BIX Animation Conference: best.of.net

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animation/best.of.net #1, from hmccracken, 576 chars, Sun Jan 16 22:15:48 1994
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TITLE: This topic…
will serve as a place where your moderators will re-post interesting
news, comments, and questions to be found in the Internet’s many
comics- and cartoon-related newsgroups. Even though BIX’s forthcoming
netnews feature will make it easy to surf the Internet, keeping up
with everything that’s to be found there is practically impossible.
Best.of.net will provide you with a realtively small amount of
pre-filtered information — and will also server as a pointer towards
conversations going on on the Internet that you may want to join.
Enjoy!
— Harry

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animation/best.of.net #2, from hmccracken, 2133 chars, Sun Jan 16 22:23:03 1994
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TODD D MCCARTNEY: NEW Version of The Very Unofficial Guide to WDW NOW Available!
*** NOW AVAILABLE FREE UPON E-MAIL REQUEST, AND FTP!! ***

The 14th revision of:
()_() The Very Unoffical Guide To ()_()
(_) Walt Disney World (_)
Revision 94.01.14
Released: January 15, 1994
By Todd D. McCartney

NOTE: Those on the mailing list for the book should
have already received the latest copy of the book.
If you did not, please e-mail me stating so. I
have been having some mailing list problems lately.

The Very Unofficial Guide to WDW contains everything you
need to know for your trip! Including: Complete resort,
theme park and attraction description; precise directions
from Orlando Int’l Airport to your WDW destination, info on
transportation, complete list of all WDW restaurants,
insiders tipsa list of new attractions, and more!

— 22:21 –rec.arts.disney– LAST –help:?–Top 43%–

insiders tipsa list of new attractions, and more!

There are two (internet) ways of getting a copy of the book:

1. If you would like a copy through e-mail,
send your request to: toddm@phobos.ucs.umass.edu
Please note: the file is over 235,000 bytes, make sure
you have enough space on your account.

2. FTP: the site name is netcom.com and the files are located
in the directory pub/kazrak All files dating back to
October 1991 are in this directory including the
maps (.gif), evaluation files, order forms etc.

Thank you for your continued support and I look forward to
hearing from you! Enjoy the book!

Todd D. McCartney

— 22:21 –rec.arts.disney– LAST –help:?–74%–

“When you wish upon a star your dreams come true…”

toddm@phobos.ucs.umass.edu toddm@twain.ucs.umass.edu

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animation/best.of.net #3, from hmccracken, 2135 chars, Sun Jan 16 22:34:49 1994
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
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TITLE: From rec.arts.animation
Timothy Fay: Spider-man Mon, 3 Jan 1994 20:54
Below is some information about the new SPIDER-MAN series that will
begin on Fox this Fall (reprinted with permission):

====================================================================

The SPIDER-MAN series will debut in October 1994 on the Fox SatAM
schedule as a weekly show. It will go daily in the Fall of 1995.
There will be =no= mini-series, however there will be several multiple
episode stories. Most of the information on the series will be kept
under wraps so that Marvel Age can have a major announcement in their
April 1994 issue.

The animation is being done by the newly formed Marvel Animation.
Marvel Animation has =nothing= to do with the former Marvel
Productions. (Marvel Productions stopped handling Marvel comics
characters almost a decade ago and was recently re-named New World
Animation and will continue work on its successful BIKER MICE FROM
MARS series.) Marvel Animation was created to deal exclusively with the
Marvel comics universe. SPIDER-MAN is only their first series… two
others will appear in the Fall of 1993 in syndication. The titles of
these series have not been officially released yet.
— 22:33 –rec.arts.animation– LAST –help:?–Top 64%–

others will appear in the Fall of 1993 in syndication. The titles of
these series have not been officially released yet.

As for the talent behind it… Executive Producers are Avi Arad, Stan
Lee and Bill Kerstetter; Supervising Producer is Bob Richardson;
Producer/Story Editor is John Semper (replacing Marty Pasko); Art
Director is Dennis Venizelos; Studio Production Manager is John
Cawley; Supervising Director is Bob Shellhorn; Overseas Supervisor is
Paul Strickland. Voices have not been finalized prior to this note.

John Cawley, Studio Production Manager

—
Reply to: avatar@wings.micro.umn.edu
fayxx001@maroon.tc.umn.edu

“My mental facilities are TWICE what yours are — you pea brain!”
-Percival McLeach

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animation/best.of.net #4, from davemackey, 334 chars, Mon Jan 17 19:23:48 1994
This is a comment to message 3.
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I must mention the John Cawley, who is the Production Manager for Marvel
Animation, is the same gentleman who has written a number of
animation-related books, many in partnership with Jim Korkis. He’s been
working for the past several years as the Pre-Production Supervisor for
“Garfield And Friends.”
–Dave

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animation/best.of.net #5, from hmccracken, 4239 chars, Mon Jan 17 22:30:08 1994
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
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TITLE: From rec.arts.animation
Will Bell: Warner Bros. Studio Store Locations [periodic posting]an 1994 05:59
This is a list of currently known Warner Bros. Studio Store (WBSS)
locations. If you know of stores not appearing on this list, please
send them to bell@cs.tamu.edu by email. Posted corrections may not
be noticed due to poor propagation of some newsgroups above.

This list is being posted about every 10 days to four newsgroups that
should be particularly interested in the information: rec.arts.animation,
alt.tv.tiny-toon, alt.tv.animaniacs, and alt.animation.warner-bros.
Please mail comments/flames about this to bell@cs.tamu.edu

Last update: January 15, 1994

Thanks to Ron Bauerle who supplied the bulk of the list. Thanks
also to: Chris Johnson, David Moisan, Po Shan Cheah, Tad Morgan,
Corinthian, Indulis Rutks, Dave Bisping

Scottsdale Fashion Square Scottsdale AZ
Topanga Plaza Canoga Park CA
South Coast Plaza Costa Mesa CA
Glendale Galleria Glendale CA
— 22:27 –rec.arts.animation– 1 MORE+next –help:?–Top 27%–

South Coast Plaza Costa Mesa CA
Glendale Galleria Glendale CA
Beverly Center Los Angeles CA
Montclair Plaza Montclair CA
Arden Fair Sacramento CA
Fashion Valley San Diego CA
San Francisco Center San Francisco CA
Santa Monica Place Santa Monica CA
Del Amo Fashion Center Torrance CA
Cherry Creek Denver CO
Danbury Mall Danbury CT
Stamford Town Center Stamford CT
The Galleria Fort Lauderdale FL
Bayside Marina Miami FL
The Gardens Palm Bch Gdns FL
Lennox Mall Atlanta GA
Underground Atlanta Atlanta GA
Water Tower Place Chicago IL
Oak Brook Shopping Center Oak Brook IL
Woodfield Mall Schaumburg IL
Riverwalk New Orleans LA
Prudential Center Mall Boston MA
— 22:27 –rec.arts.animation– 1 MORE+next –help:?–56%–

Riverwalk New Orleans LA
Prudential Center Mall Boston MA
Braintree Mall Braintree MA
Burlington Mall Burlington MA
Northshore Mall Peabody MA
Montgomery Mall Bethesda MD
Rosedale Mall Roseville MN
Mall of America Bloomington MN
St. Louis Galleria St. Louis MO
Cherry Hill Mall Cherry Hill NJ
Freehold Raceway Mall Freehold NJ
Paramus Park Mall Paramus NJ
Woodbridge Center Woodbridge NJ
The Forum at Caesars Las Vegas NV
Walden Galleria Buffalo NY
Roosevelt Field Garden City NY
Walt Whitman Mall Huntington Stn NY
Fifth Avenue at 57th Manhattan NY
Staten Island Mall New York NY
Fairfield Commons Beaver Creek OH
Tower City Cleveland OH
South Hills Village Pittsburgh PA
— 22:27 –rec.arts.animation– 1 MORE+next –help:?–85%–

Tower City Cleveland OH
South Hills Village Pittsburgh PA
NorthPark Center Dallas TX
Highland Mall Austin TX
Lakeside Shopping Centre Essex UK
Fair Oaks Mall Fairfax VA
Tysons Corner Center McLean VA
Bellevue Square Bellevue WA
—
Will Bell — bell@cs.tamu.edu — Live from the heart of Scenic Central Texas
“Ya das is Otto von Schnitzelpusskrankengescheitmeyer!
Ya das ist ein incredibly long name to have to try and say!”

(Note from Harry: that’s a pretty impressive list of locations, considering
that when I visited the one at Beverly Center in LA in November of
1991, it was the only Warner Bros. Store in all the world!)

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animation/best.of.net #6, from hmccracken, 6797 chars, Mon Jan 17 22:38:47 1994
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TITLE: From alt.fan.warner-bros.
[Note from Harry: this is part of an interesting on-going discourse
on books of value to Warner Bros. cartoon fans.]

Path: solaris.cc.vt.edu!vtserf.cc.vt.edu!uunet!usc!nic.csu.net!nic.csu.net!nntp
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: Re: Cartoon Books
Message-ID: <1993Dec31.141905.7939@nic.csu.net>
From: gary@springfield.sfsu.edu (Gary Hoo)
Date: 31 Dec 93 14:19:03 PST
Reply-To: gary@futon.SFSU.EDU
References: <1993Dec26.155635.11312@rchland.ibm.com>
Nntp-Posting-Host: springfield.sfsu.edu
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Xref: solaris.cc.vt.edu alt.animation.warner-bros:579

In article <1993Dec26.155635.11312@rchland.ibm.com> writes:
> Beck, Jerry and Will Friedwald. _Looney_Tunes_
> _and_Merrie_Melodies:_A_Complete_Illustrated_
> _Guide_to_the_Warner_Bros._Cartoons_. New York:
> Henry Holt and Company, 1989.
>
> A must-have,
> but I hope the second edition is much more
> accurate!

Is there going to be a second edition?

> Blanc, Mel and Philip Bashe. _That’s_Not_All_Folks!:_
> _My_Life_int_the_Golden_Age_of_Cartoons_and_Radio_.
> New York: Warner Books, 1989.
>
> The autobiography of Mel Blanc. Amusing in
> spots, and another interesting look at the
> cartoon industry.

I feel almost sacreligious saying this, but I was dreadfully
disappointed when I read this the first time. Not only was it
poorly written (verbose in too many places), but Blanc’s account
of certain parts of WB history, most notably the story of how the
catchphrase “What’s up, Doc?” came about, don’t jibe with what
others have said. He comes across as so self-aggrandizing,
moreover, that I just can’t credit his stories.

(One more pet peeve: the illustrations are hack renditions of
the characters, not cels or animators’ roughs.)

However, when I read it a second time (just a masochist, I guess),
I was struck by how interesting his account of the Jack Benny show
was. I don’t know how much of that part of his book I can believe,
either, but at least I don’t have three or four well-written
histories of the Benny show that contradict him, as I do for the WB
cartoon studio.

Save your money if you’re looking for insights into the studio–
Steve Schneider’s THAT’S ALL FOLKS!, Joe Adamson’s books on Avery
and Bugs Bunny (see below), and Chuck Jones’ book are all more
insightful, more trustworthy and more readable.

> Other titles, unreviewed:
>
> Tex Avery: King of Cartoons.

Author: Joe Adamson

Unless you read French, this is the only discussion of Avery in
existence, sadly enough. Includes interviews with Mike Maltese
(one of the major WB writers), Heck Allen (Avery’s main writer
at MGM), and Avery himself. OK, it may be a little adoring, but
we’ve had to put up with Disney’s bios for years, and Avery is
at least as worthy of such treatment. Includes a filmography
whose accuracy I am not qualified to judge.

> Bugs Bunny: Fifty Years and Only One Grey Hare.

Adamson again.

Well-written, lavishly illustrated, a lot of fun. He does a very
good job of trying to decipher Bugs’ prehistory, though I think he
goes a little far when he throws in references to the Native
American and African animal stories. Includes his ten personal
best (not favorite) Bugs cartoons, which undoubtedly will spark a
debate between you and your friends. Also includes a filmography
whose accuracy I cannot judge.

A few others that come to mind, in no particular order:

OF MICE AND MAGIC (with a subtitle I can’t remember)
Author: Leonard Maltin

Well-researched and detailed histories of the major Hollywood
cartoon studios between 1900 and about 1970. Lots of black-and-
white illustrations, including many movie posters, and a few color
illustrations. A major plus is that Maltin is willing to say that
a cartoon or a studio stinks; if you’ve always wondered whether
you are the only one that thinks “Aqua Duck” and Rudy Larriva’s
“Road Runner” cartoons are awful, wonder no more–you aren’t and
they are. This is the book that started my pratfall into cartoons
as an adult. If you have any interest in Hollywood animation at
all, you must have this book. (Oh yeah, there’s a filmography
for *each* studio he discusses–but you know about me and
filmographies by now, right?)

THE AMERICAN ANIMATED CARTOON
Editors: Gerald and Danny Peary

A bunch of essays about, well, American animation. Occasionally
goes beyond the usual studio histories, delving into sociology,
pop culture, etc., but don’t let that throw you: it’s got some
real gems that are hard to find, like Manny Farber’s appreciation
of WB cartoons from 1943 and Walt Disney’s testimony before the
House Committee on Un-American Activities. The latter opened my
eyes to Uncle Walt’s rightward leanings and ruthless nature long
before this past year’s “revelations” about how closely he worked
with Hoover and the FBI. (Unfortunately does not include James
Agee’s article praising RHAPSODY RABBIT, but oh well.) There is
also the only interview I’ve ever seen with Robert McKimson.

This book may be hard to find; I know I have not seen it in quite
a while in the bookstores I haunt.

FANTASIA
by John Culhane (?)

No, not WB, but since we’re talking about animation books in
general, here ’tis. I love the film and this is a great history
and overview of how it came to be. Lavishly illustrated. I
think it’s out in paperback now.

OF TALKING ANIMALS AND OTHER PEOPLE
by James “Shamus” Culhane

NB: I’m not completely sure of the title.

Autobiography, gripe session, guided tour of some of Hollywood’s
most famous cartoon studios–this book is all of them in one.
Culhane doesn’t pretend to be objective, and it’s more fun that
way. He worked for Disney, Fleischer, WB, Lantz, and others
during his career, and just pours out the memories, spiced with
his occasionally acerbic commentary.

WALT DISNEY AND ASSORTED OTHER CHARACTERS
by Jack Kinney

Next to OF MICE AND MAGIC, this is my favorite book on cartoons.
It dips into animator/story man/director Kinney’s life for just
the highlights–the funniest, most outrageous stories that he
remembers, the kind of stories you wish every autobiography would
tell. Kinney’s illustrations are integral parts of his anecdotes
and sometimes hysterically funny in themselves. And along the
way, Kinney paints a better portrait of Disney, in words and
pictures, than any Disney biography I’ve seen. It may be hard
to find, but it’s well worth seeking out. (Maybe its best selling
point: it’s SHORT.)

/gh

—
gary@futon.sfsu.edu
DISCLAIMER: I do not speak for San | In the short term … I’d suggest
Francisco State University, and I | some _really_ good scotch,
preferably
trust SFSU is suitably grateful. | consumed in Aruba…–Vince Gibboni

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animation/best.of.net #7, from davemackey, 480 chars, Tue Jan 18 18:05:38 1994
This is a comment to message 5.
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
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I have been to the Woodbridge and Freehold stores. My s.o. has been to the
one in Vegas. They are very nice stores. Did you notice the letter that was
printed in Time a few weeks back that COMPLAINED that the WB stores catered
too much to the cartoon characters? If you consider that there will always be
interest in Bugs and pals, I wager that will always be the case. Live action
stars come and go, but the cartoons, for some odd reason, endure.
–Dave

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animation/best.of.net #8, from hmccracken, 788 chars, Tue Jan 18 19:09:27 1994
This is a comment to message 7.
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I’ve been to at least half-a-dozen WB stores, and they’re all quite similar.
My favorites are the Vegas location (in Cesars Palace, with great
Roman sculptures of Bugs and company and a *fantastic* “What’s Opera,
Doc?” scene in the window) and Danbury, Ct. (which has museum-like
sculptural recreations of cartoon scenes housed in glass cases outside
the store).

In other Warner Studio Store news, the _Boston Globe_ had a story
recently reporting on a controversy brewing over Warners’ desire to
open a location in venerable Fanueil Hall here in Boston. It’s certainly
not in tune with the market’s traditional mix of fishmongers, bakeries, etc.
— but no more so than Victoria’s Secret, The Sharper Image, and yes, the
Disney Store, all of whom have stores there at present.
— Harry

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animation/best.of.net #9, from hmccracken, 2317 chars, Tue Jan 18 22:01:11 1994
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TITLE: From rec.arts.animation
Rec A Magazine: Disneyland Operating Normally Despite LA Earthquake 1994 07:37
Disneyland Operating Normally Despite LA Earthquake

Despite reports of widespread damage in the Los Angeles area from the
high-magnitude earthquake Monday morning, the Walt Disney Company’s
flagship theme park Disneyland operated business-as-usual today with only
minimal damage.

Lindsay Schnebly, Disneyland Publicity Manager, detailed earthquake effects
on the park as being limited to damage to merchandise and a small
water-main break which was repaired “within a half hour” of its discovery.
Schnebly reported that the park opened on-time at 9:00am PST after a
thorough earthquake inspection, and is expected to maintain normal
operating hours.

Attendance at Disneyland was not available due to Disney policy disallowing
comment on the subject. A Disney publicist described attendance Monday as
“like a rainy day,” when local residents tend to defer park visits and the
audience consists primarily of out-of-town visitors on long-scheduled
vacation trips or visits. Schnebly described attendance saying “My office
looks right out on Main Street, and it’s as strong today as it was
yesterday.”
— 21:59 –rec.arts.disney– LAST –help:?–Top 53%–

looks right out on Main Street, and it’s as strong today as it was
yesterday.”

Disneyland attendance may be affected in coming days as people alter their
plans to avoid the earthquake area, and as Los Angeles traffic patterns
adjust to the aftereffects of the earthquake. All Los Angeles area
airports were closed at some point Monday morning, with flights diverted to
San Diego and San Francisco. Several major freeways in the Los Angeles
area were shut down or destroyed altogether, but should only affect
employee commutes or transportation of materials with delays and
inconveniences long-term.

No damage was reported at the Disney-owned and operated Disneyland Hotel,
across the street from the park.

The CBS radio network reported that the Anaheim Arena, a few miles south of
Disneyland, suffered more extensive damage. Early estimates put the dollar
figure at $3.5 million, and a scheduled evening event was cancelled.

—————————————-
(C)1994 Arnold Tang All rights reserved.
APPROVED FOR OPEN CROSS POSTING.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #10, from hmccracken, 1137 chars, Wed Jan 19 14:17:35 1994
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TITLE: From rec.arts.animation
R. Todd King: New from the epicenter… 18 Jan 1994 21:44
FYI, the Disney studio and headquarters in Burbank is closed today; a number of
buildings sustained some structural damage. WDI in Glendale is also closed,
but structurally it appears to be okay (as I look across the street and see it
still standing). We at Feature Animation are fine, and we’re actually open
today — gotta get “Lion King” out for you guys! — but about half of us aren’t
here today, as we are either cut off from getting here in a reasonable amount
of time or are at home cleaning up.

The epicenter was about fifteen miles from here. I live right by the studio,
and I can tell you, it was hell. Oops; we’re having an aftershock…
—
===============================================================================
R. Todd King |
(tking@fa.disney.com) | “That was no miracle; just an accident,
Walt Disney | and life’s full of them.”
Feature Animation | Hogan (Clint Eastwood)
Glendale, CA 91221 | “Two Mules for Sister Sara”
(818) 544-6495 |

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animation/best.of.net #11, from hmccracken, 6326 chars, Wed Jan 19 17:25:19 1994
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TITLE: From alt.animation.warner-bros.
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vid.A.Gerstein
From: David.A.Gerstein@williams.edu (David A Gerstein)
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Subject: THE BANNED TOON LIST
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Dear Folks,

Here’s at least a partial list of what you WON’T see on TV.
Video not included. If something is available from an AUTHORIZED
(WB/Turner) videotape, I’ll give it one star *; if it’s available on
an unauthorized (public domain or bootleg) one, I’ll give two stars **.

Some cartoons are just not part of Warners’ TV package. I’VE
PUT THOSE IN CAPITAL LETTERS, to show that they’re not necessarily
banned, just NOT ON TV.

In some cases Warners itself hasn’t banned the film from TV,
but the film is part of a package which the network itself can use
any or all of. Nickelodeon, for example, is given the right by
Warners to use the 1936 Porky WWI cartoon “Boom Boom,” but does not,
considering it too violent.

All black-and-white cartoons owned by Warner are licensed to
Nickelodeon, which hardly ever shows them anymore (maybe one a week).
So that this list isn’t unbelievably long, I’m not going to classify
those which they would show, were they in color, as banned, because
once every eon they will actually choke one up apologizing for its
lack of color all the while. (I love the black-and-whites and
hate this injustice. Oh, about 100 bw ‘toons are next-to-never shown
now, and the ads for the Nick show actually brag sometimes that they
DON’T show Bosko cartoons anymore… “Sorry, Bosko.” Feh.)

Regardez:

1929 BOSKO THE TALK-INK KID**
1931 The Dumb Patrol**
1931 Bosko Shipwrecked**
1931 Bosko the Doughboy**
1931 UPS AND DOWNS**
1931 LADY PLAY YOUR MANDOLIN**
1933 One Step Ahead of My Shadow*
1934 Buddy the Gob
1934 Goin’ to Heaven on a Mule
1934 Honeymoon Hotel*
1934 Buddy of the Apes
1935 Buddy in Africa
1935 BUDDY’S BUG HUNT
1936 Boom Boom
1936 Westward Whoa!
1936 Sunday Go-To-Meetin’ Time**
1936 Porky in the Northwoods
1937 Clean Pastures**
1937 Uncle Tom’s Bungalow
1938 The Isle of Pingo Pongo
1938 Injun Trouble (Porky)
1938 Jungle Jitters**
1939 Kristopher Kolumbus Jr.**
1939 Scalp Trouble**
1939 The Little Lion Hunter*
1941 Porky’s Ant
1941 All This and Rabbit Stew**
1941 Robinson Crusoe Jr.**
1942 Tokio Jokio**
1942 Inki and the Minah Bird*
1942 Daffy — the Commando*
1943 Coal Black and de Sebben Dwarfs**
1943 Confusions of a Nutzy Spy**
1944 Angel Puss
1944 Tin Pan Alley Cats
1944 Plane Daffy*
1944 Russian Rhapsody*
1944 Bugs Bunny Nips the Nips*
1945 Herr Meets Hare*
1945 Goldilocks and the Jivin’ Bears
1945 Inki and the Lion*
1946 Inki at the Circus*
1950 Caveman Inki
1968 Hocus Pocus Powwow
1969 Injun Trouble (Cool Cat)

A few others are very heavily cut on TV when they are shown:

1938 Pilgrim Porky
1938 The Major Lied ‘Til Dawn*
1940 Confederate Honey*
1940 Africa Squeaks

Of course, some of you will remember seeing many of these on
television. There were large, sweeping bans, in which many cartoons
suddenly dropped off the air, (A) around 1987, and (B) again in 1992.
In 1988 Nick would show “Injun Trouble” (Porky) in its Korean-colored
form, but now that — according to a list I have from Warners — it
has been given the new computer-color treatment, Nick will not show
it! (It was remade as “Wagon Heels” in 1944, so you know what it’s
like.)

Two cartoons — “Coal Black” and “Uncle Tom’s Bungalow” —
were the first to be removed from the TV package, about 1960. Some
Porkys were dropped when Nickelodeon took over the colorized batch
of 78 from the independent stations in 1990 — among them “Porky’s
Ant”, “Robinson Crusoe Jr.” and “Kristopher Kolumbus Jr.”

Most of these are banned for racial caricatures, with a very
few being banned for sexuality (“Honeymoon Hotel” ends with a loving
insect couple getting into bed) or violence (in “Boom Boom” Porky ends
up bandaged beyond recognition).

Many, many other cartoons have minor censorship which I could
pick out, but it might take weeks. (Example being the numerous
explosions which originally turned characters into blackface
minstrel stereotypes)

Most, but not all, of the ones that Turner owns which aren’t
on TV *are* on the officially-licensed “Golden Age of Looney Tunes”
video series (which, BTW, is NOT over — Vol. 3 is not permanently out
of print, and Vol. 5 will come this year finishing the lot). On the
other hand, Warners does nothing to ensure that folks have access to
those its affiliates won’t show (or that it itself has banned), so
very poor public-domain or bootleg prints are often the only choice.

I can see immediately why most of these often-tasteless ‘toons
aren’t on TV, or on low-priced videos which kids would have access to,
but I can certainly see them on high-rent laserdiscs which only ADULTS
can afford, adults who are interested in history, painful warts and
all. Turner seems to have taken this road, thanks to the work of
Jerry Beck, a head consultant for the series and author of several
major WB cartoon books; Warners could apparently care less.

Yours,

David Gerstein

==========================
animation/best.of.net #12, from pixelmove, 89 chars, Wed Jan 19 22:51:23 1994
This is a comment to message 11.
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
How can one find out which cartoons are in the public domain? Is there a list
somewhere?

==========================
animation/best.of.net #13, from hmccracken, 9732 chars, Thu Jan 20 13:46:31 1994
————————–
TITLE: From rec.games.pinball

Tom Capek : >Popeye 5 Jan 1994 16:30
Having last Monday off as part of the new year’s holiday, I decided to visit
Gala Lanes and play some pins. After battling my nemisis HSII into a stand-
off (it won back everything that I won), I decided to play the new machine
Popeye.

Well, in a word it’s “cute”. And this isn’t meant to be a compliment. The
playfield is shaped like a boat deck, which the player looks down onto, and
the bow points into the normal middle drain area. It’s got an auto plunger
that sends the ball into a rotating roulette wheel for the opening “luck”
shot. Skill is definitely not a factor here.

At least 3/4 of the playfield is open, with the upper 1/4 covered by a
raised mini-playfield that is supposed to be the roof of a boat’s wheelhouse.
What really bugged me was that the only thing visible on the main playfield
(around the edges of the upper one) were lights. The mini one obscured
the ramps, scoops, bumpers, and whatever else there was. I shot a lit lamp
and my ball disappeared under the upper field. I don’t know how it got there.
I know from the sounds that it was in the bumpers, but even with the clear
insert, couldn’t see the ball. REALLY, REALLY BAD MOVE BALLY!!! How can anyone
judge shots when they don’t know where the ball will be going, once it gets
under the playfield, or where it even is. I suppose that looking directly
— 13:43 –rec.games.pinball– 10 MORE+next –help:?–Top 57%–

judge shots when they don’t know where the ball will be going, once it gets
under the playfield, or where it even is. I suppose that looking directly
down from above the mini playfield helps, but from where I normally stand,
the parallax is extreme. I could see the three rollovers, barely.

And the autoplunger has a nasty bug. On my second shot the ball disappeared.
Apparently it went back down the “lift” hole. No problem I though, except
that I only got to play 2 balls. It thought that I had fired the plunger and
advanced to the third ball. My second game had another one of those until I
learned that you have to hold the plunger in for a longer time than I was.
SWELL!

My initial impression, move to a different machine. Two games was more than
enough for me. Interesting theme that resulted in a lame execution.

—
+— O __ ———————————————————+
| |\_____|| – ‘Welcome honored guests’ – ‘Fifty Million!’ |
| | |—–| – ‘Triple Jackpot!’ – ‘Sorry old man’ UGH! |
+— / \| | ——– Tom M. Capek e-mail capek@rtsg.mot.com ——+
— 13:44 –rec.games.pinball– 10 MORE+next –help:?–Bot–

Brent R. Earl: Popeye 10 Jan 1994 15:57
I am ashamed to admit this, but I played Popeye. I am
having trouble deciding where to start in on this one.

Apparently with the Turner’s Cartoon Network now available
to the world cable community, Williams feels that this
game may appeal to more than just the US.

This appears to be a “cute” game. (Don’t worry gottlieb,
it needs a lot of help). The backglass features some of
the Popeye characters. The upper right corner has a bottle
of “Extra Pure VIRGIN Olive Oyl”.

I wasn’t inspired to take note of many details, so this
won’t be a good beta description.

A lot of the playfield shots are obscured by the rubbish
on the sides and top of the machine (like dracula was).

The machine has a worthless upper deck. You have nub flippers
and a two inch hole between them. I managed to get the ball
up there a number of times, and it came right back down.
— 13:44 –rec.games.pinball– 9 MORE+next –help:?–Top 34%–

and a two inch hole between them. I managed to get the ball
up there a number of times, and it came right back down.

There is a diverter Funhouse-esque toy on the left side of
the machine. You hit the flipper at the correct time and
the ball is knocked over. This gadget seemed to need exact
timing. I never managed to drop the ball into one of the
side slots.

The starting “lack” of skill shot drops the ball into a
roulette wheel sort of gadget. I managed to get the ball
trapped in the hole a number of times. The game took a
long time to figure this out. This is bad. If this is
supposed to be a cute game to draw kiddies and such, most
will start pounding the game, or run to get the attendant
when this happens. I thought that there could be a sensor
of some sort to detect when the ball is stuck.

The game looks like it is supposed to be aimed at children,
but the difficulty level is way above that. It needs to
have kickbacks on both outlanes and a center post, or the
outlanes roped off if it is to work for the kiddies. Don’t
— 13:44 –rec.games.pinball– 9 MORE+next –help:?–71%–

have kickbacks on both outlanes and a center post, or the
outlanes roped off if it is to work for the kiddies. Don’t
forget the short legs. (Although for my money, I would
rather play Punchy or Mario and we usually get tickets from
these machines for fun toys).

If this is to be aimed at the adult crowd, something will have
to be done about the obscured shots. I don’t know many players
that like to have to lean over the machine to see the rollovers,
then lean way down over the glass to see under the upper
playfield, the lean to the right to see the targets there …

So I guess this has potential, but when we said that about
show horses we meant potential for glue, jello, dog food …

– Brent –
earl@rtsg.mot.com (Brent Earl) Motorola CIG +1-708-632-5830
** Panic! Could not locate coffee – Operator halted **
— 13:44 –rec.games.pinball– 9 MORE+next –help:?–Bot–

Bill Elliott IV: >>Popeye 10 Jan 1994 19:48
|> Well, in a word it’s “cute”. And this isn’t meant to be a compliment. The
|> playfield is shaped like a boat deck, which the player looks down onto, and
|> the bow points into the normal middle drain area. It’s got an auto plunger
|> that sends the ball into a rotating roulette wheel for the opening “luck”
|> shot. Skill is definitely not a factor here.
|>
|> At least 3/4 of the playfield is open, with the upper 1/4 covered by a
|> raised mini-playfield that is supposed to be the roof of a boat’s wheelhouse.
|> What really bugged me was that the only thing visible on the main playfield
|> (around the edges of the upper one) were lights. The mini one obscured
|> the ramps, scoops, bumpers, and whatever else there was. I shot a lit lamp
|> and my ball disappeared under the upper field. I don’t know how it got there
4;1H.
|

Sounds almost as bad as “Dr. Who”. Jeez… Actually, maybe it’s good
that they drop a lemon every once and a while. That way, they know what NOT
to do next time….

—–

— 13:44 –rec.games.pinball– 8 MORE+next –help:?–Top 60%–

—–

***********************
* NBA JAM CHAMPION!! * Bill Elliott IV
O |”| **——————-** 1 University Ave.
/\ | | *welliott@cs.uml.edu* Box 140
/\ \——-| *——————-* Lowell, MA
/ / |——-| * For UMASS-Lowell * 01854
* Computer Science * (508) 934-6283
Pinball Forever! * Department * (508) 345-9452
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ********************* (508) 454-1592
(508) 934-3636
Wannalancit–Room 219
———————————

— 13:44 –rec.games.pinball– 8 MORE+next –help:?–Bot–

David B Stewart: >Popeye Mon, 10 Jan 1994 20:14
In article <2grtsl$4lk@delphinium.cig.mot.com>,
Brent R. Earl wrote:
>I am ashamed to admit this, but I played Popeye. I am
>having trouble deciding where to start in on this one.
>
>The game looks like it is supposed to be aimed at children,
>but the difficulty level is way above that. It needs to
>have kickbacks on both outlanes and a center post, or the
>outlanes roped off if it is to work for the kiddies. Don’t
>forget the short legs. (Although for my money, I would
>rather play Punchy or Mario and we usually get tickets from
>these machines for fun toys).

Aimed at children … but the difficult shots are so that it can be used
at PAPA 4 :-). I haven’t seen the game yet, but I wonder about having a
game like this at the PAPA tournament. Maybe use Popeye in the youth
division, or do like last year’s mushroom world and put it aside, but
to have it in the finals?

I guess the main question for those of you that have seen it: how is the
scoring on this game? If we ignore the bad artistic work that you describe, is
— 13:44 –rec.games.pinball– 7 MORE+next –help:?–Top 61%–

I guess the main question for those of you that have seen it: how is the
scoring on this game? If we ignore the bad artistic work that you describe, is
it a game that can be used in competition, or is it more like mushroom world,
which is obviously not a competition machine? (E.g., Dracula turned out to be
a machine that should never have been used in competition for many reasons, as
we learned at IFPA last May. Was SMB used in a tournament?)

~dave

——————————————————————————-
David B. Stewart – email: The Robotics Institute
snail mail: – ECE Dept., Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA 15213
Current Projects: – Chimera 3.0 Real-Time Operating System
– Reconfigurable Robotic and Automation Systems
— 13:44 –rec.games.pinball– 7 MORE+next –help:?–Bot–

==========================
animation/best.of.net #14, from hmccracken, 1424 chars, Fri Jan 21 21:03:32 1994
————————–
TITLE: From rec.arts.disney
[This is from the middle of a thread, but is definitely worth re-posting
here, if for no other reason that it reveals that animator Mike Jittlov
has an address in cyberspace. — Harry]

Mike Jittlov: >>>LA towndown tumble 21 Jan 1994 10:26
s090@ii.uib.no (Kjartan Clausen) writes:
>_Didn’t we tell you not to exceed Mach 1 when running through LA?_

It was 4:30 am. The Ventura Freeway was clear. No Highway
Patrol in sight. I didn’t think anyone would notice, if I just
had a little exercise after a night of Net-Lurking. It wasn’t
_supposed_ to be Mach 1.4…but some fool litterbug threw away
a banana peel, and _right_ in the middle of the fast lane.

I’ve hesitated admitting this until now. There’s no way that I
can possibly pay for all the damage done. Unless Lucas finally
calls me back, and I can finish the WIZARD movie*, and donate all
profit to the Quake Relief Fund. I’ll probably have to add in
THE HIKING VIKING Walkumentary as well, but it will be worth it.

________________________________________ ___._`.*.’_._ ________
Mike Jittlov – Wizard, etc . . + * .o o.* `.`. +.
Hollywood, CA 90026-2714 ‘ * . ‘ ‘ |\^/| `. * . *
jittlov@gumby.cs.caltech.edu (: May All Your \V/ Good Dreams
<& alt.fan.mike-jittlov> and Fine Wishes /_\ Come True:)
============================================= _/ \_ ===========

==========================
animation/best.of.net #15, from hmccracken, 10840 chars, Sun Jan 23 18:05:45 1994
————————–
TITLE: From rec.arts.animation
Robert A. Jung: TINY TOONS Upcoming Episodes! Sat, 22 Jan 1994 04:26
Earthquake? What earthquake? A measly 6.6 trembler can’t stop the video
juggernaut known as the TINY TOON ADVENTURES Upcoming Episodes Guide! Just
sweep some of the rubble off the couch, sit back, and read on…

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

TINY TOON ADVENTURES Upcoming Episodes Central News Recap

— 01/14/94 —
TINY TOONS Valentine cards are available now. They come in packages of 32
and 42, and feature thirteen different designs and quotes with almost all of
the main characters.

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

Steven Spielberg and Warner Bros. have decided to stop producing new episodes
of TINY TOON ADVENTURES! Voice your indignation and _demand_ more new shows!
Send your complaints, pleas, and letters to:

Tiny Toon Adventures
Bob Daly Warner Animation
— 18:04 –rec.arts.animation– LAST –help:?–Top 9%–

Tiny Toon Adventures
Bob Daly Warner Animation
Warner Bros. / Burbank Studios 15303 Ventura Boulevard
4000 Warner Boulevard Suite 1100
Burbank, CA 91523 Sherman Oaks, CA 91403

(President of Warner Bros.) (TTA Writers and Staff)

Steven Spielberg
Amblin Entertainment Programming/Syndication
100 Universal City Plaza Fox Broadcasting
Bungalow 477 10201 W. Pico Boulevard
Universal City, California 91608 Los Angeles, California 90035

(Another big kahuna) (Show’s distributor)

You’re a member of the viewing public; you have a right to be heard. Write
early, write often, and demand the return of the toons!

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

— 18:04 –rec.arts.animation– LAST –help:?–18%–

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

DISCLAIMER: We take no responsibility if this schedule becomes inaccurate
due to Fox Television’s rearrangement of the shows. This schedule represents
what gets aired in the order that Warner Animation intended.

TINY TOON ADVENTURES Upcoming Episodes Guide

Week of January 17, 1994 – January 22, 1994
Monday 109 Rock ‘n Roar
Tuesday 133 Looking out for the Little Guy
Wednesday 120 The Acme Bowl
Thursday 160 Mr. Popular’s Rules of Cool
Friday 103 Strange Tales of Weird Science
Saturday 131 It’s Buster Bunny Time

Week of January 24, 1994 – January 29, 1994
Monday 113 The Wheel O’ Comedy
Tuesday 139 Pollution Solution
Wednesday 126 Life in the Nineties
Thursday 107 Buster and the Wolverine
Friday 104 You Asked For It
— 18:04 –rec.arts.animation– LAST –help:?–28%–

Thursday 107 Buster and the Wolverine
Friday 104 You Asked For It
Saturday 117 Hare-Raising Night

Week of January 31, 1994 – February 5, 1994
Monday 128 The Acme Acres Zone
Tuesday 138 Journey to the Center of Acme Acres
Wednesday 135 Spring in Acme Acres
Thursday 132 Starting from Scratch
Friday 145 Animaniacs!
Saturday 140 A Quack in the Quarks

Week of February 7, 1994 – February 12, 1994
Monday 147 No Toon is an Island
Tuesday 155 A Ditch in Time
Wednesday 185 Sepulveda Boulevard
Thursday 154 Whale’s Tales
Friday 190 Fox Trot
Saturday 180 Toon TV

Week of February 14, 1994 – February 19, 1994
Monday 114 Dating, Acme Acres Style
— 18:04 –rec.arts.animation– LAST –help:?–36%–

Week of February 14, 1994 – February 19, 1994
Monday 114 Dating, Acme Acres Style
Tuesday 124 Prom-ise Her Anything
Wednesday 178 thirteensomething
Thursday 191 Music Day
Friday 196 The Horror of Slumber Party Mountain
Saturday 179 Acme Cable TV

Week of February 21, 1994 – February 26, 1994
Monday 195 Washingtoon
Tuesday 173 Buster & Babs Go Hawaiian
Wednesday 097 The Return of Batduck
Thursday 121 Citizen Max
Friday 116 Fields of Honey
Saturday 194 Two-Tone Town

Week of February 28, 1994 – March 5, 1994
Monday 174 Henny Youngman Day
Tuesday 193 Toons Take Over
Wednesday 163 Tiny Toon Music Television
Thursday 134 Son of Looniversity Daze
Friday 142 Europe in Thirty Minutes
— 18:04 –rec.arts.animation– LAST –help:?–46%–

Thursday 134 Son of Looniversity Daze
Friday 142 Europe in Thirty Minutes
Saturday 102 Cinemaniacs!

Week of March 7, 1994 – March 12, 1994
Monday 122 Test Stressed
Tuesday 159 Return to the Acme Acres Zone
Wednesday 146 Here’s Hamton
Thursday 136 The Wacko World of Sports
Friday 153 You Asked For It, Again
Saturday 101 Hare Today, Gone Tomorrow

Week of March 14, 1994 – March 19, 1994
Monday 168 Pledge Week
Tuesday 175 Best of Buster Day
Wednesday 115 Rainy Daze
Thursday 162 Viewer Mail Day
Friday 171 Hog-Wild Hamton
Saturday 169 Elephant Tissues

Week of March 21, 1994 – March 26, 1994
Monday 170 Toon Physics
— 18:04 –rec.arts.animation– LAST –help:?–54%–

Week of March 21, 1994 – March 26, 1994
Monday 170 Toon Physics
Tuesday 176 A Cat’s Eye View
Wednesday 181 New Class Day
Thursday 137 Sawdust and Toonsil
Frida 177 Take Elmyra, Please
Saturday 172 Love Disconnection

Week of March 28, 1994 – April 2, 1994
Monday 183 Sports Shorts
Tuesday 189 What Makes Toons Tick
Wednesday 106 Hero Hamton
Thursday 111 Career Oppor-toon-ities
Friday 158 How Sweetie It Is
Saturday 165 K-ACME TV

Week of April 4, 1994 – April 9, 1994
Monday 184 Kon Ducki
Tuesday 186 Flea for Your Life
Wednesday 110 Looniversity Daze
Thursday 118 Best O’ Plucky Duck
Friday 119 The Buster Bunny Bunch
— 18:04 –rec.arts.animation– LAST –help:?–63%–

Thursday 118 Best O’ Plucky Duck
Friday 119 The Buster Bunny Bunch
Saturday 105 Furrball Follies

Week of April 11, 1994 – April 16, 1994
Monday 126 Life in the Nineties
Tuesday 151 Brave Tales of Real Rabbits
Wednesday 167 Going Places
Thursday 112 Gang Busters
Friday 156 Son of Wacko World of Sports
Saturday 157 Weirdest Stories Ever Told

Week of April 18, 1994 – April 23, 1994
Monday 152 Psychic Funomenon Day
Tuesday 166 Playtime Toons
Wednesday 129 Inside Plucky Duck
Thursday 130 Wake-Up Call of the Wild
Friday 144 Who Bopped Bugs Bunny
Saturday 161 The Acme Home Shopping Show

Week of April 25, 1994 – April 30, 1994
Monday 188 Weekday Afternoon Live
— 18:04 –rec.arts.animation– LAST –help:?–72%–

Week of April 25, 1994 – April 30, 1994
Monday 188 Weekday Afternoon Live
Tuesday 120 The Acme Bowl
Wednesday 117 Hare-Raising Night
Thursday 131 It’s Buster Bunny Time
Friday 148 The Looney Beginning
Saturday 108 Her Wacky Highness

Week of May 2, 1994 – May 7, 1994
Monday 135 Spring in Acme Acres
Tuesday 138 Journey to the Center of Acme Acres
Wednesday 133 Looking Out for the Little Guy
Thursday 139 Pollution Solution
Friday 141 Ask Mr. Popular
Saturday 147 No Toon is an Island

Week of May 9, 1994 – May 14, 1994
Monday 143 Fairy Tales for the 90’s
Tuesday 132 Starting from Scratch
Wednesday 149 The Wide World of Elmyra
Thursday 125 Hollywood Plucky
Friday 140 A Quack in the Quarks
— 18:04 –rec.arts.animation– LAST –help:?–81%–

Thursday 125 Hollywood Plucky
Friday 140 A Quack in the Quarks
Saturday 113 The Wheel O’ Comedy

Week of May 16, 1994 – May 21, 1994
Monday 197 How I Spent My Vacation, Part I
Tuesday 198 How I Spent My Vacation, Part II
Wednesday 199 How I Spent My Vacation, Part III
Thursday 200 How I Spent My Vacation, Part IV
Friday 116 Fields of Honey
Saturday 124 Prom-ise Her Anything

Week of May 23, 1994 – May 28, 1994
Monday 109 Rock ‘n Roar
Tuesday 121 Citizen Max
Wednesday 145 Animaniacs!
Thursday 123 You Asked For It, Part Two
Friday 150 High Toon
Saturday 128 The Acme Acres Zone

Week of May 30, 1994 – June 4, 1994
Monday 127 Stuff That Goes Bump in the Night
— 18:04 –rec.arts.animation– LAST –help:?–90%–

Week of May 30, 1994 – June 4, 1994
Monday 127 Stuff That Goes Bump in the Night
Tuesday 114 Dating, Acme Acres Style
Wednesday 103 Strange Tales of Weird Science
Thursday 104 You Asked For It
Friday 184 Grandma’s Dead
Saturday 164 New Character Day

==========================
animation/best.of.net #16, from hmccracken, 3648 chars, Sun Jan 23 18:07:39 1994
————————–
TITLE: From rec.arts.disney
Amy L. Plack: Aladdin II 23 Jan 1994 01:10
I was in Suncoast video today and I saw “Aladdin II” on the Coming
Soon to video list behind the counter. I asked the clerk what this
meant and he told me that Disney is releasing a sequel to _Aladdin_
that picks up right where the first one left off. Apparently, Disney
will only release this feature as a Disney Classic on video only (prob
later on LD). Also all of the original cast will return for the
feature with the exception of Robin Williams, who apparently put up a
stink because he only received 100k for doing the first one. Touchy!!

IMHO, I think this idea is really lame! Any other thoughts?

Also, _The Fox and the Hound_ will “most likely” not be released on
LD… *sniff*
—
Amy Lynne Plack ()_() Official FDC scamperaround
trek@wpi.WPI.EDU (_) Tod the Fox
Technical Writing major,
Worcester Polytechnic Institute Star Trek (TOS, TNG, DS9) Fan
— 18:06 –rec.arts.disney– 2 MORE+next –help:?–All–

Brian Thornton: >Aladdin II 23 Jan 1994 05:03
In a previous article, trek@wpi.WPI.EDU (Amy L. Plack) says:

>I was in Suncoast video today and I saw “Aladdin II” on the Coming
>Soon to video list behind the counter. I asked the clerk what this
>meant and he told me that Disney is releasing a sequel to _Aladdin_
>that picks up right where the first one left off. Apparently, Disney
>will only release this feature as a Disney Classic on video only (prob
>later on LD). Also all of the original cast will return for the
>feature with the exception of Robin Williams, who apparently put up a
>stink because he only received 100k for doing the first one. Touchy!!
>
>IMHO, I think this idea is really lame! Any other thoughts?
>
>Also, _The Fox and the Hound_ will “most likely” not be released on
>LD… *sniff*

Is it just me, or does anyone else think that she’s been schnooked? Not
only would Disney not be tacky enough to follow up with a sequel this soon
after the original, but it wouldn’t send it straight to videotape.
However, there is another animated Aladdin that’s by another company. I
suspect that that Aladdin is what this new one is modelled after.
— 18:06 –rec.arts.disney– 1 MORE+next –help:?–Top 93%–

However, there is another animated Aladdin that’s by another company. I
suspect that that Aladdin is what this new one is modelled after.

Doesn’t this have shades of the recent, ill-fated “Happily Ever After?”
— 18:06 –rec.arts.disney– 1 MORE+next –help:?–Bot–

Dan Schuck: >Aladdin II Sun, 23 Jan 1994 11:47
In article <2hsipl$5bb@bigboote.WPI.EDU> trek@wpi.WPI.EDU (Amy L. Plack) writes:
>From: trek@wpi.WPI.EDU (Amy L. Plack)
>Subject: Aladdin II
>Date: 23 Jan 1994 01:10:13 GMT

>IMHO, I think this idea is really lame! Any other thoughts?

I suspect that Aladdin II is actually a video release of the Aladdin TV show
premiere episode. Leave it to Disney to cover all the marketing bases!

==========================
animation/best.of.net #17, from hmccracken, 381 chars, Tue Jan 25 09:15:47 1994
This is a comment to message 12.
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
Paulo, there is at least one book which lists films (including, I
hope, cartoons) that have fallen into the public domain. I
don’t know what the title is. You can also, I believe, use the
Library of Congress’s copyright catalogs to determine what
cartoons are PD. Or just go into any discount store and check
out what cartoons are on all the sleazy-looking $2.99 tapes.
— Harry

==========================
animation/best.of.net #18, from hmccracken, 1770 chars, Tue Jan 25 09:19:18 1994
————————–
TITLE: From rec.arts.animation
Paul Hendry: Eek! the Cat Future Episode List Mon, 24 Jan 1994 21:18
\\ //
==================================
ETCFEL940129 Eek! the Cat Future Episode List
==================================
// \\

This is a list of the “Eek! the Cat” cartoons which will be shown on the Fox
Kid’s Network over the following month. This is the first such bulletin that
I have posted, and I will probably be posting updates monthly. The segments
that are marked “EK” are Eek! cartoons, and the “TL” segments are Terrible
Thunder Lizards cartoons. Segments which are repeats are marked with an “R”.
Note that in some cases, the first segment is new, while the second is a rerun.

Date 1994 Fox # Names of Segments

Sat Jan 29: EK108R Eek’s International Adventure
Sat Feb 5: EK214 A Shark-work Orange
. TL206 Let’s Make A Wheel
Sat Feb 12: EK103R Catsanova
Sat Feb 19: TL210 T-Rex, Lies, and Videotape
— 09:18 –rec.arts.animation– LAST –help:?–Top 65%–

Sat Feb 12: EK103R Catsanova
Sat Feb 19: TL210 T-Rex, Lies, and Videotape
. EK211R The Great Eek-scape
Sat Feb 26: EK213 Mountain Groan
. TL203R Always Eat Your Spinach

“A Shark-work Orange” is said to be especially hilarious,
so don’t miss that one!

EEK!
—
— \ – “There, I’ve said it. I feel better.” – Death – / —
— \- Standard disclaimer: “I just can’t help myself!” – Babs -/ —
— /- Fifi == SEXIUS SKUNKIUS Minerva == SLINKIUS MINKIUS -\ —
— / – Paul David Hendry hendry@pegasus.astro.utoronto.ca – \ —

==========================
animation/best.of.net #19, from pixelmove, 58 chars, Tue Jan 25 23:32:02 1994
This is a comment to message 17.
————————–
Thanks for the info, Harry. I’ll try the local library.
,

==========================
animation/best.of.net #20, from hmccracken, 578 chars, Wed Jan 26 21:38:51 1994
————————–
TITLE: From rec.arts.animation
Scott Tadman: >New alt.tv Newsgroups for Eek The Cat and Taz-Manian 1994 22:19
alt.tv.eek-the-cat – Eek the Cat
alt.tv.taz-mania – Taz-Mania

I made the names as straight forward as possible 🙂

What to do if you don’t get these newsgroups:

1) Ask your news administrator/system operator if you can have it added to
the local newsgroup list. This is the best way.

2) If you’re particularily clever, issue another newgroup message. For
advanced users only.

=== (Scott Tadman) tadman@ecf.toronto.edu ====================================

==========================
animation/best.of.net #21, from hmccracken, 1163 chars, Fri Jan 28 17:18:25 1994
————————–
TITLE: From alt.animation.warner-bros.
Path: newshub.sdsu.edu!usc!howland.reston.ans.net!noc.near.net!news.delphi.com!u
senet
From: DONBROCKWAY@delphi.com
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: Write the Tex Avery Card!
Date: Wed, 26 Jan 94 10:34:52 -0500
Organization: Delphi (info@delphi.com email, 800-695-4005 voice)
Lines: 16
Message-ID: <19940126.10345256.donbrockway@delphi.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: delphi.com

WFMU of East Orange, New Jersey, offers a set of trading cards titled
“Crackpots and Visionaries” to its listeners as a premium. The second
set is now in preparation, and one card will be Tex Avery!

Want to write the copy for the back of the card? If your text is chosen,
you’ll receive a credit on the card, as well as a complete set of the
“Crackpots and Visionary” trading cards. Sure to be a collector’s item.
Send your submissions E-mail to DONBROCKWAY@delphi.com. All entries
become the property of WFMU (once again selected as the best radio
station by “Rolling Stone”!).

120 words is absolute maximum. Assume your reader has never heard of
Tex. And by the way, we’re considering Tex a “Visionary,” not a
crackpot!

Don Brockway

==========================
animation/best.of.net #22, from hmccracken, 437 chars, Sat Jan 29 09:47:50 1994
————————–
TITLE: V Magazine: Disney to open Vancouver studio 27 Jan 94 05:42
The local press is abuzz with gossip of Disney opening a major animation
studio here in Vancouver, B.C. Details are sketchy at this point, but I’m
assuming it is part of a move to develop more coproductions, since my country
has many co-pro treaties with European nations.

Does anyone have any good dish on this move?

James Glave
Vancouver Magazine

==========================
animation/best.of.net #23, from hmccracken, 1242 chars, Sat Jan 29 22:47:50 1994
————————–
TITLE: From rec.arts.disney

Robert Ito: Beauty and the Beast on The Disney Channel! Sun, 30 Jan 1994 01:57
In “A Letter to our Subscribers” in the February/March Disney Channel
Magazine, John F. Cooke, President of the Disney Channel, announces
that “Beauty and the Beast” will have its television premiere on The
Disney Channel in May. Set your VCRs!

And some other programming listed in the magazine for February and
March (besides what Kathy Li already mentioned):

– “Be Our Guest: The Making of Beauty and the Beast” returns.
March 6, 9, 19, 27.

– “Henry V” by William Shakespeare. This is the Kenneth Branagh
version, not the Laurence Olivier version. (And the FDC version
features Amberle Ferrian as Princess Katharine: “Once more into
their breeches, dear friends!” :-). Sorry, Amberle, I couldn’t
resist :-).) Feb. 5, 13, 22; March 6, 25.

– “The Rescuers”. Feb. 6, 12, 16, 22, 27; March 2, 8, 13, 19, 25.

— 22:46 –rec.arts.disney– LAST –help:?–Top 76%–

Bob Ito ( ito@alumni.cs.colorado.edu )
Chief Editor, Disney Comics in The Future Disney Cabinet,
and bodyguard to the FDC walkaround Belle (and Jasmine)
“Master, I could be wrong, but that may not be the best
way to win the girl’s affections.”

==========================
animation/best.of.net #24, from hmccracken, 1078 chars, Sat Jan 29 22:53:43 1994
————————–
TITLE: From alt.tv.simpsons
Jeff D Wilson: >Three more seasons… 28 Jan 1994 20:24
In article <2ibpct$676@nntp2.Stanford.EDU>,
Ben Zimmer wrote:
>
>Bart’s back
>
> HOLLYWOOD (UPI, 1/27) — Bart Simpson will be back to elicit
>laughs from kids and groans from parents for another three years
>in a Fox Broadcasting contract calling for 72 new episodes.
> “The Simpsons,” a product of another Fox division in
>conjunction with James L. Brooks’ Gracie Films, is the No. 1 rated
>series on the network.
>
>
>[Anyone worried about whether the show can stay funny for 3 more
>years?]

What wonderful news! I am going to celebrate this weekend by drinking some brew
and watching as many of my taped episodes as possible.
What a great day this is.

Jeff Wilson
— 22:52 –alt.tv.simpsons– LAST –help:?–Top 78%–

Jeff Wilson
OSU Law

P.S. Since the Simpson’s (unlike almost every other television project) seems
to get funnier each year, I don’t think it will be a problem for them to remain
funny for three more years.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #25, from hmccracken, 2430 chars, Mon Jan 31 20:11:50 1994
————————–
TITLE: From rec.arts.disney
gwm1@jaguar: the Goofy Movie 30 Jan 94 23:29
A recent post mentioned a full length feature coming out next christmas
called “The Goofy Movie”. Is this true? Goofy has always been one of my
favorite characters. Will this be considered Disney’s 33rd full length
animated feature, or will it not be considered a classic (like the Brave
Little Toaster)?
— 20:10 –rec.arts.disney– 2 MORE+next –help:?–All–

Tim Bond: the Goofy Movie 31 Jan 1994 14:56
gwm1@jaguar.uofs.edu wrote:
> A recent post mentioned a full length feature coming out next christmas
> called “The Goofy Movie”. Is this true? Goofy has always been one of my
> favorite characters. Will this be considered Disney’s 33rd full length
> animated feature, or will it not be considered a classic (like the Brave
> Little Toaster)?

I’ve heard it is a Movietoon, like the Ducktales movie a few year’s ago.

BTW – The Brave Little Toaster was not a Disney Film (I believe it is
Hyperion Pictures). The Disney Company did put it out on video, though.

tim
—
——————————————- RED*RED*RED*RED*RED*RED
– Tim Bond – tbond@admin.ac.edu – ORANGE*ORANGE*ORANGE*OR
——————————————- YELLOW*YELLOW*YELLOW*YE
– Tim and Jennifer – We Are All Over! – GREEN*GREEN*GREEN*GREEN
– Walt Disney World Tour – 1994 – BLUE*BLUE*BLUE*BLUE*BLU
——————————————- PURPLE*PURPLE*PURPLE*PU
— 20:11 –rec.arts.disney– 1 MORE+next –help:?–All–

Aaron Thomas: >the Goofy Movie Mon, 31 Jan 1994 19:05
My best guess is that this will be something like the Duck Tales movie
awhile back. I think that they’ll use Movietoon Productions, which would
probably leave it off the official list.
Questions: Did Disney make _The Brave Little Toaster_? I assumed that they
bought the rights to it when it went on the Disney Channel.
Since the Duck Tales movie came out under Movietoon, does
it count on the offical list?
Why on earth does Disney have, in affect, 4 movie production
houses? (Walt Disney, Touchstone, Hollywood, Movietoon)
I understand the first two, but why the others?

Aaron (fill in your own witty phrase) Thomas
FDC W-A Roger Rabbit and other stuff

==========================
animation/best.of.net #26, from davemackey, 6809 chars, Tue Feb 1 21:11:04 1994
————————–
TITLE: Mike Jittlov: Mike Jittlov’s “Animato”
From the email avalanche (circa 1400):

>Did you know there’s a magazine that’s using your “Animato” name?

Yup. I have every issue of “ANIMATO, The Animation Fan’s Magazine”,
from its first 1983 folded newsletter (“with apologies to Mike
Jittlov” on its title page 😉 to the present, excellent glossy
publication. Founder Mike Ventrella put me on the mailing list.

Thankfully they’ve stopped printing their quarterly Film Poll, which
always listed my “Wizard of Speed and Time” and “Animato” at the top
of the list. It was not a little suspect and embarrassing ;D

ANIMATO is even listed in the Funk & Wagnalls Dictionary, meaning
“lively, animated” – but that’s actually an old Italian music term.

Far as I knew, I made up the word in 1975, for my production company.
Twas a silly name, but ad agencies searching for an animation house
Hoften looked in the white pages, and they would see my company first.
“What I really wanted was to Direct.” But even though my UCLA degree
was in Film/TV Production & Direction, there were 700 other LA firms
doing that. Animation and effects creators were still a rare breed.

My plan: I would make my fortune through Animato Productions, and
then do the live-action & effects features I was scripting. My six
self-promotional films would demonstrate the present range of film
animation, and what I could do. (I didn’t tell people everything was
being accomplished on a homebuilt animation stand that I’d built for
$200 — instead of the customary $65,000 Oxberry.)

For various reasons (like, poverty and time), I only completed two
showcases, “Animato” (kinestasis) and “Time Tripper” (live-action
plus animation, a difficult combo). These were to be shown to
commercial agencies, and used images that would inspire them to
hire me. Halfway through “Animato”, I decided that I didn’t want
to animate fashions (as I had in my 1974 short, “Swing Shift”).
This was the magic time, “Star Wars” and “Close Encounters” were
being made, sci-fi films were finally coming alive, and if I just
replaced the models with clips from my other films-in-planning
same moves, just change the visual triggers), hopefully a studio
producer would get the point and call me and read my scripts.

Unfortunately, I was soon typecast as a maker of only hypercreative
animation. The 16mm shorts were circulated through ad agencies,
and though I was seldom hired (I charged too little, which branded
me as non-professional), the ad reps became producers and you can
now see many of my effects tricks duplicated in the past years of
music videos (like one in 1988 for The Talking Heads).

Also, because one guy in the Valley was actually carrying around
bootlegged copies of my work and posing as me (a standard rip in
this biz), I put key words and identification in my films so that
I could freeze-frame and demonstrate I was the originator. This
branded me as clever, strange, and sneaky. But it also led to my
discoveries of film subliminals, and how to make the healing ones.

As a last chance for public viewing, I entered both shorts in
FILMEX, a major Los Angeles movie festival. If they showed my work,
I could even get a free ticket to that show. When I discovered that
“Animato” and “Time Tripper” were chosen to be played in many film
screenings, I contacted the local ABC news department. Anchorman
Regis Philbin liked what he saw, and said he’d put my films on the
air. That day. In two hours. Terrific — there was no time to
call around, or tell an agent or producer to watch, they’d all gone
home. I could only call my friends and relatives.

And next day, I called the station. Regis left a message for me:
a Disney director had bought a TV set yesterday, had turned it on
for a few minutes, and was floored when he saw “Animato”. Nick
Bennion wanted to talk with me. I brought him my “GodSpeed” script.
I still remembering him whistling, as he finished it – much too big,
and I was an unknown writer-director, but if I could deomnstrate
just the speed effect for Nick’s TV special, that’d get the Disney
hierarchy’s attention. Thus began the “Wizard of Speed and Time”.

This is how Hollywood actually operates: depression > hard work >
preparation > determination > really weird luck > repeat cycle. *

Parts of the above filmlets are visible (somewhat edited and scene-
uxtaposed) in the WIZARD movie — though their edited-to-the-note
soundtracks are different, since thanks to my e.b.p. we couldn’t
afford to pay for any music rights.

1980 Capsule Summaries:

“ANIMATO” (3 minutes) – A showcase of kinestasis (photo cut-out)
animation, bounced to the beat of a Petula Clark and Tony Hatch
song, “I Know a Place”. Visuals pop and swirl, from dancing fashion
models in multi-plane backgrounds, to increasingly realistic sci-fi
scenarios over Los Angeles landmarks. For those who like to gasp
at such info, the film has 3889 frames, with most multiply-exposed
(up to 23 times), bringing the total number of separate picture
set-ups to 10,183 — and these took over six months to film, on the
animation machine glimpsed at the film’s end, with every effect done
in-camera. The artist will not repeat this film for love or money.

“TIME TRIPPER” (2 minutes) – And the star of the show is one of the
most beloved motion picture props of all time: The Time Machine,
from the George Pal movie of that name — restored to full operation
by Bob Burns and Tom Scherman. A museum custodian (Jittlov, in a
rare cameo) dares to sit within, innocently trips a few light
switches…and is launched into a glittering, dazzling flight of
fantasy. A very special little film.

Don’t ask. You can’t buy these in any store. But maybe someday,
when I complete the WIZARD feature, I can add on all of my short
films in their original form.
_________________________________________ ___._`.*.’_._ ________
Mike Jittlov – Wizard, etc . . + * .o o.* `.`. +.
Hollywood, CA 90026-2714 ‘ * . ‘ ‘ |\^/| `. * . *
jittlov@gumby.cs.caltech.edu (: May All Your \V/ Good Dreams
<& alt.fan.mike-jittlov> and Fine Wishes /_\ Come True:)
============================================== _/ \_ ===========

“Imitation is the sincerest form of plagiarism”

* There are other Operation Rules (like this set, push-pinned to
a back-office board, at Walt Disney Studios, in 1979):

THE SIX PROJECT STAGES
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Wild Enthusiasm
Disillusionment
Total Confusion
Search for the Guilty
Punishment of the Innocent
Promotion of the Nonparticipants
“The Black Hole”

==========================
animation/best.of.net #27, from hmccracken, 5274 chars, Fri Feb 4 22:12:03 1994
————————–
TITLE: From rec.arts.animation
Richard Smith: >Peanuts Sucks! (Was: charlie brown and adults)3 Feb 1994 04:52
axgims@ritvax.isc.rit.edu wrote:
: You know, for me, one of the marvelous things about the Peanuts specials
: was the way adults were treated as characters, you know, by NOT being shown
: and byhaving the characters respond to the MWOOH MWAAH voices of the
: adults. By havingadults as full blown characters there is an innocence
: that is lost, or something like that.

The creative spirit that made “Peanuts” what it was died sometime around
the late 70’s. Everything since then has been crap.

Cartoons are like radioactive elements. They decay slowly over long
periods of time. The only exception is when the creator has enough
integrity to end the strip while it still has some life in it.

This is what Berke Breathed did with “Bloom County”. Charles Schulz
obviously doesn’t care. He sold out a long time ago. Not that I blame
him. I’m sure he makes enough money off the Met Life commercials alone to
ensure that his great-great-great-grandchildren will want for nothing.

If you want proof of this, go to a library and find some of the old
anthologies from the 60’s. Compare them to the strips that are in the
— 22:07 –rec.arts.animation– 1 MORE+next –help:?–Top 61%–

If you want proof of this, go to a library and find some of the old
anthologies from the 60’s. Compare them to the strips that are in the
paper nowadays.

Since I’m pushing 30, the “classic” Peanuts movies and TV shows are etched
into the deepest parts of my mind. I can trace my entire love affair with
classical music to the scene in “A Boy Named Charlie Brown” where Schroeder
plays Beethoven’s Pathetique Sonata. It was beautiful, transcendental
animation. But those days are gone forever.

Andy G Ihnatko: >>Peanuts Sucks! (Was: charlie brown and adults)Feb 1994 11:30
rsmith@netcom.com (Richard Smith) writes:

>The creative spirit that made “Peanuts” what it was died sometime around
>the late 70’s. Everything since then has been crap.

>Cartoons are like radioactive elements. They decay slowly over long
>periods of time. The only exception is when the creator has enough
>integrity to end the strip while it still has some life in it.

>This is what Berke Breathed did with “Bloom County”. Charles Schulz
>obviously doesn’t care. He sold out a long time ago. Not that I blame
>him. I’m sure he makes enough money off the Met Life commercials alone to
>ensure that his great-great-great-grandchildren will want for nothing.

>If you want proof of this, go to a library and find some of the old
>anthologies from the 60’s. Compare them to the strips that are in the
>paper nowadays.

>Peanuts in the 90’s is nothing but a franchise. Sorry.

— 22:07 –rec.arts.animation– LAST –help:?–Top 31%–

I couldn’t disagree more. First, Schulz already has more money than he could
possibly know what to do with; if he lived to be 200 he couldn’t spend it all.
Secondly, as much as I like Breathed’s work, he’s nowhere near the professional
Schulz is. Every day for the past forty years, he’s arrived at his studio at
9 am, written, drawn, inked, and lettered a strip, all on his own without any
interruptions or assistants of any kind. Even through two serious heart
surgeries, he’s remained months ahead of schedule. No sabbaticals (like
Breathed, Larson, Watterson), no cashing out and handing many or all creative
chores over to an uncredited assistant (Jim Davis, Garry Trudeau). The guy
continues to do what he does because he loves his work. Period. By all
reports, Breathed stopped doing Bloom County because he got bored and didn’t
want the workload of a daily strip anymore. Nothing shameful about that, but
nothing noble about it, either.

As for the quality of the work…well, you’re entitled to your opinion of
course but IMHO your expectations are too high. I agree that in his prime,
Schulz used to play .800 ball; four strips out of five worth tacking up on
the bulletin board. Now, he’s batting around .350, in an industry where .200
is considered good and .100 will still keep you on the comics page (witness
Garfield and Family Circus).

Like I said, you’re entitled to your opinion, but while I can let comments
— 22:07 –rec.arts.animation– LAST –help:?–83%–

Like I said, you’re entitled to your opinion, but while I can let comments
like “‘Peanuts’ just isn’t any good any more” slide by, I can’t hear someone
call the strip nothing more than a franchise without commenting.

— Andy
—
………………………………………………………………….
/| | | | _ | \ Andy Ihnatko \ Discount
/-| |\ /| |/ | |\ |\ (| | |< () \ andyi@world.std.com \ Neurosurgery .........../................................................................ ========================== animation/best.of.net #28, from hmccracken, 529 chars, Sat Feb 5 18:16:38 1994 There is/are comment(s) on this message. -------------------------- TITLE: From rec.arts.disney (and not in particularly good taste)... TOP TEN DISNEY PRODUCTIONS IN TIMES SQUARE (For those of you who don't know, the theatre purchased by Disney to house BatB on Broadway is surrounded by pornographic movie theaters and girlie shows. 10. When You Wish Upon My Lap 9. Mr. Toad's Pantsless Ride 8. Space Mounting 7. Mickey and Minnie Doing It Live 6. Aladdin '94: "Rub This!" 5. It's A Large World 4. Mary's Poppin'! 3. Hookers of the Carribbean 2. Beauty and the Bobbitt 1. Free Willy ========================== animation/best.of.net #29, from davecolton, 282 chars, Sun Feb 6 10:29:41 1994 This is a comment to message 28. -------------------------- Stolen verbatim from David Letterman last Friday. The strip along 42nd street is something, as are the hustlers, crack dealers, hookers and IV drug users. Unless Disney is prepared to invest in other ventures to improve the environment, it will be a small island in a sea of evil. ========================== animation/best.of.net #30, from hmccracken, 817 chars, Sun Feb 6 13:07:56 1994 -------------------------- TITLE: From rec.arts.animation Mark A. Szorady: WOW! NEW ANIMATED MOVIE FOR 1994! LOOKS GOOD!6 Feb 1994 00:02 I just rented the movie ROOKIE OF THE YEAR (great movie BTW). At the beginning of the tape is a trailer for an upcoming animated feature being released by 20th Century fox for Christmas 1994. It's called THE PAGEMASTER and features the voices of Maccauley Culkin, Leonard Nimoy and Christopher Lloyd (the Pagemaster). Looks REALLY GOOD! Anybody have any more info? Which studio is putting this project together? Looks like a live action blend into animation type approach. Toonfully- Mark -- "EH, WATCH ME PASTE DIS PATHETIC PALOOKA WITH A POWERFUL, PARALYSING, PERFECT, PACHYDERMUS, PERCUSSION PITCH!" -Bugs (Ain't I a stinker?) Bunny Mark Szorady - dn043@cleveland.Freenet.Edu ========================== animation/best.of.net #31, from hmccracken, 1000 chars, Sun Feb 6 22:09:03 1994 -------------------------- TITLE: From rec.arts.comics.strips Arnold Ziffle: ANNOUNCING: New comic strip related magazine! 6 Feb 1994 18:28 This June, a new magazine about comic strips will debut, called _Hogan's Alley._ Its focus will be on both historical and contemporary strips; the first issue will feature a long interview with Lynn Johnston, of "For Better or Worse" fame, as well as articles on Milton Caniff and other great creators. Anyone interested in receiving a promotional brochure about the magazine, please reply to me with your postal address, and I'll see that you're put on the list. _Hogan's Alley_ will also feature things other comics magazines don't, such as crossword puzzles and trivia games. It will also have reader contests with prizes. It will be a quarterly, printed on white art paper with heavy covers, with articles by widely published critics and artists working in the field. ========================== animation/best.of.net #32, from hmccracken, 448 chars, Wed Feb 9 17:44:25 1994 -------------------------- TITLE: From rec.arts.disney Chris Courtois: The Lion King..Start counting! 7 Feb 94 21:22 There was a blurb in the Los Angeles Times the other day. Disney has officially announced the release dates for _The Lion King_. A limited run at the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood starts June 15, with nation-wide general release on June 24. Sorry, there was no information on limited runs in other parts of the country. -- Chris Courtois ========================== animation/best.of.net #33, from hmccracken, 23511 chars, Sat Feb 12 00:30:45 1994 -------------------------- from rec.arts.disney Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!MathWorks.Com!europa.eng.gtefsd.com!howland.reston.ans.net!cs.utexas.edu!usc!news.service.uci.edu!unogate!mvb.saic.com!esosun.css.gov!seismo!tanida From: tanida@gso.saic.com (Tom Tanida) Newsgroups: rec.arts.disney,rec.parks.theme,rec.answers,news.answers Subject: Disneyland FAQ Followup-To: rec.arts.disney Date: 10 Feb 1994 00:25:17 GMT Organization: FDC Headquarters, ToonTown Lines: 436 Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.Edu Message-ID: <2jbutd$qkh@seismo.CSS.GOV>
Reply-To: whoffman@ganymede.Jpl.Nasa.Gov
NNTP-Posting-Host: beno.css.gov
Summary: FAQ for Disneyland
Keywords: FAQ, Disneyland, Disney
Archive-name: disney-faq/disneyland
Last-modified: 05 Jan 1994

Originator: tanida@beno.CSS.GOV
Xref: news.delphi.com rec.arts.disney:29919 rec.parks.theme:599 rec.answers:3937 news.answers:17394

Disneyland Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
(Last update January 5, 1994)

This document is Copyright (c) 1994, by Walt Hoffman. It is intended
for public use, and may be redistributed freely in its original form.

CHANGES SINCE LAST POSTING: Updated operating hours, prices, entertainment,
attraction refurbishment schedule and closures, and What’s New? information.

HOW DO I FIND OUT MORE?
— Contact Disneyland Guest Relations at (714) 999-4565, (714) 999-4000 or
visit Disneyland’s City Hall. The address for Disneyland is 1313 Harbor
Boulevard, P.O. Box 3232, Anaheim, CA 92803-3232.
— For Walt Disney World (WDW) and other Disney information, see the larger
Disney FAQ posted regularly from Tom Tanida. Contact him directly at
tanida@forseti.css.gov and request the DisneyFAQ.

HOURS OF OPERATION: Here is the schedule information from an updated Disney
calendar. Everything is subject to change.

B: 8 am to midnight
C: 9 am to midnight
E: 9 am to 10 pm
G: 9 am to 7 pm
H: 8 am to 7 pm
I: 10 am to 6 pm
J: 9 am to 6 pm

This posting is a list of answers to frequently asked questions (FAQ) about
visiting Disneyland. All reasonable efforts have been made to make sure this
information is accurate, but I cannot be held responsible for errors or
schedule changes. This FAQ list is maintained by Walt Hoffman based upon the
original list from adrian@lexcel.com. For more general Disney information see
the Disney FAQ, which includes park information, film, movies, television, and
other Disney facts, maintained by Tom Tanida. The Disneyland FAQ is updated
periodically. Send suggestions and comments on *this* Disneyland FAQ to
whoffman@ganymede.jpl.nasa.gov.

Jan ’94 1C
2E 3I 4I 5I 6I 7I 8C
9E 10I 11I 12I 13I 14I 15C
16E 17G 18I 19I 20I 21I 22C
23E 24I 25I 26I 27I 28I 29C
30E 31I

Feb ’94 1I 2I 3I 4I 5C
6E 7I 8I 9I 10I 11G 12C
13E 14I 15I 16I 17I 18G 19C
20C 21E 22I 23I 24I 25G 26C
27E 28I

Mar ’94
1I 2I 3I 4C 5C
6E 7I 8I 9I 10I 11C 12C
13E 14G 15G 16G 17G 18C 19C
20C 21G 22G 23G 24G 25C 26C
27C 28C 29C 30C 31C

Apr ’94
1C 2C
3C 4C 5C 6C 7C 8C 9C
10E 11J 12J 13J 14J 15C 16C
17E 18J 19J 20J 21J 22C 23C
24E 25J 26J 27J 28J 29C 30C

May ’94
1E 2J 3J 4J 5J 6C 7C
8E 9J 10J 11J 12J 13C 14B
15E 16G 17G 18G 19G 20C 21B
22E 23G 24G 25G 26G 27C 28B
29B 30E 31G

CURRENT CONSTRUCTION AND REFURBISHMENT: (Call (714) 999-4565 for latest info)
Construction:
o A new “Indiana Jones”-themed attraction in Adventureland to open in 1995.
This will not be a roller coaster like EuroDisneyland’s but a unique ride
simulator on a moving track housed in a 4-story building.

Closures and Refurbishment:
o Golden Horseshoe Jamboree 1/3 to 1/7
o Monorail 1/3 to 1/7
1/10 to 1/14
o Space Mountain 1/10 to 1/28
o Casey Jr. Circus Train 1/10 to 2/4
o Storybook 1/10 to 2/4
o Mark Twain 1/31 to 3/11
o The Submarine Voyage 1/3 to 3/28
o Disneyland Railroad 1/3 to 4/4
o Jungle Cruise 1/3 to 4/29
o Star Tours 1/31 to 4/29
o Swiss Family Treehouse 4/3 to 4/29

o Mission to Mars, Motor Boats, and Town Square Cafe are closed permanently.
o The Main Street bank is no longer sponsored by Bank of America. It is now
the Main Street Information Center, which is no longer a function of Carefree
corner. However, a variety of banking services can still be found there with
ATM cash advances, credit card Disney Dollar advances, and foreign currency
exchanges. The bank also sells Disneyland passports, gift certificates,
postage stamps, ticket upgrades/downgrades, and even has a mailbox. The
Bank of America Automated Teller Machine is still available outside of
the park to the left of the Main Entrance.

Recent Miscellaneous Items (What’s New?):

MAIN STREET U.S.A.:
o Added a lifesize bronze statue, titled ‘Partners’, of Walt Disney with Mickey
Mouse in the hub encircled with smaller bronze statues of classic Disney
characters.
o Walt Disney mural and mirrored signs added inside the Crystal Arcade shop
near the stuffed toy wall.
o Penny Arcade has added a large, green, 1000-pound, acrylic elephant statue
(nicknamed ‘Penny’) near the entrance. It was originally designed for the
Candy Palace at EuroDisneyLand (EDL) but due to a change in color scheme
of the facility, she now resides at Disneyland.
ADVENTURELAND:
o Closures in the area to provide access for the Indiana Jones attraction,
and perform extensive refurbishment of the Jungle Cruise attraction.
o ‘Aladdin’s Oasis’, an entertainment restaurant which features magic, music,
song, and dance with characters from the movie, “Aladdin”. In addition to
the show, the food offerings are every bit as exotic. Food includes papadom
wafers w/chutney (a sort of a chips and salsa), fresh fruit, and main entree
(beef, chicken, or vegetable), raisin nut pilaf, and a special dessert.
Dinner menu has larger food portions. Children (11 and under) can choose
from cheese-filled pasta or chicken strips. Prices for adults/children
are $19.50/$14.50 for lunch and $24.50/$19.50 for dinner plus tax and
gratuity (15%). You must pay for your meal before entering the Oasis.
o Enchanted Tiki Room added a new digital sound system (although the
soundtrack is still the same.)
o Larger entrance to accommodate crowds from Fantasmic!
FRONTIERLAND:
o Casa Mexicana is no longer sponsored by Lawry’s. Slight changes in decor
and menu items (Mickey Mouse-shaped flan).
NEW ORLEANS SQUARE:
o Fantasmic! sound system improvements and a new viewing area (New Orleans
Square Promenade) around the Rivers of America. Promenade is tiered and
cobbled at an angle to provide better viewing of Fantasmic!
o Pet Cemetery added to the front yard of The Haunted Mansion.
o Pirates of the Caribbean added portraits of pirates along the walls of the
indoor queue area. Added previously were silhouettes of fighting pirates
located on the right side of the burning city scene. This scene was taken
from EuroDisneyland. Also, additional items were added in the bayou near
the boat loading area.
FANTASYLAND:
o Sleeping Beauty’s Castle walk-through now appears to be permanently open.
o It’s a Small World added a new digital sound system complete with a new
different soundtrack (with more instrumentals) inherited from EDL.
o Fantasia Gardens filled the space left from the removal of the Motor Boats.
o Window near Peter Pan’s Flight has children’s toys in it with audio of the
Darling children playing.
TOMMORROWLAND:
o Space Mountain is now sponsored by Federal Express.
o Space Place: Disneyland Birthday Parties on weekends. Two party plans are
available which include cake, ice cream, party favors, character photo
opportunities, lunch (with one of the plans), and park admission.
Call 714-520-5045 for details on Birthday Parties.
MICKEY’S TOONTOWN:
o Roger Rabbit’s Car Toon Spin ride in Mickey’s TOONTOWN is now open with the
Grand Opening on January 26, 1994 (Toontown’s one year anniversary).
o Toontown’s Jolly Trolley is jolly again. The trolley now bounces all around
(like it originally did) during it’s trip through Toontown (although only
one car per trolley instead of two).
OTHER:
o Merchandise Special Events Hotline 714-490-3935.
o Low Price Children’s menus for $2.99 at most table service and buffeteria
restaurants.
o Preferred Parking now available, located to the right of the Main Entrance.
o Disneyland Hotel Atari Adventure Video Arcade back to the “underwater”
location in the marina after refurbishment.

Future Plans and Rumors:

o Westcot Center, a west coast version of WDW Epcot Center, to be built in
the current Disneyland parking lot. A multi-level parking structure will be
constructed to the east. It will feature dedicated freeway ramps directly
connected into the parking structure and a peoplemover to transport guests
over to the parks. Expansion plans also include multiple hotels and other
entertainment venues. Environment impact study completed and approved by
the City of Anaheim but still battles remain in making Westcot a reality.
Details about the expansion are available at the Disneyland expansion
preview center located at the Disneyland Hotel (in the Plaza building,
above Maize’s Pantry) and is open Mondays and Wednesdays from 2pm to 8pm.

CURRENT PRICES: (US $) Current as of January 2, 1994
1-day 2-day 3-day Annual Premium Guided
=========================== Annual Tour
Adults 30.00 55.00 75.00 99.00 199.00 42.00
Children (3-11) 24.00 44.00 60.00 99.00 199.00 32.50
Seniors (60+) 24.00
Adults (MKC) 28.00 51.00 69.00 89.00 189.00
Children (MKC) 22.00 40.00 54.00 89.00 189.00
Parking 6.00/car
7.00/vans,campers,RV’s
12.00 Preferred Parking

****************************************
>From October 15 until June 30,1994, Southern California residents can buy a
special Disneyland passport for just $22 per person ($21 with the MKC card).
Must show proof of California residence within ZIP codes 90000 through 93599.
Passports are good for day of purchase only with a daily limit of 8 Passports
per individual with valid I.D..
****************************************
Annual passes have been changed with new prices. The Basic Annual Passport
is $99 per person and replaces the Seasonal Passport. It is valid for 338
days out of the year. Parking is not included but can be added for $25. The
cost of a one-day passport used on your visit can be applied towards the
purchase of an annual pass. The Basic Annual Passport is not valid on these
selected days:

Jan. 1, Feb. 19-20, Mar. 5,12,19,26, Apr. 2,9,16,23,30, May 7,14,21,28,29,
June 4,11,18,25, July 3, Sep. 4, Nov. 26, Dec. 25,30-31

The Premium Annual passport is $199 per person. Includes admission for all
365 days of the year, preferred parking, one year subscription to Disney News,
10% discount on most merchandise (not good for purchases under $5, Collectible
cels etc., Disney Dollars, and commemorative tickets), 15% discount on
Aladdin’s Oasis and Blue Bayou.

Current Seasonal Passports will be upgraded to Basic Annual Passports and
current Annual Passports will be upgraded to Premium Annual Passports. However,
only new or renewed Premium Annual Passports are eligible for the preferred
parking and Disney News subscription benefit.
These Annual Passport offers are available through March 31, 1994. Annual
passports vouchers are good 6 months after purchase. If your Annual passport
expires after that, it might be wise to purchase the voucher before the
program ends and redeem the voucher when the pass comes up for renewal.

Magic Kingdom Club (MKC) cardholders get admission discounts of about 7
percent. The MKC card discounts do NOT apply to merchandise at the park or
the Disneyland Hotel but will provide a 15% discount at Aladdin’s Oasis and
the Blue Bayou (2-5pm only). The card is good at The Disney Stores which
are usually found in shopping malls throughout the world. Merchandise from
the park or hotel can be ordered by calling 1-800-3-MAIL-33 (1-800-361-4533).

For ticket purchases, Disneyland accepts US. currency, VISA, American Express,
Master Card, traveler’s checks, Disney Dollars and personal checks with proper
identification. For some reason, Discover card is not honored at Disneyland
or the Disneyland Hotel. A Bank of America ATM is located to the left of the
Main Entrance. Tickets can also be purchased in advance at a Disney Store
or by mail with a check or money order in the exact amount to Disneyland
Admissions, 1313 Harbor Blvd., P.O. Box 3232, Anaheim, CA 92803-3232.

ENTERTAINMENT:
o ‘Fantasmic!’ performed on weekends and holidays through Summer 1994.
o ‘Aladdin’s Royal Caravan’ parades down Main Street on weekends and holidays
starting February 12, and daily for the Easter holidays.
o ‘Beauty & The Beast Live’ is performed at the Videopolis stage on selected
weekends and holiday periods starting February 13, 1994.
o ‘Aladdin’s Oasis’ entertainment restaurant open on selected weekends and
holidays starting February 12.

Entertainment schedules can be changed at any time. For the actual schedule
for a particular day, contact Disneyland or pick up a ‘Disneyland Today’
schedule when you visit the park.

SHOW RESERVATIONS:
Reservations for the Golden Horseshoe Jamboree have moved to the counter in
the exit lobby for the Walt Disney Story Featuring Great Moments with Mr.
Lincoln. Reservations are also taken for the Blue Bayou restaurant and
Aladdin’s Oasis, as well as restaurants at the Disneyland Hotel Resort.

WHERE SHOULD WE STAY?
Since I’m a local, I’ve haven’t stayed at many of the hotels in this area.
Here is a summary of the responses received so far. No guarantees. For more
information regarding lodging in the Anaheim area, contact the Anaheim Area
Visitor and Convention Bureau at 800 W. Katella Avenue, Anaheim, CA 92802,
or phone (714)999-8999.
DISNEYLAND HOTEL:
Official hotel for Disneyland including many shops and attractions and the
only hotel with a monorail station for transportation into the Magic Kingdom.
Since this is a Disney property, it provides the best “Disney experience”.
Hotel guests can have their park merchandise purchases delivered to their
rooms free of charge. Call 714-956-MICKEY for room reservations.
PAN PACIFIC:
Located next to Disneyland Hotel. Rooms are about half the price of the
Disneyland Hotel rooms and are large and quiet with comfortable beds but
somewhat dated decor. No refrigerators or microwave ovens in the room but
a restaurant is on-site and room service is available. A walkway provides
access to the Disneyland Hotel Resort’s shops and restaurants and Monorail
station for transportation into the Disneyland Park.
ANAHEIM HILTON AND TOWERS:
“Above average Hilton.” Small bathrooms (at least in non-tower rooms).
MARRIOTT:
“Typical Marriott.” Nobody said anything particularly good or bad.
BEST WESTERN STARDUST:
“Very spacious. Clean comfortable and reasonably priced. Walking distance,
but Disneyland shuttle is also available. No frills.”
RESIDENCE INN:
Very nice, apartment-like suites with complete, full-size kitchens and some
with fireplaces. Continental Breakfast included and free Disneyland shuttle
is available (also goes to the Disneyland Hotel if requested).

>From a Disney handout: “The Walt Disney Travel Company: Offers the finest in
family vacation travel. A `Disney Vacation’ is the ideals way to visit the
Magic Kingdom. Contact The Walt Disney Travel Company, P.O. Box 3232, Anaheim,
CA 92803 for information about travel arrangements and packages. Telephone
(714) 520-5050; Telex 655474.

WHAT’S THE BEST WAY TO SEE FANTASMIC!?
Come in from the Splash Mountain side as soon as they start clearing out
the crowds from the first show. If you come in from the other side, you’ll
be fighting 7,000-10,000 people who are exiting out through Frontierland. The
show lasts about 23 minutes and the entire area is darkened during the show
making travel through here a little tricky.

HOW DO I BEAT THE CROWDS?
Unlike WDW, Disneyland does not usually open the park early to deal with
incoming crowds. However, often on weekends Main Street will open 30 minutes
before the rest of the park. Some tour packages do offer a “Magic Morning”
package which allows participants to enter a themed area (usually Toontown)
one hour prior to opening to the general public.

In general, attendance is highest on Saturday, then Friday, Sunday, and
weekdays. Monday through Wednesday is probably the best day to visit to avoid
the large crowds.

Space Mountain is long most of the day and into the night, so first thing in
early morning is usually your best bet. Ditto Rocket Jets. Star Tours will
shorten significantly in the late evening (when the line is completely inside,
you’re in good shape). Splash Mountain is always busy (avoid it when backed
up beyond the Briar Patch shop) but is OK when it’s raining or right before
the park closes. An early-morning dash might also be a good idea (since it’s
at the back of the park). The Country Bear Jamboree is seldom crowded and it
a good place to visit if you ventured over to Splash Mountain and found a
long line.

After dinner, the rides in Fantasyland shorten a bit, but not much. Dumbo,
Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, and Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride will remain
popular throughout the entire day. Lines are usually short for Snow White’s
Scary Adventures, Pinocchio’s Daring Journey, and It’s a Small World. If the
line is long at all, skip it and try again later. Skyway line is almost
always shorter from Fantasyland to Tomorrowland than the other way around.

Matterhorn lines are usually the shortest during the parades. Normally there
are two separate lines, one for each bobsled run. But sometimes during the
parades they combine both lines into one and route it away from the parade
area. This gives the impression the wait is long but is really it is moving
twice as fast. The line splits up into two later on as you go through the
turnstile. Usually the bobsled run on the right has the shortest wait since
most people turn to the left as they enter the turnstile area.

PARADES
Crossing a parade route is possible but time consuming. Plan which side of
the park you want to be on during the parade and get there early. If you must
cross, consider using the Disneyland RR or the Skyway. Parade crossing zones
north of the Matterhorn are usually less congested than the one at the Hub.
Main Street is tough (though not impossible) to negotiate during popular
parades.

WHAT ABOUT SMALL CHILDREN?
Kids age 2 and under are free. Strollers may be rented, but some people
prefer to bring their own. Many attractions have height and age requirements,
with limit signs (‘You must be at least this tall…’) present at the entrance
to most attractions. They seem to be fairly picky about this. If you’re an
inch off, they won’t let you in.

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad 40+ inches
Space Mountain 40+ inches
Autopia (alone) 52+ inches
Autopia (w/ adult) 1+ years
Splash Mountain 3+ years and 40+ inches
Star Tours (alone) 7+ years
Star Tours (w/ adult) 3+ years
Matterhorn Bobsleds (alone) 7+ years
Matterhorn Bobsleds (w/ adult) 3+ years
Gadget’s Go-Coaster 3+ years
Goofy Bounce House 52 inches or under
Chip ‘N Dale’s Treehouse/Acorn Crawl 49 inches or under

Children under 7 are supposed to be accompanied by an adult on other
attractions as well (Snow White’s Scary Adventures, The Haunted Mansion, etc.)

HOW DO I GET A MAGIC KINGDOM CLUB (MKC) CARD AND WHAT DOES IT GET ME?
Check with your employer or credit union first, especially if you live near
any Disney attractions. If not, you can purchase a Gold MKC for $49. The
discounts are the same for both types of MKC cards. The address is Magic
Kingdom Club Gold Card, PO Box 3850, Anaheim, CA 92803-3850. Charge by calling
(714) 490-3200. Gold card members get a 2-year subscription to Disney News
and other paraphernalia. All MKC cards get you discounts at the Disney Stores
(except in the parks), on admission tickets, and on Disney, Delta Airlines,
and National Rent-a-Car packages.

IF I’VE BEEN TO THE MAGIC KINGDOM IN WDW, WHAT PARTS OF DISNEYLAND CAN I SKIP?
There are subtle differences in almost every corner of the park. If you’re a
Disney aficionado, you’ll want to check out everything. If you’re pressed for
time, you can skip the following:
o Haunted Mansion
o People Mover (more primitive, but seems to last longer)
o Monorail (unless you want to go to the Disneyland Hotel)
o Submarine Voyage (nearly identical to WDW’s except for order of presentation
and absence of little Jules Verne nuances)
o Skyway (useful for getting around, especially during parades)
o Captain EO (same movie as EPCOT Center)
o Circle Vision 360 (same as at WDW but also shows China film from EPCOT
during the early part of the day.)
o Autopia
o Small World (biggest difference is the exterior facade, including a special
presentation of the time every 15 minutes)
o Golden Horseshoe Jamboree (same show, different finale)

Tough calls: (similar, yet different and worth experiencing)
o Space Mountain
o Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
o Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln (a trimmed down version of the Hall of
Presidents) and The Walt Disney Story
o Splash Mountain (front/back seating instead of side-to-side, story not as
narrative.)
o Country Bear Playhouse (different show and DL has 2 theaters,)
o Disneyland Hotel resort complex (accessible from within the park by
monorail).

Whatever you do, don’t miss out on:
o Fantasmic!
o Star Tours (unless you’ve been on the one in Disney/MGM Studios)
o Matterhorn Bobsleds (2 different tracks, too)
o Jungle Cruise (my DL experiences have far surpassed the one at WDW)
o Pirates of the Caribbean (parts are identical, but DL is better)
o Disney Art Gallery (above Pirates)
o Disneyana Shop on Main Street (features cels and other limited editions)
o Disneyland RR between Tomorrowland & Main Street for Grand Canyon and
Primeval World dioramas (not quite as impressive as EPCOT’s World of Energy
dinosaurs)
o Mickey’s ToonTown (new land)
o Roger Rabbit’s Cartoon Spin ride (Toontown)

The Disneyland parade route is different than WDW. North of Main Street,
Disneyland parades proceed north along the east side of the Castle up to
It’s a Small World. WDW MK parades turn at the Hub, heading through Liberty
Square and Frontierland.

END of FAQ

==========================
animation/best.of.net #34, from hmccracken, 6919 chars, Sat Feb 12 22:06:58 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 12 Feb 1994 22:05:36 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9402122205.memo.79851@BIX.com>
Subject: from rec.arts.disney

Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!das-news.harvard.edu!husc-news.harvard.edu!hsdndev!news.bbn.com!seismo!tanida
Newsgroups: rec.arts.disney
Subject: Disney to create new ‘made for video’ movies
Message-ID: <2je927$bnt@seismo.CSS.GOV>
From: tanida@seismo.CSS.GOV (Tom Tanida)
Date: 10 Feb 1994 21:30:47 GMT
Organization: FDC Headquarters, ToonTown
NNTP-Posting-Host: beno.css.gov
Lines: 105

News article and press release follow.

-Tom

RTf 02/10 1414 Disney to produce made-for-video films

BURBANK, Calif., Feb 10 (Reuter) – Walt Disney Co said its home video unit
will begin to produce and release made-for-video films under a new banner, “Walt
Disney Home Video Presents.”
The first film to be released under the new banner will be “The Return of
Jafar,” a sequel to the animated film “Aladdin,” which will be released May 20.
“Under the Walt Disney Home Video Presents banner, we intend to deliver a
stream of unique, quality productions that will include original as well as
Disney character-driven programs,” Ann Daly, president of Buena Vista Home
Video, said.
REUTER

OTC 02/10 1132 Disney announces “The Return of Jafar”

BURBANK, CALIF. (FEB. 10) BUSINESS WIRE – Feb. 10, 1994–Charting a new course
for the entertainment industry, Walt Disney Home Video announced its first
original, made-for-video, animated movie “The Return of Jafar.”
This all-new ALADDIN-inspired adventure is being released under a new banner
called “Walt Dis ney Home Video Presents.” This new line of Disney video
releases will feature brand new original adventures as well as programs based on
popular Disney characters — that will all make their world premiere only on
video.
Available on May 20, “The Return of Jafar” will be supported by the most
comprehensive marketing campaign ever created for a made-for-video product and
priced at a collectible $22.99 SRP. M.A.P. is $14.75. Prebook is April 5.
“We believe there is a great opportunity in producing and releasing Disney
product exclusively for video, and we’re pleased to announce this new video
category for Disney,” said Ann Daly, president of Buena Vista Home Video.
“Under the ‘Walt Disney Home Video Presents’ banner, we intend to deliver a
stream of unique, quality productions that will include original as well as
Disney character-driven programs.”
Research shows that many of the 30 million Disney-video households are now
demanding more high-quality video programming for their families. In fact,
consumer demand for more ALADDIN adventures is at an all-time high, demonstrated
by the overwhelming popularity of the ALADDIN characters and franchise that have
made the feature the highest-grossing film, video and licensed property ever
from the Walt Disney Co.
With Disney no longer selling the original ALADDIN movie on video after April
30, 1994, “The Return of Jafar” will offer retailers additional profitability
from continued purchases of the ALADDIN characters on video.
The extensive marketing effort for “The Return of Jafar” will offer Disney
video consumers up to $10 in rebates, with additional purchases. This is
provided by two separate $5 rebate opportunities through tie-ins with Pillsbury
and Mattel toys. (Please see fact sheet for further details).
Comparable in magnitude to the marketing activities for PINOCCHIO and 101
DALMATIANS, plans also call for an extensive slate of national consumer
television and print advertising and a wide variety of impactful
point-of-purchase materials. (Further Disney marketing details will be
forthcoming).
In “The Return of Jafar,” all of the characters from ALADDIN — Aladdin,
Jasmine, the Genie, Abu, Iago, the Sultan and Jafar — are back in an
action-packed story filled with humor, romance and five great new show-stopping
songs.
The movie picks up where ALADDIN ended, with the evil sorcerer Jafar trapped
inside a magic lamp. When a clumsy thief inadvertently releases Jafar from the
lamp, the all-powerful “genie Jafar” plots his revenge against Aladdin.
The adventure that follows takes viewers from the depths of a fiery lava pit
to the heights of a thundering waterfall — it’s up to Aladdin and his friends
to foil Jafar and save the Sultan’s kingdom.
Walt Disney Home Video is distributed by Buena Vista Home Video Inc., the
recognized video industry leader for six consecutive years. A subsidiary of The
Walt Disney Co., Buena Vista Home Video is the worldwide marketing, sales and
distribution company for all Walt Disney, Touchstone, Hollywood Pictures, Jim
Henson and Buena Vista videocassettes. -0- T
THE RETURN OF JAFAR
Pillsbury and Mattel Toys Fact Sheet For consumers to obtain the
Pillsbury $5 mail-in refund, they need simply purchase “The Return of Jafar” and
mail in the mail-in certificate/proof-of-purchase from the videocassette (found
inside the videocassette box) and four UPC code labels and cash-register
receipts from the following selected Pillsbury dry baking products: Pillsbury
Plus Cake Mix; Pillsbury Ready To Spread Frosting; Pillsbury Deluxe Brownies;
Pillsbury Deluxe Bars; and Pillsbury Bundt Cake Mixes. Further details can be
found inside “The Return of Jafar” videocassette boxes and at participating
retail locations. The offer is valid from May 17 through June 30, 1994.
Consumers will be alerted to the availability of “The Return of Jafar” and the
$5 mail-in refund through a free-standing insert to approximately 51 million
households on May 22. As well, consumers will be drawn to eye-catching joint
displays and point-of-purchase materials in appropriate retail outlets. Mattel
Toys: Separately from or in addition to the Pillsbury mail-in refund offer,
consumers can obtain a $5 mail-in refund from Mattel Toys by simply mailing in a
completed mail-in refund certificate/video proof-of-purchase found inside “The
Return of Jafar” videocassette, the video proof-of-purchase and one UPC code
label from any of the following selected Mattel toys: Aladdin Waterjewel Doll;
Jasmine Waterjewel Doll; Hot Wheels Gforce Double Barrell Stunt Set; and Aviva
Air Rocket. Further details can be found inside “The Return of Jafar”
videocassette boxes and at participating retail locations. The offer is valid
from May 17 through June 30, 1994. Consumers will be drawn to eye-catching joint
displays and point-of-purchase materials in appropriate retail outlets. T
–30–DEM/la
CONTACT: Buena Vista Home Video Inc., Burbank
Steve Feldstein, 818/562-3705
Tania Steele, 818/562-3755
KEYWORD: CALIFORNIA
INDUSTRY KEYWORD: RETAIL ENTERTAINMENT
REPEATS: New York 212-575-8822 or 800-221-2462; Boston 617-330-5311 or
800-225-2030; SF 415-986-4422 or 800-227-0845; LA 310-820-9473

==========================
animation/best.of.net #35, from hmccracken, 600 chars, Mon Feb 14 19:02:16 1994
————————–
TITLE: from rec.arts.animation
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Help the Critic!!!!!!

There was an article in Variety that said that ABC is thinking seriously
of cancelling “the Critic”. Please help keep the series on for the rest
of the season!!! Write ABC a Critic fan letter!!!!!!!

ABC
2040 Avenue of the Stars
Los Angeles,CA 90067
Attn: ABC primetime

You can make the world a better place if you do!! 🙂

—
I am the Red-Haired She-Devil| shedevil@netcom.com
I am NOT a movie |
I am NOT a book | I am NOT Anne P. Mitchell, Esq.
I am NOT A LAWYER |

==========================
animation/best.of.net #36, from hmccracken, 6861 chars, Wed Feb 16 01:53:00 1994
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,alt.tv.animaniacs
Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!yale.edu!spool.mu.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!cs.utexas.edu!utnut!helios.physics.utoronto.ca!pegasus.astro.utoronto.ca!tower
From: tower@pegasus.astro.utoronto.ca (The Water Tower)
Subject: Animaniacs Future Episode List – new episodes!
Kontrol: rmgroup alt.konfig
Message-ID: <9402020330.AA10272@pegasus.astro.utoronto.ca>
Followup-To: alt.tv.animaniacs
Summary: Will we *ever* see “Meet Minerva”? Can we wait another two weeks?
Originator: root@helios.physics
Keywords: water towers do not use keywords
Sender: news@helios.physics.utoronto.ca (News Administrator)
Organization: Sir Benjamin’s Musical Peglegs
Date: Wed, 2 Feb 1994 03:30:29 GMT
Lines: 157
Xref: news.delphi.com rec.arts.animation:16918 alt.tv.animaniacs:2619

\\ //
================================
AFEL940131 ANIMANIACS FUTURE EPISODE LIST weeks 21-23
================================
// \\

===============================================================================

And now it is time for another sibling imprisoning edition of the AFEL.
Drooling Minerva Mink fanboys will probably have to be restrained and sedated
after reading the following:

There have been rumors floating around that “Meet Minerva”, the other short
besides “Moon Over Minerva” to star Minerva Mink, had been removed from the
series by the Fox BS&P. These rumors have now been…

proven to be false. 🙂

BTW, “Meet Minerva” was animated by Startoons, and not TMS as had been
previously reported.

===============================================================================

Here is the schedule for broadcasts of Animaniacs on the Fox Network over the
next three weeks. New episodes are marked with an “N” after the show number.

Date 1994 Fox # Names of Segments

Mon Jan 31: AN109 Wally Llama / Where Rodents Dare
Tue Feb 1: AN139 Smitten With Kittens / White Gloves
Wed Feb 2: AN147 Video Review / When Mice Ruled the Earth
Thu Feb 3: AN148 Mobster Mash / Ice Breakers
Fri Feb 4: AN106 Temporary Insanity / Operation Lollypop / What Are We?

Mon Feb 7: AN112 Garage Sale of the Century / West Side Pigeons
Tue Feb 8: AN108 Randy Beaman Marshmallow / The Big Candy Store /
. Randy Beaman Feetlick / Bumbie’s Mom
Wed Feb 9: AN144 The Senses Song / The World Can Wait / Kiki’s Kitten
Thu Feb 10: AN151N The Warners and the Beanstalk / Fronteir Slappy
Fri Feb 11: AN152N Ups and Downs / The Brave Little Trailer / Yes, Always

Mon Feb 14: AN153N Drive-Insane / Girlfeathers / I’m Cute
. ******************
Tue Feb 15: AN154N Brain Meets Brawn / ** MEET MINERVA **
. ******************
Wed Feb 16: AN155N Gold Rush / A Gift of Gold / Dot’s Quiet Time
Thu Feb 17: AN156N Schnitzelbank / The Helpinky Formula /
. Les Boutons et le Ballon / Kung Boo
Fri Feb 18: AN157N Of Course You Know, This Means Warners / Up a Tree /
. Wakko’s Gizmo

Mon Feb 21: 3 more new episodes in February
. 5 others in May

===============================================================================

Here is a listing of the summaries of the segments that will be shown:
(These were obtained from “Toon Magazine” and posted to a.t.a by Ron Dippold.)

The Warners and the Beanstalk (406-654)
It’s the Warners vs. Ralph the giant

Frontier Slappy (406-837)
In frontier days, Daniel Boone decides Slappy’s tree house would
make an excellent door for his new cabin.

Ups and Downs (406-660)
Dr. Scratchansniff and Wakko get stuck in an elevator. While the
inept Warner Bros. Maintenance Crew tries to fix things, Wakko tries
to entertain…

The Brave Little Trailer (406-748)
This is the tale of a little trailer home who outwits scores of
fierce seasonal cyclones for whom his newer, sleeker, hightech
trailer neighbors prove no match.

Yes, Always (406-859)
In this rare behind the scenes look, we see Brain in the recording
studio pushing his voice talents, and the people around them, to
the limit.

===============================================================================

Drive-Insane (406-656)
At the local drive-in, Dr. Scratchansniff’s date with Frau
Hossenfeffer is disrupted when the Warners show up.

Girlfeathers (406-833)
The Goodfeathers’ girlfriends, Sasha, Lana, and Kiki are off on a
girls-only trip, which the guys misinterpret as a feminine scheme
to play hard to get.

I’m Cute (406-756)
Dot explains her lasting appeal in this musical number.

Brain Meets Brawn (406-849)
In 19th century England, Pinky and Brain see Dr. Jekyll turn into
Mr. Hyde. Brain vows to use that savage strength himself and stop
Big Ben at 4 pm, creating an infinite tea time and an empire that’s
easy to rule. These premises are hilarious…

Meet Minerva (406-627)
A dippy dachsund hunting dog is sent out to bring back the pelt
of beautiful Minerva Mink

Gold Rush (406-854)
The Warners go west to mine gold and run up against Claimjump Jake,
a crotchety old prospector who doesn’t like competition.

A Gift of Gold (406-839)
Written by Steven Spielberg! A lovely piece of golden wrapping
paper is cast out to the cold, cold world only to receive a
heart-warming and important lesson of life.

Dot’s Quiet Time (406-754)
In this musical episode, Dot breaks away for some peace and quiet.

Schnitzelbank (406-658)
The Warners are in Germany to learn the international friendship
song, with the help of jolly Prof. Otto von
Schnitzelpusskrankengescheitmeyer.

The Helpinki Formula (406-655)
Brain develops a shrinking formula that will shrink humans to his
size. But how to distribute it? An infomercial! He and Pinky
present the Smallerizer Plus System on TV, with the help of celebrity
guests. But the potion has an unfortunate side effect…

Les Boutons et le Ballon
No known description.

Kung Boo (406-650A)
Karate champion Moo Goo Gal Boo is actually… guess who!

Of Course You Know, This Means Warners (406-855)
A rare World War II vintage short made by the Warners for the
patriotic purpose of persuading ordinary folks on the homefront to
do their bit collecting scrap for Uncle Sam.

Up a Tree (406-628)
When Rita is frightened up a tree, she’s too scared to climb back
down.

Wakko’s Gizmo (406-856)
Wakko demonstrates his latest invention – the ultimate Rube Goldberg
device.

===============================================================================

—
You expected a water tower to have a .signature? Ha!

==========================
animation/best.of.net #37, from davemackey, 135 chars, Wed Feb 16 23:18:03 1994
This is a comment to message 36.
————————–
Incidentally, “A Gift Of Gold” was NOT written by Steven Spielberg. It was
credited to Nick Hollander.
–Dave

==========================
animation/best.of.net #38, from hmccracken, 3418 chars, Thu Feb 17 18:27:36 1994
————————–
From rec.arts.animation
Subject: BOSKO Revival Campaign vs. Nickelodeon

Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!newshost.williams.edu!newshost.williams.edu!not-for-mail
From: 96dag@williams.edu (David A Gerstein)
Newsgroups: alt.tv.tiny-toon,alt.tv.animaniacs,rec.arts.animation
Subject: BOSKO Revival Campaign vs. Nickelodeon
Date: 13 Feb 1994 15:59:24 -0500
Organization: Williams College, Williamstown MA
Lines: 64
Message-ID: <2jm4bcINNdch@bigbird.cc.williams.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: bigbird.cc.williams.edu
Xref: news.delphi.com alt.tv.tiny-toon:10604 alt.tv.animaniacs:3712 rec.arts.animation:17209

Dear Folks,

Zach Baker said the following on the newsgroup
alt.tv.nickelodeon:

“When Nick started carrying Looney Tunes, I thought it was
great that they would mix up these amazing B&W cartoons you never get
to see with the standard fare. Especially so the Bosko and Honey
cartoons, which were hilarious.”

I agree 100%. I’ve asked many, many people — particularly
little kids, who Nick obviously worships the purchasing power of —
whether they liked Bosko and Honey as much as I, and all of them did.

“Then a year or so later,”

Actually five years — Nick ran Bosko from 1987 to 1992,
stopping after one month of the 1992 season when they “reformatted”
the LT show.

“Nick apparently decided they were too monotonous (ha ha),
and not only took them off, but made a point of saying they were
gone, in a commercial I saw.”

Actually, what they did was pare the shows down by one, so
that they could show the cartoons complete while leaving enough time
to have LOTS of commercials. The pre-1992 shows had four cartoons,
usually at least one of which would be cut slightly to make it
shorter. None of them had all the main or end titles. Starting in
1992, the cartoons had full main and end titles, and were all uncut
(unless they wanted to remove ethnic slurs). But there were only
three cartoons per show now, and Nick obviously felt that people
would prefer the third cartoon to be a post-1960 piece of drek than
a pre-1935 BW cartoon.

Actually, once in a *great* while, Nickelodeon *will* show a
BW cartoon now, but it’s *always* a Buddy, *never* a Bosko.
Nickelodeon has something agaist Bosko in particular, it seems. And
they still brag about it in their advertisements. “And *NO* Boskos!
Sorry, Bosko.” I don’t think Warners has seen that ad… they would
certainly take offense at this insult to their product.

Buddy, IMHO, is very, very bad. They tried to recapture the
spirit of Bosko after Harman and Ising left, and couldn’t use Bosko
himself because H/I still owned him, so they produced these time
fillers. Buddy cartoons are so inferior to Bosko cartoons that they
make me gag, with the exception of maybe three or four (such as
“Buddy’s Beer Garden,” which is pretty good, I’ll admit). I’m glad
that Porky came along to free us from Buddy…

As for Bosko, it’s clear that nothing short of a lot of
letters will bring him back to Nickelodeon. That, BTW, is the *only*
place to see him, because Nickelodeon has an exclusive contract with
Warners on nearly every bw WB cartoon that hasn’t been colorized, and
they retain that contract to this day.

So please send me your E-mailed letters in favor of Bosko.
When I get enough, I’ll print them out and see if I can get them to
the right person at Nick.

SEND PRO-BOSKO LETTERS TO: David.A.Gerstein@Williams.edu

==========================
animation/best.of.net #39, from hmccracken, 21847 chars, Fri Feb 18 13:43:21 1994
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
Subject: from alt.tvn.muppets

From: walpolr@emerald.CS.ORST.EDU (Rebecca Walpole)

Here is the official muppet FAQ which shall be posted from time to time
by me (hopefully every couple weeks). I hear from Bob that there is an
update in the works–maybe by next posting. (No pressure Bob 🙂

P.S. Happy Valentine’s day, everyone!

Rebecca (poster of the FAQ)
walpolr@research.cs.orst.edu——————–“Have a popever, froggy!”

————–

ALT.TV.MUPPETS FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS VERSION 3.1
Assembled and edited in October, 1993, by Bob Pedersen from material supplied
by many others.

Mail your comments to me (Bob Pedersen) at robert-c-pedersen@uiowa.edu;
however, those submitting questions unaccompanied by attempts at answers are
in danger of becoming an assistant to Dr. Bunson Honeydew. We wouldn’t want
_that_, would we? ;^)

Note: I do not plan on issuing updates solely to reflect additions to the cast
lists unless I’ve forgotten someone on the order of, say, Grover.

Have fun!

WHAT’S NEW IN VERSION 3.1?

There has been a change in the response to the issue of the sexuality of
Bert and Ernie. This was possible because of new information. There is
also a new address for the archive site, and a typo fix or two. (I hope
I’ve fixed more typos than I’ve created!)

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction
Acknowledgments
Subjects We are Tired of Hearing About
Q1. Is Ernie (or any other muppet) dying? (Abstract: NO.)
Q2. Which muppeteer played …?
Q3. What are some favorite episodes of the Muppet News Flash?
Q4. What is the name of that character on Sesame Street or the
Muppet Show?
Q5. Where can I find the Muppet Show on North American television?
Q6. Who are the human actors on Sesame Street?
Q7. What were some of the Monsterpiece Theater episodes?

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to alt.tv.muppets, the place where you can take a break from
your life of insane solemnity and engage in some serious zaniness!

This frequently asked questions file exists to serve two purposes:
one, to answer some questions often posed by persons new to the
group, and two, to give its readership a few minutes of fun.

This FAQ is archived at cathouse.org. in the directory
/pub/cathouse/television/muppets. Also at that site
are William Sherman’s wonderful Muppetography (occasionally posted
to alt.tv.muppets) and a file of song lyrics.

Although it is already recommended in the Muppetography, I want to
strongly urge you to check your local library for the following
book:
Finch, Christopher. Of Muppets and Men: The Making of the Muppet
Show. c.1981 by Henson Associates, Inc. Alfred A Knopf.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The following persons, listed in no particular order, are made honorary
members of the Electric Mayhem for their important contributions to this FAQ.
May I be sat on by Sweetums if I left anyone out.

Jerry Alexandros Devjani Mishra Simon Rooney
Chris Beck Rebecca Alice Metz Steven Newman
Charles Evans Bryan Van Blaricom Brian J. Stokes
Nicolle (Born to Recal) Sean P. Donahue Christopher Robin
Philip N. Whitman Andrew Wolf Jean-o
Max Ziff P. J. Geraghty Angela I.
Davina Tung Kriss A. Hougland Steven Newman
Laura Wasko Lore A. Guilmartin Steve Kaliszewski
Erika Lindsay Reuven Wiliam Goren Tim Wright
Benjamin R. Pierce Russell Schulz Scott McGuire
Todd Liebenow B.J. Hughes Alex Rudd
Douglass Glen Whitman
Thanks are also due to William Sherman for arranging for the FTP site.

SUBJECTS WE ARE TIRED OF HEARING ABOUT

The chief of these is the question as to whether Bert and Ernie are
homosexuals. This is a question which has raised very strong feeling on
both sides. Having recently spoken with the folks at Children’s Television
Workshop, I can pass along their firm view that Ernie and Bert are _not_ in
fact gay. CTW’s statements on other occasions indicate that the Bert and
Ernie are puppets, not people (“they don’t even have legs!” one person was
told), and do not have sexual aspects at all. Whether or not you agree with
this, please DO NOT post on this issue: it has been run into the ground
repeatedly. Rest assured that your views, whatever they may be, have been
stated by others.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Q1. IS ERNIE (or any other muppet) DYING? [Abstract: No.]

Several times a year, this group receives a panic-stricken posting
from a new reader who has heard the rumor that the beloved Sesame
Street character Ernie is dying. It is even rumored that Jim
Henson’s will requires that Ernie no longer be used after his death.
This is not the case: several members of this group have gone so
far as to contact Henson Productions and Children’s Television
Workshop, and been ABSOLUTELY ASSURED that this is not the case.

For those of you who need it from a published source, here is a
quote from “Surely, no one believes the rat in the soda bottle
story,” written by Rachel Jones of Knight-Ridder Newspapers. (Des
Moines [Iowa] Register, Dec.1, 1992, p.3T. Thanks to Lore
Guilmartin for sending it along.) The story concerns ‘urban
legends,’ stories that spread like wildfire with little or no basis
in fact.

…But some rumors are just too bizarre to figure.
One of the most recent urban myths is one claiming
that Ernie, Bert’s roommate on “Sesame Street”, is
dying of leukemia.

“Oh no, not again,” groaned Ellen Morgenstern,
spokeswoman for Children’s Television Workshop in
New York, when asked about Ernie’s health. “Ernie
is not dying of AIDS; he’s not dying of leukemia.
Ernie is a puppet.” The Ernie stories have
circulated for the past year, Morgenstern says. But
the furor is sort of flattering.

“It’s amazing that a rumor like this could send
shock waves throughout the country,” Morgenstern
says. “It’s an indication of how much Ernie is
loved.

So, no: ERNIE IS NOT DYING!

Recently, this urban legend has been sprouting variations as to the manner of
impending death or the muppet involved. The answer remains the same: Sesame
Street has no plans to kill off any of the muppets.

Q2. WHO WAS THE VOICE BEHIND … ?

Thanks to Erika Lindsay for sending me this much improved listing!

According to “The Muppet Performers” in the Muppet Show Book, the list of
actors is as follows(circ.1978):
Frank Oz as: Miss Piggy
Fozzie Bear
Animal
Sam the Eagle
Marvin Suggs
George the Janitor
Jerry Nelson as: Sgt. Floyd Pepper
Robin the Frog
J.P. Grosse
Dr. Julius Starngepork
Uncle Deadly
Crazy Harry
Richard Hunt as:
Scooter
Statler
Beaker
Sweetums
Janice
Dave Goelz as: The Great Gonzo
Dr. Bunsen Honeydew
Muppy
Zoot
Erin Ozker as: Hilda
(and sometimes Janice)
John Lovelady as: Nigel
(and sometimes Crazy Harry)
Jim Henson as: Kermit the Frog
Rowlf
Dr.Teeth
Capt. Link Hogthrob
The Newsman
The Swedish Chef (with Frank Oz)
Waldorf
Mahna Mahna

plus, they all played assorted chickens, cows, pigs, dogs, whatnots,
Frackles, Koozebanes, Snowths, Heaps, and Unnamable Hairy Things

One addition to Erika’s contribution — Kermit the Frog’s voice is now done by
Steve Whitmire.

Q3. WHAT ARE SOME FAVORITE EPISODES OF THE “MUPPET NEWS FLASH?”
(mostly contributed by Max Ziff)

The Old Lady who Lived in a Shoe

Kermit sets out to interview her, but first talks to a young lady who
lives in a glove (“Does this look like a shoe to you?”), who also has
a rhyme: “There was a young lady who lived in a glove, if you came to
her door, she’d give you a shove! Now get out of here, frog!”
Kermit then speaks to an old man who lives in a hat (“He could bark
like a dog, and meow like a cat”). He eventually meets the old
lady, who makes him take care of her children.

Humpty Dumpty

Kermit begins by interviewing one of the King’s horses (played,
essentially, by Buster), who feeds him a load of puns, which Kermit
jots down on his notepad: “Well, he’s a good egg.” “Uh huh, good
egg.” “Not what you’d call hard-boiled.” “Uh-huh, not hard-boiled.”
He then interviews Humpty Dumpty, who’s safely on top of his wall.
Eventually, Kermit gives him a hearty congratulatory slap on the
back,and, of course, he falls off. Sirens go off, horses and men show up,
and there’s a lot of talking and confusion. We hear the voice of the
horse from earlier talking with a man: “What happened?” “It was the
frog that did it.” “Somebody get the frog out of here!”

Old MacDonald had a Farm

Old MacDonald (terrific Scottish accent), has become wealthy and
famous from his song, and in order to repay the animals who made him
what he is, has converted the Farm into a health club. I remember two
aristocratic pigs, “I’ll meet you down by the pool, Muffy.” They do a
version of the song with a stretch, stretch here and a jump, jump
there, and Kermit becomes exhausted (I believe — can anyone help me
on this?).

Peter Piper

Kermit goes to Piper’s pickle patch and meets Papa Piper, Piper Piper, all
sorts of Pipers except Peter. Eventually Kermit is covered with peppers.

There’s also one from the Muppet Show where he broadcasts from the
planet Koozbane, with the Koozbanian Foob, the most sought after food on the
planet. Kermit’s asking him how they survive. The answer is
“evolution”, as the Foob turns more and more into a Kermit look-alike,
and it ends in a fight between who’s the real one. (Thanks to Rebecca Alice
Metz.)

Cinderella at the Ball

Kermit asks Cinderella to describe her outfit, and the Prince
(brilliantly played by Guy Smiley) breaks in with a yuppie accent:
“I’d be glad to. I’m wearing a sky blue velvet jumpsuit with ruffles
at the neck and cuffs … the crown that dad gave me, with jewels and
sparkly things …” Meanwhile Cinderella realizes it’s almost
midnight and leaves; after he’s through describing his ensemble, the
Prince finds her slipper (“Heigh ho, what’s this? A glass slipper!”).
He ends up dropping and breaking the slipper (“Easy come, easy go”),
forgeting about “Cindy”, and soliciting dances from other ballgoers
“The prince is free to dance! Who wants to dance with the prince?
Get your tickets! … Hey, Frog, you wanna dance? No, I suppose not.”
(Thanks to Steve Kaliszewski)

George Washington’s Father’s Cherry Orchard

Kermit interviews George Washington’s father about the famous cherry
tree incident; meanwhile little George keeps chopping down trees, and
telling the truth after each one: “I cannot tell a lie, I chopped down
that cherry tree with my little hatchet”. Kermit keeps count of the
trees (“Let’s see, there were 1776 trees, now there are 1775 trees;
1776 take away 1 is 1775”) and George’s father regrets giving him the
hatchet (“I wish we’d gotten him that wagon instead”). He continues
discussing his son’s peculiarities with Kermit (“Chop, chop, chop;
truth, truth, truth. Chop, chop, chop; truth, truth, truth.”),
finally explaining that there’s one thing the boy has to learn: “TO
STOP CHOPPING DOWN MY CHERRY TREES! C’mere, George! Gimme that
hatchet!” The 1774th tree falls on Kermit, who returns us to our
regularly scheduled program with cherries and sticks on his head.
(Thanks to Steve Kaliaszewski)

Q4. WHAT WAS THE NAME OF THAT CHARACTER ON SESAME STREET OR THE
MUPPET SHOW?

The Sesame Street lists included here were compiled by Charles Evans
out of the responses to a list posted by Bob Pedersen. Many people
offered suggestions: most of these contributors are listed in the
introduction to this FAQ.

These lists are not complete, nor do I intend them to be. Mr. Evans
IS attempting a complete list — see the newsgroup. [I, personally,
would rather take over for Sisyphus, although I suspect Gonzo would
find that role rather amusing. 8^)] This list is the first
posted version of Mr. Evans’ list, with some minor modifications.
Please note: Version 3.0 saw a few removals from this list, mostly unnamed
charaters from Sesame Street, as well as a few additions.

SESAME STREET CHARACTERS
—————————

HUMANS
———

Bob : Music teacher
Buffy : Past; played by Buffy St. Marie
David : Deceased
Fanny : Old SS kid, Kermit interview
Gina : Teenager
Gordon : Married to Susan: more than one actor
Hiroshi : Artist
John-John : Frequently used child
Koty : Child of Buffy and Sheldon
Linda : Deaf; Librarian; owns Barkley
Luis : Married to Maria
Maria : Married to Luis
Miles : Adopted son of Susan and Gordon
Mr. Mcintosh : Past; owned fruit stand on wheels
Mr.Hanford : Currently own’s Hooper’s store
Mr.Hooper : Deceased; ran grocery store
Nina the Nice : Oscar’s alter ego in a n’hood of
grouches
Olivia : Gordon’s sister
Sabian : Teenager
Shawla : Old SS kid, Kermit interview
Sheldon : Married to Buffy
Susan : Married to Gordon
Wanda the Word Fairy : New, in a few skits

MUPPETS
———-
Alice Snuffleupagus : Mr. Snuffleupagus’s sister
Amazing Mumford : Magician; Grover often volunteered
Angry Guy : Sherlock Hemlock lookalike
Assorted Cows : Often used a backup singers
Baby Martian
Barkley : Large dog: owned by Linda
Bart : Bert’s brother
Bert
Betty Lou
Biff : Construction worker: partner of
Sully
Big Bird
Boss : Lefty’s boss with the Golden “An”
Brad : Bert’s nephew
Bruno : Carries Oscar’s can
Buster : Forgetful Jones’ horse
Captain Vegetable : Guy Smiley lookalike
Charlie : as in “Hey, Charlie, a number 4!”
Cinderella :
Clementine : Forgetful Jones’ girlfriend
Cookie Monster
Don Music
Dr. Noble Price : Scientist
Elmo
Ernie
Farley : Little boy
Ferlengheti : Beat Poet
Flo Bear
Forgetful Jones : Cowboy; lives up to name
Frank and Stein : The two-headed monster
Gina : Muppet; “Gina play”
Gladys : Cow
Grover
Grover’s Mommy
Grungetta : Oscar’s girlfriend
Guy Smiley : What was his real name again? Lennie …
Guy from Alphabet Chat : Name???
Harry Monster
Harvey Kneeslapper : Practical joker
Herbert Birdsfoot
Hoots the Owl : Plays saxophone
How Now Brown Cow and The Moo Wave : Cow singing group
Humpty Dumpty : News Flash! star
Jackman Wolf : Guy with yellow hair and glasses, sung
Kermit the Frog
Large Blue Wolf : In most scenes with the wolf
Lefty : Shady guy: sells things to Ernie
Little Bird
Little Jerry and the Monotones : “Telephone Rock”
Little Red Riding Hood : Red is liberated or non-traditional
Merryl Sheep
Miss Muffett : News Flash! star
Mr. Snuffleupagus
Mrs. Suffleupagus : Mr. S’s mother
Old MacDonald : Had a Farm
Oscar the Grouch
Oscar’s little niece
Oscar’s mommy
H. Ross Parrot
Pat Playjacks : America’s _Second_ Favorite Game Show Host
Peter Piper :
Pied Piper : Really groovy, looked like Jim Henson
Placido Flamingo : Opera singer
Polly Darton : Country Singer
Prarie Dawn
Prince Charming :
Purple Guy : In the skit with the guy with long nose
Roosevelt Franklin
Rumpelstiltskin
Sam the Robot
Shaggy Singer and 2 backups who sing “Near, Far” and “Ball Tall Fall Wall”
Sherlock Hemlock : The World’s Greatest Detective
Singing pigs
Sleeping Beauty :
Slimey : Oscar’s pet worm
Small Green Wolf : Accused of a crime
Solid Citizen : Lady on stage with Mumford
Spider of Miss Muffett : News Flash! star
Sully : Construction worker; Biff’s partner
Telly Monster
The Amazing Mumford
The Beetles : They sing “Letter B”
The Count von Count
The Dingers
The Honkers
The Martians
The Three Little Pigs : Various skits
Theodore : In the Count’s classroom
Turtle
Twiddle Bugs : At least four; live in Ernie’s flowerbox
Vanna White lookalike : Name???
Very Large Grayish-Blue Wolf : Blew Kermit off the screen and screen white
Vincent Twice, Vincent Twice : Armchair announcer
Witches in a cave that COOPERATED to make some chicken soup
ZZ Top Lookalikes : Cool =)
the guy who can make noises with his mouth
The guy at Grover’s restaurants

NON-ANIMALS/PERSONS MUPPETS
——————————

Basketball : Gave Kermit a hard time
Cloud : “Here is Your Life” star for Oak Tree
Dentist : “Here is Your Life” star for Tooth
Farmer Brown : Who grew the wheat for someone
Fred Chair : “Here is Your Life” star for Oak Tree
Glass of Milk :
House : 4710 Pleasant Street
Loaf of Bread : “Here is Your Life” honoree
Nose : On Name That Part
Oak Tree : “Here is Your Life” honoree
Pasty the ToothPaste : “Here is Your Life” star for Tooth
Peanut Butter & Jelly Sandwiches : “HIYL” honoree From Tuscaloosa, AL
Spider of Miss Muffett : News Flash! star
Tooth : “Here is Your Life” honoree
Toothbrush : “Here is Your Life” star for Tooth
Wilma Table : “HIYL” star for Oak Tree

THE MUPPET SHOW CHARACTERS
————————–

Kermit
Miss Piggy
Statler
Waldorf
Fozzie Bear
Crazy Harry (likes explosions)
Lew Zealand (throws fish)
Scooter
J.P. Grosse (Scooter’s uncle who owns the theatre)
Bobby Benson and his Baby Band
Tom, Dick, and Harry, the 3-headed creature
Annie Sue (Miss Piggy’s rival)
Timmy Monster
Thog
George the Janitor
Rowlf
The Great Gonzo
Sam the American Eagle
Swedish Chef
Link Hogthrob
Camella the Chicken
Dr. Julius Strangepork
The Muppet News Reporter
Sweetums
Nigel the conductor (wrote theme music)
Showered Rosell (sports anouncer)
Muppy
Foo-foo
Robin
Andre the Artist
Hilda (from Wardrobe)
Dr. Bunson Honeydew
Beaker
Annie Sue
The Gargling Gargoyl
Marvin Suggs and his Amazing Muppephone
(Also, M.S. and his All-Food Glee Club)
Beauregard
Clifford (Jim Henson’s last creation — only two known appearences)
Mahna mahna
Wayne and Wanda
Rizzo and various other rats
Lewis Kezagger — sportscaster
Uncle Deadly
Granny the Gouger
Flying Zucchini Brothers
Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem
Dr. Teeth — keyboards
Sgt. Floyd Pepper — guitar
Zoot — saxophone
Janis — guitar, vocals
Animal — drums
Lips — trumpet (later)

Veterinarian’s Hospital
Dr. Bob (Rowlf)
Nurse Piggy
Nurse Janice

Pigs in Space
The Swinetrek
Captain Link Hogthrob
Dr. Julius Strangepork
First Mate Piggy

Q5. WHERE CAN I FIND THE MUPPET SHOW ON NORTH AMERICAN TELEVISION?

(ALL OF THIS IS AS OF LAST WORD)
It seems that the Muppet Show is not currently available on U.S. national
television. :^( Nickelodeon has run it in the past, and occasionally runs
specials — keep watching those listings.

Canada, being a more enlightened land, gets the Muppet Show five days a week
at 3:30 Eastern, 4:30 Mountain (don’t know about other time zones).

Q6. WHO PLAYED THE HUMANS ON SESAME STREET?
Contributed by Reuven William Goren

Character Actor
David Northern Calloway
Luis Emilio Delgado
Mr. Hooper Will Lee
Susan Loretta Long
Maria Sonja Manzano
Bob Bob McGrath
Gordon Hal Miller

Q6. WHAT WERE THE NAMES OF SOME MONSTERPIECE THEATER EPISODES?
(List contribouted by Tim Wright)

The King and I
The Postman Always Rings Twice [a classic]
The Monsters of Venice
The Taming of the Shoe
The Old Man and the C
Upstairs, Downstairs, episode ___ [I forget which number]
Guys and Dolls
The 400 Blows [“with subtitles”]
Ali Baba and the 40
Thieves 12 Angry Men
1 Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
The Sun Also Rises
Twin beaks
Cyranose de Bergerac
Much Ado About Nothing
Me Claudius
The 39 Stairs
Gone With the Wind
Hamlet
Chariots of Fur

I hope everyone has been entertained.

Bob Pedersen
—
Bob Pedersen
University of Iowa Library Science Student
Snail: P.O. Box 847, Iowa City, IA 52244
“I have a room for life at the Home for the Chronically Groovy!”
— Sgt. Floyd Pepper

==========================
animation/best.of.net #40, from j_mcarthur, 476 chars, Fri Feb 18 22:48:54 1994
This is a comment to message 39.
————————–
Well, I have to add just one thing about Bert and Ernie though; in a
letter to this week’s T.V. guide someone pointed out that as a child
she had visited Muppet studios and saw various Muppets in numerous
states of undress and assemblage!
According to this eyewitness; the Muppets are NOT gay or straight
because they possess no genitalia whatsoever!!
So, I hope we can bid a not so fond adieu to the rumor mill of
Muppet sexul orientation. :} :} :} :} Jeanie Mc.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #41, from hmccracken, 1725 chars, Sat Feb 19 01:06:25 1994
————————–
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Subject: Mark Trail on the air
Message-ID: <1994Feb15.183918.18214@ns.network.com>
Sender: news@ns.network.com
Nntp-Posting-Host: shark
Reply-To: sharon@shark.network.com
Organization: Network Systems Corporation
Date: Tue, 15 Feb 94 18:39:18 GMT
Lines: 27

A couple of weeks ago I was warming up my car and tuned the radio
to a local “community radio” station. To my amazement, I heard something
like this, “Ohhh, Mark, wait, do you have to walk so fast?” *tramp tramp*
“Sorry, Cherry, but this is IMPORTANT. According to Mary Sue, her uncles
are growing *Marijuana* in that valley up ahead! It’s our responsibility
to check it out!” *tramp tramp tramp* “But, Mark, *puff puff* can’t you
just slow down?” “You just have to keep up Cherry. Maybe I shouldn’t
have brought you on this honeymooon.”

I could hardly believe my ears! It was a dramatization of the past week’s
worth of Mark Trail scripts! Some of the dialog was right from the strip,
but I think they added a little bit to flesh it out. For instance, I read
Mark Trail faithfully and I don’t remember the part when Mark and Cherry
accidentally dropped a lighted match into one of the bales of *Marijuana* in
the cave…

My husband says these things are on every Friday morning. Unfortunately
I haven’t remembered to tune in on Friday to pick up any of the latest
episodes. Too bad–I really wanted to hear the part where Cherry rescues
Mark by sending the Marijuana truck plunging into a ravine.

Has anyone else heard these?

================================================================
Sharon E.Kahn sharon@network.com Minneapolis, MN
================================================================

==========================
animation/best.of.net #42, from hmccracken, 1010 chars, Sun Feb 20 14:37:36 1994
————————–
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!howland.reston.ans.net!agate!mtats
From: mtats@OCF.Berkeley.EDU (Mike Tatsugawa)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.anime,rec.arts.animation
Subject: [Cel Exhibition] in L.A. Area
Date: 20 Feb 1994 08:01:54 GMT
Organization: The Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation
Lines: 30
Distribution: ca
Message-ID: <2k75di$s2i@agate.berkeley.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: earthquake.berkeley.edu
Xref: news.delphi.com rec.arts.anime:82504 rec.arts.animation:17256

There is a special showing of anime cels at the
Lewis Galleris at
3318 Thousand Oaks Blvd.,
Westlake Village, CA 91362
(805)-371-9497

Sat & Sunday Feb 26 & 27, 1994 Noon to 5 PM

Illustrators represented are:
Mikimoto
Kawajiri
Shirow
Sonoda
Asamiya
Kitazume
Terasawa
Yuki
Go Nagai
Otomo
Tezuka
Takahashi
and Miyazaki

Mike

—
Mike Tatsugawa, AKA shogun: The busiest anime fan in the world!
President, SPJA: 2425 B Channing, Suite 684, Brk, CA 94704
Publicity Coordinator, Anime Expo ’94

==========================
animation/best.of.net #43, from hmccracken, 5664 chars, Wed Feb 23 11:02:15 1994
————————–
From rec.arts.animation
Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!das-news.harvard.edu!cantaloupe.srv.cs.cmu.edu!fs7.ece.cmu.edu!europa.eng.gtefsd.com!library.ucla.edu!nntp.ucsb.edu!mcl!ukoga
From: ukoga@mcl.ucsb.edu (Jeffrey Koga)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: BTAS and Animaniacs news
Date: 23 Feb 1994 08:48:57 GMT
Organization: University of California, Santa Barbara
Lines: 107
Message-ID: <2kf59p$7dh@hub.ucsb.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: mcl.ucsb.edu

Both Batman: The Animated Series and Animaniacs are officially cancelled by Fox.
This, because they both shows don’t get the ratings and demographics that both
X-Men and The Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers do (whatever that means).

This, according to both Paul Dini (writer of BTAS) and Audu Paden (director of
Animaniacs) at the Animation Opportunities Expo that I went to last Saturday in
North Hollywood.

On another note, both guys were GREAT to listen to! Most of what Dini said was
about BTAS and his work on Mad Love, and most of what Paden said was about what
an animation portfolio should contain.

Eric Radowski (BTAS) was there as well, but he wasn’t there as a representative
of BTAS or Warner Brothers. I recognized him, but decided to leave him alone
and to not bother him.

I was thinking of doing a summary of all of what both of them said to me, but I
still haven’t done the one I promised of Kevin Altieiri from last year yet
[sigh].

Okay, maybe just a little mini-report. ^_^
—
From Dini:

He really enjoyed working with Bruce Timm, and won’t really work with any other
artist when it comes to future BTAS comics.

In fact, he’s going to do a three-part Harley and Ivy comic, slated for Summer
1994. WITH a shower scene in each part of the series. ^_^

There wasn’t much in a visual display for the WB table. Not like the Disney
Features/Television Animation tables, where they had framed still art from
upcoming feature films, like The Lion King, Pocahantas, The Hunchback of Notre
Dame, and Gargoyles. They also had one that had a Chinese theme to it (The
Legend of ???), but I can’t remember the name of it off-hand.

Dini did have his BTAS “crew” jacket displayed behind him, but that was it. He
later decided to pick up a sericel from the WB Store in Glendale that he had
ordered (and would pick up later on in the day anyways), and to show that
instead:

It’s basically an AWESOME rogue’s gallery of villains from the show, and
includes Mr. Freeze, Poison Ivy, Penguin, Joker, Harley in the middle
(naturally), Riddler, Catwoman and Isis, and Two-Face. Those aren’t ALL of the
villains in there, just the ones that I recall off-hand.

I don’t think Clayface was in there, but for some reason, I seem to think that
Killer Croc, Scarecrow, and Manbat are. Don’t quote me on that, though.

The pencils were by Glenn Murakami and the inks were by Bruce Timm.

The villains aren’t drawn from model sheets, at least not from any sketches/
drawings that I’ve seen before. They’re in new poses. They don’t interact with
one another, but are separated from each other.

There is no background painting and what-not.

He had written in the Holiday Supplement of _Comics Buyer’s Guide_ that this
sericel would come out in the winter sometime, but it was obviously delayed, for
whatever reason. But they JUST came out with it last week, and Dini told me
that the WB Stores sold out almost instantly. Maybe because there was advance
publicity about it, maybe because Harley was in it (and Harley items sell out
rather quickly), maybe because it looks so DAMN good!

After the expo, I rushed over to the WB Store in the Topanga Plaza in Woodland
Hills to see if they had any of the sericels left. I was expecting to find none
left, but was pleasantly suprised to find they had two left. I snatched one of
them up by putting a down playment on it that day, and by putting the rest on
interest-free layaway for three months. I should be picking up mine in late
May, unless I pay sooner.

As for the price, don’t ask. Actually, it’s not as expensive as the cels that
the WB Stores sell. But it’s still pricey, to say the least. And I don’t know
why I picked it up in the first place. I guess it was kinda the same impulse I
had when I bought the Dennis Mukai piece as well at Tower Gallery last summer
when they had their yearly sale.

Dini appeared with Kevin Conroy (voice of Bruce Wayne/Batman) and two other
people (can’t remember their names) at the L.A. Comic Book and Sci-Fi Convention
last year. Mark Hamill was supposed to be there as well, but this was around
the time of the L.A. fires, and so Hamill didn’t show up.

Arlene Sorkin (voice of Harley Quinn) has this great one-of-a-kind (varsity?)
jacket with Harley stenciled on the back (I think). She’s almost had it stolen
from her three times.
—
From Paden:

He was doing commercial work for awhile before Animaniacs.

A lot of the writers on the show are stand-up comics.

Like I said, most of what I got from Paden was his advice concerning how a
portfolio should be put together. Sorry Animaniacs fans!
—
Both of them did do some great sketches, with Dini doing a Harley that
referenced Altieri’s rendition of her, and Audu doing Yacko, Wacko, and Taz. I
would try and post those sketches to some newsgroup like alt.binaries.pictures.
misc, but I am still having trouble uploading. Sorry!

–Jeff “Koganuts” Koga
—
Jeff “Koganuts” Koga || “You seen that new BT-16?”
ukoga@mcl.ucsb.edu || “Yeah, some of the other guys were telling me about it.
\(^_^)/ || They say it’s…quite the thing to see.”
SW: Tales of the Jedi ANH TESB RotJ TaB Heir to the Empire DFR TLC Dark Empire

==========================
animation/best.of.net #44, from hmccracken, 1286 chars, Thu Feb 24 21:27:05 1994
————————–
Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!news.bu.edu!decwrl!ames!agate!howland.reston.ans.net!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!newsxfer.itd.umich.edu!gumby!yale!hsdndev!dartvax.dartmouth.edu!usenet
From: morgan@astro.psu.edu (Windsor A. Morgan)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.info,rec.arts.comics.misc
Subject: Proposed Session on _Maus_ at MLA
Followup-To: rec.arts.comics.misc
Date: 21 Feb 1994 22:22:23 GMT
Organization: Penn State Dept. of Astronomy and Astrophysics
Lines: 17
Approved: hades@dartmouth.edu
Message-ID: <2kbc6v$gas@dartvax.dartmouth.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: coos.dartmouth.edu
Xref: news.delphi.com rec.arts.comics.info:701 rec.arts.comics.misc:64449

From page 24 of the Modern Language Association’s _MLA Newsletter_
(Spring 1994):

“Spiegelman’s Maus. Various approaches welcome, including narrativve
theory, postmodernism, Holocaust testimony, biography or oral
history, and pedagogy. 300–500-word abstracts and c.v. by 15 Mar.”

An organizer’s name and address are added.

—
‘Verily, there be no leader as wise as the Vision!’
Windsor Morgan (morgan@astro.psu.edu OR NHT@PSUVM.BITNET)
Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics
The Pennsylvania State University
University Park, PA 16802

==========================
animation/best.of.net #45, from hmccracken, 1394 chars, Thu Feb 24 21:27:35 1994
————————–
Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!transfer.stratus.com!news.bu.edu!dartvax.dartmouth.edu!usenet
From: jrm@elm.circa.ufl.edu (Jeff Mason)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.info
Subject: Alternative Press Expo (APE) 1994
Followup-To: rec.arts.comics.misc
Date: 24 Feb 1994 17:49:22 GMT
Organization: University of Florida, Gainesville
Lines: 37
Approved: hades@dartmouth.edu
Message-ID: <2kipb2$j3s@dartvax.dartmouth.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: coos.dartmouth.edu

The Alternative Press Expo (APE) 1994, an exhibition of small
publishers, self publishers, and alternative cartoonists, will be held
on June 4th in San Jose, California in Parkside hall.

The guests include (WOW! I like the comics produced by EVERY one of
these guests!):
Dave Sim (Cerebus)
Jeff Smith (Bone)
Jee LeVine (No Hope)
Scott Saavedra (Dr. Radium)
Teri S. Wood (Wandering Star)
Adrian Tomine (Optic Nerve)
Nina Paley
Keith Knight
Aldin Baroza (Tales from the Heart)

Edhibiting Publishers:
Slave Labor Graphics
Cherry Comics
Factsheet 5
Mu Press
Aeon Press
Boing Boing
Puppy Toss

Admission is $4.00, and you can call for more information from Slave
Labor Graphics at: 1-800-866-8929. Exhibit space is available.

If anyone is going, please let me know!!!

—
Geoffrey R. Mason | jrm@elm.circa.ufl.edu
Department of Psychology | mason@webb.psych.ufl.edu
University of Florida | prothan@maple.circa.ufl.edu

==========================
animation/best.of.net #46, from hmccracken, 3687 chars, Sat Feb 26 22:42:57 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 26 Feb 1994 22:41:34 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9402262241.memo.32921@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.info

Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!bloom-beacon.mit.edu!paperboy.osf.org!think.com!hsdndev!dartvax.dartmouth.edu!usenet
From: dvandom@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (Dave Van Domelen)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.info
Subject: Dave’s Previews Nattering: DC Spoilers
Followup-To: rec.arts.comics.misc
Date: 25 Feb 1994 18:47:06 GMT
Organization: American National Spap Oop Society
Lines: 51
Approved: hades@dartmouth.edu
Message-ID: <2klh3a$4gf@dartvax.dartmouth.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: coos.dartmouth.edu

Dave’s Previews Nattering: DC

This is all spoilers. Deal with it, pink boy. Or hit ‘n’ really fast.
}->

As has been mentioned, there will be a 15 part crossover between various
Superman titles and Milestone titles. The rationale will be a guy whose dreams
alter reality…sounds like a later Byrne FF story I once read. One notable
thing about the ads it the pairing up of the ‘parallel’ versions of two
characters: Supes and Icon, Steel and Hardware.
Flash #92: “The Flash’s countdown to this summer’s ZERO HOUR begins as
future-time fugitive *Iris West-Allen* makes a panicked flight to the 20th
Century, bringing with her a stranger called Impulse. This young man could be
Keystone City’s next hero, if his powers don’t kill him first!” Okay, is this
Kent from shortly after his origin, or the currently de-aged version? Or are
they trashing his old origin and this is a 2980’s version?
Legionnaires #16 has Mark Waid taking over as writer and (will
coincidences never cease?) starting the Valor crossover in earnest. Not much
about the plot is given away, save that time travel is involved (well, duh).
Steel Annual #1 pretty predictably puts him in the 19th Century as a
slave, where he forges a suit of armor and leads a rebellion.
Luthor’s Fail Safes continue to blow the bejeezus out of Metropolis,
including nerve gas and the Kryptonian Battle Armor (which Lex nabbed after
Supes got out of it in Reign).
LSH #59: “The ‘War for Webber’s [sic] World’ comes to a jarring conclusion
as long-absent members Valor and Dawnstar return to the team, and another
member is tragically lost. Plus: Rond Vidar makes a surprising discovery about
the time stream, and temporal anomalies cause big problems for New Earth.”
Cover price is jacked up to $1.95. Looking at the cover makes me wanna break
out in hives or something…don’t show Rokk’s player this. It shows Rokk in
either a symbolic power-corrupts pose or he’s actually floating in space
outside Weber’s World. His hands are clenched in true supervillain style.
Damn. Now, as someone suggested, he might be possessed by Bounty, which would
certainly tie in with Dawny’s return that issue. Or he might just have pulled
a Hal and gone mad. SIGH.
LEGION #68, someone from the LSH comes for Phase.
Legionnaires Annual shows some promise. It’s a universe where neither
Mordru nor Glorith won…the Circle did. The Legionnaires form a 30C Camelot,
which is in danger of being torn apart just as the original was. Lemme guess:
Garth is Arthur, Imra is Guinevere and Cos is Lancelot.
Showcase ’94 #8 will have Waverider going after Monarch. Finally.
Guy will ditch the armor after Emerald Fallout and go on a quest for new
powers. He gets a new partner, Buck Wargo, and spends #22 in a sort of
dreamscape world based on pulp novels.

Dave Van Domelen, Worlds Collide #1 (part 7 of the crossover) will have a
colorforms cover like Superman MOS #30….

==========================
animation/best.of.net #47, from hmccracken, 3498 chars, Sat Feb 26 22:43:13 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 26 Feb 1994 22:41:59 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9402262241.memo.32922@BIX.com>
Subject: rec.arts.comics.info

Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!bloom-beacon.mit.edu!paperboy.osf.org!think.com!hsdndev!dartvax.dartmouth.edu!usenet
From: dvandom@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (Dave Van Domelen)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.info
Subject: Dave’s Previews Nattering: Indies
Followup-To: rec.arts.comics.misc
Date: 25 Feb 1994 18:47:46 GMT
Organization: American National Spap Oop Society
Lines: 49
Approved: hades@dartmouth.edu
Message-ID: <2klh4i$4is@dartvax.dartmouth.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: coos.dartmouth.edu

Dave’s Previews Nattering: Independents

Okay, the big news this issue is the Bone trading cards. Basically, each
card is a scene from the comic or from a cover, with color airbrushed in for
those that were B&W. The samples shown gave me a so-so impression of this
airbrushing…Thorn looks diseased in one. Oh, and to make sure all of us Bone
fans who hate the way cards are sold these days suffer, the following things
are randomly inserted in the packs, besides the 100 card set:
100 (total) card-sized original sketches by Jeff
6 special Chase cards
a limited edition medallion
a “rare three-card subset”
a mini press sheet
“and more!”
SIGH. 10 cards per pack. The sample cards (as opposed to the page of art from
cards) look good, but unfortunately Comic Images didn’t spring the extra $$ to
have the sheet perforated, so it’s a tricky job getting the sheet out of
Previews without destroying it. X-acto knife, if ya got one.

Marshall Law: Cape Fear #2 is resolicted from, um, August 93. Oops.
There’s apparently a sequel to Give Me Liberty, called Martha Washington
Goes To War. A short preview is included.
NO Genesis titles are solicited for May. Not even Protectors. Oh well.
Don Simpson’s Bizarre Heroes is extensively covered, and there’s an
interview and stuff. Five issues are already in the can…Don’s taking no
chances with getting bogged down by self-publishing lag, he promises to publish
monthly for at least the first six issues. What little is shown looks pretty
good.
In addition to Bizarre Heroes, Don’s back to do another Image project, but
this is one I’m sure most fans will support, even if they hate Image. It’s a
Megaton Man/normalman teamup, featuring Flaming Carrot and Mr. Spook!!!!! Look
for it in August or so. I certainly will.
Y’know…the ad they have for the Flintstones movie just fills me with
utter dread. This looks like something the people who made Punisher and the FF
movie can look down on with disdain. Shudder.
Mighty Man’s secret will be revealed in Freak Force #6. I still think
he’s female in civilian ID.
Yep…only a half dozen issues of Moon Knight, and SPlatt is already
bolting to Image. Makes ya feel kinda nostalgic, don’t it?
Dreadstar #2: “Faced with the destruction of the only home she ever knew,
Kalla Dreadstar begins her quest to find the only man who can unleash the power
of the sword she wields and put an end to the Zon threat: her father Vance
[sic] Dreadstar. Featuring the return of one of the original cast members (the
fur will really fly!).” ARGH! Bap that copywriter with a quarterbox full of
old Dreadstars! VANTH. Sigh. Looks like we get to see a greying Oedi.

Dave Van Domelen, well, at least it’s not snowing *too* hard….

==========================
animation/best.of.net #48, from hmccracken, 3971 chars, Sat Feb 26 22:43:33 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 26 Feb 1994 22:42:25 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9402262242.memo.32923@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.info

Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!bloom-beacon.mit.edu!paperboy.osf.org!think.com!hsdndev!dartvax.dartmouth.edu!usenet
From: dvandom@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (Dave Van Domelen)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.info
Subject: Dave’s Previews Nattering: Marvel Spoilers
Followup-To: rec.arts.comics.misc
Date: 25 Feb 1994 18:47:23 GMT
Organization: American National Spap Oop Society
Lines: 59
Approved: hades@dartmouth.edu
Message-ID: <2klh3r$4hc@dartvax.dartmouth.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: coos.dartmouth.edu

Dave’s Previews Nattering: Marvel

As of this month, Marvel has stopped taking up space both in the main body
of Previews and in their ad in the back, and moved all info to glossy pages in
the back, called the “True Believer”.

One feature of TB is listing of crossovers and cover enhancements at the
beginning. A pity they missed the only real Levvy candidate in that listing.
Yep, Force Works #1 (resolicited for May) will have a Pop Up cover! Whee.

Transformers Generation 2 #9: Credits are really confusing, maybe you can
figure them out:
Simon Furman/Manny Galan &
Derek Yaniger/Jim Amash &
Derek Yaniger
It might mean Galan is helping on writing/plotting (yeeee), that Yaniger and
Amash are pencilling, and Yaniger is inking. But maybe it means that part one
will be Furman writing and Galan art, part two will be Yaniger writing and
Amash art, and part three will be just Yaniger writing and drawing. Sigh. Who
the hell knows.
“Events here lead into the next few issues of intense life and death
struggles! The Autobot/Decepticon alliance is closing in on the swarm, or is
it closing in on them? If you like the action-packed TRANSFORMERS TV show,
you’ll love this comic!” Um, not necessarily. }-> Ships 5/17. The cover has a
half-strength profile of Prime and several generic-looking bots being eaten by
the Swarm.

Quasar #60 is the last issue. Will I be able to hang in that long?
Sachs and Violence #4 is due to ship 5/10. One notable quote from the
blurb, “And, as Violens’s dark secret is revealed, Sachs finds herself helpless
to resist him!”
For the truly masochistic, I give you What If? #60. It’s centered around
when War Machine destroyed Living Laser (or at least got rid of him). Not only
does it have a ‘Choose your own ending’ gimmick, it teams Dan “Ren&Stimpy”
Slott’s writing with Manny “Transformers with tongues” Galan’s art!
Northstar #4 looks like it will have advanced exactly not at all in plot
since the end of #1…#2 and #3 will just be filler to get Northstar tired
enough that Arcade can finally confront him. Glad I decided not to pick up the
rest of this book.
Nicieza stops writing Thrash and Nova with #12 and #7 respectively as he
winds up the Time and Time Again crossover. There’s a fair chance he’ll stop
writing New Warriors after #50 ends the crossover, too….
White Queen comes back to the land of the conscious in time for UX #314 by
Lobdell and JRjr.
“Nightcrawler’s relationship with Amanda deepens. Secrets are revealed
about Britanic, the new Captain Britain, and Tapestry!” Damn, am I glad I
dropped X-Calibur.
Um, looks like Sinister possesses Alex sometime before X-Factor #104.
Marvel now prints a handy one-page summary of all shipping dates for
books, so you can know exactly how many are late!
Oh, if anyone cares, Guardians of the Galaxy gets a spin-off in May.
“Galactic Guardians” is composed of Hollywood (Wondy), Firelord, Ghost Rider,
Martinex, the Skrull and Phoenix. And Black Cat gets her own title, where
she’s drawn with a waist narrower than her head.

Dave Van Domelen, notes TFG2 is lumped in with Groo, the Barbie titles,
GIJoe and the Lion King adaptation in the “All Ages” section.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #49, from nicolas, 1686 chars, Tue Mar 1 09:10:46 1994
————————–
TITLE: Bay Area Demo
Those living in the Bay Area might be interested in this.

R.E. SNADER and ASSOCIATES, Sausalito California

R.E. Snader, the Bay Area’s leading provider of professional video
solutions welcomes:

Silicon Graphics
Wavefront Technologies
Discreet Logic
XAOS Tools

for an open house specifically designed for those interested in the
integration of computer graphics, animation and special effects with
broadcast quality video.

On display will be Wavefront’s Composer and 3-D Animation products,
XAOS Tools Titling and Special Effects software, Discreet Logic’s
Flint digital video editing software all running on Silicon Graphics’
Workstations (Indigo^2 & Indy).

Dates: Wednesday March 2nd and Thursday March 3rd 10:00am to 5:00pm.
No RSVP required

Location: Contract Design Center
600 Townsend Street
San Francisco, CA (South of Market/Potrero)

Directions: Call (415) 864-1500 <--************ Developers will present their products both days at 10:00am and 2:00pm. Hands on software demonstrations will follow each presentation. The Silicon Graphics "Magic Bus" will be there all day Thursday. For more details on this event (except directions), feel free to call: Jim Atkinson R.E. Snader (415) 332-7070 -- -Ted ********** Ted Malone aka tmalone@netcom.com Professional Engineer Media Consultant (Animation, Video, Audio) Any job worth doing is worth doing in DIGITAL ********** -------

……….
. Nico .
……….

==========================
animation/best.of.net #50, from hmccracken, 889 chars, Thu Mar 3 08:54:29 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Thu, 3 Mar 1994 08:34:17 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9403030834.memo.50909@BIX.com>
Subject: from rec.arts.disney

Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!lard.ftp.com!bloom-beacon.mit.edu!gatech!howland.reston.ans.net!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!uwm.edu!caen!batcomputer!ghost.dsi.unimi.it!ghost.dsi.unimi.it!not-for-mail
From: cabrini@ghost.sm.dsi.unimi.it (marina cabrini)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.disney
Subject: The Aristocats are here!
Date: 2 Mar 1994 15:01:46 +0100
Organization: Computer Science Dep. – Milan University
Lines: 9
Message-ID: <2l268a$jbd@ghost.sm.dsi.unimi.it>
NNTP-Posting-Host: ghost.dsi.unimi.it

Hello from Italy!
Just wanted to tell you, the VCR of The Aristocats is out here in Italy,
after waiting for so many years.
Is it available also somewhere else in the world or in this case we
are the first to get them?

Marina

==========================
animation/best.of.net #51, from hmccracken, 26350 chars, Thu Mar 3 08:54:52 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Thu, 3 Mar 1994 08:48:06 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9403030848.memo.50950@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.animation.warner-bros

Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!lard.ftp.com!bloom-beacon.mit.edu!usc!howland.reston.ans.net!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!news.encore.com!bseymour
From: bseymour@encore.com (Burch Seymour)
Subject: GAoLT Index .. Plus!
Organization: Encore Computer Corporation
Date: Mon, 28 Feb 1994 14:41:21 GMT
Message-ID:
Sender: news@encore.com (Usenet readnews user id)
Nntp-Posting-Host: sysgem1.encore.com
Lines: 372

It’s been a while since I posted this. The Vol field refers to the set
Golden Age oLT 1-4, and the A means The Complete Tex Avery.

If you’re on a unix box, and your version of sort works like mine, you can
use the following to generate a list by title or by date if you choose.
This article has it by set, side, and chapter.

Corrections welcome, but I think this is pretty close.

On with the show, this is it!

-Burch- bseymour@encore.com
==============================================================================
These lines create sorted by name and by date files. U figure it out 🙂
These work on my unix box (Encore) Your sortage may differ. Good luck.

sort < complete_toons_list > sort.name
sort +0.37 -0.40 +0.0 -0.30 < complete_toons_list > sort.date

==============================================================================

Smile, Darn Ya, Smile! (1931) Vol 1 Side 1 Chapter 1
Shuffle Off to Buffalo (1933) Vol 1 Side 1 Chapter 2
Miss Glory (1936) Vol 1 Side 1 Chapter 3
I Love to Singa (1936) Vol 1 Side 1 Chapter 4
Have You Got Any Castles (1938) Vol 1 Side 1 Chapter 5
Speaking of the Weather (1937) Vol 1 Side 1 Chapter 6
Katnip Kollege (1938) Vol 1 Side 1 Chapter 7
Wild Hare, A (1940) Vol 1 Side 2 Chapter 8
Daffy Duck and Egghead (1938) Vol 1 Side 2 Chapter 9
Odor-able Kitty (1945) Vol 1 Side 2 Chapter 10
Tale of Two Kitties, A (1942) Vol 1 Side 2 Chapter 11
I Haven’t Got a Hat (1935) Vol 1 Side 2 Chapter 12
Life with Feathers (1945) Vol 1 Side 2 Chapter 13
Walky Talky Hawky (1946) Vol 1 Side 2 Chapter 14
Cinderella Meets Fella (1938) Vol 1 Side 3 Chapter 15
Hamateur Night (1939) Vol 1 Side 3 Chapter 16
Thugs with Dirty Mugs (1939) Vol 1 Side 3 Chapter 17
Cross Country Detours (1940) Vol 1 Side 3 Chapter 18
Dangerous Dan McFoo (1939) Vol 1 Side 3 Chapter 19
Bear’s Tale, The (1940) Vol 1 Side 3 Chapter 20
Crackpot Quail, The (1941) Vol 1 Side 3 Chapter 21
Wabbit Twouble (1941) Vol 1 Side 4 Chapter 22
Horton Hatches the Egg (1942) Vol 1 Side 4 Chapter 23
Hep Cat, The (1942) Vol 1 Side 4 Chapter 24
Corny Concerto, A (1943) Vol 1 Side 4 Chapter 25
Kitty Kornered (1946) Vol 1 Side 4 Chapter 26
Great Piggy Bank Robbery, The (1946) Vol 1 Side 4 Chapter 27
Big Snooze, The (1946) Vol 1 Side 4 Chapter 28
Night Watchman, The (1938) Vol 1 Side 5 Chapter 29
Old Glory (1939) Vol 1 Side 5 Chapter 30
Sniffles Takes a Trip (1940) Vol 1 Side 5 Chapter 31
Dover Boys, The (1942) Vol 1 Side 5 Chapter 32
My Favorite Duck (1942) Vol 1 Side 5 Chapter 33
Aristo-Cat, The (1943) Vol 1 Side 5 Chapter 34
Inki at the Circus (1947) Vol 1 Side 5 Chapter 35
Rhapsody in Rivets (1941) Vol 1 Side 6 Chapter 36
Pigs in a Polka (1943) Vol 1 Side 6 Chapter 37
Little Red Riding Rabbit (1944) Vol 1 Side 6 Chapter 38
Duck Soup to Nuts (1944) Vol 1 Side 6 Chapter 39
Hare Trigger (1945) Vol 1 Side 6 Chapter 40
Back Alley Oproar (1948) Vol 1 Side 6 Chapter 41
Tweetie Pie (1947) Vol 1 Side 6 Chapter 42
Heckling Hare, The (1941) Vol 1 Side 7 Chapter 43
Hare Tonic (1945) Vol 1 Side 7 Chapter 44
Hare Ribbin’ (1944) Vol 1 Side 7 Chapter 45
Bugs Bunny Nips the Nips (1944) Vol 1 Side 7 Chapter 46
Hare Grows in Manhattan, A (1947) Vol 1 Side 7 Chapter 47
Unruly Hare, The (1945) Vol 1 Side 7 Chapter 48
Gorilla My Dreams (1948) Vol 1 Side 7 Chapter 49
Nasty Quacks (1945) Vol 1 Side 8 Chapter 50
Hair-Raising Hare (1946) Vol 1 Side 8 Chapter 51
Bashful Buzzard, The (1945) Vol 1 Side 8 Chapter 52
Daffy Doodles (1946) Vol 1 Side 8 Chapter 53
Little Orphan Airdale (1947) Vol 1 Side 8 Chapter 54
Baby Bottleneck (1946) Vol 1 Side 8 Chapter 55
Book Revue (1946) Vol 1 Side 8 Chapter 56
Coo Coo Nut Grove, The (1936) Vol 1 Side 9 Chapter 57
Daffy Duck in Hollywood (1938) Vol 1 Side 9 Chapter 58
Hollywood Steps Out (1941) Vol 1 Side 9 Chapter 59
What’s Cookin’ Doc? (1944) Vol 1 Side 9 Chapter 60
Hollywood Daffy (1946) Vol 1 Side 9 Chapter 61
Swooner Crooner, The (1944) Vol 1 Side 9 Chapter 62
Slick Hare (1947) Vol 1 Side 9 Chapter 63
Tortoise Beats Hare (1941) Vol 1 Side 10 Chapter 64
Tortoise Wins by a Hare (1943) Vol 1 Side 10 Chapter 65
Rabbit Transit (1947) Vol 1 Side 10 Chapter 66
Bugs Bunny Gets the Boid (1942) Vol 1 Side 10 Chapter 67
Old Grey Hare, The (1944) Vol 1 Side 10 Chapter 68
Bugs Bunny Rides Again (1948) Vol 1 Side 10 Chapter 69
Haredevil Hare (1948) Vol 1 Side 10 Chapter 70
You Don’t Know What You’re Doin’ (1931) Vol 2 Side 1 Chapter 1
Goopy Geer (1932) Vol 2 Side 1 Chapter 2
Three’s A Crowd (1932) Vol 2 Side 1 Chapter 3
We’re in the Money (1933) Vol 2 Side 1 Chapter 4
Honeymoon Hotel (1934) Vol 2 Side 1 Chapter 5
Lady in Red, The (1935) Vol 2 Side 1 Chapter 6
Penguin Parade, The (1938) Vol 2 Side 1 Chapter 7
Presto-O Change-O (1939) Vol 2 Side 2 Chapter 8
Hare-Um Scare-Um (1939) Vol 2 Side 2 Chapter 9
Elmer’s Candid Camera (1940) Vol 2 Side 2 Chapter 10
Elmer’s Pet Rabbit (1941) Vol 2 Side 2 Chapter 11
Hiawatha’s Rabbit Hunt (1941) Vol 2 Side 2 Chapter 12
Hold the Lion, Please! (1942) Vol 2 Side 2 Chapter 13
Fresh Hare (1942) Vol 2 Side 2 Chapter 14
Major Lied Till Dawn, The (1938) Vol 2 Side 3 Chapter 15
Cracked Ice (1938) Vol 2 Side 3 Chapter 16
Brother Brat (1944) Vol 2 Side 3 Chapter 17
Plane Daffy (1944) Vol 2 Side 3 Chapter 18
Tale of Two Mice, A (1945) Vol 2 Side 3 Chapter 19
Behind The Meatball (1945) Vol 2 Side 3 Chapter 20
Hare Remover (1946) Vol 2 Side 3 Chapter 21
Little Lion Hunter, The (1939) Vol 2 Side 4 Chapter 22
Draft Horse, The (1942) Vol 2 Side 4 Chapter 23
Flop Goes the Weasel (1943) Vol 2 Side 4 Chapter 24
Lost and Foundling (1944) Vol 2 Side 4 Chapter 25
Fair and Worm-er (1946) Vol 2 Side 4 Chapter 26
What’s Brewin’ Bruin? (1948) Vol 2 Side 4 Chapter 27
Rabbit Punch (1948) Vol 2 Side 4 Chapter 28
Goofy Groceries (1941) Vol 2 Side 5 Chapter 29
Wacky Wabbit (1942) Vol 2 Side 5 Chapter 30
Buckaroo Bugs (1944) Vol 2 Side 5 Chapter 31
Itch In Time, An (1943) Vol 2 Side 5 Chapter 32
Gruesome Twosome (1945) Vol 2 Side 5 Chapter 33
Draftee Daffy (1945) Vol 2 Side 5 Chapter 34
Bacall to Arms (1946) Vol 2 Side 5 Chapter 35
Acrobatty Bunny (1946) Vol 2 Side 6 Chapter 36
Hollywood Canine Canteen (1946) Vol 2 Side 6 Chapter 37
Mouse-Merized Cat, The (1946) Vol 2 Side 6 Chapter 38
One Meat Brawl (1947) Vol 2 Side 6 Chapter 39
Mexican Joyride (1947) Vol 2 Side 6 Chapter 40
Mouse Menace (1946) Vol 2 Side 6 Chapter 41
Catch As Cats Can (1947) Vol 2 Side 6 Chapter 42
Beauty and The Beast (1934) Vol 2 Side 7 Chapter 43
Little Red Walking Hood (1937) Vol 2 Side 7 Chapter 44
A-Lad-In Bagdad (1938) Vol 2 Side 7 Chapter 45
Robin Hood Makes Good (1939) Vol 2 Side 7 Chapter 46
Tom Thumb in Trouble (1940) Vol 2 Side 7 Chapter 47
Gander at Mother Goose, A (1940) Vol 2 Side 7 Chapter 48
Jack Wabbit and the Beanstalk (1943) Vol 2 Side 7 Chapter 49
Yankee Doodle Daffy (1943) Vol 2 Side 8 Chapter 50
Wise Quacking Duck, The (1943) Vol 2 Side 8 Chapter 51
Daffy the Commando (1943) Vol 2 Side 8 Chapter 52
Stupid Cupid, The (1944) Vol 2 Side 8 Chapter 53
Birth of a Notion (1947) Vol 2 Side 8 Chapter 54
To Duck or Not to Duck (1943) Vol 2 Side 8 Chapter 55
What Makes Daffy Duck? (1948) Vol 2 Side 8 Chapter 56
Hardship of Miles Standish, The (1940) Vol 2 Side 9 Chapter 57
Hop, Look and Listen (1948) Vol 2 Side 9 Chapter 58
Roughly Squeaking (1946) Vol 2 Side 9 Chapter 59
Goofy Gophers, The (1947) Vol 2 Side 9 Chapter 60
Scent-Imental Over You (1947) Vol 2 Side 9 Chapter 61
Crowing Pains (1947) Vol 2 Side 9 Chapter 62
Of Fox and Hounds (1940) Vol 2 Side 9 Chapter 63
Tick Tock Tuckered (1944) Vol 2 Side 10 Chapter 64
Good Night Elmer (1940) Vol 2 Side 10 Chapter 65
Bedtime for Sniffles (1940) Vol 2 Side 10 Chapter 66
Pest in the House, A (1947) Vol 2 Side 10 Chapter 67
Trap Happy Porky (1945) Vol 2 Side 10 Chapter 68
Unbearable Bearm The (1943) Vol 2 Side 10 Chapter 69
Daffy Duck Slept Here (1948) Vol 2 Side 10 Chapter 70
One More Time (1931) Vol 3 Side 1 Chapter 1
Red-Headed Baby (1931) Vol 3 Side 1 Chapter 2
Pagan Moon (1932) Vol 3 Side 1 Chapter 3
Great Big Bunch of You, A (1932) Vol 3 Side 1 Chapter 4
Shanty Where Santy Claus Lives,The(1933) Vol 3 Side 1 Chapter 5
One Step Ahead of My Shadow (1933) Vol 3 Side 1 Chapter 6
Dish Ran Away with the Spoon, The (1933) Vol 3 Side 1 Chapter 7
Wackiki Wabbit (1943) Vol 3 Side 2 Chapter 8
Hare Force (1944) Vol 3 Side 2 Chapter 9
Super Rabbit (1943) Vol 3 Side 2 Chapter 10
Herr Meets Hare (1945) Vol 3 Side 2 Chapter 11
Bugs Bunny and the Three Bears (1944) Vol 3 Side 2 Chapter 12
Stage Door Cartoon (1944) Vol 3 Side 2 Chapter 13
Easter Yeggs (1947) Vol 3 Side 2 Chapter 14
Squawkin’ Hawk, The (1942) Vol 3 Side 3 Chapter 15
Inki and the Minah Bird (1943) Vol 3 Side 3 Chapter 16
From Hand to Mouse (1944) Vol 3 Side 3 Chapter 17
Fin ‘N Catty (1943) Vol 3 Side 3 Chapter 18
Fresh Airdale (1945) Vol 3 Side 3 Chapter 19
Eager Beaver, The (1946) Vol 3 Side 3 Chapter 20
House Hunting Mice (1948) Vol 3 Side 3 Chapter 21
Pigs is Pigs (1937) Vol 3 Side 4 Chapter 22
Cat’s Tale, The (1941) Vol 3 Side 4 Chapter 23
Lights Fantastic (1942) Vol 3 Side 4 Chapter 24
Ding Dog Daddy (1942) Vol 3 Side 4 Chapter 25
Wacky Worm, The (1941) Vol 3 Side 4 Chapter 26
Peck Up Your Troubles (1945) Vol 3 Side 4 Chapter 27
Racketeer Rabbit (1946) Vol 3 Side 4 Chapter 28
I Wanna Be a Sailor (1937) Vol 3 Side 5 Chapter 29
Circus Today (1940) Vol 3 Side 5 Chapter 30
Aviation Vacation (1941) Vol 3 Side 5 Chapter 31
Aloha Hooey (1942) Vol 3 Side 5 Chapter 32
Holiday Highlights (1940) Vol 3 Side 5 Chapter 33
Crazy Cruise (1942) Vol 3 Side 5 Chapter 34
Cagey Canary, The (1941) Vol 3 Side 5 Chapter 35
Little Pancho Vanilla (1938) Vol 3 Side 6 Chapter 36
Booby Hatched (1944) Vol 3 Side 6 Chapter 37
I Got Plenty of Mutton (1944) Vol 3 Side 6 Chapter 38
Farm Frolics (1941) Vol 3 Side 6 Chapter 39
Falling Hare (1943) Vol 3 Side 6 Chapter 40
Birdy and the Beast (1944) Vol 3 Side 6 Chapter 41
Russian Rhapsody (1944) Vol 3 Side 6 Chapter 42
Freddy the Freshman (1932) Vol 3 Side 7 Chapter 43
Boulevardier from the Bronx (1936) Vol 3 Side 7 Chapter 44
Along Flirtation Walk (1935) Vol 3 Side 7 Chapter 45
Sports Chumpions (1941) Vol 3 Side 7 Chapter 46
Greetings Bait (1943) Vol 3 Side 7 Chapter 47
Screwball Football (1939) Vol 3 Side 7 Chapter 48
Baseball Bugs (1946) Vol 3 Side 7 Chapter 49
Egghead Rides Again (1937) Vol 3 Side 8 Chapter 50
Count Me Out (1938) Vol 3 Side 8 Chapter 51
Johnny Smith and Poker-Huntas (1938) Vol 3 Side 8 Chapter 52
Day at the Zoo (1939) Vol 3 Side 8 Chapter 53
Believe it or Else (1939) Vol 3 Side 8 Chapter 54
Feud There Was, A (1938) Vol 3 Side 8 Chapter 55
Confederate Honey (1940) Vol 3 Side 8 Chapter 56
Daffy Duck and the Dinosaur (1939) Vol 3 Side 9 Chapter 57
Slightly Daffy (1944) Vol 3 Side 9 Chapter 58
Ain’t That Ducky (1945) Vol 3 Side 9 Chapter 59
Wagon Heels (1945) Vol 3 Side 9 Chapter 60
Along Came Daffy (1947) Vol 3 Side 9 Chapter 61
Nothing But the Tooth (1948) Vol 3 Side 9 Chapter 62
Up-Standing Sitter, The (1947) Vol 3 Side 9 Chapter 63
Wake Up the Gypsy In Me (1933) Vol 3 Side 10 Chapter 64
He Was Her Man (1937) Vol 3 Side 10 Chapter 65
Sioux Me (1939) Vol 3 Side 10 Chapter 66
Mighty Hunters, The (1940) Vol 3 Side 10 Chapter 67
Feather in His Hare, A (1948) Vol 3 Side 10 Chapter 68
Early Worm Gets the Bird, The (1940) Vol 3 Side 10 Chapter 69
Inki and the Lion (1941) Vol 3 Side 10 Chapter 70
Blitz Wolf (1942) Vol A Side 1 Chapter 1
Early Bird Dood It, The (1942) Vol A Side 1 Chapter 2
Dumb-Hounded (1943) Vol A Side 1 Chapter 3
Red Hot Riding Hood (1943) Vol A Side 1 Chapter 4
Who Killed Who? (1943) Vol A Side 1 Chapter 5
One Ham’s Family (1943) Vol A Side 1 Chapter 6
What’s Buzzin’ Buzzard (1943) Vol A Side 1 Chapter 7
Screwball Squirrel (1944) Vol A Side 2 Chapter 8
Batty Baseball (1944) Vol A Side 2 Chapter 9
Happy-Go-Nutty (1944) Vol A Side 2 Chapter 10
Big Heel-Watha (1944) Vol A Side 2 Chapter 11
Screwy Truant, The (1945) Vol A Side 2 Chapter 12
Shooting of Dan McGoo, The (1945) Vol A Side 2 Chapter 13
Jerky Turkey (1945) Vol A Side 2 Chapter 14
Swing Shift Cindella (1945) Vol A Side 2 Chapter 15
Wild and Wolfy (1945) Vol A Side 3 Chapter 16
Lonesome Lenny (1946) Vol A Side 3 Chapter 17
Hick Chick, The (1946) Vol A Side 3 Chapter 18
Northwest Hounded Police (1946) Vol A Side 3 Chapter 19
Henpecked Hoboes (1946) Vol A Side 3 Chapter 20
Hound Hunters (1947) Vol A Side 3 Chapter 21
Red Hot Rangers (1947) Vol A Side 3 Chapter 22
Uncle Tom’s Cabana (1947) Vol A Side 4 Chapter 23
Slap Happy Lion (1947) Vol A Side 4 Chapter 24
King-Size Canary (1947) Vol A Side 4 Chapter 25
What Price Fleadom (1948) Vol A Side 4 Chapter 26
Little Tinker (1948) Vol A Side 4 Chapter 27
Lucky Ducky (1948) Vol A Side 4 Chapter 28
Half-Pint Pygmy (1948) Vol A Side 5 Chapter 29
Cat That Hated People, The (1948) Vol A Side 5 Chapter 30
Bad Luck Blackie (1949) Vol A Side 5 Chapter 31
Senor Droopy (1949) Vol A Side 5 Chapter 32
House of Tommorrow, The (1949) Vol A Side 5 Chapter 33
Doggone Tired (1949) Vol A Side 5 Chapter 34
Wags to Riches (1949) Vol A Side 5 Chapter 35
Little Rural Riding Hood (1949) Vol A Side 6 Chapter 36
Out_Foxed (1949) Vol A Side 6 Chapter 37
Counterfeit Cat, The (1949) Vol A Side 6 Chapter 38
Ventriloquist Cat (1950) Vol A Side 6 Chapter 39
Cuckoo Clock, The (1950) Vol A Side 6 Chapter 40
Garden Gopher (1950) Vol A Side 6 Chapter 41
Chump Champ, The (1950) Vol A Side 6 Chapter 42
Peachy Cobbler, The (1950) Vol A Side 6 Chapter 43
Cock-A-Doodle Dog (1951) Vol A Side 7 Chapter 44
Daredevil Droopy (1951) Vol A Side 7 Chapter 45
Droopy’s Good Deed (1951) Vol A Side 7 Chapter 46
Symphony in Slang (1951) Vol A Side 7 Chapter 47
Car of Tommorrow (1951) Vol A Side 7 Chapter 48
Droopy’s Double Trouble (1951) Vol A Side 7 Chapter 49
Magical Maestro (1952) Vol A Side 7 Chapter 50
One Cab’s Family (1952) Vol A Side 7 Chapter 51
Rock-A-Bye Bear (1952) Vol A Side 8 Chapter 52
Little Johnny Jet (1953) Vol A Side 8 Chapter 53
T.V. of Tommorrow (1953) Vol A Side 8 Chapter 54
Three Little Pups, The (1953) Vol A Side 8 Chapter 55
Drag-A-Long Droopy (1954) Vol A Side 8 Chapter 56
Billy Boy (1954) Vol A Side 8 Chapter 57
Homesteader Droopy (1954) Vol A Side 8 Chapter 58
Farm of Tommorrow, The (1954) Vol A Side 8 Chapter 59
Flea Circus, The (1954) Vol A Side 9 Chapter 60
Dixieland Droopy (1954) Vol A Side 9 Chapter 61
Field and Scream (1955) Vol A Side 9 Chapter 62
First Bad Man, The (1955) Vol A Side 9 Chapter 63
Deputy Droopy (1955) Vol A Side 9 Chapter 64
Cellbound (1955) Vol A Side 9 Chapter 65
Millionaire Droopy (letterbox) (1956) Vol A Side 9 Chapter 66
Cat’s Meow (letterbox) (1957) Vol A Side 9 Chapter 67
Wabbit Who Came to Supper, The (1942) Vol 4 Side 1 Chapter 1
Hare-Brained Hypnotist, The (1942) Vol 4 Side 1 Chapter 2
Case of the Missing Hare (1942) Vol 4 Side 1 Chapter 3
Hare Conditioned (1945) Vol 4 Side 1 Chapter 4
Buccaneer Bunny (1948) Vol 4 Side 1 Chapter 5
Rhapsody Rabbit (1946) Vol 4 Side 1 Chapter 6
Bugs Bunny Bond Rally (1942) Vol 4 Side 1 Chapter 7
Wild Hare, A (1940) Vol 4 Side 1 Chapter 8
Good Egg, The (1939) Vol 4 Side 2 Chapter 9
Ghost Wanted (1940) Vol 4 Side 2 Chapter 10
Snowtime for Comedy (1941) Vol 4 Side 2 Chapter 11
Bird Came C.O.D., The (1942) Vol 4 Side 2 Chapter 12
Dog Tired (1942) Vol 4 Side 2 Chapter 13
Fox Pop (1942) Vol 4 Side 2 Chapter 14
Weakly Reporter,The (1944) Vol 4 Side 2 Chapter 15
Trial of Mr. Wolf, The (1941) Vol 4 Side 3 Chapter 16
Double Chaser (1942) Vol 4 Side 3 Chapter 17
Sheepish Wolf, The (1942) Vol 4 Side 3 Chapter 18
Hiss and Make Up (1943) Vol 4 Side 3 Chapter 19
Holiday for Shoestrings (1946) Vol 4 Side 3 Chapter 20
Gay Anties, The (1947) Vol 4 Side 3 Chapter 21
Of Thee I Sing (1946) Vol 4 Side 3 Chapter 22
Tom Turk and Daffy (1944) Vol 4 Side 4 Chapter 23
I Taw a Putty Tat (1948) Vol 4 Side 4 Chapter 24
Two Gophers from Texas (1948) Vol 4 Side 4 Chapter 25
Conrad the Sailor (1942) Vol 4 Side 4 Chapter 26
Doggone Cats (1947) Vol 4 Side 4 Chapter 27
Horsefly Fleas, A (1948) Vol 4 Side 4 Chapter 28
Hobo Bobo (1947) Vol 4 Side 4 Chapter 29
Crosby, Columbo and Vallee (1932) Vol 4 Side 5 Chapter 30
Woods are Full of Cuckoos, The (1937) Vol 4 Side 5 Chapter 31
Let It Be Me (1936) Vol 4 Side 5 Chapter 32
Little Blabbermouse (1940) Vol 4 Side 5 Chapter 33
Malibu Beach Party (1940) Vol 4 Side 5 Chapter 34
Quentin Quail (1946) Vol 4 Side 5 Chapter 35
Hush My Mouse (1946) Vol 4 Side 5 Chapter 36
Hop, Skip and a Chump (1942) Vol 4 Side 6 Chapter 37
Hick, a Slick and a Chick, A (1948) Vol 4 Side 6 Chapter 38
Meatless Flyday (1944) Vol 4 Side 6 Chapter 39
Foxy Duckling, The (1947) Vol 4 Side 6 Chapter 40
Bone Sweet Bone (1948) Vol 4 Side 6 Chapter 41
Rattled Rooster, The (1948) Vol 4 Side 6 Chapter 42
Shell Shocked Egg, The (1948) Vol 4 Side 6 Chapter 43
Land of the Midnight Fun (1939) Vol 4 Side 7 Chapter 44
Wacky Wildlife (1940) Vol 4 Side 7 Chapter 45
Ceiling Hero (1940) Vol 4 Side 7 Chapter 46
Fresh Fish (1939) Vol 4 Side 7 Chapter 47
Saddle Silly (1941) Vol 4 Side 7 Chapter 48
Foney Fables (1942) Vol 4 Side 7 Chapter 49
Bug Parade (1941) Vol 4 Side 7 Chapter 50
Love and Curses (1938) Vol 4 Side 8 Chapter 51
Gold Rush Daze (1939) Vol 4 Side 8 Chapter 52
Bars and Stripes Forever (1939) Vol 4 Side 8 Chapter 53
Hobo Gadget Band (1939) Vol 4 Side 8 Chapter 54
Fagin’s Freshman (1939) Vol 4 Side 8 Chapter 55
Busy Bakers (1940) Vol 4 Side 8 Chapter 56
Snafuperman (1944) Vol 4 Side 8 Chapter 57
Booby Traps (1944) Vol 4 Side 8 Chapter 58
Spies (1943) Vol 4 Side 8 Chapter 59
Naughty But Mice (1939) Vol 4 Side 9 Chapter 60
Little Brother Rat (1939) Vol 4 Side 9 Chapter 61
Sniffles and the Bookworm (1939) Vol 4 Side 9 Chapter 62
Egg Collector, The (1940) Vol 4 Side 9 Chapter 63
Sniffles Bells the Cat (1941) Vol 4 Side 9 Chapter 64
Toy Trouble (1941) Vol 4 Side 9 Chapter 65
Brave Little Bat (1941) Vol 4 Side 9 Chapter 66
Queen Was in the Parlor, The (1932) Vol 4 Side 10 Chapter 67
I Love a Parade (1932) Vol 4 Side 10 Chapter 68
The Organ Grinder (1933) Vol 4 Side 10 Chapter 70
Billboard Frolics (1935) Vol 4 Side 10 Chapter 71
Flowers for Madame (1936) Vol 4 Side 10 Chapter 72
September in the Rain (1937) Vol 4 Side 10 Chapter 73
You’re an Education (1938) Vol 4 Side 10 Chapter 74

==========================
animation/best.of.net #52, from hmccracken, 3363 chars, Sun Mar 6 19:39:00 1994
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 6 Mar 1994 19:24:57 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9403061924.memo.62815@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!newshost.williams.edu!newshost.williams.edu!not-for-mail
From: 96dag@williams.edu (David A Gerstein)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Woody Woodpecker: ANSWERS HERE
Date: 5 Mar 1994 14:54:45 -0500
Organization: Williams College, Williamstown MA
Lines: 69
Message-ID: <2lao25INN46r@bigbird.cc.williams.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: bigbird.cc.williams.edu

Dear Folks,

Someone (I’m sorry, I only copied the message and blew it by
losing the person’s name) complained about Woody Woodpecker’s status.

