Tex Avery Loses an Eye, 1933
This was a gruesome incident that gets whispered about in the annals of Golden Age animation, so perhaps it is time to point a forensic lens at that devastating paperclip…
Animation Anecdotes #218
Dave Fleischer On Screen. In the low budget Republic live action movie Trocadero (1944), actor Eddie Bartell introduces several minor celebrities in the audience at that famous nightclub including “The…
Cool Stuff From The Thunderbean Vault
That’s right! Cool miscellaneous stuff that will likely never be on any official release from anyone. It’s a post of oddities! I always thought the coolest thing about visitiing any…
Disney’s “Pluto’s Judgement Day” (1935)
Today, a little variety for this week, with our first Disney breakdown! Just for the record, for some readers that have been wondering, I have no access to any drafts…
Spin Special: The Sherman Brothers & The Sherman Father
In the wake of Father’s Day, let’s celebrate some more with two animation-related record albums offering music from two generations of Sherman talents. THE CHIPMUNKS SING WITH CHILDREN Liberty Records…
Famous Studios 1946-47
More Noveltoons! The 1946-47 season brought about eight Noveltoons which broke down into three “Screen Songs”, one (still lost) “Snuffy Smith” cartoon, a “Herman & Henry”, a “Blackie”, and two…
Streamline Pictures – Part 10
Reviews, reviews, reviews. We got reviews for our product. Each one spreading the word about anime to an even wider, ever-growing audience. Regardless of the reviewer’s taste, these reviews (positive…
In His Own Words: Frank Thomas on the “Sleeping Beauty” Fairies
On the Disney animated feature Sleeping Beauty (1959), animators Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston were assigned to the three good fairies: Flora, Fauna and Merryweather. The fairies’ names subtly indicated…
Animation Anecdotes #217
Recreating Gertie. Last year (2014) marked the 100th anniversary of Winsor McCay’s still wonderful animated short Gertie the Dinosaur (1914). A pantheon of legendary names that represent early animation including…
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 USC in Los Angeles, CalArts in Santa Clarita, and UCLA in Westwood – teaching animation history. More about Jerry Beck [Click Here]
