And here's one more animation from Phil Monroe for a Chuck Jones cartoon. This one is a personal favourite and a memorable one where Bugs strums a guitar as the penguin builds a boat to get out of Martinique, while Bogart asks Bugs for a nickel.
Cartoon: "8 Ball Bunny" (1950, Chuck Jones)
Still one of my favourite cartoons from Bob Clampett
Phil Monroe also worked with Bob Clampett. This is one of his best works working for him as he managed to reanimated the original short its based on, making the characters loose and redrawing Daffy over Gabby Goat.
Cartoon: "Tick Tock Tuckered" (1944, Bob Clampett)
*Monroe (man, this is the second spelling mistake within a span of a week)
Animator of this month is Phil Monore, best known for his works at Warner's, especially with Chuck Jones. Though he did work for other directors like with Freleng in "The Hare-Brained Hypnotist"
His animation tends to be very loose and rubbery whilst prioritising key poses.
Here's the first Mickey Mouse clip on this account which is a beloved short where he and Pluto sneak onto a train and avoid Pete. Highlights include Pete meowing to annoy Pluto and just the pacing being really good for a Mickey Mouse short.
Cartoon: "Mr. Mouse Takes A Trip" (1940, Clyde Geronimi)
Didn't even realise I spelt it wrong until now lol
This short turned 76 today and remains to be one of the most important shorts of the Warner library. This not only builds upon Daffy's greedy personality, but it has the largest cast of stars featuring Porky, Sylvester, Melissa Duck and more.
Cartoon: "The Scarlet Pumpernickel" (1950, Chunk Jones)
Here's one more Laverne Harding scene and possibly my favourite of her works. It's mainly the section where the termite breaks reality with his zapper and pulls Woody's outlines around like a lasso, all while keeping the character on-model.
Cartoon: "Termites From Mars" (1952, Don Patterson)
"I Haven't Got a Hat", directed by Friz Freleng, was released on this day in 1935. The debut cartoon of Porky Pig.
#LooneyTunes
Here's another Laverne Harding scene. One thing she's really great at is animating exaggeration, like here where the polar bear is trying to play a flute to calm the dog until Chilly changes the score and he freaks out as he wakes up.
Cartoon: "The Legend of Rockabye Point" (1955, Tex Avery)
It's pretty much the only scene in the short without an actual score being played. Just the sounds of the grinder and bones cracking.
That's how insane it is.
My choice for Feb's animator of the month is Laverne Harding who is one of the best female animators of the Golden Age. Her work in this clip is great, featuring exaggerated poses of Woody and the wolf thinking about eating one another.
Cartoon: "Who's Cookin' Who?" (1946, Shamus Culhane)
That's his scream (most likely taken from Tee For Two where Tom has the bees in his mouth)
Happy birthday, Tex!
Ever since he started directing, he didn't stop pumping out the zaniest and funniest cartoons out there. This short is a prime example of his work while also strengthening his most popular character, Droopy.
Cartoon: "Northwest Hounded Police" (1946, Tex Avery)
Indeed, Frank Graham's talents really needs a lot more attention as he always matched the right voice for the right character much like Mel Blanc and June Foray.
Disney's first and better adaptation of this folk tale is one of their darkest and most brilliant shorts. This loose propaganda piece powerfully succeeds by having a fox trick Chicken Little into believing the sky is falling.
Cartoon: "Chicken Little" (1943, Clyde Geronimi)
Before voicing Magoo, Jim Backus voiced a genie in this short and his acting steals this show. This short hasn't been remastered in HD until recently where we'll finally get such version in the new Collector's Vault releasing next month.
Cartoon: "A-Lad-in His Lamp" (1948, Robert McKimson)
This is an enjoyable Magoo outing where a salesman scammed Magoo and has to save his life in a construction site otherwise he would bankrupt the company. The fun part is watching the character believe he's in safe hands when he's far up high.
Cartoon: "Trouble Indemnity" (1950, Pete Burness)
I can't get enough of Emery Hawkins' animation. The squishy fluidity of his movements just bursts with personality.
Today is Frank Tashlin's birthday, an underrated cartoon director making hits, both animation and live action. This is his only complete Bugs Bunny cartoon and he nailed the character first try and made me wish he stuck around to do more shorts.
Cartoon: "The Unruly Hare" (1945, Frank Tashlin)
This is a decent short with a plot that shares similarities with Friz Freleng's "Pigs is Pigs" from nearly a decade ago. The jazzy rendition of "The Devil In The White Nightgown" is the highlight and will stick in your head long after listening to it.
Cartoon: "Apple Andy" (1946, Dick Lundy)
Sound on.
Really love this short just seeing what it's like for Bugs and Sam to live together and try and get one another, with the highlight being the carrot juice scene animated by Virgil Ross.
Cartoon: "The Fair-Haired Hare" (1951, Friz Freleng)
Update on this: did a fresh install of Windows so everything should be smooth sailing onwards. I'll just have to be careful with the way I secure my drive.
With that said, I'll continue posting from tomorrow.
This week was a bit bumpy.
I've been having laptop issues as Bitlocker didn't encrypt my drive well and had to fully wipe my laptop as I couldn't get back in. I have done a full wipe and back and running now so should get back to posting very soon.
Fanart from the Tex Avery cartoon, Little Tinker. Two skunks stand in the middle of the frame, the boy holding wilted flowers as his girl looks on happily. Their scent lines float above to form a heart, just as two trees in the foreground also make a heart.
A piece in honor of that one lovelorn cartoon skunk who just can't seem to hold a date--no, the other one! Here's hoping your Valentine's Day doesn't stink!
She's the reason why a majority of Simpsons and Spongebob merchandise have Matt Groening and Stephen Hillenburg's names included
RIP