“A few years ago [in 1987 actually] Saatchi & Saatchi
Program Exchange decided that the cartoons were better shown as half
hours stripped of all individual credits. Which is the way they
remain today…

“And it’s sad too because Lantz made some really nice cartoons
during the wartime years that just don’t get shown anymore because
Saatchi didn’t include them in one of their tidy half-hour units.”

I hate to drop this very sad piece of news, but I will.

Woody Woodpecker cartoons are now being made NEW in the United
States, but they will NEVER be seen here.

Why? Because Universal gave Saatchi an EXCLUSIVE contract,
pointing out that their WW show would be THE ONLY ONE on the air.
Universal will not allow distribution of the new WW cartoons in a new
TV program, because it would compete with the Saatchi program for
airspace.

So why isn’t Saatchi buying the new ones to add to their own
package? Simple. They have no intention of expanding their package.
That would cost money — that’s what’s needed to prepare new shows,
even if they’re just cobbled together from pre-existing material —
and Saatchi isn’t going to PAY to get the rights to the new Woodys.
Not when they feel that viewer interest won’t change appreciably.

Up to this point, all this information has been in VARIETY
magazine, most of it in an article about 5 months ago.

Furthermore…

Saatchi will NEVER make any WW half-hour compilations beside
the 65 ones that now exist. That is all we will EVER see. The rest
of the Lantz cartoons, particularly the only GOOD ones, those from
1954 and before, will never be seen again.

The same is true of video. There will be NO new Lantz
animated videos for the forseeable future, according to animation
historian and studio consultant Jerry Beck, because MCA Video has no
interest in issuing any of the cartoons. The video division’s
personell doesn’t happen to like cartoons.

There are also fine Woody comics in Europe; for several years
in the ’70s and ’80s there were excellent Woody comics done in Norway
by Freddy Milton. Tell that to Harvey Comics, which will not run
translations of those in their occasional WW comics, not when they
have a lot of absolutely worthless WW comics from Whitman’s 1970s
comics which they can use in ready-made English.

* * * * *

Woody’s future is a stone wall in this country. Due to
general disinterest from everyone in power, the earlier, better Woody
cartoons — not to mention Andy and Oswald — will never be seen
again.

I may have an address we can write to. If I can dig it up,
I’ll post it here.

David Gerstein

==========================
animation/best.of.net #53, from davemackey, 138 chars, Mon Mar 7 06:55:34 1994
This is a comment to message 52.
————————–
Credit where credit is due: I’m the person who posted the material that
appears in quotes in the message.
–Dave

==========================
animation/best.of.net #54, from hmccracken, 17290 chars, Tue Mar 8 08:42:38 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 8 Mar 1994 08:42:17 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9403080842.memo.69489@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!MathWorks.Com!europa.eng.gtefsd.com!howland.reston.ans.net!math.ohio-state.edu!cs.utexas.edu!news.tamu.edu!bell
From: bell@cs.tamu.edu (Will Bell)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,rec.answers,news.answers
Subject: [rec.arts.animation] Frequently Asked Questions v. 1.26
Supersedes:
Followup-To: rec.arts.animation
Date: 5 Mar 1994 08:01:33 GMT
Organization: Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
Lines: 351
Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.Edu
Expires: 3 Apr 1994 08:00:07 GMT
Message-ID:
Reply-To: bell@cs.tamu.edu
NNTP-Posting-Host: sparc79.cs.tamu.edu
Summary: Contains Q&A for new users of this newsgroup. Pls read before posting.
Keywords: animation faq
Xref: news.delphi.com rec.arts.animation:17611 rec.answers:4250 news.answers:18427

Archive-name: animation-faq
Version: 1.26 1994/02/23

*** REC.ARTS.ANIMATION Frequently asked questions ***

*** CONTENTS

1. Introduction
2. Questions:
Q1. Where can I get a copy of the movie *Heavy Metal* on VHS?
Q2. But I just went to a ComicCon and a vendor had copies with …
Q3. I will surely die if I don’t get (MyFaveCartoon) on VHS! Where …
Q4. Any other mail order vendors I need to know about?
Q5. I’m into anime (Japanese Animation). Why no anime posts?
Q5a. Any other toon newsgroups I need to know about?
Q6. Where can I get the soundtrack from *The Last Unicorn*?
Q7. What are the lyrics to (MyFaveCartoon’sThemeSong)?
Q8. What cartoons are on *The Golden Age of Looney Tunes*?
Q9. Does anyone have a gif of (MyFaveAnimatedScene?)
Q10. What about those of us who are really interested in the actual
creating of animation? Drawing, etc?
Q11. What’s the deal with editing on Tex Avery video collections?
Q12. Any good books on Animation / Cartoons?
3. Frequently Discussed Topics that tend to go nowhere
4. Acknowledgements & Distribution rights

*** INTRODUCTION

Rec.arts.animation is a relatively high-volume newsgroup which is intended
to discuss animation of any kind. No subjects are taboo, but discussion
tends to focus on cartoons of all sorts — how they are made, how good they
are, how BAD they are :-), and any other toon-related issues.

As with any other newsgroup, there are several questions that come up
repeatedly. This document attempts to provide authoritative answers
to some of these FAQ’s.

If you have a suggestion, complaint, or any other comment, please MAIL
it to me at bell@cs.tamu.edu. This file is posted automatically by
machine, and I sometimes fall behind in my newsreading. There is a
good chance I will not see your comments if you post them. So please
email me instead. It may take me some time to incorporate your comments
into this file. All comments are saved and WILL be included at some point
in the future as my time allows.

This FAQ, as well as many other FAQ’s appearing on the net, is posted to
news.answers. You can ftp FAQ’s mentioned in this document from
rtfm.mit.edu:/pub/usenet. If you do not have ftp, send a message to
“mail-server@rtfm.mit.edu” with the word “help” in the body. The server
will send you instructions on retrieving the files via email.

This FAQ is posted about every 15 days. You may also request it via
email (give me several days to respond).

*** CHANGES FROM VERSION 1.25

. Listed questions in contents
. Q9: Changes in name & copyright policy at CATT ftp site

*** QUESTIONS

Q1. Where can I get a copy of the movie *Heavy Metal* on VHS?

A1. Heavy Metal (the movie) is not licensed on video cassette in the US.
From the horse’s mouth:

“We are constantly asked where one can buy the video of *Heavy
Metal: The Film.* You can’t. It’s not available. At the time
the movie was made the film company, Columbia Pictures, didn’t
obtain the rights to the music. It’s been a long, arduous endeavor,
but we are working on it, and hopefully we’ll have some good news
about a possible video in the future.”

Julie Simmons-Lynch
Editor-in-Chief
Heavy Metal magazine
Summer 1988 issue

The US Pay Cable channel Cinemax shows Heavy Metal approximately every
8 months. The most recent reported showing was in November 1992.
(It may have aired since then, but has not been reported to the
newsgroup.) Apparently Turner has acquired some rights to it;
it was shown on TNT in July 1993.

Q2. But I just went to a ComicCon and a vendor had copies with color covers
and everything!

A2. The movie is widely bootlegged. Some vendors dress them up to make
look official, but the fact remains that they are bootlegs.

Q3. I will surely die if I don’t get (MyFaveCartoon) on VHS! Where can I
buy it?

If it’s a Warners or MGM cartoon, there’s a very large chance it’s been
released on VHS. Check mass merchandisers such as K-Mart and Wal-Mart,
and also check places like Suncoast Motion Pictures (a store that sells
only videos). Suncoast usually has a very good selection of toons.

The best place to look for hard-to-find video is the Whole Toon Catalog.
They specialize in cartoons on video. They have thousands of titles in
their catalog including toons from many independent vendors. If it’s
available on video, they’ll probably have it. To contact them:
Whole Toon Catalog
PO Box 1910
Seattle, WA 98111-1910
(206) 441-4130 FAX: (206) 441-4295
If you live in Seattle you can visit their store at 1907 Third Ave.

Q4. Any other mail order vendors I need to know about?

A4. Warner Bros Catalog — sells Looney Tunes material as well as
promotional materials for their current movies and TV shows.
The merchandise is usually overpriced and unexceptional. (IMHO)
Warner Bros. Catalog
PO Box 60048
Tampa FL 33660-0048
(800) 223-6524
Most of the merchandise available in the catalog is also available
at the Warner Bros. Studio Stores. These are not nearly as widespread
as the Disney stores. I have a list of store locations available.
Email requests.

Disney Catalog —
The Disney Catalog
PO Box 28144
Shawnee Mission KS 66201-9144
(800) 237-5751
(any others?)

Q5. I’m into anime (Japanese Animation). Why don’t I ever see any anime
posts here?

A5. They are all in rec.arts.anime, which has its own FAQ. The maintainer of
that FAQ has volunteered to answer queries, etc., outside of r.a.anime.
Email to pearl@remus.rutgers.edu.

Q5a. Any other toon newsgroups I need to know about?

A5a. Here are a few and what they focus on :

alt.animation.warner-bros — Warner Bros. cartoons (old and new)
alt.tv.animaniacs — Fox-TV Cartoon “Animaniacs” (*)
alt.tv.tiny-toon — Fox-TV Cartoon “Tiny Toon Adventures” (*)
alt.tv.tiny-toon.fandom — Looser discussion of toons.
alt.fan.disney.afternoon — Syndicated cartoons in
“The Disney Afternoon” (Goof Troop, Rescue Rangers, Darkwing Duck,
Tale Spin) and DuckTales (and others?)
alt.tv.ren-n-stimpy — Nickelodeon cartoon “The Ren & Stimpy Show” (*)
alt.fan.ren-and-stimpy — a lesser-distributed newsgroup.
rec.arts.disney — Any and all things Disney, tends to focus more on the
animated feature films and on theme park issues (*)
alt.tv.simpsons — Fox-TV Cartoon “The Simpsons” (*)
comp.graphics.animation — technical details of computer animation
alt.tv.liquid.tv — MTV show “Liquid Television”

(*) Indicates the group has its own FAQ which you can ftp from
rtfm.mit.edu. (/pub/usenet)

Discussion about the Disney Afternoon also takes place on a mailing
list as well as the newsgroup listed above. All of the “true fans”
are on the mailing list. 🙂 The most ground-breaking news from the
list is posted to the newsgroup. Send mail to
ranger-request@taronga.com to be placed on this mailing list.

Q6. Where can I get the soundtrack from *The Last Unicorn*?

A6. The soundtrack exists, but is not released in the US. Here’s the
pertinent info.
“Das Letzte Einhorn”
released by Virgin Records (in then West Germany, I believe)
copyright 1982, CD # 610 388-222
running time: 38 min.

Q7. What are the lyrics to (MyFaveCartoon’sThemeSong)?

A7. I have lyrics for Disney Afternoon and some Jay Ward cartoons. Mail me
requests. I am trying to build up a repository of lyrics and then
stash them at some ftp site. Contributions gratefully accepted!

Q8. What cartoons are on *The Golden Age of Looney Tunes*? How about the
other tapes? Any other laserdiscs?

A8. I have a list which includes all the data for the current MGM/UA and
Warner VHS tapes and laser discs. Due to space considerations, it is
not included here. Email me and I will send you this list (it is
currently about 1000 lines long).

Q9. Does anyone have a gif of (MyFaveAnimatedScene?)

A9. These sites are known to have cartoon/animation gifs:
wuarchive.wustl.edu 128.252.135.4
avatar.snc.edu 138.74.0.13

garfield.catt.ncsu.edu is now known as ftp.catt.ncsu.edu.
The CATT site no longer offers screen grabs and other copyrighted
images.

If you know any more sites for animation gifs please let me know.

Q10. What about those of us who are really interested in the actual
creating of animation? Drawing, etc?

A10. The address for the animator’s mailing list is
animate-request@dsd.es.com; sending e-mail with a subject of
“subscribe” will automatically join you to it.

Q11. What’s the deal with editing on Tex Avery video collections?

A11. The first pressing of the Complete Tex Avery set contains two edited
cartoons. This was a mistake by MGM/Turner and the second pressing
is supposed to be correct. I wouldn’t recommend buying a copy without
first verifying it is the unedited version. In “Droopy’s Good Deed”
look for the exploding hat, if the man continues counting out the
money in black-face with a southern accent you have the unedited
version. (Thanx to Michael W. Denney for this info.)

Q12. Any good books on Animation / Cartoons?

A12. For Disney books, I refer you to part 03 of Tom Tanida’s excellent
FAQ for rec.arts.disney (see above for instructions on how to get
this list).

Whole Toon has a large list of animation books available, including
many Disney books and several non-Disney books. Some suggestions
from the net:

Adamson, Joe; “Tex Avery: King of Cartoons”; printed in 1975;
A biography of Tex Avery. It has a filmography listing credits
with a short description and rating of each cartoon. There is
an interview with Tex Avery and a fair number of black and
white stills for films, character sheets.

Beck, Jerry and Will Friedwald; “Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies” 1988;
Ultimate reference of Warner Brothers cartoons. Chronological
filmography of releases with synopsis and full credits.

Blanc, Mel; “That’s not All, Folks”;
Mel Blanc’s biography (I guess, I’ve not read it.)

Brion, Patrick; “Tom & Jerry: The Definitive Guide to their Animated
Adventures”; New York, Harmony Books, 1990. A translation of the 1987
French edition. An extremely thorough and beautiful treatment of the
Tom and Jerry series from 1940 to 1967. Includes complete production
information on each film, including music used, animators, etc. Very
large and gorgeous–lots of color pictures. [Ed. Note: If you are
a Tom & Jerry fan, you must own this book. It is a very well-done
production. I found it at a used bookstore for $10 — lists for $40!
Or, PSB suggests this source: Edward R. Hamilton, Bookseller, Falls
Village, CT 06031-5000–he doesn’t do phone orders, so write for a
catalog.]

John Canemaker, Felix: “The Twisted Tale of the World’s Most Famous Cat”
Chronicles the rise of Felix during the silent era, his fall and rise
again as a television star. Lots of great art, a bibliography and short
filmography. New York, Pantheon Books, 1991.

Carbarga, Leslie; “The Fleischer Story” 1988;
A chronicle of the rise and fall of the Fleischer brothers, the
pioneering animators responsible for Betty Boop, Koko the Clown,
Popeye among others. Contains a complete filmography.

Donald Crafton; “Before Mickey: The Animated Film 1898-1928”;
Cambridge, Mass., MIT Press, 1982. The definitive scholarly work on
the early animated film. Lots of illustrations and a bibliography.
The book ends where most begins–with Walt Disney’s work. Great of
pre-film entertainments, Emile Cohl, Winsor McCay, Bray’s invention
of the cel technique, Paul Terry’s Aesop’s Fables, Fleischer’s Out of
the Ink-well series, Felix the Cat. Crafton’s writing is extremely
readable considering his amazing scholarship.

Jones, Chuck; “Chuck Amuck — The Life and Times of an Animated
Cartoonist”; 1990;
An autobiography of Chuck Jones. It has a fair number of sketches,
stories etc about the Warner Brother studios. Includes a filmography.

Lenburg, Jeff; “Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons” 1991;
The most comprehensive reference for theatrical cartoons and feature
films, and television, listing individual episode titles.
Entries include creators, directors, studios, voices, plot summaries
and other trivia.

Maltin, Leonard; “Of Mice and Magic: A History of American Animated
Cartoons”; 1987;
A history of the major american animation studios, focusing up
until the 1960’s studios. Detailed filmography. Good overall
history of the US animation houses. Considered THE history of
American Animation

Schneider, Steve; “That’s All Folks” 1988;
Detailed history of the Warner Brothers cartooning. Chapters focus
on individual characters and a complete chronological filmography
is included. Lavishly illustrated.

Sennett, Ted; “The Art of Hanna-Barbara” 1989;
Coffee Table book thoroughly chronicles characters and series
created by Hanna Barbara. Lavishly illustrated with publicity
stills and production art. No filmography or episode titles.

Solomon, Charles; “Enchanted Drawings: The HiStory of Animation” 1989;
Huge art book, looks at the field chronologically as opposed to
focusing on certain studios. Incredible assortment of drawings
and cels. Expensive.

Thomas, Frank and Ollie Johnston; “Disney Animation: The Illusion of
Life”; “Good for the animator and non-animator alike.” 575pp.

*** FREQUENTLY DISCUSSED TOPICS THAT TEND TO GO NOWHERE

“Below are a list of topics that when brought up frequently start heated
flame wars. When discussing them, please remember that they are a matter
of personal opinion and not some absolute set of value judgements that
everyone should subscribe to — after all it is the diversity that makes
Usenet the interesting place it is. When flame wars get out of hand, the
moderate parties often drop out or unsubcribe to the group as a result.”

* US Animation vs. Japanese Animation (anime)
* Tiny Toons are/aren’t ripoffs of Looney Tunes
* “(MyFaveCartoon) is the best cartoon in existence. Flame me.”
* “(YourFaveCartoon) is a piece of . Flame me.”

(others?)

*** ACKS

The following people contributed to this document:
Roger P. Ang (rang@laputa.ics.uci.edu)
Priscilla Stearns Barlow Enrique Conty (jester@ihlpl.att.com)
Michael W. Denney (mwdenney@undergrad.math.uwaterloo.ca)
J. J. Kwashnak (jkwashna@pearl.tufts.edu)
Tad Morgan (tmorgan@as.arizona.edu)
Tony Palombella (palomb@beagle.colorado.edu)
Vince Taluskie (taluskie@utpapa.ph.utexas.edu)
Emru Townsend
Dana Uehara (duehara@yosemite.atmos.ucla.edu)

*** REDISTRIBUTION RIGHTS

This document, or any derivative works thereof, may not be sold or
redistributed for profit in any way without express written permission of
the editor, Will Bell. This includes, but is not limited to, translations
into foreign languages, mass archival as on a CD_ROM, inclusion in
commercially published compilations (books), and uploading this document
to non-USENET services.

This document represents the collective effort of many USENET animation
fans. We appreciate your honoring of this policy.
—
Will Bell — bell@cs.tamu.edu — Live from the heart of Scenic Central Texas
“It must be inordinately taxing to be such a boob.”

==========================
animation/best.of.net #55, from hmccracken, 1422 chars, Mon Mar 14 22:19:02 1994
————————–
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips
Sender: usenet@ucdavis.edu (News Guru)
Date: Mon, 14 Mar 1994 01:16:33 GMT
Lines: 27

Tom Galloway (tyg@netcom.com) wrote:
: According to Saturday’s Detroit Free Press, Watterson is going on a nine
: month sabbatical starting April 3rd. At least at first, C&H will go into
: reruns again.

: Y’know, it’s only been a couple of years since his previous sabbatical.
: This doesn’t bode well.

I don’t like this news for two reasons. First, I have to read
the old strips again that I can always find in the books anyways.
Second, and this is IMO, I feel that the quality of the work upon
returning is usually sub par from what was being written before the time
off. I found this evident in C&W as well as the Far Side. I don’t know
about Doonesbury (although I remember when Trudeau took his sabbatical)
since I wasn’t really into that strip then like I am now. I guess that I
will have to just wait and see.

Ston

—
,_ o ez020514@othello.ucdavis.edu | o\ *==================*
/ //\, Go Giants! Go Niners! |==|__ O | “If this is |
\>> | Go Cal! Go Warriors! | ‘WW /\ | paradise, I wish |
\\, __o | /\__ | I had a lawn |
_`\<,_ | \ | mower." | (*)/ (*) | T.H. | *==================* ========================== animation/best.of.net #56, from davemackey, 2865 chars, Wed Mar 16 23:46:55 1994 -------------------------- TITLE: D K Schmerler: Who Framed Roger Rabbit frame numbers for the curious For the person who asked for the frame nos. of the subliminal "porn" in _Who Framed Roger Rabbit?_ This was posted on the Disney menu. ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Tue, 15 Mar 1994 18:12:28 -0800 From: Lisa Campbell
Subject: Re: WFRR LD has subliminals
Newsgroups: rec.arts.disney

Path: news.service.uci.edu!ihnp4.ucsd.edu!library.ucla.edu!csulb.edu!nic-nac.
CSU.net!usc!howland.reston.ans.net!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!moe.ksu.ksu.edu!
usenet-feed.umr.edu!daviduy
From: daviduy@ee.umr.edu (David Uy)
Subject: Re: WFRR LD has subliminals
References: <9403151441.AA63876@admin.ac.edu>
Date: Tue, 15 Mar 1994 18:35:11 GMT
Nntp-Posting-Host: franklin.ee.umr.edu
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.1 PL8]
Organization: The UMR Corner for Toon Research and Recreation
Sender: cnews@umr.edu (UMR Usenet News Administration)
Message-ID: <1994Mar15.183511.25993@umr.edu>
Lines: 37

Tim Bond (stctab@admin.ac.edu) wrote:
> According to a AP report dated today (Tuesday 3/15/94), someone has
> discovered a few scenes in which someone at the Disney studios has
> inserted full frontal nudity drawings of Jessica in the laser disc of _Who
> Framed Roger Rabbit?_ One of the most revealing scenes is supposed to be
> when Eddie and Jessica tumble out of Benny and Jessica’s dress flies up to
> reveal she is not wearing underwear.

Well, the scene in question with Jessica tumbling out of the cab after running
into the lightpost involves 5 frames. For those of you with edition 940-2
on side 4 frames 2165, 2166 (just before her hand moves in the way) and frames
2170, 2171, and 2172. It isn’t full frontal by my definition, but you can see
up her skirt. It wasn’t obvious to me if she had underwear on or not.

Considering the following process is involved to get that on the picture:

1) The animator created the drawing
2) The drawing had to be co-ordinated with the live action
3) The drawing had to be cleaned up by clean-up artists
4) The cleaned-up art had to be xerographed onto acetate
5) Any additional hand inking that is needed
6) The cels had to be painted
7) The cels had to be photographed
8) The coordinated cels and live action had to be checked during editing

Along with numerious quality checks along the way, it’s hard to imagine that
everyone involved would let this go through without at least some agreement
that the drawing was done correctly. Any thoughts?

—
David Uy INTERNET: daviduy@ee.umr.edu
“It’s OK Ren. Lots of people make cartoons OR: duy@umr.edu
that can’t draw.”
– Stimpy from “Stimpy’s Cartoon Show” The University of Misery – Rolla
FDC janitor for backlot building R-37.
The Fourth Bucketeer!

==========================
animation/best.of.net #57, from hmccracken, 1756 chars, Sat Mar 19 22:19:28 1994
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
TITLE: From alt.tv.simpsons: _The Critic_ to move to FOX?
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 19 Mar 1994 18:29:18 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9403191829.memo.16019@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.tv.simpsons

Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!lard.ftp.com!bloom-beacon.mit.edu!gatech!howland.reston.ans.net!usenet.ins.cwru.edu!agate!headwall.Stanford.EDU!aku
From: aku@leland.Stanford.EDU (Andrew Chia-Tso Ku)
Newsgroups: alt.tv.simpsons,rec.arts.tv
Subject: THE CRITIC may move to FOX!
Date: 16 Mar 1994 08:31:10 GMT
Organization: Stanford University, CA 94305, USA
Lines: 21
Message-ID: <2m6g4e$qum@nntp2.Stanford.EDU>
NNTP-Posting-Host: elaine11.stanford.edu
Xref: news.delphi.com alt.tv.simpsons:20004 rec.arts.tv:75255

According to the March 16 issue of Daily Variety, Columbia and
Gracie Films are currently negotiating with FOX to bring THE CRITIC
from ABC to FOX. ABC aired 6 episodes before putting it on
hiatus, due to mediocre ratings. It has 7 more episodes
ready to air at a later date, but has made it clear that it
won’t be ordering any additional episodes. The Variety article
said that ABC is willing to let FOX take over the 7 episodes for
the right price.

FOX would likely air THE CRITIC after THE SIMPSONS (ie. Thursdays
at 8:30pm), since their current show, SINBAD, isn’t holding
THE SIMPSON’S lead-in audience. Variety mentioned that THE CRITIC’s
average rating at ABC has been 10.5/15 share, which if maintained
at FOX (which might be hard on the more competitive Thursday nights),
would make it among FOX’s top 4 rated shows (SIMPSONS, 90210 and
MARRIED WITH CHILDREN.)

—
Andrew Ku |
aku@leland.stanford.edu | “Buy my book!”
andrew@chemeng.stanford.edu |

==========================
animation/best.of.net #58, from switch, 82 chars, Sun Mar 20 12:44:42 1994
This is a comment to message 57.
————————–
Of course, being on FOX would make it unavailable to us Montrealers. Sigh.

Emru

==========================
animation/best.of.net #59, from hmccracken, 945 chars, Mon Mar 21 16:29:32 1994
————————–
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

From: mmarkowitz@aol.com (MMarkowitz)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Duckman Writers Want You!
Date: 16 Mar 1994 14:28:02 -0500
Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364)
Lines: 16
Sender: news@search01.news.aol.com
Message-ID: <2m7mk2$g98@search01.news.aol.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: search01.news.aol.com

Hello, animation fans…

I’m a writer for DUCKMAN. We’re eager to hear from you, hear what you think of
the show.

If you haven’t seen it, it’s a new animated sitcom from the animators of
SIMPSONS and RUGRATS, and it’s on Saturdays at 10:30pm Eastern on USA. We’ve
gotten some great comments online and we’d love to get more.

For legal reasons don’t post episode or character ideas, okay? And we’re
fully staffed right now, so don’t ask for work, because the only jobs available
are ours and we’re using ’em! 😉

Otherwise, let us know what you think! Hope you like it!

Mike

==========================
animation/best.of.net #60, from hmccracken, 7203 chars, Wed Mar 23 12:54:16 1994
————————–
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

+—————————————————————————+
The Ren and Stimpy Files and Site Guide
Sunday, March 20, 1994 Issue 27
+—————————————————————————+

atropa.stat.uiuc.edu (128.174.116.6)
Ren and Stimpy GIFs under /pub/gif
aug3.augsburg.edu (141.224.128.4)
Official Ren and Stimpy FTP FAQ Site
dev-null.phys.psu.edu (128.118.49.202)
Ren and Stimpy IBM sounds under /pub/sounds
ftp.coe.montana.edu (192.31.215.240)
Non-Official Ren and Stimpy FAQ Site. Look under /tmp.
ftp.digex.net (164.109.10.23)
Official site for the latest edition of this document.
Look under /pub/access/frampton.
ftp.uu.net (192.48.96.9)
/pub/OS/msdos/simtel20/archivers
arce41a.zip 9K Extract ARC Archives
arj241a.exe 224K Extract and Create ARJ Archives
lha213.exe 44K Extract and Create LHZ Archives
/pub/OS/msdos/simtel20/graphics
alch17.zip 478K Image Alchemy 1.7: Convert 100s of image formats
ash16.zip 13K Shell for Image Alchemy 1.6 (req. VGA+mouse)
hv12.zip 295K Hiview: JPEG/GIF/TGA viewer, req. 386+, VCPI
nview10.zip 118K SVGA BMP/GIF/PCX/TIFF/TGA Viewer (german)
pcx112.zip 58K PCX graphics image viewer
/pub/OS/msdos/simtel20/sound
plany12.zip 18K Play any file (.au,.wav,.voc,etc) on SoundBlaster
sound.zip 21K Plays .VOC, .SND & .AU files thru PC speaker
garfield.catt.ncsu.edu (152.1.43.23)
Ren and Stimpy GIFs in directory pub/graphics/images/ren-n-stimpy
gopher: kazak.nmsu.edu port 70
/Public/Ren & Stimpy
quartz.rutgers.edu (128.6.60.6)
Articles, Scripts, Episode Guides, TEXT DOCUMENTS ONLY
Ren and Stimpy in /pub/television/renstimpy
rever.nmsu.edu (128.123.3.18)
Previously freedom.nmsu.edu. Lots of stuff under /pub/ren-and-stimpy
contact lizard@acca.nmsu.edu for information
sounds.sdsu.edu (130.191.224.8)
SUN and NeXT AU audio sounds, /sounds/cartoons/ren-stimpy
sumex-aim.stanford.edu (36.44.0.6)
Ren and Stimpy GIFs and Sounds
utpapa.ph.utexas.edu (128.83.131.52)
Animaniacs under /pub/animaniacs, mainly text files and articles
Tiny Toons under /pub/tta… mainly articles, text, etc.
usenet: alt.binaries.pictures.cartoons
GIFs and JPEGs of cartoons are posted here UUENCODED
usenet: alt.toon-pics
Similar to alt.binaries.pictures.cartoons, except this one is
not official anymore.

+—————————————————————————+
A Guide on How to Use the FTP Service
+—————————————————————————+

FTP, or “File Transfer Protocol” is a service like USENET, E-MAIL,
IRC or TELNET on the Internet. Usually if you have Telnet, you have FTP.
Unfortuanatly, some Internet accounts do not have FTP. If you do not have
FTP, don’t panic! There is a way to get any file from a FTP through E-MAIL!
Just E-MAIL ftpmail@pa.dec.com for information.
Now, to see if you have FTP, just type “ftp site.domain.ext,”
(replacing site.domain.ext with where you want to FTP to.) Now, if it says
“ftp: Command not found.” chances are you don’t have ftp! So, if you do,
you’ll get a login prompt. You should always type “anonymous” even if the
prompt has your address. Next it will ask for a password. Now you type in
your address. (you will not see yourself typing it in, it will appear as
if no characters were typed)
Next, chances are you will get a welcome screen. After this there
will be a prompt. Here are the basic commands you can use:

ls list contents of the current directory
dir similar to ls, sometimes shows file size in kilobytes
get a file (example, “get youeediot.gif”)
cd change directory (example “cd GIFS”)
quit hmmm let’s see…

Well, the sumarizes the basic commands. when you type “ls” you will
get a list of files. Usally files that do not have an extension are
directories. “dir” sometimes gives you an alphabetized list of ls with file
size. I beleive “dir” also indicates directories.
Files to download. There are sometimes files called “INDEX-00.Z” or
“INDEX” or “README.Z” in directories. Usally these are lists of files
with descriptions! If you can’t find a file list, try “README.Z” Notice
certain files have extensions of “.Z” This means they are ZIP’d and
compressed. If you want them unzip’d, type “get file” (without the .Z
extension and it will automatically unzip it. Some extensions, .LZH, .ARC,
.ZIP, .ARJ, etc. are MSDOS compression formats. Utilities for some of these
formats are available at ftp.uu.net.
All commands in the FTP software (and UNIX) are case sensitive.
YOUEEDIOT.GIF is different than youeediot.gif or YouEediot.Gif
There is also a nice shell I discovered that adds interesting features
to the FTP software, called NcFTP and BncFTP. Check out and see if these
programs are on your computer. If you want, I can dig up an address of the
site that has the source code for these programs. NcFTP and BncFTP add
features such as a bar graph when receiving files, the path is located
in the prompt, and a memory of previously visited sites, just to name a
few. Just type “ncftp” or “bncftp” at your prompt.
When you are receiving the file, it will not say what percent is
complete, nor how much of the file has arrived. At certain times,
receiving files will take longer or shorter. Just wait around for a few
minutes and it’ll come. (Or, in the case of faster connections, a couple of
seconds.)
Some eeediots have mailed me saying they got the file and it’s
not on their home computer. When you get the file, it will be on your site’s
system, not yours. So you have to download the file from your site. At
14.4Kbps, 3 to 4 megs (3000-4000K) can be transfered per hour. At 2400bps,
you can get around .87 megs (870K) per hour. Commands to download files from
your site vary. On my site, there’s a nice little command called
“download” on your’s it may be different. Ask your system administrator for
more info. If the file has 2 dot in it (i.e. you.eeediot.gif) DOS may have
problems accepting it for download. Simply rename the file so it only has 2
dots in the filename.
Once you get the file, (usally a WAV, VOC, GIF, or JPEG) you’ll need
a program to view/listen to it. If you have a PC, it really helps to have
a SoundBlaster or some sound card to listen to WAVS/VOCS. Utilities to
listen/view files can be obtained ftp.uu.net (see list for recommended files)

+—————————————————————————+

If you have any questions, e.mail me at frampton@digex.net.
Please read the document CAREFULLY before mailing me, becuase I’m sick
of people asking me how to FTP the file. The point of adding the how-to guide
was so I wouldn’t get mailed all the time. It seems like I just get more
mail. I have little patience with newbies!

—
Adam Frampton [LordOptic] | frampton@access.digex.com
| optic@tele9.colorado.edu
Printed on 100 percent Recycled Electrons | frampton@digex.net
Linux: Choice of a Gnu Generation | aframpto@sidwell.edu

==========================
animation/best.of.net #61, from switch, 3278 chars, Sat Mar 26 16:52:39 1994
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
TITLE: Manga Video attempts to trademark “Manga”.

You’d think they’d have learned from the reaction to Compton.

From: malcolmc@spider.co.uk (Malcolm Campbell)
Date: Tue, 22 Mar 1994 01:20:10 GMT
Newsgroups: rec.arts.manga
Subject: Manga Trademark in UK

I dont normally read this newsgroup, but Im posting this for a friend
who wants it to get the widest distribution possible, so please forgive me
if youve seen it before.

This concerns a UK trademark application…

Manga Entertainment Ltd attempt to Trademark “Manga”

On 10 June 1993, Manga Entertainment Ltd. made a formal application to
trademark the word “Manga”, in all uses relating to videos, books and
related merchandising. The Patents and Trademarks Journal lists this
application as follows:

APPLICATION FOR REGISTRATION OF TRADEMARK

Applicant: Manga Entertainment Ltd
Trademark applied for: Manga
Nos: 1538129
1538130
1538131
1538132

If this application is accepted, it will be illegal for anyone to refer to
Manga without specific permission from Manga Entertainment Ltd. Dark Horse
may be sued for trademark infringement by virtue of their comic “Manga
Mania”. Antarctic Press in the United States may suffer similar legal
action, as they publish a comic called “Mangazine”. An Italian company
publishes a magazine with a similar title, they could be prosecuted under
European Law. The list could go on, but I hope you have got the point by now.

There is a limited time during which this application may be challenged. The
time is now. Please write immediately to:

Patent Office,
Trademark Registration Department,
Cardiff Road,
Newport,
Gwent NP9 1RH,
United Kingdom.

Quote the above application, especially the numbers. State that you wish to
object to this application on one or more of the following grounds”

– Manga is a recognised word in the Japanese Language, meaning
“irresponsible pictures or comics”, and has been in common use since the
nineteenth century.

– it has been, and still is, commonly used to describe comic books and
comic strips in Japan. It is also in common use in English-speaking
countries, such as the United Kingdom and United States, to describe comic
books or comic strips from Japan, or in Japanese style.

– It is used in titles for existing publications such as “Manga Mania” in
the UK, “Mangazine” in the United States, and the Kodansha publication
“Manga Mange” by Fred Schodt. The latter was published in 1982, a full ten
years before Manga Entertainment Ltd’s application.

This is neither the time nor the place to dwell on the application nor those
who made it. It is, quite simply, wrong, and must be appealed against by as
many people as possible. Please do so at once; it will cost you a few
minutes of your time and a first class (or airmail) stamp. Tell your friends
what you are doing and why; ask them to write to the Patent Office as well.

[Original text by Harry Payne, Flat 46, 161 Corporation Street, Coventry,
CV1 1FR, UK]
—
—————————————————————————-
Malcolm Campbell, Senior Engineer | Spider Park, Stanwell Street
Spider Software, | Edinburgh, EH6 5NG, Scotland
Division of Spider Systems Ltd | Tel: +44 31 555 5166

==========================
animation/best.of.net #62, from hmccracken, 113 chars, Sat Mar 26 18:20:11 1994
This is a comment to message 61.
————————–
Swell. This reminds me of when Disney was trying to say they owned
the word “Toon” a few years back…
— Harry

==========================
animation/best.of.net #63, from hmccracken, 2301 chars, Sun Apr 3 15:49:57 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 3 Apr 1994 15:47:38 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9404031547.memo.68992@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!yale.edu!spool.mu.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!news1.digex.net!digex.net!not-for-mail
From: outrage@cnj.digex.net (Outrageous Outputs Inc.)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.misc,rec.arts.comics.xbooks,rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: Comics CONTEST PRIZES (catch you gotta read to see)
Date: 31 Mar 1994 14:04:24 -0500
Organization: Express Access Online Communications, New Jersey, USA
Lines: 39
Expires: 10 April 94
Message-ID: <2nf6ro$eiv@cnj.digex.net>
NNTP-Posting-Host: cnj.digex.net
Summary: Need your assistance.
Xref: news.delphi.com rec.arts.comics.misc:69135 rec.arts.comics.xbooks:18562 rec.arts.comics.strips:6910

Please excuse cross posting of this article. I’m trying to reach the
largest possible audience.

Hi,
What we have here is one more person trying to gain knowledge
about who’s out there and what they like. My angle is, that I’m gonna
try to entice you into replying, with the chance of winning a prize.

E-mail me ( outrage@cnj.digex.net ) and I’ll promptly send you out
my survey consisting of 16 painless questions.

All replies will be entered into a random drawing (my 5yr. old niece
pulling your name from the bag of entries) for the ownership of
“The New Adventures of Charlie Chan #1” DC Comics, June 1958,
G.K., scarce, rare, fine-mint, check your “Overstreet” for value,
($150-350) it’s worth answering my few little questions!

The winners name will be posted here on 04/28/94.

And the winner will be E-mailed directly on 04/28/94.

If the winner does not reply by 05/12/94 a second drawing will be held
in a similar fashion with dates announced on 05/13/94.

If I receive more than 150 replies a second prize of equal value will be
added.(“Conan the Barbarian #1” Marvel, Oct 1970)

Prizes will be shipped only after verbal verification of winner.

Anyone may respond (if they read or buy comics!).

Thanx for your time,

outrage
—
************************************************************
Seeking thrills & fighting the “machine”.
Just two more reasons to get up in the morning with a smile.
outrage@cnj.digex.net (M. C. Anderson)

==========================
animation/best.of.net #64, from hmccracken, 8464 chars, Sun Apr 3 15:50:11 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 3 Apr 1994 15:49:24 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9404031549.memo.68997@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!yale.edu!yale!zip.eecs.umich.edu!newsxfer.itd.umich.edu!gumby!wupost!cs.utexas.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!qualcomm.com!happy.qualcomm.com!rdippold
From: rdippold@qualcomm.com (Ron “Asbestos” Dippold)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: COMICS POLL: Here it is, please vote (2nd Try)
Supersedes: <2nbav9$25f@qualcomm.com>
Followup-To: poster
Date: 30 Mar 1994 21:35:02 GMT
Organization: Usenet Volunteer Votetakers
Lines: 248
Message-ID: <2ncra6$prt@qualcomm.com>
Reply-To: voting@qualcomm.com (Ron Dippold Voting Alias)
NNTP-Posting-Host: happy.qualcomm.com
Originator: rdippold@happy.qualcomm.com

1st Annual Internet Comic Strip Poll
Voting Ends Friday, April 15, 1994

[Note – the first poll had 18 strips missing (marked with “*”). I
canceled it. If you voted from that, don’t worry – the mail ack
allows you to easily add your votes for those ].

Computer users aren’t quite your general public, but after the nth
“Worst Strip / Best Strip” thread, I think this is worth a shot. Feel
free to distribute this anywhere you think it’s appropriate, such as a
computer service that has a comic stip group and can send Internet
mail, but please don’t post it someplace it doesn’t belong, like a
comp. group. There’s no need to upset or pester anyone.

This list is fairly complete (173 entries) thanks to the help of
netters, but we have almost certainly missed a few lesser known strips
you know of. It’s somewhat US mainstream-centric because most of the
strips group participants are in the US or Canada. You can add
entries for others at the bottom of the list.

Instructions:

Rate each comic strip you currently read on a scale from 0 to 9, with
0 being so bad you don’t even read it, 4 and 5 being middling, and 9
being the height of genius. Place this rating in the brackets ([]) in
front of the strip. If you don’t have access to a given strip, just
leave it blank – the final totals will include the number of actual
votes on each strip. Please don’t modify the ballot or strip names –
I’m NOT counting 173 strips per ballot by hand. You don’t need to
worry about spacing or “>” that your mailer inserts: the program is
looking for the 0-9 anywhere to the left of the strip name.

Then mail this ballot to the internet address of:
voting@qualcomm.com
If you’re on another network, this may vary. For CompuServe it’d be
“>INTERNET:voting@qualcomm.com” for instance.

*IMPORTANT* — Rate each strip based on CURRENT work – even if you feel
the FooBar strips of the 1930s were unsurpassed in brilliance, if the
FooBar strips of today are middling then FooBar only gets a 4 or 5.
If you don’t currently get the strip, leave it blank. Maybe some day
we’ll do a classics poll.

And oh, yes, thanks for participating.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ballot =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Remember: 0 is extremely bad, 4 or 5 is middling, 9 is sheer genius.
If you don’t currently read a strip, leave it blank.

[Rate 0-9 ] Group
———————————————————————–
[ ] 5th Wave, The
[ ] 9 Chickweed Lane
[ ] Adam
[ ] Agatha Crumm
[ ] Alex
[ ] Alladin
[ ] Alley Oop
[ ] Amazing Spiderman, The
[ ] Andy Capp
[ ] Animal Crackers
[ ] Annie
[ ] Apartment 3-G
[ ] Archie
[ ] Arlo ‘n’ Janis
[ ] Ask Shagg
[ ] B.C.
[ ] Baby Blues
[ ] Backbench
[ ] Ballard Street
[ ] Barney Google And Snuffy Smith
[ ] Beattie Blvd.
[ ] Beetle Bailey
[ ] Better Half, The
[ ] Betty
[ ] Between Friends
[ ] Big Nate
[ ] Bizarro
[ ] Blondie
[ ] Boner’s Ark
[ ] Born Loser, The
[ ] Bound and Gagged
[ ] Brainstormers
[ ] Brenda Starr
[ ] Bringing Up Father
[ ] Broom Hilda
[ ] Buckets, The
[ ] Calvin and Hobbes
[ ] Catfish
[ ] Cathy
[ ] Charlie
[ ] City of Love
[ ] Close to Home
[ ] Comic Strip
[ ] Crankshaft
[ ] Crock
[ ] Curious Avenue
[ ] Curtis
[ ] Dave
[ ] Dennis the Menace
[ ] Dick Tracy
[ ] Dilbert
[ ] Doctor Fun
[ ] Doonesbury
[ ] Drabble
[ ] Dunagin’s People
[ ] Duplex, The
[ ] Dykes to Watch Out For
[ ] East Texas
[ ] Eek & Meek
[ ] Ernie
[ ] Ernie Pook’s Comeek
[ ] Executive Suite
[ ] Family Circus, The
[ ] Farcus
[ ] Farley
[ ] Far Side, The
[ ] Feiffer
[ ] Ferd’nand
[ ] First Lady, The
[ ] Fisher
[ ] Flashbacks
[ ] For Better or For Worse
[ ] Fox Trot
[ ] Francie
[ ] Frank and Ernest
[ ] Fred Bassett
[ ] Funky Winkerbean
[ ] Fusco Brothers, The
[ ] Garfield
[ ] Gasoline Alley
[ ] Geech
[ ] Gil Thorp
[ ] Grin and Bear It
[ ] Grizzwells
[ ] Hagar the Horrible
[ ] Heart of Juliet Jones, The
[ ] Heathcliff
[ ] Herb & Jamaal
[ ] Hi & Lois
[ ] In the Bleachers
[ ] Judge Parker
[ ] Jump Start
[ ] Just Between Friends
[ ] Kit’n’Carlyle
[ ] Kudzu
[ ] Leonard & Larry
[ ] Life in Hell
[ ] Lockhorns, The
[ ] Love Is …
[ ] Luann
[ ] Mark Trail
[ ] Marmaduke
[ ] Marvin
[ ] Mary Worth
[ ] Maxine
[ ] Mickey Mouse
[ ] Middletons, The
[ ] Miss Peach
[ ] Momma
[ ] Mother Goose & Grimm
[ ] Motley Crew
[ ] Mr. Boffo
[ ] Nancy
[ ] Nina’s Adventures
[ ] Non Sequitur
[ ] Norb
[ ] Off the Leash
[ ] One Big Happy
[ ] On the Fast Track
[ ] Outland
[ ] Overboard
[ ] Overlord
[ ] Pavlov
[ ] Peanuts
[ ] Phantom, The
[ ] Pickles
[ ] Pluggers
[ ] Popeye
[ ] Porterfield
[ ] Potshots
[ ] Prince Valiant
[ ] Quality Time
[ ] Quigmans, The
[ ] Real Life Adventures
[ ] Rex Morgan M.D.
[ ] Ripley’s Believe It Or Not
[ ] Rip Kirby
[ ] Robotman
[ ] Rose Is Rose
[ ] Rubes
[ ] Safe Havens
[ ] Sally Forth
[ ] Sherman’s Lagoon
[ ] Shoe
[ ] Sibling Revelry
[ ] Some Freaky Tuna
[ ] Stan Mack’s Real Life Funnies
[ ] Steve Roper and Mike Nomad
[ ] Suburban Cowgirls
[ ] Sylvia
[ ] Tank McNamara
[ ] Tar Pit*
[ ] Tarzan*
[ ] Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles*
[ ] That’s
[ ] They’ll Do It Every Time
[ ] This Modern World*
[ ] Tiger
[ ] Tom the Dancing Bug
[ ] Tribune Toon*
[ ] Troubletown*
[ ] Tumbleweeds*
[ ] U.S. Acres*
[ ] Walnut Cove*
[ ] Washingtoon
[ ] Where the Buffalo
[ ] Where’s Waldo?*
[ ] Willy ‘n Ethel*
[ ] Winthrop*
[ ] Wizard of Id*
[ ] Wolff & Byrd*
[ ] Ziggy*
[ ] Zippy The Pinhead*
-=-=-=-=-=- Don’t Delete Anything Between These Lines =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Write-In Area – Did we miss any strips you know of that are _still in
regular syndication or other distribution_? If so, you can add entries
for them here in the same format used above:

Whew! You’re done!
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= End of Ballot =-=–=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

All votes are public although I’ll just post a list of names/addresses
for verification. Duplicates will be removed by eliminating the
earliest vote.

—
Well, if you can’t believe what you read in a comic book, what
can you believe?! — Bullwinkle J. Moose

—
Javacise: Burst of motion after spilling coffee in one’s lap.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #65, from hmccracken, 1780 chars, Wed Apr 6 00:30:17 1994
————————–
Subject: From rec.arts.disney

From: vbv@giskard.eeap.cwru.edu (Virgilio (Dean) B. Velasco Jr.)

Famed film critics Siskel and Ebert gave two thumbs down
to “Thumbelina,” Don Bluth’s latest pathetic attempt to
emulate Disney.

They thought the story was dull, and that the music was
unmemorable. They also thought that the drawing style
stank — a sentiment which I basically echoed a few days
ago, when I said that the characters looked uninteresting.
Ariel, Belle, Aladdin, Jasmine… they’re all visually
distinctive, the kind that capture your fancy the moment
you see them. Thumbelina and her prince Cornelius, on the
other hand, looked blah and nondescript.

I must tip my hat off to Siskel and Ebert. Unlike Bluth et al
in their promos, they properly stated that Jodi Benson (“the
voice of the Little Mermaid,” they stressed) did Thumbelina’s
voice. Previously, I complained that Bluth’s people did not
give her any credit at all in their commercials, even though
she portrays the lead.

S&E did screw up in one regard. They opined that the only
people who would want to watch Thumbelina would be little
children. I disagree. There is, of course, the small but
loyal cadre of Jodi Benson fans, who would want to hear
The Little Mermaid sing again, even in a Don Bluth film.

I know I’ll be watching it, albeit with my expectation levels
turned way down. I don’t expect the music to be very good,
but for Ms. Benson’s sake, I’d be willing to give it a try.

—
Virgilio “Dean” Velasco Jr, Department of Electrical Eng’g and Applied Physics
graduate student slave, roboticist-in-training and Q wannabee
Beam me up, Scotty. | I practice the safest form of sex | Will design robots
It ate my phaser. | known. It’s called abstinence. | for food.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #66, from hmccracken, 7098 chars, Wed Apr 6 00:30:52 1994
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
Subject: From rec.arts.disney

From: bauerle@cs690-3.erie.ge.com (Ron Bauerle)
Subject: Cartoon Laws of Physics (long!)

The following was posted to rec.arts.disney by Margaret Gerberi, from
an e-mail by Dan Harrington. Dan was not the author, and didn’t know
who was, so, “author unknown”. I reformatted the text and corrected a
few typos. I’ve also added a few more amendments, one of which was
suggested by Bob Repas on alt.tv.tiny-toon. If anybody knows who the
original authors were, or comes up with funny new laws, let me know and
I’ll add them.

RDB 4/2/94
—————————————————————————

Cartoon Laws of Physics
———————-
Cartoon Law I
=============
Any body suspended in space will remain in space until made aware of its
situation.

Daffy Duck steps off a cliff, expecting further pastureland. He loiters
in midair, soliloquizing flippantly, until he chances to look down. At this
point, the familiar principle of 32 feet per second per second takes over.

Cartoon Law II
==============
Any body in motion will tend to remain in motion until solid matter
intervenes suddenly.

Whether shot from a cannon or in hot pursuit on foot, cartoon characters
are so absolute in their momentum that only a telephone pole or an
outsize boulder retards their forward motion absolutely. Sir Isaac
Newton called this sudden termination of motion the stooge’s surcease.

Cartoon Law III
===============
Any body passing through solid matter will leave a perforation
conforming to its perimeter.

Also called the silhouette of passage, this phenomenon is the speciality
of victims of directed-pressure explosions and of reckless cowards who
are so eager to escape that they exit directly through the wall of a
house, leaving a cookie-cutout-perfect hole. The threat of skunks or
matrimony often catalyzes this reaction.

Cartoon Law IV
==============
The time required for an object to fall twenty stories is greater than
or equal to the time it takes for whoever knocked it off the ledge to
spiral down twenty flights to attempt to capture it unbroken.

Such an object is inevitably priceless, thus the attempt to capture it
will be inevitably unsuccessful.

Cartoon Law V
=============
All principles of gravity are negated by fear.

Psychic forces are sufficient in most bodies for a shock to propel them
directly away from the earth’s surface. A spooky noise or an adversary’s
signature sound will induce motion upward, usually to the cradle of a
chandelier, a treetop, or the crest of a flagpole. The feet of a
character who is running or the wheels of a speeding auto need never
touch the ground, especially when in flight.

Cartoon Law VI
==============
As speed increases, objects can be in several places at once.

This is particularly true of tooth-and-claw fights, in which a
character’s head may be glimpsed emerging from the cloud of altercation
at several places simultaneously. This effect is common as well among
bodies that are spinning or being throttled.

Only at manic high speeds, the wacky guy may ricochet off walls to
achieve the velocity required.

Cartoon Law VII
===============
Certain bodies can pass through solid walls painted to resemble tunnel
entrances; others cannot.

This trompe l’oeil inconsistency has baffled generations, but at least
it is known that whoever paints an entrance on a wall’s surface to trick
an opponent will be unable to pursue him into this theoretical space.
The painter is flattened against the wall when he attempts to follow
into the painting. This is ultimately a problem of art, not of science.

Corollary: Portable holes work.

Cartoon Law VIII
================
Any violent rearrangement of feline matter is impermanent.

Cartoon cats possess even more deaths than the traditional nine lives
might comfortably afford. They can be decimated, spliced, splayed,
accordion-pleated, spindled, or disassembled, but they cannot be
destroyed. After a few moments of blinking self pity, they reinflate,
elongate, snap back, or solidify.

Corollary: A cat will assume the shape of its container.

Cartoon Law IX
==============
Everything falls faster than an anvil.

Cartoon Law X
=============
For every vengeance there is an equal and opposite revengeance.

This is the one law of animated cartoon motion that also applies to the
physical world at large. For that reason, we need the relief of watching
it happen to a duck instead.

Cartoon Law Amendment A
=======================
A sharp object will always propel a character upward.

When poked (usually in the buttocks) with a sharp object (usually a pin),
a character will defy gravity by shooting straight up, with great velocity.

Cartoon Law Amendment B
=======================
The laws of object permanence are nullified for “cool” characters.

Characters who are intended to be “cool” can make previously nonexistent
objects appear from behind their backs at will. For instance, the Road
Runner can materialize signs to express himself without speaking.

Cartoon Law Amendment C
=======================
Explosive weapons cannot cause fatal injuries.

They merely turn characters temporarily black and smoky.

Cartoon Law Amendment D
=======================
Gravity is transmitted by slow-moving waves of large wavelengths.

Their operation can be witnessed by observing the behavior of a canine
suspended over a large vertical drop. Its feet will begin to fall first,
causing its legs to stretch. As the wave reaches its torso, that part
will begin to fall, causing the neck to stretch. As the head begins to
fall, tension is released and the canine will resume its regular
proportions until such time as it strikes the ground.

Cartoon Law Amendment E
=======================
Dynamite is spontaneously generated in “C-spaces” (spaces in which
cartoon laws hold).

The process is analogous to steady-state theories of the universe which
postulated that the tensions involved in maintaining a space would cause
the creation of hydrogen from nothing. Dynamite quanta are quite large
(stick-sized) and unstable (lit). Such quanta are attracted to psychic
forces generated by feelings of distress in “cool” characters (see
Amendment B), which may be a special case of this law), who are able to
use said quanta to their advantage. One may imagine C-spaces where all
matter and energy result from primal masses of dynamite exploding. A big
bang indeed.

Cartoon Law Amendment F
=======================
Any bag, sack, purse, etc. possessed by a cool character is a tesseract –
any number of objects of any size may be placed in it or removed from it
with no change in its outer dimensions.

Cartoon Law Amendment G
=======================
Characters can spin around and change into any set of clothes
appropriate to the situation.

Cartoon Law Amendment H
=======================
Rabbits can dig a burrow from here to there in less than 20 seconds and
emerge spotlessly clean.

Cartoon Law Amendment I
=======================
Movements are accompanied by funny sound effects.

End of laws

==========================
animation/best.of.net #67, from hmccracken, 7258 chars, Wed Apr 6 00:31:23 1994
————————–
Subject: From alt.animation.warner-bros

From: bell@cs.tamu.edu (Will Bell)
Subject: [alt.animation.warner-bros] Proto-FAQ

This file is a ‘beta’ version submitted for your perusal and approval.
It may be true that we don’t even need an FAQ for this group, so if
you feel that way, let’s hear about it.

Let me know suggestions and corrections.

*** ALT.ANIMATION.WARNER-BROS frequently asked questions ***

*** INTRODUCTION

Alt.animation.warner-bros is a new newsgroup which currently is
relatively low-volume. Discussion focuses on the various animations
produced by Warner Bros. The current WB TV series have their own
newsgroups (see below), so we tend to focus on the classic WB shorts —
Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies.

[here will be standard FAQ boilerplate — see r.a.a faq if you must
know what it is]

*** QUESTIONS ABOUT SPECIFIC LOONEY TUNES

Q. Explain the joke with ‘Richard’ in 1948-1952 Looney Tunes.

A. It is a reference to a hugely popular song from the 1940’s entitled
‘Open the door, Richard’. Compare it to a silly surprise hit like
“Don’t Worry, Be Happy” or “Whoomp! There it is”.

The classic use of this reference is in “High Diving Hare” (?)
where Bugs has built a door and Yosemite Sam yells at the rabbit
to “Open the door! Open the door!” Then, in an aside, “You’ll
notice I didn’t say Richard”. Yuk yuk yuk.

Q. What is “Coal Black and de Sebben Dwarfs?”

A. It is a notorious 1943 cartoon directed by Bob Clampett which is
more-or-less a retelling of Snow White in blackface. The caricatures
of blacks in this cartoon are rather offensive by today’s standards,
but the overall cartoon is a funny parody of the Disney Classic.
It can be found on VHS (see Whole Toon Catalog).

Q. What were those great cartoons starring Bugs, Daffy, and Elmer that
always had Daffy getting his beak rearranged in various ways?

A. The three toons were directed by Chuck Jones:
“Rabbit Fire” (1951) — 1001 ways to cook Rabbit/Duck, Elmer Season
“Rabbit Seasoning” (1952) — shoot him now, or wait till you get home?
“Duck! Rabbit! Duck!” (1953) — dirty skunk season, elk season, etc.

Q. What were those wacky names in Marvin the Martian cartoons?

* In “Duck Dodgers in the 24 1/2 century”, Daffy goes to Planet X
to seek out Illudium Phosdex, the shaving cream atom. (Spelling
taken from *Chuck Amuck* so we’ll consider that canon.)

* In “Hare-Way to the Stars”, Marvin is going to blow up the Earth
using the Illudium Q-36 Explosive Space Modulator. (Spelling
assumed same as above, but Q-36 vs. Pew-36 is debatable.)

*** GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT LOONEY TUNES

Q. Where can I get on video?

A. I have got a file that summarizes release data for the current
Warner & MGM/UA releases. Email requests to me for this ~1000
line file. I have got some other data files provided by other
netters that I hope to parlay into a nice database retrieval
type thing. This will not happen for a few months, though.

Q2. I can’t find anyone around here that sells that video.

A2. The definitive source of any cartoons on video (not just Looney
Tunes) is Whole Toon Access. Their catalog is a must-have for any
cartoon lover. Call 1-206-441-4130 or write to them at PO Box 1910,
Seattle, WA 98111-1910 to get a current catalog.

Q2. General information about cartoon availability?

A. Color cartoons released prior to 01-Sep-1948 are controlled by
Ted Turner. Most of these have been released in some form.
There are a number of VHS series and 4 volumes of “The Golden
Age Of Looney Tunes” (laserdisc sets with 70 cartoons each).
A Volume 5 is rumored. Volume 4 is rumored to be on moratorium.

The cartoons are also shown on TNT, but unfortunately that channel
has begun superimposing a very distracting TNT logo on the corner
that IMO negates the possibility of building a cartoon library by
taping off the TV.

All other cartoons are controlled by Warner. From 1985-1992, the
“24 Karat” VHS series was available, and contained most of what
are considered the ‘classic’ WB shorts. This series is now out
of print. If you spot one in a store you should consider yourself
lucky and buy it right away.

WB has recently released 6 new laser discs (6 more to come soon)
which include both new and previously-released cartoons. WB is
also releasing a number of new VHS collections that feature
new-to-video shorts. IMO these are the fair-to-medium shorts that
appear on these new collections.

Q. What about Warner Bros Studio Stores and the WB Catalog?

A. The Warner Bros Catalog sells Looney Tunes material as well as
promotional materials for their current movies and TV shows.
The merchandise is usually overpriced and unexceptional (IMHO).
Write to: Warner Bros. Catalog, PO Box 60048, Tampa FL 33660-0048,
or call (800) 223-6524 to request a catalog.

Most of the merchandise available in the catalog is also available
at the Warner Bros. Studio Stores. These are not nearly as widespread
as the Disney stores. I have a list of store locations available
which is posted separately or you can email me requests.

Q. Any other toon newsgroups I need to know about?

“Animaniacs” and “Tiny Toon Adventures” have their own newsgroups,
alt.tv.animaniacs and alt.tv.tiny-toon. They also have FAQ’s.
The archive site for these two newsgroups is utpapa.ph.utexas.edu.

Q9. Does anyone have a gif of (MyFaveAnimatedScene?)

A9. These sites are known to have cartoon/animation gifs:
wuarchive.wustl.edu 128.252.135.4
avatar.snc.edu 138.74.0.13

garfield.catt.ncsu.edu is now known as ftp.catt.ncsu.edu.
The CATT site no longer offers screen grabs and other copyrighted
images.

If you know any more sites for animation gifs please let me know.

Q12. Any good books I need to know about?

A12. These books are lifted straight from the r.a.a. faq.

Beck, Jerry and Will Friedwald; “Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies” 1988;
Ultimate reference of Warner Brothers cartoons. Chronological
filmography of releases with synopsis and full credits.

Blanc, Mel; “That’s not All, Folks”;
Mel Blanc’s biography (I guess, I’ve not read it.)

*** REDISTRIBUTION RIGHTS

[standard boilerplate here]

—
Will Bell — bell@cs.tamu.edu — Live from the heart of Scenic Central Texas
A moment of silence for Walter Lantz (1902-1994).

Currently seeking job: if you need a Unix System admin or code hack, mail me!

==========================
animation/best.of.net #68, from ggarramuno, 422 chars, Thu Apr 7 00:03:07 1994
This is a comment to message 66.
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
This list of cartoon laws in one of the funniest things I have read in
a long time.
BTW, all new students aiming to be animators one day, should read it
and memorize this list, as it provides some of the most used (in the
classic cartoons) and less understood (by animation students) humor in
cartoons. All these laws can be simplified to:
YOU ARE DEALING WITH CARTOONS, THEY SHOULD BEHAVE AS SUCH, NOT AS
PEOPLE.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #69, from hmccracken, 7934 chars, Thu Apr 7 09:37:07 1994
————————–
From: Jym Dyer
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: Peanuts Bibliography
Date: 5 Apr 1994 06:21:45 GMT

=+= This is the latest revision of the Peanuts bibliography.
The major difference from the last one I posted is the inclusion
of _Peanuts_Jubilee_. There are also some recent Coronet titles
added.
<_Jym_>
=============8<=============Cut-Here=============8<============= * Introduction and Notes {Revised 4-Apr-1994} This is an attempt to compile a complete biography of books which reprint the Peanuts comic strips in the English language. Any additional information, corrections, etc., would be appreciated, and can be sent to Jym Dyer at .

This list is of course human-readable, but it can also be put
into a file and accessed using Emacs Outline mode. If you
print hardcopies of this list, you should remove the last page
(a page of instructions for Emacs) and this paragraph.

There are five main book formats, which will be referred to by
the initials in parentheses:

** Holt Rinehart & Winston (HRW)
5×8″-sized collections starting in the 1950s and going
into the 1970s.

** Fawcett Crest (FC)
Pocketsized paperback collections, almost all of which
come in pairs: Volumes 1 and 2 of an HRW book. Others
come in 3 volumes of a PP book (see below), and others
reprint incomplete “selections from” books.

** Peanuts Parade Editions (PP)
7×10″-sized releases, typically containing 1 HRW book
and about half of another. Starting with 1974-1975
strips, new material was also released in this format.

** Owl Books (OB)
Recent 5×8″-sized re-releases of the PPs, with the
same titles as the PPs. However, they seem to be
abbreviated versions of the PPs, containing only
one HRW book’s worth of strips.

** Topper Books (TB)
Variously-sized horizontal books collecting strips
from 1985 on.

There are also some Scholastic Book Club releases, coloring-book
releases, etc. These tend to overlap the five mentioned above,
and won’t be listed in this bibliography. There are also
various other books — books of reflections, animated feature
tie-ins, etc. — which are outside the scope of this list:
I’m concerned here with the strip itself.

* The HRW Books

The strips were at first printed by Rinehart & Company (which
later became Holt, Rinehart & Winston) in a series of 5×8″-sized
books.

At first the Sunday strips were printed in separate books in
horizontal (8×5″) format, but eventually they started including
the dailies and Sundays in the same 5×8″ books, and reprints of
the horizontal books were resized to 5×8″.

Most of these HRWs were followed by paperback Fawcett Crest
pocketsized paperbacks (FCs), usually two per HRW book. Those
FCs are included in the list of HRWs. The list of HRWs also
provides cross-references to the OB and PP reprints.

In the UK the Fawcett Crest books are reprinted by Coronet,
who numbers them. The numbers in angle brackets following
the FC titles are the numbers Coronet uses. I am indebted
to nhoJ for this information.

The “**” level refers to an HRW book. The “***” level refers
to the FC volumes of the HRW book. A “Sundays” in the date
means the book collects Sunday strips only (they eventually
started putting dailies and Sunday strips into the same books).
A “Themed” in the date means it’s apparently some kind of
themed book (e.g., they’re all strips about Snoopy), and
will contain some strips also found in the other books.

This list is basically in chronological order.

** Peanuts (1950-1951)
No FCs were made for this book.

** More Peanuts (1952-1954)
= There Goes The Shutout (OB)
*** The Wonderful World of Peanuts <24>
*** Hey, Peanuts! <17>

** Good Grief, More Peanuts! (1952-1956 Sundays)
*** Good Grief, Charlie Brown! <12>
*** For the Love of Peanuts! <2>

** Good Ol’ Charlie Brown (1955-1957)
= Always Stick Up for the Underbird (OB)
*** Fun With Peanuts <5>
*** Here Comes Charlie Brown! <22>

** Snoopy (1955-1958 Themed)
= What Makes You Think You’re Happy? (OB)
*** Here Comes Snoopy <6>
*** Good Ol’ Snoopy <3>

** You’re Out of Your Mind, Charlie Brown! (1956-1959 Sundays)
*** Very Funny, Charlie Brown <15>
*** What Next, Charlie Brown? <26>

** But We Love You, Charlie Brown (1957-1959)
= Fly, You Stupid Kite, Fly! (OB)
*** We’re On Your Side, Charlie Brown <16>
*** You Are Too Much, Charlie Brown <21>

** Peanuts Revisited (1955-1959)
“Favorites Old and New” A hardback book that included
strips from previous books and new ones too. (Thanks
to David Young for this
description.)

** Go Fly a Kite, Charlie Brown (1959-1960)
= Thank Goodness For People (OB)
*** You’re a Winner, Charlie Brown! <1>
*** Let’s Face It, Charlie Brown! <9>

** Peanuts Every Sunday (1958-1961 Sundays)
*** Who Do You Think You Are, Charlie Brown? <4>
*** You’re My Hero, Charlie Brown! <7>

** It’s A Dog’s Life, Charlie Brown (1960-1962)
= What Make Musicians So Sarcastic? (OB)
*** This Is Your Life, Charlie Brown! <8>
*** Slide, Charlie Brown! Slide! <10>

** You Can’t Win, Charlie Brown (1960-1962)
*** All This and Snoopy, Too <11>
*** Here’s to You, Charlie Brown <13>

** Snoopy, Come Home (1955-1962 Themed)
= The Mad Punter Strikes Again (OB)
*** We Love You, Snoopy <19>
Only one FC was made for this book, collecting
only “selections from” the HRW.

** You Can Do It, Charlie Brown (1962-1963)
= A Kiss on the Nose Turns Anger Aside (OB)
*** Nobody’s Perfect, Charlie Brown <14>
*** You’re a Brave Man, Charlie Brown <18>

** We’re Right Behind You, Charlie Brown (1958-1964 Sundays)
= There’s A Vulture Outside (OB)
*** Peanuts for Everybody <20>
*** You’ve Done It Again, Charlie Brown <23>

** As You Like It, Charlie Brown (1963-1964)
= What’s Wrong with Being Crabby? (OB)
*** Charlie Brown and Snoopy <25>
*** You’re The Greatest, Charlie Brown <27>

** Sunday’s Fun Day, Charlie Brown (1962-1965 Sundays)
*** It’s For You, Snoopy <28>
*** Have It Your Way, Charlie Brown <29>

** You Need Help, Charlie Brown (1964-1965)
= Who’s the Funny-Looking Kid with the Big Nose? (PP)
*** You’re Not For Real, Snoopy <30>
*** You’re A Pal, Snoopy! <31>

** The Unsinkable Charlie Brown (1965-1966)
*** What Now, Charlie Brown? <32>
*** You’re Something Special, Snoopy! <33>

** You’ll Flip, Charlie Brown (1965-1967)
= It’s A Long Way To Tipperary (OB)
*** You’ve Got A Friend, Charlie Brown <34>
*** Take It Easy, Charlie Brown <35>

** You’re Something Else, Charlie Brown (1967)
= A Smile Makes A Lousy Umbrella (OB)
*** Your Choice, Snoopy <38>
*** Try It Again, Charlie Brown <39>

** Peanuts Treasury (1959-1967)
Deluxe size (8.5×11″) collection of strips.

** You’re You, Charlie Brown (1967-1968)
*** Who Was That Dog I Saw You With, Charlie Brown? <36>
*** There’s No One Like You, Snoopy <37>

** You’ve Had It, Charlie Brown (1969)
= My Anxieties Have Anxieties (OB)
*** You’ve Got It Made, Snoopy <40>
*** Don’t Give Up, Charlie Brown <41>

** Peanuts Classics (1963-1970)
Deluxe size (8.5×11″) collection of strips,
with Sunday strips in color.

** You’re Out Of Sight, Charlie Brown (1969-1970)
= It’s Great to Be a Super Star (OB)
*** You’re So Smart, Snoopy <42>
*** What Out, Charlie Brown <46>

** You’ve Come A Long Way, Charlie Brown (1970-1971)
*** It’s All Yours, Snoopy <45>
*** You’ve Got To Be You, Snoopy <47>

** “Ha Ha, Herman,” Charlie Brown (1971-1972)
= Stop Snowing on My Secretary (OB)
*** You’re On Your Own, Snoopy <43>
*** You Can’t Win Them All, Charlie Brown <44>

** Thompson Is In Trouble, Charlie Brown (1972-1973)
= It’s Hard Work Being Bitter (OB)
*** You’ve Co

==========================
animation/best.of.net #70, from switch, 143 chars, Thu Apr 7 10:53:30 1994
This is a comment to message 68.
There are additional comments to message 68.
————————–
But that’s assuming that cartoons are necessarily funny or involving
anthropomorphized animals. What about, say, WHERE THE WIND BLOWS?

Emru

==========================
animation/best.of.net #71, from hmccracken, 517 chars, Thu Apr 7 11:23:53 1994
This is a comment to message 68.
There are additional comments to message 68.
————————–
>YOU ARE DEALING WITH CARTOONS, THEY SHOULD BEHAVE AS SUCH, NOT AS
PEOPLE.

Yes and no. Chuck Jones understood the cartoon laws of physics as well as
anyone, but he also understood that cartoon characters should have
personalities and emotions are completely human — whether the character
in question is a duck, rabbit, coyote, or kangaroo.

When animators follow the physics rules but forget to make their
characters human, they end up with creations that lack a soul — like
Roger Rabbit, for instance.
— Harry

==========================
animation/best.of.net #72, from hkenner, 181 chars, Thu Apr 7 16:26:11 1994
This is a comment to message 68.
————————–
So you get a sharp insight into the inferiority of Disney shorts to
Warner’s when you reflect that the “definitive” book on *Disney
Animation* is subtitled “the illusion of life.”

==========================
animation/best.of.net #73, from hmccracken, 3751 chars, Wed Apr 13 16:51:17 1994
————————–
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

From: nebus@ruphys.rutgers.edu (Joseph Nebus)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: The Comic Pages That Ate Hugo, Oklahoma
Date: 13 Apr 94 04:57:02 GMT

In response to a couple of email requests I’ve gotten, I want to post
the name of a weekly 40-page paper that prints only comic strips. It’s
“The National Forum/Strips,” published by Associated Features, Inc, PO Box
7099, Fairfax Station, VA 22039. A one-year subscription is $48.00. It reprints
a large set of strips (see below) but it does get them late; I usually run
about a week behind; on the other hand, there is a particular joy in reading
several hundred thousand panels all at once.

HOWEVER, The National Forum may be the most bizarre publication
devised. It has about 118 jillion subsections and combinations. The
basic sets are:

The Conservatives Reprints of conservative columnists
The Liberals Reprints of liberal columnists
(These sections, alone, are $42 annually)

Gallery of Cartoons Reprints of editorial cartoons
Strips Reprints of comic strips
Business & Consumer Reprints of business articles
(These sections, alone, are $48 annually)

The National Forum Weekly
All the columnists and the Gallery Of Cartoons
(Costs $68 annually)

The National Forum Weekly Plus Strips
All the columnists, Gallery of Cartoons, and Strips
(Costs $78 annually)

The National Forum Weekly Plus Business & Consumer
All the columnists, Gallery of Cartoons, Business & Consumer
(Costs $78 annually)

Strips & Toons
Just Strips and the Gallery of Cartoons
(Costs $68 annually)

National Forum Weekly Plus Strips And Business & Consumer
ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING and you’ll never finish reading it
(Costs $88 annually)

And if you think THAT’s a mess, think about what happens when you have
a problem with your subscription.

Anyway, this is the table of contents for the most recent Strips:

The Wizard Of Id
Andy Capp
The Middletons
Broom-Hilda
Animal Crackers
On The Fastrack
The Born Loser
Walnut Cove
Dennis The Menace
Ernie
Agatha Crumm
Crock
Boner’s Ark
Popeye
Hi and Lois
Marvin
Hagar The Horrible
Eek & Meek
Calvin & Hobbes
Marmaduke
Cathy
B.C.
The Lockhorns
Curtis
Funky Winkerbean
Beetle Bailey
Bringing Up Father
Barney Google & Snuffy Smith
Luann
Tumbleweeds
Peanuts
Garfield
Doonesbury
The Far Side
For Better Or For Worse
Tank McNamara
The Better Half
Blondie
Motley’s Crew
Gasoline Alley
Judge Parker
Mary Worth
Alley Oop
The Family Circus
Tarzan
Tiger
Dunagin’s People
Rip Kirby
Shoe
They’ll Do It Every Time
The Heart Of Juliet Jones
Rex Morgan
Apartment 3-G
Mark Trail
Outland
Big Nate
Dick Tracy
The Phantom
Non Sequitur
Annie
Steve Roper & Mike Nomad
Sally Forth
Mother Goose & Grimm
Pickles
Grin & Bear It
Safe Havens

The list is very volatile and subject to change at random times; for a
few weeks last year the paper dropped to 32 pages and temporarily stopped
running even ones you would think were mandatory, like “Calvin & Hobbes.” Also
I had a problem getting my subscription straightened out when I switched from
just Strips to Weekly+Strips, so you have been forewarned, and as Unca Walt
Kelly said, “He who is forewarned is forearmed–but he who is forearmed is
half a octopus, and who wants to be THAT?”

Joseph Nebus
—————————————————————————–
(Who is going to bed now that he realized he paid nearly $80 to have the
privelege of reading “Tiger” each week.) (On the other hand, there was an
honest-to-goodness funny “Outland” this week…) (“Spell FWAAOING! again.”)
—————————————————————————–

==========================
animation/best.of.net #74, from hmccracken, 19181 chars, Wed Apr 13 16:54:37 1994
————————–
Subject: From rec.arts.disney

Newsgroups: comp.graphics.animation,rec.arts.animation,rec.arts.disney,alt.animation.warner-bros
From: jmassie@netcom.com (Jeff Massie)
Subject: THE PEG-BOARD – MPSC Local 839 IATSE – April 1994
Message-ID:
Date: Tue, 12 Apr 1994 22:15:10 GMT

THE PEG-BOARD — Information Superhighway Edition — April 1994

This is a monthly posting of excerpts from THE PEG-BOARD, the newsletter of
the Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and Affiliated Optical Electronic and
Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE. THE PEG-BOARD is also published in printed
format.

Local 839 IATSE is the largest local union of film artists in the world. We
have over 1,500 active members employed in animation and CGI in Southern
California.

In this month’s issue:

* Warner Bros. Settles 839 Contract
* Disney Bails Out On Non-Union Benefits
* From The President, by Tom Sito
* From The Business Representative, by Steve Hulett
* In Memoriam
* Animation In The News
* Local 839 On The Air
* Computer Animation Grows Mightily
* Masthead

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

WARNER BROS. SETTLES 839 CONTRACT

After almost ten months of negotiations, we are pleased to report that
WARNER BROS. ANIMATION has agreed to a new contract with Local 839. The new
contract gives Warners employees scale pay retroactive to August 1, 1993 —
the same conditions previously agreed to by DISNEY, HANNA-BARBERA and
UNIVERSAL.

The Cartoonists negotiating committee, including DOUG MCCARTHY, LINDA
REDONDO, ALAN BURNETT, BRYAN EVANS, ALFRED GIMENO, CAROLYN GUSKE, NICK
HOLLANDER, ERIC RADOMSKI, TOM RAY, GREG REYNA and ROSE ANN STIRE, sat down
with Warner Bros. management on March 28 at 10:15 am and concluded
negotiations before lunch.

The new package, continuing to October 31, 1996, is almost identical with
other studio contracts, calling for 3% raises in each of the next three
years. The union asked for and got the classification of Color Stylist into
the new contract. Warner Bros. received new language regarding dismissal
pay, and a side letter promising the union would not unreasonably deny
applications from employees who wished to work part-time.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

EURO DISNEY BAILOUT
Company cuts non-union benefits

Euro Disney reached some financial light at the end of the tunnel on March
14 when a consortium of French banks (sixty-three in number) gave a
“generally favorable” reception to a restructuring plant presented by the
steering committee of nine banks representing them in negotiations.

The main pillar of the plan is a 6 billion franc ($1.04 billion) rights
offering, an issue where the banks and Disney will pitch in more cash to
reduce Euro Disney’s debt. The banks will underwrite 51% of the offering and
Disney will subscribe to the remaining 49%. The issue will hopefully reduce
debt from its current $3.64 billion to $2.1 billion. The Disney Co., 49%
owner in the Euro park, has agreed to waive its royalties and management
fees for five years. Fees will be reduced for an unspecified period of time
thereafter.

In a related cost-cutting move, Disney announced it was tightening
eligibility requirements for retirees’ health-care benefits for its
non-union employees. Under the new Disney policy, a worker must stay with
the company until age 55 to be eligible for continued coverage after
retirement.

The new rules do not affect employees under Local 839’s multi-employer
pension plan. They will qualify for retiree health care after twenty years
and twenty thousand hours of union employment, regardless of how long they
worked for any one company or where they’re working at the point of
retirement.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

FROM THE PRESIDENT
by Tom Sito

Who built Thebes of the Seven Gates?
On it are inscribed only the names of Kings.
When the Great Wall was finished
Where did the workers go?
— So many questions …
— Bertolt Brecht

Anyone who’s read history as long as I have knows it can be molded and
shaped to reflect the viewpoint of whomever is writing it. Napoleon called
history “fables we can all agree on”.

I remember after all the reading I had done on the Civil War, what a shock
the movie GLORY was. I had never realized that thousands of
African-Americans had fought for the Union. I felt that something had been
kept from me.

Ever try to find a good, exciting book on labor history? When you want to
read how the forty-hour week came into being, or how the Writers Guild won
royalties on screenplays, you have to dig real hard.

Our concepts and prejudices about labor unions have been crafted by
mainstream writing as deftly as an ad campaign sells us margarine. Now, I’m
not expounding conspiracy theories here. I’m merely noting the fact that
historical works that gloss over the struggle of working people are more
likely to be printed by large corporate publishers than those that lionize
them. Shakespeare knew when he wrote Richard III that if he portrayed the
hunchbacked king his queen’s grandfather bumped off as less than a complete
monster he’d be in deep doo-doo.

So, the prevailing fables we have about our labor history are that there was
no such thing as unions until socialists in the “Gay Nineties” and gangsters
in the 1930’s invented them to subvert the American system as we know it.
America is about lone heroes like Henry Ford and Thomas Edison. Unions mean
Jimmy Hoffa and On The Waterfront. Labor activists were first labeled
radical revolutionaries, then Communists, then mobsters, and now outmoded
relics of the macro-industrial past.

That artists would want to join a union is, of course, as nutty as a chicken
with lips. Unions are for dockworkers and miners.

Well, the facts that I’m finding don’t quite support those carefully
tailored impressions. The struggle for the average Joe and Jill to make a
dignified living goes back as far as recorded time. And artists have always
been in the forefront.

The first recorded labor strike in history was brought to my attention by
the wonderful and mysterious Dana Reemes. It occurred in 1170 B. C., in the
twenty-ninth year of the reign of Pharaoh Ramses III. The artists working on
the tombs of the Necropolis were being denied their proper rations, so the
scribe Amennakht and the chief artist Khonsu causeth the men to sit down and
maketh a big stink unto the Pharaoh’s Vizier, To. Ramses knew his
immortality depended on these artists finishing their work, so they were
paid.

The immortality of our modern Pharaohs still rests on our doing or not doing
our work.

In the Middle Ages, artists and craftsmen formed mutual protection societies
called guilds (from the German geldt, or gold). Fraternitas, Hermandades,
Schwurbruderschaft, all were to regulate the fair price of items and make
sure you could stand up to your noble employers with a united voice. The
guilds often had a patron saint. Traditionally, on December 26 all good
guildsmen ate themselves sick and drank themselves silly until, in a total
stupor, they swore oaths to the Saints to support one another as equals come
what may. Sounds like a custom that should be revived.

The first mention in history of Domenikos Theotokopoulos (El Greco) is in
1572, paying his initiation fee to the Guild of St. Luke in Rome. (He was an
intern under Titian).

After Ghiselbertus got the first personal credit, some artists tried to go
it alone. Michelangelo negotiated his own price for the Sistine ceiling with
his employer, Pope Julius II. The agreed price, 35,000 ducats for seven
years’ work less rent, materials and wages for apprentices, was one of the
first examples of an artist being shafted on a deal. (Serves him right for
being a subcontractor.) Julius II, “il Papa terrible”, funded wars
throughout Italy, hired Michelangelo, Raphael and Titian, and began St.
Peter’s Basilica, and he died leaving the Vatican a budget surplus! I’d have
hated to have been on a negotiating committee opposite HIM.

The first labor strike in the New World also involved artists. In Jamestown
Colony in 1619, four Polish and two Dutch artists, brought over to decorate
the new church, put down their brushes when they were refused the rights of
Englishmen. They won.

Next month, I’ll tell you about the Wobblies, the eight-hour day and the
first cartoonist strikes. Let me leave you with a quote from the Statutes of
the Confederacy of Rennes (1653):

Woe unto him that is alone, for should he stumble, no one is
there to help him up. Better two than one, for there is profit
in company.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

FROM THE BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVE
by Steve Hulett

While Brother Sito regales you with tales of guilds and unions in the long
ago, allow me to describe Local 839’s recent past … and soon-to-be future.

As you know from the above, the Warner Bros. negotiations ended successfully
on March 28 when the company agreed to retroactive pay back to August 1,
1993, as every other animation studio had already done. Less well-known is
how crucial the support and participation of Warner Bros. employees were to
the outcome of the negotiations. Producers, directors, animators, and color
stylists sat down at the Sportsmen’s Lodge to tell Warners management that
they did not want to focus on anything beside Warners’ refusal to pay the
contract minimums retroactively to August 1.

After a high-decibel opening session where Warners insisted it needed a
sideletter to bring in foreign employees which would alter the bargaining
unit, the union negotiating committee held a quick caucus and made it clear
to the business representative (me) that it didn’t care for Warners’
proposal. Shortly thereafter, Warners met with the union attorney and
business representative to hammer out an alternate side agreement on
part-time employees that the negotiating committee decided it could live
with.

Once the sideletter was hammered out, Warners relented, and a final package
including retroactive pay was reached by noon.

Now, all of the above sounds tedious and legalistic, but the real-life
aspects of negotiating can be tense. Will the members of the negotiating
committee hang together and not start arguing at the top of their lungs,
calling each other choice and pungent names? Will the company or companies
on the other side of the table — adamant about the give-backs that they
want — at last see the light and change their positions? Will the
negotiating committee agree on action that needs to be taken? Are these
endless negotiations ever going to come to an end? Are we ever going to have
a new contract?

There were times over these past four or five months that I wondered, but
all the committee members from the various studios hung in there and worked
to hammer out decent contracts, and got them. I have learned over the course
of four-and-a-half years that the involvement of employees is absolutely
essential to successful negotiations. I’ve yet to meet a management rep who
cares what I say or how passionately I say it during negotiations. They care
a great deal, however, about what their key employees have to say. These
long and difficult negotiations amply demonstrated that.

And what of the future? Well, there are non-contract studios to organize,
CGI and interactive companies to think about, new artists and technicians to
train. In a matter of months Warner Bros. will begin staffing its new
feature animation division, and yet another company will be staking a claim
to the territory Disney has occupied almost unopposed the last sixty years
— theatrical feature animation. If we are to prosper, we will all have to
stretch our creative muscles and make sure that the new studios and their
product succeed in the marketplace. And equally important, we must make sure
the new studios work under a contract.

They’re the two best ways we can insure that burgeoning careers in animation
are both long and lucrative.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

IN MEMORIAM

*** Retired director and producer OSCAR DUFAU died on February 8.
Starting in 1956, Dufau worked at Graphic Films, Ray Patin,
Churchill-Wexler, MGM, DePatie-Freleng, Filmation, Chuck Jones, Sanrio and
Hanna-Barbera.

*** Longtime animation cameraman CHUCK FLEKL died on February 7.

*** 1986 Golden Award winner LAVELLE HAINES HOWARD died on February 21.
From 1936 until her retirement in 1976, she worked as an inker, painter and
final checker at Lantz, Sutherland, TV Spots, Kling, Cascade, Hanna-Barbera,
Raphael Wolff, Ray Patin and Disney.

*** Animation veteran and 1985 Golden Award winner WALTER LANTZ died
March 22 at the age of ninety-three. As head of the studio best remembered
for Woody Woodpecker and Andy Panda, he held several records. He had the
longest uninterrupted studio contract in Hollywood history, with Universal
since 1929. Since 1935 he ran his own production company, Walter Lantz
Productions; his was the longest stint as the head of an American animation
studio. Last but certainly not least, he was the first West Coast animation
employer to sign a union contract, with the Screen Cartoonists Guild in
1941.

By the way, we commend The Los Angeles Times for publishing the first obit
we’ve seen that didn’t refer to Lantz as “the creator of Woody Woodpecker
and Andy Panda”. As Lantz himself would have been the first to point out,
Woody Woodpecker was the creation of the late Ben Hardaway; Andy Panda was
originated by the late Alex Lovy.

As a long-time employer of screen cartoonists and as a cooperative friend,
Lantz will be missed.

*** FRANK WELLS, president and chief operating officer of the Walt
Disney Company, was killed April 3 in a helicopter crash near Lamoille,
Nevada. Wells began his corporate career in the motion picture industry at
Warner Bros., which he left in 1984 to join Disney. His partnership with
Michael Eisner has been credited with turning around the fortunes of the
company, producing hits including The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast
and Aladdin, and making the theme parks more profitable (until the losses at
EuroDisney). Michael Eisner will be assuming Wells’ duties.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

ANIMATION IN THE NEWS

DISNEY’s first animated feature SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS, which has
made the Disney Company several hundred million dollars over the past
fifty-seven years, will come to home video for the first time this Fall …
THE RETURN OF JAFAR, a direct-to-video sequel to ALADDIN, will hit the
nation’s video stores in May. JAFAR, which has a trailer at the front of the
new Disney video release of THE FOX AND THE HOUND, was initially conceived
as a four-parter for Disney’s upcoming ALADDIN television series, with
animation done at Disney’s Australia and Japanese studios. But the resulting
work was promising enough to reshape into a direct-to-video feature release.
Ten minutes of tightening and a high-budget soundtrack helped lift JAFAR
above the usual television fare. The final product came in at a brisk
running time of sixty-five minutes. All the original cast members, with the
notable exception of Robin Williams, reprised their voice roles.

While McDonalds has a huge tie-in with HANNA-BARBERA’s once and future
animated TV show THE FLINTSTONES in its upcoming live-action feature
incarnation, Burger King will be aligning itself with Disney’s summer
animated feature THE LION KING, pumping an estimated $17-$20 million into
their promotional campaign. This will top their ALADDIN promotion, which
weighed in at $15-$17 million …

Don Bluth’s latest opus, THUMBELINA, languished in eighth place in its first
week in theaters. DAILY VARIETY reported the following (4/5/94):

Animator Don Bluth left the U.S. to avail himself of Ireland’s
lower labor costs, but a close check of the credits for THUMBELINA
reveals a number of Vietnamese names involved in the project.

Bluth says costs have gone up in Ireland, too, resulting in some work
now being shipped to Hungary, where it is done by Vietnamese artists
in Budapest.

AMBLIMATION, Steven Spielberg’s London feature unit, will be relocating to
the Universal lot later this year. They plan to begin work on a new project
in the waning months of ’94 …

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

LOCAL 839 ON THE AIR

On February 28, Local 839 President TOM SITO was interviewed on KCRW’s WHICH
WAY L. A. program, in which he discussed the explosion of the computer film
graphics industry in Los Angeles, and the steps Local 839 is taking to
organize in the field.

In case you missed the above, President Sito and Business Representative
STEVE HULETT are scheduled to be on the Labor Scene program on KPFK 90.7, on
May 23 at 7 pm.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

COMPUTER ANIMATION GROWS MIGHTILY

Computer animation grew by 72% in 1992, compared to 1991. The statistic is
reported by the Toronto animation supplier Pixel.

The value of commercial-grade computer animation production reached $3.8
billion by the end of 1992, compared with $2.2 billion the year previously.
55% was generated in the U.S. and Canada. They reported predicted growth to
be 42% in 1993, decreasing to gains of 22% by 1998.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

PRESIDENT — Tom Sito
BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVE — Steve Hulett
VICE-PRESIDENT — George Sukara
RECORDING SECRETARY — Jeff Massie
SERGEANT-AT-ARMS — David Teague
PEG-BOARD EDITOR — Jeff Massie
EXECUTIVE BOARD
Viki Anderson * Bronwen Barry * Sheila Brown * Jan Browning * James Davis
Craig Littell-Herrick * Tom Ray * Pat Sito * Ann Sullivan (on leave) * Stephan Zupkas
TRUSTEES — Pat Sito * Ann Sullivan (on leave) * Stephan Zupkas

==========================
animation/best.of.net #75, from hmccracken, 17963 chars, Wed Apr 13 22:46:54 1994
————————–
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Newsgroups: rec.arts.disney,alt.animation.warner-bros,comp.graphics.animation,rec.arts.animation

The American Animation Institute — 1994 Catalogue and Class Schedule

4729 Lankershim Boulevard, North Hollywood, CA 91602-1864
phone (818) 766-0521 * fax (818) 506-4805
PLEASE DO NOT POST OR E-MAIL AAI QUESTIONS OR REGISTRATION REQUESTS!

Summer Semester * May 23 – August 22
Fall Semester * August 29 – November 21

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

I. The American Animation Institute
a. What is the American Animation Institute?
b. What does the American Animation Institute offer?
c. What are the prerequisites for taking AAI classes?
d. Does the Institute offer degrees or certiflcates?
e. Will I be hired at an animation studio after I take the AAI classes?
f. How do the class rebates work?
g. How do I register for an AAI class?
h. What is Hollywood Hands-On?
II. Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and Affiliated Optical Electronic
and Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE
a. What is Local 839 IATSE? How do I become a member?
b. How do I get the benefits of union membership at my non-union
employer?
III. Introductory Seminars
a. Introduction To The Art And Industry
b. Basic Animation Mechanics
IV. Training Classes: Animation
a. Inbetweening And Assistant Animation
b. Animation
c. Computer Animation (see I.h. — Hollywood Hands-On)
V. Training Classes: Cartoonist Crafts
a. Background Painting And Design
b. Layout
c. Character Design
d. Storyboarding
VI. Art Classes
a. Life Drawing
b. Advanced Life Drawing
c. Head Drawing

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

I. The American Animation Institute

a. What is the American Animation Institute?

The American Animation Institute was founded in 1980 by the Motion Picture
Screen Cartoonists and Affiliated Optical Electronic and Graphic Arts, Local
839 IATSE, to further the art of the animated cartoon in the United States
through educational and other activities.

Cartoon animation in the United States is at a crisis point. The classic
animators of the “golden age of animation” have almost all retired, and too
many of the greats have passed away. Few attempts have been made to pass the
wealth of these artists’ knowledge to a new generation.

Many of those who have entered the screen cartooning industry in creative
and artistic job categories have received little or no professional
instruction in the “nuts and bolts” of the art. Few animation studios are
willing or able to offer their apprentices any real training, and there has
been no real means for screen cartoonists to brush up their skills. The
American Animation Institute is attempting to bridge that gap.

b. What does the American Animation Institute offer?

In addition to our classes geared to industry professionals, the Institute
offers introductory and intermediate classes for persons without previous
professional experience who are seeking their first jobs in screen
cartooning. The Institute’s introductory seminars, Introduction to the Art
and Industry and Basic Animation Mechanics, run for three consecutive weeks,
one two-hour session per week. Our craft classes run for twelve weeks, one
two-hour session per week; our art classes run for twelve weeks, one
three-hour session per week.

All of the Institute’s classes are offered at the M. P. S. C. Local 839
IATSE headquarters building at 4729 Lankershim Boulevard in North Hollywood,
California. Our facilities include two lecture rooms, an animation work room
equipped with lightboards and facilities for viewing pencil tests, and a
fully-equipped studio classroom for art classes.

c. What are the prerequisites for taking AAI classes?

You must be eighteen years old and a high-school graduate to take AAI
classes. Non-members of M. P. S. C. Local 839 IATSE are required to take
INTRODUCTION TO THE ART AND INDUSTRY and BASIC ANIMATION MECHANICS as
prerequisites for all other craft classes. There are no waivers from these
prerequisite requirements.

d. Does the Institute offer degrees or certiflcates?

No. Our classes are designed for people interested in animation, to augment
their previous or current studies and/or experience in animation, fine arts
or film. There is no curriculum of classes; students take as many classes as
they wish in the areas of screen cartooning that interest them. Many
students take classes over again to further sharpen their skills.

High-school graduates should be aware that most persons employed in this
field have had some junior-college or college level art training. The
Institute encourages college students to take its classes concurrently with
their other studies.

Upon request, we will give letters of completion to students seeking
employer reimbursement for class fees.

e. Will I be hired at an animation studio after I take the AAI classes?

Our classes are neither a guarantee nor a prerequisite for employment.
Finding a job in animation depends entirely on skill, talent, perseverance,
presentation and luck. Although many graduates of Institute classes have
gone on to careers in screen cartooning, the Institute is not a placement
service and cannot recommend students to specific employers; nor do we offer
financial aid or housing assistance.

f. How do the class rebates work?

Active members in good standing of M. P. S. C. Local 839 IATSE qualify for a
rebate of $20.00 on classes marked with a @ in the catalogue. In order to
receive a rebate you must attend at least ten of the twelve class sessions.
Rebates will be mailed within a week after the last class session.

g. How do I register for an AAI class?

Reservations for upcoming classes will be accepted by mail, by phone or in
person. Reservations will be taken on or after the dates listed in brackets
for each class session. When you register for a class, you are not
guaranteed a place in that class until you have paid for it.

Three to four weeks before the class is scheduled to begin, you will be sent
a postcard confirming that the class is to be held. This card must be
returned with payment in full to complete your registration and reserve your
place in the class. Your reservation for the class is not confirmed until
you have paid in full.

Because of our somewhat limited facilities it is not unusual for AAI classes
to be closed to enrollment before the first class session. For this reason,
teachers are not authorized to accept class payments on the night of a class
session. Nor are teachers allowed to make exceptions to class prerequisite
requirements, which are not waived under any circumstances. Auditing of
classes is prohibited.

Refunds will not be given after the second class session has been held.

The Institute reserves the right to cancel a class at any time before the
first scheduled class session. The fact that a class is listed does not
guarantee that it will be held; classes are subject to postponement or
cancellation due to low enrollment or teacher unavailability. If a class for
which you have registered has been cancelled, your name will be kept on file
and you will be informed of any future scheduled class sessions. Any money
collected for a cancelled class will be refunded in full.

h. What is Hollywood Hands-On?

Hollywood Hands-On is a computer learning center set up by the West Coast
studio locals of the IATSE. HHO offers beginning, intermediate and advanced
classes in all phases of computers including computer animation. For
information, call (818) 762-0060.

IMPORTANT: Hollywood Hands-On classes are available ONLY to active members
in good standing of Local 839 IATSE or other Hollywood IATSE locals.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

II. Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and Affiliated Optical Electronic and
Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE

a. What is Local 839 IATSE? How do I become a member?

Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and Affiliated Optical Electronic and
Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE, is a labor union representing the writers,
artists, craftspersons and technicians involved in the making of animated
cartoons. Local 839 administers the American Animation Institute.

Local 839 has contracts with all the major animation studios in Los Angeles
County. These contracts guarantee fair wages, hours, benefits and working
conditions for union members.

To become a member of Local 839, you must get a job with one of the studios
with which Local 839 has a contract. It is not necessary to join Local 839
as a prerequisite for getting a job at a unionized animation studio. A list
of union shops is given out at the Introduction to the Art and Industry
seminar (see III.a. below), or you can call the Local 839 office for a copy.

The initiation fee is two weeks’ scale wages in the job category in which
you are first hired. Dues are charged quarterly. When you are hired at a
union shop, the employer will notify us and we will send you a statement
with your initial balance, representing the initiation fee and dues for the
current quarter. It will not be necessary to pay the entire amount at once;
we will allow you to make reasonable payments towards the balance.

b. How do I get the benefits of union membership at my non-union
employer?

You can help Local 839 organize your non-union employer by signing a
representation card. This card, which is totally confidential, gives Local
839 the right to represent you in negotiating a contract with your employer.
When the union has collected sufficient representation cards, it will
approach the employer to suggest negotiating a contract. If necessary, the
National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) will hold a secret-ballot election. If
the union wins this election, the employer must bargain in good faith with
the union.

For further information, contact the MPSC Local 839 IATSE office at 4729
Lankershim Blvd., North Hollywood, CA 91602-1864; (818) 766-7151.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

NOTES ON CLASSES: Unless otherwise listed, all classes run from 7 pm to 9 pm.

All classes are subject to cancellation.

The dates listed in {brackets} are the earliest that registration will be
accepted for the class. (see I.g. above)

@ Members of Local 839 IATSE taking this class are eligible for class
rebates (See I.f. above)

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

III. Introductory Seminars

a. INTRODUCTION TO THE ART AND INDUSTRY

Instructor: Bud Hester………………………Fee: $30.00
3 Tuesdays…………………………………May 24, 31, June 7 {3/30/94}
July 5, 12, 19 {5/25/94}
August 30, September 6, 13 {7/6/94}
October 11, 18, 25 {8/31/94}

Note: Sessions may be scheduled for additional days of the week as demand
requires.

An overview of screen cartooning in Los Angeles County. The nature of this
challenging (and often exasperating!) field is discussed. A realistic
appraisal is given of current employment possibilities in entry-level job
positions. The union and its purpose and function in relation to employers
and workers is explained, to show that union membership and industry
employment are not a “catch-22” for the prospective screen cartoonist. For
the final class session, students may bring in portfolios to be submitted
and reviewed in class by the instructor, who will give personal advice on
presenting to a potential employer the skills necessary for employment.

b. BASIC ANIMATION MECHANICS

Instructor: Bud Hester………………………Fee: $30.00
3 Tuesdays…………………………………June 14, 21, 28 {5/25/94}
July 26, August 2, 9 {7/6/94}
September 20, 27, October 4 {8/31/94}
November 1, 8, 15 {10/12/94}

Note: Sessions may be scheduled for additional days of the week as demand
requires.

Prerequisite: INTRODUCTION TO THE ART AND INDUSTRY, or membership in Local
839 IATSE.

All persons working in screen cartooning, whether in creative, rendering or
technical job categories, are required to understand certain technical
aspects of the animation process. This class covers the functions and
capabilities of the animation camera; the use of animation bars and peg
systems with tilts and pans; the composition and reading of the exposure
sheet; and the flipping, rolling and stacking of drawings by the animator in
preparation for the work of the assistant animator, the clean-up artist and
inbetweener.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

IV. Training Classes: Animation

a. INBETWEENING AND ASSISTANT ANIMATION

Instructors: Larry Leichliter/Dori Littell-Herrick/
Alex Topete……………………………Fee: $70.00@
12 Tuesdays………………………………..May 24-August 9 {4/1/94}
August 30-November 15 {7/1/94}

Note: Sessions may be scheduled for additional days of the week as demand
requires.

Prerequisite: BASIC ANIMATION MECHANICS, or membership in Local 839 IATSE.

This class covers the working duties of the inbetweener, the apprentice
assistant animator who fleshes out the movement of the animated sequence by
providing “in-between” drawings as specified by the animator and his
assistant. Students work during class time at inbetweening animated
sequences, using equipment provided by the Institute and their own
materials.

b. ANIMATION

Instructors: Ruben Aquino/Larry Leichliter…….Fee: $70.00@
12 Wednesdays………………………………May 25-August 10 {4/1/94}
August 31-November 16 {7/1/94}

Prerequisite: INBETWEENING AND ASSISTANT ANIMATION, or membership in Local 839 IATSE with experience as an animator, assistant animator, breakdown artist or inbetweener.

Emphasis in this course will be placed on strong, descriptive poses, clear
staging, a detailed study of dialogue and the acting involved in character
animation. Further refinement in the theories of timing will also be
emphasized.

Students should be prepared to do homework assignments using their own
supplies and equipment. The students will photograph their tests at the
Institute.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

V. Training Classes: Cartoonist Crafts

a. BACKGROUND PAINTING AND DESIGN

Instructor: Bonnie Callahan………………….Fee: $70.00@
12 Tuesdays………………………………..August 30-November 15 {7/1/94}

Prerequisite: BASIC ANIMATION MECHANICS, or membership in Local 839 IATSE.

b. LAYOUT

Instructor: Bill Frake………………………Fee: $70.00@
12 Thursdays……………………………….May 26-August 11 {4/1/94}
September 1-November 17 {7/1/94}

Prerequisite: BASIC ANIMATION MECHANICS, or membership in Local 839 IATSE.

c. CHARACTER DESIGN (formerly Model Design)

Instructor: Jim Franzen……………………..Fee: $70.00@
12 Thursdays……………………………….May 26-August 11 {4/1/94}
September 1-November 17 {7/1/94}

Prerequisite: BASIC ANIMATION MECHANICS, or membership in Local 839 IATSE.

d. STORYBOARDING

Instructors: Cosmo Anzilotti/Kaan Kalyon………Fee: $70.00@
12 Thursdays……………………………….May 26-August 11 {4/1/94}
September 1-November 17 {7/1/94}

Prerequisite: Basic Animation Mechanics, or membership in Local 839 IATSE.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

VI. Art Classes

a. LIFE DRAWING

Instructors: Glenn Vilppu/Karl Gnass………….Fee: $85.00@%
12 Wednesdays………………………………May 25-August 10 {4/1/94}
August 31-November 16 {7/1/94}
6:30 pm-9:30 pm#
12 Thursdays……………………………….May 26-August 11 {4/1/94}
September 1-November 17 {7/1/94}
7 pm-10 pm#

% Plus $5.00 materials fee, payable to the teacher at the first class session.
# Sessions may be scheduled for additional times as demand requires.

b. ADVANCED LIFE DRAWING

Instructor: Karl Gnass………………………Fee: $85.00@
12 Mondays…………………………………May 23-August 22 {4/1/94*}
7 pm-10 pm

Note: No class on May 30 or July 4.

Prerequisite: The AAI LIFE DRAWING class.

c. HEAD DRAWING

Instructor: Karl Gnass………………………Fee: $85.00@
12 Mondays…………………………………August 29-November 21 {7/1/94}
7 pm-10 pm

Note: No class on September 5.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Contents (c) 1994 by American Animation Institute. All rights reserved. This
catalog is also available in printed form. Permission is given to distribute
this newsletter electronically so long as the ENTIRE contents are
distributed, including this notice.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #76, from hmccracken, 4703 chars, Wed Apr 20 11:57:39 1994
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
Subject: From rec.ARTS.ANIMATION

From: mpsc839@netcom.com (Tom Sito)
Subject: * The Next Phase Of Development *

TO ALL CGIers, VIRTUAL, INTERACTIVE, DIGITAL, TOASTER PEOPLE AND ALL THE
SHIPS AT SEA!

Traditional animation was once an industry of ink, paint and pencil,
done in Hollywood and New York. Now it is a billion dollar business
farmed out around the world.

The Computer Graphic and Imaging Industry was once a few visionaries
playing with bombsights, now it is exploding with wealth and changing
the face of Hollywood forever.

Traditional animators and computer artists were once thought to be
irreconcilable, now collaboration is norm and the future is clear.

Experts say dogmatically nothing will never be the same, but at least
one aspect of Hollywood will never change: For all the people dreaming
and creating there will always be others trying to use the dreamers and
creators to make themselves a bundle:

Witness these examples:

* Robert Armstrong, the inventor of FM radio, driven to despair by
lawsuits with RCA over his patents, leaps out of a window.

* Siegel and Schuster, the creators of Superman, sell their idea to
a comic syndicate in 1938 for $25.00. When the first $50-million-
dollar Superman feature came out in 1977, Local 839 and other
groups exposed that they had been reduced to poverty.

* An animator I knew in Northern California found out he had AIDS-
related cancer. The next day his boss fired him for “disturbing
the aura of the studio.”

Traditional animators have trod the path you are now walking. The
computer graphics animation industry is in its romantic period of
development, akin to the 1930s in Hollywood or the ’50s in television.

A few people with a dream band together and knock themselves out trying
to make it. The company grows bigger and bigger, maybe it’s bought by a
conglomerate. Suddenly your old pal is now “Mr. Pal, President” and you
need an appointment to see him, and an identity card, and you have to
take your complaints to several flunkies who don’t know you. Suddenly
you seem to them to be overrated and expensive; there’s a slew of kids
who’d love to do your job for less. Then it’s good-bye and turn in your
keys by Friday.

Your bosses may be okay guys now, but if they leave, then what?

The solution is simple: THE NEXT LEVEL OF DEVELOPMENT IS TO UNIONIZE.

Isn’t it strange that the mass culture trumpets how this generation has
revivified the Hollywood studios, film animation and TV? Yet it is
complete anathema to consider that we’d want to revive the collective
union protection our predecessors had created. Who sez there’s no room
for that?

A union isn’t Klingons or gangsters from Detroit or something, it’s you
all in concert making decisions with a majority vote. Professional
standards are set for your wage scales and benefits. In the 1930s,
before cartoonist unions, some people in Hollywood animation studios got
$500 per week while others got $26 per week. Lillian Friedman was the
first American woman animator. In 1935, Fleischer’s (the Betty Boop
people) raised her salary to $40 a week while her youngest male
counterpart got $125.

If you like swimming in Darwinian sharkpools all your career then all
this guff must be tedious. Me, I’m an artist. It’s hard enough doing my
skill properly, I also have to be Michael Milken and pull off the “deal
of the century”? If your employers could create like you can, they’d
gladly do without you. What makes you think you can go in and negotiate
with them, the thing THEY do best? That’s what unions are for.

Please contact us by phone, E-mail or snail-mail if you want more info
on unions and how to organize one. If you’re in the L. A. area, come to
our soiree on THURSDAY, APRIL 28 from 7 to 9 pm, at the BEVERLY GARLAND
HOLIDAY INN, 4444 VINELAND in NORTH HOLLYWOOD.

UNIONS — THE NEXT PHASE OF DEVELOPMENT!!!

—
_______________________________________________________________________________
Tom Sito, President
Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and 4729 Lankershim Blvd.
Affiliated Optical Electronic and North Hollywood, CA 91602-1864
Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE phone (818) 766-7151 * fax (818) 506-4805
E-mail: mpsc839@netcom.com

—
_______________________________________________________________________________
Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and 4729 Lankershim Blvd.
Affiliated Optical Electronic and North Hollywood, CA 91602-1864
Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE phone (818) 766-7151 * fax (818) 506-4805
E-mail: mpsc839@netcom.com

==========================
animation/best.of.net #77, from davecolton, 52 chars, Thu Apr 21 00:39:28 1994
This is a comment to message 76.
————————–
It speaks to the humanity under seige in all of us.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #78, from hmccracken, 42711 chars, Sat Apr 23 17:42:24 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 23 Apr 1994 17:40:12 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9404231740.memo.46081@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.disney

Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!MathWorks.Com!mvb.saic.com!news.cerf.net!ihnp4.ucsd.edu!dog.ee.lbl.gov!overload.lbl.gov!lll-winken.llnl.gov!seismo!tanida
From: tanida@beno.css.gov (Tom Tanida)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.disney,rec.answers,news.answers
Subject: rec.arts.disney FAQ, part 01/03
Followup-To: rec.arts.disney
Date: 22 Apr 1994 22:28:06 GMT
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Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.Edu
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Reply-To: tanida@gso.saic.com (Tom Tanida)
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Summary: FAQ for rec.arts.disney
Keywords: FAQ, disney
Originator: tanida@beno.CSS.GOV
Xref: news.delphi.com rec.arts.disney:36346 rec.answers:4990 news.answers:20542

Archive-name: disney-faq/part01
Last-modified: 20 Apr 1994

The rec.arts.disney Frequently Asked Questions List
Version 3.0, last revised April 19, 1994

This document is Copyright (c) 1994, by Tom Tanida, all rights
reserved. It is intended for public use, and may be redistributed freely
printed or electronically in its complete and unaltered form provided
distribution is done at no charge to the receiver. Partial and other
distribution means require the permission of the author.

This is the FAQ file for rec.arts.disney. I have tried to include
topics relevant to the questions and threads which arise most often on the
newsgroup, as well as some interesting facts. Most of the information came
from articles posted to rec.arts.disney since July 1990, about the time the
group was started, although I’m missing quite a few articles from early on.
Other information came from various books and magazines. Your input to
this list is highly appreciated.
The purpose of this list is to reduce the number of redundant
questions posted to rec.arts.disney and to provide a source of information
to Disney fans worldwide. Personally, however, I would invite discussion
of questions included in this list if this list is not complete enough.
For example, one of the questions lists the voices of popular Disney
characters and where to find more info, but if the character is not listed
here, I would still encourage you to post and ask, especially if the
character is more obscure.
Again, I hope that this list will reduce the amount of redundant
information posted to the net. Even more strongly, I hope this list, in
combination with the Walt Disney World FAQ, will provide a unified source
of information about Disney related material and provide a valuable
reference for all.

There are four sections:
I. A list of the questions in this part
II. Answers to General Questions
III. Answers to Questions with Time-critical
Information
IV. Other lists, available upon request

Send comments, corrections, suggestions, and inside information to:
tanida@gso.saic.com. I am sure that no matter how long I work on this that
it will never be perfect, but it doesn’t hurt to try. 🙂 If you prefer
Compuserve access, I’m at 76655,344. On Prodigy I’m xgsn74a. On America
Online, I’m TomTanida. If you would like to reach me by phone, my day
number is (619)-546-6118. The most reliable way to reach me is via
Internet, then Compuserve (especially if the date on this document is many
months old).
If you would like a PostScript version of this document, which has
much better formatting, feel free to send me a request; I can easily mail
it to you. The standard text version of this FAQ, like all FAQs
cross-posted to news.answers, is archived at rtfm.mit.edu. For information
regarding how to FTP the FAQ from rtfm.mit.edu, send me e-mail; I’ve
written a quick tutorial. This document is maintained in MS Word For
Windows 6.0.
Note: the Disneyland FAQ is available from me or its maintainer, Walt
Hoffman (whoffman@ganymede.jpl.nasa.gov), and via FTP from rtfm.mit.edu in
the directory pub/usenet/news.answers/disney-faq.

Section I- Questions

General questions:
0) Some information about rec.arts.disney
1) What are the Disney animated feature films? Which of the films have
been released on videocassette?
2) Where can I get a copy of {Cinderella, Lady and the Tramp, other hard to
find video(s)}?
2b) Can I get Song of the South in the US? Why doesn’t Disney release this
in the US?
3) Where can I get Disney-related GIF (JPEG, etc.) pictures?
4) Is there a Disney specific FTP site?
5) What are serigraph cels? Are they “real” cels?
6) What art galleries sell Disney cels and other collectibles?
7) To what degree are computers being used in Disney animated films today?
7b) Since computers are being used quite a bit in Disney films now, does
that mean there are no “genuine” cels from the movies?
8) I heard that Walt Disney is in cryogenic suspension. Is this true?
9) Who did the voice of {Ariel, Belle, my favorite Disney character}?
10) How do I get a job working for Disney?
11) Is Goofy a dog, a horse, or what?
12) How can I get the song lyrics to {The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the
Beast, etc.}?
13) What are the Magic Kingdom Club benefits?
14) What are the stockholder benefits?
15) What is Club 33?
16) What are the names of Ariel’s sisters in The Little Mermaid?
17) What are the Disney Stores?
18) Who are the “nine old men”?
19) Who are the current Disney animators?
20) Where can I get the movie poster for {Beauty and the Beast, other
Disney movie}?
21) Where can I find a particular Disney book? How can I find an original
version of a book that Disney adapted into a movie?
22) I remember a scene from Peter Pan where Tinkerbell is dying (having
borne the brunt of the explosion from Captain Hook’s trick present to
Peter), and the audience is asked to clap to bring her back to life.
Why isn’t it on the Disney video?
23) What was the first Disney film ever to receive a PG rating?
24) What are some “in-jokes” in the Disney films?
25) Commonly used Disney terms and abbreviations on the Internet
26) Who does the voice of the singing merchant at the beginning of the film
Aladdin?
27) Where can I get a list of Disney animation bloopers?
28) What is the FDC and how do I get in on it?

99) Where can I get more Disney info?
– Includes books, publications, computer services, phone numbers, and
addresses

Timely information:
1) What Disney shows/auctions/events are coming up?
2) What are some of the upcoming movie and video releases from the Walt
Disney Studios?
Section II – Answers to General Questions

0) Some information about rec.arts.disney

rec.arts.disney is a Usenet newsgroup, distributed via the Internet
worldwide to an estimated 80,000 readers. It is for the discussion of all
things Disney-related, including the movies, the theme parks, books, and
television shows. The group was created around May 1990, and the traffic
has gradually increased to between 3 and 4 Mb of articles per month. Some
other newsgroups that might cover Disney-related topics would include:
rec.parks.theme, rec.arts.animation, and possibly rec.arts.movies. For
information on other online sources, including mailing lists, see question
99, below.

A (very brief) netiquette (Net Etiquette) guide for new users:
* Don’t post “test” messages.
* Try to keep the discussions Disney-related. If you need help with
Internet related topics, such as how to FTP, or translated
uuencoded files to GIF files, etc., there are other sources of
information (such as news.newusers, your local sys
administration, and many, many new and current books on the
Internet at your local bookstore). I am willing to send you
instructions on how to FTP the FAQ as well (a step through
tutorial).
* Cut down on included articles when following up. A good rule of
thumb is that at least half the article you are posting should be
new text. Otherwise, you’re mostly posting something someone
already said. In addition, it makes it hard to read your new
text.
* Using all capital letters is difficult to read, and makes it look
like you’re shouting.
* If you feel an article is annoying in some way, it’s usually better
to ignore it. If you can’t ignore it, wait a couple of hours,
and come back to it, and see if it’s still worth replying to.
Also, flame wars can be taken to private e-mail, or alt.flame.
* rec.arts.disney is not the appropriate place to post GIF images,
even if Disney-related. Also, widespread public distribution of
images containing Disney characters is in violation of copyright
law.
* Read the FAQ. (Just thought I’d get a poke in there)

1) What are the Disney animated feature films? Which of the films have
been released on videocassette?

Here is the *official* list, numbered and listed in chronological
order. Other notable Disney films with Disney animation are included after
the list. The factors in what constitutes an “animated feature film” are
the amount of screen time with animation on it, the total length of the
film, the quality of the animation, and what kind of a mood the person at
the Disney studios is in when they make the decision. With each film, I
have made some notes regarding video release, Academy Awards, and other
trivia.

1) Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (12/21/1937) – Granted a special Academy
Award for screen innovation in 1938. This was re-released into
the theaters in the U.S. in the summer of 1993, and will be
released onto video in the US in the Fall (late September/early
October).
2) Pinocchio (02/07/1940) – Released on video (US) in 1986, and re-released
in the US in early 1993. Won the Oscar for Best Song (“When You
Wish Upon a Star”), and Best Original Score.
3) Fantasia (11/13/1940) – Released on video and LaserDisc (US) in 1991 and
will not be re-released on video in its original form. The
Academy granted a special award to Leopold Stokowski for
“widening the scope of the motion picture as entertainment and as
an art form” in 1941. The music was conducted by Leopold
Stokowski, and the narrator was Deems Taylor. Fantasia was
re-released in 1982 with an Irwin Kostal conducted soundtrack and
narration by Hugh Douglas, but was subsequently restored.
4) Dumbo (10/23/1941) – Released on video (US) in 1986. Based upon the
serial number on the cassette, this was the first of the animated
films to have been released on video. It was originally released
in 1980 for rental (as opposed to sell-through). It won an Oscar
for “Scoring of a Musical Picture” in 1941.
5) Bambi (08/13/1942) – Released on video (US) in 1988. Also released on
LaserDisc. (As a bit of trivia, this is the animated feature
with the fewest lines of dialog.)
6) Saludos Amigos (02/06/1943)
7) The Three Caballeros (02/03/1945) – Released on video (US) in 1988 (?).
This is somewhat of a sequel to Saludos Amigos.
8) Make Mine Music (08/15/1946) – Almost like a second Fantasia, but
featuring more popular music in 10 shorter sequences, which lack
the depth that Fantasia had. The excellent ‘Clair De Lune’
sequence in this film was originally intended to be included in
Fantasia. It also included “Casey at the Bat.” Parts of this
film have been released separately on video, under the titles
“Willie, the Operatic Whale” and “Peter and the Wolf”. This film
was never reissued in its original form.
9) Fun and Fancy Free (09/27/1947) – Contained the two stories “Mickey and
the Beanstalk” and “Bongo,” each of which have been recently
released on video. This aired on the Disney Channel in October
and November 1993.
10) Melody Time (05/27/1948) – Some miscellaneous stories, including: a
story based on Johnny Appleseed; “Little Toot” (a tugboat);
“Blame It On the Samba”, featuring Donald Duck and Jose Carioca
from The Three Caballeros; and “Bumble-Boogie,” a jazz version of
Flight of the Bumblebee. This film was somewhat of a sequel to
Make Mine Music, and also was never re-released in its original
form.
11) The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (10/05/1949) – Released on video
as separate short films, under the titles “The Legend of Sleepy
Hollow” and “The Wind in the Willows.”
12) Cinderella (02/15/1950) – Released on video (US) in 1988. It has been
said that this was Walt Disney’s favorite film.
13) Alice in Wonderland (07/28/1951) – Released on video (US) for
sell-through in 1988, and for rental only in 1980 (like Dumbo).
Also released on LD, in an original and a digitally restored
form.
14) Peter Pan (02/05/1953) – Released on video (US) in 1989. Also released
on LD.
15) Lady and the Tramp (06/22/1955) – Released on video (US) in 1987.
Originally filmed in Cinemascope.
16) Sleeping Beauty (01/29/1959) – Released on video (US) in 1987.
Originally filmed in Cinemascope.
17) 101 Dalmatians (01/25/1961) – Released on video (US) in April, 1992.
18) The Sword in the Stone (12/25/1963) – Released on video (US) in 1988
(?).
19) The Jungle Book (10/18/1967) – Released on video (US) in 1991. Also
released on LD. This was the last film that Walt Disney worked
on, as he died prior to its release.
20) The Aristocats (12/24/1970)- Never released on video.
21) Robin Hood (11/08/1973) – Released on video (US) in 1986; re-released
on video and LD in 1991.
22) The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (03/11/1977) – This was a
compilation of the three stories “Winnie the Pooh and the Honey
Tree” (1966), “Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day” (1969), and
“Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too” (1974). All of these have been
individually released on video.
23) The Rescuers (06/22/1977)- This film was the last that was developed by
the original (Walt) generation of Disney lead animators. It was
very successful in Europe during it’s initial release. It is
currently available on video and LD (non-letterboxed).
24) The Fox and the Hound (07/10/1981)- At one time the film was stated by
Disney publicists to be the 20th, then the 25th animated feature
film. The first major effort by the “new generation” of Disney
artists. This is due on video March 1.
25) The Black Cauldron (07/24/1985)- This was the first film to be released
in 70mm since Sleeping Beauty. Roy E. Disney, Walt’s nephew,
returned to the studios to contribute to the screenplay. The
film suffered from delays and a then record-cost of $25 million.
This has never been released on video.
26) The Great Mouse Detective (07/02/1986) – Score by Henry Mancini. This
was released on video during the summer of 1992.
27) Oliver and Company (11/18/1988)- Made $54M in it’s initial release,
which at the time was the highest box-office gross of any
animated film in its first theatrical run.
28) The Little Mermaid (11/17/1989) – Released on video (US) in 1990; also
available on LD. Won the Academy Awards for Best Original Score,
and Best Song (“Under the Sea”). Grossed $89M in its initial US
release.
29) The Rescuers Down Under (11/10/1990) – Nationally released on 11/23/90.
Released on video and LD (US) in 1991. Disney’s first official
animated sequel. Grossed around $28M in its initial US release.
30) Beauty and the Beast (11/15/1991) – Was nationally released on 11/23/91
and was released on video in the US at the end of October, 1992.
Was released on LD (CLV and WS CAV) in September 1993. Cost $30
million to produce. It won the Academy Awards for Best Original
Score, and Best Song (title track), and was the first animated
film to be nominated for Best Picture. In the first 42 weeks of
its US release, this film grossed $144.725 million, and sold 1
million copies of the video nationwide by the end of its first
day of release (10/30/92).
31) Aladdin (11/11/1992). Was nationally released on 11/25/92. This
features songs by the late Howard Ashman. The score was done by
Alan Menken. Since Ashman passed away before this film was
completed, Tony Award winner Tim Rice was hired to complete some
songs for the film. Ashman wrote the lyrics to the songs Arabian
Nights, Friend Like Me, and Prince Ali. Rice wrote the lyrics to
One Jump Ahead, A Whole New World, and Prince Ali (reprise).
This film reportedly cost $35 million to produce. Aladdin won
two Academy Awards, one for Best Song (A Whole New World) and one
for Best Original Score. Aladdin grossed over $215 million in
the theaters and currently holds the record as the all-time best
selling video cassette ever, exceeding 21 million copies sold.
32) The Lion King (nationwide June 24, 1994)- Tim Rice and Elton John are
working on the soundtrack for this film, set in Africa and
telling the story of a young lion cub who finds himself awkwardly
thrown into a new role as “king” of the jungle. A trailer of
this is currently being shown at the Disney Stores.
33) Pocahontas (late 1995)- Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz are working on
the soundtrack for this film.

Here are some notable films and shorts that didn’t make the Disney studio’s
official list. Because of space constraints, many shorts have been
omitted.

Ferdinand the Bull (1938) – Released on video with “Willie, the Operatic
Whale.”
The Reluctant Dragon (06/20/1941) – Released on video. This title was
originally conceived and released as a feature length film with a
combination of live-action and animated sequences including a
short story called “Baby Weems.” The video version includes just
the sequences related to the Reluctant Dragon story.
Victory Through Air Power (07/17/1943)
Song of the South (11/02/1946) – This has been released on video in Europe
and Japan. It won an Oscar for Best Song (“Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah”).
In addition, a special award was given to James Baskett for his
role as Uncle Remus.
So Dear To My Heart (01/19/49) – Features Bobby Driscoll, who was the child
actor in Song of the South, and who had provided the voice of
Peter Pan. Set in 1903, it has much of the style of Song of the
South in its mix of live-action and animation. It was released
on video in the US in early October, 1992.
Lambert, the Sheepish Lion (1952) – Released on video as a Mini-Classic
with “Willie, the Operatic Whale.”
Mary Poppins (08/27/64) – Nominated for Best Picture. An interesting and
ironic story is that Julie Andrews originated the lead role in
the Broadway version of My Fair Lady, but lost the part to Audrey
Hepburn for the 1964 screen version. Andrews was subsequently
cast as the lead in Mary Poppins, her first movie, for which she
won Best Actress. Audrey Hepburn was not even nominated that
year, although My Fair Lady won 8 Oscars that year, including
Best Picture, beating out Mary Poppins for that award. Mary
Poppins also won for Best Song (“Chim-Chim-Cher-ee”), Best Score,
Film Editing, and Special Visual Effects. This was released on
video in 1986.
Bedknobs and Broomsticks (10/07/71) – Won an Oscar for Special Visual
Effects. This has been released on video.
Pete’s Dragon (11/03/77) – Released on video in 1991.
The Small One (1978) – A short film directed by Don Bluth.
Tron (1982)- Significant for its use of computer graphics and effects.
This was released to the rental markets on video some time ago
(early ’80s).
Mickey’s Christmas Carol (1983) – Available on video.
Winnie the Pooh and a Day for Eeyore (1983) – Available on video.
The Brave Little Toaster (1988) – Released on video in 1991. The animation
for this was done by Hyperion Pictures, not Disney.
DuckTales: The Movie (1990) – Released on video. Although full length,
this isn’t included because it did not meet “classic” animation
standards (it was produced/animated outside the Disney Studios),
and was released under the “Disney MovieToons” label.
The Prince and the Pauper (11/23/1990) – This was released in the theaters
with The Rescuers Down Under. It was released on video in 1991.

Many films have been released in Japan and elsewhere on LaserDisc, and
such versions can be obtained via US dealers. Films in this category
include: Lady and the Tramp, Song of the South, Dumbo, Sword in the Stone,
Peter Pan, and Mary Poppins (in letterboxed format). Here are a couple of
dealers who may carry these titles:
Laser Land
1035 S. Saratoga-Sunnyvale Rd.
Campbell, CA
(408)-253-3733 (San Francisco Bay Area)

Laser & Video
8780 Warner Avenue #9
Fountain Valley, CA 92708
(800)-342-9715 (mention you’re looking for an import disc)

Ken Crane’s
(714)-892-2283

2) Where can I get a copy of {Cinderella, Lady and the Tramp, other hard to
find video(s)}?

In general, the “premium” Disney animated feature films are released
for a limited time. Like The Little Mermaid, that “limited time” may be a
matter of two years and 8.5 million copies, but after Disney decides to
stop taking orders and all the copies are sold, they are not replenished.
The only way to get the videos are: to search smaller, more obscure video
stores that might have some left over; to buy from somebody who has one and
is willing to sell (check out your favorite Disneyana convention- there are
often sellers there); to buy one from a used video store where somebody, by
some offbeat chance, has sold it to the store; to buy one from a place that
rents videos, and has multiple copies of the video you want (you might have
to negotiate with the owner); or to rent it and keep it and take the
extraordinarily high charge and whatever other penalty video stores dole
out for people who don’t return their videos. It might be hard to find a
good copy of an older film.
Films known to be out of print: Pinocchio (1984 edition), Robin Hood
(1985 edition), Sleeping Beauty, Lady and the Tramp, Cinderella, Fantasia
(which is slowly getting scarce), Peter Pan, The Jungle Book, and The
Little Mermaid. Beauty and the Beast, 101 Dalmatians, The Rescuers, The
Rescuers Down Under, and The Great Mouse Detective are also no longer being
produced, though you can still find these (in NTSC format).
In the January 22, 1993 issue of Entertainment Weekly, on page 65
there is an article about out of print cartoon videos. Mentioned in the
article is Norman Scherer, owner of the Video Oyster in New York, who finds
hard to find videos for you. He has a catalog; call (212)-480-2440. He is
quotes as saying that some parents paid up to $200 for a copy of The Little
Mermaid, and the article gives $85 as the going rate for Lady and the
Tramp. The Little Mermaid can be found at most Disneyana collectors shows
for around $50-80.
Will Disney re-release the movies? It’s all up to speculation. Some
contemplate a video re-release every 7 to 10 years or so, like the movies
themselves into the theaters. Pinocchio has been re-released onto video
after a seven to eight year wait. Only time will tell.

2b) Can I get Song of the South in the US? Why doesn’t Disney release this
in the US?

Song of the South is not available in standard, NTSC VHS format in the
US. You can obtain it in the US as a Japanese import LD from any LD dealer
that sells imported LDs, or as a PAL VHS tape overseas.
It is widely believed that the primary reason Disney will not release
the film in the US is due to their concern over the racial stereotyping of
blacks as slaves in the film. This policy could change in the future.

3) Where can I get Disney-related GIF (JPEG, etc.) pictures? (And what are
GIFs anyway?)

GIF stands for “Graphics Interchange Format.” A GIF picture is a file
that contains a compressed, machine-independent image. To view one, you
need a GIF viewer for your machine (there are viewers available for most
platforms). JPEG is an alternate image storage format (i.e. it uses a
different form of compression and encoding). You can find further
information in the FAQs for the alt.binaries.pictures.* groups. The
current rec.arts.disney FAQs (as well as others) can be FTP’d from
rtfm.mit.edu.
Disney considers it a violation of copyright to distribute images into
a publicly accessible place. It is legal, however, to create images for
your own personal use.
There are many Disney GIFs floating around, but there isn’t any
official way to get them. Here are some common methods, however:

Internet FTP- There isn’t any “official” site for Disney GIFs. Many GIFs
sites have some in their collection. tezuka.rest.ri.cmu.edu
(128.2.209.227) has quite a few GIFs dedicated to the Disney
Afternoon. Bob Ito’s drawings can be found at cco.caltech.edu
(131.215.6.10) in /pub/disney/images/ito. There are also a few
at wuarchive.wustl.edu (128.252.135.4), although you might have
to search. If you know of others, please send me their name (and
IP address, if you have it), and I’ll mention them here.

alt.binaries.pictures – This Usenet newsgroup will carry uuencoded versions
of GIFs. The biggest problem with finding and distributing via
this method is that not all news sites carry this group.
Pictures here are “uuencoded,” meaning they are converted from an
8-bit binary format to an ASCII form suitable for mail/news
distribution. You will need the equivalent of UNIX’s “uudecode”
command to convert them back to a binary format.

Compuserve- Compuserve has several graphics forums that carry Disney GIFs.
One is the FLORIDA forum, which has a couple of Disney-dedicated
sections. Use the Graphics File finder (go GRAPHFF) to find any
others in the Graphics forums. Connect time on Compuserve is
$4.80/hour at 2400 baud, and $9.60/hour at 9600 baud on top of a
basic fee of $8.95/month. Any images on Compuserve must have
approval from the Walt Disney Company before they can be made
available for download.
Disney Software has a section in GAMBPUB. In their library,
they have software demos and pictures.

America On-Line- On March 4, 1993, AOL pulled its Disney GIFs after being
contacted by a Disney representative. America Online has a
Disney following in the Travel section. Connect time on AOL is
$9.95/month which includes 5 hours of time.

GEnie- GEnie has the Disney Roundtable which carries hundreds of Disney
GIFs. GEnie has graphics direct from Disney’s press and
publicity department, as well as graphics contributed by members.
Connect time on GEnie is as low as $3.00/hour at 2400 baud and
$9.00/hour at 9600 baud.

The Disney Software BBS – The Disney Software bulletin board, run by
Disney. It’s number is: (818)-567-4027. There are some images
and animations available there, and last I heard, Dave
Arnspinger, the sysop, was trying to get permission to make
images available there. This BBS is primarily for the support of
Disney Software, but also includes general Disney info. Settings
are N81, 300-9600 bps. It supports the ANSI BBS protocol.

Some online contacts to Disney Software include:
America Online: DisneySoft
CompuServe: 71333,14
Delphi: DISNEYSOFT
Disney BBS: Disney SYSOP
FIDONet: Disney SYSOP (in the Disney Conference)
GEnie: DISNEYSOFT
Internet: DisneySoft@aol.com (effectively the America Online
address)
Prodigy: BWBF40A

4) Is there a Disney specific FTP site?

At this time, the Walt Disney Company has no anonymous FTP sites or
BBS’s, and there are no current plans for creating any corporate approved
ones at this time. Do not try to telnet or FTP into machines on the
disney.com domain- you’ll only be wasting bandwidth (and creating headaches
and otherwise annoying network administration at Disney).
If you would like to FTP and obtain Disney information, try
cco.caltech.edu (inside the US) in pub/disney/rec.arts.disney or
yoyo.cc.monash.edu.au (this site is in Australia), in pub/rec.arts.disney.
There are various documents that can be obtained from these locations- the
CalTech site mirrors most of yoyo. Also, Disney Software runs a BBS (see
question 3 above), and has plans to create a disneysoft.com based FTP site.
You can also explore the following locations:
nctuccca.edu.tw: /USENET/comp.archives/rec/arts/disney
quartz.rutgers.edu: /pub/disney
sol.ctr.columbia.edu: /pub/DA
ftp.wang.com: /pub/lar3ry (DIS’ ‘n’ DAT newsletter archive)
ftp.netcom.com: /pub/kazrak (Unofficial WDW Guide)

5) What are serigraph cels? Are they “real” cels?

Serigraph cels (also called “sericels”) are not “real” cels, meaning
that although they are printed on an acetate cel, they are not actually
used in the production of an animated film or short. The serigraph process
involves creating a master cel by hand, usually based on an image from a
film or from animator’s drawings. A serigraph machine, which lays down the
colors, is then used to make copies. It is a normal art process (meaning
that serigraphs are truly “art”), but in general, I wouldn’t invest in
serigraphs hoping to make huge amounts of money like those who deal with
actual production cels. In fact, the Dec/Jan 1993 issue of Storyboard
mentions that people who have tried to sell their serigraphs and other
limited editions find that galleries typically offer around half of the
original retail price. The current rate for Disney serigraphs is $250 for
“limited-editions” of 2500 pieces. They are generally unnumbered.
Disney has also released a line of hand-painted cels and backgrounds,
most around the price of $2000-3000 each. They have also released some in
the range of $4000-5000 each (e.g. the Beauty and the Beast ballroom scene,
at $3800, and the Seven Dwarfs image, at $5200). These too are not
production cels- they are painted by artists in the Disney Studio Art
Program. These are *numbered*- i.e. you can see a number on the cel that
looks like “322/500”, which means that the one you are looking at is number
322 out of an edition size of 500. Some of the releases in this program
include: a scene from Fantasia (Ben Ali Gator holding the Hyacinth Hippo
aloft); a excellent Lady and the Tramp (Lady and the Tramp at the spaghetti
table); a scene from Pinocchio (the Blue Fairy looking at both Jiminy
Cricket and Pinocchio on Gepetto’s bench); a scene from 101 Dalmatians
(Pongo, Perdita, and puppies watching TV). Only the cels are hand-painted;
the backgrounds are lithographed (reproduced). There are others as well.
The Walt Disney Company is also selling cels directly from the
following movies: The Little Mermaid, Oliver & Company, The Great Mouse
Detective, The Black Cauldron, The Fox and the Hound, and The Rescuers.
You should also be able to find cels from most, if not all, of the
television series.
Here is a description of the different cel types sold by the Disney
Art Program taken from a brochure on Disney animation art from the
Disneyana store on Main Street at Disneyland:
Production Cels – Original production cels are colorful paintings on
acetate, created by studio artists, then photographed and actually used in
a film or television program action sequence. Disney Art Editions offers
these one-of-a-kind cels taken from more recent feature films and
television programs.
Hand-Inked-Line Limited-Edition Cels – Since few production cels from
earlier animated features and shorts exist, Disney recreates cels of the
most classic moments in limited editions. Hand-inked-line cels are made
using traditional animation techniques, exactly as the production cels were
originally made for so many classic Disney films. This includes tracing an
animation drawing onto acetate by hand with different color inks and hand-
painting it with gum or acrylic-based colors formulated exclusively in
Disney laboratories. The work is done by a small cadre of Disney artists
who have kept this almost-forgotten art alive. Some hand-inked-line cels
are also combined with backgrounds.
Xerographic-Line Limited-Edition Cels – Xerographic-line cels, instead
of being hand-inked, are created by transferring the original animation
drawing to the acetate cels by a special six-step xerographic process, a
refinement pioneered by Walt Disney Studios in the late 1950s. 101
Dalmatians was the first feature film to be created entirely with this
revolutionary process. Many of the cels are then enhanced with hand-inked
lines before being painted with Disney colors and combined with a
lithographic background.
Serigraph Cels – Serigraph cels, or sericels, recreate images of
Disney’s famed cast of characters. To produce a sericel, Disney artists
create a hand-inked, hand-colored painting or model of Disney characters,
which is then transferred to the acetate cel by a silk-screen printing
process known as serigraphy.
Notes from the brochure glossary:
Cel: An outline, or line drawing, of a character and sometimes
certain special effects, either hand-inked or xerographically transferred
onto a clear sheet of cellulose acetate. The image is then painted on the
back side of the sheet. Cels are mostly in two standard sizes: a 12-field,
about 12 by 10 inches; or 16-field, approximately 16 by 12 inches.
Background: A painting of a scene to be used as a background for the
animated action. Thousands of cels may be photographed over a single
background to create one scene in an animated film. A production
background is one actually used in a film.
Cel Set-Up: One or more cels overlaid on a background.
Animation Drawing: A pencil drawing on animation paper, created by
the animator and used as the basis for an image on a cel.
Storyboard Drawing: A drawing or story sketch made for the
storyboard, which conveys visually the original plot and action. The
storyboard serves as a preliminary guide for those working on the film.
Publicity Cel: A cel not actually used in a film, but created instead
solely for publicity or promotional purposes.
Limited-Edition Cel: A cel created specifically for the collector
market in a pre-determined quantity.
Model Sheets: Drawings of a grouping of characters or a single
character in a variety of attitudes and expressions, create as a reference
guide for animators.

6) What art galleries sell Disney cels and other collectibles?

Before I give you the list, I’ll say a few words of advice about cel
collecting that echoes what many people have said on rec.arts.disney over
the years (or months): Buy only what you like. Don’t get caught up in
“auction fever.” Many cels may not be worth close to their asking price.
Make sure you check the condition of the cel closely. Cels that involve
popular scenes and characters, and have good views of the characters (e.g.
frontal view, both eyes showing) will be worth more. Buy only genuine
production cels if you are interested in investor value, otherwise forget
about the resale value and look for what you like. Shop around.
Negotiate.
There are several types of cel set-ups available (listed here in rough
order of cost, from cheapest to most expensive): Full reproductions (e.g.
serigraphs, or hand-painted reproductions, such as those discussed in
question #5); actual movie cels with no backgrounds; actual movie cels with
lithographed (reproduced backgrounds); and actual movie cels with real
backgrounds.
Some galleries also carry drawings, storyboards, etc.
There are actually quite a few galleries. Many are owned by people
who are simply interested in the field, like you and me; they’re not
necessarily “big time” operations. Here is a list I’ve drawn up (by no
means complete). I’ve only listed phone numbers so that you can call and
get information regarding addresses/catalog pricing/etc. Many places have
free catalogs. I personally can’t vouch for any of them, as I haven’t
ordered anything except catalogs from any of these places (you might just
want to post to rec.arts.disney, and see what others who have had
experience buying cels might suggest). I welcome additions to this list.

Gallery Phone
All American (800)-872-8850 (Fair Lawn, NJ)
Collectibles
Animation Alley (800)-772-8666, (714)-776-8666 (Anaheim, CA)
Animation Art (215)-925-2009 (Philadelphia, PA)
Resources
The Animation (800)-223-5328 (La Jolla, CA)
Celection
Animation (818)-988-7706 (Los Angeles, CA)
Collectible
Center
Animation Source (203)-776-7111 (New Haven, CT)
Animators Gallery (800)-972-6688, (914)-779-0046 (Bronxville, NY)
of Cartoon Art
ArtWorks (800)-535-5070 (Alexandria, VA)
C.A. Brooks (516)-487-3556 (New York, NY)
Animation Art
The Cartoon Art (800)-245-6633 (Indian Wells, CA)
Store
Cartoon Galleria (800)-767-0928 (Sacramento, CA)
Cartoon Gallery +61 2 267 3022 (Sydney, NSW)
Cartoon Kingdom (609)-243-9960 (Princeton, NJ)
The Cel Block (800)-334-8799 (New Hope, PA)
Cel Magic (510)-7360119 (Danville, CA)
Circle Gallery (several branches, including the Disneyland Hotel
complex)
Cricket Gallery (800)-BUY-CELS (Atlanta, GA)
Collector’s (818)-785-4080 (Studio City, CA)
Paradise
Film Art Galleries (516)-935-8493 (Old Bethpage, NY)
Fine Toon Gallery (713)-522-6499 (Houston, TX)
Gallery C (919)-828-3165 (Raleigh, NC)
Gallery In Motion (800)-788-0445 (Kansas City, MO)
Gallery Lainzberg (800)-553-9995 (Cedar Rapids, IA)
Gifted Images (800)-726-6708 (Rockville Centre, NY)
Howard Lowery (818)-972-9080 (Burbank, CA)
Leslie Brooks (718)-279-3861 (Little Neck, NY)
Lewis Gallery (805)-584-8462 (Simi Valley, CA)
Lynne Novick (609)-653-0770 (Linwood, NJ)
Magic Moments (603)-883-9770, (603)-888-3457 (Nashua, NH)
Marina Fine Arts (310)-305-7678 (Marina Del Rey, CA)
Mike Cluff’s (805)-927-1250 (Cambria, CA)
M.j.Manfred (412)-561-6665 (Pittsburgh, PA)
Mostly Art (203)-348-6270 (Stamford, CT)
One-Of-A-Kind (404)-377-3333 (Decatur, GA)
Cartoon Art
Optimum Arts (707)-864-5709 (event recording), (707)-864-2132
(voice)
Phillips (212)-570-4830 (New York, NY)
Collectibles
Reel Characters (201)-628-8714 (Wayne, NJ)
Gallery
Russ Wolkoff (818)-752-1755 (Los Angeles, CA)
San Francisco (800)-8DAFFY8, (415)-441-8900 (S.F., CA)
Animated Art,
Inc.
Saturday Morning (518)-482-5405
Animation
Scott & Leslie’s (714)-538-6893 (Orange, CA)
Seaside Art (919)-441-5418 (Nags Head, NC)
Silver K Fine Art +61 3 509 5577 (Armadale, Vic)
Silver Stone (310)-598-7600 (Long Beach, CA)
Gallery
Sir Issac Gallery (703)-834-1288 (Herndon, VA)
Stabur Corp. (800)-346-8940, (313)-425-7940 (Livonia, MI)
Stay Tooned Gallery (708)-382-2357 (Barrington, IL), (708)-234-3231
(Lake Forest, IL)
Suspended Animation (407)-934-7683 (Walt Disney World Vacation Village)
Sweatbox Art (408)-225-9698 (San Jose, CA)
Toon Dude (818)-883-9056 (Tarzana, CA)
Toys To Go (215)-649-2555, (215)-649-8444 (Ardmore, PA)
Vintage Animation (213)-393-8666 (Santa Monica, CA)
Gallery

Here are reviews of the Australian galleries, provided by Tim Pickett
(quetzal@yoyo.cc.monash.edu.au):
The Cartoon Gallery is fairly small and has not only cels but original
comic strips and a few items related to stop-motion animation. About 30%
of their collection is from Disney. They deal mainly in production cels
and sericels, with few limited-edition cels. The going price for a
(US$250) sericel is A$475.
Silver K Fine Art has a larger collection, much of it Disney. They
seem to deal mainly in sericels and limited-edition cels. The going price
for a (US$250) sericel is A$525.

Cels are also sold at the Disney theme parks. Serigraphs and cels are
sold at the Disney Stores (see question #14). The Disney Store has twice
offered a line of production cels with reproduced backgrounds from The
Little Mermaid. Each Disney Store should have a special order book that
will allow you to examine limited edition, production cel, and serigraph
images for purchase.
Figurines can be bought from the Walt Disney Collector’s Society and
its authorized dealers (there are quite a few). For information about the
WDCS, write to:
Walt Disney Collectors Society
500 South Buena Vista Street
Burbank, CA 91521-6876
(818)-567-5500

==========================
animation/best.of.net #79, from hmccracken, 48468 chars, Sat Apr 23 17:42:42 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 23 Apr 1994 17:40:37 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9404231740.memo.46082@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.disney

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From: tanida@beno.css.gov (Tom Tanida)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.disney,rec.answers,news.answers
Subject: rec.arts.disney FAQ, part 02/03
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There seems to be a lot of confusion on this issue, partly because
Disney seems to be trying to remain at least a little secretive about the
exact processes they use. But here’s some information obtained and
consolidated from various sources, including the periodical Computer
Graphics World and some reference books on Disney animation and computer
graphics. By far, CAPS holds the greatest mystery; it has won awards for
its innovative capabilities, yet nobody except Disney knows a lot about it
(and they aren’t talking).
Much of the computer graphics rendering work is done by the artists at
Disney’s Computer Generated Imagery (CGI) department in Glendale, CA.
There were 14 animators and software engineers there for the production of
Beauty and the Beast (they’re listed in the credits).
Computers are used for several different purposes in Disney animation.
One purpose is to process the colorization of the “cels” (I put that in
quotes because while there still are pre-production cels, they don’t look
like the final product- more on this in a moment). Another purpose for
computers is for the generation of backgrounds. A third purpose is for the
generation of certain types of animated objects. A fourth purpose is for
simple modeling. There are probably others. Remember that the ultimate
goal of any computer system, of course, is to increase the efficiency and
creativity of its users by reducing or eliminating as much of the
redundant, “grunt” work as possible.
The colorization and compositing of the characters is the most notable
use, as it represents the biggest change in the state of the art of Disney
animation. In the original process, the animators would draw an image on
paper to be transferred onto a cel by an inker, who would pass the cel on
to be carefully colored by hand. In general, consecutive cels would use
the same colors (i.e. although a particular character wouldn’t always be
the same color during the entire film depending on light and shadow, or
other Disney magic, the next frame of animation is often times very similar
to the frame before it). This represented a lot of redundancy.
An aside: note that after Sleeping Beauty, however, Disney animators
drew on paper, frame by frame, and had their drawings transferred to cels
via a xerography process (rather than via an inker) to be individually
colored. Also note that cel coloring was applied to the back of the cel,
not the front, although the cels themselves were still inked on the front.
With modern computer graphics, this process can be eliminated,
speeding up the rate of output significantly. The title for the new system
is CAPS, which stands for “Computerized Animation Production System.”
Animators’ drawings are transferred directly to a computer, where the
computer colors the image based on color models. This is not an automatic
process, but a given palette can be repeatedly applied by the computer
artist far more quickly than an artist can color a bunch of cels by hand.
The last scene from The Little Mermaid (Ariel and Eric kissing) used the
process. Most, if not all, of The Rescuers Down Under, and all of Beauty
and the Beast used the process. In addition, there is still quite a bit of
cleanup work done by hand- including the process of transferring animators’
original drawings onto clean sheets of paper to be scanned into the CAPS
system. There is some final cleanup that is done via computer to make sure
all is well and perfect with each individual image.
There are other advantages of the process as well. Since the images
are effectively digitized in a computer, they can be manipulated and merged
at will. The impressive multiplane (3D) effect at the opening of Beauty
and the Beast, where the camera travels through a forest past an animated
waterfall took advantage of the CAPS process; in the past, a multiplane
effect would be difficult at best. For example, the final scene in the
“Ave Maria” sequence from Fantasia, involved building a horizontal camera
crane, moving the camera along a track “through” panes of glass on which
the images of the forest, cathedral, and sunburst at the end, with the
panes of glass being yanked out of the way when they became out of focus.
Since then, alternative techniques were used, but none of these is as easy
as simply using a computer to move and blur images in pseudo-3D space.
Other advantages of CAPS include: the ability to easily blur images
that are “out of focus” relative to the camera position, to blend (e.g. the
blush on Belle’s cheeks) and to intricately shade the characters (e.g.
Belle and the Beast dancing in the ballroom- you were watching them, not
the spinning background, right? 🙂 ); and to combine images of different
sizes seamlessly (i.e. you can draw the image at any size and
enlarge/shrink to fit as necessary).
Other miscellaneous benefits include access to a wider range of
colors (if you’ve used any 24-bit color computer paint/DTP program on a
Mac or PC, you can see how this works- you get 16.7 million exact colors
versus whatever number you can come up with just mixing paint), and the
coloring of the lines that border the characters. Note the black lines
that border the characters in films after Sleeping Beauty: a Xerox
process was used that introduced this. This was something that annoyed
Walt Disney when it was introduced, but it helped speed up the production
rate. Later, the studio experimented with different toner types, and was
able to reduce the boldness of the lines. Also, exact color matching can
be easily achieved, as a color is represented by a 24 or 32-bit recordable
numeric value. An example of this would be how Jasmine’s shadow matches
the non-moving shadows of the trees in her garden, in Aladdin.
Another significant use of computers is the generation of backgrounds.
Although 99% of the backgrounds are painted (and colored) by hand (and then
entered into the CAPS system), there are some notable exceptions. (Note
that for a background, it’s not necessarily better to color by computer
since an artist can paint with a brush just as well, if not better, and
there isn’t a lot of redundancy since the same background is repeatedly
used; incidentally, there were 1300 background created by 14 artists for
Beauty and the Beast.) The most notable exception to date is probably the
ballroom in Beauty and the Beast. The spinning ballroom sequence was first
choreographed using Wavefront Technologies software on an SGI machine, then
modeled in 3D using the Alias software and finally rendered frame by frame
using the Renderman software (probably using some form of distributed
processing, or at least rendering different images on different computers).
The animators’ drawings of Belle and the Beast were then merged normally
using CAPS. In addition, a computer-rendered table was used in the “Be Our
Guest” sequence (the scene where Mrs. Potts is singing, with little tea-
cups circling her). The staircase that Ariel runs down before first seeing
Eric with Vanessa in The Little Mermaid also was generated via computer.
Yet another use of computers is for certain types of 3D objects. The
modeling and rendering process is similar to that of the Beauty and the
Beast ballroom. Some examples include: the gears in The Great Mouse
Detective during the chase scene at the climax; the carriage in The Little
Mermaid, external views of the villain’s vehicle, and the Sydney opera
house in The Rescuers Down Under; the dancing forks on the cake chandeliers
in the “Be Our Guest” sequence in Beauty and the Beast.
A final, minor use of computers, would be for simple modeling. For
example, the ship at the beginning of The Little Mermaid was wireframe
modeled on computers, but was drawn by hand. I’m sure the Disney artists
have found other ways to use computers to assist them, much in the same way
they might use clay models to visualize various objects (such as the
characters themselves).

Aside from using computers to produce the films, the digital domain
offers some advantages to the older films as well. For example, the recent
release of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs has been digitally restored
(“cleaned-up”) by Imagineers working with Kodak using a process developed
in 1989 at the Kodak Cinesite digital film center in Burbank called
“Cineon” technology. Snow White was originally restored in 1987 by YCM
Laboratories, but the restoration was not as good as Disney had hoped.
(YCM also restored Fantasia.) In the process, each frame of the film is
digitized into the computer system and restored by hand. The computer aids
the human restorer by remembering what was corrected and how it was
corrected and can apply that knowledge to other frames or other areas of
the same frame. The entire process is designed to remove flaws from the
animated feature, such as color loss caused by the decay of the nitrate
based film or dust particles (even as they were photographed onto the film
itself way back in 1937 when the film was made). The process is not
designed to remove animation errors. At the peak of the project, 2000
frames per day were being cleaned, which occupied 15 terabytes of disk
space. The sound was restored separately, using a software-based DSP and
editor to remove hisses and pops. The soundtrack, although mono, was
slightly “stereo-ized” to give it more depth.
(I’d be interested in hearing about other uses, by the way. In fact,
if there’s a Disney artist out there reading this who has anything to add
to this description in general… 🙂 )

7b) Since computers are being used quite a bit in Disney films now, does
that mean there are no “genuine” cels from the movies?

There are no more original production cels that were used directly for
on-screen images in any Disney animated feature film after The Little
Mermaid. Hand-inked cels are created as color models during the production
process, and hand-inked cels will probably be created for the purpose of
auctioning backgrounds (note: if you look closely through the Sotheby’s
catalogue for the Mermaid auction, it is advertised as a background
auction, not a cel auction). For the Sotheby’s auction for Beauty and the
Beast and for Aladdin, Disney auctioned genuine backgrounds used in the
production with one-of-a-kind cels created by hand by Disney artists.
These cels were based on the directing animator’s drawings. See also
question #4 for a discussion of cel types.

8) I heard that Walt Disney is “cryopreserved”/”in cryogenic suspension.”
Is this true?

No, this is an “urban legend,” although a joke goes “Yes- he’s in
suspended animation” :-). Walt Disney died at 9:35 am on December 15,
1966, of lung cancer. He was cremated (quite the opposite of being frozen,
ironically) and is buried at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, CA.
His parents are buried there as well.
This rumor did not come about completely out of the blue, however.
Some of the reasons this rumor started were: there was a small time period
between the time of Walt Disney’s death and the public announcement of his
death; Walt himself is said to have shown an interest in cryogenics in his
final years (ref. the book Disney’s World, see “Books” in question #99,
below); and even his animators have been quoted to say that it’s an
interesting thought that Walt might someday return to “set things straight”
in the company.
Incidentally, Walt was born on December 5, 1901, in Chicago, IL,
making him just over the age of 65 when he passed away.

9) Who did the voice of {Ariel, Belle, my favorite Disney character}?

I can’t include the voice of *every* Disney character here, but here
is a comprehensive list of the most popular characters. One good
reference to the Disney movies is The Disney Studio Story, by Richard
Holliss and Brian Sibley, Crown Publishers, Inc., New York, NY, 1988, ISBN
#0-517-57078-5. The most complete list, however, is the Encyclopedia of
Walt Disney’s Animated Characters, by John Grant, ISBN 1-56282-904-1. (See
“Books”, in question #99, below.) If you’re looking for the voice of a
more obscure character, drop me a line, or just post.

This list is in approximate chronological order (by appearance).

Mickey Mouse: Walt Disney himself did the voices of both Mickey and Minnie
in the early cartoons, including “Steamboat Willie.”
(Incidentally, “Plane Crazy” was Mickey’s first cartoon,
“Steamboat Willie” was Mickey’s first cartoon with sound, and the
first put into widespread release.) By World War II, Disney had
fully trained and then turned over the task to Jimmy MacDonald,
who in turn trained Wayne Allwine, the current voice of Mickey.
Minnie Mouse: Currently voiced by Russi Taylor.
Donald Duck: Initially voiced by Clarence Nash. First appeared in “The
Wise Little Hen.” Nash also voiced Donald in Mickey’s Christmas
Carol (1983). He is currently voiced by Tony Anselmo, as Nash
later passed away in the late ’80s.
Goofy: Originally voiced by Pinto Colvig. He is currently voiced by Bill
Farmer.
Chip and Dale: Currently voiced by Tress MacNeille and Corey Burton,
respectively.
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs – Snow White: Adriana Caselotti; Prince:
Harry Stockwell; Wicked Stepmother: Lucille La Verne; Grumpy:
Pinto Colvig
Pinocchio – Pinocchio: Dickie Jones; Jiminy Cricket: Cliff Edwards
Dumbo – Timothy: Edward Brophy; Stork: Sterling Holloway; Jim Crow: Cliff
Edwards
Bambi – Thumper: Peter Behn; Bambi’s Mother: Paula Winslowe; Flower:
Sterling Holloway
Saludos Amigos, The Three Caballeros – Joe Carioca: Jose Oliveira
Make Mine Music – Willie the Whale: Nelson Eddy
Song of the South – Brer Rabbit: Johnny Lee; Brer Bear: Nicodemus Stewart;
Uncle Remus/Brer Fox: James Baskett. The boy (Johnny) was played
by a young Bobby Driscoll.
Fun and Fancy Free – (“Mickey and the Beanstalk”)- Giant: Billy Gilbert
The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad – Ichabod was narrated and sung by
Bing Crosby. Toad: Eric Blore; Cyril (the horse): Pat O’Malley
Cinderella – Cinderella: Ilene Woods; Prince Charming: Mike Douglas (the TV
personality/talk show host); Stepmother: Eleanor Audley; Fairy
Godmother: Verna Felton.
Alice in Wonderland – Alice: Kathryn Beaumont; White Rabbit: Bill Thompson;
Cheshire Cat: Sterling Holloway; Queen of Hearts: Verna Felton
Lambert, the Sheepish Lion (short)- Narrated by Sterling Holloway (Dumbo,
Alice In Wonderland, Jungle Book).
Peter Pan – Peter: Bobby Driscoll; Wendy: Kathryn Beaumont; Captain
Hook/Wendy’s Father: Hans Conried; Mr. Smee: Bill Thompson
Lady and the Tramp – Lady: Barbara Luddy; Tramp: Larry Roberts;
Peg/Darling/Siamese Cats: Peggy Lee
Sleeping Beauty – Aurora: Mary Costa; Phillip: Bill Shirley; Maleficent:
Eleanor Audley
101 Dalmatians – Cruella DeVille: Betty Lou Gerson; Pongo: Rod Taylor;
Perdita: Cate Bauer; Roger: Ben Wright; Colonel: J.Pat O’Malley
The Sword in the Stone -Wart: Ricky Sorenson; Archimedes: Junius Matthews;
Merlin: Karl Swenson; Madame Mim: Martha Wentworth
Winnie the Pooh: Initially voiced by Sterling Holloway (who you’ll see pop
up quite a bit in this list of Disney voices), who passed away in
late 1992. The first two Pooh stories (Winnie the Pooh and the
Honey Tree and Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day) were
narrated by Sebastian Cabot (The Jungle Book). Other voices:
Christopher Robin: Jon Walmsley; Tigger: Paul Winchell
The Jungle Book – Mowgli: Bruce Reitherman (son of the director, Wolfgang);
Baloo: Phil Harris; Bagheera: Sebastian Cabot; Kaa: Sterling
Holloway; King Louis: Louis Prima; Shere Khan: George Sanders;
Colonel Hathi: J. Pat O’Malley
The Aristocats – Duchess: Eva Gabor; Thomas O’Malley: Phil Harris;
Roquefort (mouse): Sterling Holloway: Scat Cat: Scatman Crothers;
title song sung by Maurice Chevalier
Robin Hood – Robin: Brian Bedford; Little John: Phil Harris (The Jungle
Book, The Aristocats); Prince John: Peter Ustinov; Sir Hiss:
Terry Thomas; Allan-a-Dale (rooster): Roger Miller; Maid Marian:
Monica Evans: Sheriff: Pat Buttram; Friar Tuck: Andy Devine; Lady
Kluck: Carole Shelley
The Rescuers – Bernard: Bob Newhart; Bianca: Eva Gabor; Madame Medusa:
Geraldine Page; Penny: Michelle Stacy; Mr. Snoops: Joe Flynn;
Orville: Jim Jordan
The Fox and the Hound -Tod: Mickey Rooney; Copper: Kurt Russell; Big Mama
(owl): Pearl Bailey
The Black Cauldron – Taran: Grant Bardsley; Eilonwy: Susan Sheridan;
Dallben: Freddie Jones; Fflewddur Fflam: Nigel Hawthorne; the
Horned King: John Hurt; Gurgi, Doli: John Byner
The Great Mouse Detective – Basil: Barrie Ingham; Dr. Dawson: Val Bettin;
Ratigan: Vincent Price
Oliver and Company – Dodger: Billy Joel; Tito (Chihuahua): Cheech Marin;
Georgette (poodle): Bette Midler; Einstein: Richard Mulligan
The Little Mermaid – Ariel: Jodi Benson; Sebastian: Samuel E. Wright;
Ursula: Pat Carroll; Eric: Christopher Barnes; Scuttle: Buddy
Hackett
The Rescuers Down Under – Bernard: Bob Newhart; Bianca: Eva Gabor; McLeach:
(the) George C. Scott; Wilbur: John Candy; Jake: Tristan Rogers;
Cody: Adam Ryen; Joanna: Frank Welker
Beauty and the Beast – Belle: Paige O’Hara; Beast: Robby Benson; Mrs.
Potts: Angela Lansbury; Luminere: Jerry Orbach; Cogsworth: David
Ogden Stiers; Gaston: Richard White; Lefou: Jesse Corti; Maurice:
Rex Everhardt; Chip: Bradley Pierce; Wardrobe: JoAnne Worley
Aladdin- Aladdin: (speaking) Scott Weinger, (singing) Brad Kane;
Genie/Trader: Robin Williams; Trader (singing): Bruce Adler;
Princess Jasmine: (speaking) Linda Larkin, (singing) Lea Salonga;
Abu, the monkey: Frank Welker; Jafar: Jonathan Freeman; Iago:
Gilbert Gottfried; Sultan: Douglas Seal
The Lion King- Simba (young): Jonathan Taylor Thomas; Simba (adult):
Matthew Broderick; Nala (young): Nikita Calame; Nala (adult):
Moira Kelly; Musafa: James Earl Jones; Scar: Jeremy Irons;
Sarabi: Madge Sinclair; Zazu: Rowan Atkinson; Rafiki: Robert
Guillaume; Timon: Nathan Lane; Pumbaa: Ernie Sabella; Shenzi:
Whoopi Goldberg; Banzai: Cheech Marin; Ed: Jim Cummings

Other voices:
Huey, Dewey, and Louie, and Webbigail (DuckTales)- Russi Taylor
Darkwing Duck- Jim Cummings
Gosalyn (Darkwing Duck)- Christine Cavanaugh
Winnie the Pooh, Tigger (New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh)- Jim Cummings
Uncle Scrooge (Mickey’s Christmas Carol, DuckTales): Alan Young
Roger Rabbit: Charles Fleischer

Theme parks:
Sam the Eagle (from “America Sings”): Burl Ives
Robot-Pilot from “Star Tours”: Paul Reubens (“Pee-Wee Herman”)
Ghost Host (“Haunted Mansion”), narrator from “Adventure Through Inner
Space”: Paul Frees
Singing Statue in Haunted Mansion Graveyard (among others at Disneyland):
Thurl Ravenscroft

10) How do I get a job working for Disney?

