Category ArchiveDisney



Animation Artifacts &Bill Peckmann &Disney &Models 31 Aug 2009 07:39 am

Snow White models

- Here, I continue with the recent outburst of model sheets. The following is a collection of Snow White and all seven dwarfs. I assume some of these can be found in print in one of the many collections of art from the film. I found two of the models in an old, expensive book I have which came via American Express.

The first two beautiful, original models come courtesy of Bill Peckmann‘s collection. The remainder of the group were Xerox copies I made years back. I’ve tried to clean them up a bit (lots of old grit from the ancient copies on glossy paper.)

(Click any image to enlarge.)


The Witch


Dopey1


Snow White


Grumpy


Sleepy


Bashful


Dopey 2


Doc 1


Doc 2


Sneezy


Happy 1


Happy 2


Snow White & dwarf comparative sizes


Dwarf comparative sizes 1


Dwarf comparative sizes 2

Articles on Animation &Bill Peckmann &Books &Disney &Illustration 27 Aug 2009 07:26 am

Good Housekeeping 2

- Before getting into today’s post, I want to make sure you’ve all seen the notation on Tom Sito‘s great blog today. (An amazing and unique blog if there was one.)

    1968- Former master animator Bill Tytla’s request to return to Disney was turned down. The artist who animated Grumpy the Dwarf, Dumbo and the Devil on Bald Mountain even offered to do a free “trial animation test” to show he still had it. Disney exec W.H. Anderson wrote him:” We really have only enough animation for our present staff.”
    Tytla died later that year.

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- This is the second part of my posting of the illustrations from Good Houskeeping Magazine.

From 1934 continuing into the late 1940′s, they printed four-color full page previews of newly-released Disney shorts. These illustrations were, at first, painted by Tom Wood, and later by Hank Porter.

The Alexander Gallery collected these illustrations in 1987 for an exhibition, and they published a book of them. Bill Peckmann has kindly loaned me his copy of the book.

These illustrations were published recently in the book, Walt Disney’s Mickey and the Gang. It’s a good book which publishes more art than the Alexander Gallery collector’s item. However, the printing in this book feels more glossy and contrasty. The delicacy of the watercolors is sacrificed. That’s why I’m intent on posting them in the better form. However, this book also includes a lot of other info on the animated films and it includes the text originally published in Good Housekeeping.

Here is the second group of pages:

(Click any image to enlarge.)


The Brave Little Tailor 1938


Farmyard Symphony 1938


Donald’s Penguins 1939


Movie Makers 1938


Donald’s Cousin Gus 1938


Merbabies 1938


Donald’s Lucky Day


Mickey’s Magic Lamp 1940 | Beach Picnic 1938


The Sea Scouts 1939 | The Hockey Champ 1939


The Good Scouts 1938 | Mickey’s Parrot 1938 | Donald’s Golf Game 1938


The Symphony Hour 1942


Donald’s Camera 1942


Goofy’s Glider 1941


Golden Eggs 1941


Canine Caddy 1941

Interesting to note the play with Mickey’s ears. These are the ears
with three dimensions used in only a couple of shorts.


A Gentleman’s Gentleman 1941

Another play on Mickey’s ears – very different.


Truant Officer Donald | 1941


The Art of Skiing 1941


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Animation Artifacts &Bill Peckmann &Disney &Models 24 Aug 2009 07:45 am

Pastoral Models

- The Pastoral sequence of Fantasia is probably the lowest point during the feature. An overly cute sequence in cartoon color glory does the least to support the original score (which has been severely cut by Stokowski from 40 mins down to its 20 min running time.)

The entire sequence can be wrapped up by that one scene where the cupie-doll cupids close out a scene with their fannies forming hearts.

I posted a group of illustrations from this sequence that appeared in the Fantasia book in Sept 2007. You can check that post here if you’d like to compare.

I’ve recently been posting some beautiful model sheets loaned to me by designer/director Bill Peckmann. He has a number of sheets form this sequence of the film, and I thought to post them all together. Here they are:


(Click any image to enlarge.)
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The models start by calling the film “The Concert Feature.”
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.They soon call the film the “Pastoral.”
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It’s interesting to see how loose these clean up models are
in comparison to those of the Xerox/digital era.

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They’re probably tight compared to most of today’s assisting.
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These are the first prop models I’ve seen from this sequence.
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Here are two models of hippos from the Dance of the Hours sequence:


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And finally, something to cleanse the pallette, a model for a sequence cut from the Nutcracker Suite:
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Again, many thanks to Bill Peckmann for the loan of these great models.

Bob Cowan, has just started posting some material from Fantasia on his site. His collection is enormous and distinguished. Take a look.

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Animation Artifacts &Articles on Animation &Disney 22 Aug 2009 07:46 am

Animated Film Techniques 2

Here’s the completion of a series of articles from American Cinematographer Magazine as published in 1958. It was split in four parts. Written by Carl Fallberg, the article illuminates about the process of animation production.

Animated Film Techniques

This is an old xerox copy, so I apologize for any quality problems. Here’s the last of two parts of the article.

