Fire devastates home of Børge Ring!

The devastating news just reached me that the home of my old mentor, now 91 year old Oscar winner Børge Ring and his wife Joanika has been completely laid in ashes by fire only some four hours ago! A fire in the chimney ignited the thatched roof of their old farm in the south-east of Holland.

Børge and Joanika are safe and cared for, but they have reportedly lost EVERYTHING. Art, memories, even the Oscar went up in flames. A fund is being set up to help them - more to follow! In the mean time I wish them all the strength in the world!

Børge is recipient of the Winsor McKay Award at the Annies on Saturday, and throughout this ordeal Børge and Joanika have insisted that their daughter Anne-Mieke not change her plans to receive the award in Børge's name. (The award ceremony will be available to watch on computers as a streaming feed.)

Dick Lundy

One of the animators mentioned in my previous posting was Dick Lundy. Richard James Lundy was born in Michigan on 8/14/07 and died 4/7/90 in San Diego County. Starting as cel painter and inbetweener in 1929, he worked at Disney until 1943 (though his IMDb credits also include Mickey Mouse Disco in 1980, but this "clip show" used his early work). After Disney he worked on lots and lots of Hanna-Barbera series, as well as features like Charlotte's Web, and even Bakshi's Fritz the Cat. We have, of course, encountered Lundy many times on this blog.

We didn't see Lundy at bat in the winter 1930/31 Disney studio Softball game. But above image links to a caricature of Lundy at bat, so we know how that looked. I do not know who drew the caricature - but it is obviously contemporary and came from Jack Cutting's files.

My old mentor Børge Ring once asked Bob Maxfield, animation director on the first Dutch animated feature "Dexter the Dragon & Bumble the Bear" (a weird title, but the Dutch "Als Je Begrijpt Wat Ik Bedoel" isn't much clearer) released in 1983 (with some minor animation by me), how it was to work on a feature film with old stalwarts like Dick Lundy (and with Volus Jones on Heavy Traffic). Maxfield, who himself started at Disney in the mid 40s, answered "They couldn't do it anymore. Too many years of just doing head-turns."

Prod. CM8 - The Picnic

Directed by Burt Gillett.
Released 10/23/30, this FINAL draft dated 9/13/30.
Animation by Dave Hand, Jack King, Charlie Byrne, Norm Ferguson, Dick Lundy, Johnny Cannon, Les Clark, Ben Sharpsteen, Tom Palmer, Wilfred Jackson, Jack Cutting and Frenchy de Trémaudan.

Found on the Treasures DVD Mickey Mouse in Black and White, Vol. 2 Disk 1 or on YouTube, though in very low quality here.

A cute little film, this is actually a landmark in animation history. "Can I bring Rover?" Little Rover is, of course, none other than Pluto! Fergy's scene 27 is often "quoted" when discussing the origins of this the most famous of cartoon canines.

It is very interesting to see the difference in drawing styles. Fergy tries to draw a dog and mostly does a very nice job. Compare this with e.g. Palmer's attempt in the final scene. It is a "funny cartoon balloon animal," a much more simplistic and symbolic way of drawing. Palmer, Cannon and Lundy seem not to be quite up to the standards that Walt was striving for during this period. Maybe this went for most anybody. Then again, with Ub Iwerks gone only some seven months before this film was animated, everything was up for grabs, in this for the studio so incredibly important yet oft forgotten period - and Fergy led the way.

Dave Hand starts off with some very clear simple statements in the very first scene (until it gets a little weird), but he also gets quite a bit of technical animation in this film, with cycles upon cycles. And don't you just love the sound effects during the rain pour? "Blubblubblub..."

We have seen the background to Jaxon's scenes 20 & 26 before, on Emil Flohri's desk in the first Hyperion Ave. studio in 1931!

More of Walt's Gulfstream...

Here is another reason I love paper shows!

Here we have a rare postcard of the interior of Walt's Gulfstream airplane, his much-loved toy that he had the fun Mickey sign made for that I showed you recently! The card even shows that the plane had its own logo! "In flight aboard Walt Disney Productions' Gulfstream N732G!"
The front bottom right reads "© 1964 Walt Disney Productions."
(To see the image more correctly, I have descreened it: )
Note that the N-number N732G has NEVER been assigned to Disney; it is currently assigned to a 1969 Beech aircraft registered in North Carolina. Before Disney took it over, the plane was registered as N707MP and then it became N234MM, a tailnumber it still has to this day, as seen on the images in my previous posting. Where, then, does the number N732G on this postcard stem from??

What is interesting to note also, is the fact that Walt had this exact image in his working office at the time of his passing. Here is the pertinent part of an image taken in his office in January 1968, 13 months later, while the office still stood untouched - note the four photos leaning up against the large aerial image of Disneyland:
For the sake of clarity I have adjusted their perspective so you can see them all head-on. It is the second photo from the left.These photos show that the actual interior was much less yellow/brown than shown on the postcard. The walls and ceiling seems to have been white. Why they printed them yellow on the card, I have no idea. Maybe white was considered too boring?
The colors look like they have aged, but on a printed postcard?

