Musings On 20th Century Pop Culture by Psychotronic Paul
Monday, December 18, 2006
Truly Obscure Animated Cartoons #7
Lady Play Your Mandolin, first Merrie Melodie, 1931, is a good example of the manic and peppy style of the early musical Warners cartoons produced by Hugh Harman and Rudolf Ising.
You could say that Hugh Harman and Rudolf Ising were ripping off Disney in their early 30's cartoons, but I think they - probably inadvertently - add such original touches, so much wacky humor and a different sense of timing from "the Mickey Mouse formula" that these early Merrie Melodies end up quite different from their original inspiration.
Then again, nobody was better at plagiarizing from themselves than Harman and Ising. They lifted great quantities of this cartoon to use as cornerstones for an even better one, the classic GOOPY GEAR - one of the studio's best - in 1932.
Harman, Ising and key animators Friz Freleng and Rollin Hamilton were all ex-Disney guys. If I'm not mistaken they all animated not only on Disney's Oswald Rabbit cartoons, BUT the Oswalds made after Charles Mintz hired all of Disney's staff away except Ub Iwerks. . . forcing Walt and Ub to secretly develop a new character for their next venture, which turned out to be Mickey Mouse in PLANE CRAZY.
Harman & Ising's Merrie Melodies were preceded by the Looney Tunes series, which launched in 1930 with SINKIN' IN THE BATHTUB, starring the studio's resident star, the unrelentingly cheerful "Bosko".
dude.. your AWFULLY YOUNG to know any of this. i have seen the REAL thing. and i appreciate your sense of " revival". Tis amamzing how much is LOST and so little GAINED. espically in the world of the art of animation .. and THIS [ what you present]. is ART!!!!!!!!!!
3 comments:
brilliant brilliant and BRILLIANT!!!!!!!
MERRIE [ became] "LOONY." and MELODIES[ became] "TUNES"
plagerism to the higest degree.
thanks .... LOVED it!!!!!!!!!!!
You could say that Hugh Harman and Rudolf Ising were ripping off Disney in their early 30's cartoons, but I think they - probably inadvertently - add such original touches, so much wacky humor and a different sense of timing from "the Mickey Mouse formula" that these early Merrie Melodies end up quite different from their original inspiration.
Then again, nobody was better at plagiarizing from themselves than Harman and Ising. They lifted great quantities of this cartoon to use as cornerstones for an even better one, the classic GOOPY GEAR - one of the studio's best - in 1932.
Harman, Ising and key animators Friz Freleng and Rollin Hamilton were all ex-Disney guys. If I'm not mistaken they all animated not only on Disney's Oswald Rabbit cartoons, BUT the Oswalds made after Charles Mintz hired all of Disney's staff away except Ub Iwerks. . . forcing Walt and Ub to secretly develop a new character for their next venture, which turned out to be Mickey Mouse in PLANE CRAZY.
Harman & Ising's Merrie Melodies were preceded by the Looney Tunes series, which launched in 1930 with SINKIN' IN THE BATHTUB, starring the studio's resident star, the unrelentingly cheerful "Bosko".
dude.. your AWFULLY YOUNG to know any of this. i have seen the REAL thing. and i appreciate your sense of " revival".
Tis amamzing how much is LOST and so little GAINED. espically in the world of the art of animation .. and THIS [ what you present]. is ART!!!!!!!!!!
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