Happy Birthday, Tex Avery!

 

Early Elmer is surprisingly difficult to draw. I think I got the hang of him, though.

In honor of what would've been Tex's 115th birthday, I am going to talk about one of my favorite cartoons from him.

The Crackpot Quail (1941)

I remember first seeing this film (back when the original "razzing" version was just a rumour) and I was annoyed by the quail's incessant whistling. When the original version of the film was finally made public on the third volume of Tex Avery: Screwball Classics I was delighted...and I enjoyed the film more mainly because my ears weren't being assaulted.

"Pardon me shorty, but did you hear a funny noise around here...?"

I think Willoughby and the quail have a great dynamic. I would ask why the quail never took off as a character but I think I already know the reason: Warner already had Bugs Bunny and didn't really need more of the same. I know Willoughby lasted longer...he even got paired up with Bugs in the infamous The Heckling Hare, released the same year as this film.

The comic timing in this film (and many of Avery's other cartoons from this year, like The Cagey Canary) is perfection. I particularly enjoy the sequence where the quail tries to get his topknot out of his face (animated by Rod Scribner.)  The running gag with Willoughby crashing into trees is pretty funny too, with a very strong payoff at the end.

Final Rating: ****

The Background Art of Johnny Johnsen

I would like to devote my first actual post to one of my favorite background artists in animation: John Didrik Johnsen. 

The Crackpot Quail, 1941, Warner Bros. This film in particular features some of my favorite background art from him.

Johnsen was Avery's background artist for most of his career. It is said that he started in the mid-1930s, though the earliest film that I recognize his work in is A Feud There Was (1938). 

A Feud There Was, 1938, Warner Bros. Ignore the MeTV watermark...this is the best print currently available.

A different artist seems to take over through the rest of the film, because it's rendered in a less detailed and more cartoonish style.

In fact, this particular background makes me think of Dr. Seuss.

It's been said that he may have been responsible for the colored pencil backgrounds in Little Red Walking Hood (1937), but I'm not too sure of the legitimacy of that claim. I wonder if anyone knows when he joined Schlesinger.

Anyways, one of my favorite things about his work is the naturalistic colors featured in his work. They're extremely vibrant, but it is very much rooted in reality.

The Heckling Hare, 1941, Warner Bros. Love these autumn colors...

A lot of The Bug Parade (1941) is very interesting to me because it is so unusual from Johnsen's regular work--many shots in that call for a rather microscopic view of the world, resulting in extreme closeups of the ground and/or flowers.

The Bug Parade, 1941, Warner Bros. There are also some neat "simulated focus" shots in the film.

Anyway, Johnsen stuck around at Schlesinger for a little while, doing the background work for some of Clampett's earliest films at the former Avery unit. After a few cartoons, he reunited with Tex at MGM, where he would stay.

The Wacky Wabbit, 1942, Warner Bros. This almost looks like a shot from What's Buzzin', Buzzard?

I would add more, but part of me wants to do a separate post on Johnsen's MGM work eventually. Either way, I wonder if any of these backgrounds still exist? It'd be nice if they did.

Introduction

Hello. I am Derek S., and this is my blog.

You'll find a little bit of everything here, though most of the content revolves around my favorite art form, animation. Expect to see quite a bit on that subject.

Other things you'll most likely see are art, old-time radio, film reviews, and just about anything else I feel like posting.

In short, posts about whatever, whenever. Starting...now.