Of course, the answer to this depends on what you want to do.
All Disney employees go through a training program which introduces
them to the Disney philosophy and some of the history of the company.
If you’re looking for a summer job at Walt Disney World, consult with
“Central Casting,” located near the Disney Village, where you can get an
application. Or you can write to “Professional Staffing”, c/o WDW, at the
address in question #99 below. At Disneyland, go to the customer relations
desk near the fire station on Main Street. If you do get a summer job,
you’ll probably be making minimum wage (and regularly shaving and getting a
hair cut if you’re male, since facial hair is not allowed if you’re in the
public eye- although animators at WDW seem to be an exception).
WDW and DL have “College Programs,” for which Disney actively sends
recruiters to colleges around the country to recruit students to work at
the parks for a semester. Minimum work hours are about 30 hours per week,
starting around $5.60/hour. Thanks to Ben Scripps for this info; if you
want additional info, send me a line at tanida@gso.saic.com.
To get a job at the Disney Store, simply request a job application,
preferably from the store manager. They aren’t always hiring, but like
most retailers, will hire more employees for the Christmas season. When a
new Disney Store is opened, a “Casting Call” advertisement is placed in the
local paper, and they will interview 300-400 people for 20-25 positions.
When a position becomes available, the hiring ratio is 15-20 interviews for
one Cast Member position. If you would like to work at an existing Disney
Store, ask for an “interest card,” which lets the store know when you are
available for work and an interview. If you are called for an interview,
you will fill out a full application at that time. For more information on
what’s it’s like to work at the Disney Store, see question #16, below.
If you’re interested in animation, you need to be talented and lucky.
It helps if you attended the California Institute of the Arts (“CalArts”),
which Walt Disney helped found, and currently has 900 students and five
schools (art, dance, music, film video, theater). I suspect Disney
currently helps to fund CalArts. (The address and phone information is
given in question #99.) If you didn’t attend CalArts, some other
prestigious school of art with some animation training will probably do
(some of the animators were hired out of the University of California at
Los Angeles, the University of Southern California, and the Art Center at
Pasadena). If you do get a job as an animator, you’ll probably start out
by working on “tweening” (i.e. drawing cels that lie in sequence between
the cels produced by the primary animators), so you won’t have a lot of
creative freedom, and you’ll probably be quite busy (i.e. working longer
than 8 hour days on a regular basis). Show promise, get noticed, and the
sky’s the limit. At the very least, you get your name in the credits. 🙂

Some notes about the structure of the Walt Disney Company:
There are three top-level divisions: Movies & Television (Media
Entertainment), Merchandise, and the Theme Parks. The Movies & Television
division, run primarily by Jeffrey Katzenberg, is sub-divided into the
Feature Animation department, the Television Animation department, and the
main studios (e.g. live films, Touchstone, and Hollywood Pictures). The
Merchandise division includes sub-divisions for the video releases (Buena
Vista Home Video), music releases (Buena Vista or Disneyland Records)
general merchandise management (including creation and licensing), etc.
The Theme Parks, of course, include Disneyland, Walt Disney World,
EuroDisney (the Disney Company does not own EuroDisney in its entirety, by
the way), and Tokyo Disneyland. The Theme Parks division is run primarily
by Michael Eisner, who is also CEO of the Company. Each of these smaller
divisions might be subdivided; for example, the Feature Animation
department includes the Engineering division (e.g. CAPS), CGI (Computer
Generated Imagery- e.g. special effects), and the actual Animation units
themselves.

An address to write to regarding employment opportunities with the
studios would be:
Walt Disney Studios
500 S. Buena Vista St.
Burbank, CA 91521-7320
(The Walt Disney Company receives thousands of (solicited and
unsolicited) resumes per month, but they do keep track of all of
them.)
Job hotlines at the Walt Disney Company:
(818)-560-1811: General Employment
(818)-560-6335: Film Industry Opportunities
If you would like to submit your resume to Walt Disney Imagineering
via e-mail, send it to:
resumix@hr.wdi.disney.com
Disney uses the Resumix database system to track the resumes they
receive. I believe you can submit PostScript versions as well as standard
text (ASCII).

11) Is Goofy a dog, a horse, or what?

Goofy is a dog. He originally started life as “Dippy Dawg” early in
the history of the Disney studios, in both comic strips and short films,
but evolved into “Goofy” by 1934. He first appeared in film in 1932 (as
Dippy Dawg) in Mickey’s Revue.
This begs the question “well, if Pluto is a dog too, then why don’t
they act the same (e.g. why does Pluto not talk, why doesn’t Goofy walk on
all fours, etc.)?” My answer to that is because that’s the way Walt wanted
it. 🙂 Pluto is more of a pet to Mickey; Goofy is simply more
individualistic and anthropomorphised. In addition, they’re both different
breeds of dog. 🙂 (I won’t even get into the thread about how Goofy dated
Clarabelle Cow.)

12) How can I get the song lyrics to {The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the
Beast, etc}?

Disney song lyrics can be found via anonymous FTP on cco.caltech.edu
(pub/disney/rec.arts.disney/lyrics) or yoyo.cc.monash.edu.au (in
pub/rec.arts.disney/lyrics). Lyrics to some Disney songs are also
available at ftp.uwp.edu, in pub/music/lyrics/m/misc.musical. If you can’t
FTP, send me e-mail (tanida@gso.saic.com) and I can mail lyrics for The
Little Mermaid or Beauty and the Beast to you.
Otherwise, you can order the sheet music from the Hal Leonard
Publishing Corporation, 7777 West Bluemound Road, P.O. Box 13819,
Milwaukee, WI 53213. There is also The Illustrated Disney Song Book which
is published by Random House, Inc., of New York, NY, with the ISBN #0-394-
50745-2. It contains the lyrics (and piano music) to many of the most
popular Disney songs. There is a “New” Illustrated Disney Song Book as
well (bibliographical reference at the end of this question). Sam Goody’s
Musicland tends to carry a decent selection of sheet music. The address to
the Walt Disney Music Company is given in question #99, below.
There is quite a bit of Disney music available on CD and cassette; if
there is a demand for it, I’ll add a list of Disney music to this list.
Disneyland/Buena Vista Records and Tapes (Burbank, CA 92521) is the
“official” label that distributes the majority of the music.

The New Illustrated Disney Songbook, introduction by Steven Spielberg
Abrams, New York, 1986
ISBN 0-810-90846-8 (Abrams)
ISBN 0-881-88467-7 (Hal Leonard)
Notes: For voice and piano; includes chord symbols and guitar chord
diagrams. Presents in sheet music format about eighty songs from such Walt
Disney movies as “Cinderella,” “Dumbo,” and “Mary Poppins.” 215 pages.

13) What are the Magic Kingdom Club benefits?

As a Magic Kingdom Club (MKC) member, you receive the following
benefits:
– Special offers on Theme Park admission (usually 10%- there’s a price
guide), including EuroDisney and Tokyo Disneyland
– 10-30% discount on WDW resort accommodations
– Ability to take advantage of special vacation packages
– 10% discount on merchandise at The Disney Stores
– Reduced admission to Pleasure Island, Typhoon Lagoon, River Country,
and Discovery Island (at WDW)
– Free membership in Entertainment Publications’ “Travel America for
Half Price”
– Up to 30% discounts with National Car Rental
– 10% discount on Delta Air Lines tickets when traveling to the theme
parks
– 10% discount on Premier’s Caribbean Cruise and Walt Disney World
Week
– 15% discount on cruises aboard the Royal Caribbean Cruise Line
– 10% discount on the Norwegian Cruise Line
– 20% nightly discounts at The Hotel Queen Mary
– 10% discount at the Paradise Guest Ranch in Wyoming
– 10% discount on Broadway at the Top and the Polynesian Luau
– 10% seasonal discount on golf
– Special Club Vacations in San Diego, CA

There are a wide variety of vacation packages to choose from, with the
prices depending on where you stay and for how long, and what time of year
you visit the theme parks.
I believe there is no charge for joining the MKC if your employer has
a group number.

You can also join as a MKC Gold Card member. You receive a
personalized, embossed Gold Card, a two-year subscription to Disney
Magazine (8 issues, worth $14.95), and a membership kit, containing a tote
bag, key chain, travel video, and 5 Disney Dollars. The price for joining
is $49 for two years, which can be discounted $10 if you are a shareholder.
You also receive a list of toll free numbers to call to make travel
reservations.
There is also a Magic Years Club for those over 60 years of age. It
costs $35 for a 5-year membership, and has the same benefits as the
standard MKC, plus a few extras (an embossed card, tote bag, key chain,
bumper sticker, Magic Key newsletter).
The phone numbers for the MKC, MKC Gold Card, and Magic Years Club are
given in question #99, below.

14) What are the stockholder benefits?

The stockholder benefits have been discontinued for 1993. As a
stockholder, you can obtain an Magic Kingdom Club Gold Card membership for
$10 off the normal rate (see also question #12, above).

Here is the body of a letter received by Michael R. Johnston
(Ambrose@world.std.com), from Jennifer LaGrow, Manager of Shareholder
Services, regarding this issue.

***** Begin quote *****

May 10, 1993

Due to the tremendous growth in our shareholder base of almost 100
percent over the last year, and the substantially lower stock price
resulting from the four for one stock split in April 1992, it is no
longer economical for the Company to continue providing free
memberships to approximately 800,000 shareholders.

It is important that the Company be run as efficiently as possible so
that it can offer stockholders and above-average rate of return.
Disney stockholders have enjoyed a 28 percent annualized return over
the last ten years ending December 31, 1992. Over the same timeframe,
the Standard & Poor’s 500 has returned just 16 percent. The Company
recently increased its quarterly cash dividend by 19 percent — from
5.25 to 6.25 cents per share, beginning with the dividend which will
be paid on May 20, 1993.

There was a 100% increase in total shareholders, with approximately
430,000 new Disney stockholders in calendar year 1992. When we
reviewed the costs involved in providing complimentary Magic Kingdom
Club membership to these new stockholders, we determined that it would
cost close to $3 million to service these new accounts in fiscal year
1993. We estimated that is would cost the Company an additional
$600,000 in material and postage costs to provide complimentary MKC
membership in 1993 to all the Company’s record and beneficial owners.
These figures do not even include the cost the Company incurs from the
various discounts given to Magic Kingdom Club members.

We also discovered that 30 percent of the Company’s new 1992 record
owners (as opposed to beneficial owners of stock held in “street
name,” for whom the Company does not have records) purchased only a
single share of Disney stock. We estimate that it will cost the
Company approximately $500,000 to service these one-share accounts in
fiscal year 1993. In a recent survey, approximately 10 percent of the
stockholders surveyed said that they purchased Disney stock solely to
receive shareholder benefits such as MKC membership. Since the hotel
discount offered to shareholders through the MKC membership can be as
high as $100 per night, you can see why the Company determined that it
was not economical to offer complimentary membership to its
stockholders.

Magic Kingdom Club does provide membership programs to eligible
corporations, firms and associations, although this is a separate
program and does not have any impact on the shareholder benefit
program.

***** End quote *****

If you’d like an annual report, write to:
Walt Disney Company
Shareholder Services
4130 Cahuenga, Suite 310
N.Hollywood, CA 91602
or call: (818)-505-7040.

15) What is Club 33?

Club 33 is a somewhat exclusive club located in Disneyland. It’s not
really *exclusive* in the sense that anybody who is willing to wait 2-3
years on the waiting list and can afford the membership fee and annual dues
can join. To get more information, you can write to Club 33, c/o
Disneyland (Disneyland’s full address is included in question #99).
Club 33 is located in New Orleans Square at Disneyland. It occupies
most of the upstairs of the buildings in that area. As you exit from
Pirates of the Caribbean, turn left. Just beyond the Blue Bayou restaurant
is a green door with the address 33. In the atrium between the One of a
Kind shop and the pirate shop is a large staircase and an elevator (behind
a door) which serve as alternate entrances. (These directions were taken
from the Disneyland FAQ.)
If you’d like a copy of the text of the brochures, which includes the
membership fees (if you have to ask, you probably can’t afford it), drop me
e-mail at tanida@gso.saic.com.

16) What are the names of Ariel’s sisters in The Little Mermaid?

Ariel’s sisters are: Aquata; Andrina; Arista; Atina; Adella; Allana.
(Note the second sister is “Andrina,” not “Adrina.”) This information was
verified using both the songbook lyrics and the book The Little Mermaid:
Tales From Under the Sea. There has been a debate over whether or not the
spelling of Ariel’s last sister is “Allana” or “Alana.” The sheet music
and most of the books give it as “Allana,” but the new Encyclopedia of Walt
Disney’s Animated Characters lists it as “Alana.” “Allana” is most likely
correct. It is not a credited voice in the movie.

17) What are the Disney Stores?

The Disney Stores are a chain of retail stores dedicated entirely to
Disney merchandise. They are located throughout the US and UK, and will
soon be opening in Japan and Europe; for the location of the one nearest
you, try calling the Disney Catalog at (800)-237-5751- there is a list in
the Disney Catalog itself. The first Disney Store opened on May 28, 1987
in Glendale, CA. As of May 1, 1993, there were 208 stores in operation,
with plans to open over 60 new stores total by the end of 1993. I’ve found
that the prices of certain merchandise at the stores are lower than the
prices of the same items at the theme parks.
The Disney Store model is different than an average retail store. As
you enter, the Disney Store logo is large and prevalent, usually overhead.
There are two glass cases to either side of the entrance one of which is
used for seasonal features, and the other a Disney scene portrayed by
plastic or wooden models. There are other exterior decorations, including
a line of “film” which has in each frame a Disney character, being animated
from one frame to the next. At the entrance of each store there is a
“greeter” who stands and greets entering guests (customers), and says good-
bye to departing guests.
Inside the store, around the perimeter and overhead, are various
scenes (called “Animations”) which differ from store to store throughout
the country. Some scenes are from the movies; most are from cartoon shorts
or are original. Which scenes appear in which Disney Store is dependent
upon the year in which the store opened. Stores opened between 1987 and
1991 have unique combinations of scenes; stores opened during or after 1992
will have the same scene as other stores opened in the same year. There
are usually two cash register locations, behind which hang Disney art
(cels, serigraphs, etc.). At the back of the store is a large,
laserdisc-based projection screen for playing scenes from movies, cartoons,
music videos, etc., for the purpose of entertainment (and marketing Disney
videos and soundtracks). The stores are kept well stocked and well
organized.
The Disney Store receives entirely new merchandise on a regular basis
(on average about every two to three weeks). There is a shipment of
general merchandise every week. Every couple of months or so a new
promotion with a different theme is emphasized, sometimes based on the
season, other times based on the current movie in the theaters, etc.
The employees, called Cast Members (like all Disney employees), are
trained in Disney culture, and are routinely kept up to date with current
activities at the theme parks, new programs on the Disney Channel, when new
movies and videocassettes will become available, etc. This training
program is called “Traditions,” and (usually) takes place at the store,
consisting of some videos and forms, which takes several four hour days
(two days of company history and info, plus 5 days of Guest Service
training). There is an internal newsletter, called The Disney Store Scoop,
and award programs for Guest Courtesy, Teamwork, etc. that are reflected in
pins. One Cast Member told me that he has received some rather substantial
offers on his pins (which are not for sale). Cast Members also attend
fully paid Disney Store trips to see the latest animated film release twice
a year.
The address of the “home base” of the Disney Stores is:
101 N. Brand Blvd. Suite 500
Glendale, CA 91203
(If you have a favorite Cast Member who you think shows performance
above and beyond the call of duty, send in a letter saying why. It should
make them really happy. 🙂 )
See also question #9.

18) Who were the “nine old men”?

The “nine old men” were the group of lead animators who worked closely
with Walt Disney and the Disney studios from around the mid 1940’s to the
mid 1980’s. The term “nine old men” was a takeoff from President Franklin
Delano Roosevelt’s term for the U.S. Supreme Court justices.
The nine old men, in alphabetical order with a fraction of some of the
notable characters and movies that they contributed to, are:
Les Clark – Minnie Mouse, Mickey in Fantasia
Marc Davis – Bambi, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Cruella in 101
Dalmatians
Ollie Johnston – Dopey in Snow White, Mowgli in The Jungle Book,
Bambi, Mr. Smee from Peter Pan
Milt Kahl – Pinocchio, Robin Hood, Medusa in The Rescuers, Shere Khan
in The Jungle Book
Ward Kimball – Jiminy Cricket in Pinocchio, The Three Caballeros,
Captain Hook (Peter Pan) Lucifer in Cinderella, Dwarfs in Snow
White
Eric Larson – Figaro in Pinocchio, horses in Beethoven’s 6th in
Fantasia
John Lounsbery – Ben Ali Gator in Fantasia, Bambi, Victory Through Air
Power, the wolf in Sword In the Stone
Wolfgang Reitherman – Goofy, Cinderella, Rite of Spring in Fantasia,
The Aristocats
Frank Thomas – Bambi, Monstro the Whale from Pinocchio, Lady and Tramp
from Lady and the Tramp, Lady Tremaine from Cinderella, Dwarfs
mourning in Snow White, Captain Hook (Peter Pan)

These nine men worked on many of the Disney classics, from Snow White
to The Rescuers. Not all of the nine men worked on all of the movies
(although there were some movies that all of them participated in,
including Cinderella). Some of the other major animators at the Disney
studios included Ub Iwerks, Norman Ferguson, Ken Anderson, Mary Blair, Bill
Justice, Vladimir (Bill) Tytla, William Peet, and Wilfred Jackson (who was
the first director for Walt Disney), Hamilton Luske, and Freddy Moore.

19) Who are the current Disney animators?

Robert Cook (rcook@sdcc13.ucsd.edu) and Tim Pickett
(quetzal@yoyo.cc.monash.edu.au) have created a comprehensive list of all of
the animators who have worked for Disney over the years. These Cast and
Crew lists are available via anonymous FTP at cco.caltech.edu (if you’re in
the US) in pub/disney/rec.arts.disney, or yoyo.cc.monash.edu.au in
pub/rec.arts.disney. Please use yoyo outside normal business hours (the
site is 10 hours ahead of GMT- use the UNIX command “date -u” to get the
current GMT time), namely before noon US time, or on a Friday or Saturday.
Contact Tim Pickett (quetzal@yoyo.cc.monash.edu.au) for more info.

Some (but certainly not all) of the lead animators in the recent films
include:

Ruben Aquino – Ursula (The Little Mermaid); Maurice (Beauty and the
Beast)
James Baxter – Belle (Beauty and the Beast)
Randy Cartwright- Magic Carpet (Aladdin)
Lorna Cook – Contributed to Belle (Beauty and the Beast)
Andreas Deja – Mickey Mouse (Prince and the Pauper); Triton (The
Little Mermaid); Gaston (Beauty and the Beast); Jafar (Aladdin)
Russ Edmonds- Max the dog (The Little Mermaid); Cody (The Rescuers
Down Under); Philippe the horse (Beauty and the Beast)
Eric Goldberg- Genie (Aladdin); directing Pocahontas with Mike Gabriel
Will Finn- Grimsby (The Little Mermaid); Cogsworth (Beauty and the
Beast); Iago the Parrot (Aladdin)
Mark Henn – Stationed in Florida. Contributed heavily to the
character development of Belle and Mrs. Potts/Chip. Was the lead
animator on Jasmine (Aladdin).
Glen Keane – Supervised The Fox and the Hound; characters include
Ratigan (The Great Mouse Detective); Ariel (The Little Mermaid);
Marahute (the Eagle) (The Rescuers Down Under); Beast (Beauty and
the Beast); Aladdin (Aladdin). Glen Keane is the son of Bil
Keane, artist of the Family Circus comic strip.
Lisa Keene – Background artist/supervisor
Duncan Marjoribanks- Sebastian (The Little Mermaid), Abu (Aladdin)
Tom Sito – Worked on layout and animated the Gaston wrestling scene in
the pub (Beauty and the Beast)
Dave Pruiksma- Bernard (The Rescuers Down Under); Mrs. Potts and Chip
(Beauty and the Beast); Sultan (Aladdin)
Nik Ranieri- Ursula (The Little Mermaid); Wilbur (The Rescuers Down
Under); Luminere (Beauty and the Beast)
Chris Wahl – Lefou (Beauty and the Beast), multiple characters
(Aladdin)

These animators led the teams that animated the characters they are
credited with. Lead animators provide many of the story and character
ideas, but I am sure that many other ideas (and a lot of hard work) come
from the animators who work for the lead animator.

20) Where can I get the movie poster for {Beauty and the Beast, other
Disney movie}?

You can try just about any movie poster dealer that deals in current
posters. Prices will vary.
Some things to know: Posters aren’t easy to mail. You may need to send
the seller a mailing tube in which to hold the rolled poster.
The following list was compiled from the periodical Movie Collector’s
World, published at P.O. Box 309, Fraser, MI 48026. Phone: (313)-774-
4311. You might want to get a copy (published bi-weekly at a cover price
of $2.50) to see all the ads for yourself. All of those listed here had at
least one Disney title in their advertisements. Disclaimer: I can’t vouch
for any of these places personally, since I have not ordered from any of
them. As always, additions to this list are welcome.

Comic Castle 3148 Midway Drive #113, San Diego, CA 92110
(619)-222-3302 (Tu, W, Th only, 11-6 PST)
Mike Kinder P.O. Box 772198, Winter Garden, FL 34777
(904)-394-3569, after 5 PM
Mark J. Myler 3300 S. Tamarac #N101, Denver, CO 80231
(303)-368-1306
The Movie Gallery 2072 Front Street, East Meadow, NY 11554
(516)-794-0294
Pamela Banner 3409 Lake Montebello Dr., Baltimore, MD 21218-3151
(410)-235-7427 (10-6 EST M-Sa)
Poster Emporium P.O. Box 16681, Raytown, MO 64133-6681
(800)-877-7860
Richard Hubel 549 88th Avenue North, St. Petersburg, FL 33702
(813)-578-1236
Walls of Fame 2798 Nostrand Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11229
(718)-692-3200

If you do order from any of these (or other) places, I’d like to know
about your experiences (positive or negative).

21) Where can I find a particular Disney book? How can I find an original
version of a book that Disney adapted into a movie?

One way is to consult your local big-chain bookseller (B. Dalton,
Waldenbooks, BookStop, Bookstar, Crown Books, etc.). Many have listings,
although many Disney books are out of print. If the book you are looking
for is indeed out of print, your best hope is to search local used book
resellers in your area. Otherwise, the best you can do is your local
library. Incidentally, Hyperion Press is owned by Disney.
A good place to get information about books of any subject without
leaving the comfort of your UNIX machine is via the online Melvyl Catalog.
The Melvyl Catalog, accessible via Telnet, is an online card catalog
listing for every book in the vast University of California library system.
To access, try the following at your favorite UNIX prompt:
unix% telnet melvyl.ucop.edu
(You can substitute 192.35.222.222 for melvyl.ucop.edu if you don’t have
domain name resolution.)
If you can FTP, you should be able to telnet. If you get a “network
inaccessible error”, you probably don’t have the proper access to the
outside world. If you have trouble, feel free to send me e-mail
(tanida@gso.saic.com) and I can try to find the book you want for you.
If you can telnet, you’ll be prompted for a terminal type. Use “Z99” (w/o
the quotes) as your terminal type. Then press return. From here, you can
use the online help by typing “help “.
Some useful commands:
find su Disney = Finds “subject” Disney = any book with Disney as a
subject word
find pa Christopher Finch = Finds “personal author” Christopher Finch
= books written by author Christopher Finch
find tw Magic Kingdom = Finds “title words” Magic Kingdom = any books
with the words “Magic Kingdom”

Upon retrieving your results, you can use the display command:
display all review = Display all in a review format
display 10 long = Displays entry #10 in a long format (all the info-
author, title, etc.)
display 10 ISBN = Displays the ISBN number for entry #10

22) I remember a scene from Peter Pan where Tinkerbell is dying (having
borne the brunt of the explosion from Captain Hook’s trick present to
Peter), and the audience is asked to clap to bring her back to life.
Why isn’t it on the Disney video?

This scene never existed in the Disney version of Peter Pan. It did,
however, exist in the Mary Martin stage version, which is also available on
videocassette. The videocassette was released at about the same time the
Disney version was released, so if you don’t believe me, you can rent the
play and see for yourself. 🙂

==========================
animation/best.of.net #80, from hmccracken, 39757 chars, Sat Apr 23 17:42:57 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 23 Apr 1994 17:41:25 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
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23) What was the first Disney film ever to receive a PG rating?

The first film was The Black Hole, on December 21, 1979. The first
(and so far only) animated feature film to receive a PG rating was The
Black Cauldron, on July 24, 1985.

24) What are some “in-jokes” in the Disney films?

Here is what amounts to an incomplete list. If you find others, drop
me a line. If the list gets long enough, I can separate it out of the FAQ.

Aladdin:
In “One Jump Ahead,” Aladdin is sliding down a rope lined with laundry-
at the end of the rope is a window where a woman slams the
shutters closed. If you look closely at her lips, she appears to
say “Oh, shit.”
The directors, Musker and Clements, are among the gawkers when Prince
Achmed appears after the “One Jump Ahead” sequence. Musker has a
dark mustache, the Clements has a red beard.
Sebastian, from The Little Mermaid, appears when the Genie is pulling
items out of a recipe book just prior to granting Aladdin’s first
wish.
The Genie turns his head into Pinocchio during a discussion with
Aladdin at the oasis.
When Genie turns Abu into an elephant, the magic words are “He’s a
mambo shimming Dumbo.” In addition, the hand gestures he makes
form silhouette animals on the sand.
There is a figurine of the Beast, from Beauty and the Beast, in the
stack of toys the Sultan is piling up (which are subsequently
knocked to the floor when Jafar enters), prior to the “Prince
Ali” sequence.
In the “Whole New World” sequence, Aladdin and Jasmine fly past the
gazebo from the Beethoven sequence from Fantasia.
In the “Whole New World” sequence, one constellation looks like the
Walt Disney signature “D”.
The Genie, in the tradition of the Disney theme parks commercials,
asks Aladdin “What are you going to do next?” after he has
apparently won the heart of the princess. Also, the “When You
Wish Upon A Star” theme is played here.
At the end of the film, the Genie is dressed as a tourist, complete
with Goofy hat. This outfit (shirt, sandals, hat, and all) is
the same that Robin Williams wears in the film shown prior to the
Animation Tour at WDW.

Beauty and the Beast:
When Maurice reaches the crossroads just prior to arriving at the
Beast’s castle for the first time, there is a street sign.
Although faded, the sign that points towards the dark, scary side
is labeled “Valencia,” and the sign point towards the normal side
is labeled “Anaheim.”
On Frame #35151 of the CAV LD, you can spot a heart and arrow on the
Beast’s backside.
There is a hidden Mickey in the film, although it’s location was under
debate. I’ll have to check the film

Oliver and Company:
In the “Why Should I Worry” sequence, Pongo, from 101 Dalmatians, is
shown briefly, tugging at his master’s leash.

101 Dalmatians:
During the “Midnight Bark” several dogs from Lady and the Tramp appear
in a pet shop window.

25) Commonly used Disney terms and abbreviations on the Internet

8(:-) = Mouseketeer smiley
ADO = Approved Day Off (for Cast Members)
BatB = Beauty and the Beast
Backstage = Behind the scenes, where Cast Members are away from guests
CM = Cast Member
Cast Member = An employee of the Disney Company (the term was coined by
Walt himself)
Costume = Cast Member uniform
DL = Disneyland
ED or EDL= EuroDisneyland
ER = Early Release (getting off work early for a Cast Member)
FAQ = Frequently Asked Questions list (which you probably know by now)
FDC = Future Disney Cabinet (see question 28)
Guest = Term for a Disney customer (e.g. at the theme parks or Disney
Stores)
Intermission = A break
MK = Magic Kingdom (referring to Disneyland’s counterpart, in Florida).
Disneyland is also called The Magic Kingdom, or “Walt Disney’s Magic
Kingdom”.
MKC = Magic Kingdom Club (see question #12)
MSEP = Main Street Electrical Parade
O&C = Oliver and Company
On-Stage = Where a Cast Member is exposed to Guests (i.e. working)
r.a.d = rec.arts.disney
RDO = Requested Day Off (for Cast Members)
RDU = The Rescuers Down Under
SotS = Song of the South
TBC = The Black Cauldron
TD or TDL = Tokyo Disneyland
TDS = The Disney Store(s)
TLK = The Lion King
TTFN = Ta Ta For Now. This abbreviation and explanation was first used by
Tigger in “Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day” and has come into
widespread usage among the member of the online community.
TGMD = The Great Mouse Detective
TLM = The Little Mermaid
WDW = Walt Disney World (in Orlando, Florida)
Theme Park codes:
Code 1 = Routine
Code 2 = Urgent
Code 3 = Emergency
Code 4 = No further assistance needed
Code 101 = Attraction out of service (routine)
Code 102 = Attraction out of service (urgent)
Code 103 = Attraction out of service (emergency)
Code 104 = Attraction running (normal)
Code 105 = Attraction running (reduced capacity)
Code 106 = Attraction running (full capacity)

26) Who does the voice of the singing merchant (the Peddler) at the
beginning of the film Aladdin?

The singing voice is done by Bruce Adler (this is credited on the
soundtrack). The talking voice of the Peddler, who gives the introduction
to the story, is Robin Williams. Originally, a sequence was planned at the
end of the film (after Aladdin and Jasmine ride off into the sunset- well,
moonrise) where the merchant was to be revealed as the Genie, but this
scene was cut.

27) Where can I get a list of Disney animation bloopers?

Robert Cook (rcook@sdcc13.ucsd.edu) has taken on the arduous task of
compiling and classifying various technical and logical errors in the
Disney animated feature films. Although I’m not yet aware of availability
via FTP, you can contact him via e-mail for further information.

28) What is the FDC and how do I get in on it?

You can request the Future Disney Cabinet FAQ from David Cuthbert at
dacut@cco.caltech.edu. Also, here’s the text of an article, provided
graciously by Larry Gensch (lar3ry@world.std.com):

With the passing of Walt Disney as CEO of the Walt Disney Company, it
has come to be accepted that the tenancy of this position will
probably be open to other people in the future. How far into the
future is anybody’s guess, as Michael Eisner doesn’t seem to be on his
way out anytime soon.

An rec.arts.disney member (Sean Squier) decided to refer to himself as
the “Future CEO” for the Disney company, and in a magnamimous gesture,
opened the floodgates to any and all people who wanted to serve in his
“cabinet.”

Currently, the FDC “Registry” is being maintained by Dave Cuthbert.
If you have visions of grandeur, and think that you could make any
contribution, no matter how small, to the Disney company, simply
register your name and the position(s) that you want to hold in this
ficticious Disney utopia.

Note that Sean no longer posts regularly in the group, but his
position is being reserved for him in respect for his efforts in
organizing the FDC in the first place.

In the past year or so, a splinter group has gotten a bit militant,
with buckets, water balloons, various chemical substances, and Super
Soakers ™ being used to drench and sometimes mutilate other FDC
members. [[Usually, if you see a post with the letters FDC in the
~Subject: line, there is usually a SPLASH! or whatever inside]]

Another way of looking at this is that the FDC is really an “in-joke”
for the r.a.d crowd, and is used to identify “newbies” from the people
who post these “So what is the FDC anyway?” messages… [Insert
whatever emoticon or smiley you desire]

A lot of references to the FDC can be found in Tim Pickett’s “yoyo”
archive (refer to the weekly-posted “Lists of Lists” for more
information on that).

99) Where can I get more Disney info?

Online sources:
Via the Internet:
You should definitely get a copy of Tim Pickett’s rec.arts.disney List
of Lists, available from Tim at quetzal@yoyo.cc.monash.edu.au. This list
lists various regularly maintained documents, including FAQs, travel
guides, and other Disney-related lists.
FTP: See question 4.
rec.arts.disney: Everybody’s favorite USENET newsgroup, dedicated to
the pursuit of happiness through the Art of Walt. Other than this and the
WDW FAQ, there is also a Disneyland-specific FAQ, a EuroDisney FAQ and an
FAQ of sorts on the Monorail system.
rec.parks.theme: Includes some discussion of Disney theme parks.
Disney Fidonet Echo: If you have access to a BBS that carries Fidonet
groups, check for the Disney Echo. (Fidonet is similar to the Internet in
concept; it is composed of many participating BBSs worldwide, linked via
modem. Hub BBSs collect/send/relay messages to other BBSs on Fidonet on a
regular basis, with a large amount of work being done overnight.)
The Disney Afternoon Mailing List- Discussion of Disney Afternoon
related topics, and other related threads (and tangents). To subscribe,
send a request to ranger-list-request@taronga.com.
The Disney Comics Mailing List- Discussion of Disney-related comic
book materials, including Carl Barks and Don Rosa. To subscribe, mail to
Per Starback, at disney-comics-request@student.docs.uu.se.

Other Online Sources:
There is a Disney following in the FLORIDA forum on the Compuserve
Information Service, including libraries that have official Disney-approved
GIF images.
There is also a Disney following on GEnie. The Disney Roundtable has
a message base, live discussion areas, and libraries with various Disney
files, including GIFS. (See also question 3 regarding Disney GIFs.)
Another online source is the Disney Software BBS. It is primarily
present for the support of the Disney software products, but has some
interesting Disney GIFs and animations. The phone number is:
(818)-567-4027 (Burbank).

Mail Order:
If you’re interested in animation in general, or if you are looking
for a good place to order harder to find videos, I recommend the Whole Toon
Catalog. Call (206)-391-8747. Fax: (206)-391-9064.

Books:
There are many books available about topics related to Disney, from
biographies of Walt himself, to books about the near takeover of the Disney
company in 1984, to books about Disney animation and history. Listed here
are some of the many books available related to Disney subjects, in order
by author. Many are probably out of print. Your contributions to this list
are appreciated.

Walt Disney’s World of Fantasy, by Adrian Bailey; compiled and designed by
Julie & Steve Ridgeway.
Everest House, New York, 1982.
ISBN 0-896-96117-6
Covers the cinematography, animation, and special effects in the films from
the Disney studios. 252 pages.

Walt Disney’s EPCOT Center, by Richard R. Beard
H.N. Abrams, New York, 1982.
ISBN 0-8109-0819-0
An excellent work on EPCOT Center, covering its inception, design, and
construction. Cover priced at $55.00.

Disneyland: The Inside Story, by Randy Bright, forward by Michael Eisner.
H.N. Abrams, New York, 1987.
ISBN 0-810-90811-5
Coverage of the history of Disneyland. Highly recommended by more than one
Disney fan on the Internet. 240 pages, including many color illustrations.

Disney’s Aladdin: The Making of an Animated Film, by John Culhane
Hyperion Press, New York, 1992
ISBN 1-56282-892-4
Covers the making of Aladdin, character by character. An interesting read
with one of the more current looks at Walt Disney Feature Animation.

Walt Disney’s Fantasia, by John Culhane
Harry N. Abrams, Inc., New York, NY, 1983, reprinted in 1987
ISBN 0-8109-8078-9
A discussion of Fantasia from its inception to completion. Individual
chapters deal with each of the parts of the film. 221 pages.

The Art of Walt Disney: From Mickey Mouse to the Magic Kingdoms, by
Christopher Finch
H. N. Abrams, New York, 1975
ISBN 0-810-90321-0
160 pages.

Walt Disney’s America, by Christopher Finch
Abbeville Press, New York, NY, 1978
ISBN 0-896-59000-3
A biography of Walt Disney, focusing on his movie making. 301 pages.

Prince of the Magic Kingdom, by Joe Flower
John Wiley and Sons, Inc., New York, NY, 1991
ISBN 0-471-52465-4
History of the Walt Disney Company beginning with the appointment of
Michael Eisner as CEO. Complete through 1991, the first third of the book
covers the takeover attempt of 1984. The remainder of the book is a focus
on Michael Eisner. 309 pages.

Window On Main Street, by Van Arsdale France
Laughter Publications, Inc., Nashua, NH, 1991.
ISBN 0-941613-17-8 (softcover)
ISBN 0-941613-18-6 (hardcover)
Autobiography of Van Arsdale France, one of the major contributors to the
creation and building of Disneyland. Includes many first-hand stories,
original photographs, and illustrations. This book is published by the same
group that publishes Storyboard magazine (information included below). 123
pages.

Encyclopedia of Walt Disney’s Animated Characters, by John Grant, foreword
by David R. Smith, First Edition
Harper & Row, New York, 1987
ISBN 0-060-15777-1
A comprehensive list of Disney characters through 1986, including
filmographies and a complete index. Includes a bibliography. Currently a
collector’s item. 320 pages.

Encyclopedia of Walt Disney’s Animated Characters, by John Grant, forewords
by David R. Smith and Roy E. Disney, Second Edition
Hyperion Press, New York, 1993
ISBN 1-56282-904-1
A comprehensive list of Disney characters from the animated shorts, feature
films, and television series through 1992 (with brief, preliminary
descriptions of characters from Aladdin), including filmographies and a
complete index. Includes hundreds of color pictures, and a bibliography.
A must get for any Disney fan. 384 pages.

The Man Behind The Magic: The Story of Walt Disney, by Katherine and
Richard Greene
Viking Penguin, 375 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10014, published in
1991
ISBN 0-670-82259-0
A more sugar-coated biography of Walt Disney’s life than Leonard Mosley’s
Disney’s World; it emphasizes Walt’s role as a dreamer and covers how he
achieved those dreams in the face of adversity. 183 pages.

The Disney Touch: How a Daring Management Team Revived an Entertainment
Empire, by Ron Grover
Business One Irwin, Homewood, IL 1991
ISBN 1-556-23385-X
The story of how Michael Eisner took over charge of the Walt Disney Company
in 1984 and turned it into the company it is today. 315 pages.

The Disney Studio Story, by Richard Holliss and Brian Sibley
Crown Publishers, Inc. 225 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10003,
published in 1988
ISBN 0-517-57078-5
Covers the history of Disney films, from the creation of Mickey Mouse
through the films of 1987. Includes a synopsis of every Disney film and
short on record. Also includes a list of Academy Awards and Oscar
nominations. Out of print. 256 pages.

Walt Disney’s Mickey Mouse – His Life and Times, text and research by
Richard Holliss and Brian Sibley (Justin Knowles Publishing
Group)
Harper and Row, Publishers, New York, 1986.
ISBN 0-06-015619-8
Official biography of Mickey Mouse. 96 pages, $14.95.

Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life, by Ollie Johnston and Frank Thomas
Abbeville Press, New York, NY, 1981
ISBN 0-89659-232-4
ISBN 0-89659-232-2 (deluxe edition)
Published in 1981, this book is now hard to find. It is all about Disney
character animation, and goes into great detail, including a lot of
technical discussion. The most authoritative book by any of the “nine old
men.” Not written in chronological order, it covers mostly through The
Rescuers (1977), although I did see a background from The Black Cauldron
(which was under development when this book was written, though not
released until 1984). An autographed version of this book was sold at
auction in late 1992 for $500. 575 pages.

The Disney Villain, by Ollie Johnston and Frank Thomas
Hyperion Press, New York, NY, 1993.
ISBN 1-56282-792-8
Published in October 1993. Insight into the villains of the Disney
animated feature films, as well as some of the shorts. Discusses how the
villains were created, and how their wickedness was personified on-screen
by Disney animators. Many full color illustrations. 232 pages, $45.00.

Too Funny for Words: Disney’s Greatest Sight Gags, by Ollie Johnston and
Frank Thomas
Abbeville Press, New York, 1987
ISBN 0-896-59747-4
223 pages.

Walt Disney’s Bambi, The Story and the Film, by Ollie Johnston and Frank
Thomas
Stewart, Tabori & Chang
New York, 1992
ISBN 1-55670-8
Text and artwork from the animated film “Bambi” unfold the story of the
deer who grows up to be King of the Forest and reveal the creative
struggles and victories behind the making of the movie. 208 pages.
Dedication:
We dedicate this book to
WALT DISNEY
who asked for it fifty years ago.
“I’d like to see a book – an edition of Bambi – put out afterwards,
and I’d just like to see the text all broken up with these sketches.” —
Walt Disney, Story meeting notes, December 12, 1939.
Sorry Walt – you always said we were slow.

Justice for Disney, by Bill Justice
Tomart Publications, 1992
ISBN 0-914293-13-3
Autobiography of Disney animator Bill Justice, including illustrations and
photos. This was a limited, signed edition of 1000, with an original cover
price of $45.00. 168 pages.

Walt Disney and Assorted Other Characters: An Unauthorized Account of the
Early Years at Disney’s, by Jack Kinney, foreword by Leonard
Maltin
Harmony Books, New York, 1988
ISBN 0-517-57057-2
Biography of Walt and behind the scenes look at the Walt Disney studios.
207 pages with a cover price of $17.95.

The Wonderful World of Disney Animals, by William R. Koehler
Howell Book House, New York, 1979
ISBN 0-876-05810-1
Notes: Presents a behind-the-scenes account of the techniques and trials of
training various animals who have appeared in Disney productions. 252
pages.

Walt Disney: A Guide to References and Resources, by Elizabeth Leebron and
Lynn Gartley
G. K. Hall, Boston, 1979
ISBN 0-816-18004-8

The Disney Films, by Leonard Maltin ; research associate, Jerry Beck
Crown, New York, 1984 (updated edition)
ISBN 0-517-55407-0 (paperback)
Written by Entertainment Tonight film critic and long-time Disney fan
Leonard Maltin. Includes criticism and interpretation of the Disney
animated films. 343 pages.

Of Mice and Magic, by Leonard Maltin
Crown, New York, 1987
ISBN 0-452-25993-2
Covers the major American cartoon studios, including Disney, Fleischer,
Terry, Lantz, Warner Bros., etc. 485 pages.

The Disney Poster: The Animated Film Classics from Mickey Mouse to Aladdin.
edited by Ellen Mendlow, text by Jim Fanning
Hyperion, 114 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10011, 1993
ISBN 1-56282-924-6
Contains many full color pictures of classic Disney posters. 95 pages,
$35.00.

The Story of Walt Disney, by Diane Disney Miller as told to Pete Martin
Holt, New York, 1957
Biography of Walt from the perspective of his daughter. Note that it was
published ten years prior to Walt’s death. 247 pages.

Walt Disney, Master of Make-believe, by Elizabeth Rider Montgomery,
illustrated by Vic Mays.
Garrard Pub. Co., Champaign, Ill., 1971
ISBN 0-811-64568-1
Notes: A biography of cartoonist Walt Disney stressing his professional
contribution to the film industry and influence on American life. 96
pages.

Disney’s World, by Leonard Mosley
Stein and Day, New York, NY (hardcover, 1985)
Published by Scarborough House, Chelsea, MI 48118 (paperback, 1990)
Distributed by Independent Publishers Group, Chicago, IL 60610
ISBN 0-8128-8514-7 (paperback)
One of the better biographies on Walt Disney’s life that I’ve seen. Mosley
is a noted biographer, and he obviously put a lot of research into this
one. It is not wholly positive, but is certainly not the Disney-bashing
found in Richard Schickel’s The Disney Version. 330 pages.

The Ultimate Disney Trivia Book, by Kevin Neary and Dave Smith
Hyperion Press, New York, NY, December 1992
ISBN 1-56282-925-4
Contains 999 trivia questions (and answers) on the Disney characters,
cartoon shorts, feature films, the Theme Parks, and Walt Disney himself.

Walt Disney’s Donald Duck: 50 Years of Happy Frustration, text by Flora
O’Brian; edited by Charlotte Parry-Crookel
Another Rainbow Publishers, Scottsdale, AZ
ISBN 0-95095-171-4
Official biography of Donald Duck. Limited to 5000 numbered copies. 94
pages.

Walt Disney’s Goofy – The Good Sport, text by Flora O’Brian, research by
Christopher Fagg and Justin Knowles (Justin Knowles Publishing
Group)
HPBooks. Tuckson, AZ, 1985.
ISBN 0-89586-2
Official biography of Goofy. 96 pages, $14.95.

The Disney Version : The Life, Times, Art, and Commerce of Walt Disney, by
Richard Schickel
Simon and Schuster, New York, 1985
ISBN 0-671-54714-3
A generally negatively critical book about Walt Disney and the Disney
company.

Walt: Backstage Adventures with Walt Disney, by Charles Shows, foreword by
William D. Hanna
Published by Windsong Books International, La Jolla, CA, 1980
Distributed by Communication Creativity
ISBN 0-934-84601-4
Biography of Walt Disney. 212 pages.

The History of Animation: Enchanted Drawings, by Charles Solomon
Alfred A. Knopf, New York, NY, 1989
ISBN 0-394-54684-9
Not specific to Disney, but contains a lot of material related to the
animation of the Disney studios. Oversized and full-color, I would
recommended this to animation fans, although the cover price is $75.00.
Published in 1989, over 300 pages, covers through the films of 1988 (e.g.
Oliver and Company) ending with a discussion of computer animation. 322
pages.

Storming The Magic Kingdom: Wall Street The Raiders, and The Battle For
Disney, by John Taylor
Ballantine Books, a division of Random House, Inc., New York, NY, 1987
ISBN 0-345-35407-9
An inside look at the famous events of 1984 surrounding the attempted
hostile takeover of the Walt Disney Company by Saul Steinberg and the
subsequent installation of Michael Eisner as CEO. An interesting read.
262 pages.

Walt Disney: An American Original, by Bob Thomas
Pocket Books, New York, 1980, c1976
ISBN 0-671-66232-5
A biography of Walt Disney. Currently out of print. 414 pages.

Walt Disney: An American Original, by Bob Thomas
Hyperion, New York, 1994
ISBN 0-7868-6027-8
A biography of Walt Disney; a reprint of the 1976 edition. 379 pages.

Walt Disney and the Art of Animation; the Story of the Disney Studio
Contribution to a New Art, by Bob Thomas with the Walt Disney
staff, with research by Don Graham
Golden Press, Inc., New York, c1958
The original Bob Thomas book about the art of animation. Covers the making
of Sleeping Beauty. Out of print; now a collector’s item. 181 pages.

Disney’s Art of Animation, by Bob Thomas
Produced by Welcome Enterprises, 164 East 95th Street, New York, NY
10128
Published by Hyperion Press, 114 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10011,
1991
ISBN 1-56282-997-1
Covers Disney animation from Mickey Mouse through The Little Mermaid, with
a separate section on the making of Beauty and the Beast. Very colorful,
making it an excellent coffee table book, featuring a “cover that moves.”
Despite the fact that the inside cover reads “First Edition”, Bob Thomas
has written a previous edition on Disney animation (see above). 208 pages.

The Walt Disney Biography, by Bob Thomas
New English Library/Times Mirror, London, 1977
ISBN 4-500-32299
A biography of Walt Disney. 296 pages.

Walt Disney, Magician of the Movies, by Bob Thomas
Grosset & Dunlap, New York, 1966
Notes: “A Rutledge book.” A biography of the internationally beloved
cartoonist-creator of Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Snow White and the Seven
Dwarfs, and Disneyland. 176 pages.

Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas, by Frank Thompson
Hyperion, New York, NY, 1993
ISBN 1-56282-774-X
Behind the scenes and the making of the Touchstone film, The Nightmare
Before Christmas. Features full color illustrations and song lyrics from
the film. 192 pages, $24.95.

The Musical World of Walt Disney, by David Tietyen
Hal Leonard Publishing Corporation
7777 West Bluemound Road, P.O. Box 13819, Milwaukee, WI 53213
ISBN 0-88188-476-6
Published in 1990, but covers only through the late 1970’s (e.g. Pete’s
Dragon). Includes a forward by the Sherman brothers. A discussion of
Disney music, starting with Steamboat Willie, grouped film by film in
different chapters for the different eras. 158 pages.

Great Moments From the Films of Walt Disney, by Walt Disney Productions
Rutledge Press, New York, NY, 1981
ISBN 0-817-33975-4
Notes: “Great and memorable moments from: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,
Pinocchio, Dumbo, Bambi, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty. Volume 1”–Cover. 92
pages.

Treasures of Disney Animation Art, by Walt Disney Productions, preface by
Robert E. Abrams, introduction by John Canemaker
Abbeville Press, New York, 1982
ISBN 0-896-59315-0
Covers animation from the Disney animated films. 319 pages with an
original cover price of $85.00. There is a new edition of this book
currently for sale.

Mickey Mouse Movie Stories, story and illustrations by the staff of the
Walt Disney Studios, introduction by Maurice Sendak
Harry N. Abrams, Inc., New York, 1988
ISBN 0-8109-1529-4
Facsimile edition of “Mickey Mouse Movie Stories, Book 2”, published in
1934, containing a dozen stories illustrated with photographs of the
original cel setups from the choice cartoon shorts of 1932 to 1934. 197
pages, 98 illustrations.

The Art of Mickey Mouse, edited by Craig Yoe and Janet Morra-Yoe,
introduction by John Updike
Hyperion, 114 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10011, 1991
ISBN 1-56282-994-7
Art book covering various interpretations of Mickey by various artists.
$35.00.

There are also many guide books related to maximizing your visits to
the theme parks. Consult your local bookstore’s Travel section- there are
plenty to choose from. My personal favorites are The Unofficial Guide
books written by Bob Sehlinger. Most of the guides are updated yearly.
The guide books are covered in part two of the FAQ, which focuses on the
theme parks.

Magazines:
Disney Magazine – (see below for addresses)
Published quarterly as the Official Magazine of Walt Disney’s Magic
Kingdom Club. Subscriptions are free with a Gold Card Membership, $14.95
for two years otherwise. The cover price is $2.50; the only place I’ve
ever seen it sold off the shelf is at the Disney Store and the theme parks.
This magazine mostly covers current events at the theme parks and the
Disney realms, with a few behind the scene looks.

The “E” Ticket (as posted by mikkelson@breakr.enet.dec.com):
The “E” Ticket is published 2-3 times a year. Subscriptions are $22
for four issues, or $6 for a sample copy. Write to them at:

The “E” Ticket
20560 Alaminos Drive
Saugus, CA 91350

The publishers of The “E” Ticket always have a table at the NFFC’s
annual “Strictly Disney” show in Anaheim, where you can browse through
their magazine, sign up for a subscription, and/or purchase back
issues.

Persistence of Vision
Paul F. Anderson, 3136 South 3200 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84119

A journal of Disney history, celebrating the creative legacy of Walt
Disney. Subscriptions are $37/year (four issues). Each issue includes an
audio tape featuring clips and interviews with famous Disney people,
sometimes including Walt himself. You can contact Paul at his Compuserve
address, 71534,437 (71534.437@compuserve.com, via the Internet). Highly
recommended.

Storyboard/The Art of Laughter –
Laughter Publications, Inc., 15 Middle Dunstabe Rd., Nashua, NH
03062
(603)-888-8685
A high-quality magazine dedicated to animation art. Published by
Laughter Publications on a bi-monthly basis. Subscriptions are $22.97 for
one year, with a cover price of $4.95. Features articles and
advertisements related to cel and merchandise collecting, the Disney motion
pictures, and historical articles about the animators.

Addresses:
Here is a list of addresses and/or phone numbers:

Buena Vista Home Burbank, CA 91521
Video (US)
Buena Vista Home Beaumont House
Video (UK) Kensington Village London W14 8TS
Switchboard: +44 71 605 2400
California Operator: (805)-255-1050; 24700 W. McBean Pkwy;
Institute of Valencia, CA 91355
the Arts (Cal
Arts)
Disney Catalog P.O. Box 29144, Shawnee Mission, Kansas 66201-9144
(800)-237-5751 (orders; M-F 8a-11p ET; Sa-Su 8a-8p,
ET)
(913)-752-1095 (FAX)
Disney Gallery (at (714)-999-7531
Disneyland)
Disney Investor (818)-505-7040
Relations
Disneyland Guest P.O. Box 3232 (formerly 1313 Harbor Boulevard),
Relations Anaheim, CA 92802
(714)-999-4565
Disneyland Hotel (714)-956-6400
Disneyland (800)-3MAIL-33
Inventory
Services
Disney Magazine, P.O. Box 4489, Anaheim, CA 92803
correspondence
Disney Magazine, P.O. Box 3310, Anaheim, CA 92803-3310
subscription
info
Disney Software c/o Customer Service, 500 S. Buena Vista St.;
Burbank, CA 91521-6385
(800)-841-3326 (8a-5p PST); FAX: (818)-846-0454
Disney Studios, (818)-560-1000
Burbank
Disney Vacation (800)-800-9100; (407)-WDW-3100
Club
EuroDisney City (33) 1 49.41.49.10
Hall, Main
Street, USA
071.753 2900 (UK residents)
Gladstone P.O. Box 2079, Prescott, AZ 86302
Publishing
Hal Leonard Publishing Corporation (sheet music)
7777 West Bluemound Road, P.O. Box 13819,
Milwaukee, WI 53213
Hyperion Press 114 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10011
Magic Kingdom Club, Disneyland Travel Packages
P.O. Box 4180, Anaheim, CA 92803-4180
(714)-520-5000 (for MKC members)
Magic Kingdom Club, Walt Disney World Travel Center
P.O. Box 10160, Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830-0160
(407)-824-2600 (for MKC members)
Magic Kingdom Club P.O. Box 3850, Anaheim, CA 92803-3850
Gold Card
(800)-248-2665
Magic Years Club P.O. Box 4709, Anaheim, CA 92803-4709
(seniors)
(714)-490-3250
Tokyo Disneyland 1-1 Maihama, Urayasu-shi, Chiba-ken 279
Information
Center
0473 (54) 0001
Walt Disney 500 S. Buena Vista Street, Burbank, CA 91521-6876
Collectors
Society
(818)-567-5500
Walt Disney P.O. Box 11090, Des Moines, IA 50336-1090 (address
Collectors changes and renewals)
Society
Fulfillment
Center
Walt Disney Company 500 S. Buena Vista Street, Burbank, CA 91521
(818)-560-1000
Walt Disney Magazine Publishing Company (e.g. Disney Comics)
500 S. Buena Vista
Buena Vista, CA 91521
Walt Disney Music P.O. Box 4740, Anaheim, CA 92803-4740
Company
Walt Disney Feature 1400 Flower Street, Glendale, CA 91221
Animation
Walt Disney Human Resources: 506 Paula St., Glendale, CA 91221-
Imagineering 5020
Walt Disney World Guest Relations
P.O. Box 10000, Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830-1000
(407)-824-4321
(note: this address is a general address,
so you should specify a particular
department)

Section III – Answers to Questions with Time-critical Information

1) What Disney shows/auctions/events are coming up?

Here are some of the Disney-related events coming up in the future. If you
know of any others and would like to have them listed here, please e-mail
the appropriate info to me and I’ll add it in.

* Showcase First Disneyana Show and Sale
May 20 – 22, 1994
Contact: (603)-888-8685

* NFFC Convention
July 19-24, 1994
Hyatt Alicante, Anaheim, Calif.
Contact: (714)731-4705

* The Mouse Club’s 12th Disneyana Collector’s Convention
September 1 – 4, 1994
Contact: (408)-377-2590

* Until May 17, the Disney Store is taking pre-orders for The Return of
Jafar until May 17 and will be taking pre-orders for Snow White and the
Seven Dwarfs shortly thereafter.
* The soundtrack for The Lion King will be available within the next few
weeks (on or around May 24).
* Southern California residents can get admission to Disneyland for $22
($21 with MKC card) until June 30.
* A stage musical version of Beauty and the Beast is in previews on
Broadway, in preparation for the premiere in early May. This will feature
many of the original songs, as well as some additional songs, including
“Human Again,” which was written by the Ashman-Menken team (edited out of
the Beauty and the Beast animated feature film) and four new songs by Alan
Menken and Tim Rice. The soundtrack is also due in early May.
* The Walt Disney Collector’s Society does host certain events for its
members. Contact the society for more information (address in questions 6
and 99). Their renewal figurine and pin for 1994 are based on the Cheshire
Cat.
* In the far future, Disney has two major plans involving theme parks. One
is WESTCOT, the addition to Disneyland, the other is “Disney America,”
which is to be built in Virginia, to open in 1998. Both are in the
planning phases. See also the WDW FAQ, question 2 for information about
new attractions at the existing parks.

2) What are some of the upcoming movie and video releases from the Walt
Disney Studios?

The next animated film release is titled The Lion King. It features a
story about a lion whose power is usurped by his evil brother. This will
debut June 15 in Los Angeles (at the El Capitan) and New York (at Radio
City Music Hall), and will go nationwide June 24. There is a preview of
this on the Aladdin video. A 4 minute trailer is being shown at the Disney
Stores, about once every 20 minutes. See also Question #1, entry 32.
A Goof Troop movie will be released for the holiday season of 1994.
Like DuckTales: Treasure of the Lost Lamp, it will not be considered one of
Disney’s “official” animated feature films (see question 1).
The film for mid to late 1995 is titled Pocahontas. It is Disney’s
intention to release two animated feature films per year (summer and
holiday seasons) every year starting in 1995 or 1996.
The Hunchback of Notre Dame will follow Pocahontas, most likely in
late 1996. It is being directed by Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise, who
directed Beauty and the Beast.
In 1996 or 1997, Disney will release Fantasia Continued, which will
feature new segments mixed in with some of the old segments. It is not yet
known what will remain and what will be taken out, but it is the studio’s
intent to release the film every seven years with modifications (and will
subsequently release the modified version on video).
A company named Hi-Tech Toons is working on a film for release by
Buena Vista Pictures for the summer of 1995, tentatively titled Toy Story,
about two toys and their battle over their young master’s affections.
Henry Selick and Tim Burton are now working on a film based on the
Rhoad Dahl story James and the Giant Peach, to be done in the same stop-
motion animation style as The Nightmare Before Christmas.
The February 2, 1994 issue of USA Today reported Disney is planning
feature films based on Hercules, Aida, and the Chinese folk tale Fa Mulan.
For the farther future (mostly rumors and contemplative), Disney is
working on a project based on Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake. Another film in the
creative pipeline is Atlantis, a retelling of the story “The Man Who Would
Be King.” Another contemplative title includes Song of the Sea (Bambi with
whales?). Take these with a grain of salt for now.
Section IV- Other lists and info, available upon request:

Other lists/info, available upon request:
1) List of Jungle Cruise jokes (from Geoff Allen)
2) Misc trivia quizzes
3) Text of Club 33 brochures
4) Old rec.arts.disney articles on the Disney Vacation Club
5) Information on Celebration, Disney’s Florida community
6) Disney Press Release on planned Disney America Theme Park in Virginia
7) Disney Film Availability List- lists all the animated feature films and
their availability status on video

Robert Cook is compiling a list of technical errors in Disney animated
feature films (contact him at rcook@sdcc13.ucsd.edu)
I’d also recommend getting the rec.arts.disney List of Lists, from Tim
Pickett (quetzal@yoyo.cc.monash.edu.au).

==========================
animation/best.of.net #81, from hmccracken, 47902 chars, Sat Apr 23 17:43:11 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 23 Apr 1994 17:41:46 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9404231741.memo.46084@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.disney

Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!MathWorks.Com!mvb.saic.com!news.cerf.net!ihnp4.ucsd.edu!dog.ee.lbl.gov!overload.lbl.gov!lll-winken.llnl.gov!seismo!tanida
From: tanida@beno.css.gov (Tom Tanida)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.disney,rec.parks.theme,rec.answers,news.answers
Subject: Walt Disney World FAQ
Followup-To: rec.arts.disney
Date: 22 Apr 1994 22:30:01 GMT
Organization: FDC Headquarters, ToonTown
Lines: 941
Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.Edu
Message-ID: <2p9j59$t7l@seismo.CSS.GOV>
Reply-To: tanida@gso.saic.com (Tom Tanida)
NNTP-Posting-Host: beno.css.gov
Summary: FAQ for WDW, a little on DL
Keywords: FAQ, disney
Archive-name: disney-faq/disneyworld
Last-modified: 20 Apr 1994

Originator: tanida@beno.CSS.GOV
Xref: news.delphi.com rec.arts.disney:36349 rec.parks.theme:834 rec.answers:4993 news.answers:20545

The Walt Disney World Frequently Asked Questions List
Version 3.0, last revised April 19, 1994

This is FAQ file for Walt Disney World. It contains some information
relevant to both WDW as well as Disneyland, though I would recommend
getting the Disneyland FAQ for more specific Disneyland information. Your
input to this list is highly appreciated.
The purpose of this list is to reduce the number of redundant
questions posted to rec.arts.disney and to provide a source of information
to Disney fans worldwide. Personally, however, I would invite discussion
of questions included in this list if this list is not complete enough.
For example, I couldn’t possibly write the “complete guide to taking kids
to the Disney Theme Parks” because there is no truly complete guide (not to
mention the fact that there are many good guide books out there, as well as
a couple of Internet guides- see question 18). So although I have offered
some information and advice in part two of this list (the information which
is most commonly suggested), I would still welcome discussion of the topic
since everybody has their own opinions about what rides to go on, what to
see, when to go, what restaurants to eat at in the area, etc.
Again, I hope that this list will reduce the amount of redundant
information posted to the net. Even more strongly, I hope this list, in
combination with the rec.arts.disney FAQ, will provide a unified source of
information about Disney related material and provide a valuable reference
for all.

There are two sections:
I. A list of the questions in this part
II. Answers to Theme Park Questions

If you would like a PostScript version of this document, which has
much better formatting, feel free to send me a request; I can easily mail
it to you. The standard text version of this FAQ, like all FAQs
cross-posted to news.answers, is archived at rtfm.mit.edu. For information
regarding how to FTP the FAQ from rtfm.mit.edu, send me e-mail; I’ve
written a quick tutorial. This document is maintained in MS Word For
Windows 6.0.
Note: the Disneyland FAQ is available from me or its maintainer, Walt
Hoffman (whoffman@ganymede.jpl.nasa.gov), and via FTP from rtfm.mit.edu in
the directory pub/usenet/news.answers/disney-faq.

Section I- Questions

Theme park questions:
1) What are the park hours?
2) What rides are currently shut down for refurbishing? What current
construction is going on?
3) What are the current prices at {WDW, Disneyland}?
4) How do I beat the crowds?
5) If I’ve been to the Magic Kingdom in WDW, what parts of Disneyland can I
skip?
6) Where should I stay when visiting {WDW, Disneyland}?
7) What’s the best time to go to {WDW, Disneyland}?
8) My child is 3 years old. Is that old enough to enjoy Disneyland/WDW?
9) What are good attractions to take younger children to?
10) Other considerations for children (strollers, etc.)
11) Some interesting things to look for at the theme parks
12) Differences between the Magic Kingdom at WDW and Disneyland
13) Who created the music from the Main Street Electrical Parade?
14) What is SpectroMagic at Walt Disney World?
15) What is Fantasmic! at Disneyland? How do I beat the crowds?
16) What is a “Character Breakfast”?
17) What is the Disney Vacation Club?
18) What are some good guide books on travel to {WDW/Disneyland?
19) What are “Hidden Mickeys”? Where can I find some?

Other lists, available upon request:
1) Technical errors in Disney animated feature films (contact Robert Cook
at rcook@sdcc13.ucsd.edu)
2) List of Jungle Cruise jokes (from Geoff Allen)
3) Misc trivia quizzes
4) Text of Club 33 brochures
5) Old rec.arts.disney articles on the Disney Vacation Club
6) Information on Celebration, Disney’s Florida community
7) Disney Film Availability List- lists all the animated feature films and
their availability status on video

Section II- Answers to Theme Park Questions

Theme park questions:

1) What are the park hours?

Here are the WDW hours, through the end of April. Note that the Main
Street section of the Magic Kingdom at WDW will often open 30 minutes to an
hour ahead of the official opening time. I will post hours past the end of
February when they become available.

—————————————————————–
Theme Park Operating Hours for April – May 1994
—————————————————————–

*** HOURS AND ENTERTAINMENT SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE ****

———————————————————————–
MAGIC KINGDOM
April 17 – 21 ……………………………. 9 am – 9 pm
April 22 – 23 ……………………………. 9 am – 11 pm
April 24 ………………………………… 9 am – 9 pm
April 25 – 30 ……………………………. 9 am – 7 pm
May 1 …………………………………… 9 am – 9 pm
May 2 – 6 ……………………………….. 9 am – 7 pm
May 7 – 8 ……………………………….. 9 am – 9 pm
May 9 – 13 ………………………………. 9 am – 7 pm
May 14 ………………………………….. 9 am – 11 pm
May 15 ………………………………….. 9 am – 9 pm
May 16 – 20 ……………………………… 9 am – 7 pm
May 21 ………………………………….. 9 am – 12 am
May 22 ………………………………….. 9 am – 9 pm
May 23 – 27 ……………………………… 9 am – 8 pm
May 28 – 29 ……………………………… 9 am – 12 am
May 30 – 31 ……………………………… 9 am – 9 pm

Grad Night:
May 6 – 7 at 11 pm – 5 am

SpectroMagic:
April 22, 23 at 9 pm
May 14 at 9 pm
May 21, 28, 29 at 9 pm and 11 pm

Fireworks:
April 15, 16, 22, 23 at 9 pm
May 14, 21, 28, 29 at 10 pm
May 30, 31 at 9 pm

———————————————————————–
EPCOT CENTER
———————————————————————–
April 8 – 30 …………………………….. 9 am – 9 pm
May 1 – 13 (Future World) …………………. 9 am – 7 pm
May 1 – 13 (World Showcase) ……………….. 12 pm – 9 pm
May 14 – 31 ……………………………… 9 am – 9 pm

Illuminations:
April and May at 9 pm
EPCOT ’94 International Flower & Garden Festival: May 1 – 31

———————————————————————–
DISNEY-MGM STUDIOS THEME PARK
———————————————————————–
April 17 – 23 ……………………………. 9 am – 7 pm
April 24 – 30 ……………………………. 9 am – 6 pm
May 1 – 27 ………………………………. 9 am – 6 pm
May 28 – 31 ……………………………… 9 am – 9 pm

Aladdin’s Royal Caravan:
April 10 – 20 at 1 pm
May 1 – 31 at 1 pm

Sorcery in the Sky:
May 28 – 30 at 8:50 pm

For Disneyland hours, consult the Disneyland FAQ.
There is a WESTCOT preview center open at the Disneyland Hotel
complex. Its hours are Mondays and Wednesdays, 2 pm – 8 pm.

2) What rides are currently shut down for refurbishing? What current
construction is going on?

If there’s someone out there who regularly goes to WDW and is willing
to keep the group updated, here’s a big chance to help out.

Here’s some information for Florida, thanks to the FLORIDA forum on
Compuserve (Jan 13, 1994):
Refurbishment:
– Jungle Cruise: closed 4/11/94 to 5/20/95 for rehab
– Mission to Mars: now closed until Feb 6, 1995. This is being
converted to the Alien Encounter attraction.
– Magic Journeys (Fantasyland Theater): closed to be refurbed for a
“Lion King” presentation, to open in July 15, 1994.
– Circlevision 360: movie being replaced in June (not yet determined)
– WEDWay PeopleMover: closed until June 10, 1994 for changeover to
Tomorrowland Transit Authority.
– Star Jets: closed until June 1994 for changeover to AstroOrbiter as
part of the new Tomorrowland
– American Journeys: closed until February 1995
– GE Horizons: closed for redesign
– Expo Robotics (Communicore): closed permanently
– Backstage Magic (Communicore): closed permanently
– Snow White’s Scary Adventure (MK): being revamped
– All of Communicore will be undergoing redevelopment late this year.

Under Construction:
– Sunset Boulevard (Disney-MGM Studios)- estimated opening May 1994
– Tower of Terror (Disney-MGM Studios)- July 1994
– A new Theater of the Stars and a Sunset Marketplace Cafe are being
added to Sunset Blvd. at Disney-MGM
– All Star Resort, Disney’s economy hotel ($65/night for 2 adults),
opening May 1994
– Discoveryland (MK)
– “Innoventions” (EPCOT): June 1994. 70000 square feet of display
devoted to high tech products of the future, under a sponsorship
agreement with AT&T.
– Journey Into Imagination: New 3-D film (“Honey, I Shrunk the
Audience”) with in-theater special effects (Fall 1994)
– Spaceship Earth: Spectacular new finale (late 1994)
– Wilderness Lodge: May 94
– Celebration, in Osceola County, Florida; Phase 1 will open in 1995
– Hotels: Florida Beaches- Summer 1995; Mexican Hotel- October 1994;
Mediterranean Hotel- June 1996; West Gate Hotel- Summer 1998;
Wilderness Junction- November 1995

Long Term Future Plans:
– A Nestle supported show, at the Universe of Energy detailing the
formation of the Earth will open in 1996
– Blizzard Beach, a northern cousin to Typhoon Lagoon and River
Country and Disney’s largest themed water park: early 1995
– Fantasmic! Hollywood was originally scheduled to open this summer
(and was mentioned in the 1993 Annual Report), but has been
placed on hold

Disneyland:
– The Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom attraction is now well
under construction.
– A Lion King parade is under development for the summer.

Otherwise, you can contact the respective theme parks directly. The
number for Disneyland is (714)-999-4565. WDW: (407)-824-4321

3) What are the current prices at {WDW, Disneyland}?

The following table lists prices for Passports to WDW. If staying at
a Disney resort, you may benefit if you can find a package deal that
includes lodging and a passport.

Passport type General General MKC MKC
Public, Public, Member, Member,
adult child adult child
Six Day Super Duper $192.36 $152.50 $182.69 $144.86
Pass (resort
guests only)
Five Day Super Duper $170 $135
Pass (resort
guests only)
Five Day World Hopper $179 $143 $170.51 $136.26
Pass (off-resort
guests)
Four Day Super Pass $125 $98
(resort guests
only)
Four Day Park Hopper $134 $107 $129 $102
Pass (off-resort
guests)
Four Day Value Pass $124 $97 $119 $92
Annual Passport, new $199 $174 $184 $164
Annual Passport, $179 $154 $164 $144
renew
Annual Passport, $31 $31 $28.50 $28.50
River Country &
Discovery Island
add-on
Annual Passport $63 $63 $56.75 $56.75
Typhoon Lagoon add-
on
Annual Passport $26 $26 $20 $20
Pleasure Island
add-on
“Be Our Guest” $77 $61 $73.15 $57.95
passport (1n/2d)
“Be Our Guest” $112 $89 $106.40 $84.55
passport (2n/3d)
“Be Our Guest” $146 $115 $138.70 $109.25
passport (3n/4d)
“Be Our Guest” $170 $135 $161.50 $128.25
passport (4n/5d)
“Be Our Guest” $193 $153 $183.33 $145.36
passport (5n/6d)
One-day, one park $36 $29 $33.92 $26.92
ticket
Pleasure Island, one $13.95 N/A $11.85 N/A
day
Pleasure Island, $36.95 N/A $33.45 N/A
annual pass
Pleasure Island, $31.95 N/A $28.45 N/A
annual pass renew
Typhoon Lagoon, one $20.50 $16.50 $18.50 $14.75
day
Typhoon Lagoon, $78.75 $78.75 $70.50 $70.50
annual pass
River Country, one $13.25 $10.50 $12.00 $9.25
day
River Country, annual $52.50 $52.50 $47.25 $47.25
pass
Discovery Island, one $8.50 $4.75 $7.75 $4.25
day
River $16.75 $12.25 $15.25 $11
Country/Discovery
Island combo

Notes: The above prices are subject to the Florida state sales tax of 6%.
A child is of the ages 3-9. The above list is current as of March 4, 1994.

Disney has (again) changed their unlimited pass policy. The 4 and 5
day, multi-park passes (i.e. passes that let a holder go between the parks
on the same day) are again available to all WDW guests, whether you stay on
resort or off. Off-resort guests pay a $9 premium for the “Park Hopper”
and “World Hopper” passes, listed above, whereas resort guests can purchase
the “Super” passes.
The Six Day Super Duper Pass is only available only to guests staying
at the WDW Swan, WDW Dolphin and WDW Village Hotel Plaza resorts, and
includes admission to Typhoon Lagoon, River Country, Pleasure Island and
Discovery Island.
For the “Be Our Guest” passports above, the numbers represent the
nights and days (e.g. (4n/5d) = 4 nights and 5 days). These passports
are for Disney Resort Hotel guests only, and include unlimited access to
the three theme parks, Pleasure Island, Typhoon Lagoon, River Country,
Discovery Island. There are longer durations available, but after a
certain price point it might be more economical to purchase an annual pass
with separate admissions to the individual minor parks.
Magic Years Member prices are the same as the MKC prices.

The Five Day Super Duper Pass and the Five Day World Hopper Pass
include unlimited admission to the Disney-MGM Studios Theme Park, Magic
Kingdom Park and EPCOT Center any five days with no expiration date. Plus
unlimited admission for seven days to Typhoon Lagoon, River Country,
Discovery Island and Pleasure Island (valid for seven days after first
visit to Magic Kingdom Park, EPCOT Center or the Disney-MGM Studios Theme
Park). It also includes unlimited use of the transportation system linking
the parks.
The Four Day passes are the same as the Five Day but do not include
admission to the minor parks.
An Annual Passport includes twelve months of unlimited admission to the
Disney-MGM Studios Theme Park, the Magic Kingdom Park and EPCOT Center
during regular operating hours. It also includes special advance
reservation privileges for Walt Disney World restaurants, free parking and
unlimited use of the transportation system linking the Parks. Annual
Passport holders can purchase separate admissions to the minor parks to
supplement their passport. These expire at the same time the passport does.
A One-Day One Park Ticket includes one day’s admission to either the
Disney-MGM Studios Theme Park, Magic Kingdom Park or EPCOT Center and bus
transportation between the Transportation and Ticket Center, and Magic
Kingdom Park, EPCOT Center or the Disney-MGM Studios Theme Park.
There are also six, seven and eight day Super Duper Passes, which can
only be purchased at the resorts themselves.
Parking is $5 per car.

For Disneyland, here is a current price guide (as of June 1, 1993):

Passport type General PublicMKC Club Members
Adult, 1 day/2 $30/55/75 $28/51/69
day/3 day
Child (3-11), 1 $24/44/60 $22/40/54
day/2 day/3 day
Seasonal Passport, $105 $95
adult
Seasonal Passport, $85 $75
child (3-11)
Annual Passport, $195 $180
adult
Annual Passport, $155 $140
child (3-11)

Disneyland has restructured their annual pass. There are two types now
available:
1. Annual: year round, with Saturdays during March-June excluded, as
well as peak holiday periods. Parking is not included. This is
$99.
2. Premium: no restrictions, and includes free “Preferred Parking”
(the privilege of parking closer). This pass also includes a 10%
discount on merchandise at Disneyland and the Disneyland Hotel, a
10% discount on food at the park, a 10% discount on rooms and
restaurants at the hotel, and a free subscription to the Disney
News. This is $199.

MKC members receive a $10 discount on either of these passes. These prices
are good until March 31, 1994.

Until June 30, 1994, Southern California residents can buy a special
Disneyland passport for $22 per person ($21 with MKC card). The purchaser
must show proof of California residence within ZIP codes 90000 through
93599. Passports are good for day of purchase only with a daily limit of 8
Passports per individual with valid ID.

Parking in the Disneyland parking lot is an additional $5 per car.
The Seasonal Passport can be used from September 1 through May 31,
excluding Saturdays and December 25-31. Unlimited parking is an additional
$17.50. Annual Passports include unlimited parking, and are good for one
year from the date of issue.

4) How do I beat the crowds?

One of the best strategies is to arrive early, before the park opens.
An hour after opening is too late, by then, the lines have built up to a
full frenzy. Another strategy, generally for those without kids, is to
take on the more popular rides late in the evening (after 9 pm, through
midnight, if you’re there at the time of year when the park is open late).
Also, the lines do shorten a little during major shows (the Main Street
Electrical Parade, SpectroMagic at WDW, or Fantasmic! at Disneyland) and
during dinner time.

For Disneyland (from the Disneyland FAQ):
Start by selecting a good day to go (see question #7, below).
Fantasmic! has made nighttime on the west side of the park very
unpredictable. Tremendous numbers of people show up. During the shows,
lines for attractions are quite short (especially when the Electrical
Parade is also running). When the show is over, many people avoid the
herding affect by jumping into one of the nearest lines: Splash Mountain,
Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean, Jungle Cruise, and Big Thunder
Mountain Railroad.
Space Mountain is long most of the day and into the night, so first
thing early morning is usually your best bet. Ditto Rocket Jets. Star
Tours will shorten significantly in the late evening (when the line is
completely inside, you’re in good shape). Splash Mountain is good when
it’s raining or right before the park closes (avoid it when it backs up
beyond the Briar Patch shop). An early-morning dash might also be a good
idea (since it’s at the back of the park). After dinner, the “kiddie”
rides in Fantasyland shorten a bit, but not much. Dumbo, Alice in
Wonderland, Peter Pan, and Mr. Toad will remain popular, but there will be
almost no line for Snow White’s Scary Adventures or Pinocchio’s Daring
Journey. Skyway line is almost always shorter from Fantasyland to
Tomorrowland than the other way around. Small World should usually be a
walk-on; if it’s not, come back later. Country Bear Jamboree almost never
takes long.
Crossing the parade route is possible but time consuming. Plan which
side of the park you want to be on during the parade and get there early.
If you must cross, consider using the Disneyland RR or the Skyway. Parade
crossing zones north of the Matterhorn are usually less congested than the
one at the Hub. Main Street is tough (though not impossible) to negotiate
during popular parades.

5) If I’ve been to the Magic Kingdom in WDW, what parts of Disneyland can I
skip?

The answer here is taken from the Disneyland FAQ:
There are subtle differences in almost every corner of the park. If
you’re a Disney aficionado, you’ll want to check out everything. If you’re
pressed for time, you can skip the following:
– Haunted Mansion (I hate to admit it, but WDW’s is better)
– People Mover (more primitive)
– Monorail (unless you want to go to the Disneyland Hotel)
– Submarine Voyage (nearly identical to WDW’s except for order of
presentation and absence of little Jules Verne nuances)
– Skyway (useful for getting around, especially during parades)
– Captain EO
– Circle Vision 360 (same as at WDW)
– Autopias
– Small World (biggest difference is the exterior facade)
– Country Bear Jamboree (virtually identical but DL has 2 theaters)
– Golden Horseshoe Revue (same show, different finale)
Tough calls: (similar, yet different and worth experiencing)
– Space Mountain
– Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
– Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln (a trimmed down version of the Hall
of Presidents)
– Splash Mountain
Whatever you do, don’t miss out on:
– Fantasmic!
– Star Tours (unless you’ve been on the one in Disney-MGM Studios)
– Matterhorn Bobsleds
– Jungle Cruise (my DL experiences have far surpassed the one at WDW)
– Pirates of the Caribbean (parts are identical, but DL is better)
– Disney Art Gallery (above Pirates)
– Disneyland RR between Tomorrowland & Main Street for Grand Canyon
and Primeval World dioramas (not quite as impressive as EPCOT’s
World of Energy dinosaurs)

The parade route is different. North of Main Street, Disneyland parades
proceed north along the east side of the Castle up to It’s a Small World.
WDW MK parades turn at the Hub, heading through Liberty Square and
Frontierland.

6) Where should I stay when visiting {WDW, Disneyland}?

For first time guests, especially those with kids, I recommend an
on-site resort in order to make the transition easier. At Disneyland, the
Disneyland hotel features the monorail; it is *very* convenient to flash
your passport and hop on to go to the park, then hop back on in
Tomorrowland to return to the hotel when you need a break. Likewise, the
Contemporary Resort, among others, also feature easy Monorail-to-park
access.
For those without kids, or experienced travelers, off-site hotels can
be cheaper. Although they won’t feature the amenities of the more
expensive hotels, this may be better if you’re looking to save money and
aren’t interested in spending much time in your room (aside from sleeping).
Be sure to check out vacation packages, however, before giving up on the
Disney hotels.
Birnbaum’s Official Guide books give decent listings of the resort
hotels, including phone numbers and addresses.
For information regarding lodging in the Anaheim area, you may contact
the Anaheim Area Visitor and Convention Bureau at 800 W. Katella Ave.,
Anaheim, CA 92802. Phone: (714)-999-8999.

7) What’s the best time to go to {WDW, Disneyland}?

For WDW, here’s a quick and dirty table, from best to worst:
1) October, through a week before Christmas, except Thanksgiving
2) Post New Years through a couple weeks before Easter
3) Post Easter through Memorial Day
4) President’s Day weekend
5) Spring Break week (the week up to and including Easter)
6) Memorial Day through the end of Summer
7) Thanksgiving weekend
8) Christmas through the New Year

8) My child is 3 years old. Is that old enough to enjoy Disneyland/WDW?

As always, it depends on the kids and the patience of the parent. Two
or three is about a minimum age (otherwise, the child is pretty much just
along for the ride), but even children this young can get quite a bit of
enjoyment from the visit. Children of this age might enjoy meeting the
characters (in the park, or at a Character Breakfast (see #16 below)), and
some of the milder rides. Detracting from the enjoyment would be the
patience of the kids waiting in line for the rides; you probably know how
to judge/handle your own child’s patience levels better than I do. 🙂
To fully appreciate Disneyland/WDW, seven or so is probably a better
age.

Some info from the Disneyland FAQ:
Kids age 2 and under are free. Strollers may be rented, but many
people prefer to bring their own. Some rides have height and age
requirements.

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad 40+ inches/42+ inches at WDW
Space Mountain 40+ inches/44+ inches at WDW
Autopia (alone) 52+ inches
Autopia (w/ adult) 1+ years
Splash Mountain 3+ years and 40+ inches/44+
inches at WDW
Star Tours (alone) 7+ years
Star Tours (w/ adult) 3+ years
Matterhorn Bobsleds (alone) 7+ years
Matterhorn Bobsleds (w/ adult) 3+ years

Children under 7 are supposed to be accompanied on other attractions as
well (Snow White’s Scary Adventures, The Haunted Mansion, etc.)

9) What are good attractions to take younger children to?

(I’ll take “younger” to mean below 5 years of age here.)
Almost always OK:
Jungle Cruise
Swiss Family Treehouse (though some find this too dull and crowded)
Dumbo
It’s A Small World
Peter Pan’s Flight
PeopleMover
Walt Disney World/Disneyland Railroad
Mickey’s Starland Show (WDW)
Country Bear Jamboree
Tom Sawyer’s Island (WDW)
Cinderella’s Carousel
Journey Into Imagination (EPCOT)
Kitchen Cabaret (EPCOT)
Universe of Energy (EPCOT)
Disney Animation Tour (Disney-MGM)
Anything in the EPCOT World Showcase, with the possible exception of
the Norway Maelstrom ride.

Possible fright factor:
Haunted Mansion
Tea Cups (motion sickness)
Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride (not as wild as the name suggests, but still
rough)
Space Mountain
Star Tours
Enchanted Tiki Room
Captain EO (I’d be wary of the volume)
Pirates of the Caribbean (can be threatening to the unaware, includes
a couple of plunges)
Body Wars (EPCOT; can be generally nauseating to people of any age)
The Great Movie Ride (Disney-MGM- potential surprises)
Snow White Ride (featuring the rather scary queen popping out of the
dark)

As always with kids, your mileage may vary; a good strategy would be
to start with the milder rides and work your kid up to more “aggressive”
rides if you think they’re up to it. Certain aspects of a ride may
frighten children, such as immersion in darkness (e.g. Pirates of the
Caribbean).
Also note that meeting Disney characters themselves is not a given, as
some kids can be terrified of a gigantic Mickey or Goofy. Start from a
distance and work forward.
There is a “fright factor” chart in the 1992 edition of the Unofficial
Guide to Walt Disney World, by Bob Sehlinger (see question #18 for a list
of guide books).

10) Other considerations for children (strollers, etc.)

(This question may be broken up and expanded to include phone numbers
and specific locations in the future.)
Physical health: In the summer months especially at WDW, it is easy
for kids (and adults) to get sunburned and dehydrated. Bring along plenty
of bottled water (much better than sugary sodas) and sunscreen; with the
crowds you’ll otherwise have to stand in line at the refreshment stands or
drinking fountains, and if it’s a hot day, you might have to stop often.
Also guard against blisters (use broken-in shoes and consider two pairs of
thin socks over one pair of thick socks). Make note of the First Aid
centers (there is one in each of the three theme parks).
Temperament: It’s up to you, the parent to keep your temper. It
might not be easy, given the crowds and the long waits for certain rides,
the heat, etc. The best thing to do is to make sure you enjoy yourself.
Maximizing your vacation is not a matter of cramming yourself on as many
rides as possible: it’s a good idea, especially with kids, to take time out
for a breather periodically (not just standing in line). Find a place to
sit down with some ice cream, or even return to the hotel room after lunch
for a short nap.
Strollers: Strollers are available for rent at each of the theme
parks. The stroller centers are near the entrances, and the process of
getting a stroller is fairly quick and easy. Rule number one is to keep
your receipt. Rule number two is to keep your receipt (and don’t keep it
in the stroller itself). It’s easy for your stroller to get swiped- not
because there are roving packs of stroller thieves, but because people
might mistake your stroller for theirs. If this should happen, you can go
to the stroller center, show your receipt, and get a new one (they won’t
charge you to replace it). A good idea is to attach something to the
stroller that will uniquely identify it as yours (nothing of great value,
of course), such as a piece of paper with your name on it or a bright
scarf. The stroller staff at WDW currently do take your name and put it on
a card which is attached to the stroller itself.
Baby-sitting services: There aren’t any services inside the parks
themselves, but there are child care services at the resorts. In general,
you must have a reservation. They can be expensive (e.g. $6 per hour, with
an $18 minimum), but include free video games, Disney movies, games and
activities, and visits by a Disney character each night. They accept kids
from 3-12 years of age. There is also a “Fairy Godmother” service
available (also not cheap), who will come to your room at any hour of the
day, 24 hours a day, and can even take care of your pet.
Infants/Toddlers: All of the theme parks have Baby Care services,
which have everything you need for changing diapers, making formula, etc.
Supplies for purchase can be found at these places as well.
Lost children: You may or may not be surprised at how easy it is to
get your child lost. When you exit rides and shows, you should take your
child by the hand to make sure they don’t get lost in the bustle of people
exiting. Also keep in mind there may be more than one exit to a bathroom;
should your child wander out of the one you don’t expect, he or she may
find themselves to be lost. Also keep track of your kids during parades-
they might otherwise wander off while trying to get a better viewpoint.

11) Some interesting things to look for at the theme parks

WDW:
Hidden Mickeys: list available separately- see question #19, below.

Disneyland:
– The Park Entrance, designed to look like a red carpet
– Apartment above the Disneyland Fire Station; apartment in the fourth
floor of the Castle; offices above Main Street
– The names on the windows on the second story of the buildings on
Main Street. These are named for notable people who were
involved in the creation of Disneyland.
– The Disney Gallery, above Pirates of the Caribbean in New Orleans
Square, of interest to those into animation
– Telegraph operator at Frontierland/New Orleans Square station, which
types out a Morse code version of Walt’s opening day speech
– The Club 33 entrance, at New Orleans Square, near the Blue Bayou
restaurant
– The Haunted Mansion knight
– Snow White’s Grotto, to the right of the Castle before you enter
Fantasyland. Note the song in the Wishing Well. Also note the
dwarves are the same size as Snow White.
– Platform where Tinkerbell lands as the Fantasy in the Sky fireworks
begin; a fort tower located behind the Frontierland buildings
hidden by trees, where she slams into some mattresses at the end
– Infrared sensor bathrooms, located near Videopolis, which turn the
water on when you put your hands under the faucet, and flush the
toilets when you step away
– Paul Reubens (Pee-Wee Herman) as the voice of the pilot of Star
Tours
– Leslie Neilson (of Police Squad/Naked Gun fame) as one of the
singing heads in the Haunted Mansion

12) Differences between the Magic Kingdom at WDW and Disneyland

The following are found only at the Magic Kingdom at WDW:
The Hall of Presidents (Liberty Square)
Dreamflight (Tomorrowland)
Carousel of Progress (Tomorrowland)
Mickey’s Starland
SpectroMagic (Main Street)
The following are found only at Disneyland:
Great Moments With Mr. Lincoln (Main Street)
Sailing Ship Columbia (Frontierland)
Big Thunder Ranch (Frontierland)
The Story of Sleeping Beauty (Fantasyland)
Pinocchio’s Daring Journey (Fantasyland)
Casey Jr. Circus Train (Fantasyland)
Storybook Land Canal Boats (Fantasyland)
Alice In Wonderland (Fantasyland)
Matterhorn Bobsleds (Fantasyland)
Motor Boat Cruise (Fantasyland)
Star Tours (Tomorrowland; these are at the Disney-MGM studios in
Florida)
Main Street Electrical Parade (Main Street)

At WDW, Space Mountain, the Castles in Fantasyland (which are bigger)
are considered better than their counterparts at Disneyland. The
Disneyland Railroad features the Grand Canyon Diorama and Primeval World,
not found at the Magic Kingdom in WDW, and Pirates of the Caribbean is much
longer at Disneyland. The Magic Kingdom at WDW also has the advantage of
having much larger pathways, having been built with large crowds in mind.
Disneyland has more of the details (see also Question #11) and personality
that Walt added. See also the Disneyland FAQ.

13) Who created the music from the Main Street Electrical Parade?

The music, which is titled “Baroque Hoedown,” was written by Jean-
Jacques Perry and Gershon Kingsley. The electronically synthesized version
which you hear during the parade was arranged and performed by Don Dorsey,
noted synthesizer performer.
The introduction, as the music starts:
“Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls
Disneyland proudly presents
Our spectacular festival pageant of nighttime magic and
imagination
In thousands of sparkling lights and electro-syntho-magnetic
musical sounds
The Main Street Electrical Parade!”
Incidentally, you can request a summary of the parade with a
description of each of the floats from Disneyland Guest Relations via mail.
(Unfortunately, I lost my summary, but it was probably out of date anyway,
as the parade changes slightly on an annual basis.)
The soundtrack to the Main Street Electrical Parade is available on at
least three different albums: the Fantasmic! soundtrack (Disneyland Records
and Tapes, DIDX 013173); the “Music of Disneyland, Walt Disney World, and
EPCOT Center” soundtrack (Disneyland Records and Tapes, CD-007); and “The
Music of Disney: A Legacy in Song,” which is the 3 CD boxed set. The
Fantasmic! soundtrack’s version is the most complete by far, and is (again)
available from Disneyland Merchandise at (800)-362-4533 or at the theme
park.

14) What is SpectroMagic at Walt Disney World?

SpectroMagic at WDW is the successor to the Main Street Electrical
Parade. It use fiber optics and live costumed actors and, like the Main
Street Electrical Parade, features floats of varying themes. Opinions on
SpectroMagic being better than the Electrical Parade vary.

15) What is Fantasmic! at Disneyland? How do I beat the crowds?

Fantasmic! is somewhat like a stage show, but with dazzling
pyrotechnics. It is performed nightly at the south end of Tom Sawyer’s
Island (you can’t miss it- just look for the thousands of people standing
around at show time). There are individual sequences with various themes
from Disney’s history, with particular emphasis on the animated films.
These sequences are tied together by the main plot of Mickey’s imagination
being overrun by the evil forces of Queen Maleficent (from Sleeping
Beauty), Ursula (The Little Mermaid), the Queen from Snow White, among
others. To date, it has been extremely popular.
Incidentally, there is a Fantasmic! soundtrack available, which also
includes the full soundtrack to the Main Street Electrical Parade (it’s
more up to date than the version included on the “Music of Disneyland, Walt
Disney World, and EPCOT Center” album released in 1990). The manufacture
of this soundtrack was halted due to legal and copyright implications, but
once resolved may go on sale again. You can contact Disneyland Merchandise
Services, at (800)-362-4533, for more information.

16) What is a “Character Breakfast”?

A “Character Breakfast” is a breakfast held at specific locations
early in the day where you (and your kids, of course) have the opportunity
to eat breakfast while meeting popular Disney characters. They are held at
different locations (listed below). Some locations need a reservation in
advance. They do cost a little extra (around $10 for adults), but kids
under 3 eat free, and kids 3-11 eat at reduced children’s rates (around
$6-7). All of the characters come and visit every table, so there is no
pushing and shoving to meet them. There are also Character Brunches and
Dinners, also included below. Young kids generally love these.

Location Time Notes
Contemporary 8-11 am No reservations
Resort:
Contemporary
Cafe (WDW)
Disney Beach Club: 7:30-11 am No reservations
Cape May
Restaurant (WDW)
Dolphin Hotel: Th, Su 8:30a- Reservations: (407)-934-4085
Ristorante 12:30p
Carnevale (WDW)
Grand Floridian: 7:30-noon Reservations: (407)-824-2383
1900 Park Fare
(Breakfast)
Grand Floridian: 5-9 pm Reservations: (407)-824-2383.
1900 Park Fare $18 adults, $9 children.
(Dinner)
Pleasure Island: 8:30 am Reservations: (407)-934-7639
Empress Lilly seating,
Riverboat (WDW) 10:30 am
seating
Polynesian Resort: 7:30-10:30 Reservations: (407)-824-1391
Tangaroa Terrace am
(WDW)
Stargate Restaurant until 11 am Counter-eatery; no
(EPCOT) reservations; not
necessary to purchase
anything
Swan Hotel: Garden W, Sa 8-11 No reservations. Info:
Grove (WDW) am (407)-934-1281
Tomorrowland 7:30-10 am Exclusive to those who get
Terrace, in WDW this as part of a package;
early admission to park
with voucher
WDW Village: Chef 5:30-10 pm Better than average food, but
Mickey’s Village you only get to meet
Restaurant Mickey.
Disneyland Hotel, 7:30-10 am Contact the hotel for exact
Disneyland information
Plaza Inn, 7:30-10 am No reservations
Disneyland

This information is probably incomplete, as I suspect WDW/Disneyland
change their schedules and add and delete locations. It might be a good
idea to check with your hotel (if it’s a Disney resort) or the Guest
Relations of the park you will be visiting (see question #99 in part 1 of
the FAQ for phone numbers).

17) What is the Disney Vacation Club?

The Disney Vacation Club is a like a time-sharing resort.
Essentially, you purchase a certain amount of points, then use those points
to stay at Disney Vacation Homes on the Walt Disney World property. The
minimum buy-in is currently 230 points at $59 per point as of November,
1993 (and has historically increased $1.50 per point every six months),
with annual dues of $2.70 per point. Where you stay and what time of year
you go determines how many points you use- you can choose a studio (sleeps
4), a one (sleeps 4) or two (sleeps 8) bedroom houses, or a Grand
Villas.(sleeps 12). It is up to you to choose where and when to go
(reservations are required, of course). You may also stay at selected Walt
Disney World hotels as well.
If you’d like a copy of some articles discussing the DVC (which were
previously used to answer this question in the FAQ) send me e-mail at
tanida@gso.saic.com.

You can get more information by calling (800)-800-9100, or (407)-WDW-3100
(the latter if you in Florida) between 7 am and 5 pm ET, seven days a week.
You can also write to:
Disney Vacation Club at
The Walt Disney World Resort
6751 Forum Drive Suite 220
Orlando, FL 32821-9900
If you call or write, you can request to receive brochures, which include
floor plans, complete tables with the point allocations.

18) What are some good guide books on travel to Walt Disney
World/Disneyland?

There are a couple of useful guides written by some members of the
Internet (and r.a.d, of course) community. They include “The Very
Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World” by Todd McCartney, at
toddm@phobos.ucs.umass.edu, and some suggestions for planning a trip to WDW
by Bill Ellett, at bill@sdg.dra.com.
Guide books can be found in the Travel section of your favorite
bookstore. They are generally grouped under the California (for
Disneyland) or Florida (for WDW) sections, which is under “domestic
travel.”
The best all around guide for planning your trip and finding good
advice is probably one of the The Unofficial Guide books by Bob Sehlinger.
(In fact, a lot of the information in this part of the FAQ was derived from
these books.) The Fodor’s travel guide is not very useful, except perhaps
for restaurants in the area. The “Official” guide books are OK as
references to the various services at the parks and have some trivia about
the rides that might be interesting reading while standing in line.

Birnbaum, Steven, Guide to Disneyland
Avon Books, updated yearly
Birnbaum, Stephen. Birnbaum’s Walt Disney World
Hyperion and Hearst Business Publishing, updated annually
ISBN: 1-56282-946-7 (1993 ed.)
Labeled as the “official” Disney sanctioned guide.

Ritz, Stacy, Disney World and Beyond
Ulysses Press
ISBN 0-915233-37-1

Sehlinger, Bob, The Unofficial Guide to Disneyland
Prentice Hall Travel, updated yearly
Sehlinger, Bob, The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World and EPCOT
Prentice Hall Travel, updated yearly
ISBN 0-13-953944-1
Thorough, including sections on preparations for kids, evaluations of every
ride, and clever strategies for waiting in line. A must get.

Wiley, Kim Wright, Walt Disney World With Kids
Prima Publishing
ISBN 1-55958-140-9
Another good one for those going to WDW with children. Written by an
experienced mom.

And, from the Disney Lists of Lists, maintained by Tim Pickett
(quetzal@yoyo.cc.monash.edu.au), I would also recommend the online
(Internet) guides:

Planning a Trip to Walt Disney World, created and maintained by: Bill
Ellett
FTP availability: yoyo.cc.monash.edu.au [130.194.9.1] :
pub/rec.arts.disney/wdwtrip.Z
e-mail availability: available from maintainer

Tips on planning a trip to WDW. Includes sections on timing of trip,
Disney’s budget hotels, touring the parks, miscellaneous tips. Also
includes critiques of selected attractions, and a comparison of
Disney-MGM with Universal Studios.

The Very Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World, created and maintained by:
Todd McCartney
FTP availability: rvcc.raritanval.edu [192.231.207.110]
e-mail availability: available from maintainer. Todd is starting a
mailing list. Mail him to get onto it.

A large guide to Walt Disney World in Florida. Included are a map of
WDW, and a comprehensive guide that explains just about everything you
need to know to plan a trip to WDW.

19) What are “Hidden Mickeys”? Where can I find some?

Hidden Mickeys, found at the theme parks, are simply Mickey Mouse
images, either the “mouse ear” pattern or a full figure, that exist in
places you normally wouldn’t notice them unless you were looking. They
were brought to wide-scale attention in the Winter 1991 Disney News, which
featured “the Secrets of Walt Disney World.” Some examples given in this
article include: Mickey ears on the manhole covers; a Mickey constellation
in the geosphere of Starship Earth; a Mickey in the mural of Body Wars;
Mouse ears on one of the Vikings in Norway’s Maelstrom attraction in the
World Showcase; and a Mickey Mouse cookie cutter in one of the baskets in
front of one of the worker droids in Star Tours.
Stan Sroka, at sroka@evax.gdc.com, has been keeping lists of Hidden
Mickeys for both theme parks. Send him e-mail for the latest list, and be
sure to send him your contributions/discoveries as well.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #82, from hmccracken, 519 chars, Mon May 9 16:53:07 1994
————————–
From rec.arts.disney
Subject: NYU and Walt
From: hurtheil@eagle.wesleyan.edu
Date: 8 May 94 21:19:34 EDT

Hey!

For anyone in the NYU area….

I read that the summer program is giving a course on Walt Disney. Rare footage
will be shown and some of his early works etc…..
does anyone know about the prof…..or the course?
And how is the computer animation, or animation course?

I hope I get to take it! What a thrill!

heather
FDC Cinderella
(wondering where the FDC Prince to Cinderella and Bodyguard went?)

==========================
animation/best.of.net #83, from hmccracken, 795 chars, Mon May 9 16:53:50 1994
————————–
From rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: ‘The Buckets’ and Online cartooning

Date: 5 May 1994 00:32:08 -0400
Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364)

‘The Buckets’ is celebrating it’s 3rd anniversary this month! my strip is
enjoying syndication in over 150 newspapers around the world and we are in the
process of launching a line of mugs, t-shirts and a greeting card line from
Gibson Greeting.
I would greatly enjoy any and all input from you online surfers. I view this as
the future of cartooning, (or at least a growing aspect), and I would be
especially interested in your thoughts on what role online services will play
in the future of cartoons and cartooning. I look forward to our discussion.
Feel free to leave a message or e-mail me here or at SStantis@aol.
Scott Stantis

==========================
animation/best.of.net #84, from hmccracken, 2306 chars, Wed May 11 09:18:33 1994
————————–
Subject: From rec.arts.disney
Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!howland.reston.ans.net!gatech!udel!news.sprintlink.net!agphx.agcs.com!not-for-mail
From: deckerd@agcs.com (Dwight Decker)
Subject: Sample Dealer Prices of Moratoriumed Disney Tapes
Date: 10 May 1994 16:22:27 -0700

I was originally going to title this posting something like
“OOP Disney Tapes for Sale,” but since I’m not offering the
tapes for sale myself and I’m only quoting prices I’ve seen…
well, I forgot to put on my asbestos underwear this morning.

Anyway, I just got the Laser Disc Newsletter for May (a fine
publication from Douglas Pratt at PO Box 420, East Rockaway,
NY 11518-0420), and there are classified ads from people
selling out of print laserdiscs. Prices for Disneys are
shockingly high (a new CAV Little Mermaid is $300 from one
seller, while another wants $200 for a CAV Lady & the Tramp).
Still, prices for discs are not impossible to understand,
in that press runs were relatively low and many desirable
titles are now impossible to find in stores, with reissues
possibly years away. It’s the price of tapes that astounds me,
since millions were sold of each title.

And one LDN advertiser is selling Disney tapes along with his
discs. Just for the sake of comparison, let’s see what he’s
charging for his tapes (repeat, TAPES)…

* Lady and the Tramp (used): $350

* Sleeping Beauty (used): $200

* Cinderella (new): $200

* Bambi (new): $200

* Little Mermaid (new): ($250)

Are we sick yet?

I’m always a little suspicious of used Disney tapes, too. These
are mostly watched by kids, who can easily watch the same tape
over and over and over again while doing awful things to it in
jamming it into the VCR. Pay hundreds of dollars for one of those?!

On the other hand, even if you already have these titles safely
tucked away in your video hoard at home, don’t feel too smug. Unless
you set up in business as a dealer for yourself, you’ll never get prices
like these for your collection if you ever decide to sell (a pro dealer
would pay you much less). What these prices seem to represent is what
you would have to pay to replace the titles if something horrible ever
happened to your collection. Put a lock on your video cabinet and
upgrade your fire/homeowner’s/renter’s insurance!

–Dwight R. Decker

==========================
animation/best.of.net #85, from hmccracken, 1468 chars, Thu May 19 00:08:20 1994
————————–
Subject: From alt.tv.simpsons

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Elvis deserves a postage stamp, but Bart
Simpson doesn’t.
That’s the ruling from the U.S. Postal Service, which has
rejected Fox Broadcasting Co.’s suggestion for a stamp featuring
“The Simpsons” cartoon character.
“It would be like a commercial endorsement,” Postal Service
spokeswoman Robin Minyard said Monday.
And Bart’s bad-boy tendencies couldn’t have helped in the cause.
Fox submitted two contenders: one stamp with a crooning Bart in
glitzy, Elvis Presley-type garb, and another showing Bart posed in
front of a chalk board that reads “I will not waste chalk.”
Willful Bart is often called to task by his teacher in the
animated TV series.
The Citizens Stamp Advisory Committee, a panel which advises the
postmaster on appropriate stamp subjects, considers about 40,000
suggestions a year.
The Bart stamp was considered and rejected in the past several
weeks, Minyard said.
Committee members typically will reconsider a proposal if they
receive enough requests, she said, holding out slight hope for Bart
boosters.

————————————————————————-
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==========================
animation/best.of.net #86, from hmccracken, 30035 chars, Fri May 20 22:34:31 1994
————————–
Subject: From alt.animation.warner-bros

From: mpsc839@netcom.com (MPSC Local 839 IATSE)
Subject: THE PEG-BOARD — M.P.S.C. Local 839 IATSE — May 1994
Date: Fri, 20 May 1994 01:07:06 GMT

THE PEG-BOARD — Information Superhighway Edition — May 1994

Local 839 IATSE is the largest local union of film artists in the world. We
have over 1,500 active members employed in animation and CGI in Southern
California.

In this month’s issue:

* Local 839 Expanding At Record Pace
* Animation Around Town
* From The Business Representative, by Steve Hulett
* From The President, by Tom Sito
* Letter To The President
* In The News
* In Memoriam
* 24th Anifest! Honors Foray
* At The Water Cooler
* Animation Writers’ Caucus
* An Open Letter To Don Bluth
* Masthead

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

LOCAL 839 EXPANDING AT RECORD PACE
Active membership of 1,543 highest in over ten years

The current boom in animation production is making itself apparent in the
increase in Local 839’s active membership. We are seeing record levels of
new membership and reinstatements of inactive memberships. With the recent
news about expanded operations at Amblimation and Warner Bros. (see below),
within six months to a year we expect to be the largest we’ve been in our
forty-two-year history.

The charts* illustrate some interesting and encouraging trends. From its
earliest history, employment in animation in Los Angeles has been a
boom-and-bust roller coaster, paralleling the fortunes of the latest
animation “fad”. Industry employment, and active union membership, rose and
fell dramatically in short periods along with the “hot” employer of the
moment. Each of these animation “booms” was only sufficient to sustain the
temporary fortunes of two or three animation studios, of which one would
predominate in the union’s employment statistics at any particular time.

In 1985, the predominate employer was Filmation. The bar graph* reflects
that Filmation was the last studio to extensively employ in-house animation
technicians (Xerox, ink-and-paint and checkers). After a dramatic fall
following Filmation’s close in 1988, employment and membership have steadily
risen. Employment of animation technicians has actually remained relatively
stable in the ’90s, and can be expected to rise as work that previously
might have been sent overseas to be cel-painted is “reclaimed” to be done on
computers under Local 839 jurisdiction.

Although Disney has been our largest employer since Roger Rabbit and The
Little Mermaid, they currently employ a smaller percentage of Local 839
members than Filmation did in 1985. The diversification of employment is a
healthy trend that can be expected to continue due to the increasing number
of animation producers. This should insure that the overall employment
picture is not dependent upon the fortunes of one or two dominant employers
in the field.

We anticipate that these statistics will prove even more encouraging as
Local 839 expands into the field of computer graphics imagery (CGI), and as
additional employers draw upon the worldwide pool of animation talent.

* This article is accompanied by graphs that show the following statistics:

LOCAL 839 DUES PAYING MEMBERSHIP, 1985-1994

Employed Employed Total
Artists/ Technicians Employed Total
Writers Unemployed Membership
==================================================

1985…….800……..388……..136…..1,188…..1,324
1986…….831……..283……..195…..1,114…..1,309
1987…….483……..190……..517…….673…..1,190
1988…….488……..118……..258…….606…….864
1989…….502………74……..351…….576…….927
1990…….787……..145……..184…….932…..1,116
1991…….944……..178……..242…..1,122…..1,364
1992…….920……..172……..340…..1,092…..1,432
1993…….861……..158……..383…..1,019…..1,402
2/94…..1,067……..208……..218…..1,275…..1,493
4/94…..1,136……..224……..207…..1,360…..1,567

EMPLOYMENT BY STUDIO

1985

Filmation………..42.4%
Marvel…………..19.2%
Hanna-Barbera…….17.0%
Disney**…………12.3%
Ruby-Spears……….5.6%
Others***…………3.5%

1994

Disney**…………39.3%
Hanna-Barbera…….20.2%
Rich Entertainment..13.5%
Warner Bros.**……11.1%
Marvel/New World…..5.3%
Universal…………4.0%
Other studios***….12.4%

** all animation divisions
*** studios with less than 40 employees

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

ANIMATION AROUND TOWN

AMBLIMATION will be moving from London to Los Angeles later this year; they
have not yet begun staffing. As this issue goes to press they are still in
negotiations with Local 839 on a contract.

DON BLUTH has departed Ireland and his Irish animation company to join with
Twentieth Century-Fox in a deal to produce animated feature films. Bluth
stated in a Los Angeles Times article that his new studio would be set up
outside of California because he doesn’t like earthquakes.

Rumors have the studio ending up being in Arizona or Washington State. As of
this writing, we are betting on Washington (Spokane, anyone?) as the site of
Don’s next studio. Phoenix or Scottsdale seem a trifle too sun-baked and
harsh after the lush green landscapes of Ireland.

DISNEY FEATURE ANIMATION has completed animation and cleanup on The Lion
King, and as of the end of April every scene is in color. Animation on
Pocahontas is gearing up. Story work on Hunchback of Notre Dame is well
along with many sequences boarded.

1420 Flower Street
Glendale 91221
(818) 544-2090

DISNEY TV ANIMATION has sixty-five half-hours of Aladdin in production for
the ’94-’95 season; sixty-five half-hours of Duck Daze in production for the
’95-’96 season; and thirteen half-hours of Snookums and Meat Funny Cartoon
Show in production. Aladdin — The Return of Jafar is set for a
direct-to-videocasette rollout on May 20.

5200 Lankershim Boulevard
North Hollywood 91601
(818) 754-7100

GRAZ ENTERTAINMENT has The Tick, X-Men, Warrior Skeletons, and Conan in
various stages of production.

1745 Victory Boulevard
Glendale 91201
(818) 241-6718

HANNA-BARBERA’s feature The PageMaster is in final stages of production for
a Fall/Christmas release. Cats Don’t Dance, H- B/Turner’s follow-up feature,
is now into animation.

For television, twenty-five new Captain Planets have been produced, with
three remaining in the production cycle; nine Swat KATS episodes in
production; thirteen half-hours of Droopy/Screwball Squirrel, sixty-five new
half-hour episodes of Johnny Quest, a Flintstones Christmas Special and an
Arabian Nights special in post-production. Forty-eight new shorts also in
various stages of production.

3400 Cahuenga Boulevard West
Hollywood 90068
(213) 851-5000

At HYPERION, thirteen additional half-hours each of Itsy Bitsy Spider and
Little Wizards are now in production, both shows for the USA Network.

111 N. Maryland Avenue, #200
Glendale 91206
(818) 244-4704

CHUCK JONES FILM PRODUCTIONS is hard at work on theatrical shorts for Warner
Bros.

3500 W. Olive Avenue, Suite 1430
Burbank 91505
(818) 954-2655

Bill and Sue Kroyer, who have run KROYER FILMS, their own animation
production company, these past several years, have signed a two-year deal
with Warners Feature Animation to develop and produce feature projects. They
will be on “loan out” from Kroyer Films for that duration.

The Kroyers’ company produced the animated feature Fern Gully, which went on
to gross $100 million worldwide, and a host of commercials, animated title
sequences and short films. They contributed a sequence to the recently
completed The Thief and the Cobbler, and are now wrapping several projects
before moving full-time to Warners. Kroyer Films will still be in operation,
but on a very limited basis.

12517 Chandler Boulevard, 2nd floor
North Hollywood 91607
(818) 755-0280

MARVEL PRODUCTIONS is working on sixty-five half-hours of Spider-Man,
thirteen episodes of The Fantastic Four and thirteen episodes of Iron Man.

1440 S. Sepulveda Boulevard
Los Angeles 90025
(310) 444-8433 (Spiderman)
(310) 444-8197 (Fantastic Four/Iron Man)

NEW WORLD FAMILY ENTERTAINMENT is busy with forty episodes of Biker Mice
From Mars.

1440 S. Sepulveda Boulevard
Los Angeles 90025
(310) 444-8160

RICH ENTERTAINMENT’s feature The Swan Princess is winding its way toward
completion and a November release.

333 N. Glenoaks Boulevard, #300
Burbank 91502
(818) 846-0166

UNIVERSAL CARTOON COMPANY is completing the direct-to-video feature Land
Before Time II and working on Land Before Time III, producing an additional
thirty-nine episodes of Exo-Squad, and producing thirteen episodes of
Beethoven.

100 Universal City Plaza
Universal City 91608
(818) 777-2848 (creative)
(818) 777-7785 (checking/i&p)

WARNER BROS. TV ANIMATION is currently continuing development work for new
series. In work: A Tiny Toons Halloween Special. WARNERS CLASSICS’s
theatrical short Carrotblanca is in production, along with various
commercials. WARNERS FEATURE ANIMATION is currently staffing for future
development and feature work.

15303 Ventura Boulevard, 11th floor
Sherman Oaks 91403
(818) 379-9401 or 995-8691
Feature Animation: (818) 954-7555

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

FROM THE BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVE

This month’s Business Rep rant concerns that sub-species of humans known as
Hollywood Liberals, one of the lowest forms of life that walks the earth.

I’ve been in this job four years and eight months, and I’ve observed that
Hollywood Liberals come in all shapes, sizes and genders, but mostly they
occupy the higher echelons of Tinsel Town, sitting behind big, comfortable
desks, barking orders down to the lower orders via telephone, hobnobbing
with their fellow high-rollers at pricey charity affairs, singing “Kumbaya”
in a big circle of execs and politicos, often but not always including the
President or Vice President of the U.S.A. in their midst.

A Hollywood Liberal gets dewy-eyed over the plight of the spotted owl and
the sperm whale, he stands in solidarity with the oppressed peoples of
Central America, he thinks what’s going on in Bosnia is awful. A Hollywood
Liberal worries about our diminishing ozone and the environment all the
time. A Hollywood Liberal is a rock-ribbed Feminist, capital “F.”

And you can count on Hollywood Liberals (the kind I am talking about) to
hammer on labor unions every chance they get. And to protest that they
really like and support labor when called on it, except … but … well,
they’re involved in a business, you know …

For instance, I got a call from a member a year ago who was angry that a
highly placed Hollywood Liberal exec at a major studio (their corporate
symbol has round ears) sent around letters to employees instructing them on
how to vote in an upcoming election. He was even angrier when he fired off a
letter of protest and got a huffy reply defending the action. This same
exec, a stoolie in middle management informed me, had no qualms about
violating California labor law by ordering employees to keep quiet about
their wage rates. But the Hollywood Liberal does support the environment and
love all Democrats, even if he behaves like a William McKinley Republican
while dealing with his employees.

At a rally in support of striking crew members on Harts Of The West, I
witnessed actor/producer Beau Bridges telling his striking crew that if they
had just been “a little more patient,” he could have smoothed things out,
gotten some of those eighteen-hour days rolled back. Raised wages a little.
And then somebody in the crowd asked how he felt about union crews, and he
stammered about how “in general,” he supported them.

Which of course is the best working definition of a Hollywood Liberal I’ve
heard. They are for a prosperous, green planet. They are for dignity for the
indigenous peoples, and equal rights, and universal health care, and for the
fair treatment and dignity of workers.

In general.

But if it affects their personal cash flow, then all bets are off. And if
it’s something they can actually do something about, which it often is, then
you hear the parrot-like refrain: “Hey! What are you, crazy? This is a
business!”

Which, of course, is the real bottom line, no matter how much money they
contribute to save old-growth forests. Most of them have more concern about
trees than human beings.

— Steve Hulett

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

FROM THE PRESIDENT

All that harms Labor is Treason to America.
No line can be drawn between the two.
If any man tells you he loves America yet he hates labor,
he is a liar. If a man tells you he trusts America yet fears
labor, he is a fool.
— Abraham Lincoln

The story of labor in America is a largely unknown story. The conditions
people endured creating this industrial superpower are passed over and the
struggle for decent working conditions pooh-poohed by standard historical
text. We read of the wisdom and talent of the Edisons and Rockefellers and
Carnegies. Who thinks anymore about the Ludlow Massacre of 1914? Or of Joe
Hill’s last words before being executed: “Don’t mourn, organize!” Or how the
working people of San Francisco in 1934 shut down the entire city for three
days in a general strike and blood flowed on the Embarcardero.

Folks who think wage scales and job safety and even the forty-hour week are
facts of nature like the seasons will be shocked to know they were
painstakingly won by people risking their careers and lives to get them. No
employer granted them out of compassion.

In the 1800s and early 1900s, besides the horrors of child labor and
unsanitary conditions, you would work from 7 am to 8 pm six days a week. In
1886 the New York Times called the eight hour day “…a foreign born idea
inviting sloth, drunkenness and debauchery.” When the employers’ profits
suffered from bad business deals, falling prices and the many economic
panics (1837, 1873, 1877, 1886, 1893), he merely lowered your wages. Henry
Ford’s Model Ts were assembled on a chain conveyor belt. When he wanted to
increase production he sped up the chain. If you couldn’t keep up you were
fired.

Trade unions are as old as America. As early as the 1790s folks were banding
together to ask for better conditions to do their jobs.

They were called by a variety of funny nicknames: The Molly Maguires, The
Locofocos, The Wobblies (name of the International Workers of the World, a
movement that believed that justice be achieved only when all working people
around the world belonged to one union.)

Employers threw everything at them from Pinkerton detectives and state
militia to the Ku Klux Klan (and its sister group in the North, the Black
Legion). There were appeals to patriotism, hatred of foreigners, race
hatred, fear of anarchy, anything to keep us from banding together.

On May 1st, 1886, The Knights of Labor called for nationwide strikes against
all employers not honoring an eight-hour day. 750,000 people went out on
1,700 strikes and the government panicked. Thousands of people battled
police in Tompkins Square in New York. In Haymarket Square in Chicago,
during a rally a bomb exploded among the police who immediately opened fire
on the crowd. No one ever discovered who threw the bomb but the union
leaders were arrested and hanged despite the international calls for mercy
from notables like George Bernard Shaw. Union leader Albert Parsons shouted
as he dropped through the gallows: “Let the Voice of the People be heard!”

“The historical perspective”, wrote William Dean Howells, “is that a free
republic has executed four men for their opinions.”

In 1968 hippie radicals blew up the monument to the Haymarket policemen.

Okay, so what about us cartoon-folk? Because of the 1929 Depression,
Hollywood got used to using large staffs who worked for peanuts while a few
made out like, err, Movie Stars. Later as the Depression eased, people
wanted their living standards raised. The great entrepreneurs who forged our
large studios saw such talk as ingratitude. James Cagney, Frank Mankiewicz,
Dorothy Parker, even Ronald Reagan were Hollywood union pioneers who defied
them.

In 1935 the cartoonists of the Van Beuren Studio tried to organize and were
all fired. On May 7th, 1937, the Fleischer animators went out on strike
after Max fired thirteen union animators. The strike attracted two thousand
people and animators blocked Broadway and battled police and non-union
cartoonists. Fourteen arrests and a few broken noses. I met a sweet little
old lady inker named Ellen Jensen who recalled being arrested for biting a
policeman on the leg. The strike was finally settled on orders from
Paramount. Max Fleischer moved his studio to Florida and the expense of
fighting unionization probably helped to sink his studio.

1941, the year Schlesinger locked out Chuck Jones and Bob Clampett, saw
animation’s version of the Civil War, the Disney strike. The struggle over
who would represent Disney’s cartoonists lasted months and left hard
feelings to this day. The cartoonists went for IATSE in 1952 and our local
was formed. We won a strike in 1979 and lost one in 1982. A lot of our work
was shipped overseas but recent results have forced much to return home.

In the economic frenzy of the late ’70s and ’80s, unions were portrayed as
inhibitors of growth and entreprenurial spirit and national union membership
plummeted. As a result, the nineties now see real wages down 25%, millions
without health care and arrogant companies enforcing demands on privacy like
lie detector exams, enforced weight loss and no-drinking programs. In 1992
the Wall Street Journal examined the “Great Gatsbyification of Wealth”.
Whereas in 1979 employers made $35 to every $1 of yours, they currently make
$100 to your $1!

So here we are today. The future? Maybe we’ll be an all-computer local by
decade’s end. Who knows? In 1829 in an address to the working people of
Philadelphia Mrs. Frances Wright wondered: “…if the new technology was not
lowering the value of human labor, making people appendages to machines.”

We recently had a meeting of the artists of the new computer and digital
companies. The hall was packed with enthusiastic unorganized workers. Their
main concern? In 1886 it was overtime. At Fleischer in 1937 it was overtime.
In 1994, the main complaint was a fifty- to seventy-hour week with no
overtime. I hope Albert Parsons is listening.

— Tom Sito

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

LETTER TO THE PRESIDENT

An important correction needs to be made in your April President’s Report.
It’s not Schwurbruderschaft (umlaut over the first u), it’s
Schwurbruderschaft (umlaut over the second u).

— Andreas Deja

Oops, my umlauts are showing! — TS

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

IN THE NEWS

In mid-April, DISNEY began selling advance tickets to its new animated
feature The Lion King for its June 15 openings at Radio City Music Hall and
the El Capitan Theater in Hollywood. Advance ticket sales, a film-world
tradition in the Twenties, Fifties and Sixties, went out of fashion around
the time wide-screen spectaculars did, and haven’t been used in a
quarter-century …

Your tax dollars at work: As this issue goes to press, the U.S. House of
Representatives is about to vote on a transportation bill that will include
funding for a 12,000-space parking lot for the proposed Westcot Center at
Disneyland. Its inclusion was a “giant step” toward obtaining $318 million
in federal money for Westcot, said a representative for the Orange County
Transporation Authority …

Disney increases its presence on Saturday-morning network television this
fall with thirteen half-hours of Aladdin on CBS in addition to a renewed
Little Mermaid series. Other CBS entries include Universal’s Beethoven, Wild
C. A. T. S., and renewals of Garfield and Friends and Teenage Mutant Ninja
Turtles.

ABC’s fall cartoon schedule includes H-B’s The Addams Family and Warners
perennial Bugs Bunny and Tweety, along with Free Willy, Sonic The Hedgehog,
and Tales from the Cryptkeeper …

The SCREEN ACTORS GUILD’s Animation Caucus has approved an “incentive plan”
that would restructure residuals for voice actors, in an effort to stem the
tide of voice work sent to be done non-union in Canada.

SAG estimates that more than 20,000 jobs, representing $14 million in
revenue, have been lost to Canada since 1985. The new plan will allow
producers to pay singers, voice and ADR performers in “use cycles” rather
than straight residuals.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

IN MEMORIAM

1986 Golden Award winner BETTY BRENON died on April 30. Since 1933 she had
worked for Warners, MGM, Disney, Lantz, U.S. Army First Motion Picture Unit,
John Sutherland, Paul Fennell, Jerry Fairbanks, UPA, Top Cel and Jay Ward,
as well as running her own eponymous ink-and-paint service.

Retired effects painter BERNICE DAVENPORT died on March 29. From 1969 to
1982 she worked for Project Films, Bakshi-Krantz, Fred Calvert, Filmation
and Hanna-Barbera.

Veteran animator REUBEN TIMMINS died on March 10. From 1930 until his
retirement in 1980 he worked for Fleischer, Van Beuren, Disney, Screen Gems,
Trans-Artists, Sam Singer, Terrytoons, UPA, Grantray-Lawrence,
DePatie-Freleng, Sanrio, Bakshi-Krantz and Filmation.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

LOCAL 839 ON THE AIR

Our president Tom Sito and business representative Steve Hulett are
scheduled to be interviewed on The Labor Scene on KPFK 90.7 FM on May 23 at
7 pm. After the interview, we will have cassettes available of this program
and of Tom Sito’s February 28 interview on KCRW’s Which Way L. A.? program.
All you need do is bring in a blank ninety-minute cassette to our office and
we’ll give you a copy.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

24TH ANIFEST! HONORS FORAY

In 1970, June Foray, the voice of Rocky the Flying Squirrel, Natasha, Witch
Hazel and many other cartoon characters, sponsored an informal fund-raiser
for ASIFA/Hollywood in her backyard. Animation cels, donated by various
studios, were sold for a few dollars apiece to ASIFA members and their
friends. Since then the AniFest! convention has grown to become the largest
and longest-running animation-related event of its kind in the country.

This year, the convention is dedicated to Foray, and will be held on JUNE
18, from 11 AM to 6 PM, in the main ballroom of the BEVERLY GARLAND HOLIDAY
INN in North Hollywood. There will be shows by top cartoon voice artists,
demonstrations of various steps in the animation process, representatives of
animation schools and organizations, personal appearances by celebrity
animators, actors and authors, and a variety of informational displays of
interest to animation fans. In addition, there will be dealers in all sorts
of animation-related collectibles and products, including animation artwork,
toys, ceramics, posters and lobby cards, as well as animation books,
magazines, comic books and video tapes.

On the evening before the AniFest!, ASIFA/Hollywood will be holding a gala
reception, tribute and banquet in honor of June Foray, hosted by such
animation luminaries as Chuck Jones, Don Messick, Stan Freberg and Janet
Waldo.

The Beverly Garland Holiday Inn is located at 4222 Vineland Ave., just south
of the Hollywood Freeway in North Hollywood. General admission to the
AniFest! will be $5.00, with ASIFA members and children under 12 admitted
for $3.00. Tickets for the June Foray banquet will be on sale soon. For
further information, contact ASIFA/Hollywood, 725 S. Victory Blvd., Burbank,
CA 91502; phone (818) 842-8330 or fax (818) 842-5645.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

AT THE WATER COOLER

WARNER BROS. ANIMATION personnel are now eligible to attend Warner Bros.
employee screenings at the Academy Plaza Theater, 5230 Lankershim in North
Hollywood. Warners employees must show their i.d. at door …

Universal producer ROY SMITH married JULIE WAKEFIELD on May 1 … TOM SITO
and STEVE HULETT are developing deep, meaningful relationships with each
other’s answering machines …

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

ANIMATION WRITERS’ CAUCUS

On May 3, over one hundred and forty animation writers attended the founding
conference of the Animation Writers Caucus at the Writers Guild of America
west. The basic issue discussed: better treatment for writers working in
animation. Speakers included WGAw executive director Brian Walton, assistant
executive director Paul Nawrocki, and AWC steering committee member Craig
Miller.

Among the short-term goals of the Caucus are better working conditions and
pay rates for writers; among the long-term goals are the organizing of
non-union animation houses in and around Los Angeles.

Some of the immediate benefits to AWC members will be:

* The right to participate in Animation Writers Caucus events and activities.

* Eligibility for participation in the WGAw’s alternative health plan through
Foundation Health HMO.

* Receipt of Guild Publications — Animation Writers’ Caucus Newsletter, WGAw
Journal, WGAw Calendar, WGAw Manual.

* All other WGAw mailings sent to WGAw Associate members.

* Eligibility for WGAw Film Society.

* Discount on the WGAw’s script registration service.

If you are a writer in animation (either for TV or features) and you wish to
learn more about the Animation Writers Caucus, contact Cecelia Ceccone at
the WGAw’s Department of Industry Alliances at (310) 205-2511.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

AN OPEN LETTER TO DON BLUTH

May 9, 1994

Don Bluth
Don Bluth Entertainment, Ltd.
Phoenix House
Conningham Road
Dublin, Ireland

Dear Don:

On behalf of the animation artists of Los Angeles as well as myself let me
congratulate you on your new venture with Fox, with hopes for your success.

When you started your independent career in the early 1980’s, animation was
in a neglected, moribund state with little hope for the future. You and your
fellow crusaders reinvigorated us and helped pave the way to the dizzying
renaissance we currently enjoy. You are one of animation’s true legends.

Now that you are returning to the U. S., I’d ask you to take a fresh look at
relations with our union. The labor strife and partisan rancor of the past
are history. Just as the studios have new leadership and spirit, so the
union has been reinvigorated with a new sense of purpose. We are larger and
more powerful than at any time in our history. This power is created not of a
wish to destroy or interfere with business, but from the natural aspirations
of hundreds of artists and their families for a dignified and secure future.
Many of your former employees are now firm supporters of the new union
movement. Our leadership has dedicated itself to working through problems
with management in a spirit of cooperation rather than dogmatic
confrontation.

You who have been a leader and inspiration for hundreds of artists can now
lead the way to a new spirit of reconciliation. Please don’t assume the old
feuds endure. We all love this art form and shouldn’t be divided over venal
issues.

Work with us. You may find we’re not as inflexible as you think. I await
your response.

Sincerely yours,

Tom Sito
Animator and President
Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and Affiliated Optical Electronic and
Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

PRESIDENT — Tom Sito
BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVE — Steve Hulett
VICE-PRESIDENT — George Sukara
RECORDING SECRETARY — Jeff Massie
SERGEANT-AT-ARMS — David Teague
PEG-BOARD EDITOR — Jeff Massie
EXECUTIVE BOARD
Viki Anderson * Bronwen Barry * Sheila Brown * Jan Browning * James Davis
Craig Littell-Herrick * Tom Ray * Pat Sito * Ann Sullivan * Stephan Zupkas
TRUSTEES — Pat Sito * Ann Sullivan * Stephan Zupkas

Contents (c) 1994 by MPSC Local 839 IATSE. All rights reserved. Publications
of bona fide labor organizations may reprint articles from this newsletter
so long as attribution is given. Permission is also given to distribute this
newsletter electronically so long as the ENTIRE contents are distributed,
including this notice.
—
_______________________________________________________________________________
Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and 4729 Lankershim Blvd.
Affiliated Optical Electronic and North Hollywood, CA 91602-1864
Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE phone (818) 766-7151 * fax (818) 506-4805
E-mail: mpsc839@netcom.com

==========================
animation/best.of.net #87, from hmccracken, 1644 chars, Fri May 20 22:35:27 1994
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Xref: mv misc.jobs.offered:14943
Path: mv!noc.near.net!bigboote.WPI.EDU!netnews.upenn.edu!dsinc!newsfeed.pitt.edu!godot.cc.duq.edu!news.duke.edu!news-feed-1.peachnet.edu!emory!swrinde!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!walt.disney.com!wdi.disney.com!tad
From: tad@fa.disney.com (Tad Gielow)
Newsgroups: misc.jobs.offered
Subject: Disney Animation seeks Animators
Date: 18 May 1994 17:18:45 GMT
Organization: Walt Disney Imagineering
Lines: 20
Message-ID: <2rdillINNcql@marvin.is.wdi.disney.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: genie.fa.disney.com
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.1 PL6]

Walt Disney Feature Animation, Florida is looking for qualified candidates for
a position of Computer Animator. In this position you will be responsible for
constructing, and synthesizing the motion of, mechanical and organic objects
or characters using both proprietary and off-the-shelf software. You must be
able to successfully complete animation and rendering for compositing with
other elements, based upon parameters defined by x-sheets, layouts and
director’s notes. Potential candidates must have strong computer literacy and
good artistic sense, while at the same time possessing excellent animation
skills.

Requirements include a minimum two years experience in animation production
as an animator or animation assistant. Minimum B.F.A. degree in classical
animation, or traditional fine art with course work in film or animation, or
equivalent work in related discipline.

Qualified candidates please send your resumes via Internet mail to:
flcgi_resumes@fa.disney.com or by fax to (407) 560-3297. Please do not contact
Walt Disney Feature Animation, Florida by phone.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #88, from hmccracken, 7467 chars, Tue May 24 09:54:18 1994
————————–
From rec.arts.tv
Subject: Big Boy Movie

THE BIG BOY MOVIE IS HERE!
==============================================================

If you open up this message, it is safe to say that we share an interest.
An interest in a wild and wooly character named “Big Boy”.

We are Henry Cline and Chris O’Donnell, a couple of guys who make a
living in the film business as camera and sound technicians. Been
doing it a long time, too long. So we decided to start making our own
films, documentary films that is.
Our interest in the Big Boy, like many others out there, is bordering on
obsession. And crazy as it may sound to some outsiders, we know this
is a great idea for a short film.

We have spent the last couple of years doing paper research. We have
the full support of Elias Brothers, (the owner of the Big Boy trademark
and franchise rights), but now we really gotta get started.

==============================================================

What we’re doing out here in cyberspace you may wonder?

Looking for any and all people with Big Boy info, if you have the
inclination, this is what we’re searching for:

–People with Big Boy stories to tell, virtually everyone we ask has
some humerous assocaition with the Big Boy. Even the simplest
anecdote might be the kind of thing we are looking to include in our
movie.

–Info on noteworthy folks who appreciate the Big Boy. We are
already contacting people like David Lynch and LA radio hosts Mark
and Brian, but are constantly surprised by the sheer number of
luminaries who include the Big Boy in their daily ritual. If you know
of someone, (famous or not) or even heard a rumour, let’s us know.
Info on how to contact them specifically would be much appreciated.

–Places to upload this file? If you have an idea on a forum, group, site
or hole that you think would benefit from this notice, please let us
know.

–Ideas on possible funding. We feel confident that eventually we will
be able to find enough dough to make the film, but if you have any
thoughts, bring ’em on.

–Your interest in comment are always welcome–email at will.

==============================================================

Following is a description of why we think the Big Boy is gonna make
it as a movie.

==============================================================

WHY A FILM ABOUT THE BIG BOY?

Everybody’ll seen him in one of his many configurations: that stout
figure with the eggshell skin, the brown hair in its singular towering
wave, those blue eyes, cute pug nose, and impish grin all stuffed into a
pair of red and white checkered overalls with a T-shirt proudly
proclaiming his name: BIG BOY. Sometimes he’s happily balancing a
double cheeseburger above his head, other times he’s just standing,
hands clutching his suspenders, waiting to greet you. He can even be a
Big Boy on the go: hands astride, suspended as if to be flying. He can
be 4 feet tall or 8 feet tall. You have probably seen him at his
restaurant home or possibly on a post card, T-shirt, hat or jacket.

The past decade has brought about a great interest in fifties and
sixties American iconography. The baby boomers have grown up and
are looking for those symbols of their lost youth. This enthusiasm has
spread all over the country and the Big Boy is riding the wave. So
what if he contradicts the fitness-crazed doctrine of the present day,
the Big Boy’s appeal extends beyond the foodstuffs he represents.
People love him for his robust good nature, his monumental
friendliness, and his never-changing familiarity. No wonder that while
on a recent two day visit to New York City, a place where aloofness is
required behavior for survival, no fewer than two dozen perfect
strangers gleefully pointed to the Big Boy emblem on my jacket
exclaiming, “Hey look, it’s Bob’s!” or “It’s Elias’s!” or “Where did you get
that Frisch’s jacket?” No wonder the new Big Boy Diner in Glendale,
California, where the Big Boy is seamless blended with a high gloss
fifties-diner theme, has become so immensely successful. Why, he’s so
popular his likeness is copied, slapped onto counterfeit T-shirts, and
sold at chic urban boutiques!

SO WHO IS THIS GUY?

The purpose of this short 16mm film is to answer that very question.
We
will accomplish this by blending two fun ingredients; a history of the
Big
Boy character and the restaurant he represents with short
testimonials and anecdotes.

The historical parts of the film will reveal among other things, how
Bob Wian, after selling his 1933 DeSoto Roadster for $300 was able to
open his first restaurant in Glendale, California in 1937. He named the
ten seat diner Bob’s Pantry and by using a sketch of a chubby boy in
checkerboard overalls he found a symbol and a name for his novel
dual patty hamburger: the “Big Boy.” We will follow the emergence of
the Big Boy and the growth of his empire, from that modest beginning
in 1937 to the nearly one thousand restaurants and six franchises of
today; from that first cartoon sketch penned by Looney Tunes
animator Ben Washam, to the national advertising campaigns of the
1980’s and 1990’s.

This historical material will be intercut with short interviews
highlighting many of the fans that the Big Boy has amassed over the
past fifty-five years. We will hear amusing anecdotes from faithful
burger loving patrons as well as loyal lifetime employees. We will
even meet some of the 3.3 million fans that cared enough to vote on
the fate of the Big Boy in the 1983 “should he stay or should he go”
advertising campaign. (That is three times the number of people who
recently decided the Elvis U.S. postage stamp election.) This immense
popularity will be expressed in interviews with some better known
figures as well. Film director David Lynch wrote his first feature film
while sipping away on countless cups of coffee in a Bob’s Big Boy.
Famed Los Angeles KLOS FM morning radio talk show hosts Mark and
Brian recently held a Big Boy hostage over the airwaves. And
cartoonist Ken Brown has embellished the Big Boy in much of his
work. The list goes on and on, from the famous to the ordinary, they
all have one common thread, an unyielding appreciation of the Big
Boy.

In 1988 Fred Elias said “We’re going to do our level best to spread Big
Boy all over the country.” The recent passing of Bob Wian has made it
quite clear to us that this message has reached its term. Now is the
time to document what has become much more than just another
roadside family restaurant, and show it as a part of our American
culture.

—
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
===== = ===== ===== ===== == == == == ===== = = = ===== == == = =====
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
==== = = === ==== = = = = = = = = = = = = === = = = =====
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = == = =
===== = ===== ===== ===== = = = ===== = = ===== ==== = = =====
Henry Cline and Chris Odonnell can be reached at these email address’
silsurf@aol.com/silsurf@delphi.com/henry_cline@earthfirst.org/fredphead@aol.com
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++,,++++++

==========================
animation/best.of.net #89, from hmccracken, 461 chars, Tue May 24 09:55:00 1994
————————–
Subject: From rec.arts.tv

From: tonyg@compnews.co.uk (Tony Greenway)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.tv
Subject: calling Flinstones’ fans
Date: 23 May 1994 14:00:43 GMT

I am a freelance journalist planning an article on
The Flinstones. Is there anyone out there who is
a die hard Flinstone fan? Is there a
Flinstones’ fan club? If you know anyone who
lives and breaths Fred and Barney
e-mail replies would be much appreciated.

Ta.
Tony

—
Tony Greenway, (CNS)

==========================
animation/best.of.net #90, from hmccracken, 7640 chars, Tue May 24 17:19:22 1994
————————–
Subject: From rec.arts.tv

From: hendry@helios.physics.utoronto.ca (Paul Hendry)
Subject: Animaniacs Future Episode List – last new episode
Date: Sun, 22 May 1994 16:17:07 GMT

\\ //
================================
AFEL940523 ANIMANIACS FUTURE EPISODE LIST weeks 37-43
================================
// \\

===============================================================================

It is time for another @recycle’ed edition of the AFEL. Here is the advance
schedule for broadcasts of Animaniacs on the Fox Kids Network over the next
7 weeks.

Note that the final new episode of Animaniacs will be broadcast tomorrow.
After that, there will be no new episodes of Animaniacs shown on Fox,
unless the Fox Network executives decide to contract for more episodes.
Their decision, current as of May 20th, is to continue with only the 65
episodes that they have already bought. Rumours to the effect that Fox
has actually bought new episodes have turned out to be false. If Fox has
bought new episodes for next season, they have apparently forgotten to
let Warner Brothers in on their little secret.

“Warner Bros. Animation is eager to create new episodes for Animaniacs.
So far Fox has not ordered any but they are notorious for ordering late.
Now is the time when fan response can dictate what happens.

Call Fox Children’s Network in Hollywood at 213 856 1800. You can make a
difference.”

Other ways in which you can communicate with the Fox Network about this
matter are, via snail mail:

Margaret Loesch
Fox Childrens’ Network
5746 Sunset Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90035

or e-mail:

foxnet@delphi.com

If public demand for continuing to contract for more episodes is to have
any effect, it must be done very soon. Prospects for making any new episodes
of Animaniacs for broadcast on either Fox for the season after next (or WB’s
proposed network to start in 1996) are very poor as public interest in new
episodes will have significantly waned by then. Fox’s decision is not
necessarily final, there is a possibility that it can be changed, but it
must be changed now.

===============================================================================

Date 1994 Fox # Names of Segments

Mon May 23: AN165N The Warners’ 65th Anniversary Special

The Warners 65th Anniversary Special (406-652)
The biggest stars in Hollywood come out to celebrate the Warners’
65th anniversary. Never before seen clips of the Warners. But
there’s a strange hooded figure in the wings… Ralph?

Tue May 24: AN156 Schnitzelbank / The Helpinky Formula /
. Les Boutons et le Ballon / Kung Boo
Wed May 25: AN116 Chalk Board Bungle / Hurray for Slappy /
. The Great Wakkorotti: The Master and His Music
Thu May 26: AN110 King Yakko
Fri May 27: AN129 Draculee, Draculaa / Phrankenrunt

Mon May 30: AN160 Karaoke-Dokie / Cranial Crusader / The Chicken Who Loved Me
Tue May 31: AN113 Hello Nice Warners / La Behemoth /
. Little Old Slappy From Pasedena
Wed Jun 1: AN108 Randy Beaman Marshmallow / The Big Candy Store /
. Randy Beaman Feetlick / Bumbie’s Mom
Thu Jun 2: AN120 Hearts of Twilight / The Boids
Fri Jun 3: AN130 Hot, Bothered and Bedevilled / Moon Over Minerva /
. Skullhead Boneyhands

Mon Jun 6: AN134 Clown and Out / Bubba Bo Bob Brain
Tue Jun 7: AN122 Guardin’ the Garden / Plane Pals
Wed Jun 8: AN123 Be Careful What You Eat / Up the Crazy River /
. Ta Da Dump, Ta Da Dump, Ta Da Dump Dump Dump
Thu Jun 9: AN107 Piano Rag / When Rita Met Runt
Fri Jun 10: AN142 Can’t Buy A Thrill / Hollywoodchuck

Mon Jun 13: AN127 You Risk Your Life / I Got Yer Can / Jockey for Position
Tue Jun 14: AN118 Pavlov’s Mice / Chicken Boo-Ryshnikov /
. Nothing but the Tooth
Wed Jun 15: AN131 O Silly Mio / Puttin’ on the Blitz /
. The Great Wakkorotti: The Summer Concert
Thu Jun 16: AN137 Dough Dough Boys / Boot Camping / General Boo-Regard
Fri Jun 17: AN128 Moby or not Moby / Mesozoic Mindy /
. The Good, the Boo and the Ugly

Mon Jun 20: AN135 In the Garden of Mindy / No Place Like Homeless /
. Baghdad Cafe
Tue Jun 21: AN136 Critical Condition / The Three Muska-Warners
Wed Jun 22: AN132 Chairman of the Bored / Astro-Buttons
Thu Jun 23: AN133 Noah’s Lark / The Big Kiss / Hiccup
Fri Jun 24: AN139 Smitten With Kittens / White Gloves

Mon Jun 27: AN140 Fair Game / Puppet Rulers
Tue Jun 28: AN145 Windsor Hassle / …And Justice for Slappy
Wed Jun 29: AN138 Spell-Bound
Thu Jun 30: AN141 Broadcast Nuisance / Raging Bird
Fri Jul 1: AN146 Turkey Jerky / Wild Blue Yonder

Mon Jul 4: AN121 Four Score and Seven Migraines Ago / Wakko’s America /
. Davy Omelette / The Flame
Tue Jul 5: AN144 The Senses Song / The World Can Wait / Kiki’s Kitten
Wed Jul 6: AN151 The Warners and the Beanstalk / Frontier Slappy
Thu Jul 7: AN153 Drive-Insane / Girlfeathers / I’m Cute
Fri Jul 8: AN117 Roll Over Beethoven / The Cat and the Fiddle

===============================================================================

Here are brief summaries of cartoons that have been mostly completed and
which would be ready for broadcast with only a little bit more work, but
which may never be broadcast:

The Mindy 500 (406-634)
Mindy takes a fancy to a race car and follows it to the Indy 500
Speedway. Buttons pursues in what becomes a high speed chase.

Katie Ka-Boom: The Blemish (406-735A)
Katie goes berserk when she discovers a pimple on her face

Katie Ka-Boom: Bad Hair Day (406-735B)
When Katie has a bad hair day, the entire family feels the impact.

Katie Ka-Boom: The Broken Date (406-735C)
Teen hormones go screwey when Katie thinks she’s been stood up.

I’m Mad! (406-745)
The Warners are having a bad day in this musical tribute to sibling
squabbles.

Miami Mama-Mia (406-847)
The Goodfeathers visit Florida for a visit with Pesto’s aging Ma.
Ma is getting varried to a young gull, and Pesto tries to put an end
to the wedding by whacking his future “Dad”.

Bad Mood Bobby (406-850)
Goodfeathers Pesto and Squit try to cheer up

Amusement Park (406-657)
The Warners tangle with an officious ticket taker at the amusement
park.

We’re No Pigeons (406-757)
A young owl is out hunting pigeons, but doesn’t know what they look
like. The Goodfeathers lie t othe little bird, but their fib
backfires. Hmmm… sounds like Henry Chickenhawk.

Morning Malaise (406-857)
The Warners take on shockjock radio host Howard Tern. The on the
air free for all culminates in an insult-fest between Yakko and
Howard.

Whistle-Stop Mindy (406-758)
Mindy plays with her wooden toy train whistle when the real thing –
a magnificent steam engine train – pauses on the tracks behind her
back fence. You know the plot.

Pigeon on the Roof (406-858)
The Goodfeaters send up marriage and musicals.

===============================================================================
—
— \ – “There, I’ve said it. I feel better.” – Death – / —
— \- Standard disclaimer: “I just can’t help myself!” – Babs -/ —
— /- zoo >> Fifi == SEXIUS SKUNKIUS << zoo -\ -- -- / - PPLPTPlptlpltptltppltltpl! HA! I gave you a raspberry! - \ -- -- ========================== animation/best.of.net #91, from hmccracken, 11517 chars, Tue May 24 22:38:29 1994 -------------------------- Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips Subject: Dilbert Newsletter and Mailing List Lines: 305 Look what I got today via e-mail Dibert newsletter 1.1 --------------------- 5/94 Hi. I'm Scott Adams, author of Dilbert. And this is the first-ever Dilbert Newsletter. Feel free to forward it, post it and distribute it to people who you know would like to see it (within the bounds of good netiquette of course). I've gotten about 15,000 messages from readers since I started including my e-mail address in the strip. Many people ask the same questions. So as a public service (sprinkled with self-serving promotional bits) I thought I'd answer them this way. Here are the most frequently asked questions and my oh-so-clever responses. Is Dilbert a Virgin? -------------------- Sadly, yes. I tried to solve that problem once but my editor decided the funny papers weren't ready. I drew a series of strips where Dilbert had a female co-worker who was a nymphomaniac. She confessed to Dilbert that she had "torrid romances with half of the men in the department in the past year" and asked if Dilbert thought she should seek counseling. Dilbert's reply was "Oh, I'd give it another year." In the strips that followed, it was clear that a happy Dilbert had become her most recent conquest. I always wished that series had made it through the editorial net. But Dilbert gets another shot at it this summer when he meets a woman named Liz. Liz will either take Dilbert's innocence or be killed by a meteor. I haven't penned the ending yet. I'm going to monitor my e-mail and see how the sentiment flows after Liz gets introduced. There will be a two month lag while I decide her fate. Any opinions? (If Dilbert gets lucky, I'll draw the strip one day this summer with his necktie hanging flat. That's how you'll know.) Do You Work at My Company? -------------------------- Most people ask this question jokingly because Dilbert's job mirrors their own. But a surprising number of people have heard rumors that I actually do work at their company. There are persistent rumors that I work (or worked) at HP, DEC, IBM, AT&T, Boeing, Honeywell and a dozen other companies. At IBM, one employee searched the company directory looking for me and turned up three Scott Adamss. (My guess is that the careers of those other Scott Adamss are not going too well.) An employee of Mass Mutual was so sure that I worked at her company under an assumed name, or had a spy there, that she researched all of my past comics looking for clues. She noticed a dinosaur named Dawn in a 1990 strip and a restaurant sign named "Scaparotti's" in the background of another strip. Then she found a Dawn Scaparotti in the Mass Mutual employee directory and wrote a memo to her asking if she was the spy. She isn't, but Dawn is my good friend, and both the dinosaur and the restaurant were in fact named in her honor. The truth: I work at Pacific Bell in San Ramon, California. Before that, I spent 7 years at Crocker National Bank in San Francisco. Are You an Engineer? -------------------- Yes and no. My business cards have said "engineer" for several years, but that's mostly to impress women. I work in a laboratory that develops ISDN applications. (ISDN is a technical standard for sending lots of data over phone lines digitally.) So I spend my time figuring out what hardware and software the customers need to take advantage of Pacific Bell's ISDN lines. And I run Pacific Bell's BBS and manage the data on our Gopher server on the Internet. But my background is a B.A. in economics and an MBA (mostly finance) from Berkeley. My technical training is all on-the-job, and frankly I usually don't know what I'm doing. But I get to use a battery powered screwdriver and I can surf the Internet as a legitimate part of my job. In previous jobs I've also pretended to be a software programmer. Back in my Crocker Bank days, I lied and said I could program in order to get a higher-paying job that required it. Then I quickly signed up for a programming class at night. Nerd that I am, I fell in love with it and programmed on my own time for years, developing a string of amazingly bad and commercially unsuccessful software products. But damn, it was fun. This leads me to the next question: Are You the Same Scott Adams Who Wrote the Adventure Series Video Games years ago? ------------------------------------------------------------ No. But I've gotten literally hundreds of letters from people who are big fans of his. If anybody knows where he is, I'd like to know where I can forward his mail. What's the Deal with Dilbert's Necktie? --------------------------------------- I know what you're thinking and you should be ashamed of yourself. Actually, I don't know why the necktie turns up like that. Dilbert started as a doodle -- a composite of my co-workers -- and the tie evolved. I don't remember thinking anything about it except that it looks right that way. Maybe it's a metaphor for his lack of control over even the simple things in his environment. Maybe he's just glad to see you. You decide. Where Do You Get Your Ideas? ---------------------------- About half are from my own experience and half are suggested by e-mail. If you want to suggest something, I'm always open. The best way to suggest topics is by explaining the situation itself and let me do the humor part. I use what I call the "Two Company Rule" which means I only use corporate situations I know to exist in more than one company. What Does it Take to Become a Famous Cartoonist? ------------------------------------------------ Some people have suggested it takes a traumatic childhood, or a blow to the head, or abduction by sadistic aliens. In fact, it takes all three. My advice to all aspiring cartoonists who would compete with me is to get the blow to the head during childhood (which is also traumatic) then use hypnosis to uncover the memories of your alien abduction. It's that easy. Are You Like Dilbert? --------------------- I share Dilbert's love of technology. And his career and social life are drawn from my own experiences. But my personality more closely resembles Dogbert's. Dogbert says the things I would say if I didn't fear retribution. Do You Have a Dog? ------------------ I have two cats, Sarah and Freddie. Dogs are great but they're too high maintenance for my schedule. How Many Papers is Dilbert In? ------------------------------ It's in over 200 papers, in about nine countries. Translators rewrite the strip for foreign languages. As a result, Dilbert's success in other countries is dependent on how funny the translator is. How Far in Advance Do You Do the Strip? --------------------------------------- I draw about two months ahead of the print date. Is Dilbert Available Online? ---------------------------- Yes. You can download Dilbert GIF files from America Online if you are a subscriber. Use the keyword "Dilbert" to go to the Dilbert file area. Read the directions for downloading there. You need a GIF viewer, which you can also download. Dilbert is available to subscribers of the ClariNews service on the Internet. ClariNews is a service of ClariNet and it is generally site-licensed to organizations. People interested in ClariNet feeds for their site can contact them at info@clarinet.com or phone 800-USE-NETS. Dilbert is also available on the World Wide Web (WWW) for Mosaic users. It's on the Global Network Navigator (GNN) pages. The URL is: http://nearnet.gnn.com/gnn/GNNhome.html Are There Any Dilbert Books? ---------------------------- Yup, four of them. "Build a Better Life by Stealing Office Supplies" (new material about working at a big company), Andrews & McMeel, (ISBN 0-8362-1757-8). "Always Postpone Meetings with Time-Wasting Morons" (a compilation of the first year), Andrews & McMeel (ISBN 0-8362-1758-6 ). This one is hard to find. "Clues for the Clueless" from Andrews and McMeel. It's new material on the subject of manners using the Dilbert cast (ISBN 0-8362-1737-3). A fourth book -- a compilation of the second year of Dilbert -- titled "Shave the Whales" is just out in May 1994. It's from Andrews & McMeel (ISBN 0-8362-1740-3). How Do I get Permission to Reprint or License Dilbert? ------------------------------------------------------ The copyright and trademark for Dilbert are owned by United Media in New York. You can call them at 800-221-4816. There would be a fee that depends on how you want to use the strip or the characters. When Will Dilbert be Animated? ------------------------------ It already is. CGA has created a set of short animated Dilbert business videos for meetings, workshops and presentations. The videos are based closely on themes from the strip. They're used primarily as ice breakers. Six titles are currently available: - Dilbert on Quality - Dilbert on Managing Change - Dilbert Does Sales - Dilbert Does Meetings - Just the Breaks #1 (Mingling Groups) - Just the Breaks #2 (110%). Prices start at $99. You can also get Dilbert Business Video coffee mugs, t-shirts, and mouse pads. Call 1-800-208-3535 for more information What About Dilbert Shirts, Mugs, Screen Savers etc. --------------------------------------------------- Dilbert Mugs and sweatshirts are available through the Sunday Comics Store at 203-359-6902. The mug features the strip that compared cubicle workers to prairie dogs. The sweatshirt features Dilbert and Dogbert floating in Cyberspace with the caption "Lost in Cyberspace." The back of the shirt is the reverse view. We're working on a Screen Saver now and it should be available within the year. About the Dilbert List ---------------------- I'm including you on this initial mailing because you wrote to me and did one of the things below. a. You asked to be on a mailing list or... b. You asked about Dilbert books or... c. You identified yourself as a Dilbert fanatic. This initial list represents about 5% of the people who have sent e-mail to me in the last year. I read all the e-mail personally (because my cats refuse to help) and made the judgement about whether you'd appreciate getting this. I haven't included anybody who simply wrote to say they like the strip or to ask a question. And going forward, people will only be added to the list by request. I'm using a "List Server" system to automate this process. So this will come to you from a different e-mail address than my personal one. You can subscribe to the Dilbert List automatically by sending an e-mail to the address: dilbert-request@internex.net and include ONLY the exact message below in the body of your message (except put your real name instead of Joe Blow). Your e-mail address will be picked up automatically, so you need not specify it. subscribe dilbert_list Joe Blow If you want to take your name off the list automatically, send an e-mail to the same address but include only these words in the body of the message: unsubscribe dilbert_list If you want to flame me personally, my address is still scottadams@aol.com and I read all the messages. But I may not be able to respond to all of them. The frequency of the Dilbert Newsletter is approximately "whenever I feel like it", which should be about two or three times a year. Scott Adams ========================== animation/best.of.net #92, from hmccracken, 3849 chars, Wed May 25 15:01:01 1994 -------------------------- Subject: From alt.fan.simpsons Subject: The Simpsons & the new Fox schedule Date: 25 May 1994 12:23:06 -0600 A SIMPSONHOLIC'S VIEW OF FOX'S NEW TV SCHEDULE ---------------------------------------------- Did anybody else get a good look at Fox's fall TV schedule? Some smart guy decided to move "The Simpsons" to Sunday night at 8:00, thinking one of three things: (a) there should be a large carryover audience from NFL football and the show that follows it ("Fortune Hunter", which is a James Bond clone - yeah, right); (b) now is the time to eat away at the "Murder, She Wrote" audience (this doesn't work in practice - both "Mork & Mindy" and "Family Ties" lost a large chunk of audience when moved to a spot against an established Sunday night show); (c) on Sunday night at 8, the adult viewers are watching "Murder, She Wrote", and the slightly younger viewers are pretty much split between "Lois & Clark" and "Seaquest DSV", so it's a chance to capture the small but nevertheless significant children's market at that time. Now here's the question: what happens when a football game goes past 7:00 Eastern time? (I do mean WHEN, not IF, since, for some strange reason, if a Sunday football telecast goes past that time, even for five minutes, it counts in the national prime-time TV ratings.) The standing policy for NBC and CBS (when they had football, that is) is: everything gets pushed back slightly, but nothing is pre-empted - unless the game goes past 7:30, in which case a show (invariably NBC's 7:00 show or "Murder, She Wrote" on CBS) is cut that night. (Also note that if a show is cut out east, it is cut out west as well.) Since "The Simpsons" is one of Fox's highest-rated programs, chances of it being pre-empted would seem to be small (and very few weeks actually have football extending to 7:30 anyway), but (a) pre-empting new shows is not a smart thing to do, as you can't build a viewer base, and (b) they can "get away" with pre-empting the occasional "Simpsons" episode (especially in the "dead period", assuming there still will be one, between the last fifth-season repeat and the first sixth-season episode), since there are only 22 episodes in a season. Still, those of you in the Eastern and Central time zones in the USA had better set your VCRs carefully beginning in September...and if you want to fit more that two episodes on a T-120, you'll probably have to tape it "manually". Those of us out west don't have to worry much (except for things like earthquakes and invasions of giant ants), since late football games don't push the prime-time schedule back, but be on the lookout for Fox doing something crazy like pre-empting the 7:00 show and pushing everything else back one hour, so your Simpsons tape has an episode of "Married...with Children" on it. As for "The Critic", it has been put on the "mid-season replacement" list, along with the return of "The George Carlin Show", a show featuring comedian Lisa Ann Walter, and a new newsmagazine show. Logically, the best spot for "The Critic" is following "The Simpsons" in an hour block (e.g. Sunday 8-9), but this might require some schedule juggling if one of the hour shows goes first (my guess: "Party of Five", which follows "Melrose Place" on Monday). I wouldn't be surprised if "The Simpsons/ Critic Hour" ends up on Sunday night at 7 (6 Central) against "60 Minutes". And as for "the Monday 'Next Two Episodes' listing", it will have to be changed to "next week's episode", as the issue of TV GUIDE with "next Sunday's episode" doesn't come out until "this Sunday's episode" has been shown... -------------------------------------------------- Don Del Grande, ddelgran@nyx.cs.du.edu Actually, I'm in San Francisco - I only net through Denver Wait a minute...Statue of Liberty...that was OUR planet! ========================== animation/best.of.net #93, from hmccracken, 1772 chars, Mon Jun 6 00:54:00 1994 -------------------------- Subject: From rec.arts.animation From: rcortez@drew.drew.edu Subject: Hannah-Barbera at FAO...what a rip-off Date: 21 May 94 23:10:35 EDT I was in FAO Shwartz in NYC today. As I wandered around the second floor, I found out that Hannah and Barbera were there, signing autographs. I was initially really excited and I look around to see if there was something I could get for them to autograph. Being a poor college student, I really couldn't afford the cels they were selling. Finally I spotted some people bringing up baseball caps and getting them signed. So I grabbed a hat and went up to the line. A security guard stopped me and told me that they weren't signing hats. I pointed out to him the there was someone getting their hat signed. He said that was only one person. I told him that there were several people on line with hats. He never turned around to look and still refused to let me through. The only things that were getting signed were cels and a copies of the art of Hannah - Barberra book, which I already owned (and got for a lot less than the hundred dollars they were charging). A friend of mine went back to argue with the guy. This time, the guy said that the hats were for the relatives of Hannah and Barbera, which was why the exceptions were being made. While I'm sure there are some special favors going on here, I really doubt that those hats were going to their relatives. I was fairly disgusted at that point. I pretty sure they can be fairly strict at most signing sessions, but what annoyed me was that some people were getting through, the guard knew they were, but for some reason, he chose to hassle me. Does anyone know an address for FAO Shwartz that I can send my complaint to? -Miss Rommy ========================== animation/best.of.net #94, from hmccracken, 39529 chars, Fri Jul 1 13:57:36 1994 -------------------------- Subject: From rec.arts.disney Newsgroups: rec.arts.disney Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!news2.near.net!das-news.harvard.edu!cantaloupe.srv.cs.cmu.edu!nntp.club.cc.cmu.edu!newsfeed.pitt.edu!gatech!news.byu.edu!news.mtholyoke.edu!world!lar3ry From: lar3ry gensch
Subject: DIS’ ‘n’ DAT Newsletter (LONG)
Message-ID:
Keywords: DIS’ ‘N’ DAT, newsletter, FDC, humor
Sender: lar3ry@world.std.com (Larry Gensch)
Reply-To: lar3ry@world.std.com
Organization: DIS’ ‘n’ DAT Editorial Offices
Date: Fri, 1 Jul 1994 00:27:33 GMT
Lines: 813

[Intro for rec.arts.disney posting]

IN THIS ISSUE…
—————-

We present the usual top ten list, along with an article about the
Disney film divisions. In addition, we continue our series of FDC
“bios,” and the FDC Dwarf presents a first-hand account about the
recent r.a.d “get together” at Disneyland.

Due to an extremely busy travel schedule for myself as well as for
my contributing editor (Hi, Amberle, wherever you may be…), as
well as two extremely late submissions that arrived at the
eleventh hour, this newsletter didn’t get as much editorial
attention as previous issues. The result is a rather massive
newsletter.

In addition, this is the last DIS’ ‘n’ DAT newsletter to be
posted from this account (lar3ry@world.std.com). I am in the
process of changing internet accounts to one that is more local
to my home. For the time being, I’ll still be able to receive
mail at both accounts, but this account will probably be closed
near the end of the year.

Future DIS’ ‘n’ DAT newsletters will be posted from my new
account, which is . You may want to update any
mail aliases, kill files, etc. Also, address all future
correspondence to this address.

DDDDD IIIII SSSS ”’ ”’ ”’ DDDDD A TTTTT
D D I S S ”’ ”’ n ”’ D D A A T
D D I S ‘ ‘ nnnnnn ‘ D D A A T
D D I SSSS ‘ ‘ n n ‘ D D A A T
D D I S n n D D AAAAAAA T
D D I S S n n D D A A T
DDDDD IIIII SSSS n n DDDDD A A T

“All Disney news fitted to print”

__________________________________________________________________________
Volume 2 Number 7 July 94 Edition
__________________________________________________________________________

In this issue…

o Top Ten Reasons for the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror Delay

o FDC Column

o Disney Film Divisions for the Confused

o r.a.d Members Meet at Disneyland

__________________________________________________________________________
Top Ten Reasons for the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror Delay
__________________________________________________________________________

One of the newest thrill attractions at the Disney/MGM Studios is the
Twilight Zone Tower of Terror. In this ride, guests are going to have the
magic thrill of plummeting thirteen stories in a delapidated elevator.

This ride was originally scheduled to open June 1, 1994. The date
was pushed back to July 1, 1994, and now we are being told that this date
is going to be pushed back even further.

For those that are curious, DIS’ ‘n’ DAT presents, as a public ser-
vice, from our home offices in “I’ll Sue” City…

Top Ten Reasons for the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror Delay

10. Sparky got too nervous when Imagineering wanted him to be the
first person to try out the ride.

9. Two words: “O”-Ring Seals.

8. Saudi Prince wants the Tower to be turned slightly so that it
faces Mecca.

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Top Ten Reasons for the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror Delay

7. Slight misunderstanding arose when they found that guests were
actually thinking that they’d survive the drop.

6. Michael Eisner decided that having Mutual of Omaha machines in the
queue for the attraction was not in good taste.

5. Tower architect kept on saying “Of course it’ll work… and my
wife is Morgan Fairchild… whom I’ve slept with.”

4. Personnel from nearby Nickelodeon Studios broke in recently and
placed tons of green slime at the bottom of the drop.

3. Construction crew was disheartened when they found that Beauty and
the Beast on Broadway only got one crummy Tony award.

2. Imagineering keeps saying that the Tower is as stable as shares in
Euro-Disney.

And the number one reason for the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror Delay…

1. Weenies in management keep asking for useless things like safety
tests.

__________________________________________________________________________
FDC Column
__________________________________________________________________________

The FDC is a group of people on r.a.d that have dreams of working for
the Disney company in some capacity or another. The FDC was founded to
allow such people an opportunity to pretend that they do work for the com-
pany that gave us Mickey Mouse, Disneyland, and _Freaky Friday_.
Recently, most FDC applicants are character walk-arounds, who assume the
role of their character quite literally in correspondence on r.a.d. A
number of FDC members and other people that regularly read r.a.d recently
got together at Disneyland, and a report of that trip is included as a
separate article in this issue.

In this column, DIS’ ‘n’ DAT gives some more members of the FDC the
opportunity to tell the readership of this newsletter just who they are
and how they came r.a.d in the first place. Their responses, slightly
edited, follow:

David Uy – daviduy@ee.umr.edu
David Uy (the last name is pronounced “We” in case you were wonder-
ing) has taken the fanciful title of FDC Janitor for Back Lot Build-
ing R-37. He has been classified by some as a net.artist even though
his formal art training does not extend beyond the kindergarten fin-
ger-painting level. [Don’t let him kid you… he’s actually quite
good – Ed.] David began lurking on r.a.d around February 1993 and,
having nothing to contribute at the time, continued lurking until
Neil Collins and a group of other Mermaid fanatics expressed an
interest in seeing some of his homemade cel set-ups. Since August

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1993, he has posted a number of creations for the readers of the
newsgroup. [Some of his images can by found via anonymous ftp at
ftp.ugcs.caltech.edu:/pub/disney/images – Ed.]

David’s interest in cels and animation art was actually sparked by a
visit to the Animation Studio Tour of the Disney/MGM Studios Theme
Park in 1991. Taking the phrase “I’ll do it myself!” to heart, he
did just that, experimenting with different techniques and methods
until his creations began to look reasonable. The end result of this
interest is an apartment that looks like an animation art
gallery/studio. An interior decorator would probably have a heart
attack if they ever saw a place so decorated.

David began life as he knows it in Detroit, Michigan. He hates to
admit this fact as the old neighborhood is now classified as a demil-
itarized zone. He stopped celebrating his birthday after he turned
21 and admits that he would have had to stop four years earlier if he
were a toon because he would have been drawn with a only four fingers
per hand, four toes per foot, and one nose. David’s birthday, how-
ever, does not go completely uncelebrated as the computer virus
strain named after famed renaissance artist Michelangelo by some
strange coincidence strikes on the same day. David wonders how long
it would take the average r.a.d resident to find all the hidden Mick-
eys had he been commissioned to paint the Sistine Chapel.

His favorite pastime is traveling to exotic countries to sample the
local cuisine. His hobbies include (along with trying to draw pic-
tures) photography and watchmaking and he also enjoys fishing and
hiking.

David also appears to be a laserdisc (LD) fanatic – as a public ser-
vice to other LD enthusiasts on r.a.d, David has taken the responsi-
bility of maintaining a supplemental list to Tom Tanida’s Film Avail-
ability List. This supplement serves as a repository for all the
little useless information that LD collectors find so interesting.

When he is not goofing off, David secretly disguises himself as a
graduate student at the University of Misery in Rolla, MO. He should
have been finished with school by now and on the streets carrying a
sign saying “Will Work for Food!” Fortunately, he was discovered by
r.a.d and when finally finished, he can happily carry a sign pro-
claiming “Will Work for Don Bluth!”

Lisa Shoup Campbell – lcampbel@uci.edu
When asked for a biography for this newsletter, Ms. Campbell did what
comes naturally for her. Living up to her role as the totally NON-
MUTE “FDC March-Around Dopey,” her autobiography is a bit of a
novella, like many of her posts to r.a.d. Instead of attempting to
paraphrase her, I’ll let that FDC dwarf “speak” for herself…

I live in southern California, about a half-hour’s drive from Disney-
land, The Original!, and have lived in southern California all my
life. I’m 34, so I’ve been visiting Disneyland almost as long as
it’s been there. I’ve seen it go through TONS of changes, but I
never tire of visiting the Park, and even have a coveted “Annual
Pass.” I go about twice a month, which is such a total luxury, I’m
still THRILLED to be able to do it! And contrary to what I’d feared,

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going that often has not left me jaded, or indifferent toward Disney-
land– quite the contrary! Since I go that often, I see little
details that I’d never noticed before, and I can take time to just
relax with a cup of coffee and some form of chocolate dessert
(doesn’t matter what form, as long as it’s chocolate!), and just
watch the people and soak up the wonderful, happy atmosphere there.
I appreciate Disneyland more and more with each visit, and never
cease to marvel at the magic the cast there creates!Now that I’ve
been on r.a.d for awhile, I’ve begun to know some WONDERFUL people
that I wouldn’t have met otherwise. The “r.a.d Disneyland get-
togethers” that we in the southern California area have begun to do
have been a great way to meet others with similar interests, and
there’s nothing better than seeing Disneyland with other people who
are as enthusiastic about it as I am!

I had the good fortune to visit Walt Disney World just once, about
two years ago, and while we had to abort the vacation early due to
“family issues,” I still had a terrific time, and can hardly wait to
go back. My goal is to be there October 1, 1996, for the 25th
anniversary, which will coincidentally be my birthday, so what better
present could I give myself??!

I’ve loved all things Disney pretty much all my life. I’m one of
those people who just loves “happily-ever-afters,” so Disney has
obviously always appealed to me. I REALLY enjoy introducing the won-
der and magic of Disney to people who haven’t experienced it yet. To
anyone reading this, if you’re EVER planning a visit to Disneyland
and would like a personal tour guide, just let me know! I **LOVE**
the place, and love showing it to people.

