Bill Tytla
Encyclopedia
Vladimir Peter "Bill" Tytla (October 25, 1904 – December 30, 1968) was one of the original Disney
animator
s and is considered by many to be the best character animator to work during The Golden Age of Hollywood animation. Tytla is particularly noted for the animation of Grumpy in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
, Stromboli
in Pinocchio
, Chernabog in the Night on Bald Mountain
sequence from Fantasia
and the title protagonist in Dumbo
.
. His Ukrainian
immigrant parents reportedly recognized talent in their son and encouraged it. In 1914, when Tytla was 9, he visited Manhattan
to attend Gertie the Dinosaur
, an animated
vaudeville
act by Winsor McCay
. He never forgot it, and some say it changed his life forever.
Tytla attended the New York Evening School of Industrial Design
while still in high school
. But eventually high school lost out to his interest in art
and he quit. In 1920, at age 16, Tytla was working for the Paramount
animation studio
in New York. His assignment was providing lettering for title cards. He was nickname
d "Tytla the Titler."
His first animation experiences were on Mutt and Jeff short films at the Bronx studio of Raoul Barré
and the Joy and Bloom Phable at the Greenwich Village
studio of John Terry, later creator of the aviation
comic strip
Scorchy Smith
. His brother Paul Terry
, founder of Terrytoons
, soon hired Tytla to work on his Aesop's Fables
.
Within three years he was earning a very good salary as an animator and supporting his family. The simplistic nature of cartoons at the time did not challenge Tytla who dreamed of becoming a fine artist. He took up his studies again at the Art Students League of New York
and studied under Boardman Robinson
.
In 1929 he sailed for Europe
with some of his school friends to study painting
in Paris
. There he not only studied painting, but sculpture
with Charles Despiau
. To this has been attributed the weight and three-dimensionality of his work. In Europe he was able to see first hand the masterpieces he had only read about. True to his nature of never wanting to be second best, Tytla came to the conclusion that he could never top these masters and destroyed most of his work.
with the attitude that he could become a great master of animation by incorporating his rich knowledge of art. Now animated shorts had sound which in turn brought a new enthusiasm and a need for talented animators. Paul Terry offered Bill a job right away. There he met animator Art Babbitt
who became his close friend and roommate. Art eventually left to work for Walt Disney
because of the challenging work and good working conditions. For two years Art tried to entice Bill to come out to Hollywood, but Bill did not want to leave his family and a well paying job during the Great Depression
. Finally in 1934 Tytla flew to Hollywood. He was very impressed and accepted the job even at a lower salary than he was being paid at Terrytoons.
During his "probationary" year in 1935 Tytla worked on three shorts:
Tytla in The Cookie Carnival was responsible for animating the gingerbread boy and girl
as well as the rivalry between the angel-food
and devil's food cake
s. He animated the broadly comic Clarabelle Cow
in Mickey's Fire Brigade
. In Cock o' the Walk, Tytla animated his first "heavy," a bully rooster
dancing the Carioca. The great Grim Natwick
, creator of Betty Boop
, remarked, "Bill hovered over his drawing board
like a giant vulture
protecting a nest
filled with golden eggs, he was an intense worker—eager, nervous, absorbed...Key drawings were whittled out with impassioned pencil thrusts that tore holes in the animation paper."
His work did not go unnoticed by Walt Disney
who soon came to realize what he had in Tytla. Consequently both his responsibilities and his wages increased dramatically. Tytla and Babbitt quickly became two of Disney's top-salaried artists, and again shared a residence—this time a Tuxedo Terrace house complete with a maid. He continued to send money home and purchased for his family 150 acre
(607,000 m²) of farmland in East Lyme, Connecticut
. Babbitt started after hours "Action Analysis" classes and brought in Don Graham to teach. Tytla was an eager participator in these classes (later to become officially sanctioned by Disney) which have been credited with the some of the phenomenal leaps in the quality of animation during this period.
Tytla was one of the first animators assigned to Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
. Fred Moore and Tytla were responsible for much of the design
of the film and the definition of the personalities of the seven dwarfs. One of Tytla's famous scenes from the film (as described by John Canemaker
) is where woman-hating
Grumpy is kiss
ed by Snow White
. As he brusquely walks away, an internal warmth generated by the kiss gradually slows him, bringing a soft smile
and sigh to his lips, revealing his true feelings of love. Grumpy's inner feelings are portrayed solely through pantomime
—in his telling facial expression
s, his body language
, and the timing of his reactions.
, but admitted "My glass was half-filled with enthusiasm
, his often half-empty with self-doubt
s. We were, however, definitely yin and yang". Their thirty-year marriage
began on April 21, 1938.
Clearly, she was a great inspiration and support for her husband although she complained that in order to get her husband's attention when he was intently working on his animation, she had to stand in the doorway naked
.http://www.mouseplanet.com/articles.php?art=ww070117ws
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was eventually completed and released on December 21, 1937. Tytla was next assigned to animate Stromboli
, an explosive puppeteer
and kidnapper
in Pinocchio (1940). Larger-than-life, a monster
of mercurial mood
s—comic and menacing by turns—Stromboli is one of Disney's most three-dimensional and frightening villain
s.
"Bill was powerful, muscular, high-strung and sensitive, with a tremendous ego," wrote Disney animators Frank Thomas
and Ollie Johnston
in their book The Disney Villain. "Everything was 'feelings' with Bill. Whatever he animated had the inner feelings of his characters expressed through very strong acting. He did not just get inside Stromboli, he was Stromboli and he lived that part."
Brave Little Tailor
was a 1938 short featuring Mickey
and Minnie Mouse
. Tytla animated the giant who was as dumb as he was huge. The character "became the model for all giants throughout the industry from gags to personality," according to Johnston and Thomas. The short was nominated for the Academy Award for Animated Short Film
of 1939. But it lost to Ferdinand the Bull, another Disney short, directed by Dick Rickard, animated by Milt Kahl
and Ward Kimball
.
Early in 1938, Tytla animated Yen Sid, the old magician
in "The Sorcerer's Apprentice
," which would eventually become a segment in Fantasia
(1940). However the character from Fantasia which Tytla is better known for is Chernabog, his own version of Crnobog the Black God, from the "Night on Bald Mountain
" sequence.
It is often said that Chernabog was based on actor Bela Lugosi
, and Walt did bring him in to do live action reference for the character. However, Bill already had a pretty good idea of what he wanted to do and did not like Bela's interpretation
of the character. Instead he had Wilfred Jackson
(who is credited for the music of Steamboat Willie
) act out the part for him, and that is what he used as live action reference. The scene is pure pantomime, but shows the full emotional range of the character, from unabashed glee to profound despair, expressing physical pain at the sound of the church bells at dawn. Chernabog is considered Tytla's supreme achievement in personality animation and marks the zenith of his career.
By 1940 Tytla was tiring of animating heavies. Not one to want to be typecast Tytla requested as his next assignment Dumbo
(namesake star of the 1941 film), the baby elephant
ridiculed and rejected because of his big ear
s.
This time his reference was his own infant son, Peter. The intent was to do something untheatrical and sincere, to try to put the personality of a human child into that of an elephant so that it rings true. The happy sequence of Dumbo splashing and blowing bubbles in a bathtub, or playing hide-and-seek between his mother's legs contrasts with the later scene in which Dumbo visits his mother in prison. Dumbo, climbing onto his mother's trunk shows a slight apprehension as she begins to swing him gently back and forth. He relaxes, yet his sadness over the temporary nature of this maternal solace always there. When they finally must part, the slow reluctant pull of Dumbo's trunk away from his mother's is heartbreaking.
