A rare black & white publicity still photo featuring several cels and an impressive background from Jones forthcoming film THE MIGHTY HUNTERS, based on Jimmy Swinnerton’s Canyon Kiddies.
Late August through mid-September 1939 at the Leon Schlesinger studio. Production on The Mighty Hunters (aka Canyon Kiddies) has the studio excited. As does Friz Freleng’s You Ought To Be In Pictures which is shooting this month with apparently Bugs Hardaway reluctantly playing the cop (soon replaced by Michael Maltese).
John McGrew moves over to Jones’ unit to do color sketches and layouts (Art Loomer and Al Tarter do Chuck’s backgrounds; Bob Holdeman does layouts for Freleng’s unit backgrounds, with Griff Jay and Peter Gaenger doing the paintings. Among the other good stuff here in issue #15 are bios of animators Tex Avery and Harold Soldinger and painters Mary Lane and Sue Gee.
PORKY’S HOTEL was released on September 2nd – during the period of these two newsletters.
By mid-September, Chuck Jones’ Little Brother Rat was deemed a “hit” after getting big laughs on Hollywood Blvd. Bio’s here include sound man Treg Brown, assistant Tolly Kirsanoff, painter Dixie Mankameyer and receptionist Virginia Ginger Morgan.
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 [
When did Hardaway leave Schlesinger and then go to Lantz?
I’m guessing in early 1940, after Freleng took over his and Dalton’s unit and was demoted back to storyman; his last story credit there was “LITTLE BLABBERMOUSE”. I’m guessing he went to Lantz some time after it reopened following months-long closure that same year, his first credit there being “RECRUITING DAZE”.