Comings and Goings
Animation is noticeably in the news these days. The holiday season, heralding the openings of features and television specials, is one reason for this attention. On November 19th three animated features opened in New York, an unusual event in itself.
It must have come as a shock to the producers of the feature length films, each of which began production on different dates and each with the hope of exclusivity upon opening. It would seem that being the only animated feature at this season would have a certain advantage at the box office. One of the films, "Heidi's Song," an offering from the television production organization, Hanna-Barbera, had been in production for a good many years and was scheduled to premiere months ago, yet here it was making its long awaited debut at the same moment with Rankin and Bass', "The Last Unicorn" and Friz Freleng's "1001 Rabbit Tales," featuring Bugs Bunny.
It must have been interesting for the local critics, who are generally a bit awkward in their assessment of animation, to have to run around from theater to theater to view each of the new movies. Can't you just see the critics at the Times, who normally spend their days ogling Bergman, Kurosawa and Fellini, to decide who will review which cartoon production?
Even more surprising than the fact of the simultaneous premieres was the reality that none of the offerings were from the Disney Studio. The Disney boys however had beaten Messers. Rankin, Bass, Hanna, Barbera and Freleng to the punch with the rerelease of the 1940 classic, "Fantasia," featuring a newly recorded Dolby soundtrack. "Fantasia," as you may recall, was the first theatrical film to incorporate stereophonic sound when it was initially released. In fact there were much more than just two speakers to deliver the music to the audience, but several theaters in key cities had been accommodated to reproduce "Fantasia's" nine separate tracks (reduced to three for projection) so that sounds would appear to emanate from various points in the theater. It was called Fantasound in 1940 and it was a bold and costly innovation at that time.
Now the producers have yanked the film back into the studio and rerecorded the tracks for the purpose of obtaining the ear tingling resonances that seem to be required for today's "Walkman" generation. Also on the chopping block went the scenes featuring music critic and composer, Deems Taylor, who introduces each of the film's concert portions. His tuxedoed figure has been replaced with a voice over narrator mouthing the same dialogue. It all seems like a lot of effort for nothing, unless a younger generation will appreciate the souped up sound reverberations without any knowledge of the historical aspects of this film. I have a sneaking suspicion that the Disney people have been chafing for almost 40 years over the Warner Brother's send up of this feature in their short subject, "Corny Concerto" which included Elmer Fudd portraying Deems Taylor in caricature complete with white tie, tails and Taylor's characteristic mannerisms. With the updated "Fantasia" track, the Disney organization not only has a new chance at the box office but they also can create confusion for the new audiences who see the Warner's short and wonder why Elmer Fudd looks the way he does.
Mighty Mouse Honored
While all of this hullabaloo was going on at neighborhood movie houses, the library in New Rochelle was quietly making history by exhibiting the art and memorabilia of the Terry-Toon years. Paul Terry's studio had been situated in this community just 45 minutes from Broadway, from about 1934 till the late '60's. The exhibit, that had originally been mounted in April of this year and was accompanied by seminars and a dinner dance, was rehung to celebrate the completion of a sculpture depicting Mighty Mouse and Heckle and Jeckle soaring through the air. The work was specifically commissioned to be displayed permanently on the library site.
The figures, accompanied by a plaque honors the talents of Paul Terry and all of the hundreds of artists and technicians that were employed at the studio over the years, was sculpted by Michael Lantz, a well known artist from New Rochelle. Lantz is the brother of cartoon producer Walter Lantz who for 60 years has been creating animated films, most notably those featuring Andy Panda and Woody Woodpecker.
The exhibit and the commemorative sculpture is sponsored by the New Rochelle Council on the Arts. Much of the effort to bring the idea and its reality to New Rochelle was due to the persistence of Diane and Eli Bauer, Doug Crane and Thea Eichler. The unveiling of the Mighty Mouse sculpture was attended by New Rochelle's mayor, Leonard Paduano, Paul Terry's daughter, Pat Leahy, Arts Council members as well as former Terry-Toon employees. Smiling for the cameras were animation artists Doug Crane, Eli Bauer, Marty Taras, Al Kouzel, Doug Moye and myself.
Hugh Harman
This past week, newspapers carried the obituary of Hugh Harman, who working with Rudolph Ising, was responsible for the inauguration of both the Warner Brothers and the MGM cartoon departments. Harman, Ising and several other young artists began began making cartoons with Walt Disney in Kansas City shortly after World War I. When Disney set up shop in Hollywood, Harman and some of the others were sent for to help produce the Alice in Cartoonland series that Disney and his brother Roy had managed to get distribution for. By the end of the decade they were all pitching in on a new series, Oswald The Lucky Rabbit, which had supplanted the Alice cartoons. At this time Harman, Ising and Friz Freleng, another of the Kansas group left to work with Charles Mintz, Disney's distributor, who undertook to do the Oswald cartoons on his own using most of Disney's best animators. The major reason they left was due to Disney's interest in his own career and lack of concern for the contributions of those in his employ, Harman once told interviewer Mike Barrier.
Harman eventually became partners with Rudolph Ising and the two gained distribution for their character, Bosko The Talk-Ink kid. The arrival of sound films not only effected the name of the series but the studio name as well. In deference to the wonders of science that had rendered films lyrical, the partners chose the euphonious title, Harmon-Ising to hang over their studio door.
Though none of their characters achieved the fame that accompanied those from other studios, Harmon-Ising were the only producers whose technical expertise matched the look of the Disney product. In fact during the '30's the Disney organization, in an effort to meet their quota, farmed out a Silly Symphony to Harman-Ising since they were the only ones that could duplicate the Disney style and flair.
It would take a research genius to discover any articles written exclusively about Hugh Harman. Most of the world's animation information tends to illuminate the doings of Walt Disney. In fact there were probably more lines written about Harman's brother Fred who drew the Red Ryder comic strip for many years. Still the passing of Hugh Harman is an important note in the history of animation, a medium that he was closely connected with all his life and to which he had, though often unrecognized, a profound effect.
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