Barbie Sings for Christmas!
Outside of some recent CG video movies, Barbie really isn’t a cartoon star. But the Mattel fashion doll has been a fixture of Saturday morning and after school cartoon shows…
Cartoons In Stereo
Seasons Greetings, Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas! As my Christmas gift to you, I offer up an hour of great music from cartoons, inspired by animation, covered by other artists…
Christmasy Cartoonz, Part 5: Foreign Animation, A – I
I would get lost if I tried to include all of the foreign (non-U.S., Canadian, or British, which are often shown on American TV) Christmas animated features and shorts. Here…
Eye Candy: Animated Pitches for “Candyland” Riches
Christmas is nearly upon us, and around our house that usually means candy. Lots of candy. In honor of our annual overindulgence of the confectioner’s craft, we present a selection…
Animation Anecdotes #141
Ann Margrock. Artist Doug Wildey once was assigned in 1963 to draw a cartoon version of actress Ann-Margret to appear in an episode of “The Flintstones” television series. He easily…
Mid Century Modern, Volume 2: “Look Who’s Driving”
Somehow a majority of the projects from this year seem to be wrapping up at the same time. On the new titles news, the Gulliver’s Travels BluRay is off to…
Year End Book Binge
First order of business – today at 7pm EST/4pm PST I will appear once again on the world-famous internet radio program, Stu’s Show, to talk classic cartoons, DVDs and Terrytoons…
“The Hobbit” on Disneyland Records
With Peter Jackson’s latest installment of The Hobbit breaking records at the box office, I thought it would be a good time to look back at the original “records” of…
Cartoon Japanese Folk Tales
If I have to name an anime that was an exercise in what kind of different styles you can do with the animation medium, I’m going to have to pick…
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 Cal Arts in Valencia, UCLA in Westwood and Woodbury University in Burbank – teaching animation history. More about Jerry Beck [Click Here]