The above row of images shows that there were basically two "rooms" divided by a semi-transparent divider with curtain. The postcard image (image 2) was shot from the position seen in image 1, while image 3 is as shot through the curtain, its counter shot is image 4, through which you can see the backside of the postcard image.
I count 13 seats...

Some time ago, the Disney Archives showed the following images on the D23 site: a jet model that was on Walt's desk in his official office, Walt's phone from the Gulfstream plane, and the plane's altimeter.Neither the Gulfstream, nor the earlier Queen Air or King Air planes resemble the jet model, though. Looking at an image from Walt's formal office (left photo, also January 1968), I can see the plaque reads "Grumman Gulfstream 2," which to me sounds like a letter to Santa: "Dear Roy, I want one!" Then again, in Walt's working office (right photo) were both a model AND a photo of the "current" plane!You can still see Walt's open briefcase in the floor behind his desk...

In Wade Sampson (Jim Korkis)'s very interesting article you can read more about Walt's planes, including this excerpt:
Over the years, there were actually three company planes that Walt flew in: Queen Air (Beechcraft) February 1963 - July 1965 (propeller driven); King Air (Beechcraft) 1965- 1967 (prop jet); and the Gulfstream (Grumman) bought 1963, in service May 1964, retired to WDW October 8, 1992. This is the plane you see on the backstage tour and, yes, Walt did fly in it to search for a site for Walt Disney World.
What I do not see in the article, though, is the intense involvement in Walt's plane from another flier in the company, Jack Cutting, who was Mr. International Dept. and one of Walt's closest advisers in this matter, helping writing the safety manuals. The top hand-written added phone number in his Disney phonebooks (of which I have a few) was the Burbank Airport, followed by the weather bureau.

(For information on the current Disney air fleet, check the info on their company Earth Star Inc, 500 S. Buena Vista St., Burbank.)

Prod. UM1 - Mickey's Nightmare

Directed by Burt Gillett.
Released 8/13/32, this draft dated 4/20/32. Nearly four months!? Could it be because this film was the first Mickey in the United Artists series?

Animation by Norm Ferguson, Jack King, Tom Palmer, Johnny Cannon, Gilles Armand "Frenchy" de Trémaudan, Ben Sharpsteen,
Les Clark, Hardy Gramatky and Dave Hand.

Another classic with the animators unknown - until now!

Drawing in 3D - anno 1949

I was wondering what Paul Satterfield had been doing after he left Disney. He was not involved in the infamous strike of 1941, and information is scarce at best:

Paul McKinley Satterfield was born 3/27/1896 and died 8/14/1981.
Alberto Becattini had this info for Paul Satterfield:
Animator: CARLSON 19-21 (The Gumps 20-21); DISNEY c36-38 (Mickey Mouse 38, Silly Symphony 38-39 [Farmyard Symphony 38, The Ugly Duckling 39], Donald Duck 39)
Sequence Director: DISNEY c38-41 (Fantasia 40, Bambi 42)

Thus I was very surprised to find at a paper show recently a set of cards dated 1949 with 3D drawings on them that show they were made by P & C Satterfield. Am I right in deducing that this "P" may be said Paul Satterfield?

The sets include five whole series and two incomplete ones. Some (like the one above) are very cartoony, others are more realistic Lone Ranger-type sets. If there is more interest among you, I may scan a few more...

Technically, note that these are not the cross-eyed type: the left image is for the left eye, the right for the right eye. Thus, if you size them so the images are no more than the difference between your eyes apart, you should be able to see the depth (with some practice). You can also use your old stereo viewer. You DO have one, don't you? Else, I have made a version that can be seen cross-eyed, here:It tends to be easier to see stereo images cross-eyed, as it does not strain the eyes in the same way and the distance between the images can be larger than the standard "about 2.5 inches" which means that you can see larger images. In the image just above I switched the left and right eye images, so the left eye sees the right image.

With a little training you can get the left and right-eye images to coincide, and the brain will take over and show you the depth information. Here is how you can train this: put your finger at the bottom edge right in between the two images you want to see as a 3D image. Slowly move it straight towards your nose, and keep looking the tip of it with both eyes. In the mean time still take note of the images that start to come together just above your finger. When it is about halfway in between the screen or paper and your face, the images should coincide. At this point, concentrate on the images, and have your brain place them perfectly over each other. Your brain should take over here, and show you the image in 3D.

Of course this works only for cross-eyed 3D images. For the other type your finger should move away, possibly to infinity, or even just split up, and this is not at all practical. Yet even many of this type of images can be seen in 3D with practice, if you teach yourself to look "through" the image into the space behind it. The advantage of this is the size of the resulting image, it will seem closer by. On the other hand, the distance between the images should as a rule not be larger than the distance between the centers of your pupils, which is rather an obvious limitation. Many older stereopticon images are a little further apart, and the glasses in the viewer make up for this increased distance. Obviously, cross-eyed viewing is much easier to train.

