Korman's Clippings

When you think of Shakespeare, Harvey Korman doesn’t come to mind. Well, unless he’s doing the balcony scene from Romeo and Juliet with Tim Conway and they’re cracking up. But before audiences typecast him as a sketch comedian, Korman was a dramatic actor on stage, as the clipping to the right from 1949 attests. In fact, he was one of the first three players signed for the stock company of the Los Angeles Summer Playhouse in June 1963; he only had a handful of TV guest shot credits at that point.

“When people ask me what my credits are,” Korman told the Archive of American Television, “I did a couple of good Mel Brooks pictures, and I did The Carol Burnett Show. That is my biography. Because the rest of it was pretty awful in one way or another.” Of course, if that had really been the case, Burnett would never have cornered him in the parking lot of CBS in 1967 asking him if he’d be interested in being part of her soon-to-be-starting variety show.

Korman, like other very funny people, failed in situation comedy. For viewers, seeing someone as a “real” character over a half hour is a lot different than seeing them in short, over-the-top routines spread out in between other variety elements. Korman was almost a regular sitcom supporting player in the early ‘60s, but fate intervened. He was hired to play the father in the teenaged sitcom “Karen,” and filmed the pilot in December 1963 to air the following September. But then Korman landed a banana job on the Danny Kaye variety show, so his role on “Karen” went to Richard Denning.

Here are a couple of pre-Burnett newspaper pieces about Korman. Both may have been CBS publicity handouts as they have no bylines. The first one appeared in The Dover Daily Reporter of March 14, 1964.

INDISPENSIBLE SECOND BANANA  
Who's Harvey Korman? Danny Kaye Tells You
Up until just recently, Harvey Korman could walk down the street of almost any major city and no one would recognize. This even included Hollywood. In fact, most people on reading this might still ask: "Who is Harvey Korman?"
He has been, during the last few months, a Nazi prison camp commandant, a shipboard steward, Robin Hood's Little John, an old time movie tycoon, a horror-movie monster, an officer of the Northwest Mounted Police.
More accurately, Korman is the "second banana," or utility player, on CBS-TV's "The Danny Kaye Show," appearing in various guises, almost always made up, costumed or be-wigged so that no one could possibly recognize him as he actually is.
When neither makeup, costume nor wig is called for, Korman manages to lose his own personality simply by adjusting the set of his shoulders or calling upon his remarkable ear for dialects and accents.
On a recent show, in a well-deserved tribute, Kaye brought Korman into the show's "sitdown" spot and introduced him formally to the TV audience.
"Harvey Korman," Kaye said feelingly, "is the most capable and versatile utility player I have ever worked with. He has become one of the rock-like foundations of this show."
"We figured out the other day," Korman muses, "that I've done over 50 different people in various sketches on 21 Kaye shows. If I were the type to have a split-personality problem, I'd never know who I really was.
"But, you see, I really think I'm always myself. If a script is well-written, and if the actor is good—and I think I'm a good actor—you can interpret who you're supposed to be without changing who you are. If I make myself clear."
He doesn't. But he believes it.
Korman's rare talent is best appreciated when it is realized that he is only the fourth genuinely versatile second banana to come along in 16 years of commercial TV. The other 3 are Carl Reiner, Howard Morris (who has now attained guest-star status and frequently appears on the Kaye show) and Art Carney.
Korman also is unique in other ways. Unlike most other comics, he was born in Chicago rather than New York and has already played Hamlet—not once but twice. That's a record not even his boss can boast.

And this appeared in the El Paso Herald-Post on June 12, 1965.

Versatile Comedian Plays Farce or Drama
HOLLYWOOD.—For an actor to play Hamlet is to have lived — to have accepted the drama world's greatest challenge.
But when Harvey Korman talks about his Hamlet, the expression "to have lived" takes on even greater meaning.
"HAMLET," says Korman, "saved my life. I was at a point in life where I had become so frustrated — so torn by self pity — that I debated whether I wanted to live or to die."
The tall, young character comedian of The Danny Kaye Show told us the story over a luncheon table just before a rehearsal for the weekly show, his 51st as Kaye's favorite utility actor.
HE PLAYS different characters every week, some in makeup, some as his handsome self. After 50 shows with Kaye, his character creations add up to more than 100. In many ways he is to Danny what Carl Reiner was to Sid Caesar in their triumphant TV days.
But over the luncheon table, Korman looked back to the year 1955 when he first came to Hollywood. Summer stock around Chicago, his home town, had kept him busy as an actor but real success had become a will o' the wisp.
"NO ONE," he went on, "seemed to want me as an actor, so I applied for a job as a $45-a-week warehouse freight cashier. I was turned down because I lacked experience. That's when I went into a frenzy of self pity. I walked away from the warehouse with tears in my eyes. Then, in a strange reaction, I started soliloquizing to myself, 'To be or not to be, to live or to die . . . " I had played Hamlet in college and the words came rushing back.
I remembered how confident I had been as a college boy and I said to myself; " 'Boy, oh boy, could I play Hamlet NOW.' "
KORMAN CALLS it "pure fate" because the next day a friend told him about a production of Hamlet being planned at a Hollywood little theater. Korman auditioned, won the role and played it for six weeks. From a distinguished member of one night's audience — Bette Davis no less — Korman rewon confidence in his acting career.
"Thank you, honey," said Bette, after seeking him out backstage, "Now I know what this play is all about."
WHAT HOLLYWOOD now knows about Harvey Korman after 100 varied roles on the Danny Kaye show is that he can play anything from broad farce to straight drama.
Kaye thought so much of Korman he signed him to a personal contract.
A situation comedy series of his own is the 33-year-old actor's dream for his future which already includes becoming a father in July. Mrs. Korman is former Chicago model Donna Ehlert.

It goes without saying to anyone who has ever watched the Burnett show that Korman was a smash hit. Here’s an Associated Press story from October 13, 1968.

