Robert McKimson, A hard guy to track down Options

[MicahToons]

greetings from a first time poster.
I'm doing a presentation in my Animation History Class at school on Robert McKimson. I've managed to dig up some interesting history on the man. I have a bit of insight into his personality.
Since he was such a quiet guy there aren't but one or two interviews that I know about. His interview on the Looney Tune DVDs is great.

The long and short of this is: I want to knock folks out with this presentation. The Teacher is a big Brain when it comes to Animation History... I want to honor the man who made my favorite cartoons and stick one to the teacher (less than noble, sure, but what the hey.)

If anyone has suggestions for books, internet or magazine articles, newspaper article, any other media that may help me isolate and better explain Robert McKimson's contribution to Animation I would greatly appreciate the help. When compiled I will make the presentation availible on the internet.

Thanks.

Yours Truly,
MicahToons

[RobEB]

You're probably already aware of this one, but there's a McKimson interview (by Mark Nardone in 1976) in The American Animated Cartoon, A Critical Anthology, edited by Gerald and Danny Peary, published by E.P. Dutton. Hope this helps!

[CaptGeorge]

Frankly, I think McKimson was a better animator than director.

I know a lot of people defend his directing efforts and he's been the subject of a lot of overly harsh, critical reviews, but I don't think he's in the same league as Avery, Clampett, Freleng, Frank Tashlin, or Chuck Jones. His Bugs Bunny cartoons are blander than the other guys and even when he's working with his own original characters (listed below), his cartoons just don't come off as well as the other directors. Heck, I've seen WB cartoons directed by Art Davis that were a LOT funnier than any of McKimson's.

(Part of the reason McKimson gets defended more than Davis is because he LASTED LONGER AS A DIRECTOR. Davis' WB animation unit lasted roughly 2 years, 1946?-1948?, before it was disbanded and he got bumped back down to animator because of cost cutbacks at WB.)

I know there's been a lot of talking and excuses that the other directors (Freleng and Jones) took the best crew people for their animation units, but a really good director would make the best use of people regardless of who they were and they probably interchanged people from time to time. I kinda doubt people worked together ALL the time over 10-20 at Warner Bros. or any studio at the time the shorts were made.

Look, the characters McKimson contributed were Tazmanian Devil, Henry Hawk, and Foghorn Leghorn. These are NOT the best of the classic Looney Tunes characters, but at least they're NOT Bunny and Claude of the Sixties Looney Tunes! LOL You've gotta give McKimson that.

I'm in awe of McKimson's talent as an animator and still think that his model sheet for Bugs Bunny is the standard by which every character model sheet ought to be judged. For heavens' sake, they're STILL using a variation of that model sheet even today!

I'd have to think Michael Barrier's Hollywood Cartoons book has something to say about Robert McKimson's cartoons.

There's another book called "The Great Cartoon Directors" that's written by Jeff Lenburg, but I DON'T think it's worth hunting down because it only has a paragraph on McKimson and what I wrote (factually, not the opinion part) is basically what's in that book. Basically, besides lacking the sense of humor that his contemporaries had, McKimson stayed with Warner Bros. until it closed in 1963, took a 2-year break, and then started working on shorts with DePatie-Freleng and stayed there until his death in 1977. That's basically all the book says besides the fact that McKimson created 3 classic characters at WB.

[Muctu]

Frankly, I think McKimson was a better animator than director.
I don't think he's in the same league as Avery, Clampett, Freleng, Frank Tashlin, or Chuck Jones.  His Bugs Bunny cartoons are blander than the other guys

There is a pretty good run-down of McKimson's carreer as part of the documentary on disk 4 of the Looney Tunes DVD set. I think he is a great director who suffers only by comparison to even greater directors. I love his loudmouth characters like Foghorn Leghorn and the Genie in A Lad and His Lamp. And Hillbilly Hare has one of the funniest musical numbers ever. I agree he did a kick-ass Bugs Bunny model sheet.

