his impressions of the interview on his blog, Small Room.

The Second Part Of This Interview Has Now Been Posted... Bob Givens Interview Part Two: War And Working For Walt

Stephen Worth
Director
ASIFA-Hollywood
Animation Archive
.

Stumble It!