His son, Peter Tytla, has grown up to become a collage
artist focusing on images made from photographs of junk cars.
cutting of nearly 50% of their revenue
. This led to staff layoff
and broken promise
s with regard to job
security
, raises and bonuses.
While the top animators like Tytla and Babbit were highly paid, they were all too aware of the low wage
s being paid to assistant
s and production people. Babbit even went as far as paying his assistant out of his own pocket. But in early 1941 Babbitt was fired for union activities. The day after Babbit led over 300 Disney studio employees in a strike
, demanding union representation. To Disney's surprise and dismay, Tytla joined the strike line. "I was for the company union, and I went on strike because my friends were on strike," said Tytla. " I was sympathetic with their views, but I never wanted to do anything against Walt." The strike lasted over two months and was so divisive that it profoundly altered the course of American character animation. As the strike ended, America entered World War II
and the Golden age was effectively over.
Tytla returned to the studio, but "there was too much tension and electricity in the air," according to Adrianne Tytla. With Vladimir, "everything was instinctive and intuitive, and now the vibes were all wrong." Due to the economics of the studio at the time, assignments were less challenging.
In Saludos Amigos
(1942) Tytla animated Pedro (a baby airplane) and Jose Carioca
(a Brazil
ian parrot
). His small but juicy final portrayals at Disney were a witch and a Nazi teacher in the short Education for Death
(1943) and the climactic battle between a giant octopus
and an American eagle in the feature Victory Through Air Power
(1943).
Tytla's perception that he was unwelcome at the studio; less challenging work, his wife's three-year long illness with tuberculosis
, fear of Japanese
attack, and a desire to live on his Connecticut farm
eventually led him to the decision to leave the studio. He resigned from the Disney studio on February 24, 1943, an action he regretted for the remaining twenty-five years of his life.
for a short while. There he was assigned as a film director
for the short The Sultan's Birthday (1944). Tytla soon left Terrytoons but would continue to act as a director for the rest of his animation career.
His next employer was Famous Studios
, owned by Paramount Pictures
. His directorial efforts there include several shorts:
His own daughter Tammy reportedly provided inspiration for the Little Lulu and Little Audrey shorts. She would later pursue a career as an artist and photographer, known as Tamara Schacher-Tytla.
between David Hilberman
and Zack Schwartz. They were both former Disney colleagues of Tytla. David had notably served as an art director
for Bambi
and Zack for "The Sorcerer's Apprentice
." They were among the founders of the United Productions of America
but later sold their shares to their partner
Stephen Bosustow
.
At first the two indended to produce educational films but soon found there was only a limited market for them. However Jack Zander
, head of the animation department of Transfilm Inc., which produced television commercials, approached them with an offer to produce animated advertisements for his company. They were at first assigned to advertise Camel cigarettes. Later their assignments included Standard Brands
, Plymouth automobile, National Dairy Association, Tide
and Clark Gum Company. Zack Schwartz had left the company in 1948/1949 but assignments continued. David Hilberman decided to expand the staff. The expansion included hiring Tytla as advertisement director.
The squared-off stylized designs reportedly frustrated Tytla. But he produced some good work there including some stop motion
animation. His animated advertisements though are perhaps the least well-remembered part of his career. When the revival of interest in classical animation
started in the 1980s, they were long unavailable to audiences, presumably lost. A reason for this was that Tempo proved short-lived, blacklist
ed during the Red Scare of the early 1950s.
Tytla, however took time to visit his former colleagues at Disney in 1954. Unlike Babbitt he was welcome to do so and even had his picture taken with his old boss Walt. In a letter to Marc Davis written in December, 1954 Tytla said "What a helluva swell time I had, It did me a world of good".
He also took time to create one last short for Terrytoons, First Flight Up (1962). His last work on a feature film
with full personality animation was The Incredible Mr. Limpet
(1964). A comedy
mixing live action
and animation, directed by Arthur Lubin
and starring Don Knotts
as a fish. However during this time Tytla became ill and a lot of the actual animation was completed by animation director Robert McKimson
, Hawley Pratt
and Gerry Chiniquy. All three of them are better known for their Looney Tunes
work.
Following this Tytla suffered many small stroke
s which left him blind
in his left eye. On August 13, 1967, the opening night of the Montreal
Expo
's World Exhibition of Animation Cinema, featured a screening of Dumbo
as part of an Hommage Aux Pionniers. Tytla was invited, but worried if anyone would remember him. When the film finished, they announced the presence of "The Great Animator." When the spotlight finally found him, the audience erupted in "a huge outpouring of love. It may have been one of the great moments of his life," recalled John Culhane.
Tytla did try to return to Disney. In a letter dated August 27, 1968, Disney productions vice president W.H. Anderson rejected his offer to do "trial animation", saying, "We really have only enough animation for our present staff." And as late as October 11, 1968, less than three months before Tytla's death, Disney director Wolfgang Reitherman
responded to story material Tytla submitted explaining "...I'm sorry to say that your story ideas don't fit into our present program.. We have not forgotten that you are anxious to animate here at the studio, but...So far, we can just barely keep our present crew of animators busy...rest assured you have many friends here at the studio who are pulling for you."
Vladimir Tytla died on his farm on December 30, 1968, aged 64.
Walt Disney Pictures
Walt Disney Pictures is an American film studio owned by The Walt Disney Company. Walt Disney Pictures and Television, a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Studios and the main production company for live-action feature films within the Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group, based at the Walt Disney...
animator
Animator
An animator is an artist who creates multiple images that give an illusion of movement called animation when displayed in rapid sequence; the images are called frames and key frames. Animators can work in a variety of fields including film, television, video games, and the internet. Usually, an...
s and is considered by many to be the best character animator to work during The Golden Age of Hollywood animation. Tytla is particularly noted for the animation of Grumpy in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film)
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is a 1937 American animated film based on Snow White, a German fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm. It was the first full-length cel-animated feature in motion picture history, as well as the first animated feature film produced in America, the first produced in full...
, Stromboli
Stromboli (Pinocchio)
Mangiafuoco is the fictional wealthy director of the Great Marionette Theatre who appears in Carlo Collodi's book The Adventures of Pinocchio . He is described as "...a large man so ugly, he evoked fear by simply being looked at...
in Pinocchio
Pinocchio (1940 film)
Pinocchio is a 1940 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and based on the story The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi. It is the second film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics, and it was made after the success of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and was released to theaters by...
, Chernabog in the Night on Bald Mountain
Night on Bald Mountain
Night on Bald Mountain is a composition by Modest Mussorgsky that exists in, at least, two versions—a seldom performed 1867 version or a later and very popular "fantasy for orchestra" arranged by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, A Night on the Bare Mountain , based on the vocal score of the "Dream Vision...
sequence from Fantasia
Fantasia (film)
Fantasia is a 1940 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and released by Walt Disney Productions. The third feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, the film consists of eight animated segments set to pieces of classical music conducted by Leopold Stokowski, seven of which are...
and the title protagonist in Dumbo
Dumbo
Dumbo is a 1941 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and released on October 23, 1941, by RKO Radio Pictures.The fourth film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, Dumbo is based upon the storyline written by Helen Aberson and illustrated by Harold Pearl for the prototype of a...
