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Here’s a parcel sent by Mel Blanc to “Fred Fraling.” I can only imagine the variety of ways people mispronounced Friz Freleng’s name. The cartoon studio was at 1351 North Van Ness.
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Here’s a crate for another resident of 1351 N. Van Ness—one C. Martin Jones. I suspect you know which cartoon director he is.
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The trunk is on its way to Friz Freleng of Pratt Falls, Wisconsin. There may not be a Pratt Falls, but there is a Hawley Pratt who laid out this cartoon.
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The label on the green case reads “Tedd Pierce.” Pierce wrote the cartoon. The rest of the label isn’t very readable but it says “Low” and “Nevada.” I presume it’s a Las Vegas/Low Wages gag. I can’t read the label on the red hat box.
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“Anyone can ? this one for free”.
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Gower Gulch was the nickname of the area at Gower and Sunset, not all that far from the Warner Bros. cartoon studio. At one time, it’s where cowboys hung out to get work as extras in silent westerns.
The inside jokes are again from the brush of background artist Paul Julian.
Back in the silent-film days, Sunset and Gower earned the nickname "Poverty Row" thanks to a number of low-budget film studios in the neighbourhood who had problems getting their films widely released and distributed--and (except for Columbia Pictures) went out of business when sound came along; many such were unable to afford sound-recording equipment. And it was during the "Poverty Row" days that the neighbourhood's reputation for attracting cowboys seeking bit film parts emerged.
ReplyDeleteAnother interesting reference to Gower Gulch was in a 1948 episode of the CBS West Coast detective series Jeff Regan, Investigator, which starred a pre-Dragnet Jack Webb in the role of a low-budget detective. Its title: ""The Guy From Gower Gulch".
As for what Gower Gulch is like today, this page has a few interesting images.
"Anyone can have this one for free" I think.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the "Anyone can have this one for free" analysis.
ReplyDeleteRecall that in Jones' "Drip-Along Daffy," under the credits, Porky (the comedy relief) sings about the Flower of Gower Gulch. I believe, from what I've read, that the area continued to supply work for those appearing in "oaters" well into the 1950s.