My earliest recollections of Disney are of the Park. I remember the
first time I rode on the Matterhorn, which was probably when I was
around 6 years old. I have NO recollection of the actual ride I took
that day, but I distinctly recall trying to be very brave while we
waited in line, and “telling” my mother over and over that this would
undoubtedly be a really fun ride, and not scary at all. I’m not sure
if I convinced myself or not, but I can still picture it in my mind’s
eye.

I also recall visiting the “Mickey Mouse Club Clubhouse,” and having
my picture taken with Mickey, when I was probably about 4. I think I
“remember” it more from the picture than from actual memory, but I
treasure that photo. And I have wonderful memories of the “first”
Fantasyland, and going to the Welch’s grape juice counter for a grape
Popsicle, then watching “Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day” in the
theatre there. I recall watching the construction of “Pirates of the
Caribbean,” and the “Haunted Mansion,” and being so excited when we
could FINALLY ride those rides! They were SHEER MAGIC! Absolute
bliss.

I spent my 1977 high school Grad Night at Disneyland, and waited
about five hours (!) in line for Space Mountain, since it was new
then. Well worth the wait, though, and it’s STILL my favorite Dis-
neyland ride!

I also have wonderful memories of what is, to me, one of the most
wonderful things in Disneyland: the “Fantasy in the Sky Fireworks.”
My earliest clear recollections are of the time when it wasn’t Tinker

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Bell who “flew” from the Matterhorn down to “light” the fireworks,
but it was Mary Poppins! Oh how I LOVED that! Tinker Bell’s flight
is still nearly magical to me, and if someone could grant me one Dis-
ney wish, I would wish to be that Tinker Bell for a night!

(And when I watch the Disneyland Fireworks, I will always think of my
very happy, vibrant friend Melodie, who finally got to visit Disney-
land for the VERY first time when she was 26, and had tears in her
eyes when the fireworks were through, because the “Americana”-ism of
it all just overwhelmed her. We had a *great* day that day, August
1993, but she very suddenly passed away six weeks later. You won’t
ever be forgotten, Mel!)

My earliest, *clear* Disney movie memories are of seeing The Jungle
Book, which I always thought (and still do) was sort of sad, when
Mowgli has to leave at the end. Geez, I’m such a sap! I also LOVED
watching “The Wonderful World of Disney” every Sunday night, and just
hated it when they showed a “two-parter,” cause I was certain that
there was NO WAY I could wait a week to see part two! That Walt sure
could weave some kind of magic!

My BEST Disney memory, though, is of when I saw “Snow White and the
Seven Dwarfs” for the very first time. My mom and I went together,
and I was SO taken with Dopey, and his sheer DELIGHT with life, and
his absolute joy, love, and total desire to enjoy EVERY moment, and
his total trust and child-like innocence! He’s been my ultimate
favorite Disney character ever since that wonderful afternoon, and
that happiness he brings has become a really enjoyable hobby of mine,
as I collect Dopeys in almost ANY form– figurines, rubber dolls,
original hand-made dolls, mugs, music boxes, movie posters, lobby
cards, production drawings, whatever I can find AND afford! (I
**jokingly** say that because I collect Dopeys, that’s why I married
my ex-husband, and that that was the only bad investment I’ve made so
far!, but I stress the *jokingly* part of that. We remain good, sup-
portive friends, for which I’m grateful).

I also had the extreme pleasure of being a Disney Cast Member, if
only briefly. I worked for three months this past holiday season at
my local Disney Store, and never had so much FUN *working* in my
life! When you get the chance to interact with guests who are still
enthralled by the magic, and you can share it with them, it can
really make your heart soar! I’m hoping to become a store Cast Mem-
ber again, when the store a few miles from my home opens this fall!

In “real life,” I work at the University of California (UC), Irvine.
The UC has nine campuses, and Irvine is, fortunately, near Disney-
land! I’ve worked here 11 1/2 years, after graduating from here with
a degree in French Linguistics. Much of my work is done online now,
and I therefore have managed to get FREE, UNLIMITED Internet access!
Browsing through the newsgroups one day, I stumbled upon r.a.d, and
have been hooked ever since! And of course, I just HAD to apply to
be the FDC Dopey!

I love reading r.a.d, seeing the various viewpoints on various top-
ics, and I enjoy both the “fun” posts that simply entertain, as well
as the intellectual debates that get going sometimes. One thing that
continually strikes me is how **intelligent** r.a.d’ers are! Many
“outsiders” think that adult Disney fans are people who are

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“childish,” but as we all know, we simply are able to still enjoy the
child within us all! (It certainly isn’t “childish” when, while dis-
cussing _Beauty and the Beast_, we start quoting from the ‘original’
French tale, citing specific passages; or when we get into a lengthy
debate about “Hamlet” while awaiting the release of “The Lion
King!”).

The only negative Disney comment I’ll make about myself is that I
have trouble being negative about Disney! But heck, so what? This
is the entertainment portion of life, and I like to just sit back and
have FUN with it! Again, if anyone is going to be in the area of
Disneyland, let me, or the r.a.d group, know ahead of time, so that
I/we can meet you, if you’d like. It’s terrific when one can share
that Disney love and magic with others!

[Editor’s note: Lisa has informed me that while her email may say
“Campbell” for a while longer, she’s resuming the use of her family
name, which is “Shoup.” So when you start seeing massive posts from
somebody with that name, it’s not a “Dopey” usurper, it’s still her.]

__________________________________________________________________________
A Novice’s Guide to Disney’s Film Divisions
__________________________________________________________________________

Touchstone pictures has that recognizable blue “line and circle” logo
that tells you that the following film is a Touchstone picture. Hollywood
Pictures has that dumb-looking Sphinx gracing the start of their features.
These images may be distinctive, but do little to convey the type of
entertainment one is to expect from the respective labels.

Disney has a number of studios for some very good reasons. For exam-
ple, the films “Splash!” and “The Little Mermaid,” though they both deal
with mermaids and the human males they pursue, are completely different.
And being affiliated with such an image-conscious company as Disney has
caused each of these studios to develop a distinctive “personality” that
marks its products long before one even sees the opening credits.

Since it’s true that “if you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all,” we
at DIS’ ‘n’ DAT have created a small but definitive guide for the average
film viewer to describe EXACTLY the type of film one can expect from each
of Disney’s film studios so that YOU, the fan, can wisely budget your
hard-earned entertainment dollars.

Miramax Pictures
Adult Material presented in a hopelessly confusing way. Pseudo-
intellectuals will compare films from this studio with that of Chap-
lin, Kubrick, Premminger, and Woody Allen. Attempting to watch a
Miramax film will thoroughly bewilder the average viewer, since these
films are made to be talked about, not watched. It is sufficient to
just know the names of these films. That way, you can lace the
titles into socialpolitical discussions from Ethnic Cleansing to
Clinton’s Health Care Reform and sound really sophisticated and
worldly on the cocktail circuit, without ever having seen the films.

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Touchstone Pictures
Self-important superstars and directors proving to themselves that
they are just as good as Woody Allen, and proving to the audience
that they are just as bad as Sonny Tufts. Starring in a Touchstone
Picture is a sign that a person has made it in Hollywood; it is also
a sure sign of a career just starting its decline, or vainly attempt-
ing a comeback.

Disney Films
Live-action films under the Disney label are best characterized by
the word “NO”: NO dirty language, NO nudity, NO controversial subject
matter, and NO real plot. This film division was designed to provide
material for “The Magical World of Disney” show on the Disney Chan-
nel. Feature artists that play roles in these films have recently
just sobered up after a five year binge, or have had a tragedy in
their life that makes them want to make a film that will stay in the
hearts of their children. Unfortunately, these films also end up
sitting heavily in the stomachs of everybody else…

Disney Feature Animation
Ahhh… the jewel in the Disney crown. This film division has long
been regarded as one of the best loved and most visible manifesta-
tions of the Disney corporate entity. With the nomination of _Beauty
and the Beast_ for Best Picture, however, this division has let suc-
cess finally go to their heads, despite having lot the award to a
movie about a cannibal. These people are now idealists that now deny
any association with _Duck Tales: The Movie_ and _Return of Jafar_.
They are so in love with their drawings that they won’t make any fea-
ture films whose characters aren’t plastered in every store window.
Just visit any department store and look at _The Lion King_ merchan-
dise climbing to the walls…

Hollywood Pictures
The best description of this studio is to say that it’s a cross
between Miramax and Disney Films: Adult material treaded in a child-
ish manner. ‘Nuff said.

__________________________________________________________________________
r.a.d Members Meet at Disneyland
by Lisa Shoup Campbell
__________________________________________________________________________

On June 5, 1994, at about noon, a group of r.a.d’ers finally had a
chance to meet, **face to face**, at Disneyland (The Original!). I think
that everyone who was able to attend had a GREAT time meeting each other,
and getting to know the people behind the posts. Of course, three of the
group were lurkers, so we didn’t even know them from their posts, but that
made absolutely no difference, because they are all true-blue Disney fans,
and us non-lurkers were thrilled to meet even more people!

We met in front of “It’s A Small World” at noon. Christina, from the
earthquake-ravaged California State University at Northridge, who made the
original suggestion for this whole event, wasn’t able to make it, because

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her car died! (Next time, Christina!). She was going to bring a sign,
and I (Lisa, AKA FDC March-Around Dopey! *Heigh ho, Heigh ho*) was going
to carry a red mouse-ears balloon. Meeting at the dedication plaque was a
great idea, but it’s also where the stroller parking is, so we wanted to
avoid the confusion of this group of people who didn’t know each other’s
faces trying to find and meet each other! Well, Christina never made it,
and I spent from 11:30 till noon looking EVERYWHERE in the Park for a bal-
loon vendor, but of course, they were nowhere to be found. So we wound up
mingling around, and eventually pulling ourselves into a group! It was a
little comical, to say the least.

Poor Roxane, the now un-lurked, who happened upon a woman right in
that area who DID have one of the precious red balloons. She asked the
woman if she was with the r.a.d group, and I’m not sure what the woman
must have thought! While we waited for a few more people to show up who’d
said they’d be there, I spotted a family with three balloons, one of them
red! I went over and asked if I could buy the red one from them, and
while they may have thought I was one brick short of a load, they very
kindly just gave me the balloon. They’d had them since their “Magic Morn-
ing” breakfast, and were tired of them bobbing around on the stroller! So
after I finally procured the red balloon, we waited, and waited, and
waited, and finally realized that no one else was coming anyway.

By then we’d probably clogged the exit to Small World for about an
hour, so we decided to veer over toward some shade and continue getting to
know each other! Allow me to introduce you to the group who was able to
be there.

Jacquie Parr was one of the first there, but also, unfortunately, one
of the first to leave, since she was visiting from northern California
with 10 relatives! We were glad to meet you, Jacquie, even if only
briefly! Hopefully you’ll be able to make it down again sometime!

Steve Z (AKA Steve Ziolkowski) was there, with a really cool Euro-
Disney cap on. (See lar3ry– **someone** went there, at least ONCE!).
His mother lives in Italy, so he gets to jet over there periodically, and
drops in at Euro Disney from time to time! (Lucky guy).

Doug Palmer, the very tall guy in the photos, for those of you who
have seen them, was there from nearby Long Beach, Calif.

John(Indigo) Frost, who kindly made our group lunch reservations at
The Blue Bayou, was there, and along with Doug, touted the Monte Cristo
sandwich so much that most of us had them for lunch! Yummmmmmmmmmm!
(Rule #1: Never count calories at Disneyland!).

Greg (Tigger) Orman was there, appropriately attired in a Tigger
shirt, and black and orange sunglasses! He’s a real Disneyland regular,
and is another fan of those Disney-lore stories that some of us love so
much!

Greg(Sacto) Loe was able to be there, too, although he had to leave
early, too. But at least we got to meet him! He stayed for the get-
together, and left as we went into the Blue Bayou for lunch, cause he
still had to drive home to Sacramento, which is probably at least seven
hours away by car. We’re glad to stuck around for a bit, Greg!

July 94

DIS’ ‘n’ DAT Page 9

Todd King (a lurker, but lurkers are ALWAYS welcome!) was there in a
great Lion King shirt. He works in Feature Animation! We
can watch for his name in the credits of _The Lion King_ when we all start
flocking to it!

Teri McDonald (another WELCOME lurker!) was there, and SHE works in
Feature Animation, too! Her name is also in _The Lion King_
credits, under “Finishing,” I think, and for those of you with the videos,
she also worked on _Aladdin_ and _Beauty and the Beast_, (I think those
are the ones she said!).

Roxane Smyer (the now famously de-lurked!) was there, too, and is
another die-hard Disney fan! She and John(Indigo) are the two who saw
Marie Osmond on Space Mountain, for those of you who read that thread.
She is also not only de-lurked, but has already become an FDC member, as
the FDC Fantasmic! Ninja! (Those of us who are joining her at Disneyland
on July 4th to chat and watch Fantasmic! together are hoping to see her do
her Ninja-stick routine!).

Roberta (FDC MalEficent and Sleeping Beauty Castle Walk Through sup-
porter extraordinaire!) Brubaker was able to join us, for part of the
time, although she was working that afternoon so couldn’t stay with us the
whole time. She’s been a Disneyland cast member for around 15 years, and
is one of the special group of Cast Members who has a Spirit Pin! If you
ever see a Cast Member with a pin of Sleeping Beauty’s castle on their
name badge, they’re SPECIAL! And she truly does have the Disney spirit.
She has many *wonderful* stories about the joys of working at Disneyland,
and how she honestly never tires of it!

Last but by no means least, was Steven (The Surge!) Soria, who is
listed last only because we met him last, and unfortunately only briefly.
He was hard at work as a lead on Main Street, working at the Cone Shop
when we tracked him down. We dragged him out just long enough to get him
in one of our group photos, then he diligently went back to work, but with
a Disney smile on his face! We’re hoping that another time he’ll be able
to join us for much longer!

I hope I didn’t leave anyone out, and my apologies if I did. Meeting
each other was **terrific**, but trying to get the names straight was
tough at first, since we’re used to email addresses and clever sigs,
instead of actual FACES!

(For any lurkers who may be out there but hesitant to join us– DON’T
HESITATE! The group of us had a GREAT time, and it didn’t matter if you
were a complete lurker, or as famous as Roberta or The Surge! We’re all
equal in the eyes of Uncle Walt, so come on out and JOIN US next time!)

After talking in front of Small World for about an hour, then talking
in the nearby shade for probably another 30-45 minutes, we decided to EAT.
While we were in the shade, though, Roberta pointed out a man walking by
and said, “See that man– he’s the president of Disneyland.” I think
Roberta was almost ready to hold me back, as I was ready to run after him
and, I don’t know– bow at his feet, maybe! I mean, I’ve grown up in
southern California, and couldn’t even BEGIN to count how many times I’ve
visited Disneyland, but I’ve been going since around 1963. But here, in
the space of about 2 hours, I’m hob-nobbing with “Spirit” award-winning
cast members, feature animation cast members, the president of Disneyland
walks by– WHAT A DAY! But even if all these people had had other jobs

July 94

DIS’ ‘n’ DAT Page 10

and weren’t cast members with really cool jobs, the day would still have
been one of the BEST times I’ve had there. We all just had SO MUCH FUN!
If you think r.a.d is fun– just wait till you get together with a group
of r.a.d’ers! EVERYONE has the Disney spirit, loves Disney (whether bla-
tantly or slightly cynically– the love is still there!), and loves talk-
ing about Disney!

So to anyone who couldn’t join us, I **heartily** encourage you to
join us another time, or for those of you closer to Walt Disney World,
plan a r.a.d-together there! I feel like I can almost guarantee that
you’ll have a GREAT time!

Back to the day:

We all made it over to The Blue Bayou, although Greg Loe and Steve Z.
had to leave us early. The remaining 8 of us had a wonderful, leisurely
lunch, a few of us, myself included, were introduced to the wonders of
Monte Cristo sandwiches, and we TALKED AND TALKED AND TALKED! We all
seemed to have so much to share, and it was INCREDIBLE to hear everyone’s
different stories, experiences, etc. As we were finishing lunch, the
soothing jazz trio started playing on the balcony overlooking the restau-
rant, and we were all having just a WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL time!

After lunch, we went over and tracked down Steve (The Surge!), so
that we could FINALLY meet this man with all of this wonderful Disney
knowledge and ENTHUSIASM. Even though he couldn’t stay and chat, we now
have a face and smile to go with those wonderful posts, and hopefully
he’ll join us sometime in the future.

Over lunch, Roberta pointed out that since many of us have annual
passes (a deal you can hardly refuse if you live nearby!), we could do
these get-togethers on a semi-regular basis, and we agreed heartily to
that! A suggestion of every 6 weeks to 2 months was made, and also any-
time anyone’s going to be in the area and wants to meet some of us who
have the good fortune to *live* in the area, we can meet then also!

After The Surge! went back to his duties, many of us, sadly, had to
leave. Roberta had to work, Teri and Todd said their goodbyes also, Doug
left, also, and after a little bit of shopping in the Villains store, I
had to leave, too. If I hadn’t had house guests, I would have stayed to
close the place!, along with John(Indigo) and Roxane, but, well, NEXT
TIME! Greg (Tigger) went to visit his friend Rod, the piano player
EXTRAORDINAIRE who has entertained so many of us at his piano at Coke Cor-
ner for so many years, (and who, Greg and I agreed, should ABSOLUTELY get
a “window on Main Street” if he retires some day!, although he never seems
to *age*– what do he and Dick Clark know that WE don’t know???).

Roxane and John(Indigo) were able to stay, and apparently did us all
proud, riding most of the “mountain range” of roller coaster rides (along
with Marie Osmond, who must certainly have been following them around).
They, too, visited Rod for a bit, and eventually watched the Main Street
Electrical Parade before calling it a day.

AND WHAT A DAY IT WAS! Speaking for myself, it was one of the most
enjoyable days I’ve spent at the Park, because I was with a group of
**wonderful** people who love Disney as much as I do! (My family still
finds it hard to believe that there REALLY are other people who love it as

July 94

DIS’ ‘n’ DAT Page 11

much as I do!). There was NEVER a shortage of happy conversation, and we
really became friends that day, in just a few hours. Several of us have
gotten together since then, (Doug, Roxane and I, along with some friends
and relatives, all saw “The Lion King” together on Friday, June 17, at the
El Capitan theatre in Hollywood, AND cheered when Teri and Todd’s names
went by!, and I know some other groups saw it together, also).

Teri, Roxane and I plan to get together again soon, and Roxane and I
are staking out a Fantasmic! viewing spot on July 4, and others are WEL-
COME to join us! (Roxane has posted this to r.a.d, so check there for
details). And most of us are planning to meet again on July 10 at noon at
the Goofy statuette by the Partners statue! And the WONDERFUL THING
(well, ONE of the wonderful things) about this is that most of us had
never met before June 5! But we all had such a TERRIFIC time, that we can
hardly wait to get together again!

It was a GREAT day (or did I mention that already?), and if anyone
can ever make it to another one of these, PLEASE COME! You’ll meet NICE
people, (I *know*– I’ve met ’em!), and *we’ll* meet MORE nice people, and
we can all share our mutual love of things DISNEY!

Our Next Get-Together…

This will be, (in case any of you have missed the posts about it on
r.a.d), on July 10th, around noon, and we will meet in the hub, (or the
round, virtual center of the Park), at the Goofy statuette right by the
gorgeous Partners statue of Walt and Mickey. ALL r.a.d’ers are welcome,
whether you lurk or post or just LOVE DISNEY! I imagine that
spouses/mates/significant others/friends would also be WELCOME!

Thanks for the great idea, Christina! Hope you can be there next
time!

__________________________________________________________________________

DIS’ ‘n’ DAT is an on-line newsletter published monthly by Larry Gensch.
Copyright (C) 1994 Larry Gensch, except where individual copyright is
retained by the authors. All rights reserved. Anything may be reprinted
in whole or in part with proper attribution to DIS’ ‘n’ DAT. All inci-
dents, situations, and events depicted or described in DIS’ ‘n’ DAT are
fictional, and any similarity, without satiric intent, of characters pre-
sented therein to living persons, toons, alleged NHL teams, or Disney
executives is purely coincidental. So get a life, OK?

__________________________________________________________________________

CONTRIBUTIONS

People wishing to contribute to DIS’ ‘n’ DAT should send email to the pub-
lication at the internet address “.” Please state
explicitly if you wish to retain copyright or anonymity for any material
submitted. The editor assumes no liability for unsolicited material of
any kind.

July 94

DIS’ ‘n’ DAT Page 12

__________________________________________________________________________

STAFF

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF / PUBLISHER

lar3ry gensch

CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

Amberle Ferrian

CONTRIBUTORS

Lisa Shoup Campbell
David Uy

__________________________________________________________________________

AVAILABILITY

DIS’ ‘n’ DAT is posted monthly to the Usenet newsgroup rec.arts.disney
just prior to the calendar month of the issue date. Two mailing lists are
maintained for this newsletter. To subscribe, send email to and state whether you wish to receive either the ASCII or the
PostScript version.

The following ftp archives contain back issues of DIS’ ‘n’ DAT:

o ftp.wang.com[150.124.8.99]:/pub/lar3ry/dnd/*

o yoyo.cc.monash.edu.au[130.194.9.1]:/pub/rec.arts.disney/creative/dnd/*

o cco.caltech.edu[131.215.48.151]:/pub/rec.arts.disney/creative/dnd/*

If you have site that wishes to allow anonymous users to retrieve past
issues (via ftp, mail server, or downloading) please send email with
information to .

July 94
—
(void) lar3ry(); lar3ry@mv.mv.com (new, and preferred)
lar3ry@world.std.com (old)
new .sig currently under constructio — watcH fOr fALl*NG bitz

==========================
animation/best.of.net #95, from hmccracken, 305 chars, Thu Jul 7 09:25:18 1994
————————–
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

From: lcopley@crl.com (Lane Copley)
Subject: Animators wanted
Date: 5 Jul 1994 23:27:41 -0700

I would like to discuss (only, so far) the possibility of a 40-minute
animation project by an animator for shares in the profits. Does anyone
have a name for me to e-mail?

==========================
animation/best.of.net #96, from hmccracken, 8744 chars, Thu Jul 7 09:26:20 1994
————————–
Subject: From rec.arts.disney

From: modemac@cambridge.village.com (Eric Walker)
Subject: REVIEW: THE LION KING
Date: 6 Jul 1994 09:41:21 -0400

[ Article crossposted from rec.arts.movies.reviews ]
[ Author was Eric Walker ]
[ Posted on Thu, 30 Jun 1994 17:14:36 GMT ]

THE LION KING
A film review by Eric Walker
Copyright 1994 Eric Walker

Walt Disney came up with a winning formula when he made SNOW WHITE
AND THE SEVEN DWARFS, back in 1937; over the years, his company refined
that formula to a science. With the re-birth of Disney in the late
1980s, the “magical” formula for Disney animation was re-discovered by
Jeff Katzenberg and Michael Eisner, the studio heads. Unfortunately,
these two men are not Walt Disney: they’re Hollywood studio
executives. That means that you can expect them to milk a winning
formula for all it’s worth, and not dare to push the edge. If it
works, why change it?

Because you can wear it out, that’s why. The spectacular
box-office success of Disney’s animated films (except for THE RESCUERS
DOWN UNDER, which deserved to do better) has blinded the men on the top
of the heap; as long as the money keeps rolling in, they’re not going
to want to make any changes. But they don’t see that when you rely too
heavy on a safe, predictable formula, you risk losing the life-granting
“spark” that infuses your creations with energy–and keeps the money
rolling in. THE LION KING is going to make another pile of money for
Disney, and as a result we can expect to see no changes in the formula
for Disney animated films in the future. That formula is laid bare
here:

– Pour lots of money into producing great animation. This is the
easy part. The Disney studios have hundreds of artists and the latest
computer technology to produce lavish, dazzling animation that can be
matched by no one else. There are some amazing moments here,
especially during the opening sequence (which Disney has pushed for
months, revealing this sequence at its many Disney Stores as early as
February) and a scene where Mufasa speaks to his son from the clouds.
The animation on the rest of the movie is also good, as one expects
from Disney. But is great animation the only reason we watch Disney
films? No. The formula has more ingredients, such as ….

– Create an evil, sneaky villain, and then let him be utterly
defeated (preferably in the midst of an inferno of some sort, with
lightning and smoke and explosions and fire to make it more dramatic).
With the Disney formula, there are only the Good Guys and the Bad
Guys–you know whom to root for, because the Bad Guys are always drawn
in a cartoonish way that makes them look less than human. The perfect
hero and heroine battle the freaks, and guess who wins in the end?

– Create a hero, and give him a girlfriend–but make sure the
hero is nice and bland. What’s the difference between Simba, the hero
of this film, and Aladdin? Nothing at all, other than being drawn
differently. They’re both young and naive; they both make a big
mistake; they both correct that mistake by beating the Bad Guy once and
for all. And the girlfriend must be equally bland, though at least in
ALADDIN Princess Jasmine was a major character. In THE LION KING, the
girlfriend is merely there for the hero to grow up with, and to bring
him back to face his big mistake so that the movie can reach its
climax. Why must the hero and his girlfriend be so generic and
uninteresting? So that they won’t overshadow the supporting
characters, as we see in the next ingredient ….

– For comic relief (and merchandising), through in a few goofy
characters to play the hero’s friends. These characters always act
silly, and they get the lion’s share (pun intended) of the laughs,
except during the climax when they stay by the hero’s side and battle
the bad guys.

– And of course, include a bunch of musical numbers. Ever since
THE LITTLE MERMAID won the Oscars for Best Original Score and Best
Song, Disney has been pushing its animated films as the last bastion of
the Hollywood musical. Each of their animated films includes a bunch
of bouncy numbers as filler, one Busby Berkeley surrealist musical
number, and a sappy, treacly “love” song to get the audience all
weepy-eyed.

When this formula works, it can awaken the child in us. I enjoyed
THE LITTLE MERMAID, because it made the Disney films seem fresh and new
again. I loved ALADDIN in spite of its flaws–but if it weren’t for
Robin Williams, that movie would have fallen flat on its face, because
it was nothing but Disney formula. THE LION KING doesn’t have Robin
Williams; and while it does have James Earl Jones’ booming baritone as
Mufasa, the great king, that’s not enough to keep this film from
feeling like a re-hash. There’s nothing new here, and there’s not
enough creativity to make it seem refreshing.

Sure, the animation’s great–that’s easy for Disney to do,
because they’ve got millions of dollars to do it. But there’s more to
making a great film than merely dazzling the eyes, whether it’s with
animated lions, computer-generated dinosaurs or exploding bridges
(which we’ll see in TRUE LIES). As in all great movies, it’s the story
and the characters that count, and there’s nothing in here that we
haven’t seen before. Mufasa himself is a regal, majestic figure; the
comic-relief characters are funny; and the evil Scar is wicked and
properly evil. But Disney has given us a long line of majestic, funny,
and evil characters, from Cruella de Vil and Stromboli to Gaston and
Iago; the characters in THE LION KING simply aren’t charismatic enough
to come out from the shadow of their predecessors.

As if to add insult to injury, the musical numbers are downright
awful. There’s nothing in here to match the catchy, joyful “Under The
Sea and “Be Our Guest,” or even the fun “Prince Ali” and “Never Had A
Friend Like Me.” The songs were written by Tim Rice (who also worked
on the ALADDIN soundtrack) and Elton John–who also sings the “love
theme” over the ending credits. Bleah. Disney is certain to push this
soundtrack for the Oscar…but if it actually wins, it will be
undeniable proof that taste is dead in Hollywood. There IS a
reasonably good musical score by Hans Zimmer that’s based on on African
music (though why didn’t Disney just bring in some real African
musicians to compose it?), but that’s about all the praise I can give
it.

The problem is simply that we’ve seen it all before. Nothing is
new here, and one gets the impression that Disney is merely spinning
its wheels. The Disney formula is starting to wear thin … but as
long as it keeps making millions for the company, we’re not going to
see anything different.

In this respect, one can say that BEAUTY AND THE BEAST was the
most original Disney film in a long time, because while it included
many aspects of the Disney formula (animation, musical numbers, comedy
relief characters), it actually worked on real characterization (at
least on the part of the Beast himself) and an entertaining story
(though I detested the character of Gaston). But that film proved to
be an exception to the rule. ALADDIN, despite Robin Williams’
delightful presence, was merely a return to the old formula … the
same formula that mires down THE LION KING.

This does not bode well for the long-term future of American
animated films. Hollywood is falling once again into the trap of
trying to imitate Disney, rather than experimenting with other ways of
making animated films. But Walt Disney himself knew that if you don’t
keep looking forward and aiming for something new, fresh, and
different, you’re liable to dig your own grave.

Disney has reached the height of its popularity; in fact, it may
have already passed that peak (note the troubles of Euro Disneyland).
But if corporate history has any precedents, it is that the bigwigs at
the top don’t notice that the tree is sick until it’s already rotten
and ready to collapse or be cut down. I suspect that the same thing is
starting with Disney: THE LION KING is merely one symptom of corporate
rot that is starting to seep into the Disney empire–its movies are
safe, non-controversial, and bland; the theme parks are expanding with
seemingly endless re-hashes of the same few ideas (movie-based rides);
and all of the company’s other projects (the BEAUTY AND THE BEAST stage
musical, or their proposed ceremonies for the World Cup tournament)
consist of them spending money like water to flash and dazzle the eyes
and promote themselves.

Disney is in trouble–but they don’t know it yet. The next few
years are going to be *very* interesting times, indeed.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #97, from hmccracken, 1333 chars, Fri Jul 22 09:48:01 1994
————————–
Date: Fri, 22 Jul 1994 09:46:25 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news.delphi.com!usenet
From: Mark Evanier
Subject: San Diego Con Voice Artist Panel!
Date: Tue, 19 Jul 94 22:07:07 -0500

I will be hosting a panel of top cartoon voice artists at this year;s
San Diego Comic Book Convention. The panel will be on SATURDAY at 12:30
in the afternoon, tentatively in room 14A. (Consult your program guide at
the con for a possible last-minute change.)

So far, we have lined up…

JUNE FORAY, voice of Rocky the Flying Squirrel, Natasha and so many
others from the great Jay Ward cartoons, plus everywhere else.

LUCILLE BLISS, voice of Crusader Rabbit and Smurfette

GREGG BERGER, voice of Odie and Orson on GARFIELD & FRIENDS, Cornfed
on DUCKMAN and about half the G.I. JOEs and TRANSFORMERS.

GREG BURSON, new voice of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Foghorn
Leghorn, Sylvester, Yogi Bear, Hucklberry Hound, Quick Draw McGraw,
Snagglepuss, Mr. Magoo, etc., etc..

HOWARD MORRIS, voice of Wade Duck on GARFIELD, Jughead on ARCHIE,
Atom Ant and so many others…

..and we’re waiting on schedule problems for Frank Welker, Don
Messick, Gary Owens, Keith Scott and several others.

This is looking like a once-in-a-lifetime gathering…so be there!

==========================
animation/best.of.net #98, from hmccracken, 898 chars, Fri Jul 22 09:48:55 1994
————————–
Date: Fri, 22 Jul 1994 09:47:13 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

From: brad@fa.disney.com (Brad Lowman)
Subject: Disney at SigGraph!
Date: 19 Jul 1994 19:19:18 GMT

For those attending SigGraph ’94 in Orlando, Florida next week, the
Walt Disney Company has its first ever booth on the show floor! Come by
and visit us at booth #616 on the following days and times:

Tuesday, July 26 from 10am to 6pm
Wednesday, July 27 from 10am to 6pm
Thursday, July 28 from 10am to 3:30pm

I am also posting in alt.binaries.pictures two versions of the same image
developed here at Disney for SigGraph ’94. These have viewers built into
them so that once you uudecode or binhex them, they are ready to run. There
is a Macintosh version called DisSig.dp.hqx and a Windows version called
Dissig.exe.UU. Enjoy!

—
Brad Lowman
Sr. Software Engineer
Walt Disney Feature Animation
brad@fa.disney.com

==========================
animation/best.of.net #99, from hmccracken, 2383 chars, Fri Jul 22 22:59:36 1994
————————–
Subject: From rec.arts.movies

From: tcook@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu (Teresa Lamb)
Subject: DISNEY CENSUS-32 ANIMATED FEATURES??
Date: 21 Jul 1994 21:50:42 GMT
trailer heralding “King” as the 32nd full length animated feature. This got
my group of film freaks pondering in Houston. 32? I hit Leonard Maltin’s
Disney book and tried putting together the fabled list of 32. Stopped cold
around the mid 20s, we began questioning the additions of “Mary Poppins”,
“Bedknobs and Broomsticks” and “Song of the South” since all have some major
animation sequences. At a point of desperation we contacted a Disney person
who kindly presented the following listing of Animation Features:

1.) SNOW WHITE (1937)
2.) PINOCCHI0 (1940)
3.) FANTASIA (1940)
4.) DUMBO (1941)
5.) BAMBI (1942)
6.) SALUDOS AMIGOS (1943)
7.) THE THREE CABALLEROS (1945)
8.) MAKE MINE MUSIC (1946)
9.) FUN AND FANCY FREE (1947)
10.) MELODY TIME (1948)
11.) ADVENTURES OF ICHABOD AND MR. TOAD (1949)
12.) CINDERELLA (1950)
13.) ALICE IN WONDERLAND (1952)
14.) PETER PAN (1953)
15.) LADY AND THE TRAMP (1955) [FIRST WIDESCREEN FEATURE ‘CINEMASCOPE’]
16.) SLEEPING BEAUTY (1959) [ALSO WIDESCREEN ‘TECHNIRAMA’]
17.) 101 DALMATIANS (1961)
18.) SWORD IN THE STONE (1963)
19.) JUNGLE BOOK (1967)
20.) ARISTOCATS (1970)
21.) ROBIN HOOD (1973)
22.) MANY ADVENTURES OF WINNIE THE POOH (1977)
23.) RESCUERS (1977)
24.) FOX AND THE HOUND (1981)
25.) BLACK CAULDRON (1985) [WIDESCREEN SUPER PANAVISION 70]
26.) GREAT MOUSE DETECTIVE (1986)
27.) OLIVER & COMPANY (1988)
28.) LITTLE MERMAID (1989)
29.) RESCUERS DOWN UNDER (1990)
30.) BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (1991)
31.) ALADDIN (1992)
32.) LION KING (1994)

Okay anybody got a problem with “classics” #6-#11? I had to look most of
them up to get a clue. Including “THREE CABALLEROS” adds non-animated foot-
age into the realm. This harkens back to the “SONG OF THE SOUTH” inquiry.
My synical thought is that Disney put this list together to hype a past film.
For example to promote Don Bluth’s animation team’s “BLACK CAULDRON” in ’85
they could have called it the 25th animated feature. I think this list of 32
is questionable. Does anyone have thoughts or responses?? Also anyone got a
bootleg of “BLACK CAULDRON” that is letterbox format to present this classic
at its 2.35:1 aspect ratio?? Big Bucks!
TCook

A
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
A

A
A

A
A
A
A
A
1949

==========================
animation/best.of.net #100, from hmccracken, 42422 chars, Mon Jul 25 14:29:59 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 25 Jul 1994 14:25:46 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9407251425.memo.91194@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.animation.warner-bros.

Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,comp.graphics.animation,rec.arts.disney,comp.graphics,rec.arts.movies,alt.animation.warner-bros
Path: news.delphi.com!noc.near.net!paperboy.wellfleet.com!news-feed-1.peachnet.edu!news.duke.edu!MathWorks.Com!europa.eng.gtefsd.com!howland.reston.ans.net!agate!news.ossi.com!news.fai.com!amdahl!netcomsv!netcom.com!mpsc839
From: mpsc839@netcom.com (MPSC Local 839 IATSE)
Subject: THE PEG-BOARD — MPSC local 839 IATSE — July 1994
Message-ID:
Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 261-4700 guest)
Distribution: na
Date: Tue, 12 Jul 1994 18:42:24 GMT
Lines: 951
Xref: news.delphi.com rec.arts.animation:20997 comp.graphics.animation:9776 rec.arts.disney:45995 comp.graphics:48225 rec.arts.movies:144407 alt.animation.warner-bros:1637

THE PEG-BOARD — Information Superhighway Edition — July 1994

This is a monthly posting of excerpts from THE PEG-BOARD, the newsletter
of the Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and Affiliated Optical
Electronic and Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE. THE PEG-BOARD is also
published in printed format.

This file is available by anonymous ftp, along with a number of other
files about Local 839. The address is:

ftp.netcom.com:/pub/mpsc839

Local 839 IATSE is the largest local union of motion picture graphic
artists in the world. We have over 1,600 active members employed in
animation and CGI in Southern California.

In this month’s issue:

* From The Business Representative, by Steve Hulett
* From The President, by Tom Sito
* Letter to the President, by Ellen C. Jensen Klugherz
* Strike Fund: The Debate Continues
* Strike Fund Q & A
* Survey Response Excerpts
* “What’s The ‘Going Rate’?”
* Letter To The Editor, by Ann Guenther
* “Year Of Rage” Update
* At The Water-Cooler
* In Memoriam
* Positions Available
* Animated Features On The Way
* In The News
* Masthead

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FROM THE BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVE

As I write, The Lion King has exploded for a $100-million gross in
eleven days, heading toward $200 mil like a rocket.

What a difference seventeen years make.

I was a young twenty-something nincompoop working at Disney, watching
Woolie Reitherman shred animators and storypersons for lunch, listening
to the wise old Disney vet Larry Clemmons regale me with tales of the
Hyperion days (“they called it the Golden Age, Steve, but I’ll tell ya,
when the production manager came into your room at five on Friday and
asked you to work on Saturday for free, it wasn’t the Golden Age to
me.”)

Back in those halcyon times, the era of wide lapels and bushy sideburns,
Disney animated features were pulling in big profits for the studio.
Live action was lacklustre, but The Rescuers was making $40 million
domestic and more than that overseas. CEO Card Walker buttonholed Woolie
in the second- floor hall and told him the studio would double the size
of the animation staff, would construct a whole new building for
animators …

So here we are, more than a decade and a half later, come full circle.
Animated features are once again the profit center for the Disney
Company. Videocassettes, character merchandising, huge box office both
foreign and domestic. As in the seventies, live action is lacklustre.
Only this time, management is increasing the animation staff, and
actually putting the finishing touches on a new animation building for
the crews that create the blockbusters.

So where do we go from here? What’s in it for the animation employees
who push the pencils and run the computers and turn out the product that
help furnish the upper crust with the manna for their Aspen summer
houses and their exotic cars?

From the look of things, employment opportunities are going to be
bountiful for the next few years. Time Warner, visions of Disney-sized
profits dancing in its crafty corporate head, steadily builds a Feature
Division. Amblimation, the huffing and puffing of Universal execs to the
contrary, transplants itself from London to Los Angeles piece by piece.
Don Bluth hovers over the horizon, ready to start a studio in Phoenix.

The next thirty-six months aim to be boom times in animation. What
happens after that depends on how all the new product performs with the
general public. Each of us, in our morning and evenings prayers, should
ask for The Swan Princess, PageMaster, Cats Don’t Dance and the first
feature produced by Warner Bros. Feature Animation to do well at the box
office. For it is not enough that Disney makes profits, others must haul
in barrelfuls of cash as well.

I have little doubt that other quality product produced in Los Angeles
can earn the same kind of money with which Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast
and The Lion King have been showered. And when that happy day arrives,
we will see movie producers dropping down from Mars and Jupiter begging
members of the Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists to work their magic on
technicolored extravaganzas yet undreamed of.

— Steve Hulett

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FROM THE PRESIDENT

Voltaire and his contemporaries called America a nation of tinkerers and
inventors.

Innovation and change has been an American trademark since Ben Franklin
electrocuted turkeys for his dinner guests’ amusement in the 1750’s.
Cinema, being by nature a technology based art form, is particularly
obsessed by newer and better tools. Hollywood has a tradition of turning
itself upside down every now and then with the latest thing. So it was
in 1928 with sound, 1948 with television, and 1994 with computers.

Yep, we’ve been hearing since the sixties how computers are coming any
minute and will change everything and nothing will ever be the same. It
has to be the most over-hyped revolution ever (“the Revolution will be
televised”). Well, it’s not a hypothetical any more.

It’s fact. It’s here and we are living the revolution right now.

Tron, Jurassic Park, Rescuers Down Under, Death Becomes Her … I don’t
have to spend any more print describing their technical advances.
Hundreds of magazine articles and news spots have clued in all but the
most Neanderthal that times they are a changin’. Computer animation
companies, once a few dreamers and math nerds tinkering with army
surplus bombsights, have spawned a collateral industry next to
traditional Hollywood worth millions and growing at a dizzying pace.

If you can remember Dolphin Productions, Magi or New York Institute of
Technology, you gotta see Pacific Data Images, Digital Domain, Sidewalk
and the others: hundreds of workers, top designers and artists pulling
in mondo salaries with no end in sight. Even your prez is writing this
samizdat on a Mac Quadra 605 and will later put it on the Internet where
thousands can read it worldwide.

What no one ever wants to hear about revolutions are their human costs.
When movies went to sound, theater orchestras were obsolete and the
musicians’ union roster dropped by seventy-five percent. When television
and anti-trust legislation killed the cartoon short, many abandoned
their animation careers, which is why most animators seem to be around
the same age lately.

For the human cost of our current revolution, ask an optical cameraman,
a sound engineer or a cel painter. There are no splashy articles in
Preview or on E! about how their ranks have been decimated and their
livelihoods jeopardized as they frantically piece their careers back
together. Their only sin was not seeing the tidal wave coming. Sometimes
we can be as starry-eyed about the consequences of our development as
the Manhattan Project physicists.

Folks not yet plugged in need not despair, however. Work long-lost
overseas is returning, and computer companies are desperate to get and
train people with traditional aesthetic skills (dat means you).

We welcome the new computer artists and technicians into our movement.
Not content to suffer the “computer-geek” label anymore, these men and
women are talented and proud of their role in remaking Hollywood. I once
asked several of them if they desired a special designation of computer
animator in the contract. I was told unequivocally: “I am an
**Animator!** I worked hard for that title and I’m damned proud of it!”

In the seventies, the computer industry was viewed as a nemesis bent on
eradicating our careers. Today collaboration is the norm and the AVID,
Paintbox and ANIMAC have taken their place on our desks next to our
Blackwings and Hammerill Bond.

The challenge to our union is to adapt and welcome this new industry to
the benefits of collective protection. Just like it took a while for
producers to see the computer’s potential, so now union locals are
scratching their heads to see how they fit in to the new way of things.
Of course management apologists would say they are no longer needed
(surprise, surprise).

In Silicon Valley and Marin, visionary pioneer studio heads have spawned
a paternal system of small studio management that they think can
transplant nicely into mondo-Hollywood. Their light touch is reminiscent
of the romantic era of Uncle Walt and Uncle Max. Let’s all have a beer
and go bowling. Even when these Mom-and-Pop operations evolve into five-
hundred-plus payrolls and are absorbed by giants like Phillips and Sony,
they still think their Whole- Earth-Catalog system is relevant.

Upon closer examination, their systems are dependent on heavy amounts of
free overtime labor. The employers speak quite openly about the fifty-
five-to- sixty-hour week being the industry norm. That’s not futuristic,
that’s the attitude from the thirties! A computer animator told me he
made $1,300 a week and didn’t need a union. I pointed out that union
scale is based on a forty- hour week, whereas he worked on average sixty
hours. So in reality he was making $866 a week, almost $350 per week
below union scale. The companies say they pay you back with something
called “comp time”, time off with pay. Remember when we read comic books
for several months between The Great Mouse Detective and Oliver &
Company on salary and still got overtime? Yeah, that’s Disney — but is
Sony any smaller?

Like typical non-union and peripheral companies, there’s some people who
make beaucoup salaries and a lot of people who make dirt. Digitizers at
American Film Technologies told Steve Hulett that they were working for
scale, then quoted a rate half of what the CAPS people at Disney are
getting. Many have no idea what to charge or what the guy at the next
console is making. Right now you can work for an L. A. studio from your
personal computer in Tulsa or Reno, but you have no hope of knowing if
you’re getting screwed. The employers all brag now about how they’re
bringing jobs back to America (very chic these days), but must Americans
get their jobs back at Third World rates?

Through these little companies, the big boys have tasted the blood of
big profits and cheap labor and they’re addicted. It’s no coincidence
that their mantra lately is to cut supervisory overtime and digital
painter’s salaries.

Our challenge will be to help the starry-eyed newcomer see the value of
having his or her career protected by union rights. Your union has the
mandate and the initiative to help these new studios. We are talking to
Local 16 in Northern California and Local 644 (which absorbed 841) in
New York about pooling our efforts. Casey Bernay and Hollywood Hands-On
are our voices crying in the wilderness. But remember you are the front-
line shock troops. They’re always calling you and asking for your
traditional expertise. Demand union representation. Talk to the artists
about what you have as a union member. As long as someone wants to make
art while others use that artist to make money, unions will remain as
important as ever.

— Tom Sito

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LETTER TO THE PRESIDENT

In my May column I referred to Ellen Jensen as a “sweet little old lady”
who during the 1937 Fleischer strike bit a policeman on the leg. I
received this letter:

Darling: If I ever met you I’m sure I’d remember … I didn’t bite the
policeman on the leg but on the arm until blood flowed. They were
wringing both my arms and had just knocked off my hat with a nightstick.
Of course the union thought it was great but I felt awful … I am not
sweet nor ever will be but an old lady.

— Ellen C. Jensen Klugherz

Ellen: I met you at Shamus Culhane’s house in 1979, and you’ll always be
sweet to me. Thanks for the note, T.S.

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STRIKE FUND: THE DEBATE CONTINUES Survey shows 51%-46% split; more
discussion on July 26

A mail survey of the membership about the establishment of a strike fund
has proved inconclusive, although strong opinions were evident on both
sides of the issue. As a result, the Executive Board has postponed its
decision on recommending a change to the Local 839 Constitution
establishing such a fund, until members have been further educated about
the proposal and have had time to provide further input.

The strike fund proposal came as a result of strong support expressed at
recent membership meetings; a show of hands at a recent meeting showed
virtually unanimous support for such an idea. Although the mail survey
showed a much smaller margin of approval (see below), the greatest
number of comments from both “yes” and “no” respondents expressed a
desire for more information.

The July 26 membership meeting will be devoted to a full and frank
debate of the proposal. See below and on pages 6 and 7 for further
discussion on this important topic.

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STRIKE FUND SURVEY: THE RESULTS

Should Local 839 establish a strike fund?

Yes………………..50.9%
No…………………46.3%
Undecided……………2.8%

If yes, how much should be charged per member per quarter?

Less than $20.00……..3.8%
$20.00 …………….58.5%
$30.00……………..18.8%
$40.00……………..11.1%
Undecided……………7.7%

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Q&A ABOUT THE STRIKE FUND

* Exactly how much would the strike fund pay me? Would it be enough?

Of course it would be great to be able to predict exactly how much the
fund would pay, but the answer to this question depends on any number of
variables, such as: if and to what degree the active membership
continues to increase in size; when or whether the membership votes to
go on strike; how many employers are struck; and, of course, how long
the membership chooses to stay on strike.

For all these reasons, obviously we cannot guarantee that the payout
from a strike fund would match any member’s current or future salary.
It’s more important for the member, considering whether or not to vote
for a strike, to be able to weigh the strike fund payout versus the
economic impact of giving in to management’s demands.

* Why can’t the strike fund be funded from the union’s current reserves?

It can, and it almost certainly would be — in part. Allocations of the
union’s reserves are made by recommendation of the Trustees to the
Executive Board. If the membership approves a strike fund, the Trustees
and the Board have already indicated that they would cut costs and
attempt to put as much into the strike fund as they possibly can.

At the same time, the Trustees have good reason to be cautious. Once
money is shifted from the general fund into the strike fund it cannot be
shifted back. If too much money is shifted into the strike fund and
membership subsequently declines, in a worst-case scenario we could be
faced with having to raise the dues even higher. We don’t feel a
meaningful strike fund can be paid for entirely from the current
reserves.

* How would a strike fund help the union’s negotiating committee
negotiate better contracts? Wouldn’t it just make a strike more likely?

We cannot emphasize too strongly that the purpose of a strike fund is to
avoid strikes. No union negotiating committee can ever make headway with
management unless it is clearly understood that the union’s negotiators
are acting with the full support of the membership. Strikes are avoided
when management appreciates the union’s strength.

We found it interesting that more of the “no” votes then the “yesses”
took time to complain about industry conditions: unstable employment,
runaway production, lack of residuals and a 401(k) plan. These are all
issues that have been addressed in past contract negotiations. If the
result was not what the members wanted, that’s due to the fact that we
could not show that the union membership was sufficiently ready and
willing to back its demands. That’s what a strike fund would accomplish.

* Everything’s just fine in the industry. Why even think about having
another strike when we should just be happy with what we’ve got?

To judge by the survey responses, not all members think working
conditions at union shops are completely acceptable. But even assuming
that they are, that hardly means that things will always be that way.

Looking at the history of Local 839 contract negotiations over the last
ten years, it can be seen that every contentious issue that has divided
labor and management has resulted from management demands. Remember when
we used to get triple-time on Sundays? We lost that in 1988, along with
the Monday-Friday workweek. Last year, we lost automatic dismissal pay
and we started paying deductibles for prescriptions … and supervisors
almost lost their overtime.

Even though our employment is much better than the vast majority of
unions, we’ve been in the same boat at negotiation time: not so much
making progress as fighting to hang on to what we have. We’re much more
likely to need to strike to preserve our status quo.

* Would there be a cap on the size of the strike fund? What happens to
the money if there never is a strike?

Rather than a cap, we may propose that the Trustees be able to recommend
reductions in the strike fund dues increase, if and when the strike fund
is judged to be sufficiently healthy. To maintain the fund’s credibility
with both members and employers, it should never be used for any other
purpose than strike benefits for members. In any event, we must be
prepared for the possibility of a strike or lockout every time we sit
down at the bargaining table. In labor contract negotiations there’s no
such thing as “never”.

* What if the strike fund doesn’t have enough money to support an
industry- wide strike?

Not all strikes — not even all Local 839 strikes — are industry-wide.
This is especially true in cases like ours where is no “multi-employer
bargaining unit” — in other words, each employer negotiates separate
and apart from every other employer. One employer might insist on a
contract giveback while other employers are willing to live with the
status quo. Thus, as the industry expands it seems more likely that a
strike, if and when it were to come, would affect only some employers.

One of the most effective strike strategies employed by unions in recent
years is the so-called “rolling thunder” approach where a union strikes
only at certain times in certain places, then moves on to other
employers in order to be most effective. Frequently as a part of such a
strategy, the members who remain employed pay a higher dues or
assessment to support strike fund payments to the striking members. Such
a strategy, if employed, could maximize the effectiveness of the strike
fund.

* On top of our dues, would we have to pay into the strike fund while we
are unemployed?

Absolutely not. A number of survey respondents made comments on the
presumption that they are forced to pay dues when they are unemployed.
In fact, any member has the option of honorable withdrawal or suspension
when they are not working. We have always actively encouraged unemployed
members to deactivate their memberships, allowing them to defer or
reduce their payments until they are rehired. For further information,
call the union office.

* Wouldn’t it be better for members to start saving for the possibility
of a strike?

Of course it would — and they should do so whether the strike fund is
instituted or not. As we said earlier, we can’t guarantee how much the
strike fund would be able to pay out in any circumstance. Members
probably would have to dip into savings in a long-term strike situation,
just as they have to do when they’re laid off.

* Doesn’t the IATSE have a fund to help with strike expenses?

Yes. The IATSE Defense Fund helps local unions with all manner of
strike- related expenses, including legal fees, negotiation costs, etc.
However, IA Defense Fund monies are earmarked only for expenses incurred
by local unions. Strike benefits paid to individual members are
specifically excluded.

* How would the members know how much is in the strike fund?

We may recommend that the Trustees report on the strike fund at
membership meetings, on a quarterly or semiannual basis. Also, like all
financial information about the union, it would be available for
inspection by any member at any time upon request.

* How would the money from the strike fund be invested?

The Local 839 Constitution (Article 7, Section 4[b]) requires that local
union monies can only be invested in funds or accounts insured by the
Federal government. Most likely the Trustees would favor relatively
conservative investments that mature at the expiration of future
contracts.

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STRIKE FUND SURVEY RESPONSES

37% of the “yes” votes included a comment. Unless indicated, each member
below voted for a $20.00 increase in dues. Some excerpts:

* A difficult decision, but greed is rampant with the corporate types!
(Second only to ignorance)

* Sounds good to me, we need that weapon to protect the next contract!!

* … or possibly a small percentage based on individual’s wages as (I’m
assuming) the dues are figured.

* {$40} This sounds like a good idea. These are bad times for artists
unions because of union busting.

* {$40} Let’s do it!

* {$40} I feel very strongly this fund should be established. Too many
people have extreme fiscal responsibilities destroying our ability to
use the strike option.

* Sure wish we would have had a strike fund in 1982!

* {$40} We must pass a fund of some kind! Without it we’re dead in the
water!

* Only if no one touches this account. And if it gets so big, then use
it as retirement.

* The fact that we had no strike fund hurt us in both 1979 and 1982. Of
course, with many members financially strapped for repair of quake-
damaged homes, many can’t afford large contributions presently.

* {$30} I support the fund because the union needs clout to move on to
the issue of residuals.

* Good idea! (five responses)

* I marked the lowest rate because, of course, I would like to pay the
lowest amount for a strike fund but … if it is necessary to pay more
then I will. I truly believe a strike fund is essential.

* Any amount is OK with me if it provides our union with enough muscle
to stand up to the studios!

* Even the $87.00 quarterly is tough as hell for us who haven’t had any
work in close to two years. 35 years in the business/union — I’ll
somehow come up with a few more bucks! You’re doing a great job!

* Perhaps $20 for the first two years, then $10 after 1996.

* {$30} … but, you know, the more I think about it, the more I
envision hordes of members lining up for strike benefits, then going
over to DIC and lining up to pick up work at the back door. We’re such a
bunch of whining, amoral thugs … I feel better now that I’ve beaten us
up! XOXOX

* {$30} The fund is a great idea. Whatever amount is decided on will be
fine with me.

* I may not be able to afford much but I stand by this proposal 100%!

* As some management officials increase their belligerent attitudes so
should we increase our confidence in ourselves.

* Great direction — you guys are working hard!

* {$30} You should have thought of this a long time ago!

* {$30} I think we should have struck the last time.

* A union without collective bargaining power is a social club. I want
my prescription money reinstated! I think the new Disney animation
building is an eyesore and a public nuisance!

29% of the “no” votes made a comment. Some excerpts:

* When it’s layoff season, dues are hard to pay. With added charges for
strike fund, tougher still …

* This transfers money from my savings account into yours. I will refuse
to pay this idiotic levy under any circumstances. Does this mean that
the “membership” can just vote itself any amount for any reason any
dingbat can think of.

* What’s going to happen to all of that money if there’s no strike?

* I don’t think it would help the members as much as if they saved the
money themselves. And the companies we’d be striking against are always
going to be looking for the lowest prices and get it wherever they can
anyway.

* To add additional payment to the present dues will be too much. Our
problem is our insecure jobs. We’re always laid off, on and off, on and
off, on and off! What we need is steady secured jobs! We need to stop
jobs being sent abroad!

* If this problem occur [sic], it should be the union management that
should solve this — that’s what we’ve voted them there for.

* $20.00 per quarter is $60.00 per year I will never see.

* Instead of a strike fund, encourage members to start a savings
account.

* Bulls–t.

* Be grateful for jobs!

* Maybe, if we had more information.

* Haven’t you got anything better to do with your time than to come up
with ideas like this?!

* I might consider if I knew more about how fund would be administered
and the guidelines relating to who would get benefits and why and how
and when, etc. etc.

* Fix your pension system first. Obtain residual payments for writers
and designers first.

* I need to know more details.

* It will never work for everyone.

* Other unions have done away with this — the employers did not like
it!

* I don’t trust my money with any of the individuals mentioned.

* I might change my mind if I had more information about strike funds.

* Think positive, please!

* Increased dues already remain increased.

* I don’t believe in strikes. My job is rare and I am happy with what I
do get.

* There should be no strikes. We are paid well enough at the lowest rate
and on scale. Just try to prevent work going overseas!

* We don’t make enough to survive on now without paying for more!

* I strongly oppose a strike tax. It became clearly evident during the
recent negotiations that the studios have 90% of the power.

* I find it hard to vote on this subject without knowing more about the
benefits the strike fund would offer.

* Tom Sito — get a life!

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“WHAT’S THE ‘GOING RATE’?”

That’s a question we get a lot, as the labor pool becomes more of a
seller’s market. Your new contract books tell you the minimums, but you
should also know the average overscale for your job category.

Going rates vary widely. There are, of course, many determining factors
including demand and merit and ability. A general rule of thumb is that
the lower the minimum rate, the more people are working at that rate.

There’s an easy way to find out what the rates are at your studio: just
ask your fellow employees. And don’t let management tell you you can’t
do that: the California Labor Codes specifically give anyone the right
to discuss their wages with anybody without fear of retaliation.

Local 839 is currently doing a survey of pay rates in various
categories. As soon as it’s complete, we’ll be mailing it to active
members under separate cover.

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LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Please let other members, particularly younger members, know how
important it is to keep copies of their check stubs. Twenty-three years
ago, I worked for an animation studio which did not report my hours to
the Pension Funds and I did not hang on to the check stubs which showed
my hours. I do have my W-2 showing the money earned; unfortunately that
is not enough.

Please don’t anybody else throw away the records showing the hours you
worked. You’ll regret it later.

— Ann Guenther

You should also save, and closely study, the semiannual report you get
from the Pension Plan. Check that report thoroughly against your stubs,
and then save the stubs to make sure your hours have been properly
credited for your health insurance.

If there is ever a discrepancy, report it immediately to the funds at
(818) 769-0007 or (310) 769-0007. Arrange to send them copies of the
stubs as proof of your employment. Remember that neither W-2s nor union
records are sufficient, as the records must show the hours worked in
order to be acceptable.

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“YEAR OF RAGE” UPDATE

To date one interactive computer house and a well-known non-union
commercial studio are expressing an interest in signing union contracts,
and another has promised to sign “as his work load stabilizes” (meaning
when he can pay his bills!) We even got a feeler from a large non-union
employer (don’t have a cow, man, but anything can happen!)

These shops are talking to us solely because Local 839 artists are
pressuring them so they can get their benefits. It’s working!

Remember the pledge from Tom Sito’s January column: say “no” to at least
one job this year only because it’s non-union. Make your feelings known
to your employer! Keep up the pressure!

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AT THE WATER-COOLER

Welcome to our newest Executive Board member, EARL KRESS, who has been
appointed to the position left vacant by ENRIQUE MAY’s resignation. Earl
is the first working freelance writer to serve on our board since Steve
Hulett, and only the third in the last twenty years. We look forward to
his expertise and support … TODD KUROSAWA is honeymooning in
Switzerland, having tied the knot on June 18 … Animation magazine
editor RITA STREET went down the aisle July 3. Congrats to one and all!

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IN MEMORIAM

* Retired layout artist and 1984 Golden Award winner DICK BICKENBACH
died on June 28 at the age of 86. From 1930 until his retirement in 1975
he worked for Universal, Ub Iwerks, Skippy, MGM, Warners, Grantray-
Lawrence and Hanna- Barbera.

* Retired inker and final checker ELLEN CHRISNEY died on May 7. From
1947 until her retirement in 1983, she worked for Larry Harmon, Format
and Disney.

* JACK HANNAH, animator, teacher and director of more than a hundred
Donald Duck cartoons, died on June 11 at the age of 81.

Hannah worked for Disney from 1933 to 1959. He directed sixty-five
shorts, eight of which were nominated for Academy Awards, as well as
fourteen hour- long TV shows, including skits with Walt Disney at his
desk talking to Donald Duck. After leaving Disney, Hannah worked in the
1960s on stories for live- action films and with Walter Lantz, directing
several Woody Woodpecker cartoons.

His retirement did not mean an end to his work. Hannah developed the
School of Character Animation at the California Institute of the Arts.
He was on the CalArts staff for eight years, and also taught painting
classes.

* Retired assistant animator CLARENCE “C. K.” ROBINSON died on April 15.
From 1940 until he retired in 1977, he worked for Disney, Screen Gems,
Herb Lamb, Eagle, Ed Graham and Filmation.

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POSITIONS AVAILABLE

WARNER BROS. FEATURE ANIMATION IS NOW HIRING ARTISTS

Warner Bros. Studios is now seeking professional artists with experience
in the field of animation to create and staff its new Feature Animation
division. Opportunities are now available for artists with several years
of professional experience in the following areas:

* Animation
* Background Painting
* Computer Animation
* Layout (Scenic Illustration)
* Special Effects
* Storyboard
* Visual Development & Character Design
* Animation Technologies & Engineering

If you are interested in exploring employment opportunities, please mail
or fax your resume to:

Warner Bros. Feature Animation
Attn. Director of Recruiting
15303 Ventura Blvd., Suite 500
Sherman Oaks, CA 91403
Fax: (818) 981-4913
Tel: (818) 954-7555 (you may call collect)

* * *

“AND EVERYTHING INBETWEEN …”

Disney Feature Animation is currently seeking Character and Effects
Inbetweeners for immediate openings on their upcoming productions,
Pocahontas and The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Testing opportunities for
these positions will commence during the month of July and continue into
August.

The test will be administered on-site at Walt Disney Feature Animation,
Monday through Friday starting at 9:00 am. Applicants will be asked to
arrive by 8:45 am to receive instruction. The test will be six hours in
length with an hour break for lunch. Candidates will have their choice
between two tests depending on their level of expertise.

Upon arrival to your testing appointment, artists should bring 10 to 15
Xerox samples of Life Drawings representative of your portfolio. These
will be circulated with your completed test during the evaluation
process. You will be contacted once the evaluation process is complete.

Any interested artists are encouraged to call. For those who may not be
available to work during the week, a Saturday date will be available to
you.

For scheduling test appointments or further information please call
Marina Shibuya or Philip Williams at the Feature Animation Recruitment
Center at (818) 544-2130.

* * *

Capilano College * North Vancouver, B. C. Canada

In response to the increasing demand for skilled animation artists,
Capilano College is introducing a Commercial Animation Program. Classes
will begin this fall. A regular full-time faculty position is available
immediately. Duties: To organize, develop, and implement this new
program; to teach traditional film animation skills; to liase with the
commercial animation industry. Qualifications: Required: extensive
experience in all phases of commercial film animation. Desirable:
experience in teaching film animation skills and concepts, preferable in
a post-secondary educational institution; post- secondary degree in a
related field. Salary: To $60,056 (Cdn) depending upon experience.
Comprehensive benefit plan.

Applications to: Dean, Career and Vocational Programs, Capilano College,
2055 Purcell Way, North Vancouver, B. C. V7J 3H5

* * *

California Institute Of The Arts * School Of Film/Video * Assistant to
Equipment Supervisor

This position reports to the Cage Supervisor and is responsible for
assisting with the film and video equipment and editing facilities
provided for use by faculty in classes and by students for their shoots.
This is a continuing, full-time, nine-month staff position for each
academic year.

Responsibilities include: Assist with reservations and checkout of
equipment; maintain inventory, general troubleshooting. Qualifications:
Knowledge of film and video equipment, computer experience, general
equipment maintenance.

Resumes to: Myrna Saltzberg, Personnel Director, California Institute of
the Arts, 24700 McBean Parkway, Valencia, CA 91355

* * *

Help wanted: Free-lance character designers for children’s game. Hip,
street style, humorous cartoonists, non-violent. Call Roselyn, (310)
559-4545.

* * *

Unemployed airbrusher needed to work on member’s car. Deanna Spears,
(805) 298-2298.

* * *

For sale: Light table, 25″ by 38″. $100. Clay Burdick, (818) 761-9065.

* * *

The second annual Kids Street Fair benefitting the Samuel Goldwyn
Children’s Center will be held September 11 at the Center in West Los
Angeles. They are once again asking for the support of Local 839
members. For information call Marcia Braunstein at (818) 224-3863.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

ANIMATED FEATURES ON THE WAY

There are now more animated features in production or development in Los
Angeles than ever before in entertainment history. Projects in the works
include:

AMBLIMATION — Studio scheduled to relocate from London over next six
months. Some key personnel now in town. Several properties in
development, including Cats and a property based on Roman mythology.

DISNEY — Pocahontas: now in animation, scheduled for a summer 1995
release.

Hunchback of Notre Dame: now in animation, scheduled for a Christmas
1995 release.

Fa Mulan: now in development, with most animation to be done in Florida.
Scheduled 1996 release.

Fantasia Continued: now in development, scheduled for a 1996 or 1997
release.

Hercules: now in development, scheduled for a 1996 or 1997 release.

HANNA-BARBERA — The Pagemaster: animation being completed, scheduled
for a November 1994 release.

Cats Don’t Dance: animation 20% completed, scheduled for a 1995 release.
Several other features, currently untitled, are in development.

RICH ENTERTAINMENT — The Swan Princess: animation completed, cleanup
completed end of July, scheduled for a November 1994 release.

Untitled Feature — now in development, scheduled to go into production
in three to six months.

WARNER BROS. FEATURE ANIMATION — Numerous projects currently in
development. No directors or producers currently attached to any of
them. Division is still in the process of staffing; recently wrapped
negotiations with Local 839.

Note that all release dates are subject to change. As one source said to
the Peg-Board: “We were supposed to finish story work on Pocahontas in
June 1993, and we’re still working on it.”

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

IN THE NEWS

DISNEY’s The Lion King took in $142 million through July 10, making it
the forty-sixth biggest all-time grosser. Industry projections are for
Lion to leap the $200 million barrier with ease …

We hear through the grapevine that Florida animation staffers are
starting to raise the issue of wage parity with animation personnel in
California. We’ve always been told it’s much cheaper to live in Florida
… especially if you’re an orange. Seriously, we wish them luck …
Warners producer TOM RUEGGGER has signed a multi-year deal …

Last month the FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION heard testimony from
more than two dozen witnesses on the state of children’s TV programming.
The hearing came as public interest groups such as ACT pressured the
agency to order broadcasters to carry an hour a day of educational
programming for children. Alternatively, ACT founder Peggy Charren has
suggested that the FCC consider dropping all regulations of children’s
TV content, in exchange for collecting $100 million per year from
commercial broadcasters to be funneled into PBS programming …

* * *

Normally, letters requesting honorable withdrawal from the union are not
exactly worthy of mass publication, but this missive from a member who’s
moved out of town caught our eye:

To Whom It May Concern at Good Ol’ Local 839:

Please place me amongst the illustrious ranks of those on honorable
withdrawal until some filthy rich union studio in L.A. begs me to work
for them, or I go broke and have to come back and eat all the “I-told-
you-so’s” in the world.

Thanks a heap, your Brother In Labor,

* * *

We’ve heard horror stories about non-union conditions, but this ad for a
South Carolina company from the May/June issue of Animation magazine,
takes the cake:

“DUNGEON INK & PAINT

“WE’LL SQUEEZE THE BLOOD out of our staff to get your ink-and-paint
project done ON TIME … and ON BUDGET! Our animators and in-betweeners
are just DYING to help with your next project. They just love to get out
of the PIT … to work on things.

“Inmates and slaves trained to digitally computer scan, paint and frame
… Our one-armed staff still hand ink-and-paint … The legless crew
are nailed to the Oxberrys.

“Please give us a call … so you can experience the Dungeon.

“CHAINED TO THE WALL AND WAITING!”

Note to employers: please do not call the union office asking for these
guys’ phone number …

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

MOTION PICTURE SCREEN CARTOONISTS
AND AFFILIATED OPTICAL ELECTRONIC AND GRAPHIC ARTS,
LOCAL 839 IATSE
4729 Lankershim Boulevard, North Hollywood, CA 91602-1864
phone (818) 766-7151 * fax (818) 506-4805
E-mail inquiries: mpsc839@netcom.com
Anonymous FTP: ftp.netcom.com:/pub/mpsc839
PRESIDENT — Tom Sito
BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVE — Steve Hulett
VICE-PRESIDENT — George Sukara
RECORDING SECRETARY — Jeff Massie
SERGEANT-AT-ARMS — David Teague
PEG-BOARD EDITOR — Jeff Massie
EXECUTIVE BOARD
Viki Anderson * Bronwen Barry * Sheila Brown * Jan Browning
James Davis * Earl Kress * Craig Littell-Herrick * Tom Ray
Pat Sito * Ann Sullivan * Stephan Zupkas
TRUSTEES — Pat Sito * Ann Sullivan * Stephan Zupkas

Contents (c) 1994 by MPSC Local 839 IATSE. All rights reserved.
Publications of bona fide labor organizations may reprint articles from
this newsletter so long as attribution is given. Permission is also
given to distribute this newsletter electronically so long as the ENTIRE
contents are distributed, including this notice.
—
_______________________________________________________________________________
Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and 4729 Lankershim Blvd.
Affiliated Optical Electronic and North Hollywood, CA 91602-1864
Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE phone (818) 766-7151 * fax (818) 506-4805
ANONYMOUS FTP: ftp.netcom.com:/pub/mpsc839 E-MAIL: mpsc839@netcom.com

==========================
animation/best.of.net #101, from hmccracken, 1245 chars, Tue Aug 2 23:11:10 1994
————————–
Subject: From alt.animation.warner.bros

Subject: “Flintstones” Moves Faces Blanc Lawsuit!
From: ngsippel@miavx1.acs.muohio.edu
Date: 30 Jul 94 23:17:51 -0500

FYI:

I was watching Entertainment Tonight the other night, and there is
an interested lawsuit going on right now.

Apparently, Hanna-Barbara did not acknowledge Mel Blanc’s Dino voice
in the new Flintstones movie (in either money or credit). So, the
estate of Mel Blanc is suing Hanna-Barbara for damages and to force
the credit of Dino’s voice to be changed from “DINO as DINO” to
“MEL BLANC as DINO”.

Hanna-Barbara claims that the Dino voice is a sound effect, so they
were within their rights.

We’ll just have to wait to see who wins. (IMHO, I hope Blanc’s estate wins.)

—
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
“Even in the future, nothing works!” Norman G. Sippel
— Dark Helmet, “SpaceBalls” ngsippel@miavx2.ham.muohio.edu
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
We are Nickelodeon. You will be assimilated. Your opinion is irrevalant.
Self determination is irrevalant. You will be assimilated. We are Nick.
— “The Borg” Gerry Laybourne and Vanessa Coffey

==========================
animation/best.of.net #102, from switch, 3145 chars, Wed Aug 17 10:12:43 1994
————————–
From: frank@yensid.ness.com (Frank Hagan)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.disney
Subject: Disney on InfoSupHwy
Message-ID: <08111994.193057@yensid.ness.com>
Date: 11 Aug 94 19:30:57 PST
Reply-To: frank@yensid.ness.com
Lines: 67

Cross posted to rec.arts.disney and the RIME Disney Conference

—————- Begin Quoted Material ———————–

Disney, Baby Bells team up in video venture
By E. Scott Reckard, The Associated Press

A man peers at his TV, where Mickey Mouse explains how to click a remote
control to write a check, buy underwear, summon “The Lion King” or buy
Disney’s box-office flop “Renaissance Man” on home video — all without
leaving the sofa.

Hey, three Baby Bells like the idea.

Despite its frequent scorn for “information highway” alliances, the Walt
Disney Co. said yesterday that it’s teaming up with a trio of regional
phone companies to deliver video programs and services into homes.

Disney disclosed no financial details and only the broadest outlines of
its venture, saying it would devise a business plan with Ameritech
Corp., BellSouth Corp., and Southwestern Bell Corp., which have 50
million customer lines in 19 states.

The companies said they would develop a “navigator” to help make the
services user-friendly, raising the prospect of Mickey as pathfinder
through the video universe.

Disney Chief Executive Michael D. Eisner had been a vocal skeptic about
entertainment companies getting involved with the hardware that delivers
entertainment and information into homes.

Indeed, his disinterest verged on scorn last year at an “information
superhighway” summit called in Los Angeles by Vice President Al Gore.
Eisner said he understood content but not delivery, and intended to
stick with what he understood.

But in a statement yesterday, he said Disney hopes to “use
technological breakthroughs and new entertainment delivery systems to
provide consumers with a compelling and creative array of programming.”

“It’s the first time since the summit in L.A. that Mr. Eisner has
actually agreed to play in Mr. Gore’s back yard,” said Christopher P.
Dixon, a Paine Webber analyst.

Tom Skaggs, Disney’s vice president for corporate development and
acquisitions, said the alliance is really just another way for Disney
to achieve its core business — getting programming to people.

Staggs said Disney would provide much of the content for the video
venture but may buy extensive programming and services from other
suppliers.

Disney announced last month that it would license several characters to
MicroSoft Corp. to be used in CD-ROMs, another alliance positioning the
entertainment company to benefit from cutting edge technology without
having to develop it.

———————- End of Quoted Material ————————

()_() RIME Disney Conference Host
(_) Frank Hagan ->THEMAIN
—
~ OLX 1.52 ~ RIME Men’s Roundtable and Disney Conference Host

VQWK 6.20 [Rev H – 04/04/94]
Part of the Magic of Mickey’s Kingdom BBS (909) 242-3975
Miracles from Molecules are dawning everyday in Adventures thru Inner Space

==========================
animation/best.of.net #103, from hmccracken, 15482 chars, Fri Aug 19 22:44:57 1994
————————–
Subject: From alt.tv.simpsons
Path: news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!yale!zip.eecs.umich.edu!newsxfer.itd.umich.edu!europa.eng.gtefsd.com!library.ucla.edu!agate!biosci!muug.mb.ca!davehall
From: davehall@muug.mb.ca (Dave Hall)
Newsgroups: alt.tv.simpsons
Subject: [list] The Homer File V1.2
Date: 17 Aug 1994 07:22:57 -0700

Lots of new stuff. I like to thank Suresh Goel, Andrew Shaw, Rick Diamant
and others who contributed their observations. I laugh myself silly.
(Homer making a home-made football. 🙂

_____________________
/ The Homer File V1.2 \_______________________________________________________
|
Maintained by Dave Hall (davehall@muug.mb.ca) |
==============================================================================
“Ah, sweet pity. Where would my love life have been without it?”
– Homer

>>Homer’s Age & Weight
According to 9F02, Homer is 36 and weights 239 pounds.

>>Homer Episodes
[7G03] Homer’s Odyssey
[7G10] Homer’s Night Out
[7F01] Two Cars in Every Garage, Three Eyes on Every Fish
[7F02] Simpson and Delilah
[7F05] Dancin’ Homer
[7F11] One Fish, Two Fish, Blowfish, Blue Fish
[7F12] The Way We Was
[7F13] Homer vs. Lisa and the 8th Commandment
[7F16] Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?
[7F20] War Of The Simpsons
[7F22] Blood Feud
[7F23] When Flanders Failed
[7F24] Stark Raving Dad
[8F04] Homer Defined
[8F06] Lisa’s Pony
[8F08] Flaming Moe’s
[8F09] Burns Verkauft das Kraftwerk
[8F10] I Married Marge
[8F12] Lisa the Greek
[8F13] Homer at the Bat
[8F14] Homer Alone
[8F19] Colonel Homer
[8F23] Brother, Can You Spare Two Dimes?
[9F01] Homer the Heretic
[9F07] Mr. Plow
[9F09] Homer’s Triple Bypass
[9F12] Brother from the Same Planet
[9F14] Duffless
[9F15] Last Exit to Springfield
[9F17] So It’s Come to This: A Simpsons Clip Show
[9F21] Homer’s Barbershop Quartet
[1F02] Homer Goes to College
[1F07] The Last Temptation of Homer
[1F09] Homer the Vigilante
[1F10] Homer and Apu
[1F13] Deep Space Homer
[1F14] Homer Loves Flanders
[1F20] Secrets of a Successful Marriage

>>Bonehead Antics
[7G09] Shoving a handful of bees and honey into his mouth
[8F04] take Lisa to Moe’s’ Tavern
[8F07] smoking a cigar while welding next to a leaky can of gasoline
[8F13] makes home-made football {sg}
[????] starts a house fire
[9F13] rummages through the Flanders’ trash. Finds a toothbrush and
actually using it.
[9F16] getting a plunger stuck to his head
[1F08] trying to teach Maggie how to gamble
[1F03] has both arms stuck in vending machines, only because he won’t let
go of the soft drink & candy. {rd}

>>Whining or crying
[7G04] Bad-mouthing his family to the man upstairs
[7F01] begs Marge to cook supper for Burns
[7F07] citing the most pathetic family to the man upstairs
[7F14] SLH ate his `Big cookie’
[7F14] Lisa’s speech about giving up SLH
[7F21] Bart sold his Duff beer
[8F07] being a bad father to Bart
[8F14] bowling lane balls
[8F17] when Santa’s Little Helper goes missing {as}
[8F18] can’t open pudding without Marge {sg}
[8F23] when the couch breaks down
[9F02] selling his `Duff Blip’ ride ticket
[1F06] thinks they are going to die in the ocean {sg}
[1F20] when saying that TV won’t give him half an hour to himself. {as}

>>Cursing
[8F02] Turkey sandwich
[8F15] stubby fingers
[8F16] 1. trying to build a doghouse
2. putting $20 in the church collection plate
3. missing the last bowling pin
4. indirectly getting Ned a job in a TV commercial
5. bees land on top of him and sting him all over. {as}
[1F04] Homer Simpson {for eating the emergency donut}
[1F09] magic beans.

>>Simians gags
[7G01] Lady at the Baby-sitting Service called Homer an ape
[7G02] Bart referred to him as a balding North American ape
[7G09] acting like an ape/Big Foot
[7G10] Burns calls Homer an over-sexed orangutan in heat
[7F05] Bart is stated to have call him one sad ape-like dude
[7F08] jumping up & down, beating his chest and screeching like an ape
[7F10] Burns calls him a big ape and wants to buy him off with a banana
or two
[7F19] Lisa called him a baboon
[8F06] `2001: A Space Odyssey’ dream sequence
[8F18] Marge calls Homer a “big ape” {sg}
[9F04] second story (“KING HOMER”)
[1F13] his skeletal structure as he walks through the X-ray machine. {mk}
[1F21] Homer asks Maggie to point to the monkey on TV and Maggie points
to him. {sg}

>>Missing the point
[7F07] Asking the operator for the number to 911
[9F09] needing a heart triple Bypass operation.
[9F22] doesn’t understand his new name was Thompson. {rd}

>>Kissing
[7F11] Moe’s bar denizens
[8F14] Chief Wiggum
[8F23] Herb
[1F14] Ned
[1F16] Hans Moleman (Raliph Melish).

>>TV idolizing
[7F12] Dear God, just give me one channel!
[8F10] Don’t you ever, ever talk that way about television.
[9F03] [Bart: TV sucks!]
I know you’re upset right now, so I’ll pretend you didn’t say
that. {rd, sg}
[9F05] I wish I brought a TV. Oh God, how I miss TV!
[9F09] It’s not easy to juggle a pregnant wife and a troubled child, but
somehow I managed to fit in eight hours of TV a day.
[1F20] It’s those TV networks, Marge. They won’t let me. One quality
show after another, each one fresher and more brilliant than the
last. {rd}
[????] TV, have you turned on me too?

>>Flashbacks
[7F12] Dating Marge
[7F16] Abe’s wife giving birth to him
[7F16] his voice breaks while singing in a choir. {as}
[8F10] marrying Marge; Bart’s birth
[8F17] Carving the Turkey {as}
[9F06] learning the birds and the bees by watching monkeys `attack’
each other.
[9F08] first years of married life
[9F14] buying beer with a fake ID
[9F17] a retrospect of past episodes:
– Getting hit in the head by Bart’s baseball. (7G11)
– getting hit by a baseball. (8F13)
– Band-saw hitting his head. (8F06)
– Kwik-E-Mart sliding doors hitting his head. (8F06)
– getting whacked by Maggie. (7F09)
– electric shock theory session. (7G04)
– falling down Springfield Gorge. (7F06)
– bringing SLH to the Animal Hospital. (8F17)
– trying to catch dinner (with Bart). (7G09)
– carrying Marge to his car at SNPP. (7G11)
– his chocolate fantasy. (8F09)
– his dream. (8F06)
– begging Burns for money. (8F17)
– listening to Lisa play her sax. (7F11)
– catching Bart swiping his change jar. (8F22)
– watching Bart and his friends fight in the treehouse. (7F21)
– showing Bart how to shave. (7F11)
[1F18] home movies.

>>Mooning his butt at Death {el, rd}
[7G03] Taking that last dip off a bridge {dh}
[7F06] fell down Springfield gorge {9F17 stated he did it twice-dh}
[7F11] thought he ate poison blow fish {??}
[8F04] nuclear meltdown {??}
[8F07] smoking a cigar while welding next to a leaky can of gasoline {dh}
[8F11] throwing a loaded shotgun to the floor
[8F13] holding sheet metal over head in a thunderstorm {??}
[8F13] nearly chokes to death on doughnuts {??}
[9F01] House fire {??}
[9F07] nearly falls off a cliff {??}
[9F09] has heart attack in Burns office
[9F10] nearly crashing the Monorail {dh}
[9F17] beer can explodes in his face
[1F03] drove over edge of chasm {??}
[1F05] falls off the cliff {??}
[1F06] lost at sea {??}
[1F07] jumps out of an elevator and falls off a cooling tower
[1F09] cocks a loaded shotgun before looking down the barrel
[1F13] nearly lost in space {??}
[1F15] falls into a tar pit. {??}

>>Talking to his brain
[8F07] Homer’s brain uses reverse psychology in getting Homer to use
reverse psychology on Bart
[9F12] the interviewer asks Homer why he wants a littler brother. Brain
tells mouth not to say `revenge’, but mouth says it anyway {cs,as}
~[9F13] tries to figure out what special day he missed
[9F14] loses track of what his brain says and what his mouth says {cs}
[9F16] Homer makes a deal with his brain to complete an exam so he can go
back to killing it with beer
[1F06] Homer tells his brain to shut-up or he’ll stab it with a Q-tip
[????] finds $20 and asks his brain to explain how money can buy lots of
peanuts {as}
[1F20] telling his brain that he would have to think up a way of getting
Marge back. {as}

>>Homer’s food obsession
[7F23] Eating people’s leftovers
[9F02] eating a large container of Petroleum jelly
[9F05] dish soap sample
[9F06] eating seafood; eating 10 pound bag of flour when there was
nothing else to eat
[9F09] eating a smorgasbord in bed
[9F11] his 10 foot hoagie
[1F04] eating forbidden donut and later his own head {rd}
[1F07] taking a box of donuts into the bathroom; eating a packet of gravy
mix found in SNPP parking lot
[1F10] eating rancid meat
[1F16] eating flowers in bathroom. {rd}

>>Strangling Bart
[7F02] after Bart spilt his bottle of Dimoxinil
[8F05] when Bart says he won’t even use the bathroom after him.
[8F11] when he realizes Bart fooled him with a fake radio announcement
[1F20] after Bart says that Homer double-dared him. {as}

>>Sage Advice
[7F11] The three little sentences that will get you through life:
1. Cover for me.
2. Oh, good idea, Boss!
3. It was like that when I got here.
[8F07] If stuff starts flying, just turn your head!
[8F08] You know, if you tip the glass, there won’t be so much foam on top.
[8F19] Marge, it takes two to lie. One to lie and one to listen.
[8F13] Its a crock, no matter how good you are there is someone better.
[Bart then says “Can’t win, don’t try”] {sg}
[8F21] If something’s hard to do then it’s not worth doing {sg}
[9F05] If something goes wrong…blame the guy who can’t speak English.
[1F15] Son, when you participate in sporting events, it’s not whether you
win or lose — it’s how drunk you get.
[1F16] Kids, you tried your best, and you failed miserably. The lesson
is, never try.
[????] And there’s nothing wrong with hitting someone when his back is
turned.

>>Important Events
[7G03] Promoted to Safety Inspector from technical supervisor
[7F02] grows hair; promoted to better position at SNPP {But loses both.}
[7F12] falls in love with Marge
[8F10] marries Marge; Bart is born
[8F24] grows two more hair strands {But loses both.}
[9F08] brought first home with Abe’s money; Lisa is born
[1F13] shot into space.

>>A peek into the future
[9F03] seeing I&S:TM with middle-aged Bart
[9F16] attending a 50th high school reunion.

>>Boyhood/life long dream
[9F10] Monorail conductor / run out on a baseball field during a game
[8F19] manage a beautiful country singer / eat the world’s biggest hoagie

>>Best day of his life
[9F01] 1. findings a penny {new winner}
2. marrying Marge
3. dancing around an overturned beer truck
[9F08] A baby, a free burger and an hour-long episode of `Mama’s Family’

>>Signs of Intelligence
[9F07] Telling the insurance adjuster that Moe’s (Tavern) is a
pornography shop so he can get his insurance money from wrecking
the car
[9F10] realizes he could get killed by slipping on a bar of soap.

>>Correcting Bart or Lisa {rd}
[1F15] Lisa, a guy who’s got lots of ivory is less likely to hurt
Stampy than a guy whose ivory supplies are low.
[????] Bart, you’re saying butt-kisser like it’s a bad thing!

>>Misc titbits
[8F01] couldn’t touch his own nose
[9F09] when he dies, Homer wants to be stuffed and put on the couch as a
reminder for Marge about their marital vows
[9F09] stated to have visited Hell
[MISC] often writes fist-like.

>>Seen in underwear
[7G10] In bathroom, getting ready for work
[8F22] when Bart swipes his change jar
[9F05] when he asks Marge if she seen his lunch box.

>>`D’oh!’ Count List
[8F16] While trying to think of someone who has got rich by doing yo-yo
tricks; when a piece of wood is nailed to his coat. {as}

[1F20] Three times when picking up the cards in the poker game. {as}

[8F17] Two when he didn’t have the right lottery ticket number; one when
a building blows up, taking his `lost dog’ flyers with it. {as}

[8F06] Four times while banging his head on the table because the shop
next door was closed early; one when asked if Lisa’s sax is an
alto or tenor; one when Lisa doesn’t forgive him; one while trying
to keep his Scratch & Win card. {as}

>>Beer quotes
[7G03] Beer. Now there’s a temporary solution.
[7F10] Ah, good old trustworthy beer. My love for you will never die.
[8F11] There’s only one can of beer left and it’s Bart’s!
[8F16] Maybe it’s the beer talking, Marge, but you got a butt that won’t
quit. They got those big chewy pretzels here five
dollars?! Get outta here! [9F14] I would kill everyone in this room for a drop of sweet beer.
[9F17] Ah beer, my one weakness. My Achilles heel if you will.

>>`Woo Hoo’ count
[8F06] Gets the number of the reed off his shoe; tries to bluff a win on
the scratch and win card; when Apu says that he’s hired. {as}
[8F17] thinks he can still win the lottery. {as}
[1F20] when he tries to bluff in the poker game. {as}

>>`Mmmmmm…’ Count List
[8F17] Snouts {as}
[8F06] Beer {as}
[9F17] Beer

>>`The Perfect Crime’ Count List
[7F20] When he sets his plans to motion to catch General Sherman.

>>Beer
[7G03] Stole Bart’s piggy bank to buy beer.

>>Homer’s bowling ball
[7G01] Bart tries to bash Ms. Botz’s head with it
[8F19] Homer bowls 280 by singing to his bowling ball.

>>Bonding or Little talks with Bart
[8F16] After Bart congratules him ending of the love letter. {as}

>>Suggestive snuggling
[8F22] After he learns some new vocabulary
[9F01] while Marge is praying for him.

>>Lustful `Ohhhhh…’ Count List
>>`U.S.A’ chant list
>>Suggestive snuggling
>>Flanders `hate’ List
>>Bonding with Lisa
>>Singing

{Suggestive sections are welcomed}
===============================================================================
>> Contributors
===============================================================================
rd – Rick Diamant (diamantr@ext.missouri.edu)
sg – Suresh Goel (sng2@po.cwru.edu)
mk – Matt Keary (keary@hpand0.an.hp.com)
el – Ellis Lee (lawyer@camelot.bradley.edu)
as – Andrew Shaw (andrew@shaws.demon.co.uk)
cs – Colin Smith (syscws@devetir.qld.gov.au)
?? – Unknown (Pointed out by Rick Diamant, but original author unknown)
——————————————————————————-
{Contributors & Corrections are greatly welcomed.}
——————————————————————————-

==========================
animation/best.of.net #104, from hmccracken, 11009 chars, Wed Aug 24 15:58:32 1994
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
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From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Wed, 24 Aug 1994 15:54:46 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9408241554.memo.8157@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.animation.warner-bros

>Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
>Path: news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!yale!yale!yale.edu!spool.mu.edu!torn!nott!cunews!freenet.carleton.ca!FreeNet.Carleton.CA!ab027
>From: ab027@FreeNet.Carleton.CA (Tom Knott)
>Subject: Ottawa International Animation Festival
>Message-ID:
>Sender: news@freenet.carleton.ca (Usenet News Admin)
>Reply-To: ab027@FreeNet.Carleton.CA (Tom Knott)
>Organization: The National Capital FreeNet
>Date: Tue, 23 Aug 1994 23:17:42 GMT
>Lines: 241

Greetings

Preparations for the Ottawa 94 International Animation Festival
are now in full swing. The 10th edition of the International
Animation Festival, taking place from September 28th to October
2nd at Canada’s prestigious National Arts Centre, promises to
deliver all the events that the Festival has become known for _
the competition, retrospectives, tributes, workshops, Chez-Ani
and the animators’s picnic. We are confident that you will find
our busy schedule of screenings, workshops and parties enjoyable
and rewarding. If you have any questions please give us a call.
We look forward to welcoming you to the Festival, to Ottawa and
to our spectacular autumn colours.

Official Competition

From July 25th to August 3rd, the Selection Committee met to
select the films and videos that will make up the Official
Competition. We received over 800 entries from 40 countries. The
Selection Committee consisted of: Otto Alder (Germany), Marc
Glassman (Canada), Elaine Pain (Canada) and Linda Simensky (USA).
The Jury members will be announced shortly. Programmes A full
slate of retrospectives and special programmes will be presented
at Ottawa 94. Tributes confirmed at press time include: Vancouver
animator Al Sens (A HARD DAY AT THE OFFICE); the director of
HEAVY METAL Gerald Potterton; former UPA designer and director of
THE CRITIC and FLEBUS, Ernest Pintoff; animation pioneer John
Bray; and Croatian animator/ director Borivoj (Bordo) Dovnikovic.
Confirmed special programmes include: Hollywood Cartoons Produced
in Cinemascope, programmed by noted animation historian Jerry
Beck; Independent Animation from Australia; and Animated Women,
documentary portraits of Faith Hubley, Joanna Preistly, Ruth
Peyser and Lynn Smith. Additional details and programmes will be
announced in August.

Workshops and other Activities

Ottawa 94 will feature several workshops and panel discussions.
Among the planned workshops are: a two-morning workshop dealing
with adapting existing stories and developing original ideas;
computer animation; women in animation; the business of
animation; and panel discussions with prominent animators.
Complete details will be available in late August.

Recruitment

Several animation studios will be at the Festival recruiting
artists for their studios. If you are looking for work the
Festival recommends bringing your portfolio, sample videotape,
etc. with you.

Travel

Ottawa can be reached by air, train, bus or car. If you are
flying directly to Ottawa you can reach the downtown area by
taking either the airport shuttle bus ($9.00) or a taxi
(approximately $20.00). The shuttle bus takes about 45 minutes
depending upon which hotel is your destination. The taxi ride
from the airport to downtown Ottawa takes about 15 minutes. For
those arriving from overseas, via Montreal’s Mirabel Airport,
Voyageur Colonial offers bus service at $21.65 for a one-way
ticket to Ottawa. Buses depart from Mirabel several times daily
and the trip to the Ottawa bus depot takes two hours. The
departure times should be confirmed by your travel agent. Taxis
are readily available at the Ottawa train station and the Ottawa
bus depot. For information on Mirabel Airport call (514)
476-3010.

Accommodation

There are a number of hotels near the Festival headquarters at
the National Arts Centre, varying in price, size and amenities.
The rates quoted are subject to change. Be sure to book your room
as soon as possible and mention you are with the Animation
Festival in case they are offering a discount. The prices quoted
do not include a 5% Ontario room tax and a 7% federal goods and
services tax. The toll free 1-800 telephone numbers may not be
valid outside of Canada.

QUALITY INN (JOURNEY’S END), 290 Rideau St., tel: (613) 789-7511;
toll free: 1-800-4-CHOICE. The festival has a block of rooms
reserved here until the beginning of September. A 15 minute walk
to the National Arts Centre. Rates, $68 for a single or a double.

HOWARD JOHNSON OTTAWA, 140 Slater Street, tel: (613) 238-2888;
fax: (613) 235-8421; toll free: 1-800-664-2000. The festival has
a block of rooms reserved here under the code “#Fest” until Sept.
4th. Rates, $79 single or double. A 10 minute walk from the
National Arts Centre.

SHERATON OTTAWA HOTEL & TOWERS (OTTAWA HILTON), 150 Albert St.,
tel: (613) 238-1500; fax: (613) 235-2723. The festival has a
block of rooms reserved here until the end of August. Special
rate for festival attenders, $115 for a single or a double. A 5
minute walk from the National Arts Centre.

CAPITAL HILL HOTEL AND SUITES, 88 Albert Street, tel: (613)
235-1413; fax: (613) 235-6047; toll free: 1-800-463-7705. Rates,
$68 for a single or double. A 5 minute walk from the National
Arts Centre.

RAMADA HOTEL & SUITES, 111 Cooper St., tel: (613) 238-1331.
Rates, $78 for a single or a double. A 15 minute walk to the
National Arts Centre.

MINTO SUITE HOTEL, 433 Laurier Ave. W., tel: (613) 782-2350; toll
free: 1-800-267-3377. Rates, $109 studio; 140 – 1 bedroom; $203
-2 bedroom. A 20 minute walk to the National Arts Centre.

LES SUITES, 130 Besserer, tel: (613) 232-2000; fax: (613)
232-1242. A 10 minute walk to the National Arts Centre. Rates,
$95 – 1 bedroom; $130 – 2 bedroom

NOVOTEL HOTEL, 33 Nicholas, tel: (613) 230-3033. Rates, $90 for a
single or a double. A 10 minute walk from the National Arts
Centre.

THE LORD ELGIN HOTEL, 100 Elgin Street, tel: (613) 235-3333; fax:
(613) 235-3223; toll free: 1-800-267-4298. Rates, $81 for a
single or a double. May be booked over the festival but try in
case of cancellations. Across the street from the National Arts
Centre.

BED & BREAKFAST ACCOMMODATION

There are many establishments offering bed and breakfast
accommodation in Ottawa. When making a reservation determine
whether the rate includes a full or continental breakfast and if
the accommodation includes a private bath. Note that a number of
bed and breakfast establishments prohibit smoking or confine
smoking to limited areas of the house.

ALBERT HOUSE, 478 Albert, tel: (613) 236-4479; toll free:
1-800-267-1982. Rates, $59+ single; $69+ double. A 20 minute walk
from the National Arts Centre.

AUBERGE CENTRETOWN GUEST HOUSE, 502 Kent, tel: (613) 233-0681;
fax: (613) 235-3777. Rates, $30 single; $35 double; $40 twin. A
25 minute walk from the National Arts Centre.

AUBERGE DE LA SALLE, 245 Dalhousie, tel: (613) 241-3900. Rates,
$50 single; $61 double. A 15 minute walk to the National Arts
Centre.

AUBERGE McGEE’S INN, 185 Daly Avenue, tel: (613) 237-6089; fax:
(613) 236-6201. Rates, $68+ single; $85+ double. A 20 minute walk
from the National Arts Centre.

OTTAWA HOUSE, 264 Stewart St, tel: (613) 789-4433. Rates, $60
single; $75 double. A 20 minute walk from the National Arts
Centre.

RIDEAU VIEW INN, 177 Frank St. tel: (613) 236-9309. Rates, $55+.
A 20 minute walk to the National Arts Centre.

AUBERGE DES ARTS, 104 Guiges Ave. tel: (613) 562-0909. Rates, $45
single; $55 double. A 15 minute walk to the National Arts Centre.

L’AUBERGE DU MARCHE, 87 Guiges Ave. tel: (613) 241-6610. Rates,
$45 single; $55 double; $70 suite. A 15 minute walk to the
National Arts Centre.

OTTAWA BED AND BREAKFAST, 488 Cooper St. tel: (613) 563-0161.
Rates, $40 single; $50 double. This is also a referral service so
be sure to ask about any other rooms that might be available
downtown.

GAUTHAUS SWITZERLAND INN, 89 Daly St. tel: (613) 273-0335 or
1-800-267-8788. Rates, $58+. A 20 minute walk to the National
Arts Centre.

BEATRICE LYON GUEST HOUSE, 479 Slater. tel: (613)-236-3904.
Rates, $35 single; $45 double. A 20 to 30 minute walk to the
National Arts Centre.

CENTRETOWN GUEST HOUSE, 502 Kent St. tel: (613) 233-0681; fax:
(613) 235-3777. Rates, $30+ single; $35+ double. A 20 to 30
minute walk to the National Arts Centre. FOISY HOUSE, 188 St.
Andrew. tel: (613) 562-1287. Rates, $40 single; $45 double. A 20
minute walk to the National Arts Centre.

LAURIER GUEST HOUSE, 323-329 Laurier Ave. E. (613) 238-5525.
Rates, $30+. A 20-30 minute walk to the National Arts Centre.

ECONOMY ACCOMMODATION

The least expensive places to stay in Ottawa. There may be
restrictions on your access and your activities.

OTTAWA YM-YWCA, 180 Argyle, tel: (613) 237-1320. Rates, $42
single; $50 double (taxes included). A 20 minute walk from the
National Arts Centre.

OTTAWA INTERNATIONAL HOSTEL, 75 Nicholas, tel: (613) 235-2595;
fax: (613) 789-2131. Rates, non-member hosteller $19; member
hosteller $15. Restricted late night access, doors open from 7:00
a.m. to 01:00am. An heritage building, formerly the Carleton
County Jail (1862-1971). A 10 minute walk from the National Arts
Centre.

If you are having problems locating accommodation please contact
the Festival and we will help you find a room.

Ottawa 94 Festival Pass

AnimaPass Plus $165.00 (tax and service charge included) (All
films, workshops, parties and picnic)

Members of ASIFA or the Society For Animation Studies (SAS) can
purchase a Animapass Plus for $135.00 (service charge and tax
included). To claim this special rate, ASIFA members must send a
photocopy of their current ASIFA membership card. The names of
SAS members claiming this discount will be checked against the
current SAS membership list. Students registered in a full-time
animation programme can purchase an AnimaPass Plus for $120.00
(service charge and tax included). To qualify for this special
rate, a student must present a valid student card for the
academic year 1994-95 when picking up his/her pass.

AnimaPass $120 (tax and service charge included) (Screening
only)

Passes must be ordered directly from the National Arts Centre Box
Office. Passes can be ordered by mail:
National Arts Centre – Box Office
P.O. Box 1534, Station B
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 5W1
and by fax (613) 995-4343. The National Arts
Centre Box Office accepts money orders and bank drafts, drawn in
Canadian funds made payable to the National Arts Centre, and
credit cards from American Express, MasterCard and VISA. The
National Arts Centre does not accept personal, company or
certified cheques. If you encounter difficulties in ordering
passes, please contact the Festival directly at:

2 Daly, Ottawa Ontario, K1N 6E2, (613) 232-6727
(613) 232-6315 (fax)

==========================
animation/best.of.net #105, from hmccracken, 31363 chars, Wed Aug 24 15:58:51 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Wed, 24 Aug 1994 15:56:06 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9408241556.memo.8162@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.animation.warner-bros

>Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,comp.graphics.animation,rec.arts.disney,rec.arts.movies,rec.arts.movies.production,comp.graphics,alt.animation.warner-bros
>Path: news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!MathWorks.Com!news.kei.com!ub!csn!csus.edu!netcom.com!mpsc839
>From: mpsc839@netcom.com (Jeff Massie)
>Subject: THE PEG-BOARD — MPSC Local 839 IATSE — August 1994
>Message-ID:
>Summary: Monthly excerpts from the animation union newsletter
>Keywords: ANIMATION UNION NEWSLETTER MPSC 839 AUGUST
>Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 261-4700 guest)
>Date: Wed, 10 Aug 1994 00:24:24 GMT
>Lines: 635
>Xref: news.delphi.com rec.arts.animation:21818 comp.graphics.animation:10357 rec.arts.disney:49989 rec.arts.movies:153426 rec.arts.movies.production:484 comp.graphics:49666 alt.animation.warner-bros:1925

THE PEG-BOARD — Information Superhighway Edition — August 1994

This is a monthly posting of excerpts from THE PEG-BOARD, the newsletter
of the Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and Affiliated Optical
Electronic and Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE. THE PEG-BOARD is also
published in printed format.

This file is available by anonymous ftp, along with a number of other
files about Local 839. The address is:

ftp.netcom.com:/pub/mpsc839

Local 839 IATSE is the largest local union of motion picture graphic
artists in the world. We have over 1,600 active members employed in
animation and CGI in Southern California.

In this month’s issue:

* The Lion set to be all-time profit King
* From the Business Rep, by Steve Hulett
* From The President, by Tom Sito
* A letter to the President, by Phil Cummings; reply by Tom Sito
* Editorial policy
* Animation in the news
* In memoriam
* E-mail to the editor
* Phoenix rises with cartoon hopes
* Eisner’s health spurs successor talk
* AAI Day Classes
* Classified ads
* Masthead

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

“THE LION” SET TO BE ALL-TIM PROFIT KING

An article in the August 1 Hollywood Reporter estimates that Disney’s
feature The Lion King may generate over three-quarters of a billion
dollars in net profits, which would make it the most profitable motion
picture of all time.

Analyst Dave Davis projects The Lion King’s theatrical grosses topping
off at $385.7 million, plus an estimated $720 million home video take,
with TV revenues of $65.5 million bringing the total to a cool $1.17
billion. Subtract expenses of $356.7 million, and you end up with a net
profit of $814,500,000 after three years. By way of contrast, Disney’s
previous profit champ, Aladdin, has generated an estimated $483 million
in profits. Last year’s Jurassic Park, the all-time box-office champ,
has generated $399 million previous to its video release, scheduled for
this month.

This obviously represents good news for Disney’s bottom line, and
signals encouraging times ahead for employment in animation, as other
studios race to catch up with the profits Disney has proven can be made
with quality theatrical animation.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

FROM THE BUSINESS REP

The other night at a union meeting, a strong supporter of the Local got
up and gave a speech from the floor. Nice fellow. Eloquent fellow. And
most everything he said I agreed with, but there was one thing he said,
two words actually, that ate at me. He said “the union has got to…”
and “the union should…”, like “the union” was a large furry beast
seated downstairs in the office, separate and distinct from him. It
bothered me because it’s the way lots of union members think of the
union. It’s some entity living in the next county, which mails them Peg-
Boards and tote bags. Which bills them for dues.

And truth to tell, it was the way I thought of the union, back when I
was a twenty-nine-year-old story person so full of myself I’m amazed I
didn’t explode. Local 839 was some amorphous blob, lurking at an address
on Ventura Boulevard to which I sent dues every three months. Not once,
from 1976 to 1982, did I think of the union as anything but an
organization “out there” which had little to do with my life.

And then, in the second year of the Reagan Administration, the universe
tilted. The 1982 strike rolled up like a steam roller, and I found
myself out in front of Disney’s holding a picket sign. I was hot, I was
unhappy, and I discovered the union had a lot to do with my life — not
much of it good from my jaundiced perspective. I was walking back and
forth in the August heat, protesting “runaway production,” losing week
after week of pay. And wondering what I was going to do for eating
money.

When the strike finally ended ten weeks later, I had lost seven thousand
dollars, and I was a changed man. I knew where the union office was, and
I knew that I had damn well better get involved in union affairs so I
wasn’t blind-sided by another damn strike.

Out of self-preservation, I started going to union meetings. By and by I
found myself on the executive board, and the universe tilted again. It
slowly dawned on the tired old crystal set I use for a brain that the
union wasn’t Bud Hester, or the office staff, or the Executive Board. It
was everyone out there working with paint brushes, pencils and
computers, everyone paying dues, everyone struggling to advance the art
of animation. The union was … us. (What a concept!)

Since I’ve become business representative, I’ve only become more aware
of this fact. Reality just keeps jumping up and bopping me in the face.
Let me give you a few examples. I’ve worked to organize a number of
studios over the past four years, and mostly I bomb out. I stand in
front of some building handing out leaflets and rep cards, buttonholing
people, begging, pleading and going pretty much nowhere. But let the
artists inside the building get ticked off, and hesto presto, we have a
contract. It happened at Baer. It happened at Hyperion. It happened at
several other places.

And take contract negotiations. Studio negotiators don’t care a fig if I
get indignant over one of their proposals. I’m just the rumdum in the
union office who whines at them on the phone when an artist gets stepped
on. But they care a whole lot when the artists get angry, since they are
the folks who turn out the high-profit product, and they are the folks
who can turn off the money spigot.

As a group, artists and other animation employees have power. It only
took me seven or eight years to figure this out. I’m a slow learner, so
sue me. But now that I’ve learned it, I feel it’s overwhelmingly
important to teach it to others, so that wages stay up, and working
conditions don’t erode, and we don’t suffer a fate, one day twenty years
hence, like the one suffered by Jack Kirby.

The union is us? What a concept.

— Steve Hulett

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

FROM THE PRESIDENT

I was talking union recently to a computer expert. He was full of the
arrogance of young technology and creative power (“tomorrow belongs to
meeeee…”). He was making a great salary, had employers eating out of
his hand, everything going for him. When he said to me the often quoted
“If you’re really good, you don’t need any unions!” …

I immediately thought of Jack Kirby.

First off, let me say this homily is not intended to insult or libel
anyone at Marvel Productions, a good union employer which in any event
is corporately divorced from Marvel Comics. This happened a long time
ago, in a galaxy far away…

In 1983, I was at the Ruby-Spears Christmas party at the Sheraton
Universal. In the crowd I ran into Doug Wildey, a great story and comic
book artist and acquaintance from New York. We chatted and he introduced
me to a small jovial man who rather looked on that warm night like an
Israeli Prime Minister.

After the man passed by I told Doug I didn’t catch his name. Doug said:
“That’s Jack Kirby.”

“Jack ‘King’ Kirby?”, I said. “Mr. Marvel Superheroes? What’s he doing
here? Slumming?”

“No,” Doug replied, suddenly serious. “He’s picking up storyboard work
from Dorman.”

I was shocked. “You mean the most famous comic book artist on Earth, who
invented the Marvel drawing style, the man who has inspired generations
of kids who slavishly try to master his superheroes in millions of
copybooks, he has to pick up Saturday-morning storyboards from us?”

It was later explained to me that, all the years Kirby was the power in
comic art, he did it all for straight salary. He never used his clout to
buy into the company, to become a partner — he was happy just to draw.
He asked for nothing. So when management had enough guys who could do
his style better than he could and he was old and expensive, they showed
him the door. And there’s his thanks for making them mega-mega-rich!

I have heard when Jack Kirby died last year at age 76 he was trying to
sue to get something more for all the joy and artistry he brought into
this world. I hope God is a more appreciative employer.

We are all Jack Kirbys. We live for what we do, we draw, we create, we
entertain.

We are lambs among wolves in the business world. Franz Hals, Beethoven
and Vivaldi trusted in their talent. They all died poor and alone.
Siegel and Shuster, who created Superman and sold it in 1938 for twenty-
five dollars, almost died penniless. Thanks to Local 841 in New York and
other groups, Warner Bros. was embarrassed into giving them a small
pension as compensation for the profits of the Superman movies.

I pray that at eighty, my artistic skill is as sharp as Hokusai or Al
Hirschfeld or Joe Grant. But I must be realistic. If I don’t create a
means for a secure future now while my powers are strong, then I’m
playing long-range Russian roulette with my life.

This is the reason artists have been banding together in guilds since
the Middle Ages. This is the very reason we must stick together. If raw
talent is enough to make it, why isn’t Dan Haskett as rich as Michael
Eisner?

No matter the medium, no matter the company, if you think you can make
it big by yourself, think of Jack Kirby.

— Tom Sito

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

A LETTER TO THE PRESIDENT

Dear Tom:

I’m writing this letter to express not just my strong opposition to the
strike fund but also to tell you that the dishonest and undemocratic
methods that you are using to promote this ill-conceived notion will
weaken and alienate loyal members. When you publish percentage results
in The Peg-Board and not raw numbers it shows you don’t have the support
of anything like a majority of the membership. It also implies that you
intend to push this through in spite of your lack of majority support.

You launched this idea after a “discussion” among the twenty or so
activists in the tightly-knit clique which attends meetings. You then
sent the ballots out with a letter strongly advocating a yes vote to the
other 1500 members who don’t belong to your compliant little group.

Why couldn’t you publish the union’s fax number and ask for input from
the rest of us before you went ahead with this? Heavy handed control of
the means of communication and lack of a free debate shows your lack of
confidence in your leadership and your unwillingness to consider the
feelings and views of others. I believe that it was this lack of empathy
and arrogant attitude which cost you the certification election at Film
Roman.

I’m asking you to please publish this letter and to solicit and publish
unedited any view on this or any other union matter that any of the
fifteen hundred members of this union (who pay for The Peg-Board and
should have access to it) wish to express. If a strike fund achieved by
these methods is a bad idea a union that actually stages a strike
without a completely free, fair and democratic discussion amongst all of
its members will not prevail.

Your loyal member, Phil Cummings

Phil: Thank you for your letter and your comments. You made your points
forcefully if a little too bluntly. But hey, ya gotta expect that in the
El Presidente business. Reading your letter I felt like Marlon Brando in
Viva Zapata — the revolutionary turned president who listens to
complaints about himself. You should ask Tom Tataranowicz or Kevin
Petrilak about how I used to thunder about the union being unfair ten
years ago. I hope more folks write us. We’ll use the old Washington
measure, that one letter means a few dozen more felt the same way but
not strongly enough to write in.

In answer to your “J’Accuse”: First of all, Hulett and I didn’t sit in a
cave like Mao and Lin Piao and dream up this strike fund idea. Your
fellow artists working in the studios called and showed up at membership
meetings to demand it. Honestly, it’s grass roots. The reason we
sometimes must be cagey about what we print in The Peg-Board is because
it is such an open public forum. Many more people read The Peg-Board
than just members. Other union officials, people in New York and Florida
— and, unfortunately, the people who are enemies of your rights. They
study it for signs of our weakness as well as our strength.

A strike fund is a direct appeal to muscle. In negotiations, it’s
missiles in the silos. If Kennedy told Khrushchev how many ICBMs he had,
if I played poker and told you what I’m holding in my hand … see what
I mean? Believe it or not, after a Peg-Board goes in the mail I usually
have a producer or two casually mention to me: “Liked your article …”
And they’re not on the mailing list …

I’m saddened that you think we’re being undemocratic and cliquish. The
notice for the July 26 membership meeting did not read: “Elite Tightly-
Knit Clique Members Only!” Any union member could attend. You could have
come; you didn’t. We read your letter aloud so your voice would be
heard, and since you gave us your permission. The people who believed
with passion equal to yours that a levy of $40 more per quarter was
appropriate, were present that night. And they were mostly new faces to
me.

Hulett and I have worked hard to bring more members into the decision-
making process. In the last contract negotiations, every step we took
was spelled out to you in letters, postings and studio appearances
asking your advice and permission to proceed.

As long as I’m President the will of the majority will be respected and
acted on. Not just a slim majority, the majority. I know as well as you
that animation folk won’t glumly support an idea thrust upon them. I’m
not that arrogant or nave. All my attention is focused on building
unity, not division.

Since you didn’t show on July 26, let me tell you that no vote was taken
on the strike fund, and no recommendation was given to the membership by
the Executive Board. The opinion of more members will be sought. As for
the union’s fax number, it has appeared in every issue of The Peg-Board
since we bought a fax machine [(818) 506-4805]. You can call or e-mail
myself or Hulett any time you want and give me your opinion. If you
looked at the July Peg-Board, you saw letters telling me to “get a
life”and “bulls–t”. So we’re printing contrary opinions — of those
who choose to express them to us.

I don’t begrudge your suspiciousness. Jefferson thought it was a
citizen’s duty to question the actions of its leaders. You are as
welcome as any other union member to volunteer for union work, or to run
for union office. People write you gut-punching letters, but it may be
the toughest job you’ll ever love. Thank you for your loyalty and input.

— Tom Sito

P. S. I wasn’t President during the Film Roman election. I didn’t lose
it — the union did.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Here are the numerical totals of the strike fund survey reported in the
July Peg-Board:

Do you want a strike fund?

Yes…………..234
No……………213
Undecided………13
Total votes……460
Total sent…..1,381 (33.3% returned)

If yes, how much per quarter?

Undecided………19
>$20.00…………9
$20.00………..137
$30.00…………43
$40.00…………26

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

The editorial policy of The Peg-Board has been, and will continue to be,
to publish the written opinions of members on Local 839 matters,
providing that the following criteria are met:

* We only guarantee to publish the opinions of members. Accordingly, we
will not publish letters sent anonymously to Local 839 or The Peg-Board,
but upon request we will withhold the member’s name when publishing a
letter.

* We will only publish letters with the specific permission of the
member.

* The Editorial Board (which consists of the President, the Business
Representative and the Editor) reserves the right not to publish
letters, or portions of letters, that it considers to be libelous or
slanderous.

* We reserve the right to edit letters for purposes of length and to
avoid libel or slander. We will indicate when we have edited a member’s
letter for these reasons.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

ANIMATION IN THE NEWS

DISNEY enjoyed a 3% rise in third-quarter earnings, largely due to the
video release The Return of Jafar, shipping 8.5 million videocassettes,
and $70 million from The Lion King through June 30. On the down side, a
$101.1 million loss for Euro Disney in the current quarter was not
helpful to its bottom line … The new WARNER BROS. Network plans new
episodes of Animaniacs, and the first new cartoons of Sylvester and
Tweety in over thirty years. Warners has also ordered multiple episodes
of a new animated series entitled Steven Spielberg Presents Freakazoid!
Three additional half-hour series will shortly be announced to round out
the Warners Bros. Saturday morning slate. Also in September 1995, WB
will offer two half-hour animated strips for weekday mornings …

The 22nd annual ANNIE AWARDS, sponsored by ASIFA/Hollywood, has
increased the number of award categories to nine. The four new
categories are: Outstanding creative supervision — producing and
directing; Story contribution — writing and storyboarding; Artistic
excellence — animation, layout, design, color, and Voice acting. Up to
three Winsor McCay Awards could be awarded for lifetime achievement in
any area of the animation business. This year’s ceremony will take place
November 12. For further details contact ASIFA/Hollywood at (818) 842-
8330 …

File this under “Revenge Of The Woodstock Generation”: We recently
learned of an animation writer who wrote the script for one of the best-
known psychedelic animated features of the 1960s. The producer of this
film made enough on it to retire, but the writer was paid the flat sum
of $5,000 — no residuals, no royalties.

Now the company who owns it wants to sell it, probably for a theatrical
rerelease plus videocasettes and laserdiscs, etc. However, at some point
in the years since the Summer Of Love they managed to lose the writer’s
contract! They need it to close the deal, and the writer has balked at
signing the same deal he signed twenty-odd years ago. His agent is
talking with the rights holders, and he stands to gain immeasurably more
then he has in the years since the original deal. Moral: sometimes the
good guys win!

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

IN MEMORIAM

Xerox processor TINA BALDWIN died on August 4. Since 1977 she worked for
Hanna-Barbera, Filmation, Kroyer and Disney.

Layout artist, 1987 Golden Award winner and former Local 839 Executive
Board member OWEN FITZGERALD died on July 23. Since 1937 he had worked
for Disney, Schlesinger, Fleischer, the U.S. Army Signal Corps, Warners,
DePatie-Freleng, Hanna-Barbera, Ruby-Spears, Universal and Graz. He
served on the Board from 1979 to 1980.

Storyboard artist RAYMOND JOHNSON died on July 29. Since 1984 he worked
for Hanna-Barbera, Marvel, Warner Bros. and Hyperion. Contributions to a
trust fund for his two-year-old son can be arranged by contacting
Geraldine Clarke at (213) 463-0145.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

E-MAIL TO THE EDITOR
(From the rec.arts.animation USENET newsgroup)

I’ve been taking classes at the American Animation Institute. The
teacher in my inbetweening class is a Disney employee, as are most of
the teachers there. There are many talented students in my class that
could probably make a name for themselves in animation. The one thing I
noticed is they all have the same goal. They all want to work for
Disney. That’s all they want. They don’t care about if any other studios
are hiring.

So, I asked the teacher about getting hired at other studios. He was at
a loss. He didn’t know about anything other than Disney either. He just
said that Disney is taking portfolios in July. I told him that Disney
really didn’t interest me as a place to work. Boy, you’d think that I
said I was a Nazi or something. The whole class looked at me as if I was
crazy.

I have nothing against Disney. I enjoy their features. But people, there
are other places to work for. I think at a large studio like Disney it’s
hard to be an individual. You’d get lost in the large amount of artists.
I would rather work for a smaller studio or a studio which is just
starting out and get a name for myself. At Disney it’s like your an
extension of Walt. Just my opinion,

– – – –

Yes, there is life beyond Disney (hard as it is to believe). Warners,
Hanna-Barbera, Amblimation and Rich Entertainment are all working on
animated features. Some of the features (rumor has it) are very good.

The problem has been that Disney has been the only major animation
employer, in Southern California and elsewhere, to put their money where
their mouth is when it comes to bona fide training programs. Disney
deserves much credit for their foresight not only in providing training,
but in guaranteeing work to those they have trained. Other studios have
failed to offer real training; when it has been offered it usually
amounts to throwing inexperienced artists into the deep end of the pool
and fishing out the few who know how to swim. Even considering the
current state of the labor market, it’s remarkable how few employers who
profess to be desperate for bodies are willing to spend any time or
funds to train inexperienced creative talent.

We believe, ingrates that we are, that quality product comes out of many
studios. Disney features currently are making the biggest bucks, but
artists who choose to work elsewhere are not necessarily spiritual and
emotional cripples. Chuck Jones had a fine career even though he was a
Disney employee for only three or four weeks. So have others. In fact,
of the twelve teachers in our faculty, only four are currently employed
by Disney.

If you want a specific list of places to launch your animation career,
give us a call. We’ll be glad to assist you.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

PHOENIX RISES WITH CARTOON HOPES

An article in the August 2 issue of The Arizona Republic profiled
Twentieth Century Fox’s plans to open a feature animation studio in
Phoenix, Arizona, with wages and working conditions considerably below
the going rates for Local 839 cartoonists.

Fox’s plans were announced at a news conference featuring Arizona’s
governor and the mayor of Phoenix. Fox hopes to crack the animated-
feature market currently dominated by Disney.

As an incentive to bring Fox to Phoenix, the state and city are offering
an incentive package of almost $1 million in equipment loans and job
training funds. Fox says they will be paying “an average” of $30,000 to
$45,000 per year — below the minimum scale rate for journey artists
under the Local 839 contract.

Fox has hired Don Bluth and Gary Goldman to head their enterprise, and
claims they will be hiring as much as three hundred employees, “mostly
local talent” according to the Arizona Republic article. By hiring Bluth
and Goldman as employees, Fox will avoid obligation for the sizable
debts they incurred with the failure of their operations in Burbank and
Dublin, Ireland. According to the article, the company will bring “a
relatively small number” of animators from Ireland and California.

Fox plans to open their new studio by September 1 in what was once the
Phoenix headquarters of Lincoln Savings and Loan, the failed thrift
whose president, Charles Keating, is serving jail time for fraud. Fox
plans to spend at least $1 million on building improvements to the
facility, which is supposed to be in full operation by the end of the
year.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

EISNER’S HEALTH SPURS SUCCESSOR TALK

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Walt Disney Co. chairman Michael Eisner was
receiving business calls and guests at the hospital two days after
quadruple bypass surgery for clogged coronary arteries. He was expected
to be back at work in three or four weeks. But analysts said Eisner’s
illness, coming

3 1/2 months after Disney President Frank Wells’ death, was expected to
put major decisions on hold for the time being at Disney. Longer-term,
it could force Disney to more quickly name an heir apparent to Eisner
and merge or affiliate with other companies.

Eisner, 52, was out of intensive care at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and
expected home within a week. While he was expected to be back at the
office in several weeks, Roy Disney, the company’s vice chairman, said
in a statement, “I think we will see Michael back on the studio a lot
sooner than anyone realizes.”

The succession issue centered on Disney studios head Jeffrey Katzenberg,
who built a movie powerhouse that has been the engine for huge revenue
and earnings increases, not only in the filmed entertainment division
but in Disney’s theme parks and consumer products divisions. Katzenberg,
44, was mentioned immediately as a successor when Wells died in a
helicopter crash while skiing in Nevada in March. Eisner, however,
decided against immediately filling the job that had been held by Wells,
his closest aide and chief strategist.

Friends of Katzenberg have said he wants greater responsibilities and
deserves a shot at the No. 2 Disney job. Not getting it might cause him
to invite bids from other companies, an auction that could set salary
bidding records and a wholesale realignment of studio jobs in Hollywood.

“If I needed someone to be the quarterback and if I knew Jeffrey
Katzenberg was available, I would go to the bank,” said Steve Tisch, an
independent movie producer who has known Katzenberg for more than
twenty-five years.

The Orange County Register said Disney board director Raymond Watson
acknowledged the company needed to address the succession issue. “That
is still being directed by Michael Eisner,” Watson said in a weekend
interview.

Like others in Hollywood, Disney has studied alliances to provide
outlets for its entertainment and defray high production costs.
Speculation it might buy CBS Inc. arose again this month after CBS’
merger with the home-shopping network QVC Inc. fell apart.

Eisner has repeatedly expressed skepticism about Disney expanding from
its base of producing entertainment. But the economic pressures to team
up with television networks, cable and telephone companies, computer
concerns and others are considerable as those industries converge, Vogel
said.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Position available: The University of Central Florida is seeking an
instructor/assistant professor to teach courses and build a curriculum
in computer animation. An MFA or MA is required and a PhD is preferred,
with demonstrated ability/experience in computer animation. The position
will be available by August 1995; applications received by October 15,
1994 will receive priority consideration. Send current vita, three
letters of recommendation, a letter of application and current samples
of computer animation, to: Dr. Rick Blum, Chair, Animation Search
Committee, Motion Picture Division, School of Communication, POB 25000,
University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL 32816-1344.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Eagle’s Coffee Pub and Newsstand is looking for art to display and sell
in their gallery. All monies made on art sales will go directly to the
artist. Each artist will be allowed to display for thirty days. Space is
now available. Eagles is located at 5231 Lankershim Blvd., north of
Magnolia. For further information, please call Star Irvine at (818) 760-
4212 or (818) 760-2878.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

American Animation Institute
Fall Semester * Day classes

PERSPECTIVE AND RENDERING…..$105
12 Mondays, August 29-November 21
10 am-2:30 pm (no class 9/5)
Instructor: Debbie Zak

BASIC DRAWING AND PAINTING…..$180
12 Tuesdays, August 30-November 15
9:30 am-4 pm
Instructor: Glenn Vilppu

BEGINNING FIGURE DRAWING…..$180
12 Wednesdays, August 31-November 16
9:30 am-4 pm
Instructor: Glenn Vilppu

INTERMEDIATE FIGURE DRAWING…..$180
12 Thursdays, September 1-November 17
9:30 am-4 pm
Instructor: Glenn Vilppu

All day classes include a thirty-minute lunch break. For further details
or to register, call (818) 766-0521.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Contents (c) 1994 by MPSC Local 839 IATSE. All rights reserved.
Publications of bona fide labor organizations may reprint articles from
this newsletter so long as attribution is given. Permission is also
given to distribute this newsletter electronically so long as the ENTIRE
contents are distributed, including this notice.
—
_______________________________________________________________________________
Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and 4729 Lankershim Blvd.
Affiliated Optical Electronic and North Hollywood, CA 91602-1864
Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE phone (818) 766-7151 * fax (818) 506-4805
Anonymous FTP: ftp.netcom.com:/pub/mpsc839 E-mail: mpsc839@netcom.com

==========================
animation/best.of.net #106, from switch, 37 chars, Wed Aug 24 20:52:06 1994
This is a comment to message 104.
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
Is anybody else going to this?

Emru

==========================
animation/best.of.net #107, from elfhive, 215 chars, Wed Aug 24 23:28:13 1994
This is a comment to message 106.
————————–
No, but I wish I were, Switch!

I really should put it in my plans for future years, but I’m trying to
get back to Anime conventions on the West Coast and I’m going to Glasgow
next year for the World SF Convention.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #108, from hmccracken, 11311 chars, Fri Sep 2 23:06:34 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Fri, 2 Sep 1994 23:06:13 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9409022306.memo.47772@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.animation.warner-bros

>Path: news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!noc.near.net!jericho.mc.com!daffy!jlw
>From: jlw@daffy.mc.com (Jack Webb)
>Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
>Subject: “Who did what characters” list (WARNING – LONG POST)
>Date: 2 Sep 1994 02:58:13 GMT
>Organization: Mercury Computer Systems, Chelmsford MA 01824
>Lines: 482
>Sender: jlw@daffy (Jack Webb)
>Distribution: world
>Message-ID: <3464c5$kh5@jericho.mc.com>
>NNTP-Posting-Host: daffy.mc.com

This all started as an e-mail conversation I’d been having with Tony
Palombella. We were discussing certain WB characters, and how their
“character characteristics” were influenced by the directors. This led
to wondering what directors had actually done ‘toons with the various
characters. Ultimately, this led to the following list. I guess I figured
if I was crazy enough to come up with it, there might be somebody crazy
enough out here in Netland who would want to see it.

The list is a simple look at Warner Brothers characters and who directed them.
The format of the list is the name of the character(s) followed by a list of
directors or director pairs that supervised cartoons with the character(s)
in them. The numeric data is the number of ‘toons followed by the release
year (ie, 3-42 indicates three cartoons released in 1942).

The list was compiled by perusing the book “Looney Tunes and Merrie
Melodies – A Complete Illustrated Guide to the WB Cartoons” written by
Jerry Beck and Will Friedwald. Only those characters that appeared in at
least two cartoons were listed.

I certainly don’t consider either my reading or typing skills to be
infallible, and I’ve heard of errors in B&F’s book, so please let me know
of any corrections or omissions at jlw@mc.com. Any comments in general
about the list are also welcome.

Jack

——

BOSKO & HONEY
Harman/Ising 2-30, 5-31, 5-32, 7-33

BOSKO
Harman/Ising 2-30, 5-31, 2-33
Hamilton/Smith 1-31

FOXY
Marsales 1-31
Harman/Ising 2-31

PIGGY
Harman/Ising 2-31

BOSKO & BRUNO
Harman/Ising 1-31, 2-32, 3-33

GOOPY GEER
Harman/Ising 3-32

BOSKO, HONEY & BRUNO
Harman/Ising 2-32, 2-33

BUDDY & COOKIE
Palmer 1-33
Duvall 2-33, 1-34
Freleng 1-34
King 3-34, 1-35
Hardaway 4-35

BUDDY
Freleng 2-34
Hardaway 1-34, 2-35
King 2-34, 3-35

PORKY PIG, BEANS, HAM & EX
Freleng 1-35
King 1-36

BEANS
King 2-35

PORKY PIG & BEANS
Avery 1-36
King 2-36

BEANS, HAM & EX
King 2-36

PORKY PIG
Avery 5-36, 3-37, 1-41
King 4-36
Tashlin 3-36, 3-37, 4-38, 2-44
Iwerks 1-37
Clampett 2-37, 8-38, 10-39, 9-40, 3-41, 1-45
Howard/Dalton 2-38, 3-39
Hardaway 1-38
Jones 1-39, 3-41, 1-45, 1-51
Freleng 3-40, 2-41, 1-42, 2-49
Clampett/McCabe 1-40, 1-41
McCabe 1-41, 1-42, 1-43
Davis 1-46, 1-48, 2-49
McKimson 1-47, 1-49, 1-50, 1-51

PORKY PIG & PETUNIA PIG
Tashlin 3-37
Clampett 2-39

PORKY PIG & DAFFY DUCK
Avery 1-37
Clampett 2-38, 2-39, 1-40, 2-41, 1-44, 1-46
Freleng 1-40, 1-43, 2-44, 1-52
Jones 1-42, 1-44, 1-50, 1-51, 1-54, 2-56, 1-58
Tashlin 1-43
McKimson 1-46, 1-48, 1-49, 1-50, 1-51, 2-52, 1-55, 1-57, 1-59, 1-61
Davis 1-48

PORKY PIG & GABBY GOAT
Iwerks 1-37
Clampett 2-37

EGGHEAD
Avery 2-37, 3-38, 2-39
Howard/Dalton 2-38

DAFFY DUCK & EGGHEAD
Avery 1-38

DAFFY DUCK
Avery 1-38
Jones 1-39, 1-48
McCabe 3-42
Clampett 1-43, 1-45, 2-46
Tashlin 1-43, 1-44, 1-45
Freleng 1-43, 1-45, 1-46, 1-47, 1-50, 1-55
McKimson 2-47, 1-52, 1-53, 1-56, 1-62, 1-63, 1-65
Davis 1-47, 1-48, 1-49, 1-62
McKimson/Bonnicksen 1-63
Ford/Lennon 1-87, 1-88

SNIFFLES
Jones 3-39, 3-40, 3-41, 1-43, 1-44, 1-46

BUGS BUNNY
Hardaway 1-39
Avery 3-41
Freleng 1-41, 1-43, 3-44, 1-45, 2-46, 2-47, 1-48, 2-49, 1-51, 1-52,
1-54, 1-55, 1-56, 1-58, 1-59
Jones 2-42, 2-43, 1-45, 3-48, 4-49, 2-50, 1-51, 2-53, 2-54, 1-55,
1-56
Clampett 2-43, 3-44
McKimson 1-46, 3-48, 3-49, 3-50, 3-51, 2-52, 1-54, 1-56, 1-58, 2-59,
1-62, 1-64
Davis 1-49
Jones/Levitow 1-59
Jones/Noble 1-63

INKI
Jones 1-39, 1-41, 1-43, 1-47, 1-50

BUGS BUNNY & ELMER FUDD
Jones 1-40, 1-41, 1-45, 1-50, 1-55, 1-56, 1-57
Avery 1-40
Clampett 1-41, 1-42, 1-43, 1-44, 1-46
Freleng 3-42, 1-44, 1-47, 1-49, 1-53, 1-55
Tashlin 1-45, 1-46
McKimson 1-47, 1-50, 1-53, 1-56, 1-57, 1-58

ELMER FUDD
Freleng 2-40, 1-49, 1-53
Jones 1-40
Clampett 1-43
McKimson 1-59, 1-60, 1-61
Freleng/Pratt 1-62

THE THREE BEARS
Avery 1-40
Jones 1-48, 2-49, 1-51

CONRAD CAT
Jones 1-42

PORKY PIG & CONRAD CAT
Jones 1-42

DAFFY DUCK & CONRAD CAT
Jones 1-42

BUGS BUNNY & BEAKY BUZZARD
Clampett 1-42

HENERY HAWK
Jones 1-42

TWEETY, BABBIT & CATSTELLO
Clampett 1-42

DAFFY DUCK & ELMER FUDD
Jones 1-43, 1-47
Tashlin 1-44
Davis 1-48
Freleng 1-49
McKimson 2-54, 1-58

HUBIE & BERTIE
Jones 1-43, 1-46, 1-48

BUGS BUNNY & THE THREE BEARS
Jones 1-44

TWEETY
Clampett 1-44, 1-45

PEPE LEPEW
Jones 1-45, 1-47, 1-49, 1-51, 1-52, 1-53, 1-54, 2-55, 1-56, 1-57,
1-60, 1-61
Davis 1-48
Levitow 1-59
Jones/Noble 1-62

SYLVESTER
Freleng 2-45, 1-49, 1-50, 1-51, 1-53, 1-54, 2-55, 1-60, 1-61
Davis 2-47
McKimson 1-56

BUGS BUNNY & YOSEMITE SAM
Freleng 1-45, 2-48, 1-49, 3-50, 3-51, 2-52, 1-53, 1-54, 2-55, 1-56,
1-57, 1-58, 1-59, 3-60, 1-62, 1-63
Harris 1-59
Freleng/Pratt 1-61

BABBIT & CATSTELLO
Tashlin 1-45
McKimson 1-46

BEAKY BUZZARD
Clampett 1-45
Freleng 1-50
McKimson 1-50

PORKY PIG & SYLVESTER
Clampett 1-46
Jones 1-48, 1-54, 1-55

FOGHORN LEGHORN, HENERY HAWK & BR’ER DOG
McKimson 1-46, 1-48, 1-49, 1-50, 1-51, 1-52, 1-55

BUGS BUNNY & ROCKY
Freleng 1-46

GOOFY GOPHERS
Davis 1-47, 1-48
McKimson 1-49, 1-58
Freleng 1-51, 1-54, 1-55

TWEETY & SYLVESTER
Freleng 1-47, 1-48, 1-49, 2-50, 3-51, 1-52, 1-54, 1-55, 1-56, 3-57, 3-59,
1-60, 1-61

FOGHORN LEGHORN, HENERY HAWK, BR’ER DOG & SYLVESTER
McKimson 1-47

PORKY PIG & CHARLIE DOG
Jones 1-47, 2-49

ELMER FUDD & SYLVESTER
Freleng 2-48, 1-55, 1-56

SYLVESTER & HIPPITY HOPPER
McKimson 1-48, 1-49, 1-52, 1-54, 1-55, 1-61

BUGS BUNNY & MARVIN MARTIAN
Jones 1-48, 1-52, 1-58
Jones/Noble 1-63

DAFFY DUCK & HENERY HAWK
Jones 1-48

HUBIE, BERTIE & CLAUDE CAT
Jones 1-49, 1-50, 1-51

ROAD RUNNER & WILE E. COYOTE
Jones 1-49, 2-52, 1-53, 1-54, 2-55, 2-56, 2-57, 3-58, 2-59, 2-60,
1-61
Jones/Levitow 1-61
Jones/Noble 1-61, 1-62, 1-63, 1-64
McKimson 1-65, 1-66
Larriva 7-65, 4-66

DAFFY DUCK, PORKY PIG, SYLVESTER, ELMER FUDD & HENERY HAWK
Jones 1-50

PORKY PIG, DAFFY DUCK & ROCKY
Freleng 1-50

CHARLIE DOG
Jones 1-50, 1-51

FOGHORN LEGHORN
McKimson 1-50, 2-56, 1-60

TWEETY, SYLVESTER & GRANNY
Freleng 1-50, 1-51, 2-52, 4-53, 1-54, 2-55, 2-56, 1-57, 2-58, 1-60,
1-62
Freleng/Pratt 1-61
Chiniquy 1-64

SYLVESTER, JUNIOR (CAT) & HIPPITY HOPPER
McKimson 1-50, 1-52, 1-53, 2-56, 1-57, 1-64

CLAUDE CAT & FRISKY PUPPY
Jones 1-50, 1-52

BUGS BUNNY, DAFFY DUCK & ELMER FUDD
Jones 1-51, 1-52, 1-53, 1-55
Freleng 1-60

FOGHORN LEGHORN, BR’ER DOG & MISS PRISSY
McKimson 1-51, 1-53

BUGS BUNNY & WILE E. COYOTE
Jones 1-52, 1-56, 1-60
Jones/Noble 1-61, 1-63

MARC ANTONY & PUSSYFOOT
Jones 1-52, 1-53, 1-58

BUGS BUNNY & GOSSAMER
Jones 1-46, 1-52

SYLVESTER & GRANNY
Freleng 1-52

FOGHORN LEGHORN & BR’ER DOG
McKimson 1-52, 1-53, 1-57, 2-58, 1-62, 1-63

CLAUDE CAT
Jones 1-52

SYLVESTER, SPIKE & CHESTER
Freleng 1-52, 1-54

RALPH WOLF & SAM SHEEPDOG
Jones 1-53, 1-54, 1-55, 1-57, 1-60
Jones/Noble 1-62
Monroe/Thompson 1-63

BUGS BUNNY & DAFFY DUCK
Jones 1-53, 1-57
Freleng 1-57
McKimson 1-59, 1-63
Jones/Noble 1-61
Monroe/Noble 1-64

BUGS BUNNY, YOSEMITE SAM & GRANNY
Freleng 1-53

PORKY PIG, DAFFY DUCK & MARVIN MARTIAN
Jones 1-53

SPEEDY GONZALES
McKimson 1-53, 1-58
Freleng 1-59
Freleng/Pratt 1-64

TWEETY, SYLVESTER & ROCKY
Freleng 1-53

TWEETY, SYLVESTER & PEPE LEPEW
Freleng 1-54

MARC ANTONY, PUSSYFOOT & CLAUDE CAT
Jones 1-54

CLAUDE CAT, FRISKY PUPPY & TWEETY
Jones 1-54

BUGS BUNNY, ROCKY & MUGSY
Freleng 1-54, 1-57, 1-63

FOGHORN LEGHORN, MISS PRISSY & JUNIOR (CHICKEN)
McKimson 1-54, 1-55

BUGS BUNNY & TASMANIAN DEVIL
McKimson 1-54, 1-57, 1-62, 1-64

BUGS BUNNY & WITCH HAZEL
Jones 1-54, 1-56
Levitow 1-59

ELMER FUDD & GOOFY GOPHERS
Freleng 1-55

BUGS BUNNY, DAFFY DUCK, ELMER FUDD & YOSEMITE SAM
Freleng 1-55, 1-56

SYLVESTER & SPEEDY GONZALES
Freleng 1-55, 1-57, 1-59, 2-63, 1-64
McKimson 1-57, 1-60, 1-61, 1-64
Freleng/Pratt 1-61, 1-62, 1-64, 1-65

FOGHORN LEGHORN, BR’ER DOG & DAFFY DUCK
McKimson 1-56

DAFFY DUCK & TASMANIAN DEVIL
McKimson 1-57

SYLVESTER & JUNIOR (CAT)
McKimson 1-59, 1-62, 1-63
Freleng 1-60, 1-61

FOGHORN LEGHORN & MISS PRISSY
McKimson 1-59

FOGHORN LEGHORN & JUNIOR (CHICKEN)
McKimson 1-60, 1-62

FOGHORN LEGHORN, HENERY HAWK & MISS PRISSY
McKimson 1-61

YOSEMITE SAM
Freleng 1-62

PORKY PIG, BUGS BUNNY & YOSEMITE SAM
Chiniquy 1-64

DAFFY DUCK, SYLVESTER & SPEEDY GONZALES
Freleng/Pratt 1-65

SYLVESTER, ROAD RUNNER, WILE E. COYOTE & SPEEDY GONZALES
Freleng/Pratt 1-65

DAFFY DUCK & SPEEDY GONZALES
McKimson 5-65, 9-66, 1-67
Larriva 3-67
Lovy 4-67, 2-68

PORKY PIG, DAFFY DUCK & GRANNY
Spector 1-65

DAFFY DUCK & GOOFY GOPHERS
McKimson 1-65

DAFFY DUCK, SPEEDY GONZALES & WITCH HAZEL
McKimson 1-66

COOL CAT
Lovy 1-67, 3-68
McKimson 2-69

MERLIN THE MAGIC MOUSE
Lovy 1-67, 2-68
McKimson 2-69

BUNNY & CLAUDE
McKimson 1-68, 1-69

The Directors:

Fred (Tex) Avery
Ted Bonnicksen
Gerry Chiniquy
Robert Clampett
Cal Dalton
Arthur Davis
Earl Duvall
Greg Ford
Isadore (Friz) Freleng
Rollin Hamilton
Ben (Bugs) Hardaway
Hugh Harman
Ken Harris
Cal Howard
Rudolf Ising
Ub Iwerks
Chuck Jones
Jack King
Rudy Larriva
Terry Lennon
Abe Levitow
Alex Lovy
Frank Marsales
Norman McCabe
Robert McKimson
Phil Monroe
Maurice Noble
Tom Palmer
Hawley Pratt
Paul Smith
Irv Spector
Frank Tashlin (sometimes credited as Frank Tash or Tish Tash)
Richard Thompson

==========================
animation/best.of.net #109, from hmccracken, 1095 chars, Sun Sep 4 16:46:06 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 4 Sep 1994 16:45:44 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9409041645.memo.51824@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

>Path: news.delphi.com!uunet!newstf01.cr1.aol.com!search01.news.aol.com!not-for-mail
>From: jjrsc@aol.com (Jjrsc)
>Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
>Subject: Mike Gribble of Spike & Mike died last Tues.
>Date: 2 Sep 1994 18:01:03 -0400
>Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364)
>Lines: 7
>Sender: news@search01.news.aol.com
>Message-ID: <3487av$2ov@search01.news.aol.com>
>NNTP-Posting-Host: search01.news.aol.com

Mike Gribble , whose creative vison and zany promotion helped build the
Festival of Animation, died at his home in San Diego last Tues. night. He
was 42 and undergoing treatment for pancreatic cancer. A Mike Gribble
Animation Scholarship fund will be established in his memory. Those who
wish to contribute should send it to MMP, Inc. 7488 La Jolla Blvd., La
Jolla, CA 92037. At 5 pm next Sunday, Mike’s friends all over the world
will release a purple ballloon in his memory. Please join us.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #110, from hmccracken, 15127 chars, Tue Sep 13 22:06:14 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 13 Sep 1994 22:03:59 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9409132203.memo.89341@BIX.com>
Subject: from rec.arts.comics.strips

>Path: news.delphi.com!uunet!europa.eng.gtefsd.com!swiss.ans.net!news.ans.net!mrtnt.ntrs.com!tntvax!spb
>Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
>Subject: Dilbert Newsletter 2.0
>Message-ID: <1994Sep11.121455@tntvax>
>From: spb@tntvax.ntrs.com (Steve Bonine)
>Date: 11 Sep 94 12:14:55 -0500
>Nntp-Posting-Host: tntv6
>Nntp-Posting-User: spb
>Lines: 433

Dilbert Newsletter 2.0
———————-

To: Dogbert’s New Ruling Class (DNRC)
From: Scott Adams
Date: 9/94

New Ruling Class
—————-

If you’re getting this newsletter directly then you’re already qualified to
be a member of Dogbert’s new ruling class when he conquers the planet. If
you tried unsuccessfully to subscribe to the mailing list, read the
instructions at the end for some tips.

If you still can’t figure out how to get on the list, you’re probably a
“Family Circus” fan anyway and not destined to mingle with the new ruling
class except maybe as domestic help.

But hey, clean homes are important too.

Dilbert Screen Saver
——————–

Many of you asked for it. Soon you’ll be able to buy a Dilbert Screen Saver
(Windows or Mac), courtesy of the very cool people at Delrina.

You’ll be able to while away the otherwise useless business day by watching a
variety of educational vignettes: Animated lawyers being beaten with large
mallets; the Secretary With a Crossbow; Ratbert abducted by a golden eagle;
Saint Dogbert driving out the demons of stupidity; Dogbert pummeling an MBA
with a rolled up budget report; Bob giving wedgies and lots more.

The Dilbert Screen Saver will be available for the holiday season at major
retail stores and mail order, but in the mean time if you have any questions,
feel free to call Delrina at 1-800-268-6082.

Censorship of Dilbert?
———————-

Depending where you were, some of you saw a different Dilbert on August 1st.
We offered the newspapers an alternate strip in case they were uncomfortable
with my preferred version for that day.

The preferred strip featured Dogbert helping Dilbert’s company select a new
high-tech name. Dogbert used a computer to randomly generate words from
astronomy and electronics, finally coming up with the name “Uranus Hertz.”

Some people cried “censorship” when they noticed that a few newspapers ran
the alternate. But this wasn’t a case of censorship.

It’s only censorship if the suppression is for moral reasons. In this case
some newspaper editors thought the substitute cartoon was better for their
readers. That’s just editing, not censorship, and it’s okay with me.

Dilbert’s Necktie
—————–

Okay, okay. What’s the deal with Dilbert’s necktie?

As most of you know, in the first Dilbert Newsletter I said when Dilbert’s
perky tie went limp it would be a sign that Dilbert got lucky. On August 9th
the tie headed South.

But there were some ambiguities: Liz said she wouldn’t get physical before
marriage; then Dilbert attributed his relaxed condition to becoming a
Unitarian. Many readers were confused.

Some of the theories I got by e-mail included:

– Maybe Liz is married.
– Maybe Liz changed her mind and took Dilbert’s innocence.
– Maybe Dilbert replaced his lust with religion.
– Maybe “Unitarian” is a pun and the sex was…uh…alone.
– Maybe Liz is a lying, hypocritical little tramp.
– Maybe sex with Liz was like a religious experience.

So What Really Happened?
————————

Well, it’s like UFOs. (Stay with me on this.)

If you believe what you read, the sky is thick with aliens who are designing
pyramids, disemboweling livestock, impregnating rural people and generally
having a good time at our expense.

But we also read that thousands of people celebrate holidays by firing guns
in the air. From a statistical standpoint, you’d expect many aliens would
get caught in the hail of bullets and we’d find their tiny green bodies
slumped all over the place. But I’ve never found one. And I’ve looked.

Logically then, guns must not exist.

Of course, some conspiracy theorists believe that the government swoops in
and creates elaborate cover stories whenever an alien lands in somebody’s
shrubbery. This line of thinking depends on the notion that the government
is highly efficient. (I don’t know how the conspiracy theorists exchange
ideas, but I’m guessing it’s not through the mail.)

But What About Liz?
——————-

So that brings us directly to the question of Liz and Dilbert.

Over the summer I’ve received lots of suggestions about whether Dilbert
should lose his innocence or Liz should be hit by a meteor. Opinions were
divided, but the most persuasive letters basically said:

“Neither option is creative enough.”

OUCH!!

But I’d already written myself into a corner.

So I did the only thing you can do when you’re trapped in a corner: I chewed
my way through the wall. I broke the unwritten cartoon rules. I shifted
responsibility for defining reality…to you.

My solution was to write the comic equivalent of a traffic accident. All the
witnesses see the same event but perceive it differently. Reality is, after
all, subjective. How you interpreted the August 9th strip says a lot about
you.

About 18 out of every 20 people saw the limp tie and perceived that Dilbert
lost his innocence. They believed that when Liz said “no” she didn’t mean it
or she changed her mind. Maybe some readers trusted me as the authority
figure in this case, and I clearly implied the tie was the sign. Or maybe
they just wanted Dilbert to get lucky. The people in this group buy lottery
tickets and expect to win.

A few of you questioned all of the assumptions. You considered the
possibility that the tie could be down for some other reason. That, coupled
with the pun-like word “Unitarian” led you to believe Dilbert took matters
into his own hands. This group took Liz at her word and assumed the author
was trying to pull a fast one (so to speak). This group is composed of
lonely people who are often misdiagnosed as professional tennis players.
(Think about it.)

A small minority of readers distrusted Liz, assuming she must be married but
not to Dilbert. The people in this group voted for Perot and occasionally
find bullet-riddled aliens slumped in their shrubbery.

One Unitarian asked if he could reproduce the August 9th strip for a
recruiting brochure. He will go to heaven.

What Really Happened?
———————

It’s a private matter between Dilbert and Liz.

The Future of Liz
—————–

You won’t see Liz for a few months because I had a bunch of cartoons in the
pipeline before I knew her fate. But she’ll return because of popular
demand.

Liz is an engineer too, for a different company. She’s an expert on
composite materials. If there are any materials engineers out there, send me
an e-mail with any good buzzwords you’d like to see included.

Dear Dogbert
————

In this section, Dogbert will answer frequently asked questions which I’m too
polite to answer myself.

Dear Dogbert:

I noticed that the Dilbert cartoon is available on the Internet. Is it okay
if I copy and distribute it everywhere as long as I don’t make any profit?
It seems like this would be good publicity for you.

Dear Moron:

It’s apparent that you were raised in some god-forsaken Eastern Bloc
communist country. Let me explain some of the basic concepts of capitalism.

The best way to learn is by experience. I’d like you to go to your nearest
mall departments store and try your approach to get some free pants.

Don’t let them intimidate you with their snooty attitudes. As you well know,
if you wear their pants it’s excellent publicity for Macy’s. In fact THEY
shoud pay YOU to take their pants. Remember, the only thing that really
matters is that you were considerate enough to ask. Besides, they have lots
of pants and you only have a few pairs.

If this approach does not yield satisfactory results, just grab a pair off
the rack and run for the exit. If you hear a loud alarm as you pass through
the exit it means you have won a prize hog from the store. If you do not see
the hog immediately, make loud hog calls until the prize committee surrounds
you (they have maroon uniforms — can’t miss ’em).

As far as the Dilbert strips go, they are copyrighted. That means you can’t
copy them without permission from United Media (which generally means sending
them money — call 800-221-4816).

But you seem like such a nice guy that I’ll ask them to send you special
written permission. If you don’t get it in a few hours it must be lost at
the Post Office. So call the Surgeon General and complain. And don’t accept
her lame excuses about jurisdiction.

Suggestions for the Strip
————————-

I continue to get great theme suggestions for the strip and use many of them.

I especially like stories of office politics, poorly conceived incentive
plans, clueless management techniques, new business fads, amazingly bad
bosses, strange idiosyncrasies and obnoxious corporate policies — things
that evoke emotional responses.

The best fodder involves what people are thinking, not what they are saying.
So please don’t send dialog suggestions.

You can send suggestions by e-mail to scottadams@aol.com or by snail mail to
Scott Adams, c/o United Media, 200 Park Ave., New York, NY 10166.

Next Newsletter
—————

In the next newsletter I’ll defend myself from the cruel accusation that my
e-mail address defines me as a newbie. And I’ll tell you how to jockey for
status in Dogbert’s new ruling class. (The job of “Minister of Gadgets” has
already been awarded.)

My Support Staff
—————-

I still handle all of my e-mail personally, although I recently taught my cat
Sarah to fire up a Flash Session to retrieve my mail from America Online.
(But she has to use “QUICKEYS” so it’s hardly noteworthy.)

Other than that, it’s still just me and the dust mites. And judging from
their actions, they haven’t bought into my mission statement.

***************** General Dilbert Facts *******************

The cartoon strip Dilbert began in 1989. It now appears in 250 papers in 9
countries. The author (that would be me) receives about 50 e-mail messages
per day.

Copying, Reprinting, Licensing of Dilbert
—————————————–

The copyright and trademark for Dilbert are owned by United Media in New
York. You can call them at 800-221-4816. There would be a fee that depends
on how you want to use the strip or the characters.

Dilbert Books
————-

“Build a Better Life by Stealing Office Supplies” (new material about working
at a big company), Andrews & McMeel. (ISBN 0-8362-1757-8)

“Always Postpone Meetings with Time-Wasting Morons” (a compilation of the
first year), Andrews & McMeel.
(ISBN 0-8362-1758-6)

“Clues for the Clueless” from Andrews and McMeel. It’s new material on the
subject of manners using the Dilbert cast. (ISBN 0-8362-1737-3)

A fourth book — a compilation of the second year of Dilbert — titled “Shave
the Whales” is just out in May 1994. It’s from Andrews & McMeel.
(ISBN 0-8362-1740-3)

The fifth book is due in Spring of 1995.

Check with any bookstore. If that fails, call the publisher directly at
800-826-4216 and order by mail.

Dilbert Business Videos:
————————

Cohen/Gebler Associates has created a set of short animated Dilbert business
videos for meetings, workshops and presentations. The videos are based
closely on themes from the strip. They’re used primarily as ice breakers.

Six titles are currently available:

– Dilbert on Quality
– Dilbert on Managing Change
– Dilbert Does Sales
– Dilbert Does Meetings
– Just the Breaks #1 (Mingling Groups)
– Just the Breaks #2 (110%).

Prices start at $99.

Call 1-800-208-3535 for more information

Dilbert Shirts and Mugs:
————————

– Sunday Comics Store at 800-243-8962.

T-Shirt: Dilbert and Dogbert floating in Cyberspace
Sweat Shirt: Dilbert and Dogbert floating in Cyberspace

– Signals Catalog at 800-663-9994

Mug: St. Dogbert drives out demons of stupidity
T-Shirt: St. Dogbert drives out demons of stupidity
Sweat Shirt: St. Dogbert drives out demons of stupidity

Dilbert Screen Savers
———————

The Dilbert Screen Saver (Windows or Mac) will be available for the holiday
season at major retail stores and mail order, but in the mean time if you
have any questions, feel free to call Delrina at 1-800-268-6082.

Online Dilbert Sources
———————-

– America Online (older daily strips) (Keyword: Dilbert)

– ClariNews: 1-800-USE-NETS or info@clarinet for
subscription info. Daily current strips.

Note: None of the Sunday Dilberts are online anywhere yet.

About the Dilbert List
———————-

It costs you nothing to be on the Dilbert Newsletter list, except for the
cost of your own e-mail.

I’m using a “List Server” system to automate this process. So this
newsletter will come to you from a different e-mail address than my personal
one.

The frequency of the Dilbert Newsletter is approximately “whenever I feel
like it”, which should be about two or three times a year.

How to Subscribe Automatically
——————————

You can subscribe to the Dilbert List automatically by sending an
e-mail to the address listproc@internex.net with NOTHING in the
subject line and ONLY this message in the body of your e-mail:

subscribe Dilbert_List Joe Blow

(except put your real name instead of Joe Blow).

Your e-mail address will be picked up automatically, so you need not specify
it.

If the automatic method doesn’t work for you, send me a note at
scottadams@aol.com and I’ll put you on manually.

Unsubscribing
————-

If you want to take your name off the list automatically, send an e-mail to
listproc@internex.net but include only these words in the body of the
message:

unsubscribe Dilbert_List

Getting Old Newsletters
———————–

Send email to listproc@internex.net with ONLY the message:

get dilbert_list newsletter_1.0

Problems Signing Up for the Newsletter
————————————–

If you tried unsuccessfully to subscribe to the newsletter just send e-mail
to me and I’ll sign you up manually. My personal address is still
scottadams@aol.com

If you got a strange message saying you can’t change your password, ignore
it. The password isn’t useful in this application.

Reprinting This Newsletter
————————–

Feel free to copy, post and distribute this newsletter within the bounds of
good netiquette. But don’t forward copies to Bill Amend because he’s still
mad about getting six copies of the first newsletter.

Scott Adams
scottadams@aol.com

==========================
animation/best.of.net #111, from hmccracken, 2175 chars, Sun Sep 25 19:24:09 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 25 Sep 1994 19:23:28 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9409251923.memo.38620@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.animation.warner-bros.

>Path: news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!yale!zip.eecs.umich.edu!newsxfer.itd.umich.edu!europa.eng.gtefsd.com!swiss.ans.net!netnews.lightside.com!user40.lightside.com!user
>From: vintage@lightside.com (Stephen W. Worth)
>Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
>Subject: Animation Art Info
>Date: Fri, 23 Sep 1994 00:39:09 -0700
>Organization: Vintage Ink & Paint
>Lines: 31
>Message-ID:
>NNTP-Posting-Host: user40.lightside.com
>Mime-Version: 1.0
>Content-Type: text/plain;charset=US-ASCII
>Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

Vintage Ink & Paint, the leading authority in animation art restoration
and authentication is offering articles of interest to animation art
collectors via e-mail. The following titles are currently available:

THE CARE AND RESTORATION OF VINTAGE ANIMATION CELS

APPRAISING ANIMATION ART: FINE ART OR CARTOON COLLECTIBLE?

HOW CAN I TELL IF ITS REAL? AUTHENTICATING ANIMATION ART

and ADVICE FOR BEGINNING COLLECTORS

Send your requests (one title per day, please) to vintage@lightside.com
and we will e-mail the article back to you ASAP. Hard copies can be
requested by sending a SASE to:

Vintage Ink & Paint
5701 Klump Av. #7
N. Hollywood, CA 91601

Vintage Ink & Paint is the exclusive representative to Ralph Bakshi and
the estates of Grim Natwick and Les Clark. If you would like to receive
notice of any of their upcoming sales of fine animation art, include your
name and mailing address. The current catalog, which is available for $3,
features animation drawings from Warner Brothers, and includes many layout
sketches by Robert McKimson.

____________________________________________________Steve Worth Vintage Ink & Paint
vintage@lightside.com Animation Art Restoration,
Authentication, Appraisal
and Sales

==========================
animation/best.of.net #112, from hmccracken, 24185 chars, Sun Sep 25 21:09:30 1994
————————–
>Subject: LIST: Sherlock Holmes Illustrated
>Date: 17 Jul 1994 16:04:46 GMT
>Xref: news.delphi.com rec.arts.books:86295 alt.fan.holmes:2567 rec.answers:6259 alt.answers:3555 news.answers:24705

Archive-name: books/holmes/illustrated
Last-modified: 9 July 1994

This article contains a list of Sherlock Holmes comic books and
graphic novels published in the United States.

Please send corrections, additions, comments, and
suggestions to Mark Martinez .
USmail: P.O. Box 15065, Santa Fe, NM 87506-5065

Posted quarterly (Jan, Apr, Jul, Oct) to
rec.arts.books, alt.fan.holmes, rec.answers, and news.answers.

Available in the indicated USENET newsgroups, or via
anonymous ftp from rtfm.mit.edu in the file:
/pub/usenet/news.answers/books/holmes/illustrated

Also available from mail-server@rtfm.mit.edu by sending a
mail message containing:
send usenet/news.answers/books/holmes/illustrated

Send a message containing “help” to get general information
about the mail server.

Also available from Sherlocktron, a Sherlock Holmes BBS.
Sherlocktron: (714)492-0724 24 hours a day, 365 days of the
year, 300/1200/2400, N-8-1. There is no fee to use the system
and there are no charges to be listed.
Sherlocktron has several major sections:
A data base of Sherlock Holmes Societies throughout the world.
A data base of Sherlockian Publications.
A data base of purveyors of all sorts of Sherlockian items. What
is for sale, who sells it and how to contact them.
A message section.
A mailing list for people interested in getting mailings of
Sherlockian material (Announcements, Ads, Flyers, Etc.).
A Magazine of the Air with articles on Sherlockian subjects of
all types.
Sherlocktron is operated by Willis G. Frick, 513 Via Presa, San
Clemente, CA 92672, who can be reached during West Coast
business hours at (714)368-6914 (Voice) FAX (714) 992-0981,
Compuserve, 72175,1376
Internet: frickwg@netcom.com

The Holmes Booklist, maintained by Evelyn Leeper, is posted to
the same newsgroups. Copies may be obtained by anonymous ftp to
rtfm.mit.edu in the file:
/pub/usenet/news.answers/books/holmes/list
Or, send email to mail-server@rtfm.mit.edu with the message:
send usenet/news.answers/books/holmes/list

——————————————————————
Sherlock Holmes Illustrated:
Comics, graphic novels, and illustrated stories
——————————————————————

There are many illustrated editions of the Holmes stories.
This list concentrates on English language comic books and
graphic novels published in the US that have come to my
attention.

ACADEMIC INDUSTRIES/PENDULUM PRESS

1974 The great adventures of Sherlock Holmes
Adventure of the speckled band
Boscombe Valley mystery
Now Age Illustrated 64-1379, art by Nestor Redondo
ISBN 0-88301-137-9 (7th ptg, Nov 76), trade pb

1974? Hound of the Baskervilles
Now Age Illustrated 64-2642

1984 The great adventures of Sherlock Holmes
Pocket Classics C13, reprint of Now Age Illustrated edition
ISBN 0-88301-712-1, mass-market pb

1984 Hound of the Baskervilles
Pocket Classics C28
ISBN 0-88301-727-X, mass-market pb

ADVENTURE COMICS

Sherlock Holmes: Return of the Devil
01
02 Oct 92 Return of the devil!
Martin Powell and Seppo Makinen
Features Holmes and Moriarty, b&w

ANDRION BOOKS

1981 The Sherlock Holmes Cartoon Book
Marc Bilgrey
ISBN 0-9606826-0-0 (reprinted 1985)

ARGOSY

V3 03 Aug 91 A study in terror
Ellery Queen, Part 1: The adventure of the surgeon’s kit
Features Holmes and Jack the Ripper
text with b&w illustrations

ATOMEKA

Feb 93 Sherlock Holmes in TCOT Vanishing Villain
Features Holmes and Mr. Hyde, color

CALIBER PRESS

Caliber Presents
04 Baker Street
09 Feb 90 Baker Street: Elementary my dear
Christmas Special Baker Street

Baker Street
01
02 May 89 Honour among punks: Pride and prejudice
03
04
05 Feb 90 Honour among punks: Finale
06 Children of the night: Part 1
07
08
09
10
A recasting and modernizing of Holmes as a punk woman, b&w

Baker Street: Graphitti
01 Elementary, my dear

CB PUBLICATIONS

1987 Sherlock Holmes, a graphic novel
The hound of the Baskervilles
A study in scarlet
Portrait in red
ISBN 0-944099-00-9, collects strips drawn by Bill Barry, 1976-77

CHARLTON COMICS

All new baffling adventures of Sherlock Holmes
01 Oct 55
02 Mar 56
Unathorized comics

CLASSIC COMICS/CLASSICS ILLUSTRATED

21 Jul 44 Three Famous Mysteries
Includes “The sign of the four”, art by Loius Zansky.
First edition by Classic Comics, then Classics Illustrated, color
First comic book appearance of Sherlock Holmes

33 Jan 47 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
A Study in Scarlet
The Hound of the Baskervilles
First edition by Classic Comics, then Classics Illustrated,
after the first printing A Study in Scarlet was dropped, color
Art by Louis Zansky and H.C. Kiefer

110 Aug 53 A Study in Scarlet
Includes “The adventure of the speckled band”, color
Adapted by Kenneth Fitch with art by Seymour Moskowitz

COMICS MAGAZINE COMPANY

Detective Picture Stories
01 Dec 36
First comic book parody of Sherlock Holmes

DC COMICS

Action Comics
283 Dec 61 The red kryptonite menace

Sherlock Holmes
01 Sep/Oct 75
The final problem
The adventure of the empty house
Written by Dennis O’Neil with art by E.R. Cruz, color

The Joker
V2 06 Mar/Apr 76 Clown Prince of Crime
Sherlock Holmes stalks the Joker, color

Detective Comics
572 Mar 87 The doomsday book
Sherlock Holmes in the adventure of the red leech
50th anniversary issue, features Batman and Holmes

Eclipso
07 Mar 93 Back with a vengeance
Irene Adler makes a brief appearance, color

08 Apr 93 Good-night Mr. Holmes
Holmes and Watson are on the case when Eclipso possesses
American opera singer Irene Adler.

DELL PUBLISHING (FOUR COLOR)

New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
1169 Mar/May 61
The deadly inheritance
The tunnel scheme

1245 Nov/Jan 62
The derelict ship
The safe robber
The cunning assassin

Art for these two comics by Bob Fujitama, Mike Sekowsky, and
Frank Giacoia

DRACULINA PUBLISHING

01 Jun 94 Bimbos in Time
Brief Sherlock Holmes appearance

EC PUBLICATIONS

Tales Calculated to Drive You Mad
04 ? Oct 54
Shermlock Shomes

07 Oct/Nov 54
Shermlock Shomes and the Hound of the Basketballs

11 ?
One panel appearance of Shermlock Shomes in “Dragged Net”

1955? Inside Mad
Ballantine 265, mass-market pb
Reprints Shermlock Shomes, b&w

1955? The Brothers Mad
Ballantine 267K, mass-market pb
Reprints Shermlock Shomes and the Hound of the Basketballs, pp 52-75, b&w

Mad Super Special
18 1975 The Nostalgic Mad #4, 32-page color comic
Reprints Shermlock Shomes, 8-page parody from 1953
Holmes cover reproducing Tales Calculated to Drive You Mad #7

28 Fall 79 The Nostalgic Mad #7, 32-page color comic
Reprints Shermlock Shomes and the Hound of the Basketballs,
8-page parody from 1954
Cover reproduction from Tales Calculated to Drive You Mad #4

Mad
263 Jun 86
Young Sureschlock Homely, movie parody

ETERNITY COMICS (MALIBU GRAPHICS)

Scarlet in Gaslight
01 Nov 87 Scarlet in gaslight
02 Jan 88 Invasion
03 Mar 88 Plague
04 Jun 88 The final triumph
Martin Powell and Seppo Makinen, features Sherlock Holmes
and Dracula, b&w

1988 Sherlock Holmes: Scarlet in Gaslight, an adventure in terror
ISBN 0-944735-09-6 (2nd printing, 1990), trade pb, reprints
issues 1-4

A Case of Blind Fear
01 Jan 89 The madness
02 Apr 89 The woman
03 Sep 89 The revelation
04 Nov 89 The enemy unseen
Martin Powell and Seppo Makinen, sequel to Scarlet in
Gaslight featuring Holmes and the Invisible Man, b&w

1990 A Case of Blind Fear
ISBN 0-944735-50-9, trade pb, reprints issues 1-4

Sherlock Holmes
01 Jun 88
thru
23 May 90
Reprints 1954-56 New York Herald Tribune daily and Sunday comic
strip written by Edith Meiser and drawn by Mike Sekowsky and
Frank Giacoia, b&w

1989 Sherlock Holmes, Vol. 1: The classic comic strips
ISBN 0-944735-15-0, trade pb, reprints issues 1-6

1991 Sherlock Holmes: The red headed league and other stories
ISBN 0-944735-68-1, trade pb, reprints issues ?

Sherlock Holmes Casebook
01 Mar 89
02 Mar 89
Reprints New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (Dell), b&w

Sherlock Holmes in the Case of the Missing Martian
01 Jul 90 Part 1
02 Jul 90 Part 2
03 Sep 90 Part 3
04 Oct 90 Part 4
Doug Murray and Topper Helmers, features Holmes, Jack the
Ripper, and H. G. Wells’ Martians, b&w

Sherlock Holmes of the 30s
01 Jan 90 The Gloria Scott, Silver Blaze
02 Feb 90 Silver Blaze, The Musgrave ritual
03 Mar 90 The Musgrave ritual, The Greek interpreter
04 Apr 90 The Greek interpreter, The Reigate puzzle
05 May 90 The Reigate puzzle, The Naval treaty
06 Jun 90 The Naval treaty, The stockbroker’s clerk
07 Jul 90 The stockbroker’s clerk, The crooked man
Reprints 1930-32 Bell Newspaper Syndicate comic strip by Leo
O’Mealia, b&w, first appearance of Sherlock Holmes in the comics

Sherlock Junior
01 Aug 90
02 Sep 90
03 Oct 90
Reprints of half page gag strip, b&w

Ghosts of Dracula
02 Oct 91 The magician and the monster
Martin Powell and Seppo Makinen, features Dracula, Houdini
and contains a brief appearance by Holmes, b&w

GOLDSTEIN

03 Jul 76 Sherlock Holmes (122nd anniversary magazine)
E-GO Collector’s series

GRANDREAMS

1979 Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson Annual
ISBN 0-86227-016-2, oversize hardcover, contains British comics,
stories, and TV photos

HARPOON

02 Ozone Holmes: Deducer of the inexplicable, tracer of lost mysteries

HARVEY PUBLICATIONS

Speed Comics: The adventures of Padlock Holmes
32 1940-41?
33
37

HAWK BOOKS

1990 Hound of the Baskervilles
Classic Comics, UK hardback of a Spanish adaptation ?
Adapted by Dr. Marion Kimberly
ISBN 0-948248-08-4

HYPERION PRESS

1977 Sherlocko the Monk, A Complete Compilation: 1910-1912
Gus Mager
ISBN 0-88355-654-5, oversize paperback, comic strip reprints
featuring the Great Sherlocko and Dr. Watso, b&w

INNOVATION PRESS

01 Jul 89 A Study in Scarlet
The singular case of the anemic heir
Premiere Graphic Novel, b&w

MANUSCRIPT PRESS

Comics Revue
21 1987 Milt Caniff, “The Baker Street Adventure”
Reprints Steve Canyon strip with Canyon as Holmes, b&w

MARVEL COMICS

Giant-Size Master of Kung Fu
03 Mar 75 Fires of rebirth
Featuring Clive Reston, great-nephew of Holmes

Marvel Preview Presents Sherlock Holmes
05 Apr 76 Part 1: The hound of the Baskervilles
06 Spring 76 Part 2: The demon-hound from hell
Adapted by Doug Moench with art by Val Mayerik, magazine, b&w

The Man Called Nova
20 Jul 78 At last — the inner circle
21 Sep 78 The shocking secret of Nova
Features a Sherlock Holmes robot as a secondary character

NATIONAL LAMPOON

V1 16 Jul 71 The strange case of the Queen’s pupils
Charles O’Hegarty and Michael Choquette

NEW MEDIA PUBLISHING

Fantasy Illustrated
01 Spring 82 Part 1: The hounds of hell theory
The magazine folded and Part 2 was never published, b&w

NORTHSTAR PUBLISHING

1989 Cases of Sherlock Holmes, Volume 1
ISBN 1-877977-00-5, reprints issues 1, 2, 4, and 5

Cases of Sherlock Holmes
16 1989 The adventure of the solitary cyclist
17 1989 The abbey grange
18 1989 The blue carbuncle
19 1990 The man with the twisted lip
20 1990 The red headed league
Continues Renegade Press series, b&w

Chronicles of Crime & Mystery: Sherlock Holmes
01 Feb 92 The adventure of the speckled band
Like the Renegade Press comics, this comic contains the
text of Doyle’s story with illustrations, b&w

Sherlock Holmes: Tales of Mystery and Suspense (Volume 1)
01 Aug 92 The Satherwaite Horror
02 Sep 92 The triangle of blood
03 Mar 93 The sequestered spy
New adventures, b&w

PYRAMID BOOKS

1977 Son of Sherlock Holmes: The Woman in Red
Byron Preiss and Ralph Reese
ISBN 0-515-04260-9, oversize paperback, color

RENEGADE PRESS

Cases of Sherlock Holmes
01 May 86 The adventure of the Beryl Coronet
02 Jul 86 The adventure of the dancing men
03 Sep 86 The strange adventure of the Vourdalale
(original story by Gordon Derry)
04 Nov 86 The adventure of the six napoleons
05 Jan 87 The adventure of the engineer’s thumb
06 Mar 87 The adventure of the resident patient
07 May 87 The adventure of the Musgrave ritual
(comic is dated Mar 1987)
08 Jul 87 A scandal in Bohemia
09 Sep 87 The adventure of the copper beeches
10 Nov 87 The adventure of the Greek interpreter
11 Jan 88 The adventure of Black Peter
12 Mar 88 The adventure of Silver Blaze
13 May 88 The adventure of the Naval treaty, Part 1
14 Jul 88 The adventure of the Naval Treaty, Part 2
15 Sep 88 The adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton
With the exception of #3, these comics contain the text of
Doyle’s stories with illustrations, series continued by
Northstar Publishing, b&w

SIMON & SCHUSTER

1957 Sherlock Holmes
Golden Picture Classic CL-408
Adapted by C. Verral, illustrated by Tom Gill

SPECTACULAR STORIES MAGAZINE

04 Jul 50 Sherlock Holmes
Fox Features Syndicate, Hero Books

TOME PRESS

01 Adventure of the Naval Treaty
Reprints Cases of SH 13 & 14

nn A Scandal in Bohemia
Reprints Cases of SH 8

nn The Adventure of the Musgrave Ritual
Reprints Cases of SH 7

TUNDRA

03 1992 The Maximortal
Holmes cover, features the death of the master, color

WARREN PUBLISHING

The Rook
05 Oct 80 Part 1: Master of the world
06 Dec 80 Part 2: Master of the world
Budd Lewis
Features Holmes, A. C. Doyle, and Jules Verne

10 Aug 81 The singular case of the anemic heir
Will Richardson and Kevin Duane
Features Holmes and Dracula

13 Feb 82 Part 1: A study in scarlet
14 Apr 82 Part 2: A study in scarlet (continued in issue #?)
magazine, b&w

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Coming Attractions
——————————————————————

ARGOSY

A study in terror
04 Jun 93 Part 2: The adventure of the veiled woman

CALIBER

Oct 93 Baker Street: Honour among punks, Guy Davis
graphic novel reprinting 1-5

Oct 93 Baker Street: Children of the night, Guy Davis
graphic novel reprinting 6-10

Jun 94 Baker Street Sketchbook

1994 Baker Street (new mini-series)

1994 Ghost Sonata
Sherlock Holmes and the Phantom of the Opera

CB PUBLICATIONS/BILL BARRY ENTERPRISES

Sherlock Holmes: The hound of the Baskervilles
Sherlock Holmes: A study in scarlet
These were originally advertised as separate publications
and may have been replaced by the following

Jun 93 The illustrated adventures of Sherlock Holmes
The hound of the Baskervilles
A study in scarlet
Portrait in red
Also contains a history of Holmes comic book artists

COMIC ZONE PRODUCTIONS

Oct 92 The Ribald Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (bimonthly)

NORTHSTAR

Sherlock Holmes: Tales of Mystery and Suspense
04 Apr 93 (resolicited Jul 94)
05 Aug 93

RAVETTE BOOKS

Feb 93 Sherlock Holmes: The red death
trade pb

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Cancellations
——————————————————————

INNOVATION Sherlock Holmes: The hound of the Baskervilles

MAGIC COMICS The last case of Sherlock Holmes (3 issues)

TOME PRESS The adventure of the Copper Beeches
The adventure of the speckled band
The Adventure of Silver Blaze

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Need More Information
——————————————————————

Archie Publications Life with Archie 267
Classic Comics (Gallery or Hawk ?) Hound of the Baskervilles, 1991
Coward Shoe Classics Illustrated A study in scarlet
Eternity Sherlock Holmes 1 & 2 (strip reprints)
Pacific/Eclipse Comics Somerset Holmes
Playboy Sherlock, Gahan Wilson, Playboy Album 3
Straight Arrow Books The Firesign Theatre’s Big Mystery Joke Book

——————————————————————
Sherlock Holmes Illustrated: The original stories
——————————————————————

After the first appearance of this list, I was reminded that the
chronicles of Mr. Holmes cases have always been illustrated, so
I decided to add detail on the original illustrations. The
following information is from ‘The Complete Guide to Sherlock
Holmes’. For each story, you will find the original publication
(UK and/or US), publication date, and illustrator(s).