.
Early years
Vladimir Peter Tytla was born on October 25, 1904 in Yonkers, New YorkYonkers, New York
Yonkers is the fourth most populous city in the state of New York , and the most populous city in Westchester County, with a population of 195,976...
. His Ukrainian
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
immigrant parents reportedly recognized talent in their son and encouraged it. In 1914, when Tytla was 9, he visited Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
to attend Gertie the Dinosaur
Gertie the Dinosaur
Gertie the Dinosaur is a 1914 American animated short film by Winsor McCay. Although not the first feature-length animated film, as is sometimes thought, it was the first cartoon to feature a character with an appealing personality...
, an animated
Animation
Animation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
act by Winsor McCay
Winsor McCay
Winsor McCay was an American cartoonist and animator.A prolific artist, McCay's pioneering early animated films far outshone the work of his contemporaries, and set a standard followed by Walt Disney and others in later decades...
. He never forgot it, and some say it changed his life forever.
Tytla attended the New York Evening School of Industrial Design
Industrial design
Industrial design is the use of a combination of applied art and applied science to improve the aesthetics, ergonomics, and usability of a product, but it may also be used to improve the product's marketability and production...
while still in high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
. But eventually high school lost out to his interest in art
Art
Art is the product or process of deliberately arranging items in a way that influences and affects one or more of the senses, emotions, and intellect....
and he quit. In 1920, at age 16, Tytla was working for the Paramount
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
animation studio
Studio
A studio is an artist's or worker's workroom, or the catchall term for an artist and his or her employees who work within that studio. This can be for the purpose of architecture, painting, pottery , sculpture, scrapbooking, photography, graphic design, filmmaking, animation, radio or television...
in New York. His assignment was providing lettering for title cards. He was nickname
Nickname
A nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....
d "Tytla the Titler."
His first animation experiences were on Mutt and Jeff short films at the Bronx studio of Raoul Barré
Raoul Barré
Raoul Barré was a Canadian and American cartoonist, animator of the silent film era, and artist.Barré was born in Montreal, Quebec, the only artistic child of an importer of communion wine...
and the Joy and Bloom Phable at the Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village, , , , .in New York often simply called "the Village", is a largely residential neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City. A large majority of the district is home to upper middle class families...
studio of John Terry, later creator of the aviation
Aviation
Aviation is the design, development, production, operation, and use of aircraft, especially heavier-than-air aircraft. Aviation is derived from avis, the Latin word for bird.-History:...
comic strip
Comic strip
A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....
Scorchy Smith
Scorchy Smith
Scorchy Smith was an American adventure comic strip created by artist John Terry that ran from 1930 to 1961.Scorchy Smith was a pilot-for-hire whose initial adventures took him across America, fighting criminals and aiding damsels in distress...
. His brother Paul Terry
Paul Terry (cartoonist)
Paul Houlton Terry was an American cartoonist, screenwriter, film director and one of the most prolific film producers in history...
, founder of Terrytoons
Terrytoons
Terrytoons was an animation studio founded by Paul Terry. The studio, located in suburban New Rochelle, New York, operated from 1929 to 1968. Its most popular characters included Mighty Mouse, Gandy Goose, Sourpuss, Dinky Duck, Deputy Dawg, Luno and Heckle and Jeckle; these cartoons and all of its...
, soon hired Tytla to work on his Aesop's Fables
Aesop's Film Fables
Aesop's Film Fables was a series of animated short subjects, created by American cartoonist Paul Terry. Terry came upon the inspiration for the series by young actor-turned-writer Howard Estabrook, who suggested making a series of cartoons based on Aesop's Fables. Although Terry later claimed he...
.
Within three years he was earning a very good salary as an animator and supporting his family. The simplistic nature of cartoons at the time did not challenge Tytla who dreamed of becoming a fine artist. He took up his studies again at the Art Students League of New York
Art Students League of New York
The Art Students League of New York is an art school located on West 57th Street in New York City. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists, and has maintained for over 130 years a tradition of offering reasonably priced classes on a...
and studied under Boardman Robinson
Boardman Robinson
Boardman Robinson was a Canadian-American artist, illustrator and cartoonist.-Early years:Boardman Robinson was born September 6, 1876 in Nova Scotia, Canada. He spent his childhood in England and Canada, before coming to Boston in the first half of the 1890s...
.
In 1929 he sailed for Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
with some of his school friends to study painting
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. There he not only studied painting, but sculpture
Sculpture
Sculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard materials—typically stone such as marble—or metal, glass, or wood. Softer materials can also be used, such as clay, textiles, plastics, polymers and softer metals...
with Charles Despiau
Charles Despiau
Charles Despiau was a French sculptor.Despiau was born at Mont-de-Marsan, Landes and attended first the Ecole des Arts Décoratifs and later the Ecole des Beaux Arts...
. To this has been attributed the weight and three-dimensionality of his work. In Europe he was able to see first hand the masterpieces he had only read about. True to his nature of never wanting to be second best, Tytla came to the conclusion that he could never top these masters and destroyed most of his work.
Back in America
Tytla returned to the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
with the attitude that he could become a great master of animation by incorporating his rich knowledge of art. Now animated shorts had sound which in turn brought a new enthusiasm and a need for talented animators. Paul Terry offered Bill a job right away. There he met animator Art Babbitt
Art Babbitt
Arthur Harold Babitsky , better known as Art Babbitt, was an American animator, best known for his work at The Walt Disney Company. He received over 80 awards as animation director and animator, but is most famous for creating Goofy...
who became his close friend and roommate. Art eventually left to work for Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
because of the challenging work and good working conditions. For two years Art tried to entice Bill to come out to Hollywood, but Bill did not want to leave his family and a well paying job during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. Finally in 1934 Tytla flew to Hollywood. He was very impressed and accepted the job even at a lower salary than he was being paid at Terrytoons.
During his "probationary" year in 1935 Tytla worked on three shorts:
- The Cookie CarnivalThe Cookie CarnivalCookie Carnival is an animated short made in 1935 by Walt Disney Productions. It is a Cinderella story involving a cookie girl who wishes to be queen at the cookie carnival....
, a Silly SymphoniesSilly SymphoniesSilly Symphonies is a series of animated short subjects, 75 in total, produced by Walt Disney Productions from 1929 to 1939, while the studio was still located at Hyperion Avenue in the Silver Lake district of Los Angeles...
short, first released on May 25, 1935. - Mickey's Fire BrigadeMickey's Fire BrigadeMickey's Fire Brigade is a 1935 American animated short film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by United Artists. The cartoon stars Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy employed as firefighters responding to a hotel fire...
, a cartoon featuring firefighterFirefighterFirefighters are rescuers extensively trained primarily to put out hazardous fires that threaten civilian populations and property, to rescue people from car incidents, collapsed and burning buildings and other such situations...
s Mickey MouseMickey MouseMickey Mouse is a cartoon character created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks at The Walt Disney Studio. Mickey is an anthropomorphic black mouse and typically wears red shorts, large yellow shoes, and white gloves...
