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Friday, July 31, 2015

Original Production Drawing of Goofy from "Tugboat Mickey," 1940


Original production drawing of Goofy from "Tugboat Mickey," 1940; Red, green, blue, and graphite pencil on peg hole paper; Numbered 23 with animation ladder lower right; Size - Goofy: 5 1/2 x 8 1/4", Sheet 10 x 12"; Unframed.


Goofy, one of the greatest Disney characters ever, was created in 1932 and debuted in "Mickey's Revue," originally imagined as Dippy Dawg. Later the same year, he was redesigned as a much younger dog, renamed Goofy, and appeared in "The Whoopee Party." During the 1930s he was used extensively as part of a comedy trio with Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck. Goofy's breakout was in 1939, when he was given his own series of shorts that became very popular; and his starring roles continued into the 1940s and early '50s.


Close up of the Goofy production drawing.

The story of "Tugboat Mickey" is that Mickey is the Captain of a tugboat, along with Donald and Goofy as crew members. Suddenly Mickey receives a distress signal from a sinking ship, calls the crew, and has them begin to fire up the tugboat engine. As Donald struggles with the connecting rod of one of the pistons, Goofy accidentally overloads the furnace of the ships steam engine that causes a catastrophic explosion. As Mickey and his crew are floating in the water surrounded by the remains of their tugboat, they learn that the distress signal they heard was only part of a broadcast radio drama. The voice cast for "Tugboat Mickey" includes Walt Disney as Mickey Mouse, Clarence Nash as Donald Duck, and Pinto Colvig as Goofy.


Close up of the production ladder and production number.

This is a wonderful full figure, eyes open, and large drawing of Goofy; as he is shoveling coal into the furnace of Mickey's tugboat furnace engine. The drawing is rendered in red, blue, green, and graphite pencils and the image of Goofy is an impressive 5 1/2 x 8 1/4". The production number along with the animation ladder are in the bottom right corner.

Thursday, July 30, 2015

Original Production Drawing of Grumpy from "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," 1937


Original production drawing of Grumpy from "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," 1937; Red and graphite pencil on peg hole paper; Numbered 47 lower right; Stamped production numbers lower left; Size - Grumpy: 4 x 3 1/4", Sheet 10 x 12"; Unframed.


Development on Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs began in early 1934, and by June Walt Disney announced to The New York Times the production of his first feature, to be released under Walt Disney Productions.  Before Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the Disney studio had been primarily involved in the production of animated short subjects in the Mickey Mouse and Silly Symphonies series.  However, Disney hoped to expand his studio's prestige and revenues by moving into features, and he estimated that Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs could be produced for a budget of $250,000 (this was ten times the budget of an average Silly Symphony).

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was to be the first full-length cel animated feature in motion picture history, and as such Walt Disney had to fight to get the film produced. Both his brother and business partner Roy Disney, as well as his wife Lillian attempted to talk him out of it.  The Hollywood movie industry mockingly referred to the film, while is was in production, as "Disney's Folly."  Disney ended up having to mortgage his house to help finance the film's production, which would eventually ran up to a total cost of $1,488,422.74; an absolutely massive sum for a feature film in 1937!


Close up of the Grumpy production drawing.

Grumpy was animated by Vladimir "Bill" Tytla, who also animated Doc. Tytla's Grumpy is the second most popular of the seven dwarfs, just behind Dopey.

From Disney animator Andreas Deja:
"Tytla animated 'from the inside out.' For every scene he did, he lived inside of that character. He drew absolutely beautifully, but bringing out  emotion and personality came first. Even if that lead to an off model drawing here and there. Walt had Fred Moore take a look at a few of Tytla's Grumpy scenes in order to punch up the 'charm level.'"


Close up of the production stamp.

Pinto Colvig provided the voice of Grumpy. Colvig was an American vaudeville actor, radio actor, newspaper cartoonist, movie voice actor, and circus performer; but he is most remembered for being the original Bozo The Clown. He was also the original voice of the Walt Disney character Goofy, and not only provided the voice of Grumpy, but Sleepy as well.


Close up of the production number.

This is a brilliant drawing of Grumpy from the "Bluddle-Uddle-Um-Dum" song sequence; also known as "The Dwarfs' Washing Song." It is performed by the seven dwarfs as they wash their faces and hands, under Snow White's orders. Grumpy sits on a nearby barrel refusing to join in, while teasing the other dwarfs for taking orders from Snow White. This eyes open and full figure drawing of him sitting on a barrel is from the scene when he tells the other dwarfs, "Bunch of old nanny goats. Ya make me sick." Eventually the other dwarfs grab him and throw him into the washing trough, and begin scrubbing him vigorously.