A STUDY IN SCARLET
Beeton’s Christmas Annual, 1987, D.H. Friston

THE SIGN OF FOUR
Lipponcott’s Monthly Magazine, Feb 1890, illustrator?

THE ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES
A Scandal in Bohemia
Strand, Jul 1891, Sidney Paget
The Red-headed League
Strand, Aug 1891, S. Paget
A Case of Identity
Strand, Sep 1891, S. Paget
The Boscombe Valley Mystery
Strand, Oct 1891, S. Paget
The Five Orange Pips
Strand, Nov 1891, S. Paget
The Man with the Twisted Lip
Strand, Dec 1891, S. Paget
The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle
Strand, Jan 1892, S. Paget
The Adventure of the Speckled Band
Strand, Feb 1892, S. Paget
The Adventure of the Engineer’s Thumb
Strand, Mar 1892, S. Paget
The Adventure of the Noble Bachelor
Strand, Apr 1892, S. Paget
The Adventure of the Beryl Coronet
Strand, May 1892, S. Paget
The Adventure of the Copper Beeches
Strand, Jun 1892, S. Paget

THE MEMOIRS OF SHERLOCK HOLMES
Silver Blaze
Strand, Dec 1892, S. Paget
Harper’s, 25 Feb 1893, William H. Hyde
The Yellow Face
Strand, Feb 1893, S. Paget
Harper’s, 11 Feb 1893, W.H. Hyde
The Stock-Broker’s Clerk
Strand, Mar 1893, S. Paget
Harper’s, 11 Mar 1893, W.H. Hyde
The ‘Gloria Scott’
Strand, Apr 1893, S. Paget
Harper’s, 15 Ar 1893, W.H. Hyde
The Musgrave Ritual
Strand, May 1893, S. Paget
Harper’s, 13 May 1893, W.H. Hyde
The Reigate Squires (US-The Reigate Puzzle)
Strand, Jun 1893, S. Paget
Harper’s, 17 Jun 1893, W.H. Hyde
The Crooked Man
Strand, Jul 1893, S. Paget
Harper’s, 8 Jul 1893, W.H. Hyde
The Resident Patient
Strand, Aug 1893, S. Paget
Harper’s, 12 Aug 1893, W.H. Hyde
The Greek Interpreter
Strand, Sep 1893, S. Paget
Harper’s, 16 Sepb 1893, W.H. Hyde
The Naval Treaty
Strand, Oct & Nov 1893, S. Paget
Harper’s, 14 & 21 Oct 1893, W.H. Hyde
The Final Problem
Strand, Dec 1893, S. Paget
McClure’s, Dec 1893, H.C. Edwards

THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES
Strand, Aug 1901-Apr 1902, S. Paget
Strand (New York), Sep 1901-May 1902

THE RETURN OF SHERLOCK HOLMES
The Empty House
Collier’s, Sep 1903, Frederic Dorr Steele
Strand, Oct 1903, S. Paget
The Norwood Builder
Collier’s, Oct 1903, F.D. Steele
Strand, Nov 1903, S. Paget
The Dancing Men
Collier’s, Dec 1903, F.D. Steele
Strand, Dec 1903, S. Paget
The Solitary Cyclist
Collier’s, Dec 1903, F.D. Steele
Strand, Jan 1904, S. Paget
The Priory School
Collier’s, Jan 1904, F.D. Steele
Strand, Feb 1904, S. Paget
Black Peter
Collier’s, Feb 1904, F.D. Steele
Strand, Mar 1904, S. Paget
Charles Augustus Milverton
Collier’s, Mar 1904, F.D. Steele
Strand, Apr 1904, S. Paget
The Six Napoleons
Collier’s, Apr 1904, F.D. Steele
Strand, May 1904, S. Paget
The Three Students
Strand, Jun 1904, S. Paget
Collier’s, Sep 1904, F.D. Steele
The Golden Pince-Nez
Strand, Jul 1904, S. Paget
Collier’s, Oct 1904, F.D. Steele
The Missing Three-Quarter
Strand, Aug 1904, S. Paget
Collier’s, Nov 1904, F.D. Steele
The Abbey Grange
Strand, Sep 1904, S. Paget
Collier’s, Dec 1904, F.D. Steele
The Second Stain
Strand, Dec 1904, S. Paget
Collier’s, Jan 1905, F.D. Steele

HIS LAST BOW
The Cardboard Box
Strand, Jan 1893, S. Paget
Harper’s, Jan 1893, W.H. Hyde
Wisteria Lodge
Collier’s, Aug 1908, F.D. Steele
Strand, Sep & Oct 1908, Frank Wiles
The Bruce-Partington Plans
Strand, Dec 1908, Arthur Twidle
Collier’s USA, Dec 1908, F.D. Steele
The Devil’s Foot
Strand, Dec 1910, Gilbert Holiday
Strand (New York), Jan & Feb 1911
The Red Circle
Strand, Mar & Apr 1911, H.M. Brock, Joseph Simpson
Strand (New York), Apr & May 1911
The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax
Strand, Dec 1911, Alec Ball
The American Magazine, Dec 1911, F.D. Steele
The Dying Detective
Collier’s, Nov 1913, F.D. Steele
Strand, Dec 1913, Walter Paget
His Last Bow: An Epilogue of Sherlock Holmes
Strand, Sep 1917, Albert Gilbert
Collier’s, Sep 1917, F.D. Steele

THE VALLEY OF FEAR
Strand, Sep 1914-May 1915, F. Wiles
Philadelphia Press, Sep-Oct 1914, A.I. Keller

THE CASE BOOK OF SHERLOCK HOLMES
The Mazarin Stone
Strand, Oct 1921, A. Gilbert
Hearst’s International, Nov 1921, F.D. Steele
Thor Bridge
Strand, Feb & Mar 1922, A. Gilbert
Hearst’s International, Feb & Mar 1922, G. Patrick Nelson
The Creeping Man
Strand, Mar 1923, Howard K. Elcock
Hearst’s International, Mar 1923, F.D. Steele
The Sussex Vampire
Strand, Jan 1924, H.K. Elcock
Hearst’s International, Jan 1923, W.T. Benda
The Three Garridebs
Collier’s, Oct 1924, John Richard Flanagan
Strand, Jan 1925, H.K. Elcock
The Illustrious Client
Collier’s, Nov 1924, J.R. Flanagan
Strand, May 1925, H.K. Elcock
The Three Gables
Liberty, Sep 1926, F.D. Steele
Strand, Oct 1926, H.K. Elcock
The Blanched Soldier
Liberty, Oct 1926, F.D. Steele
Strand, Nov 1926, H.K. Elcock
The Lion’s Mane
Liberty, Nov 1926, F.D. Steele
Strand, Dec 1926, H.K. Elcock
The Retired Colourman
Liberty, Dec 1926, F.D. Steele
Strand, Jan 1927, F. Wiles
The Veiled Lodger
Liberty, Jan 1927, F.D. Steele
Strand, Feb 1927, F. Wiles
Shoscombe Old Place
Liberty, Mar 1927, F.D. Steele
Strand, Apr 1927, F. Wiles

For those of us who can’t afford the originals, here are several
facsimile reprints of stories published in ‘The Strand Magazine’:

The Original Illustrated ‘Strand’ Sherlock Holmes: The Complete
Facsimile Edition
Mallard Press, 1990, oversize hardcover
This edition contains the entire Canon including “A Study in
Scarlet” and “The Sign of the Four” which did not appear in
Strand. Page reproductions are larger than the originals and the
quality is very good.

The Complete Illustrated ‘Strand’ Sherlock Holmes: The Complete
Facsimile Edition
Barnes & Noble, ISBN 0-88029-885-5, oversize hardcover
Same as above. This edition may still be available from Barnes &
Noble and its affiliates (e.g., B. Dalton and Bookstar).

The Original Illustrated Sherlock Holmes
Castle, ISBN 0-89009-052-2, hardcover
Contains all of the stories illustrated by Sidney Paget. This
edition is currently available from Edward R. Hamilton (a
mailorder bookseller) and can often be found in used
bookstores.

Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes
A&W Visual Library, 1975

The Hound of the Baskervilles
Schocken Books SB505, 1975, ISBN 0-8052-0505-5, trade pb
There may be a hardcover edition also

The Return of Sherlock Holmes
Schocken Books SB506, 1975, ISBN 0-8052-0506-3, trade pb
There may be a hardcover edition also

The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes
Schocken Books, 1976
There may be both hardcover and trade pb editions

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
Schocken Books, 1976
There may be both hardcover and trade pb editions

The Sherlock Holmes Illustrated Omnibus
Schocken Books SB507, 1976, ISBN 0-8052-0507-1, trade pb
Collects the four Schocken titles listed above.
The Schocken titles can often be found in used bookstores.

——————————————————————
Credits
——————————————————————

My thanks to these individuals for their contributions:

Evelyn Leeper
Roger Squires

——————————————————————
References
——————————————————————

Benton, Mike. Crime Comics: The Illustrated History (The Taylor
History of Comics #5). Dallas: Taylor Publishing, 1993. ISBN
0-87833-814-4 (advance uncorrected proof)

Comics Buyer’s Guide. Krause Publications, Inc.

Hardwick, Michael. The Complete Guide to Sherlock Holmes. New
York: St. Martin’s Press, 1992. ISBN 0-312-07248

Leeper, Evelyn C. Holmes Booklist (periodic post to rec.arts.books)

Lovisi, Gary. Relics of Sherlock Holmes (2nd printing).
Brooklyn: Gryphon Books, 1989. ISBN 0-93607-16-8

—. Sherlock Holmes: The great detective in paperback.
Brooklyn: Gryphon Books, 1990. ISBN 0-936071-14-1

Mettler, Mike. “Sherlock Holmes in the comics”. Amazing Heroes 45,
Fantagraphic Books, April 15, 1984. pp 51-55.

Overstreet, Robert M. The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide, 22nd
Edition. New York: Avon Books, 1992. ISBN 0-380-76912-3

Previews. Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #113, from hmccracken, 1897 chars, Thu Sep 29 23:31:50 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Thu, 29 Sep 1994 23:29:36 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9409292329.memo.59299@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Path: news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!news.umass.edu!news.mtholyoke.edu!news.byu.edu!netline-fddi.jpl.nasa.gov!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!lll-winken.llnl.gov!fnnews.fnal.gov!fnalv.fnal.gov!higgins
From: higgins@fnalv.fnal.gov (Bill Higgins– Beam Jockey)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: When did lightbulb = idea appear?
Date: 28 Sep 94 15:39:11 -0600
Organization: Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory
Lines: 25
Message-ID: <1994Sep28.153911.1@fnalv.fnal.gov>
NNTP-Posting-Host: fnalo.fnal.gov

I just read a question from Steve Lubar of the Smithsonian Institution
on a history-of-technology mailing list:

“Does anyone know when the lightbulb first started to be used as a
symbol for a bright idea???”

I decided that rec.arts.comics.strips was a good place to ask
this question. I’ve read *Backstage at the Strips* by Mort Walker and
*Understanding Comics* by Scott McCloud, but they don’t give any clue
about the history of this particular icon.

Greg Galer of MIT says that David Nye’s book *Electrifying America*
discusses this. But I haven’t seen it and I don’t know how well Nye
answers the question.

I’m willing to bet that a gang of comics enthusiasts can come up with
a more authoritative answer than a gang of technology historians.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #114, from hmccracken, 4600 chars, Thu Sep 29 23:32:11 1994
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From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Thu, 29 Sep 1994 23:30:09 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9409292330.memo.59306@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Path: news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!news.umass.edu!news.mtholyoke.edu!uhog.mit.edu!news.kei.com!yeshua.marcam.com!charnel.ecst.csuchico.edu!nic-nac.CSU.net!usc!howland.reston.ans.net!swiss.ans.net!nntp.interaccess.com!nb-dyna16.interaccess.com!netboy
From: NetBoy
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: NetBoy (Press Release) 9-28-94
Date: 28 Sep 1994 17:46:59 GMT
Organization: NetBoy Co.
Lines: 70
Distribution: world
Message-ID: <36ca6j$hko@nntp.interaccess.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: nb-dyna16.interaccess.com
X-Newsreader: Nuntius Version 1.2
X-XXMessage-ID:
X-XXDate: Wed, 28 Sep 1994 12:47:32 GMT

Contact: Kate – Exec Producer, NetBoy
netboy@interaccess.com

THE INTERNET’S LOVED COMIC STRIP NETBOY GROWS UP.

…….CHICAGO IL,September 24 1994,Stafford Huyler, the
creator/writer of the Internet`s acclaimed weekly web comic, NetBoy,
is leading a new wave of electronic publishing. Starting October
10th, the new daily called `NetBoy@interaccess.com` will be the
first Internet`exclusive comic strip to be available via a daily
subscription. Deposited each morning in subscribers` email
accounts, this venture will deliver NetBoy`s daily dose of
satirical net humor right to their electronic doorsteps.

…….NetBoy features the adventures of stick figure characters
whose main loves are computers and the Internet . Netboy is the
strip`s `newbie,` a gentle innocent who is awkward with, but
fascinated by, the net. His friends LanMan and Bran are,
respectively, a rough sort of hacker and a nerdy computer
programmer. The characters are both realistic and absurd, making
technical in`jokes about obscure commands as well as offering
piercing commentary about the other inhabitants of the electronic
community.

…….NetBoy@interaccess.com grew from the observations of Huyler
at his marketing director post at Interaccess, a Chicagoland
Internet provider. He dealt daily with people trying to get
online, and also saw the difficulties of starting up a service
where it seems that something unfathomable is always breaking.

…….`When I came up with the NetBoy comic idea way back in
January `94, I knew that I might sell a shirt or two,` Huyler
says, `but I had no idea of the following I would get.` Huyler`s
readers often finish up their reading session by hitting a button
to send mail to Netboy, offering feedback on jokes that they
enjoyed and storylines that they would like to see. Netboy is in
touch with its readers due to this direct line of communication.
Stafford say`s `The daily format will be a great way to tell detailed
stories about every Internet intrest from OS\2 to the Newton and
perhaps a NetBoy meeting with Bill Gates.`

…….Huyler`s Netboy comic has also captured the interest of
writers and journalists. Huyler has been interviewed in the
Houston Chronicle, and NetBoy has gotten running in almost every
Internet publication, including Wired magazine and Boardwatch. `I
guess journalists have been waiting to talk about something fun
and enjoyable about the Internet,` Huyler says. `That`s Netboy.
Good online fun.`

…….The new daily strip will be 6 panels, perfect for email.
The large Saturday Web editions of Netboy will, as always, be
free to every user of the net. A three month subscriptions for the
new daily strip will be available for $10.00 and readers can buy
t-shirts for $15.00. Ordering both will save you money, as the
combination costs just $20.00. Details and the comic itself are
available at http://www.interaccess.com/netboy.html and further
questions may be directed to Kate at netboy@interaccess.com.

——————————————-
A special note to just the net.
-NetBoy is no longer just a hobby. I want to keep Netboy true and
honest and I want it to continue. If I can make money from
offering NetBoy daily then it becomes a business. A business that
is good for the Internet at large. The media these days talk about
the Internet as a monster. NetBoy is the story the media is
waiting for, to talk about the wonderful side of our beloved
Internet. We can all agree that a strong, free willed, healthy
Intenet is what we want for the future. NetBoy is another good
part of the Internet that the world needs to see. And that comes
at a small price, but worth every penny.- Stafford

==========================
animation/best.of.net #115, from hmccracken, 4591 chars, Thu Sep 29 23:32:33 1994
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Thu, 29 Sep 1994 23:31:26 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9409292331.memo.59332@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.animation.warner-bros

Path: news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!news.umass.edu!news.mtholyoke.edu!world!uunet!news.pipeline.com!not-for-mail
From: tishtash@pipeline.com (Thomas M. Shim)
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: WB Store in NYC
Date: 29 Sep 1994 17:51:25 -0400
Organization: The Pipeline
Lines: 66
Message-ID: <36fcst$4i@pipe3.pipeline.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: pipe3.pipeline.com

For those of you planning to come to NYC:

Subj: WB Store at NYC 94-03-14 21:23:02 EST
From: TishTash

The Warner Bros. Store in New York is located at the posh corner of 57th
St. and Fifth Avenue, next to Tiffany’s, Bergdorf’s, FAO Schwartz, and
Planet Hollywood. It takes up the entire banking building from which it
was built, boasting three floors of (expensive) merchandise. On the second
floor windows, about 20 feet tall, hang long, museum-length banners of
various WB artwork, while directly below, the stony facade is sculpted into
various scenes from WB cartoons (“Western,” “Horror,” “Comedy”).

The first floor has a widescreen projection television that runs the WB
special that was on TNT recently. There are selected clothing, jewelry,
books, and memorabilia, as well as videotapes here, including an
interactive store directory. Tie-ins include Mad Magazine and
Harley-Davidson, with life-size statues of Alfred E. Newman and the
Tazmanian Devil on a motorcycle. The main WB cartoon characters jump out
of the lighted concentric rings in the center of the ceiling.

The second floor has a composite television image six screens across by
four screens high, showing WB trailers, cartoon excerpts, and music videos
from WEA (Warner/Elektra/Atlantic). There are stuffed dolls, music boxes,
lots and lots of T-shirts, sweatshirts, and shorts, plus a whole section
devoted to Batman, Superman, and the rest of the DC Comics cast. Three of
them, including Wonder Woman, come bursting out of the wall here. There is
an interactive television demonstration hosted by Bugs Bunny and Daffy
Duck, and the kids can computer-color scenes from WB cartoons at the other
end of the store.

There are many scenes here, painted ones like the diner serving all the
cartoon characters, the Roadrunner and Coyote skating, the characters again
cramped in a subway car, and the Animaniacs crew jumping on top of everyone
in their corner of the room. To top it all off, there is a life-size
replica of the Batmobile, and the Batplane is suspended from the ceiling.
Periodically, the program in progress on the big screen is abruptly
interrupted by scenes from the Batman movies, the lights dim, and the
Batplane descends, shooting lasers and wreaking havoc on the shoppers
below.

The third floor has hundreds of cels, both production ones from the current
series and limited-editions from the WB directors and animators, and also
kitchenware and expensive trivia, such as steel sculptures, collectors’
plates, and mobiles. There is an art-deco designed projection television
that shows classic WB shorts, and a complete consultant center (read, sales
desk) for cel-buying. One can also learn about various art pieces from an
interactive TV screen. You can also view a huge group painting of all the
major WB cartoon directors with their creations, and an entire wall devoted
to the history of Warner Bros. cartoons, written by Jerry Beck (“Looney
Tunes and Merrie Melodies”) and illustrated with famous scenes.

Going down the escalator from here, you can see Gremlins popping in and out
of the facade. If you choose to take the elevator, you are treated to
relevant snippets of WB cartoon scenes on a little LCD screen next to the
controls, such as Bugs Bunny saying, “Going up!” And when you get out,
don’t walk away: You’ll also see Superman flying the elevator up from
underneath the car.
==========================================================================
TishTash(tm): n. The only cartoon director to make it big in live-action.
————————————————————————–
“Frith of Inle, you “Ah, your mother rides “Agh! Ya got me! [wheeze]
can see the whole a vacuum cleaner!” … Ah’m a-goin’. [gasp]
world from here!” –Hansel & Gretel … AH’M a-goin’! [sigh]
–Dandelion, to Witch Hazel, … G’bye now!” –Daffy,

==========================
animation/best.of.net #116, from davemackey, 711 chars, Sat Oct 1 06:40:12 1994
This is a comment to message 115.
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
Of course, you all know Tom Shim from his BIX days when he was using the name
tshim. Now he goes dually by tishtash@aol.com and tishtash@pipeline.com.
(Tishtash, of course, being a pseudonym of the late Frank Tashlin.)
There was a write up in the current issue of “Casino Player” of the new
Warner Bros. Studio Store that just opened up in the Trump Plaza casino in
Atlantic City, NJ. Apparently, the Atlantic City store is the second largest
in the chain. I would wager (heh) that the largest one is the one in the
Forum Shops at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas, and I definitely plan to stop at
that one on my honeymoon, which at this writing is about two weeks away
(gasp!)
–Dave

==========================
animation/best.of.net #117, from hmccracken, 320 chars, Sat Oct 1 11:08:23 1994
This is a comment to message 116.
————————–
The Warner’s Store in Vegas isn’t especially large, but it’s definitely
worth visiting for its Roman-themed statuary and spectacular recreation
of a scene from _What’s Opera, Doc?_ in the window.

The largest Warner Studio Store I’ve visited is the one in San Francisco.
It’s the only two-story one I’ve seen.
— Harry

==========================
animation/best.of.net #118, from hmccracken, 3658 chars, Tue Oct 4 23:33:43 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 4 Oct 1994 23:33:19 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9410042333.memo.79088@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Path: news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!yale!gumby!newsxfer.itd.umich.edu!europa.eng.gtefsd.com!howland.reston.ans.net!cs.utexas.edu!not-for-mail
From: thomp030@maroon.tc.umn.edu (Steve A. Thompson)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: Charles Schulz appearance
Date: 3 Oct 1994 08:57:34 -0500
Organization: UTexas Mail-to-News Gateway
Lines: 50
Sender: nobody@cs.utexas.edu
Message-ID: <45902.thomp030@maroon.tc.umn.edu>
Reply-To: NNTP-Posting-Host: news.cs.utexas.edu

In conjunction with the 45th anniversary of Peanuts and an exhibit at Mall
of America, Charles Schulz made two public appearances in Minneapolis and
St. Paul over the past weekend. Saturday’s was at O’Gara’s Bar in St. Paul,
meeting place of the Minnesota Cartoonists League. O’Gara’s also has the
privilege of housing, in one room, the former site of Schulz senior’s
barber shop, wherein young Charlie spend countless afternoons. Audience was
made up of cartoonists, friends and family. Sunday’s appearance was a $50
per plate appearance with a reported attendance of 3,000 plus. Both
events were fundraisers for Canine Companions for Independence. Because
of his nerve problems, he did not sign autographs or do any drawing in
public. For those interested, I can only report on the Saturday event.

Schulz made a brief speech, in which he stated, among other things: he has
never submitted a strip that he did not feel was the best he could do; he
has never liked the name “Peanuts” and does not use it himself in talking
about the strip; the strip will not continue after he retires or dies;
cartoonists who use assistants deprive themselves of the joy of creating,
somewhat like Arnold Palmer hiring someone to hit 9 irons for him. He has
repeatedly stated that he does not want the early strips reprinted, so
rumors of reprints from day 1, at least in newspapers, seem unlikely.

In answer to the question “What do you think of current strips such as
`Calvin and Hobbes'” he responded “It was great to see the strip in this
morning’s paper from five years ago,” which drew a great response from the
audience. He did say the strip was very good, but didn’t understand the
need for so many vacations.

Other questions brought out the following: if he can complete six dailies
in two days, he feels he’s doing well; three days, it’s still OK, but if it
takes four days, he’s obviously having difficulties. He alternates six
dailies and a Sunday on drawing and inking, keeping eight weeks ahead of
publication.

The question “Will you ever move back to Minnesota” brought an immediate
and very firm “No!”

The exhibit at the Mall of America included original dailies and Sundays,
animation art, foreign language titles, awards and originals from other
cartoonists with Schulz or strip mentions. It closed October 2 and
unfortunately did not include a program book.

As a side note, I discovered while doing research in the Walt Kelly papers
that Schulz lived on the same street in Richfield (southern suburb of
Minneapolis) that I do, about six blocks away, during the early 1950s. In a
letter to Kelly, Schulz says Pogo overshadows him everywhere, describing
doing an autograph session at the U of M bookstore while a Pogomobile hung
above him. In reply, Kelly pointed out that the current Pogo book only
cost a dollar, while the new Peanuts book cost $1.25.
Steve Thompson — U of MN Dept. of Theatre Arts & Dance
thomp030@maroon.tc.umn.edu

==========================
animation/best.of.net #119, from hmccracken, 1386 chars, Mon Oct 10 00:26:39 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 10 Oct 1994 00:25:44 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9410100025.memo.99143@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!yale!yale!yale.edu!spool.mu.edu!sgiblab!nbn!news.zeitgeist.net!NewsWatcher!user
From: upb@fractals.fractals.com (William McClung)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,alt.tv.tiny-toon,alt.tv.animaniacs
Subject: On the genius of Chuck Jones
Date: Sun, 09 Oct 1994 11:47:58 -0800
Organization: University Press Books/Berkeley
Lines: 15
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: 140.174.235.102
Xref: news.delphi.com rec.arts.animation:23944 alt.tv.tiny-toon:12434 alt.tv.animaniacs:17742

I am the editor of a wonderful new book by Hugh Kenner on the genius of
Chuck Jones (whose legendary work on the Road Runner, Wile E. Coyote, Bugs
Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig is well known) and how the Warner Bros.
organization permitted/encouraged/required that genius in the 1930s, 40s,
and 50s. It’s a small book packed with sharp and idiosyncratic insights
from a great literary critic. You can browse this book (and order it
online) from the URL below.

William McClung
University of California Press

—
William McClung
University Press Books/Berkeley
http://www.fractals.com/upb/html/upb_intro.html

==========================
animation/best.of.net #120, from hmccracken, 1882 chars, Sun Oct 16 18:33:24 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 16 Oct 1994 18:32:58 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9410161832.memo.25163@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.fan.animation.warner-bros.

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!news.pipeline.com!not-for-mail
From: tishtash@pipeline.com (Thomas M. Shim)
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: Energizer Coyote
Date: 15 Oct 1994 23:48:51 -0400
Organization: The Pipeline
Lines: 22
Message-ID: <37q7r3$rkt@pipe2.pipeline.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: pipe2.pipeline.com

First, it was Darth Vader’s lightsabre fizzing out.

Now, we have Wile E. Coyote going up against the bunny that keeps going
(and going, and going). He gets the target in his sights, only to have his
helicopter contraption buzz when his (non-Energizer) batteries run low.
Down he goes amongst the mesas of the American SW.

This ad (like the Star Wars and Wizard of Oz ones) is great because the ad
agency really tries to re-create each scenario with accuracy and a dash of
love. Done by the ex-Disneyite crew of Darrell Van Citters–the same folks
who brought you the “Hare Jordan” spots–the animation of Wile E. is the
best since he signed off in 1965, and the Stalling-like music and Treg
Brown-ish sound effects just add to the authenticity. Great!

==========================================================================
TishTash(tm): n. The only cartoon director to make it big in live-action.
————————————————————————–
“Frith of Inle, you “Ah, your mother rides “Agh! Ya got me! [wheeze]
can see the whole a vacuum cleaner!” … Ah’m a-goin’. [gasp]
world from here!” –Hansel & Gretel … AH’M a-goin’! [sigh]
–Dandelion, to Witch Hazel, … G’bye now!” –Daffy,

==========================
animation/best.of.net #121, from hmccracken, 3102 chars, Sun Oct 16 22:48:58 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 16 Oct 1994 22:48:42 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9410162248.memo.25384@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!not-for-mail
From: thomp030@maroon.tc.umn.edu (Steve A. Thompson)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: Pogofest in Waycross GA
Date: 14 Oct 1994 08:49:36 -0500
Organization: UTexas Mail-to-News Gateway
Lines: 41
Sender: nobody@cs.utexas.edu
Message-ID: <45131.thomp030@maroon.tc.umn.edu>
Reply-To: NNTP-Posting-Host: news.cs.utexas.edu

All Pogo fans in the southeastern US (as well as anyone else who can travel
on short notice) are invited to the 8th annual Pogofest in Waycross
Georgia, October 21-23. Although Pogofest is primarily a community
celebration for the city of Waycross, the Pogo Fan Club has also used it as
a logical gathering point as well. Fred Lasswell, of “Snuffy Smith”, will
be the Guest of Honor and will be autographing the new history of the
strip’s 75 year history. He will also be inducted into Waycross’
Cartoonist Walk of Fame, with accompanying sidewalk star. Selby Daley
Kelly, animator, artist and Walt Kelly’s widow, will also be in attendance.

Specific Pogo Fan Club activities will be: private reception for Lasswell
Friday evening, Miggle’s Emporium 10:00-12:00 Saturday morning (buy, sell
and trade Kelly and Pogo material from specialist dealers and collectors),
Lasswell autographing Saturday afternoon (time TBA) and general PFC meeting
and social time Saturday evening from 6:00 onward. Time is allowed for
tours of the Okefenokee Swamp as well.

For collectors, Pogofest is an ideal opportunity to find scarce and unusual
material, as well as more common items. In past years, all S&S books have
been available in multiple grades, as well as most comics and magazines
with Kelly art. Original art (dailies, Sundays and animation) will be
available, as will hard to find items such as Kelly Christmas cards,
advertising pieces, charity artwork, autographed books and more. Most
dealers don’t take credit cards, so it may be worth hitting a cash machine
before coming.

Pogofest includes a sizeable gathering of antique dealers and arts & crafts
folk from around the southeast, as well as continuous musical entertainment
Saturday and Sunday.

For those staying overnight, the Holiday Inn is offering special rates –
just tell them you’re with the Pogo Fan Club. Steve Thompson, President of
the PFC, will be in Waycross after Tuesday afternoon and available to
answer questions about PFC activities. Contact through the Holiday Inn
(912-283-4490), usually after 6:00 p.m. or leave a message. I’ll
also be checking e-mail through 3:00 p.m Monday Oct 17, at
thomp030@maroon.tc.umn.edu. Directions to Waycross can be obtained from the
Tourism and Conference Bureau (912-283-3742). Non-PFC Pogofest information
available from the Okefenokee Pogofest Association (912-285-4400).
Steve Thompson — U of MN Dept. of Theatre Arts & Dance
thomp030@maroon.tc.umn.edu

==========================
animation/best.of.net #122, from switch, 31634 chars, Sun Oct 23 14:04:38 1994
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
From: mpsc839@netcom.com (MPSC Local 839 IATSE)
Message-Id: <199410131923.MAA19241@netcom11.netcom.com>
Subject: THE PEG-BOARD — September 1994
To: animate@dsd.es.com (animate)
Date: Thu, 13 Oct 1994 12:23:45 -0700 (PDT)
X-Mailer: ELM [version 2.4 PL23]
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-Length: 31251
Status: RO

THE PEG-BOARD — Information Superhighway Edition — September 1994

************************************************************************
* We apologize for the late posting of the September PEG-BOARD, due to *
* computer problems and other unavoidable delays. *
************************************************************************

This is a monthly posting of excerpts from THE PEG-BOARD, the newsletter
of the Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and Affiliated Optical
Electronic and Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE. THE PEG-BOARD is also
published in printed format.

This file is available by anonymous ftp, along with a number of other
files about Local 839. The address is:

ftp.netcom.com:/pub/mpsc839

Local 839 IATSE is the largest local union of motion picture graphic
artists in the world. We have over 1,600 active members employed in
animation and CGI in Southern California.

In this month’s issue:

* Baer Animation signs with Local 839
* A letter from a member
* From the President
* From the Business Representative
* A letter from Don Bluth’s lawyer
* Local 839’s reply
* In the news
* At the water cooler
* Classifieds
* In memoriam

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

BAER ANIMATION SIGNS WITH LOCAL 839

Negotiations for a new contract with Baer Animation concluded last
month, with the Screen Cartoonists signing a new two-year pact with the
commercial house. Baer Animation, headed by Dale Baer and Jane Baer, has
been one of the premiere commercial animation facilities in Los Angeles
since its founding.

The new contract includes minimums for theatrical animation, commercial
and interactive work, as well as cable and direct-to-video. The contract
runs from August 1, 1993 to August 1, 1996.

The Baer contract is a milestone in setting fair terms and conditions
for new technologies and the burgeoning interactive field. We are
approaching other employers who have expressed interest in working with
Local 839 to establish work standards.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

A LETTER FROM A MEMBER

Dear Tom and Steve:

Right up front, let me tell you that I support the idea of a strike
fund. Details need to be worked out: how much, how long until it’s
considered “fully funded”, etc. But it’s a necessity because:

The only clout that we, the union, have is the withholding of our
services. That’s it. That’s our arsenal. One measly weapon: Treat us
fairly or we won’t work for you. If we won’t or can’t use this weapon,
we’re screwed.

When it comes to using this weapon, I’d like to offer the membership a
few pieces of advice gleaned from twenty-plus years of surviving as a
freelancer.

First, make yourself valuable. Take the courses, improve your craft and
your art. When you work, work hard and conscientiously. Give ’em their
money’s worth. Make them want you.

Then use the weapon. If you don’t like the deal, don’t take the job. You
may get a better or you may not, but you sure won’t get it by accepting
every deal that’s offered.

Naturally, whether you work or walk depends on your bank balance. My
agent calls it “f–k you money.” So, save. Keep your credit clean. Live
below your means instead of always pushing the edge, and bank some cash.

Diversify. If you keep little revenue streams flowing from other sources
such as advertising or comic books or whatever, you can weather
downturns and strikes in the cartoon biz much more easily. Instead of
taking that freelance cartoon job for extra cash, find a job in another
field and cultivate it.

So much for sage advice, Let’s talk about that strike fund.

I always mutter the same four-letter obscenity when I receive my bill
for union dues. I don’t like paying the money, and often the bill comes
when my bank balance is at an ebb. And I don’t relish the idea of the
amount being increased to support a strike fund. But there’s nothing
like a healthy strike fund and a committed membership to put far more
money in our pockets at contract negotiating time.

How much are you spending for prescriptions this quarter, prescriptions
that were free last year? How much do you stand to lose as producers
jack around with overtime pay? How much would you make if you got just a
tiny percentage of the videocassette sales of your work, or a small
residual like that paid to voice actors, lyricists and composers? How
much will you make from CD-ROM and other interactive uses of your work
in the future?

Everything that we now have, has been fought for by the union members
that preceded us. Everything that we now have is at risk with every
contract negotiation. Everything we will gain in the future will be
gained because we fought for it, because we sacrificed short-term
interests for it and used our one and only weapon: the withholding of
our services.

A strike fund is our muscle, not just for the money involved but because
it demonstrates our determination and our unity. We must be ready,
willing and able to strike. Without the clear determination to strike,
we have no clout and the producers will pounce on us like hungry wolves
on a limping antelope.

So, debate. Get the details worked out. And then vote for the fund. We
need it.

Sincerely,

— Jan Strnad

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

FROM THE PRESIDENT
New York Stories

Recently I was back in New York seeing family and inhaling the grime and
knishes with sweet nostalgia. While there I had a meeting with Lou
D’Agostino and John Amman of Camera Local 644, which absorbed our
eastern sister MPSC Local 841. We discussed the cartoonists’ union in
New York in great depth.

New York, for all its majesty and power, has always been a tough town
for animation.

The cartoon, comic strip and comic book industry were born in New York.
Winsor McKay worked there, and J.R. Bray invented the animation studio
system (layout, animation, assistants, inbetweeners, etc.). Yet Gotham
has had mixed success with long-term employment. Some say the town never
recovered from the loss of the Fleischer Studio. Animated television
commercials were first produced in Manhattan in the 1950s; today,
despite all the giant advertising agencies still headquartered on
Madison Ave., most commercials are animated in L.A., London or San
Francisco.

New York has another heritage: the union movement. Contrary to the
denials of self-serving nihilists, cartoonists and illustrators in New
York had been trying to organize since the 1920s. Look at this excerpt
from the Report of the Commercial Artists to the Artists Union of New
York (AMPWU) Convention of 1935:

We must first explore all possibilities of shop organization, find those
large numbers of workers such as fashion sketchers, art services,
textile designers, animated cartoonists, etc. who are most exploited…

The Commercial Artists and Designers Union (CADU), the WPA Arts Project
(who fought with police when they closed their offices), The Animated
Motion Picture Workers Union, the Paperhangers, the Cartoonists Guild of
New York, The United American Artists (UAA), The Unemployed Artists
Association … Zounds! even the IATSE began in New York! The first
attempts to organize an animation studio were made at Iwerks in 1931,
spearheaded by New Yorkers like Shamus Culhane, Al Eugster, Bernie Wolf,
and Grim Natwick. After the bitter Fleischer strike in 1937, Max signed
the first animation union contract. Local 841 was formed in 1952, and in
the ’70s under Jerry Salvio they pioneered a track that unions elsewhere
are only now starting to follow, that of organizing the computer
graphics and digital imaging industry.

Until recently, New York has had hard times. After Raggedy Ann and Andy
in1977, a lot of work seemed to dry up in town. Every once in a while I
would call Mike Sporn or Nancy Beiman and they would tell me it’s even
deader this year than last. Local 841 went through the same rough
transition we did, from the “Golden Age” generation to the “Baby Boom”
and “Gen-X” generations. The problem was that while the older generation
remembered the conditions of the past and gave loyalty, the younger
people had no connection and felt alienated when the union would try and
enforce its will. We have learned now that unions can never take loyalty
for granted, but must go out and earn hearts and minds, one artist at a
time. This problem, coupled with the poor economic climate, forced what
remained of 841 to join with 644 in 1985.

As anyone who has read labor history knows, unions have been declared
dead before: in 1877 with the Homestead Massacre, in 1933 when IATSE’s
industry-wide strike in Hollywood went down, in 1982 when our attempt to
halt our jobs going overseas was destroyed. We always bounced back
bigger and badder then ever.

People now like to say unionism in New York animation is dead. But I
don’t think so … While the nay-sayers exult, 644’s Maestro D’Agostino
is quietly working miracles with the computer animation studios there.
He seems to have forged the right balance of cooperation and pliability
in contracts, and solved the jurisdictional issues which are a major
bone to pick among computer folks in Tinseltown. There are still union
artists in New York, studios like R.O. Blechman are still under contract
and our reciprocal transfer treaty is still intact.

Nickelodeon, Viacom and other cable biggies have spawned lots of new
work in New York, and small studios like Curious are growing. There’s
talk of features on the horizon. A new generation of artists, untainted
by old hates, is sitting in the chairs of the Culhanes, Hubleys and
Gentilellas. 644’s job is to make the spirit of unionism relevant for
them. Their challenge will be to fight the ghetto mentality that so
pervades the minds of artists in New York (and Toronto and L.A. too),
the attitude of: “Be grateful for the work and don’t make trouble
because they’ll send it all away”. Lou D’Ag and John seem up and ready
to fight. We at 839 wishes them luck and our full support. Let our
brother and sister artists in the Big Apple know that we all benefit
when the movement is not just an “artist’s union” but a “Union of
Artists”!

Good luck, 644 and the New York animation community! So come on through,
New York, New Yorrrrrrk … dat-dat datta-wa, dat-dat datta-wa …

— Tom Sito

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

FROM THE BUSINESS REP

Not long ago a former Disney colleague told me about a close artist
friend who asked plaintively why he, the close friend, never had any
money. This particular artist made a terrific salary (terrific by my
standards, anyway), yet when the end of the year rolled around, the bank
account was empty.

My former colleague was not working at the time, but he wasn’t strapped
for cash. The question his plaintive friend asked was: “How come you’re
not working and can still afford your house payment, but I’ve been
steadily employed the last three years and have two hundred bucks in the
bank?”

The answer was simple. My friend explained that while he ate his meals
at home and brown-bagged his lunch, his employed buddy was eating lunch
out, buying stereos and a new car, dropping $50 a night at high-priced
restaurants.

The artist who was unemployed paid himself first, squirreling money away
in the bank, then spent money on food, clothing and shelter. His friend
did precisely the reverse — and never saved a dime.

Why do I bring this up now? Because the union is working to bring into
being a 401(k) plan — a sort of pay-yourself-first plan made easy —
and I think it’s a good time to broach the subject of setting money
aside.

Now, some of you regard the idea of reducing your take-home pay with
distaste if not downright horror, but as a guy who grew up in the
animation industry, I’ve seen how today’s $1,400-per-week employment
turns into tomorrow’s layoffs. I went from staff writing at a
comfortable wage for Disney to private-school teaching at minimum wage,
and I learned the hard way. If you are not socking something away on a
weekly basis, you are being short-sighted. The fat times do not last
forever.

A couple of weeks ago we mailed out a letter about wage rates in the
industry. Over the next few months we will hopefully be putting the
final bricks in place for a savings/retirement plan, and sending you
information on the final plan when it’s ready. Some studios may choose
to participate, others may decline. You will have to decide if it’s
something you want to supplement your rocking-chair years, however soon
(or far off) they may be.

— Steve Hulett

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

A LETTER FROM DON BLUTH’S LAWYER

************************************************************************
* In the May Peg-Board, Local 839 President Tom Sito wrote a letter to *
* Don Bluth offering union assistance in building Fox’s new Arizona *
* studio. We sent that letter to Mr. Bluth, hoping for a positive *
* answer. As of this date we have still not received a response, *
* either positive or negative. *
* *
* In July, the union sent a letter regarding Mr. Bluth to people at *
* Sheridan College in Toronto. The letter was not positive about Don *
* Bluth. It was, frankly, quite critical, and written with *
* considerable input from former Bluth employees. It apparently found *
* its way into other hands, and unlike our friendly letter in May, *
* resulted in a swift response from Don, via his lawyer. *
* *
* What follows is a letter from Don Bluth’s legal representative. We *
* have printed it verbatim, with our response. *
************************************************************************

Dear Steve Hulett and Members of Local 839:

As most of you are aware, recently Don Bluth and Gary Goldman agreed to
become the creative executives of Fox Animation Studios, Inc., in
Phoenix, Arizona. At the time the agreement was made, Don and Gary were
enthusiastic about their future with a major studio and being associated
with someone like Fox’s Bill Mechanic. Their enthusiasm was balanced
with some sense of trepidation on returning to the United States, where
they had not worked for almost 8 years.

After the public announcement was made about their new positions, my
office became aware that a number of statements were being made by
members of your union, to the public at large, that were either complete
falsehoods, or leaving the wrong impression as to the true facts. As a
result of these statements being made, both orally and in writing, I
have requested that Don and Gary have the right to respond to some of
these falsehoods in your union publication. They are grateful that Steve
Hulett, your Business Representative, has permitted this response to be
published.

Initially, each of you should be made aware of the fact that Don and
Gary have not been the owners of Don Bluth Entertainment, Don Bluth
Animation Studios, or Don Bluth Ireland, LTD since approximately
September, 1991. At that time, in order to save the studio from
financial destruction, Don, Gary and John Pomeroy sold their ownership
interested in the studio, with a promise to be paid in the future for
their stock holdings. This promise was never fulfilled and as a result
Don and Gary each lost all possible monies due them for their career
efforts over the last 15 years.

The fact that Don and Gary no longer owned the studio, they were now
employees and only controlled what they personally contributed to the
studio.

In the beginning of 1992 the studio was again transferred to another
European company. Within a very short period of time, this company also
began experiencing financial problems. In August 1992, Don and Gary were
asked to encumber the three (3) films in process without an assurance
from anyone they would be able to complete the films. It was decided
they could not give their permission. Don and Gary, were willing to give
their permission if, and only if, they were given appropriate assurance
that the financial support would be there to pay the employees and
complete these pictures.

As a result of these financial difficulties, the studio went into
liquidation. In order to keep the staff together Don and Gary
voluntarily used their own personal funds to pay two weeks of the Irish
management salaries and one month health insurance benefits for the
employees. As of this time, they have not been reimbursed for these U.S.
expenditures. In addition, Don and Gary have also lost a number of weeks
[as have all members of the Irish and Burbank Studios] salary for which
the liquidator of the studio has not paid. After the studio was
purchased out of liquidation, Don and Gary simply made a claim for their
lost monies with the liquidator — as each of you should also do, if you
haven’t already.

It has also been stated that Don and Gary received $100 million dollars
from Rupert Murdoch and Fox. While this statement was made, Don and Gary
are sure that each of you realize that this is simply not true. Don and
Gary have signed employment agreements with Fox. They again have no
ownership interest in the new studio. The capacity will simply be sd
creative heads working for Fox.

Another falsehood printed is that Don and Gary set up the new studio in
Arizona to stay beyond the legal reach of any labor unions. The truth is
that Don and Gary recommended to establish the new studio in Arizona, to
give individuals in the animation community the ability to choose a
better quality of life. The cost of living is substantially less in
Arizona than in California; the crime rate is lower than in Los Angeles;
the commute time to and from work is less; the public education is far
greater in Arizona than in the Los Angeles City School system; state
income taxes and sales taxes are lower in Arizona; and the overall
business climate is more favorable than in California.

Fox believes that if they offer union wages to its employees that they
could live a better quality of life in Arizona than in California.
Furthermore, each employee will be covered with an appropriate health
care plan provided by Fox. In addition, it is anticipated that a state
of the art computer studio will be established based upon the commitment
given by Fox to make quality classical animation films that the whole
family can enjoy.

In conclusion, it is hopeful that Don and Gary have been able to shed
some light on what has been unknown by many of you in the past. They are
optimistic that in the future these types of untruths will no longer be
disbursed. Please feel free to contact Don and Gary through Jon D.
Cantor at (818) 986-1900.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

LOCAL 839’S REPLY

I trained under Don Bluth at Disney in 1976. At that time, I observed
how he treated Disney employees while they were in his presence, and
listened to what he said about those employees when they walked out the
door. And drew my own conclusions.

Since 1977, I have had little or no professional contact with Don.
During most of the battles he fought with this union in the early
eighties, when he was threatening to close his company if his employees
didn’t resign from union membership, I was ensconced in Disney’s story
department and paying minimal attention.

Until I took the job of Local 839 Business Representative in 1989, I
seldom thought about Don. But since that time, he keeps getting nudged
back into my consciousness, and it’s more than my kids watching his
films, or my reading an article about him. At every studio to which I
go, at every season of the year, I encounter veteran story men and
women, veteran animators, veteran layout artists who have unkind things
to say about Don Bluth (all, I should add, without prompting from me.)

These artists all have one thing in common. They have all worked for Don
Bluth or with Don Bluth.

Now, I don’t for a minute think that all of Don’s former employees
dislike or hate him, but I find it astounding that there is so much ill
will from so many for a man who has only been a “boss” for fifteen or
sixteen years. And it’s not just artists. Two years ago a writer who had
written a screenplay for him called me out of the blue to complain
bitterly about Don rewriting her script without her consent or
knowledge.

Despite all of the above, this union has, in the past, paid tribute to
Don’s accomplishments in animated features. At the time of his Irish
company’s bankruptcy in 1993, we acknowledged Don’s years of work in the
field, and wished him well.

Which brings us, finally, to our Sheridan letter and Don’s unhappiness
with it. The letter was written after other attempts at communication
were ignored. Don disputes some of our allegations, but he cannot
dispute our willingness to provide him with a forum to answer those
allegations. We have published his representative’s letter exactly as we
received it, without editing, despite what we consider to be his
unrelenting hostility to this union, despite his failure to answer our
letter of May 9, a letter intended to heal old wounds, to move our
relationship forward to mutual benefit.

We are pleased that Fox is offering the equivalent to union contract
minimum wages to its Arizona employees, but it only deepens our
confusion as to why the company refuses to become a signator to the
contract guaranteeing those wages. For Fox to offer true parity to Local
839 contract conditions, in addition to wages they would have to pay
overtime to all employees, establish a fully portable multi-employer
health and pension plan, and empower a completely independent authority
for representation and arbitration of employee grievances. Assuming Fox
sincerely intends to do all this, why go to such lengths when a union
contract would be cheaper?

Don and Gary’s representative asserts that Fox set up the studio on
their recommendation for “quality of life” reasons, and not to avoid
unionization. But are we wrong in assuming that the “more favorable”
business climate of which he writes includes weaker unions due to state
laws hostile to labor? Are we wrong in pointing out that Arizona will
provide Fox with a “captive” labor pool, with less freedom for artists
to jump ship to jobs with better wages and conditions? We think not.

Regardless, we still hope to work with Don and Gary to provide union
protection to the employees of the new Fox studio. And we hope that they
will provide us the same opportunity to address Fox’s employees that we
have provided them in communicating with union members. If that hope
proves elusive, and Don fails to provide the same courtesy to us that we
have provided to his representative, we will move forward without Don or
Gary’s help to give the Arizona animation employees the contract
protection they need and deserve.

— Steve Hulett

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

IN THE NEWS

Disney announced on August 8 that it intends to team with three large
regional phone companies to deliver new video services to home
consumers. Disney will partner with AmeriTech, BellSouth Corp. and
Southwestern Bell to offer movies on demand, home shopping, and a
“navigator” used by the home audience to sort through the wide, deep sea
of programming. The August 8 agreement is limited to the development of
a business plan, but the new partnership would link a powerful Hollywood
studio that have over fifty million telephone lines crisscrossing
nineteen states.

Disney will pull The Lion King out of theaters at the end of September,
then re-release the film during the Thanksgiving holiday, along with a
new ad campaign. The move is unprecedented, but our guess is that Disney
believes Lion will have renewed, vigorous boxoffice, re-entering the
marketplace just as out-of-school kids do. (And they probably hope to
steal some Page Master and Swan Princess business in the process.)

Daily Variety reported in its August 12 edition that Francis Ford
Coppola is set to direct The Adventures of Pinocchio, a live-action film
that Coppola says is not a remake of Disney’s 1940 version, but instead
will return to the original 1870 book by Collodi. In Coppola’s version
(we’re informed), Pinoke will mash the cricket flat.

MGM, continuing its full-ahead return to animation, will release the Don
Bluth musical animated feature The Pebble and the Penguin in 1995.
Following Pebble, the company will release an All Dogs Go To Heaven
sequel, now in pre-production at the Bluth Studios in Ireland. Don Bluth
will not be connected to this film, as he is now a full-time executive
with Fox’s Animation studios in Phoenix, Arizona.

Universal will release The Flintstones as a sell-through videocassette
on November 8. The live-action version of the long-running animated TV
show (first in prime-time) will be going head to head with Jurassic Park
(yet another animated flick) and the grandmother of all animated
features, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Universal expects to sell 12
million units.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

AT THE WATER COOLER

Local 839 board member and Disney key assistant Stephan Zupkas flew to
Chicago last month to assist his mother in her recovery from a serious
illness. We wish a speedy recovery to Steve’s mom …

Jim Vanderkeyl of Warner Features is a father for the third time. His
daughter, Savannah, was born on July 17… Disney TV’s Colette van
Mierlo and husband Terry Wheeler have a new pair of twins on August 22
— Hayley (7 lbs 15 oz.), and Christopher (7 lbs. 9 oz.) …

The first annual Hanna-Barbera feature artists vs. production staff
softball game was won by the artists, 18-12. A key play was Craig
Littell-Herrick’s catch of a pop fly hit by producer Barry Weiss. By the
time of the second annual Hanna-Barbera beach party at Zuma Beach, it
was reported that Barry was once again on speaking terms with Craig, if
only “Hey, you!” …

Warners’ Norm McCabe and wife Fern are vacationing at Mt. Shasta and
(possibly) Hawaii, before he returns to be a timing director on the
Granny Sleuth show … According to ASIFA’s newsletter, Chuck Jones will
be getting a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame next year. About time!

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

HELP WANTED

And Everything Roughly Inbetween!

Disney Feature Animation is currently seeking rough inbetweeners for
immediate openings on their upcoming productions, Pocahontas and The
Hunchback of Notre Dame. Testing opportunities for these positions are
tentatively scheduled to commence within the next two months.

Qualified test candidates need to have experience in the following
areas: as a clean-up inbetweener, breakdown or assistant animator, or
have commensurate animation experience and training.

Tests will be administered at Walt Disney Feature Animation, Monday
through Friday starting at 9 am. Applicants will be asked to arrive at
8:45 am to receive instruction. The test will be eight hours in length
with an hour break for lunch over a two-day period.

Upon arrival to your testing appointment, you should bring ten to
fifteen Xerox samples of Life drawings representative of your portfolio
and a copy of your current resume. These will be circulated with your
completed test during the evaluation process. You will be contacted once
the evaluation process is complete.

Any interested artists are encouraged to call. For those who may not be
available to test during the week, Saturday-Sunday dates will be made
available to you.

For scheduling test appointments or further information, please call
Marina Shibuya or Phillip Williams at the Feature Animation Recruitment
Center at (818) 544-2130.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Artist needed to draw logo for new company. Roughs are complete; we need
camera-ready two-color finished image. Contact Christie Cash at (213)
462-6699.

For sale

VAS-4, 3/4-inch pencil test machine with Sony deck, rack and camera.
Works perfectly. $24,000 new; will sell for $14,000 obo. Also: layout
boards, $250; discs, $100. Bill Kroyer, (818) 755-0280.

20″ FAX model 20-12-2MB animation disk. Top condition. Plus full set of
field guides. $350 plus shipping. Jim Willoughby, (602) 778-7987.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

In memoriam

DOROTHY ESGATE, who worked as an ink-and-painter at Disney from 1937
until her retirement in 1977, died on June 30.

MIKE GRIBBLE, the “Mike” of Spike & Mike and the co-organizer of the
eponymous animation festivals, died in late August. He was a friend of
animation who gave many opportunities to young filmakers.

Retired background artist PETER VAN ELK died on June 23. From 1965 until
1982 he worked for Hanna-Barbera, Krantz and Ruby-Spears.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

==========================
animation/best.of.net #123, from switch, 25833 chars, Sun Oct 23 14:10:06 1994
————————–
From: mpsc839@netcom.com (MPSC Local 839 IATSE)
Message-Id: <199410131924.MAA19265@netcom11.netcom.com>
Subject: THE PEG-BOARD — October 1994
To: animate@dsd.es.com (animate)
Date: Thu, 13 Oct 1994 12:24:12 -0700 (PDT)
X-Mailer: ELM [version 2.4 PL23]
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-Length: 25453
Status: O

THE PEG-BOARD — Information Superhighway Edition — October 1994

This is a monthly posting of excerpts from THE PEG-BOARD, the newsletter
of the Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and Affiliated Optical
Electronic and Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE. THE PEG-BOARD is also
published in printed format.

This file is available by anonymous ftp, along with a number of other
files about Local 839. The address is:

ftp.netcom.com:/pub/mpsc839

Local 839 IATSE is the largest local union of motion picture graphic
artists in the world. We have over 1,600 active members employed in
animation and CGI in Southern California.

In this month’s issue:

* Disney agrees to 401(k) plan
* Geffen, Katzenberg and Spielberg to open new studio
* From the Business Representative
* From The President
* Q&A about 401(k)
* How 401(k)s save you money
* Don’t be afraid of COBRAs
* A fond farewell
* In memoriam

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

401(k) VICTORY!
Disney agrees to union savings plan;other studios may follow

Disney has greenlighted participation in the Motion Picture Screen
Cartoonists’ new 401(k) plan. Disney, Local 839’s largest employer,
agreed to participate in the plan after turning down the union’s 401(k)
proposal in the 1993-94 contract negotiations. The company reversed its
earlier position after studio employees signed petitions supporting a
401(k) plan.

A 401(k) plan is a voluntary plan by which employees choose to have a
portion of their earnings put into a tax-deferred savings plan for
retirement. The plan, set to roll out in the first quarter of 1995, will
be administered by The Principal Financial Group, one of the largest
401(k) administrators in the country.

Local 839 has sent copies of its 401(k) proposal to every studio with
which we have a contract. We encourage all our employers to agree to a
401(k) on the same basis as Disney. Our goal is to make this a multi-
employer plan with full portability, allowing members to switch from one
union shop to another while keeping the same 401(k) provisions, much as
they now do for health and pension.

Our other union shops are studying the plan with interest, although one
employer, Warner Bros., has (so far) turned us down. Members employed at
studios not yet signed to the 401(k) plan should take a cue from the
methods by which Disney employees got the plan approved. Put direct
pressure on management — sign petitions, talk to supervisors. If you’re
negotiating or renewing a personal service contract, drop some broad
hints that a 401(k) would “sweeten” the deal. Our hope that the intense
competition in the labor market will lead other employers to follow
Disney’s example — but this will only happen if members themselves make
their feelings known.

Watch this newsletter (and separate mailings) for further developments.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

“I’m going to Disney World” — Jeffrey Katzenberg, 10/12/94

Word reaches us that three of the most powerful men in Hollywood are
going to form a new, $2 billion studio — and have announced that they
“will make animation a priority”. David Geffen, Jeffrey Katzenberg and
Steven Spielberg will form a company to produce and distribute animated
and live-action movies, records, television and interactive projects.

Katzenberg, who will run the studio, recently left his position as
chairman of Walt Disney Studios, where he was credited with their
stellar animation successes of recent years. Spielberg, the most
successful director and producer in motion picture history, is
responsible for several successful

animated features including Who Framed Roger Rabbit? and An American
Tail. Geffen, the only partner without an animation track record, comes
from a background in the record industry.

At an October 12 press conference, the troika announced preliminary
plans to operate in five areas — “animation, movies, records,
television and interactive” (interesting priority!) The new company will
be privately held, with Geffen and Spielberg, two of the richest men in
Hollywood, serving as primary backers.

Two hours before the press conference, the union office received its
first calls asking where to send resumes. Needless to say, this is
premature; the new studio doesn’t even have an office address yet. We
will report as we learn more details.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

FROM THE BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVE
Reflections on a fifth anniversary

Next month I celebrate my fifth year as 839’s Business Representative
(that’s the one union officer who is paid). And if I were a better
politician (and more seasoned liar), I would tell you how the union has
grown from 700 to 2,000 members in the past five years, how the union
coffers have refilled, how we have prospered beyond our wildest
imaginings — all due to my steady hand and inspired leadership.

And it would be, as my Aunt Clarise used to say, patented horse poop.

The truth is, most of the growth of this union has occurred because
(firstly) Steven Spielberg decided to dive into animation in the mid-
eighties and (secondly) Disney kept its feature animation division open
after CEO Ron Miller took early retirement and the company produced a
string of gargantuan animated hits. And now, of course, most of Disney’s
competition is making the traditional profit-driven Hollywood stampede
into the golden fields of animation.

We have been the right labor union in the right place when the tidal
wave hit. Whatever contributions yours truly has made have been around
the edges: visiting studios, calling members, helping to expand The Peg-
Board, typing resumes, making referrals, cobbling negotiating committees
together, and so forth. All of it helpful, but most of it beside the
point. The market, and the skill of our members, have made all the
difference.

So now we stand on the cusp of record employment in animation, and I
gaze back over the past five years, and muse upon what I have learned,
and how I have changed.

I have learned that this job on its worst day is still better than
teaching the eighth grade on an average day.

I have learned to hope for the best, and then pray for it.

I have learned that union artists have much more clout at the bargaining
table than I do. Therefore I have also learned to have as many of them
at the bargaining table as possible.

I have learned that most meaningful negotiations occur in the final
twenty to thirty minutes of contract talks. And that if you don’t watch
every word, comma and period of the resulting draft document, you can
get in trouble.

I have learned that the more management negotiators trumpet about
principles, the less principle is actually involved.

I have learned that the market always prevails, and it’s nice seeing the
market drive up wages … since it’s usually the other way around.

I have learned that cynicism can be both a shield and a comfort.

I have learned that, if I live as long as my grandfather, I will end up
in a rest home wearing diapers, so I shouldn’t take the defeats (and
occasional victories) too seriously. I am, after all, just the union
guy, and twelve months after I depart nobody will remember I was here in
the first place.

I have learned that just as I start to despair over members’ cowardice
(and sometimes my own), their courage bursts forth to astound and
delight me.

Most of all, I have learned that the skills of screen cartoonists are
rare and irreplaceable, and that the employers, occasional words and
actions to the contrary, know this as well.

— Steve Hulett, USNR retired

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

FROM THE PRESIDENT
Tales of terror

This is the month for ghosts, goblins and trick-or-treaters. I can’t
soap your windows and I don’t know many scary stories beyond Social
Security will be bankrupt one day, so I thought I’d present for your
amusement an Animation Chamber of Horrors. Direct quotes from employers,
your friends who hire and control your pay, either heard by me or
relayed to me by other artists.

Abandon All Hope All Ye Who Enter:

The problem with animators is that they make too much money and all want
big houses. If they made less and lived in apartments they would
concentrate on their work more.
— unnamed Dublin studio owner

Compensation? To be an Artist for Walt Disney is compensation enough!
— unnamed contract negotiator
(not an artist)

That’s a Disney problem. We’re talking Steven Spielberg!
— unnamed negotiator, in response
to being told our membership
won’t stomach wage and
overtime cuts just to sign a contract

Steve, do you think it’s fair that all those $100,000-a-year directing
animators and supervisors get overtime as well?
— unnamed WB contract negotiator

A seven foot by seven foot space is all any animator wants or needs.
— unnamed production manager

You’re making good money for a girl.
— unnamed New York studio head,
to woman recently promoted to animator

What are you, p–w–d*?!
— *crude synonym for “henpecked”
said by production manager to artist who
refused to work any more Sundays because he
wanted to spend time with his family

Longterm? Why worry about longterm when we can always get another bunch
of CalArts-ers and burn them up!
— unnamed studio head

I thought we had something special here. I thought you cared about
animation.
— unnamed non-union studio head,
dressing down his staff for refusing
to work for free on weekends

I can get cel painting done for $16 a week overseas. When a computer can
do that, call me!
— unnamed studio head
[Note: Cuckoo’s Nest in Taipei
is buying ink and paint computers …]

Before I’d sign a union contract I’d cut my wrists and move back to
Hungary!
— unnamed non-union producer

They’re animators. And you know animators know nothing about money!
— unnamed Canadian studio owner

Animators are easy. I can always get as many as I want for as little as
I want.
— unnamed non-union production manager

Scary, eh? If you have any bon mots like this send them in to the union
office for next years’ column.

Someone asked me if I’m telling you to hate your bosses. I don’t want
that.

Most of the men and women we work for are fair and love this art form as
much as we do. True, some are just passing through this current boom but
many have dedicated their lives and fortunes to it as you and me. A
studio production head once said to me about his artists: “Why don’t
they want to belong to a union? The benefits are so obvious!” Another
said: “Who says the relationship between management and union must
always be hostile?”

So be loyal, efficient and productive employees. Let’s all enjoy this
prosperous time together. Just keep in the back of your mind the words
spoken by the great Oakland Raiders sage John Matusak, yelling at his
coach in the film North Dallas Forty (screenplay by Frank Yablans, Ted
Kotcheff and Peter Gent):

How come every time we say it’s a game you say it’s business, yet when
we wanna talk business you say it’s a game?!

Happy Halloween!

— Tom Sito

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Q & A

Q: What is a “401(k)”?

A: A 401(k) plan, named after the numbered provision of the Federal tax
code, is a voluntary employee retirement plan which allows you to
shelter earned income in a tax-deferred account that grows (hopefully)
until you reach retirement age … and then the Feds tax it. If you
choose to invest in a 401(k) plan, the money is deducted from your
weekly paycheck.

One difference between a 401(k) account and an individual retirement
account (IRA) is that with a 401(k), you can deduct and shelter up to
$9,000 a year. An IRA only allows $2,000 per year.

Q: What’s the difference between a 401(k) plan and the pension plan we
already have?

A: Our pension plan, commonly referred to as a “defined benefit” plan,
is financed entirely by employer contributions (the employee
contribution was discontinued in 1990). The investments made by the
pension plan are determined by a joint labor-management board of
trustees. Federal law guarantees that the pension will be available and
paid out to vested participants.

Q: What is an “employer match”? Will the MPSC 401(k) plan have one?

A: “Employer matches” are contributions an employer makes into an
employee’s 401(k) account to “match” employee contributions. Although
the Screen Cartoonists’ negotiating committee fought tenaciously for an
employer match in the last negotiations, we received a resounding “no”
on the subject.

Q: Don’t most 401(k) plans have an employer match? Is it worthwhile for
me to put money into a 401(k) plan without an employer match?

A: Many 401(k) plans have an employer match, but some do not. The
national average for employer matches is 50 cents for every dollar an
employee puts in; the average yearly total for employer matches (per
employee) is $711.

Often, employer matches are conditional on working at a specific
employer for a length of time — sometimes as long as five years.
Otherwise, the employer takes back his contributions when you leave the
company.

Every dollar that you put into a 401(k) plan is excluded from federal
and state income taxes, so your “take home” pay does not drop as much as
the money you remove to put into your 401(k) account [see “How a 401(k)
saves you money”, below]. And remember, the money that your 401(k)
deductions earn in their 401(k) account is tax-deferred — so the money
grows that much faster.

Q: Who will be handling the 401(k) accounts?

A: The administrator for The Screen Cartoonists’ 401(k) plan will be The
Principal Financial Group. The Principal, one of the country’s largest
insurance companies, has $35 billion in assets and offered us the most
cost-efficient administration. It’s one of the U.S.’s largest 401(k)
administrators, and one of the most active with small and medium-sized
funds. They offer a wide range of mutual funds from which participants
can choose.

Q: Who decides where my 401(k) monies are to be invested?

A: Unlike the pension plan, where investments are made by a joint labor-
management board of trustees, you will make your own investment
decisions for the money you defer. The administrators will offer
guidance and advice on how best to invest your money, but the final
decisions are up to you.

Q: Are the 401(k) accounts insured and guaranteed?

A: The plan’s money market account (which will be one of several
options) invests in high-grade corporate and government bonds and seeks
to preserve principal. The equity funds (those investing in stocks) can
go up or down, depending on the market. Nothing in life is guaranteed,
including mutual funds. Over the last sixty years, however, well-managed
stock funds have averaged ten percent growth per year.

Q: What happens to my 401(k) account if I move to another studio?

A: We are designing this plan to be portable; that is, if you leave one
signator studio for another, your 401(k), like your health plan, goes
with you.

Q: What happens to my 401(k) if I leave the industry?

A: The money you accumulate can be rolled over into a personal IRA
account and taken with you. You can also take the money out of the
account and stuff it into your jeans, but then the Federal government
will swoop down and take a large bite out of your stash in taxes. Better
to roll it over into an IRA and keep it sheltered from the IRS.

Q: When I asked management at my studio about a 401(k), they said we
couldn’t have one because we already have a defined-benefit pension
plan.

A: Wrong. Although some studios have had a policy of not allowing
employees to have both a 401(k) and a defined-benefit plan, there is no
legal impediment to having a 401(k) plan with any union employer.

Whether or not management chooses to allow Local 839 members to have a
401(k) will depend entirely on how forcefully employees make their
feelings on the matter known to management.

Q: I didn’t make all that much last year. Aren’t 401(k)s just for the
“fat cats” who make a lot of money in the industry?

A: Not at all. For example, many lesser-paid members in our industry
come from multiple-income families that file joint returns. If you file
jointly, and your spouse works at a job that does not have a 401(k)
plan, that may be an incentive for you to defer a high percentage of
your wages into our plan.

Q: When will this plan start?

A: We anticipate roll out in the first quarter of 1995. If you’re with a
studio that has signed on, expect to get plenty of info in the mail
before and during that time.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

How a 401(k) plan saves you money

These estimates assume that you make an annual wage of $35,000, and that
you file a single income tax return with one exemption.

401(k) deferral
percentage = None 2% 4% 6%
—- — — —

Annual salary………$35,000…..$35,000……$35,000….$35,000
Annual deferral………….0……..$700…….$1,400…..$2,100
Amount reported
on W-2………..$35,000…..$34,300……$33,600….$32,900
Federal tax…………$5,996……$5,799…….$5,603…..$5,407
California state tax…$1,501 …..$1,307 ……$1,307 ….$1,307
FICA……………….$2,677……$2,677…….$2,677…..$2,677
Take-home pay………$24,826…..$24,517……$24,013….$23,509

Minimum annual profit
from 401(k) deferral*…….0……..$391………$587…….$783

* These figures represent the amount deferred minus the amount lost from
take-home pay; they do not take into account your potential profit/loss
from investment of your deferred wages.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

DON’T BE AFRAID OF COBRAS

We’re not talking about poisonous hooded snakes from India here, nor are
we referring to the bad guys from G. I. Joe. We’re talking about self-
payment of health premiums under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget
Reconciliation Act (or COBRA).

What COBRA means to you is that, if you’re running out of health
coverage, you have the right to self-pay the group-rate premiums — an
amount equal to the Plan’s applicable premium cost plus 2% for
administration. This may be extended up to a maximum of eighteen months.

There are two COBRA rates: Core, which includes medical, hospital and
prescription drug coverage only, or Non-Core, which includes medical,
hospital, prescription drug, vision and dental coverage. If you’ve had a
bank-of-hours or disability extension in the prior six-month period,
your right to self-pay will decrease by six months per extension.

The good news about COBRA self-payment is that it allows you to continue
at the same level of coverage you had when you qualified. This can save
you a lot if you have pre-existing medical conditions, a large family,
or any situation where your medical bills tend to be relatively high.

The bad news about COBRA is that it can be expensive. If you only want
major medical or hospitalization coverage in case of accident or major
illness, there are less expensive alternatives, with the tradeoff of
high deductibles. The union has information on these alternatives.

For further information about COBRA payments, contact the Motion Picture
Industry Pension and Health Plan at (818) 769-0007 or (310) 769-0007.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

A FOND FAREWELL

Jeffrey Katzenberg said his good-byes to Disney’s feature animation crew
on September 23, ironically ten years to the day since Michael Eisner
and Frank Wells first toured the animation department. The event was
disguised as an Octoberfest party with no hint of the real nature of the
occasion. It is speculated this was done to keep the event private and
away from the media who exulted in reporting the tearful farewell the
Florida unit gave him.

Amongst the beer, schnitzel and kielbasa the dreaded rob-exec embraced
and joked with his former cartoon cohorts. He later gave a speech
thanking us for letting us share Camelot with him. Even for as cynical a
bunch as we animators can be, the event was moving. We all had the sense
that an era was ending. As we wished J.K. well in any new pursuits we
urged him not to forget animation. Some among us reported his leaving
them not with a shout but a whisper: “We will work together again …”

— Tom Sito

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

POSITIONS AVAILABLE

Chuck Jones Film Productions is looking for a layout person with a
minimum of three to five years’ experience in layout, for work on a
series of theatrical cartoons. Position requires expensive understanding
of the mechanics of layout, an ability to work quickly and effectively
in a graphic style, and an ability to take direction well. Position is
“on staff” and is to be filled as soon as possible. Portfolios and
resumes may be dropped off at the studio weekdays between the hours of
nine and six. All portfolios should be labeled on the outside “LAYOUT”
and be to the attention of Stephen Fossati. 3500 West Olive Avenue,
Suite 1430, Burbank, CA 91505; phone (818) 954-2655.

Walt Disney Television Animation is currently interviewing for all
artistic positions for new programs consisting of cartoon shorts and
action-oriented stories. Please submit resumes and portfolios to:
Barbara Ferro, c/o Walt Disney TV Animation, 5200 Lankershim Blvd.,
#600, North Hollywood, CA 91601.

Help wanted: I am an established illustrator that needs help with
coloring two picture books under contract to a major publisher.
Animation techniques applicable. Immediate response preferred. Flat fee.
Be prepared to show works in color. We will collaborate on finishes. You
will learn about picture book art from a pro. You will do most of the
work off premises. Barbara, (818) 784-7443.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

IN MEMORIAM

1992 Golden Award winner ANNA LOIS RAY died on September 29. Since 1941
she had worked as an inker, painter and assistant animator for MGM,
Cascade, TV Spots, Celine Miles, Filmfair, Paul Fennell, Hanna-Barbera,
Krantz, Marvel, Bakshi, Fred Niles and Archer Productions. She is
survived by her husband, Executive Board member Tom Ray, and her
children, Greg Ray and Donna Mouliot.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

==========================
animation/best.of.net #124, from davemackey, 389 chars, Mon Oct 24 21:46:27 1994
This is a comment to message 122.
————————–
>Warners’ Norm McCabe and wife Fern are vacationing at Mt. Shasta and
>(possibly) Hawaii, before he returns to be a timing director on the
>Granny Sleuth show

I wish I, in my thirties, had half the energy that McCabe has in his
eighties. He is one of the very few veterans from the 1930’s who is still
working as an active animation artist. God bless him.
–Dave

==========================
animation/best.of.net #125, from hmccracken, 1254 chars, Tue Oct 25 22:41:30 1994
————————–
Date: Sun, 23 Oct 1994 01:41:41 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9410230141.memo.55116@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!tadpole.com!news.dell.com!swrinde!ihnp4.ucsd.edu!pwa.acusd.edu!jerry
From: jerry@pwa.acusd.edu (Jerry Stratton)
Subject: GUTTERS: The Comics Art Illustrators Journal (Mailing List)
Message-ID:
Organization: University of San Diego
Date: Fri, 21 Oct 1994 15:25:59 GMT
Lines: 23

GUTTERS is a mailing list for discussion of topics related to comics art
illustration. To subscribe, send the following message to
“listproc@pwa.acusd.edu”:

subscribe gutters Your Full Name

You will be subscribed to the mailing list, and sent a Welcome file that
includes Frequently Asked Questions. If you want to get the FAQ before
subscribing, send the following message to “listproc@pwa.acusd.edu”
instead:

get gutters faq

When you actually subscribe, send mail for discussion to the address
“gutters@pwa.acusd.edu”.

Send questions to me: jerry@pwa.acusd.edu

Jerry
jerry@pwa.acusd.edu (Finger/Reply for PGP Public Key)
——
“Reverse my buttocks, Sergeant Major!”
— The Shadowy Mr. Evans

==========================
animation/best.of.net #126, from hmccracken, 7489 chars, Tue Oct 25 22:41:56 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 25 Oct 1994 22:36:57 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@bix.com
Message-ID: <9410252236.memo.67549@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.animation.warner-bros.

Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,comp.graphics,rec.arts.disney,alt.animation.warner-bros,comp.graphics.animation,rec.arts.movies.production,alt.drooling.animation.fandom
Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!spool.mu.edu!uwm.edu!lll-winken.llnl.gov!trib.apple.com!amd!netcomsv!netcomsv!netcom.com!mpsc839
From: mpsc839@netcom.com (MPSC Local 839 IATSE)
Subject: “Going Rates” For Union Animation In Southern California
Message-ID:
Summary: “Going rates” and union job prospects for Southern California
Keywords: GOING RATES UNION ANIMATION JOBS LOCAL 839 WORK SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 261-4700 guest)
Distribution: na
Date: Sat, 22 Oct 1994 00:46:21 GMT
Lines: 130
Xref: news1.delphi.com rec.arts.animation:24504 comp.graphics:53348 rec.arts.disney:59111 alt.animation.warner-bros:2661 comp.graphics.animation:12395 rec.arts.movies.production:1570 alt.drooling.animation.fandom:133

[The following is a letter sent last month by the 839 IATSE office to
its members. The information on upcoming projects and “going rates” is
more or less current, although it predates the announcement of the
Geffen-Katzenberg-Spielberg collaboration.

The Local 839 contract sets minimum wages and conditions. Anyone working
under our contract is free to negotiate any overscale wages or working
conditions as long as they are at least as good as the contract
minimums.

For further information, ftp to the site listed in our signature. Check
the files CBA/contract or CBA/wages for information on our current
minimums.]

September 8, 1994

Dear Motion Picture Screen Cartoonist:

A couple of months back, there was mention in the Peg-Board of a
forthcoming letter that would detail current market rates. Here, at
last, is that letter.

Animation is currently booming (what a surprise, eh?). Warner Bros.
Feature Animation, Warner Bros. Animation, Rich Entertainment, Disney
Feature Animation, Hanna-Barbera (among others) are in a hiring frenzy.
Not surprisingly, pay rates for artists have been rising. TV rates have
been moving up, along with feature rates, but theatrical features is
where most of the current employment and action is. This letter will
concentrate on feature employment.

Entry level artists who show high promise and/or some animation
experience are coming in at $700-$1,000 per week. The rule of thumb that
we have seen is as follows:

Inbetweeners and breakdown artists are working at wages from scale
(roughly $700-$800 per week) to $100-$200 over scale ($800-$1,000) per
week. Assistants are scale to a hundred fifty over scale ($825-$1,150);
Key Assistant Animators work in the range of $1,000 to $1,550, depending
on studio and length of service. Variables include the desperation of a
producer to finish a project, the wallet size of a producer, the quality
of the resume and portfolio of a prospective employee.

Smaller employers tend to pay somewhat less than larger employers, but
usually offer more career opportunities, often with a faster rise to
journey categories. Employers staffed by long-time employees with old
personal service contracts, are generally paying less than newer
employers trying to build staff.

Technical rates like digital ink and paint are pretty close to scale.
Final check, animation check are scale to $150 overscale. (Understand
that technical rates vary according to the seniority of the staff and
how established the studio is.)

The rates that are furthest above scale right now are:

Category “Going rate” Journey scale
——– ———— ————-

Animator………………..$1,200-$2,300………$1,043.44
Background………………$1,200-$1,800………$1,043.44
Layout………………….$1,150-$1,750………$1,043.44
Model Designer…………..$1,100-$1,700………$1,043.44
Production Board…………$1,250-$1,800………$1,199.96
Staff animation writer……$1,050-$2,100………$1,043.44

Please understand that the above rates are general ranges gleaned from
union members who have volunteered information. We know that there are,
in many cases, people who make more than the above rates, and some who
make less, although, of course, only those working non-union make less
than scale. By and large, however, the cited rates are those in effect
now. Six months from now, who knows?

Lots of people have asked where the industry will be in three years
time. This is sort of like asking what the weather will be like in
Ventura County on February 12, 1996, but here is our educated guess,
based on observed industry cycles over the past sixty years:

Warner Bros. is in the process of building a staff, which will go on for
the next twelve to twenty-four months. This will tend to drive up market
rates. Amblimation is coming into town (scouts are here already,
surveying the landscape), Disney Feature Animation is expanding (though
not by huge amounts). These things will also tend to drive up rates.
Twentieth Century-Fox has set up a studio in Phoenix, headed by former
Dubliners Gary Goldman and Don Bluth; Fox — though a non-signator — is
paying at scale or close to, but overall wage rates are lower than Los
Angeles Studios. (We have thus far failed to secure a contract with Fox,
though we continue to work on it.)

There will be a frenzy of production activity for the next two to four
years, all the up-and- comers lunging for the Lion King/Aladdin/Beauty
and the Beast brass ring. If some non-Disney features do respectable
business ($40-$60 million), the job market should continue to expand. If
some non-Disney features hit the $100 million mark, tell Aunt Mabel to
start taking art courses, as the job market should explode.

Even if non-Disney features are still-born at the box office, we expect
studios like Universal and Warners to produce more than one picture.
Every budding animation producer finally understands that building an
animation division which produces viable films takes years rather than
months to accomplish. The majors seem to be in the game for the long
haul. (And of course, Jeffrey Katzenberg, soon to be gone from Disney,
could well build an animation studio somewhere in the foreseeable
future.)

To sum up, even if productions without the Disney label bomb out, we
will probably see healthy employment for the next three to six years.
Page Master and Swan Princess will be released into theaters this Fall;
they will be the first indicators to come of performances of non- Disney
features.

Hopefully this letter provides you with a little more information than
you had before. If you have any specific questions about employment
opportunities or where the industry is going, please contact. We’re here
to help.

Sincerely yours,

Steve Hulett
Business Representative
—
_______________________________________________________________________________
Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and 4729 Lankershim Blvd.
Affiliated Optical Electronic and North Hollywood, CA 91602-1864
Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE phone (818) 766-7151 * fax (818) 506-4805
Anonymous FTP: ftp.netcom.com:/pub/mpsc839 E-mail: mpsc839@netcom.com

==========================
animation/best.of.net #127, from hmccracken, 1853 chars, Fri Oct 28 19:49:00 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Fri, 28 Oct 1994 19:45:47 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9410281945.memo.81435@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!heifetz.msen.com!jthiel
From: jthiel@garnet.msen.com (Joe Thiel)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: “Jeopardy” Category: ANIMATION
Date: 27 Oct 1994 02:26:25 GMT
Organization: Msen, Inc. — Ann Arbor, MI (account info: +1 313 998-4562)
Lines: 34
Message-ID: <38n34h$5ud$1@heifetz.msen.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: garnet.msen.com
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2]

On 10/20/94, the game show “Jeopardy” had the category “Animation”.
Here are the questions …er, “answers”…that were used. Enjoy!

Most of these are easy, but some also are good for a laugh! (Well,
they’re topical around here, at least, and if you can imagine them
popping up on the “Jeopardy” show, it’s pretty funny…)

PLEASE DO NOT POST YOUR RESPONSES! The correct solutions to these will
be posted in a separate post.

$100 Answer:
In the ’30s, the popularity of the Fleischer cartoons starring this
sailor rivaled Disney’s Mickey Mouse.

$200 Answer:
Scandal hit the papers in 1994 when a few frames of Jessica Rabbit in
this film were found very revealing.

$300 Answer:
In a 1977 series, this myopic character was given a companion–McBarker,
a nearsighted dog.

$400 Answer:
Songs in this ABC Saturday morning series of shorts included “Figure
Eight” & “Three is a Magic Number.”

$500 Answer:
Released in 1947, “Tubby the Tuba” was one of his “Puppetoons”.

—
Joe Thiel ! O O Wile E. Coyote ! Spell the future!
jthiel@mail.msen.com ! ( \=/ ) GENIUS ! Gur Erchoyvpna
Eli on FurryMUCK ! (=) Have brain ! Pbagenpg jvgu
Eli_W on FurToonia ! O Will travel ! Nzrevpn

==========================
animation/best.of.net #128, from hmccracken, 1370 chars, Fri Oct 28 19:49:27 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Fri, 28 Oct 1994 19:46:15 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9410281946.memo.81439@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!heifetz.msen.com!jthiel
From: jthiel@garnet.msen.com (Joe Thiel)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: “Jeopardy” Category: ANIMATION *SOLUTIONS*
Date: 27 Oct 1994 02:28:01 GMT
Organization: Msen, Inc. — Ann Arbor, MI (account info: +1 313 998-4562)
Lines: 59
Message-ID: <38n37h$5ud$2@heifetz.msen.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: garnet.msen.com
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2]

On 10/20/94, the game show “Jeopardy” had the category “Animation”.
The questions (“answers”, actually) were posted in a separate post.
The ans…q…SOLUTIONS! Whatever… are below. 🙂

(buncha ^Ls…)

$100 Question:
Who is Popeye?

$200 Question:
What is “Who Framed Roger Rabbit?”

$300 Question:
Who is Mister Magoo?

$400 Question:
What is “Schoolhouse Rock”?

$500 Question:
Who was George Pal? (sp?)

==========================
animation/best.of.net #129, from hmccracken, 1595 chars, Fri Oct 28 19:49:43 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Fri, 28 Oct 1994 19:48:23 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9410281948.memo.81440@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!olivea!news.hal.COM!decwrl!netcomsv!netcom.com!madhaus
From: madhaus@netcom.com (Maddi Hausmann Sojourner)
Subject: I don’t get 10/22 B.C. !
Message-ID:
Organization: Society for Putting Things on Top of Other Things
Date: Thu, 27 Oct 1994 02:37:00 GMT
Lines: 23

Saturday’s B.C. strip didn’t make sense to me, so I showed it to my
husband. He didn’t get it either. Did any of you?

Scene: Fat Broad talking to one of the guys; the rock he’s leaning on
says “Job Opportunities.” She’s pissed, and demands to know if they
won’t hire her because she’s a woman. Next panel, guy is stammering:
“er, ar, eh, hmmm…YES!” This panel shows a cave entrance to the
right, with the legend “Eight-Day Clock Company” over it.

HUH?

I usually don’t care for B.C. anyway, since Johnny Hart sneaks in as
much obnoxious Christian commentary as possible (which is pretty silly
for a strip about cavemen!) not to mention the pointless attacks on
evolution. Some of the “daffynitions” are mildly amusing. But this one
just left me wondering what sort of point he was trying to make (and
whether any of you figured out that he made it).

—
Maddi Hausmann Sojourner madhaus@netcom.com
Centigram Communications Corp San Jose California 408/428-3553

“A catchy slogan should appear here” –Dave Barry

==========================
animation/best.of.net #130, from hmccracken, 3270 chars, Sat Oct 29 18:43:06 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 29 Oct 1994 18:37:02 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9410291837.memo.84321@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.disney

Newsgroups: rec.arts.disney,rec.games.video.sega
Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!csc.ti.com!news.ti.com!m2.dseg.ti.com!skopen.dseg.ti.com!usenet
From: woodall@adrs1.dseg.ti.com (Dave Woodall)
Subject: Attention Mickey Fans!!!
Message-ID:
Sender: usenet@skopen.dseg.ti.com
Nntp-Posting-Host: adr15.dseg.ti.com
Reply-To: woodall@adrs1.dseg.ti.com
Organization: Texas Instruments, Inc.
Date: Sat, 29 Oct 1994 16:23:59 GMT
Lines: 52
Xref: news1.delphi.com rec.arts.disney:60215 rec.games.video.sega:36146

Hello to all MM fans –

Just wanted to let you know there is a *great* new video game
starring Mickey Mouse for the Genesis and SNES. It’s called “Mickey
Mania”, and I rented it last night. Here’s a quick review:

The game takes you through Mickey’s history-making career, starting
with “Steamboat Willie” and ending with “Prince and the Pauper”. There
are 6 levels to the game, and each one is set in one of his more
famous cartoons, like “The Mad Doctor”, “Lonesome Ghosts”, and
“Mickey and the Beanstalk”.

The graphics are unbelievably good. Steamboat Willie starts out in
black and white, and *very* gradually adds color to the end of the
level. Did I mention the animation was done by Disney artists? Mickey
himself is the modern style Mickey, and he’s kind-of time travelling
through the game, working his way back to the present. At the
beginning, the modern Mickey gets to meet the “old style” Mickey who’s
piloting the boat in Steamboat Willie. There are also many very well
done 3D effects.

The control is very good, and its simple. You can jump and throw
marbles. Most of the gameplay deals with trying to figure how to grab
ropes, avoiding rolling/flying objects, or reaching high places.

This game is *not* easy!!! There are a few places that are really
tough, and the game graciously allows you to move on if you just can’t
make it through and you lose all your lives. The game is also very
good about letting you start *exactly* where you were when you last
died – unless you have to take a continue – then its back to the
beginning of the level.

The music is good, and fits well with the cartoons. I haven’t made
it past the 3rd level, so I don’t know (yet 🙂 how the later levels
are. The sound effects are also good, and some effects seem to be
made for Pro-Logic sound, as they bounced all around the sound field.
There are also a lot of good Mickey samples (voice clips) that are
used at appropriate places. (for example, to get past one point,
you have to knock a bad guy down, then jump on his stomach to “bounce”
up the wall. When you do, Mickey says “sorry!”. 🙂

If you like Mickey, and you like to play games, go get this one! Its
the best Mickey game yet – at least for the Genesis!

Dave

——————————————————————–
| Dave Woodall | e-mail: woodall@dseg.ti.com | Plano, TX |
——————————————————————–
Roads? Where we’re going, we don’t need roads! Dr. E. L. Brown

==========================
animation/best.of.net #131, from davemackey, 4819 chars, Fri Nov 4 20:56:34 1994
————————–
>Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!howland.reston.ans.net!sw
iss.ans.net!netnews.lightside.com!user35.lightside.com!user
>From: vintage@lightside.com (Stephen W. Worth)
>Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
>Subject: ASIFA-Hollywood’s Annie Awards
>Date: 4 Nov 1994 22:36:20 GMT
>Organization: Vintage Ink & Paint
>Lines: 119
>Message-ID:
>NNTP-Posting-Host: user56.lightside.com
>Mime-Version: 1.0
>Content-Type: text/plain;charset=US-ASCII
>Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

PLEASE NOTE: Vintage Ink & Paint is posting this for ASIFA-Hollywood.
Please direct all inquiries and correspondence on this post to:

ASIFA-Hollywood
725 S. Victory Bl.
Burbank, CA 91502
(818) 842-8330

ASIFA-Hollywood is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the
art and craft of animation. Vintage Ink & Paint encourages all animation
professionals and fans to join and support ASIFA and its projects.

__________________________________________________________

The International Animated Film Society: ASIFA-Hollywood is proud to
announce the nominees for the 22nd annual Annie Awards, a celebration of
creative excellence in animation to be held Saturday, November 12th at the
Television Academy Theater in North Hollywood California. (Tickets: $35
general admission, $25 for ASIFA members. Call 818-842-8330 for more info)

Master of Ceremonies for the event will be Mark Hamill, voice of the Joker
on Batman: The Animated Series.

NOMINEES AND HONOREES

CERTIFICATE OF MERIT
Spike & Mike’s Festival Of Animation
Chris Craig: Annie Awards Producer
Milton Knight: Animator/Designer
Rita Street: Editor, Animation Magazine
Kathy Richardson: ASIFA Volunteer
Bryan Mon: Artist

TELEVISION COMMERCIAL
“Heart Rate” Kurtz & Friends
“In The Bag” Will Vinton Studios
“Sax Man” Duck Soup Produckions
“Tango” R. Greenberg Associates

HOME VIDEO
Animation Legend: Winsor McCay – Lumivision
Legend of the Overfiend – Central Park Media
The Lost World – Lumivision
Mickey Mouse: The B&W Years – Walt Disney Home Video
The Return of Jafar – Walt Disney Home Video

CD-ROM ANIMATION
Flintstones/Jetsons Timewarp – R/GA Interactive
Rebel Assault – Lucas Arts Entertainment
The Resident’s Freakshow – Cryptic Corporation
Sam & Max Hit The Road – Lucas Arts Entertainment

CREATIVE SUPERVISION
Bob Camp: The Ren & Stimpy Show
Mark Gustafson: Mr. Resistor
Henry Selick: The Nightmare Before Christmas
David Silverman: The Simpsons
Bruce Timm & Eric Rodamski: Batman: The Animated Series

ARTISTIC EXCELLENCE
Andy Gaskill: The Lion King
Mark Henn: The Lion King
Scott F. Johnston: The Lion King
Paul Rudish: Super Secret Squirrel
Deane Taylor: The Nightmare Befor Christmas

STORY CONTRIBUTION
Brenda Chapman: The Lion King
Paul Dini: Batman: The Animated Series
David Feiss: Flintstone Family Christmas
Gary Graham: Mighty Max
Iwao Takamoto: Hollyrock-a-bye Baby

VOICE ACTING
Gregg Berger: Duckman
Mark Hamill: Batman: The Animated Series
Jeremy Irons: The Lion King
Frank Welker: Animaniacs
Billy West: The Ren & Stimpy Show

ANIMATED TELEVISION SERIES
Batman: The Animated Series – Warner Bros. Animation
The Critic – Film Roman
The Ren & Stimpy Sho – Games Animation
The Simpsons – Film Roman
Animaniacs – Warner Bros. Animation

ANIMATED FEATURE
Batman: The Mask Of The Phantasm – Warner Bros. Animation
The Lion King – Walt Disney Pictures
The Nightmare Before Christmas – Touchstone Pictures

WINSOR MC CAY LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Ed Benedict: Animator, layout artist, character designer
Arthur Davis: Animation Director
Jean Vander Pyl: Voice Actress

PRESENTERS

Tom Sito: Animator, Storyman, President of MPSC Local 839
Bill Kroyer: Animator, Director, Producer
Marc Davis: Animator, Designer, Member of Disney’s “Nine Old Men”
Bill Littlejohn: Animator
Joe Grant: Storyman, Designer
June Foray: Voice Actress
Lucille Bliss: Voice Actress
Bob Kurtz: Animator, Designer, Producer
Bill Hurtz: Animator, Director
John Canemaker: Animator, Historian, Teacher

ASIFA-Hollywood would like to acknowledge the generous support of The
Cartoon Network, Walt Disney Feature Animation, Hanna-Barbera, Walt Disney
Television Animation, and Warner Bros. Animation

____________________________________________
Stephen Worth Animation Art
vintage@lightside.com Restoration, Authentication,
Appraisal and Sales

==========================
animation/best.of.net #133, from ianl, 126 chars, Wed Nov 9 21:43:43 1994
This is a comment to message 132.
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–

That FAQ ends with an admonishment not to post it on places like BIX.
Can they do that without explicitly copyrighting it?

==========================
animation/best.of.net #134, from hmccracken, 157 chars, Wed Nov 9 23:56:12 1994
This is a comment to message 133.
————————–
I’m not sure, but I’ve respected their wishes and withdrawn it.
(It’s still available over in rec.arts.animation for those
who’d like to read it.)
— Harry

==========================
animation/best.of.net #135, from hmccracken, 2183 chars, Sat Nov 12 18:45:07 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 12 Nov 1994 18:44:51 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9411121844.memo.44361@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!das-news2.harvard.edu!casaba.srv.cs.cmu.edu!nntp.club.cc.cmu.edu!hudson.lm.com!news.pop.psu.edu!news.cac.psu.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!ix.netcom.com!netcom.com!foont
From: foont@netcom.com (Sam Hughes)
Subject: Flannery O’Conner in Hogan #2
Message-ID:
Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 261-4700 guest)
Date: Sat, 12 Nov 1994 06:08:06 GMT
Lines: 30

Following is a blurb by Tom Heintjes from a conversation on Compuserve. It
seemed pointless for me to rewrite the info when he has it first hand.
Anyway, when I originally heard of this I was quite amazed.

Forgive the hypebole, I think perhaps he read too many of Stan Lee’s
soapboxes as a child 🙂

Sam Hughes
(foont@netcom.com)

— Begin Tom Heintjes Letter —

I wanted to let you know about an article I’ve been researching for the
second issue of HOGAN’S ALLEY: it’s an examination of the cartooning work of
the famous author Flannery O’Connor. I spent a day recently in
Milledgeville, Ga., the home of O’Connor (and where her mother, Regina,
still lives at 98). I was given full access to the Flannery O’Connor
collection, including the high-school newspapers that contain some of her
cartooning work. (I got to run my hands over the desk and typewriter she
used.) She was very interested in cartooning, and I came away with many
reproductions to publish in HOGAN’S ALLEY. Right now, I’m still compiling
the research I did, but it’s shaping up to be a very interesting article.
Whenever I tell people about it, no one had ever known she was interested in
cartooning, much less that she has a considerable body of published
cartooning work! I know this isn’t the sort of article that Wizard would put
on its cover (no offense to Wizard, but this sort of rarefied stuff isn’t
what Wizard is about), but it’s what sets HOGAN’S ALLEY apart. I know you’re
all breathless with anticipation!

— End Tom Heintjes —

==========================
animation/best.of.net #136, from hmccracken, 1435 chars, Sun Nov 13 10:36:11 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 13 Nov 1994 10:34:49 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9411131034.memo.45977@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.movie

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!EU.net!uknet!gdt!aber!mhr
From: mhr@aber.ac.uk (Mike)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.movies
Subject: New Aardman Movie
Date: 31 Oct 1994 12:51:17 GMT
Organization: Prifysgol Cymru Aberystwyth University of Wales
Lines: 20
Distribution: world
Message-ID: <392p85$q0d@fileserv.aber.ac.uk>
NNTP-Posting-Host: thorbb.dcs.aber.ac.uk

Dear All.

Good news for all animation fans. Aardman Animation, producers
of `A Grand Day Out’ (Oscar Nomination), `Creature Comforts’ (Oscar
Winner) and `The Wrong Trousers’ (Oscar Winner) have just started the
third Wallace and Gromit movie `A Close Shave’. Expect it in a year or
so …

To all the Americans and others who haven’t seen it – `The
Wrong Trousers’ is simply AMAZING stuff, great for kids, adults,
adults who act like kids (guilty m’lud), dogs, sheep etc. etc.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #137, from hmccracken, 11246 chars, Fri Nov 18 23:27:00 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Fri, 18 Nov 1994 23:25:24 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9411182325.memo.73804@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!gatech!bloom-beacon.mit.edu!senator-bedfellow.mit.edu!bluebox-24.mit.edu!user
From: smcguire@mit.edu (Scott McGuire)
Newsgroups: alt.comics.peanuts,rec.arts.comics.strips,rec.arts.animation
Subject: Guide to Animated “Peanuts” Specials
Date: Mon, 14 Nov 1994 22:47:25 -0400
Organization: Network Services, MIT
Lines: 290
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: bluebox-24.mit.edu
X-Newsreader: Value-Added NewsWatcher 2.0b19.1+
Xref: news1.delphi.com alt.comics.peanuts:21 rec.arts.comics.strips:9563 rec.arts.animation:25685

[Note: several people have requested that I post this to
alt.comics.peanuts. I decided to cross-post it to the other groups where
it might be appreciated. If this was inappropriate in some way, send me
mail telling me I’m a bozo and I won’t do it again.]

A GUIDE TO ANIMATED PEANUTS OFFERINGS
Compiled by Scott McGuire (smcguire@mit.edu)
Last Updated: November 13, 1994

Here is a list of “Peanuts” television specials and movies, with brief
descriptions and year of broadcast. I believe it’s pretty complete,
but *please* let me know if I’ve forgotten something or gotten it wrong.

VIDEO AVAILABILITY
——————
Currently Paramount Corp. is reissuing the Peanuts prime-time TV
specials and other tapes. (A current list is at the end of this file.)
A newspaper article I read said that Paramount has an exclusive
multi-year contract to distribute 63 TV episodes, 15 of which were
never released before. The home video titles are marketed under four
banners: “Peanuts Classics” (one episode per tape), “This Is America,
Charlie Brown” (one episode per tape), “The Charlie Brown and Snoopy
Show” (two episodes per tape), and “Snoopy Double Features” (two
episodes per tape). The prices I have seen on these have varied
widely, from about $9 to $15.

Most prime-time specials were available on video some time in the past,
however now the Paramount releases are the only ones “in print.”

The video availability of the movies is unclear; I have seen them all
available on CBS FOX video (mostly at Suncoast Video Stores, a shopping
mall chain), but since Paramount has also released “Race For Your Life,
Charlie Brown,” I’m not sure who holds the rights anymore.

And the most recent two TV specials, “It’s Christmas Again, Charlie
Brown” and “You’re In the SuperBowl, Charlie Brown” were available as
cheap videos from Shell gas stations.

Through Jan. 31, 1995, Paramount also has a special cross-promotion
deal with Travelodge Hotels, where coupons for $5 off a night at
Travelodges are included in the videotape releases, and if you stay a
total five nights at Travelodges during the promotion, you can get a $3
“rebate” on purchased videocassettes and two free videotapes of “It’s a
Mystery, Charlie Brown” and “You Don’t Look 40, Charlie Brown” which
will not be made available to the public until the promotion ends.

AVAILABILITY ON TV
——————
For the past year and presently (November 1994), the Disney Channel has
been running most of the TV specials and the Saturday morning cartoon
shows, and occasionally shows one of the movies. Only “A Charlie Brown
Christmas” sees regular network airplay these days.

TELEVISED SPECIALS
——————
Below, the abbreviations “P.P.” and “C.B.” refer to Peppermint Patty
and Charlie Brown, respectively. Information I am unsure of I have
marked with a question mark. Entries marked with an asterisk (*) are
currently available as part of the Paramount reissue video series.

*A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)
– Charlie Brown directs the gang in a Christmas pageant.
– First animated Peanuts special.

Charlie Brown’s All-Stars (1966)
– Charlie Brown’s unsuccessful baseball team gets sponsors &
uniforms.

*It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (1966)
– While the gang goes Trick-or-Treating, Linus waits in the pumpkin
patch.

You’re In Love, Charlie Brown (1967)
– C.B. is stricken with love for the Little Red-Haired Girl.

*He’s Your Dog, Charlie Brown (1968)
– Snoopy is returned to the Daisy Hill Puppy Farm because of
disobedience.
– Last show using same character voices as in “C.B. Christmas.”

*It Was a Short Summer, Charlie Brown (1969)
– The gang goes to summer camp, where they compete in a variety of
sports.

Play it Again, Charlie Brown (1971)
– Something to do with Schroder’s music and “music in spray cans.”

*You’re Not Elected, Charlie Brown (1972)
– Linus runs for election as school body president.

There’s No Time for Love, Charlie Brown (1973)
– P.P. & C.B. mistake a supermarket for an art museum on a field
trip.

*A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (1973)
– Peppermint Patty invites herself and friends to C.B.’s for dinner.
– Animated debut of Marcie.

*It’s the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown (1974)
– Peppermint Patty decorates eggs, Sally awaits the Easter Beagle.

It’s a Mystery, Charlie Brown (1974)
– Snoopy investigates the disappearance of Woodstock’s nest.

Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown (1975)
– C.B. waits for Valentines cards, Linus buys a present for Miss
Othmar.

You’re a Good Sport, Charlie Brown (1975)
– P.P., C.B. compete in a motocross race against the Masked Marvel.

It’s Arbor Day, Charlie Brown (1976)
– The gang plants a tree in Charlie Brown’s pitcher’s mound.
– Animated debut of Re-run Van Pelt.
– Last show with music by Vince Guaraldi.

It’s Your First Kiss, Charlie Brown (1977)
– C.B. is the homecoming escort for the Little Red-Haired Girl.
– First time the Little Red-Haired Girl is given a name (Heather).

What a Nightmare, Charlie Brown (1978)
– Snoopy eats too much pizza & dreams of being an Alaskan sled dog.

*You’re the Greatest, Charlie Brown (1979)
– The gang competes in the Junior Olympics Decathlon.

She’s a Good Skate, Charlie Brown (1980)
– Snoopy coaches P.P. for a skating competition, Marcie sews her
dress.

Life is a Circus, Charlie Brown (1980)
– Snoopy runs away with some poodles and joins the circus.

Someday You’ll Find Her, Charlie Brown (1981)
– C.B. falls for a girl he sees in the audience of televised football
game.

It’s Magic, Charlie Brown (1981)
– Snoopy makes C.B. invisible.

Is This Goodbye, Charlie Brown? (1983)
– Lucy and Linus move from the neighborhood.

What Have We Learned, Charlie Brown? (1983)
– While in France, Linus talks about the World Wars and veterans.

*It’s Flash Beagle, Charlie Brown (1984)
– Snoopy develops a nocturnal dancing habit.

*Happy New Year, Charlie Brown (1985)
– Peppermint Patty hosts a New Year’s Eve party.

Snoopy’s Getting Married, Charlie Brown (March 20, 1985)
– Snoopy decides to get married.
– Animated debut of Spike, Snoopy’s brother.

Why, Charlie Brown, Why (March 16, 1990)
– C.B. & Linus become concerned when one of their friends develops
leukemia.

*Snoopy’s Reunion (May 1, 1991)
– C.B. throws a reunion party for Snoopy and his family.

It’s Christmas Time Again, Charlie Brown (Nov. 27, 1992)
– The gang is in another Christmas pageant.

You’re In the Superbowl, Charlie Brown (Jan. 18, 1994)
– Snoopy coaches a football team of birds to the championships.

THIS IS AMERICA, CHARLIE BROWN
——————————
– An eight-part series where Charlie Brown and the gang illustrate
history by giving schoolroom talks; they also appear in historical
vignettes, along with colorized historical pictures.

SERIES 1 (Oct-Nov 1988)
*1. The MayFlower Voyagers
– The gang travels to America with the pilgrims.

2. The Constitution
– The gang attends the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia,
1787.

*3. The Wright Brothers at Kitty Hawk
– The gang watches the Wright Brother’s historic flight.

4. The NASA Space Station
– The gang imagines themselves aboard America’ first space station.

SERIES 2 (Feb-Mar 1989)
*5. The Building of the Transcontinental Railroad
– About the building of the transcontinental railroad.

*6. The Great Inventors
– The gang learns about the invention of the telephone and
automobile.

7. The Smithsonian and the Presidency
– About Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, and Franklin Roosevelt.

8. The Music and Heroes of America
– ??

OTHER TV (not necessarily a complete listing)
——–
Charlie Brown and Charlie Schultz (1969)
– documentary

A Charlie Brown Celebration (1981)
– Charles Schultz talks about Peanuts and introduces animations based
on strips.

It’s an Adventure, Charlie Brown (1983)
– C.B. bites the kite-eating tree, goes on the run from the EPA, and
ends up teaching a pee-wee baseball team. Based on series of
newspaper strips.
– Maybe from the “Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show”?

You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown (1985)
– Animated version of the Broadway special.

You Don’t Look 40, Charlie Brown (1990?)
– ??

COMPILATIONS FROM “THE CHARLIE BROWN & SNOOPY SHOW”
—————————————————
“The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show” was a Saturday morning cartoon
show, with vignettes based upon the newspaper strips. It ran from
1983-85. These are compilations that were released on video:

(Out of Print)
Good Grief, Charlie Brown
She Likes You, Charlie Brown
Very Funny, Charlie Brown
What Next, Charlie Brown
You Can’t Win, Charlie Brown
It’s Three Strikes, Charlie Brown

(In Print)
*Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show, Vols. 1 – 4 (may duplicate some of
above “Out of Print” titles, I don’t own any of these)

MOVIES
——
A Boy Named Charlie Brown (1969)
– Charlie Brown competes in a national spelling bee.

Snoopy Come Home (1972)
– Snoopy decides he must return to his previous owner.

*Race For Your Life, Charlie Brown (1977)
– The gang goes to summer camp and competes in a whitewater race.

Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (1980)
– The gang travels to Europe.

CURRENT LIST OF PARAMOUNT RELEASES
———————————-
(released March 1994)
It’s the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown
He’s Your Dog, Charlie Brown/It’s Flashbeagle, Charlie Brown
You’re the Greatest, Charlie Brown/Snoopy’s Reunion
This is America, Charlie Brown Vol. 1: The Great Inventors
This is America, Charlie Brown Vol. 2: The Wright Brothers
The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show, Vol. 1
The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show, Vol. 2

(released August 1994)
It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
You’re Not Elected, Charlie Brown/It Was a Short Summer, Charlie Brown
This is America, Charlie Brown Vol. 3: The Transcontinental Railroad
The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show, Vol. 3
The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show, Vol. 4
Race for Your Life, Charlie Brown (movie)

(released October, 1994)
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving
A Charlie Brown Christmas
Happy New Year, Charlie Brown
This is America, Charlie Brown Vol. 4: The Mayflower Voyagers

(coming January 11, 1995)
Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown
two “Snoopy Double Feature” tapes (two shows per tape, sorry, don’t
know which ones yet)

==========================
animation/best.of.net #138, from hmccracken, 3026 chars, Sat Nov 19 14:05:15 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 19 Nov 1994 14:03:42 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9411191403.memo.75329@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!howland.reston.ans.net!gatech!news-feed-1.peachnet.edu!usenet.eel.ufl.edu!interlog.com!not-for-mail
From: eye@interlog.com (eye WEEKLY)
Newsgroups: eye.news,rec.arts.movies,rec.arts.animation
Subject: ON SCREEN: The Swan Princess
Followup-To: eye.general,rec.arts.movies,rec.arts.animation
Date: 18 Nov 1994 17:50:10 -0500
Organization: Toronto’s Arts Newspaper
Lines: 45
Approved: eye@interlog.com
Message-ID: <3ajb32$llm@gold.interlog.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: gold.interlog.com
Xref: news1.delphi.com rec.arts.movies:180144 rec.arts.animation:25894

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
eye WEEKLY November 17 1994
Toronto’s arts newspaper …..free every Thursday
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ON SCREEN ON SCREEN

THE SWAN PRINCESS
Featuring the voices of Jack Palance, Steven Wright and John Cleese.
Screenplay by Brian Nissen. Directed by Richard Rich.
Animation.
(STC) Opens Nov. 18.

by
CAROLYN BENNETT

Do any of you have little kids, know little kids or have to be around
little kids for any length of time? If so, you might want to corral
them to see The Swan Princess, the latest animated contender in the
lucrative family entertainment market. Written, produced and directed
by former Disney filmmaker Richard Rich, The Swan Princess is a
cel-painted, old-fashioned offering that might enchant the young’uns,
even if the film feels somewhat calculated (like it must immediately
establish Rich Animation Studios as quality competition for the Disney
juggernaut).

A tongue-tied prince searches for the beautiful princess he unwittingly
pisses off. Cursed by a generic power-hungry sorcerer, the princess
occasionally turns into a swan. With the help of a puffin, a frog and a
turtle, the princess breaks the spell, defeats evil and marries the
prince.

Welcome relief from the sappiness is supplied by the talents of Jack
Palance (the bad guy), Steven Wright (perfect as the turtle) and John
Cleese (reprising his arrogant Frenchman/frog). The musical numbers are
Broadway-big and although the lyrics by David Zippel are clever, I
don’t think the songs will have much appeal for kids.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Retransmit freely in cyberspace Author holds standard copyright
Issues of eye in archive gopher://interlog.com
Coupla Mailing lists available http://www.interlog.com/eye
eye@interlog.com “Break the Gutenberg Lock…” 416-971-8421

==========================
animation/best.of.net #139, from hmccracken, 3011 chars, Sat Nov 19 14:05:37 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 19 Nov 1994 14:04:44 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9411191404.memo.75331@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!howland.reston.ans.net!gatech!news-feed-1.peachnet.edu!usenet.eel.ufl.edu!interlog.com!not-for-mail
From: eye@interlog.com (eye WEEKLY)
Newsgroups: eye.news,rec.arts.movies,tor.arts,rec.arts.animation
Subject: ON SCREEN: Too Outrageous Animation
Followup-To: eye.general,rec.arts.movies,tor.arts,rec.arts.animation
Date: 18 Nov 1994 17:48:05 -0500
Organization: Toronto’s Arts Newspaper
Lines: 43
Approved: eye@interlog.com
Message-ID: <3ajav5$li2@gold.interlog.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: gold.interlog.com
Xref: news1.delphi.com rec.arts.movies:180122 tor.arts:412 rec.arts.animation:25887

TOO OUTRAGEOUS ANIMATION
Produced by Benjamin G. Levy.
Nov. 18, 19, 25, 26 at Bloor Cinema, 506 Bloor W. 532-6677.
(See eye’s Independent & Repertory listings for times.)

by
EDMUND LEE

About halfway through the animation compilation Too Outrageous
Animation, I realized that almost all the shorts featured bodily
functions, or sex (which is also one, sort of), or the de-limbing of or
defacing of the body in some fashion. That’s not to say the shorts
aren’t amusing — some are laugh-out-loud hilarious. It’s just that a
kind of bawdy predictability creeps in after a while, which is to be
expected when 88 minutes worth of them are thrown up together at once.

The shorts aren’t tasteful, but on the whole are well made. Some are
technically marvellous and/or scathingly smart. But the funniest are my
guilty pleasures: DNA Productions’ Weird Beard, about a raunchy and
sadistic initiation of an innocent chump who wants to be a pirate;
Caren Scarpulla’s witty Liver, Lust Or Louie, which features legless
lovers in the aesthetic of ’50s love comics; and Guido Manuli’s Use
Instructions, which transforms everything presented on the screen into
an extremely gaseous and flabby butt — a grotesque statement against
pollution.

Too Outrageous Animation isn’t for all stomachs, but those with
appetites for the slightly warped should find it very palatable.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #140, from hmccracken, 23687 chars, Sun Nov 20 00:13:39 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 20 Nov 1994 00:12:18 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9411200012.memo.76801@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.animation.warner-bros.

Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,comp.graphics,rec.arts.disney,alt.animation.warner-bros,comp.graphics.animation,alt.movies.visual-effects,rec.arts.movies.production,alt.society.labor-unions
Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!howland.reston.ans.net!ix.netcom.com!netcom.com!mpsc839
From: mpsc839@netcom.com (MPSC Local 839 IATSE)
Subject: THE PEG-BOARD — November 1994
Message-ID:
Summary: Excerpts from cartoonists’ union monthly newsletter
Keywords: CARTOONISTS UNION NEWSLETTER LOCAL 839 IATSE
Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 261-4700 guest)
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Date: Sat, 12 Nov 1994 01:20:50 GMT
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THE PEG-BOARD — Information Superhighway Edition — November 1994

This is a monthly posting of excerpts from THE PEG-BOARD, the newsletter
of the Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and Affiliated Optical
Electronic and Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE. THE PEG-BOARD is also
published in printed format.

This file is available by anonymous ftp, along with a number of other
files about Local 839. The address is:

ftp.netcom.com:/pub/mpsc839

Local 839 IATSE is the largest local union of motion picture graphic
artists in the world. We have over 1,700 active members employed in
animation and CGI in Southern California.

In this month’s issue:

* 401(k) plan headed for Jan. 1 startup
* Pay raise effective 11/1/94
* From the Business Representative
* From the President
* Fox in the henhouse
* Animation in the news
* At the water cooler
* Workaholics Anonymous
* Volunteers wanted
* Classified ads
* In memoriam
* Masthead

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

401(k) HEADED FOR JANUARY 1 STARTUP
Startup costs to be voted at Nov. membership meeting

The union’s 401(k) plan is progressing towards its scheduled startup at
the beginning of 1995. This voluntary retirement savings plan will give
members access to tax-deferred savings that will lower their tax bills
and help gather funds for retirement.

So far Disney is the only studio signed to the Local 839 plan. Most
other employers have expressed interest; to date, Warner Bros. remains
the only studio that has declined to participate.

As an incentive to help get the plan off the ground, Local 839’s
Executive Board is recommending that the membership authorize covering
the plan’s start-up costs from the union’s general funds, rather than by
an assessment to the plan’s participants. This appropriation, estimated
at $25,000, will be voted on by the membership at the next general
meeting on November 29.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

PAY RAISE EFFECTIVE 11/1/94

Members working at union scale should be aware that the Local 839
contract minimums went up by three percent on November 1. Here are some
examples of journeyman minimums:

Animator, Background, Layout, Model Design, Staff Story Person:
$1,074.76

Production Board: $1,235.97

Assistant Animator, Assistant Background, Assistant Layout, Assistant
Model Design, Animation Checker, Color Stylist: $914.00

Inbetweener: $766.64

Cel Painter, Opaquer, Xerox Processor: $752.68

For other rates, check your “green book” or call the union office.
[Internetters: The full contract rates are available at
ftp.netcom.com:/pub/mpsc839/CBA/wages.txt]

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

FROM THE BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVE
Where do we go from here?

Animation, like much of the rest of the country, is rapidly being
swallowed up in computer technology. Color stylists work on Macs using
Adobe Photoshop; animators use Silicon Graphics computers and software
(among others). Month by month, year by year, phosphor screens and key
pads replace cels and paint, pencil and paper.

Which brings me to a SIGGRAPH meeting that occurred at UCLA last month.
SIGGRAPH, as you may or may not know, is a professional association of
computer imagers around the country.

The October meeting was billed as a round-table discussion of the place
for unions in emerging computer imaging companies. The panelists were
Disney Animation’s Tom Sito and Steve Goldberg, three computer imagers
from Sony ImageWorks and Digital Domain, and Scott Rosen, one of Digital
Domain’s top managers.

Me, I was there in the audience, along with some other union B.A.s,
listening to the back and forth among the participants. Tom and Steve,
naturally enough, thought working union was great. The computer imager
from Sony was kind of for unionization, spoke highly of the concept of
time and a half for overtime, but was no flag waver. The two imagers in
the middle of the table, however, both of whom worked for non-union CGI
houses, were fire-breathing, vociferous anti-unionists.

One of the antis detailed the horrors of working for a unionized
television network in New York. The other said they did just fine
negotiating their wages without unions, and how unions restricted people
getting jobs. Then there was this tidbit — the imager had it on good
authority that the Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists works hard to keep
out woman and black union members.

At which point a wave of nausea rolled over me. I leaped out of my seat
shouting “Yo!” and scuttled to a microphone. Eventually I was allowed to
speak, after the imager had clarified and amplified on the evils of the
Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists. It turned out that the evil union did
not actually have a contract with the company for which the imager
worked, but hey, the company behaved like it was a union shop.

Finally, after much fidgeting at the mike, I was allowed to put my two
cents in. I said I didn’t mind taking heat for sins the Screen
Cartoonists had committed, I do that all the time, but I was damned if I
was going to take flak for things we don’t do now and have never done.

I pointed out (in my usual humble, low-key way) that it was kind of
unfair to blame the Cartoonists for the hiring practices of a company
with which we had no connection. I also took exception to the accusation
that we keep people out of union membership when we have no roster, have
minimal membership requirements, and I regularly waive those paltry
requirements to studios that bother to ask for a waiver.

I pointed out that if the company for which the imager had once worked
did not hire many black or female computer graphics people, it was the
company’s fault, not the Screen Cartoonists. I pointed out that company
management made the selection of who they hired, not the union.

There were a few grudging head nods, I answered a few questions and sat
down. Perhaps a few eyes were opened, perhaps a few minds were changed,
but I doubt that any executives in the audience were worried that all
the CGIers in attendance would suddenly rise up and bellow “UNION!” with
one throaty voice. Too many of them believe it’s better for them to
operate without work protections or wage floors. Too few of them know
that now is the time for them to take the CGI industry into their own
hands by uniting, while their collective clout is strong.

The very end of the evening summed up the problems (and the solution)
best for me. One of the SIGGRAPH activists came up to the podium and
complained about CGI effects people getting their screen credits at the
back of the new big films, even the high- budget special effects
spectaculars. Mr. Rosen, the executive from CGI, had a ready answer:
“You know why all your credits are at the back of the film?” he said.
“Because the Directors Guild forces us to put them there!” And Tom Sito
bent down to his microphone and said softly: “And you know why the
directors can force the credits to the back? Because they organized.”

— Steve Hulett

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

FROM THE PRESIDENT
Golden Age: A User’s Guide

This Thanksgiving, animation folk have more to be thankful for than
we’ve had in decades. The Katzenberg/Spielberg/Geffen commitment to
animation is just the latest sign that we may be in the midst of the
greatest animation boom of our time. When we retire we may very well
look back on these years as our Golden Age.

While live-action Hollywood is decentralizing its productions to places
like North Carolina and New Mexico and union representation is
shrinking, we are drawing in the best animation talent of the world and
studios are relocating back here. Last year we grew to be the seventh
largest craft union in Hollywood, and we’re up to fifth this year. We
helped a new animation local to start in Florida and have direct
cooperation with unions in Paris, New York and Marin.

We continue to help the artists of Toronto in their struggle to organize
as well.

While other labor organizations are scratching their heads over repping
new CGI technologies, we are already 30% CGI and may be as high as 60%
in a few years.

All the top studios of Hollywood, and the new software and game
companies, are desperate for your traditional skills. Employment is at
90% and the finest animation in the world is done here and is done
union. As Walter Brennan said in The Guns of Will Sonnet: “No brag, jes’
fact”. The competition for artists is causing salaries to double union
scale.

So for all the young folks and newcomers now swelling our ranks, here’s
some advice from an old hustler on how to conduct oneself in these heady
times.

* When negotiating, be pleasant but firm. Don’t be arrogant or abrasive.
As the Scorsese character says in Quiz Show: “People and governments
forget, but corporations never.” They know someday they’ll have you on
the short end and then you’ll eat it.

* Daddy Warbucks said: “Don’t kick anybody on the way up that you plan
meeting on the way down.” In other words, don’t make enemies. There’s
only so many people in this field. We’re all going to grow old working
side by side whether we like it or not. People you piss off now will
keep showing up in studio after studio; they may even become your boss.
Whatever annoys you about them ain’t worth the hassle. It’s bad for
business.

* Cos Anzilotti once told me, “No matter what you think of what you’re
working on, no matter how dumb or bad you think it is, do the best damn
job you’re capable of. Give it 200%. Because you never know who’s
watching.” That advice has never failed me.

* If you plan to work non-union (you’d be outta your mind with all this
legit stuff around), beware that if you’re out of 839 jurisdiction for
more than two years you may screw up your pension. Like it goes back to
square one in terms of qualification. Why do you think all the folks who
love places like Film Roman are old? They are what you call “vested”.
After ten years your pension is locked in. Under ten years, you may lose
yours and have to start over. If you’re poor when you’re old that’s not
their problem.

If you find yourself taking a non-union gig, ask that they talk to the
union or help us organize it. Now with our 401(k), it only means more
for you to sign these studios up, more for them if you go silently. The
pressure on Bluth is growing, and it wouldn’t have happened if we hadn’t
gotten the info to people about salaries. Tell your friends in Phoenix
and Dublin what you have as a union artist. With union protection,
nothing can happen to you like what happened at his last studio …

Studios will try and sign you to long-term personal contracts so you
won’t skip. Read carefully; there’s a lot of booby traps to get free
overtime out of you or prevent you from working for a competitor even
after you leave. If you have questions, call the union office. It’s our
job and we’re happy to advise you. We even keep a file of Xeroxed
contracts.

Don’t quit in the middle of a deadline, it gives you a rep as
undependable, which is sometimes more important than how good you draw.

There’s an old axiom that it’s tacky for artists to tell each other what
they make. Who the heck invented that rule? Who benefits by it? We’re
all confused about what to ask for. The older I get the more I think
that’s bulls–t invented by businessmen to keep you and me ignorant. So
I say tell everyone what you make and compare notes. We’ll all benefit.
Don’t forget, it’s a violation of California state labor law for any
employer, union or non-union, to require you to keep your salary a
secret.

I make $1,980 a week at Disney, plus overtime. (I was at $1,550 until
becoming a supervisor on story).

Keep your contacts and portfolio up even if you’re a long time in one
studio. Every studio is two flops from extinction. You saw how the
Hollywood players bolted for the exits when Rover Dangerfield and Cool
World failed. They may do so again.

Animation is cyclical. In 1996 or 1998 there could be a turndown that
will shake out all but the best. Be prepared so that by the time the
boom winds down, your whiz-kid status isn’t changed to burger-flipper.
Keep improving, take classes, and above all support this union. If you
are pleased with the progress we’ve had with things like a 401(k),
remember every time you say yes to a non-union gig you’re throwing a
rock at our ability to achieve more. You can’t just think of yourself
and then complain the union doesn’t give you anything. This is a
collaborative medium in more ways than one.

In the 1960’s animators tried to fight for residuals. They had no unity
so they lost. We had unity for the 401(k) so now we’re getting it.
Together what can’t we do?

So when you bow your head or raise your glass at the Thanksgiving table
this month, give thanks for our collective talents that made this boom
possible in an art form once called dead, give thanks for our collective
voice in union that fights to keep our animation working standards the
highest in the world. Happy Thanksgiving!

— Tom Sito

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

FOX IN THE HENHOUSE

Is the Medfly back? Who cares! Has Bigfoot been seen again? Unimportant!
The latest news is that Fox Animation, a.k.a. “Two Rich Guys from
Dublin”, is starting to telephone folks around town offering the “golden
opportunity” to go to Phoenix and train people. They as yet have
expressed no interest in signing anything with our union, despite Big
Momma Fox having lots o’ contracts with IATSE.

The Phoenix homesteaders tried to recruit in Canada until we helped
enlighten the Sheridan grads there. Next they tried importing a small
army from Dublin but we’re told that the U.S. Immigration Service wasn’t
too understanding. So finally, desperate for experienced animation folk
(but not desperate enough to return the union’s phone calls), they’re
trying to talk you into going. Once you train the poor neophytes to do
your job for much cheaper, your usefulness will be over.

Quality feature animation is a union monopoly right now. You can’t do a
good animated feature with the best talent in the U.S. without signing a
839 contract. That’s a fact. Why louse up your bargaining power for
their sakes? They’ve proved how little they value your livelihood in
their previous studios.

They’re trying an end run around us and they’re playing us for saps.
Don’t play the game their way, make them play it your way. When their
agents call, tell them “Pog ma thoin!”. Turn them down until they sign a
union contract.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

ANIMATION IN THE NEWS

As we go to press, Warner Bros. Features is narrowing down their six
features in development to two. Robert Daly and associates were
presented with the latest development work of six animated features they
had earlier greenlighted for additional story work. The first feature
they approve will go into production for a December, 1996 release.

Also regarding Warner Bros.: the studio’s refusal to consider giving
animation employees the opportunity to participate in a 401(k) has
resulted in petitions from those employees urging Warners’ management to
reconsider its position …

Over at Hanna-Barbera/Turner, “Pagemaster” is in the can and walls are
coming down as major remodeling occurs on the feature unit’s work
spaces…

The Walt Disney Co. has apologized to ROBIN WILLIAMS for using his Genie
voice to hawk merchandise from Aladdin. “We had a specific understanding
with Robin that we wouldn’t do that. [Nevertheless] we did that. We
apologize for it,” Disney studio chief Joe Roth said in the Los Angeles
Times.

Disney also should have disputed reports Williams was complaining
because he agreed to take scale pay of $75,000 and the movie grossed
more than $200 million, Roth said. Williams has said he lent his voice
as a favor to Disney, not to make money. “I’ve known Robin for years and
know that none of these issues are ever about money,” Roth said. “They
are simply about principle.”

Williams likened the apology to “a country re-establishing diplomatic
relations.” And he said he will do some more Disney work …

Drive-time radio shock-jock HOAWRD STERN recently interviewed Beavis &
Butthead creator Mike Judge. Stern and his sidekick Robin Quivers were
laughing at him for the fact that he signed away most of the rights to
his characters to MTV.

Stern: “What a great gig! I’ll steal somebodys’ cartoon characters and
get rich! Hey Mike, do you know any really dim cartoonists, y’know, who
don’t have a clue? …” Judge: “They all are.” Stern: “Walt Disney
invented Mickey Mouse and built a whole studio. If MTV was around when
he started he would’ve wound up a has-been voice actor.” Quivers: “In
the credits after your name, they should have a credit ‘And the Money
goes to …'”

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

AT THE WATER COOLER

DEBBIE KURCZYK, Rich effects assistant, and her husband DAVE of Disney,
welcomed their first baby, Alexander, in mid-September … HEIDI and BOB
SHELLHORN’s son, William Harris, was born on October 29 … Rich’s
TERESA SMYTHE and husband John jusr returned from a French honeymoon …

Warners’ JOE BANASZKIEWICZ should be home from the hospital and
recovering from his surgery … Disney painter and Executive Board
member ANN SULLIVAN won second place in oils at the Malibu Art
Association Juried Art Show in May …

We welcome our newest union member, Disney story and model designer JOE
GRANT, age 86. Self-employed until resuming his Disney career as a
consultant on Beauty and the Beast, Brother Grant quipped, “I heard the
retirement benefits were good” …

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Workaholics Anonymous

Oscar Wilde said that work is the refuge of people who have nothing
better to do. If so, Americans are now among the world’s saddest
refugees. Factory workers in the United States are working longer hours
than at any time in the past half-century. America once led the rich
world in cutting the average working week — from 70 hours in 1850 to
less than 40 hours in the 1950s. It seemed natural that as people grew
richer they would trade extra earnings for more leisure. Since the
1970s, however, the hours clocked up by American workers have risen, to
an average of 42 this year in manufacturing.

Several studies suggest that something similar is happening outside
manufacturing: Americans are spending more time at work than they did 20
years ago… Most Germans get six weeks’ paid annual holiday; even the
Japanese now take three weeks. Americans still make do with just two. An
average full-time American worker now toils for even more hours a year
than his Japanese counterpart; and for as much as 15% longer than a
typical German…

— From The Economist, October 22-28, 1994

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Volunteers wanted

To help promote the Child Abuse Hotline, we need your help to complete
animation on a sixty-second spot entitled “Some Secrets Aren’t Worth
Keeping”, starring James Earl Jones and Edward James Olmos. Everything
has been donated for this project. Contact Tiana Barron at (818) 985-
1348 … Camp Ronald McDonald for Good Times is a non-profit
organization that provides free sleepaway camps for children with cancer
and their families. They’ll be holding a Christmas Party on Saturday,
December 3, from noon to 3 pm, at the Warner Bros. Ranch, 3701 W. Oak
St. in Burbank. One of the most popular attractions are the artists
making character drawings of the kids. If you’d like to volunteer, call
Chris Nehls at (310) 476-8488.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

I have spent fifty happy years learning the animation business. Now I
want to teach. Ken Southworth, (714) 533-1958.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

For sale: 20″ FAX model 20-12-2MB animation disk; top condition. Plus
full set of field guides. $350 obo, plus shipping. Jim Willoughby, (602)
778-7987.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

In memoriam

Retired storyboard and layout artist and producer LEWIS SAW died on
September 30. From 1964 until his retirement, he worked for Cannawest,
Halas and Batchelor, Filmation and Hanna-Barbera. In 1985 he moved to
Washington state, where he continued to freelance.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Contents (c) 1994 by MPSC Local 839 IATSE. All rights reserved.
Publications of bona fide labor organizations may reprint articles from
this newsletter so long as attribution is given. Permission is also
given to distribute this newsletter electronically so long as the ENTIRE
contents are distributed, including this notice.
—
_______________________________________________________________________________
Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and 4729 Lankershim Blvd.
Affiliated Optical Electronic and North Hollywood, CA 91602-1864
Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE phone (818) 766-7151 * fax (818) 506-4805
Anonymous FTP: ftp.netcom.com:/pub/mpsc839 E-mail: mpsc839@netcom.com

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animation/best.of.net #141, from hmccracken, 2582 chars, Wed Nov 23 13:30:12 1994
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From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Wed, 23 Nov 1994 13:29:50 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9411231329.memo.91261@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!howland.reston.ans.net!gatech!psuvax1!news.cc.swarthmore.edu!netnews.upenn.edu!a!poole
From: poole@a.chem.upenn.edu (Stephan Poole)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Upcoming Animation Convention
Date: 23 Nov 1994 17:46:31 GMT
Organization: University of Pennsylvania
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Message-ID: <3avv5n$569@netnews.upenn.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: a.chem.upenn.edu
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2-upenn1.1]

**** ConAnimate ****

Date: February 17-19, 1995

Location: Airtel Plaza Hotel
Van Nuys, CA

Contact: Infinity Conventions
Attn: David Roth
PO Box 46738
Los Angeles, CA
(818) 753-8852

********************** Press Release Follows **********************

Information for the Press and General Public
ConAnimate 1995

We at Infinity Entertainment are planning ConAnimate 1995, an
animation convention with guest speakers, autograph sessions, slide
shows, vendors, and special videos and previews. ConAnimate is not a
festival of animation, rather a celebration of it! This is a true
convention which will include many events within the event: panels on
hot animation topics, question and answer sessions with professionals
in the field, inside looks at upcoming shows and trends for the year
ahead, and memorabilia and merchandise available in a vendors’ room.
The event both celebrates and explains the ins and outs of the
animated form of expression.

ConAnimate will be held at the Airtel Plaza Hotel in Van Nuys, CA on
Friday February 17, Saturday February 18, and Sunday February 19.
Tickets will be sold at the door starting Friday at 7 PM, Saturday and
Sunday at 10 AM. A full-event 3 day ticket is $30- for adults, $20-
for children 12 and under. A single day ticket is $20- for adults,
$15- for children 12 and under. Call (818) 753-8852 for group discount
rates. The Airtel is handicapped accessible. Rooms at the hotel are
available at a discount to ConAnimate attendees at the rate of $65-
for singles, doubles, triples, and quads; and $125- for executive
suits per night. Call the Airtel Hotel at 1 (800) 350-1111, or in Los
Angeles (818) 997-7676 for reservations.

Any additional questions about ConAnimate 1995, contact:
Infinity Entertainment
PO Box 46738
Los Angeles, CA 90046
(818) 753-8852

==========================
animation/best.of.net #142, from hmccracken, 1312 chars, Wed Nov 23 15:21:35 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Wed, 23 Nov 1994 15:18:20 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9411231518.memo.92311@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.animation.warner-bros.

[Note from Harry: The following message refers to _Chuck Jones: A Flurry
of Drawings_, by our own Hugh Kenner.)

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!newstf01.news.aol.com!newsbf01.news.aol.com!not-for-mail
From: ogla@aol.com (Ogla)
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: Re: On the Genius of Chuck Jones
Date: 22 Nov 1994 14:10:12 -0500
Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364)
Lines: 9
Sender: news@newsbf01.news.aol.com
Message-ID: <3atfmk$of2@newsbf01.news.aol.com>
References:
NNTP-Posting-Host: newsbf01.news.aol.com

In article ,
upb@fractals.fractals.com (William McClung) writes:

I have to tell you — and as great an admirer of Chuck Jones as I am — I
was amazed to discover that the author of The Pound Era (which remains, in
my mind, the standard by which 20th century lit crit must be judged, no
kidding) had turned his big, big brain to Bugs Bunny. I’m looking forward
to reading the book–it’s easily found here in Berkeley. Congratulations
in advance. I expect it’s stunning. Wish you all the best success.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #143, from hmccracken, 869 chars, Mon Nov 28 20:35:51 1994
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 28 Nov 1994 20:33:57 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9411282033.memo.9448@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.lefthanders

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!howland.reston.ans.net!pipex!uunet!newstf01.news.aol.com!newsbf01.news.aol.com!not-for-mail
From: tlshay@aol.com (TLSHAY)
Newsgroups: alt.lefthanders
Subject: Cartoon character is a lefty, too!
Date: 24 Nov 1994 21:00:32 -0500
Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364)
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Sender: news@newsbf01.news.aol.com
Message-ID: <3b3gg0$rve@newsbf01.news.aol.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: newsbf01.news.aol.com

Here’s a bit of trivia for you …

The cartoon character, Doug Funnie (show called, “Doug”), on Nickelodeon
is a lefthander. Are there any other cartoon characters that are
lefthanders?

Terry Shay – tlshay@aol.com
Owner – What’s Left

==========================
animation/best.of.net #144, from hmccracken, 908 chars, Mon Nov 28 20:36:09 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 28 Nov 1994 20:34:15 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9411282034.memo.9451@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.lefthanders

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!usc!crash!cg57.esnet.com!esbbs!Bob.Forsythe
From: Bob.Forsythe@esbbs.cg57.esnet.com (Bob Forsythe)
Newsgroups: alt.lefthanders
Subject: Re: Cartoon character is a lefty, too!
Date: 25 Nov 1994 08:01:39 -0800
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Cathy from “Cathy” is left-handed. This is because her creator,
Cathy Guisewhite is a lefty.

=Bob

==========================
animation/best.of.net #145, from hmccracken, 1389 chars, Mon Nov 28 20:36:34 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 28 Nov 1994 20:34:57 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9411282034.memo.9452@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.lefthanders

Newsgroups: alt.lefthanders
Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!agate!library.ucla.edu!whirlwind!typhoon!paredes
From: paredes@typhoon.seas.ucla.edu (Fernando Paredes)
Subject: Re: Cartoon character is a lefty, too!
Sender: news@seas.ucla.edu (News Daemon)
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Date: Fri, 25 Nov 1994 10:14:17 GMT
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TLSHAY (tlshay@aol.com) wrote:
> Here’s a bit of trivia for you …

> The cartoon character, Doug Funnie (show called, “Doug”), on Nickelodeon
> is a lefthander. Are there any other cartoon characters that are
> lefthanders?

Calvin, from Calvin and Hobbes. every time he’s drawing something or
trying to do homework, he’s using his left hand. i’m pretty sure his
alter ego spiff holds his ray guns with the same hand. i’ve always
liked calvin for that (:

________________________________________________
FERNANDO PAREDES paredes@seas.ucla.edu
SOCIETY OF LATINO ENGINEERS AND SCIENTISTS, UCLA

“It is far better to be feared than loved, if you cannot be both.”
Machiavelli.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #146, from hmccracken, 1537 chars, Mon Nov 28 20:36:57 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 28 Nov 1994 20:35:30 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9411282035.memo.9453@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.lefthanders

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!agate!notmendel.Berkeley.EDU!frauwirt
From: frauwirt@notmendel.Berkeley.EDU (Ken Frauwirth (BioKen))
Newsgroups: alt.lefthanders
Subject: Re: Cartoon character is a lefty, too!
Date: 25 Nov 1994 09:41:15 GMT
Organization: /etc/organization
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References: <3b3gg0$rve@newsbf01.news.aol.com>
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In article ,
Scott Jennings wrote:
>In article <3b3gg0$rve@newsbf01.news.aol.com>, tlshay@aol.com (TLSHAY) wrote:
>
>> Here’s a bit of trivia for you …
>>
>> The cartoon character, Doug Funnie (show called, “Doug”), on Nickelodeon
>> is a lefthander. Are there any other cartoon characters that are
>> lefthanders?
>
>Muppets are left handed… I know they’re not really cartoon characters,
>but just thought I’d mention it.
>

Probably because Jim Henson was a leftie.

Anyway, Bart Simpson is left-handed (I’m not sure if Lisa is also).

BioKen
—
Ken Frauwirth (MiSTie #33025) _ _
frauwirt@mendel.berkeley.edu |_) * |/ (_ |\ |
Dept. of Molec. & Cell Bio. |_) | () |\ (_ | \|
Univ. of Cal., Berkeley Push the button…someone 🙁

==========================
animation/best.of.net #147, from switch, 67 chars, Mon Nov 28 21:21:12 1994
This is a comment to message 143.
————————–
Hmn. The _Simpsons_ characters are arbitrarily left-handed.

Emru

==========================
animation/best.of.net #148, from switch, 8464 chars, Wed Nov 30 00:37:53 1994
————————–
Date: Mon, 21 Nov 1994 17:22:15 -0800
From: ScottAdams@internex.net
To: Multiple recipients of list
Subject: Dilbert Newsletter 3.0 – Special Supplemental
X-Listprocessor-Version: 6.0c — ListProcessor by Anastasios Kotsikonas
Content-Type: text
Content-Length: 8157
Status: RO

Dilbert Newsletter 3.0
———————-
******************************
**** Special Supplemental ****
******************************

To: Dogbert’s New Ruling Class (DNRC)
From: Scott Adams
Date: 11/94

Hi again.

This special supplemental newsletter is mostly so I can shamelessly tell you
that the new ***Dilbert Screen Saver Collection*** (for Windows and Mac) has
shipped.

It’s from Delrina and it should be popping up in all fine computer stores who
have a clue. Or call Delrina at 1-800-315-5848.

If the sales person at your local software store gives you a blank stare or
says they don’t carry it, I recommend scrunching your face up and saying
something incredibly condescending like “It runs under Windows — maybe
you’ve heard of THAT.”

(Macintosh users adjust accordingly. If you have any trouble sounding
condescending, find a Unix user to show you how it’s done.)

Your Rank in the DNRC
———————

As you know, when Dogbert conquers the planet, those of you on this mailing
list will form the new ruling class and get to treat all other people like
five-and-a-quarter-inch diskettes.

But you’re probably wondering how you can jockey for position within the
ruling class.

After all, it’s not who you are as a person that counts, it’s who you’re
superior to. So, to remove any ambiguity in this matter I have consulted
with Dogbert to create this handy point scoring system.

The more points you get, the higher your rank.

How to Earn Points
——————

* 1 point for every computer in your home.

* 1 point for each Dilbert cartoon displayed on your wall, door or
refrigerator. (5 bonus points if you are knowingly annoying somebody by
displaying the cartoons.)

* 1 point for every game on your computer(s) at work.

* 2 points for every vacation day you’ve successfully classified as a
“telecommuting” day in the past 12 months.

* 2 points for convincing your employer that you need Internet access for
(hee hee!) “important business reasons.”

* 5 points for each unit of Dilbert merchandise you purchase.
(All funds go to Dogbert’s paramilitary force, mostly to improve morale among
the Generals.)

* 5 points for contacting your newspaper and requesting that
they run Dilbert. (3 bonus points for snorting and acting amazed that the
paper doesn’t already have it.)

* 5 points if you suggest a topic that I later use in the strip, even if
others suggested it too.

* 10 points for dressing like any member of the Dilbert cast for Halloween.

* 20 points for buying the Dilbert Screen Saver before Christmas. (10 bonus
points if you can get your employer to pay for it.)

* 20 points if you’ve ever become aroused by reading the strip. (10 bonus
points if you’re a Unitarian.)

* 50 points if you’ve been reprimanded by management for displaying Dilbert
cartoons.

* Minus 5 points if you think little Billy from Family Circus is “a stitch”.

Point Score Adjudication
————————

We’re using the Bird Watchers method of point scoring, meaning you use the
honor system. Obviously, skilled liars will fare better at both bird
watching and jockeying for position in the DNRC.

Titles Already Taken
——————–

All official titles in Dogbert’s New Ruling Class are awarded on a
first-come, first-served basis. These titles are already taken:

God of Mayonnaise
King of Colorado
King of France
Supreme Gadget Tinkerer
Minister of Gadgets
Minister of Gidgets
Supreme Arch Techno-Weenie
Lord High Everything Else
Senior Technologist
Supreme Goddess of Pun@ctu*at!io}n, Er&ro%rs and Mispelllingz
Minister of Whirled Peas
Assistant Under-Secretary for Euphemisms
Minister of Megalomania
Secretary of Crass Commercialization
Kitchen Staff Supervisor
Minister of procrastination
Lifeguard of the Internet
Something of Frost
Minister of Cutting Edge Information Technologies that Suck
Up All Your Free Time
Manager of Zero Quality Software
Commissioner of the Professional Frisbee Golf Association
Cardinal of Limbo
Minister of Violent Crack Down on Restless citizens
Supreme Overlord of the Waffle Light
Secretary of Odds and Ends
Keeper of the Sacred Can Opener
Director of Recycling
Minister of things that go ‘plonk’ when you hit them with a
stick
Minister for Saying ‘I told you so.’ When Things Have Gone
Terribly Wrong
Minister of Dying Technologies
The Secretary of Misguided Users
Minister for Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms
Technological Toy Tsar
Judge of Wedgies
Deputy Assistant Under Secretary for the Promulgation of
Bureaucracy
Minister of Rudeness
Minister of Bizarre and Possibly Immoral Experiments
Minister of User Interface Review
Minister of Highly Secret Things
Minister for Things That Seemed Like A Good Idea At The Time
Minister of Everything
Guy in charge of the Bureau of Alchemy
Pointless Research at Higher Institutions
Chief Secretary of Computer Security, Torture, and the
Infinitely Complex Password
Minister of Defense
Low Life Sub-Peon Pond Scum
Director of Nomadic Urban Planning
Minister of Buzzwords
Maintainer of the St. Dogbert Shrine

Any disputes will be resolved by the Judge of Wedgies.

Rumor Squelching
—————-

There is a rumor in the Boston area that the Dilbert Screen Saver Collection
has one module that acts as a powerful subliminal aphrodisiac. In my tests I
found that only a small percentage of viewers experienced this effect, barely
more than a control group of fraternity members who drank beer and viewed
adult movies.

However, there is some evidence that the Dilbert Screen Saver reverses male
pattern baldness, but it’s too soon to tell.

Catbert
——-

I got a peck of mail after the brief appearance of a cat creature in the
strip. Most of the writers could be put in two categories: 1) Cat lovers,
and 2) People who think cat lovers should be ripped to pieces by large dogs.

People in the second category were largely baffled by the strip where the cat
(okay, call it Catbert) declared it would attack its natural enemy and was
next seen on Dilbert’s keyboard. As only cat owners with computers know,
cats love to get on your keyboard when you’re using it.

This was not my most insightful work, but I got lots of mail from people with
the same problem who wrote, and I quote “My cat slhgjb to climb on myj pwerjp
keyboardlsad he’s onthhgj there now. Ha ha kjgj ha!!”

I haven’t decided if the cat will return.

Dogbert Secret
————–

Here’s a little inside knowledge that only the people who read this
newsletter will know. Dogbert’s original name wasn’t Dogbert. It was
Dildog. I changed it at the last minute before I sent my samples to comic
syndicators for consideration.

Remember this tidbit in case you ever have to prove you’re a member of
Dogbert’s New Ruling Class. It’s your password.

Dilbert Index
————-

I’m starting an index of the top ten most irritating` business practices.
It’s a non-scientific survey that will eventually be construed as scientific
because most people don’t care whether their information is reliable or not.

To participate, just vote for the THREE that irritate you the most and send
your vote to: IndexBert@aol.com for tabulation. This will be an ongoing
measure.

– Quality
– Empowerment
– Performance reviews
– Idiots promoted to management
– Reengineering
– Status reporting
– Ordering office supplies
– Micromanagement
– Longer hours without overtime pay
– Hoteling (first-come cubicles)
– Lack of training
– Being forced to work with idiots

How to Subscribe Automatically
——————————

You can subscribe to the Dilbert List automatically by sending an e-mail to
the address listproc@internex.net with ONLY this message in the body of your
e-mail (and nothing in the subject line):

subscribe Dilbert_List Joe Blow

(except put your real name instead of Joe Blow).

And your e-mail address will be picked up automatically, so you need not
specify it.

If the automatic method doesn’t work for you, send me a note at
scottadams@aol.com and I’ll put you on manually.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #149, from hmccracken, 15700 chars, Wed Nov 30 15:23:51 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Wed, 30 Nov 1994 15:22:45 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9411301522.memo.19351@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.tv

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!gatech!newsxfer.itd.umich.edu!nntp.cs.ubc.ca!news.DataFlux.BC.CA!not-for-mail
From: scotth@cyberspace.net (Scott Hollifield)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.misc,rec.arts.comics.info,rec.arts.tv,rec.arts.animation
Subject: Comic Book Superheros in Film and TV
Followup-To: rec.arts.comics.misc
Date: 24 Nov 1994 22:17:20 -0800
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Xref: news1.delphi.com rec.arts.comics.misc:113370 rec.arts.comics.info:1684 rec.arts.tv:103648 rec.arts.animation:26272

The Comic Book Superhero Film and Television List
by Scott Hollifield
Version 3.4
Last update: 11/10/94

CONTENTS

A. Who Belongs and Doesn’t Belong In This List
– i. Who Belongs
– ii. Who Doesn’t Belong
– iii. What is Super?
– iv. Comedy Sketches

1. DC Comics (television-animated)
2. DC Comics (television-live action)
3. DC Comics (film serials)
4. DC Comics (motion pictures)
5. Marvel Comics (television-animated)
6. Marvel Comics (television-live action)
7. Marvel Comics (film serials)
8. Marvel Comics (motion pictures)
8. Miscellaneous (television-animated)
9. Miscellaneous (television-live action)
10. Miscellaneous (motion pictures)

INTRO

A. Who Belongs and Doesn’t Belong In This List

i. Who Belongs
– Super-heroes created for comic books who later were interpreted
– for television or film

ii. Who Doesn’t Belong
– Non-superhero characters of any type (Garfield, Indiana Jones,
– Alf)
– Superheroes who were created for a comic strip (The Phantom)
– Superheroes who were created for live action TV (Once a Hero’s
– Captain Justice)
– Superheroes who were created for animated TV (Hero High)
– Superheroes who were created for film (Blankman)
– Japanimation characters (Akira)
– Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

iii. What is Super? (e.g. examples which may be close to the line)
– The Human Target, Jon Sable, etc. are also counted as superheroes
– for the purposes of this list even though they’re really not in
– the classic sense.

iv. Comedy Sketches
– I would like to have included superhero comedy sketches in this
– file, but unfortunately, I don’t have any hard reference data
– on them, just a few vague memories. I do know that there have
– been at least two sketches on Saturday Night Live, one with
– the Justice League and one with both Marvel and DC heroes, as
– well as a recent Justice League sketch on MTV’s The State.

[Note: The sections dealing with animated television are sorted by
character name, due to the number of multiple series incarnations.]

1. DC Comics (television-animated)

THE ATOM
– The Superman-Aquaman Hour of Adventure (CBS, 1967-68)
– (Included Superboy, the Flash, Green Lantern, the Atom,
– Hawkman, the Teen Titans and the Justice League.)

BATMAN
– The Batman/Superman Hour (CBS, 1968-69)
– The Adventures of Batman (CBS, 1969-70; reruns of Batman segments
– from Batman/Superman Hour)
– The New Scooby Doo Movies (CBS, 1972; Batman & Robin guest-star in
– two episodes)
– The Brady Kids (197?; Batman & Robin guest-star in one episode)
– Sesame Street (197?; Batman & Robin make an appearance in one
episode)
– The New Adventures of Batman (CBS, 1977)
– The Batman/Tarzan Adventure Hour (CBS, 1977-78; Batman segments are
– reruns of New Adventures)
– Tarzan & the Super 7 (CBS, 1978-80; Batman segments are reruns of
– New Adventures)
– Batman and the Super 7 (NBC, 1980-81; Batman segments are reruns of
– New Adventures)
– Batman: The Animated Series (Fox, 1992-94)
– The Adventures of Batman and Robin (Fox, 1994-; reruns of Batman:
– The Animated Series plus new episodes)
– [note: Batman and Robin also appeared as regular characters in each
– incarnation of the Super Friends]

CAPTAIN MARVEL
– The Kid Super Power Hour With Shazam (NBC, 1981-82)

FLASH
– The Superman-Aquaman Hour of Adventure (CBS, 1967-68)
– (Included Superboy, the Flash, Green Lantern, the Atom,
– Hawkman, the Teen Titans and the Justice League.)
– Super Friends (ABC, 1973-75, 1976-77; the Flash guest-starred in
– one episode)
– [note, the Flash also appeared as a regular character in Challenge
– of the Superfriends]

GREEN LANTERN
– The Superman-Aquaman Hour of Adventure (CBS, 1967-68)
– (Included Superboy, the Flash, Green Lantern, the Atom,
– Hawkman, the Teen Titans and the Justice League.)
– [note, Green Lantern also appeared as a regular character in
– Challenge of the Superfriends]

HAWKMAN
– The Superman-Aquaman Hour of Adventure (CBS, 1967-68)
– (Included Superboy, the Flash, Green Lantern, the Atom,
– Hawkman, the Teen Titans and the Justice League.)
– [note, Hawkman also appeared as a regular character in Challenge of
– the Superfriends]

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA — see also SUPER FRIENDS
– The Superman-Aquaman Hour of Adventure (CBS, 1967-68)
– (Included Superboy, the Flash, Green Lantern, the Atom,
– Hawkman, the Teen Titans and the Justice League.)

PLASTIC MAN
– Super Friends (ABC, 1973-75, 1976-77; Plastic Man guest-starred in
– one episode)
– The Plastic Man Comedy/Adventere Show (ABC, 1979-80)
– The Plastic Man-Baby Plas Super Comedy (ABC, 1980-81; CBS, 1983-83)

ROBIN
– see Batman

SUPERBOY/SUPERBABY
– The Superman-Aquaman Hour of Adventure (CBS, 1967-68)
– (Included Superboy, the Flash, Green Lantern, the Atom,
– Hawkman, the Teen Titans and the Justice League.)
– Superman (CBS, 1988-89; segments known as “Superman’s Family Album)

SUPERMAN
– Superman (1941-43; the legendary Max Fleischer cartoons)
– The New Adventures of Superman (CBS, 1966-67)
– The Superman-Aquaman Hour of Adventure (CBS, 1967-68)
– (Included Superboy, the Flash, Green Lantern, the Atom,
– Hawkman, the Teen Titans and the Justice League.)
– The Batman/Superman Hour (CBS, 1968-69)
– Superman (CBS, 1988-89)
– [note: Superman also appeared as a regular character in each
– incarnation of the Super Friends]

SUPER FRIENDS
– Super Friends (ABC, 1973-75, 1976-77)
– The All-New Superfriends Hour (ABC, 1977-78)
– Challenge of the Superfriends (ABC, 1978-79)
– World’s Greatest Superfriends (ABC, 1979-80)
– Super Friends: The Legendary Super Powers Show (ABC, 1984-85)
– Super Powers Team: Galactic Guardians (ABC, 1985-86)

TEEN TITANS
– The Superman-Aquaman Hour of Adventure (CBS, 1967-68)
– (Included Superboy, the Flash, Green Lantern, the Atom,
– Hawkman, the Teen Titans and the Justice League.)
– [note: Cyborg of the New Teen Titans appeared as a regular character
– in the Super Friends from 1984 on]

MISCELLANEOUS
– Comic Strip (Nickelodeon, 1981?)
– (This was a short-lived half-hour series in the early days of
– Nickelodeon. Taking “animation” to a new low, it literally
– consisted of a camera taking in shots of the panels of a comic
– book, one at a time, while voiceovers read the word balloons.
– Roughly half of the episodes were devoted to issues of Sugar &
– Spike; the rest were of certain Silver Age tales like Green
– Lantern, the Flash, Adam Strange and other space adventures.
– You can tell it was produced in the late ’70s, because the
– opening shows a group of kids happily assailing their local drug
– store for comics; the rack (Hey Kids! Look, Comics!) sports
– period DC titles like Black Lightning and the original Firestorm
– series. In my opinion, it is doubtful this series was
– originally produced specifically for Nickeledeon; likely, it was
– a local production that the then-young cable network picked up
– from somewhere. I would appreciate any info anyone has about
– this show, as I cannot find any reference at all to it in any
– television reference book, although there was a show in the
– 1950s with the same name and similar concept, utilizing
– non-superhero comics.)
– Swamp Thing (syndicated, 199?-??)

2. DC Comics (television-live action)

The Adventures of Superman (syndicated, 1953-57; 104 episodes)
Batman (ABC, 1966-68; 120 episodes)
The Flash (CBS, 1990-91)
The Human Target (ABC, 1992; 6 episodes)
Legends of the Super-Heroes: The Challenge (NBC special, 1979)
Legends of the Super-Heroes: The Roast (NBC special, 1979)
Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman (ABC, 1993-)
Shazam! (CBS, 1974-75)
The Shazam!/Isis Hour (CBS, 1975-77)
Superboy (syndicated, 1988-91?)
Swamp Thing (USA cable; 198?-?)
Wonder Woman (made-for-TV movie; 1974)
– (with Cathy Lee Crosby)
Wonder Woman, The New, Original (ABC, 1974; 14 episodes)
– (set during World War II)
Wonder Woman, The New Adventures of (CBS, 1976-78; 47 episodes)
– (set in present-day)

3. DC Comics (film serials)

Batman (Columbia, 1943, 15 chapters)
Batman And Robin (Columbia, 1949, 15 chapters)
Blackhawk (Columbia, 1952, 15 chapters)
The Adventures of Captain Marvel (Republic, 1944, 15 chapters)
– [re-released as The Return of Captain Marvel]
Congo Bill (Columbia, 1948, 15 chapters)
Superman (Columbia, 1948, 15 chapters)
Atom Man Vs. Superman (Columbia, 1950, 15 chapters)
Spy Smasher (Republic, 1942, 12 chapters)
– [re-released as Spy Smasher Returns]
The Vigilante (?, 1945)

4. DC Comics (film)

Batman (1968?)
Batman (1989)
Batman Returns (1992)
Batman Forever (1995)
Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (The Animated Movie) (1993)
Catwoman (1995?)
Rex the Wonder Dog (19??)
Superman The Movie (1978)
Superman II (1981)
Superman III (1983)
Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987)
Supergirl (1984)
Swamp Thing (1982)
The Return of the Swamp Thing (1989)

5. Marvel Comics (television-animated)

AVENGERS
– Marvel Action Hour (syndicated, 1994-; there is no Avengers cartoon,
– but a group of heroes loosely based on the Avengers appear as
– the supporting cast in the Iron Man feature; they include
– Hawkeye, Spider-Woman, the Scarlet Witch, War Machine and
– Century)

CAPTAIN AMERICA
– Marvel Super Heroes (syndicated, 1966; included Captain America,
– the Hulk, Iron Man, Thor and Sub-Mariner)
– The Incredible Hulk & The Amazing Spider-Man Hour (NBC, 1982-83;
– Captain America guest-stars in one Spider-Man episode, “The
– Capture of Captain America”)
– Marvel Action Universe (syndicated, 1988-89; Spider-Man segments are
– reruns of Incredible Hulk & Amazing Spider-Man Hour; Captain
– America guest-stars in one episode)

FANTASTIC FOUR/THING
– Fantastic Four (ABC, 1967-70; 26 episodes)
– The New Fantastic Four (NBC, 1978-79; the Human Torch is replaced
– with H.E.R.B.I.E. the robot)
– Fred and Barney Meet The Thing (NBC, 1981-82)
– Marvel Action Hour (syndicated, 1994-; includes Iron Man and
– Fantastic Four)

HAWKEYE
– Marvel Action Hour (syndicated, 1994-; Hawkeye appears as a regular
– supporting character in the Iron Man features)

HULK
– Marvel Super Heroes (syndicated, 1966; included Captain America,
– the Hulk, Iron Man, Thor and Sub-Mariner)
– The Incredible Hulk & The Amazing Spider-Man Hour (NBC, 1982-83)
– The Amazing Spider-Man & The Incredible Hulk Hour (NBC, 1983-84)

IRON MAN
– Marvel Super Heroes (syndicated, 1966; included Captain America,
– the Hulk, Iron Man, Thor and Sub-Mariner)
– Marvel Action Hour (syndicated, 1994-; includes Iron Man and
– Fantastic Four)

SCARLET WITCH
– Marvel Action Hour (syndicated, 1994-; Scarlet Witch appears as a
– regular supporting character in the Iron Man features)

SPIDER-MAN
– Spider-Man (ABC, 1967-69)
– Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends (NBC, 1981-82,1984-86)
– The Incredible Hulk & The Amazing Spider-Man Hour (NBC, 1982-83)
– The Amazing Spider-Man & The Incredible Hulk (NBC, 1983-84; reruns
– of Incredible Hulk & Amazing Spider-Man Hour)
– Marvel Action Universe (syndicated, 1988-89; Spider-Man segments
– are reruns of Incredible Hulk & Amazing Spider-Man Hour)
– Spider-Man (Fox, 1994-)

SPIDER-WOMAN
– Spider-Woman (ABC, 1979-80)
– Marvel Action Hour (syndicated, 1994-; Spider-Woman appears as a
– regular supporting character in the Iron Man features)

SUB-MARINER
– Marvel Super Heroes (syndicated, 1966; included Captain America,
– the Hulk, Iron Man, Thor and Sub-Mariner)
– The Incredible Hulk & The Amazing Spider-Man Hour (NBC, 1982-83;
– Sub-Mariner guest-stars in one Spider-Man episode, “Wrath of
– the Sub-Mariner!”)
– Marvel Action Universe (syndicated, 1988-89; Spider-Man segments are
– reruns of Incredible Hulk & Amazing Spider-Man Hour; Sub-Mariner
– guest-stars in one episode)
– Marvel Action Hour (syndicated, 1994-; Sub-Mariner guest-stars in
– one Fantastic Four episode)

THOR
– Marvel Super Heroes (syndicated, 1966; included Captain America,
– the Hulk, Iron Man, Thor and Sub-Mariner)

WAR MACHINE
– Marvel Action Hour (syndicated, 1994-; War Machine appears as a
– regular supporting character in the Iron Man features)

X-MEN
– Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends (NBC, 1981-82,1984-86; the X-Men
– guest-star in two episodes, “The X-Men Adventure” and “The
– Origin of Iceman” [?])
– Marvel Action Universe (syndicated, 1988-89; the X-Men appear in one
– episode, “Pryde of the X-Men”)
– The X-Men (Fox, 1993-)

6. Marvel Comics (television-live action)

Captain America (CBS, two made-for-TV movies, 1979)
Dr. Strange (made-for-TV movie, 1978)
The Electric Company (PBS, 1971-76)
– (contained Spider-Man shorts for children that inspired the
– “Spidey Super-Stories” series)
The Incredible Hulk (CBS, made-for-TV movie, 1977)
Return of the Hulk (CBS, made-for-TV movie, 1977)
The Incredible Hulk (CBS, 1979-82; 85 episodes)
The Return of the Incredible Hulk (NBC, made-for-TV movie, 1988)
The Trial of the Incredible Hulk (NBC, made-for-TV movie, 1989)
The Death of the Incredible Hulk (NBC, made-for-TV movie, 1990)
The Amazing Spider-Man (CBS, 1978-79; 13 episodes)
– (there were at least two 2-parters, which showed up later as
– syndicated TV movies; the pilot may have done this as well)

7. Marvel (film serials)

Captain America (Republic, 1944, 15 chapters)
– (re-released as The Return of Captain America)

8. Marvel (film)

Exit the Ghetto, Enter the Black Panther (1995)
Captain America (1990)
The Fantastic Four (1993)
– (still on shelf pending newer, bigger-budget FF movie from
– another studio; bootleg copies available at conventions)
Howard the Duck (1986)
The Punisher (1989)
Spider-Man (1995?)

8. Miscellaneous (television-animated)

The Tick (Fox, 1994-)
WildC.A.T.S. (CBS, 1994-)

9. Miscellaneous (television-live action)

Sable (ABC, 1987-88; 7 episodes)
The Maxx (MTV, 1994-)

10. Miscellaneous (film)

The Crow (1994)
Doom’s IV (1995?)
Judge Dredd (1995)
The Rocketeer (1991)
The Mask (1994)
The Mask II (1995/1996?)
Tank Girl (1995)
Timecop (1994)
Zen, Intergalactic Ninja: The Movie (1995)

—————————–

Send additions or corrections to me at scotth@the-matrix.com. Note the
new address!

==========================
animation/best.of.net #150, from switch, 19852 chars, Sun Dec 11 20:51:21 1994
————————–
From: mpsc839@netcom.com (MPSC Local 839 IATSE)
Message-Id: <199412100613.WAA26884@netcom6.netcom.com>
Subject: THE PEG-BOARD — December 1994
To: animate@dsd.es.com (animate)
Date: Fri, 9 Dec 1994 22:13:07 -0800 (PST)
X-Mailer: ELM [version 2.4 PL23]
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-Length: 19473
Status: RO

THE PEG-BOARD — Information Superhighway Edition — December 1994

This file is available by anonymous ftp, along with a number of other files
about Local 839. The address is:

ftp.netcom.com:/pub/mp/mpsc839

Local 839 IATSE is the largest local union of motion picture graphic artists
in the world. We have over 1,600 active members employed in animation and
CGI in Southern California.

In this month’s issue:

* Membership approves 401(k) plan
* “Lion” still king of box office
* From the President, by Tom Sito
* From the Business Representative, by Steve Hulett
* Where do my dues go?
* Animation in the news
* At the water cooler
* Classified ads
* In memoriam

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

MEMBERSHIP APPROVES 401(K) PLAN
Disney, H-B to sign on soon; others still waiting

On November 29, the Local 839 membership unanimously approved the Screen
Cartoonists 401(k) plan which is expected to roll out in early 1995. Disney
and Hanna-Barbera have already indicated they will participate in the plan,
which means that over half of Local 839’s employed members will be eligible
for voluntary tax-deferred savings.

At the November 29 meeting, the membership authorized expenditures covering
the startup costs of the plan, and all administrative expenses for the first
year. Bill Clingen of Principal Financial Group, which will be administering
the plan, reported that they will be setting up meetings with Disney and H-B
employees in early ’95 to explain the plan and sign up enrollees.

Most other employers have taken a wait-and-see approach to the 401(k)
proposal, with only Warner Bros. delivering a flat no to date. We are
optimistic that, before long, all of our employed members will have these
savings available to them.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

LION STILL KING
“Princess” swoons; “Pagemaster” still on the books

The box office for Disney’s re-release of The Lion King has swamped its
animated competitors, Turner’s The Pagemaster and Rich’s The Swan Princess.
As of December 6, Lion King has grossed $19 million since its re-release in
late November, compared to $6.6 million for Swan Princess which debuted the
same day. The Pagemaster is at a respectable $7.5 million after twelve days
in theaters. Undeterred, both Turner and Rich are working on new animated
feature projects.

As we go to press, Disney’s latest animated blockbuster stands at $285
million. It’s about to become the fifth-largest domestic grossing movie of
all time — confirming Disney’s continued dominance of animated theatrical
features.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

FROM THE PRESIDENT
Family values

Young and alone on a long road, Once I lost my way:
Rich I felt when I found another, Man rejoices in man.

— the Viking Elder Edda

Remember during the riots when the mob pulled out that trucker Reginald
Denny and beat him almost to death? A black man saw it happen on TV, rushed
out of his house and pulled him out of danger, saving his life. When asked
why he did it he replied: “I didn’t see a white man. I saw a fellow trucker
like me in trouble.”

A fellow trucker … tribes … family … animators … that’s a lot like
us.

Admit it, animators are a strange breed. But despite our various tastes and
temperaments we are all of a kind. We have an invisible bond. A bond that
drew us to this little known field, the bastard child of Hollywood, who
never gets respect even when it outshines all other movies. We know we’ll
never become stinking rich, we’ll be comfortable. Just so long as we can get
to animate. To create. To spend hours and days lost in concentration, making
funny little drawings that move in a split second. Strained eyes, sore
wrists, crooked backs. We love it .We scowl about the work load then feel
sad when the job ends. We have shattering fights and nervous exhaustion over
the follow through on Peter Piggy and Funny Fish, no wonder people think
we’re crazy.

But we understand each other. Many of us like to think we’re only looking
out for number one. Remember after the Northridge quake last January how we
all visited and helped each other and how the studios coordinated cleanup
and loans and temporary shelter … We’ve shown we have the capacity for
united action when the goal is clear.

Strike issues aside, you gotta admire the solidarity of the baseball and
hockey players’ unions. Millionaires to rookies, nobody is breaking ranks.
Someone once said to me unions only reward mediocrities. The negotiators of
the players are Barry Bonilla, Brett Butler, Tom Seaver. Mediocrities? And
when did those guys begin to get those monster salaries? When they
unionized. Before they were traded and sold like pieces of meat and the
average salary was $35,000. Cecil Fielder tried to fight the system alone
and was destroyed and banned from baseball. He was talented, but alone he
still failed.

Disney director Barry Cook and I once talked about how we’re a lot like
ballplayers. You have so many years of peak performance in you. What you do
and what you set up when you’re strong will have to carry you when your
powers begin to fail. Like Sugar Ray Leonard, who invested shrewdly and
became an independent corporation, to some old toothless hockey player who
had enough left over from the good times to buy a bar and hang his jersey in
the window.

If you live for today and set up nothing you’ll have nothing when you want
to rest. When I was in my twenties, retirement was unthinkable. Next year
I’ll be twenty years in animation and the idea of resting doesn’t seem so
awful.

So in this Holiday Season when the love of family is all important, think of
what you have invested in your animation family. You’re not just Dagwood
Bumstead going to the office and getting yelled at by Mr. Dithers. You have
a legacy behind you. You are the direct heirs of Bill Tytla, Mary Blair and
Bob Clampett. Your work is constantly being compared to theirs. You will
pass your knowledge to young people as they did. Those pioneers also made
you a union with the highest standard of living and the best health care in
the animation world.

When you meet any of our retired gods and goddesses, say thank you to them,
artist to artist, for doing so much that we benefit from now. They don’t
hear that nearly enough. Benefits that if you waited for the employer to
pass down to you, you’d still be waiting. (Funny, I’m always taking potshots
at the bad ol’ producers and lately I’ve found out we have a number of
producers who are still active dues paying members! Hey, love you folks too!
)

My Christmas Wish is that when we retire and pass Local 839 on to our
students and successors it’ll be bigger, do more and be all around more
baddass than ever! Not to benefit some AFL-CIO bigshot, but for the benefit
of us, cartoon people. The Hollywood Animation community’s common good.

Love the legacy. Love your family. Love your animation family. Have a Safe
and Happy Holiday! (and those of you still on overtime, remember to pause to
smell the Xmas trees …)

— Tom Sito

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

FROM THE BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVE
Reflections on an off-year election

The November elections have come and gone. Republicans are now jubilantly
ascendant, with Newt Gingrich, Jesse Helms and other GOP high rollers
issuing sound bites trashing Clinton and other “Liberal Big Spenders.” Rush
Limbaugh announces daily that national liberation is at hand. (“Free at
last, free at last, thank God almighty we’re free at last.”)

And surviving Democrats have been, for the most part, gloomily silent.

Now, I’m a Democrat, have been for twenty-odd years, and most everything I
voted for went down to defeat. And not just defeat, like 52%-48%, but
crushing defeat. Like obliteration. Vaporization. Like buried under a
landslide fifteen feet deep and a mile wide. And you would think that me,
the long-time Democrat, would be devastated, but I’m not depressed about
this election, not at all. I’m actually kind of upbeat and bouncy, eager to
see what the Republicans come up with in the next twenty-four months. Why?
Maybe it’s because deep in my inner core, there are remnants of the Youth
for Goldwater I once was (move over, Hillary). Maybe it’s the
twenty-something buried in my psyche who once cast his first vote for
Governor Ronald Reagan and first presidential vote for Richard Nixon (and
how many Americans will admit to that?).

But actually, I think it’s something else. Late at night, as I’m sliding off
to sleep, I’ve had the sneaking suspicion that Democrats, and particularly
House of Representative Democrats, have come to believe that chairing
Congressional committees is a birthright reserved only for them. I guess
part of me is pleased that their bloated complacency has been deflated like
a cheap birthday balloon and they now have to rethink some of their
positions. I mean, I don’t smoke, don’t like smoke, but Congressman’s Henry
Waxman’s unending inquisition of the tobacco companies gets to be just a
little tiresome. Either outlaw tobacco or get off it already. Stop the damn
preaching.