[RobEB]

There is a pretty good run-down of McKimson's carreer as part of the documentary on disk 4 of the Looney Tunes DVD set. I think he is a great director who suffers only by comparison to even greater directors. I love his loudmouth characters like Foghorn Leghorn and the Genie in A Lad and His Lamp. And Hillbilly Hare has one of the funniest musical numbers ever. I agree he did a kick-ass Bugs Bunny model sheet.

I know I've said this here before, but I still think McKimson's early Bugs cartoons (A LAD IN HIS LAMP, THE WINDBLOWN HARE, HURDY GURDY HARE, etc.) are the best in the series.

[Guest_JackSpit_*]

Don't forget to mention his brothers who were both illustrators and animators--they were really talented too.

[Semaj]

From what I've seen, Robert McKimson was a great animator, even though animators are normally given less bread than their directors. He had been working for Warner Brothers for practically the entire life-span of the studio, working under the supervision of almost every director there between 1930 and 1946. There was a brief period during the mid-1950's when McKimson did some animating under his own supervision. He even remained at Warner Bros. during the Seven Arts Era (1964-1969).

There's one book I've read (written by Chales Solomon in 1989) that explains a heap of stuff about animation. It has a paragraph or two about Robert McKimson, but it explains more about how much he hated his role as a director than anything about his animation skills.

McKimson's drawings didn't start to become polished until 1939, when he was animating under Chuck Jones' supervision (as evidenced by the outstanding Old Glory (1939)). His animation under Bob Clampett officially paid-off, when he designed the modeling sheet for Bugs Bunny. When people are describing the evolution of Bugs Bunny, they often overlook McKimson's redesigning of the character, as they tend to focus solely on the directors' attitudes toward the character development.

As for McKimson's role as a director, it's been said time and again that his best material ranged from 1946 to 1955. It should also be said that McKimson created the first Speedy Gonzales cartoon in 1952 (not Friz Freleng, although Freleng was the first to formally introduce the character in 1955).
I personally think McKimson would've had better luck in his career if he tried to strike it out on his own at some point. That's what Clampett, Freleng, and Jones all did at some point of their careers. Or, he could've tried moving to different studios, as did Tex Avery. Either way, he would've been placed on the ranks of such people as Shamus Culhane, or Gene Deitch if he had taken more risks.

As for the McKimson brothers (Charles and Thomas), they did some artwork for Warner Bros. between the 1930's and 1950's. For some reason, Thomas left in 1947, and Charles left in 1955.

[MicahToons]

Whew! I'll start off by thanking you folks for taking the time to respond! I check the infor you've given me this weekend as I try to find the structure of my presentation.

The American Animated Cartoon, A Critical Anthology, edited by Gerald and Danny Peary, published by E.P. Dutton. is something my teacher tried to remember for me but he could not quite recall the info. This will be of great help.

I was thinking of trying to compile a chart with the units of animation depicting who worked where when adn how long. I think that aught to be fascinating anyway, besides helping me understand the time relationships.

McK was the first Directore I recognised on TV. THe first one I thought "Ah! I know this guy! This'll be fun!" So I want to honor his work. His cartoons make me laugh. My girlfriend will tell you that I am rediculously easily amused... however I really give up the gufaw for McKimson.

There's one book I've read (written by Chales Solomon in 1989) that explains a heap of stuff about animation. It has a paragraph or two about Robert McKimson, but it explains more about how much he hated his role as a director than anything about his animation skills.

That may make this an interesting project. If I can get that opinion verified then it may explain any shortcomings as a director. We shall see.

I think his contribution as an animator and designer are most important to his recognition. Unfortunately the lay man may know some or all the big directors, but too few realise who/how the contributions of the animators (on down)are/did their thing. His Brothers aren't going to be forgotten.

I have unearthed Robert McKimson Jr. as a proponent of his father's recognition. Though perhaps biased (perhaps?!!) I think he will have great things to offer. If he is willing.

I'll be back here as I delve into the subject further. THanks again.!!