Original Production Drawing of Mickey Mouse from "Canine Caddy," 1941


Original production drawing of Mickey Mouse from "Canine Caddy," 1941; Red, green, and graphite pencil on peg hole paper; Numbered 60 lower right with animation ladder right; Size - Mickey Mouse: 4 x 6", Sheet 10 x 12"; Unframed.


The plot of "Canine Caddy" is that Mickey Mouse is on the links going golfing, and Pluto is his caddy. Besides the usual caddy duties like carrying the bag of golf clubs and removing the flag from the hole cup; Pluto also chases after the ball and once he finds it he points. However, when the ball lands in a gopher hole, Pluto begins to chase the gopher. They chase each other throughout the golf course and finally find there way to a small hill. Mickey is on top of the hill getting ready to putt his ball into the cup, when Pluto and the gopher's chase makes so many holes in the hill, that it finally collapses.


Close up of the Mickey Mouse production drawing.

This was the second to last Mickey Mouse cartoon of 1941 and just two more Mickey cartoons were made in 1942; after which Mickey did not appear again until 1947. For "Canine Caddy" Walt Disney was the voice of Mickey Mouse and Pinto Colvig provided the voice of both Pluto and the gopher.


Close up of the production number.

This drawing is when Mickey is getting ready to putt his ball; just after he has trimmed the grass from the ball to the cup, with a hand held trimmer. This is a great full figure and eyes open Mickey Mouse drawing from 1941 playing golf, from one of the finest Walt Disney shorts.

To view the scene which this drawing was used to create, click on the short video below:

Original Production Drawing of Pinocchio from "Pinocchio," 1940


Original production drawing in red, blue, green, and graphite pencils of Pinocchio from "Pinocchio," 1940; On watermarked five peg hole paper with production stamp lower left; Numbered 43 in pencil lower right; Size - Pinocchio 4 x 4", Sheet: 10 x 12"; Unframed.


"Pinocchio," 1940 was the second animated feature film produced by Disney, and followed on the success of "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs." 1937. It was released to theaters by RKO Radio Pictures on February 23, 1940 and was based on the Italian children's novel "The Adventures of Pinocchio" by Carlo Collodi. The general plot of the film involves an old wood-carver named Geppetto, who carves a wooden puppet that he names Pinocchio. One night the puppet is brought to life by the Blue Fairy, who informs him that he can become a real boy if he proves himself to be "brave, truthful, and unselfish". Pinocchio's journey to become a real boy is challenged by his encounters with an array of scrupulous characters.

"Pinocchio" became the first animated feature to win an Academy Award; it won for both Best Music - Original Score and for Best Music - Original Song for "When You Wish Upon A Star." Most critics and audiences agree that "Pinocchio" is among the finest Disney features ever made, and one of the greatest animated films of all time. In 1994, it was added to the United States National Film Registry as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."


Close up of the Pinocchio original production drawing.

Due to the huge success of "Snow White," Walt Disney wanted more famous voice actors for "Pinocchio." He cast popular singer Cliff Edwards (who had made the first record selling over a million copies) as Jiminy Cricket. Disney also wanted the character of Pinocchio to be voiced by a real child. The role ended up going to twelve year old actor Dickie Jones, who had previously been in Frank Capra's enormous Hollywood hit, "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington."


Close up of the production stamp.

Animation began in September 1938 and just as in "Snow White," live-action footage was shot for "Pinocchio" with the actors playing the scenes; which was supervised by Hamilton Luske. The animators then used the footage as a guide for their animation drawings by studying the human movement and then incorporating many of those poses and scenes. The title character was animated by Milt Kahl (initial design), Frank Thomas, and Ollie Johnston. "When I was doing Pinocchio," Johnston said, "I thought of the character being real, a living person, not a drawing."


Close up of the production number.

"Pinocchio," was groundbreaking in the area of effects animation. The animators gave realistic movement to vehicles, machinery, and natural elements; such as rain, lightning, snow, smoke, shadows, and water. In contrast to the character animators, effects animators create everything that moves around the characters. Sandy Strother, one of the Disney effects animators from "Pinocchio," kept a diary about his year long animation of the water effects; which included splashes, ripples, bubbles, waves, and the illusion of being underwater. All of this attention to detail contributed to "Pinocchio" being one of the first animated films to have highly realistic effects animation. Ollie Johnston remarked "I think that's one of the finest things the studio's ever done" and Frank Thomas stated, "The water looks so real a person can drown in it, and they do."

This is a wonderful full figure drawing of Pinocchio underwater. His eyes and mouth are open, and he is surrounded by bubbles and water currents. There is also a second rough animation drawing of Pinocchio's face, just to the right of the main image.