Television's Best 'Second Banana'
By CYNTHIA LOWRY
HOLLYWOOD (AP) — If Harvey Korman had chosen baseball for a career instead of acting—and had been as good at it—he would have wound up as the best catcher in the business. And he would have yearned, but not too much, to have been a star pitcher.
As it is, Korman, at 41, has achieved a success more appreciated inside the acting business than outside it—as the best and strongest support a comedian or comedienne can have in a variety show with its diverse requirements.
Korman backstopped Danny Kaye through four years of that star's weekly show and moved right over to perform the same function for Carol Burnett and her variety hour.
Six-feet four in height and a calory-counter, Korman can sing enough to get by, fake a little dancing but becomes a giant in the sketches—which is the place, these days, when the chips are down. He is a master of accents.
"My job is to help the star," Korman says flatly. "Whether it was Kaye or is Carol, I'm there to offer all the support. I can. And, I may say, it is a joy to work with them—as it is with Lucille Ball, Dick Van Dyke, Jackie Gleason and, of course, Jack Benny. Every one of them is a consumate actor."
Korman, although he participates in some wild comedy, considers himself an actor who is playing comedy parts in a variety show. Other pretty funny people have been careful to make the same distinction between being a comedian and an actor. Benny and Art Carney are among them.
Korman, as backstop man for the stars, however, slips into all sorts of different rote. On the Burnett show, he has numerous acting chores to perform depending on the whims of the show's writers, but has registered solidly in sketches in which he plays Carol Burnett's husband. "I don't look for comedy in the sketches," Korman explained.
"The thing an actor always looks for is the give and take with the other performers. In the case of Carol, there is plenty of it. If I can find some place" in the sketch that I can make a statement of some sort, Carol adores it...but of course, not all performers like to work that way when they are stars."
Co-star and general utility man for "The Carol Burnett Show" though he is, Harvey still would like to reach the top of his profession. But being the No. 2 man in a show has many advantages—financial security, steady employment, longevity in career and none of the trauma involved in trying to keep your own show somehow in the top third of the Nielsen ratings. Still, there is something about being the second banana that makes a performer just a little bit wistful.
He is, however, one funny fellow who does not dream of the day when he can play "Hamlet." He already has done that, on the stage, in Chicago, and to excellent critical notices.
He is a native of Chicago, was educated there and was hooked on acting in high school, which pushed him on to four years of dramatic studies at the Chicago Art Institute's Goodman School of Drama. Fellow students included Geraldine Page and Shelley Bennan, another artist who although he has made good in the comedy field, still insists be is. first of all, an actor.
Five years of trying to break into the New York theater led Korman to little except odd jobs for bread and butter, so he turned to summer stock and commercials. Eight years ago he was cast in a role in a Chicago play which brought him to the attention of Seymour Berns, then Red Skelton's director.
Three years later, Berns recommended Korman as a "character comedian" for Danny Kaye's show—a job that lasted four years.
When Carol Burnett and her producer-husband, Joe Hamilton were working out plans for her hour-long variety show two years ago. Carol remembered the actor's all-around work on the Kaye show and suggested that they get "a Harvey Korman type" for her.
"Why not try to get Harvey Korman?" asked her husband. And it was as easy as that.
What else does Korman want from his career?
"Well, everybody wants to be a star." he said," "but I just want to keep acting—in television, in movies, on the stage. And, later, I think I'd like to buckle into a bit of directing."

I suppose it’s understandable that after ten years of doing the same thing, Korman wanted to move on, especially when it’s ten years of not being the star. So he left the Burnett show in 1977. In an interview with United Press International, Korman makes an interesting comment that he considered leaving the show at the time Tim Conway joined the regular cast. Korman’s probably best-known for his byplay with Conway on the show.

Korman Steps Out On His Own Limb
By VERNON SCOTT
HOLLYWOOD, Aug. 14 (UPI) — Harvey Korman, among the most talented second bananas in television history, has departed "The Carol Burnett Show" to tackle the perils of becoming a top banana.
The enormously talented Korman hasn't made the move without trepidation. For the past decade he has enjoyed the security of a steady job — no small matter to show folk — in a top show, earning big bucks and without the awesome responsibility of carrying the load.
Korman is aware that some of his second banana friends have cut out of successful television series to star in shows of their own and have come up empty.
"I thought about leaving the Burnett show for a couple of years," Korman said. "I don't know now much personal courage it took on my part to leave, but it was now or never. There were all the reasons in the world to stay and none to leave. I'm coming up on my 50th birthday and if ever I planned to expand my career beyond work, then I'd better do it now."
Over his 10-year hitch as Carol's leading man, Korman was a one-man repertory company. By his own count, he appeared in nearly 1,000 sketches, three and four a show, in the course of 250 shows. He played everything from yokels to Ronald Colman-like movie stars with aplomb, panache, savoir faire and great gobs of hilarity.
Korman is virtually irreplaceable, according to Carol and her producer-husband, Joe Hamilton. The measure of his worth is that his job this season will be filled by Dick Van Dyke, himself one of the finest comedians the tube has produced.
"If you work as long as I have doing sketch material, you begin living a sketch life. Off-stage you begin to believe you have a sketch wife, sketch children and a sketch doctor.
"Hell, maybe I'm having a middle life crisis. But this is a very positive move in my life something I feel compelled to do."
Korman's immediate future is solid enough. He is starring in Mel Brooks' new comedy, "High Anxiety," in which he and Cloris Leachman play a pair of heavies running the Psychoneurotic Institute for the Very, Very Nervous, a loony bin in which the operators are nuttier than the inmates. He also has a five-episode commitment with ABC-TV for "The Harvey Korman Show," a situation comedy for which he already has made the pilot.
"I've discovered it's hard to play one guy with consistency after so many years of doings sketches," Korman said. "I'm in the process of establishing a dimensional character. He's an unemployed actor who teaches drama. He's something of a charlatan. Larger than life. The supporting cast includes his daughter and an agent.
"Just as I'm putting together his characteristics, I'm involved in establishing different dimensions in my personal life. I'm gravitating to more work and interest in my career. I'm involved in casting, writing and producing the show, which is very exciting to me. On the Burnett show I was just handed a script.
"Being on my own for the next year will be all right financially. I won't need any handout." Then, unable to resist voicing the actors' age-old insecurity, he concluded:
"But check with me next year. It could be different."