And I am pleased because Democrats won’t be the ones with the responsibility
anymore. Newt Gingrich and his flying circus will now have the job of
holding the hearings and passing the legislation. If Aid to Dependent
Children is abolished and infants begin dying in the gutter, we’ll know just
who to give the credit to. If tax cuts kick in and the deficit explodes and
Alan Greenspan raises interest rates to double digits, we’ll know just who
to applaud. But most of all, we’ll now get to see if the New Republican
Majority is serious about cutting entitlements. It’s easy enough to kick the
supports out from under teenage mothers and toddlers. And rail against
illegal immigrants. Those people don’t vote. What I’m anxious to see is if
the Republicans will end farm subsidies or make the millionaire ranchers in
Wyoming and Montana pay market rates for grazing their cattle on public
lands. Will Republicans start making cuts in Medicare and Social Security,
which is where most of the entitlement spending is?

Somehow, I doubt the boys and girls in the GOP will touch the big
entitlements. Bob Dole and Newt have already said that Social Security and
Medicare are “off the table.” Damn right they’re off the table. Bob and Newt
don’t want twenty million enraged senior citizens kicking their butts out of
office in the next election, no matter how much economic sense trims in
Social Security and Medicare might make. Those people do vote.

So, like I say, although I’m a Democrat, I take perverse pleasure in seeing
the Republicans tall in the saddle. Even though unions will get stomped on a
bit more, even though the poor will have to scrabble a little harder, we’ll
no doubt get to hear more threats and bluster against Bill Clinton from
Chairman Helms. We’ll be enlightened by lectures on public morality from
that well-known avoider of alimony payments, Newt Gingrich.

And we’ll get to see if the “Contract With America” leads us to the broad,
sunlit uplands of greater economic prosperity and the rescue of the
disgruntled middle class. We’ll get to see if a Constitutional Amendment for
Prayer in Schools will raise those SATs and lower those illegitimate births.
Who knows? Maybe it will bring us, in January 1997, to the inauguration of
President Dan Quayle.

Should be an interesting two years.

— Steve Hulett

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

WHERE MY DUES GO?

Assuming you pay the full journey dues of $87.00 per quarter, over a third
of your dues goes to so-called “head taxes” to the IATSE and other
organizations (see below). The remainder pay’s Local 839’s overhead.

Local 839 Expenses……………63%
IATSE Head Tax……………….34.5%
Other head taxes………………2.5%

The overhead includes salaries for the office staff, consisting of the
Business Representative (Steve Hulett), the Office Manager (Lyn Mantta), the
Assistant to the Business Representative (Jeff Massie), and a part-time
receptionist (Shawn Carlson).

The Business Representative negotiates and polices the contract, files
grievances (official complaints against employer misconduct), visits union
studios, and organizes non-union studios. He reviews members’ personal
service contracts and supervises the office staff. The staff writes and
publishes The Peg-Board, keeps the books, sends out dues bills, runs the
computers, and mails out correspondence. The staff also oversees the
operation of The American Animation Institute, the art and animation school
operated by the union.

The best way to keep abreast of where your dues go is to attend our
bimonthly membership meetings, which are held at the union office at 4729
Lankershim in North Hollywood. The next membership meeting is scheduled for
January 31, 1995 at 6:30 pm.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

ANIMATION IN THE NEWS

Disney announced in late November that the huge success of The Lion King
enabled the company to surge to record revenue for the fourth quarter and
the year. For the first time in decades, the Mouse Factory made more money
from its films than its theme parks. For the quarter, the Walt Disney Co.
earned $225.9 million. For the year, profits came in at $1.1 billion …

Walt’s golden oldie Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs sold 17 million
videocassettes in its first three weeks of release. Through November 15, it
had generated $300 million in sales — and since it was produced in the
pre-union thirties, not a nickel of residual money goes to anyone. Pure
profit for Disney stockholders … and Disney management.

Warner Bros. has been developing an animated/live-action feature which is
slated to team Michael Jordan with Bugs, Daffy and other WB characters (last
seen together in a pair of “Hare Jordan” TV ads for Nike). No release date
has been announced …

The American Animation Institute, the Screen Cartoonists’ “little art school
that could,” was profiled in the Valley editions of the Los Angeles Times on
November 18. Glenn Vilppu, longtime AAI drawing teacher, said that AAI
students work harder than many he taught at other schools: “They’re here to
learn. Students here are more realistic and down-to-earth.” The AAI’s
introductory seminars begin on January 3, and the spring semester begins
February 13 …

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

AT THE WATER COOLER

Local 839’s second annual Christmas party on December 2 was a smashing
success, with over five hundred attendees flocking to the Grand Ballroom of
the Beverly Garland Holiday Inn in Studio City. As always, the best
entertainment of the evening was to be found in the companionship of fellow
members, greeting old friends and catching up on each other’s news. The
union buttons supplied by Tom Sito and Jeff Massie were well-received. We
hope to make this an annual event — so if you missed it, shame on you and
see you there next year!

On December 4, Rich layout assistant Tyrone Elliott and wife Daniella had
their first baby, Deanna … Disney artists Don and Marcia Dougherty had a
new baby, Evan Richard Yoshio, on November 13 … Dave Hancock and his wife
became the proud parents of Brandon on December 5 … Louis Tate married his
ladylove Tracey Renata on November 26.

On December 4, paintballs whistled through the trees as Disney and Warners
artists squared off to do battle in one of the largest paintball games yet
seen in animation annals. Sixty artists and friends went up to Close
Encounters field in Newhall to laugh, run and shoot each other for the
Holidays …

Our apologies to Debbie Kupczyk who was misidentified in last month’s
Peg-Board; she is in fact the supervisor of effects animators at Rich
Entertainment.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Orange County High School of the Arts in Los Alamitos, is developing an
emphasis in animation production. We are looking for experienced animators
to talk about the industry, share their portfolios, exaluate student work,
etc. Fax a letter of interest to Geoff Black at (310) 431-7602.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

For sale: 20″ FAX model 20-12-2MB animation disk; top condition. Plus full
set of field guides. Best offer. Jim Willoughby, (602) 778-7987.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

IN MEMORIAM

Designer, layout and storyboard artist GEORGE GOODE died on November 11. He
was 42 years old. Since 1973, he had worked at Filmation, Ruby-Spears,
DePatie-Freleng, Marvel, Disney and Hanna-Barbera.

Friends of George Goode gathered at the Beverly Garland Theater on the
afternoon of December 3 to remember a talented artist. Jim and Sue
Willoughby, unable to attend, sent this tribute:

Adios, George. You only stayed a short time. We who knew you, worked with
you, drew with you loved you.

We’ll miss you, kid, and those exceptional qualities about you — your
unequaled drawing talent, your relaxed Texas way of walking, those Wednesday
chili dinners and drawing sessions at Sue’s house, your shy smile which
showed the tooth that got busted by a zooming Frisbee in Filmation’s
upstairs hallway …

Wherever you are going now, George — that mysterious place beyond this life
we won’t really know about until we get there — our thoughts, our love go
with you.

* * * * * *

Retired inker and painter LILLIAN HOODKISS died on September 30. From 1960
until her retirement in 1983 she worked for TV Spots, Auril Thompson,
Filmation, DePatie-Freleng, Kurtz and Hanna-Barbera.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

MOTION PICTURE SCREEN CARTOONISTS
AND AFFILIATED OPTICAL ELECTRONIC AND GRAPHIC ARTS,
LOCAL 839 IATSE
4729 Lankershim Boulevard, North Hollywood, CA 91602-1864
phone (818) 766-7151 * fax (818) 506-4805
E-mail inquiries: mpsc839@netcom.com
Anonymous FTP: ftp.netcom.com:/pub/mp/mpsc839
PRESIDENT — Tom Sito
BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVE — Steve Hulett
VICE-PRESIDENT — George Sukara
RECORDING SECRETARY — Jeff Massie
SERGEANT-AT-ARMS — David Teague
PEG-BOARD EDITOR — Jeff Massie
EXECUTIVE BOARD
Viki Anderson * Bronwen Barry * Sheila Brown * Jan Browning
James Davis * Earl Kress * Craig Littell-Herrick * Tom Ray
Pat Sito * Ann Sullivan * Stephan Zupkas
TRUSTEES — Pat Sito * Ann Sullivan * Stephan Zupkas

==========================
animation/best.of.net #151, from switch, 4608 chars, Tue Dec 13 00:11:34 1994
————————–
Date: Mon, 5 Dec 94 17:16:29 CST
From: Glenn Carnagey
Subject: CFV: rec.arts.comics.alternative
Reply-To: voting@qualcomm.com

FIRST CALL FOR VOTES (of 2)
unmoderated group rec.arts.comics.alternative

Newsgroups line:
rec.arts.comics.alternative alternative (non-mainstream) comic books.

Votes must be received by 23:59:59 UTC, 22 December 1994.

After this CFV appears on news.announce.newgroups it will be sent to
the mailing lists the Comix mailing list
, COMICS-L Digest
, the cerebus mailing list
, the 2000AD mailing list , the Bone mailing list
, the Otis mailing list
, the Poison Elves mailing list
, the Small Press mailing list
.

This vote is being conducted by a neutral third party. For voting
questions only contact rdippold@qualcomm.com. For questions about the
proposed group contact Glenn Carnagey

Charter: The purpose of rec.arts.comics.alternative is to
——– provide a forum for the discussion of alternative
comic books, which follow in the footsteps of the
1960s’ underground comics in that they defy the common perceptions
that all comics are for children and that almost all feature
four-color superheroes. Comics which easily fall into genres
well-represented by the comic book industry’s mainstream (such as
superheroes, science fiction/fantasy/horror, comics for kids and
teens, and comics based on popular movies or bestsellers) are not
considered “alternative” unless they fit the following description of
alternative comic books:
In contrast to over 80% of comic books today, they are not
published by the chief imprint of the biggest mainstream companies
(DC, Marvel, Image, Valiant, Archie and Disney); comic books that you
could buy at a convenience store or a newsstand would not be
considered alternative. Alternative comic books focus on subjects not
typically found in comic books or focus on typical subjects in
atypical and innovative ways. These two qualities are essential.
They are additionally most often published in black and white, in
small circulations (roughly less than 10 of the index currently used
by the major distributors), and are published by the smaller
publishers (i.e. are not delineated above). They are normally owned by
their creators and many times even published by them. A majority of
these qualities should be present.
If a comic doesn’t obviously belong in any other group,
including rec.arts.comics.alternative, it should be discussed in the
RAC.misc group. If you can’t tell if a comic belongs in
RAC.alternative, then don’t discuss it there; if you can tell, then
discuss away.

Rationale: The group rec.arts.comics.alternative is proposed to
———- replace the group alt.comics.alternative, due to the
propogation problems of that group: many people would
like to read the group and cannot, but do have access to the rec
hierarchy. The group rec.arts.comics.misc is heavy-traffic, and is
overwhelmingly dominated by the discussion of mainstream comic books
not ordinarily of interest to many readers of alternative comic books.
In addition, creation of rec.arts.comics.alternative would
considerably boost the visibility of the discussion of alternative
comic books.

HOW TO VOTE

Send MAIL to: voting@qualcomm.com
Just Replying should work if you are not reading this on a mailing list.

Your mail message should contain one of the following statements:
I vote YES on rec.arts.comics.alternative
I vote NO on rec.arts.comics.alternative

You may also ABSTAIN in place of YES/NO – this will not affect the outcome.
Anything else may be rejected by the automatic vote counting program. The
votetaker will respond to your received ballots with a personal acknowledge-
ment by mail – if you do not receive one within several days, try again.
It’s your responsibility to make sure your vote is registered correctly.

One vote counted per person, no more than one per account. Addresses and
votes of all voters will be published in the final voting results list.

—
“Purple Haze all in my brain. Lately things just don’t seem the same. I
feel funny, but I don’t know why. ‘Scuse me while I kiss the sky…(incredible
guitar riff)” — Jimi Hendrix, the Master of the Stratocaster, born this
week in 1942. Happy 52nd, Jimi, hope you’re even more experienced. :^)

==========================
animation/best.of.net #152, from hmccracken, 1481 chars, Sun Dec 25 21:27:57 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 25 Dec 1994 21:25:37 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9412252125.memo.27961@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!bloom-beacon.mit.edu!gatech!howland.reston.ans.net!ix.netcom.com!netnews
From: kasanoff@ix.netcom.com (Bruce Elliott)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: Pogo, Pogo & more Pogo
Date: 16 Dec 1994 16:15:28 GMT
Organization: Netcom
Lines: 17
Distribution: world
Message-ID: <3csef0$496@ixnews1.ix.netcom.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: ix-stm1-23.ix.netcom.com

There have been several questions posted recently concerned where to get
Pogo strips, books, etc.. I am the publisher of “Pogo is Back”, a
quarterly newsletter/catalog devoted to Walt Kelly’s Pogo. With over
25,000 Pogo fans on our mailing list, we are the world’s largest
circulation newsletter devoted to a single comic strip.

Recently, we acquired the exclusive rights to 32 classic Pogo books
published during Walt Kelly’s lifetime. These include classics such as
“Pogo Puce Stamp Catalog”, “Prehysterical Pogo (in Pandemonia)”, “Deck
Us All with Boston Charlie” and “We Have Met the Enemy and He Is Us.”

We are reprinting these books as hardcover editions. Our goal is to
bring them back and keep them in print, so that Walt Kelly’s heritage
continues to flourish.

Anyone who wants a free copy of “Pogo is Back” should e-mail their name
and mailing address to: kasanoff@ix.netcom.com

==========================
animation/best.of.net #153, from hmccracken, 8575 chars, Tue Dec 27 10:19:30 1994
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 27 Dec 1994 10:16:05 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9412271016.memo.30707@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!howland.reston.ans.net!swiss.ans.net!netnews.lightside.com!user36.lightside.com!user
From: vintage@lightside.com (Stephen W. Worth)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Animation Art Fraud (LONG)
Date: 20 Dec 1994 04:00:19 GMT
Organization: Vintage Ink & Paint
Lines: 154
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: user59.lightside.com
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COLLECTOR’S ALERT! DECEMBER
19, 1994

* Introduction
* Background Information
* Complete Listing Of All Known Forgeries In This Batch
* What You Can Do To Avoid Animation Art Fraud
____________________________________________________________

INTRODUCTION

Vintage Ink & Paint, the leading authority on animation art conservation
and authentication is providing the following information as a service to
the collecting community. An illustrated pamphlet is being prepared for
release in January. More information on how to obtain a copy will be
posted when the brochure becomes available.

Vintage Ink & Paint offers a free article entitled, HOW CAN I TELL IF IT’S
REAL: AUTHENTICATING ANIMATION ART via e-mail. For a copy, send your
requests to: vintage@lightside.com

If you have reason to believe that you may have been offered any
fraudulant artwork, or if you have unknowingly purchased any of the pieces
described below, please contact Stephen Worth at vintage@lightside.com
____________________________________________________________

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

A little more than two years ago, an animation art gallery in Los Angeles
purchased a large collection of animation art for approximately $70,000.
The collection included about fifty animation drawings, cels, background
paintings and hand-drawn model sheets reputed to be from both the Warner
Bros. and Disney Studios. Subsequently, it was discovered that none of the
artwork included in the sale was authentic. The gallery was able to
recover their money, but was forced to return the illegitimate art to the
seller. At that time, the gallery was assured by the seller that he would
not offer the artwork for sale again. Since then, several pieces from this
batch have surfaced at estate auctions and swap meets across the country.
In December of 1994, a large number of these pieces were offered to a
Chicago animation art dealer by a group of individuals which included at
least one of the principals from the failed Los Angeles deal. Although
many of these individuals later claimed to be merely innocent
intermediaries, none of them were willing to provide addresses or phone
numbers to the Chicago dealer– all communications were made through a
single pager number. This group was informed that all of the artwork that
they were offering for sale were forgeries, but unfortunately, none of the
artwork was able to be recovered and destroyed.

These forgeries are easily identified by their extensive use of rubber
stamps, crimped seals, approval initials, and hand-written and typewritten
notations. None of the artwork is on standard studio paper, and none of
the rubber stamps and marginal notations are of the same design used at
the studios. The artwork is very poorly drawn, and most of the images are
traced from book illustrations. Many of the pieces had been drawn on old
yellowed papers or artificially aged sheets, and some were trimmed and
mounted to mat board. Several of the pieces had been autographed with
forged Walt Disney signatures and initials. Both the Los Angeles and
Chicago dealers were shown the same book of xeroxes, which were said to be
taken from a formal authentication by one of the major auction houses.
Most knowledgeable collectors should immediately recognize these as
forgeries, but less experienced collectors will need to be made aware that
these pieces are not authentic.

____________________________________________________________

COMPLETE LISTING OF ALL KNOWN FORGERIES IN THIS BATCH

* ANIMATION ARTWORK WITH DISNEY AUTOGRAPHS: Mickey Mouse as the
Brave Little Tailor / Goofy animation drawing / Inked comic strip image of
Mickey and Minnie in a car

* HAND-DRAWN MODEL SHEETS AND ANIMATION DRAWINGS FROM SNOW
WHITE : At least three different poses of Snow White, a dozen different
poses of dwarfs, and a hand-drawn model sheet of the Witch most in
red pencil

* HAND-DRAWN MODEL SHEETS AND ANIMATION DRAWINGS FROM PINOCCHIO:
Hand-drawn model sheet of Pinocchio heads / Hand-drawn model sheets
of early Jimminy Cricket design and facial expressions / At least a dozen
different Jimminy model drawings / two hand-drawn Stromboli model
sheets

* HAND-DRAWN MODEL SHEETS AND ANIMATION DRAWINGS FROM FANTASIA:
Sorcerers Apprentice Mickey and Broom (four poses) / Tyrannosaurus
Rex / Mushroom Dancers / Hippo / Ostrich / Centaurette / Zeus / Bacchus
& Jackus

* CEL AND BACKGROUND SET-UPS: Mickey Mouse on telephone (early 30’s
style painted in color) / Mickey from Through the Mirror / From 101
Dalmatians Cruella in Hell Hall / Jasper & Horace, the Baduns / Pongo
with paws on piano keys / Pongo & Perdida midnight bark / Horse,
Sheepdog & Cat / From Jungle Book Shere Kahn & Kaa / Mowgli /
Mowgli & Kaa / From Aristocats Butler head shot / Donald Duck two
poses / From Little Toot Seagull in paper boat / Humphrey Bear

* PRELIMINARY CONCEPT DRAWINGS IN COLOR: Betty-Boop-like version of
Snow White / Mickey as the Sorcerers Apprentice / Tinkerbell

* ANIMATION LAYOUT DRAWINGS FROM DISNEY SHORTS: Mickey from The
Pointer saying, Excuse me, Mr. Bear. / Mickey from Through the Mirror /
Two drawings from Mickeys Holiday (sic) / Donald Duck fighting
housefly six panel storyboard / Four animation drawings of Donald
breaking a golf club over his knee from Donalds Golf Game / Pete from
Mickey’s Service Station / Spencer Tracy from Mother Goose Goes
Hollywood

* PUBLICITY AND COMIC STRIP IMAGES: Mickey pushing Donald on a cart full
of junk To New Studio / Seven poses of Mickey with exercise
equipment punching bag, horseshoes, hurdling, Indian clubs, baseball
bat, tennis racquet, and ice skates / Mickey with toy train– My
Oil-Can-Tucky Home (all in red grease pencil) / Four inked comic panels
from Mickey’s Man Friday

* WARNER BROTHERS CELS: Several poses of Bugs Bunny, one signed by Mel
Blanc

____________________________________________________________

WHAT YOU CAN DO TO PROTECT YOURSELF AGAINST ANIMATION ART FRAUD

* Always buy from an established dealer. Never buy from individuals who are
reluctant to give you their phone numbers and addresses. Establishing a
good relationship with several reputable galleries in your area can be very
helpful when you need advice or objective opinions on authenticity.

* Always get a receipt with a full description of the artwork, the attribution
(the film it came from), condition, a full disclosure of all
restoration work
performed on the piece, and a lifetime money-back guarantee of
authenticity. No reputable dealer or gallery should refuse to do this.

* Do your homework. Ask questions. Research the art, so you know what it
should look like. If you are unsure, get xerox copies of the artwork before
buying, and run them by a knowledgeable collector or dealer. Never buy
“sight-unseen.”

* Never jump to conclusions. If you suspect fraud, gather all the information
and professional back-up you need before confronting the seller. Get an
objective opinion from a recognized authority in the field before
demanding a refund. Most good galleries can reccomend an expert
authenticator.

* If you discover fraudulant artwork, report it to the law enforcement
officials. Art fraud can be stopped if collectors work together to remove
questionable pieces from the market.

____________________________________________________________

For More Information Contact:

____________________________________________
Stephen Worth Animation Art
vintage@lightside.com Restoration, Authentication,
Appraisal and Sales

==========================
animation/best.of.net #154, from hmccracken, 1361 chars, Mon Jan 16 23:02:18 1995
————————–
Date: Mon, 16 Jan 1995 23:01:52 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9501162301.memo.10036@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!howland.reston.ans.net!ix.netcom.com!netnews
From: kasanoff@ix.netcom.com (Bruce Elliott)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: 2 Pogo books out next week
Date: 16 Jan 1995 19:25:11 GMT
Organization: Netcom
Lines: 17
Distribution: world
Message-ID: <3feh6n$qlk@ixnews2.ix.netcom.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: ix-stm1-22.ix.netcom.com

As publisher of the “Pogo is Back” newsletter, I’m pleased to report
that two more classic Pogo books will come off the presses next
week (the week of January 23). They are “Prehysterical Pogo (in
Pandemonia)” and “Pogo Puce Stamp Catalog.” Each is available for the
first time ever as a hardcover.

This makes three Pogo classics back in print over the past two months;
the first was “Deck Us All with Boston Charlie.” Seven other classics
are already scheduled for release over the next five months.

The books sell for $19.95 each, or you can buy all ten books for the
price of eight.

For more information and/or a free Pogo newsletter, email your USPS
address to me. If you want to order by phone, you may call 800-438-7646
(this is for MC & VISA orders only; newsletters are not available via
the phone).

==========================
animation/best.of.net #155, from hmccracken, 2114 chars, Thu Jan 26 15:35:09 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Thu, 26 Jan 1995 15:34:50 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9501261534.memo.53749@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.parks.theme

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!gatech!darwin.sura.net!nntp.st.usm.edu!whale.st.usm.edu!not-for-mail
From: aloomis@whale.st.usm.edu (Austin George Loomis)
Newsgroups: rec.parks.theme
Subject: Re: Universal Studios Flo. Expansion
Date: 22 Jan 1995 10:59:00 -0600
Organization: [,org_nai’zeish_n]
Lines: 24
Message-ID: <3fu2sk$1088@whale.st.usm.edu>
References: <3fdac9$sgd@newsbf02.news.aol.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: whale.st.usm.edu

In article <3fdac9$sgd@newsbf02.news.aol.com>, PookMan wrote:
>Yep: a new park (top secret, nudge nudge nudge), a slew of hotels and a
>”nighttime entertainment complex” much like Universal LA’s “CityWalk”.
>Look for a 1998 opening for the park, later for the other stuff. 🙂

Not very secret really — it recently merited an article in USA TODAY which
announced that four of the five “Islands of Adventure” would be Seuss Landing
(which could be either a masterful tribute to the genius that was Ted Geisel
or a fulfillment of the fears the Cat in the Hat expresses in IN SEARCH OF DR.
SEUSS), Cartoon Lagoon (new home of the Universal and H-B characters, as I
understand), Superhero Island (featuring the Marvel characters, in a probably
necessary counterbalance to the DC characters at Six Flags), and Jurassic Park
(based on the movie). Anyone know what the fifth will be?
—
Austin George Loomis | Campus Crusade for Grimace (AB4D)
aloomis@whale.st.usm.edu | ZOOKEEPERS (ACF-F)/LNH 2023 (RACC)
zedd@pentagon.io.com | Austin’s Glosses (RGVA,AGSf2,AGMk)
70415.1160@compuserve.com | The Superdean (Illuminati University)
Also watch for Mentat Blackberry and the Bunnisher on alt.DBs
—
Austin George Loomis | Campus Crusade for Grimace (AB4D)
aloomis@whale.st.usm.edu | ZOOKEEPERS (ACF-F)/LNH 2023 (RACC)
zedd@pentagon.io.com | Austin’s Glosses (RGVA,AGSf2,AGMk)
70415.1160@compuserve.com | The Superdean (Illuminati University)

==========================
animation/best.of.net #156, from hmccracken, 26032 chars, Fri Jan 27 16:37:15 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Fri, 27 Jan 1995 15:37:38 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9501271537.memo.58309@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.disney

Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,comp.graphics,rec.arts.disney,alt.animation.warner-bros,comp.graphics.animation,alt.movies.visual-effects,rec.arts.movies.production,alt.society.labor-unions
Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!news.mathworks.com!udel!gatech!howland.reston.ans.net!ix.netcom.com!netcom.com!mpsc839
From: mpsc839@netcom.com (MPSC Local 839 IATSE)
Subject: THE PEG-BOARD — January 1995
Message-ID:
Summary: Cartoonists’ union newsletter excerpts
Keywords: MPSC LOCAL 839 CARTOONISTS UNION NEWSLETTER
Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 261-4700 guest)
Distribution: na
Date: Wed, 25 Jan 1995 19:20:45 GMT
Lines: 530
Xref: news1.delphi.com rec.arts.animation:28424 comp.graphics:59473 rec.arts.disney:70773 alt.animation.warner-bros:4160 comp.graphics.animation:15257 alt.movies.visual-effects:517 rec.arts.movies.production:3422 alt.society.labor-unions:423

THE PEG-BOARD — Information Superhighway Edition — January 1995

This is a monthly posting of excerpts from THE PEG-BOARD, the newsletter
of the Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and Affiliated Optical
Electronic and Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE. THE PEG-BOARD is also
published in printed format.

This file is available by anonymous ftp, along with a number of other
files about Local 839. The address is:

ftp.netcom.com:/pub/mp/mpsc839

Local 839 IATSE is the largest local union of motion picture graphic
artists in the world. We have over 1,600 active members employed in
animation and CGI in Southern California.

In this month’s issue:

* Health plan on the mend
* From the Business Representative, by Steve Hulett
* From the President, by Tom Sito
* Correspondence
* Dreams may come true
* Short takes command
* Animation in the news
* Whither the 401(k)?
* Q & A
* At the water cooler
* Hollywood Hands-On seminar
* Classifieds
* In memoriam

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

HEALTH PLAN ON THE MEND
$28 mil deficit becomes $22 mil surplus

The headline of the September 1992 Peg-Board carried the chilling news
that “Our health plan is in trouble”. At that time, the plan’s reserves
had dropped so low that we were in danger of losing the “bank of hours”
provisions by which members are allowed to extend their benefits during
long layoffs.

The ensuing contract negotiations between the IATSE and AMPTP producers’
association addressed the plan’s financial problems. Cuts were made in
areas such as psychiatric and chiropractic care, and incentives were
added to encourage participants to use HMOs. Residual payments were
diverted from the retiree health plan, which remains comfortably in the
black.

A year ago, the plan was $7.1 million in the red, a 75% improvement over
conditions in ’92. A recent Daily Variety article reported that the Plan
is now $22 million in the black — its first surplus in years.

This is especially good news in light of the recent elections, which
have doomed any chance of national health care for the foreseeable
future. It’s especially incumbent on us not to rest on our laurels. In
the next negotiations, the employers must not be allowed to roll back
contributions until and unless we regain the benefits surrendered in the
1993-94 talks. We’ve earned it — we deserve to get it back.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

FROM THE BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVE
The animation landscape: early 1995

As I write, the Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists stand on the cusp of
the one of the great periods of their forty-three-year history.
Employment is at an all-time high, total membership moves toward new
records, and we are moving to embrace the new technologies in computer-
land.

I have done more negotiating in the last year than in the first four
years of my tenure combined. 1993 and 1994 were tough in the negotiating
sphere. Employers wanted major rollbacks in wages and overtime, but
finally backed off in the face of a united membership. In the past six
months, Universal/MCA came knocking twice with the same contract
demands: 45% wage cuts for digital ink and paint and elimination of
overtime for all supervisory personnel. At a time when almost every
animation employee who can hold a pencil or paintbrush is employed at
well above scale, we respectfully declined their modest requests.

And now here it is 1995 already, and the change in the animation
landscape is changing again:

Rich Animation, which employed 180 MPSC members just eight months ago,
has now laid off most of its staff. Warner Bros. Feature Animation,
after a hiring frenzy through the Spring, Summer and Fall, has
temporarily gone into hibernation while the Warner higher-ups decide
which feature project to greenlight (that should end soon). Disney
Feature Animation, freshly housed in its new animation building, races
to meet its June release deadline for Pocohontas, all the while hiring
new staffers for releases that come after. On the movie horizon, the
triumvirate of Spielberg, Katzenberg and Geffen loom like thunderheads
(and we expect to be negotiating with them shortly.)

In Tee Vee Land, Hanna-Barbera is concentrating on its shorts shows,
some of which it hopes to spin off into half-hour series. Disney TV is
busy working on direct-to-video projects for Aladdin and Lion King, busy
producing half-hours of Aladdin, Duck Daze, The Shnookums and Meat
Funny Cartoon Show, and Timon and Pumbaa. At Graz Entertainment, work
continues on X-Men, Tick, and Skeleton Warriors; Warners TV is deep into
work on Sylvester and Tweety, Animaniacs, and Freakazoids. Warners
Classics is finishing up their short Carrotblanca and continuing with
commercials. Hyperion has completed new orders of Itsy Bitsy Spider,
Happily Ever After, and Life with Louie. In the next couple of months
they will begin work on two new Brave Little Toaster direct-to-video
sequels. Universal Cartoon StudioS is finishing post-production on its
second Land Before Time direct-to-video release.

That, in a nutshell, is an overview of what’s going on today in L.A.
animation. The Screen Cartoonists have contracts with every active
theatrical animation producer in Los Angeles. Unfortunately, that’s not
the case in television. While contract studios Disney, Warners, Graz
Entertainment, Hyperion, Universal and Hanna-Barbera are active, major
producers of television product, so also are Film Roman, DIC, Klasky-
Csupo and Games, Inc., none of which enjoys contractual relationships
with the Screen Cartoonists. The fact that they are out there driving
down wages (their occasional protests to the contrary), should concern
every artist and technician who intends making a long-term career in
animation. It’s considerably easier to support a family on a thousand to
thirteen hundred a week rather than six or eight hundred.

And what about computers? The Screen Cartoonists continue to represent
more CGI artists than any other union in town; within a decade most of
our members will be working in front of a computer screen. Over the past
six months, we have received at least an inquiry a week from CDROM
companies wanting to use the service of feature-quality animators. There
is no reason that artists working in those areas should not be working
under a contract that gives them quality pension and health benefits,
that enhances their working conditions.

To sum up, 1995 looks like a banner year. Just how big the unfurling
flag will be, and how briskly it will snap in the wind, depends on each
one of us.

— Steve Hulett

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

FROM THE PRESIDENT
Complete self-interest

December is the month of warmth, parties, waxing poetic and thinking of
others.

January is the month of cold, tax planning, plain talk and thinking of
yourself.

Some of us don’t need this time of year to grow self-absorbed, let’s
face it, most of us are out for ourselves. All those words about union
unity and solidarity is just so much gas, what’s in it for Me? How does
it solve My problems? Me! Moi! Numero Uno!

Well boys and girls, never mind history lessons, you saw in 1994 how you
benefited from hanging together and hanging tough. All attempts to cut
your overtime pay and wages were shot down, the stingiest companies were
made to cough up the retroactive pay they owed you, you are about to
have the chance to enroll in a multi-employer 401(k) plan that only a
few union locals enjoy, and the big bosses are beginning to think the
unthinkable, residuals. Your medical plan has stayed strong while some
employers have cut their executive plans to no longer cover families or
dependents.

That’s what you got.

However, in other ways we’re still blowing it. Example: When we recently
negotiated with a large employer, their first negotiator (who’s since
been replaced) tried as an opening gambit the same tired requests for
cutting overtime for top animators and supervisors and the salaries of
digital ink & paint. I educated him about our united muscle and asked
for profit sharing, employer matching 401(k) participation and a
structured bonus system. Part of my argument was: “Try and do it
without us! Call Fox in Phoenix and ask how many pros they’re getting.
Nobody! They can’t get anyone good without signing a contract with us!”

The next day I heard that one or two H-B artists were going to Phoenix.
Luckily it’s only one or two, but you see the psychological effect.
Those artists must figure “It’s good money, what the heck?” But it’s a
gut punch to any attempts to get you those aforementioned goodies I
demanded. And it brings you one step closer to a smaller paycheck if
you’re a painter and no overtime if you’re an animator or department
head.

You think the big company execs aren’t sharing info about you? Go to the
corner of Ventura and Firmament in Encino and look at the big building
with the Scarlet O’Hara and Little Mermaid mosaics all over it. That’s
the AMPTP headquarters, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television
Producers, the employer’s clubhouse.

Is it clairvoyance that almost every large company last year had the
identical demands for overtime rollbacks? Look at that building — then
try and go it alone against all of them united.

Look for these demands to resurface in the future. As the big companies
swallow up computer software houses, they’ve whetted their appetite on
the navete of young computer artists’ acceptance of long hours for no
pay, a situation considered sacrilege in Hollywood for forty years.
They can’t be faulted, they’re doing what they think is right for them.

There’s a lot of small animation houses who depend on freelance from
you. Some slipped out of the contract after the ’82 debacle, others are
run by old working friends.

Hulett and I can’t go break their knuckles for you, you gotta do what’s
right for you and ask them to sign a union contract. Last year when just
one top artist at Cornell-Abood complained he wasn’t getting his
benefits, they weakened and asked to talk about a deal. Unfortunately
when they realized they could still get you and some Canadians to
freelance they changed their minds. It’s in their self-interest. To hell
with your kids’ glasses or your pension, here’s a few bucks.

If you’re in a non-union house, what’ll it kill you to sign a rep card?
They’re anonymous, it’s against federal law to fire you. Will Bluth and
Goldman move back to Dublin and dismantle an investment of millions
because you signed a card? In 1994 all the British artists of
Amblimation signed a petition which the government considers a request
for union representation. They’re not folding up and moving to Cambodia
or canceling the work visas, they’re still coming here.

So in 1995 lets get good and selfish and ask not only for money but for
our union benefits as well. Nothing personal. Just pure self-interest.

As Leopold I, the “Old Dessauer”, said before the Battle of Kesselsdorf
in 1745:

Oh God, let me not be disgraced in my old days. Or if thou wilt not help
me, do not help these scoundrels; but leave us to try it ourselves.

— Tom Sito

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

CORRESPONDENCE

Dear Steve:

{Re the December Peg-Board column,} I was surprised to read that you
voted Democrat. I thought you and the President were Communists.

I’m so tired of opening the Peg-Board and reading the spewing rhetoric.
Can’t you just focus on the issues and the goals that you were elected
to further and stop subjecting the rest of us to your political beliefs?

Don’t you see the hypocrisy? You complain that “We’ll be enlightened by
lectures on public morality from Newt Gingrich,” while you yourself are
lecturing on your own version of public morality.

Steve, if you would just spend the time and effort trying to improve the
union stead of raving away, we’d all be better off.

Merry Christmas,

— Cliff MacGillivray

*****

Dear Cliff:

Thanks for your Christmas greeting/letter of complaint. Joe Stalin
didn’t appear on my ballot, so I guess I was forced to vote Democrat.

You could be right about subjecting unsuspecting members to my political
beliefs. Not that most people seem to care. So far one person has
congratulated me, and now you’ve written to tell me to get off it
already. That’s what? Two members out of 1,800.

Since it’s the second political column I’ve written in five years — the
first being an attack on Hollywood liberals — I don’t think I’m being
excessive. Now, you might not like the union rah-rah stuff which usually
gets printed … but the Peg-Board is (supposedly) a union publication.
Pro-labor cant goes with the territory.

Nevertheless, I will work hard to improve the union, and spend less time
raving away. And I apologize for any offense given. Hope to see you, one
day, at a union meeting.

Happy New Year,

— Steven Hulett, USN Retired

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

DREAMS (OF RESIDUALS!) MAY COME TRUE

The long-anticipated announcement has been made that the “Dream Team” of
Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen will call their
new operation DreamWorks. An article in the January 12 Hollywood
Reporter carried the enticing news that the new company is offering
profit participation to new employees. The article continues: “Allowing
profit participation by animators is part of an emerging industry trend,
and the dream team plan could change the salary structure of
animators”.

We’re glad to report that we’re about to start negotiations with
DreamWorks, and we have every anticipation that they will become a part
of our family of employers. Until the company sets up its own
operations, we understand that resumes are being accepted at
Amblimation, 100 Universal City Plaza, Bungalow 477, Universal City, CA
91608; (818) 777-1000.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

SHORT TAKES COMMAND

Thomas C. Short was appointed IATSE President on December 15. He had
been the IA’s General Secretary/Treasurer, and had served several years
as an International Vice-President.

We’ve been impressed with Tom’s achievements to date as an IA official;
we wish him luck and look forward to working with him in the future.
(See IN MEMORIAM below.)

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

ANIMATION IN THE NEWS

Hanna-Barbera has regained syndication rights to The Flintstones after
fourteen years. The company plans to resyndicate the entire package,
which will coincide with the thirty-fifth anniversary of The Flintstones
original network premiere.

Television animation will most likely be undergoing major restructuring
as the Warner Bros. Network and the United Paramount Network come on
line. Disney, Warners, Universal and other suppliers look toward a
tighter, more competitive market by 1997, when Paramount and Warners
will have their networks up and running. Mort Marcus, the head of Buena
Vista Television, believes that ratings might become too fragmented, but
that there is no clear picture yet as to how the marketplace will
finally look.

Disney is planning to raise as much as $500 million from outside
investors to finance their upcoming films. This outside financing would
be invested in live-action product only. Animated features would be
excluded. The trades reported in early January that The Lion King
became the second highest grossing picture in film history. Who wants to
share that boodle with outside investors?

Disney’s next theatrical feature, The Goofy Movie, is scheduled for an
April 7 release date. Much of the project was completed at Disney’s
Paris facility, with an assist from Burbank …

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

WHITHER THE 401(K)?

DISNEY: As the Peg-Board goes to press we can report that Disney has
approved the pertinent documents. Disney employees will receive
information in the mail between now and the start of enrollments on
February 6. Starting on that date, enrollment meetings will be
scheduled on the studio premises.

HANNA-BARBERA/TURNER: It looks like the 401(k) is a virtual lock at H-B.
Lawyers are reviewing documents, and we have every expectation that the
plan will be available in the immediate future.

Warner BROs. continues to be the only union shop that has flatly refused
to consider a 401(k) plan. The majority of Warners employees have signed
petitions asking management to take the union’s proposals seriously; to
date there has been no reply.

Several studios have asked to see the union plan, and have expressed
interest in talking to us about it. We believe that labor market forces
will eventually compel most if not all union shops to sign up to our
plan.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Q&A

Q: My divorce will be final next month. Will my ex-spouse still qualify
for medical benefits under our health plan?

A: No. Coverage for your ex-spouse will expire the last day of the month
in which the divorce is finalized.

It is very important that you promptly notify the Trust Funds of any
divorce. Otherwise, you will be held liable for any claims submitted by
your ex-spouse.

Your children from a previous marriage should continue to qualify,
provided they are your natural children. The rules regarding coverage
for stepchildren or adoptees of a divorced family are complicated. For
further information, contact the Motion Picture Industry Health and
Pension Plan, POB 1999, Studio City, CA 91614-0999, or call (818) 769-
0007 or (310) 769-0007.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

AT THE WATER COOLER

Congratulations to Al Holter of Turner Feature Animation, and his wife
Nancy Turner, on their baby girl named Emma born November 20 … Warner
Bros.’s Brian Mitchell and his wife Cindy’s little girl, Jennifer Marie,
was born November 19, weighing six pounds, five ounces … Yet another
bundle of joy for Warner Bros.’s Eric Mahady and wife Carolyn, whose
baby girl, Madison Waite, was born on December 7. She weighed in at
seven pounds, two ounces … Mike Milo married Laura Escudero on
November 12 … Our condolences to Maxine Markota on the death of her
husband, Richard …

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

HOLLYWOOD HANDS-ON PRESENTS
CAREERS IN THE NEW MEDIA with Pam Hogarth

Spend the afternoon learning about what’s happening with careers in the
new media — what are they, where are they, who’s doing them, what
skills they require, how you get one. Hollywood and Silicon Valley are
colliding in interactive entertainmentm special effects, and video
production.

Where do you fit in? Is there a place for you in the digital revolution?
What skills do you need to get your job done? Do you acquire those
skills — or hire them? This seminar will clear much of the current
confusion and help yopu plot a road for your career future.

Pam Hogarth has been leading seminars in the new media and careers and
technology at The American Film Institute. She has a masters degree in
vocational counseling and extensive experience in counseling adults in
their career choices.

Sunday, February 12 * 2-5 pm * $25.00
held at Hollywood Hands-On, 4729 Lankershim, 2nd floor, North Hollywood
For information and reservations, call (818) 762-0060

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Leonard Maltin will host An Animation Tribute: 25 Years Of Oscar-Winning
& Nominated Animation, celebrating the twenty-fifth anniversary of the
Tournee of Animation. This will take place on February 2, at 8 pm, at
the Samuel Goldwyn Theater of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and
Sciences. For additional information call (310) 278-5673.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Multimedia artists wanted: Full-time contract work. Extensive 3d Studio
and Animator Pro Experience required. Also 2D Photoshop artists needed.
Fax resume to: (415) 243-8630.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

BAFTA L. A. — the British Academy of Film and Television Arts Los
Angeles — promotes the excellence of British film and television in the
United States. For information about membership, contact Tracy Dodd,
BAFTA L. A., 8500 Melrose Ave., Suite 208, Los Angeles 90069; phone
(310) 652-4121 or fax (310) 854-6002.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

For sale: Animation light board, dark wood, with disc (glass cracked).
Also, 3 boxes of Pantone and Design art markers, all colors. Leona,
(213) 469-8730.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Openings for cartoonists, pen-and-ink and painters. Help needed on
eleven four-page cartoon stories for small magazine. Good pay !! Contact
Gerald Ravel, Mr. G’s, 16010 Crenshaw Blvd. Suite D, Gardena 90249;
(310) 719-1883.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

IN MEMORIAM
Al DiTolla, 1926-1994

ALFRED W. DITOLLA died of cancer on December 20, five days after
resigning as President of the IATSE (see “Short Takes Command”, above).
A longtime IA officer, he was appointed to the presidency in 1986,
succeeding Walter Diehl.

If the history of DiTolla’s years in office seems clouded, it’s largely
for reasons beyond the control, or blame, of any one individual. In
remembering him, we prefer to credit the positive aspects of his work.
For the first time in our memories, a healthy emphasis on organizing
was added to the IA’s agenda, and actions actually accompanied words. We
were continually reminded that, for all our faults, our International
and our fellow locals are at the forefront in the areas of worker
education and safety. We perceived a lessening of the climate of
hostility and antipathy that had been fostered between the West Coast
studio locals and the rest of the Alliance, as DiTolla grasped that the
Hollywood unions have become the most successful and important part of a
larger whole.

DiTolla understood the need to make hard decisions in difficult times,
even at the risk of antagonizing allies. If not all his choices turned
out to be the right ones, can we really blame him for not having perfect
foresight? Though some may disagree, we see no reason not to honor the
memory of a union official who worked to the best of his ability to move
our union forward, and often succeeded.

*****

1985 Golden Award honoree MARTY TARAS died on November 14. Since 1933,
he had worked for Van Beuren, Fleischer, Jam Handy, Terrytoons,
Paramount, Tempo, CBS, Bill Tytla, Bakshi-Krantz, Hal Seegar, Hubley,
Kim & Gifford, Ovation, D & R, Zander, N. Y. Institute of Technology,
Hanna-Barbera and Ruby-Spears.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

MOTION PICTURE SCREEN CARTOONISTS
AND AFFILIATED OPTICAL ELECTRONIC AND GRAPHIC ARTS,
LOCAL 839 IATSE
4729 Lankershim Boulevard, North Hollywood, CA 91602-1864
phone (818) 766-7151 * fax (818) 506-4805
E-mail inquiries: mpsc839@netcom.com
Anonymous FTP: ftp.netcom.com:/pub/mp/mpsc839
PRESIDENT — Tom Sito
BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVE — Steve Hulett
VICE-PRESIDENT — George Sukara
RECORDING SECRETARY — Jeff Massie
SERGEANT-AT-ARMS — David Teague
PEG-BOARD EDITOR — Jeff Massie
EXECUTIVE BOARD
Viki Anderson * Bronwen Barry * Sheila Brown * Jan Browning
James Davis * Earl Kress * Craig Littell-Herrick * Tom Ray
Pat Sito * Ann Sullivan * Stephan Zupkas
TRUSTEES — Pat Sito * Ann Sullivan * Stephan Zupkas

Contents (c) 1995 by MPSC Local 839 IATSE. All rights reserved.
Publications of bona fide labor organizations may reprint articles from
this newsletter so long as attribution is given. Permission is also
given to distribute this newsletter electronically so long as the ENTIRE
contents are distributed, including this notice.
—
_______________________________________________________________________________
Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and 4729 Lankershim Blvd.
Affiliated Optical Electronic and North Hollywood, CA 91602-1864
Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE phone (818) 766-7151 * fax (818) 506-4805
ftp://ftp.netcom.com:/pub/mp/mpsc839 mailto://mpsc839@netcom.com

==========================
animation/best.of.net #157, from hmccracken, 17091 chars, Thu Feb 2 12:01:11 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Thu, 2 Feb 1995 11:55:52 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9502021155.memo.83900@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!newsgate.watson.ibm.com!watnews.watson.ibm.com!bocanews.bocaraton.ibm.com!michaelb
From: michaelb@hobbie.bocaraton.ibm.com (Michael Rogero Brown (Sys Admin))
Subject: Dilbert Newsletter 4.0
Sender: news@bocanews.bocaraton.ibm.com (News Admin ID)
Message-ID:
Date: Wed, 1 Feb 1995 15:39:04 GMT
Nntp-Posting-Host: hobbie.bocaraton.ibm.com
Organization: IBM, Boca Raton, FL
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.1 PL8]
Lines: 524

[I received this yesterday & figured some might want to see it. Past issues
are available at the “Dilbert Archive” at http://www.quadralay.com/]

Dilbert Newsletter 4.0
———————-

To: Dogbert’s New Ruling Class (DNRC)
From: Scott Adams
Date: January 1995

DNRC Status Report
——————

BUHWAHAHAHA!!! <---- maniacal laugh We're making excellent progress toward our goal of becoming the New Ruling Class when Dogbert conquers the world and makes everybody else our servants. The DNRC has over 14,000 members already. When we get about 50,000 members we can start bullying politicians into passing laws that benefit us at the cost of others. For example, I support a law that would tax readers of Family Circus and give the money to DNRC members. I think we could argue that it stimulates the economy since we would be inclined to go out and blow any extra money we got, whereas Family Circus readers would just squirrel it away in a mattress in the attic until rats ate it. "What's that Devil Guy Holding?" -------------------------------- In a recent series, Dilbert was being tempted to the "dark side" to become a manager instead of an engineer. A devilish character appeared behind Dilbert's couch holding an object that readers couldn't identify. I was bombarded with mail from people asking what the object was. It was a big spoon. Here's the... uh... scoop. The character isn't Satan; he's "Phil from Heck" -- a character that appears occasionally to handle the situations that aren't serious enough for Hell. Phil was created the first year of the strip. Originally he was conceived as Satan, but my editor thought that might cause problems with readers. So instead of the Lord of Darkness I ended up rewriting the character to be Phil from Heck, the Prince of Insufficient Light. It seemed right that he should have a big spoon instead of a scary pitchfork. Now if you haven't tried to draw a giant spoon lately, let me tell you it's pretty hard, especially for me, since many of my characters already look like giant utensils. Dilbert Screen Saver Award Nomination ------------------------------------- The Dilbert Screen Saver from Delrina has been nominated for a Software Publisher's Award in the Business Utilities category. We're up against a bunch of relatively useless products that do things like restoring lost files. (Bo-o-o-ring!!) Actually, I don't know what most of the other products do but I hate them just the same. If your company is a member of the Software Publishers Association (SPA) you have a vote. Please hunt down the person at your company who votes and promise them a guest pass to the DNRC (good through July) if they will vote for the Dilbert Screen Saver. Or, if it's not too much to ask, you could stage a hunger strike. (I'd do it for you.) Catbert results --------------- Catbert will return for a guest appearance as the Human Resources director at Dilbert's company. He's perfect for the job -- he looks harmless and cute and he doesn't care if you live or die. Annoying Index Results ---------------------- In my last newsletter I asked people to vote for their top three annoying business practices. Nearly 1,500 people voted. The results will surprise nobody in the DNRC: the winning irritant was "Idiots promoted to management" followed closely by "Being forced to work with idiots". Votes ----- - Idiots promoted to management 924 - Being forced to work with idiots 638 - Empowerment 428 - Micromanagement 390 - Status Reporting 353 - Performance Reviews 330 - Reengineering 285 - Quality 270 - Overtime without pay 262 - Lack of training 142 - Ordering Supplies 112 - Hoteling 60 Total votes 4,194 The Associated Press picked up the story and it got reprinted in major newspapers all over the country. CNN reported it several times on Prime Time News. Dozens of reporters and radio shows called me to ask for my opinion on how to deal with the idiot infestation problem. I fed them a bunch of crap about the importance of training. But I'll tell you my real opinion: I think the only solution to the idiot problem is to have specially trained German Shepherd dogs who identify idiots and separate them from the rest of the people in meetings. For example, when the idiot comes to the meeting 15 minutes late and insists on revisiting the first agenda item the dog will burst into the room and sink its teeth into the idiot's donut-fattened thigh and drag him into the hallway. This may seem cruel, but the dogs will get used to it. But suppose you have no budget for trained dogs. What then? The answer is to assign all of the idiots to a new project that requires lots of meetings and has no vital business purpose. You could call it something like "The Quality Competitiveness Task Force" to conceal your treachery. Wait nine months (a respectable time) then eliminate the project and its staff without having to address the question of their individual shortcomings. Dogbert Answers My Irritating Mail ---------------------------------- In this section, Dogbert answers frequently asked questions which I am too polite to answer myself. ****************** Dear Mister Adams: I sent a suggestion that you should do a comic on the subject of "work". If you use my idea, can you send me the original art? Timmy Dear Timmy, Unlike some lazy cartoonists who draw one original cartoon per day and then reproduce it, Mister Adams draws an original cartoon directly onto every single copy of every newspaper. You can simply clip your original Dilbert art out of the newspaper. Dogbert ****************** Dear Mister Adams: I'm an accountant who likes to draw cartoons. I've developed a cartoon called "Larry the Dust Mite". My friends think it's funny. Could you drop whatever you're doing and answer all of my questions about cartooning so that I can become a syndicated cartoonist and bump you out of newspapers? I'd really appreciate it. Oh, by the way, I love your comic strip Gilbert. Floyd Dear Gloyd: It makes good sense to abandon accounting and try to become a syndicated cartoonist, despite what you've heard about the odds being 10,000 to 1 against you. The trick is to get yourself "discovered" by an editor from an important cartoon syndicate. To do this, you must set yourself apart from the thousands of would-be cartoonists who simply mail photocopies of their work to syndicate editors. You must do something different, something memorable. I recommend plastic surgery to make yourself look like a Klingon from Star Trek. (Makeup won't fool anybody. You need the surgery.) Then travel to the headquarters of a major comic syndicate, dress yourself in putrid street-person clothes, douse yourself with gin and lay on the sidewalk just outside their lobby. When anybody walks by who could be an editor, leap up and yell "SPARE CHANGE?!!" Then you'll all have a good laugh, talking about the Klingon surgery and how you talked the street-person out of his clothes and all that. Your sense of humor will be evident. You will form a lifelong bond with the editor and you will be on your way to fame and fortune. Dogbert (P.S. Try King Features first) (P.P.S. Lazy persons can try subscribing to Cartoonist Profiles at P.O. Box 325, Fairfield, CT 06430 at $25 per year. It has good tips for beginning cartoonists.) ****************** Dear Mister Adams: My friend Raquel wrote an e-mail to you and got a personal response. But when I wrote I got what appears to be an impersonal form letter. What's the story? Bernadette Dear Writer, Thank you for your letter. Your comments are always appreciated. Have a nice day. Dogbert Problems Getting on the Dilbert List ------------------------------------ Many people reported problems getting on the Dilbert mailing list. Some couldn't sign up automatically. Others didn't receive Newsletter V3.0 and wondered if they had been excommunicated. The lesson: Being on the Dilbert list is neither a right nor a privilege; apparently it's luck. I don't know what the heck is going on. I referred the problems to my customer service organization but they just continued to lay in sun spots on my rug and lick their fur. DNRC Sainthood -------------- Two Dilbert readers have been elevated to sainthood in the DNRC for service above and beyond the call of nature. John McDonald earns the title of "Saint John of Cod" for pestering the Cape Cod Times to reinstate Dilbert after inexplicably dropping it. Many others also complained, but they didn't write to tell me about it. David Hershberger earns the title of "Saint David of Grass Valley" for organizing a grass roots signature campaign to successfully get Dilbert into the Grass Valley Times (it was front page news in Grass Valley -- and David was interviewed by the New York Times about it.) Sainthood in the DNRC comes with some special privileges: 1. The right to wear a really big hat 2. The right to relieve yourself in the parking lot of any mall 3. The right to call any non-Saint "Big Guy", as in "How's it goin' Big Guy?" DNRC Titles ----------- I got thousands of requests for titles in the DNRC. All have been accepted and sealed in my vault. The most commonly requested title was "Minister of Redundancy Minister" (about 200 people requested some variant of that -- no kidding). But you can't have too many of those, so you're all in. New Dilbert Book in the Works ----------------------------- Dilbert book number five is due later this spring (April or May I think): "Bring Me the Head of Willy the Mailboy" -- a compilation covering 10/5/90 through 5/18/91. From Andrews & McMeel. Sending Ideas for Dilbert ------------------------- Most of my ideas for the strip come from e-mail. (Thanks to all of you who took the time.) Remember, the best suggestions are theme ideas, not dialog or "gags". I'll do the humor part. I'm most inspired by true stories of idiotic management and clueless business practices. Send them to me, not a reply to the newsletter address. I'm at scottadams@aol.com. Thanks! ***************** General Dilbert Facts ******************* The cartoon strip Dilbert began in 1989. It now appears in 400 papers in 10 countries. The author (that would be me) receives up to 100 e-mail messages per day. Despite what you've heard, I don't work at your company (unless your company is Pacific Bell, where I work in the ISDN lab). I read all of my e-mail personally. But obviously I've automated many responses. If you get a canned response it just means my fingers are tired. I love you, really. Copying, Reprinting, Licensing of Dilbert ----------------------------------------- The copyright and trademark for Dilbert are owned by United Media in New York. You can call them at 800-221-4816 (International callers use 01-212-692-3700). There would be a fee that depends on how you want to use the strip or the characters. Dilbert Books ------------- "Build a Better Life by Stealing Office Supplies" (new material about working at a big company), Andrews & McMeel. (ISBN 0-8362-1757-8) "Always Postpone Meetings with Time-Wasting Morons" (a compilation of the first year), Andrews & McMeel. (ISBN 0-8362-1758-6) "Clues for the Clueless" from Andrews and McMeel. It's new material on the subject of manners using the Dilbert cast. (ISBN 0-8362-1737-3) "Shave the Whales" -- a compilation of the second year of Dilbert, Andrews & McMeel. (ISBN 0-8362-1740-3) "Bring Me the Head of Willy the Mailboy" -- a compilation covering 10/5/90 through 5/18/91. Due spring of 1995, date to be determined. Check with any bookstore. If that fails, call the publisher directly at 800-826-4216 and order by mail. (International callers use 01-816-932-6700) Dilbert Business Videos: ------------------------ Cohen/Gebler Associates has created a set of short animated Dilbert business videos for meetings, workshops and presentations. The videos are based closely on themes from the strip. They're used primarily as ice breakers. Six titles are currently available: - Dilbert on Quality - Dilbert on Managing Change - Dilbert Does Sales - Dilbert Does Meetings - Just the Breaks #1 (Mingling Groups) - Just the Breaks #2 (110%). Prices start at $99. Call 1-800-208-3535 for more information. (International callers use 01-617-262-4242) Dilbert Shirts and Mugs: ------------------------ - Signals Catalog at 800-663-9994 (International callers dial 01-612-659-4312) Mug: St. Dogbert drives out demons of stupidity T-Shirt: St. Dogbert drives out demons of stupidity Sweat Shirt: St. Dogbert drives out demons of stupidity Dilbert Screen Savers --------------------- The Dilbert Screen Saver (Windows or Mac) is available at major retail stores and mail order. If you have any questions or want to order direct from Delrina, feel free to call them at 1-800-315-5848 (international callers use 1-416-441-3676). Online Dilbert Sources ---------------------- - America Online (older daily strips) (Keyword: Dilbert) - ClariNet: ClariNews service. 1-800-USE-NETS or info@clarinet.com for subscription info. Daily current strips. - World Wide Web: http://nearnet.gnn.com/gnn/news/comix/dilbert.html (may not be updated regularly) Note: None of the Sunday Dilberts are online anywhere yet. About the Dilbert List ---------------------- It costs you nothing to be on the Dilbert Newsletter list, except for the cost of your own e-mail. I'm using a "List Server" system to automate this process. So this newsletter will come to you from a different e-mail address than my personal one. Don't "reply" to the newsletter address please. The frequency of the Dilbert Newsletter is approximately "whenever I feel like it", which should be about three or four times a year. How to Subscribe Automatically ------------------------------ You can subscribe to the Dilbert List automatically by sending an e-mail to the address listproc@internex.net with ONLY this message in the body of your e-mail: subscribe Dilbert_List Joe Blow (except put your real name instead of Joe Blow). Don't put anything in the subject line. And your e-mail address will be picked up automatically, so you need not specify it. If the automatic method doesn't work for you, send me a note at scottadams@aol.com and I'll put you on manually. Unsubscribing ------------- If you want to take your name off the list automatically, send an e-mail to listproc@internex.net but include only these words in the body of the message: unsubscribe Dilbert_List Don't put anything in the subject line. Getting Old Newsletters ----------------------- Send email to listproc@internex.net with this message in the body (and nothing in the subject line): get dilbert_list newsletter_1.0 Problems Signing Up for the Newsletter -------------------------------------- If you tried unsuccessfully to subscribe to the newsletter just send e-mail to me and I'll sign you up manually. My personal address is still scottadams@aol.com If you got a strange message saying you can't change your password, ignore it. The password isn't useful in this application. Reprinting This Newsletter -------------------------- Feel free to copy, post and distribute this newsletter within the bounds of good netiquette. Scott Adams scottadams@aol.com -- ----------All Opinions Expressed are MINE, not IBM's-------------- Michael Rogero Brown (uK Development System Administrator) IBM (uK Development) TEL/TIE (407) 443-6400 Boca Raton, FL Internet: mikal@bocaraton.ibm.com If you think I speak for IBM, then I've got some swamp land^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H real estate to sell you. ========================== animation/best.of.net #158, from hmccracken, 908 chars, Sun Feb 12 23:34:52 1995 -------------------------- From: hmccracken@BIX.com Date: Sun, 12 Feb 1995 23:33:01 -0500 (EST) To: hmccracken@BIX.com Message-ID: <9502122333.memo.31034@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!howland.reston.ans.net!news.sprintlink.net!news.bluesky.net!udel!rochester!rit!isc-newsserver!psinntp!psinntp!psinntp!pbs.org!pbs10407.pbs.org!user
From: pdelgrosso@pbs.org (pHd)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Wallace & Gromit on PBS
Date: 9 Feb 1995 18:34:07 GMT
Organization: PTV
Lines: 6
Message-ID: NNTP-Posting-Host: pbs10407.pbs.org

On Wednesday, March 22 at 8pm (in most areas) you can check out Britain’s
fab claymation duo Wallace & Gromit on PBS.

The first half of the hour features the W&G film “The Wrong Trousers” and
the second half features “Inside the Wrong Trousers,” a documentary on W&G
creator Nick Park.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #159, from hmccracken, 20559 chars, Sun Feb 12 23:35:08 1995
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 12 Feb 1995 23:34:36 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9502122334.memo.31053@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,rec.answers,news.answers
Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!ix.netcom.com!netcom.com!wbb
From: wbb@netcom.com (Will Bell)
Subject: [rec.arts.animation] Frequently Asked Questions v. 1.27
Message-ID:
Followup-To: rec.arts.animation
Summary: Contains Q&A for new users of this newsgroup. Pls read before posting.
Keywords: animation faq
Supersedes:
Reply-To: wbb@netcom.com
Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 261-4700 guest)
Date: Sun, 5 Feb 1995 09:13:11 GMT
Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.Edu
Expires: Mon, 6 Mar 1995 09:13:09 GMT
Lines: 426
Xref: news1.delphi.com rec.arts.animation:28942 rec.answers:9893 news.answers:36499

Archive-name: animation-faq
Version: 1.27 1994/08/23

*** REC.ARTS.ANIMATION Frequently asked questions ***

*** CONTENTS

1. Introduction
2. Questions:
Q1. Where can I get a copy of the movie *Heavy Metal* on VHS?
Q2. But I just went to a ComicCon and a vendor had copies with …
Q3. I will surely die if I don’t get (MyFaveCartoon) on VHS! Where …
Q4. Any other mail order vendors I need to know about?
Q5. I’m into anime (Japanese Animation). Why no anime posts?
Q6. Any other toon newsgroups I need to know about?
Q7. Where can I get the soundtrack from *The Last Unicorn*?
Q8. What are the lyrics to (MyFaveCartoon’sThemeSong)?
Q9. What cartoons are on *The Golden Age of Looney Tunes*?
Q10 Does anyone have a gif of (MyFaveAnimatedScene?)
Q11. What about those of us who are really interested in the actual
creating of animation? Drawing, etc?
Q12. Are there any magazines, etc. dealing with Animation?
Q13. What’s the deal with editing on Tex Avery video collections?
Q14. Any good books on Animation / Cartoons?
3. Misc. information sources
S1. FTP site for Local 839 IATSE (Animators’ Union)
4. Frequently Discussed Topics that tend to go nowhere
5. Acknowledgements & Distribution rights

*** INTRODUCTION

As with any other newsgroup, there are several questions that come up
repeatedly. This document attempts to provide authoritative answers
to some of these FAQ’s.

If you have a suggestion, complaint, or any other comment, please MAIL
it to me at wbb@netcom.com. This file is posted automatically by
machine, and I sometimes fall behind in my newsreading. There is a
good chance I will not see your comments if you post them. So please
email me instead. It may take me some time to incorporate your comments
into this file. All comments are saved and WILL be included at some point
in the future as my time allows.

This FAQ is posted about every 15 days. You may also request it via
email (give me several days to respond).

*** CHANGES FROM VERSION 1.26

. Questions renumbered
. Q1: minor rewording of Turner comments
. Q10: New ftp site added (lisa.apana.org.au)
. Q12: Added (Animation magazines)
. Section 4 added (Add’l sources of info, Local 839 IATSE info)

*** QUESTIONS

Q1. Where can I get a copy of the movie *Heavy Metal* on VHS?

A1. Heavy Metal (the movie) is not licensed on video cassette in the US.
From the horse’s mouth:

Julie Simmons-Lynch
Editor-in-Chief
Heavy Metal magazine
Summer 1988 issue

The US Pay Cable channel Cinemax shows Heavy Metal approximately every
8 months. The most recent reported showing was in November 1992.
(It may have aired since then, but has not been reported to the
newsgroup.) Ted Turner has acquired rights to it; a butchered
version of it is shown occasionally on TNT and/or TBS.

Q2. But I just went to a ComicCon and a vendor had copies with color covers
and everything!

A2. The movie is widely bootlegged. Some vendors dress them up to make
look official, but the fact remains that they are bootlegs.

Q3. I will surely die if I don’t get (MyFaveCartoon) on VHS! Where can I
buy it?

The best place to look for hard-to-find video is the Whole Toon Catalog.
They specialize in cartoons on video. They have thousands of titles in
their catalog including toons from many independent vendors. If it’s
available on video, they’ll probably have it. To contact them:
Whole Toon Catalog
PO Box 1910
Seattle, WA 98111-1910
(206) 441-4130 FAX: (206) 441-4295
Sadly, their retail store in Seattle has shut down; however I
understand their mail order business shall continue.

Q4. Any other mail order vendors I need to know about?

A4. Warner Bros Catalog — sells Looney Tunes material as well as
promotional materials for their current movies and TV shows.
The merchandise is usually overpriced and unexceptional. (IMHO)
Warner Bros. Catalog
PO Box 60048
Tampa FL 33660-0048
(800) 223-6524
Most of the merchandise available in the catalog is also available
at the Warner Bros. Studio Stores. These are not nearly as widespread
as the Disney stores, though their numbers are growing rapidly.
The 800 number above should be able to tell you the WBSS nearest
to your town.

Disney Catalog —
The Disney Catalog
PO Box 28144
Shawnee Mission KS 66201-9144
(800) 237-5751
(any others?)

Q5. I’m into anime (Japanese Animation). Why don’t I ever see any anime
posts here?

A5. They are all in rec.arts.anime, which has its own FAQ. The maintainer of
that FAQ has volunteered to answer queries, etc., outside of r.a.anime.
Email to pearl@remus.rutgers.edu.

Q6. Any other toon newsgroups I need to know about?

A6. Here are a few and what they focus on :

(*) Indicates the group has its own FAQ which you can ftp from
rtfm.mit.edu. (/pub/usenet)

Discussion about the Disney Afternoon also takes place on a mailing
list as well as the newsgroup listed above. All of the “true fans”
are on the mailing list. 🙂 The most ground-breaking news from the
list is posted to the newsgroup. Send mail to
ranger-list-request@taronga.com to be placed on this mailing list.

Q7. Where can I get the soundtrack from *The Last Unicorn*?

A7. The soundtrack exists, but is not released in the US. Here’s the
pertinent info.
“Das Letzte Einhorn”
released by Virgin Records (in then West Germany, I believe)
copyright 1982, CD # 610 388-222
running time: 38 min.

Q8. What are the lyrics to (MyFaveCartoon’sThemeSong)?

A8. I have lyrics for Disney Afternoon and some Jay Ward cartoons. Mail me
requests. I am trying to build up a repository of lyrics and then
stash them at some ftp site. Contributions gratefully accepted!

Q9. What cartoons are on *The Golden Age of Looney Tunes*? How about the
other tapes? Any other laserdiscs?

A9. I have a list which includes all the data for the current MGM/UA and
Warner VHS tapes and laser discs. Due to space considerations, it is
not included here. To obtain this list by email, send mail to
wbb@netcom.com with a subject of “SENDME lt.lis”.

Q10. Does anyone have a gif of (MyFaveAnimatedScene?)

A10. These sites are known to have cartoon/animation gifs:
wuarchive.wustl.edu 128.252.135.4
avatar.snc.edu 138.74.0.13
lisa.apana.org.au
ftp.ctr.columbia.edu

Fewer and fewer sites are offering these images due to the very
valid concern of copyright violation. Be aware that if you
publicly offer GIFs or other images of copyrighted/trademarked
characters you may be putting yourself at legal risk.

Q11. What about those of us who are really interested in the actual
creating of animation? Drawing, etc?

A11. The address for the animator’s mailing list is
animate-request@dsd.es.com; sending e-mail with a subject of
“subscribe” will automatically join you to it.

Q12. Are there any magazines, etc. dealing with animation?

A12. A list follows, which is surely not all-inclusive. Thanks to
Emru Townsend for the info.

A-Ni-Me, Neo-Tokyo Enterprises/Mike Tatsugawa
2425 B Channing Way, Suite 310, Berkeley, CA 74704
$15.00 (includes tax, shipping & handling), published annually
Anime Magazine

Animaster, The Goodwill Network/Massimo Iorillo
P.O. Box 3244, 1499 Yverdon, Switzerland, Europe
Anime magazine

Animation Magazine, VSD Publications
6750 Centinela Ave., Suite 300 Los Angeles, CA 90230

Animato, the Animation Fan’s Magazine
17 Spruce St. Springfield, MA 01105
Quarterly animation magazine; $12/four issues; tel: (413) 731-7928

Animator
13 Ringway Road Part Street, St. Albans, Herts, AL2 2RE, England
Animation magazine

Anime UK
70 Mortimer Street, London, England W1N 7DF, tel: +44 (0)71 637 2588
Japanese animation magazine

Big Reel, P.O. Box 1050, Dubuque, IA 52004
Subscription: $25 for 12 monthly issues; tel: (800) 334-7165
Magazine for film collectors

fps, PO Box 36, Station H, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3G 2K5
Small-press animation magazine, contact emru@cam.org

In Toon!, PO Box 217, Gracie Station, New York, NY 10028
A magazine for collectors of original animation art; $18/year

Q13. What’s the deal with editing on Tex Avery video collections?

A13. The first pressing of the Complete Tex Avery set contains two edited
cartoons. This was a mistake by MGM/Turner and the second pressing
is supposed to be correct. I wouldn’t recommend buying a copy without
first verifying it is the unedited version. In “Droopy’s Good Deed”
look for the exploding hat, if the man continues counting out the
money in black-face with a southern accent you have the unedited
version. (Thanx to Michael W. Denney for this info.)

Q14. Any good books on Animation / Cartoons?

A14. For Disney books, I refer you to part 03 of Tom Tanida’s excellent
FAQ for rec.arts.disney (see above for instructions on how to get
this list).

Whole Toon has a large list of animation books available, including
many Disney books and several non-Disney books. Some suggestions
from the net:

Beck, Jerry and Will Friedwald; “Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies” 1988;
Ultimate reference of Warner Brothers cartoons. Chronological
filmography of releases with synopsis and full credits.

Blanc, Mel; “That’s not All, Folks”;
Mel Blanc’s biography (I guess, I’ve not read it.)

Thomas, Frank and Ollie Johnston; “Disney Animation: The Illusion of
Life”; “Good for the animator and non-animator alike.” 575pp.

*** MISCELLANEOUS SOURCES OF INFORMATION

S1. Local 839 IATSE FTP site (following info provided by them)

The Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and Affiliated Optical Electronic
and Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE is pleased to announce the availability
by anonymous FTP of information files about our organization.

Ftp to ftp.netcom.com and check out the directory /pub/mpsc839.
Information available includes the collective bargaining agreement
between Local 839 and most animation concerns in SoCal; the
complete schedule of the American Animation Institute, an educational
program administered by Local 839; excerpts of recent back issues of
THE PEG-BOARD, Local 839’s monthly newsletter; and more.

For further information, email mpsc839@netcom.com. Jeff Massie
is the human behind this alias.

*** FREQUENTLY DISCUSSED TOPICS THAT TEND TO GO NOWHERE

(others?)

*** ACKS

*** REDISTRIBUTION RIGHTS

This document may be distributed freely throughout the net so long
as all identifying information and this disclaimer appears intact.

This document, or any derivative works thereof, may not be sold or
redistributed for profit in any way without express permission of the
editor. If you are compiling a CD-ROM and desire to include this FAQ,
please consult the editor to negotiate appropriate permissions and
releases. Normally I will require stipulations on header formats and a
free copy of the end product if appropriate.

This document represents the collective effort of many USENET animation
fans. We appreciate your honoring of this policy.

*** NOTICE

If you are reading this off of a CD-ROM, you should be aware that the
vendor of your CD-ROM has not asked for permission to use this FAQ; if
they had I would have supplied them with a version missing this
paragraph. I strongly encourage you to avoid vendors who shamelessly
milk the net without even asking first.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #160, from davemackey, 85 chars, Wed Feb 15 06:16:05 1995
This is a comment to message 159.
————————–
“Heavy Metal” was on Cinemax this past Friday night.
–Dave

==========================
animation/best.of.net #161, from hmccracken, 2614 chars, Sat Feb 25 23:59:12 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 25 Feb 1995 23:55:35 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9502252355.memo.86627@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!gatech!howland.reston.ans.net!newsserver.jvnc.net!daniel!adebliec
From: adebliec@daniel.drew.edu
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: CBS Fall line-up
Message-ID: <1995Feb24.125427.116542@daniel>
Date: 24 Feb 95 12:54:27 ETST
Organization: Drew University
Lines: 50

I have the Michele Greppi/NY Post article in front of me about
the upcoming CBS fall line-up. Here are the highlights:

‘Gone from CBS’ kids’ line-up, which ranks third behind first-place Fox
and ABC, are three freshman shows – move spinoff “Beethoven”,
“WILDC.A.T.S.” [sic], and “Skeleton Warriors” – Disney’s 3-year-old
“Little Mermaid” [sic] and the 7-year-old “Garfield and Friends.”‘

Here’s the schedule:

8 a.m.: “The Adventures of Hyperman”, produced in conjuction with IBM,
which created the on-line educational tools and CD-ROM featuring the goofy
intergalactic hero, his grouchy pet Studd Puppy and teen genius Emma C.
Squared. Hyper-Man’s crew must protect Earth from Entrobe and his
sidekick Kid Chaos.

8:30 : “The Lion King’s Timon & Pumbaa,” with “special guest appearances”
by Simba, Rafiki and other characters from the movie.

9 a.m.: “Disney’s Aladdin,” back for a second-season.

9:30 : TMNT I, back for season 6

10 a.m. “The Mask”, morphing into a cartoon show with new characters
joining Stanley “The Mask” Ipkiss and Milo the Wonder Dog. Mike
Richardson, creator of the original comic book for Dark Horse, is a
consultant.

10:30 : TMNT II

11 a.m: “Felix The Cat,” which will give a “new spin” to the famed cartoon
character first animated for silent movie audiences in the 1920’s, and
whose image was used for one of the very first experimental TV broadcasts
in 1925.

11:30: “Santo Bugito,” about two ants, Carmen and Paco La Vermin who run
a cantina in a bottle cap in the border town of Santo Bugito, Texas. The
regulars include starving artist-termite Eaton Woode, a macho male Lady
Bug, a coupole of slob barflies and a damsel-fly pilot.

Noon: “Beakman’s World” returns for season number 3.

12:30 p.m.: “National Geographic’s Really Wild Animals”, with Dudley Moore
providing the voice of Sping, the animated globe who hosts the collection
of “fast-paced global adventures” about the animal world.

-Augie De Blieck Jr.
“Now once again, what are you doing here? And please, don’t fall off the
building this time.” -Goliath to Eliza Maza (Awakenings III)

==========================
animation/best.of.net #162, from hmccracken, 27406 chars, Sat Feb 25 23:59:35 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 25 Feb 1995 23:58:45 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9502252358.memo.86631@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,comp.graphics,rec.arts.disney,alt.animation.warner-bros,comp.graphics.animation,alt.movies.visual-effects,rec.arts.movies.production,alt.society.labor-unions,alt.disney,alt.disney.criticism
Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!news.sprintlink.net!howland.reston.ans.net!ix.netcom.com!netcom.com!mpsc839
From: mpsc839@netcom.com (MPSC Local 839 IATSE)
Subject: THE PEG-BOARD Union Newsletter — February 1995
Message-ID:
Summary: Excerpts of monthly newsletter of the cartoonists’ union
Keywords: CARTOONISTS CGI MONTHLY NEWSLETTER FEBRUARY 1995 LABOR UNION
Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 261-4700 guest)
Distribution: na
Date: Thu, 23 Feb 1995 22:38:34 GMT
Lines: 559
Sender: mpsc839@netcom8.netcom.com
Xref: news1.delphi.com rec.arts.animation:29812 comp.graphics:61488 rec.arts.disney:76025 alt.animation.warner-bros:4689 comp.graphics.animation:16215 alt.movies.visual-effects:733 rec.arts.movies.production:4307 alt.society.labor-unions:553 alt.disney:178 alt.disney.criticism:54

THE PEG-BOARD — Information Superhighway Edition — February, 1995

This is a monthly posting of excerpts from THE PEG-BOARD, the newsletter
of the Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and Affiliated Optical
Electronic and Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE. THE PEG-BOARD is also
published in printed format.

This file is available by anonymous ftp, along with a number of other
files about Local 839. The address is:

ftp.netcom.com:/pub/mp/mpsc839

Local 839 IATSE is the largest local union of motion picture graphic
artists in the world. We have over 1,800 active members employed in
animation and CGI in Southern California.

In this month’s issue:

* Membership approves strike fund
* 401(k) enrollment begins
* From the President, by Tom Sito
* From the Business Representative, by Steve Hulett
* How the union collects residuals
* MGM, CFI, Turner sign with 839
* Animation in the news
* At the water cooler
* Correspondence
* Help wanted
* In memoriam
* Masthead

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

MEMBERSHIP APPROVES STRIKE FUND
Unanimously accepted plan will not raise dues

Last year, the Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists polled the membership
to find out if they were in favor of setting up a Strike Fund, and if
so, would they be in favor of paying an additional fee. The poll came
back 53% in favor, 47% opposed. Almost all of the “no” votes were
opposed to the raise in dues rather than to the idea of a fund to help
members in the event of a job action.

Over the past several months the Screen Cartoonists have received
impassioned communications — both pro and con — regarding a Strike
Fund. In early January, the Executive Board voted to recommend to the
membership the set-up of a Strike Fund of $250,000 with an infusion of
cash from the General Fund. This solution would not involve any raise in
dues.

At the January 31 general membership meeting, President Sito outlined
the board’s recommendation, stressing that there would be no change in
dues or fees, that this money would come exclusively from the General
Fund. The membership approved the board’s recommendation unanimously.

What a strike fund means

Does this mean we’ll be having a strike next time negotiations roll
around? No. It means we’ll have money to assist us in organizing non-
union shops. It means we’ll have money available if a job action is ever
contemplated in the future.

Are we going to have to pay more dues or some kind of “strike fund fee”?
No. The union’s General Fund is healthy, even though the local’s dues
and initiation fees are the lowest of any union in Hollywood. The board,
after long and thoughtful deliberation (and a few raised voices)
determined that we could easily afford to start a strike fund out of
current cash flow.

With the establishment of a strike fund, Local 839 takes an important
step toward protecting its members interests and strengthening its hand
in negotiations and organizing.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

401(k) ENROLLEMNT BEGINS

The week of February 6-10, over three hundred animation employees at
Disney Feature and Television Animation attended informational meetings
about MPSC’s new 401(k) savings plan. The plan, administered by the
Principal Financial Group — one of the nation’s largest — includes
twelve fund account options, teletouch investing, and loan-back
provisions after the plan runs for eighteen months.

The Screen Cartoonists’ goal is to have all of our signatory studios
participate in the plan. As we go to press, Disney, Hanna-Barbera and
Turner Feature Animation have agreed to participate. If you are employed
at a signator studio that has shown no interest in being part of our
401(k) family, stop by your supervisor’s office and respectfully ask if
your current employer would like to reassess its position.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

FROM THE PRESIDENT
In the time of the gypsies

In the ‘seventies we all worried about all our jobs going overseas,
lately it seems that the trend is now runaway in reverse. The
uncontested success of our homemade films like Lion King and the
burgeoning concentration of the new CGI houses is drawing to L.A. the
animation talent of the world and the entrepreneurs who crave that
talent. That curious race that I once belonged to, the International
Animation gypsies, trained and seasoned in studios from Barcelona to
Berlin to Seoul, are now flocking into Tinseltown the way London was the
place in the ‘eighties and Taipei or Sydney in the ‘seventies.

When I came to work in L.A. in 1977,my pure Brooklynese was the most
exotic accent anyone had ever heard. Tran Vu would ask me: “Tom, How is
Noo Yawk?” And remember in 1980 when Disney wanted to hire Andreas Deja
from Germany how they jumped through hoops to get his visa? That funny
ad in the Los Angeles Times:

Wanted: Disney-style directing animator, must draw like Milt
Kahl, have a mustache, good biceps, speak German, etc. Apply
WDP.

Now our Hollywood roster rings with names like Kupzcyk and Bao Wan,
Siobhan and Raul, Hans and Ivan.

Our pride and thanks go out to the new artists in our midst and an
invitiation not to drift away when the animation teats dry but stay and
put down roots. You, our colleagues, become our neighbors and friends.

Don’t think that our union is an “Americans Only” club bent on keeping
you out. Historically new immigrants were a driving force behind social
justice in America. The first abolitionists fighting in Missouri were
German immigrants who couldn’t appreciate the invisible double standard
in “All Men are Created Equal” that Americans had taken for granted. The
eight-hour workday first demanded in 1886 was denounced as a foreign
idea brought from England to ruin American prosperity.

Haymarket union martyr Albert Parsons was an Austrian immigrant, our
patriot philosopher Thomas Paine was from Lincolnshire, England and the
great poet-minstrel of organised labor, Joe Hill was born Josef
Hillstrom in Sweden. And the Irish, God love them, were everywhere in
the fight wherever the average guy was getting a bum deal. It’s safe to
say the union movement in the U.S. never would have gotten anywhere
without foreign workers in the forefront. And encouraging hatred of
foreigners was always a tactic of big business.

If you came here out of love of the work of the great Hollywood
animators, then help the other institution the great Hollywood animators
loved. This union.

You bring your skills and ideas from abroad, we give you, thanks to our
union, the highest standard of living in the animation world. Don’t be
so nave as to believe these wage standards were always here like the
palm trees (they were imported too.). Bill Tytla, Art Babbitt, Maurice
Noble, Chuck Jones, all the artists you look up to fought for their
union rights. If you’re goal is to step into their shoes, do it all the
way and fight for this union too. It’s as much part of their legacy as
Dumbo or Droopy.

Local 839 is only against those artists who come here to punch holes in
our livestyle by helping non-union dumps. Parasites who don’t care if
what they do hurts anyone and then dissappear at the end of their
tourist visas. Those artists who come to be part of the real animation
family are always welcome.

Someday some of you may get homesick and go home. Others will get good
offers somewhere else in the world and move on. Wherever you go tell
them of the strength and security you enjoyed from being a union brother
or sister, that artists don’t have to take-it and take-it and just
grumble in their beers at night. Tell them our solution can be theirs
also.

For the rest, there is room at our table among the hot dogs and chili
for kielbasa and kim chee. In the ‘nineties boom Local 839 welcomes the
best animation artists the World has to offer. They reinforce our
ability to say that the finest animation work in the world today is done
here and that the finest work is done Union!

Today the proudest boast a top animation artist can say is: “Dude, Ich
Bin Ein Angeleno!”

— Tom Sito

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

FROM THE BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVE

Another busy month, and I could sit here and whine about how tired and
overworked I am, but I don’t think the staff working seven days a week
on Pocahontas would be too sympathetic …

Enrollments have begun at Disney Feature Animation for the 401(k) plan.
I spent two frantic weeks over there in meetings and preparations for
meetings, and the interest seemed to build day by day [see above].
Hanna-Barbera has indicated that they will be coming into the 401(k)
plan when they have finished reviewing documents. I have high hopes that
by the end of the year, most of the others studios — including our
friends in Warners management who thus far stoutly resist — will climb
on board the plan.

What else? Every week we get inquiries from CD-ROM companies looking to
hire artists for games, information disks, and general entertainment.
Some of these companies are in Vancouver, some in Little Rock, some in
northern California. I got a call today from one in exotic Beverly
Hills. The upshot is that they need your talents and we want to
negotiate a contract with them.

How will it happen? When will it happen? At that happy moment when they
realize they are better off securing your artistic abilities by means of
a cartoonists’ contract, than by pleading with you to come work without
the Motion Picture Industry Health and Pension Plan, without our
emerging 401(k).

In features, work continues to expand. Warner Bros. Feature Animation is
hiring new artists with a view to moving to a larger facility in
Glendale in the spring. Disney Features continues to grow, cranking up
for The Hunchback of Notre Dame after Pocahontas wraps this Spring. The
Screen Cartoonists continue to negotiate with new feature animation
studios as they roll over the horizon (and we hope to have more details
about that next month.)

Television, as it has for the last few years, continues to be a burr
under the union saddle. Film Roman remains a non-signator, as do Klasky-
Csupo and Gunther-Wahl. A couple of years ago, Phil Roman — one of our
honorably withdrawn members — informed Tom Sito that it cost him more
to stay non-union than sign a collective bargaining agreement. I didn’t
realize that paying below-contract wages was such an expensive
proposition, but I was delighted to learn it was so. I’ll rest easier.
(Phil’s protests remind me of car dealer Cal Yeakel’s TV spots for his
Oldsmobile agency when I was a kid: “We lose money on every new Olds we
sell, but we make up for it in volume!”)

As our late President Richard Nixon used to say, let me make one thing
perfectly clear. The reason that a few cartoon studios here in town
cling tenaciously to their non-union status, is because it saves them
money. Which means you are making less money. I don’t expect anybody to
weep, wail and rent their garments over that fact, but I want everybody
to be aware of it.

As I have said probably three hundred and eighty-five times before, the
day that the Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists evaporate into thin air,
is the day that you will be making a less livable wage.

— Steve Hulett

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

HOW YOUR UNION COLLECTS RESIDUALS FOR YOU

You may not be aware that Local 839 collects residuals under its
contract with the producers. A recent article in the newsletter of
International Photographers Guild, Local 659 IATSE, by their Executive
Director, Bruce Doering, puts it in perspective:

Many members are unaware that we benefit tremendously from residual
payments under the Hollywood Basic Agreement. Residuals negotiated by
the IATSE and Hollywood local unions are funded by a percentage of
payments derived from the selling of theatrical features to secondary
markets such as free television, cable and videocassettes.

However, unlike residuals negotiated by SAG, WGA and DGA, IATSE
residuals are not paid directly to individual members. Rather, under the
1993-1996 Basic Agreement, residuals are paid into the Motion Picture
Health And Welfare Active Plan (Active Plan), and the Health and Welfare
Retiree Plan (Retiree Plan).

Supplemental markets

Producers who have signed the Basic Agreement pay two kinds of residuals
to the Plans. First, they pay “supplemental market income” which
originates from the sale of motion picture features as videocassettes,
pay television, airlines, etc. For example, when a feature is filmed
under the Basic Agreement and within the thirteen western states, the
producer must pay between 5.4% and 8.1% of the payments derived from
such sales, into the Health and Welfare Active Plans.

Indeed, in 1994, $88 million in supplemental market income was paid into
the Active Plan, versus a total of $61 million in total hourly
contributions. As a result, the Active plan showed a $33.4 million
surplus [see The Peg-Board, January 1995, page 1]

“Post 60’s”

“Post 60’s” are the second kind or residual payment. Post 60’s are due
when a feature film made after February 1, 1960 and shot under the Basic
Agreement is sold into the free television market. In such a case the
producer must pay 5.4% of his total worldwide gross receipts derived
from licensing the right to exhibit his motion picture on free
television.

“Post 60’s” income has traditionally gone into the Retiree Plan. In
1993, however, it was agreed that about 50% of the 1994 “post 60’s”
income, which amounted to about $22.5 million, would go into the Active
Plan.

Why is this important?

The importance of these residuals cannot be overestimated. Supplemental
market payments are the primary reason that, despite the skyrocketing
costs of medical care, Local 839 and other IATSE members working under
the Basic Agreement enjoy the best benefits of any union in Hollywood.
Similarly, “Post 60’s” payments have permitted the Plans to maintain
full health coverage for retirees.

In short, our residuals make our health plan one of the best union plans
in the country. If we wish to keep our plan strong, then we must not
only defend our residual structure in negotiations with the producers,
but we must also organize non-union employers.

— Bruce Doering

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

MGM, CFI, Turner: the signatures just keep on coming …

Quarterly IA/AMPTP meetings are usually lackluster affairs as far as the
Screen Cartoonists are concerned, but the meeting in Palm Springs the
last two days of January was more productive than most. MGM ANIMATION’s
representative was delighted to sign the Local 839’s Collective
Bargaining Agreement and bring Leo the Lion into our happy family of
signator studios. (Previously MGM had paid Local 839 members through a
payroll-service agreement, but now they are signed directly with us.)

We can also report that Turner Feature Animation is now a union shop.
Turner, which had payrolled Local 839 employees on The Pagemaster
through Hanna-Barbera, is still preparing its Cats Can’t Dance feature
project.

CFI, the largest lab in Hollywood, has also signed on the dotted line,
signifying our move into visual effects and computer graphics. We
welcome MGM, CFI and Turner to the Local 839 club!

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

THE FAMILY MEDICAL LEAVE ACT

Although the FMLA was signed into law by President Clinton in 1993,
final regulations were only implemented last month. Here’s some details
of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993:

Q: Who is covered?

A: Federal and California state laws cover employers with fifty of more
employees for each working day in any twenty calendar weeks in the
current or preceding calendar year. Part-timers on payroll at the
beginning and end of a week are also included, but not those employees
on layoff.

An employer who has more than fifty employees in, say, April of a
calendar year but less than fifty by August would still be covered by
the act until the end of the year (December 31).

You must have worked at least 1,250 hours in the twelve months before
leave is requested.

Q: What triggers mandatory leave?

A: National and state laws provide for leave for mothers and fathers in
the case of:

1) birth of a child of the employee
2) placement of a child with the employee for adoption or foster
care
3) care for a child, parent or a spouse who has a serious health
condition, or
4) the employee’s own serious health condition that makes it
impossible to perform essential job functions.

Q: How much leave am I entitled to, and when?

A: Employers must allow employees up to twelve weeks of unpaid leave
over a twelve-month period. Leave cannot be carried over if not used
within the year. Leave for the birth or placement of a child must be
started and concluded within twelve months of that event.

Q: When can leave be denied?

A: The FMLA requires employees to give the employer as much advance
notice as possible (at least thirty days notice of the need for a leave,
if possible and such notice as practical of leave needed more quickly
than that). Notice need not be written and should be given at least two
days after the employee learns of the circumstances requiring leave.

If the employee fails to give thirty days notice for foreseeable leave,
the employer may delay the leave until thirty days after the time notice
was made, but only if the employee had knowledge of the FMLA’s notice
requirement (and if you’re reading this, then you’ve got knowledge,
right?)

Q: What are my rights during leave?

A: Federal law requires employers to continue health benefit coverage
for employees on leave. In our case, that won’t present a large problem
for employers since health coverage generally continues for many months
after an employee’s departure from work. However, there might be some
circumstances where an employer might have to kick in contribution hours
to continue an employee’s medical coverage. Please note: an employee
cannot be required to use his bank of hours to cover a leave period.

Q: How can I enforce my FMLA rights?

A: An employee who has not been given the notices, leaves, benefits or
reinstatement rights provided for by the FMLA may:

1) file a lawsuit on his or her own behalf, or
2) file charges with the Wage and Hour Division, Employment
Standards Administration of the Department of Labor, or
3) do both. Employees can file their charges in person, by
telephone or by mail.

Space prevents us from going into all the details of the new FMLA regs.
If you have questions we haven’t covered here, please call the union
office.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

ANIMATION IN THE NEWS

In 1996, Disney will release direct-to-video sequels to The Lion King
and Aladdin (the second after The Return of Jafar) …

Lion King art work garnered almost $2 million at Sotheby’s auction house
in New York on February 11, a record for animation art. The highest
price paid by the SRO crowd at the 256-piece auction was $39,100 for an
image of the lion cub Simba with Pumbaa the warthog and Timon the
meerkat …

Hanna-Barbera’s two-year cartoon shorts project kicked off on February
20, with the simultaneous airing of World Premiere Toon-In on TBS, TNT
and The Cartoon Network. The show included Craig McCracken’s Powerpuff
Girls, Pat Ventura’s Yuckie Duck and Genndy Tartakovsky’s Dexter’s
Laboratory …

Mindy Farrell has left her post as senior vice-president of creative
affairs for Warner Bros.’s feature animation unit, and will now serve as
a consultant to the company …

Silicon Graphics Inc. has announced the $500 million purchase of Alias
Research Inc. and Wavefront Technologies Inc. SGI’s computers are widely
used with Alias and Wavefront 3-D graphics software in motion picture
animation and visual effects.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

AT THE WATER COOLER

Congrats to Chuck Jones on receiving a long-overdue star on the
Hollywood Walk Of Fame on February 13 …

Corey and Kathleen Fredrickson of Disney Feature Animation are the proud
parents of a baby girl, born January 27 … Turner’s Kevin Johnson and
wife Marla had a daughter, Chaya Olivia, born January 17 … Disney
assistant Wendy Muir and hubby Dave had a baby boy, Joshua … Vladimir
Spasojevic and his wife Jelena are proud parents of a son, Sava, born
January 27 …

Disney has honored Carmen Sanderson for her fifty years employment at
the studio …

Retired MGM/Hanna-Barbera cartoonist Walter Clinton would like to hear
from old friends in the industry. His address is 10714 Brookside Drive,
Sun City, AZ 85351.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

CORRESPONDENCE

I’m just getting over a head cold/flu bug that has lasted a good 10
days. When the symptoms first came up, I really wanted to stay in bed
and get some needed rest. I didn’t because our union contract has no
“sick day” pay. Consequently, I’ve been to work knowingly risking giving
my germs to fellow employees. I know this is a common experience.

Even if the producers come back and say some people will abuse the
system and “fake” sick to take a few days off each given year, those
same people could feel that is time that is important to “recharge their
batteries” so to speak.

Since our industry is a pretty strong one these days, I see no reason
why our people shouldn’t be treated any differently than most other
corporations. It only seems to me to be the human thing to do. At our
next negotiations, I hope we don’t let this far request flit away as
something “expendable.” Thanks for your time.

— Peter Gullerud

Warners employees have long complained about the company’s unenlightened
attitude toward sick days. Other companies — Disney being the most
notable — have sick days for employees, but those sick days are not a
contractual requirement.

And therein lies the problem. At contract time, sick days are a burning
issue for some and not for others. When 1993 contract proposals were
being formulated, sick days were not at the top of the agenda. We urge
members of the Screen Cartoonists (beg, even) to let us know what
proposals should be brought forward in 1996 contract negotiations.

If sick days are important, show up and let us know, and the issue will
be joined.

— Steve Hulett

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Turner Feature Animation — Storyboard Artists Wanted

If you are looking for a exciting place to work on non-traditional
feature projects, then we are eager to meet you or at least have a look
at your work. Turner Feature Animation is presently seeking storyboard
artists with two years feature experience preferred, to work on upcoming
feature projects. If interested, please drop off your portfolio and
resume to 3330 Cahuenga Blvd., second floor. For more information call
(213) 969-4184.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

IN MEMORIAM

Key assistant animator Chris Chu died on February 5 after a long battle
with cancer. Since 1977 he had worked for Hanna-Barbera, Filmation,
Bakshi, Disney, Baer Animation and Turner Feature Animation. His family
asks that contributions in his name be made to Heal The Bay or The
Cousteau Society.

1984 Golden Award winner Larry Silverman died on January 30. From 1926
until his retirement in 1982, he worked for Terrytoons, John Terry,
Disney, Harman-Ising, Van Beuren, Film Graphics, Famous, Hanna-Barbera,
Kinney-Wolf, Sam Singer and Filmation.

Retired inker Helen Emily Stafford died on December 27. From 1938 until
her retirement in 1971, she worked for Disney, Famous, John Sutherland,
Raphael Wolff, Cascade, TV Spots, MGM, Lantz, Hanna-Barbera, Harmon-
Ticktin, Sam Singer, DePatie-Freleng, Pat Jenks and Warners.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

MOTION PICTURE SCREEN CARTOONISTS
AND AFFILIATED OPTICAL ELECTRONIC AND GRAPHIC ARTS,
LOCAL 839 IATSE
4729 Lankershim Boulevard, North Hollywood, CA 91602-1864
phone (818) 766-7151 * fax (818) 506-4805
E-mail inquiries: mpsc839@netcom.com
Anonymous FTP: ftp.netcom.com:/pub/mp/mpsc839
PRESIDENT — Tom Sito
BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVE — Steve Hulett
VICE-PRESIDENT — George Sukara
RECORDING SECRETARY — Jeff Massie
SERGEANT-AT-ARMS — David Teague
PEG-BOARD EDITOR — Jeff Massie
EXECUTIVE BOARD
Viki Anderson * Bronwen Barry * Sheila Brown * Jan Browning
James Davis * Earl Kress * Craig Littell-Herrick * Tom Ray
Pat Sito * Ann Sullivan * Stephan Zupkas
TRUSTEES — Pat Sito * Ann Sullivan * Stephan Zupkas

==========================
animation/best.of.net #163, from hmccracken, 2961 chars, Thu Mar 2 23:25:48 1995
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Thu, 2 Mar 1995 23:25:08 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9503022325.memo.9402@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt-animation-warner.bros.

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!caen!math.ohio-state.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!swiss.ans.net!netnews.lightside.com!user36.lightside.com!user
From: vintage@lightside.com (Stephen W. Worth)
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: Animation Researchers Need Help
Date: Fri, 17 Feb 1995 22:44:03 -0800
Organization: Vintage Ink & Paint
Lines: 45
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: user36.lightside.com
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain;charset=US-ASCII
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

This was posted by vintage@lightside.com (Steve Worth) for Ken Shiffman at
Ken.Shiffman@turner.com

****Please respond to Ken directly. Thanks!*****

Can You Help Animation Researchers Seeking Hard-to-find Animation?

We are working on a federally-funded research project studying the content of
animated cartoons produced between 1930 and the present. For our study,
we need to locate nearly 1,500 specific cartoon episodes that were randomly
chosen. So far, we have been able to locate approximately 1,200 of the
titles we need, but have been having MUCH difficulty locating copies of
the remaining 300 or so. We are looking for people who have large
animation collections, particularly those
containing episodes from the series listed below. We can pay reasonable costs
associated with dubbing, etc. and/or arrange trades for some of our 2,500+
cartoons. The following list is NOT comprehensive, so if you have other
cartoons that you think might be helpful to us, please contact us. Here are
SOME of the things we are still looking for:

Baggy Pants The Nitwits
Mighty Hercules Winky Dink and Woofer
Oddball Couple Blue Racer
Kissyfur Amigo and Friends
Police Academy Paramount Noveltoons
Superfriends Bailey’s Comets
Johnny Cypher Sugar Bear
The Company So Hi
Lovable Truly New Archies [mid 1980s]
vintage Columbia cartoons [1930s-40s]
vintage Fleischer cartoons [1930s-40s]
Terrytoons [1930s-40s]

If you or someone you know can help out with any of these or other similar
cartoons series we’d very much like to hear from you. When we correspond, we
can discuss the specific episodes that we need and make all necessary
arrangements [i.e. purchase price, trade] to get the titles we need. We look
forward to hearing from you!!!!!

Posted for Ken.Shiffman@turner.com (Ken Shiffman) by:

—
Stephen W. Worth Animation Art
vintage@lightside.com Restoration, Authentication
Appraisals and Sales

==========================
animation/best.of.net #164, from davemackey, 220 chars, Sat Mar 4 14:23:06 1995
This is a comment to message 163.
————————–
Ah. The lost works of DePatie-Freleng coming back to haunt me again. I
haven’t seen “Oddball Couple” and “Bailey’s Comets” in years and have never
seen the “Blue Racer” theatrical series.
–Dave

==========================
animation/best.of.net #165, from hmccracken, 1329 chars, Sat Mar 11 10:26:24 1995
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 11 Mar 1995 10:26:07 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9503111026.memo.42054@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!iglou!dougq
From: dougq@iglou.iglou.com (Douglas H. Quebbeman)
Subject: Bill Keane Comes Out of the Closet
Message-ID:
Sender: news@iglou.com (USENET News Administrator)
Organization: IgLou Internet Services
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2]
Date: Tue, 7 Mar 1995 17:51:44 GMT
Lines: 18

Bill Keane (or is it just Kean?), whose Family Circle has graced the
dailies’s I’ve been reading for I suppose at least twenty years, has
finally come out of the closet… He’s a Zippy the Pinhead fan!

Today’s strip had little Billy lying in bed, dreaming about Zippy.
His Mom comes in and wakes him up, much to his chagrin.

The dream balloon was actually drawn by Bill Griffith! Which is
probably as close as our local (conservative) newspapers will ever
come to having a Zippy strip that doesn’t feature something that
looks like a defective clone of the Pillsbury Doughboy.

Next, perhaps Mr. Toad will make an appearance in Garfield…
—
—
-Douglas H. Quebbeman (dougq@iglou.com)
“The large print giveth, and the small print taketh away.” -Tom Waits

==========================
animation/best.of.net #166, from davemackey, 92 chars, Sat Mar 11 10:46:03 1995
This is a comment to message 165.
————————–
I think Bil Keane’s finally having fun yet.
–Dave

==========================
animation/best.of.net #167, from hmccracken, 4937 chars, Sat Mar 25 18:45:13 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 25 Mar 1995 18:41:34 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9503251841.memo.97525@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.animation.warner-bros.

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!boulder!palomb
From: palomb@beagle.Colorado.EDU (Anthony Palombella)
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: Re: Obscure Voices
Date: 19 Mar 1995 13:46:38 GMT
Organization: University of Colorado at Boulder
Lines: 112
Message-ID: <3khcju$bai@lace.Colorado.EDU>
References: <9503181735242376@fatal.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: beagle.colorado.edu

ted.hering@fatal.com (Ted Hering) writes:

>I remember seeing a Warner’s cartoon starring “Jack Bunny” in the
>1950s… although it was old, even then. Jack throws a beach party for
>all his celebrity friends. One of the celebrities complains (or brags?)
>”I never go anywhere and I never have any fun.” Fanny Brice then begs
>to bury him in the sand. Who is this character supposed to be? My
>guess was Fred Allen, but some others who have seen the cartoon say it
>isn’t Fred, but don’t know who it IS. Any help?

That would be Ned Sparks. He looks and talks just like that. Check him
out in “Lady For a Day” (1933). His character is named Happy, and he is
anything but. Cracks me up.

Using the various reference books available, I’ve come up with a list of
WB voices and characters. I haven’t updated it in a couple of years, it
hasn’t been spell-checked, etc., but here it is. A voice not included is
the one who does the Queen in Coal Black. It’s listed in the “50 Greatest
Cartoons” book though. Additions, corrections welcome.

MEL BLANC
Zillions, including: BUGS, PORKY, FOGHORN, BR’ER DOG,
SYLVESTER, SAM, MARVIN, TWEETY, DAFFY, PEPE… (ELMER in
PREHYSTERICAL HARE and others)
ARTHUR Q. BRYAN
ELMER FUDD (Much later done by SMITH, BUTLER and BLANC),
DANGEROUS DAN MC FOO, NARRATOR (NUTTY NEWS), CASTING DIRECTOR
(PAST PERFUMANCE), GUEST (A PEST IN THE HOUSE, in Room 666!)
JOE ALASKEY
Lots of 90’s stuff)
TEX AVERY
GHOST (GHOST WANTED), HIPPO (HAMATEUR NIGHT), FATHER BEAR (THE
BEAR’S TALE), TIMBER WOLF (LAND OF THE MIDNIGHT FUN), DEAN
(HOLIDAY HIGHLIGHTS), WALRUS (PENGUIN PARADE), SPIDER (MEATLESS
FLYDAY)
DICK BEALS
RALPH PHILLIPS (BOYHOOD DAZE, A TO Z-Z-Z-Z)
JULIE BENNET
3RD GRANNY
BEA BENEDERET
PRISSY (At least occasionally), MAMA BEAR, RALPH’S TEACHER,
MARC ANTHONY’S OWNER, WILD WIFE, WOMAN (CHOW HOUND), MOMMY (ALL
A-BIR-R-R-D), 1ST GRANNY
JEFF BERGMAN
ALL CHARACTERS in BOX OFFICE BUNNY
BILLY BLETCHER
PAPA BEAR, VINEGAR BOTTLE VILLAIN (LITTLE DUTCH PLATE), VARIOUS
BAD GUYS (BOOM BOOM) VILLAIN (PORKY OF THE NORTH WOODS), LION
(THE LYING MOUSE),WALRUS (PORKY’S TIRE TROUBLE), COMMANDANT
(LITTLE BEAU PORKY)
ROBERT C. BRUCE
NARRATOR (“SPOT GAG” CARTOONS)
GREG BURSON
BUGS (some 90’s stuff, including HARE JORDAN ad)
DAWS BUTLER
NED MORTON, PAPPY AND ELVIS (BACKWOODS BUNNY, THE DIXIE FRYER),
JUNIOR (A WAGGILY TALE), SAM (MOUSE AND GARDEN), MR. WILBUR
(ROCKET-BYE BABY), MAN (GO FLY A KIT), SAM (TRICK OR TWEET),
etc.
JACK CARR
BUDDY
PINTO COLVIG
CONRAD THE SAILOR, MOUNTIE (SNOW MAN’S LAND), HOBO (HOBO GADGET
BAND), GHOST (JEEPERS CREEPERS), DING DOG DADDY, CLAUDE HOPPER
(HOP AND GO)
VIVIAN DAINDRIDGE
SO WHITE
JOE DOUGHERTY
PORKY (pre BLANC)
JUNE FORAY
WITCH HAZEL, ALICE CRUMDEN, 2ND GRANNY, MILLICENT (RABBIT
ROMEO), MRS. DAFFY (QUACKODILE TEARS), SALESLADY (BIRD IN A
BONNET), NARRATOR, FABRETTE (REALLY SCENT) many others
STAN FREBERG
JUNIOR BEAR, one of the GOOFY GOPHERS, HUBIE, PETE PUMA,
GAMBLING BUG (EARLY TO BET), NARRATOR (THREE LITTLE BOPS)
BERENICE HANSEN
PINKIE (PORKY’S NEPHEW, PORKY’S PICNIC), SNIFFLES, LITTLE KITTY
(I HAVEN’T GOT A HAT, PLANE DIPPY), MISS GLORY, Song (BUDDY’S
PONY EXPRESS), CAR (STREAMLINED GRETA GREEN), MOUSE (THE
LYING MOUSE), 3 SQUIRRELS (ROBIN HOOD MAKES GOOD), BETTY BEAVER
(PORKY OF THE NORTH WOODS), BOY (TOYTOWN HALL), THE NIGHT
WATCHMAN, POKER-HUNTAS, BABY BEAR/GOLDILOCKS (THE BEAR’S TALE)
virtually any small voice in the early days
ROCHELLE HUDSON
HONEY
CARMEN MAXWELL
BOSKO
TERRENCE MONCK
MICHIGAN J. FROG (“Probably,” sez CJ)
VICTOR MOORE
HUNTER (AIN’T THAT DUCKY)
CLIFF NAZARRO
EGGHEAD (Usually as a JOE PENNER impression)
FRANK NELSON
PRODUCER (WIDEO WABBIT), ART LAMPLIGHTER (PEOPLE ARE BUNNY)
KENT ROGERS
BEAKY (early; BLANC later)
HAL SMITH
ELMER FUDD (DOG GONE PEOPLE, WHAT’S MY LION)
LARRY STORCH
COOL CAT, etc.

— Tony
—
““““““““““““““““““””””””””””””””””””
HA! … *Pronoun trouble.* It’s not, “He doesn’t have to shoot *you*
now,” it’s, “He doesn’t have to shoot *me* now.” Well, I say he DOES
have to shoot me now! So SHOOT ME NOW!! [] palomb@beagle.colorado.edu

==========================
animation/best.of.net #168, from hmccracken, 17480 chars, Sat Apr 8 15:20:56 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 8 Apr 1995 15:19:03 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9504081519.memo.52708@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!vanbc.wimsey.com!scipio.cyberstore.ca!yyj-ppp-9
From: mac7@po.CWRU.Edu (Michael A. Chary)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.info,rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: Dilbert Newsletter 5.0
Followup-To: rec.arts.comics.misc
Date: Wed, 05 Apr 95 00:21:18 GMT
Organization: UTexas Mail-to-News Gateway
Lines: 527
Sender: nobody@cs.utexas.edu
Approved: scowling@cyberstore.ca
Distribution: world
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Reply-To: mac7@po.CWRU.Edu (Michael A. Chary)
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Xref: news1.delphi.com rec.arts.comics.info:2199 rec.arts.comics.strips:12471

Dilbert Newsletter 5.0
———————–

To: Dogbert’s New Ruling Class (DNRC)
From: Scott Adams
Date: March 1995

Highlights:
———————————————
– New Dilbert Web site on Internet
– New Dilbert compilation book due late April
———————————————

DNRC Status Report
——————

In just eleven months Dogbert’s New Ruling Class has grown to over 20,000
cynical (yet oddly attractive) members!

But don’t worry, that still leaves well over 5 billion people to do our
menial work after Dogbert conquers the planet and enslaves all non-members.
Start putting your job list together now.

Name the Non-DNRC People
————————

What we really need is a good derogatory nickname for non-DNRC people. The
phrase “non-DNRC people” is kinda klunky and doesn’t convey our full contempt
for the fact that they squander our valuable resources such as oxygen and
vowels.

Their name should sound harmless and endearing but have a clever double
meaning. For example, we could call them “pumpkin” to their faces, then
mutter “…head” under our breath while clearing our throats.

Or we could call them “Dumplings”, because you can’t say dumpling without
“duh.”

I’ll print the best suggestion in the next newsletter. And the person who
suggests the winning name will be elevated to DNRC Sainthood.

(Note: My examples were intentionally non-funny so as not to discourage your
participation by overwhelming you with my own professional wit. I could do
much better. I’m just holding back. I’m not defensive. Leave me alone.
Stop touching me.)

Dilbert’s New Home on the Internet
———————————-

You may notice the sudden disappearance of Dilbert from the GNN web page and
the ClariNet service.

Dilbert is moving to his own home page on the World Wide Web, courtesy of
United Media. It’s open to the press on March 30th. A special DNRC preview
of the page is available on March 31st. And it’s open to the general public
(Dumplings?) the next day.

Here’s the address:

http://www.unitedmedia.com/comics/dilbert

Here’s what you’ll find
====================================================
– Dilbert cartoon of the day (one week delay)
– Prehistory of Dilbert — early rejections
– Photo tour of how I create Dilbert*
– Dilbert Newsletter archive
– Instructions on joining Dogbert’s New Ruling Class
– Dilbert character descriptions.
– Early photos of me (may frighten young children)
====================================================

* Special guest appearances by Sarah and Freddie the cats

Pioneer Preference
——————

Anybody who is on the Dilbert mailing list prior to June 1995 will be granted
permanent “Pioneer Preference” status in the DNRC. This elite status gives
you the special unalterable right to wildly exaggerate how life in the DNRC
was in the early days.

Delight your friend(s) with stories about how your first newsletter was
delivered to you over a six baud modem and filled your entire 1K hard disk.
Fortunately, you were able to rewrite the operating system of your computer
to make room, creating a new operation system called “Dogbert’s Operating
System” (DOS for short) which was later adapted from its shareware version
into something commercial by a weird guy with glasses who kept hanging around
your house so he could meet your sister.

DNRC Enemies List
—————–

I compiled an official “Enemies List” to unite the DNRC. But I could only
come up with a few names that I thought would have general agreement:

1. Little Billy from Family Circus
2. Satan
3. Marcia Clark’s hair stylist

Witch Hunt
————

I have received unconfirmed reports that executives at Computer Associates
have tried to find out which one of their employees is really the ghost
writer for Dilbert.

One of the things they don’t teach you in business school is what to do when
your company starts to resemble a comic strip. I guess the executives at
Computer Associates figured that the best corrective action was to seek out
the author of the comic and punish him. That should improve morale.

In recent published reports I’ve also been described variously as an employee
of Hewlett-Packard, AT&T and Pacific Gas and Electric. And I’ve been rumored
to have links with most of the aerospace companies.

I think what’s really happening in all of these companies is that disgruntled
employees are starting rumors just to tweak management. Try starting the
rumor that the author of Dilbert works at your company — it’s worth 50
points in the DNRC and it’s more fun than scanning a photo of your butt and
pasting it at the top of your new org chart. (So I’ve heard.)

Origin of Bob the Dinosaur
—————————

New readers of Dilbert may be puzzled by the occasional appearance of a
dinosaur. Bob the dinosaur appeared several years ago after Dilbert did a
computer analysis which proved that dinosaurs couldn’t all be
extinct…therefore, logically, they must be hiding. That’s when Bob and his
dinosaur mate Dawn revealed that they had been hiding behind the couch.

Dawn is skilled at moving quietly among humans undetected, which is why you
rarely see her anymore. But Bob has to compensate for his poor stealth by
wearing tennis shoes to soften his footsteps.

So you see, it all makes perfect sense.

Complaint of Sexism in Dilbert and the DNRC
———————————————-

In the last newsletter I granted sainthood to two DNRC members for their
efforts in getting Dilbert in the local newspapers. By coincidence, both
saints were men. A few women wrote letters like this one:

——————————————————-
“Dear Mr. Adams:

OK, I love the strip, etc., but in the strip and in the
newsletter the assumption seems to be that it’s guys
talking to guys. I.e., the rights of saints include:

The right to relieve yourself in the parking lot of
any mall

The right to call any non-Saint “Big Guy”, as in
“How’s it goin’ Big Guy?”

That cuts out 51% of your readers, you know what I mean?
I’m not asking for political correctness here, but there
*are* women in the computer industry and lots of them
read your stuff. I’m just asking for a little
awareness.”
——————————————————-

My first reaction was to devise a brilliant and witty “reasonable doubt”
defense based on the theory that a rogue cop planted incriminating sexist
evidence in my newsletter.

I even paid my neighbor’s maid to support my story. But the whole plan
started to fall apart when Johnnie Cochran refused to handle my case because
he “…didn’t want to associate with a person like me.”

My second plan was to scratch myself in a socially unacceptable manner and
then spit. But I was sitting in my studio at the time and I figured that
this insightful and biting satire would be totally wasted on my cats.

Eventually my denial impulse subsided. I decided to plead guilty and mend my
sexist ways. As a sign of my enlightenment I have revised the rights of
saints to be more gender-sensitive:

1. The right to relieve yourself in the parking lot
of the mall, but only after waiting in a long
line.

2. The right to call any non-Saint “Beverly.”

I’m not just being politically correct. It’s the right thing to do.

Dogbert Answers My Mail
—————————

Dogbert answers the letters that I’m too polite to answer myself.

———————————————————-
Mr. Adams:

I was perusing a forwarded copy of your Dilbert newsletter
(v.4) and noticed two instances where you used “lay” when
you should have used “lie.” This is one of my biggest pet
peeves, and it distresses me no end that a talented (and
influential) cartoonist such as yourself should fall
victim to this pernicious grammatical faux pas. Please be
more careful in the future.

–m

p.s. I am not a crackpot.
———————————————————-

Dogbert responds:

Dear Crackpot,

Sounds like you need to get lied.

Dogbert

———————————————————-
Mr. Adams:

We are students at Dartmouth. We keep reading your strip
and can’t find any humor there. Is it supposed to be
funny or autobiographical or what?

— Timmy and Ron

———————————————————-

Dogbert responds:

Dear Timmy and Ron,

I hope you have athletic scholarships.

Dogbert

Best “P.S.” of the Year
———————–

Dear Scott,

Thanks for Dilbert. He’s often the only worthwhile reason for buying the
Sunday paper.

Dave

P.S. My name really isn’t Dave. I’ve changed my name to the symbol that
looks like the word “Dave.” I prefer to be addressed as “The guy formerly
known as Dave, who is now known as the symbol which looks like the word
‘Dave’ (but really isn’t the word Dave.)”

My new name is starting to cause some confusion. I think, in part, because
the pronunciation of my new name – the symbol that looks like the word “Dave”
– does not sound like the word “Dave” at all.

Unfortunately, my new name is pronounced differently depending on who is
addressing me. The exact pronunciation also depends on the season and the
temperature, but I usually don’t get mad at mispronunciations unless someone
makes absolutely no attempt at all to pronounce my name correctly.

Fortunately for you, Scott, the pronunciation of the symbol that looks like
the word “Dave” is exactly the same as the word Dave, even when its really
hot or cold outside. Of course, since this is e-mail, all this
pronunciation stuff doesn’t really matter.

Sending Ideas for Dilbert
————————-

Most of my ideas for the strip come from e-mail. (Thanks to all of you who
took the time.)

Remember, the best suggestions are theme ideas, not dialog or “gags.” I’ll
do the humor part. I’m most inspired by true examples of idiotic management
and clueless business practices. The best suggestions tend to be the ones
that can be expressed in a paragraph or less.

Send them to me, not a reply to the newsletter address. I’m at
scottadams@aol.com. Thanks!

***************** General Dilbert Facts *******************

The cartoon strip Dilbert began in 1989. It now appears in over 400 papers
in 10 countries. The author (that would be me) receives up to 100 e-mail
messages per day.

I read all of my e-mail personally. But obviously I’ve automated many
responses. If you get a canned response it just means my fingers are tired.
I love you, really.

Despite what you’ve heard, I don’t work at your company (unless your company
is Pacific Bell, where I work in the ISDN lab).

The most frequently asked question is “Why does Dilbert’s tie curl up like
that?” The answer is either A) It’s a metaphor for his inability to control
his environment or B) He’s just glad to see you.

Printing, Copying, Reprinting, Licensing of Dilbert
—————————————————

The copyright and trademark for Dilbert are owned by United Media in New
York. You can call them at 800-221-4816 (International callers use
01-212-692-3700). There would be a fee that depends on how you want to use
the strip or the characters.

Dilbert Books
————-

“Build a Better Life by Stealing Office Supplies” (new material about working
at a big company), Andrews & McMeel. (ISBN 0-8362-1757-8)

“Always Postpone Meetings with Time-Wasting Morons” (a compilation of the
first year), Andrews & McMeel.
(ISBN 0-8362-1758-6)

“Clues for the Clueless” from Andrews and McMeel. It’s new material on the
subject of manners using the Dilbert cast. (ISBN 0-8362-1737-3)

“Shave the Whales” (a compilation of the second year of Dilbert), Andrews &
McMeel. (ISBN 0-8362-1740-3)

“Bring Me the Head of Willy the Mailboy” (a compilation covering 10/5/90
through 5/18/91.), Andrews & McMeel. Due in bookstores around late April
1995. (ISBN 0-8362-1779-9)

Check with any bookstore. If that fails, call the publisher directly at
800-826-4216 and order by mail. (International callers use 01-816-932-6700)

Dilbert Business Videos:
————————

Six titles are currently available:

– Dilbert on Quality
– Dilbert on Managing Change
– Dilbert Does Sales
– Dilbert Does Meetings
– Just the Breaks #1 (Mingling Groups)
– Just the Breaks #2 (110%).

Prices start at $99.

Call 1-800-208-3535 for more information. (International callers use
01-617-262-4242)

Dilbert Shirts and Mugs from Signals:
————————————-

Call Signals Catalog at 800-663-9994. (International callers dial
01-612-659-4312.)

Design: St. Dogbert drives out demons of stupidity

Mug: Item #38823
T-Shirt: Item #38821
Sweat Shirt: Item #38822

Dilbert Shirts from Quality Classics:
————————————-

Coming soon to a retail store near you — Dilbert T-shirts and sweat shirts
from Quality Classics. There will be eighteen new designs in the first
batch. Look for ’em.

Dilbert Screen Savers
———————

The Dilbert Screen Saver (Windows or Mac) is available at major retail stores
and mail order. If you have any questions or want to order direct from
Delrina, feel free to call them at 1-800-315-5848 (international callers use
01-416-441-3676).

Online Dilbert Sources
———————-

– America Online (older daily strips) (Keyword: Dilbert)

– World Wide Web (NEW!!!)

http://www.unitedmedia.com/comics/dilbert

About the Dilbert List
———————-

It costs you nothing to be on the Dilbert Newsletter list, except for the
cost of your own e-mail.

I’m using a “List Server” system to automate this process. So this
newsletter will come to you from a different e-mail address than my personal
one. Don’t “reply” to the newsletter address please.

The frequency of the Dilbert Newsletter is approximately “whenever I feel
like it” which should be about three or four times a year.

How to Subscribe Automatically
——————————

You can subscribe to the Dilbert List automatically by sending an e-mail with
the address, subject and message shown:

Address: listproc@internex.net
Subject: Dilbert
Message: subscribe Dilbert_List Joe Blow

(except put your real name instead of Joe Blow).

Your e-mail address will be picked up automatically, so you need not specify
it. The only thing you customize is your first and last name.

Unsubscribing
————-

If you want to take your name off the list automatically, send an e-mail to
listproc@internex.net but include only these words in the body of the
message:

unsubscribe Dilbert_List

Put only the word “Dilbert” in the subject line.

Getting Old Newsletters
———————–

You can get back issues of the Dilbert Newsletter automatically by sending an
e-mail with this precise form:

Address: listproc@internex.net
Subject: Dilbert
Message: get dilbert_list newsletter_1.0

You can use that command form for newletters 1.0, 2.0, 3.0 and 4.0, sending a
different message for each.

But the best way is to visit the Dilbert web site if you have a web browser.
See above.

Problems Signing Up for the Newsletter
————————————–

If you tried unsuccessfully to subscribe to the newsletter just send e-mail
to me and I’ll sign you up manually. My personal address is still
scottadams@aol.com

If you got a strange message saying you can’t change your password, ignore
it. The password isn’t useful in this application.

Reprinting This Newsletter
————————–

Feel free to copy, post and distribute this newsletter within the bounds of
good netiquette.

Scott Adams
scottadams@aol.com

—
Vote YES for humanities.misc!!!! A hierarchy for the Liberal Arts!!!!
Mail me for the RFD, CFV, and Ballot for humanities.misc!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Court Philosopher and Barbarian, Dogbert’s New Ruling Class
Congratulations to Richie Ashburn, the newest member of the Hall of Fame.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #169, from hmccracken, 1218 chars, Sat Apr 8 15:21:24 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 8 Apr 1995 15:20:36 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9504081520.memo.52709@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!news.sprintlink.net!howland.reston.ans.net!ix.netcom.com!netnews
From: kasanoff@ix.netcom.com (Bruce Elliott)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: Pogo books
Date: 3 Apr 1995 21:59:38 GMT
Organization: Netcom
Lines: 15
Distribution: world
Message-ID: <3lpr4a$sms@ixnews3.ix.netcom.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: ix-stm1-08.ix.netcom.com

I have a favor to ask those of you who appreciate comic strips.

As publisher of the “Pogo is Back” newsletter, I’m always experimenting
with ways to keep Walt Kelly’s Pogo heritage alive. Our latest
experiment is to launch a home page on the Web.

Here’s the favor: could you please pass the word as widely as possible?
If any of you have the ability or inclination to do so, we would welcome
and and all links to our home page, which can be found at:

http://turnpike.net/emporium/G/go2pogo/index.html

Right now, the home page focuses on Pogo books, but we hope to soon add
cartoons, trivia, and lots more. Keep watching, and thanks for your
help.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #170, from hmccracken, 1385 chars, Mon Apr 24 02:27:01 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 24 Apr 1995 02:23:07 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9504240223.memo.9448@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!newstf01.news.aol.com!newsbf02.news.aol.com!not-for-mail
From: maureenf@aol.com (MaureenF)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Animation Event in Hollywood
Date: 14 Apr 1995 01:22:13 -0400
Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364)
Lines: 25
Sender: root@newsbf02.news.aol.com
Message-ID: <3ml0q5$k26@newsbf02.news.aol.com>
Reply-To: maureenf@aol.com (MaureenF)
NNTP-Posting-Host: newsbf02.mail.aol.com

Name That Toon invites you to a celebration of the life and art of Mary
Blair, the brilliant color stylist whose work defined the look of Disney
animation for three decades. Many pieces of her original artwork will be
on display.

Also in attendance will be a number of influential animators, voice
artists and other individuals who worked with Blair at the Disney studios.

– When:
Thursday, May 11, 7-9 p.m.

– Where:
Name That Toon
8483 Melrose Avenue
West Hollywood, CA 90069

RSVP by May 6th — call 213-653-5633.

Hors d’ouevres and liquid refreshments will be served.

A donation of $20 is requested.

All proceeds from this event will be donated to Women in Animation, a
non-profit organization which is a special project of ASIFA-Hollywood.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #171, from hmccracken, 2101 chars, Mon Apr 24 02:27:23 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 24 Apr 1995 02:23:39 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9504240223.memo.9452@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!newstf01.news.aol.com!newsbf02.news.aol.com!not-for-mail
From: maureenf@aol.com (MaureenF)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Animation Conference – Call for Papers
Date: 14 Apr 1995 02:32:04 -0400
Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364)
Lines: 37
Sender: root@newsbf02.news.aol.com
Message-ID: <3ml4t4$l5t@newsbf02.news.aol.com>
Reply-To: maureenf@aol.com (MaureenF)
NNTP-Posting-Host: newsbf02.mail.aol.com

THE SOCIETY FOR ANIMATION STUDIES
7TH ANNUAL CONFERENCE

September 29 – October 1, 1995

Hosted by:
The Department of Broadcasting, Cinema and Theatre
at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro

The Society for Animation Studies was created to promote the study of
animation history, theory and criticism throughout the world. Through
publications, exhibitions, public lectures and academic conferences, it
brings together scholars from inside and outside the traditional
university and archive settings. The SAS encourages research and debate
representing a diverse range of views and methodologies and, toward that
end, it seeks members from many disciplines and backgrounds.

The 1995 Conference will combine paper presentations, filmmaker panels,
teaching workshops and retrospective screenings covering a variety of
genres and historical periods. For the first time, publisher and
distributor representatives and sample products will be available to
promote a wide range of books, journals, videos and other materials
concerning animation, comic books, film, television, and related fields.

The deadline for proposals is May 15, 1995.

Questions and proposals should be directed to:

Professor Michael Frierson
The Dept. of Broadcasting, Cinema and Theatre
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro
100 Carmichael Building
Greensboro, NC 27412-5001 USA

Tel: 1-910-334-5360
Fax: 1-190-334-5001
E-mail: m_friers@steffi.uncg.edu

==========================
animation/best.of.net #172, from hmccracken, 1285 chars, Mon Apr 24 21:52:34 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 24 Apr 1995 21:50:47 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9504242150.memo.13267@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!news.sprintlink.net!howland.reston.ans.net!newsjunkie.ans.net!newstf01.news.aol.com!newsbf02.news.aol.com!not-for-mail
From: iignatz@aol.com (I Ignatz)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Boop-a-like contest!
Date: 21 Apr 1995 10:22:49 -0400
Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364)
Lines: 11
Sender: root@newsbf02.news.aol.com
Message-ID: <3n8f3p$kam@newsbf02.news.aol.com>
Reply-To: iignatz@aol.com (I Ignatz)
NNTP-Posting-Host: newsbf02.mail.aol.com

To celebrate the premiere of “Bettty Boop Confidential,” a collection of
Betty’s most risque cartoons from the 30s, New York’s Film Forum theater
is holding a Boop-a-like contest on May 12. “Best Boop” gets $500 Golden
Garter Award plus a $500 donation in the winner’s name to Gods Love We
Deliver (they deliver meals to homebound people with AIDS). Sign up
begins at 5:00 pm on May 12.

The film program, which runs for two weeks, includes many early Fleischer
Studios cartoons recently restored by UCLA, including SNOW WHITE (1994
inductee into the Library of Congress’ National Film Registry).

==========================
animation/best.of.net #173, from hmccracken, 1156 chars, Fri Apr 28 18:41:36 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Fri, 28 Apr 1995 18:35:56 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9504281835.memo.30669@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!satisfied.apocalypse.org!news2.near.net!lard.ftp.com!bloom-beacon.mit.edu!panix!not-for-mail
From: pheel@panix.com (Mike Pollock)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Bullwinkle on WWW!
Date: 26 Apr 1995 22:55:51 -0400
Organization: PANIX Public Access Internet and Unix, NYC
Lines: 17
Message-ID: <3nn13n$gsn@panix2.panix.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: panix2.panix.com
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2]

Bullwinkle is on the World Wide Web!

Frostbite Falls Page, Rocky and Bullwinkle’s Home Page,
is an unofficial web site devoted to Jay Ward cartoons.
Frostbite Falls Page contains episode guides, voice
credits, and other information on Rocky and Bullwinkle,
Hoppity Hooper, George of the Jungle, Cap’n Crunch, and
other great cartoons from Jay Ward, Alex Anderson, and Bill
Scott.

The address is:

http://www.pomona.claremont.edu/frostbite/Frostbite.html

The Frostbite Falls Page is maintained by Charles Ulrich,
ulrich@sfu.ca

==========================
animation/best.of.net #174, from hmccracken, 2610 chars, Fri Apr 28 18:41:53 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Fri, 28 Apr 1995 18:37:27 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9504281837.memo.30670@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!news.nyc.pipeline.com!newsjunkie.ans.net!howland.reston.ans.net!Germany.EU.net!EU.net!news.sprintlink.net!news.primenet.com!brandi
From: brandi@Primenet.Com (Brandi Weed)
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros,rec.arts.animation
Subject: Marc Davis Animation Lecture 4/26: Chuck Jones
Followup-To: alt.animation.warner-bros
Date: 28 Apr 1995 02:40:32 GMT
Organization: Primenet
Lines: 37
Message-ID: <3npkj0$esn@news.primenet.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: usr1.primenet.com
Xref: news1.delphi.com alt.animation.warner-bros:5854 rec.arts.animation:33177

If you weren’t fortunate enough to be in Los Angeles, or if you were but
couldn’t make it… it was a lot of fun for a measly $2 (and free parking)!

Jones is amazingly self-effacing, and very funny in a laconic way. He retold
a few anecdotes from Chuck Amuck, and as amusing as they were to read, they
were much more fun to hear… 10 shorts were shown (all WB, which was OK
but I would have liked seeing The Dot and the Line again), including the
new Chariots of Fur, which wasn’t bad (whether it will hold up for 40-50
years like the others is another matter).

There were three particularly interesting bits of info from Mr. Jones:

1) A follow-up book (autobiography?), Chuck Amuck Reducks (yes, that’s how
it’s spelled) will be out this spring.

2) Jones is directing a new Michigan J. Frog cartoon to be shown before
Batman Forever. I have to admit that I’m not sure how well this will
turn out as One Froggy Evening was so complete in itself; it’s like trying
to follow-up Casablanca or something. Jones noted that the new voice for
Michigan will be the singer currently in Beauty and the Beast onstage as
the Beast (I can’t remember his name).

3) One of the Pepe le Pew shorts has a lewd frame in it! According to Jones,
during one of the tight clinches between Pepe and the usual long-suffering
feline there is a frame showing intercourse. It went out in general release
because the producer found the frame after 2500 prints had been made and
was too cheap to pull and re-edit them all. Rather puckishly, Chuck didn’t
say *which* Pepe short it was… but I figure with all you rude boys with
laser discs and good VCRs, the frame will be in
alt.binaries.pictures.erotica.cartoons in two, three weeks tops. :] :]

Followups have been set to alt.animation.warner-bros.

—
Brandi Weed
brandi@primenet.com
http://www.primenet.com/~brandi

==========================
animation/best.of.net #175, from hmccracken, 4644 chars, Fri Apr 28 18:42:16 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Fri, 28 Apr 1995 18:41:07 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9504281841.memo.30688@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!citicorp.com!spcuna!news.columbia.edu!sawasdee.cc.columbia.edu!grd1
From: Gevian R Dargan
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: HEY!!! CHECK THIS OUT!!!!
Date: Wed, 26 Apr 1995 11:36:04 -0400
Organization: Columbia University
Lines: 81
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: sawasdee.cc.columbia.edu
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII
X-Sender: grd1@sawasdee.cc.columbia.edu

ANIMATED CONCEPTS The TV Series

Animated Concepts, Inc. in conjunction wit CTV (Columbia University
Television), The Lion Network is producing a 30-min program featuring news
and information in the Animation/Comics and Anime/Manga industries. The
purpose of this program is to bring these industries more into America’s
mainstream by showcasing the work of these industries in a format which is
accessible to fans of these of these industries as well as the uninitiated.
We, at Animated Concepts, want to not only entertain and inform the established
fans of Animation, Anime, Manga, and Comics, but we also want to draw in those
who are not fans or have not been exposed to the wonderful work being produced
in these industries. We believe this program will serve that purpose.

The format of the show will be two feature articles on a comic book
series, Manga series, Animated film/short/series, Anime(films, OAVs, etc.),
and related events (i.e. conventions); interviews (one per show) with
industry professionals and the support community (i.e. retailers, convention
organizers, clubs, etc.) as well as a feature on current and comming events in
each of these industries.

We are asking, of the Internet/WWW community, for your help and support.
We want this program to be as professional, accurate, and informative as
possible. Unfortunately, we do not know everything and we can use your help
to fill in any gaps in our own research. We need various kinds of information
regarding the different topics we hope to cover each program. We need your
opinions, knowledge.. aynthing which you feel will help to make this program a
success. *ANIMATED CONCEPTS The TV Series does not generate any profit for
Animated Concepts, Inc.* We mention this because the main objective of this
program is to demonstrate that each of the industries featured on the show
are not only entertaining, but are also viable forms of storytelling.
Routinely, we will be asking people to please send us info. on a particular
Anime or comic we will be featuring on the show, please respond and any
information that you submit and is used will be properly credited.

For the pilot episode, we need information on the following:

1. GATCHAMAN

Home pages Sandy Frank/Battle of The Planets
FTP sites Impact on fans of animation/anime worldwide
Air Dates What made it a good show.. What was not so good..
Background on series (i.e. charcters, settings, premise)
Producers of both the Original Gatchaman series and the new
OAVs

2. X-MEN

Home pages Impact on fans of animation worldwide
FTP sites Good Show or bad?
Air dates Producers of the current series and the original pilot
as well as any info. you may have regarding the appearances
of the X-Men in the “Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends” series
(There were 3 appearances in total)

Also, any info. of importance on the comics, like things not generally
known

3. Any tidbits of information on the following.. Batman Forever, Mortal
Kombat the movie, Samurai Spirits (or Showdown) the (TV) special,
WildC.A.T.S. animated series, and Exo-Squad.

This is a program which I feel which not change the faces of these
industries as we know it, but I do feel it will serve as an effective vehicle
for introducing the quality elements of each of these industries to America’s
mainstream, who for various reasons, do not realize nor appreciate some of the
work being produced.

If you have any information to offer, questions or concerns, then please
contact me at grd1@columbia.edu I can’t wait to hear from you and if anyone
who would like to see this program, I will send copies to those interested.
Look out for the Animated Concepts home page newsletter.

Sincerely,

Gevian Dargan
President/Owner

==========================
animation/best.of.net #176, from hmccracken, 1426 chars, Wed May 24 04:44:04 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Wed, 24 May 1995 04:42:12 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9505240442.memo.23448@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!world!bloom-beacon.mit.edu!gatech!news.sprintlink.net!nntp.earthlink.net!sworth.earthlink.net!user
From: sworth@vintageip.com (Stephen W. Worth)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Betty Boop Revival
Date: Thu, 18 May 1995 18:38:16 -0700
Organization: Vintage Ink & Paint
Lines: 19
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: sworth.earthlink.net

Good news!

I just heard that they’re planning to release a feature length compilation
of Fleischer cartoons to theaters this summer… The travelling road show
will include “Snow White”, “Poor Cinderella”, “Dancing on the Moon” and an
Ethel Merman sing-along among others… Many of the prints will be
restored copies from the UCLA Film and Television Archives, so they should
look incredible. Also, AMC will be doing a Fleischer festival in August
featuring Betty Boop as well. It should be a good summer for Fleischer
fans!

See ya,
Steve Worth

______________________________________________
Stephen W. Worth Animation Art
Vintage Ink & Paint Restoration, Authentication
sworth@vintageip.com Appraisal and Sales
==== Free info for animation art collectors via e-mail. ====

==========================
animation/best.of.net #177, from hmccracken, 1049 chars, Sat May 27 01:21:36 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 27 May 1995 01:20:36 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9505270120.memo.35497@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!george.inhouse.compuserve.com!news.inhouse.compuserve.com!news.production.compuserve.com!news
From: Tracy Grand <74774.2002@CompuServe.COM>
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,rec.arts.misc,rec.arts.movies
Subject: Casper on the WWW!
Date: 24 May 1995 05:37:32 GMT
Organization: Digital Planet
Lines: 10
Message-ID: <3pugms$qfc$1@mhadf.production.compuserve.com>
Xref: news1.delphi.com rec.arts.animation:34083 rec.arts.misc:3174 rec.arts.movies:236334

Get an afterlife in the hair-raising interactive tour of
Amblin/Universal’s Casper…Match wits with Casper and the infamous
Ghostly Trio in a web game where you can’t take anything for
granted. Watch out because this site will be different every time
you play it.

Casper location at
http://www.mca.com/universal_pictures/casper/index.html

Casper opens in theaters May 26th!

==========================
animation/best.of.net #178, from hmccracken, 1695 chars, Tue May 30 01:44:34 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 30 May 1995 01:41:23 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9505300141.memo.41704@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!mr.net!winternet.com!pinch.io.org!interlog.com!usenet.eel.ufl.edu!news-feed-1.peachnet.edu!gatech!news.sprintlink.net!noc.netcom.net!ix.netcom.com!netnews
From: evanier@ix.netcom.com (Mark Evanier)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,alt.animation.warner-bros.
Subject: R.I.P., Friz Freleng
Date: 26 May 1995 18:47:14 GMT
Organization: Netcom
Lines: 21
Distribution: world
Message-ID: <3q57ni$bri@ixnews2.ix.netcom.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: ix-la15-21.ix.netcom.com

Stan Freberg just phoned me with the sad but inevitable news that
Isadore “Friz” Freleng passed away early this morning. Friz was one
of the last two surviving directors of classic Warner Brothers
cartoons.

He was a small man with a loud voice; the character of Yosemite Sam
was based in part on his temper…but he was loved by the entire
industry. He directed many of the best Bugs Bunny cartoons and
specialized in Tweety & Sylvester and Speedy Gonzales films. He
later formed DePatie-Freleng studios where he was part of the creation
of the Pink Panther.

The few times I met him, he proved to be a walking animation school
with stories and lessons about everything and a great willingness to
share his expertise and to encourage new people. He had been very
ill the last few years (a $2000-a-plate testimonial dinner was
continually postponed) and his death this morning was probably a
blessing for him and his family, as he was not likely to ever get
well enough for the event to happen.

He will be missed.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #179, from hmccracken, 2899 chars, Tue May 30 01:45:05 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 30 May 1995 01:42:17 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9505300142.memo.41733@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!news.vanderbilt.edu!NewsWatcher!user
From: ewing@vhp.vanderbilt.edu (Rick Ewing)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: The Life of Isadore “Friz” Freleng
Date: Sat, 27 May 1995 01:27:55 -0500
Organization: Vanderbilt Health Plans
Lines: 42
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: 129.59.171.29
X-Newsreader: Value-Added NewsWatcher 2.0b24.0+

With the death of Friz Freleng, I can’t help but remark that I don’t
believe that today’s youth really appreciate the contributions to
animation that giants like Freleng made on the tunes we enjoy. We’ve seen
the name “Friz Freleng” on so many cartoons pass by our television screens
in the last 35 years that it’s almost passe how much this man
contributed. From wha I remember of his life, Friz started at Disney in
the late twenties when animation there was just starting to bear fruit.
Walt Disney fired him for being away from the job one day, but he was soon
picked up by the Harmon-Ising animation duo to create cartoons for the
fledgling Warner Bros. animation studio in 1930. By the time that the
studio was shut down in 1964, classic characters such as Porky Pig, Daffy
Duck, Bugs Bunny, Yosemite Sam, Tweety Pie & Sylvester, Speedy Gonzoles,
and yes, even Bosko and Buddy all passed under his pen. Contrary to the
media reports today, he was *not* the creator of Bugs Bunny (Tex Avery
deserves that title with the name borrowed from an earlier rabbit creation
from Ben “Bugs” Hardaway and Cal Dalton). But that does not diminish the
contribution that Friz gave to Bugs in shaping that wascally wabbit that
we all know and love today. Of the giants of Warner Bros animation
history, including Friz, Robert Clampett, and Robert McKimson, only Chuck
Jones still lives.

Even with the shutdown of the Warner Bros. “Termite Terrace” animation
studio in 1964, Freleng wasn’t finished. Combining forces with David
Depatie, he created a new animation company that created cartoons for
Warner under contract through 1969. Depatie-Freleng created the Pink
Panther cartoons, as well as a host of other memorable creations seen on
Saturday morning and other specials and if memory served me correct, they
are still turning out cartoons.

I for one will find the copy of the Bugs Bunny cartoon where Friz lampoons
himself as an astronomer that looks up to the heavens to see Bugs Bunny
piloting a rocket ship hooked to every planet and piece of space-debris
imaginable and I will have to wonder what Friz, Robert C., Robert K., and
Mel Blanc are all doing now. Probably making eternity laugh.

–Rick Ewing
Vanderbilt University

—
–Rick Ewing
Vanderbilt University
ewing@vhp.vanderbilt.edu

==========================
animation/best.of.net #180, from hmccracken, 1391 chars, Sun Jun 11 21:14:26 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 11 Jun 1995 21:06:42 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9506112106.memo.85261@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.animation.warner-bros

Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!recepsen.aa.msen.com!simtel!noc.netcom.net!netcom.com!wbb
From: wbb@netcom.com (Will Bell)
Subject: Freleng’s death and WBSS galleries
Message-ID:
Organization: Certified Loonies, Ltd., Gene Splicer, President
Date: Sun, 28 May 1995 03:31:58 GMT
Lines: 19
Sender: wbb@netcom15.netcom.com

With the death of Friz Freleng, there has suddenly been a run on WBSS
galleries to buy his signed limited edition prints. Indeed, all pieces
are being held at the warehouse and no longer being shipped to stores
without orders.

For the curious, WBSS plans to raise prices on all Freleng cels in
mid-June. And, a Freleng piece which was to be released in the near
future and sell for about $600 is being delayed for a few months. When
it is finally released its price will be about $1600.

I refrain mightily from commenting on this, and leave you to draw your
own conclusions. The bottom line is, anyone who might have wanted one
of the Friz Freleng limited edition cels from a WBSS would be
well-advised to get it ASAP.

—
Will Bell — wbb@netcom.com
A moment of silence in memory of Elizabeth Montgomery.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #181, from hmccracken, 2907 chars, Tue Jun 13 00:07:28 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 13 Jun 1995 00:06:49 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9506130006.memo.89556@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.disney

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!europa.chnt.gtegsc.com!howland.reston.ans.net!news.cac.psu.edu!news.pop.psu.edu!hudson.lm.com!newsfeed.pitt.edu!befst3
From: befst3+@pitt.edu (Brian E Foote)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.disney
Subject: Pocahontas Review!!!!!!
Date: 11 Jun 1995 16:24:04 GMT
Organization: University of Pittsburgh
Lines: 55
Message-ID: <3rf5b4$hnf@usenet.srv.cis.pitt.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: unixs5.cis.pitt.edu
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2]

Well, I have read ZM’s post about the movie. Let me post my opinion.
First, about the day. I got there at two and the gates were already
open. The stage shows were already started. They had different groups
from the Disneyland and DisneyWorld parks. They also had Lebo M. who did
the Rythm of the Pridelands and some of the music in the Lion King.

I liked the stage shows. I thought they were entertaining in a typical
Disney fashion. I felt like I was at a theme park, and my friends and I
had a great day. Everyone around us was incredibly excited as well.

The lines were a little long. I stood in line 2 and a half hours for
souviniers. The food lines were long too, but people didn’t seem to mind.
You just got to know the people around you.

Now on to the movie…….

Just before the movie, there was the musical productin with all the people
ZM mentioned. This was incredbile. I especially liked Sam Wright, Jodi
Benson, Paige O’Hara, and Ernie Sabella.

The movie started abruptly. I don’t want to give too many spoilers away.
Other people can give the spoilers.

I thought the movie was more reminiscient of BatB. The colors were dark.
The tone was serious.

I thought the movie was as good as BatB. In my group of friends, there was
one person who didn’t like it. She liked it, but didn’t love it shall we
say.

The storm scene in the beginning was incredible. The music was great. It
started raining during the storm at sea in real life, kind of like
muppet vision 3-D.

The one friend’s complaint was similar to ZM’s. Not enough plot and
character development. I agree that there could have been more character
development, but the plot was fabulous. That is why there wasn’t as
much character development.

It is an emotional roller coaster of a movie. It is inspiring, happy,
sad, angry, remorseful, and many other emotions all wrapped up together.
Just go see it and find out for yourself.

There were no credits shown last night, but they had all the pop stars come
out and sing the credit music live. That was pretty nice. Then an
incredible firework production.

Well, I have to run, since this is a long distance call to st this message.
I may write more later.

Brian E. Foote
FDC Wannabe Gurgi
befst3+@pitt.edu

==========================
animation/best.of.net #182, from hmccracken, 5857 chars, Wed Jun 28 00:36:36 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 26 Jun 1995 23:25:03 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9506262325.memo.37017@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!europa.chnt.gtegsc.com!news.sprintlink.net!cs.utexas.edu!geraldo.cc.utexas.edu!mickey.cc.utexas.edu!not-for-mail
From: jfl@mickey.cc.utexas.edu (Juan F. Lara)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.disney,rec.arts.animation
Subject: Review: “Pocahontas”
Date: 25 Jun 1995 18:50:02 -0500
Organization: The University of Texas at Austin; Austin, Texas
Lines: 91
Message-ID: <3sksna$8ir@mickey.cc.utexas.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: mickey.cc.utexas.edu
Xref: news1.delphi.com rec.arts.disney:97230 rec.arts.animation:35261

I just saw “Pocahontas”, and here’s some thoughts on it. Sorry if I
repeat any old points.

“Pocahontas” started out unfocused and uninvolving, but at a key point in
the plot the film becomes mesmerizing.

MAJOR SPOILER WARNING
( Not for those who have not seen the film )

The first half of the film moved at a breakneck pace that alienated me.
One minute we’re in England, the next the settlers are in the storm, the next
the Powhatens have just won a war, then Poca is betrothed, and so forth. I
just felt dazed and confused through this part of the film, and couldn’t latch
onto a storyline.
Poca at first came off for me as a clone of Ariel: willful and dreaming
of “finding her own path” the same way that Ariel wanted to explore the human
world. And her relationship with Powhaten was very much like Ariel and Triton,
with Powhaten wanting her to follow his plans for her future and feeling
frustrated by her willfulness.
We learn very little about John Smith’s personality at first; only that
he can do superhuman stunts like how he saved Thomas. 🙂 His reaction to the
New World in his part of “Mine, Mine, Mine” also reminded me of Prince Eric.
But he starts to develop his personality when he’s talking to Poca. I really
liked his lines just before “Colors of the Wind”, where he gave away the pre-
sumptions the settlers had of Indian culture without sounding stilted.
Actually, I found Governor Ratcliffe the most interesting character during
the first half. His lines just seemed better written than the others. Also,
they established his motivations when he briefly mentioned that this was his
“last chance” at success. So I could understand his desparation and disregard
for anyone else. Still, I would’ve liked to have had more background.
Kocoum gets no character development at all. People kept talking about
how “serious” he was. I wanted to find out WHY he was so serious. Koucum
should’ve had some dialogue with Poca or Powhaten, and then we could’ve learned
his perspective, and also gotten some background about the tribal war. I was
thinking that the fighting had “hardened” him.
So if the film had been slower paced in the first half, we would’ve gotten
the needed character development, and the story would’ve been more compelling.
But then in the second half….

The makers of “The Fox and the Hound” tried to break new dramatic ground
in killing off Chief, but were thwarted. But in “Pocahontas” they finally get
to follow through. Kocoum’s death reminded me a LOT of Chief’s near-death, and
when it happened I realized that Kocoum occupied a place in the tribe similar
to Chief in the Slade household. Also, the subplot of Thomas trying to be a
good settler/Indian fighter was building up to this moment, but I didn’t guess
it beforehand. These dramatic points gave this scene a strong impact, ( Like-
wise, Poca’s anger over Kocoum’s death at that moment reminded me of Copper’s
reaction to finding Chief. )
Feeling the aftermath of that scene, I suddenly felt fully drawn into the
film. I found the “Savages” sequence very saddenly, with a lot of tension
building for the upcoming confrontation. Then Poca had the compass scene. I
never guessed for a moment the exact meaning of her dream, and her realization
was a memorable image. Also memorable was Poca rushing to the battlefield to
try to save Smith.
Finally the last scene of Poca protecting Smith resembled the climax of
“The Fox and the Hound”. Powhaten’s decision not to kill Smith had the same
dramatic force as Slade lowering his gun.
I also liked what ultimately happened to Ratcliffe. Definitely not what
usually happened to Disney villians. 🙂

MISCELLANEOUS POINTS

I did not like the animals at all. They didn’t seem very furry to me,
much like Abu in “Aladdin”. Instead they seemed obnoxious and high strung with
little characterization. Their slapstick was played too broadly, often clash-
ing with the dramatic tone. I thought that was particularly true in the scenes
just before Kocoum’s death. Meeko and Percy’s fighting almost ruined this
scene for me. Maybe after repeated viewings I’ll grow to like them, but I left
the film wondering how this film would be like if they had cut out the animal
characters altogether.
The music – I like Alan Mencken’s music in general. So I liked the film’s
score. The songs overall I liked better than those in “The Lion King”, with
“Just Around the RiverBend” my favorite for now. Sometimes though the songs
got in the way: Powhaten didn’t have to suddenly sing at the beginning, and I
wish the scene just before “Colors of the Wind” was longer.
Grandmother Willow had some funny lines. The premise of her fit into the
film’s spiritual tone. But I thought they pushed things too far in her being
real even to Ben and Lon.

So the film’s first could’ve been done better, but I liked the film’s
second half so much that it made me like the film overall.

– Juan F. Lara, #1 Gadget Hackwrench fan

Smith: Pocahontas. That tree is talking to me.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #183, from hmccracken, 1046 chars, Tue Jul 4 11:41:57 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 4 Jul 1995 11:39:15 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9507041139.memo.59789@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.animation.warner-bros.

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!europa.chnt.gtegsc.com!news.sprintlink.net!netnet2.netnet.net!news2.netnet.net!kryten.awinc.com!pme026.awinc.com!user
From: ldyck@awinc.com (Jeff Dyck)
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: Chuck Jones biography
Date: Sun, 25 Jun 1995 22:12:54 +0000
Organization: A & W Internet Inc.
Lines: 6
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: pme026.awinc.com

Has anybody read Chuck’s autobiography “Chuck Amuck”? Just wondering if
its worth picking up. I read “Chuck Jones: A Flurry of Drawings” a few
months back. It’s a brief but interesting account of the early days of WB
and of Chuck’s great career. The author, Hugh Kenner has a great writing
style that makes it worth while. He’s a literary critic and approaches
Chuck’s work like Shelley or Shakespeare. Worth checking out.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #184, from hmccracken, 2622 chars, Sun Jul 9 13:29:17 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 9 Jul 1995 13:28:10 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9507091328.memo.75616@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.animation.warner-bros.

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!news.sprintlink.net!nntp.earthlink.net!asifa.earthlink.net!user
From: asifa@earthlink.net (Davrick Waltjen)
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: Ojai Animation Conference, July 22nd
Date: Thu, 06 Jul 1995 20:06:30 -0700
Organization: ASIFA-Hollywood
Lines: 37
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: asifa.earthlink.net

The Ojai Animation Conference, taking place on Saturday, July 22, is a
retreat for the animation community to exchange ideas, screen
works-in-progress and examine new technologies. The all day conference,
centered on the theme of “A New Industry for New Markets,” takes place in
the beautiful resort town of Ojai, California, about an hour-an-a-half
north of Los Angeles.
The Conference will begin at 11:00 a.m. with the first of three panel
discussions entitled: *Women In The Director’s Chair: Where Are They?*
This panel will be examining trends in animation for women director’s, and
will be chaired by President and Fonder of Women In Animation, Rita
Street. The panel will also feature Warner Bros. Senior VP of Operations,
Michael Laney.
The second panel featured is: *Not By Fairy Tales Alone: Alternative
Approaches To Animation,* a discussion asks: *Why do contemporary features
have to be fairy tales- Can it be more than singing dogs and talking
dinosaurs?* The panel will be moderated by Jerry Beck, Vice President of
Animation, Nickelodeon Movies.
The final panel (but not the final event!) will be *Animator
$uperstar, a panel which explores the implications of the emergence of
superstar animators from both a financial and artistic perspective. Editor
and Publisher of *The Animation Report*, Harvey Deneroff, will moderate
this panel.
Our dinner will feature keynote speaker, Bill Kroyer, Director, Warner
Bros. Feature Animation and former President of Kroyer Films.
Topping off our schedule will be the Works-in-Progress screening,
featuring clips from unreleased productions in various stages of release.

If you are interested in attending the Ojai Animation Conference, please
call 818.842.8330 for a brochure with information on times, prices,
directions and lodging.

&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%

Davrick Waltjen The International Animated Film Society
asifa@earthlink.net ASIFA-Hollywood

&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%

==========================
animation/best.of.net #185, from hmccracken, 1106 chars, Wed Jul 19 18:39:23 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Wed, 19 Jul 1995 18:29:30 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9507191829.memo.12578@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!dziuxsolim.rutgers.edu!pion.rutgers.edu!not-for-mail
From: nebus@pion.rutgers.edu (Joseph Nebus)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: Newsday goes down…so much for Truth etc.
Date: 18 Jul 1995 22:08:02 -0400
Organization: Rutgers University
Lines: 10
Distribution: world
Message-ID: <3uhpe2$rnn@pion.rutgers.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: pion.rutgers.edu

It’s of marginal relevance, but we probably should note the
passing of New York Newsday. It had (in my opinion) (and by default) the
strongest comic section of the New York papers; and for quite some time
its advertising slogan was one of the few–and the only one in a marketing
campaign I’ve directly experienced–to emphasize its comics as a selling
point (“New York Newsday: Truth, Justice, and the Comics”).

Joseph Nebus
——————————————————————————

==========================
animation/best.of.net #186, from hmccracken, 4715 chars, Sat Jul 22 21:18:02 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 22 Jul 1995 21:17:22 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9507222117.memo.36921@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in2.uu.net!spool.mu.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!news.sprintlink.net!news.dgsys.com!DGS.dgsys.com!robin
From: robin@dgsys.com (Robin Netherton)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: Rewrite Peanuts! Wash. Post contest
Date: 19 Jul 1995 00:09:00 GMT
Organization: Digital Gateway Systems
Lines: 69
Distribution: world
Message-ID: <3uhies$6fm@news.dgsys.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: dgs.dgsys.com
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2]

Given the recent discussion on this group about Charles Schulz’s loss
of edge, I thought r.a.c.s readers would be interested in this week’s
Style Invitational contest from the Washington Post.

(For non-Washingtonians: The Post’s features section (“Style”) runs an
irreverent competition every Sunday, in which readers submit their
ideas in some particular topic area. Recent contests have included
awkward Muzak tunes to hear when on hold to some celebrity’s house,
mottos for the proposed state of D.C., silly poems, unfortunate
misspellings of newspaper headlines, etc. Responses are usually funny,
sometimes gross, occasionally offensive. The first prize is usually
disgusting or useless, but three or four runners-up get neat t-shirts,
and the dozen or two honorable mentions get bumper stickers. More
important, they get fame; a few frequent winners have attained local
folk-hero status.)

Herewith is the text of the contest announced July 16. (The tone of
the announcement will give you a sense of the feature.) Deadline for
entries is Monday, 7/24. I would encourage any r.a.c.s readers who
think they can do better than Schulz to enter; email entries are
accepted. And I personally would love to see those entries posted to
this group, too. If people are interested in seeing the winning
entries, let me know and I will post them when they are announced in
three weeks’ time.

Washington Post text follows (any typos are mine):

This week’s contest was suggested by Gary Patishnock of Laurel
[MD], who wins the following anagram of his name: “Crap-stink
hoagy.” Gary suggests that we try to help out old Charles
Schulz, a once-brilliant, cutting-edge cartoonist whose X-Acto
knife appears to have dulled just a bit over the years.
Personally, we trace the decline of “Peanuts” to the
introduction of Woodstock, the witless bird who talks in
apostrophes. Whatever happened to Linus, the philosopher? To
Pig Pen, the disagreeable little dirtball? What’s up with this
dog who talks to cactuses? Why has nothing funny happened since
1962? How can we help Charles Schulz reanimate “Peanuts”? Your
challenge is to come up with a new story line for the strip,
some plot development or new character that will put the strip
back on the road to relevance. You don’t have to draw it. Just
describe it. We’ll handle the art. First-prize winner gets his
or her idea illustrated by Bob Staake [a cartoonist who
illustrates the Invitational and other Post articles]. We would
promise you the “original” illustration, but there is no such
thing as an “original” Staake illustration. Staake faxes us his
cartoons. We have never actually met him. We are not even
certain for sure that he exists. “Bob Staake” could be a boiler
room operation employing 200 illegal alien artists from Honduras
and Benin, for all we know. So what you will get is a fax of
your idea illustrated by someone, or some enterprise, doing
business as Bob Staake. We will frame it.
Runners-up, as always, get the coveted Style Invitational
losers’ T-shirts. Honorable mentions get the mildly sought-after
Style Invitational bumper stickers. Winners will be selected on
the basis of humor and originality. Mail your entries to the
Style Invitational, Week 122, The Washington Post, 1150 15th St.
NW, Washington, DC 20071, fax them to 202-334-4312, or submit
them via the Internet to this address: losers@access.digex.net.
Internet users: Please indicate the appropriate Week Number in
the “subject” field. Entries must be received on or before
Monday, July 24. Please include your address and phone number.
Winners will be announced in three weeks. Editors reserve the
right to alter entries for taste, appropriateness, or humor. No
purchase necessary. Employees of the Washington Post and their
immediate families are not eligible for prizes.

–Robin N.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #187, from hmccracken, 4718 chars, Sun Aug 6 22:48:38 1995
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From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 6 Aug 1995 22:48:08 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9508062248.memo.98716@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.sprintlink.net!howland.reston.ans.net!news-e1a.megaweb.com!newstf01.news.aol.com!newsbf02.news.aol.com!not-for-mail
From: iignatz@aol.com (I Ignatz)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Boop/Adopt-A-Cartoon benefit at Academy 8/7
Date: 2 Aug 1995 09:27:14 -0400
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(ASIFA-Hollywood press release)

BETTY BOOP JOINS CAMPAIGN
TO SAVE ENDANGERED CARTOONS

AUGUST 7 SCREENING AT ACADEMY OF MOTION PICTURE ARTS AND
SCIENCES TO BENEFIT CARTOON PRESERVATION AT UCLA

BURBANK — Betty Boop is pitching in to help save some of her cartoon
contemporaries. On August 7, the cartoon queen will kick off an
international ADOPT-A-CARTOON fundraising campaign at a gala Academy of
Motion Picture Arts and Sciences benefit screening of her early films to
which all her fans are invited.

The ADOPT-A-CARTOON program allows groups and individuals to “adopt”
animated “orphans” — pre-1950 cartoons shot on unstable nitrate stock —
so that film archivists may restore and preserve them for future
generations. The program is run by the Animation Preservation Project of
The International Animated Film Society, ASIFA-Hollywood, which announced
Miss Boop’s appointment as the official ADOPT-A-CARTOON spokescharacter
during the organization’s recent ‘Anifest 1995’ convention. The campaign
is being launched with the support of King Features, licensing agents for
Betty Boop.

Entertainment Tonight critic Leonard Maltin, author of OF MICE AND MAGIC:
A HISTORY OF AMERICAN ANIMATED CARTOONS, will host the August 7 benefit
screening of BETTY BOOP CONFIDENTIAL, a critically acclaimed new
retrospective released by Kit Parker Films in honor of Betty Boop’s 65th
year in show business. The collection features SNOW WHITE (the pre-Disney
Betty Boop short recently added to the National Film Registry at the
Library of Congress) and other cartoons recently preserved by the UCLA
Film and Television Archive. Tickets are just $10 each, and all money
raised from the screening will be donated to UCLA by ASIFA-Hollywood to
cover direct lab costs associated with continued cartoon preservation.

The festivities begin Monday, August 7 at 7:30 p.m., when the red carpet
is rolled out in front of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
(Samuel Goldwyn Theater, 8949 Wilshire Boulevard, Beverly Hills) for the
arrival of the “Boop-mobile” – a red vintage caddy convertible – bearing a
glamourously attired Betty Boop and her escorts. The screening will be
preceded by a short presentation about animation preservation and comments
from acclaimed director Richard Fleischer, son of Max Fleischer, who first
brought Betty out-of-the-inkwell in the summer of 1930.

“ASIFA-Hollywood is pleased to welcome Betty Boop to the ADOPT-A-CARTOON
program,” says Antran Manoogian, President of ASIFA-Hollywood. “With
Betty’s help, we feel confident that we can attract enough contributions
to preserve many of the thousands of cartoons that are slowly turning to
dust in film vaults.” Manoogian puts the estimated average cost of
preserving a cartoon short at between $1,500 and $5,000.

“We are delighted to join ASIFA-Hollywood and King Features in celebrating
Betty Boop’s 65th successful year in show business,” says Robert Rosen,
Director of the UCLA Film & Television Archive. “UCLA will dedicate the
proceeds from the event to the urgent preservation of animated film.”

Tickets may be purchased at the screening for $10 each; seating is
limited. For more information, contact the ASIFA-Hollywood at (818)
842-8330. Donations and requests for information on how to adopt a
cartoon should be mailed to ASIFA-Hollywood/Animation Preservation
Project, 725 South Victory Boulevard, Burbank, CA 91502.

# # #

ADOPT-A-CARTOON is a program of the Animation Preservation Project
of ASIFA-Hollywood, the largest chapter of the Association Internationale
du Film D’Animation

UCLA Film and Television Archive is one of the leading media centers in
the U.S.
and has worldwide prominence in film preservation.

King Features, a division of the Hearst Corporation, is the world’s
largest distributor of feature material to newspapers and a worldwide
leader in classic character licensing.

iignatz@aol.com (Amanda Hass)

==========================
animation/best.of.net #188, from hmccracken, 36501 chars, Sun Aug 13 11:45:00 1995
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From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 13 Aug 1995 11:42:53 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9508131142.memo.21851@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
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From: MDB@CUNYVMS1.GC.CUNY.EDU (BARNHILL MARC)
Subject: Flintstones FAQ
Message-ID: <1995Aug12.190652.12717@timessqr.gc.cuny.edu>
Sender: news@timessqr.gc.cuny.edu (USENET News System)
Organization: GRADUATE SCHOOL AND UNIVERSITY CENTER, CUNY, NEW YORK
Date: Sat, 12 Aug 1995 19:06:52 GMT
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Lines: 749

======================================================================
Bedrock Online (The Flintstones Mailing List)
======================================================================

THE FLINTSTONES FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS LIST
v 1.2 8-12-95

Compiled by Marc Barnhill, list owner
Supplementary material and corrections provided by Joe Cabrera

======================================================================

Contact the list owner at with comments,
corrections, and additions.

———————————————————————-
CONTENTS:

1. Bedrock Online administrivia.
2. When and where did _The Flintstones_ originally run?
3. Didn’t the series originally have a different name?
4. But wasn’t there a _Flagstones_ “pilot”?
5. Were the opening and closing sequences always the same?
6. What are the lyrics to “(Meet) The Flintstones”?
7. What’s up with that cat, anyway? It appears in the framing
sequences but never in the show!
8. Didn’t Dino talk once?
9. Hold on, didn’t the dinosaurs die out quite some time before the
first humans appeared on earth?
10. What were the origins and early history of the show?
11. Wasn’t _The Flintstones_ based on _The Honeymooners_?
12. But didn’t Jackie Gleason try to sue Hanna-Barbera for imitating
_The Honeymooners_?
13. Who were the creative talents behind the show?
14. Forget camera operators and layout technicians, who did the
voices?
15. Where did “Yabba-dabba-doo” come from?
16. Did the Flintstones originally have a son?
17. Don’t the [houses/furniture/streets/cars/people] seem to change in
appearance from episode to episode?
18. I remember seeing the show with a laugh track, but my local/cable
station has none. How did the series originally air?
19. What celebrities visited Bedrock?
20. Where did Bamm-Bamm come from?
21. Where did the Great Gazoo come from?
22. Where does Barney work?
23. So just how many different incarnations of _The Flintstones_ have
there been?
24. How widely is _The Flintstones_ seen today?
25. What is the best general reference work on the show?
26. Are any _Flintstones_ episodes available on video?
27. Are there any Flintstones-related resources accessible by
computer?
———————————————————————-
1. Bedrock Online administrivia.

a. Posting

To post a message to everyone on the mailing list, send it to:

bedrock-list@netcom.com

with a Subject line indicating the content of your post.

b. Administrative commands

Administrative commands are handled by an automated Majordomo
list server. All such commands should be sent to:

listserv@netcom.com

Do NOT send administrative commands to . If
you do, your commands will be received by all list members and
will not be processed.

The basic commands are:

SUBSCRIBE bedrock-list Adds your e-address to the list
UNSUBSCRIBE bedrock-list Removes you from the list
HELP Provides information on all
Majordomo commands

c. List use and abuse

Generally speaking, anything relating to the various
_Flintstones_ series, specials, movies, comic books and other
offshoots is an appropriate topic for the list. Such topics
may include, but are certainly not limited to, debates or
essays on the philosophical and cultural implications of the
series, announcements of rumored or confirmed new projects,
discussion of plot points and series continuity, reviews of
episodes or specials, inquiries and responses regarding
artists associated with the series, nostalgic threads
involving favorite episodes/characters/animal inventions,
general questions, and trivia.

As always, the rules of netiquette apply here. Friendly
disagreement is encouraged, but personal attacks are not
acceptable. This list is unmoderated, but the owner reserves
the right to remove any subscriber who repeatedly abuses it.

Tape and merchandise exchanges are not forbidden, but should
be kept within reasonable limits so as not to interfere with
the primary purpose of the list, which is discussion. An
appropriate use of the forum in this regard would be a brief
request or announcement pertaining to the item(s) in
question, followed by correspondence via private e-mail.

d. Contacting the list owner

All special requests, questions, and suggestions should be
directed to list owner Marc Barnhill at

mdb@cunyVMS1.gc.cuny.edu

e. Online documents

The following documents are available upon request from the
list owner:

* The Flintstones Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) List
* The Flintstones Episode Guide: Original series, 1960-66
* Digested back-posts of Bedrock Online

Please direct requests for these documents only to the list
owner; do NOT post such requests to the mailing list.
———————————————————————-
2. When and where did _The Flintstones_ originally run?

_The Flintstones_ premiered on September 30, 1960 on ABC, and ran for
six seasons (166 episodes) on Fridays at 8:30 p.m. The final episode
aired on April 1, 1966.
———————————————————————-
3. Didn’t the series originally have a different name?

Yes. The original name of the series (and its starring family) was
“The Flagstones.” The name had to be changed when it was realized
that the “Hi and Lois” characters’ surname was Flagston. The name
“Gladstones” was briefly considered before the final change to
“Flintstones.”
———————————————————————-
4. But wasn’t there a _Flagstones_ “pilot”?

A screen test for _The Flagstones_ running one minute and 42 seconds
was made to help calm down anxious financial backers. The characters
look rather different here–Betty looks almost nothing at all like her
now-familiar self–but the segment is otherwise nearly identical to
the lunch/swimming-pool/spear-fishing scene in episode P-1 (“The
Swimming Pool”).
———————————————————————-
5. Were the opening and closing sequences always the same?

The framing sequences for the first two seasons featured an
instrumental called “Rise and Shine.” The original opening sees Fred
driving home from work, zipping through the streets of Bedrock. He
slams his car into the garage, enters the house and sits down to watch
television–on which he himself appears, hawking the program’s
sponsors’ products. The original closing sequence has Fred turn off
the TV set, cover the bird cage, and attempt to put the cat out–after
which the cat puts him out instead. (“Wilma! Come on, Wilma, open
this door! Willllll-ma!”)

The more familiar framing sequences, the ones with the “Meet the
Flintstones” theme song, weren’t introduced until the third season.
The opening has Fred sliding down the tail of his dino-crane at
quitting time, picking up Wilma and the pets, and driving to the
movies (where “The Monster” is playing). The closing sequence has
them leave the movies, order giant ribs (which tip over the car) at a
drive-in restaurant, and go home, where Fred attempts to put out the
cat but gets put out himself instead. (“WILLLLLL-MA!”)

These last sequences were later altered to include the Rubbles and
accommodate the arrivals of Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm. Also, the
quitting-time whistle is given an actual whistle sound rather than the
original bird squawk.

A later closing sequence featured Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm singing “Open
Up Your Heart and Let the Sunshine In.”

Nowadays, most showings of the original series in syndication use the
third-season “Meet the Flintstones” sequences to frame episodes from
seasons 1 and 2. (The “Rise and Shine” opening, uncovered in 1994
after a worldwide search, is only known to exist in black and white.)
However, since the same end titles are now used for entire seasons,
the credits are inaccurate for nearly every episode anyway.
———————————————————————-
6. What are the lyrics to “(Meet) The Flintstones”?

The theme song’s lyrics were written by Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera,
with music by Hoyt Curtin, the studio’s musical director, who also
composed the background music for every episode of _The Flintstones_.
The song, actually a reworking of sad music already composed for one
of the episodes, was recorded with five singers and a 22-man jazz
band.

OPENING CREDITS:

Flintstones, meet the Flintstones
They’re the modern stone-age family
From the town of Bedrock
They’re a page right out of history
Let’s ride with the family down the street
Through the courtesy of Fred’s two feet
When you’re with the Flintstones
Have a yabba-dabba-doo time
A dabba-doo time
You’ll have a gay old time

In the CLOSING CREDITS, the “Let’s ride” and “Through the courtesy”
lines are replaced with

Some day, maybe Fred will win the fight
And that cat will stay out for the night

The “courtesy of Fred’s two feet” line is hopelessly indecipherable to
many people and was dubbed, in one of Rich Hall’s _Sniglets_
collections, a “Hanna-Barbarism.”

The fifth- and sixth-season theme music features a slight difference
in the vocals.

Interestingly, the song was actually recorded for the Golden Record
album _Songs from the Flintstones_ in 1961, a year before it appeared
as the program’s theme. Sung by the _Flintstones_ cast, the album
version features different lyrics, including a reference to Dino and
an entire “Rubbles, meet the Rubbles” section.

An excellent collection of the program’s songs and background music is
Rhino Records’ _The Flintstones: Modern Stone-Age Melodies_.
———————————————————————-
7. What’s up with that cat, anyway? It appears in the framing
sequences but never in the show!

Baby Puss, the Flintstone family’s cat, actually does appear a couple
of times in the original series, but is noticeably absent from the
vast majority of episodes–surprising, considering that the cat is the
only character other than Fred who is singled out in the aired theme
song’s lyrics. One possible explanation is that Dino and Baby Puss,
judging from what little evidence we have, generally did not get along
very well, so the cat didn’t hang around the house much.
———————————————————————-
8. Didn’t Dino talk once?