Wednesday, July 29, 2015

Original Production Drawing of Mickey Mouse from "The Dognapper," 1934


Original production drawing of Mickey Mouse from "The Dognapper," 1934; Graphite pencil on peg hole paper; Numbered 49 lower right; Size - Mickey Mouse with hat and smoke: 6 x 7", Sheet 9 1/2 x 12"; Unframed.


"The Dognapper,"1934 is an animated short film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by United Artists. The film stars Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck as police officers who chase Pegleg Pete who has dognaped Fifi, Minnie Mouse's pet Pekingese. The film was directed by David Hand and features the voices of Clarence Nash as Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck, and Billy Bletcher as the voice as Pegleg Pete. This was the first and only time that Mickey was voiced by Clarence Nash, because Walt Disney was in Europe at the time and therefore unavailable to record his lines for Mickey.


Close up of the Mickey Mouse production drawing.

"The Dognapper" was Donald Duck's third film and the first adventure story to star both Mickey and Donald. This was also the second, of only three black and white cartoons, to feature Donald Duck (the other two being "Orphan's Benefit" and "Mickey's Service Station"). 


Close up of the production number.

"The Dognapper" begins with newspaper headlines that Fifi, Minnie Mouse's "prize pooch," has been dognapped. The newspaper also has a description of the suspect, Peg Leg Pete. Police officers Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck here a transmission over their motorcycle radio about the robbery, and a description of the getaway car. Suddenly, they see Peg Leg Pete speed by in his car, and they hop onto their police motorcycle to chase after him. This drawing is from the opening scene as Mickey hops onto the motorcycle, his hat up is in the air above his head, and a cloud of smoke comes out from the tailpipe. This is a wonderful 1934 drawing of an eyes open Mickey Mouse from an early black and white cartoon.

To view the scene which this drawing was used to create, click on the short video below:

Tuesday, July 28, 2015

Original Production Cel of Wart as King Arthur from "The Sword In The Stone," 1963


Original hand painted production cel of Wart as King Arthur from "The Sword In The Stone," 1963; Set on a lithographic background; Size - Wart (King Arthur): 5 1/4" x 5 1/2", Cel: 10 x 12"; Image 8" x 9 3/4", Mat 13 1/2 x 16"; Double matted.


"The Sword in the Stone," 1963 is the 18th full length feature film produced by Walt Disney and it was released on December 25, 1963 by Buena Vista Distribution. The film was based on the novel of the same name, that was first published in 1938. It was later republished in 1958 as the first book of T. H. White's tetralogy "The Once and Future King." It was to be the final Disney animated film released before Walt Disney's death on December 15, 1966. The songs in the film were written and composed by the Sherman Brothers, who would become very famous for their future work on later Disney films including; "Mary Poppins," 1964, "The Jungle Book," 1967, and "Bedknobs and Broomsticks," 1971.


Production cel of Wart as King Arthur without the background.

Wart was animated by both Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston; and the voice was provided by three different actors; Rickie Sorensen, Richard Reitherman and his brother Robert Reitherman. This lead to noticeable changes in the character's voice between scenes. Also, the three voices all have Brooklyn-esque accents, which differed with the English setting for the film and with the accents spoken by all other characters.


Photograph of the matted original production cel of Wart as King Arthur.

The cel is from the scene in the film which occurs after Wart/Arthur has pulled the sword (Excalibur) from the stone and is crowned King. As time passes, he feels unprepared for the responsibility of ruling an entire country. He attempts to run away, but every exit door of the castle is blocked by cheering crowds of people. Merlin suddenly returns from Bermuda and is thrilled that Wart is now King Arthur. Merlin tells Arthur that in the future he will be famous, books will be written about him, and perhaps even a motion picture! This cel is from the scene when Arthur jumps off his thrown and attempts to run away from the castle. Cels of Wart as King Arthur (wearing the crown and robe) are extremely rare. He is only in the film as King during the last few minutes of the movie. The dialog for this cel is below:

Wart/King Arthur: "I can't be a king, Archimedes. I don't know anything about ruling a country."
Archimedes (Owl): "I told you to leave the thing in the stone, boy."
Wart/King Arthur: "I'll, I'll run away, that's what I'll do. They'll just have to get somebody else."

Monday, July 27, 2015

Original Production Animation Cels of Horace Badun and Jasper Badun From "101 Dalmatians," 1961


Original hand painted production animation cels of Horace Badun, numbered 378 and of Jasper Badun, numbered 58 both from "101 Dalmatians," 1961; Both set on a lithographic background; Size - Horace and Jasper: 9" x 11 1/4", Cels: 12 1/2 x 15", Image: 11" x 14"; Unframed.