, GoofyGoofyGoofy is a cartoon character created in 1932 at Walt Disney Productions. Goofy is a tall, anthropomorphic dog, and typically wears a turtle neck and vest, with pants, shoes, white gloves, and a tall hat originally designed as a rumpled fedora. Goofy is a close friend of Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck...
and Donald DuckDonald DuckDonald Fauntleroy Duck is a cartoon character created in 1934 at Walt Disney Productions and licensed by The Walt Disney Company. Donald is an anthropomorphic white duck with a yellow-orange bill, legs, and feet. He typically wears a sailor suit with a cap and a black or red bow tie. Donald is most...
attempting to rescue Clarabelle CowClarabelle CowClarabelle Cow is a Disney fictional character within the Mickey Mouse universe of characters. Clarabelle Cow was created by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks in 1928. Clarabelle is one of Minnie Mouse's best friends and is usually depicted as the girlfriend of Horace Horsecollar, although she has also...
from a burning boarding houseBoarding houseA boarding house, is a house in which lodgers rent one or more rooms for one or more nights, and sometimes for extended periods of weeks, months and years. The common parts of the house are maintained, and some services, such as laundry and cleaning, may be supplied. They normally provide "bed...
. First released on August 3, 1935). - Cock o' the Walk, a Silly Symphonies short, first released on November 30, 1935).
Tytla in The Cookie Carnival was responsible for animating the gingerbread boy and girl
Gingerbread man
A gingerbread man is a biscuit or cookie made of gingerbread, usually in the shape of a stylized human, commonly male as the name suggests, although making other shapes, especially seasonal themes and characters, is quite common as well.-History:...
as well as the rivalry between the angel-food
Angel cake
Angel Food cake, or Angel cake, is a type of sponge cake originally from North America that first became popular in the U.S. in the late 19th century...
and devil's food cake
Devil's food cake
Devil's food cake is a moist, airy, rich chocolate layer cake. It is considered a counterpart to the white or yellow angel food cake. Due to differing recipes and changing ingredient availability over the course of the twentieth century, it is difficult to precisely qualify what distinguishes...
s. He animated the broadly comic Clarabelle Cow
Clarabelle Cow
Clarabelle Cow is a Disney fictional character within the Mickey Mouse universe of characters. Clarabelle Cow was created by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks in 1928. Clarabelle is one of Minnie Mouse's best friends and is usually depicted as the girlfriend of Horace Horsecollar, although she has also...
in Mickey's Fire Brigade
Mickey's Fire Brigade
Mickey's Fire Brigade is a 1935 American animated short film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by United Artists. The cartoon stars Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy employed as firefighters responding to a hotel fire...
. In Cock o' the Walk, Tytla animated his first "heavy," a bully rooster
Rooster
A rooster, also known as a cockerel, cock or chanticleer, is a male chicken with the female being called a hen. Immature male chickens of less than a year's age are called cockerels...
dancing the Carioca. The great Grim Natwick
Grim Natwick
Myron "Grim" Natwick was an American artist, animator and film director. Natwick is best known for drawing the Fleischer Studio's most popular character, Betty Boop.-Background:...
, creator of Betty Boop
Betty Boop
Betty Boop is an animated cartoon character created by Max Fleischer, with help from animators including Grim Natwick. She originally appeared in the Talkartoon and Betty Boop film series, which were produced by Fleischer Studios and released by Paramount Pictures. She has also been featured in...
, remarked, "Bill hovered over his drawing board
Drawing board
A drawing board is, in its antique form, a kind of multipurpose desk which can be used for any kind of drawing, writing or impromptu sketching on a large sheet of paper or for reading a large format book or other oversized document or for drafting precise technical illustrations...
like a giant vulture
Vulture
Vulture is the name given to two groups of convergently evolved scavenging birds, the New World Vultures including the well-known Californian and Andean Condors, and the Old World Vultures including the birds which are seen scavenging on carcasses of dead animals on African plains...
protecting a nest
Nest
A nest is a place of refuge to hold an animal's eggs or provide a place to live or raise offspring. They are usually made of some organic material such as twigs, grass, and leaves; or may simply be a depression in the ground, or a hole in a tree, rock or building...
filled with golden eggs, he was an intense worker—eager, nervous, absorbed...Key drawings were whittled out with impassioned pencil thrusts that tore holes in the animation paper."
His work did not go unnoticed by Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
who soon came to realize what he had in Tytla. Consequently both his responsibilities and his wages increased dramatically. Tytla and Babbitt quickly became two of Disney's top-salaried artists, and again shared a residence—this time a Tuxedo Terrace house complete with a maid. He continued to send money home and purchased for his family 150 acre
Acre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...
(607,000 m²) of farmland in East Lyme, Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
. Babbitt started after hours "Action Analysis" classes and brought in Don Graham to teach. Tytla was an eager participator in these classes (later to become officially sanctioned by Disney) which have been credited with the some of the phenomenal leaps in the quality of animation during this period.
Tytla was one of the first animators assigned to Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film)
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is a 1937 American animated film based on Snow White, a German fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm. It was the first full-length cel-animated feature in motion picture history, as well as the first animated feature film produced in America, the first produced in full...
. Fred Moore and Tytla were responsible for much of the design
Design
Design as a noun informally refers to a plan or convention for the construction of an object or a system while “to design” refers to making this plan...
of the film and the definition of the personalities of the seven dwarfs. One of Tytla's famous scenes from the film (as described by John Canemaker
John Canemaker
John Cannizzaro Jr. , better known as John Canemaker, is an independent animator, animation historian, author, teacher and lecturer. In 1980, he began teaching and developing the animation program at New York University, Tisch School of the Arts', Kanbar Institute of Film and Television Department...
) is where woman-hating
Misogyny
Misogyny is the hatred or dislike of women or girls. Philogyny, meaning fondness, love or admiration towards women, is the antonym of misogyny. The term misandry is the term for men that is parallel to misogyny...
Grumpy is kiss
Kiss
A kiss is the act of pressing one's lips against the lips or other body parts of another person or of an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, affection, respect, greeting, friendship, and good...
ed by Snow White
Snow White
"Snow White" is a fairy tale known from many countries in Europe, the best known version being the German one collected by the Brothers Grimm...
. As he brusquely walks away, an internal warmth generated by the kiss gradually slows him, bringing a soft smile
Smile
A smile is a facial expression formed by flexing the muscles near both ends of the mouth. The smile can also be found around the eyes . Among humans, it is an expression denoting pleasure, joy, happiness, or amusement, but can also be an involuntary expression of anxiety, in which case it is known...
and sigh to his lips, revealing his true feelings of love. Grumpy's inner feelings are portrayed solely through pantomime
Mime artist
A mime artist is someone who uses mime as a theatrical medium or as a performance art, involving miming, or the acting out a story through body motions, without use of speech. In earlier times, in English, such a performer was referred to as a mummer...
—in his telling facial expression
Facial expression
A facial expression one or more motions or positions of the muscles in the skin. These movements convey the emotional state of the individual to observers. Facial expressions are a form of nonverbal communication. They are a primary means of conveying social information among humans, but also occur...
s, his body language
Body language
Body language is a form of non-verbal communication, which consists of body posture, gestures, facial expressions, and eye movements. Humans send and interpret such signals almost entirely subconsciously....
, and the timing of his reactions.
Marriage
One evening of 1936 in the art classes of Don Graham, a vibrant and beautiful 22-year-old actress and fashion model from Seattle named Adrienne le Clerc posed for the animators, including Tytla. She shared his volcanic temperamentTemperament
In psychology, temperament refers to those aspects of an individual's personality, such as introversion or extroversion, that are often regarded as innate rather than learned...