[MicahToons]

So, I'm running around the internet and there are some old posts on other boards about Robert McKimson. And here's a speculation by some of those gents:

From 1958-1962 a slump in the quality of films was noted. One or two of the guys seemed to think there was a noticable lag. Anyhow--Opinion not withstanding--This time seems to correlate with Ted(d) Pierce being McKimson's writer. Just Pierce. I know there is quite a bit in the Chuck amuck book about Pierce (takeing the reader on a virtual tour or somesuch) that's tonight's reading. But theory goes that Pierce was rather tough to get along with (yet was employed by WB for some time).

Was Pierce an "@55 hole"? Did that have something to do with the quality of the shorts?

I recently made contact with Robert McKimson, Jr. He says he'll be happy to answer any questions I have. Hoping to get some good stuff that can be confirmed.

thnks

[Matthew Hunter]

Speaking of McKimson Jr., I did an interview with him for my website a while back about his dad. You're welcome to use anything from that:
http://toolooney.toonzone.net/mckimson.htm
-Matthew

[CaptGeorge]

There is a pretty good run-down of McKimson's carreer as part of the documentary on disk 4 of the Looney Tunes DVD set. I think he is a great director who suffers only by comparison to even greater directors. I love his loudmouth characters like Foghorn Leghorn and the Genie in A Lad and His Lamp. And Hillbilly Hare has one of the funniest musical numbers ever. I agree he did a kick-ass Bugs Bunny model sheet.

I know I've said this here before, but I still think McKimson's early Bugs cartoons (A LAD IN HIS LAMP, THE WINDBLOWN HARE, HURDY GURDY HARE, etc.) are the best in the series.

If you're talking about the best in McKimson's series, then yeah, maybe they're the best McKimson-directed Bugs Bunny. BUT have you actually seen the majority of the Bugs Bunny cartoons made before 1960?

Best Bugs Bunny shorts? Um, I don't think so. I think you're gonna run into majority opinion that's going to favor Bugs' shorts by Jones, Freleng, or Clampett over McKimson. McKimson's cartoons don't have 1/100, let alone 1/20 of the energy of the best Clampett Bugs' shorts, and they're not as easily recognizable as the 1950s Jones shorts. I think the word to describe a McKimson cartoon is "somewhat listless." They're not horrible cartoons, but they're not much above average. They are, however, a lot better than the 1960s WB shorts.

McKimson may have been a better director than most of the guys that attempted Bugs Bunny shorts in the 1980s and 1990s, but I don't think he comes off well against Clampett, Jones, or Freleng. As an animator, few people that really knew him would say he was anything less than excellent.

I could be wrong, but I also DON'T think any of the McKimson-directed Looney Tunes ended up in the survey that became the book, "The 50 Greatest Cartoons." McKimson WAS mentioned in the book, but none of the cartoons he DIRECTED made the cut. It's not a biased book because several hundred people in the animation industry -- people from their 20s into their 80s -- were surveyed to make the list so there was no agenda to "cut McKimson out."

If McKimson's son is upset about statements by his father's coworkers that cut his father down (Chuck Jones?), then I understand his resentment, but if he's saying EVERY Looney Tunes fans SHOULD appreciate his father's work the way he does, I don't think he's going to win friends that way. I respect his dad's work but I still don't think he was a director on the level of his direct contemporaries -- Clampett, Jones, or Freleng. Those are the people McKimson is always going to be compared to, and he's unfortunately going to fall short in most critical circles and I would say among most animation fans that have actually seen more than 3 or 4 Bugs Bunny shorts. McKimson might look good to a ten-year-old who's seen only McKimson's Bugs shorts for the first time, but I could almost guarantee by the time that ten-year-old reaches 20 or 30 and has seen other cartoons by Clampett, Freleng, or Jones, he's NOT going to think McKimson is the best WB director let alone director of the best Bugs Bunny shorts.