Dino frequently forms half-articulate phrases, though in a manner more
similar to that of Scooby-Doo than of the Jetsons’ Astro. However,
you may be thinking of episode P-11, “The Snorkasaurus Hunter,” in
which Fred and Barney attempt to catch a fast-talking creature called
a snorkasaurus (wonderfully voiced by Jerry Mann) for dinner. The
wives befriend the creature, who winds up acting as a sort of
all-purpose servant at the Flintstones’ house. Wilma refers to the
snorkasaurus as “Dino” toward the end of the episode, and he certainly
looks very similar (though not identical) to the family’s beloved
dogasaurus, but the similarity decidedly ends there.

Dino proper had already appeared as early as “No Help Wanted” (P-6),
and returns in “Love Letters on the Rocks” (P-21), which aired three
weeks after “The Snorkasaurus Hunter”–a situation that must have
confused more than a few viewers in 1961. The transition between the
two Dinos is one of the many intriguing curiosities in the show’s
history.

Alternatively, you may have in mind “Monster Fred” (P-118), in which
Len Frankenstone’s personality-switching machine temporarily gives
Dino Fred’s mind, manner and voice.
———————————————————————-
9. Hold on, didn’t the dinosaurs die out quite some time before the
first humans appeared on earth?

Yes. Live with it.
———————————————————————-
10. What were the origins and early history of the show?

That’s a very long story, but here’s the short version.

John Mitchell of Screen Gems (distributor for Hanna-Barbera
Productions) suggested a prime-time animated series, which had never
been attempted before. William Hanna and Joseph Barbera experimented
with different sorts of cartoon families before storyboard illustrator
Dan Gordon hit on the idea of cavemen and their “modern stone-age”
appliances. (Other accounts credit either Harvey Eisenberg or Milt
Rosen with the original idea. Bill Hanna maintains that Gordon’s was
the true inspiration.) Gordon’s sketches were forwarded to Ed
Benedict, who refined them into the characters of Fred, Wilma, Barney,
and Betty. (Benedict based his characters at least in part on cavemen
he designed for the 1955 Tex Avery MGM cartoon, “The First Bad Man.”)

Plot outlines (by Barbera and Gordon) and storyboards (by Gordon) were
drawn up for the first two episodes, and Barbera spent an exhausting
two months pitching the show before it was finally purchased by ABC in
March 1960. Equally nerve-wracking pitches were required before R. J.
Reynolds (the cigarette company) and Miles Laboratory (the makers of
Flintstones Vitamins) agreed to sponsor the program.

More problems arose as the pilot deadline approached and it seemed
that _The Flagstones_ (as it was then still called) would not be
ready. The Screen Gems people, however, decided they liked what they
saw and gave H-B a bit more time. A last-minute name change, and the
rest is (pre)history.
———————————————————————-
11. Wasn’t _The Flintstones_ based on _The Honeymooners_?

Sort of (maybe). Here’s what Bill Hanna himself has said on the
subject:

At that time “The Honeymooners” was the most popular show on
the air, and for my bill, it was the funniest show on the air.
The characters, I thought, were terrific. Now, that influ-
enced greatly what we did with “The Flintstones”….”The
Honeymooners” was there, and we used that as a kind of basis
for the concept.

Meanwhile, Joe Barbera says:

I don’t remember mentioning “The Honeymooners” when I sold the
show, but if people want to compare “The Flintstones” to “The
Honeymooners,” then great. It’s a total compliment. “The
Honeymooners” was one of the greatest shows ever written.
(Adams 38; see question 24)
———————————————————————-
12. But didn’t Jackie Gleason try to sue Hanna-Barbera for imitating
_The Honeymooners_?

Henry Corden, a friend of Jackie Gleason and the current voice of Fred
Flintstone, recalls:

Jackie’s lawyers told him he could probably have “The Flint-
stones” pulled right off the air. But they also told him, “Do
you want to be known as the guy who yanked Fred Flintstone off
the air? The guy who took away a show that so many kids love,
and so many of their parents love, too?” And apparently
Jackie thought it over and decided against it.
(Adams 38; see question 24)
———————————————————————-
13. Who were the creative talents behind the show?

_The Flintstones_ could not have existed without the able skills
of one of the best teams in television history:

cocreators and executive producers William Hanna and Joseph Barbera;

writers R. Allen, Joseph Barbera, Tony Benedict, Walter Black, Barry
Blitzer, Harvey Bullock, Alan Dinehart, Herb Finn, Warren Foster,
Ralph Goodman, Joanna Lee, Mike Maltese, Larry Markes, George
O’Hanlon, Arthur Phillips, Jack Raymond, R. Saffian, Dalton “Sandy”
Sandifer, and Sydney Zelinka;

storyboard illustrator Dan Gordon;

artist/make-over consultant/set designer Ed Benedict;

associate producer and layout artist Alex Lovy;

layout artist and designer Iwao Takamoto;

layout artists Dick Bickenbach, Jerry Eisenberg, Willie Ito, and Don
Jurwich;

animators Ed Aardel, George Goepper, Gerry Hathcock, Ed Love, Dick
Lundy, Kenneth Muse, George Nichols, Don Patterson, Irv Spence, and
Carlo Vinci;

animation checker Midge Sturgis;

background painting department head Fernando “Monte” Montealegre;

background artist Richard H. Thomas;

camera department head Frank Pakier;

musical director Hoyt Curtin.

This is only a partial list of the many talented individuals whose
creative efforts made _The Flintstones_ what it was, and is.
———————————————————————-
14. Forget camera operators and layout technicians, who did the
voices?

Major Characters (1960-present)

FRED FLINTSTONE Daws Butler (_Flagstones_ screentest);
Alan Reed (1960-1977);
Henry Corden (singing in _The Man Called
Flintstone_; 1977-present)
WILMA FLINTSTONE Jean Vander Pyl (1960-present)
BARNEY RUBBLE Mel Blanc (1960-1989);
Daws Butler (1961)*;
Frank Welker (1989-present)
BETTY RUBBLE Bea Benaderet (1960-1964);
Gerry Johnson (1964-1966);
Gaye Autterson (1971-1977, 1979-1981?);
Gay Hartwig (1977-1978);
B. J. Ward (1981?-present)

Other Recurring Characters (original series voices):

DINO Mel Blanc, Daws Butler*
PEBBLES FLINTSTONE Jean Vander Pyl
BAMM-BAMM RUBBLE Don Messick
MR. SLATE John Stephenson
MRS. SLAGHOOPLE Verna Felton, Janet Waldo
GAZOO Harvey Korman
ARNOLD Don Messick
JOE ROCKHEAD Daws Butler, John Stephenson
UNCLE TEX Hal Smith

*Butler substituted for Blanc (while the
latter recovered from a serious car accident)
in 5 episodes from 1961: “Droop Along
Flintstone,” “Fred Flintstone Woos Again,”
“The Hit Song Writers,” “The Rock Quarry
Story,” and “The Little White Lie.”

On the original series, hundreds of minor and incidental characters
were voiced by Alan Reed, Jean Vander Pyl, Mel Blanc, Bea Benaderet,
Don Messick, Daws Butler, John Stephenson, Harvey Korman, Doug Young,
Elliott Field, Mike Rye, Maxie Rosenbloom, Frank Nelson, Hal Smith,
Ginny Tyler, Nancy White, Jerry Mann, Howard McNear, Nancy Russell,
Bob Hopkins, Willard, Lucille Bliss, Bern Bennett, Sandra Gould, Leo
de Lyon, Pattee Chapman, Paula Winslow, Alan Dinehart, Herschel
Bernardi, Paul Frees, Walker Edmiston, Herb Vigran, Howard Morris,
June Foray, Janet Waldo, Henry Hoople, Jerry Hauser, Allen Melvin,
Dick Beals, Gerry Johnson, Naomi Lewis, Nancy Wible, Henry Corden,
Mike Road, Sam Edwards, and Bernard Fox. Also featured were guest
voices Hoagy Carmichael, Tony Curtis, Ann-Margret, James Darren,
Elizabeth Montgomery, and Dick York.
———————————————————————-
15. Where did “Yabba-dabba-doo” come from?

From Alan Reed, the voice of Fred. Hear the words of Joe Barbera:

In a recording session, Alan said, “Hey, Joe, where it says
yahoo, can I say yabba-dabba-doo?” I said yeah. God knows
where he got it, but it was one of those terrific phrases.
(Adams 38; see question 24)

Reed reportedly said that the inspiration for the phrase came from his
mother, who used to say, “A little dab’ll do ya,” probably borrowed
from a Brylcreem commercial.
———————————————————————-
16. Did the Flintstones originally have a son?

A boy named Junior was included in the series’ press release and in a
Little Golden Book adventure (as well as on some advance merchandise
related to the program), but never on the actual show.

When the decision was made in 1962 to give the Flintstones a little
bundle of joy, the child was going to be a boy–until it was realized
that a girl would translate into major merchandising by way of dolls
(which Pebbles subsequently did).
———————————————————————-
17. Don’t the [houses/furniture/streets/cars/people] seem to change in
appearance from episode to episode?

Yes, they do. Lapses in continuity, some of which are due to the
practice of having several different teams working separately on
different episodes simultaneously, are among the many fascinating
things to watch for on the show. Joe Rockhead has had several
different physical appearances, as has Arnold the paperboy. Wilma’s
maiden name is identified at one point as “Pebble,” but later as the
canonical “Slaghoople.” Mr. Slate (whose first name is either “Sam,”
“George,” or “Nate,” depending on the occasion), is originally a
short, dark-haired, moustached man; he soon disappears and is replaced
by Fred’s more familiar, bald, bespectacled boss. Even the boss’s
surname isn’t stable, as he changes from “Mr. Boulder” to “J. J.
Granite” to “Joe Rockhead” (no relation to Fred’s friend–or is he?)
to “Mr. Slate,” and Fred’s regular place of employment has been
identified by at least 18 different names.

The Flintstone family car, if it is indeed the same car from one
episode to the next, is alternately a two- and four-seater, a
roofed vehicle and a convertible, and has either a left- or right-side
steering wheel. And the Flintstones’ house never has the same size,
furniture, or design twice.

Obviously the real reason for these discrepancies is that we’re
dealing with a television program. But this hasn’t stopped many
people from speculating endlessly about the possible weekly rebuilding
of homes, motivations behind mysterious name changes, and explanations
for inexplicable lapses in characters’ memories. Nor has it prevented
a steady stream of creative tinkering that attempts to make
_Flintstones_ history consistent with itself.
———————————————————————-
18. I remember seeing the show with a laugh track, but my local/cable
station has none. How did the series originally air?

165 of the original episodes aired *with* a laugh track; only “Sheriff
for a Day” (P-135) was produced without one. In syndication, many
stations would edit the episodes to fit commercials, often producing a
rather shoddy result, so Hanna-Barbera released an “official” edit of
the episodes and removed the laugh track in keeping with the laughless
cartoons of today. Some stations still air episodes with laugh
tracks, though these are undoubtedly still edited versions of the
original episodes.
———————————————————————-
19. What celebrities visited Bedrock?

A surprising number of famous individuals–some voiced by real-life
celebrities, some impersonated, some based on combinations of star
“types,” and some only famous in the prehistoric world of _The
Flintstones_–showed up in Bedrock at one time or another. The list
includes movie stars Rock Quarry, Gary Granite, Stony Curtis, Ann-
Margrock, and Jimmy Darrock; TV celebs Ed Sullystone, Jimmy O’Neill-
stone, Rocky Genial, (Hum Along With) Herman, Perry Masonry, Perry
Gunite, Aaron Boulder, Alvin Brickrock, Larry Lava, the Cartrocks,
the Great Mesmo, Superstone, the Gruesomes, Samantha and Darrin
Stephens, and Sassie; musical artists Hoagy Carmichael, the Way Outs,
Hot Lips Hannigan, Scat Von Rocktoven, and Rock Roll; boxer Sonny
Dempstone; and an assortment of producers, directors, managers, and
other behind-the-scenes types, including Norman Rockbind, Roland
Rockwell, Go Go Ravine, and a number of drawling “colonels.” Even
Yogi Bear and Boo Boo make an appearance, stealing the Flintstones’
picnic basket (“Swedish Visitors,” P-88).

References to famous personalities not actually encountered on the
series abound, and post-1966 series and specials continue the
tradition of “stone-ifying” contemporary celebrities.
———————————————————————-
20. Where did Bamm-Bamm come from?

Bamm-Bamm was left on the Rubbles’ doorstep after Barney and Betty
wished on a falling star that they would have a child. The Rubbles
endured an unpleasant custody battle in court (and a suicide attempt
by Barney) before they were permitted to adopt Bamm-Bamm.
———————————————————————-
21. Where did the Great Gazoo come from?

Gazoo was exiled from his home planet, Zetox, for inventing a device
that could destroy the entire universe. As punishment, he was
stranded on prehistoric Earth and made to serve the “dumb-dumbs” who
found him–Fred and Barney. Gazoo can apparently be seen and heard
only by Fred and Barney, animals, and children.
———————————————————————-
22. Where does Barney work?

This question hits upon the central mystery of the Hanna-Barbera
pantheon, the Holy Grail of discussion among Flintstonephiles. Where
does Fred drop Barney off each morning, where does he pick him up at
the end of the workday, and what does Barney do in between?

At first, it appears that Barney may work at the quarry with Fred,
since he bowls on the quarry’s bowling team (“The Flintstone Flyer”).
The exact nature of Barney’s next job is unknown, but Fred
inadvertenly gets him fired from it in “No Help Wanted,” the 6th
episode produced. (Fred explains that he told Barney to “put his
broom down”; Barney later remarks that “it wasn’t much of a job”).
Fred then helps Barney secure a job as a furniture repossessor, but
this career is never mentioned again and appears to have been brief.
Other temporary positions include travel agent, co-owner (with Fred)
of “The Drive-In,” and (again, with Fred) private investigator.

On one occasion we are clearly shown that he works at Pebbles Co. Rock
and Gravel (which may or may not be a competitor of Slate Rock and
Gravel), though we don’t know what he actually does there or how long
this job lasted. At times, one is again tempted to believe he works
with Fred in the gravel pits; he certainly hangs out there a lot.
Indeed, Barney briefly becomes a vice president at the quarry (after
once again losing an unidentified job somewhere else) when he turns
out to be related to Mr. Slate; once again, he does not hold the
position long.

But vague, cryptic references to Barney’s job are sprinkled throughout
the original series, and at one point Betty (following Wilma’s
example of using an impressive euphemism to describe her husband’s
career) says that Barney is in “top secret work”–a deliberate nod
to curious Barney fans? (Or is Barney merely unemployed again?)

Series and specials subsequent to 1966 more or less (though not
always) agree that Barney does, in fact, work alongside his pal Fred
at Mr. Slate’s. But the nebulous nature of Barney’s job over the
course of the original series remains a contentious issue.
———————————————————————-
23. So just how many different incarnations of _The Flintstones_ have
there been?

Lots. Here are the major ones:

> _The Flagstones_ (1960): Screen test.
> _The Flintstones_ (1960-1966): Original series.
> _The Man Called Flintstone_ (1966): Motion picture.
> _Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm_ (1971): Saturday morning TV series.
> _The Flintstones Comedy Hour_ (1972): Saturday morning TV series.
(Old and new PABB episodes plus other material.)
> _The Flintstones Show_ (1973-1974): Reruns of TFCH.
> _Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm [2]_ (1974-1976): Reruns of TFCH.
> _Fred Flintstone and Friends_ (1976?-?): Contains reruns of TFCH.
> _A Flintstone Christmas_ (1977): TV special.
> _The Flintstones’ Little Big League_ (1978): TV special.
> _The New Fred and Barney Show_ (1979): Saturday morning TV series.
(13 original-series episodes with redubbed voices for Fred [Henry
Corden] and Betty [Gay Autterson].)
> _Fred and Barney Meet the Thing_ (1979): Old episodes paired with
adventures of the Thing (and his Thing Ring).
> _The Flintstones Meet Rockula and Frankenstone_ (1979): TV special.
> _Fred and Barney Meet the Shmoo_ (1979): 90-min. Saturday morning
TV series.
> _The Flintstone Comedy Show_ (1980-1981): 90-min. Saturday morning
TV series. (Featured “Flintstone Family Adventures,” “Pebbles,
Dino and Bamm-Bamm,” “Captain Caveman,” “Bedrock Cops,” “Dino and
Cavemouse,” and “The Frankenstones.”)
> _The Flintstones’ New Neighbors_ (1980): TV special.
> _The Final Fling_ (1981): TV special.
> _Wind-Up Wilma_ (1981): TV special.
> _Jogging Fever_ (1981): TV special.
> _The Flintstone Kids_ (1986-1988): TV series.
> _The Jetsons Meet the Flintstones_ (1987): TV movie.
> _Flintstone Kids: Just Say No_ (1988): TV special.
> _I Yabba Dabba Do!_ (1993): TV movie.
> _Hollyrock-A-Bye Baby_ (1993): TV movie.
> _A Flintstone Family Christmas_ (1993): TV special.
> _The Flintstones_ (1994): Live-action motion picture.
> _A Flintstones’ Christmas Carol_ (1994): TV movie.
> _Stay Out_ (1995): Short Dino cartoon; first in a proposed series.

Other appearances over the years have included advertising for Winston
cigarettes, One-a-Day vitamins, Pebbles cereal, and Welch’s grape
juice; a Busch beer promotional film; Viewmaster reels adventures;
the 1966 TV special _Alice in Wonderland (Or What’s a Nice Kid Like
You Doing In a Place Like This?)_; trading cards; comic books;
campaigns for Operation Baby Buckle, the American Humane Society, the
American Automobile Association’s safety program, and Easter Seals;
the prevention special “Strong Kids, Safe Kids”; television
retrospectives on the show; a theme ride at Universal Studios; and the
hundreds of licensed and unlicensed products that form a highly
lucrative collectors’ market.
———————————————————————-
24. How widely is _The Flintstones_ seen today?

_The Flintstones_ is presently seen in 22 languages in more than 80
countries around the world, and is on somewhere every minute of the
day.
———————————————————————-
25. What is the best general reference work on the show?

My vote goes to _The Flintstones: A Modern Stone Age Phenomenon_ by
T. R. Adams (Turner Publishing, 1994). It’s a big, deluxe coffee
table book with beautiful color pictures and an episode guide, and
it approaches every aspect of the series’ history with a seriousness
and atention that is truly remarkable. The interview material quoted
in this document is taken from the Adams text.

Selected bibliography:

Barbera, Joseph. _My Life in ‘Toons: From Flatbush to Bedrock
in Under a Century_.
Beck, Jerry. _The 50 Greatest Cartoons: As Selected By 1,000
Animation Professionals_.
Blanc, Mel. _That’s Not All, Folks_.
Lenburg, Jeff. _Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons_.
Maltin, Leonard. _Of Mice and Magic: A History of American
Animated Cartoons_.
Sennett, Ted. _The Art of Hanna-Barbera_.
Solomon, Charles. _Enchanted Drawings: The History of
Animation_.
———————————————————————-
26. Are any _Flintstones_ episodes available on video?

Turner Home Entertainment has released a number of episodes on tape,
grouping them thematically rather than chronologically.

Columbia House makes the entire original series available on tape to
club members. These episodes are uncut, but do not feature the laugh
track.

A laserdisc box set is also anticipated. It reportedly contains the
first 14 episodes, the _Flagstones_ screentest, the “Rise and Shine”
opening sequence, original bumpers, and even the Winston cigarette
commercials.
———————————————————————-
27. Are there any Flintstones-related resources accessible by
computer?

E-mail:

Bedrock Online is the only Internet resource expressly dedicated to
the Flintstones. (See section 1.)

Other e-mail resources you may wish to contact include:

The Cartoon Network:

Turner HQ:

Usenet:

There was once an ALT.FLINTSTONES newsgroup, but its poorly chosen
name format kept it from being widely propagated.

Check out REC.ARTS.ANIMATION, which deals with ‘toons in
general and frequently features discussion of _The Flintstones_ and
the Hanna-Barbera universe.

Joe Cabrera contributes a biweekly trivia quiz to REC.GAMES.TRIVIA
that regularly contains Flintstones-related questions. Dave
Larocque occasionally contributes installments of The Flintstones
Quiz to the same newsgroup.

Other questions might be addressed to ALT.CEREAL, REC.ARTS.TV, and
the REC.ARTS.COMICS groups.

Web sites:

A Flintstones Web Page and FTP site are currently being planned as
a companion to this list. More details will be available soon.

There are many Web sites devoted to animation in general. Those
listed below provide excellent entry points for Web exploration.

Yahoo’s cartoon menu:
http://www.yahoo.com/text/Entertainment/Television/Shows/Cartoons/

The Animators’ Homepage:
http://www.xmission.com/~grue/animate

The Cartoon Heaven Homepage:
http://symphony.ucc.ie/~niall/cheaven.html

The Vintage Ink & Paint Homepage:
http://www.earthlink.net/~sworth/

Snail mail:

Hanna-Barbera Productions | The official fan mail address!
Attn: “The Flintstones”
3400 Cahuenga Blvd. West
Hollywood, CA 90068

Turner Home Entertainment | Distributor of episodes
One CNN Center | on video
Atlanta, GA 30303

Archie Comics Publications, Inc. | Current publisher of Flint-
325 Fayette Avenue | stones comic book titles
Mamaroneck, NY 10543

Kraft Foods, Inc. | Makers of Post Fruity and Cocoa
Box FP-13 | Pebbles cereals
White Plains, NY 10625

Rhino Records, Inc. | Distributors of Flintstones/H-B
10635 Santa Monica Blvd. | song and sound effect records
Los Angeles, CA 90025-4900

___________________________
Flintstones FAQ Version 1.2
By Marc Barnhill
August 12, 1995

==========================
animation/best.of.net #189, from hmccracken, 1732 chars, Sun Aug 13 23:07:25 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 13 Aug 1995 23:05:43 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9508132305.memo.22988@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.animation.warner-bros.

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news.uoregon.edu!newsfeed.internetmci.com!solaris.cc.vt.edu!swiss.ans.net!newsjunkie.ans.net!newstf01.news.aol.com!newsbf02.news.aol.com!not-for-mail
From: michael799@aol.com (Michael799)
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: Re: ANOTHER FROGGY UPDATE
Date: 30 Jul 1995 07:38:25 -0400
Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364)
Lines: 14
Sender: root@newsbf02.news.aol.com
Message-ID: <3vfqvh$274@newsbf02.news.aol.com>
References: <3ve3bh$nh8@pangea.ohionet.org>
Reply-To: michael799@aol.com (Michael799)
NNTP-Posting-Host: newsbf02.mail.aol.com

The fate of Chuck Jones’ “Another Froggy Evening” is, at present, in the
hands of the upper echelon of Warner Bros. Original plans had it coming
out with Batman. The bigwigs decided that they did not want to have it
with the film and withdrew it. Rumor had it that it was to be released
with “Free Willy pt.2” but alas that did not happen. Another bad idea was
developed, to premiere it with the new season of the WB network since frog
is the mascot. Hopefully, this will not happen.
What needs to happen is to have all supporters of cartoons with movies
either write or phone Bob Daly’s office in Burbank. It seems that they
just don’t understand the loyal following of this kind of genre. I will
try and post his e-mail address.
GET THE WORD OUT…All who want to see new Chuck Jones cartoons with WB
movies should get everyone to write or phone. Here’s hoping of the start
of a ground swell and that they won’t disregard the public’s wishes.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #190, from hmccracken, 2953 chars, Thu Aug 24 21:52:00 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Thu, 24 Aug 1995 21:50:41 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9508242150.memo.69161@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!news.sprintlink.net!clue.callamer.com!usenet
From: Dave Strickler
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: You Need This Book
Date: Sun, 20 Aug 1995 09:58:00 -0700 (PDT)
Organization: CallAmerica, San Luis Obispo CA USA
Lines: 50
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: pinot.callamer.com
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII
NNTP-Posting-User: dstrickl

So when did Henry begin, anyway? Is it still around? Who wrote Buck
Rogers in the 30s? What were Charles Schulz’s other 2 syndicated strips?
Who created the most strips, Rube Goldberg, Mort Walker, or Pedro Moreno?
What strips have been named for professors?

If you’re a serious comic strips fan, if you appreciate details of comic
strip history, if you truly value the rich tradition of newspaper comic
art, if you’re a professional or gifted amateur in the field, or if you
read rec.arts.comics.strips, you need _Syndicated Comic Strips and
Artists, 1924-1995: The Complete Index_.

With this 250-page index, you’d have the answers to these and thousands
of other comic strip facts right at your elbow…or your keyboard.

Published just this week, _Syndicated Comic Strips and Artists_ lists the
nearly 4550 strips and panels that have been syndicated from 1924 to
right now. Each entry contains the strip’s years of syndication, along
with all of the personnel who worked on it and the years of their
involvement.

An alphabetical index of some 3200 creators, artists, illustrators, and
writers also appears, and all the strips they are attributed to.

As a bonus, you get an index to artist pseudonyms and nicknames.

These indexes are compiled from Editor & Publisher’s _Syndicate
Directory_, published annually since 1924, and reformatted into an
easy-to-use layout.

No other index even comes close to the detail or comprehensiveness of
_Syndicated Comic Strips and Artists, 1924-1995. It’s a serious reference
source for the informed student of comic strips. And it’s the only one of
its kind.

For shipment today, you can order online with the email order form below.
$16.95, plus $2 shipping & handling (California residents please add
$1.23 sales tax), with your Visa or Mastercard.

Or drop a line or call Comics Access, 1071 Main Street, Box X-9, Cambria,
CA 93428. Phone (805) 927 2668 or fax (805) 927 0384.

And you can ask for the index on disk, if you’d prefer it that way.

Name:__________________________________
Street/PO Box:_________________________
City/ST/Zip:___________________________
Card (Visa/MC):________________________
Card number:___________________________
Expiration date:_______________________

==========================
animation/best.of.net #191, from hmccracken, 3328 chars, Sun Aug 27 23:18:30 1995
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 27 Aug 1995 23:17:58 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9508272317.memo.78643@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.animation.warner-bros

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news.uoregon.edu!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.sprintlink.net!in1.uu.net!news.io.com!woodward
From: woodward@io.com (Jonathan Woodward)
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros,alt.tv.tiny-toon.fandom,alt.tv.animaniacs
Subject: “Carrotblanca” – A Completely Biased Review
Followup-To: alt.animation.warner-bros
Date: 26 Aug 1995 14:19:34 GMT
Organization: Illuminati Online
Lines: 43
Message-ID: <41nahm$1en@anarchy.io.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: bermuda.io.com
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2]
Xref: news1.delphi.com alt.animation.warner-bros:7724 alt.tv.tiny-toon.fandom:7238 alt.tv.animaniacs:43157

-Go See This Short. Ignore The Pandas. Yes, It’s Worth $7.50.

-This weekend, “Carrotblanca” debuts, with a 90 minute movie
titled _The Amazing Panda Adventure_ attached to the end of it.
“Carrotblanca” is the latest cartoon short from Warner Bros. Classic
Animation, who are currently producing one or two shorts a year featuring
classic Looney Tunes characters. “Carrotblanca” is, as you might guess,
a spoof of the famous WB film _Casablanca_, starring Humphrey Bogart.
-This short is, in all ways, a sterling example of what WB should
aspire to. The animation is excellent, the writing tight and funny, the
characterization dead on. The music and sfx are well done, and the
backgrounds are evocative.
-The plot is an accurate re-make of _Casablanca_, neatly
compressed into eight minutes. Bugs stars as Mr. Bogart’s character, and
shines in the part. Indeed, all the casting decisions are inspired, from
Sylvester as Victor Lazlo, to Tweety as Ugarte, to Pepe as Claude Rains.
Daffy brings his own spin to Sam, as he cheerfully plonks away on the
piano and comments sarcastically on proceedings. Cameos abound; at least
a dozen characters major and minor can be found lurking in the
background. It’s true; everyone comes to Rick’s.
-While the animation is done in a modern style, as opposed to
imitating the classics, it is still excellent. The music hits every cue
you expect it to, and a few you don’t, bringing pleasant surprises and
fond memories at every note. Listen for “Knock On Wood”, and the French
national anthem.
-It is in the wrting and characterization where “Carrotblanca”
really shines. Bugs is unmistakably himself, and just as unmistakably
Bogart. Penelope Pussycat, as Ingrid Bergman’s character, manages to be
demure, confused, sexy, and violently self-reliant, all within seconds.
The jokes are swift, the parodies are biting and fiendishly accurate.
And, best of all, this is the most _romantic_ Looney Tune I’ve ever
seen. It is highly, highly recommended.
-I’ll be posting a transcript to the Acme Page
(http://www.io.com/~woodward/acme/), but it’s no substitute. Go, see it,
and gain hope for the cartoons to come.

-JW

—
Jonathan Woodward woodward@ftp.com or @io.com http://www.io.com/~woodward/
A! JW21 BR+++I^ SL+++!^ RI+++! DC++i^ JW++++i Dpfdwo[s] $+++dvc Vj+r+ TBrain
GCS/O a- C+++$ W++>+++$ N++ w++ t++ 5+ R+>+++$ b+++ DI++++ G++>++++ T+++$ y+
“Being human never really occured to me as much of an advantage.” -J Owen

==========================
animation/best.of.net #192, from hkenner, 26 chars, Sun Aug 27 23:34:27 1995
This is a comment to message 191.
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
And who directed it?
–HK

==========================
animation/best.of.net #193, from hmccracken, 249 chars, Sun Aug 27 23:49:26 1995
This is a comment to message 192.
————————–
I’m not sure — not Chuck Jones, though. I’m going to try and catch
it this week and will report back here.

I’ve heard, by the way, that Jones’s _Another Froggy Evening_ has been
completed, but Warner’s has not decided what to do with it.
— Harry

==========================
animation/best.of.net #194, from hmccracken, 1286 chars, Tue Sep 5 00:14:18 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 5 Sep 1995 00:10:32 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9509050010.memo.13859@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news.uoregon.edu!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!newsjunkie.ans.net!newstf01.news.aol.com!newsbf02.news.aol.com!not-for-mail
From: maureenf@aol.com (MaureenF)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Animation Journal home page
Date: 21 Aug 1995 05:06:57 -0400
Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364)
Lines: 13
Sender: root@newsbf02.news.aol.com
Message-ID: <419ibh$835@newsbf02.news.aol.com>
Reply-To: maureenf@aol.com (MaureenF)
NNTP-Posting-Host: newsbf02.mail.aol.com

Animation Journal is the only peer-reviewed scholarly journal devoted to
animation history and theory. It is published under the auspices of the
Film and Television Department of Chapman University in Orange,
California.

If you would like to find out more information, please check out the
Animation Journal home page at http://www.chapman.edu/animation. The AJ
home page contains a list of articles in back issues (soon they will be
abstracted) as well as an index to the contents of the first three volumes
(Fall 1992 – Spring 1995).

Maureen Furniss
Editor, Animation Journal

==========================
animation/best.of.net #195, from switch, 260 chars, Fri Sep 8 23:46:05 1995
————————–
TITLE: From one of the humor archives
~From: denelsbe@cs.unc.edu (The KevMan)
~Subject: Religious clash

My 3-year-old second cousin recently showed us the dangers of religion at
too early an age by saying:

“I know Jesus loves me ’cause Fievel tells me so.”

==========================
animation/best.of.net #196, from hmccracken, 2074 chars, Fri Sep 15 20:17:08 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Fri, 15 Sep 1995 20:14:04 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9509152014.memo.66097@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.strips

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.sprintlink.net!news.wwa.com!shoshani
From: shoshani@miso.wwa.com (Michael Shoshani)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: NANCY: they’ve GOTTA be raiding the morgue…
Date: 13 Sep 1995 00:45:53 GMT
Organization: WorldWide Access – Chicago Area Internet Services
Lines: 27
Message-ID: <4359k1$c70@sake.wwa.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: miso.wwa.com
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2]

I can’t believe that the Gilchrist Brothers are doing EVERYTHING on that
strip…all the characters look like Bushmiller’s 50s-70s models, the
gags are the same (Bushmiller often said he started with the punch line
and work his way back), incidental characters are the same, and SETTINGS
are the same.

Did you see 9/11 when Aunt Fritzi observes Nancy in front of the TV?
The TV is the box-on-four-spindly-legs type that every household had
40 years ago, but NO house would have today. And that bug-topped
extermination truck in 9/12 is pure Ernie, both in strip design
and in the pacing of the gag…not to mention the gag itself.

Myself, I like the 40s Nancy much better…the characters had MUCH
more expression in the faces and some strips were even continuing
stories. However, the later styles seem to be “THE” Nancy Style.
Right before Bushmiller died, when several assistants were cranking
the strip out (some of them horrible), Al Plastino was doing a
marvelous job on the Sundays. The dailies were very capably handled
in the Bushmiller style by Mark Lasky, until *his* untimely death.

Just some random reminiscing 🙂

—
shoshani@miso.wwa.com / i once heard the survivors of a colony of ants
Michael SB Shoshani / that had been partially obliterated by a cow s foot
Chicago IL, USA / seriously debating the intention of the gods
/ towards their civilization –archy

==========================
animation/best.of.net #197, from switch, 1393 chars, Fri Sep 22 18:09:33 1995
————————–
From: MMCCASKEY@guvax.acc.georgetown.edu
Date: 8 Sep 1995 15:46:14 -0400
Newsgroups: rec.arts.anime
Subject: ANIMATION FESTIVAL OCT 7-9

INTERNATIONAL COMICS & ANIMATION FESTIVAL
AT GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY
OCTOBER 7, 8, 9

Three full days of events, including presentations on
American, Australian, Belgian, French, German, Japanese and Swedish
comics and/or animation, exhibits of cartoons, and showings of
animation classics.
A series of showings of animation classics is planned for each
evening at the Biograph Theater, which is within walking distance
from the University.
Registration is $5 for students (college or high school) and
$15 for general admission to all open events, except the showings
at the Biograph, for which there will be a regular admission
charge.
Seating is limited, so it’s best to make reservations now. For
a reservation form and schedule, please contact Prof. D. Dawson,
Chair, Dept. of French, Georgetown University, Washington, DC
20057. A faster way is to fax your request if possible to Prof.
Dawson at (202) 687-5712.
This is a unique event, and is an expanded follow-up of the
very successful Manga Symposium we had here in January.
We hope to see as many of you there as possible. Please make
your reservations soon, so we know how many to plan for for all the
events.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #198, from hmccracken, 4238 chars, Sun Sep 24 18:30:26 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 24 Sep 1995 18:23:35 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9509241823.memo.8073@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!news.sprintlink.net!nntp.earthlink.net!sworth.earthlink.net!user
From: sworth@vintageip.com (Stephen W. Worth)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Richard Williams
Date: Wed, 20 Sep 1995 12:08:09 -0700
Organization: Vintage Ink & Paint
Lines: 75
Message-ID:
References: <43mdpm$3g4@bigboote.WPI.EDU> <43or7r$cdv@newsbf02.news.aol.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: sworth.earthlink.net

I recently read this in the newsletter of ASIFA-San Francisco
and I though the folks here in r.a.a. might be interested in it…
If you’re not a member of your local chapter of ASIFA, you’re
missing out on great stuff like this…

Contact asifa@earthlink.net for info on the chapter nearest
to you.

See ya
Steve

SPECIAL THANKS TO ALL WHO MADE OUR TRIBUTE TO RICHARD
WILLIAMS A ONCE IN A LIFETIME SUCCESS by Karl Cohen

The event was full of surprises starting with Margaret Williams
coming up from the LA area to attend the event with two of Richard’s
children. Margaret had written and revised the script to Williams’
feature, “The Theif & The Cobbler” (just released in San Francisco as
“Arabian Knight”) and provided fascinating details about the feature
and other projects. It turned out that Alan Spurling, one of the
announced guests, was hired by her for his first animation job, so it
was a surprise reunion.

Everybody was in great spirits and anxious to share wonderful
stories about the studio. David Byers Brown, who worked with the
studio for about 8 years, presented a history of Richard’s career.
He would frequently ask Margaret if his facts were correct, thus
drawing her again and again into delightful conversations.

Colin White talked about his year with the studio as an animator
on “Roger Rabbit”. He discussed his boss’ working habits and
showed the Maroon Cartoon that opens the feature. He said it was the
only section in which Richard had complete control of the animation.

Alan Spurling showed original art by Williams plus a tape of “Love
Me, Love Me, Love Me”, and early short, and the opening titles for a
Pink Panther feature. We also showed animation from the feature
“Charge of the Light Brigade”, several early TV commercials, and a
tape of “Thief & The Cobbler” before it was changed into its present
form.

This program would not have happened if it were not for a lot of
behind the scenes help and a lot of chance happenings. SF State’s
Cinema Dept arranged for the use of the space (thanks Vicki and
Jan). ILM’s Nagisa Yamamoto put us in touch with Brown and White.
Wes Takahashi had once said a former Williams employee was on the
ILM staff. Steve Segal told me he worked next to a former Williams
animator at Pixar. Marty McNamera saved the day when he figured
out how to hook up Alan Spurling’s Beta tape deck to State’s video
projector. McNamara also brought his reel of classic TV commercials
by the studio. Tha tape of “The Charge of the Light Brigade” isn’t
available at most video stores, but Le Video on 9th had it. The idea
for the show came from my having seen a tape of the feature in
Los Angeles several years ago and from ASIFA-East doing a tribute
to Williams earlier this year. Finally, thanks to our three guests of
honor (White, Brown and Spurling) and to the great audience (about
100 people) who showed up and discovered why I believe Williams
is one of the greatest animators of this century.

Williams’ son said his father is retired and living on an island off
the west coast of Canada. He is animating a personal film based on
a play by the Greek author, Aristophanese.

Karl Cohen
ASIFA-San Francisco
P.O. Box 14516
San Francisco, CA 94114

_______________________________________________
Stephen W. Worth Animation Art
Vintage Ink & Paint Restoration, Authentication
sworth@vintageip.com Appraisal and Sales
_______________________________________________
On the WWW at:
==== Free info for animation art collectors via e-mail. ====

==========================
animation/best.of.net #199, from hmccracken, 689 chars, Sun Sep 24 18:30:57 1995
————————–
xFrom: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 24 Sep 1995 18:24:24 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9509241824.memo.8074@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!cs.utexas.edu!news.sprintlink.net!matlock.mindspring.com!usenet
From: rosco29@mindspring.com (Scott Piehler)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Happy Birthday, Chuck Jones! (9/21)
Date: Wed, 20 Sep 1995 07:57:10 GMT
Organization: MindSpring Enterprises
Lines: 6
Message-ID: <43rfb3$17gu@news.mindspring.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: rosco29.mindspring.com
X-Newsreader: Forte Free Agent 1.0.82

Chuck Jones turns 83 today (9/21/95)

Happy Birthday Chuck!

Scott

==========================
animation/best.of.net #200, from hmccracken, 2830 chars, Mon Sep 25 23:03:35 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 25 Sep 1995 23:00:53 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9509252300.memo.13848@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!news.sprintlink.net!howland.reston.ans.net!agate!plutonium.CChem.Berkeley.EDU!pete
From: pete@plutonium.CChem.Berkeley.EDU (Pete Goodeve)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Wallace & Gromit news — repost from uk.tv
Date: 25 Sep 1995 19:13:02 GMT
Organization: University of California, Berkeley
Lines: 62
Message-ID: <446uvu$336@agate.berkeley.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: plutonium.cchem.berkeley.edu

I thought this news worth reposting here, for those of you who don’t
cross-read…
— Pete —

========================================================================

From: ed67@dial.pipex.com (Steerpike)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.tv.uk.misc
Subject: Attention all Wallace & Gromit fans
Date: Sun, 17 Sep 1995 12:46:45 GMT

Here’s an article from this week’s ‘Broadcast’ magazine:

UK independent Aardman Animations, which has won 2 Oscars for its
plasticine creation, is planning to make its first TV series.

Aardman is to create a 26 x 5-minute series, “Rex The Runt”, aimed at
what it believes is a growing market for youth and adult animation.

“Rex The Runt”, being written and directed by Richard Goleslowski, is
a comedy starring “4 plasticine cut-out friends who inhabit a world of
TV cliches”.

Production will start early in 1996 with the first episodes ready for
broadcast in the summer.

The BBC is understood to be bidding for the UK TV rights, while
competition for international rights is expected to be intense given
Aardman’s previous success.

The independent is in the process of completing its latest Wallace &
Gromit feature, “A Close Shave”, which it hopes to premier at the
London Film Festival.

Aardman hopes “A Close Shave” will qualify for the next Oscars
ceremony.

Well there you have it. Good news or what?

___________________________________________________
Steerpike: Gormenghast should have been only the begining

========================================================================

From: Phil Gyford Newsgroups: rec.arts.tv.uk.misc
Date: Tue, 19 Sep 95 01:55:20 +0000

They have just finished shooting ‘A Close Shave’ in the past day or two, with
post-production the only thing left to do. It will be on BBC TV on Christmas
Day (or thereabouts). Apparently it’s incredible…

____________________________________________________________________________
Phil Gyford | fabius@paranoia.com
@ | phil@jherek.demon.co.uk
Bristol, UK | COMING SOON… www.paranoia.com/~fabius

========================================================================

==========================
animation/best.of.net #201, from hmccracken, 4292 chars, Mon Sep 25 23:03:55 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 25 Sep 1995 23:02:40 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9509252302.memo.13854@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in2.uu.net!info-server.bbn.com!news2.near.net!newshost.williams.edu!newshost.williams.edu!not-for-mail
From: 96dag@williams.edu (David A Gerstein)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: FELIX Review: “The Sludge King/Mars Needs Felix”
Date: 23 Sep 1995 12:05:38 -0400
Organization: Williams College, Williamstown MA
Lines: 65
Message-ID: <441b8iINNpol@bigbird.cc.williams.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: bigbird.cc.williams.edu

“The Twisted Tales of Felix the Cat” #2 was the first episode
I’ve seen. Since I’ve been doing extensive research on Felix lately
for an upcoming project (not related to TV), I’ve been very interested
in seeing the new show.

“The Sludge King” was… well… extremely confusing. Felix
has had a dopey pal before — Flub in the old 1950s comics (many
reprinted a couple years ago), so the character of Roscoe had a
tradition behind him. I enjoyed seeing Felix’s excitement over that
female feline, too; very much in character. But the sludge kingdom
under the sewer was completely unexplained, as was its tie-in with the
computer-animated scene. It would have been one thing had the
computer been “reading” Felix’s subconscious and shown him something
that was going to happen. But that scene (of the King shaking Felix
around) never DID happen later in the film…
“Mars Needs Felix” was much better. Felix’s dialogue was
almost completely lifted from old 1930s comic strips, right down to
the references to “eats”. Some viewers’ complaints that Felix was too
passive in this new series would seem to be annulled by this one, in
which Felix was very smart, clever, and dynamic. The end of this
cartoon was also remarkably Messmerized. I hope that Felix remains as
“active” in future episodes as he does here.
Felix’s “new” voice, by the way, is an attempt to recreate the
voice he had in the 1936 Van Beuren cartoons (“Felix the Cat and the
Goose that Laid the Golden Egg”, etc.). It’s not a dead-on match, but
pretty darn close.
I’m also pleased with the way Felix is animated. The slanted
eyelids when he laughs, the teeth, the whiskers — this is very
clearly the “pre-Oriolo” cat, which I find infinitely more appealing.

I do have serious concerns about the series, though. It
appears that two cartoons — “Felix Dines and Pines” (1927) and “Felix
Woos Whoopee” (1930), in which Felix’s hallucinations or nightmares
prompt his world to turn bizarre — were allowed to influence the
show’s basic style to a tremendous degree. Felix’s real world, while
full of silliness and unreality, was not painfully grotesque in the
old cartoons; he was DREAMING the wildest sequences. In this new
series, EVERYTHING is warped, and a lot of it is just too ugly or
perverse to be really funny. I am reminded of ROCKO’S MODERN LIFE
(which works much better with this style), not any past version of
Felix. I hope that next season (if there is one, I hope) keeps the
weirdness a little more under control.
My other concern regards the music and pacing. “The Sludge
King” was extremely slow and drawn-out — it didn’t really need to be
a two-part cartoon, and the computer business could have been left out
entirely. I saw someone’s comment that the timing in last week’s
episode was very quick and funny. This week, “Mars Needs Felix” was
the only episode that moved as fast as it needed to. Second, the
music, while in many cases good, did not seem keyed to the action and
was at many times inexplicably absent. I like this band and its
sound, but it needs scores like WB Animation uses.
Finally, I was shocked by the end credit that gives both
Messmer and Oriolo credit for creating Felix. While we have Oriolo to
thank for the fact that the character survives at all, the man did not
have anything to do with Felix until twenty-seven years after his
animated debut.

I’ll continue to watch this show and encourage others to see
it, but I hope that most episodes take “Mars Needs Felix”‘s lead on
the cat’s personality, then go further to improve the music and soften
the weirdness a bit.

David Gerstein
<96dag@williams.edu>

==========================
animation/best.of.net #202, from hmccracken, 1489 chars, Tue Oct 10 21:57:41 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 10 Oct 1995 21:52:21 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9510102152.memo.81116@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!elvis.delphi.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!cs.utexas.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!chi-news.cic.net!news.uoregon.edu!news.islandnet.com!islandnet.com!murray
From: murray@islandnet.com (Murray Hunter)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Richard Williams Animation Masterclass
Date: 9 Oct 1995 05:52:53 GMT
Organization: Island Net in Victoria, B.C. Canada
Lines: 22
Message-ID: <45adbl$df0@sanjuan.islandnet.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: island.islandnet.com
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2]

I am posting this message for Mr. Williams who does not have internet
access.

Richard Williams’ Animation Masterclass will be held in Vancouver, B.C.,
Canada November 10th to 12th. Richard Williams has won over 250
international awards including three Oscars and three British Academy
Awards and an Emmy. His films include ‘Who Framed Roger Rabbit’, ‘The
Return of the Pink Panther’ and ‘A Christmas Carol’.

Having trained many of today’s leading animators worldwide, this is the
first time Williams is passing on his knowledge in a masterclass.
Starting with the basics he will progress in three days to the secrets
of the masters of classical animation.

Further information from

Animation Masterclass
P.O. Box 2055
Sidney, B.C., Canada
V8L 3S3
Fax: (604) 653-4502

==========================
animation/best.of.net #203, from hmccracken, 8103 chars, Tue Oct 10 21:57:55 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 10 Oct 1995 21:52:52 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9510102152.memo.81117@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!elvis.delphi.com!uunet!in2.uu.net!tcsi.tcs.com!agate!spool.mu.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.sprintlink.net!nntp.earthlink.net!sworth.earthlink.net!user
From: sworth@vintageip.com (Stephen W. Worth)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.disney,rec.arts.disney.misc,rec.arts.animation,alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: ASIFA Announces 95 Annie Award Nominees
Date: Fri, 06 Oct 1995 21:37:08 -0700
Organization: Vintage Ink & Paint
Lines: 181
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: sworth.earthlink.net
Xref: news2.delphi.com rec.arts.disney.misc:1262 rec.arts.animation:40496 alt.animation.warner-bros:8506

The International Animated Film Society: ASIFA-Hollywood has announced
its nominees for the upcoming Annie Awards ceremonies. Here is the press
release from this weeks’ trades:

The International Animated Film Society, ASIFA-HOLLYWOOD Presents
The 23rd Annual Annie Awards, a celebration of creative excellence
in animation , Saturday, November 11, 1995, 6:00 p.m. Television
Academy Plaza Theater, 5230 Lankershim Blvd, North Hollywood
Hosted by Leonard Maltin, film historian and correspondent for
Entertainment Tonight Tickets: $35.00 general, $25.00 ASIFA-
HOLLYWOOD members For further information, call (818) 842-8330,
or e-mail . Deadline to purchase tickets is
Friday, November 3, 1995

&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&%&

The 1995 Annie Award Nominees:

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN AN ANIMATED HOME VIDEO PRODUCTION

* Gates of the Minds Eye – Miramar
* The Land Before Time, Part Two – Universal Cartoon Studio
* Macross Plus, Volume One – Big West, Macross Plus Project,
Hero Co., Ltd.
* Macross Plus, Volume Two – Big West, Macross Plus Project,
Hero Co., Ltd.
* Opera Imagineria – Miramar

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN AN ANIMATED INTERACTIVE PRODUCTION

* The Adventures of Hyperman – IBM, Illumina Productions, Inc.,
Bull Dolphin, Inc.
* Cadillacs & Dinosaurs – Duck Soup Produckions
* Crayon Factory – Sidewalk Studio/Philips Media, Inc.
* Full Throttle – LucasArts Entertainment Co.
* KIA Interactive – Digital Evolution

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN AN ANIMATED PROMOTIONAL PRODUCTION

* Citibank John Dough – Optimus, Inc.
* Eveready Batteries – Wile E. Coyote – Warner Bros. Animation
* Felix the Cat Canary Boom – Film Roman
* Shell Oil Chicago Blues – R/Greenberg
* The Simpsons Unforgettable Moments – Film Roman, Fox

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN AN ANIMATED SHORT SUBJECT

* Dexters Laboratory – Hanna-Barbera
* Driving Mr. Pink – MGM Animation
* George & Junior’s Christmas Spectacular! – Hanna-Barbera
* Interview With Tallulah, Queen of the Universe – Queen of the
Universe Productions
* Johnny Bravo – Hanna-Barbera

OUTSTANDING INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT FOR CREATIVE SUPERVISION
IN THE FIELD OF ANIMATION

* Ben Edlund, Co-producer, The Tick – Sunbow Productions,
Graz Entertainment
* John Eng, Director, Duckman – Klasky-Csupo, Reno and Osborn
Productions in assoc. with Paramount Pictures Television
* Al Jean & Mike Reiss, Executive Producers, The Critic – Gracie
Films, Film Roman
* Frank Paur & Greg Weisman, Producers, Gargoyles – Walt Disney
Television Animation
* Greg Vanzo, Supervising Director, The Maxx – MTV Animation,
Rough Draft Studios

OUTSTANDING INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT FOR PRODUCTION DESIGN IN
THE FIELD OF ANIMATION

* Rasoul Azadani, Layout Artistic Supervisor, Pocahontas – Walt
Disney Feature Animation
* Michael Giamo, Art Director, Pocahontas – Walt Disney Feature
Animation
* Adrian Penn, Art Director, Wiess Energy Hall: The Origin of Energy –
Engineering Animation, Inc.
* Kazuyoshi Takeuchi, Production Designer, Gargoyles – Walt Disney
Television Animation
* Fred Warter, Production Designer, A Goofy Movie – Walt Disney
Television Animation

OUTSTANDING INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT FOR STORYBOARDING IN THE FIELD
OF ANIMATION

* Warwick Gilbert, Storyboard Artist, Disneys Aladdin “The Lost Ones –
Walt Disney Television Animation
* Denise Koyama, Storyboard Artist, Disneys Aladdin “The Secret of
Dagger Rock – Walt Disney Television Animation
* Brian Pimental, Story Supervisor, A Goofy Movie – Walt Disney
Television Animation
* Genndy Tartakovsky, Storyboard Artist, Dexters Laboratory –
Hanna-Barbera
* Kazuo Terada, Storyboard Artist, Gargoyles Reawakening – Walt
Disney Television Animation

OUTSTANDING INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT FOR VOICE ACTING IN THE FIELD
OF ANIMATION

* Jeff Bennett as Johnny Bravo, Johnny Bravo – Hanna-Barbera
* Nancy Cartwright as Bart Simpson, The Simpsons – Gracie Films,
Film Roman
* Jim Cummings as Mr. Bump, Bump in the Night – Danger Productions,
Greengrass Productions
* Tress MacNeille as Dot, Animaniacs – Warner Bros. Animation
* Rob Paulsen as Yakko, Animaniacs – Warner Bros. Animation

OUTSTANDING INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT FOR MUSIC IN THE FIELD OF
ANIMATION

* Phillip Appleby, Composer & Dr. Seuss, Lyricist, Dr. Seuss
Daisy Head Mayzie – Hanna-Barbera
* Patrick DeRemer & Roy Freeland, Song Writers, I2I A Goofy
Movie – Walt Disney Television Animation
* Alan Menken, Composer & Steven Schwartz, Lyricist, Pocahontas –
Walt Disney Feature Animation
* Richard Stone, Supervising Composer, Animaniacs – Warner Bros.
Animation
* Shirley Walker, Supervising Composer, Batman:: The Animated Series –
Warner Bros. Animation

OUTSTANDING INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT FOR ANIMATION

* Chris Buck, Supervising Animator, Grandmother Willow” Pocahontas –
Walt Disney Feature Animation
* Dominique Monfrey, Animation Supervisor, A Goofy Movie – Walt
Disney Television Animation
* Dave Pruiksma, Supervising Animator, Flit, Pocahontas – Walt
Disney Feature Animation
* Nik Ranieri, Supervising Animator, Meeko, Pocahontas – Walt
Disney Feature Animation
* Cynthia Wells, Animator, Interview With Tallulah, Queen of the
Universe – Queen of the Universe Productions

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN AN ANIMATED TELEVISION PROGRAM

* Batman: The Animated Series – Warner Bros. Animation
* The Maxx – MTV Animation, Rough Draft Studios
* The Simpsons – Gracie Films, Film Roman
* Steven Spielberg Presents Animaniacs – Warner Bros. Animation
* The Tick – Graz Entertainment, Sunbow

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN AN ANIMATED THEATRICAL FEATURE

* A Goofy Movie – Walt Disney Television Animation
* Pocahontas – Walt Disney Feature Animation
* The Swan Princess – Rich Entertainment

RECIPIENTS OF THE WINSOR MCCAY AWARD FOR LIFETIME CONTRIBUTIONS
TO THE ART & FIELD OF ANIMATION

* Jules Engel, famed animation Art Director/Designer whose graphic
style influenced Disneys Fantasia and helped define the U.P.A.
style of the 1950s. He went on to influence future generations
through the CalArts Experimental Animation program.

* Vance Gerry, legendary Disney story artist who helped develop
the story and the look for such Disney classics as Jungle Book,
101 Dalmations, Sword in the Stone through Pocahontas.

* Dan McLaughlin, independent filmmaker and founder of the UCLA
Animation Workshop. Dans students hold many key positions in the
animation industry.

THE JUNE FORAY AWARD

* A newly created award will be given to June Foray, the voice of
Rocky the Flying Squirrel. This June Foray Award is given
to individuals whos involvement in animation has made a positive
and significant impact on the industry and the art form.

For more information, contact The International Animated Film Society:
ASIFA Hollywood at

==========================
animation/best.of.net #204, from hmccracken, 38944 chars, Tue Oct 10 21:58:18 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 10 Oct 1995 21:53:31 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9510102153.memo.81123@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news.uoregon.edu!usenet.eel.ufl.edu!news.ultranet.com!zombie.ncsc.mil!admaix.sunydutchess.edu!ees1a0.engr.ccny.cuny.edu!timessqr.gc.cuny.edu!news
From: MDB@CUNYVMS1.GC.CUNY.EDU (BARNHILL MARC)
Subject: Flintstones FAQ
Message-ID: <1995Oct5.032919.18701@timessqr.gc.cuny.edu>
Sender: news@timessqr.gc.cuny.edu (USENET News System)
Organization: GRADUATE SCHOOL AND UNIVERSITY CENTER, CUNY, NEW YORK
Date: Thu, 5 Oct 1995 03:29:19 GMT
X-News-Reader: VMS NEWS 1.24
Lines: 781

======================================================================
Bedrock Online (The Flintstones Mailing List)
======================================================================

THE FLINTSTONES FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS LIST
v 1.3 9-9-95

Compiled by Marc Barnhill, list administrator
Supplementary material and corrections provided by Joe Cabrera

======================================================================

Contact the list administrator at with
comments, corrections, and additions.

———————————————————————-
CONTENTS:

1. Bedrock Online administrivia.
2. When and where did _The Flintstones_ originally run?
3. Didn’t the series originally have a different name?
4. But wasn’t there a _Flagstones_ “pilot”?
5. Were the opening and closing sequences always the same?
6. What are the lyrics to “(Meet) The Flintstones”?
7. What’s up with that cat, anyway? It appears in the framing
sequences but never in the show!
8. Didn’t Dino talk once?
9. Hold on, didn’t the dinosaurs die out quite some time before the
first humans appeared on earth?
10. What were the origins and early history of the show?
11. Wasn’t _The Flintstones_ based on _The Honeymooners_?
12. But didn’t Jackie Gleason try to sue Hanna-Barbera for imitating
_The Honeymooners_?
13. Who were the creative talents behind the show?
14. Forget camera operators and layout technicians, who did the
voices?
15. Where did “Yabba-dabba-doo” come from?
16. Did the Flintstones originally have a son?
17. Don’t the [houses/furniture/streets/cars/people] seem to change in
appearance from episode to episode?
18. I remember seeing the show with a laugh track, but my local/cable
station has none. How did the series originally air?
19. What celebrities visited Bedrock?
20. Where did Bamm-Bamm come from?
21. Where did the Great Gazoo come from?
22. Where does Barney work?
23. So just how many different incarnations of _The Flintstones_ have
there been?
24. What are the latest rumored or confirmed _Flintstones_ projects?
25. How widely is _The Flintstones_ seen today?
26. What is the best general reference work on the show?
27. Are any _Flintstones_ episodes available on video?
28. Are there any Flintstones-related resources accessible by
computer or mail?
———————————————————————-
1. Bedrock Online administrivia.

a. Posting

To post a message to everyone on the mailing list, send it to:

bedrock-list@netcom.com

with a Subject line indicating the content of your post.

b. Administrative commands

Administrative commands are handled by an automated Majordomo
list server. All such commands should be sent to:

listserv@netcom.com

Do NOT send administrative commands to . If
you do, your commands will be received by all list members and
will not be processed.

The basic commands are:

SUBSCRIBE bedrock-list Adds your e-address to the list
UNSUBSCRIBE bedrock-list Removes you from the list
HELP Provides information on all
Majordomo commands

c. List use and abuse

As always, the rules of netiquette apply here. Friendly
disagreement is encouraged, but personal attacks are not
acceptable. This list is unmoderated, but the administrator
reserves the right to remove any subscriber who repeatedly
abuses it.

d. Contacting the list administrator

All special requests, questions, and suggestions should be
directed to list administrator Marc Barnhill at

mdb@cunyVMS1.gc.cuny.edu

Additionally, problems of a technical nature may be addressed
to David Strauss at .

e. Online documents

The following documents are available upon request from the
list administrator:

* The Flintstones Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) List
* The Flintstones Episode Guide: Original series, 1960-66
* Digested back-posts of Bedrock Online

Please direct requests for these documents only to the list
administrator; do NOT post such requests to the mailing list.
———————————————————————-
2. When and where did _The Flintstones_ originally run?

A later closing sequence featured Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm singing “Open
Up Your Heart and Let the Sunshine In.”

OPENING CREDITS:

In the CLOSING CREDITS, the “Let’s ride” and “Through the courtesy”
lines are replaced with

Some day, maybe Fred will win the fight
And that cat will stay out for the night

The “courtesy of Fred’s two feet” line is hopelessly indecipherable to
many people and was dubbed, in one of Rich Hall’s _Sniglets_
collections, a “Hanna-Barbarism.”

The fifth- and sixth-season theme music features a slight difference
in the vocals.

Yes. Live with it.
———————————————————————-
10. What were the origins and early history of the show?

That’s a very long story, but here’s the short version.

Sort of (maybe). Here’s what Bill Hanna himself has said on the
subject:

Meanwhile, Joe Barbera says:

Henry Corden, a friend of Jackie Gleason and the current voice of Fred
Flintstone, recalls:

_The Flintstones_ could not have existed without the able skills
of one of the best teams in television history:

cocreators and executive producers William Hanna and Joseph Barbera;

storyboard illustrator Dan Gordon;

artist/make-over consultant/set designer Ed Benedict;

associate producer and layout artist Alex Lovy;

layout artist and designer Iwao Takamoto;

layout artists Dick Bickenbach, Jerry Eisenberg, Willie Ito, and Don
Jurwich;

animators Ed Aardel, George Goepper, Gerry Hathcock, Ed Love, Dick
Lundy, Kenneth Muse, George Nichols, Don Patterson, Irv Spence, and
Carlo Vinci;

animation checker Midge Sturgis;

background painting department head Fernando “Monte” Montealegre;

background artist Richard H. Thomas;

camera department head Frank Pakier;

musical director Hoyt Curtin.

Major Characters (1960-present)

FRED FLINTSTONE Daws Butler (_Flagstones_ screentest);
Alan Reed (1960-1977);
Henry Corden (singing in _The Man Called
Flintstone_; 1977-present)
WILMA FLINTSTONE Jean Vander Pyl (1960-present)
BARNEY RUBBLE Mel Blanc (1960-1989);
Daws Butler (1961)*;
Frank Welker (1989-present)
BETTY RUBBLE Bea Benaderet (1960-1964);
Gerry Johnson (1964-1966);
Gaye Autterson (later Hartwig) (1971-1981?);
B. J. Ward (1981?-present)

Other Recurring Characters (original series voices):

From Alan Reed, the voice of Fred. Hear the words of Joe Barbera:

A boy named Junior was included in the series’ press release and in a
Little Golden Book adventure (as well as on some advance merchandise
related to the program), but never on the actual show.

Lots. Here are the major ones:

> _The Flagstones_ (1960): Screen test.
> _The Flintstones_ (1960-1966): Original series.
> _The Man Called Flintstone_ (1966): Motion picture.
> _Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm_ (1971): Saturday morning TV series.
> _The Flintstones Comedy Hour_ (1972): Saturday morning TV series.
(Old and new PABB episodes plus other material.)
> _The Flintstones Show_ (1973-1974): Reruns of TFCH.
> _Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm [2]_ (1974-1976): Reruns of TFCH.
> _Fred Flintstone and Friends_ (1976?-?): Contains reruns of TFCH.
> _A Flintstone Christmas_ (1977): TV special.
> _The Flintstones’ Little Big League_ (1978): TV special.
> _The New Fred and Barney Show_ (1979): Saturday morning TV series.
> _Fred and Barney Meet the Thing_ (1979): Old episodes paired with
adventures of the Thing (and his Thing Ring).
> _The Flintstones Meet Rockula and Frankenstone_ (1979): TV special.
> _Fred and Barney Meet the Shmoo_ (1979): 90-min. Saturday morning
TV series.
> _The Flintstone Comedy Show_ (1980-1981): 90-min. Saturday morning
TV series. (Featured “Flintstone Family Adventures,” “Pebbles,
Dino and Bamm-Bamm,” “Captain Caveman,” “Bedrock Cops,” “Dino and
Cavemouse,” and “The Frankenstones.”)
> _The Flintstones’ New Neighbors_ (1980): TV special.
> _The Final Fling_ (1981): TV special.
> _Wind-Up Wilma_ (1981): TV special.
> _Jogging Fever_ (1981): TV special.
> _The Flintstone Kids_ (1986-1988): TV series.
> _The Jetsons Meet the Flintstones_ (1987): TV movie.
> _Flintstone Kids: Just Say No_ (1988): TV special.
> _I Yabba Dabba Do!_ (1993): TV movie.
> _Hollyrock-A-Bye Baby_ (1993): TV movie.
> _A Flintstone Family Christmas_ (1993): TV special.
> _The Flintstones_ (1994): Live-action motion picture.
> _A Flintstones’ Christmas Carol_ (1994): TV movie.
> _Stay Out_ (1995): Short Dino cartoon; first in a proposed series.

Sources at Hanna-Barbera and elsewhere have leaked the following info:

A sequel is being planned to the live-action movie (starring John
Goodman). Word has it that where the first film was a more-or-
less direct translation of the show to the big screen, the sequel
will be more plot-oriented and have a stronger parodic edge.
(The two _Addams Family_ movies have been cited as a point of
comparison.) The result, hopefully, will appeal more to adults
than the first film was perceived to.

While Fred, Wilma, Barney, and Betty will be taking a well-
deserved rest after last year’s Flintstone-mania, the familiar
team of Pebbles, Bamm-Bamm, and Dino will be retooled for today’s
young viewers; the concept is being dubbed “Cave Kids” (not to be
confused with a comic title of the same name). It is unknown
what relation, if any, this new project has to the proposed new
Dino series.

A source at H-B further revealed to Bedrock Online that
the Powers That Be have been toying for some time now with the
possibility of a Flintstones convention, a la the successful
conventions surrounding sci-fi TV shows like _Star Trek_. Plans
are extremely tentative at this stage, but questions of the
possible format and location for such a convention have already
been raised and discussed. Stay tuned…
———————————————————————-
25. How widely is _The Flintstones_ seen today?

_The Flintstones_ is presently seen in 22 languages in more than 80
countries around the world, and is on somewhere every minute of the
day.
———————————————————————-
26. What is the best general reference work on the show?

Selected bibliography:

Barbera, Joseph. _My Life in ‘Toons: From Flatbush to Bedrock
in Under a Century_.
Beck, Jerry. _The 50 Greatest Cartoons: As Selected By 1,000
Animation Professionals_.
Blanc, Mel. _That’s Not All, Folks_.
Lenburg, Jeff. _Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons_.
Maltin, Leonard. _Of Mice and Magic: A History of American
Animated Cartoons_.
Sennett, Ted. _The Art of Hanna-Barbera_.
Solomon, Charles. _Enchanted Drawings: The History of
Animation_.
———————————————————————-
27. Are any _Flintstones_ episodes available on video?

Turner Home Entertainment has released a number of episodes on tape,
grouping them thematically rather than chronologically.

Columbia House makes the entire original series available on tape to
club members. These episodes are uncut, but do not feature the laugh
track.

A laserdisc box set is also anticipated. It reportedly contains the
first 14 episodes, the _Flagstones_ screentest, the “Rise and Shine”
opening sequence, original bumpers, and even the Winston cigarette
commercials.
———————————————————————-
28. Are there any Flintstones-related resources accessible by
computer or mail?

E-mail:

Bedrock Online is the only Internet resource expressly dedicated to
the Flintstones. (See section 1.)

Other e-mail resources you may wish to contact include:

The Cartoon Network:

Turner HQ:

Animators List:

Usenet:

There was once an ALT.FLINTSTONES newsgroup, but its poorly chosen
name format kept it from being widely propagated.

Check out REC.ARTS.ANIMATION, which deals with ‘toons in
general and frequently features discussion of _The Flintstones_ and
the Hanna-Barbera universe.

Joe Cabrera contributes a biweekly trivia quiz to REC.GAMES.TRIVIA
that regularly contains Flintstones-related questions. Dave
LaRocque occasionally contributes installments of The Flintstones
Quiz to the same newsgroup.

Other questions might be addressed to ALT.CEREAL, REC.ARTS.TV, and
the REC.ARTS.COMICS groups.

Web sites:

A Flintstones Web Page and FTP site are currently being planned as
a companion to this list. More details will be available soon.

There are many Web sites devoted to animation in general. Those
listed below provide excellent entry points for Web exploration.

Yahoo’s cartoon menu:
http://www.yahoo.com/text/Entertainment/Television/Shows/Cartoons/

The Animators’ Homepage:
http://www.xmission.com/~grue/animate

The Cartoon Heaven Homepage:
http://symphony.ucc.ie/~niall/cheaven.html

The Vintage Ink & Paint Homepage:
http://www.earthlink.net/~sworth/

Snail mail:

Hanna-Barbera Productions | The official fan mail address!
Attn: “The Flintstones”
3400 Cahuenga Blvd. West
Hollywood, CA 90068

Turner Home Entertainment | Distributor of episodes
One CNN Center | on video
Atlanta, GA 30303

Archie Comics Publications, Inc. | Current publisher of Flint-
325 Fayette Avenue | stones comic book titles
Mamaroneck, NY 10543

Kraft Foods, Inc. | Makers of Post Fruity and Cocoa
Box FP-13 | Pebbles cereals
White Plains, NY 10625

Rhino Records, Inc. | Distributors of Flintstones/H-B
10635 Santa Monica Blvd. | song and sound effect records
Los Angeles, CA 90025-4900

___________________________
Flintstones FAQ Version 1.3
By Marc Barnhill
September 9, 1995

==========================
animation/best.of.net #205, from hmccracken, 1838 chars, Tue Oct 10 21:58:38 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 10 Oct 1995 21:54:16 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9510102154.memo.81125@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!sleepy.inch.com!news.cloud9.net!news.sprintlink.net!nntp.earthlink.net!sworth.earthlink.net!user
From: sworth@vintageip.com (Stephen W. Worth)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Sad News…
Date: Wed, 04 Oct 1995 11:49:25 -0700
Organization: Vintage Ink & Paint
Lines: 26
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: sworth.earthlink.net

I’m sorry to announce that the great MGM animator, Irv Spence passed
away last week. Spence was instrumental in setting the pacing for
the classic Tom & Jerry cartoons. Mike Lah, Tex Avery’s right-hand
animator has said that he and Spence would take turns trying to top
one another in their respective cartoons, making a take more extreme
or cranking up the speed to split-second precision.

Irv also was instrumental in Ralph Bakshi’s best pictures, bringing
a sense of refinement and personality to all of his scenes. I had the
pleasure of speaking with Irv on several occasions and found him to
be a charming and interesting person.

Irv Spence received a life achievement Annie Award several years
back in honor of his many years in the animation business, from his
early work at the Iwerks Studio to his recent work for Bakshi and
others.

Steve Worth

==========================
animation/best.of.net #206, from hmccracken, 4224 chars, Tue Oct 10 21:58:53 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 10 Oct 1995 21:55:32 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9510102155.memo.81137@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in2.uu.net!world!news.kei.com!simtel!news.sprintlink.net!nntp.earthlink.net!sworth.earthlink.net!user
From: sworth@vintageip.com (Stephen W. Worth)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: DIC disinters Tex
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 1995 00:10:15 -0700
Organization: Vintage Ink & Paint
Lines: 80
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: sworth.earthlink.net
Xref: news2.delphi.com rec.arts.animation:40074 alt.animation.warner-bros:8330

Well, reading today’s trades, I was reminded of the recent story about the
two young men who broke into Forest Lawn last week. (…but I’ll save that
story for alt.folklore.urban…)

Andy Heyward of DIC (whose controlling interest was acquired by Disney in
the recent ABC/Cap Cities “Deal of the Decade”) just announced their newest
project today…

“Tex Avery Theater”

I can just hear you saying to yourself, “Wait a minute, doesn’t Time/Warner
own Bugs, Droopy and the ubiquitous Screwy Squirrel (since they bought out
Turner in the OTHER “Deal of the Decade”?)

Yes, DIC has no rights to any of Tex Avery’s classic characters. So just what
cartoon character do they plan to star in this series, anyway?

You might want to sit down for this…

Andy Heyward’s brilliant idea for the newest cartoon character to capture
the hearts and minds of America is to make the real person into a cartoon.
Yes, Tex Avery himself!

Yikes! Now I HAVE seen everything…

The cartoono-necrophilic concoction supposedly carries the blessing of
Tex’s daughter. (I guess limited edition cels wouldn’t have brought in
enough money for her, she wanted the big bucks- a series license…)

Heyward plans 65 half hour episodes based on the “cute little cartoon
director.” I doubt that I’ll be able to sit through a single one.

In any case, I can’t think of a studio that has exibited less of Tex’s
influence than DIC, so it seems like a mis-match made in hell to me…
You can bet that Tex is spinning in his grave complete with dry brush
blur right now…

This is the best story on DIC I’ve read since Andy Heyward told the
trades about the elaborate computer animation setup they were going
to produce all of their series on, or the time he described the DIC
“Studio Tour” which was to be led by a costumed Inspector Gadget
character… “Here is the shipping department where everything gets
sent to Korea… and here is where the artists sit when they’re not
laid off… and here is the highlight of our tour, Robbie London’s office!”

The only thing that worries me is that Andy just might be serious
this time…

I’ve been thinking all day of possible sequels and competing series for
“Tex Avery Theater”… Here are a few:

Film Roman could produce “Burt Gilett Theater”, where the hot headed
auteur has a nervous breakdown screaming, “I DIRECTED THE THREE LITTLE
PIGS, DAMMIT!” while he kicks the animators mercelessly, until they
throw him in a sanitarium to bring him back to his senses.

or perhaps Hanna-Barbera could replace the real Bill and Joe with
animated ones… (Much cheaper than keeping the real ones on staff…
particularly since those Dino and Yakkie Doodle shorts bombed so
badly…)

or perhaps Klasky-Czupo could do the comical adventures of crotchety
old Ben Sharpsteen, the one director at Disney that no one seems to have
a kind word for… (In the words of Art Babbit, “He saved a boy from
drowning once… I think the kid owed him five dollars.”)

or maybe Filmation could be reformed to produce the lavish Saturday
morning series, “Silly Seymour Kneitel & His Jolly Friends at Famous”

The mind boggles…
See ya
Steve

==========================
animation/best.of.net #207, from hmccracken, 2608 chars, Thu Oct 12 20:56:25 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Thu, 12 Oct 1995 20:56:00 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9510122056.memo.92259@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!elvis.delphi.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!usenet.eel.ufl.edu!news-feed-1.peachnet.edu!umn.edu!newsstand.tc.umn.edu!usenet
From: Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: Pogofest
Date: Thu, 12 Oct 95 08:21:59 CST
Organization: University of Minnesota
Lines: 32
Message-ID: <44085.thomp030@maroon.tc.umn.edu>
Reply-To: NNTP-Posting-Host: x52-1.cla.umn.edu
X-Minuet-Version: Minuet1.0_Beta_14.1
X-POPMail-Charset: English

The City of Waycross, Pogo People Inc. and The International Pogo Fan Club
would like to invite all strip fans to the Ninth Annual Pogofest in
Waycross Georgia, October 27-29. Waycross, in addition to being located on
the northern edge of the Okefenokee Swamp, is home to the Cartoonists Walk
of Fame. This year’s star on the Walk is being awarded to Mort Walker.

Pogofest activities include the presentation of the Star, followed by a
private reception for organizers and members of the Pogo Fan Club Friday
evening; antique and collectibles show all weekend, various musical events
and kids programming, community events and food booths. Pogo Fan Club
guests will be both Selby Daley Kelly (Walt’s widow) and Carolyn Kelly
(Walt’s daughter); both drew the strip at various times.

Pogo Fan Club activities will include presentations on Kelly’s editorial
cartoons, exhibits of original strip artwork (which will be for sale), a
collector’s show with opportunities to buy, sell or trade Pogo and Kelly
collectibles, and conversations with both Selby and Carolyn. Collectibles
available will include: original art, signed items, copies of all Pogo
books and many non-Pogo Kelly illustrated titles, scarce and unusual pieces
such as Puce Stamps and porcelain figures, and much more. Many collectors
make Pogofest their major shopping trip of the year.

Pogofest is free to all interested visitors; however, some of the Pogo Fan
Club activities require advance registration. Registration includes
convention book, button and t-shirt, none of which are available elsewhere.
If you’re interested in Fan Club registration, let me know and I’ll forward
the details.

By the way, Churchy reminds us that Friday the Thirteenth comes on a Friday
this month, so he is in hiding until at least Monday.
Steve Thompson — U of MN Dept. of Theatre Arts & Dance
thomp030@maroon.tc.umn.edu

==========================
animation/best.of.net #208, from hmccracken, 2231 chars, Sun Oct 22 16:25:49 1995
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 22 Oct 1995 16:21:57 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9510221621.memo.35083@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!elvis.delphi.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!nntp.earthlink.net!sworth.earthlink.net!user
From: sworth@vintageip.com (Stephen W. Worth)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Yet another animation great passes away…
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 1995 19:11:29 -0700
Organization: Vintage Ink & Paint
Lines: 35
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: sworth.earthlink.net

Boy, it seems like we’ve lost more than ever before this year, but
now there’s another animator’s death to announce…

Mike Lah, veteran MGM animator, and right hand man to Tex Avery
on the classic Droopy / Spike cartoons died this week after suffering
a series of debilitating strokes over the past two years.

At MGM, Mike and Irv Spence (who also passed away last month) served
similar positions on the Avery and Hanna-Barbera units (respectively)
at MGM. Their friendly competition to pace gags faster and faster, while
still making them “read”, led to some of the wildest cartoons ever made.
As a partner in Quartet Films, Mike brought Tony the Tiger and Snap,
Crackle & Pop to life.

I had the pleasure of knowing Mike, serving with him on the ASIFA-Hw’d
Board of Directors. He was a soft-spoken and humble man who just
wanted to continue to animate when many of his contemporaries were
retiring. The death of his wife several years ago was a severe blow to
Mike. He never really recovered.

At this years’ Annie Awards, ASIFA will pay special tribute to the great
figures in animation that we lost this year: Walter Lantz, Friz Freleng,
Irv Spence, Michael Lah, Paul Julian, and Preston Blair.

Steve Worth
Editor
ASIFA-Hollywood’s “Inbetweener”

==========================
animation/best.of.net #209, from hkenner, 253 chars, Sun Oct 22 18:18:53 1995
This is a comment to message 208.
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
Paul Julian? I missed the report of his death. The son of the barber
I went to when I lived in Santa Barbara, and the brother of Margaret J.,
another artist. Do I remember correctly that at Warner’s (wasn’t it?)
he was a background specialist?
–HK

==========================
animation/best.of.net #210, from switch, 39 chars, Sun Oct 22 18:20:59 1995
This is a comment to message 209.
There are additional comments to message 209.
————————–
You do remember correctly, Hugh.

Emru

==========================
animation/best.of.net #211, from hmccracken, 986 chars, Sun Oct 22 21:17:31 1995
This is a comment to message 209.
————————–
Julian was indeed a background painter — at Warner’s (primarily
for Friz Freleng), where he started in 1939. Later, he became
a designer for UPA, where he worked on such well-known cartoons
as _Rooty Toot Toot_ (based on the Frankie and Johnny story) and
the animated sequences in Stanley Kramer’s live-action film
_The Four Poster_. I’m relatively positive he worked in TV animation as
well, but I’m not sure where.

Julian also earned a certain type of immortality for something he said
when carrying a gigantic stack of art supplies through a crowded hallway:
“Beep, Beep.” The expression tickled his Warner colleagues so much that they
gave it the Road Runner to say.

I hadn’t heard of Julian’s death before reading that post either. We
continue to lose important animation artists at an alarming rate: Friz
Freleng, Preston Blair, Michael Lah, Irv Spence, and Julian, among others.
It’s very sad, but not surprising as the golden age of animation fades
into history.

— Harry

==========================
animation/best.of.net #212, from hmccracken, 3361 chars, Sun Oct 22 23:31:03 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 22 Oct 1995 23:29:29 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9510222329.memo.36301@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.animation.warner-bros.

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!elvis.delphi.com!news-out.internetmci.com!newsfeed.internetmci.com!howland.reston.ans.net!news-e1a.megaweb.com!newstf01.news.aol.com!newsbf02.news.aol.com!not-for-mail
From: eocostello@aol.com (EOCostello)
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: Re: Mel Blanc
Date: 9 Oct 1995 18:23:48 -0400
Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364)
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Sender: root@newsbf02.news.aol.com
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NNTP-Posting-Host: newsbf02.mail.aol.com

Following up on my earlier note, there are actually few instances
where WB personnel can actually be seen, in live action or in caricature.
While I don not think the following list is complete, it will give you
some idea of what is out there.

Joe Glow the Firefly (Jones, 1941). The sleeping human that the title
character crawls around is Jones himself.

Wackiki Wabbit (Jones, 1943). Writers Tedd Pierce and Mike Maltese
provide the voices, and to a certain extent the caricatures, of the two
castaways.

Ghost Wanted (Jones, 1940). Robert Givens, who designed the model sheet
for the rascally ghost voiced by Tex Avery, has stated that the ghost is
something of a caricature of Jones. (See Schneider, page 63)

Hasty Hare (Jones, 1952). “I. Frizby”, the director of the Shalomar
Observatory, is a superb caricature of Friz Freleng.

Russian Rhapsody (Clampett, 1944). A T. Hee Christmas card from the 1930s
(reproduced in Schneider at page 24) featuring caricatures of the staff
was used as the model for the Russian gremlins. I can identify Tubby
Millar (the tack-headed fellow), Friz Freleng (short green gremlin with a
saw nose), Henry Binder (sleeping gremlin), and a relatively straight
Schlesinger caricature. I cannot readily identify any of the others.

Ride Him Bosko (Harman/Ising, 1933). Live action shot at end shows Walker
Harman and Rudy Ising.

Hollywood Steps Out (Avery, 1941) Schlesinger and Binder are seated at a
table; Binder raises his glass.

Rookie Revue (Freleng, 1941). Binder, Avery and Ray Katz are seated at a
table, eating noisily, until Binder spots the audience and makes everybody
eat politely.

Nutty News (Clampett, 1942) Ray Katz gets his pants stolen.

Page Miss Glory (Avery, 1936). Avery, Jones and Clampett are in the crowd
greeting Miss Glory at the end.

Circus Today (Avery, 1940). Though A.C. Gamer and Rich Hogan are referred
to in the names of some of the sideshow attractions, only Captain
Clampett, the Human Cannonball, is an actual caricature.

Porky’s Hero Agency (Clampett, 1937). The picket fence outside the
Medusa’s workshop is composed of Clampett and members of his crew at that
time, including Chuck Jones, Bobe Cannon, Ernest Gee, Lu Guarnier, and
John Carey.

Bosko the Talk-Ink Kid (Pilot film, 1929). Rudy Ising is seen on screen,
interacting with Bosko much like Walter Lantz and Max Fleischer used to
do.

These are the ones I can think of off the top of my head. I’m sure
thereare others.

Eric O. Costello, J.D., D.O.A., W.Y.S.I.W.Y.G. (alias EOCostello@aol.com).

==========================
animation/best.of.net #213, from hmccracken, 1775 chars, Fri Nov 10 23:25:31 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Fri, 10 Nov 1995 23:22:54 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9511102322.memo.22135@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.comics.strips

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!elvis.delphi.com!news-out.internetmci.com!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in2.uu.net!news.erinet.com!ragnarok.oar.net!malgudi.oar.net!news.cd.columbus.oh.us!medit2.cd.columbus.oh.us!user
From: gkiefer@cd.columbus.oh.us (Gary Kiefer)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: Watterson statement on end of C&H
Date: Thu, 09 Nov 1995 18:02:05 -0500
Organization: The Columbus Dispatch
Lines: 32
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: medit2.cd.columbus.oh.us

Note: Newspapers carrying “Calvin and Hobbes” received this explanation
from Bill Watterson today concerning his decision to end the strip.
Following is the complete text of his letter:

————————-

Dear Editor:

I will be stopping “Calvin and Hobbes” at the end of the year.

This was not a recent or easy decision, and I leave with some sadness.
My interests have shifted, however, and I believe I’ve done what I can
do within the constraints of daily deadlines and small panels.

I am eager to work at a more thoughtful pace, with fewer artistic
compromises. I have not yet decided on future projects, but my
relationship with Universal Press Syndicate will continue.

That so many newspapers would carry “Calvin and Hobbes” is an honor
I’ll long be proud of, and I’ve greatly appreciated your support and
indulgence over the last decade. Drawing this comic strip has been a
privilege and a pleasure, and I thank you for giving me the opportunity.

Sincerely,
Bill Watterson

————————-

—
gkiefer@cd.columbus.oh.us
Gary Kiefer

==========================
animation/best.of.net #214, from hmccracken, 1556 chars, Mon Nov 20 20:24:18 1995
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
xFrom: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 20 Nov 1995 20:20:52 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9511202020.memo.58972@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

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From: chance@unix.infoserve.net (chance)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Disney empties the basement…
Date: Mon, 20 Nov 1995 02:13:10 GMT
Organization: Jake & Chance Garage
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NNTP-Posting-Host: d150.infoserve.net
X-Newsreader: Forte Free Agent 1.0.82

Disney has evidently unearthed an unfinished Mickey Mouse cartoon, a partial
sequel to “Fantasia”, the original “Little Mermaid” (??) and a version of
“Hiawatha” kept in the can because execs believed it would lose money in
release.

This report further goes on to say that we can expect to see this stuff within
the next two years.

(cribbed without permission, but with thanks, from “Vancouver Province”, Nov.
16, 1995)
_______________________________________________________________________________
SwatKats Fans: Series’ creators holding free draw for original artwork! Mail a
postcard (or envelope) with your name and return address on the back to:
SWATKATS DRAW, 15460 Sherman Way #1-310, Van Nuys CA, USA 91406. (Cutoff date
Dec. 1st – one entry per person please).

==========================
animation/best.of.net #215, from hmccracken, 1220 chars, Mon Nov 20 20:24:32 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 20 Nov 1995 20:21:24 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9511202021.memo.58983@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.mci.newscorp.com!imci2!newsfeed.internetmci.com!swrinde!cs.utexas.edu!news.cs.utah.edu!news.aros.net!usenet
From: Dave
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: New Animation Spot on WWW
Date: Sat, 18 Nov 1995 11:41:51 -0700
Organization: ArosNet Inc.
Lines: 13
Message-ID: <30AE28EF.24CB@aros.net>
NNTP-Posting-Host: anp13.aros.net
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
X-Mailer: Mozilla 2.0b2 (Windows; I; 32bit)

The Cartoon Factory has opened it’s new web page on the Net! The
Cartoon Factory is a fully licensed gallery representing Disney,
Warner Bros., Hanna-Barbera, Linda Jones Enterprises, MCA/Universal,
The Simpsons, Ren and Stimpy and many others.
We invite you to drop by http://www.cartoon-factory.com/ and take a
look around. We hope you like it!
—

The Cartoon Factory, Inc.

fone: 801.583.3700 * fax: 801.583.3713
http://www.cartoon-factory.com/
E-Mail: info@cartoon-factory.com

==========================
animation/best.of.net #216, from switch, 120 chars, Tue Nov 21 22:45:01 1995
This is a comment to message 214.
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
Sounds like they watched that NBC dateline “news item” that promoted Charles
Solomon’s The Disney that Never Was.

Emru

==========================
animation/best.of.net #217, from hmccracken, 2754 chars, Sat Nov 25 18:24:02 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 25 Nov 1995 18:23:06 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9511251823.memo.78168@BIX.com>
Subject: Silicon Valley SIGGRAPH Nov. mtg – ‘Toy Story’

Newsgroups: ba.seminars,comp.graphics,alt.3d,comp.graphics.animation,rec.arts.disney.animation
Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.mci.newscorp.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!usc!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!lll-winken.llnl.gov!simtel!news3.noc.netcom.net!netcom.com!hitchner
From: hitchner@netcom.com (Lew Hitchner)
Subject: Silicon Valley SIGGRAPH Nov. mtg – ‘Toy Story’
Message-ID:
Summary: November meeting
Keywords: ‘Toy Story’, Pixar and Disney, animation
Organization: Silicon Valley SIGGRAPH
Date: Mon, 20 Nov 1995 16:11:31 GMT
Lines: 48
Sender: hitchner@netcom6.netcom.com
Xref: news2.delphi.com ba.seminars:3418 alt.3d:18147 comp.graphics.animation:26533 rec.arts.disney.animation:3397

Silicon Valley SIGGRAPH November Meeting

Pixar and Disney’s ‘Toy Story’

Rick Sayre, Ronen Barzel, Rich Quade, and Hal Hickel, Pixar

Tuesday, November 28, 1995
Apple Auidtorium
4 Infinite Loop
Cupertino

7:30 pm Networking & Socializing
8:00 pm Meeting
Admission free, open to all and to all ages!

As Steve Jobs told us all in his keynote speech at SIGGRAPH ’95 last
summer in Los Angeles, 1995 is the 100th anniversary of the first
moving picture. 1995 will be significant in motion picture history for
a second reason. The soon-to-be-released feature length movie, ‘Toy
Story’, co-produced and animated by Pixar and Disney Studios is the
first feature length film whose frames are 100% computer generated.
Come to the SIGGRAPH meeting to hear from the principal developers how
the movie was made and all about mind boggling facts such as: the
number of gigabytes (terabytes?) of disk to store the animation frames,
the hours (years?) of CPU time for generating them, and, of course,
inside stories about how some of the magical effects were produced.

Directions (for those of you in Santa Clara County):
From Highway 280, take the De Anza Boulevard off ramp south towards
Cupertino.
Turn left at Mariani.
Turn left into the second driveway.
The auditorium is in building 4, the second building on the right.

For further information,
call Domenic Allen at (408) 720-9669, ext. 7448. or domenic@acm.org
http://www.best.com/~siggraph
http://www.toystory.com

—
Lew Hitchner 500 W. Middlefield Rd. #34
Silicon Valley SIGGRAPH Mountain View, CA 94043
email: hitchner@netcom.com
URL: ftp://ftp.netcom.com/pub/hi/hitchner/vrnews.html

==========================
animation/best.of.net #218, from hmccracken, 412 chars, Sat Nov 25 18:25:54 1995
This is a comment to message 216.
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
I guess so…How was the item?

I’m not sure if I’ve reviewed the book here yet, but it’s wonderful —
a coffee-table volume full of artwork from Disney films that were
planned but never made, mostly during the 1930s and 1940s. It’s
the first Disney book I’ve plunked down my money for in quite
some time (I don’t have _The Making of Pocahontas_ and its like),
and it’s well worth the $40 asking price.
— Harry

==========================
animation/best.of.net #219, from hmccracken, 6344 chars, Sat Nov 25 20:17:57 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 25 Nov 1995 20:15:46 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9511252015.memo.78355@BIX.com>
Subject: Toy Story

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!usenet
From: Richard Trethewey Newsgroups: rec.arts.disney.misc
Subject: Toy Story
Date: Fri, 17 Nov 95 23:11:41 -0500
Organization: Delphi (info@delphi.com email, 800-695-4005 voice)
Lines: 94
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: bos1e.delphi.com

I got to see Toy Story on Thursday at the San Francisco office of Dolby
Labs and I loved it. There’s a lot of humor aimed at adults, so you
won’t feel like you’re sitting through a “kiddie movie.” The computer
animation is superb. If you’ve ever seen John Lasseter’s previous
works “Tin Toy” or “Knick-Knack,” you’ll see just how far the medium
has come in the last seven years. The characters’ mouths form words so
flawlessly that you’ll forget it’s not top-quality traditional
animation. Tom Hanks does a great job as our hero Woody the Cowboy.
You can feel Hanks’ body language in his voice, in a performance as
exuberant as “Big” and “Nothing In Common.” But Tim Allen as Buzz
Lightyear – Space Ranger steals the show with a display of Saturday
morning super-hero bravado as he explains to the other toys how he
really is Buzz Lightyear and he alone can save the universe from the
evil Emperor Zurg. Sure, there’s an undertone of Tim “The Tool Man”
Taylor in Buzz as Allen plays the self-absorbed semi-delusional space
toy without pulling any punches. Lots of other wonderful voices, too.
Jim “Ernest” Varney plays Slinky – a dashund pull-toy with a Southern
drawl as long as his springy midsection. Don Rickles is just fine as
Mr. Potatohead who hopes against hope that the next new toy to arrive
will be a Mrs. Potatohead. Annie Potts plays a demure Little Bo Peep
procelain lamp in love with our hero Woody. A personal favorite is
Wallace Shawn who plays Rex, the dinosaur toy. He’s a short,
bald-headed character actor with a distinctive lisp you’d recognize
immediately on the screen. He played the evil genius who kept saying
“inconceivable” and had a duel of wits with Wesley in “The Princess
Bride.” Got him now? He also played one of Elaine Nardo’s boyfriends
in an episode of “Taxi” in which he got Elaine’s kids to like him by
bribing them with 20-dollar bills. But then, I’m one of those strange
people who enjoy character actors nobody else recognizes, like Elisha
Cook, jr. who passed away recently after an amazing 50-year career in
movies and television. John “Cliff Claven” Ratzenberger plays Hamm,
the know-it-all piggy bank whose role was rather unremarkable, which
was a disappointment. Ditto for Laurie Metcalf, best known as
Roseanne’s sitcom sister Jackie, who plays Andy’s mom. Neither of the
latter two characters got enough screen time to make any impact, in my
opinion.

I think this movie is going to be a huge hit. It’s a cute story of
toys who come to life when the humans leave the room. Woody is the
favorite toy of the little boy in the film, Andy, who has a birthday
party early in the film. One of the presents he gets is a Buzz
Lightyear toy, and Andy immediately starts to treat Buzz as his new
favorite. A turf battle between Woody and Buzz leads to a mix-up
ending with the two characters becoming “lost toys” – a fate akin to
death for these guys. The scary parts are gentle enough for the 8 and
older crowd, I think, and the “Babes In Toyland” dreamworld is sure to
keep them entertained.

Lots of inside jokes. Watch product labels and book titles. Lots of
references to toy manufacturers, many of whom don’t even have Toy Story
stuff to hawk. Imaginative characters abound – especially the toys
owned by the neighborhood brat who abuses toys maniacally. Every male
will immediately recognize the poses of all of the plastic army men.
The screening room at Dolby was naturally equipped with full Dolby
Digital Surround Sound, and it definitely enhanced the audience’s
sensory immersion in this artificial environment. I can’t say enough
about the quality of the computer-generated images. The surface
textures are most impressive, with less of that look of heavily
enameled wood in every object. Some folks may be put off by the lack
of detail in the faces of the human characters, but I took that to be a
deliberate choice rather than a flaw or limitation. Lighting and
shading effects, another hallmark of most computer animation, were kept
in check. Fast pans seemed a bit choppy, but that was the most
nit-picking criticism I could possibly come up with.

I enjoyed Randy Newman’s music here, as always. It’s very reminiscent
of his work in “Parenthood.” Oh, let’s face it. His music pretty much
all sounds alike. No sign of “The Boys Are Back In Town” despite its
appearance in the TV commercials. The soundtrack album is overloaded
with instrumentals, which have a flavor much like “Nightmare Before
Christmas.” In line with my previous comments on this subject, I
strongly recommend the Sing-Along cassette.

If its a Disney film, you know there’s going to be merchandising. We
checked out the local Target and Toys-R-Us stores for Toy Story toys
and found little to choose from yet. Target only had a Mr. Potatohead
in the toy department, but they also had Toy Story candy bars and bags
of miniature chocolates. TRU had the Thinkway Toys talking poseable
Woody and a Buzz Lightyear flashlight. Thinkway Toys will also be
producing a talking Buzz Lightyear, which is sure to be very popular.
There’s also sets of small PVC’s and some other action figures, and I’m
sure The Disney Stores will have t-shirts and other items. There’s a
$4.00 rebate deal on the talking Buzz and Woody toys when you buy the
soundtrack album, so save all of the cash register receipts. Hyperion
has published a postcard book and a flip book, as usual, but the keeper
is the “Art and Making Of” book with a giant 3-D lenticular picture of
Buzz and Woody on the cover. And we can all start looking forward to
regular visits to the local Burger King for the next eight weeks for
their collection of Kids Meals toys. My advice, try the broiled
chicken salad and lo-cal dressing when you can’t face another burger
and fries.

Richard L. Trethewey
Rainbo Electronic Reviews

==========================
animation/best.of.net #220, from switch, 460 chars, Sun Nov 26 21:37:34 1995
This is a comment to message 218.
————————–
The item was average, at best. It presented information which most animation
fans already knew (the original plans for Fantasia, reborn as Fantasia
Continued, Clair de Lune, stuff like that) and for the most part made a simple
fact (studios come up with ideas that are discarded) sound like a recent
discovery. No direct mention of the book, save a pan up the cover (to
illustrate the original Little Mermaid idea) and comments from Charles Solomon.

Emru

==========================
animation/best.of.net #221, from hmccracken, 47595 chars, Mon Nov 27 00:14:55 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 26 Nov 1995 23:39:04 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9511262339.memo.80987@BIX.com>
Subject: From alt.tv.simpsons

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.mci.newscorp.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!news.us.world.net!news.sprintlink.net!news.wwa.com!mkurth
From: mkurth@wwa.com (Matthew Kurth)
Newsgroups: alt.tv.simpsons,alt.answers,news.answers
Subject: alt.tv.simpsons LISA (FAQ) – December 1995
Followup-To: poster
Date: 27 Nov 1995 04:11:06 GMT
Organization: Lisa Simpson & Dot Warner Appreciation Society
Lines: 1046
Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.EDU
Message-ID: <49bdoq$mt7@kirin.wwa.com>
Reply-To: mkurth@wwa.com
NNTP-Posting-Host: miso.wwa.com
Summary: A compliation of more-or-less useful information and answers to common
questions about alt.tv.simpsons and the TV series “The Simpsons”
Keywords: Simpsons FAQ LISA Help
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2]
Xref: news2.delphi.com alt.tv.simpsons:85925 alt.answers:13434 news.answers:56787

Archive-name: tv/simpsons/faq
URL: http://miso.wwa.com/~mkurth/lisa.html
Posting-Frequency: Every Two Weeks
Version: December 1995, Text Format
Last-modified: 11-26

Overseas-Production-By: Anivision
Blackboard-Quote: The Doctor did not appear in 3F08 just for me. The Doctor/
In-Memory-Of: “Bleeding Gums” Murphy, George “Bubby” Berube

List of Inquiries and Substantive Answers (LISA)
————————————————
Maintained by Matthew “The Captain” Kurth

(####)
(#######)
(#########)
(#########)
(#########)
(#########)
__&__ (#########)
/ \ (#########) |\/\/\/| /\ /\ /\ /\
| | (#########) | | | \/ \/ \. .—-/ \—-.
| (o)(o) (o)(o)(##) | | \_ / \ /
C .—_) ,_C (##) | (o)(o) (o)(o) <__. .--\ (o)(o) /__. | |.___| /____, (##) C _) _C / \ () / | \__/ \ (#) | ,___| /____, ) \ > (C_) < /_____\ | | | / \ /----' /___\____/___\ /_____/ \ OOOOOO /____\ ooooo /| |\ / \ / \ / \ / \ / \ Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) for the Usenet newsgroup alt.tv.simpsons, to be posted as required and pointed to users asking about topics covered here. Finger to see if your copy of the LISA is still current.
A current version of the LISA is always available at in the
directory /pub/usenet-by-group/alt.tv.simpsons or by sending Email to
with the word “LISA” as the subject of your message.

The official HTML version of this document is available on the WWW at the URL
. Accept no substitutes!

The FAQ is also available in Spanish. The Preguntas Mas Frecuentes can be
obtained by sending Email to with “PMF” as the subject.

Corrections and Suggestions encouraged! Please direct all comments to
.

NOTE: This document is by no means all-inclusive. It is intended to serve as
a general guide to the series and pointer to other sources with more
detailed information on specific aspects of the series and newsgroup.

-> NEW In This Edition:
——————–
– WWW Update!

-===========================< Table of Contents >==========================-

-= Section I – General Interest =-

1.1 alt.tv.simpsons Basic History
1.2 “The Simpsons” Basic History
1.3 The Simpson Family
1.4 Series Timeline
1.5 Relevant Associated Newsgroups, Fanclubs, and FTP/WWW Sites
1.6 Frequently Used Acronyms and Local Terminology
1.7 Topics That Tend To Go Nowhere

-= Section II – Frequently Asked Questions =-

2.1 Characters, Places, and Internal Consistency
2.2 Background, Production, and Broadcast
2.3 Comics, Music, and Newsgroup-Specific

-= Section III – Commonly Requested Lists =-

3.1 The Episode Capsules
3.2 Required Reading
3.3 The alt.tv.simpsons Mail Server

-= Section IV – Closing Remarks =-

4.1 Acknowledgements
4.2 Contributors
4.3 Disclaimer and Copyright

-=====================< Section I - General Interest >=====================-

1.1 alt.tv.simpsons Basic History
— —————————–

Newgrouped during the third week of March 1990, alt.tv.simpsons, a Usenet
newsgroup, is a free forum for discussing various aspects of the television
series “The Simpsons”. Currently, no mailing list exists for the newsgroup.

1.2 “The Simpsons” Basic History
— —————————-

“The Simpsons” is an animated television series produced by Gracie Films
for Twentieth Century Fox and the Fox Network. It began as a series of
interstitals (also called bumpers or shorts) for “The Tracey Ullman Show” on
April 19, 1987, and premiered as a series on December 17, 1989 in the 8PM time
slot. Regular broadcasts began on Sundays beginning January 14, 1990. Seasons
Two, Three, Four, and Five were broadcast by Fox on Thursday nights in the 8PM
slot, before returning to Sunday nights beginning with Season Six.

Seasons One and Two were animated by Klasky-Csupo (pronounced “CLASS-key
CHOOP-oh”), who also worked on “The Tracey Ullman Show” bumpers. Subsequent
seasons have been animated by Film Roman, with in-between work being done for
both animation houses by Akom Production Company, Anivision, and Rough Draft
Studios in Korea.

The Simpson family was created in ~15 minutes while Matt Groening waited
in the foyer to Brooks’ office, a long-standing legend confirmed in the Oprah
Winfrey Interview by Groening himself.

-> A GIF of his original sketches is available. (See Sec 1.3)

1.3 The Simpson Family
— ——————

Family Member Voice Talent Description

Homer J. Simpson Dan Castellaneta Father, “D’oh!”
Marjorie Bouvier Simpson Julie Kavner Mother, “Hmmmmmmmmm”
Bartholomew Jo-Jo Simpson Nancy Cartwright Son, “Ay, Carumba!”
Lisa Marie Simpson Yeardley Smith Daughter, “I’ll be in my room.”
Margaret Simpson Liz Taylor Daughter, “”

Santa’s Little Helper Frank Welker Family Dog
Snowball II Frank Welker Family Cat, Second-In-Line

Abraham J. Simpson Dan Castellaneta Grampa, “In _my_ day…”
Jacqueline Bouvier Julie Kavner Marge’s Mother
Patty Bouvier Julie Kavner Marge’s Celibate Sister
Selma Bouvier Julie Kavner Selma’s Twin Sister

-> A complete cast list is available. (See Sec 3.2)

1.4 Series Timeline
— —————

1955 1956 1974-1975 1980 1983 1989
| | | | | |
… –+—+——–+———-+++—–++——–++–
| | | ||| || |+–Tenth Anniversary
| | | ||| || +–Maggie Born
| | | ||| |+–Lisa born
| | | ||| +–They move into Evergreen Tce.
| | | ||+–Bart born.
| | | |+–Homer gets job at SNPP.
| | | +–Married
| | +–Marge & Homer graduate High School
| +–Marge born (Within 1 year of Homer.)
+— Homer born (05/10/1955)

According to the 1993 “Simpsons Fun Calendar” Maggie was actually born on
19th August 1985, and Bart was born on 17th December 1979. These Calendars are
MG’s productions, and thus can not follow the continual updating the writers
impose upon the series. However, from MG’s view, these dates are approximately
correct, considering the first airings of “The Tracey Ullman Show” bumpers and
the fact that MG has plainly stated the characters do not age.

This is however, a little inconsistent with the UFA, another MG production
which unfortunately is inconsistent with the series. In this, it is said that
Bart was born on the April 1st, 1980. However, this production appears to have
been written before Season Three season was completed, and thus has great
inconsistencies with Season Three episodes like “I Married Marge”. And
according to the Olympic events scheduled on her birthday in “Lisa’s First
Word”, Lisa was born on August 2, 1984. However, Homer also held up a
newspaper on her birthday which puts the date closer to March.

-> At this time, it appears that the production staff has chosen to ignore
certain established continuity references beginning with Season Five,
and as such the LISA has chosen to reciprocate and ignore subsequent
continuity where it interferes with previously established events.

1.5 Relevant Associated Newsgroups, Fanclubs, and FTP/WWW Sites
— ———————————————————–

Newsgroups:

alt.binaries.pictures.cartoons – For images related to “The Simpsons”
alt.binaries.sounds.cartoons – For sounds related to “The Simpsons”
alt.fan.itchy-n-scratchy – For fans of Itchy & Scratchy
alt.tv.simpsons.itchy-scratchy – For discussing “The Itchy & Scratchy Show”
alt.tv.tiny-toon.fandom – For the “drooling fanboy” types
alt.tv.the-critic – For discussing “The Critic”

FTP and WWW:

Known as “The Simpsons Archive”, it is the current archive site with a
large collection of documents and texts. For specifics on digimark, send
Email to Gary Goldberg .

Other locations to check out:

/pub/caddy/Simpsons/

and are two servers suggested as starting points
for Archie users.

Fanclubs:

The Yeardley Smith Fan Club (YSFC) is a free mailing list dedicated to
sharing all available information on actress Yeardley Smith. To join the YSFC
or to get more information, send Email to or
visit the YSFC home page at .

The Homer J. Simpson Fan Club is dedicated to worshipping the one and only
Homer the Great. Yearly dues are $5. Send Email to for
more information.

1.6 Frequently Used Acronyms
— ————————

Acronym Translation

a.t.s – The Usenet newsgroup alt.tv.simpsons
MG – Matt Groening
OFF – Our Favorite Family (The Simpsons, of course)
OFN – Our Favorite Newsgroup (a.t.s of course)
SLH – Santa’s Little Helper (the Simpsons’ family dog)
DYN – Did You Notice, Didja Notice
UFA – _The Simpsons Uncensored Family Album_ (book)
BCG, BC – Bongo Comics Group (MG’s comic production outfit)
LIH – “Life in Hell” (MG’s comic strip)
I&S – Itchy and Scratchy.
FFF, FF – Freeze-Frame Fun
SI(xx) – Simpsons Illustrated (us) U.S. (oz) Australia
SNPP – Springfield Nuclear Power Plant
BSGTL, BGTL – _Bart Simpson’s Guide to Life_ (book)
CWTS – _Cartooning with the Simpsons_ (book)
FITS – _The Simpsons Fun in the Sun Book_
RDFB – _The Simpsons Rainy Day Fun Book_
IMHO, IMO – In My (Humble) Opinion
BTW – By The Way
WRT – With Regard To, With Respect To
ROFL – Rolling On the Floor Laughing
IYKWIM – If You Know What I Mean
AFAIK – As Far As I Know
WTF – What The [Heck]

Other Terms:

Production Code – The four character episode number given to each episode.
P-Code – Production Code, ie: 7G08, 7F24, 2F05
Couch Gag – Part of the title sequence when the family runs into the
house and something unusual happens.
Ref – Reference, where an event or scene in the show parodies
another show, movie, or event.
Blackboard Quote – What Bart writes on the chalkboard at the beginning of the
title sequence.
Cutoff – The last thing Bart writes on the chalkboard as he is
dismissed during the title sequence.
Episode Capsule – A compilation file for each episode. (See Sec 3.1)

1.7 Topics That Tend To Go Nowhere
— ——————————

As with most newsgroups, certain threads have been beaten to death.
These issues generally revolve around topics that are based on individual
interpretations of the presented facts. As such, there are no set answers,
and a large percentage of the readers have either already made up their minds
on the subject, or has bombarded with the topic before.

– Smithers is gay or bisexual.
– Favorite Quotes
– Favorite Episodes
– [insert episode name here] is the Best Episode Ever.
– [insert episode name here] is the Worst Episode Ever.
– [insert character here] Sucks.
– [insert season number here] was the Best Season Ever.
– [insert season number here] was the Worst Season Ever.
– Character development is better than cheap gags.
– Reality vs. Surrealism
– If you don’t like the way the show is headed, then stop watching it.
– [insert character here] shot Mr. Burns.

Please remember that these topics also tend to generate strong emotional
feelings by people on all sides of the argument, and to approach these threads
with care should you desire to discuss them. (See Sec 2.1, Sec 3.2)

Also, it is asked that binary files (GIFs, JPEGs, WAVs, MPEGs, etc.) be
directed to the appropriate alt.binaries.* newsgroup rather than posting them
to a.t.s directly.

-===============< Section II - Frequently Asked Questions >================-

2.1 Characters, Places, and Internal Consistency
— ——————————————–

Q: How much does Maggie cost in the opening titles?

A: Maggie is listed as costing $847.63, a figure once given as the amount of
money required to raise a baby for one month in the US.

Q: Where *is* Springfield, anyway?

A: “Springfield” is a fictional location. MG says he chose the name because
it is one of the most common city names and the setting of the antithesis
to the Simpsons, “Father Knows Best”. Indeed, from Groening’s
childhood perspective, that Springfield was “the next town over” from his
home in Portland, Oregon.

According to some sources on the group, Matt Groening has said that
although Springfield is basically “anytown USA” it does have features
somewhat similar to towns in Oregon, where Matt grew up.

-> Read “Where Is Springfield” if you’re still not convinced. (See Sec 3.2)

Q: What is the Simpsons’ home address?

A: That depends.

In “Blood Feud” 94 Evergreen Terrace, Springfield, USA
In “Bart the Lover” 94 Evergreen Terrace, Springfield, USA
In “Mr. Lisa goes to Washington” 59 Evergreen Terrace, Springfield, TA
In “Kamp Krusty” 430 Spalding Way, Springfield, USA
In “New Kid on the Block” 1094 Evergreen Terrace
In “Marge In Chains” 742 Evergreen Terrace, Springfield
In “Homer the Vigilante” 723 Evergreen Terrace
In “Bart vs. Australia” 742 Evergreen Terrace
In the Oprah Winfrey Interview 742 Evergreen Terrace

-> It has been suggested that the address used in “Kamp Krusty” hints to
monologist and actor Spalding Gray, whose humor is also considered subtle,
poignant, and yes, generally irritating to Republicans. The Evergreen
Terrace address is in honor of the street MG lived on as a boy.

Q: What is the Simpsons’ home phone number?

A: Homer’s phone numbers, according to Principal Skinner’s rolodex card at
Springfield Elementary are:

Before “Simpson and Delilah” After
Home: 555-6528 555-6832
Work: 555-7334 555-6754

In Season Three, their home number was 555-8707.

And the phone numbers from Homer’s television debut in “Mr. Plow” are:

Home: 555-3223
Business: 555-3226

Q: Where did Matt Groening get the names for the Simpson family?

A: Homer and Margaret (“Marge”) are the names of his parents (Mrs. Simpson
is Marjorie); the names of Matt Groening’s sons are Homer and Abe. His
siblings are, in birth order, Mark (unused so far), Patty, (then came
Matt), Lisa, and Maggie (named Margaret like her mother but called Maggie).

The name Bart, on the other hand, is simply an anagram for “brat”, although
on several occasions MG has said he is strongly influenced by both himself
and his brother Mark.

The surname Simpson is a natural choice for the family as the name
“Simpson” literally translates to “Son of a Simpleton”.

-> There has also been debate on the group about the film “Day of the Locust.”
It seems a character from this film has exhibited characteristics with
uncanny similarities to Homer Simpson, and the character’s name actually is
Homer Simpson. It is unknown for sure whether this film has ANY connection
with MG’s choice of name, whether it is pure coincidence, or whether MG
just took advantage of that coincidence.

Incidentally, MG’s mother’s maiden name is Wiggum, and many of the
secondary characters are named after streets in Portland, Oregon.

Q: Is it just me or are several of the characters left-handed?

A: No, many of the characters are indeed left-handed. This is because MG is
infact left-handed himself. Viewers with eagle eyes may notice that this
is not always consistent however, especially in later episodes.

Q: It seemed to me that Homer’s voice sounds different in some early episodes.
Did they change actors, or is it just my imagination?

A: When Dan Castellaneta originally began voicing Homer, he basically imitated
Walter Matthau to get the voice. However, Dan reportedly had trouble with
certain emotional registers and intonations with the voice, so beginning
with Season Two, he changed it slightly to create its present sound.

Q: What does the “J” stand for in Homer J. and Bart J. Simpson?

A: MG says that Homer’s and Abraham’s middle initial is a token of admiration
for Rocky and Bullwinkle (Rocket J. Squirrel and Bullwinkle J. Moose),
whose initials were in honor of their creator, Jay Ward.

According to MG, Bart’s middle name is Jo-Jo, and not Jebediah as stated
previously in the _Rainy Day Fun Book_. One can only guess that some facts
got lost when the RDFB was made. The name was given to him by none other
than Nancy Cartwright.

Q: Which one’s Itchy and which is Scratchy?

A: As Lisa and Bart explained to Herb Powell:

Lisa: “The mouse’s name is Itchy, and the cat’s name is Scratchy.”
Bart: “They *hate* each other.”
Lisa: “And they’re not shy about expressing it.”

Q: Which one’s Patty and Which one’s Selma?

A: Sometimes referred to as the “Gruesome Twosome”. Patty usually wears a
necklace with round beads and doesn’t part her hair. Selma wears a
necklace with oval beads and does part her hair. Selma wears earrings
shaped like the letter “s”, and Patty wears triangle-shaped earrings.
Marge differentiated them for Homer in 7F15 thusly:

Homer: “Which one’s Selma, again?”
Marge: “She’s the one who likes Police Academy movies and Hummel
figurines, and walking through the park on clear autumn days.”
Homer: “Oh, yeah yeah yeah. But I thought she was the one that didn’t
like to be … you know … touched.”
Marge: “It’s Patty who chose a life of celibacy. Selma simply had
celibacy thrust upon her.”

Q: How come the Halloween Specials don’t follow established continuity?

A: The “Treehouse of Horror” series is, according to MG, are non-canonical and
as such the writers can do whatever they choose, such as put Mr. Burns’
country home in Pennsylvania, have the family appear to have long forked
tongues, or have Mr. Burns’ head sewn onto Homer’s body.

Q: Is Smithers or Karl gay (or bisexual)?

A: According to Producer David Silverman, Yes, Waylon Smithers and Karl
(Homer’s secretary from 7F02) are both gay. End of discussion.

Q: Wasn’t Smithers black in one episode?

A: Sort of. When “Homer’s Odyssey” was being produced, Smithers was
accidentally animated with the wrong color. This goof is entirely the
fault of Klasky-Csupo and Producer David Silverman assures us that Waylon
was always meant to be yellow.

David suggests that you imagine that Smithers had just come back from a
vacation in the Caribbean with a deep tan when the episode took place.

Q: Who is that bee guy?

A: Springfield’s TV show starring a man in a bumblebee costume is similar
to the show “Lo Mejor De Chesperito” from the Miami-based Univision
network. Correlation has also been made to the show “El Show de Luis De
Alba”. The character’s official name according to the production staff is
simply “Bumblebee Man”.

Q: What’s that thing Homer says? Doh? Dough? D’ohh?

A: The correct way to spell it is “D’oh!”

Q: Is Bart’s friend named Milhous or Milhouse?

A: Although it is true that he is named after former U.S. President Richard
Milhous Nixon, his full name is correctly spelled as Milhouse Van Houten.

Q: Is Nelson Muntz’s father that Snake guy?

A: No. Nelson’s father appears in 9F12, and it definately isn’t Snake.

Q: In one episode, Homer says, “Mmmmmmmm, Liquid Smoke!” What is it?

A: Liquid Smoke is a type of sauce (similar to A-1) that allegedly makes food
taste like it was cooked on a grill or bar-b-que.

Q: What are “Wet Willies” and “Wedgies”?

A: A “Wet Willie” is a popular junior high school prank administered by
wetting one’s finger, usually with spit, and inserting it into the victim’s
ear, usually accompanying it with a twisting of the wrist back and forth.

A “Wedgy” is yet another popular junior high school prank. Also known as a
“Grundy”, a wedgie is usually administered by grabbing the waistband of the
victim’s underpants and quickly yanking them upward, causing the victim’s
underwear to wedge between their buttocks, causing a great deal of
discomfort and humiliation. Wedgies are usually administered from behind
as it allows for the element of surprise, and because there is greater
access to the victim’s waistband at the rear. “Front Grundies”, the
pulling of the victim’s front waistband, are not unheard of, but are far
less common.

Q: What is the “Dreaded Rear Admiral”?

A: More than one a.t.s reader has attempted to correlate it to the insertion
of one’s finger into another person’s “rear”, through their clothes or
underwear.

However, the official word according to Bill Oakley is that the “Rear
Admiral” simply doesn’t exist. He used it because he thought it sounded
like a particularly nasty prank someone might pull.

2.2 Background, Production, and Broadcast
— ————————————-

Q: Who is Matt Groening?

A: Matt Groening is the creator of “The Simpsons” and “Life in Hell”.
Intending to be a professional writer after leaving Evergreen State
College, WA (graduated in 1977 at 23), his disappointing career in L.A.
came to an end with the unexpected success of his “Life in Hell” comic
strip. It was “Life in Hell” that attracted the attention of James L.
Brooks of Gracie Films, who in 1985 invited MG to develop an idea for a
future project that later became the animated Simpsons shorts shown
during “The Tracey Ullman Show”.

Q: What exactly does he do for “The Simpsons”?

A: Matt Groening is officially known as the show’s Creative Consultant, and
has a hand in almost every phase of the production process, like one can
if they’re the CC. However, it is stressed that the talented people
employed by Gracie Films, Film Roman, et al. are at fault for the bulk of
what happens.

His name appearing on all Simpsons merchandising is a trademark
requirement, by agreement with the 20th Century Fox Film Corporation, who
bought from him the rights and ownership of “The Simpsons”.

Incidentally, the distinctive font (“Matt”) used by the show and magazine
were specially designed in Postscript by Apple Computer employees, and
based on his own handwriting (surprise). Sorry, but they’re proprietary.

However, a look-alike font based on MG’s “Life in Hell” script called
“Groening” is available. (See Sec 1.5)

Q: Why wasn’t MG’s name on 2F31?

A: MG asked that his name be removed from the credits to “A Star Is Burns”
because he felt the episode was one very long commercial for “The Critic”,
and that it creates the image that the two shows are somehow linked
together, which of course isn’t the case.

Q: What are all these hexidecimal numbers people keep talking about?

A: The numbers (7G06, 7F19, 9F08, 2F05, etc.) refer to the production code
assigned by the production team. Each story has its own p-code which
refers to the season which it was produced for, but not necessarily the
one it was broadcast in. One or two episodes are usually held over for
broadcasting early the following season, hence 7F24 was the Season Three
opener. As a general rule of thumb:
7G codes refer to Season One episodes
7F codes refer to Season Two episodes
8F codes refer to Season Three episodes
9F codes refer to Season Four episodes
1F codes refer to Season Five episodes
2F codes refer to Season Six episodes
3F codes refer to Season Seven episodes

The p-codes do not appear to be actual hexidecimal numbers. James L.
Brooks said he got the idea for the Season One codes for “The Simpsons”
from the fact that Homer works in sector 7G at SNPP.

-> Consult the Episode Quicklist for a listing of stories and p-codes.
(See Sec 3.2)

Q: Where do you get the production codes from?

A: Watch the closing credits to each episode. The credit page with the
copyright information (usually the fifth page from the end) contains the
line “THE SIMPSONS EPISODE #____” which is the p-code for that episode,
with the exception of 7G08 where the p-code immediately follows the
copyright notification. The p-codes for the music videos are found on
special unbroadcasted title cards identifying it for TV station personnel.

Q: Where do the episode titles come from?

A: Some newspapers print the episode titles. The book _Simpson Mania_ lists
Season One titles; Brian Howard was able to get “inside” information for
Season Two and Three titles. Season Four, Five, Six, and Seven titles were
provided by David Mirsky, and later by Bill Oakley. Episodes 7G07 and 7F10
were actually broadcast with their titles. The titles for the shorts are
listed in the credits to “The Tracey Ullman Show”. The music video titles
are, of course, taken from their song titles.

Q: Why was 7G01 held to the last episode of Season One?

A: “Some Enchanted Evening” was the first full-length episode sent by Klasky-
Cuspo to Akom Production Company for overseas production, and during the
animation process, an animator thought it might be funny if one of the
bears in the Happy Little Elves video ripped the head off of one of the
elves. Needless to say, MG sent the episode back to have the offending
scene re-animated, thereby pushing it back to the end of the season.

As far as MG is concerned, the original sequences have been destroyed.
However, no source has been able to confirm or deny this.

Q: Why do the production codes in Season Six jump from 2F22 to 2F31?

A: The current production staff at “The Simpsons” has only enough resources to
put together roughly 22 episodes a season. However, for Season Six an
arrangement was made with the staff of “The Critic” to produce two
additional episodes. Those two episodes were given the p-codes 2F31 and
2F32.

2F33 is the exception. Fox aparrantly demanded the inclusion of a 25th
episode to the season, and so a former writer was called in at the last
minute to hack together another episode, even going so far as to use a
pseudonym – Penny Wise (implying that Fox is “Pound Foolish” of course!)
and so the episode was given the highest p-code available to distance it
from the other episodes.

Q: How do I pronounce…

“Groening”? A: In one of the Life In Hell strips and in the “Rolling
Stone” article, MG mentioned that it rhymes with
“complaining”; the “Newsweek” article rhymes his name with
“raining”.

“Yeardley”? A: “Yeardley” is a variant spelling of the British name
“Yardley”, whose pronunciation is non-problematical.

Q: Have any of the episodes been released on video?

A: A set of videos containing primarily of Season One and Season Two episodes
is available in Britain, New Zealand, and Australia consisting of 28
episodes on 14 PAL VHS tapes.

A set of 12 SECAM VHS tapes featuring 24 episodes from Season One and
Season Two is available in France, released by Fox France.

In North America, only the Christmas special (7G08) has been released by
Fox Video on a single NTSC VHS tape, title #1915.

A handful of shorts from “The Tracey Ullman Show” were also included with
some movies released by 20th Century Fox around 1990.

Q: What’s all this about syndication?

A: A selection of episodes from the first five seasons has been made
available as a syndication package by Fox. This means that any station
can buy it and show it at any time they choose, not just Fox Network
affiliates.

Q: Why are the syndicated episodes being cut?

A: Syndicated episodes are edited to fit the standard length of any other
syndicated show to allow more commercials to be shown. This means that
some scenes are shortened or removed entirely. As such, the first
material to be edited usually includes the title sequence (which is why
the syndicated titles are even shorter than the standard abridged
sequence in recent US broadcasts by Fox) and scenes that are not integral
to the plot – often meaning some of the most memorable lines are missing
from the syndicated versions.

-> A list of edits to syndicated episodes is being compiled.

Q: What became of Tracey Ullman’s lawsuit?

A: Lawyers on behalf of Tracey Ullman have twice filed litigation proceedings
against Fox, not MG or Gracie Films, insisting although there was never
any signed agreements when the show went to the half-hour format, that
she should be entitled to 7.5% of `The Simpsons’ net merchandising profits.
Both claims were later rejected in court.

Q: Does anybody know the RGB values for the Simpsons?

A: Yup:
Skin Color : Pantone 116, RGB 255,217,15
Homer’s Pants : Pantone 284, RGB 112,209,255
Homer’s Shoes : Pantone 445, RGB 41,79,51
Homer’s Beard : Pantone 465, RGB 209,178,112
Marge’s Dress : Pantone 366, RGB 209,255,135
Marge’s Hair : Pantone 285, RGB 23,145,255
Bart’s Shorts & Shoes : Pantone 299, RGB 33,209,255
Lisa’s Dress : Pantone 179, RGB 255,54,15
Maggie’s “Baggie” & Bow: Pantone 297, RGB 125,255,255

2.3 Comics, Music, and Newsgroup-Specific
— ————————————-

Q: How do I contact Matt Groening or the producers/writers of the show?

A: You don’t. If MG has an address, he has not made it public. Several of
the writers and producers do have Email addresses, however, they are not
publically available and should not be given out.

Q: …But I have a script/story idea I want to show to the producers!

A: The best advice here is to get yourself an agent. Due to potential legal
problems, the producers and writers aren’t supposed to read unsolicited
scripts or story materials, and so it’s best not to bother them in the
first place.

Q: Where can I get the Simpsons DOOM files?

A: Try , beginning with the directory /pub/doom directory.

There are two separate patches available. “Simpsons DOOM” has replacement
sound and graphics WADs available as SIMPSONS.ZIP; “Homer’s DOOM” has a
replacement sound WAD only, available as HOMERDM3.ZIP. You _must_ have a
registered version of DOOM and have the DMADDS.EXE file to integrate the
WAD files.

Users with the shareware version of DOOM or who don’t want to use the WAD
version can find a compatible version of Homer’s DOOM available as
HOMERDM.ZIP.

Q: What’s Bongo Comics Group/Simpsons Illustrated?

A: “Simpsons Illustrated” was a quarterly “fan” magazine that is no longer
in print. Issues of SI include cast and production staff interviews, fan
artwork, and lots of trivia. A Simpsons annual and a special 3-D issue
were also published. Back issues are nearly impossible to find.

The publishers of the magazine (at least in the US) have gone on to
collaborate with Matt Groening to form the Bongo Comics Group. Titles
include three-issue limited series: “Radioactive Man”, “Krusty Comics”,
and “Itchy & Scratchy Comics”; a one-off I&S holiday issue, and a Lisa
comic, all of which have run their course.

Currently in production are two bi-monthly titles, “Simpsons Comics” and
“Bartman”. Rumors exist that “Lisa Comics” may begin regular production,
but no firm word exists on the subject. Also (aparrantly) planned for this
fall is a limited series featuring Ned Flanders; details remain sketchy.

-> Bongo Comics does not offer subscriptions at this time.

Q: What are the words to “The Itchy & Scratchy Show” theme?

A: “They Fight! And Bite!
And Bite and Bite and Fight!
Fight Fight Fight!
Bite Bite Bite!
The Itchy & Scratchy Show!”

Q: Where can I get the music from “The Simpsons”?

A: Currently only one album and its associated singles have been released,
“The Simpsons Sing the Blues”. This includes…
The Simpsons Sing the Blues Album CD, MC, Vinyl.
Do the Bartman Single
CD single, release version. 12″ vinyl release.
Deep, deep trouble Single
CD Single, Promotional & release version. 12″ vinyl release.
Sibling Rivalry Single
CD Single, release version. (12″ Vinyl?)

However, these do not include the theme, which appears on Danny Elfman’s
CD, “Music for a Darkened Theatre”, and a longer guitar rendition is on
Danny Gatton’s disc “88 Elmira Street”.

There is also in existence a limited edition promotional copy of “Deep,
Deep Trouble”, which contains a remix track not seen on any other
release anywhere. Apparently there is also a “Sibling Rivalry” CD
single available as well. All the released singles & album have now been
deleted in all the released countries around the world.

Q: Wasn’t there supposed to be a second album?

A: Yes. The second album, “The Yellow Album”, was confirmed as having
been in production at one time. The title is meant to be a take-off of
Prince’s album “The Black Album” rather than The Beatles’ “The White
Album” as some have suggested. The album is said to include the single
“My name is Bart, and I am funky”, a take-off of the Prince single of
similar title.

The album is complete and was scheduled for a January 1993 release.
Rumor suggested that it may have been scheduled for a November 1995
release, however, with the announced release of “The Beatles Anthology”
the album once again disappeared from record store information sheets.

Q: Is my local station cutting the episodes?

A: Probably not, unless you’re watching the syndicated versions of the
episodes, which are edited severely. Episodes from Seasons One, Two, and
Three shown in Germany and ALL episodes broadcast in Australia are
routinely censored to abide with younger children’s’ viewing guidelines
because of the early time slots used by both countries. The abridgement
of the title sequence in the US is done by the Fox network. Canadian
viewers, who don’t get the episodes through Fox are usually granted the
pleasure of a full episode each week.

Q: Why are some clips shown in commercials not in the transmitted episode?

A: Each episode is produced with extra and alternate animation, to allow the
directors the freedom to decide just what will and won’t work, up until a
few days before a show goes to air. Fox has access to the footage before
the final cuts are made, and so it’s not unusual for extra material to
materialize during the promotions.

Q: Is the “Simpsons” production staff aware of Usenet and a.t.s?

A: Yes. Although Matt Groening has never appeared on the Internet publically
as himself (as far as anybody knows anyway), he has dropped several clues
in references to certain discussion threads from a.t.s which appeared in
his “Life in Hell” comic strips. His presence was finally confirmed by the
December 7, 1994 edition of the _Philadelphia Inquirer_ which ran an
article dealing with alt.tv.simpsons, in which MG admitted:

“I lurk [on a.t.s.] but the other writers on the show were reluctant to
have me admit that.”

However, in June 1993, MG did accept an invitation from the Prodigy service
to chitchat with their users, personally answer a few of those annoying
standard questions, and detail the reality of his involvement with the
show.

-> A transcript of the Prodigy session is available. (See Sec 3.2)

Other producers of the show have made brief Internet apperances, and the
Simpsons drinking game has apparently circulated through the production
offices, and seems to have been well-received.

-> The drinking game is also available. (See Sec 3.2)

In the past, many postings have claimed to have originated from Matt
Groening and other identities. One should immediately be sceptical of
*any* messages that claim to have been sent by a notable personality – it
is a trivial exercise to fake an article so that it appears to have come
from another person.

Q: What’s the difference between a FFF and a DYN?

A: A “FFF” is typically a list that requires the pause of a VCR to discern
(like “Things in the attic”, or “degrees on Lionel Hutz’s wall”) and the
text of signs (like “For the Obese or Gangly Gentleman”). Otherwise, it’s
a “DYN”. So green rats, mouse holes in the wall, and purple food globs
count as DYNs. (See Sec 1.6, 3.1)

-===============< Section III - Frequently Requested Lists >===============-

3.1 The Episode Capsules
— ——————–

The episode capsule is perhaps the ultimate resource file for every
episode of “The Simpsons” outside of the production offices. It contains a
summary of the script, reviews, and observations posted to the newsgroup for
each episode. For more details, see the episode capsule FAQ or check out one
of the capsules themselves.

With the exception of 7F76, 9F08, 9F09, 9F11, and 9F14, capsules exist for
every episode, short, and music video aired to date.

James A. Cherry is the current capsule compiler.
The previous compiler and originator is Raymond Chen, who produced most of the
capsules through Season Four. Chris Baird, Dave Hall, and Scott Simpson
are responsible for the remaining handful of capsules not produced by Raymond
Chen or James Cherry.

3.2 Required Reading
— —————-

In addition to the LISA, several other reference works are available,
such as cast lists and episode guides. These documents are highly recommended
for persons interested in more details on these particular aspects of the show.

Episode Guides and Technical Documents: Maintained By:
“The Simpsons” Episode QuickList Matthew Kurth
“The Simpsons” Episode Guide Dave Hall
“The Simpsons” Writers & Directors Dave Hall
“The Simpsons” Cast List Dave Hall
“The Itchy & Scratchy Show” Episode Guide J.D. Baldwin
Couch, Blackboard Punishment, & Airdates Listing Don Del Grande
Bart’s Prank Calls To Moe’s Tavern Don Del Grande
Episode Capsule FAQ James Cherry
Episode Capsule Submission Guidelines James Cherry

Miscellaneous Documents: Maintained By:
The List of Lists Dave Hall
Where is Springfield? Dave Hall
“The Simpsons” Drinking Game Joey Berner

There are also many other documents available that are not listed here,
such as character files, song lyrics, ASCII pics, and much more. See the List
of Lists for more information, or browse the FTP and WWW sites. (See Sec 1.5)

3.3 The alt.tv.simpsons Mail Server
— ——————————-

Many of the documents referred to here are available via the
alt.tv.simpsons mail server. With this service, you can request these files to
be sent right to your Email box quickly and easily without the use of FTP or
WWW.

To request more information about the server, as well as instructions and
a list of documents currently available through the service, send Email to
with the phrase “Info” as the subject of your message.

-=====================< Section IV - Closing Remarks >=====================-

4.1 Acknowledgements
— —————-

Many thanks go to the previous FAQ maintainers for their diligent work in
making this version possible: Gavan McCormack, Chris Baird, Raymond Chen, and
Brendan Kehoe. This document would not be possible without their previous
contributions. Substantial thanks also go to the episode capsule compilers and
all the other list maintainers out there that make my life easier.

Special thanks to Gavan McCormack for all his help in getting me started, to
Gary Goldberg for the use of his facilities at Digimark, and to James Cherry
for his endless patience.

And of course, thanks to the production team and that produces one of the best
shows on television. We wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for you.
(Well, duh!)

4.2 Contributors
— ————

These people have contributed in some fashion to this document, both with and
without their knowledge. This list is woefully incomplete, but it’s a start.

cjb@hna.com.au Chris Baird
berner@dpdmai.enet.dec.com Joey Berner
ccammack@clyde.ics.uci.edu Chris Cammack
jac@doe.carleton.ca James A. Cherry
raymondc@microsoft.com Raymond Chen
caddy@best.com Terri Clendenin
chris@leo.sgs.es.hac.com Chris Courtois
licpd@pippin.cc.flinder.edu.au Christopher Dent
c348354@mizzou1.missouri.edu Rick Diamant
del_gran@ix.netcom.com Don Del Grande
og@digimark.net Gary Goldberg
dolemite@falcon.cc.ukans.edu Geek Boy
davehall@cyberspc.mb.ca Dave Hall
r5d4@m-net.arbornet.org Tim Harrod
hill0256@maroon.tc.umn.edu Tony Hill
bren@interlog.com Bren Lynne
tetragon@lisa.apana.org.au Gavan McCormack
nabors@pobox.upenn.edu Gary S. Nabors
sarah@well.sf.ca.us Sarah Rosenbaum
u2118@uicvm.bitnet John Schulien
paul@labyrinth.apana.org.au Paul Shandi
tredysvr!cellar!toad@gvls1.gvl.unisys.com Tony Shepps
terho@babel.helsinki.fi Juha Terho
etrinida@scf.usc.edu Elson Trinidad
avarhola@ix.netcom.com Aaron Varhola
alav@julius.fdn.fr Julien Villeret

Acknowledgement is also given to all the Simpsons-related publications
which have also provided key background information for this document.

Special acknowledgement also goes out to Matt Groening for his Bongo Comics
columns and David Silverman’s lectures which have been invaluable in tying up
certain nagging details, and to those of the production staff that occasionally
come down from the mountain to enlighten those of us outside of the loop.
Thanks guys!

4.3 Disclaimer and Copyright
— ————————

This document is Copyright (c) 1995 Wildcat Productions and may not be
repackaged, edited, released, distributed, or used for-profit without consent
of the current maintainer. This includes, but is not limited to: CD-ROMs,
magazines, books, newspapers, or television broadcasts. Free distribution is
encouraged provided the document is unabridged, unmodified, and unaltered.
This includes the removal of the author’s .sig (signature file).

This Copyright does not extend to, and is not intended to infringe upon,
the characters, names, and related indica of “The Simpsons” which remains
Copyrighted by, and a Trade Mark of, Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation.

The information in this document has been checked where appropriate, and
is considered as accurate as possible. However, nobody’s perfect. As such,
Wildcat Productions takes no responsibility for incorrect or inaccurate
information beyond correcting the error in the next official LISA release.

-= Goodnight, Everybody! =-

—
Matthew W. Kurth | “Prayer – The last refuge of a scoundrel.” – Lisa Simpson
-aka The Captain | “That makes me feel all warm and squishy.” – Dot Warner
—————–+———————————————————-
mkurth@wwa.com | “I can make mistakes myself just fine.” – Don Williams

==========================
animation/best.of.net #222, from hmccracken, 1495 chars, Fri Dec 1 01:06:00 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Fri, 1 Dec 1995 01:04:46 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9512010104.memo.1067@BIX.com>
Subject: Toy Story–Two Parents??

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.mci.newscorp.com!uunet!in2.uu.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.sprintlink.net!info.evansville.net!usenet
From: jim@evansville.net
Newsgroups: rec.arts.disney.animation
Subject: Toy Story–Two Parents??
Date: Fri, 01 Dec 1995 01:05:50 GMT
Organization: Evansville Online
Lines: 22
Message-ID: <30be5324.30179369@news.evansville.net>
NNTP-Posting-Host: thirteen.evansville.net
X-Newsreader: Forte Agent .99c/16.141

How come every animated project Disney is involved in there aren’t two parents?
Okay, Lion King had two for a while before dad got bumped off, but just sit and think. How hard
would it have been in Toy Story for Andy to have a father, for crissake? My four-year-old
wants to know.

Cinderella–Dead father, no mother, evil stepmother.
Snow White–No parents, evil stepmother
Bambi–Dead mother, I can’t remember the dad
Pocahontas–No mother
Fox & Hound–No father
Little Mermaid–No mother
Rescuers–No mother or father, orphan
Jungle Book– Ditto
Dumbo–No dad, I don’t think (been a while)
Aladdin–Jasmine, no mom; Aladdin, orphan
Beauty & the Beast– No mom for Belle; no parents for Beast, even when a teen
Sleeping Beauty–Two parents at last!!! Wait, we take the kid until she’s 16
Sorta related:
Swan Princess: Derek, no father; Odette, no mother

==========================
animation/best.of.net #223, from switch, 2666 chars, Mon Dec 4 00:54:54 1995
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
TITLE: From the SF Canada mailing list
Date: Thu, 23 Nov 1995 18:40:26 -0500
X-Sender: shainblum@vir.com
X-Mailer: Windows Eudora Version 1.4.4
To: sfcanada@physics.utoronto.ca
From: shainblum@vir.com (Mark Shainblum)
Subject: Superheroes: 0, Greed: 1000

Very disturbing news from X-Land, for those of you interested in comic books.

Marvel Comics seems to be breaking up and shutting down, believe it or not.
The rapacious dweebs who bought the firm, took it public and artificially
boosted its value on the stock market to a high of US$65 (now at around
$10.50) seem to have raped and pillaged as much as they can and now they’ve
decided to cut their losses and run.

After basically destroying the specialty direct-sale comic book trade last
year by buying their own distributor and forcing all the independent
distributors but one out of the business, Marvel now seems to be licensing
out their properties piecemeal and shutting the firm down. One rumour has
Topps Comics acquiring the rights to the Spider-Man family of books. I
imagine the bidding is fierce for the X-Men titles, less so for third tier
books like Captain America and Iron Man.

Breaking up the Marvel Universe is, of course, the stupidest decision Ronald
Perlman and his cronies have made since buying Marvel for $85 million
several years ago. And they’ve made some whoppers. It’s not just the
characters and the licensing which has made Marvel strong over the years.
It’s the shared background, the larger story which encompassed all the
individual stories and the individual characters. Sharecropping, we call it
in SF, but it was invented in the comic books.

It’s not always a good thing. Comic books in the 70’s were usually just
banal excercises in inter-continuity and team-ups. But when done right, the
shared universe gives these concepts their real power.

Oh well. The suits never understood comics, never liked them, never
pretended to like them. It all boils down to $$$.

When you think that these guys OWN characters like Spider-Man and Captain
America, selfless champions who always do the right thing, it just makes you
want to retch.

The end of an era.

Sigh.

Mark Shainblum

=============================================================================
Mark Shainblum ++ shainblum@vir.com
Montreal, Quebec, Canada ++ http://www.vir.com/~shainblum/markhome.htm
Writing, Editing, Publishing ++ tel: (514) 737-6270
=============================================================================
“Never trust a man in a blue trenchcoat; never drive a car when you’re dead.”
– Tom Waits

==========================
animation/best.of.net #224, from hmccracken, 38 chars, Tue Dec 5 03:04:34 1995
This is a comment to message 223.
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
This CAN’T be true…Can it?
— Harry

==========================
animation/best.of.net #225, from hmccracken, 1134 chars, Tue Dec 5 20:39:57 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 5 Dec 1995 20:37:03 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9512052037.memo.20021@BIX.com>
Subject: Felix WWW site has new summaries!

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.mci.newscorp.com!news2.near.net!newshost.williams.edu!newshost.williams.edu!not-for-mail
From: 96dag@williams.edu (David A Gerstein)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,rec.arts.comics.misc,rec.arts.comics.other-media
Subject: Felix WWW site has new summaries!
Date: 1 Dec 1995 17:06:06 -0500
Organization: Williams College, Williamstown MA
Lines: 12
Message-ID: <49nu8eINNif9@bigbird.cc.williams.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: bigbird.cc.williams.edu
Xref: news1.delphi.com rec.arts.animation:43329 rec.arts.comics.misc:168958 rec.arts.comics.other-media:2677

The Felix WWW-site now has summaries of about ten 1920s Felix
cartoons added to it, thanks to some contributions from historian Mark
Kausler. Let’s hear it for him!

Remember the Felix URL:
http://wso.williams.edu/faculty/psci335/gerstein/felix.html

(The Felix summaries are found in the Felix filmography.)

David Gerstein
<96dag@williams.edu>

==========================
animation/best.of.net #226, from hmccracken, 2729 chars, Tue Dec 5 20:40:09 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 5 Dec 1995 20:39:13 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9512052039.memo.20026@BIX.com>
Subject: Toy Story — Rendering the ‘real’ people…

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.mci.newscorp.com!imci2!news.internetMCI.com!newsfeed.internetmci.com!swrinde!sgigate.sgi.com!news1.best.com!sdd.hp.com!col.hp.com!fc.hp.com!rhm
From: rhm@fc.hp.com (Bob Miller)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.disney.animation
Subject: Toy Story — Rendering the ‘real’ people…
Date: 1 Dec 1995 23:05:28 GMT
Organization: Hewlett-Packard Fort Collins Site
Lines: 35
Message-ID: <49o1no$n9i@fcnews.fc.hp.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: hpfirhm.fc.hp.com
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL1.4]

As a designer who is heavily involved in rendering techniques and
their adaptation for hardware implementation, I was generally quite
impressed with the level of technical sophistication in Toy Story —
particularly given its sheer size. All of the nerd stuff aside, it was
a well-conceived, well-made movie…

But one area that underwhelmed me a bit was the rendering and animation of
the real people — Andy, Sid, Andy’s mom, Scud the dog, etc. I’m trying to
decide whether these characters were deliberately underproduced in order to
emphasise the emotional attachment to the toy characters, or if these
characters were rendered and animated to the best standards available to
Pixar. I believe that these characters were responsible for the “Davy and
Goliath” comparisons more than any others…

There are obviously many difficult aspects rendering human or animal faces
with real skin and hair which flexes and folds in ways incredibly complex
to describe but obvious to the viewer when compromised. Toys, of course, are
much easier to accurately and realistically model. I was unimpressed with the
kids’ gaits. My kids don’t walk like that. I’m left wondering whether the
film would have been more aesthetically comfortable if real actors were
employed for the real people and integrated into the virtual worlds…

Soooo, anyone at Pixar or elsewhere care to comment? Were we seeing the
best that technology can do at “virtual real” people? if so, I think we’ve
got a way to go before the realism is good enough to begin to forget the
technology’s limitations. Or was the rendering of these less important
characters deliberately underdone??

Bob (OK, time to get back to my schematics, now) Miller
rhm@hpfirhm.fc.hp.com

BTW, a colleague was disappointed that “Pixar must have run out of resources
halfway through the movie and started integrating real scenes, cars, van,”
etc. He was shocked when I corrected him saying no, what he thought were
real scenes were also modelled and rendered …

==========================
animation/best.of.net #227, from ddsnell, 204 chars, Thu Dec 7 02:25:01 1995
This is a comment to message 224.
There are additional comments to message 224.
————————–
[hmccracken on 5-Dec-1995]

Of course it can. Corporate greed and stupidity know no bounds.
Unfortunately. *sigh* (I’m sorry to hear about this, and I hope it’s
just an unfounded rumor.)

–dds

==========================
animation/best.of.net #228, from switch, 60 chars, Fri Dec 8 22:44:56 1995
This is a comment to message 224.
————————–
Could be; Mark’s usually straight up on these things.

Emru

==========================
animation/best.of.net #229, from hmccracken, 12587 chars, Wed Dec 13 22:06:28 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Wed, 13 Dec 1995 22:04:58 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9512132204.memo.53714@BIX.com>
Subject: (long) Totally Toy Story trip report

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.mci.newscorp.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!genmagic!n2-14-5.dynamac.genmagic.com!user
From: Scott_Knaster@genmagic.com (Scott Knaster)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.disney.animation,rec.arts.disney.misc
Subject: (long) Totally Toy Story trip report
Date: Thu, 07 Dec 1995 10:03:46 -0800
Organization: General Magic, Inc.
Lines: 224
Message-ID:
Reply-To: sknaster@best.com
NNTP-Posting-Host: n2-14-5.dynamac.genmagic.com
X-Newsreader: Yet Another NewsWatcher 2.1.2
Xref: news2.delphi.com rec.arts.disney.animation:3842 rec.arts.disney.misc:2322

From now until January 1, 1996, Disney is presenting Toy Story at the El
Capitan Theatre in Hollywood as part of a special attraction called
Totally Toy Story. This article is about my family’s trip to see Totally
Toy Story on November 24th. I’m not going to review the movie, except to
say that it’s wonderful, but you knew that already.

Totally Toy Story includes a showing of Toy Story, followed by a visit to
the Toy Story Funhouse, a building next to the theatre that’s been rebuilt
as a seven-room showcase for lots of Toy Story-themed activities. A ticket
to Totally Toy Story gets you admission to one showing of the movie, then
two hours in the Funhouse.

_Getcher Tickets_

Totally Toy Story offers two kinds of tickets: VIP, which are reserved
seats available in several rows of the best seats in the balcony and on
the main floor (center section only), and general admission, which is
everything else. VIP seats also include a bucket of popcorn, a large Coke
or Diet Coke, and a souvenir program, all delivered direct to your seat.
VIP tickets cost $30; general admission is $20.

You can order advance tickets to any showing of Totally Toy Story all the
way up to the last day, January 1st, by calling 1-800-DISNEY6. There are
six shows every day, starting at 9:50 AM (enjoy that Coke!) and running
into the evening. The day we attended, we arrived at 11:00 AM with our
11:30 tickets and the first four shows were all sold out, while the two
evening shows still had tickets available.

If you go to Totally Toy Story, I recommend the VIP tickets, mainly
because they guarantee great seats without having to arrive hours before
the show. When we got there, the general admission line ran for more than
a block down Hollywood Boulevard, while VIP ticket holders had reserved
seats and no line to stand in. Our group consisted of five: my wife, her
mother, our 10-year-old son, our 1-year-old daughter, and me. The
1-year-old didn’t need a ticket.

If you get VIP tickets, make sure you don’t stand in the general admission
line. The ushers may or may not give you the right information – they were
friendly (mostly), but they did not know what was going on with the VIP
tickets. Of course, that was just the third day of the show, so maybe
they’ve gotten it together by now.

_Dorothy, I Don’t Think We’re in Anaheim Anymore_

If you’re visiting Southern California and you’re going to see Totally Toy
Story, chances are you’re more familiar with Anaheim than with Hollywood.
Getting to the El Capitan Theatre took us about 40 minutes from Anaheim
with minimal traffic, and we drove about 55 MPH and didn’t get lost. We
took the Santa Ana Freeway (I-5) north to the Hollywood Freeway (US 101)
north, then exited at Hollywood Blvd. and drove west (turned left). We
soon saw the huge El Capitan marquee on our left.

As you cruise down…er, drive down Hollywood Blvd., you’ll see some of
its seedier segments. You’ll also pass through the Metrorail (that’s LA
for subway) construction zone. Thankfully, the El Capitan is in a
tourist-dominated block that also includes the historic Chinese Theatre
(formerly Grauman’s) across the street, so the city-phobic need not be
concerned. You can find plenty of parking lots just a block off the
boulevard. These lots charge from $5 to $10 to park for the duration of
the show — in other words, they know why you’re there.

_Now That’s a Theatre!_

Your first hint of magic comes when you see the front of the the El
Capitan Theatre. The building is huge – it looks five stories high. I
could hardly believe that it held a mere movie theatre. The enormous
marquee features giant figures of the movie’s main characters stretched
out across its length. They’d need a Burger King the size of Kansas to
hold those guys.

The El Capitan Theatre itself is like a dream. Built in 1926 as a stage
theatre, then converted for movies, it was completely restored and fitted
with new sound and projection equipment a few years ago. The lobby is not
the most ornate I’ve seen, but the sheer size of the theatre, including
the balcony and massive screen, are remarkable. As I watched the three
separate curtains glide open before the movie began, I figured that this
is what going to the movies must have been like a long time ago. I’ll have
a hard time trudging back to my local Googolplex CineDump after this
experience.

_Please Take Your Seats_
We entered the theatre at about 11:10 for our 11:30 show and found chaos.
The theatre is run by a company called Pacific, not Disney, so the
renowned Disney clockwork was not in evidence. Instead, we got ushers
telling us different things — you can go in, you can’t go in, why are you
in here? — and a mad scene as ushers raced to clean the theatre before
our show began. They did manage to remove most of the solid waste and
forgotten spouses, although lots and lots of popcorn remained. I was kind
of amused by the whirl of activity as people got seats, ushers cleaned,
other ushers passed out programs, food and drinks, and other ushers just
passed out (or looked like they were about to).

As we entered the theatre, our hands were stamped for admission to the
Funhouse after the movie. I think the stamp also tells what time you’re
supposed to leave the Funhouse, as you’re limited to a specific two-hour
period.

We brought our baby in a stroller, and a very helpful manager took us to a
place where we could store our stroller — I think it was next to the
wheelchair seating). Once in the theatre, we visited the downstairs lounge
for a small “making of Toy Story” exhibit. This exhibit included
storyboards, posters showing the various stages of creating a movie with
computer graphics, and even a replica of a Pixar animator’s desk that
included a working SGI showing a frame of animation. Cool!

Once in our seats, those brave but ill-prepared ushers brought us
VIP-seaters our popcorn, drinks, and programs, much to the stares of the
folks in the general admission seats. Luckily, the seats have cup holders
for the drinks. You’re on your own with the bucket o’popcorn.

_Showtime_

Before the movie came the trailers, which were pretty cool. I don’t know
if they’re the same for all Toy Story showings around the country. We saw
trailers for:
– The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Lots of pencil roughs and a bit about
the feature voices, including Tom Hulce (Amadeus). One scene showed
Quasimodo breaking out in poignant song, at which the audience laughed out
loud. Summer 1996.
– James and the Giant Peach. Stop-motion animation from Tim Burton,
Henry Selick, and the Nightmare Before Christmas gang, with songs by Randy
Newman. Could be very cool. Spring 1996.
– Tom & Huck (or maybe Huck & Tom, I forget). Live action version of
you-know-what. Coming soon.
– Muppet Treasure Island. Arrr, matey. Coming 1996 (I think).
– 101 Dalmatians. Live action version. No, really. The trailer
consisted entirely of famous buildings (such as the White House) covered
with spots. It ended with a spotty earth. I think most of the audience
didn’t get that it was going to be live action. Coming 1996 (I think).

_And Then…_

And then we saw Toy Story. It looked and sounded marvelous.
Congratulations to all the geeks and non-geeks at Pixar for coming
together to create this masterpiece.

_The Fun Begins_

I always stay for the credits after a movie — except this time, because
my son wanted to make the most of his two hours at the Funhouse. If you
don’t get going right away, you risk getting caught in (sigh) a line as
you wait a few minutes to get in. I figured I could see the credits the
next time I see Toy Story. (I wound up reading them in the program —
they’re pretty entertaining.)

The three-level Funhouse consists of these rooms:

– Woody’s Roundup, mainly for little kids, had live singing and
dancing, a rope toss game, and a small snack bar.
– Green Army Obstacle Course featured incredible walk-around Green Army
Men, complete with “plastic” base that interferes with their walking, who
yell at you as you proceed through the course. You even get to wear your
own version of the “plastic” base on your shoes.
– Hamm’s Theatre had a show where “dolls come to life.” Mainly for
girls, I guess. We didn’t see it.
– Mr. Potato Head room, for small school-aged kids, had Etch-a-Sketches
and Lite Brites, I think (we didn’t stay for very long).
– Disney Interactive, where you can play the Toy Story video games.
Includes a big TV and giant, non-working Sega Genesis replica.
– Pizza Planet, a quiet place where parents go to get away from the
buzz. And speaking of which…
– Buzz Lightyear’s Galaxy was the place were my 10-year-old chose to
spend most of his time, which kinda means that’s where I spent most of my
time, too. There was a stage show featuring a walk-around Buzz and some
dancing space women. But the room’s main attractions were a small
simulator ride with a pretty long line (we didn’t ride it), a giant set of
Whack-a-Alien games connected together, and a similar set of Buzz’s
LazerTron games. Both of these were more or less the standard versions of
games you see at any arcade, with slight modifications, like you didn’t
have to put quarters in them.

All Whack-a-Alien and all Buzz’s LazerTron players started each game at
the same time. At the end of each game, the high scorer got a prize. The
prizes included 100 Grand candy bars, Toy Story trading cards, real metal
Slinkys, and Magic 8 Balls. My son is an ace LazerTron shooter, so we went
home with a lot of candy and cards, plus two Slinkys.

Note: if you get to the Funhouse with the first wave of people, friendly
cast members will direct you to Hamm’s Theatre for its first showing. They
are cleverly trying to clear space for those who will come behind you. But
be not fooled. You don’t have to go to Hamm’s Theatre right away. There
are several performances to choose from, and if you don’t go to Hamm’s
immediately, you’ll find the other rooms very un-crowded for a while.

The Funhouse also had a small, low-key merchandise shop where you could
buy a few Toy Story things and a few Totally Toy Story things. My wife
bought a cool Totally Toy Story pin.

There were lots of great details, like the Cute Alien wallpaper in the
Pizza Planet and the Woody and Bo Peep signs on the restrooms. The
Funhouse includes an elevator to make it more accessible.

The Funhouse was definitely fun, especially, y’know, for the kids, but it
wasn’t really a magical Disney theme-park-type experience. Put together
with a great movie in an incredible theatre, it was very enjoyable.

_What Sucked?_

Absolutely nothing. It was a blast. We made the right decision in getting
reserved seats, because standing in that line and then hustling for seats
wouldn’t have been fun.

When we got to the Funhouse, we noticed that we had been served El Capitan
cups and popcorn buckets, while many others had Toy Story versions of
those items. I decided I didn’t care enough about getting the Toy Story
ones to return to the theatre and make a fuss. If you want Toy Story
buckets and cups, don’t forget to take a look at yours after you get them.
If you have VIP tickets, remember that this will take place in a darkened
theatre, which makes it easier to fool you.

Was it worth $30? I’m much too loose with my money to answer that
question. But we did have a great time, and I highly recommend the
experience if you love Toy Story, Disney, or movies and great theatres.

Please write to me if you have any questions or comments.

Disclaimer: None of my family works for Disney. Instead, we give money to them.
Scott Knaster
sknaster@best.com

Visit Fresh Stuff at http://www.spies.com/~sknaster

==========================
animation/best.of.net #230, from hmccracken, 915 chars, Sun Dec 17 23:02:07 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 17 Dec 1995 22:59:17 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9512172259.memo.70235@BIX.com>
Subject: Behind-the-scenes look at animation

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.mci.newscorp.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!news.compuserve.com!news.production.compuserve.com!news
From: Tracy Grand <74774.2002@CompuServe.COM>
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,rec.arts.misc
Subject: Behind-the-scenes look at animation
Date: 17 Dec 1995 18:33:29 GMT
Organization: Digital Planet
Lines: 6
Message-ID: <4b1npp$98c$2@mhafm.production.compuserve.com>
Xref: news2.delphi.com rec.arts.animation:44060 rec.arts.misc:4580

Check out the website for the animated film, BALTO.
Cool behind-the-scenes look at how animated
movies are made with quicktimes of the actual making of
Balto. A great site for kids or anyone interested in
animation!
http://www.mca.com/universal_pictures/balto

==========================
animation/best.of.net #231, from hmccracken, 1933 chars, Sun Dec 17 23:02:29 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 17 Dec 1995 22:59:43 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9512172259.memo.70244@BIX.com>
Subject: The web site is FINALLY out of Beta-test!!

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.mci.newscorp.com!imci2!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in1.uu.net!dobie.loop.com!pma71.loop.com!user
From: mhass703@loop.com (Michelle Klein-Hass)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,alt.animation.warner-bros,alt.animation.spumco,alt.fan.ren-and-stimpy,alt.tv.ren-n-stimpy,alt.slack
Subject: The web site is FINALLY out of Beta-test!!
Date: Fri, 15 Dec 1995 17:10:40 -0800
Organization: Animation Nerd At Large, Anvil Anthology Magazine
Lines: 32
Distribution: world
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: pma71.loop.com
Xref: news2.delphi.com rec.arts.animation:43995 alt.animation.warner-bros:9653 alt.animation.spumco:780 alt.fan.ren-and-stimpy:2890 alt.tv.ren-n-stimpy:11744 alt.slack:58565

Hi everyone!

I’ve had several friends look at my web site, and so far no hideous
problems, so I’m going to unveil it now….

**************** A N N O U N C I N G ! ! ! ********************************

T H E A N I M A T I O N N E R D ‘ S P A R A D I S E W E B S I T E

Animation news * Reviews of TV, Movies, Videos and Merchandising Items *
Articles featuring interviews with cool animation-related people!!!!!
And the FIRST guided Nerd-Tour of animation-related sites on the WEB!!!!

Still under construction — the best is yet to come!!!!!

The all important URL….

http://www.loop.com/~mhass703/

That’s

http://www.loop.com/~mhass703/

Be there or don’t DARE call yourself a TRUE Animation Nerd!!!

–.\\<-H-- -- Have better physical and mental health...watch more cartoons! AOL: MHass703, Net: mhass703@loop.com, michelle.hass@ledge.com Web site soon to come...watch this space for future developments This post is my own damn opinion! ========================== animation/best.of.net #232, from hmccracken, 1243 chars, Sun Dec 24 00:29:05 1995 -------------------------- From: hmccracken@BIX.com Date: Sun, 24 Dec 1995 00:26:02 -0500 (EST) To: hmccracken@BIX.com Message-ID: <9512240026.memo.94800@BIX.com>
Subject: BIG SHOW!

Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.mci.newscorp.com!uunet!in2.uu.net!tank.news.pipex.net!pipex!usenet.eel.ufl.edu!ukma!ovation!usenet
From: Carl Moebis
Subject: BIG SHOW!
X-Nntp-Posting-Host: guard10.pica.army.mil
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Message-ID: <30DC8682.BDE@comicshow.com>
Sender: usenet@pica.army.mil (USENET Special Account )
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
Organization: Great Eastern Conventions
Mime-Version: 1.0
Date: Sat, 23 Dec 1995 22:45:22 GMT
X-Mailer: Mozilla 2.0b3 (Win95; I)
Lines: 15

The largest comic book convention is coming to the East Coast. The
PHILADELPHIA COMIC BOOK SPECTACULAR January 12-13-14, 1996. Check out
the home page for more info on the 200+ guest artists and publishers
that will be there. Open to the public. To access our WWW page:

http://www.comicshow.com

if you have any difficulty try:

http://www.comicshow.com/gec.htm

—
Carl E. Moebis IV / cmoebis@comicshow.com
—————————————–
http://www.comicshow.com

==========================
animation/best.of.net #233, from hmccracken, 835 chars, Sun Dec 24 00:29:21 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 24 Dec 1995 00:28:09 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9512240028.memo.94801@BIX.com>
Subject: New Calvin and Hobbes Home page

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.mci.newscorp.com!news2.near.net!satisfied.apocalypse.org!wizard.pn.com!brighton.openmarket.com!decwrl!tribune.usask.ca!rover.ucs.ualberta.ca!news
From: dlazechk@gpu.srv.ualberta.ca (David Lazechko)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: New Calvin and Hobbes Home page
Date: 18 Dec 1995 04:28:47 GMT
Organization: University of Alberta
Lines: 4
Message-ID: <4b2qlv$au0@pulp.ucs.ualberta.ca>
Reply-To: dlazechk@pop.srv.ualberta.ca
NNTP-Posting-Host: async11-7.remote.ualberta.ca
X-Newsreader: WinVN 0.99.2

I have set up my own memorial to c&h at
http://www.ualberta.ca/~dlazechk/
I hope you enjoy it.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #234, from hmccracken, 19651 chars, Sun Dec 24 00:42:50 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 24 Dec 1995 00:40:23 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9512240040.memo.94807@BIX.com>
Subject: Int’l Animated Film Society News (LONG)

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From: sworth@vintageip.com (Stephen W. Worth)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,alt.animation
Subject: Int’l Animated Film Society News (LONG)
Date: Tue, 12 Dec 1995 13:56:14 -0800
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This is a condensed version of the International Animated Film Society:
ASIFA-Hollywood’s newsletter, The Inbetweener. This edited version
includes all of the ASIFA News and announcements.

The complete version is available in hard copy to ASIFA members and
includes industry news, upcoming film festival submission guidelines,
announcements of interest to animators and fans, reviews, and columns by
writers like John Cawley, Gere Guldin, Jim Korkis and Karl Cohen. The
newsletter is illustrated by Milton Knight, and is edited by Stephen
Worth. Its contents are copyrighted by ASIFA-Hollywood and the individual
contributors and are not to be duplicated or redistributed. The material
in this posting has been written by Frankie Kowalski, Wendy Jackson and
Stephen Worth

For ASIFA-Hollywood membership info, contact Wendy Jackson at
or phone (818) 842-8330. (ASIFA memberships make
great Christmas gifts!)

THE INBETWEENER – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

The Annies Sell Out! – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

The 1995 Annie Awards, which was held on Saturday, November 11th was
attended by over six hundred animation professionals, and due to space
restrictions, another two hundred were turned away at the door. Without
question, it was ASIFAs most successful event in years. This years
Annies brought together animation professionals from all aspects of the
business for recognition of the finest work produced during the past year.

ASIFA-Hollywood president, Antran Manoogian, started the evening out by
presenting Certificates of Merit to: King Features, Dave Brain, Amanda
Hass, Sarah Baisley, Gary Lah, and Gini Swift. Leonard Maltin, the Master
of Ceremonies for the evening, commented that there was a delightful buzz
going all around town about the event, leaving some less-informed studio
execs wondering, What the heck are the Annies?! He also pointed out, We
keep hearing how animation is back. Well, where did it go? The answer is
that its been here all the time, and the unseen artists and technicians
that create cartoons are finally getting their due.

Annie Awards were presented to the following:

Outstanding Achievement in Animated Home Video:
Gates of the Minds Eye (Miramar)

Animated Interactive Production:
Cadillacs & Dinosaurs (Duck Soup)

Animated Promotional Production:
Wile E. Coyote Helicopter (Warner Bros.)

Animated Short Subject:
Dexters Laboratory Changes (Hanna-Barbera)

Individual Achievement in Animation:
Nik Ranieri (Supervising Animator, Pocahontas)

Creative Supervision:
Ben Edlund (Co-Producer, The Tick)

Production Design:
Michael Giaimo (Art Director, Pocahontas)

Storyboarding:
Kazuo Terada, (Gargoyles: Reawakening)

Writing:
Ben Edlund & Richard Liebmann-Smith
(The Tick: The Tick vs. Arthurs Bank Account)

Voice Acting:
Nancy Cartwright (Bart Simpson, The Simpsons)

Music:
Alan Menken, composer;
Stephen Schwartz, lyricist, (Pocahontas)

Best Animated Television Program:
The Simpsons

Best Animated Feature:
Pocahontas

New to the Annie Awards in 1995, The June Foray Award was presented to
June Foray, herself, for her significant and positive impact in the
animation industry. The ceremony closed with the presentation of the
Winsor McCay Awards, for lifetime achievement in the art and field of
animation. This years honorees were Vance Gerry, Dan McLaughlin, and
Jules Engel.

We would like to extend our thanks to the people who made the 1995 Annie
Awards such a huge success: AnnMarie Ashkar, Ben Fried, Andris Friemanis,
Glenn Gilbert, Frankie Kowalski, Phil Langone, Susan Levin, Mark Levine,
Stacie Manning, Sandra Marshall, Jamila Maloney, Kent Meredith, Kerryn
Miller, Jeannine Roussel, Christine Schweiger, Tim Soman, Bill Turner,
Kathy Turner, James Valladao, Stephanie Villet, and Cambra Zweigler.
Special thanks are due to Wendy Jackson, Stephen Worth, Antran Manoogian
and the producer of the program, Chris Craig.

Animation Opportunities Expo 96 – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Its coming! This years Animation Opportunities Expo will be bigger and
better than ever. More than just a job fair, the Expo is a unique setting
designed to provide studios the occasion to introduce themselves and their
projects to the animation industry. It also provides current and
prospective members of the animation industry with information, resources,
contacts, and guidance about career opportunities within the field of
animation. There will be over 50 tables representing many animation
studios and organizations including the Cartoonists Union (MSPC Local
839), AnimAction, CalArts, and other schools and training programs. Last
year, over 1,500 people attended, and there were representatives on hand
from DreamWorks SKG, Disney, Warner Brothers, Turner Feature Animation,
Film Roman and Hanna-Barbera, to name just a few.

In addition to the networking, there will also be seminars and panel
discussions led by well-known and experienced industry professionals
taking place all day. Some of the topics scheduled to be addressed are:
How to Prepare an Effective Portfolio, Animation for Interactive
Multimedia, Animation Opportunities for Artists, and Voice-Over Acting for
Animation. ASIFA-Hollywoods third annual Animation Opportunities Expo,
will take place all day Saturday, February 24th, 1996 at the top of the
hill in Universal City at the luxurious Hilton Towers. ASIFA Members will
receive a discount on admission, and registration forms will be sent to
you in the mail. If you would like information about booking a table,
volunteering to help organize and run the event, volunteering to
participate as a panelist in the seminars, or to reserve ad space in the
special Expo issue of the Inbetweener, please call Wendy at the ASIFA
office: (818) 842-8330.

WIA Spotlights The Art of the Pitch – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Pitches and pitchforks prevailed at Women in Animations 7th general
meeting on Tuesday, October 24th, 1995. Following a reception at the
Warner Bros. Commissary, the full house was introduced to Amy Pell of
Warner Bros. Feature Animation who introduced the evenings program. Libby
Simon, chair of the organizations Historical Committee announced that
eleven taped interviews with outstanding women in animation have been
completed to date. Then, Libby introduced WIAs special Historical
Committee honoree, Xenia Beckwith De Mattia, who was recognized for her
significant contribution to the art of animation.

Following the Historical Committee presentation, Babs Parent of Warner
Bros. treated attendees to an animated short by WIA member Cynthia Wells,
titled Tallulah, Queen of the Universe. This year, Wells was nominated for
two Annie Awards; for Outstanding Achievement in an Animated Short
Subject, and she is the first woman to be nominated in the category of
Outstanding Individual Achievement for Animation. Congratulations,
Cynthia!

After the film screening, the panel discussion, Devils, Deals &
Development began. Laverne McKinnon, VP of Creative Affairs at Klasky
Csupo deftly moderated the exciting and informative discussion. The
panelists were Tom Burton, President/CEO of Calico Entertainment; Joey
Franks, Director of Creative Affairs, Warner Bros. Animation; Roger
Hector, VP/GM of Sega Technical Institute; J. David Koch, VP Interactive
Development at Saban Entertainment; and Doug Wood, VP of Production at
Turner Feature Animation. All in all, the evening was a great success.

Many thanks to Warner Bros, Hanna-Barbera, and ASIFA-Hollywood for their
continued support of Women In Animation. In addition we would like to
thank the participants and attendees of all WIA events in 1995. Happy
Holidays and heres to an exciting new year! The next Women In Animation
General Meeting will be held on February 29th at Warner Brothers. The
panelists subject will be Licensing and Merchandising. For more
information call the WIA information line at (818) 759-9596.

OBITUARIES – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

So Long

Michael Lah, legendary animation veteran and dedicated ASIFA member,
passed away on October 13th at the age of 83. Starting in the business in
1934, Michael worked for Disney, Harman-Ising, MGM, and Paul Fennell,
working alongside such animation greats as Tex Avery, Bill Hanna and Joe
Barbera, Mike is best known for his animation of Spike the Bulldog in the
Droopy cartoons; as the Director of the classic MGM cartoon, Cellbound; as
well as directing the first Yogi bear cartoon, Pie Pirates. He later
joined Quartet Films, where he directed and animated commercials featuring
Tony the Tiger, the Hamms Beer Bear, King Vitaman, and the Jolly Green
Giant. Mike served on the ASIFA Board of Directors as Treasurer in the
1980s, and was recipient of an Annie Award in 1984. Prior to Mikes
passing, he donated equipment, production files and artwork from his
studio to the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archives, where the materials will
be catalogued and preserved for researchers and fans alike. He will be
greatly missed by all of his friends here at ASIFA-Hollywood.

ASIFA NEWS- – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Memorial Tribute Scheduled – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

This year, the animation industry lost some of its most valuable and best
loved-members, so ASIFA-Hollywood, The Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists
Union Local 839, and Women In Animation have joined to present a memorial
tribute in their honor. The individuals who will be remembered will be:
Jacqueline Jackie Banks, Preston Blair, Bob Brown, Jack Buckley, Lars
Calonius, Christopher Chris Chu, Margaret Cook, Lyall Bud Crabe, Jim
Davis, Isadore Friz Freleng, John Halas, Alex Ignatiev, Hal Kramer,
Leonard Johnson, Paul Julian, Michael Lah, Bob McCrea, Doris Pollock,
Larry Silverman, Irven Irv Spence, John Whitney, and Gina Wooten.

This will be a non-denominational service open to all. The event will take
place on Saturday afternoon, February 3rd, from 2 to 4 pm at the United
Hollywood Methodist Church, 6817 Franklin Avenue (corner of Highland Blvd.
& Franklin), in Hollywood. For more information call (818) 766-7151 or
(818) 842-8330.

ASIFA-Hollywood at NATPE Animation Pavilion – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

The National Association of Television Program Executives annual
convention has added an Animation Pavilion to its convention for 1996,
which will showcase around 20 animation companies. ASIFA-Hollywood will
have a booth at the Pavilion, along with Women In Animation. This years
convention will take place January 22-25 at the Sands Expo Center in Las
Vegas. For more information call NATPE at (310) 453-4440.

ASIFA-Hollywood Signs Deal with Animanagement – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

On December 6th, the ASIFA-Hollywood Board of Directors approved a
co-operation agreement with Animanagement, L.L.C, a company founded by
industry attorneys Paul Husband and Aaron Berger. Through our combined
efforts, we will work to bring the Annie Awards to the television viewing
public. For more information, contact the law offices of Husband & Berger
at: (805) 255-3123.

The ASIFA-Hollywood Store? – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Were working on it! The ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Center now has an
expanding selection of merchandise for sale. Come in Monday through
Friday, from 1 to 6pm (calling first is recommended), and check out our
unique collection of affordably priced animation cels, videos, T-shirts,
buttons, flipbooks, back issues of our publications, and other exciting
miscellany! In 1996, we will be expanding our collection to include more
books about animation too. We plan to be your one-stop animation stop!

Featured Video of the Month: PIXAR – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

This wonderful video collection features award-winning short films from
the creators of Toy Story, including: Tin Toy (1988) the first computer
animated film to win an Academy Award; Luxo Jr. (1986) the first 3-D
computer animated film to be nominated for an Academy Award; Reds Dream
(1987) which reveals what philosophers and poets have long wondered…
What do unicycles dream about at night?; Knickknack (1989) the adventures
of a snowman in a snowglobe; and much more. This video is available at the
ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Center for only $30. Stop by and pick up your
copy today!

Tomorrowland! – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Three-fingered gloves and green claws clasp! Strange and crazy visions
flit past your porthole as you witness early animated views of future
worlds! Obscure eye-opening cartoons produced around the globe during the
1930s and 40s offer their takes on such phenomena as aliens, space
travel, automation, future race relations, and total atomic warfare. But
fear not! Our kindly tour guide, Milton Knight will make sure the ride is
a smooth one, and you can bet that well encounter none of the predictable
tourist traps on our voyage! (Yeah! No Duck Dodgers!) The intergalactic
tour departs from the ASIFA Animation Center promptly at 7:30 pm on
Friday, January 26th. Remember to bring goodies for the refreshment table!
Admission is $3 for ASIFA members.