, but admitted "My glass was half-filled with enthusiasm
Enthusiasm
Enthusiasm originally meant inspiration or possession by a divine afflatus or by the presence of a god. Johnson's Dictionary, the first comprehensive dictionary of the English language, defines enthusiasm as "a vain belief of private revelation; a vain confidence of divine favour or...
, his often half-empty with self-doubt
Doubt
Doubt, a status between belief and disbelief, involves uncertainty or distrust or lack of sureness of an alleged fact, an action, a motive, or a decision. Doubt brings into question some notion of a perceived "reality", and may involve delaying or rejecting relevant action out of concerns for...
s. We were, however, definitely yin and yang". Their thirty-year marriage
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
began on April 21, 1938.
Clearly, she was a great inspiration and support for her husband although she complained that in order to get her husband's attention when he was intently working on his animation, she had to stand in the doorway naked
Nudity
Nudity is the state of wearing no clothing. The wearing of clothing is exclusively a human characteristic. The amount of clothing worn depends on functional considerations and social considerations...
.http://www.mouseplanet.com/articles.php?art=ww070117ws
Continued Disney career
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was eventually completed and released on December 21, 1937. Tytla was next assigned to animate Stromboli
Stromboli (Pinocchio)
Mangiafuoco is the fictional wealthy director of the Great Marionette Theatre who appears in Carlo Collodi's book The Adventures of Pinocchio . He is described as "...a large man so ugly, he evoked fear by simply being looked at...
, an explosive puppeteer
Puppeteer
A puppeteer is a person who manipulates an inanimate object, such as a puppet, in real time to create the illusion of life. The puppeteer may be visible to or hidden from the audience. A puppeteer can operate a puppet indirectly by the use of strings, rods, wires, electronics or directly by his or...
and kidnapper
Kidnapper
Kidnapper may refer to:* Kidnapper , a film by Kelvin Tong* "Kidnapper" , by American band Blondie on the Plastic Letters album* A person who performs a kidnapping-See also:* Kidnapped * Kidnapping...
in Pinocchio (1940). Larger-than-life, a monster
Monster
A monster is any fictional creature, usually found in legends or horror fiction, that is somewhat hideous and may produce physical harm or mental fear by either its appearance or its actions...
of mercurial mood
Mood (psychology)
A mood is a relatively long lasting emotional state. Moods differ from emotions in that they are less specific, less intense, and less likely to be triggered by a particular stimulus or event....
s—comic and menacing by turns—Stromboli is one of Disney's most three-dimensional and frightening villain
Villain
A villain is an "evil" character in a story, whether a historical narrative or, especially, a work of fiction. The villain usually is the antagonist, the character who tends to have a negative effect on other characters...
s.
"Bill was powerful, muscular, high-strung and sensitive, with a tremendous ego," wrote Disney animators Frank Thomas
Frank Thomas (animator)
Franklin M. "Frank" Thomas was an American animator. He was one of Walt Disney's team of animators known as the Nine Old Men....
and Ollie Johnston
Ollie Johnston
Oliver Martin Johnston, Jr. was an American motion picture animator. He was one of Disney's Nine Old Men, and the last surviving at the time of his death. He was recognized by The Walt Disney Company with its Disney Legend Award in 1989...
in their book The Disney Villain. "Everything was 'feelings' with Bill. Whatever he animated had the inner feelings of his characters expressed through very strong acting. He did not just get inside Stromboli, he was Stromboli and he lived that part."
Brave Little Tailor
Brave Little Tailor
Brave Little Tailor is a 1938 American animated short film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by RKO Radio Pictures. The cartoon is an adaptation of the fairy tale The Valiant Little Tailor with Mickey Mouse in the title role. The film was directed by Bill Roberts and features...
was a 1938 short featuring Mickey
Mickey Mouse
Mickey Mouse is a cartoon character created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks at The Walt Disney Studio. Mickey is an anthropomorphic black mouse and typically wears red shorts, large yellow shoes, and white gloves...
and Minnie Mouse
Minnie Mouse
Minerva "Minnie" Mouse is an animated character created by Ub Iwerks and Walt Disney. The comic strip story "The Gleam" by Merrill De Maris and Floyd Gottfredson first gave her full name as Minerva Mouse. Minnie has since been a recurring alias for her. Minnie is currently voiced by actress Russi...
. Tytla animated the giant who was as dumb as he was huge. The character "became the model for all giants throughout the industry from gags to personality," according to Johnston and Thomas. The short was nominated for the Academy Award for Animated Short Film
Academy Award for Animated Short Film
The Academy Award for Animated Short Film is an award which has been given by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as part of the Academy Awards every year since the 5th Academy Awards, covering the year 1931-32, to the present....
of 1939. But it lost to Ferdinand the Bull, another Disney short, directed by Dick Rickard, animated by Milt Kahl
Milt Kahl
Milton Erwin Kahl was an animator for the Disney studio, and one of Disney's Nine Old Men....
and Ward Kimball
Ward Kimball
Ward Walrath Kimball was an animator for the Walt Disney Studios. He was one of Walt Disney's team of animators known as Disney's Nine Old Men.-Career:...
.
Early in 1938, Tytla animated Yen Sid, the old magician
Magician (fantasy)
A magician, mage, sorcerer, sorceress, wizard, enchanter, enchantress, thaumaturge or a person known under one of many other possible terms is someone who uses or practices magic that derives from supernatural or occult sources...
in "The Sorcerer's Apprentice
The Sorcerer's Apprentice
The Sorcerer's Apprentice is the English name of a poem by Goethe, Der Zauberlehrling, written in 1797. The poem is a ballad in fourteen stanzas.-Story:...
," which would eventually become a segment in Fantasia
Fantasia (film)
Fantasia is a 1940 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and released by Walt Disney Productions. The third feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, the film consists of eight animated segments set to pieces of classical music conducted by Leopold Stokowski, seven of which are...
(1940). However the character from Fantasia which Tytla is better known for is Chernabog, his own version of Crnobog the Black God, from the "Night on Bald Mountain
Night on Bald Mountain
Night on Bald Mountain is a composition by Modest Mussorgsky that exists in, at least, two versions—a seldom performed 1867 version or a later and very popular "fantasy for orchestra" arranged by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, A Night on the Bare Mountain , based on the vocal score of the "Dream Vision...
" sequence.
It is often said that Chernabog was based on actor Bela Lugosi
Béla Lugosi
Béla Ferenc Dezső Blaskó , commonly known as Bela Lugosi, was a Hungarian actor of stage and screen. He was best known for having played Count Dracula in the Broadway play and subsequent film version, as well as having starred in several of Ed Wood's low budget films in the last years of his...
, and Walt did bring him in to do live action reference for the character. However, Bill already had a pretty good idea of what he wanted to do and did not like Bela's interpretation
Interpretation (aesthetics)
An interpretation in philosophy of art, is an explanation of the meaning of some work of art. An interpretation expresses an understanding of a work of art, a poem, performance, or piece of literature.- One or many :...
of the character. Instead he had Wilfred Jackson
Wilfred Jackson
Wilfred Jackson was an American animator, arranger, composer and director best known for his work on the Mickey Mouse and Silly Symphonies series of cartoons and the two segments Night on Bald Mountain and Ave Maria of Fantasia from The Walt Disney Company.Wilfred Jackson was born in Chicago,...