[J Lee]

On the other hand, if you ever watch a bunch of Warners cartoons with a movie theater audience, for sustained laughter it's hard to beat the square dance sequence from McKimson's "Hillbilly Hare."

That said, his cartoons at times do seem 'heavier' than what the other WB directors were putting out, though I think he may have actually benfitted a little from the forced break J.L. make Bob take in 1953. While the animation unit he had after the studio's reopening wasn't as good, McKimson's cartoons did seem to have a little more life in them for a couple of years after the studio re-opened, compaired with the last year or so of production before the 3-D shutdown.

He also had a very dry streak from around mid-1958 though 1961, but for the last couple of years the studio was open, IMHO his shorts were about on par with what the other two units were putting out (in part because the quality level of the Jones and Freleng stories dropped sharply after Foster and Maltese left the studio). So McKimson may not be among the Top 4 or 5 of WB directors, but he's certainly not on the level of Paul J. Smith over at Lantz, either.

[RobEB]

There is a pretty good run-down of McKimson's carreer as part of the documentary on disk 4 of the Looney Tunes DVD set. I think he is a great director who suffers only by comparison to even greater directors. I love his loudmouth characters like Foghorn Leghorn and the Genie in A Lad and His Lamp. And Hillbilly Hare has one of the funniest musical numbers ever. I agree he did a kick-ass Bugs Bunny model sheet.

I know I've said this here before, but I still think McKimson's early Bugs cartoons (A LAD IN HIS LAMP, THE WINDBLOWN HARE, HURDY GURDY HARE, etc.) are the best in the series.

If you're talking about the best in McKimson's series, then yeah, maybe they're the best McKimson-directed Bugs Bunny. BUT have you actually seen the majority of the Bugs Bunny cartoons made before 1960?

Best Bugs Bunny shorts? Um, I don't think so. I think you're gonna run into majority opinion that's going to favor Bugs' shorts by Jones, Freleng, or Clampett over McKimson. McKimson's cartoons don't have 1/100, let alone 1/20 of the energy of the best Clampett Bugs' shorts, and they're not as easily recognizable as the 1950s Jones shorts. I think the word to describe a McKimson cartoon is "somewhat listless." They're not horrible cartoons, but they're not much above average. They are, however, a lot better than the 1960s WB shorts.

McKimson may have been a better director than most of the guys that attempted Bugs Bunny shorts in the 1980s and 1990s, but I don't think he comes off well against Clampett, Jones, or Freleng. As an animator, few people that really knew him would say he was anything less than excellent.

I could be wrong, but I also DON'T think any of the McKimson-directed Looney Tunes ended up in the survey that became the book, "The 50 Greatest Cartoons." McKimson WAS mentioned in the book, but none of the cartoons he DIRECTED made the cut. It's not a biased book because several hundred people in the animation industry -- people from their 20s into their 80s -- were surveyed to make the list so there was no agenda to "cut McKimson out."

If McKimson's son is upset about statements by his father's coworkers that cut his father down (Chuck Jones?), then I understand his resentment, but if he's saying EVERY Looney Tunes fans SHOULD appreciate his father's work the way he does, I don't think he's going to win friends that way. I respect his dad's work but I still don't think he was a director on the level of his direct contemporaries -- Clampett, Jones, or Freleng. Those are the people McKimson is always going to be compared to, and he's unfortunately going to fall short in most critical circles and I would say among most animation fans that have actually seen more than 3 or 4 Bugs Bunny shorts. McKimson might look good to a ten-year-old who's seen only McKimson's Bugs shorts for the first time, but I could almost guarantee by the time that ten-year-old reaches 20 or 30 and has seen other cartoons by Clampett, Freleng, or Jones, he's NOT going to think McKimson is the best WB director let alone director of the best Bugs Bunny shorts.

