Too Looney: Appreciating The Art of Warner Bros. Cartoons
Although we have all seen the finished product of Warner Brothers Animation, with all the elements of animation and sound and color combined, it is rare that we get to see the countless pieces of artwork that went into creating it. The internet has proven to be a treasure trove of images, as more and more collectors out there begin to buy, sell and trade bits and pieces of cartoon history in a way that would have been unheard of 2 decades ago. In my opinion, it doesn't matter who ultimately buys the rare and expensive animation drawings, layouts, cels and backgrounds from online galleries, from Ebay, or other 'net sources. I certainly couldn't afford to own most of them myself. But thankfully, before someone snaps them up, these pieces are scanned and photographed, and displayed for prospective buyers...and I, for one, save the images before they're gone. I have been saving this stuff for quite a while, in hopes of someday creating a sort of online museum devoted to the artwork behind Warner cartoons, and that "someday" is here. If you are an animation gallery, an Ebay trader, a collector, or an expert, yes, I probably have mined your auction or web site for images. If you would like to receive credit for your photography, let me know and I will make note of it by the image.
As for the art itself, keep in mind that every image you see here is one-of-a-kind, and in some cases one of the only surviving elements of the creative process used to make the cartoons. At most Hollywood animation studios, the clear celluloid sheets, or "cels" used to paint and ink the animation drawings and lay them over the background, were erased and reused. It was simply more reasonable economically to recycle the material, because with thousands of these cels per cartoon, the cost would have been astronomical to buy more for every film made. The paint was washed off and a new image was painted onto it for the next cartoon. Who knows, a cel that was used to make "The Heckling Hare" might have been erased and used again on "Wabbit Twouble". As far as I know, the practice continued as long as Warner Bros., and for that matter any other studio, made theatrical cartoons. What survives today are what studio employees saved for themselves or gave away as gifts. The same goes for animation drawings, backgrounds, and sketches...most of them probably wound up in the trash, unless an animator or director decided to keep them for their own personal reference. There are many of Chuck Jones' drawings published in his two autobiography books, and Bob Clampett's estate probably owns a lot of Clampett's works, as he was notorious for saving them. Still, compared to the immense volume of work that a cartoon required, only bits and pieces still survive, and the internet is showing us that there may be more out there than we once thought. You never know what surprises may turn up, but when one does, I notice. Now, you can notice, too.
WB Cartoon Art page 1 (Drawings) WB Cartoon Art page 2 (Cels)
WB Cartoon Art Page 3 (Backgrounds, layouts and Models)
Animation drawings:
From Hugh Harman and Rudolph Ising's "Bosko In Dutch" (1933). This is an image of Bosko's dog, Bruno, pulling a cart.
This is a very rare image of Buddy from Friz Freleng's "Buddy The Gob" (1934). Artwork from this period is fairly hard to come by, if not simply because of its age.
Ham and Ex, two puppies who briefly appeared as costars to Porky Pig and Beans the Cat, are shown here being chased by a pirate dog in Jack King's "The Phanton Ship" (1936)
Animation drawings from Chuck Jones' "Inki and the Lion"(1941).
One of the Seven Dwarfs in an animation drawing from Bob Clampett's wartime classic "Coal Black And De Sebben Dwarfs."
Two drawings from Chuck Jones' "Broomstick Bunny"(1956), featuring Witch Hazel and her magic mirror.
Animation drawing of Bugs Bunny from Chuck Jones' "What's Opera, Doc?"(1957).
The Mighty Angelo, an incredibly strong flea, made a memorable one-shot appearance in Chuck Jones' "To Itch His Own"(1958.) It was also the last WB cartoon with music composed by Carl Stalling.
"A Witch's Tangled Hare" (1959) was Abe Levitow's only directorial effort at Bugs Bunny, although he had essentially co-directed lots. He was one of Chuck Jones' key animators in the 1950's, and may well have done these drawings of Bugs and Witch Hazel himself.
"The Bugs Bunny Show"(1962): A Robert McKimson animation drawing of TV host Bugs Bunny from the linking footage for ABC's Bugs Bunny Show. Artwork from this show has turned up a lot lately, but the finished shows themselves are among the rarest of anything the studio ever produced...because some idiot decided to reuse some of the footage later...and chopped up the original negatives to do it!
Animation drawing of Pepe Le Pew from Chuck Jones' "Louvre Come Back To Me" (1962), the last Pepe Le Pew short ever made.
Animation Drawings of Daffy Duck from Robert McKimson's "Good Noose"(1962). A lot of artwork seems to have survived from this particular short, as images of Daffy and the parrot, Mister Tristan, are all over the place on the internet.
Tom Thumb's father from "I Was A Teenage Thumb" (1963), a rather bizarre and not-so-popular cartoon by Chuck Jones, and one of his final Warner Bros. works. Still, the stylized artwork in it makes it worth watching, just look at the design of this character!
Animation drawing of Percy the Bulldog from the Robert McKimson Daffy Duck short "Fast Buck Duck"(1963).
Speedy Gonzales literally drives Sylvester crazy in Friz Freleng's "It's Nice To Have A Mouse Around The House"(1965), and it's one of the very last appearances of Sylvester in a classic Warner short. Granny hires Daffy Duck to get rid of Speedy after he does this to Sylvester...and the pair up of Daffy and Speedy continued for 27 cartoons following.
Daffy Duck in a particularly sour mood, from an unidentified Daffy/Speedy
cartoon, circa 1967.
Continue to see CELS