(who is credited for the music of Steamboat Willie
Steamboat Willie
Steamboat Willie is a 1928 American animated short film directed by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. It was produced in black-and-white by The Walt Disney Studio and released by Celebrity Productions. The cartoon is considered the debut of Mickey Mouse, and as his girlfriend Minnie, but the characters...
) act out the part for him, and that is what he used as live action reference. The scene is pure pantomime, but shows the full emotional range of the character, from unabashed glee to profound despair, expressing physical pain at the sound of the church bells at dawn. Chernabog is considered Tytla's supreme achievement in personality animation and marks the zenith of his career.
By 1940 Tytla was tiring of animating heavies. Not one to want to be typecast Tytla requested as his next assignment Dumbo
Dumbo
Dumbo is a 1941 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and released on October 23, 1941, by RKO Radio Pictures.The fourth film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, Dumbo is based upon the storyline written by Helen Aberson and illustrated by Harold Pearl for the prototype of a...
(namesake star of the 1941 film), the baby elephant
Elephant
Elephants are large land mammals in two extant genera of the family Elephantidae: Elephas and Loxodonta, with the third genus Mammuthus extinct...
ridiculed and rejected because of his big ear
Ear
The ear is the organ that detects sound. It not only receives sound, but also aids in balance and body position. The ear is part of the auditory system....
s.
This time his reference was his own infant son, Peter. The intent was to do something untheatrical and sincere, to try to put the personality of a human child into that of an elephant so that it rings true. The happy sequence of Dumbo splashing and blowing bubbles in a bathtub, or playing hide-and-seek between his mother's legs contrasts with the later scene in which Dumbo visits his mother in prison. Dumbo, climbing onto his mother's trunk shows a slight apprehension as she begins to swing him gently back and forth. He relaxes, yet his sadness over the temporary nature of this maternal solace always there. When they finally must part, the slow reluctant pull of Dumbo's trunk away from his mother's is heartbreaking.
His son, Peter Tytla, has grown up to become a collage
Collage
A collage is a work of formal art, primarily in the visual arts, made from an assemblage of different forms, thus creating a new whole....
artist focusing on images made from photographs of junk cars.
The strike
While Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was hugely successful the following films had a hard time making money due to the war in EuropeEuropean Theatre of World War II
The European Theatre of World War II was a huge area of heavy fighting across Europe from Germany's invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939 until the end of the war with the German unconditional surrender on May 8, 1945...
cutting of nearly 50% of their revenue
Revenue
In business, revenue is income that a company receives from its normal business activities, usually from the sale of goods and services to customers. In many countries, such as the United Kingdom, revenue is referred to as turnover....
. This led to staff layoff
Layoff
Layoff , also called redundancy in the UK, is the temporary suspension or permanent termination of employment of an employee or a group of employees for business reasons, such as when certain positions are no longer necessary or when a business slow-down occurs...
and broken promise
Promise
A promise is a commitment by someone to do or not do something.In the law of contract, an exchange of promises is usually held to be legally enforceable, according to the Latin maxim pacta sunt servanda.- Types :...
s with regard to job
Employment
Employment is a contract between two parties, one being the employer and the other being the employee. An employee may be defined as:- Employee :...
security
Security
Security is the degree of protection against danger, damage, loss, and crime. Security as a form of protection are structures and processes that provide or improve security as a condition. The Institute for Security and Open Methodologies in the OSSTMM 3 defines security as "a form of protection...
, raises and bonuses.
While the top animators like Tytla and Babbit were highly paid, they were all too aware of the low wage
Wage
A wage is a compensation, usually financial, received by workers in exchange for their labor.Compensation in terms of wages is given to workers and compensation in terms of salary is given to employees...
s being paid to assistant
Production assistant
A production assistant, also known as a PA, is a job title used in filmmaking and television for a person responsible for various aspects of a production...
s and production people. Babbit even went as far as paying his assistant out of his own pocket. But in early 1941 Babbitt was fired for union activities. The day after Babbit led over 300 Disney studio employees in a strike
Disney animators' strike
The Disney animators' strike was a labor strike by the animators of Walt Disney Studios in 1941.-History:The 1930s led to a rise of labor unions in motion pictures as in other industries such as The Screen Actors Guild which was formed in 1933. Animators of Fleischer Studios went on strike in 1937...
, demanding union representation. To Disney's surprise and dismay, Tytla joined the strike line. "I was for the company union, and I went on strike because my friends were on strike," said Tytla. " I was sympathetic with their views, but I never wanted to do anything against Walt." The strike lasted over two months and was so divisive that it profoundly altered the course of American character animation. As the strike ended, America entered World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and the Golden age was effectively over.
Tytla returned to the studio, but "there was too much tension and electricity in the air," according to Adrianne Tytla. With Vladimir, "everything was instinctive and intuitive, and now the vibes were all wrong." Due to the economics of the studio at the time, assignments were less challenging.
In Saludos Amigos
Saludos Amigos
Saludos Amigos is a 1942 animated feature produced by Walt Disney and released by RKO Radio Pictures. It is the 6th animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series. It is the first of six package films made by the Disney studio in the 1940s...
(1942) Tytla animated Pedro (a baby airplane) and Jose Carioca
José Carioca
José Carioca is a Disney cartoon character drawn as an anthropomorphized parrot from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil . José was created in 1943 for the movie Saludos Amigos as a friend of Donald Duck, described by Time as "a dapper Brazilian parrot, who is as superior to Donald Duck as the Duck was to...
(a Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
ian parrot
Parrot
Parrots, also known as psittacines , are birds of the roughly 372 species in 86 genera that make up the order Psittaciformes, found in most tropical and subtropical regions. The order is subdivided into three families: the Psittacidae , the Cacatuidae and the Strigopidae...
). His small but juicy final portrayals at Disney were a witch and a Nazi teacher in the short Education for Death
Education for Death
Education for Death: The Making of the Nazi is an animated short film produced by Walt Disney and released on January 15, 1943 by RKO Radio Pictures. Based on the anti-Nazi propaganda book by Gregor Ziemer, directed by Clyde Geronimi and principally animated by Ward Kimball...
(1943) and the climactic battle between a giant octopus
Octopus
The octopus is a cephalopod mollusc of the order Octopoda. Octopuses have two eyes and four pairs of arms, and like other cephalopods they are bilaterally symmetric. An octopus has a hard beak, with its mouth at the center point of the arms...
and an American eagle in the feature Victory Through Air Power
Victory Through Air Power
Victory Through Air Power is a 1942 non-fiction book by Alexander P. de Seversky. It was made into a 1943 Walt Disney animated feature film of the same name: Victory Through Air Power.-Theories:...
(1943).
Tytla's perception that he was unwelcome at the studio; less challenging work, his wife's three-year long illness with tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
, fear of Japanese
Empire of Japan
The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...
attack, and a desire to live on his Connecticut farm
Farm
A farm is an area of land, or, for aquaculture, lake, river or sea, including various structures, devoted primarily to the practice of producing and managing food , fibres and, increasingly, fuel. It is the basic production facility in food production. Farms may be owned and operated by a single...
eventually led him to the decision to leave the studio. He resigned from the Disney studio on February 24, 1943, an action he regretted for the remaining twenty-five years of his life.