George,

As I've been watching Bugs Bunny since roughly 1960 (I was born in the 1950s), and as I have the majority of Warner's cartoon output on 16mm, Super 8mm, VHS, Laser Disc, and now DVD, I can certainly say I've seen the majority of Bugs pre 1960 cartoons. And I still think the early McKimsons are the best. The gags, the timing, the rabbit's squat design, and most importantly, the ATTITUDE given Bugs in these cartoons make him most appealing (example: after humiliating the gorilla in HURDY GURDY HARE, Bugs turns to us and tosses off the line "I'll bet this kid won't take much more of this guff!"). Not to say all of Mckimson's Bugs cartoons from this period were gems. EASTER YEGGS I can do without, and REBEL RABBIT has it's moments, but ultimately doesn't work for me. Annnd, while I love McKimson's early Bugs, I must say I never cared for his Porky/Daffy cartoons from the same period. DAFFY DOODLES was pretty good, but you can have things like BOOBS IN THE WOODS and DAFFY DUCK HUNT. They come off as being forced and rather unfunny. Of course, all of this is my opinion, and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of others on this board!

[babylove]

Best Bugs Bunny shorts? Um, I don't think so. I think you're gonna run into majority opinion that's going to favor Bugs' shorts by Jones, Freleng, or Clampett over McKimson. McKimson's cartoons don't have 1/100, let alone 1/20 of the energy of the best Clampett Bugs' shorts, and they're not as easily recognizable as the 1950s Jones shorts.

"Majority opinion" doesn't have much to do with my own opinions... anyway, I'd like to stick up for McKimson's Bugs cartoons. From 1946 to 1951 McKimson turned out some of the best Bugs Bunny cartoons ever made, and his characterization of Bugs was perhaps the most interesting and entertaining. There was also a great deal of variety in his Bugs cartoons; cartoons like "Rebel Rabbit" and "Easter Yeggs" are some of the most unique Bugs cartoons ever. They're also some of the funniest, and I'd say McKimson's best stuff from this era is every bit as funny as his colleagues' -- the reactions of audiences I've seen them with would bear this out.

I don't care all that much for many of Clampett's Bugs cartoons ("The Big Snooze" lays an egg every time I see it with an audience); it seems to me that whereas other directors found new things to do with that character, Clampett mostly stuck with the "Wild Hare" formula of the wacky heckling hare in a woodland setting. Anyway I'd certainly rank McKimson over Clampett as a Bugs director.

The fact that McKimson's cartoons never get selected on these "best" lists has more to do with reputation than with quality -- "Hillbilly Hare" may not have the reputation as one of the greatest cartoons ever made, but I think it is, and "Daffy Doodles," "It's Hummer Time," "Rebel Rabbit" and others are somewhere on my own "best" lists. (I'd knock "What's Opera Doc" off any list for some of those.)

McKimson was, perhaps, more dependent on his story material than other directors. That's why his cartoons start to take a dip when he lost the services of Warren Foster (Freleng wanted Foster, so he "demoted" Tedd Pierce to McKimson's unit and took Foster instead). Tedd Pierce did some good stuff for McKimson ("Hillbilly Hare"), but I think his style "meshed" better with Jones or Freleng (McKimson's cartoons improved for a few months when Pierce was out and McKimson worked with Sid Marcus instead). On the other hand, I think Foster's work for Freleng is considerably less interesting and unique than his work for McKimson (or Clampett or Tashlin), so I can't count out McKimson; I think he had a surprisingly quirky sense of humor and was willing to try cartoons that were quite a bit more offbeat than anything Freleng usually did ("A Fox in a Fix," "Corn Plastered"). McKimson also kept alive the tradition of pop-culture references and parodies at a time when most other cartoon directors were striving to be "timeless." And as to influence, "Rabbit's Kin" was an enormous influence on Tiny Toons with its theme of older cartoon stars teaching younger cartoon characters the art of cartoon violence.

So I have no problem saying that McKimson was a fine director whose best stuff can stand with anybody's.

[Guest_JackSpit_*]

McKimson is my favorite Bugs animator-- Art Davis lost his job at WB over this same opinion, thanks to Chuck Jones ego.