“You idiots! You... You fools! Oh, you imbeciles!”
―Cruella to Jasper and Horace

"One Hundred and One Dalmatians" ("101 Dalmatians"), is a 1961 full length animated feature film by Walt Disney Productions. It was adapted from Dodie Smith's 1956 novel of the same name. It stars Rod Taylor as the voice of Pongo and Cate Bauer as the voice of Perdita; with Betty Lou Gerson as the voice of the evil and villainous Cruella de Vil. The animation of all the characters from the film was quite extraordinary. The animators responsible for the villains were Marc Davis who animated Cruella De Vil, and John Lounsbery who animated both Horace and Jasper Badun.

From former Walt Disney animator Andreas Deja:
"Cruella De Vil's henchmen Jasper and Horace were principally animated by John Lounsbery (and beautifully so), but their final design was created by Milt Kahl based on story man Bill Peet's rough character concepts. These two second rate criminals share a fairly low IQ, but in appearance they form a fun, strong contrasting duo. Jasper is tall, thin and gangly, Horace is tubby, short and  roly-poly. Some of their scenes were based on live action reference, but the animation never looks rotoscoped or floaty."


Original production cels of Horace and Jasper without the background.

Frederick Worlock provided the voice for both Horace and Inspector Craven, while J. Pat O'Malley provided the voice for both Jasper and the Colonel. O'Malley had a long history with voice work for Disney: he was the Cockney guy in the "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" sequence in "Mary Poppins," 1964, Cyril Proudbottom, Winkie, and a policeman in "The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad," 1949, Colonel Hathi and Buzzie in "The Jungle Book," 1967, all the character voices in the "The Walrus and the Carpenter" segment (besides Alice), including Tweedledum and Tweedledee from "Alice In Wonderland," 1951.


Production numbers on the Horace and Jasper production cels.

These cels pictured are from the scene when Horace Badun and Jasper Badun, Cruella's two hired henchman, sneak into Roger and Anita's house; by attempting to pass themselves as repairmen from the Electric Company. Nanny refuses to let them in since Roger and Anita are out walking Pongo and Perdita; but the two force themselves through the front door. Jaspar keeps Nanny upstairs in an attic room, while downstairs Horace steals the puppies. These two cels appear when Nanny opens the front door, and are greeted by the evil duo. This is perhaps one of the greatest cel setups of Horace and Jasper. They are both eyes and mouth open, and are tipping their hats to Nanny; as they try to get inside the house to steal the dalmatian puppies for the evil Cruella. The dialog from the scene is below:

Nanny: "Now, who do you suppose...?" [answers the door]
Jasper: "Good evening, ma'am. We're here to inspect the wiring and the switches."
Horace: "And we're from the gas company."
Jasper: [prods Horace] "Lectric, lectric."
Horace: "Oh. Electric company!"
Nanny: "Oh, but we didn't call for any inspection."

To view the scene which these cels were used to create, click on the short video below:

Sunday, July 26, 2015

Original Production Cel of the Queen of Hearts from "Alice In Wonderland," 1951


Original hand inked and hand painted production cel of the Queen of Hearts set on a lithographic background from "Alice In Wonderland," 1951; Size - Queen of Hearts: 7 x 5 1/2", Cel: 10 x 9", Image: 9 1/2 x 8"; Unframed.


"Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" (commonly shortened to "Alice in Wonderland"), is a 1865 novel written by English author Charles Lutwidge Dodgson who wrote under the pseudonym Lewis Carroll. Disney reworked the story to fit with both a younger audience and a time frame suitable for an animated film (it's run time is only 75 minutes). 


Production cel of the Queen of Hearts without the background.

The Queen of Hearts was voiced by Verna Felton and most people, when you mention the Queen of Hearts from "Alice," remember hearing Verna's classic line "Off with their heads!" Ms. Felton not only voiced the Queen from "Alice" but the Fairy Godmother from "Cinderella," Flora and Queen Leah from "Sleeping Beauty," Aunt Sarah from "Lady and Tramp," and several other Disney characters. What is interesting is that all the other characters that Felton voiced are sweet and kind, with the typical grandmother type of voice; but not the Queen of Hearts. The Queen was loud and you never knew exactly when she would lose her temper.


Close up of the original production cel of the Queen of Hearts.

This is a spectacular full figure image of the major villain from the film "Alice In Wonderland," the Queen of Hearts! She is lifting her red and black robe, holding her heart fan, and she has a fantastic grin on her face. This cel is from the scene when the Queen first appears in the film. She is announced by the White Rabbit who is wearing a heart tunic, and after he has blown a horn he says, "Her Imperial Highness, Her Grace, Her Excellency, Her Royal Majesty, the Queen of Hearts!" The Queen walks out, surrounded by heart suited playing card guards.