Korman tried several TV ventures. All of them failed. He had far more success uniting with Conway and hitting the road, bringing back memories of their Burnett successes to grateful audiences.

Harvey Herschel Korman was born on February 27, 1927 to Cyril Roy, a travelling salesman, and Ellen (Blecker) Korman. His father was Russian and his mother French. He spent about the first ten years of his life in Jackson, Mississippi before he, his mother and younger sister moved back to Chicago by 1940 (his father stayed in Jackson and remarried). He died in Los Angeles on May 29, 2008, leaving behind millions of laughs. He never would have done that with Hamlet.

A Few Dover Boys Backgrounds

Just what the title of the post says. I wish I could paste together the long opening drawing that the camera spends the first 45 seconds panning across (with stops for gags along the way). Instead, you just see the opening shot.



John McGrew came up with the layouts and Gene Fluery drew the backgrounds.

The Two Looks of Andy Panda

For reasons lost to time, someone decided to redesign Andy Pandy for the 1944 cartoon “The Painter and the Pointer.” Here’s Andy on the title card. I think this is an Alex Lovy design, with the cutsey-poo rounded two-teeth-in-one.



And here’s a shot of Andy from the cartoon itself.



The dog isn’t consistent, either. Sometimes, he looks like a near relative of Pluto. Other times, he reminds me of the Shakespearean dog in the cartoons put out by the Art Davis unit at Warner; not a surprise considering Emery Hawkins worked on both.

Hawkins and Les Kline get an animation credit.

Someone Had to Take on Lucy

These days, we’re used to television shows appearing and disappearing on the network schedules at the whims of executives reading columns of numbers (shares, demographics and so on). How different it was in earlier days.

Into the early 1960s, time slots could very well be controlled much as they were in the radio days—by sponsors and their ad agencies. If they bought the time, they could basically tell the network what to put there. If they bought a show, the network miraculously found a place for it. The people involved in the show themselves got caught in the middle. And that’s what happened to Dennis Day.

Dennis rose to fame as a singer on the Jack Benny radio show where he also displayed a talent for impersonations and crazy dialects. That landed him his own radio show and when television needed talent, popular radio stars were targeted for transition to the new medium. So Day ended up in TV in a sitcom featuring a janitor named Charley Weaver who went on to greater fame. Day may have been popular on radio but there was a TV star more popular—Lucille Ball. And that’s who Day ended up battling for ratings. You can guess at the outcome. But you probably can’t correctly guess why Day ended up in that time slot. The pull of the sponsor came into play. Dennis talked about it in this interview with the Associated Press.

Dennis Day Is Called Brave to Buck ‘Lucy’ Show
By BOB THOMAS
HOLLYWOOD, Apr. 7 (AP) — Nominated for the bravest man in TV: Dennis Day.
“I wouldn’t say I was the bravest,” says Dennis. “Maybe the unluckiest.”
I have selected Dennis for the video medal of valor because he is the fellow who has had to face Lucille Ball on an opposing network, In most locations, the Dennis Day Show is on at the same time on Monday night as “I Love Lucy.” This took real nerve, since “Lucy” has drawn the biggest audience in TV for the past two years.
“Believe me, it wasn’t my idea to go opposite Lucy,” Dennis told me. “I wanted to do my show on film. My sponsor, RCA, didn’t want me to. The only way I could get permission was to agree to take the spot opposite Lucy. So I did it.
“I took a chance and I failed. I think it was a mistake putting such a similar show opposite Lucy.
We both have situation comedy. We had good mail from people who said they had switched over to watch us. Once they made the change, they seemed to like our show. But watching ‘Lucy’ is too great a habit for the majority of viewers. We just couldn't fight it.”
The show, has been dropped by RCA, which Dennis says is concentrating its fortune on the transition to color TV. Dennis still is under contract to NBC and will be back next season—in a different time slot, you can bet.
“Still, I didn’t do so badly,” he added. “When I started, out the sponsor said if I hit a 7 rating, I’d be doing all right. If I made 14, I’d be a hero, and over 30 would be sensational. The show got up into the 20s, so they can’t complain. In Canada, where I don’t have to face Lucy, ours is the No. 1 show.”
In this country, “I Love Lucy” has maintained a rating in the 60s, or roughly three times the Dennis Day audience. Industry observers feel Day has definitely cut into Lucy’s audience, since the show used to rate head-and-shoulders above its competition. Now it has to fight “Dragnet” for top honors.
I asked Dennis why he insisted on filmed shows us against live, which he did in his first two years on TV.
“I think film is a lot better for a show like mine,” he remarked. “Sometimes I play as many as eight different characters in one sketch, which would be impossible to do live.
“When I was doing the show live, it was nerve-wracking. One character I did required a one-minute costume change, so it always had to come after a commercial. Even so, I was always wondering, ‘Will the zipper work?’
“To get from one scene to another, I would have to race the length of the stage. I was breathless, but I would have to break into a love song with the girl in the show.”
Of course, another advantage in filming is the moola. Live shows can never be recalled; the Kinescope is destroyed a few weeks afterward, Dennis remarked. But films can be shown over and over again.
Dennis owns them outright. He has lavished money on them, often taking a loss from his own pocket. The films are more expensive than most other shows because he uses a full orchestra to accompany his songs. Most of the other films use canned music or vocal backgrounds to avoid paying the musicians’ union its required 5 percent.
“But the films are all mine,” said Dennis, adding a tribute to his Lucy opposition: “And virtually no one has seen them yet.”

But Day never did get another shot at TV stardom. He continued making appearances on the Jack Benny television show and guesting elsewhere. Perhaps appropriately, one of his shots was on “The Lucy Show.”

Walt, About Your Studio...

Some weeks ago, we posted news and reviews about the animated cartoon world for the second half of 1928 from the pages of The Film Daily, a trade publication based in New York City. Let’s do the same thing for the first half.