Work at Terrytoons and Famous Studios
After leaving the Disney studio Tytla returned to TerrytoonsTerrytoons
Terrytoons was an animation studio founded by Paul Terry. The studio, located in suburban New Rochelle, New York, operated from 1929 to 1968. Its most popular characters included Mighty Mouse, Gandy Goose, Sourpuss, Dinky Duck, Deputy Dawg, Luno and Heckle and Jeckle; these cartoons and all of its...
for a short while. There he was assigned as a film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
for the short The Sultan's Birthday (1944). Tytla soon left Terrytoons but would continue to act as a director for the rest of his animation career.
His next employer was Famous Studios
Famous Studios
Famous Studios was the animation division of the film studio Paramount Pictures from 1942 to 1967. Famous was founded as a successor company to Fleischer Studios, after Paramount acquired the aforementioned studio and ousted its founders, Max and Dave Fleischer, in 1941...
, owned by Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
. His directorial efforts there include several shorts:
- Starring Little LuluLittle Lulu"Little Lulu" is the nickname for Lulu Moppett, a comic strip character created in the mid-1930s by Marjorie Henderson Buell. The character debuted in The Saturday Evening Post on February 23, 1935 in a single panel, appearing as a flower girl at a wedding and strewing the aisle with banana peels...
.- Snap Happy (June 22, 1945).
- Bored of EducationBored of EducationBored of Education is a 1936 Our Gang short comedy film directed by Gordon Douglas. Produced by Hal Roach and released to theaters by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, it was the 146th entry in the Our Gang series to be released.-Plot:...
(March 1,,1946). - A Scout with the Gout (March 24, 1947).
- Super Lulu (November 21, 1947).
- Starring PopeyePopeyePopeye the Sailor is a cartoon fictional character created by Elzie Crisler Segar, who has appeared in comic strips and animated cartoons in the cinema as well as on television. He first appeared in the daily King Features comic strip Thimble Theatre on January 17, 1929...
.- Service with a Guile (April 19, 1946).
- Rocket to Mars (August 9, 1946).
- Island Fling (March 4, 1947).
- Popeye Meets Hercules (June 18, 1948).
- Tar with a Star (August 12, 1949).
- Jitterbug Jive (June 23, 1950).
- Starring Herman Mouse and Henry Rooster. (Herman would later co-star in the Herman and KatnipHerman and KatnipHerman and Katnip are a duo of cartoon characters . From 1944 to September 1950, Herman appeared without Katnip, who made his first appearance in November 1950 with Mice Meeting You. The two characters continued to star in animated cartoons by Famous Studios until 1959...
series).- Sudden Fried Chicken (October 18, 1946).
- Starring Little AudreyLittle AudreyLittle Audrey is a fictional character, appearing in Paramount Pictures' Famous Studios cartoons from 1947 to 1958. She is considered a variation of the better-known Little Lulu, devised after Paramount decided not to renew the license on Marjorie Henderson Buell's comic strip character...
.- The Lost DreamThe Lost DreamThe Lost Dream is a romantic drama television series which premiered 4 November 2008, on MBC 4.-Characters:*Omer just moved to Istanbul to get a job ater the death of his family.*Pinar is the teenage girl who falls in love with Omer....
(March 18, 1949). - Song of the BirdsSong of the Birds*Song of the Birds is a traditional Catalan song. It was arranged for cello by cellist Pablo Casals and routinely played by him as an encore to protest the Franco regime in Spain.*It is also a 1935 Max Fleischer Color Classic...
(November 18, 1949). - Tarts and Flowers (May 26, 1950).
- Goofy Goofy Gander (August 18, 1950).
- The Lost Dream
- Starring Herman Mouse alone.
- Campus Capers (July 1, 1949).
- Starring Casper the Friendly GhostCasper the Friendly GhostCasper the Friendly Ghost is the protagonist of the Famous Studios theatrical animated cartoon series of the same name. As his name indicates, he is a ghost, but is quite personable...
.- Casper's Spree Under the Sea (October 13, 1950).
- Featuring no recurring characters.
- The Wee Men (August 8, 1947).
- The Bored Cuckoo (April 9, 1948).
- The Mite Makes Right (October 15, 1948).
- Hector's Hectic Life (November 19, 1948).
- Leprechaun's Gold (October 14, 1949).
- Voice of the Turkey (October 13, 1950).
His own daughter Tammy reportedly provided inspiration for the Little Lulu and Little Audrey shorts. She would later pursue a career as an artist and photographer, known as Tamara Schacher-Tytla.
Work at Tempo Productions
Tytla left Famous Studio during the early 1950s to work for Tempo Productions. Tempo was founded in 1946 as a partnershipPartnership
A partnership is an arrangement where parties agree to cooperate to advance their mutual interests.Since humans are social beings, partnerships between individuals, businesses, interest-based organizations, schools, governments, and varied combinations thereof, have always been and remain commonplace...
between David Hilberman
David Hilberman
David Hilberman was an American cartoon animator and one of the founders of classic 1940s animation.Hilberman worked for Walt Disney Studios and helped animate Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and Bambi. His involvement in unionizing colleagues and organization of the 1941 Disney strike cost him...
and Zack Schwartz. They were both former Disney colleagues of Tytla. David had notably served as an art director
Art director
The art director is a person who supervise the creative process of a design.The term 'art director' is a blanket title for a variety of similar job functions in advertising, publishing, film and television, the Internet, and video games....
for Bambi
Bambi
Bambi is a 1942 American animated film directed by David Hand , produced by Walt Disney and based on the book Bambi, A Life in the Woods by Austrian author Felix Salten...
and Zack for "The Sorcerer's Apprentice
The Sorcerer's Apprentice
The Sorcerer's Apprentice is the English name of a poem by Goethe, Der Zauberlehrling, written in 1797. The poem is a ballad in fourteen stanzas.-Story:...
." They were among the founders of the United Productions of America
United Productions of America
United Productions of America, better known as UPA, was an American animation studio of the 1940s through present day, beginning with industrial films and World War II training films. In the late 1940s, UPA produced theatrical shorts for Columbia Pictures, most notably the Mr. Magoo series. In...
but later sold their shares to their partner
Business partner
Business partner is a term used to denote a commercial entity with which another commercial entity has some form of alliance. This relationship may be a highly contractual, exclusive bond in which both entities commit not to ally with third parties...
Stephen Bosustow
Stephen Bosustow
Stephen Reginald Bosustow was a Canadian-born American film producer from 1943 until his retirement in 1979. He was one of the founders of United Productions of America and produced nearly 600 cartoon and live action shorts. He is chiefly remembered for producing a string of Mr...
.
At first the two indended to produce educational films but soon found there was only a limited market for them. However Jack Zander
Jack Zander
Jack Zander was an American animator whose career lasted from the "golden age" of theatrical animation into the 1980s.-Biography:Jack Zander was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan...
, head of the animation department of Transfilm Inc., which produced television commercials, approached them with an offer to produce animated advertisements for his company. They were at first assigned to advertise Camel cigarettes. Later their assignments included Standard Brands
Standard Brands
Standard Brands was formed in 1929 by J.P. Morgan with the merger of:*Fleischmann Company*Royal Baking Powder Company*E. W. Gillett*Widlar Food Products Company*Chase & Sanborn Coffee Company...
, Plymouth automobile, National Dairy Association, Tide
Tide (detergent)
Tide is the brand-name of a popular laundry detergent manufactured by Procter & Gamble and first introduced to the United States consumer in 1946. It is also marketed in Canada, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, India and several other countries...
and Clark Gum Company. Zack Schwartz had left the company in 1948/1949 but assignments continued. David Hilberman decided to expand the staff. The expansion included hiring Tytla as advertisement director.