It is actually quite helpful to train this, as you can find more 3D images on the web that work this way. Also, for those of you making 3D CGI, placing two images next to each other this way makes it possible to see them in 3D without glasses (and without their inherent loss of light and color!) Some programs that present 3D video from two separate sources let you view the images side-by-side, and cross-eyed you can often see any mistakes more clearly than using 3D glasses. I used this on our own "Olsen Gang Gets Polished" feature, which four of us made into a 3D presentation in about four months, two years back.

It is to me pretty amazing just how much work the brain does to get the 3D to work. A few years back I was fortunate to attend the 3D Festival in Hollywood, where all the known 3D films from before the recent revival of the medium were shown, and I noticed that taking my glasses off showed me two weaving images moving in any direction constantly. With the glasses, the 3D image was rock steady. I speculate that it is all this correcting by the brain that for some people leads to headaches.

Prod. UM12 - Ye Olden Days

Directed by Burt Gillett, music by Frank Churchill.
Released thru United Artists on 4/8/33.

Sadly the first page is missing on my copy, but what is left shows us the following animators: Ben Sharpsteen (supervising Art Babbitt, Marvin Woodward, Ham Luske, Johnny Cannon and probably more), Norm Ferguson, Dick Lundy, Les Clark, Tom Palmer and Jack King.

Sharpsteen was in charge of the up-and-coming animators in this period, which is why so many scenes bear his name. As an example, scene 21 has only his name indicated, but we have seen recently that it was animated by Ed Love. Only with access to more documents like this animation layout can we find the actual credits for Ben's scenes. [Addition:] Seconds ago I was thumbing through the Layout & Background book in the Archives series, and here I see that scene 11 is by "Ben/[Harry ]Reeves, while the layout for scene 33B has "Ben/[Jack ]Kinney" written on it!

Prod. 2011 - The Fabulous Mr. Toad (XVII) - Seq. 19.6 - Ending - Seq. 03.0 Sec.B

Seq. 19.6 - Directed by Jack Kinney, layout by Al Zinnen. Animation by Harvey Toombs, Clair Weeks, Henry Tanous and Jack Boyd.

Seq. 03.0 Sec "B" - Directed by Special Process (Ub Iwerks' dept.), layout by John Hench. This sequence ends the Toad draft, which continues into the (separate) Ichabod draft.

These Final draft pages are dated 5/12/49.

This is the end of this film. Remember what I wrote about the historical value of these documents in my "Standard Disclaimer!"
Still, they give a great insight into the film. I wish they started to make a separately super-imposable subtitle track for the DVD and Blu-Ray editions. I guess that the Powers That Be do not see any financial benefit in it, but I should also never say never...

Back soon with more interesting stuff!

Prod. 2011 - The Fabulous Mr. Toad (XVI) - Seq. 19.5 - Fight (part 2)

Continued from yesterday:(Directed by Jack Kinney, layout by Al Zinnen.
This Final draft is dated 5/11/49.)

More Reitherman, Sibley and Lusk...

Prod. 2011 - The Fabulous Mr. Toad (XV) - Seq. 19.5 - Fight (part 1)

Directed by Jack Kinney, layout by Al Zinnen.
This Final draft is dated 5/11/49.

Animation by Murray McClellan, Henrey Tanous, John Sibley, Woolie Reitherman, Hal King, Harvey Toombs, Don Lusk and Ed Aardal.

Ever in need of material to post, and with very little time on my hands, I split this sequence up in two parts, and leave the commenting to you!

Icons of Animation Auction (VI)

Here is another contender for my favorite item at tomorrow's big animation art auction:502. ORIGINAL CONCEPT ARTWORK BY DAVID HALL OF CROCODILE SNIFFING CAPTAIN HOOK’S CIGARS FROM PETER PAN. (Walt Disney Studios, 1953) Original concept artwork by master concept artist David Hall accomplished in watercolors over ink and dry-brush on a leaf of illustration board measuring approx. 9 ½ in. x 12 in. featuring a crocodile in a swamp sniffing two of Captain Hook’s disposed cigars. Conceived, executed and signed by David Hall in 1939, fourteen years prior to the eventual release of the Disney film. This painting was reproduced in the February 1999 issue of Walt Disney’s Uncle Scrooge in a story titled “The Year that was 1939, David Hall Revisited.” From the collection of Bruce Hamilton.
$6,000 – $8,000 [Did not sell.]

Now, you'll ask, "What is that crocodile crockery on the right? He certainly isn't part of the auction!" Here is a revelation that I was witness to recently: David Hall's great crocodile painting MUST have been the model for the croc bank on the right, which was produced in at least four different color schemes as merchandise for the 1967 musical The Happiest Millionaire! Again I say: how great is that?
Look at that happy smiling expression, and the direction of his eyes! Anybody looking for a painting to give as present for my 50th birthday in two weeks, here it is...

Oh, and his name is George!

Remember, if you are not bidding, get the catalog while you can!

Prod. 2011 - The Fabulous Mr. Toad (XIV) - Seq. 16.1 - Secret Tunnel

Directed by Jack Kinney, layout by Charles Philippi and Al Zinnen.
This Final draft is dated 5/11/49.

Character animation by Marc Davis, effect animation by Jack Boyd.
A whole sequence of over 40 scenes by Davis!