One key development in the industry took place at the time, but only part of the story was told in The Film Daily. Winkler Productions’ Charlie Mintz, who had been a middle man between Universal and Walt Disney in the release of Disney’s Oswald the Rabbit cartoons, stole Disney’s staff—then told Walt that a contract stated that Oswald was the property of Universal. That left Disney with nothing. The Film Daily merely reported on Disney’s trip to New York, but nothing about the backstabbing shenanigans. And there’s nothing—yet—about Disney’s creation of a new (silent) mouse character that appeared on screen at a preview in Los Angeles that May.

Incidentally, the Take-Oswald-Away shenanigans had a gestation period that began before this. Mike Barrier’s book Hollywood Cartoons states Hugh Harman was approached in summer 1927 about taking over for Disney.

Disney’s name was certainly known as it appeared on each Oswald cartoon (none of the animators were credited, a fact that may have rankled someone like Harman), and Disney was given favourable reviews in The Film Daily. You can read the reviews of the cartoons after the news items; beware, one of the Felix reviews contains slang for a Chinese man not considered proper. There’s little news that’s significant, though Nat Mintz pens a couple of items that appeared in the newspaper’s special Shorts editions. A contest to re-name Henry the Cat from the Aesop’s Fables was announced but the winning name isn’t revealed. And I’ve included a review of a two-reel live action comedy starring Walter Lantz. There was no animation it appears. Lantz soon packed up for the West Coast and a short career as a gagman before getting back into the cartoon business.

January 11, 1928
Our Passing Show. Charles B. Mintz visiting Universal City...

January 11, 1928
Paul Terry, creator of and supervising artist for Aesop's Film Fables, released by Pathe, is enjoying his first vacation in three years. Mrs. Terry and Paul are visiting the Coast, where the artist began his career as a newspaper cartoonist.

January 20, 1928
"U" Releasing "Maestro"
Universal is releasing "The Maestro," a one reel carto[o]n novelty, made for tie-ups with picture theater orchestras. It was first presented at the Colony, New York. The reel caricatures the conductor of an orchestra. It shows a cartoon dog taking the baton and leading the orchestra throught various passages of John Phillip Sousa's "Stars and Stripes Forever." The reel is synchronized with this music.

Harry Hershfield gives a real plug to cartoon comedies in his "Abie the Agent" cartoon strip, reviewing "Gridiron," one of the 26 Charles B. Mints cartoon subjects. He calls it "perfect animated draughtsmanship —smooth as possible and no effort on the eye."

February 10, 1928
Paul Terry Returns
Paul Terry, creator of Aesop's Film Fables, has returned to New York from a vacation on the Coast.

February 16, 1928
Extends Winkler Contract Additional Three Years
Universal has completed arrangements with Charles B. Mintz, president of Winkler Prod., for an additional three years' supply of the Oswald the Lucky Rabbit cartoon comedies. The contract provides for 26 cartoons a year, which is similar to the existing arrangement.

February 16, 1928
Paul Terry, creator of Aesop's Fables, is to give the lowdown on his animated cartoon characters over WEAF, New York, today, with Don Hancock doing the interviewing act.

February 28, 1928
Mr. and Mrs. Walt Disney are in New York on the first trip in years. Confirmed Californians. Had no sooner stepped on the Eastbound train when homesickness almost made them turn back. That's what the climate "out thar" does.

March 4, 1928
Cartoon Popularity
By NAT L. MINTZ
Vice President of Charles B. Mintz Co.
CHARLES B. MINTZ CO. is the producer of the Krazy Kat and Oswald cartoons. The former series has to its credit Broadway bookings for its first sixteen releases which have played at practically every first-run theater on the street.
IN spite of all that has been said regarding the evil of presentations and the menace they represent insofar as the future of short subjects is concerned, one form of short subject, the cartoon, continues serenely on its way to wider use in motion picture theaters.
Since its screen debut in the form of Windsor McCay's immortal "Gertie," the cartoon has remained firmly fixed in public favor. More than this, it is becoming more popular with each season.
The cartoon occupies an unique position in that there is no action its characters cannot portray. Situations impossible in the usual form of screen entertainment, stunts which no living character could possibly perform, ideas which the limitations of even the trick cameras make impossible of realization, fall into the routine of the cartoonist to whom are entrusted the accomplishments of the tasks called for in the script.
Aside from psychological elements accounting for the cartoon's popularity, this form of short subject is strongly favored by not only the smaller theaters, but by the managing directors of the largest and finest first run houses. The reason for the latter is readily apparent. In addition to being truly funny, a cartoon is a short subject. While cartoons are frequently 600 ft. long, the best of these subjects is seldom over 550 ft. in length. There is a sound reason back of this limit in film footage. A cartoon could contain as much action as does the average high grade two reel comedy. It should contain the same number of gags. Action and gags can be padded out with extraneous material in a two reel comedy, but as much as ten feet of padding in a cartoon is deadly because patrons have come to demand action every foot of the way.
The managing director of first run presentation theaters is always crowded for time. His overture, newsreel, presentation and feature picture take up a specific number of minutes. Seldom does he find the twenty to twenty-five minutes which the running of a two reel picture must have. Occasionally he finds that a feature picture is shorter than anticipated and it is then, and only then, that the two reelers finds its place on the screen.
The great advantage possessed by the cartoon is that, as most, it requires from three to five minutes of running time. In nine cases out of ten, the managing director finds that he has this space to fill. Knowing how desirable the comedy element is in his show he immediately spots in a cartoon. The result is that no other form of motion picture is given such widespread usage in first run theaters as is the cartoon.
Charles B. Mintz Co., producers of cartoons for more than fifteen years, feels that as regards its particular form of short subjects the cartoon is destined to experience even wider usage and greater popularity.

June 1, 1928
Charles Mintz Returns
Charles B. Mintz of Winkler Pictures has returned to New York from the Coast.