A Note From June Foray – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

14 November 1995

Dear Antran and ASIFA Board,

Never would I have dreamed about the homage of my peers as experienced
Saturday at the Annie Awards. I was so touched and stimulated that sleep
at night was impossible. What a joyous way to lose that sleep! I thank
you all most humbly, and I shall continue to initiate every effort to
promote animation and ASIFA-Hollywood. What lovely young people you are.

With enduring love,
June Foray

Hurrah For Our Volunteers! – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

For years, ASIFA-Hollywood has relied on dedicated volunteers to help us
pull off ambitious events and achieve our goals. As our membership
increases (750 members at last count!) and our events grow in scale, ASIFA
needs even more volunteers than in the past. To promote volunteerism among
the membership, ASIFA is dedicated to support and encourage those
individuals who share a part of their time to help out at our various
activities. The volunteers at this years Annie Awards, and the intrepid
souls who braved the Animation Center Clean-Up Day were recently treated
to an exclusive cocktail party and reception at the swanky Warner Bros.
Commissary. Several Annie Award recipients were on-hand as well to chat
and rub shoulders with the people that made the event a reality. Many
thanks go to Dave Master, Max Howard, Michael Laney, and Louise Helbert at
Warner Brothers Animation for generously hosting this event.

Volunteers will be needed for the 1996 Animation Opportunities Expo coming
up in February. We also need folks to help with the Inbetweener; writing
news stories and columns, proofreading, addressing, collating, and
mailing. Please call Wendy at the ASIFA office for information about
volunteering your time and talents to this worthy cause. The best thing
about it is Its fun!

The ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Formally established in 1994, the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive is a
repository and preservation center for papers and artwork of historical
importance in the field of animation. Its purpose is to make this material
available to scholars, journalists, and filmmakers. Recent acquisitions
include donations of artwork and production files from the family of
Michael Lah of Quartet Films; business records and publicity materials
from The Don Bluth Studio; papers from the files of UPAs founder, Stephen
Bosustow; and original artwork from the family of the first of Disneys
nine old men, Les Clark. The ASIFA-Hollywood Archive is a fitting
compliment to our Film Preservation Project, as both seek to preserve and
make accessible the basic documents and artifacts of animation history.
ASIFA-Hollywood will actively seek out archive material and provide a safe
and secure home for it. We are looking to collect such items as:

Personal papers of animation artists, historians, actors,
producers, executives, and union leaders, including letters,
diaries, photographs, scrapbooks and other documents relating
to their careers in animation

Corporate papers of studios, distributors, or other organizations
involved in animation, such as correspondence, corporate records,
stills, press releases and in-house newsletters

Publications including books, magazines, and newsletters, as well
as ephemeral material such as festival programs, pamphlets, and
flyers

Production materials from scripts and storyboards to pencil tests
and audition tapes

Oral history tapes, videotapes, and transcripts done by
historians and journalists

Animation Artwork

On November 18th, the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Center and Archive was
cleaned and organized by 16 dedicated volunteers: Jeff Alva, David Crane,
Renard Fiscus, Debbie Green, Andris Friemanis, Ben Fried, Wendy Jackson,
Frankie Kowalski, Glenda Lubas, Gerry Miller, Antran Manoogian, Kent
Meredith, Carmella Ortiz, Kathy Richardson, Susan Rippel, and Thomas
Safer. Thank you! This clean-up day was a great step forward towards our
goals for the archive, but there is still much more to be done, such as
the time-consuming task of cataloging and organizing new donations, and
matting cels. We welcome your contributions of time, materials, or money
to help this vital endeavor. If you would like to be an archive volunteer
or supporter, please contact Wendy Jackson at the ASIFA office.

Is ASIFA on your Christmas List? – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Did you receive too many unwanted gifts this year? Dont know what to do
with that 200 Megabyte external hard drive your Aunt Mildred gave you?
Despair not! We can take these unwanted gifts off your hands. (but no
ties or socks, please!) Here is ASIFAs holiday wish list for all of you
kind-hearted members and patrons to consider. Remember, ASIFA-Hollywood is
a non-profit organization; So all of your donations are tax-deductible.

For our Macintosh: color scanner, Zip or SyQuest drive; Video Equipment:
laserdisc player, 3/4″ video player, Betamax deck, small television
monitor, CD player. Household Items: potted plants, floor lamp or
torchiere, filing cabinet. If you have something you think we could use,
give us a call at (818) 842-8330.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
For more information contact Wendy Jackson at
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

==========================
animation/best.of.net #235, from hmccracken, 1340 chars, Sun Dec 31 23:43:16 1995
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 31 Dec 1995 23:42:46 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9512312342.memo.14539@BIX.com>
Subject: fleischer bros. cartoons

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From: jbeck6540@aol.com (JBeck6540)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Re: fleischer bros. cartoons
Date: 29 Dec 1995 11:19:34 -0500
Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364)
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a set (both VHS & Laser Disc) of ALL Betty Boop cartoons (in Black & whi
te) will be released in April 1996 by Republic. Get out your wallets for
this one time event!

It will contain Screen Songs Betty appears in as well. It will be missing
four rare titles: BUZZY BOOP
BUZZY BOOP AT THE CONCERT
HONEST LOVE AND TRUE
PUDGY AND THE LOST KITTEN

(I have a dupey 16mm print of “Buzzy Boop”) If anyone has a copy of these
cartoons above please contact me.

Jerry Beck

==========================
animation/best.of.net #236, from hmccracken, 4516 chars, Mon Jan 8 21:53:15 1996
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 8 Jan 1996 21:52:32 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9601082152.memo.41875@BIX.com>
Subject: Calvin’s replacements list

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From: Steve Higdon <70423.1220@compuserve.com>
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: Calvin’s replacements list
Date: 8 Jan 1996 18:45:33 GMT
Organization: N/A
Lines: 98
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Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
X-Mailer: Mozilla 1.12(Macintosh; I; 68K)
X-URL: news:rec.arts.comics.strips

Here’s the compilation of responses to the question “What now occupies
the space in your paper that Calvin & Hobbes occupied last week?” as
posted on CompuServe’s Funnies Forum and on the Internet newsgroup
rec.arts.comic strips. Please reply with what the papers you read have
chosen if you don’t them listed here. After we gather a few more
responses (Calvin appeared in 2,400 papers, so this ain’t quite all of
them), we’ll post a final list.

Dailies:

Arizona Republic: Luann
Asbury Park Press: Fox Trot
Atlanta Journal: Stone Soup
Austin American Statesman: Curtis
Baltimore Sun: Dilbert
Bangor (ME) Daily News: Dilbert
Bellingham (WA) Herald: Dilbert
Bloomington (IN) Herald Times: Mother Goose & Grimm and Mallard Fillmore
Boulder Daily Camera: Non Sequitur
Cedar Rapids Gazette: Baby Blues
Champaign-Urbana (IL) News-Gazette: Sherman’s Lagoon
Chattanooga News-Free Press: Mallard Fillmore
Chicago Tribune: Non Sequitur
Cleveland Plain Dealer: At the Zu
Columbus Dispatch: Sherman’s Lagoon
Dallas Morning News: Apparently now carrying one less strip
Des Moines Register: Stone Soup (after a reader poll)
Florida Today: Dilbert
Foster’s Daily Democrat (Dover, NH): Moved Big Nate in from another page
Franklin (TN) Review-Appeal: Sherman’s Lagoon
Houston Chronicle: Over the Hedge
Idaho Falls Post-Register: Mutts
Knoxville News-Sentinel: At the Zu
Lake County (OH) News-Herald: Mother Goose & Grimm
Laredo (TX) Morning Times: Dilbert
Long Island (NY) Newsday: Mallard Fillmore
Los Angeles Times: Against the Grain
Louisville Courier-Journal: Fox Trot
(Madison) Wisconsin State Journal: Citizen Dog
Memphis Commercial Appeal: Mother Goose & Grimm
Merced (CA) Sun Star: Fox Trot
Miami Herald: Brought back Fox Trot
Minneapolis Star-Tribune: Readers will choose from several strips
rotating over 6-8 weeks
Modesto Bee: Dilbert
Monterey Herald: Sally Forth moves in from the classified section
Murfreesboro (TN) News-Journal: For Better or For Worse
Nashville Banner: Thatch
Newark Star-Ledger: Dilbert
New Haven (CT) Register: Dilbert
New Orleans Times-Picayune: Baby Blues
New York Daily News: Mutts
Orlando Sentinel: Rose Is Rose
Ottawa (Canada) Citizen: Rose Is Rose
Pensacola News-Journal: Baby Blues
Phildelphia Inquirer: Bent Halos
Portland (ME) Press Herald: Dilbert
Raleigh News & Observer: Fox Trot
Rochester Democrat & Chronicle: Dilbert
St. Petersburg Times: Dilbert
San Diego Union-Tribune: Mutts
San Francisco Chronicle: Over the Hedge
San Jose Mercury-News: Ghost Story Club
Seattle Times: Readers will be voting on a new strip after weekly
try-outs
Southeastern Connecticut’s “The Day”: Cathy
Staten Island Advance: Luann
Tacoma News Tribune: Against the Grain
Tallahassee Democrat: Dilbert
Tampa Tribune: Doonesbury moved from page 2 of Entertainment section
Vancouver Province: Dilbert
Winston-Salem Journal: Dilbert
Washington Post: Over the Hedge

Of those strips gaining more than one new daily paper (at this count):
Dilbert has gained fourteen, Fox Trot has gained five; Baby Blues,
Mallard Fillmore, Mother Goose & Grimm, Mutts, Over the Hedge, and
Sherman’s Lagoon have gained three; and Against the Grain, At the Zu,
Luann, Non Sequitur, Rose Is Rose, and Stone Soup have each gained two.

Sundays:

While many of the above will also substitute in Sunday editions, this is
not necessarily the case. Here are the variations for Sundays that we
know so far.

Bangor (ME) Daily News: Just given other strips more space
Chicago Tribune: Adventures of Aaron
Laredo (TX) Morning Times: Mutts
Nashville Tennessean: Dilbert
Newark Star-Ledger: Fusco Brothers
Staten Island Advance: Fox Trot
Tampa Tribune: Dilbert and Pickles

Be sure to respond with what now occupies the former C & H space in your
paper, it it is not listed here already.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #237, from hkenner, 59 chars, Mon Jan 8 23:59:31 1996
This is a comment to message 236.
————————–
>>Stone Soup (Atlanta Constipation)

Depressing, ain’t it?

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animation/best.of.net #238, from hmccracken, 1516 chars, Tue Jan 9 00:05:23 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 9 Jan 1996 00:04:02 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9601090004.memo.42280@BIX.com>
Subject: Bill Plympton On-Line!!

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From: John Holderried <72732.1204@CompuServe.COM>
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Bill Plympton On-Line!!
Date: 7 Jan 1996 05:58:42 GMT
Organization: CompuServe, Inc. (1-800-689-0736)
Lines: 18
Message-ID: <4cnnei$c8l$1@mhafn.production.compuserve.com>

Bill Plympton, famed animator of the film “The Tune” and the shorts
“Your Face” and “25 Ways to Quit Smoking” is now on-line! You can
send e-mail to Plymptoons@aol.com or check out Bill’s web-site!

The web site address is http://found.cs.nyu.edu/plympton/ and has
lots of cool artwork and info about Bill’s films. You can find out
when and where Bill will be screening his films in your area, and
you can also order animation videos, posters, even autographed cels!

For those of you in the New York City area, Bill Plympton will be
presenting three new animated short films at Caroline’s comedy club
on January 16 at 8 pm. There will also be songs, stories, door
prizes…call 757-4100 for info and reservations.

And, for those of you attending the Sundance Film Festival, don’t
miss Bill’s new film “How to Make Love to a Woman” in a program
called “Awesome Animation” (which also includes the new Nick Park
film!)

==========================
animation/best.of.net #239, from hmccracken, 1648 chars, Tue Jan 9 00:05:42 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 9 Jan 1996 00:04:24 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9601090004.memo.42288@BIX.com>
Subject: It’s really happening! HEAVY METAL ON LEGIT VIDEO!!!

Path: news1.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.mci.newscorp.com!imci2!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in1.uu.net!dobie.loop.com!pma1_128.loop.com!user
From: mhass703@loop.com (Michelle Klein-Hass)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,rec.video.tape-trading
Subject: It’s really happening! HEAVY METAL ON LEGIT VIDEO!!!
Date: Sat, 06 Jan 1996 17:21:45 -0800
Organization: Animation Nerd At Large, Anvil Anthology Magazine
Lines: 22
Distribution: world
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: pma1_128.loop.com

Here’s some news from the LA Times Calendar section for tomorrow:

“The oft-bootlegged 1981 animated cult classic “Heavy Metal” will receive
a theatrical re-release in advance of its video premiere on Columbia
Tri-Star home video.” — Donald Liebenson, in his article “Some Things
Old, Some Things New in ’96…Video:” LAT Calendar 1/7/96

So this year, 15 years after the movie’s release, a whole bunch of people
will finally get their fondest wish.

Who says that fan pressure never works?

Now if only “Yellow Submarine” and the B&W Popeye shorts would get
released to video…

–.\\<-H-- -- For better health, watch more cartoons! * This post is my own damn opinion! AOL: MHass703 Net: mhass703@loop.com - Ledge address is no longer checked. Check out Animation Nerd's Paradise -- http://www.loop.com/~mhass703/ 'Net censorship SUCKS and so does Compu$erve! Fight the Communications Act! ========================== animation/best.of.net #240, from hmccracken, 1110 chars, Mon Jan 29 00:07:35 1996 -------------------------- From: hmccracken@BIX.com Date: Mon, 29 Jan 1996 00:06:18 -0500 (EST) To: hmccracken@BIX.com Message-ID: <9601290006.memo.31929@BIX.com>
Subject: THE ULTIMATE WEB SMURF CLUB!

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.mci.newscorp.com!imci2!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in1.uu.net!istar.net!infoshare!passport.ca!grumpy.insinc.net!magic-toronto!usenet
From: “I.H.”
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: THE ULTIMATE WEB SMURF CLUB!
Date: 28 Jan 1996 20:10:41 GMT
Organization: ARC
Lines: 18
Message-ID: <4egl81$1lo@mechanus.magic.ca>
NNTP-Posting-Host: baator1.magic.ca
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
X-Mailer: Mozilla 1.22 (Windows; I; 16bit)

Hi, Smurf Fans!

Yes, it is up and going! The one and only WEB SMURF CLUB!

Wanna join into the fun? Check it out!

http://www.arcos.org/astro/astro1.html

The pages provide you with detailed information about Smurf figurines and
other smurfy items.

You can also share you hobby with others and, I am working on a Smurf
Chat Club in IRC!

Send me your feedback!

astro

==========================
animation/best.of.net #241, from switch, 1695 chars, Tue Jan 30 12:33:10 1996
————————–
To: animate
Subject: Leonardo da Vinci Prize
Date: Mon, 29 Jan 96 22:10:28 -0500
From: Tony Mabey

— [ From: Tony Mabey * EMC.Ver #2.5.02 ] —

Hi there,
If there are any young British animators out there who are interested in
winning #7,500 read on…
The Rotary Club of London are awarding the Leonardo da Vinci prize this year
to animators. They are currently seeking nominations of candidates for the
prize. You must not be over 36-years-old, and must be a British national.
You need to have demonstrated virtuoso technical ability as well as a
capacity for insiped ideas and skill in communicating them. Obviously, in
order to demonstrate the above, you must have directed at least one film of
your own. Unfortunately, they won’t be considering student applications. Any
animation technique (2D, 3D, teaditional or new technology) is eligible.
If you would like to nominate someone send :-
-a note explaining your choice.
– the persons CV
– A showreel of their work (include an SAE if you want it back)
to Clare Kitson,
Commissioning Editor, Animation,
Channel Four Television,
124, Horseferry Road,
London SW1P 2TX
e-mail – CKITSON@CHANNEL4.CO.UK

by 14th February at the latest.

A film presentation will take place at the National Film Theatre on Sunday
19th May and the #7,500 award will be given the folloing day, by the Duke of
Eningburgh at a private ceremony at Buckingham Palace!

Good Luck.

Tony Mabey,
Cardiff, Wales.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Life Stinks” – Al Bundy
“Not in the Face, Not in the Face!” – Arthur, The Tick’s Sidekick.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

==========================
animation/best.of.net #242, from switch, 857 chars, Tue Jan 30 13:04:40 1996
————————–
From: allard philippe
Date: 12 Jan 1996 05:38:38 -0500
Newsgroups: rec.arts.anime.info
Subject: Brussels Animation Festival

Hi!
If you want to have informations about the next (15th) “Festival du
dessin anime et du film d’animation” (Festival for animated film) of
Brussels (Belgium), please contact the organizers:
Folioscope
rue de la Rhetorique 19
1060 Bruxelles (Belgique)
Tel. (32)2/534.41.25 or 534.35.53
Fax (32)2/534.22.79
It’s also possible to let a message to my e-mail (altho@infoboard.be). I
shall transmit it to the Festival.
That’s all folks!
Philippe Allard

—
——————————————————————————-
Edited by Steve Pearl- Moderator, rec.arts.anime.info
Email submissions to anime-info@cybercomm.net and questions about the newsgroup
to anime-info-request@cybercomm.net

==========================
animation/best.of.net #243, from switch, 4257 chars, Sat Feb 10 11:48:56 1996
————————–
Date: Wed, 7 Feb 1996 15:25:26 -0500
To: byron@art.niu.edu, entpph@rit.edu, HELPPH@rit.edu, animate@perp.com
From: mks@cs.rit.edu (Marla Schweppe)
Subject: ASIFA Midwest Animator’s Conference – Registration and Participation

(Apologies in advance for multiple copies you may receive.)
——————————————————————

Subject: Call for Participation – ASIFA Conference

CALL FOR PAPERS and PRESENTATIONS Fourth ASIFA Midwest Animators Conference
Friday April 19th through Sunday April 21st 1996 at the Starved Rock Lodge in
Starved Rock State Park, Utica, Illinois

Submissions are being accepted for the Fourth Annual ASIFA Midwest Animators
Conference. Papers and/or presentations should deal with animation and will
be presented at our fourth annual conference and retreat. Presenters need not
be members of ASIFA. Topics may range from personal work or the work of other
animators, to critical or theoretical issues in historical or contemporary
(or future) animation. Independent, experimental, commercial and educational
points of view are welcome. Papers will be juried and published in the 1995
Spring issue of Frame By Frame ,
the Quarterly Publication of ASIFA Central. Presentations of visual and/or
aural material or demonstrations need not be submitted in publishable form,
but we will need to see a written proposal, including equipment or space
needs. Please inform us of your intent to submit as soon as possible. Papers
for publication need to arrive by March 15th, 1996. Mail submissions to:

Marla Schweppe, Chair
1996 ASIFA Midwest Animator’s Conference
c/o Rochester Institute of Technology
70 Lomb Memorial Drive
Rochester, NY 14623

ASIFA Central http://laotzu.art.niu.edu/asifa.html

1996 ASIFA MidWest Animator’s Conference See also:
http://laotzu.art.niu.edu/~asifa/confinfo.html Friday April 19th through
Sunday April 21st 1996 at the Straved Rock Lodge in Starved Rock State Park,
Utica, Illinois.

It’s that time of year again. Time to gather at the Starved Rock Lodge and
commune with nature and other animators. Come get to know other ASIFA
animators and their work. Bring your reel to share! We have a variety of
activities organized for the weekend from presentations by individual
animators to talks about animators and demonstations of commercial software
packages. For those of you who haven’t attended a conference in the past,
Stared Rock provides lots of opportunity for relaxation. There’s an indoor
pool,
whirlpool and saunas. The state park is located in a beautiful natural area
near the Fox River waterway. You can watch barge traffic go thru the locks or
hike along a variety of trails. There is a restaurant and snack bar at the
Lodge and other eating establishments in the near-by town.

If you have questions or need further information contact Marla Schweppe at
mks@cs.rit.edu.

Rooms should be reserved through the Lodge (800-868-ROCK or 815-667-4211).
Let the front desk know that you are a part of the ASIFA Midwest group or
in Block# 4863. Rooms are reserved for Friday and Saturday night [The
lodge will not allow a room to be reserved for Saturday night only]. Room
rates vary from $62 to $84 per night. Since there are a limited number of
rooms available in the Lodge, these rooms will be assigned on a first come
first serve basis. If there are more people than rooms, other
accomodations are available nearby. Room fees are payable upon arrival
directly to the Lodge.

The conference fees:

Members: $40 for the weekend, $25 for Saturday only Non-members: $50 for the
weekend, $35 for Saturday only Student Members: $25 for the weekend, $15 for
Saturday only Student Non-members: $30 for the weekend, $20 for Saturday only

Mail registrations to:
Marla Schweppe, Chair
ASIFA Midwest Animator’s Conference
c/o Rochester Institute of Technology
70 Lomb Memorial Drive
Rochester, New York 14623

Make checks payable to ASIFA Central.

Name:________________________________
Address:_____________________________
City, State:_________________________
Zip:_________________________________
Phone:_______________________________
Fax number:__________________________
Email:_______________________________

==========================
animation/best.of.net #244, from hmccracken, 2247 chars, Mon Feb 12 12:29:22 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 12 Feb 1996 12:28:00 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9602121228.memo.2164@BIX.com>
Subject: CBS’ 1996 Sat AM Lineup

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.mci.newscorp.com!imci2!news.internetMCI.com!newsfeed.internetmci.com!chi-news.cic.net!news.math.psu.edu!news.iag.net!news.new-york.net!news.nic.com!nic!augie
From: augie@nic.com (Augie De Blieck Jr)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: CBS’ 1996 Sat AM Lineup
Date: 9 Feb 1996 05:13:25 GMT
Organization: NIC Internet Connection in NJ: email info@nic.com
Lines: 45
Message-ID: <4fel5l$8uq@news.nic.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: nic.com
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2]

I’m surprised nobody else has reported this yet. Unless I missed it.

As reported by Josef Adalian in Wednesday’s New York Post:

CBS is going educational.

First the lineup:

8:00 The Lion King’s Timon and Pumbaa
8:30 Felix the Cat [new time]
9:30 Project G.eeK.eR
10:00 Ace Ventura: Pet Detective [new time]
10:30 TMNT [new time]
11:00 Bailey Kipper’s P.O.V.
11:30 Secrets of the Cryptkeeper’s Haunted House
12:00 Beakman’s World
12:30 CBS Storybreak

Well, the first thing that jumped out at me is that there is another
Tales from the Crypt show. And then I read the description:

“…also touted by CBS as an educational effort, is a half-hour game show
in which kids compete in a physical and mental challenge.”

i.e. Ghoulish Double Dare.

Bailey Kipper is “an FCC-friendly half hour” from the Beakman people. It
“revolves around the live-action adventures of an imaginative 11-year-old
film-maker.”

“Project G.eeK.eR” is easily the toughest to type title since “Jim Lee’s
WildC.A.T.s: Covert Action Teams.” It is “an animated action.adventure
series about a ‘skinny red nerd in a jumpsuit… who possesses unlimited
powers, but doesn’t quite know how to use them.”

Not returning to CBS: “Hyperman”, “Aladdin”, “Santo Bugito”,
and “National Geographic’s Really Wild Animals.”

-Augie
—
———————————————————————–
Augie De Blieck Jr. – Happy 85th Birthday – http://daniel.drew.edu/~
augie@nic.com – to President Reagan – adebliec/index.html
adebliec@drew.edu – ! –

==========================
animation/best.of.net #245, from hmccracken, 1498 chars, Mon Feb 12 12:29:35 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 12 Feb 1996 12:28:22 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9602121228.memo.2169@BIX.com>
Subject: FOX’s Animated Schedule

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.mci.newscorp.com!imci2!news.internetMCI.com!newsfeed.internetmci.com!chi-news.cic.net!news.math.psu.edu!news.iag.net!news.new-york.net!news.nic.com!nic!augie
From: augie@nic.com (Augie De Blieck Jr)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: FOX’s Animated Schedule
Date: 9 Feb 1996 05:17:49 GMT
Organization: NIC Internet Connection in NJ: email info@nic.com
Lines: 30
Message-ID: <4feldt$8uq@news.nic.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: nic.com
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2]

I’m tired and will post some details tomorrow, but here is a quick
rundown of FOX’s animated fall plans:

SATURDAYS

8:00 C-Bear and Jamal
8:30 Life with Louie [new time]
9:00 Casper
9:30 Masked Rider [new time]
10:00 Goosebumps [the show which proved the Kids’ Takeover is rigged -Augie]
10:30 Spider-Man [new time]
11:00 X-Men
11:30 The Tick [new time]

WEEKDAYS

2:00 p.m. Bobby’s World
2:30 Where on the Earth is Carmen San Diego?
3:00 Eek!stravaganza
3:30 The New Batman and Robin Adventures
4:00 Power Rangers Zeo
4:30 Big Bad BeetleBorgs

==========================
animation/best.of.net #246, from switch, 1696 chars, Sat Feb 24 19:56:08 1996
————————–
From: ROCKAFEL@emuvax.emich.edu
Date: Sun, 18 Feb 1996 20:53:58 -0500 (EST)
To: ANIMATE@perp.com
Subject: “Uncooked” ’96

From: EMUVAX::ROCKAFEL 4-FEB-1996 17:00:05.44
To: ROCKAFEL
CC:
Subj: Animation Festival “Uncooked” ’96

Eastern’s “Uncooked” Animation Festival ’96

presented by A.E.M.

April 4th 8:00p.m. $2

At Roosevelt hall on the Campus of Eastern Michigan University.

“Uncooked” will showcase animation produced by University, and
high school students in the categories of 3D computer animation, 2D
animation, and Stop-motion animation.

Sponsored by: the General Fee, Student Goverment, and the Animators of
Eastern Michigan.

—————————-
TO ENTER:
To enter you must have been enrolled at a Michigan, or Ohio
university in Fall of ’95 or
be a Michigan high school student(9th – 12th grade).

Entries must be on VHS only!

$5 entry fee

Awarding Best of Show for 3 categories:
3D computer Animation, 2D animation, and Stop-motion.

Deadline March 14th!!!!!

For an entry form call 313-487-1762 ask for Randy
or email: Rockafel@emuvax.emich.edu
or write to : A.E.M. -“Uncooked” ’96
OCL
11 McKinney Union
Ypsilanti, MI, 48197

For more info call or email the above.

——Please pass on this email to 6 other people ——–

-Randy Rockafellow
President
Animators of Eastern Michigan

==========================
animation/best.of.net #247, from hmccracken, 2218 chars, Tue Mar 5 10:47:19 1996
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 5 Mar 1996 10:45:53 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9603051045.memo.1583@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.iguide.com!news2.near.net!news.ner.bbnplanet.net!howland.reston.ans.net!swrinde!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in1.uu.net!news.ktb.net!NewsWatcher!user
From: sworth@vintageip.com (Stephen W. Worth)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,alt.tv.cartoon-network,alt.animation.spumco
Subject: Hanna-Barbera is no more.
Date: Mon, 04 Mar 1996 13:49:11 -0800
Organization: Vintage Ink & Paint
Lines: 31
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: ktb2.ktb.net
X-Newsreader: Yet Another NewsWatcher 2.1.8
Xref: news2.delphi.com rec.arts.animation:47273 alt.animation.spumco:959

I’m more than a little pissed off…

I heard that Hanna-Barbera is changing the name of the studio to
“Cartoon Network Animation”. I didn’t believe it at first, but I asked
an employee at ASIFA’s Animation Opportunities Expo and he
confirmed it…

Who the hell came up with this bright idea? I can’t conceive of
them wanting to dump a corporate image with the significance of
Hanna-Barbera. It’s just another example of a distribution company
slapping their own name over the creators’ names… And what kind
of image does “Cartoon Network Animation” project anyway? Bill
and Joe were pioneers of television animation, and aside from
Disney, were responsible for the creation of more memorable
characters than anyone else. The name “Hanna-Barbera” means
a lot more to the public than the name of a second rate premium
channel. What ever happened to historical continuity of a company
image? It’s like Ford Motors changing their name to “Mustang Car
Makers”. It’s stupid.

Along with this irritating bit of news came the announcement that
Bill Hanna is retiring and leaving the company. (It’s nice of them to
wipe his name off the sign on Cahuenga as a going away present…)
Joe Barbera will stay on for now, but they don’t seem to be using
him for anything more creative than signing cels these days.

It’s all a tremendous waste if you ask me. (Well, you didn’t, but you
got my opinion anyway!)

See ya
Steve

==========================
animation/best.of.net #248, from hmccracken, 1671 chars, Tue Mar 5 14:49:12 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 5 Mar 1996 14:48:29 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9603051448.memo.3024@BIX.com>
Subject: From rec.arts.animation

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.iguide.com!news2.near.net!satisfied.apocalypse.org!wizard.pn.com!brighton.openmarket.com!decwrl!news.zocalo.net!news
From: Jamie Johnson
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Felix the Cat Cartoons on the WEB!
Date: Mon, 04 Mar 1996 16:42:09 -0800
Organization: Big Top Productions
Lines: 20
Message-ID: <313B8DE1.41B4@bigtop.com>
Reply-To: jamie@bigtop.com
NNTP-Posting-Host: btp-114.bigtop.com
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
X-Mailer: Mozilla 2.0 (Macintosh; I; 68K)
CC: rec.arts.movies.misc, k12.chat.teacher, rec.arts.anime,
comp.graphics.animation, comp.infosystems.www.authoring.html,
rec.games.frp.misc, alt.culture.internet, rec.arts.misc,
alt.artcom, alt.anything

If you like cartoons, animation, Felix the Cat, and things of that
nature, there’s something new on the WWW that you should be aware
of…

Big Top Productions is pleased to announce that we will be putting up
a new Felix the Cat cartoon each day on our website. The address is
http://www.bigtop.com/ and the cartoons can be found under the Cartoon
Theater.

Of course, you need to have the latest version of Netscape and the
Shockwave plug-in to view the cartoons, but those are pretty easy to
come by these days.

Anyway, the cartoons are groovy and the site is fun. So, please come
check it out!

In the immortal words of Felix himself:
“I hate to nag, but where’s my bag?”

-Jamie

==========================
animation/best.of.net #249, from lkaplan, 739 chars, Tue Mar 5 15:10:52 1996
This is a comment to message 247.
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
Re: From: hmccracken@BIX.com
>Who the hell came up with this bright idea? I can’t conceive of
>them wanting to dump a corporate image with the significance of
>Hanna-Barbera. It’s just another example of a distribution company
>slapping their own name over the creators’ names… And what kind
>of image does “Cartoon Network Animation” project anyway?

Sad, but I guess we shouldn’t be surprised … it isn’t just the animation
biz — this gets done a lot, as companies try to say “we’ve bought
somebody, so now they’re new and fresh”. I’ve heard of it backfiring
bigtime, also — people _like_ companies that are “old friends” …

(though they didn’t change the name, look at what has happened to Snapple
since it was bought …)

-Len

==========================
animation/best.of.net #250, from hmccracken, 385 chars, Tue Mar 5 16:13:07 1996
This is a comment to message 249.
————————–
I’m not a Hann-Barbera fan, but the idea of changing the studio’s name
still seems a tad sacreligious. The partnership between Bill Hanna
and Joe Barbera is nearly sixty years old; who knows if the Cartoon
Network will still be around six decades from now?

What’s next — will they rename Walt Disney Products as “Touchstone
Productions Family-Oriented Animation Division?”

— Harry

==========================
animation/best.of.net #251, from hmccracken, 1685 chars, Thu Mar 21 10:33:07 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Thu, 21 Mar 1996 10:32:45 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9603211032.memo.82233@BIX.com>
Subject: R.I.P. Jack Berrill, creator of Gil Thorp

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.iguide.com!imci2!news.internetMCI.com!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in2.uu.net!news.u.washington.edu!news.uoregon.edu!news.islandnet.com!Brethour
From: tyg@netcom.com (Tom Galloway)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.info,rec.arts.comics.misc,rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: R.I.P. Jack Berrill, creator of Gil Thorp
Followup-To: rec.arts.comics.strips
Date: Sun, 17 Mar 96 04:23:25 GMT
Organization: Netcom Online Communications Services (408-241-9760 login: guest)
Lines: 13
Approved: scowling@islandnet.com
Distribution: world
Message-ID: <4igej0$3pj@sanjuan.islandnet.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: i20.islandnet.com
X-Newsreader: News Xpress Version 1.0 Beta #2
Apparently-To: rec-arts-comics-info@uunet.uu.net
Xref: news2.delphi.com rec.arts.comics.misc:184833 rec.arts.comics.info:3811 rec.arts.comics.strips:21753

According to an obituary in the Boston Globe, Jack Berrill, creator of the
38 year old comic strip Gil Thorp, died Thursday of cancer. According to
a Tribune Media spokesperson, the 65 newspaper syndicated strip will continue
without interruption. In recent years, other artists had been doing the art
while Berrill did the plots and dialogue.

Personally, Gil Thorp was one of the first strips I read, due to it being
carried in the Charlotte Observer. I’ve long enjoyed the strip, and have
long considered it to be a generally underrated continuity strip. It’s quite
good, and the pacing of the stories was excellent.

tyg tyg@netcom.com

==========================
animation/best.of.net #252, from hmccracken, 762 chars, Wed Mar 27 21:43:46 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Wed, 27 Mar 1996 21:42:36 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9603272142.memo.14366@BIX.com>
Subject: Aardman Animations W3 site

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.iguide.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!tank.news.pipex.net!pipex!dish.news.pipex.net!pipex!soap.news.pipex.net!pipex!aj058.du.pipex.com!user
From: trevor@dial.pipex.com (Trevor Lawrence)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Aardman Animations W3 site
Date: 28 Mar 1996 01:23:18 GMT
Organization: Southfork Graphics
Lines: 2
Message-ID: NNTP-Posting-Host: aj058.du.pipex.com
X-Newsreader: Yet Another NewsWatcher 2.1.8

In case anyone’s interested, Aardman Animations have a W3 site on
www.aardman.com.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #253, from hmccracken, 1469 chars, Wed Apr 3 00:04:25 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Wed, 3 Apr 1996 00:04:04 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9604030004.memo.42797@BIX.com>
Subject: Updated Mr. Boffo home page

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.iguide.com!imci2!imci3!imci4!newsfeed.internetmci.com!uwm.edu!newsspool.doit.wisc.edu!news.doit.wisc.edu!earvax.waisman.wisc.edu!stellmack
From: stellmack@earvax.waisman.wisc.edu (Mark Stellmack)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: Updated Mr. Boffo home page
Date: 2 APR 96 15:43:26 GMT
Organization: Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Lines: 14
Message-ID: <2APR96.15432660@earvax.waisman.wisc.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: visar.waisman.wisc.edu

Mr. Boffo, named “King of the Comics Page” by National Comics Review Weekly
(NCRW), has a newly revised web site. Included are Willy ‘n’ Ethel (“…like
Marmaduke, but funny and without animals…” – NCRW) and Porterfield (“…like
Dennis the Menace, but funny and involving an older guy with a job…” – NCRW).
Also, it appears that a new book, “Mr. Boffo – The First Decade”, is due out in
June. It is rumored that negotiations are under way to include a special guest
appearance by the ghost of Grandpa from Family Circus. In an ironic twist, he
would appear in one of Mr. Boffo’s famous “hell” cartoons (“…like Cathy, but
funny, although both are visions of hell…” – NCRW).

The Mr. Boffo home page currently resides at:

http://www.wisenet.net/users/boffo/boffo.htm

==========================
animation/best.of.net #254, from hmccracken, 3962 chars, Thu Apr 11 22:55:04 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Thu, 11 Apr 1996 22:53:02 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9604112253.memo.73109@BIX.com>
Subject: My visit to Intl Museum of Cartoon Art

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.iguide.com!imci2!news.internetMCI.com!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in2.uu.net!news1.digital.com!decwrl!amd!netcomsv!uu4news.netcom.com!netcomsv!uu3news.netcom.com!ix.netcom.com!netnews
From: mrussell@ix.netcom.com(Michael Russell)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: My visit to Intl Museum of Cartoon Art
Date: 8 Apr 1996 13:02:24 GMT
Organization: Netcom
Lines: 85
Message-ID: <4kb2p0$ilp@reader2.ix.netcom.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: orl-fl2-22.ix.netcom.com
X-NETCOM-Date: Mon Apr 08 6:02:24 AM PDT 1996

I was able to visit the International Museum of Cartoon Art on
Thursday, 4 April 1996. Medium crowd (about 100+ people), most being
families (most public schools were closed for the holidays).

The Museum is located in Mizner Park, next to an up-scale shopping area
in downtown Boca Raton, Florida.

I’ll quote from the brochure that was handed out:

—- Begin quote —-

.. this new American Museum celebrates cartoons, the world’s most
popular art. And it’s here in South Florida, in Boca Raton, in Mizner
Park.

From caricatures to comic strips, political cartoons to animation art,
sports cartoons to comic books, you’ll find a lively exploration of
cartoon art in a beautiful new building featuring permanent and
changing exhibitions, a wonderful Museum Store and Cafe. And in the
near future, you’ll also enjoy the Theater, Video Center, Library and
Education Center.

—- End quote —–

I’ll quote from the opening ceremonies book:

—- Begin quotes —-

Phase I — The Present

.. The Museum is housed in a 52,000 square foot building. Temporary
galleries exhibit original cartoon works of art … showcasing a
[small] portion of the Museum’s collection.
Today, the Museum has more than 150,000 original drawings, 10,000
books and over 1,000 hours of video and film dating back to America’s
first efforts to create animation.
.. It is hoped that Phase I will be the catalyst to help raise the
remaining $10 million to complete the entire facility.

—- End quotes ——

Basically, the museum is in a very nice new building. The building has
two floors, but only part of the first floor is open at present.

The Museum had a small, but representative selection of artwork on
display. The animation wall had some original production cels from
about seven or eight movies or TV shows. I was not too impressed by
the animation art wall (I think I have better pieces on my wall).

I liked the walls with the Rube Goldberg Award winners and the big
names in comic strip art.

I would say it took me about 40 minutes to walk through all the
exhibits — most of this time was reading the gags in the comic strip
or comic book artwork.

The gift store was small. The mandatory T-shirts, baseball caps,
souveniour book, and pins. There were some comic strip compilation
books, “mass market” posters, post cards, and a few other items. The
only animation related items were a couple of Disney limited edition
etchings being sold.

There is a very small cafe attached to the gift shop. The cafe was not
open and it appears it will not be open for awhile.

In summary, I found the visit interesting and a little enjoyable.
While I think they could have far more items on display and far more
items in the gift shop and lot more training at the cash register, I
think a lot of these are simply a result of being open just a week or
two.

I think the Museum has a lot of potential, but it will need support.

I would visit again, but I would wait a year to see if they get more
support. I’m thinking of joining as a member, just because I want to
support cartoon art appreciation.

Cheers – Mike

—
Staying Tiny Toon’d is Michael Russell from Orlando, FL.
Also at michael_russell@vnet.ibm.com

==========================
animation/best.of.net #255, from hmccracken, 1398 chars, Sat May 4 18:18:47 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 4 May 1996 18:16:48 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9605041816.memo.52306@BIX.com>
Subject: Tintin elections

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.iguide.com!imci2!news.internetMCI.com!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in1.uu.net!uunet.ca!news.uunet.ca!rcogate.rco.qc.ca!altitude!giguere.hip.cam.org!user
From: giguere@cam.org (Denis Giguere)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: Tintin elections
Date: Wed, 01 May 1996 22:44:23 -0400
Organization: Communications Accessibles Montral
Lines: 23
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: giguere.hip.cam.org

Hi!
Remember Tintin, the young Belgian reporter and his white dog? This strip
was a huge success in Europe in the 40’s and 50’s. All their adventures,
plus later ones, are available as albums in several languages and all
around the world. Which is your favourite? Check it out and vote! Here
is a cross-post :

Best regards,

Denis Giguere

==========================
animation/best.of.net #256, from hmccracken, 4094 chars, Sat May 11 16:32:14 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 11 May 1996 16:31:57 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9605111631.memo.74316@BIX.com>
Subject: Gladstone DISNEY COMICS Official Website Up!

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.iguide.com!news.uoregon.edu!news.islandnet.com!scowling
From: David.A.Gerstein@williams.edu (David A Gerstein)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,rec.arts.disney.animation,rec.arts.disney.misc,rec.arts.disney.merchandise,rec.arts.comics.misc,rec.arts.comics.info,rec.arts.comics.strips,alt.disney.secrets
Subject: Gladstone DISNEY COMICS Official Website Up!
Followup-To: rec.arts.comics.misc
Date: Fri, 10 May 96 03:51:35 GMT
Organization: Williams College, Williamstown MA
Lines: 61
Approved: scowling@islandnet.com
Distribution: world
Message-ID: <4muotu$c6f@sanjuan.islandnet.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: i1-119.islandnet.com
X-Newsreader: News Xpress Version 1.0 Beta #2
Xref: news2.delphi.com rec.arts.animation:49946 rec.arts.disney.animation:8265 rec.arts.disney.misc:7007 rec.arts.disney.merchandise:7127 rec.arts.comics.misc:193052 rec.arts.comics.info:4155 rec.arts.comics.strips:22910 alt.disney.secrets:2367

“Jumpin’ jacksnipes!”
“Great howling crashwagons!”
“Well, fer gosh sakes!”

It’s time for Disney comics fans to tune up their
web-browsers! Gladstone’s own web pages are available for the first
time, and only for a limited time — we’re testing them for potential
reader interest and profitability, and their success in this incipient
stage is most important.
Based on the current, initial reaction, we will decide how
exactly to carve out our presence on the Web for good, probably later
this year (from another home site). It will be at the current address
at least until June.

The site contains all kinds of things. First it is a complete
catalog for all of Gladstone’s wares, with a full range of comics,
back issues, comic albums, lithographs, and sculptures available from
the fine hands of Carl Barks, Floyd Gottfredson, Don Rosa, William Van
Horn and others. If you have a credit card, you can order the items
directly from the page; without one, you can print out the pages and
use them to order through normal mail. (If you order from the pages
themselves, make sure to fill in all the blanks. We cannot process
incomplete orders.)
Second, you will find a mixture of house editorials, new
comics news, and historical features crafted especially for our
electronically-advanced Disney comics readers. Here’s the way to keep
up on what we’re doing, thinking, and learning while bringing you our
time-tested relaxation formula! You will see some of these features
nowhere else!
And third, it’s an opportunity for you to tell us what you
think! Along with the electronic order forms we mention above, we
have included a special “Gladstone Backsquawk” page whereby you can
rate our pantheon of writers and artists and provide other commentary
for our own enlightenment.

For now, GLADSTONE DISNEY COMICS ON THE WEB! is maintained by
yours truly, a writer for their comics, and you can find it at:

http://wso.williams.edu/~dgerstei/gladstone

This site replaces the unofficial Current Gladstones Page
that I maintained up until two weeks ago. If you go to that old page
now, you’ll only find a link to this new site.
It works best with Netscape 2.0 — which you can download from
the page if you don’t have it already (it will automatically recognize
what browser you are using). But you can nonetheless tour the site
with any browser.

Go for it! Waddle on over and see what we’re doing to make
comics fun again — and make sure to ask for our great Disney comics
at your favorite comics shop or magazine rack! If you haven’t read
the great works of Barks, Gottfredson, and others, give them a try.
They’re NOT the kid stuff you may expect — but they ARE some of the
best humor and adventure comics on the market today!

David Gerstein
<96dag@williams.edu>
Maintainer — Gladstone Web Site
Maintainer — Classic Felix the Cat Fandom Page
[http://wso.williams.edu/~dgerstei/felix.html]

==========================
animation/best.of.net #257, from hmccracken, 1425 chars, Sat May 25 15:27:08 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 25 May 1996 15:26:04 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9605251526.memo.18280@BIX.com>
Subject: Attn, Rocky and Bulwinkle Fans…

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news-feed.iguide.com!news.uoregon.edu!newsfeed.internetmci.com!EU.net!usenet1.news.uk.psi.net!uknet!tank.news.pipex.net!pipex!netcom.net.uk!ix.netcom.com!news
From: wogggly@ix.netcom.com(B. Baker )
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Re: Attn, Rocky and Bulwinkle Fans…
Date: 24 May 1996 16:23:02 GMT
Organization: Netcom
Lines: 19
Message-ID: <4o4np6$3lt@dfw-ixnews2.ix.netcom.com>
References: <4o4bmr$6d1@clarknet.clark.net>
NNTP-Posting-Host: nyc-ny14-07.ix.netcom.com
X-NETCOM-Date: Fri May 24 11:23:02 AM CDT 1996

In <4o4bmr$6d1@clarknet.clark.net> sirgray@clark.net (Harry Flashman)
writes:
>
>Cartoon Network has announced that the moose and squirrel will be
>premiring June 1st. This will be the old Rocky and Bulwinkle shows
that we
>know and love. I for one am OVERJOYED!!!!
>
>Scott
>
This is NOT an ad, simply an advisory re: moose and squirrel. Bantam
Books will publish “The Rocky & Bullwinkle Book” this fall. The book,
by Louis Chunovic, is a profusely illustrated coffee table-sized book
that is completely sanctioned by the Jay Ward estate; it will be on
sale in early Oct. It will be $50 – $60 (!) Despite that price, it
sounds like something to look forward to…

— B.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #258, from hmccracken, 3255 chars, Mon Jun 10 15:45:23 1996
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 10 Jun 1996 15:44:58 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9606101544.memo.67414@BIX.com>
Subject: June issue of Animation World Magazine now online!

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in2.uu.net!hunter.premier.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!nntp.earthlink.net!max4-so-ca-23.earthlink.net!user
From: dan@awn.com (Dan Sarto)
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: June issue of Animation World Magazine now online!
Date: Sat, 08 Jun 1996 15:24:26 -0700
Organization: Animation World Network
Lines: 56
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: max4-so-ca-23.earthlink.net

Take a few minutes and check out the June issue of Animation World
Magazine, at www.awn.com, the home of Animation World Network. A monthly
on-line magazine dedicated to the international animation community,
Animation World Magazine launched in April of this year. It’s loaded with
fun and interesting articles, and is free to the Internet community.

The June issue of Animation World Magazine features a series of articles on
“independent” animators and their forays into feature films. There is a
report by Mark Segall on Bill Plympton’s wacky new work-in-progress, “I
Married a Strange Person” and a scathing assessment of the state of American
feature animation by R.O. Blechman, the master of the squiggly line. Suzanne
Buchan provides an in-depth profile of the Brothers Quay and their
live-action (with animation) film, “The Institute Benjamenta” and Frankie
Kowalski examines the pixilated world of Britain’s Dave Borthwick. Jerry
Beck takes a look back when Don Bluth broke from Disney to set up his own
studio, thus precipitating today’s boom in feature animation. William Moritz
adds a historical note to the proceedings with a portrait of Lotte Reiniger,
whose entrancing silhouette features predated Disney’s “Snow White” by
several years.

Of a more general nature, there is a report on what’s new in Winnipeg, home
of such popular filmmakers as Cordell Barker (who’s now into computer
animation) and Richard Condie. Meanwhile, Donna La Breque examines the
role played by animation in “Zork Nemesis,” the latest update in the Zork
computer game phenomena in an interview with producer Cecilia Barajas.

This issue ends with John Dilworth’s review of Mamoru Oshii’s cybertech
thriller, “Ghost in the Shell,” while Frankie Kowalski offers up selections
of 10 desert island films from the likes of Bruno Bozetto, Richard Williams,
R.O. Blechman and Bill Plympton–independent filmmakers who, at one time or
another, have indulged their fantasies about making animated features.

For more information about the magazine, or Animation World Network,
contact us at:

Animation World Network
6525 Sunset Blvd.
Garden Suite 10
Hollywood, CA 90028

(213) 468-2554
(213) 464-5914 (fax)

http://www.awn.com

Email Addresses –

AWN General Information info@awn.com
Animation World Magazine frankie@awn.com

Sales/Marketing

North America wendyj@awn.com
Europe vincent@awn.com
UK roger@awn.com
Asia bruce@awn.com

==========================
animation/best.of.net #259, from elfhive, 120 chars, Mon Jun 10 17:40:32 1996
This is a comment to message 258.
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
I tried to logon to the AWN WWW site from AOL and was denied permission.
Do you need to be a member to access the site?

==========================
animation/best.of.net #260, from hmccracken, 118 chars, Mon Jun 10 18:40:14 1996
This is a comment to message 259.
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
I don’t think so — I’ve investigated it in the past without problems. I’ll
try again and report back here.

— Harry

==========================
animation/best.of.net #261, from hmccracken, 170 chars, Mon Jun 10 18:42:36 1996
This is a comment to message 260.
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
It works fine over my Internet connection. You might try again; I find that I
often have mysterious, temporary problems when trying to use AOL for Web access.

— Harry

==========================
animation/best.of.net #262, from elfhive, 196 chars, Mon Jun 10 21:55:56 1996
This is a comment to message 261.
————————–
Thanks, I’ll check it out as soon as I can get back on AOL which is an
another problem these big systems have. I think, when my economic situation
turns around, I’ll go with a more direct ISP 🙂

==========================
animation/best.of.net #263, from hmccracken, 1652 chars, Tue Jun 11 22:00:59 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 11 Jun 1996 22:00:41 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9606112200.memo.72306@BIX.com>
Subject: I, Roboman

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!news.ner.bbnplanet.net!howland.reston.ans.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in2.uu.net!newstf01.news.aol.com!newsbf02.news.aol.com!not-for-mail
From: jimmeddick@aol.com (JimMeddick)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: I, Roboman
Date: 10 Jun 1996 09:41:03 -0400
Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364)
Lines: 23
Sender: root@newsbf02.news.aol.com
Message-ID: <4ph8lf$ja7@newsbf02.news.aol.com>
Reply-To: jimmeddick@aol.com (JimMeddick)
NNTP-Posting-Host: newsbf02.mail.aol.com

Dear Robotman Readers,

Because I receive so many questions about Robotman’s history, I’ve decided
to tie together a lot of the loose ends and plot twists in an upcoming
series of strips. The dates these strips will appear are: July 1 through
July 6 and July 7 through July 12. If you’re curious to know more about
these strips, let me give you a hint: they’re weird.

If for some reason you don’t read Robotman on the aforementioned dates,
(like you’re visiting a remote Tibetan village on those dates or a large
person is sitting on your chest and won’t let you up) don’t despair. I
hope to eventually have them permanently included in the Robotman web site
along with additional behind-the-scenes commentary. The Robotman web site
address is:

http://www.unitedmedia.com/comics/robotman

If, after all this, you still have unanswered questions, I recommend
pounding your head against a wall in frustration.

—-Jim Meddick
jimmeddick@aol.com

==========================
animation/best.of.net #264, from hmccracken, 10382 chars, Sun Jun 16 12:12:25 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 16 Jun 1996 12:12:00 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9606161212.memo.85669@BIX.com>
Subject: FAQ v2.2 for rec.arts.comic.strips

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!news.ner.bbnplanet.net!howland.reston.ans.net!world1.bawave.com!news2.cais.net!news.cais.net!news2.cais.com!news
From: bebe@artcomic.com (Bebe Williams)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: FAQ v2.2 for rec.arts.comic.strips
Date: Sat, 15 Jun 1996 00:05:10 GMT
Organization: Capital Area Internet Service, Inc.
Lines: 285
Message-ID: <31c1fdb6.39927377@news.vni.net>
Reply-To: bebe@artcomic.com
NNTP-Posting-Host: nova-aa-017.vni.net
X-Newsreader: Forte Agent .99e/32.227

Rec.arts.comic.strips
Frequently-Asked Questions list v2.2
1996, June 15th, 1996

Table of Contents

1. What is rec.arts.comics.strips?
2. Do any cartoonists use the Internet?
3. Where can I find cartoons outside the funny pages?
4. How can I learn more about cartoons?

1. What is rec.arts.comics.strips?

It’s a Usenet discussion group set up for people who like comic
strips and editorial cartoons. Discussions include: cartoons,
their creators, and their spin-offs into other media incarnations.
Sometimes the rec.arts.comics hierarchy is referred to
as “rac”, and rec.arts.comics.strips is called rac.strips or racs.

A few strips have their own dedicated newsgroups, like
alt.comics.peanuts. Their existence does not preclude the
discussion of those strips in rec.arts.comics.strips. Some
people like to cross-post to more than one newsgroup.

2. Do any syndicated cartoonists use the Internet?

Yes. The following cartoonists:
have announced e-mail addresses in their cartoons:
Scott Adams (“Dilbert”)
Ruben Bolling (“Tom the Dancing Bug”)
Gary Trudeau (“Doonesbury”)
Bob Thaves (“Frank & Ernest”)
Jeff MacNelly (“Shoe”, “Pluggers”)
Jimmy Johnson (“Arlo ‘n’ Janis”)
Dan Piraro (“Bizarro”)
Jeff Shesol (“Thatch”)
David Farley (“Dr.Fun”)
Joe Martin (“Mister Boffo”)
Brian Bassett (“Adam”)
John McPherson (“Close to Home”)<76702.2263@compuserve.com>
Michael Fry & Terry Lewis (“Over the Hedge”)

Scott Santis (“The Buckets”) Mike Peters (“Mother Goose & Grimm”)

have read or posted to rac.strips:
Tom Tomorrow (“This Modern World”)
Scott Adams (“Dilbert”)
Bill Amend (“Foxtrot”)
Gary Trudeau (“Doonesbury”)
Michael Fry (“Committed”)
Jimmy Johnson (“Arlo and Janis”), ArlnJan@aol.com
Jim Medddick (“Robotman”)
Pat Brady (“Rose is Rose”) Wiley (“Non Sequiter”)
Rick Kirkman (“Baby Blues”)
Brooke McEldowney (“9 Chickweed Lane”)

There are quite a few more more cartoonists using the internet than
is listed here with a good majority of them on America-On-Line and
Compuserve. If you’re a cartoonist making dailies or a weekly and wish
to be listed in the upcoming email listing of professionals
(to be separate from this FAQ), simply email me a message at:
bebe@artcomic.com

Syndicated cartoonists do enjoy receiving fan mail, but please do not
harass them!

Many other cartoonists, most of them not syndicated, read and
post to rac.strips.

Dave Farley pointed out that the following comics editors also
participate here:
Lee Salem, Universal Press
Jay Kennedy, King Features

3. Where can I find cartoons outside the funny pages?

Lots of places.

World Wide Web cartoons
=======================

Many people maintain collections on the world wide web. You can
reach them with a web browser program like Netscape, Mosaic,
or MacWeb. The most comprehensive index is maintained by
Glenn Carnagey. To get at it, ask your
browser to open the location or URL (uniform resource locator)
called http://www.redweb.com/wraithspace/Strips/

There is also another good list of comic strips at David Filo and
Jerry Yang’s Yahoo index
http://www.yahoo.com/Entertainment/Comics/Comic_Strips/

Many syndicated strips are offered after a delay by United Features
Syndicate at http://www.unitedmedia.com/

Original dailies are offered six days a week by the Art Comics
Syndicate.
In existence since February of 1995, they offer six features for
distribution to web publications as well as email subscriptions.
http://www.artcomic.com –

Another original web syndicate is Open Prarie Syndicate at:
http://www.winternet.com/~oprarie

Art Comics offers e-mail subscriptions:
e-mail to the address listserver@artcomic.cais.com with ONLY this
message in the body of your e-mail for a list of offerings:

info lists

Web-cartoonists consists of a variety of creators (both pro and
amateur) and these are the most notable having been providing
comics for over a year.
John Zakour (“Computer Cartoons”)
Gabe Martin (“Borderline”)
Bebe Williams (“Art Comics Daily”)
Elliot Feldman (“Flashers”)
Joda Thayer (“The Noo Greak Kollum”)
Steve Ward (“Buzz the Fly”)
Raquel Gompy (“Nerd”)

There are many web comics pages showing strips Some web pages showing
daily strips are:

Houston Chronicle’s site located at:
http://www.chron.com/fronts/chronicle/comics/index.html
It requires free registration.

Web Comics Daily – http://www.cyberzine.com/webcomics/comics.html

Jason’s Web Comics Daily –
http://www.cs.ubc.ca/spider/harrison/daily-comics.html

Snobs Daily – http://www.artcomic.com/snobs.html

CRAYON – http://crayon.net

Sami Koykka’s Comics Hotlist http://www.uta.fi/yhteydet/sarjikset.html

Philadelphia Online (run by the Philadelphia Inquirer and Daily
News) charges $4.95 a month. The URL for the comics page is
http://www2.phillynews.com/comics/

From many of these web sites, you can click into archives of many of
your favorite comic strips.

Other Newsgroups
================

You need a Gif viewer to see them after downloading binaries of comics
from newsgroups listed here:

clari.feature.*comic strip title (a few choices)
alt.binaries.pictures.misc
alt.binaries.pictures.cartoons

Magazines
=========

Comic Relief magazine is published monthly and features several
cartoons, among
them Life in Hell, This Modern World, Ernie Pook’s Comeek, Doonesbury,
and Toles.

Comic Relief Subscriptions
Page One Publishers
P.O. Box 6606
Eureka, CA 95502
Voice:(707)443-2820
Fax: (707)445-0270

Another publication is National Forum Strips, a weekly with about
65 popular strips.

“National Forum Strips”
Associated Features, Inc.
P.O. Box 7099
Fairfax Station, VA 22039
(703) 764-0496
Subscriptions: $48/year

Books
=====

There isn’t room to reproduce a comprehensive listing here. Doug
Krause
maintains a very thorough one.

Chris Anderson keeps a detailed Calvin &
Hobbes
bibliography.

Jym Dyer maintains one for Peanuts strips.
There is
also an animated Peanuts list kept by Scott McGuire
at
http://www.mit.edu:8001/people/smcguire/peanuts.html

Pat Brady says that you can get a list of names and
addresses of all syndicates by
writing to:

Editor & Publisher Magazine
11 West 19th Street
New York, NY 10011.

4. How can I learn more about cartoons?

To discuss and learn more about vintage pre-1960 comic strips, you can
subscribe to the mailing list “comic-strip-classics” maintained by
Stuart Liss. To subscribe, send a message to:
majordomo@indra.com
with one line of text: subscribe comic-strip-classics

(Stuart is also the creator of the “Little Orphan Annie Home Page”
devoted to Harold Gray located at:
http://www.indra.com/~sliss/loahp.html )

You can get virtually any info you need concerning cartooning in
general
on the inside web pages of Ted Goff’s Cartoonists’ Web Bulletin Board
located on the web at:
http://www.tfs.net/personal/tgoff/wwwboard/wwwboard.html

The Web Bulletin Board is also a forum for discussions about
cartooning for cartoonists, both amatuer and professional.

Here are the beginnings of a reading list put together by
heroic rac.strippers:

Berger, Arthur Asa. _The Comic-Stripped American_

Walker, 1973 Jones, Chuck. _Chuck Amuck_; 1990

McKenzie, Alan. _How to Draw and Sell Comic Strips_ 1987 Quatro
Publishing.

Walker, Mort. _Backstage at the Strips_ 1975 Mason/Charter

Scott Adams maintains a mailing list for Dogbert’s New Ruling Class.
>You can subscribe to the Dilbert List automatically by sending an
>e-mail to the address listproc@internex.net with ONLY this message in
>the body of your e-mail:
>
> subscribe Dilbert_List Joe Blow
————————————————————————-

Many people have contributed to this faq:
Kitchen Staff Supervisor
Craig Leff
Mark Thompson Bill Higgins– Beam Jockey
Chris Anderson
Keith Rose
Mark Jackson
Andrew Galbraith Jr.
Matt Ceccato
Anthony J. Foglia
David Farley
Jacob C Kesinger
Phil Lerman Dave Schaumann
Joshua Kreitzer
Robin Netherton
Dave Horlick
Anthony J. Foglia
Stuart Liss

Any information you think should be added to this FAQ or any questions
you would like to have answered, please direct your email to me at:
bebe@artcomic.com

This FAQ is available on the web at:
http://www.idyllmtn.com/rac/

==========================
animation/best.of.net #265, from hmccracken, 1785 chars, Thu Jun 20 20:28:54 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Thu, 20 Jun 1996 20:27:28 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9606202027.memo.1870@BIX.com>
Subject: “Jay Ward Special” (June Foray, Bill Scott, and more) Now Online

Newsgroups: rec.arts.tv,rec.arts.animation
Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!news.ner.bbnplanet.net!howland.reston.ans.net!swrinde!sgigate.sgi.com!esiee.fr!jussieu.fr!math.ohio-state.edu!usc!rand.org!vortex.com!lauren
From: lauren@vortex.com (Lauren Weinstein)
Subject: “Jay Ward Special” (June Foray, Bill Scott, and more) Now Online
Message-ID:
Organization: Vortex Technology, Woodland Hills, CA, U.S.A.
Date: Mon, 17 Jun 1996 06:27:14 GMT
Lines: 25
Xref: news2.delphi.com rec.arts.tv:172878 rec.arts.animation:51108

Greetings. Vortex Technology is pleased to announce the online availability
of Professor Neon’s “Jay Ward Animation Special”. This is a one hour audio
program playable via Xing “Streamworks” on any of the various supported
platforms (Windows, Mac, SGI, Sun, Linux).

A must for “Rocky and Bullwinkle” or other Jay Ward Productions fans, and
anyone else interested in animation! Recorded *live* at UCLA on
February 5, 1982, this never before heard material features the
creative talents behind these and other classic animation programs
performing a live script reading, and answering an array of questions
about their shows, animation, television, censorship, and many other topics.
Featuring June Foray, Bill Scott, Walker Edmiston, and more!

Access is via the URL:

http://www.vortex.com

in the “Live & On-Demand Audio/Video” section. Enjoy.

–Lauren–

P.S. Links to locations for obtaining the “Streamworks” client
software, etc. are reachable via the same URL listed above.

–LW–

==========================
animation/best.of.net #266, from hmccracken, 263 chars, Fri Jun 21 22:04:02 1996
————————–
TITLE: Spoiler Warning
The next message is quite a good review of _The Hunchback of Notre Dame_,
plucked out of the rec.arts.disney.animation newsgroup. If you don’t
like to read reviews of movies before you’ve seen them, please skip over
this message.

— Harry

==========================
animation/best.of.net #267, from hmccracken, 6921 chars, Fri Jun 21 22:04:28 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Fri, 21 Jun 1996 22:02:40 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9606212202.memo.5813@BIX.com>
Subject: Hunchback of Notre Dame review

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in3.uu.net!in2.uu.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.ycc.yale.edu!yale!news-mail-gateway!daemon
From: Michael Dequina (by way of Michael Dequina )
Newsgroups: rec.arts.disney.animation
Subject: Hunchback of Notre Dame review
Date: 19 Jun 1996 17:24:59 -0400
Organization: Yale CS Mail/News Gateway
Lines: 96
Sender: daemon@cs.yale.edu
Message-ID: <19960619172453.aaaa005Yp@babyblue.cs.yale.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: babyblue.cs.yale.edu

From the 6/17 issue of my weekly e-mail movie publication, The Movie Report…

The Hunchback of Notre Dame (G) **** (out of ****)
Last summer, Disney made a bold move by tinkering with its
tried-and-true formula for kid-friendly animated features and releasing the
underrated, surprisingly serious and more adult-oriented Pocahontas.
Believe it or not, Disney has made an even bolder move with its ambitious
34th full-length animated feature, The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Startlingly
adult and with an oppressive dark tone, Hunchback is also quite simply the
most brilliant and poignant animated feature to come from Disney since
1991’s Oscar-nominated Beauty and the Beast.
This adaptation of Victor Hugo’s classic novel tells the tale of
Quasimodo (voice of Tom Hulce), the deformed bell-ringer of the Notre Dame
cathedral in Paris. Locked in the bell tower since his youth by the cruel
Minister of Justice Frollo (Tony Jay), Quasimodo yearns to be “out there”
among the people. He gets his chance during a town festival and instantly
falls in love with sultry gypsy dancer Esmeralda (Demi Moore), who befriends
the lonely Quasimodo but becomes enamored with the gallant captain of the
guard Phoebus (Kevin Kline).
Sounds like typical Disney fodder–an outcast hero, a beautiful
heroine (who’s also an outcast), a truly hissable villain, and much romantic
longing and angst. But Hunchback is the most atypical of all Disney
animated features. Bravely, wisely, directors Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise
(who also did Beauty) and screenwriters Tab Murphy, Irene Mecchi, Bob
Tzudiker, Noni White, and Jonathan Roberts, while adding a dollop of humor
in the form of three wisecracking gargoyle companions (voiced by Jason
Alexander, Charles Kimbrough, and the late Mary Wickes), have not
extensively sugarcoated Hugo’s dark tale. The result is shocking–and
incredibly potent. Right in the prologue, we see Frollo murder Quasimodo’s
mother and attempt to drown the infant Quasimodo in a well; from then on,
the audience becomes witness to the unspeakable abuse Quasimodo receives,
from the townspeople, who crown him king of the festival only to mock him;
to more from the embodiment of cruelty that is Frollo, who continuously
belittles his appearance and his worth as a person–in song, no less. What
makes it all the more heartbreaking is that Quasimodo sings along with him.
For all the lighthearted moments–and, unlike in the nearly totally straight
Pocahontas, there are quite a few–there’s no escaping the atmosphere of
dread and sadness, from the intricately detailed, cold, imposing walls of
Notre Dame and the shadows that engulf each corridor to the always sad,
often crying face of Quasimodo and the ominous music.
Alan Menken’s score is definitely his most daring for an animated
feature, adopting an appropriate Gothic sound full minor chords and choirs
chanting in Latin. Menken and lyricist Stephen Schwartz also push the
envelope in terms of subject matter, too: in the eerie dirge “Hellfire,” the
pious Frollo expounds on his hypocritical, consuming lust for
Esmeralda–“Hellfire/Dark fire/The fire in my skin/This burning/Desire/Is
turning me to sin.” Not exactly kids’ stuff; in fact, you’d be pretty
hard-pressed to find a song that children will find especially singable.
The two lighthearted tunes, including a comic showcase for the gargoyles
called “A Guy Like You,” aren’t nearly as catchy and infectious as an “Under
the Sea” or “Be Our Guest.” But there are a couple of gems here–namely,
the two central ballads: the traditional protagonist “I Want” song, “Out
There”; and Esmeralda’s haunting prayer “God Help the Outcasts,” definitely
the most spiritual and transendent tune to emerge from an animated feature.
More than any other Disney animated feature, Hunchback lends itself to a
second life as a Broadway show; the opening number, “The Bells of Notre
Dame,” isn’t so much a song as it is a group of sung recitative lines, a
writing technique commonly found on the stage.
Hunchback is also the most visually stunning animated feature to
come from Disney or anywhere else. The exterior walls of the cathedral are
rendered in such intricate detail, as are the legendary bells, and the faces
are extraordinarly expressive. There are more than a few knockout sequences
visually, the most memorable being the “God Help the Outcasts” number, in
which Esmeralda walks through the cathedral, lit only by candles and,
ultimately, light shining through a colorful, astonishingly detailed stained
glass window; and Quasimodo’s daring rescue of Esmeralda. Trousdale and
Wise have said that they tried to take animation to visual lengths never
attempted; they certainly succeeded in that respect.
Hunchback’s all-around success also extends to the voice casting.
Hulce brings great vulnerability and gentleness in speaking and singing
Quasimodo, firmly establishing this “monster”‘s humanity. Moore imbues
Esmeralda with her characteristic sexual bravado and insouciance; it’s
amazing how much the character resembles Moore, both physically and
spiritually. Kline makes Phoebus a charming, likable lug by giving him an
appealing sense of self-effacing humor, and Kimbrough, Wickes, and
especially Alexander hit the right comic notes as the gargoyles. The
breakout star in the piece, however, is Jay, whose deep, Brit-inflected
tones just ooze menace and evil, making Frollo perhaps the most despicable
villain in Disney history.
Hunchback’s darkness will, in all likelihood, prevent it from
receiving Lion King-size grosses, but don’t be surprised if it just happens
to win an Oscar nomination for Best Picture next year. It is much more than
just a moving, emotionally resonant cartoon–it is a moving, emotionally
resonant motion picture, period.

______________________________________________________________________

Michael Dequina
“has-been former award-winning film critic”
mrbrown@ucla.edu
Visit Mr. Brown’s Movie Site at http://members.tripod.com/~MrBrown/

“Mr. Brown can do it. How about you?”
–from Mr. Brown Can Moo! Can You? by Dr. Seuss
______________________________________________________________________

==========================
animation/best.of.net #268, from hmccracken, 2056 chars, Mon Jul 1 22:05:24 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 1 Jul 1996 21:59:27 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9607012159.memo.34177@BIX.com>
Subject: Whole Toon Catalog is back!!!

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!inXS.uu.net!news.sprintlink.net!new-news.sprintlink.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!malgudi.oar.net!rclnews.eng.ohio-state.edu!magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu!usenet.ins.cwru.edu!cleveland.Freenet.Edu!hm797
From: hm797@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Terrence C. Briggs)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,rec.arts.tv,alt.fan.disney.afternoon,rec.arts.disney.animation,rec.arts.comics.other-media
Subject: Whole Toon Catalog is back!!!
Date: 28 Jun 1996 06:02:12 GMT
Organization: Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH (USA)
Lines: 36
Message-ID: <4qvsh4$if9@madeline.INS.CWRU.Edu>
Reply-To: hm797@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Terrence C. Briggs)
NNTP-Posting-Host: owl.ins.cwru.edu
Xref: news2.delphi.com rec.arts.animation:51676 rec.arts.tv:173764 alt.fan.disney.afternoon:8383 rec.arts.disney.animation:10535 rec.arts.comics.other-media:5389

Just like the subject line says, Whole Toon Catalog is
back! This info comes straight from rec.arts.animation vet
Kevin Knoles, who heard the number straight from the horse’s
mouth (actually it was an answering machine).

1-800-331-6197

I forget the name of the distributing company, but I do
know that they’ll keep me on hold for about an hour or so
before they actually get my address down…
Anyway, normal business hours apply (Central Time, from
Chicago). I’ve also been told that the catalog itself won’t
be available in its new edition for another month.

The number again…

1-800-331-6197

Take it easy, and peace in the Middle East…

“My clan can beat your clan…any day of the week.”

‘Profit’ will not return this fall. Guess ‘Homicide’ is
back to being the best show on TV…

“Nobody messes with the Ministry of the Public Welfare!”

—
—————————————————————
Terrence Briggs “Mr. Man”
Email: hm797@freenet.cleveland.edu

==========================
animation/best.of.net #269, from switch, 3654 chars, Tue Jul 9 09:04:59 1996
————————–
From: Steve Pearl
Date: 9 Jun 1996 09:29:48 -0400
Newsgroups: rec.arts.anime.info
Subject: [CON] Katsucon 3- Spring 1997

Katsucon Three
An East Coast Anime/Manga Convention
March 7-9, 1997
at the
Holiday Inn Executive Center
Virginia Beach, Virginia, USA

Katsucon will be returning to the newly expanded Holiday Inn
Executive center in the spring of 1997. With the increased function
space, we’ll be bringing more anime, more dealers, and more fun than
ever before!

We’re still working on our guest list. We intend to announce a major
Japanese guest later on this summer. Watch this space for more
details.

Planned events include:

Panels Workshops Model Contest
Variety Show Costume Show Exhibitors Hall

Katsucon’s Exhibitors Hall will be bigger and jam-packed with Cels,
CD’s, LD’s, games, and other fabulous merchandise that will send your
heart racing and make your credit card scream for mercy. Katsucon will
have many well known and eclectic retailers of anime merchandise in
attendance.

And, in case of emergency, some of us are considering installing
AC generators in our Jurai Guardians……:-)

Art Show

The Katsucon Art Show will have on display some of the finest
anime-inspired works done by both our guests and attendees, including both
two-dimensional paintings and three-dimensional models. Much of the
material in the show will be for sale by the artist, either for direct
purchase or at the Art Auction on Sunday afternoon.

_General Info_

_Memberships_
$20.00 US until Aug. 30, 1996
$25.00 US until Nov. 29, 1996
$30.00 US until Feb. 14, 1997
$40.00 US at the Door.

_Exhibitors Tables_
$150 per table till the Feb. 14.
$200 at the Con, if any are left unsold by then.
(tables include 2 membership each)

_Hotel Information_
Holiday Inn Executive Center
5655 Greenwich Road
Virginia Beach, Virginia 23462
(804) 499-4400
1-800-HOLIDAY

The hotel is centrally located in the Tidewater area of Virginia which
includes Newport News, Norfolk, Hampton and Virginia Beach.

Directions:
_By Car_
From I-64 East, take Exit 284-B (Newtown Road) then the South
Newtown Road exit. At the light go straight onto Greenwich Road. The
Hotel is located on the right. Free parking for registered hotel guests
on the premises for cars and buses.

**NOTE: Hotel room reservations must still be made through the Holiday Inn.**

The Katsucon staff invites everyone to come and join us for a weekend
of Ani-mania. To register and receive more information on Katsucon Three,
send mail to:

Katsu Productions
PO Box 11582
Blacksburg, Virginia 24062-1582

Internet Mail: katsucon@vtserf.cc.vt.edu
Internet Mailing list: katsucon-l@solaris.cc.vt.edu
(Send subscription notices to listproc@solaris.cc.vt.edu)

MAKE CHECKS PAYABLE TO: Katsu Productions
(No Cash PLEASE)

Katsu Productions is a registered non-profit fan based organization
devoted the promotion and education of the international animation and comics
industry.

—
epawtows@vt.edu—————————————————-
Technicon 14- March 14-16, 1996. SF&F return to Blacskburg!

==========================
animation/best.of.net #270, from switch, 2036 chars, Wed Jul 10 08:02:32 1996
————————–
From: joebev@netvoyage.net
Date: Wed, 12 Jun 96 09:10:23
To:
Subject: ANIFEST!

Celebrity Voice Actors to Perform at the 25th Anniversary
ASIFA-Hollywood AniFest! Convention

Everything for the cartoon fan! All under one roof!

Saturday, July 20th, 1996
10am to 4pm
(ASIFA-Hollywood members with membership card
may enter the dealers’ room beginning at 9am.)
Universal City Hilton and Towers
Universal City, California
(At the top of the hill at Universal Studios, near CityWalk.)
General Admission: $7.00
ASIFA-Hollywood Members: $5.00

This year’s ASIFA AniFest! Convention will feature appearances by
celebrity voice actors performing actual cartoon scripts before an
audience. The tentative schedule thus far will include live
performances of ROCKY AND BULLWINKLE, HUCKLEBERY HOUND, YOGI BEAR,
and QUICK DRAW McGRAW. Actors set to perform so far include JUNE
FORAY, COREY BURTON, JOE BEV, MATT HURWITZ, JERRY HOISER, and LEE
HARRIS. More information on these performances and additional actors
will be forthcoming.

FOR THE PAST 25 YEARS, ASIFA-Hollywood has been hosting the largest
and longest running conventions in the world of animation– The
AniFest! At the AniFest! you’ll find a wide variety of cartoon
related entertainment, art, merchandise, collectibles, products and
services- all under one roof!

In addition to the celebrity voice actors demonstration, there will
be guest appearances by some of animation artists, other
demonstrations and seminars, and dealers in every kind of cartoon
collectible you can imagine: posters, cels, toys, videos, films and
even more! If you’re a fan of animation, you won’t want to miss it!

Other events are being lined-up at this moment and more information
on these will be forthcoming.

For more information, contact ASIFA-Hollywood at (818) 842-8330.
Dealers’ tables are still available! Call now to reserve space
before we sell out!

For more information on ASIFA-Hollywood, visit their Internet Web
site Home Page at: http://home.earthlink.net/~asifa/

==========================
animation/best.of.net #271, from hmccracken, 745 chars, Thu Jul 11 23:23:14 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Thu, 11 Jul 1996 23:22:40 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9607112322.memo.62112@BIX.com>
Subject: A moment of silence

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!inXS.uu.net!news.cybercomm.net!not-for-mail
From: dmackey@cybercomm.net (Dave Mackey)
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: A moment of silence
Date: 10 Jul 1996 06:40:34 GMT
Organization: CyberComm Online Services
Lines: 8
Message-ID: <4rvj92$j1s@crow.cybercomm.net>
NNTP-Posting-Host: raven.cybercomm.net
X-Newsreader: TIN [UNIX 1.3 950515BETA PL0]

Mel Blanc died seven years ago today.

—

dmackey@raven.cybercomm.net Dave Mackey
Visit my Home Page! http://raven.cybercomm.net/~dmackey

==========================
animation/best.of.net #272, from hmccracken, 2799 chars, Thu Jul 18 18:22:11 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Thu, 18 Jul 1996 18:21:48 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9607181821.memo.80593@BIX.com>
Subject: My Dinner With Sparky

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!inXS.uu.net!nntp.primenet.com!news.cais.net!sen.ca.gov!sen.ca.gov!nntp
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: My Dinner With Sparky
Message-ID: <1996Jul15.113943.317@sen.ca.gov>
From: Mark Androvich
Date: 15 Jul 96 11:39:43 -0800
Distribution: world
Nntp-Posting-Host: 165.107.135.182
X-Mailer: Mozilla 1.1 (Windows; U; 16bit)
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Lines: 42

As promised, I’m posting a “review” of the Cartoon Art Museum’s July 12th
fund-raising dinner with Charles Schulz.

I first went to see the CAM’s Peanuts’ 45th Anniversary exhibit. There
were a few original strips from 1952, most from the 1990’s, and a few in
between. As one who thinks that Schulz’ best strips were from the period
1955 through 1965, I was pleasantly surprised that I enjoyed so many of
the Sunday panels dated between 1991 and 1995.

I was disapppointed only by the fact that the museum didn’t have a bigger
selection of Peanuts books available for sale. I ended up buying a few
Pogo collections instead…

Anyway, the dinner was held at a posh restaurant in Nob Hill. Mr. Schulz
and his wife, Jeanne, were both very personable and generous with their
time. We had a very nice dinner conversation, in which I learned the
answer to a question I had– the golf “gods” finally granted him a
hole-in-one about a year ago.

After dinner, Mr. Schulz spoke to the whole group. He shared anecdotes
about people who called his house to settle bets as to whether or not he
was dead, as well as comments he received from people in Santa Rosa
who asked him how he was enjoying his retirement.

One comment caught my attention, as I had discussed this several weeks
ago in this newsgroup. Someone out there suggested that Peanuts started
the simplistic artistic style now seen in many strips which has led to
the “demise” of the comics page. I suggested instead that Peanuts was
responsible for the current trend of cramming tiny strips into the page.
At the dinner, Schultz also noted that he felt Peanuts may have been
responsible for this. He noted that the strip was specifically designed
to fit in 4 newspaper columns. Other strips followed suit.

Mr. Schulz graciously allowed pictures and even signed a few of the
dinner programs at the end of the evening. He was courteous and
charming, but I didn’t have the courage to actually call him Sparky…

In my opinion, anyone who suggested that Schulz should retire would have
left the dinner a changed person…

Mark

==========================
animation/best.of.net #273, from hmccracken, 2412 chars, Fri Jul 19 20:14:12 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Fri, 19 Jul 1996 20:09:16 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9607192009.memo.84038@BIX.com>
Subject: Disney to distribute Miyazaki films in USA

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in2.uu.net!hunter.premier.net!netnews.worldnet.att.net!newsadm
From: modemac@netcom.com (Modemac)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,alt.slack.goathead,alt.drooling.animation.fandom
Subject: Disney to distribute Miyazaki films in USA
Date: Thu, 18 Jul 1996 16:53:32 GMT
Organization: First Online Church of “Bob”
Lines: 44
Message-ID: <4slj17$jst@mtinsc01-mgt.ops.worldnet.att.net>
NNTP-Posting-Host: 95.cambridge-2.ma.dial-access.att.net
X-Newsreader: Forte Free Agent 1.0.82
Xref: news2.delphi.com rec.arts.animation:52356 alt.slack.goathead:262 alt.drooling.animation.fandom:229

Japan Economic Newswire, JULY 17, 1996

HEADLINE: Disney to distribute Miyazaki’s animated movies in U.S.

DATELINE: TOKYO, July 17 Kyodo

BODY:

Walt Disney Co. has agreed with a Japanese publisher to
distribute English-language versions of the animated films of Hayao
Miyazaki through its global network, officials of the publisher,
Tokuma Shoten Publishing Co., said Wednesday.

Miyazaki’s animated movie, ‘My Neighbor TOTORO’ has been translated
into English and the film is also available on videotape. Some of the
animator’s better-known movies include ‘Kiki’s Delivery Service’ and
‘Laputa, Castle in the Sky.’

The Tokyo-based publishing house has the right to market Miyazaki’s
works and it holds a majority equity stake in his company, Studio
Ghibli Co.

Walt Disney will distribute the English versions of Miyazaki’s
animated movies in the United States, Tokuma officials said.

A Japanese subsidiary of Walt Disney will market Miyazaki’s
animated movies on videotape in Japan and other countries, and Tokuma
will focus on the distribution of his animated movies in Japan, they
said.

Miyazaki has long wished to have his movies seen by children around
the world, they added.

LANGUAGE: ENGLISH

LOAD-DATE: July 17, 1996

—
Reverend Modemac (modemac@netcom.com)
First Online Church of “Bob” “There is no black and white.”
PGP Key Fingerprint: 47 90 41 70 B4 5B 06 90 7B 38 4E 11 8A ED 80 DF
URL: http://www.tiac.net/users/modemac/
(FINGER modemac@netcom.com for a FREE SubGenius Pamphlet!)

==========================
animation/best.of.net #274, from hmccracken, 4820 chars, Sun Jul 28 20:46:20 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 28 Jul 1996 20:45:41 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9607282045.memo.6293@BIX.com>
Subject: the Disney/Studio Ghibli agreement

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in3.uu.net!noc.nyx.net!nyx.cs.du.edu!not-for-mail
From: wsantoso@nyx.cs.du.edu (Widya Santoso)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.anime.misc,rec.arts.animation,rec.arts.disney.animation
Subject: the Disney/Studio Ghibli agreement
Date: 25 Jul 1996 04:31:17 -0600
Organization: University of Denver, Math/CS Dept.
Lines: 75
Message-ID: <4t7idl$1e4@nyx.cs.du.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: nyx.nyx.net
Keywords: Hayao Miyazaki Disney Studio Ghibli
X-Newsreader: NN version 6.5.0 #3 (NOV)
Xref: news2.delphi.com rec.arts.anime.misc:15418 rec.arts.animation:52521 rec.arts.disney.animation:11972

Here’s my take on the Disney/Ghibli agreement:

1) Disney has only an agreement to distribute Studio Ghibli
material, not alter it. This means that Disney, through any of its
subsiduaries (Buena Vista, Miramax to name a few), will be able to
distribute Studi Ghibli films worldwide, through cinema and video
outlets. As a result…

2) Studio Ghibli will be solely responsible for the post-production
of their own films. Thus any fears of Disnification are unfounded-
this will not happen. Miyazaki himself has indicated that Studio
Ghibli will supervise any alteration for the foreign (nee’
non-Japanese) market. This doesn’t mean that Studio Ghibli won’t
approach Disney for consultation, but Studio Ghibli will have the
final say.

3) There will be no “Lyin’ King” situation. The agreement virtually
says that Disney recognises Studio Ghibli’s work as independent.
Secondly, whilst it is *conceivable* (but pretty much inconceivable)
that no one at Disney knew Osamu Tezuka’s work, it is well known that
many animators at Disney know Miyazaki’s work, and there would
probably be some sort of outcry within the creative community for any
filching of Miyazaki’s work. It has been recorded that the creators
of Tailspin cite Laputa as one of their inspirations, the director of
Toy Story also cites Miyazaki as one of his heroes, and that the
clock scene in The Great Mouse Detective is inspired by the climax in
Castle of Cagliostro.

4) Studio Ghibli films will probably be “second string” features in
the Disney schedule of releases. These films would be second only to
the annual major Disney animated release, and thus would probably
attract a late Summer/early Autumn or a Christmas release. (The
reasoning for this is the release of the formerly OAV/now theatrical
release of Aladdin and the King of Thieves in August/September, and
last year’s Toy Story at Christmas.) Where does that leave the
Disney animation shops in Florida, France, Australia and elsewhere?
Probably producing TV/OAV material, but also the odd second stream
studio release as well (Aladdin and the Prince of Thieves, A Goofy
Movie.)

The probability of films such as Only Yesterday and Tanuki Ponpoko is
that they will be distributed by Miramax, whilst the majority of
Miyazaki’s films will be distributed by Buena Vista. I’m a bit
worried for Miyazaki’s older films, as audiences, spoiled by advanced
animation techniques and CGI, may find them “old fashioned” or
“jerky”. Hopefully the story will more than compensate for this.

5) The rumours of a Disney/Miyazaki consultation agreement: this was
broached on Usenet about two months ago, and I, for one, wanted more
than the word of “a trusted source”. It may be that this was the
source of the rumour, however the distribution agreement doesn’t kill
off the chance of a Hayao Miyazaki consultation. The fruits of such
labours is unlikely before AD2000, as the schedule of proposed
animated feature films is already set until the turn of the century.
One interesting thought is for Miyazaki to produce a short for
Fantasia Continued. Of course there is no evidence to support this,
but nevertheless it’s a intriguing thought.

MHO? I think it’s an exciting venture, not only for Studio Ghibli,
but also for Disney. By acknowledging Studio Ghibli, Disney is
acknowledging anime as a legitimate animation art form, and the work
of Studio Ghibli as the ultimate form of anime, at the level of art.
In the reverse, this allows Studio Ghibli to at last have a chance to
have their work recognised not just by animation lovers, but a
worldwide audience. Of course, what happens in reality is a
different thing altogether, but at least Miyazaki holds the reins to
his own future, which is much better than many other people have
gotten.

—
Widya Santoso wsantoso@nyx.cs.du.edu +61 6 288 0405
Please support the Australia in 1999 Worldcon bid at the
1996 Worldcon, LACon III, Aug 29 – Sept 2, 1996
— Unit 3/12 Araluen Street, FISHER ACT 2611, AUSTRALIA —

==========================
animation/best.of.net #275, from hmccracken, 3794 chars, Tue Jul 30 20:51:02 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 30 Jul 1996 20:47:44 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9607302047.memo.12394@BIX.com>
Subject: What happened to WB in the 70’s??

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!news2.near.net!news3.near.net!bigboote.WPI.EDU!news.ultranet.com!zombie.ncsc.mil!newsgate.duke.edu!godot.cc.duq.edu!newsfeed.pitt.edu!dsinc!netnews.upenn.edu!news.cc.swarthmore.edu!news.cse.psu.edu!uwm.edu!math.ohio-state.edu!usc!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!news.msfc.nasa.gov!newsfeed.internetmci.com!info.ucla.edu!unixg.ubc.ca!van-bc!n1van.istar!van.istar!west.istar!ott.istar!istar.net!tor.istar!east.istar!news1.istar.ca!news
From: J or S Weinman <"jacjud@"@istar.ca>
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: Re: What happened to WB in the 70’s??
Date: Thu, 25 Jul 1996 23:20:38 -0400
Organization: SAME
Lines: 40
Message-ID: <4t9dgp$am3@news.istar.ca>
References: <4t9ack$egv@natasha.rmii.com>
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Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
X-Mailer: Mozilla 2.01KIT (Win95; I)
To: Sir Arnold Robinson

Sir Arnold Robinson wrote:
> My biggest gripes with
> that era can be boiled down to 2 things.
> 1) Bill Lava’s music. Awful. Oh, absolutely. As a great fan of WB cartoon music, I find
Lava’s wallpaper accompaniments just OFFENSIVE. By the way, you know
where the most egregious example of that occurs? In a Freleng 1962
Tweety called “The Jet Cage.” It was the last cartoon scored by Milt
Franklyn, but he appears to have died partway through scoring it. So
the first three minutes have the familiar Stalling-Franklyn sound,
complete with quotes from “Powerhouse” and “In an 18th-century Drawing
Room,” and suddenly Lava takes over, unsubtle, humorless, inappropriate,
and completely uncognizant of the fact that a Warner Brothers cartoon
MUST be accompanied by music that quotes songs and follows the action
even unto the point of finding musical equivalents for blinking. (Don’t
you love that, BTW? You know–“Bu-link, bu-link!”) Lava was a composer
of B-movie scores, and he scored cartoons as though they were simply a
lower form of B-movie, whereas C.S. and later M.F. scored them like
A-cartoons, if you see what I mean…
What I’ve always wondered is, who hired Lava? Jones and Freleng
and co. more or less had a free hand by then (for example, they were
credited as producers of their cartoons on post-1960 award nominations),
so the horrible feeling persists that they really didn’t KNOW how
important the Stalling style was to their cartoons. An article written
by Jones in the 1940’s criticizing the quote-and-toot formula of most
cartoon music provides further ammunition for this theory, and the fact
that Jones’s post-1964 cartoons featured Lava-style scores (even by
Eugene Poddany, who proved in 1951 that he could write in the proper WB
style) is even stronger evidence that this crap is what the directors
wanted. Really, when you think about it, the Lava-Dean Elliot style
(that is, the UPA scoring style: tinny little band, no song quotations,
and no appreciable difference between the way you’d score a cartoon or a
live-action film) reigned supreme from the 1960’s on. It wasn’t until
recently that Warner Brothers started hiring composers who had even a
passing familiarity with Stalling, and thankfully their current music
director, Richard Stone, is both good and stylistically correct.
Geez, I really shot off my mouth, didn’t I? I can’t help it. I
love Stalling. I love Milt Franklyn, too, and I tend to work his name
into every post to this group because I feel he’s underrated. (Couldn’t
the “Carl Stalling Project” have included just one M.F. score, for
contrast if nothing else?)

==========================
animation/best.of.net #276, from hmccracken, 2259 chars, Fri Aug 2 23:27:01 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Fri, 2 Aug 1996 23:25:57 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9608022325.memo.22241@BIX.com>
Subject: If you buy ANIMATO!in a comix store…

Path: news2.delphi.com!news.delphi.com!uunet!in2.uu.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!kona.javanet.com!usenet
From: Mike Dobbs
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: If you buy ANIMATO!in a comix store…
Date: 31 Jul 1996 01:17:44 GMT
Organization: Inkwell Productions
Lines: 32
Message-ID: <4tmc7o$ihb@kona.javanet.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: spfl-pm109.javanet.com
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
X-Mailer: Mozilla 1.12(Macintosh; I; PPC)
X-URL: news:rec.arts.animation#4tlu1e$5ue@newsbf02.news.aol.com

Late last week Diamond, the largest distributor of comics and magazines
to comic book stores, announced it had bought the number two
distribution company, Capitol. This means Diamond will have a monopoly
on practically everything consumers find at direct-sale outlets.
Considering our magazine’s history with Diamond (we dropped them for
over a year because of an unfair sales agreement), I don’t anticipate
having Diamond continue their relationship with us.

Most of our readership is reached through our newsstand/bookstore
distributors, but many of our readers overseas and in Canada pick up
ANIMATO! through a comic book shop. We don’t want to lose anyone!

Therefore, we at ANIMATO! suggest that, if you regularly purchase
independent comics or small press magazines, that you consider
subscribing to them as they might be disappearing from your local shop.

So, we’re making this offer to any new subscribers…a four-issue
subscription to ANIMATO! (regularly $16.00) is discounted to $14.00 for
US customers; $18.00 (regularly $21.00) for Canadian residents and
$25.00 for all others (a $28.00 value). This offer is good through
August 30, 1996.

Send check or money order to ANIMATO! 17 Spruce St. Springfield, MA
01105 or charge your subscription to your Master, Visa or Amex card by
e-mailing your name, address, card, account number and expiration date
to us or by calling 413-731-7928 from 4:00 to 9:00 p.m. eastern time.

Thanks,
Mike Dobbs
editor, ANIMATO!

==========================
animation/best.of.net #277, from hmccracken, 3802 chars, Fri Aug 30 11:19:40 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Fri, 30 Aug 1996 11:19:17 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9608301119.memo.91397@BIX.com>
Subject: [XREF/INET] The Cartoonists Union Web Page — What’s new

Path: news2.delphi.com!delphi.com!cam-news-feed1.bbnplanet.com!cam-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!news.mathworks.com!usenet.eel.ufl.edu!spool.mu.edu!munnari.OZ.AU!harbinger.cc.monash.edu.au!not-for-mail
From: mpsc839@primenet.com (Jeff Massie)
Newsgroups: alt.iatse.forum,alt.union.iatse,alt.society.labor-unions,rec.arts.animation,alt.animation.warner-bros,comp.graphics.animation,rec.arts.disney.animation,alt.drooling.animation.fandom,alt.disney,alt.disney.criticism,alt.disney.secrets,rec.arts.disney.announce,alt.animation.spumco,alt.tv.simpsons,alt.fan.beavis-n-butthead,alt.fan.ren-and-stimpy,alt.tv.ren-n-stimpy,alt.tv.beavis,alt.tv.beavis-n-butthead
Subject: [XREF/INET] The Cartoonists Union Web Page — What’s new
Followup-To: poster
Date: 29 Aug 1996 09:45:03 -0700
Organization: M. P. S. C. Local 839 IATSE
Lines: 48
Approved: Tim Pickett
Message-ID:
Reply-To: mpsc839@primenet.com
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X-NNTP-Posting-User: tbp
Xref: news2.delphi.com alt.iatse.forum:7 alt.union.iatse:360 alt.society.labor-unions:7801 rec.arts.animation:53574 alt.animation.warner-bros:13761 comp.graphics.animation:37757 rec.arts.disney.animation:12699 alt.drooling.animation.fandom:301 alt.disney:5980 alt.disney.criticism:3049 alt.disney.secrets:3564 rec.arts.disney.announce:653 alt.animation.spumco:1359 alt.tv.simpsons:123922 alt.fan.ren-and-stimpy:3610 alt.tv.ren-n-stimpy:13118 alt.tv.beavis-n-butthead:38705

Here’s an update on what’s newly available on the Local 839 web page at
http://www.mpsc839.org/mpsc839.

Newly available is “Poor Tom’s Almanac”, Tom Sito’s daily history postings.

In the August PEG-BOARD, Local 839’s newsletter:

* Warner Bros. agrees to Local 839’s 401(k) plan;
* Local 839’s president, Tom Sito, talks about agendas;
* Local 839’s Business Representative, Steve Hulett, talks about
selfishness;
* What do strippers in San Francisco have that animators at Klasky-
Csupo don’t?

—————————————————————

The Local 839 Web Page feature up-to-the-minute news and information about
MPSC Local 839, the labor union for screen cartoonists and CGI artists and
technicians in Southern California.

The information page of our website has been set up with the cooperation
of the Animation World Network, which can be reached directly at
http://www.awn.com. Among its features:

* The latest Local 839 contract and wage minimums;
* Information on the American Animation Institute, the
biggest animation training program in the U. S.;
* Results of Local 839’s wage surveys, showing the
“going rates” in animation and CGI;
* A list of Local 839’s “union shops”;
* Substantial excerpts from THE PEG-BOARD, Local 839’s
monthly newsletter.

The Local 839 home page will also features links to Local 839 members and
union shops.

In short, everything you always wanted to know (or maybe thought you never
needed to know!) about the biggest cartoonists’ union in the world!

—
_____________________________________________________________________
Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists and 4729 Lankershim Blvd.
Affiliated Optical Electronic and North Hollywood, CA 91602-1864
Graphic Arts, Local 839 IATSE ph (818) 766-7151 * fax (818) 506-4805
http://www.mpsc839.org/mpsc839 mailto:mpsc839@primenet.com
—
Moderator, rec.arts.disney.announce.
Submissions can be mailed to rad-announce@yoyo.cc.monash.edu.au.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #278, from hmccracken, 1480 chars, Fri Sep 6 11:32:46 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Fri, 6 Sep 1996 11:32:08 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9609061132.memo.10410@BIX.com>
Subject: new animation channel

Path: news2.delphi.com!delphi.com!cam-news-feed1.bbnplanet.com!cpk-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!newsfeed.internetmci.com!howland.erols.net!cs.utexas.edu!utnut!kone!hone!informer1.cis.McMaster.CA!hwfn!james!ae884
From: ae884@freenet.hamilton.on.ca (Stewart Shutler)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: new animation channel
Date: 6 Sep 1996 03:27:55 GMT
Organization: Hamilton-Wentworth FreeNet, Ontario, Canada.
Lines: 19
Message-ID: <50o5nr$jrl@main.freenet.hamilton.on.ca>
NNTP-Posting-Host: james.freenet.hamilton.on.ca
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2-HWFN]

One of the several new Canadian channels approved by the CRTC is
“Teletoon”, and it’s one of only four that will start next fall.
According to a couple different newspapers, there will be a lot of adult
animation, along with the rest.

There is a lot of great animation studios in Canada, such as Nelvana, and
of course there’s the National Film Board animation division which has
won a bunch of Oscars. Besides that, I hope they strike up some sort of
deal with Ted Turner to be able to show Hanna-Barbera, especially a lot
of stuff that I miss that we don’t get up here (unless you pay a lot
extra for premium channels) like Scooby-Doo without Scrappy, and Josie
and the Pussycats.

I am really looking forward to this.

Stewart.

—

==========================
animation/best.of.net #279, from hmccracken, 2648 chars, Sun Sep 8 17:25:36 1996
There is/are comment(s) on this message.
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 8 Sep 1996 17:21:11 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9609081721.memo.15018@BIX.com>
Subject: REQ: Tex Avery/Walter Lantz

Path: news2.delphi.com!delphi.com!news-feed.iguide.com!news.uoregon.edu!enews.sgi.com!www.nntp.primenet.com!nntp.primenet.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!news.cybercomm.net!not-for-mail
From: dmackey@cybercomm.net (Dave Mackey)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Re: REQ: Tex Avery/Walter Lantz
Date: 8 Sep 1996 01:09:55 GMT
Organization: CyberComm Online Services
Lines: 37
Message-ID: <50t6d3$c4e@crow.cybercomm.net>
References: <50t3nq$2860@news.doit.wisc.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: raven.cybercomm.net
X-Newsreader: TIN [UNIX 1.3 950515BETA PL0]

Dan McCormick (crowtrobot1@juno.com) wrote:
: Does anybody have a list of the shorts that Tex Avery worked on during
: his brief tenure at Walter Lantz’s studio? The only one I am familiar
: with is “Crazy Mixed Up Pup” (which was nominated for an Oscar).
:
: Anybody know what else he did there?

Tex Avery only directed four cartoons at Lantz in the mid 1950’s. He had
some familar people helping him out, some ex-MGM animators named Ray
Abrams and Don Patterson (the animation crew was rounded out by the
formidable Laverne Harding), and his old WB colleague Michael Maltese.

Those cartoons were “Crazy Mixed-Up Pup”, “I’m Cold”, “The Legend Of
Rockabye Point” and “Sh-h-h-h”. The middle two titles were the second and
third Chilly Willy cartoons (picking up a one-shot character Paul Smith
tried out in 1953), and the final one was a rather lame attempt to make a
cartoon out of the O’keh Laughing Record. Lantz cartoons of the 50’s are
generally pretty gamy, but Avery tried real hard to make cartoons that
were a cut above, but couldn’t rise above the economical Lantz production
mill. Lantz quit after these four cartoons and was replaced by Alex Lovy,
back with the studio after a 13-year hiatus.

Remember, too, that Walter Lantz had previously employed Tex Avery as an
animator during the 1930’s. Since director credits didn’t exist on Lantz
cartoons until the late 1930’s, it’s a fair guess that Avery had a crack
at direction on the black-and-white Oswald series. Several titles have
been cited as possibilities including “Elmer The Great Dane”, “Ham And
Eggs” and “Annie Moved Away”. Eventually, Avery left Lantz (taking fellow
animators Sid Sutherland and Virgil Ross with him) with an offer to direct
from Leon Schlesinger, based on his supposed director status at Lantz.

—

dmackey@raven.cybercomm.net Dave Mackey
Visit my Home Page! http://raven.cybercomm.net/~dmackey

==========================
animation/best.of.net #280, from elfhive, 300 chars, Mon Sep 9 10:33:41 1996
This is a comment to message 279.
————————–
Outre Magazine #6 which I just received has an article/interview with
Walter Lantz by Frank Cali (page 75). There is also a sidebar of reminiscences
from June Foray. It is fairly short, but if that isn’t enough to convince
you, there is a massive article about Dick Dale, King of the Surf Guitar 🙂

==========================
animation/best.of.net #281, from hmccracken, 4543 chars, Mon Sep 9 12:10:44 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 9 Sep 1996 12:09:26 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9609091209.memo.16859@BIX.com>
Subject: Possible return of Whole Toon

Path: news2.delphi.com!delphi.com!news-feed.iguide.com!news.uoregon.edu!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!uwm.edu!lll-winken.llnl.gov!enews.sgi.com!www.nntp.primenet.com!nntp.primenet.com!cpk-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.zeitgeist.net!news.c2.net!jupiter.dnai.com!user
From: scoffey@dnai.com (Shannon Coffey)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Re: Possible return of Whole Toon
Date: Sun, 08 Sep 1996 23:26:38 -0800
Organization: Shannon Coffey
Lines: 81
Message-ID:
References: <322ef381.63701465@hobbes.cc.uga.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: isdn7-200.isdn.dnai.com

In article <322ef381.63701465@hobbes.cc.uga.edu>,
BRETTM@UGA.CC.UGA.EDU (Brett Middleton) wrote:

>Can you tell us more about this company? Are they likely to put the
>same toon-loving effort into the business that Doug Raney did, or will
>we get a short list of popular titles and maybe some cheap merchandise?

Rest assured, it is the REAL THING, right down to the graphics and layout.
I received my catalog Saturday and I’m still recovering from the shock. I’d
heard Facets had acquired Whole Toon, but was suspicious of a gutting of
the catalog.

It is virtually the same, save for the deletion of the “Periodicals” and
“Audio” sections, and a general update/housecleaning. What remains is the
“Books,” “Videos” and “Japanimation” sections–the core of the catalog. Now
if they’d only get this beast online… www.facets.org exists, but in light
of recent developments it needs an update badly (I’ll work for
Scooby-snacks!).

I assume they’re mailing them out to the old Whole Toon list, but if you
don’t get one soon, call and ask, they’re free:

The Whole Toon Catalog
Facets Multimedia
1517 W Fullerton Av
Chicago IL 60614
800-331-6197
sales@facets.org
Mon-Fri: 9a-8p, Sat: 10a-6p Central Time

If anyone from Facets is listening in, let me just say that you’ve done a
first rate job of seamlessly transferring ownership. You haven’t just
revived a catalog, you’ve preserved an animation icon.

For the final word, I’ll let the catalog speak for itself:

“The Whole Toon Catalog, Number 12, Summer 1996 (Back by Popular Demand!)

Facets
Facets Multimedia is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to the media
arts. We show great movies year-round in our two small cinemas, and we’re
home to The Chicago International Children’s Film Festival, the largest
competitive kids fest in the U.S. We also maintain a large video retail
store, a live performance space, and of course, our worldwide mail-order
video catalog.
Along with all of you who have enjoyed and used The Whole Toon Catalog
for many years, we were dismayed to learn that this unique resource would
be shutting its doors at the end of 1995. Fortunately, we were able to
acquire the services of Whole Toon’s founder, Doug Ranney, and take on the
job of continuing the wonderful work he started.
We are delighted to carry on the remarkable legacy of The Whole Toon
Catalog: seeking out and providing you with the widest assortment of
animated films from across the globe. It’s a tradition that fits perfectly
with our long-standing commitment to classic, foreign, independent and fine
arts cinema.

The Whole Toon Catalog, Access To Toons
The Whole Toon Catalog was started in 1988 by animation lovers for
animation lovers. We strive to provide the finest selection of animated
films from the world over. We buy from hundreds of sources and we’re
constantly on the lookout for new films on video, whether they come from
Disney or the smallest independent producer. After years of serving
animation fans, scholars and professionals, we’ve accumulated an unmatched
knowledge of cartoons released on home video. Whether you seek that certain
East European stop-motion rarity or desire the complete canon of Tex Avery,
we are here to provide it if it’s been released on tape.
We aim to satisfy animation fans like ourselves, so you won’t find much
Saturday-morning fare, or really anything in he way of “kidvid.” You won’t
see live-action fare such as muppets or The Thunderbirds, or even
live-action films that incorporate animated effects (such as King Kong or
Jason & The Argonauts). What you will find in these pages is the best
selection of quality animated films assembled anywhere.”

Amen.

Shannon
www.aimage.com

==========================
animation/best.of.net #282, from hmccracken, 6222 chars, Thu Sep 12 20:43:17 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Thu, 12 Sep 1996 20:39:36 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9609122039.memo.29022@BIX.com>
Subject: Comics Revue review

Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Path: news2.delphi.com!delphi.com!news-feed.iguide.com!news.uoregon.edu!arclight.uoregon.edu!voskovec.radio.cz!www.nntp.primenet.com!nntp.primenet.com!news-peer.gsl.net!news.gsl.net!ix.netcom.com!tor-nn1.netcom.ca!torfree!bg549
From: bg549@torfree.net (Bob Heer)
Subject: Comics Revue review
Message-ID:
Organization: Toronto Free-Net
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2]
Date: Sat, 7 Sep 1996 21:40:51 GMT
Lines: 104

I picked up COMICS REVUE #124, mostly since they started
reprinting Jack Kirby’s “Sky Masters”, from right after the old
Pure Imagination book, and I figured I’d try an issue to see if
the whole package is going to be worth the price to me. Verdict
is, I dunno.

The important thing, of course is “Sky Masters”. And my first
reaction is, please someone call up Greg Theakston and ask him to
either do another volume of the strip, or if he can’t, give the
guys at REVUE access to whatever his source for the reprints was.
The reproduction in the book was wonderful (as was the pure white
paper). In REVUE, Wally Wood’s perfect little lines are smudged.
The finer lines seem to drop out completely. Wood’s solid black
shadows come out speckled with white. This deserves far better.
While most of the Kirby comes through (it always does, despite
the inker or the printing), most of the Wood is lost.

Other than that, I really liked it. Only a month of continuity
(from 1959), which isn’t nearly enough (how do continuity strip
fans stand reading them in the daily paper? I can’t, and only
really began to appreciate continuity strips when I read them in
collections, where you get months of the strip at a time. Maybe
it’s something you have to grow up with). An actual solid
science fiction strip (as opposed to space opera). Cool.

Next is “The Phantom”, by Lee Falk, drawn by Olesen&Williams
(1995). I didn’t like this one much. The writing seemed really
dumbed down (perhaps to ease translation? I know the strip is
big in non-English countries). The art was just funtional, too.
There was some potential in the plot (though I didn’t like that
the Phantom was pretty much just thrown in to quickly wrap up the
story), but this needs a script in the worst way.
“Spider-man” by “Stan Lee” and Larry Lieber (1996). Spidey was
one of the few continuities to run in local dailies that I read
as a kid. Based on this, it’s probably not coincidence that I
was soured on continuity strips as a kid. Decent enough classic
Marvel art, but a pretty bad plot and a script that tries to be
overly cute at the wrong places and way too expository at times.

“Tarzan” by Russ Manning (1970). Wonderful Manning art (printed
at about twice the size of most of the other strips, but you only
get around two weeks worth. And I think some of the finer line
work dropped out despite the bigger size). An okay story if you
like Tarzan. Somehow he’s in what seems to be ancient Egypt (or
one of those many lost cities in Africa). Worthwhile stuff.

“Krazy Kat” be George Herriman (1931). A week of daily strips,
printed fairly large. Cute stuff, though I think it takes more
than a week of stuff to really get into Herriman’s bizarre
rythem. I’ve only read a bit of “Krazy” before this, I’m willing
to read more.

“Steve Canyon” by Milton Caniff (1979) was the most pleasant
surprise here. I’ve been reading ther early “Canyon” in the last
few months, and I absolutely love it. It’s become my favourite
adventure strip ever. So I’ve been a bit reluctant to get into
the later stuff, which from first glance doesn’t look nearly as
good. And it isn’t. But it’s still pretty damn good. It was a
relief to read that the art suffered far more than the writing.
The art in these isn’t brilliant, but it’s good on its own merits
and does the job. The story is much closer to the quality of the
40s/50s stuff. Fast moving plot, great dialogue. Lots of
continuity baggage, but handled well (Summer vanished for three
years? Wonder how that was eventually resolved). Only real
complaint I have is the the Sundays seem to be scanned in from
printed versions, and sorta come out muddy. Spoiled by the KSP
reprints, which I think were from syndicate proofs, I guess.
Second best in the book, and that might just be because I’m a
Kirby junkie.
“Alley Oop” by V.T. Hamlin (1934). Two weeks worth, and I didn’t
think too much of them. I’m not really familiar with the strip
at all. Found the character who talked in verse to be a pain.

“Modesty Blaise” by Peter O’Donnell and Romero (year unknown,
pretty recent I’d guess). This was okay. Not much more I can
say about it, since this was the last month of an adventure, so
it’s all action and wrap-up. I’m willing to read more.

“Gasoline Alley” by Dick Moores (1973). I “discovered” Moores
work recently, reading about a year of the strip from late in his
run. I had hated “Gasoline Alley” as a kid, but rather enjoyed
what I read recently. It was cute and clever. Bit disappointed
to find just one page of it printed here, so I’m not sure if my
newfound fandom extends to all of Moores run or just the later
stuff.

And finally, a month of “Buz Sawyer” by Roy Crane (1948). Eh.
I’ve never really gotten into Crane’s stuff from the earlier
post-war strips I read or from a few months of “Wash Tubbs”.
Still not. It’s readable enough, but to me it just lacks that
spark in the writing or art to make it special.
I probably like just enough in here to justify buying it every
month. The only real problem is that I don’t entirely like the
format. As I said, I like reading continuity strips in big
chunks, and even one month at a time isn’t enough for me. I want
another full volume of “Sky Masters” and some more “Steve Canyon”
books. I also like them on better paper. But this is tempting.

I may just wait a while and if they continue running “Sky
Masters” just order a year of back issues (or buy them from a
store if I can find them) and read each strip straight through.

Bob

==========================
animation/best.of.net #283, from hmccracken, 4078 chars, Sun Sep 22 21:07:47 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 22 Sep 1996 21:03:27 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9609222103.memo.55440@BIX.com>
Subject: NEWS: New Animation Company

Path: news2.delphi.com!delphi.com!cam-news-feed1.bbnplanet.com!cam-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!www.nntp.primenet.com!nntp.primenet.com!enews.sgi.com!news.sgi.com!news.msfc.nasa.gov!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.kei.com!news.thenet.net!uunet!in2.uu.net!news.ios.com!haven.ios.com!rjmlof
From: rjmlof@haven.ios.com (Randy/Jean-Marc Lofficier)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: NEWS: New Animation Company
Date: 22 Sep 1996 01:13:46 GMT
Organization: Internet Online Services
Lines: 62
Message-ID: <5223sa$o31@news.ios.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: haven.ios.com
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2]

NEWS RELEASE – September 21, 1996

Pioneer LDC, Inc. of Tokyo, the giant Japanese electronics firm, and
Kurosawa Enterprises USA, Inc., a Los Angeles-based production company
associated with the Tokyo firm of Japanese director Akira Kurosawa, have
launched a new animation co-production venture with Perfect World
Entertainment LLC, a newly formed corporation, it was announced today by
Perfect World’s vice-president of development, Randy Lofficier.

With plans to produce animated feature films utilizing the dynamic
strengths of Japanese animation and direction, combined with North American
and European artists, writers and properties, the venture is the first of
its kind. Commenting on the announcement, Ms. Lofficier said, “Japanese
animation studios traditionally have been relegated to sub-contractor
status, whereas Pioneer LDC will be a controlling partner in Perfect World,
as well as being artistically involved with every phase of production, from
development to distribution.”

Perfect World has begun development on several projects, with the partners
planning to contribute fully one third to one-half of the budget for each,
which will range from $10 to $15 million.

Overseeing the venture’s operations are Taro Maki, executive producer of
Pioneer LDC, Inc.’s Film Business Division, who will be in charge of
production, Tak W. Abe, president of Kurosawa Enterprises USA, Inc., who will
coordinate activities between Los Angeles and Tokyo, and Ms. Lofficier.

Mr. Maki has worked with Pioneer in 1991, after having been with Tohoku-
Shinsha for several years. In 1995, Mr. Maki produced the animated feature
“Tenchi Muyo,” originally released directly to video in Japan and released
again in 1996 theatrically, due to its outstanding performance.

Mr. Abe has been associated with Akira Kurosawa for sixteen years. Prior
to that time, he had extensive experience working on Japanese animated
features and television productions.

Until her recent appointment, Ms. Lofficier was vice-president of
Starwatcher, one of the top agencies representing comic book and animation
talent. An award-winning writer, she has sold several live-action and
animated screenplays, has written half-a-dozen books about movies and
television and has worked in animation since 1980.

“The timing of this venture is just right,” Ms. Lofficier said. The
grosses on animated features have been steadily climbing and foreign
revenues and ancillary rights have also increased dramatically. Expanding
new markets, such as multimedia and games, offer new ways to merchandise
animation material. And the children who grew up viewing American animated
classics now represent an audience that is open to new styles and topics.

“We plan to offer animation that is stylistically different and exciting,”
she adds. “This is where a venture like ours can thrive. Through my
relationship with Starwatcher, we have access to the best talent and
properties in the world. Production-wise, Pioneer LDC is staffed with
prominent Japanese animation directors and artists, and Kurosawa Enterprises
adds their considerable production experience to the mix.”

Perfect World will announce its first two projects within several weeks.

—
Jean-Marc Lofficier
rjmlof@haven.ios.com

==========================
animation/best.of.net #284, from hmccracken, 1523 chars, Sun Sep 22 21:08:00 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 22 Sep 1996 21:03:54 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9609222103.memo.55441@BIX.com>
Subject: BEANY AND CECIL Homepage

Path: news2.delphi.com!delphi.com!news-feed.iguide.com!news.uoregon.edu!arclight.uoregon.edu!usenet.eel.ufl.edu!spool.mu.edu!newspump.sol.net!www.nntp.primenet.com!nntp.primenet.com!cam-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!cpk-news-feed2.bbnplanet.com!cpk-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in2.uu.net!news.megalink.net!usenet
From: cooke@megalink.net
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: BEANY AND CECIL Homepage
Date: Fri, 20 Sep 1996 20:27:18 +0000
Organization: Megalink Internet
Lines: 21
Message-ID: <3242FE21.7DFC@megalink.net>
NNTP-Posting-Host: mega-51.megalink.net
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
X-Mailer: Mozilla 3.0 (Macintosh; I; PPC)

Attention!

My “The Unofficial Beany and Cecil Page” is finally up and running!
Featuring episode guides, sounds, pictures, and more from this Bob
Clampett cartoon! This may be the only “Beany and Cecil” Page on the
WWW…

So calling all “Beany and Cecil” fans from Cape Banana Peel to
Eight-Nine Tennessee the URL is:

http://www.megalink.net/~cooke/beany-cecil/index.html

-Jon

—

Jon Cooke [ mailto:cooke@megalink.net ] I’ve got a .sig now! Yaay!
http://www.megalink.net/~cooke/
Visit my Homepage for Muppets, Looney Tunes, Tiny Toons, and stuff.
“He got it. And he can have it.” – Tweety, “Birdy and the Beast” (1944)
—

==========================
animation/best.of.net #285, from hmccracken, 1069 chars, Sun Sep 22 21:08:21 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 22 Sep 1996 21:04:26 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9609222104.memo.55442@BIX.com>
Subject: Happy Birthday Chuck!

Path: news2.delphi.com!delphi.com!news-feed.iguide.com!news.uoregon.edu!hunter.premier.net!www.nntp.primenet.com!nntp.primenet.com!news.sgi.com!news.msfc.nasa.gov!newsfeed.internetmci.com!in1.uu.net!newstf01.news.aol.com!newsbf02.news.aol.com!not-for-mail
From: sevgreen@aol.com (SEVGREEN)
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: Happy Birthday Chuck!
Date: 20 Sep 1996 22:17:03 -0400
Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364)
Lines: 7
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Reply-To: sevgreen@aol.com (SEVGREEN)
NNTP-Posting-Host: newsbf02.mail.aol.com

Someone just told me that Chuck Jones’ birthday is Saturday the 21st.
Happy 84th Birthday Chuck! I hope I’m still as active doing what I love to
do when I’m 84.
A true role model proving that there is no such thing as old.

Mark LoPresti, Buffalo NY

==========================
animation/best.of.net #286, from hmccracken, 1724 chars, Sun Sep 29 02:14:35 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 29 Sep 1996 02:14:09 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9609290214.memo.73117@BIX.com>
Subject: [OBIT] Alex Kotzky (Apt. 3-G) dead

Path: news2.delphi.com!delphi.com!cam-news-feed1.bbnplanet.com!cpk-news-feed2.bbnplanet.com!cpk-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.uoregon.edu!news.islandnet.com!scowling
From: tyg@netcom.com (Tom Galloway)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips,rec.arts.comics.info
Subject: [OBIT] Alex Kotzky (Apt. 3-G) dead
Followup-To: rec.arts.comics.strips
Date: Sat, 28 Sep 96 20:31:31 GMT
Organization: Netcom Online Communications Services (408-241-9760 login: guest)
Lines: 13
Approved: scowling@islandnet.com
Distribution: world
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Xref: news2.delphi.com rec.arts.comics.strips:26470 rec.arts.comics.info:5081

Per an obituary in the Boston Globe credited to the LA Times, Alex Kotzky
who drew and later wrote Apartment 3-G died Thursday of kidney disease at
age 73. The obit noted that he also worked on Plastic Man, but the phrasing
contains enough inaccuracies to make me wonder about that (it claims Plas
was both a strip and book, and that Kotzky was “one of the four original
artists” on the character). The obit also notes that while Alex Kotzky’s
name has remained on the strip, Apt. 3-G is currently being “produced” by
his son Brian Kotzky (produced is the obit’s word; unclear whether this
means he’s both writing and drawing or what).

tyg tyg@netcom.com

==========================
animation/best.of.net #287, from hmccracken, 2027 chars, Thu Oct 10 22:56:02 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Thu, 10 Oct 1996 22:55:06 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9610102255.memo.8223@BIX.com>
Subject: Pogofest

Path: news2.delphi.com!delphi.com!cam-news-feed1.bbnplanet.com!cpk-news-feed2.bbnplanet.com!nntp-hub2.barrnet.net!cam-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!howland.erols.net!spool.mu.edu!newshub.tc.umn.edu!newsstand.tc.umn.edu!usenet
From: “Steve A. Thompson” Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: Pogofest
Date: Mon, 7 Oct 96 10:49:58 CST
Organization: University of Minnesota
Lines: 30
Message-ID: <52170.thomp030@maroon.tc.umn.edu>
Reply-To: NNTP-Posting-Host: x52-1.cla.umn.edu
X-Minuet-Version: Minuet1.0_Beta_14.1
X-POPMail-Charset: English

Fans of Walt Kelly’s POGO and classic comic strips in general, at least
those who live in the southeastern states, may want to check out POGOFEST.
Held in Waycross, GA, at the northern edge of the Okefenokee Swamp, this
year’s event is scheduled for October 18-20 and includes the 12th “Pogo For
President” campaign.

Pogofest is, among other things, the annual meeting of The Pogo Fan Club.
PFC events include an art show of original Kelly art, custom t-shirts and a
convention book including art and articles unavailable elsewhere and
appearances by Selby and Carolyn Kelly, both of whom drew the Pogo strip
after Walt’s death. This year’s PFC meeting will have Walt himself as guest
speaker, via taped interviews unheard for over 30 years.

Registration and hotel information, as well as more details about Pogofest
and the Pogo Fan Club, can be found at:

http://waycross.com/pgfest.htm (Waycross page)
http://www.nauticom.net/www/chuckm/pfest.htm (PFC registration and info)

or by contacting me at thomp030@maroon.tc.umn.edu

Vote Pogo in ’96; with 12 campaigns under his belt, he’s obviously the most
experienced candidate.

Steve
*
Steve Thompson
Principal Secretary for Graduate Studies
U of MN Dept. of Theatre Arts & Dance
thomp030@maroon.tc.umn.edu

==========================
animation/best.of.net #289, from hmccracken, 3284 chars, Mon Oct 28 20:14:42 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 28 Oct 1996 20:12:20 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9610282012.memo.59884@BIX.com>
Subject: [REVIEW] Marvin the Martian in the 3rd Dimension

Path: news2.delphi.com!delphi.com!cam-news-feed1.bbnplanet.com!cam-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!cpk-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!www.nntp.primenet.com!nntp.primenet.com!howland.erols.net!news-peer.gsl.net!news.gsl.net!portc01.blue.aol.com!newstf01.news.aol.com!newsbf02.news.aol.com!not-for-mail
From: eocostello@aol.com (EOCostello)
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: [REVIEW] Marvin the Martian in the 3rd Dimension
Date: 27 Oct 1996 12:49:32 -0500
Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364)
Lines: 55
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Reply-To: eocostello@aol.com (EOCostello)
NNTP-Posting-Host: newsbf02.mail.aol.com

[Spoiler Advisory]

Yesterday, 10/26/96, I viewed the new 3-D cartoon “Marvin the Martian
in the 3rd Dimension,” at the (recently renovated and expanded) Warner
Brothers Studio Store at 57th and 5th here in New York City. There is a
theater on one of the floors. It costs $2.00 to see the cartoon, but you
get a “Martian Coin” that you can either have as a souvenir, or use to get
$2.00 off merchandise, so it’s a wash. (When you leave the theatre, you
walk right past racks of Martian goodies. Clever, clever.)

Anyway, the cartoon, as the title indicates, is in 3-D. From a
technical standpoint, the cartoon is done VERY well. The music is
excellent, and there is good usage of the possibilities of 3-D. There are
also a few other sensory effects that are neat — I won’t spoil your
enjoyment of them by telling you about it.

The cartoon is and isn’t a sequel to Duck Dodgers. Marvin, scanning
the skies for anti-Martian activity, mistakes Daffy’s speech (which is
part of a VERY low budget epic that Daffy is doing for WB) for the
destruction of Mars as the real thing. He sends K-9 to get Daffy. K-9
does so, pinching Daffy off the studio lot (where he is defacing a
billboard for a high-budget Bugs Bunny space epic). Daffy, after playing
with the spaceship’s controls (he is under the impression this is part of
a movie set), is brought to Marvin. Marvin wants to disintegrate him, and
Daffy barely manages to escape both him and those bird-like creatures
borrowed from “Jumpin’ Jupiter” and “Hare-Way to the Stars” Daffy manages
to get back to Earth where, as the result of an explosion (nicely
rendered) he is turned into a Martian (sans beak, which is separate).
Marvin mistakes him for the leader of the Martian 5th column and they
leave, Daffy driving the spaceship (badly).

I have only two complaints about the film, which runs 13 minutes.
One is a complete lack of credits, which I find shameful. The other is
that there is an abrupt, inconclusive ending which isn’t entirely
satisfying. On the other hand, there is a long series of very good sight
and verbal gags, and I think it’s one of the best Daffy cartoons in a good
while, even if it is the same old Jealous Daffy routine.

In summary, if your local WBSS is carrying this, go see it. It’s
worth it.

Eric O. Costello, J.D., D.O.A., W.Y.S.I.W.Y.G. (alias EOCostello@aol.com).

==========================
animation/best.of.net #290, from hmccracken, 3121 chars, Sat Nov 30 22:42:05 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 30 Nov 1996 22:40:58 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9611302240.memo.55631@BIX.com>
Subject: Digital “Enhancement”

Path: news2.delphi.com!delphi.com!uunet!in3.uu.net!news.ktb.net!bigshot
From: bigshot@spumco.com (Stephen W. Worth)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: Digital “Enhancement”
Date: Wed, 27 Nov 1996 00:23:54 -0700
Organization: Spumco International
Lines: 59
Message-ID:
NNTP-Posting-Host: ktb2.ktb.net
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit
X-Newsreader: Yet Another NewsWatcher 2.2.0b13
Xref: news2.delphi.com rec.arts.animation:56790 alt.animation.warner-bros:16260

Are there any technically minded folks out there who can
explain to me how DVNR (Digital Video Noise Reduction)
works? Is it supposed to remove scratches from film? It
seems to do a lot more than that… How does it determine
whether something is “noise” as opposed to “signal”?
There must be some sort of criteria it uses to choose
what to delete and what to leave…

The Betty Boop set and several of the recent H-B Cartoon
Network shorts have been mauled by this technological
monster, and I’m curious what it’s actually intended to
do.

If you want to see an example of this “enhancement”, still
frame some of the Betty Boop cartoons on the recent
Republic Pictures set and watch the ink lines disappear.

I was watching Mask-A-Raid the other day and there was a
close up of Betty Boop where half of her face lines and
one whole arm disappeared in one frame. And the one
where Grampy runs for President has a scene where he
shoots a bunch of gloves on strings into a crowd to
shake hands with them… Several of the strings disappear
for several frames at a time. Comparing the cartoons
repeated from the old Collectors’ Edition laserdiscs,
I’ve noticed that every single cartoon seems to be
altered. Ink lines disappear all over the place- they’re
all fine in the older release.

Is this “enhancement” added as a part of the editing
or duplication process, or is it part of the telecine
itself? The reason I ask is, if there ever is a laserdisc
version of the Betty Boop set, will this problem be able
to be fixed, or are we stuck with it until someone goes
to the trouble of assembling all those old prints again?…

I’ve waited a long time for the Betty Boops to be
released. It’s frustrating that the new transfers are so
much worse than the ones released to laserdisc many years
ago…

Do you know anything about this process, Jerry? Have the
cartoons on Golden Age of Loony Tunes been digitally
processed like this too?

Anyone who transfers animation to video, please tell
the engineer to turn the DVNR off!

See ya!
Steve Worth
bigshot@spumco.com

%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%

Visit Spumco’s Spumco International
Wonderful World of Cartoons 7336 Santa Monica Bl. Box 591
http://www.spumco.com Los Angeles, CA 90046

%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%

==========================
animation/best.of.net #291, from hmccracken, 890 chars, Thu Dec 5 20:40:10 1996
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Thu, 5 Dec 1996 20:39:38 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9612052039.memo.69647@BIX.com>
Subject: C&H are back

Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Path: news2.delphi.com!delphi.com!cam-news-feed1.bbnplanet.com!news.bbnplanet.com!cam-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!uunet!in1.uu.net!204.176.28.226!server2.btna.com!fil
From: filfeit@rael.btna.com (Fil)
Subject: C&H are back
Sender: news@server2.btna.com
Message-ID:
Date: Thu, 5 Dec 1996 13:10:28 GMT
X-Nntp-Posting-Host: pc52.btna.com
Organization: bt
X-Newsreader: News Xpress Version 1.0 Beta #4
Lines: 10

http://www.uexpress.com/cgi-bin/ups/mainindex.cgi?code=ch

Starting with the first strip, from 18 Nov 1985 and only 11 years behind the
times.

Finally, I can get my daily Calvin and Hobbes fix again!

–f2
“tigers will do anything for a tuna fish sandwich”

==========================
animation/best.of.net #292, from hmccracken, 1348 chars, Tue Jan 7 21:56:39 1997
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Tue, 7 Jan 1997 17:14:15 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9701071714.memo.50478@BIX.com>
Subject: Obit: Al Eugster

Path: news2.delphi.com!delphi.com!news-feed.iguide.com!news-out.internetmci.com!newsfeed.internetmci.com!hunter.premier.net!netaxs.com!news.fast.net!uunet!in1.uu.net!199.171.196.4!news.cybercomm.net!not-for-mail
From: dmackey@cybercomm.net (Dave Mackey)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Obit: Al Eugster
Date: 6 Jan 1997 21:59:24 GMT
Organization: CyberComm Online Services
Lines: 14
Message-ID: <5arsjs$2if@crow.cybercomm.net>
NNTP-Posting-Host: raven.cybercomm.net
X-Newsreader: TIN [UNIX 1.3 950515BETA PL0]

I’ve been informed that veteran animation artist Al Eugster died on New
Year’s Day. I don’t have his age or cause of death.

Al’s career stretched back to the 1930’s at the Fleischer studio. He later
went west to spend a few years at Disney where he worked on “Snow White”.
He later returned to Fleischer in Miami, and moved north with the crew of
Famous Studios, where he worked until the studio’s closing in 1967. He
also worked for Joe Oriolo on “Felix The Cat” (1958-1961).

—

dmackey@raven.cybercomm.net Dave Mackey
All Unsolicited E-Mail Of A Commercial Nature Is Ignored
http://www.cybercomm.net/~dmackey

==========================
animation/best.of.net #293, from hmccracken, 2031 chars, Thu Jan 9 22:51:04 1997
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Thu, 9 Jan 1997 22:46:15 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9701092246.memo.58550@BIX.com>
Subject: Obit: Louise Beaudet

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From: mlanger@ccs.carleton.ca (Mark Langer)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Obit: Louise Beaudet
Date: 8 Jan 1997 23:03:41 GMT
Organization: Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada
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Newsgroups such as this often recognize the passing of great animators and
other prominent people in the animation industry. I think it is
appropriate for us to mention here the passing of one of the key
figures in animation who was not an artist or industry figure. Louise
Beaudet, curator of film at the Cinematheque Quebecoise in Montreal, died
after a long illness on Jan. 3.

Louise Beaudet helped to build up the largest archive of animation in the
world, and was instrumental in bringing many international animated films
to North America (with the Museum of Modern Art’s Adrienne Mancia) with the
touring “Best of Zagreb” and “Best of Annecy” shows. Louise was extremely
helpful to people programming animation retrospectives in museums and film
festivals, making the substantial collection of the Cinematheque available
for exhibition. She also was the author of pioneering articles and
monographs on such topics as Charles Bowers and Canadian animation.
Louise’s lifetime achievement was recognized by a recent award from ASIFA
and by being named as the Honourary President of the 1996 Ottawa
International Animation Festival.

———————————————————————-
Mark Langer

Email address: mlanger@ccs.carleton.ca
———————————————————————-

==========================
animation/best.of.net #294, from hmccracken, 3915 chars, Sun Jan 12 11:01:27 1997
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 12 Jan 1997 11:00:49 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9701121100.memo.64890@BIX.com>
Subject: ‘

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From: J or S Weinman
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: Bugs Bunny Festival ’96: Thumbs Down
Date: 12 Jan 1997 05:02:22 GMT
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Before I start my rant, I want to ask a favor: if anybody knows
by what process the cartoons were selected for the “Bugs Bunny Festival
’96,” please speak out, because I’m at a loss as to how such a mediocre
program wound up being sent out into the world as a “Festival.” Now for
the rant:
Grumblegrumble…I just got back from the local arthouse, where
they were showing (a little late) the “Bugs Bunny Festival ’96,” a
followup to the collection of post-1948 shorts that WB sent out to the
repertory theatres in 1995. What a disappointment met mine eyes! Of
course, it’s always a little annoying to have to see a screening
entirely devoted to post-1948 cartoons, but last year they put out a
fairly good selection of “classics” (though one that unfortunately
emphasized Jones to the exclusion of everyone else). This time it was a
different story: there weren’t many true clunkers, but most of the
cartoons selected were no better than par for the course for the Termite
Terrace crowd–instead of getting the chance to see GREAT cartoons on
the big screen, I found myself face-to-face with a bunch of ‘toons that
I had classified, and still do classify, as amusing but standard WB
fare. “Festival” implies something special, but what’s special about a
festival that includes such enjoyable but routine entries as:
DESIGN FOR LEAVING, CAT’S AWEIGH, HERE TODAY GONE TAMALE, HEAVEN
SCENT, A STAR IS BORED, KNIGHTS MUST FALL ZIP N’ SNORT, CAPTAIN
HAREBLOWER, and [the only truly atrocious cartoon on the program] DR.
DEVIL AND MR. HARE. I’m sure anyone reading this could think of
literally dozens of cartoons from the same period that are better than
the ones listed.
The only ones on the program that I felt had some right to be
there were Jones’s FAST AND FURRY-OUS, BEANSTALK BUNNY and HAREWAY TO
THE STARS, Freleng’s BIRDS ANONYMOUS, and McKimson’s THE FOGHORN LEGHORN
(not a great cartoon, but a good representative Foggy-Henery standoff).
I wouldn’t say I had a bad time (how could I: second-tier Jones
and Freleng is still Jones and Freleng, and even McKimson can get some
laughs out of me when he’s on good behaviour), but I was conscious, and
still am, of a sense of waste: why were these cartoons selected, instead
of all the much better ones that could have been picked from the
post-1948 period alone? (Hopefully, with the Turner/Warner merger,
future “Festivals” will mix in some earlier entries.) It seems like
they just picked cartoons at random, with no regard to which ones were
most worthy of the sadly rare honor of being projected on a big screen.
Moreover, the quality of the prints was lacklustre: faded colors, a
general dark haze over everything, and a couple of the post-1957
cartoons were projected in phony “widescreen” versions with the top and
bottom cut off. So again: if anybody knows who’s to blame for the
lackluster selection in what could have been a wonderful experience,
post the salient facts so I’ll know whose picture to throw darts at.

Peeved,
Jaime J. Weinman

==========================
animation/best.of.net #295, from hmccracken, 6667 chars, Sun Feb 2 11:24:43 1997
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From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 2 Feb 1997 11:24:17 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9702021124.memo.35075@BIX.com>
Subject: final night-fleischer bros retrospective at LACMA

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From: ag644@lafn.org (Vince Waldron)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: final night-fleischer bros retrospective at LACMA
Followup-To: poster
Date: Sun, 26 Jan 1997 03:35:42 -0800
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Keywords: fleischer studios, mr. bug goes to town, animation, cartoons, la county museum of art, film series, a tribute to the fleischer studios, casper the friendly ghost, joseph oriolo, vince waldron
X-Newsreader: Value-Added NewsWatcher 2.12d0+

Animation fan Vince Waldron offers
a few brief notes on

OUT OF THE INKWELL
A tribute to the films of the fleischer bros. at
The Los Angeles County Museum of Art

I happened to catch the final evening’s screening in the LA County
Museum’s excellent Fleischer Bros Studios tribute series earlier tonight,
lured in by the irresistable promise of seeing a restored print of Mr Bug
Goes to Town on the big screen. If you aren’t familiar with this 1941
classic, you might still be able to track down the videocassette that
Republic issed a few years back. A Capraesque animated musical
feature that tells the story of a neighborhhod of anthropamorphic city
bugs and their comic struggles to find a safe plot of land on which to
live in midtown Manhattan, this is one of the most charming animated
features ever made. With outstanding songs by Leigh Harline, top drawer
character animation and a very impressive design, this movie certainly
holds its own with some of the Disney films of the period. A real gem,
this one, and somewhat undeservedly overlooked.

And I’m delighted to report that ‘Mr Bug Goes to Town’ holds up well. The
only thing that might’ve heightened the experience of seeing it on a big
screen once again would’ve been if there’d been more little kids
murmuring, laughing and talking aloud in wonder throughout the house.
I’m not sure if it was the thunderstorms raging or the bomb threat that
had been lodged earlier in the day at the nearby Paramount studios that
kept the family groups away, but the audience at the museum tonight
seemed to be made up of largely of film and animation buffs, at least
from the looks of ’em.

I ran into animation scholars Jerry Beck and Leslie Carbaga at the
screening, both of whom spoke highly of the program of selected rare
shorts that the tribute’s curators had scheduled to fill out the evening’s
screening. And indeed, the evening’s second half was well worth waiting
for, a healthy array of Fleischer studios rarities that included a
handful of early thirties Screen Songs, early three strip technicolor
“sing a long” shorts that looked as though they were designed to compete
with disney’s silly symphonies. These follow the bouncing ball novelties
were uniformly entertaining–especially when compared to the tamer whimsey
that typified Disney’s musical shorts from the same era. Though the
Fleischers were operating their studio at Paramount by this time, the
Screen Songs examples shown tonight all retained enough of the brothers’
trademark surrealism to make them recognizably Fleischer cartoons.

Of special interest was a later Fleischer Paramount short that was
screened late in the program, a cartoon short called “Tears of An Onion”
which was credited to animators Dave Tendler and Joe Oriolo. As you may
or may not recall, Oriolo was the fellow who would eventually make the
first Casper the Friendly Ghost short for the Paramount Famous division of
the same studio a few years after the Fleischers’ departure. Oriolo’s
connection to this short became all the more fascinating once it started
upspooling and I noticed that it’s storyline resembled nothing so much as
an early prototype for what seems like a few score of the Casper cartoons
that would follow a few years later, only instead of depicting the hapless
attempts of a kind hearted ghost to find friendship, this odd little curio
showed us the hapless misadventures of an anthropamorphic onion whose
effots to make friends were repeatedly stifled once the other members of
his vegeatable garden family got a whiff of his disagreeable scent, which
caused them each to cry uncontrollably, much as the neighborlu ghost would
elicit a fearsome cries of “a g-g-ghost!” from his unintended victims in
the later series. Actually, the cartoon didn’t seem nearly as bizarre as
it sounds described here. In fact, other than the fact that most fo the
characters were animated vegetables, the story pretty much followed the
casper formula from first frame to last: after the casperesque onion
alienates a farmer’s market worth of potential pals, the outcast Onion
finally reduces a menacing caterpillar to helpless tears, thereby saving
the day for his succulent community, at whihc point he is somewhat
abruptly welcomed into their number and embraced by a choice tomato. Or
maybe she was a turnip–it was late by then and I’d been watching cartoons
for nearly three hours by that point. Anyway, even if this cartoon wasn’t
quite as weird as I’m making it sound here, I must acknowledge that it
probably was one for aficianadoes only.

The evening also included a couple of early Betty Boop shorts, as well as
a mesmerizing Ko Ko the Clown silent from 1927 or so (when the Fleischers
were still operating out of an outfit that was identified in the cartoon’s
closing credits as “The Inkwell Studio” ) in which Ko Ko and Bosco assist
their human overseer in exploring the ins and outs of a remarkably
versatile invention of a walking cane that doubles as an umbrella, fluted
instrument, garden sprinkler and about a dozen or three other unlikely
household appliances. Very strange, and pretty funny. Most of the
shorts were quite splendidly restored by the UCLA Archives, who deserve
our gratitude for rescuing these and so many other worthy slices of our
past from the rigors of wear, tear and other forms of neglect. And
thanks also to the film department of the LA County Museum of Art for
providing such a marvelous excuse to come in out of the rain on a drizzly
Saturday night.

Please feel free to address any feedback or further commentary directly to
my e-mail address, which is:

ag644@lafn.org

Best–Vince Waldron

—
Please reply directly to me at:
ag644@lafn.org
Vince Waldron

==========================
animation/best.of.net #296, from hmccracken, 2935 chars, Sun Feb 9 00:50:23 1997
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 9 Feb 1997 00:47:38 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9702090047.memo.58092@BIX.com>
Subject: HELP SAVE CHUCK JONES PRODUCTIONS!!

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From: joealaskey@aol.com (JoeAlaskey)
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: HELP SAVE CHUCK JONES PRODUCTIONS!!
Date: 6 Feb 1997 18:29:59 GMT
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Hi, I’m Joe Alaskey. And I’m not really a duck. I just play a few on TV…
I’m going to ask you all a small favor on behalf of Chuck Jones
Productions.
Recent cutbacks at Warners have led to discussions between WB and CJP
regarding future financing. No one really wants to see the Chuck Jones
shorts program brought to a halt. Negotiations are going on now with some
success.
What can YOU do to help Chuck Jones Productions survive?
You can SEND SNAILMAIL (a postcard or letter ONLY – NO E-MAIL, PLEASE!)
to the Warners executives whose decision this will be. You can give your
vote of confidence in Chuck’s vision, your vote of trust in his artistic
integrity, and of faith in his guidance in keeping the classic cartoons
structures and characters alive.
Corny, ain’t it? But I mean it. This is your chance to show Chuck that you
believe in his work – past, present and future.
I’m a VA. I was hired to do Sylvester for one short, FATHER OF THE BIRD,
and it was an honor and career highlight for me. But I’m not asking for
myself…
… Well, not just for myself… %}))
Seriously, Chuck’s hand-picked animation team is at it day and night,
trying their damnedest to deliver quality – and everyone there feels the
quality is improving with each effort. There are plans for more cartoons –
damn funny ones, from the storyboards I’ve seen – starring other classic
WB characters – cartoons just waiting for the green light. In November
’96, CJP wanted to release 6 a year starting in ’97. Now they’re
discussing the possibility of even fewer releases.
If you’ve supported Chuck’s work in the past – anything from buying a cel
all the way up to a belly-laugh, please help.
The bottom line:
Wouldn’t you rather have more Chuck Jones cartoons than not?

Write (SNAILMAIL ONLY, PLEASE!) to:

Bob Daly or Terry Semel (or both!)
Warner Bros.
4000 Warner Blvd.
Burbank, CA 91522

and/or to:

Gerry Levin
Time-Warner Inc.
75 Rockefeller Plaza
N.Y.C., NY 10019

jfa

==========================
animation/best.of.net #297, from hmccracken, 4250 chars, Sat Mar 22 22:59:19 1997
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sat, 22 Mar 1997 22:57:39 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9703222257.memo.88902@BIX.com>
Subject: [COMIC REVIEW and INFO] Looney Tunes #29

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From: eocostello@aol.com (EOCostello)
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: [COMIC REVIEW and INFO] Looney Tunes #29
Date: 20 Mar 1997 03:45:13 GMT
Organization: AOL http://www.aol.com
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[Spoiler Advisory]

Today, March 19th, the new issue of the Looney Tunes comic book (#29)
went on sale. I’m generally a sucker for Wile E. Coyote, and as this
particular issue features two vintage Wile E. episodes (not to mention a
poignant cover showing Wile E. discovering that Amtrak can, in fact, run
on time), it’s worth picking up in my view.

The first story is “Stupider by the Dozen” by Tony Collins. Wile
E., anticipating Dolly the Ambulatory Haggis of recent news stories, has
developed various clones of himself (well, sort of…the clones are not
quite like him, as we see one near sighted one, one sleepy one, one that
dresses like Roy Rogers, a dim one, and so forth). Wile E. wakes Bugs up
at 0430 to borrow a screwdriver to make the final adjustments on his ACME
VOW 9000 machine (the acronym, in a lettering flub, is messed up in that
we are not told what the W stands for). Wile E., in George Patton mode,
gives orders to his minions to seek out the Road Runner. Bugs hangs
around to watch the fun. Alas, the clones suffer from the same habits of
entering tunnels and utilizing TNT as the original does, and the clones
are all wiped out in one spectacular accident, to the original’s grief.
His grief is compounded when, somehow, the Road RUnner clones himself. A
good, well drawn story, with Wile E being full of himself as usual.

Dana Kurtin is responsible for the second story, “Widdle Wed Widing
Tweety,” it’s essentially Tweety reading the fable of Little Red Riding
Hood in Tweety-ese (the reading is designed to stave off the real
Sylvester from noshing on the canary), with a little twist at the end.
Pretty standard (and decently funny) Sylvester and Tweety stuff, though
there is a neat cutaway view of Sylvester after he’s swallowed (for once)
the bird. The story comes in third among the three stories in quality,
but only because the other two stories are quite good.

The last story, “A Kind of Magic” is the best of the three.
Leonardo Batic, one of the best artists WBWP has, does double duty here as
the both the penciller and the story writer, and does a fine job of
capturing Wile E’s spirit. Wile E.’s tools this time are a magic kit he’s
had airdropped (alas, all too literally) from Acme. Various implements
and tricks, such as a magic wand, a magic hat, and a David
Copperfield-like vanishing bridge all backfire on Wile E. The gags are
good, but it’s the fine job Batic does on Wile’s expressions of surprise,
fear and rage that really put this over (as well as the colourful
background work). Buy the comic for this story, even if it’s only 8
pages.

Now, for a bit of news: a highly placed source has told me that on
May 22nd, the US Postal Service will release a limited edition first day
of issue comic for the Bugs Bunny stamp. The comic will have a real Bugs
stamp and first day of issue cancellation on the cover. It will be serial
numbered, and the edition is limited to 100,000. The writing is a
Carolan/Moore job, with art by Carzon, DeCarlo, Batic and McRae. It will
only be sold in very large post offices and each of those PO’s are getting
only 24 copies; some copies are being held back for sale through
philatelic catalogs and charity auctions. Price: $4.95.

Eric O. Costello (EOCostello@aol.com)

(Author of “The Warner Brothers Cartoon Companion,” a guide to obscure and interesting items of Classic WB animation, now being serialized at http://www.spumco.com. A through D up as of 11/1/96.)

==========================
animation/best.of.net #298, from hmccracken, 2144 chars, Tue May 13 20:16:09 1997
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From: Ron Evry
Date: Tue, 13 May 1997 17:13:43 -0600 (MDT)
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Subject: CSC: The envelopes please!
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Precedence: bulk

Here are the Reuben winners from this weekend that got lost in cyberspace:

Milton Caniff Lifetime Achievement – Jack Davis
Newspaper Panel Division – Wiley Miller
Advertising and Illustrating Div. – Roy Doty
Comic Book Div. – Jeff Smith
Newspaper Illustration Div. – David Clark
Magazine and Book Illustration Div. – Doug Cushman
Television Animation Div. – Everett Peck
Feature Animation Div. – Mark Miller & Crew
Greeting Cards Div. – Suzy Spafford
Gag Cartoon Div. – Glenn McCoy
Editorial Cartoon Div. – Bill Day
Newspaper Comic Strips Div. – Patrick McDonnell
Reuben Award – Sergio Aragones

A wonderful time was had by all. The highpoint for me was meeting Jack
Davis, who is a real gentleman. He drew a nifty sketch of me that I will
treasure forever.

-=-Uncle Ron-=-

=========================================================
-=-Ron Evry-=-
Author of Witzworx, the Shareware Comic Book Font!
Available at http://www.clark.net/pub/revry/witzworx.html
=========================================================
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
To unsubscribe, send mail to: majordomo@indra.com NOT to the list itself,
with one line of text: unsubscribe comic-strip-classics

==========================
animation/best.of.net #299, from hmccracken, 1997 chars, Sun Jun 22 11:12:19 1997
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 22 Jun 1997 11:09:48 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9706221109.memo.82071@BIX.com>
Subject: Kim Casali, “Love Is” creator dead

From: jpstrain@netcom.com (Jim Strain)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.strips
Subject: Kim Casali, “Love Is” creator dead
Date: Sat, 21 Jun 1997 12:33:57 -0800
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Kim Casali’s obituary appeared in this morning’s LA Times. The New
Zealand born cartoonist created the little single-panel daily starring the
nude-but-androgynous man and woman that always appeared with a caption that
completed the “Love is…” phrase. Casali began drawing the cartoons as
love-notes to her husband in the 60’s and later began assembling them into
small booklets at the design house where she worked. It was there she was
“discovered” and soon thereafter was syndicated. The cartoons have
appeared in newspapers in 60 countries around the world. Though the
sentiments were usually laid on thick, and many found them cloying, they
must somehow have spoken to lovers because they were at one time enormously
popular (greeting cards, coffee cups, the works), and the strip is still
carried daily in a lot of papers (including the Times).
Kim Casali was 55. Cause of death wasn’t disclosed. Her son Stefano
Casali plans to continue drawing the cartoons. I don’t know Stefano, but I
would advise him to find a job, instead. I always thought Kim’s cartoons
were cute, and occasionally touching, but taking over the “Love is” strip,
IMO, is not a high ambition.
.. . .jim strain in san diego.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #300, from hmccracken, 13015 chars, Sun Oct 5 15:32:29 1997
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 5 Oct 1997 15:31:06 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9710051531.memo.15922@BIX.com>
Subject: 1997 ASIFA-Hollywood Annie Award Nominees

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From: bigshot@spumco.com (Stephen W. Worth)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation,rec.arts.disney.animation,alt.animation.warner-bros,alt.animation.spumco
Subject: 1997 ASIFA-Hollywood Annie Award Nominees
Date: Mon, 29 Sep 1997 20:05:49 -0700
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I’m posting this for ASIFA Hollywood.

See ya,
Steve

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

25th Annual Annie Award
Nominees Announced

The nominations are in for the 1997 Annie Awards, animation’s most
prestigious honor. Leading the way with 13 nomimations was Walt Disney
Television Animation. Second was Film Roman with 12. The most nominated
theatrical production was Turner Feature Animations CATS DON’T DANCE.
There was a three way tie for the most nominated TV production between KING
OF THE HILL, THE LION KING’S TIMON AND PUMBAA and THE SIMPSONS. Winners
will be announced at a gala ceremony on November 16th.
Over 500 entries were received The Production entries were voted
on by the entire membership of ASIFA-Hollywood. The top vote getters
became the final nominations. In the area of Individual Achievement,
special committees of animation professionals and experts were assembled to
select the top in their category.
The honored Winsor McCay awards are to be given to Willis O’Brien,
famed model animator on such classics as the original LOST WORLD and KING
KONG, Myron Waldman, a pioneering animator who worked at Fleischers on
Betty Boop, Superman and more, and Paul Winchell, the ventriliquist who
developed an artificial heart and later moved into cartoon voicework on
such characters as Tigger. The June Foray award, given for humanitarian
service to the animation industry will go to the late Phyllis Craig, for
her work in expanding the market for animation artists and opening the
doors for new talent.
For more information on ASIFA-Hollywood or the 25th Annual Annies,
contact ASIFA-Hollywood at 818-842-8330.
(A complete listing of nominees follows.)

=====

Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement in an animated
Home Video Production
ALADDIN AND THE KING OF THIEVES. Walt Disney Television Animation
THE LAND BEFORE TIME IV: JOURNEY THROUGH MISTS. Universal Cartoon Studios
THIS LAND IS YOUR LAND; THE ANIMATED KIDS’ SONGS OF WOODY GUTHRIE.
Guthrie/Calico Productions.
A RUGRATS VACATION. Nickelodeon-Klasky Csupo

Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement in an animated
Interactive Production
Absolut Panushka. Troon Ltd
Green Eggs and Ham. Wild Brain, Inc.
Starcraft. Blizzard Entertainment

Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement in an animated
Promotional Production
ANGRY BEAVERS – Main Title. Nicktoons.
“Super Mom” – Coca Cola. Wild Brain, Inc.
GARGOYLES – Main Title. Walt Disney Television Animation.
SPAWN – Promo. HBO Animation.
Visa Check Card “Daffy Duck”. Warner Brothers Classic Animation.

Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement in an animated
Short Subject
ACTION LEAGUE NOW “Rock-A-Big Baby”. Nickelodeon.
THE AMBIGUOUSLY GAY DUO #2. J.J. Sedelmaier Productions, Inc.
THE AMBIGUOUSLY GAY DUO #3. J.J. Sedelmaier Productions, Inc.
BJORK “I Miss You”. Spumco.
THE BUG HUNT. Walt Disney Television Animation

Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement in an animated
Television Program
DEXTER’S LABORATORY. Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc.
KING OF THE HILL. Twentieth Century 20th Television Films in association
with Deedle-Dee Productions, Judgemental Films & 3 Arts Entertainment.
THE SIMPSONS. Animation Production by Film Roman, Inc. A Gracie Film
Production in Association with Twentieth Century Fox Television.
STEVEN SPIELBERG PRESENTS PINKY AND THE BRAIN. Warner Brothers Television
Animation.
THE TICK. Sunbow Entertainment.

Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement in an animated
Theatrical Feature.
Cats Don’t Dance. Turner Feature Animation
Hercules. Walt Disney Feature Animation.
Space Jam. Warner Brothers

Annie Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement for
Character Animation

Bob Baxtor for “Beethoven’s Whiff” – THE LION KING’S TIMON AND PUMBAA. Walt
Disney Television Animation.
Ken Duncan for Meg – HERCULES. Walt Disney Feature Animation.
Franz Fischer for Darla Dimple & Max – CATS DON’T DANCE. Turner Feature
Animation.
Nik Ranieri for Hades – HERCULES. Walt Disney Feature Animation.

Annie Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement for
Directing in an Animated Feature Production
Marc Dindal – CATS DON’T DANCE. Turner Feature Animation.
Ron Clements & John Musker – HERCULES. Walt Disney Feature Animation.
Bruce Smith & Tony Cervone – SPACE JAM. Warner Brothers

Annie Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement for
Directing in an Animated Television Production
Mike Anderson – “Homer’s Phobia” THE SIMPSONS. Animation Production by
Film Roman, Inc. A Gracie Film Production in Association with Twentieth
Century Fox Television.
Roberts Gannaway & Tony Craig – “Beethoven’s Whiff/Bumble in the
Jungle/Mind Over Matterhorn” THE LION KING’S TIMON & PUMBAA. Walt Disney
Television Animation.
John Rice – “Keeping Up with Our Jones” KING OF THE HILL. Animation
Production by Film Roman, Inc. Deedle-Dee Productions, Judgemental Films &
3 Arts Entertainment in Association with Twentieth Century Fox Television.
Charles Visser – “Noel” ANIMANIACS. Warner Brothers Television Animation.
David Wasson – VOICE B GONE. Sore Head Productions.

Annie Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement for
Effects Animation
Eric Armstrong – CONTACT. Sony Pictures Imageworks.
John Armstrong – CATS DON’T DANCE. Turner Feature Animation.
Mauro Maressa – HERCULES. Walt Disney Feature Animation.
Bob Simons – CATS DON’T DANCE. Turner Feature Animation.

Annie Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement for
Music in an Animated Feature/Home Video Production
Leslie Bricusse (music written by) – THE LAND BEFORE TIME IV: JOURNEY
THROUGH THE MISTS. Universal Cartoon Studios.
Steve Goldstein – CATS DON’T DANCE (score). Turner Feature Animation.
Woody Guthrie (writer) & Frank Fuchs (arranger) – THIS LAND IS YOUR LAND:
THE ANIMATED KIDS’ SONGS OF WOODY GUTHRIE. Guthrie/Calico Productions.
Randy Newman – CATS DON’T DANCE (songs). Turner Feature Animation.
Mark Watters & Carl Johnson (composers) – ALADDIN AND THE KING OF THIEVES.
Walt Disney Television Animation.

Annie Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement for
Music in an Animated Television Production
Tom Chase, Steve Rucker (score) – DEXTER’S LABORATORY. Hanna-Barbera Cartoons.
Alf Clausen (underscore) – THE SIMPSONS. Animation Production by Film
Roman, Inc. A Gracie Film Production in Association with Twentieth Century
Fox Television.
Carl Johnson (composer) – MIGHTY DUCKS. Walt Disney Television Animation.
Michael & Patty Silversher (songwriter) – BOO! TO YOU TOO! WINNIE THE POOH.
Walt Disney Television Animation.
Michael Tavera, Charles Fernandez, Ron Grant, Harvey Cohen (composers) –
CASPER. Universal Cartoon Studios.
Shirley Walker (main title) – SUPERMAN. Warner Brothers Television Animation.

Annie Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement for
Producing in an Animated Feature Production
Alice Dewey, Ron Clements, John Musker – HERCULES. Walt Disney Feature
Animation.
David Kirschner & Paul Gertz – CATS DON’T DANCE. Turner Feature Animation.
Ron Tippe – SPACE JAM. Warner Brothers.

Annie Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement for
Producing in an Animated Television Production
Al Jean, Michael Reiss – “The Springfield Files” THE SIMPSONS. Animation
Production by Film Roman, Inc. A Gracie Film Production in Association
with Twentieth Century Fox Television.
Kathi Castillo – “Hyper-Psycrow” EARTHWORM JIM. Universal Cartoon Studios.
J.J. Sedelmaier – “The Ambiguously Gay Duo #2”. SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE. J.J.
Sedelmaier Productions, Inc.
Genndy Tartakovsky – “Ham Hocks ‘n Arm Locks” DEXTER’S LABORATORY.
Hanna-Barbera Cartoons.
Mitch Watson – “Ebony Baby” DUCKMAN. Klasky Csupo.

Annie Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement for
Production Design in an Animated Television Production
Mike Moon, Production Designer – “Beethoven’s Whiff” THE LION KING’S TIMON
& PUMBAA. Walt Disney Television Animation.
Barbara Schade, Key Backgrounds – THE MAGIC PEARL. Film Roman in
association with Greengrass Productions, Inc.
Mitch Schauer, Executive Producer – “Born to Be Beavers” ANGRY BEAVERS.
Nicktoons.
Kexx Singleton, Color Director – “Beethoven’s Whiff” THE LION KING’S TIMON
& PUMBAA. Walt Disney Television Animation.
Sy Thomas, Color Director – “Bumble in the Jungle” THE LION KING’S TIMON &
PUMBAA. Walt Disney Television Animation.

Annie Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement for
Storyboarding in an Animated Television Production
Carolyn Gair-Taylor – “Spaced Out” THE SYLVESTER & TWEETY MYSTERIES. Warner
Brothers Television Animation.
Nora Johnson – “Orthodontic Police” COW AND CHICKEN. Hanna-Barbera
Cartoons, Inc.
Denise Koyama – “A Night in the Wasteland” DISNEY’S THE JUNGLE CUBS. Walt
Disney Television Animation.
Bob Logan – “Beethoven’s Whiff/Bumble in the Jungle” THE LION KING’S TIMON
& PUMBAA. Walt Disney Television Animation.
Eric Radomski – “Burning Visions” SPAWN. HBO Animation.

Annie Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement for
Voice Acting by a Female Performer in an Animated Television Production
Christine Cavanaugh as Dexter in DEXTER’S LABORATORY. Hanna-Barbera
Cartoons, Inc.
June Foray as Granny – TWEETY & SYLVESTER MYSTERIES. Warner Brothers
Television Animation.
Tress MacNeille as Debbie Douglas in “Mission Freakazoid” – STEVEN
SPIELBERG PRESENTS FREAKAZOID. Warner Brothers Television Animation.
Brittany Murphy as Luanne in KING OF THE HILL. Twentieth Century 20th
Television Films in association with Deedle-Dee Productions, Judgemental
Films & 3 Arts Entertainment.
Maggie Roswell as Sharry Bobbins in “Supercalifragilisticexpial(annoyed
grunt)cious” – THE SIMPSONS. Animation Production by Film Roman, Inc. A
Gracie Film Production in Association with Twentieth Century Fox
Television.

Annie Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement for
Voice Acting by a Male Performer in an Animated Television Production
Jeff Bennet as Johnny Bravo – JOHNNY BRAVO. Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc.
Townsend Coleman as The Tick – THE TICK. Sunbow Entertainment.
Phillip Hayes as Tumbleweed Tex in SCHOOL DAZE. Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc.
Mike Judge as Hank Hill – KING OF THE HILL. Twentieth Century 20th
Television Films in association with Deedle-Dee Productions, Judgemental
Films & 3 Arts Entertainment.
Rob Paulsen as Pinky – PINKY AND THE BRAIN. Warner Brothers Television
Animation.

Annie Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement for
Writing in an Animated Television Production
Jason Butler Rote for “The Beard to be Feared” – DEXTER’S LABORATORY.
Hanna-Barbera Cartoon.
Jane Wagner for “Just Say Noel” – Edith Ann’s Christmas. Kurtz &
Friends/Tomlin & Wagner Theatricalz.
Mark Young for “Loyalty” – ADVENTURES FROM THE BOOK OF VIRTUES. PorchLight
Entertainment.
Paul Lieberstein for “Luanne’s Saga” – KING OF THE HILL. Twentieth Century
20th Television Films in association with Deedle-Dee Productions,
Judgemental Films & 3 Arts Entertainment.
Alan R. Cohen for “Shins of the Father” – KING OF THE HILL. Twentieth
Century 20th Television Films in association with Deedle-Dee Productions,
Judgemental Films & 3 Arts Entertainment.

Annie Award for
Technical Achievement in the Field of Animation
SPACE JAM. Warner Brothers

June Foray Award
Phyllis Craig

Winsor McCay Award
Willis O’Brien
Myron Waldman
Paul Winchell

The Committees
The nominating committees were coordinated by Brian Miller.
Committee Chairpersons were Heather Kenyon, Kent Meredith, Bob
Miller, Brian Miller, Joanne Miller, Tom Sito and Rita Street.
Committee members were Jerry Beck, Kristofor Brown, C. Matthew
Eddy, Karl Gnass, Laura Harkman, Debby Hindman, Eileen Hoffman, Michael
Humphries, Tom Knott, Melissa Kurtz, Michael Lander, Larry Latham, Michael
Mallory, Leonard Maltin, Jennifer Pelphrey, Reed Robbins, Rob Romero,
Pamela Ross, Robert St. Pierre, Libby Simon, Ken Spears, Andrew Street,
Michael Turner and Phil Weinstein. ASIFA-Hollywood thanks each of them for
their assistance this year, the 25th anniversary of the Annie Awards.

Contact: John Cawley
25TH ANNUAL ANNIE AWARD NOMINEES

==========================
animation/best.of.net #301, from hmccracken, 1788 chars, Thu Nov 6 20:46:12 1997
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Thu, 6 Nov 1997 20:45:40 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9711062045.memo.35137@BIX.com>
Subject: A new Chuck Jones cartoon opens Nov. 21st!

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From: joealaskey@aol.com (JoeAlaskey)
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: A new Chuck Jones cartoon opens Nov. 21st!
Date: 6 Nov 1997 19:31:31 GMT
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Good news, cartoon lovers!
FATHER OF THE BIRD, produced by The Man himself, directed by Stephen A.
Fossati, starring Sylvester, and featuring the talents of June Foray, Maurice
Noble and some other young upstarts, opens November 21st!
June plays a new character, Cornbread (apropos of Thanksgiving).
It was the last short produced by Chuck’s pre-Time/Warner-merger team, and many
of them think it’s the unit’s best work to date.
This short had its unofficial premiere – as a surprise for the audience – on
the last night of this year’s AFI festival, and was warmly and
enthusiastically received by the audience, which was kind enough to laugh in
the right places.
And here’s some more good news:
FOTB will be attached to the WB release THE MAN WHO KNEW TOO LITTLE, starring
Bill Murray, instead of a “kids’ movie”!

BTW, IF you go, and IF you like this cartoon, you could always write a letter
to the theatre, for instance, asking for more…! Hey, just something to keep
in mind.
(More about that later, probably, if you know me.)

jfa

==========================
animation/best.of.net #302, from hmccracken, 3342 chars, Sun Nov 9 20:51:06 1997
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Sun, 9 Nov 1997 20:49:29 -0500 (EST)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9711092049.memo.45141@BIX.com>
Subject: Chuck Jones in NYC 11/8//97 and a Cel/Grinch question!

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From: mrlaytos@mindspring.com (Mark R. Laytos)
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros,rec.arts.animation
Subject: Chuck Jones in NYC 11/8//97 and a Cel/Grinch question!
Date: Sun, 09 Nov 1997 22:38:11 GMT
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Xref: news.delphi.com alt.animation.warner-bros:22480 rec.arts.animation:64496

Last night I was invited to a apperance of Chuch Jones (with about 300
others!) to Animazing Gallery in NYC. The place was packed and cel’s
were flying off the walls! They romoved all pieces and only Chuck’s
stuff was available. I saw some people buying 4-5 pieces at a clip.
Saw one person buy $11,000 worth of stuff! Aw… to have money!
The setup was as follows. I was greeted at the front door to get to
the gallery which is on the second floor. You where not allowed to
take any items with you i.e. jacket, camera, books, cels etc…..
Me? I brought a camera, jacket and a Grinch cel that I had bought from
them last year and had credit so I figured I would trade up. Once into
the gallery, there was a nice little table with some food and drinks,
no charge! Chuck was seated at the far end with his daughter Linda.
There were no less than 5 employees in front of him at any given time.

The rules where simple. You wanted to meet him you had to buy
something. Period, end of story. I did trade in my Grinch cel for
another Grinch so I did get to meet him, have my picture taken, and
even managed an auto. He was in very good spirits and I can truly say
he loves kids. Even kids who where too young to know who he is seemed
to warm to him and you could see him even be very happy when having a
picture taken with a child. He seems to be a very good hearted person.

Now on to my cel question.
I traded up to a different Grinch cel that was a few hundred bucks
more that my original one ($1900 to $2200). After returning home I
popped in the “HTGSC” tape to check it out. This perticular cel is a
full figure Grinch with Max being fully covered in snow. When I say
covered I mean all you see in the cel is a pile of snow with Max’s two
paws sticking out of the pile. THats it as far as Max goes. Heres my
question. The cel does not match to the videol. This is a three sheet
cel. One of the Grinch, one of the snow pile, and one of Max’s feet
but yet the Grinch is from a different frame than Max. The Grich is
about 5 seconds befor the frame with Max. Should this be a concern?
Does this have any effect on the vallue? I don’t think it should
because the Grinch is one frame and Max is another. I probably could
remove the two sheets for Max and have a seperate cel but I don;t see
the point in that.

Thanks in advance for any input!

Mark R. Laytos
Bayonne, N.J.

==========================
animation/best.of.net #303, from hmccracken, 1691 chars, Mon Apr 13 21:12:18 1998
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 13 Apr 1998 21:01:25 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9804132101.memo.50393@BIX.com>
Subject: Mickey Mouse to get new look, attitude

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From: David Crowe
Newsgroups: rec.arts.animation
Subject: Mickey Mouse to get new look, attitude
Date: 12 Apr 1998 13:49:02 -0700
Organization: Primenet (602)416-7000
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Message-ID: <6gr9bu$psr@nntp02.primenet.com>
X-Posted-By: jetman@206.165.6.207 (jetman)

There is a story in the Philadelphia Inquirer detailing how Mickey Mouse
is going to get a total image makeover, including a new attiude. The new
and “improved” Mickey will first appear on the Toon Disney network.

The full text is at
http://www.phillynews.com/inquirer/98/Apr/07/lifestyle/MAKER07.htm

but here are some quotes.

“Our focus groups told us that these characters did not have enough
attitude,” said exec producer Roberts Gannaway, who’s in charge of the
makeover.

“These characters were born in the Great Depression with a simple,
optimistic outlook which now looks outdated,” said Gannaway.

I can’t stop thinking about the “Poochie” episode of the Simpsons.

If this had been posted on April 1, no one would have believed it.
Reality is outstripping satire again.

—
David “No Nickname” Crowe http://www.primenet.com/~jetman UPDATED!

Cable, to me, is the Race Bannon of the Marvel Universe. He’s a good man,
a brave man, who believes in things, but usually winds up wrestling an
alligator in the process. -Mike Smith

==========================
animation/best.of.net #304, from hmccracken, 4951 chars, Mon Aug 3 03:06:20 1998
————————–
From: hmccracken@BIX.com
Date: Mon, 3 Aug 1998 03:05:54 -0400 (EDT)
To: hmccracken@BIX.com
Message-ID: <9808030305.memo.66167@BIX.com>
Subject: Porky Pig Lawsuit

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From: irazfan2@aol.com (IRAZfan2)
Newsgroups: alt.animation.warner-bros
Subject: Porky Pig Lawsuit
Lines: 77
Message-ID: <1998080123293800.TAA09172@ladder01.news.aol.com>
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Date: 1 Aug 1998 23:29:37 GMT
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Friday, July 31, 1998
Los Angeles Times

Porky Pig Lawsuit Is No Laughing Matter
By MIKE DOWNEY

The Porky Pig case went to court Thursday.
I try to follow most of the important legal battles around town, so I made sure
to look into Ira Zimmerman vs. ABC-TV.
Zimmerman claims that ABC’s “20/20” program reduced him, anonymously, into no
more than “a stuttering activist who once demanded Time Warner retire Porky to
protect children from being tormented.”
In a lawsuit, Zimmerman is seeking due recognition for changing Porky Pig’s
image to a positive one. He feels that whereas Warner acknowledged his true
purpose, ABC diminished him offhandedly.
“Nobody ever reports the full story,” the 57-year-old retired aerospace
engineer from San Juan Capistrano told me after spending Thursday morning in an
L.A. Small Claims Court.
“Some people just aren’t interested unless you’re out there protesting in a
picket line and carrying signs that say, ‘ROAST PORKY!’ ”
I’m happy to report that he doesn’t want to turn the porker with the speech
impediment into a menu item at Boston Market.
Zimmerman just would like the public to understand what he did want.
And that he’s not Looney Tunes.
* * *
I must confess, I knew nothing about Ira Zimmerman until the last 24 hours.
“Did you know I was a ‘Jeopardy’ question once?” he asked.
I put my answer in the form of a question:
“You were?”
“The question was, ‘Ira Zimmerman Led a Protest Over the Mocking of Michael
Palin’s Speech in This 1988 Film,’ ” he explained.
It was a “Celebrity Jeopardy” show that day. The contestants were film director
Oliver Stone, television news reporter Andrea Mitchell and comedian Bill Maher,
and the category was “Politically Incorrect.”
“Nobody got it,” Zimmerman said. “I remember Maher saying later, ‘I should have
gotten that one.’ ”
The film was MGM’s “A Fish Called Wanda,” co-starring Palin as a crook who
stutters and Kevin Kline as an accomplice who mimics him.
In a frame in Zimmerman’s home today is a letter of apology from Kline.
Zimmerman saw no humor in having grown up in Brooklyn with a stuttering
affliction. Upon moving to California, he wrote a letter to Warner Bros. in
1962, mentioning the Porky Pig cartoons and the ridicule he received as a
child.
“I got a letter from Warner telling me that Porky Pig is actually a heroic
figure.”
He let the matter drop.
More than 30 years later, Zimmerman became a founder of a nonprofit clinic, the
Center for Children Who Stutter, on the campus of Cal State Fullerton.
By then, he had organized a protest over “Wanda,” requesting a disclaimer that
the film hadn’t meant to belittle people who stutter.
That led to the pig mess.
For a number of years, Zimmerman had endeavored to get Warner to make Porky a
true “heroic figure” and not just a character who stammered for laughs.
He says, “It’s not only about a speech issue. It’s about stopping the bullying
of kids who are different in any way–short, overweight, if they wear glasses,
if their skin color’s different, whatever.”
Zimmerman says he got nowhere until he bought Time Warner stock, attended a
shareholders meeting, then put it to the chairman of the board.
What he said was: “I realize Porky Pig has been enjoyed by millions. But for
generations, a Warner Bros. media product has been used to bully and tease
disabled children who stutter. When a product does harm to anyone, especially
children, shouldn’t a corporation move to recall that product?”
For good measure, he added, “Isn’t it about time Porky Pig be retired at the
age of 61?”
That’s when the slop hit the fan.
* * *
Zimmerman’s beef is no longer with Time Warner, which he once did picket over
Porky.
He is actually pleased with that company, because Warner has indeed begun a Web
site with Porky explaining to children: “Everyone’s unique . . . and
th-th-that’s good, folks!”
“That’s fine, Porky talking that way, since it’s a positive image,” Zimmerman
says. “I’m not about PC run amok.”
He objected, though, to ABC’s news program that he said minimized his efforts.
He is asking the court to make the network pay him a few thousand dollars to
take out ads in the Hollywood trade papers to “clear my name.”
Not a few million. A few thousand. That’s all, folks.