The squared-off stylized designs reportedly frustrated Tytla. But he produced some good work there including some stop motion
Stop motion
Stop motion is an animation technique to make a physically manipulated object appear to move on its own. The object is moved in small increments between individually photographed frames, creating the illusion of movement when the series of frames is played as a continuous sequence...
animation. His animated advertisements though are perhaps the least well-remembered part of his career. When the revival of interest in classical animation
Modern animation of the United States
Modern animation of the United States from the late 1980s onward is sometimes referred to as the "American animation renaissance". During this period, many large American entertainment companies reformed and reinvigorated their animation departments following a general decline during the 1970s and...
started in the 1980s, they were long unavailable to audiences, presumably lost. A reason for this was that Tempo proved short-lived, blacklist
Blacklist
A blacklist is a list or register of entities who, for one reason or another, are being denied a particular privilege, service, mobility, access or recognition. As a verb, to blacklist can mean to deny someone work in a particular field, or to ostracize a person from a certain social circle...
ed during the Red Scare of the early 1950s.
Tytla, however took time to visit his former colleagues at Disney in 1954. Unlike Babbitt he was welcome to do so and even had his picture taken with his old boss Walt. In a letter to Marc Davis written in December, 1954 Tytla said "What a helluva swell time I had, It did me a world of good".
Later years
His next sources of employment were animated series. He is credited as director for episodes of four different series:- Popeye (September 10, 1956 –1963).
- Deputy DawgDeputy DawgDeputy Dawg is a Terrytoons cartoon character featured on the animated television series of the same name in an original TV weekly run from 8 September 1962 to 25 May 1963, with no episodes on 8 December to 29 December 1962, resuming on 5 January 1963. The cartoons are between four and six minutes...
(September 5, 1959 – 1972). - Matty's Funday FunniesMatty's Funday FunniesMatty's Funday Funnies is an American animated cartoon compilation television series.The original Matty's Funday Funnies aired from 1959-1961 on ABC's Sunday afternoon schedule , and originally featured 1950-59 Famous Studios theatrical cartoons starring Casper the...
(featuring Beany and CecilBeany and CecilBeany and Cecil was an animated cartoon series created by Bob Clampett, who had previously worked for Warner Bros.. As a puppet show entitled Time for Beany, it originally aired in 1949, with the animated series first appearing in Matty's Funday Funnies in 1959, later renamed Matty's Funnies with...
by Bob ClampettBob ClampettRobert Emerson "Bob" Clampett was an American animator, producer, director, and puppeteer best known for his work on the Looney Tunes animated series from Warner Bros., and the television shows Time for Beany and Beany and Cecil...
, October 11, 1959 – 1962). - The New Casper Cartoon Show (1963 – 1969).
He also took time to create one last short for Terrytoons, First Flight Up (1962). His last work on a feature film
Feature film
In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
with full personality animation was The Incredible Mr. Limpet
The Incredible Mr. Limpet
The Incredible Mr. Limpet is a 1964 American live-action/animated film from Warner Bros. It is about a man named Henry Limpet who turns into a talking fish resembling a tilefish and helps the U.S. Navy locate and destroy Nazi submarines. Don Knotts plays the title character. The live action was...
(1964). A comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
mixing live action
Live action
In filmmaking, video production, and other media, the term live action refers to cinematography, videography not produced using animation...
and animation, directed by Arthur Lubin
Arthur Lubin
Arthur Lubin was an American film director and producer who directed several Abbott & Costello films and created the TV series Mr. Ed.Arthur Lubin was born Arthur William Lubovsky in Los Angeles, California in 1898...
and starring Don Knotts
Don Knotts
Jesse Donald "Don" Knotts was an American comedic actor best known for his portrayal of Barney Fife on the 1960s television sitcom The Andy Griffith Show, a role which earned him five Emmy Awards...
as a fish. However during this time Tytla became ill and a lot of the actual animation was completed by animation director Robert McKimson
Robert McKimson
Robert "Bob" Porter McKimson, Sr. was an American animator, illustrator, and director best known for his work on the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons from Warner Bros., and later DePatie-Freleng Enterprises...
, Hawley Pratt
Hawley Pratt
Hawley Pratt was an American film director, animator, and illustrator. He is best known for his work during the heyday of Warner Bros. Cartoons and as the right-hand man of director Friz Freleng as a layout artist and later as a director...
and Gerry Chiniquy. All three of them are better known for their Looney Tunes
Looney Tunes
Looney Tunes is a Warner Bros. animated cartoon series. It preceded the Merrie Melodies series and was Warner Bros.'s first animated theatrical series. Since its first official release, 1930's Sinkin' in the Bathtub, the series has become a worldwide media franchise, spawning several television...
work.
Following this Tytla suffered many small stroke
Stroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
s which left him blind
Blindness
Blindness is the condition of lacking visual perception due to physiological or neurological factors.Various scales have been developed to describe the extent of vision loss and define blindness...
in his left eye. On August 13, 1967, the opening night of the Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
Expo
Expo 67
The 1967 International and Universal Exposition or Expo 67, as it was commonly known, was the general exhibition, Category One World's Fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, from April 27 to October 29, 1967. It is considered to be the most successful World's Fair of the 20th century, with the...
's World Exhibition of Animation Cinema, featured a screening of Dumbo
Dumbo
Dumbo is a 1941 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and released on October 23, 1941, by RKO Radio Pictures.The fourth film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, Dumbo is based upon the storyline written by Helen Aberson and illustrated by Harold Pearl for the prototype of a...
as part of an Hommage Aux Pionniers. Tytla was invited, but worried if anyone would remember him. When the film finished, they announced the presence of "The Great Animator." When the spotlight finally found him, the audience erupted in "a huge outpouring of love. It may have been one of the great moments of his life," recalled John Culhane.
Tytla did try to return to Disney. In a letter dated August 27, 1968, Disney productions vice president W.H. Anderson rejected his offer to do "trial animation", saying, "We really have only enough animation for our present staff." And as late as October 11, 1968, less than three months before Tytla's death, Disney director Wolfgang Reitherman
Wolfgang Reitherman
Wolfgang Reitherman , also known and sometimes credited as Woolie Reitherman, was a famed Disney animator and one of Disney's Nine Old Men.-Personal life:...
responded to story material Tytla submitted explaining "...I'm sorry to say that your story ideas don't fit into our present program.. We have not forgotten that you are anxious to animate here at the studio, but...So far, we can just barely keep our present crew of animators busy...rest assured you have many friends here at the studio who are pulling for you."
Vladimir Tytla died on his farm on December 30, 1968, aged 64.
External links
- http://web.archive.org/web/20091027021843/http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Academy/5308/index.html by Eddie Bowers. Original text for this article. Used with permission and based on Vladimir Tytla - Master Animator John CanemakerJohn CanemakerJohn Cannizzaro Jr. , better known as John Canemaker, is an independent animator, animation historian, author, teacher and lecturer. In 1980, he began teaching and developing the animation program at New York University, Tisch School of the Arts', Kanbar Institute of Film and Television Department...
, Catalogue essay for exhibition at The Katonah Museum of Art, Katonah, N.Y. Sept. 25, 1994-Jan.1, 1995.