June 3, 1928
Mintz Back in N. Y. After Opening New Coast Studio
Charles B. Mintz, president of Winkler Pictures and producer of the "Krazy Kat" cartoons released through Paramount, returned to his New York office on Thursday of this week after an absence of six weeks spent covering the Universal and Paramount conventions. While in Hollywood, Mintz opened a new studio for the production of the Oswald, the Lucky Rabbit series of cartoons which are released through Universal. A staff of 25 cartoonists and animators, under direction of George Winkler is working at the new studio.

Publicize Fables Through Radio Cat Name Contest
Widespread publicity for Aesop's Film Fables has been secured by Van Beuren Enterprises through a contest to select a new name for "Henry", the cartoon cat in the series. News about the contest has been broadcast each Thursday afternoon from Stations WEAF in New York and WRC in Washington. Henry's new name will be announced via radio Thursday afternoon, June 7.

INSIDE STORY ON HOW CARTOONS ARE MADE
By NAT. L. MINTZ
Vice-President—Charles B. Mints, Inc.
Producers of "Krazy Kat" Cartoons
IN these days of sophisticated fans there are, perhaps, few angles to the screen entertainment field which prove puzzling to the average movie goer. The mystery of studio work and the secrets of trick photography have been exposed so many times that scenes of the hero meeting and shaking hands with himself, or ocean liners being sunk at sea, or people walking on the edge of window sills, a hundred feet from the sidewalk no longer bring puzzled frowns to the faces of the followers of the silent drama.
But in spite of this general knowledge there still is one phase of screen entertainment that very few people seem to know about. I refer to the making of cartoon comedies. Everyone knows, in a general way, that artists draw the characters in the cartoons, animate them and the film is ready for showing. But just how these sketches are made to move about, how many drawings are needed for each scene, the size of the staff needed to create these cartoons, etc., all seems to be somewhat hazy in the minds of the uninitiated.
Before a new comedy is started, a conference is held and each artist has the chance to express his views as to the theme and characters in the proposed scenario. All suggestions are taken down by a stenographer and typed, and a scenario is thus formed by the head of the department. This man then boils down the score or more suggestions into a short story. With the characters decided upon, the scenario is developed in detail. Scenes, actions and titles are put into proper continuity in the same manner as a scenario for a twelve reel picture. Backgrounds are the first pictures to be drawn. These are sometimes exterior scenes showing woodland country or mountains. After the backgrounds are made the artists immediately set to work animating the various scenes.
Each animator is assigned a series of scenes and his drawings are made on translucent tissue paper. Thus the animator may see the lines of his preceding drawing as he places a new paper over each completed sketch. On the new paper he traces the previous drawing, but moves the arm or leg to head, as the case may be, up or down to give the completed action of the character. This means that each drawing of a character is made in an entirely different position and the mere action of Krazy Kat lifting his paw may mean a series of forty to fifty different drawings. After the picture has been completed by the total number of drawings being made on the tissue paper, these pictures are handed to the "tracers" who transfer the drawing from the tissue to celluloid sheets, which are of the same size as the paper.
Tracers then fill in the "blacks," or bodies. As we know, Krazy Kat and most of his companions are of a very dark hue. Water colors, black and white, are always used so that after the celluloids have been photographed they may be washed and used again. The completed drawings are numbered by the supervising artist and the number of photographic exposures necessary to register the desired action is made.
The ordinary motion picture camera takes sixteen pictures, or "frames," per second, but the cameras used in photographing Krazy Kat are so arranged that only one "frame," or picture, is taken with each turn of the camera handle.
The entire cartoon is handed over to the photographers, and is usually between ten and twenty thousand sheets of celluloid. The background of the first of these sheets is placed under the camera eye and fits the celluloid over two pegs that protrude from the camera table.
These pegs are, of course, the exact distance apart as are the pegs on the animator's and tracer's drawing boards. The first action picture is then placed over the background and, as all pictures of action are made on celluloid, the background shows through to give the necessary effect.
Upon the completion of the photographing process the exposed negative is developed and edited.

June 5, 1928
Don Hancock is ballyhooing the fact that the Orpheum Circuit has booked "Topics of the Day" and "Aesop's Fables'" solid for 1928-29 for all its houses. This is the tenth consecutive year that the Van Beuren product has been so treated by Orpheum, which has never given such a break to any other product.

CARTOON REVIEWS, January-June 1928

January 1, 1928
"Carnival Week"
Aesop Fables—Pathe
The Farmer Turns Showman
Type of production....1 reel cartoon
Al, the farmer, stages a carnival in front of his barn. The festivities end hectically with a race between an elephant and an ostrich. Trouble starts popping when the farmer, intoxicated, announces that the rabbit won—but there wasn't any rabbit in the competition. This film is typical of the others in the series.

January 8, 1928
"The Ole' Swimmin' 'Ole"
Disney—Universal
High-Grade Cartoon
Type of production. . .1 reel novelty
Action in this short centers around the ole' swimmin' 'ole, as the title indicates, with the traditional sheriff endeavoring to spoil the sport. This picture is gagged with new ones, distortion of characters playing an important and entertaining part in the proceedings. An exceptionally diverting number.

"High Stakes"
Aesop—Pathe
Usual Cartoon Stuff
Type of production. . .1 reel novelty
Entirely lacking in plot, even as plot goes in cartoon series, this picture is moderately pleasing. A few new gags are incorporated. The action is assorted and insane, ranging from a poker game to the customary concluding chase.

"A Short Circuit"
Aesop Fables—Pathe
Tricky Cartoon Stuff
Type of production....1 reel novelty
In this number the farmer tries operating his farm by electricity, with a flock of trick and entertainingly impossible things following. Among other phenonemas the hen lays eggs by the bushel and the cow literally flows milk. It is up to the standard set by this series.

January 22, 1928
"Gridiron"
Krazy Kat Cartoon—Paramount
Amusing
Type of production. . . .1 reel cartoon
Clever animation makes this Krazy Kat cartoon an amusing little number. The cat's experiences on this occasion take him to the football field and concern his efforts to nab a touchdown for his team. He does finally, of course, by means of a good deal of nonsense which causes chuckles here and there. And that's all it is supposed to do.

