Daws Butler in the 1980's

I’m back at Pratt, and I have a long and stressful semester ahead of me. Thankfully, I am not alone; there are nearly twenty animators in my senior class, many of whom I hold in the highest regard. Hopefully, by the semester’s end, I should have a good film in my hands.


I was checking the official Daws Butler website recently, and saw this article about him, written back in 1985. Butler is perhaps best known as the major voice talent in the early Hanna Barbera period.


Anyway, I found the article to be quite an intrigue. By 1985, Hanna Barbera was going even lower creatively, and their shows from that period are barely remembered. Butler, who died in 1988, expresses his dissatisfaction with the animation industry in this article. I find it comforting to know he felt this way. I don’t want to repeat what the article said, so I clipped the part I liked. I suggest you read it.


Recently, somebody uploaded a bunch of episodes of a HB all-star show called Yogi’s Treasure Hunt on YouTube. And what can I say, other than its a really bad show. But its bad in rather amusing way. At least I am amused by it, because it stars characters I really enjoy. One thing that makes this show watchable are the voice talents employed in it. Among those are Charlie Adler, Michael Bell, and veterans Frank Welker, and Don Messick. I can safely say these guys provided the last little bit of soul left in these economically bloated shows.




And despite being able to afford more animation than before, the look of the shows is still terrible. The Korean labor practice is, in my opinion, one of the worst practices in the animation industry. There’s no director to approve, and there are mistakes that are more noticeable than ever. Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera blew so many opportunities to re-invent their characters, and take them to new heights.

If anybody wants to see these, I suggest the episodes “Goodbye Mr. Chump” and “Snow White and the Seven Treasure Hunters.” I chose not to embed them here, because I think I got the point across already.


John Kricfalusi took Yogi Bear to a whole new level with his Ranger Smith cartoons, the most notable of which is "Boo Boo Runs Wild." His cartoons proved a new way of bringing these characters to life, mostly due to his great admiration of character designer Ed Benedict.

Cartoon Burials

I have been in Cleveland for the last week, and have been lazy as hell. Nothing much to report on. I am taking a short break from Parasite's Delight. I should be back to animating by January 4th, at which I will be back at the Pratt studios in Brooklyn.

In the meantime, I have started watching a couple of (so-called) cartoon burials. First off is Private Snafu, a series of instructional films made by Warner Bros. during World War II. Although they were never meant for general audiences, I find them to be very impressive. And they are quite funny too (in a sick and offensive way). They are currently available as special features on the recent Looney Tunes Golden Collections (since volume 3).





The one below is entitled "Spies," and I consider it to be a perfect introduction to the series. I believe this one is directed by Chuck Jones, although I can't be too sure. I say that because I know Theodore "Dr. Seuss" Geisel wrote most of these, and worked closely with Jones. The one I really want to post is called "Rumors," but I can't find a good copy of it, and I don't like the YouTube version.



I am also struggling to watch the 1972 made-for-TV film Yogi's Ark Lark. So far, I have only seen the first 12 minutes of the 43 minute film, but I can certainly vouch for its mediocrity. But, in saying that, I can not deny that I have a soft spot these Hanna Barbera all-star shows, and watching them is something of a guilty pleasure. It's still better than the mushy Smurfs or Snorks.






I have another schizophrenic post coming up soon.

Winter Break

Nothing new, I just want to keep my posts up. Winter Break has now begun here at Pratt Institute.

Animation wise, I am getting just a little done on Parasite's Delight. I am also trying to find some of Hanna Barbera's unfavorables. I used to be a huge fan of the all-star shows, particularly Yogi's Gang. As a little kid, it impressed me that there could be a whole community of animated characters. It's one of the things that inspires me to want to invent characters.

Unfortunately, they are not as timeless as other HB products, and so there isn't enough demand for these shows to be released on DVD, and are in rare print.



I just had to post this image. The Doggies' mouths fall off for a couple of frames.


I will be heading home to Cleveland next week, but I will still be posting.

Is it alright to like Hanna Barbera?

Still working away on Parasite's Delight. I am trying to get myself used to the production schedule I have set.

My recent discovery of Top Cat has, as usual, led me to looking up other Hanna Barbera cartoons, as well as their history. I find that I gyrate more towards the TV characters from the late 1950's and early 1960's. Those characters include such charmers as Top Cat, Yogi Bear, Huckleberry Hound, Quickdraw McGraw, Wally Gator, and of course, the Flintstones. However, I have also found that Hanna Barbera is blamed for the decline in the quality of commercial animation. This is particularly true in their 1970's stuff, which I have never been enthusiastic about (the Smurfs, Scooby Doo spin-offs).






I wish I knew where this came from. I want a larger version.

I love animation that has a lot of posing and acting (or what many call classical animation). I feel like I might be criticized for liking HB cartoons. But if there's anything I go for, its characters. No matter how they are drawn or animated, I like fully formed personalities. I see no reason not to like all different forms of animation. I even like stuff that hasn't lasted very long, and even some considerably unsuccessful stuff.



I am excited about the early stuff, because I find the characters to be quite appealing. I love charming characters, possibly because they have qualities I don't have. These same characters were reused in gang of 1980's Saturday Morning cartoons. Those shows, unfortunately, are too humiliating to watch, have terrible coloring (fast food coloring) and have infantile humor. But considering the financial trouble HB was going through at the time, I guess it shouldn't be too surprising. I believe those bad cartoons could have been great with the same characters, but just with better coloring and more inventive plots. I don't mind seeing these great characters over again.



I have been working on my technique lately, although they are less a priority than my film. Here I jotted down some expressions for practice. I just thought I'd share it. I am hoping to get more of my thesis up here, although not everything is as complete as the last clip I posted.

Emmett's Birthday and the discovery of TOP CAT

As usual, my birthday this year just happened to fall upon Thanksgiving, so my family and I had a double celebration. My sister, who is a culinary student, took charge of my birthday treat shown below. All I asked was no chocolate this year, and in turn, I got a lovely collection of cream-filled, sugar glazed pastries (I can't remember what the dish is called, but it was still great).


What did I do on my birthday besides eating? I discovered Hanna Barbera's Top Cat for the first time in my life. Although I had discovered many HB characters when I was a little kid (through one of our local video stores), I never found anything on Top Cat, even though the character popped up in HB images every so often. I found myself attracted to it, which is I guess isn't too sup rising. I find HB's characters to be among the most appealing, right up there with Looney Tunes characters and others.




Along with Top Cat, I also watched a Looney Tunes DVD with my Grandmother. She's getting up there, and it was wonderful to see her laughing. I showed her Bob Clampett's Book Revue with Daffy Duck (one of my favorites). And not only was she laughing, but she was excited to pick out all the celebrities parodied in the cartoon. A true classic.



I would like to wish whoever reads this blog a HAPPY THANKSGIVING.