Who was the man, the Big Kahuna in the field of music for animated cartoons? Well, there were several - Scott Bradley (MGM), Darrell Calker (Walter Lantz Productions/Universal), Leigh Harline at Disney's and the team of Sammy Timberg and Lou Fleischer - but in general, the first name in the "Password" answer is the incomparable Carl W. Stalling (November 10, 1891 - November 29, 1972).
Warner Bros. cartoon-meister elaborates on the greatness of Carl Stalling.
Carl W. Stalling, composer-conductor-arranger extraordinaire with Walt Disney Productions, the Ub Iwerks Studio and Warner Bros. (pre and post Leon Schlesinger), had a way of improving the films' quality wherever he went.
The Skeleton Dance (1929) in particular was innovative and a groundbreaking film by the Disney studio.
Carl Stalling contributed many wonderful scores to the cartoons produced by the studio of ace Disney animator and special effects inventor Ub Iwerks in 1930-1935.
Leon Schlesinger hired Carl to succeed Norman Spencer as the Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies music man and the improvement in the cartoons was immediate.
It's a tough call as to which individual Looney Tune or Merrie Melodie features my favorite Carl Stalling soundtrack. In addition to PORKY IN WACKYLAND, PORKY PIG'S FEAT directed by Frank Tashlin and THE GREAT PIGGY BANK ROBBERY directed by Bob Clampett immediately come to mind.
For more music and material on Carl Stalling, read Devon Baxter's splendid and thorough article about the score and voice work of the classic Bob Clampett Looney Tune cartoon Porky's Hero Agency (1937). Also check out this Carl Stalling Project volumes 1 and 2 playlist.
In addition, note that the new Flip The Frog Blu-ray from Thunderbean is officially available. If you don't have it yet, this set is chock full of excellent Carl Stalling scores and animated goodness from the talented likes of Grim Natwick, Berny Wolf, Al Eugster and Shamus Culhane.
3 comments:
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Thanks! The change from Norman Spencer to Carl Stalling as music director at Warner Bros. cartoons is drastic and immediate. While Spencer, who loved wood blocks like Christopher Walken's record producer on SNL loved cowbells, contributed some decent scores to the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies (SHANGHAIED SHIPMATES, FISH TALES, I LOVE TO SINGA), Stalling's work is AMAZING. The terrific trifecta of Tex Avery, Frank Tashlin and Carl Stalling joining the Schlesinger WB studio changed animation in a profound way.
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