"The Smoke Scream"
Pat Sullivan—Educational
Cartoon Antics
Typo of production. . .1 reel animated
Felix the Cat helps his boss to smuggle smokes against the wife's orders. The boss's whiskers catch fire, and he runs to town and dashes up the stairs of a skyscraper. Smoke bursts out from every floor and the tenants are yelling at the windows to be rescued. Felix organizes himself into a fire department. His stunts for rescuing the people are highly original. He finally saves his boss from the burning whiskers, and is elected a hero. As a screen hero, Felix is still holding his own.

January 29, 1928
"Wandering Minstrels"
Aesop Fables—Pathe
How to Rescue a Lady
Type of production....1 reel novelty
This Fable has a medieval background and a story in which a wandering minstrel rescues a fair damsel when her horse runs away and then again from a band of thugs. It all ends in the hero slaying the heavies a la Doug Fairbanks in a prolonged duel. Better than the average number of this series.

February 5, 1928
"Everybody's Flying"
Aesop Fable—Pathe
Better Than Usual
Type of production. . . .1 reel novelty
In this chronicle of cartoonland all inhabitant stake to aviation, with a variety of animal's converted into "planes." The usual chases occur, with characters more than ordinarily distorted. It manages to be entertaining as cartoon films go.

February 12, 1928
"Rival Romeos"
Disney—Universal
Good Audience Stuff
Type of production....1 reel novelty
Oswald, in his cartoonland flivver, goes to call on his lady love and so does his rival, in a magnificent machine. After a flock of insane but entertaining gags Oswald arrives at her home and serenades her until a goat eats up his music. Then, while the rivals are arguing over the lady, she goes riding off with another suitor. This is one of the best novelties of its kind Universal has displayed in many weeks.

"Draggin' the Dragon"
Pat Sullivan—Educational
Fun With Felix
Type of production. . .1 reel novelty
Felix the Cat steals a chop suey recipe book, and is pursued by the Chink all the way to China. Here the army and the secret police and all the machinery of the law are called on to capture him. The cartoonist's inventive genius was going full steam on this one, and he managed to turn out an animated that has plenty of novelty and fun. The dragon on a flag comes to life, and then Felix has his hands full.

"The Good Ship Nellie"
Aesop Fables—Pathe
Cartoon Pirates
Type of production....1 reel novelty
This is the best Fable Pathe has released in some weeks. Paul Terry and his associates have gone in for more-than-usual distortion of characters and action and fine entertainment has resulted. The business has to do with a pirate attack upon a ship mastered by a mouse and his wife. It's fast and furious stuff.

February 19, 1928
"A Blaze of Glory"
Fables—Pathe
Lively Cartoon
Type of production. . .1 reel animated
Old Al assigns the Cat to clean out the mice that infest his home, but poor Thomas is licked almost unconscious. So Al gives Tabby the air. As Al sleeps, a fire occurs in his home, and the mice make matters worse by filling a patent fire extinguisher with benzine. When Al uses this, his property becomes a total loss. Nothing new. Just the average cartoon, but it moves at a lively clip.

February 26, 1928
"The County Fair"
Aesop's Fables—Pathe
Good Animated
Type of production....1 reel cartoon
Farmer Al is assisted by Mr. Cat in getting his entry ready for the county fair. They feed the hen some magic meal that bloats it up to an enormous size, and it looks like a walkaway for the blue ribbon. But things happen unexpectedly, and all hands have an exciting time before the event is over. The reel has the usual appeal of this series, and proves reasonably diverting.

March 4, 1928
“Sadie Sagebrush"—Winkler Cartoon
Universal
Good Burlesque
Type of production .. 1 reel animated
Oswald plays the part of the bold cowpuncher who arrives at the Sagebrush Salon. There is the heroine, Sadie, who tries to keep Oswald from getting his face messed up. But the hero strides boldly inside. He is sent sprawling by the villain, who jumps out in pursuit of the heroine. Oswald pursues on his horse, and that highly intelligent animal helps his master cook the villain's hash in approved Western style. It is all good kidding of the Western hokum, and carries the laughs nicely. Walt Disney did the animation.

"The Oily Bird"-Pat Sullivan
Educational
Animated Larks
Type of production. . .1 reel animated
Felix the Cat is accused by the lady of the house of stealing her jewels. He sets out to find the real criminal, who proves to be a wise old hen. Felix does a regular Sherlock Holmes, and at last tracks down the guilty one. Up to the usual standard of this series.

March 11, 1928
"On the Ice"—Fables
Pathe
Good Cartoon
Type of production . . 1 reel animated
All about the adventures of Milton Mouse who enters a sleigh race. But the villain Thomas Cat steals his girl while the race is on. Milton has entered the race to win a diamond ring which the villain has offered as a prize. So when the hero gets back victorious, he finds he has another race to catch the gal. Old Al Falfa does his stuff, and adds to the general merriment. This one carries the usual snap and comedy of the Fables cartoons.

March 25, 1928
"Africa Before Dark"
Oswald—Universal
Clever Cartoon
Type of production . . 1 reel animated
Walt Disney is turning out a steady stream of crackerjack Oswald cartoons, and this one rates well up with the rest. Oswald is here seen on his trained elephant hunting in Africa. The artist gets some original twists into the drawing. The comedy work is first class.

"Ohm Sweet Ohm"
Pat Sullivan—Educational
Lively
Type of production . . 1 reel animated
Felix the Cat steps out into a thunder storm, and gets a bright idea. He bottles the lightning bolts, and starts to use them in a practical way. First he tries an experiment on a cabby with an old plug. He furnishes him a bolt of lightning in place of the old nag. Then things start to happen to the cabby. Finally he harnesses some lightning to an old lady's broom, and before the electrified sweeper gets through, it has cleaned up the works—including Felix. Well done on cartoon gags, and has the laughs.

April 1, 1928
"Japanicky"
Felix—Educational
Cartooon Comics
Type of production . . . 1 reel animated
Felix the Cat starts on an unexpected trip for Japan. He has learned something about the art of Jiu Jitsu, and tries it on the natives. But it doesn't go so well. Then he gets the idea of introducing chairs into Japan. He winds up by selling the idea to the Mikado. Done in the original style of the Pat Sullivan studio. Makes good amusing entertainment.

