Here is Exhibit A: the third scene from the 1951 Terrytoon The Cat's Tale. He animates the first scene of the cat getting chased by mice. It's got frizzy tails and weird shapes that only Tyer would do.
Then his animation gets crazier as the cat frantically seals the door to his cave home to stop the mice from getting in. Look at the angles. They're insane.
Tyer animates parts of this scene on ones, so there’s no penny-pinching going on.
That’s not all. The next scene features weird pupil shapes as the cat pushes his head toward the camera. And there’s Tyer smear animation.
Tyer wasn't credited on this cartoon. None of the animators were until Paul Terry sold his studio and Gene Deitch was hired in 1956. Good for you, Gene!
It's as surprising as it is delightful that Jim Tyer was allowed to animate in his unique style. Perhaps the producers thought, Whatever gets the laugh.
ReplyDeleteTyer was FAST and cranked out the footage.
DeleteIt seems to me that whatever didn’t cost Paul Terry one extra cent, he was okay with it. Tyer animated his scenes quickly and got the work done on time. He was respected as a cartoonist by his colleagues - and his cartooning and animation was noticed and liked by audiences and his peers. Paul Terry’s studio wasn’t Disney’s and he knew it. Tyer work gave Terrytoons entertainment value that differentiated it from others - at no extra cost. The only thing I wonder about is why they didn’t “cast” Tyer for specific scenes (as Clampett did with Scribner at Schlesingers). Tyer seems to have done any shots the director had ready to give him - occasionally, as in the beginning of A Cat's Tale, his animation fit the story or the action perfectly.
ReplyDeleteMy impression is Tyer drew the way he thought was funny.
DeleteI was pleased to read that Gene Deitch liked him, considering Deitch's opinion about these '50s Terrytoons.
I didn't link to Howard Beckerman's piece on Tyer; maybe I'll do it next time. I've got frames from another Tyer scene in about 10 days.
This is what Tyer’s style was made for! Characters with frazzled nerves and a lot of frantic personality. This honestly was the reason why I watched the cartoon this is from, given how he is a master as distorting any shape to fit the action.
ReplyDeletedie! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! dicxbe! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! cxbie! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! dibxcxbe! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! dccie! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! ddie! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! bxie! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die! die!
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