21
(Click any image to enlarge to a legible size.

22
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26 27
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28 29

Animation Artifacts &Bill Peckmann &Disney &Models 21 Aug 2009 07:53 am

How To Draw Donald

- I continue with the Art Corner books from Disneyland with the How To Draw Donald classic. I’d received a full set of these books (How to draw Mickey, Donald, Goofy, Pluto and Chip & Dale) when I bought an Animation Kit from them. I’ve started posting these booklets after posting the lecture series that was given to the staff in the 1930′s.

Go here to see the lecture series posts:
Mickey / Donald / Goofy / Pluto
Here to see How To Draw Mickey.
Here to see How To Draw Pluto.
Here to see How To Draw Goofy (Jenny Lerew‘s Blackwing Diaries.)

Here’s the booklet:

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(Click any image to enlarge.)

34

5

67

89

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1112

1314

I don’t have a lot of Donald model sheets to add to this, but these three are interesting.


Master of the Hounds


This last model comes courtesy of Bill Peckmann‘s collection. Many thanks.

Articles on Animation &Bill Peckmann &Comic Art &Disney &Illustration 20 Aug 2009 07:20 am

Good Housekeeping 1

- From 1934 continuing into the late 1940′s, Good Houskeeping Magazine printed four-color full page previews of newly-released Disney shorts. These illustrations were, at first, painted by Tom Wood, and later by Hank Porter.

Here’s information from the book on Wood and Porter:

    Tom Wood came to Disney Studios in 1932 from his position as a Los Angeles daily newspaper artist. A quiet, hardworking individualist, he was well liked and highly regarded by those who knew him both personally and professionally. He worked at the Studio until his untimely death in 1940 and, as publicity artist, assumed primary responsibility for the monthly Good Housekeeping page as well as the creation of publicity stills for the theater. Since Good Housekeeping was the only magazine for which Disney produced these monthly watercolor sequences, we recognize their scarcity.

    Wood typically worked on each of these pages for a full week. Beginning with sketchy, pencilled drawings which he would then ink himself, he also created the final watercolors which represented a 7-minutc Disney film short. Assisted by an “idea man” and a third person who wrote the story or dialogue, the publicity artist had the final approval on the finished version. After Wood’s death Hank Porter would continue working with the magazine well into the late 1940′s. Thereafter, production of these shorts was discontinued as costs became prohibitive and the Studio refused to compromise on quality.

The Alexander Gallery collected these illustrations in 1987 for an exhibition, and they published a book of them. Bill Peckmann has kindly loaned me his copy of the book, so I’ll post the illustrations over a number of posts.

Here are the first group of pages:

(Click any image to enlarge.)
1

Donald Duck in “The Delivery Boy” 1938

2 3

(L) Donald Duck – Antarctic Troopers 1938
(R) Silly Symphony – The Practical Pig 1938

4 5

(L) Mickey Mouse – Society Dog Show 19389
(R) Goofy and Wilbur – Goofy and Wilbur 1939

06

Mickey Mouse – The Pointer 1939

7 8

(L) Donald Duck – Donald’s Date 1939
(R) Donald Duck – Officer Duck 1940

9 10

(L) Mickey Mouse – Ice Antics 1940
(R) Donald Duck – Donald’s Elephant 1940

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Donald Duck – Billposters 1940

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(L) Donald Duck – Donald’s Vacation 1940
(R) Donald Duck – Window Cleaners 1940

1415

(L) Donald Duck – Fire Chief 1940
(R) Donald Duck – Put-Put Troubles 1940

1617

(L) Mickey Mouse – The Little Whirlwind 1941
(R) Mickey Mouse – Big-Hearted Pluto 1941

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Donald Duck – Timber 1941

Articles on Animation &Bill Peckmann &Disney &Illustration &Mary Blair 19 Aug 2009 07:33 am

El Groupo & Mary Blair’s Peter Pan

- Yesterday I saw a preview screening of Walt and El Groupo. This is a documentary exploration of the Disney trip to South America to bring back material for Saludos Amigos and Three Caballeros. If you have any interest in Walt Disney or the history of his studio or Mary Blair, you’ll have to see this film. It features interviews with a number of the children of those who went to South America with Disney. Interviews with those who hosted Disney talk about the visit.

The film is shot in a beautifully lush color that is almost reminiscent of IB Technicolor. One would expect the home movies to be grainy and unattractive, but instead they’re gorgeous.

The film is worth the visit. It’ll open in NY & LA on Sept. 11th. I’ll write more about it as the event gets closer.

There’s also upcoming a screening for MOCCA, the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art featuring a Q&A with writer/director Ted Thomas and producer Kuniko Okubo, moderated by John Canemaker. This will take place on Thursday, August 27th, 7:30 PM at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, BAM Cinema 4, (30 Lafayette Avenue, Brooklyn, NY).
Admission is free for Members of MoCCA. To rsvp, call (212) 254-3511.

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- In tune with the above comments and having posted, this past week, the wonderful 1940 model sheets from Disney’s Peter Pan (thanks to Bill Peckmann and his fine collection), I thought about the Mary Blair art for this film. Neither those model sheets nor Mary Blair’s art made it to the film.