"Barnyard Rivals"
Whirlwind—Bray Studios
Sad Stuff
Type of production. . . .2 reel comedy
Walt Lantz is featured to carry the comedy, but the story is so crude that he can do little with it. He and his helper on the farm meet the gal from the city and start to show her the joys of farm life. One gag consists in showing her how a cow is milked. As there is no cow on the farm, they rig one up out of props, and proceed to stage some business that is very sad. The final sequences drag in the old wheeze of an auto race. Walt Lantz is a darn good animated cartoonist. If they can't do any better by him than this, he is losing time on the wrong end of the screen. Directed by Stan de Lay.

April 8, 1928
"Oozie of the Mounted" [sic]—Oswald
Universal
Good Burlesque
Type of production. . .1 reel animated
Oswald the rabbit is used to kid the Northwest Mounted mellers in this offering. The hero starts out to get his man, Foxy Wolf. But Oswald runs into a lot of trouble with his mechanical horse, who gets his rider into difficulties due to static and other air interference. By a ruse he captures the bandit. The art work is clever. Another entertaining cartoon.

April 15, 1928
"Barnyard Lodge No. 1"
Aesop—Pathe
Lively Cartoon
Type of production. .1 reel animated
Farmer Alfalfa joins the barnyard lodge, and what they do to him when they initiate him is plenty. All the different animals finds some original method for torturing him, and when it is all over Alfalfa is pretty well done up but happy that he has made the grade. The animal gags are original and worked out with good comedy angles that should get the laughs.

"Felix in Polly-Tics"
Pat Sullivan
Lively Animated
Felix, the Cat, finds a home at last after he saves the bottle of milk which the mice were trying to steal. But the rest of the domestic animals including the parrot, goldfish and pup get jealous and start to make things tough for Felix. Every time they get rid of him Felix finds some clever way to get back into the house again. A bright and funny number, done in the best style of the Pat Sullivan studio.

April 22, 1928
"Hungry Hoboes"-Oswald
Universal
Hobo Gags
Type of production. . .1 reel cartoon
Oswald the Rabbit does his stuff as a hobo. He meets a regular gent of the road and the two land on a fast freight filled with livestock. The animal gags are highly original, and Walt Disney, the artist, turns out a very snappy and entertaining cartoon. The windup is especially good, with Oswald and his pal pulling a line of nifty stunts in their frantic efforts to get away from a railroad inspector who spots them stealing a ride.

"Comicalamities"—Pat Sullivan
Educational
A Pip
Type of production. . .1 reel animated
Here is a nifty cartoon with a bright idea that is refreshing. Starts looking for a beautiful girl to star in the movies. He runs across a homely dame, and changes her facial expression until she's so good looking he falls for her himself. Then she pulls the usual line: "I wanna hat, and jooels and furs 'n everything." So Felix starts out. And when he's all through giving, she gives him the cold shoulder, so he tears up the gal, remarking: "She's only paper, after all." It's done with class—and a laugh.

"Barnyard Artists"
Fables—Pathe
Clever
Type of production . . 1 reel animated
Alfalfa and Henry Cat draw their own animated cartoons and go through all the technical maneuvers of creating an animated reel. When finished, it is shown in a theater, and then we see the story. It shows a conceited pup chasing elephants and all the rest of the jungle animals. Very clever idea, and one of the best in the recent Fables releases.

April 29, 1928
"Jungle Days"—Fables
Pathe
Original
Type of production . . 1 reel animated
This one goes back to the stone age when the men wooed their women with strong arm methods. The caveman sends his sweetie a stone heart for a valentine, and she returns it to his dome for the count. Then the hero starts out in earnest to get a gal who escapes on a tiger. After he overtakes her and she is in his arms he thinks he is all set, but she changes her mind again and knocks him for a goal. It's sprightly cartoon stuff, and should please the Fables fans.

"A Bum Steer"—Krazy Kat
Mintz—Paramount
Komical Kartoon
Type of production . . . Cartoon
Usually very amusing, "A Bum Steer" one of the Krazy Kat series lives up to the reputation of the series. It's all a lot of good-humored nonsense, made entertaining, of course, by the clever animation work of Ben Harrison and Manny Gould. Good for kids and grown-ups as well.

"Oh What a Knight"
Oswald—Universal
Clever
Type of production . . 1 reel cartoon
This is one of the cleverest of the Oswald series, and the funny rabbit is handled so amusingly by the cartoonist that it will get the laughs from grownups as well as the youngsters. Oswald as the knight gallops to the castle to visit his lady love. There he encounters all sorts of terrible adventures with the alligators guarding the castle, and has a thrilling fight with the gal's father. In the windup Oswald and the lady float out of the balcony window, using her skirts for a parachute.

May 6, 1928
"Coast to Coast"—Fables
Pathe
Auto Race
Tyne of production. . .1 reel cartoon
Alfalfa, the cat, and his pal enter the auto race from coast to coast, and all sorts of funny things happen to the racing cars as they speed over hill and dale. The windup is fast and furious, with the cat winning by a tail. Good cartoon stuff, worked up with some novelty gags.

May 13, 1928
"Poor Papa"—Oswald Cartoon
Universal
Very Good
Type of production. . . .1 reel cartoon
Clever and original cartoons. In this offering Oswald the rabbit goes through some fine comedy antics. A flock of storks visit his cabin, and drop batches of little rabbits down the chimney. The idea is played up for a variety of gags, all funny and exceedingly original. One shows Oswald giving the kids their Saturday bath on the wholesale plan, and he runs them through a washing machine and hangs them on a line to dry. As cartoons go, it is easily above the average, and will click with all the fans.

"Sure-Locked Homes"—Pat Sullivan
Educational
Novelty
Type of production....1 reel cartoon
Felix starts out to do a Sherlock Holmes and the atmosphere is worked up in the real detective thriller fashion with clever cartoon work. There is the Bat and the Spider, and the latter is made a partner by Felix to help the cat sleuth capture the criminals. So he has the spider weave a web to snare the villains. Clever and unique.

