Forgotten OAVs #10: “Riding Bean”
This OAV was originally intended to be the first in a Riding Bean series, but artist Kenichi Sonoda and Toshiba EMI, the video distributor, had a disagreement and Sonoda cancelled it.
Bugs Hardaway of Battery D
When it came over the radio that FDR had died, the story team at Lantz Productions went quiet, and then the former artillery sergeant said, “Harry’s the President.”
Animation Anecdotes #254
Bonkers was created so that Disney could have a Roger Rabbit type of character that it owned completely without having to worry about approval or sharing the profits with Steven Spielberg.
Paul Terry, the model senior citizen, in “Social Security in America” (1968)
Paul Terry is featured in this week’s film as a shining example of how the Social Security system is working. It’s quite a rarity in that I don’t think there are too many surviving prints.
Jam Handy’s “A Case Of Spring Fever” (1940)
Whenever the name Jam Handy is mentioned one particular film often recalled: “A Case of Spring Fever”. The film, cleverly employing live action with cartoon animation, has now achieved cult status.
Disney’s “Clarabelle Cow” on Records
A look at the only book and recording set headlined by the bovine enchantress – in which she is nonetheless a supporting player to Donald Duck and Mickey Mouse.
Chatting with Manny Gonzales and Bob Carlson
Manny Gonzales and Bob Carlson were both Disney artists who were both hired as inbetweeners in 1936, though their subsequent careers went in rather different directions.
My Third Anniversary
This is my column’s third anniversary – and so, here is something different. A profile of some of the cartoon shorts – current TV series – that started three years ago.
The Clarence Nash Story
Clarence Nash was born December 7, 1904, in Watonga, Oklahoma, roughly three years before Oklahoma became a state. He never grew to be taller than five foot two. Nash was…
Jerry Beck is a writer, animation producer, college professor and author of more than 15 books on animation history. He is a former studio exec with Nickelodeon Movies and Disney, and has written for The Hollywood Reporter and Variety. He has curated cartoons for DVD and Blu-ray compilations and has lent his expertise to dozens of bonus documentaries and audio commentaries on such. Beck is currently on the faculty of CalArts in Valencia, UCLA in Westwood and Woodbury University in Burbank – teaching animation history. More about Jerry Beck [Click Here]