I thought, as a companion piece to those early model sheets, I’d post the Peter Pan illustrations in John Canemaker‘s fine book: The Art and Flair of Mary Blair. A number of these have been used to illustrate the new book, Walt Disney’s Peter Pan. They’re all attractive and modern in style. I think the film took the colors without the style and came up with a picture postcard look.

Here are Mary Blair‘s paintings:


(Click any image to enlarge.)


Animation Artifacts &Bill Peckmann &Disney &Models &Story & Storyboards 17 Aug 2009 07:38 am

Peter Pan models à la 1940

- Peter Pan was floating around production in 1940. I was reminded of this when I went through the magnificent grab-bag of model sheets that Bill Peckmann has loaned me for this blog. Here are some stunning model sheets which showcase a completely different take on the story before the influence of Mary Blair and the animators


(Click any image to enlarge.)
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Surprise! A new character which was, fortunately, deleted.
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Here’s a short bit of 1940 storyboard.
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These drawings of Smee are loving and beautiful.
I’d like to know who did them.

And, in case you’ve forgotten, here’s how the final cast looked.


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Many thanks, again, to Bill Peckmann for the loan of these model sheets.


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Animation Artifacts &Bill Peckmann &Disney &Models 13 Aug 2009 07:50 am

Mother Goose Models

- Here are more of the models from Bill Peckmann‘s collection. I’ve chosen to just focus on the one Silly Symphony, Mother Goose Goes Hollywood. The film showcases the genius of caricature that was possible in animation. (The closest we have today is the flash photo montages of JibJab. No beautiful drawing is involved.)

Joe Morgan was a major part of the models and design for these characters. The model sheets were signed by director Wilfred Jackson, storyman T. Hee, Animation Director Bob Stokes, and layout director Terrell Stapp. Other anmators include: Izzy Klein, Ward Kimball, Grim Natwick, Jack Campbell, and Don Patterson. Actual credit for story direction went to George Stallings,with T. Hee, Dick RIckard, Leo Ellis, Peeter O’Crotty, Ed Penner, Webb Smith, and Izzy Klein working under him.


(Click any image to enlarge.)


(This one’s from my own collection.)

To give an idea of the color in this film, here are some frame grabs:


Katherine Hepburn


Hugh Herbert and the Marx Brothers


Hugh Herbert, Donald Duck and Charles Laughton, Spencer Tracy & Freddie Bartholomew


Spencer Tracy & Freddie Bartholomew and Katherine Hepburn


Katherine Hepburn


W.C.Fields and Charlie McCarthy


Oliver Hardy & Stan Laurel


Edward G. Robinson, Greta Garbo and Eddie Cantor


Wallace Beery, Fats Waller and Cab Calloway


Edna Mae Olvier, Mae West, and Zasu Pitts


Edna Mae Olvier, Joan Blondell, & Zasu Pitts and Clark Gable & George Arliss


Chico Marx, Fats Waller & Groucho Marx and Fred Astaire


Joe E. Brown and Martha Raye

For other caricature ID’s you can look at the blog, Random Semiconscious Musings.

Animation Artifacts &Bill Peckmann &Disney &Models 10 Aug 2009 07:16 am

A Symphony of Models

- The illustrious NY animation designer/director, Bill Peckmann, is sharing a very large archive of material with this site, so I’ll be posting forever to get it up.

Let’s start with model sheets from some of the Disney Silly Symphonies. You’ve possibly seen some of these, but I like gathering them all in one post.

These are from three gems of films. Among the very best of the shorts.

Woodland Cafe is a beauty released March 1937. these three model sheets are signed by Director Wilfred Jackson, animators Paul Allen, Johnny Cannon, Bob Stokes, Leonard Sebring, and storyman Dick Rickard. Other animators include: Cy Young, Izzy Klein, Dick Lundy, Charles Byrne, Jack Hannah and Ward Kimball. (Story supervision was actually done by Bianca Majolie and I’m not really sure the Sebring animated on this film.) Layout was by Terrell Stapp and John Walbridge.


(Click any image to enlarge.)

Farmyard Symphony was directed by Jack Cutting. George Stallings was the story supervisor. Ham Luske signed the sheets for the animators; he was probably the animation director. Animation was done by Eric Larson, Fred madison, John Bradbury, Ken Hultgren, Milt Kahl, Bernard Garbutt, Don Lusk, Paul Satterfield, Lynn Karp, John Sewall, and Paul Busch. Layout was by Dave Hilberman and Art Heinemann.

Rel;eased April 1939, The Ugly Duckling won the Oscar and stands out from a lot of the Symphonies of the period. Direction was by Jack Cutting and animation direction went to Ham Luske (which may explain why Luske signed the sheets for Farmyard Symphony as well. Layout was by Dave Hilberman and animation was by Eric Larson, Stan Quakenbush, Riley Thompson, Archie Robin, Milt Kahl and Paul Satterfield. George Stallings was the story director.

Many thanks to Bill Peckmann. More to come later this week.

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