May 13, 1928
"Eskimotive"—Pat Sullivan
Educational
Fine Cartoon
Type of production..1 reel animated
Felix, the adventurous cat, goes on a journey to the Arctic by means of a bubble. It serves as his airship, and after many unique experiences he lands in the realm of snow and Northern Lights. The cartoonist has started to develop a new technique in the Felix series, and it shows to fine advantage in this number. It consists in employing shadows and blackouts, and gives the cartoons an appearance of depth and body similar to actual shots of outdoor views. The boy who is doing the creative work on this series is using the old bean. Bound to please.

May 27, 1928
"A Jungle Triangle"
Fables—Pathe
Animal Comics
Type of production . . . 1 reel cartoon
Tells of the adventures of Martin Monk whose sweetie is stolen by Jumbo the elephant. Martin pulls a fast one and slips a sleeping powder in Jumbo's drink at the Jungle Night Club. Then he beats it back to the cocoanut tree with his sweetie, and everything is hotsy totsy. Good animal cartoon gags, with a fair share of giggles for the kids who love this series.

"The Fox Chase"—Oswald
Cartoon—Universal
Original
Type of production . . . 1 reel animated
Walt Disney has turned out another clever Oswald cartoon that will please all the fans. Oswald starts on his horse to take part in the fox chase, but the hoss plays some pranks and gets Oswald's goat. Meanwhile brother Fox is pulling all kinds of funny stunts fooling his pursuers. By the time Oswald catches up the fox is cornered, but managers to escape by a very original ruse. Good cartoon number wherever these are appreciated.

June 3, 1928
"Arabiantics"
Felix—Educational
Clever
Type of production..1 reel animated
A highly entertaining cartoon idea gives Felix the Cat a chance to adventure in Arabia. It's a good burlesque on the Arabian Nights Tale of the Forty Thieves. Felix finds himself on a magic rug that transports him to Bagdad. He swaps the magic rug for a bag of jewels. The Forty Thieves set out to steal the jewels, and Felix is kept busy and the fans will be kept well amused. As usual, the Sullivan studios have turned out a cartoon that is done with class and carries a good percentage of merriment and real entertainment.

June 17, 1928
"The Mouse's Bride"
Fables—Pathe
Very Good
Type of production .. 1 reel animated
Old Al has his troubles taking care of the various animals that share his home. First the goldfish call for a drink, and then the cat and the mouse insist on being waited upon. A clever idea is worked with two mice trying to spoon in the parlor, while Danny Duck is constantly walking in and out and interrupting the fun. It is well up to the Aesop Fables standard.

June 24, 1928
"Ride 'Em Cowboy"—Fables
Pathe
Burlesque
Type of production. .. .1 reel cartoon
The further adventures of Milton Mouse show him on his wedding day starting on the honeymoon. But the two bad cat bandits waylay them and steal the bride. Soon Milton is on their trail, riding his trusty horse. The latter proves a good ally by using his feet on the outlaws, and the fair dame is rescued and the honeymoon proceeds. It is a good burlesque on the western outlaw stuff.

"In and Out Laws"
Pat Sullivan—Educational
Travel Cartoon
Type of production. . . .2 reel comedy [sic]
Felix the Cat comes into possession of a game rooster, and decides to take it to Mexico and clean up on the fights. He matches his bird against the champion Mexican rival, and a hot battle ensues. Felix' bird wins, a villain steals the bankroll, but Felix manages to turn the tables on him in a very original manner. Cleverly executed as always, and the comedy antics of the cat are well up to his usual standard.

"Sleigh Bells"—Oswald
Universal
Clever
Type of production....1 reel cartoon
Oswald, the funny rabbit proves himself a fancy ice skater, and meets up with a pretty dame who is willing to let him teach her a few fancy capers. Oswald hits on the idea of using a balloon to keep the girl on her feet. She is carried skyward and by some very ingenious work Oswald succeeds in bringing her back to earth. A very entertaining and clever animated that will please old and young.

“Tall Timber”
Oswald—Universal
Good Cartoon
Type of production....1 reel comedy
Oswald the rabbit goes out into the open spaces for a day's sport, and all kinds of queer things happen to him. He has a tough time trying to shoot ducks, and almost sinks himself in his canoe. Then he is chased by various animals, and even the rocks roll down the hill on him. He finishes with a bear, but succeeds in winning the final bout. Very original, and the gags are clever and laughable.

And here are a few more ads for Krazy and Oswald.

Ring-Em White

Radio reference time again, this one from the Walter Lantz cartoon “Boogie Woogie Man” (1943). It’s not one you’ll see on TV any time soon, thanks to the very thick-lipped black caricatures in the second half. Well, and the nipples on the female ghosts in a few scenes.

During one sequence, three women spooks float up from under the stage and sing:



“Ring-em white, ring-em white
“Corny little wash-day goons.”

The tune’s a spoof of the Rinso jingle that could be heard on “Big Sister” and other radio shows of the era. Ghosts. Sheets. Ring-em. Get it? Oh, that Bugs Hardaway! Cle-ver!

Two of the ghosts return to under the stage, but one of the hammy ghosts remains. She’s pulled back under. The sequence is shot with each drawing on two frames.



La Verne Harding and Les Kline get the animation credits. Since there’s girl animation, Pat Matthews has got to be in here, too.

Casanova Cat and Mouse

Gender overrides species in cartoons. Watch some Terrytoons and you’ll see a lustful cat try to make out with a girl mouse.

And it happens in reverse, such as in “Casanova Cat.” I think I’ve figured out the reason. The girl cat kind of looks like a large girl mouse. Compare her head to Jerry’s.



And she gives a coy look at the end because the mouse is going to have his way with her in the back seat of a cab. Unlike the Terry girl mice, the girl cat in this cartoon isn’t too particular about who kisses her.



Ken Muse, Ed Barge, Ray Patterson and Irv Spence are the animators of this cartoon WHV doesn’t want to release on its Golden Collection DVD.