Cal Dalton
Encyclopedia
Cal Dalton was a cartoon
Cartoon
A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...

 director
Animation director
An animation director is the director in charge of all aspects of the animation process during the production of an animated film or animated segment for a live-action film...

 at Warner Brothers. Dalton's first commercial animation work was on an animated short version of The Wizard of Oz
The Wizard of Oz (1933 film)
The Wizard of Oz is an animated short film directed by Ted Eshbaugh. The story is credited to "Col. Frank Baum." Frank Joslyn Baum, a Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Army and eldest son of writer L...

that was produced by Ted Eshbaugh
Ted Eshbaugh
Ted Eshbaugh was a Canadian animated filmmaker whose work includes The Wizard of Oz, Goofy Goat Antics, and The Sunshine Makers.Sammy Salvage 1943 - External links :...

's independent animation studio in 1933. Afterwards, Dalton left to work at the Warner Brothers
Warner Bros. Cartoons
Warner Bros. Cartoons, Inc. was the in-house division of Warner Bros. Pictures during the Golden Age of American animation. One of the most successful animation studios in American media history, Warner Bros. Cartoons was primarily responsible for the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies theatrical...

 animation studio, with his first project being 1935's Mr. and Mrs. Is the Name
Mr. and Mrs. Is the Name
Mr. and Mrs. Is the Name is a 1935 animated Merrie Melodies cartoon, starring Buddy and Cookie , and is noted to be the only Buddy cartoon in Technicolor. This is directed by Friz Freleng.-Plot:...

. Altogether, Dalton worked on 33 Warner Bros. cartoons as part of their animation department.

In 1938, following Friz Freleng
Friz Freleng
Isadore "Friz" Freleng was an animator, cartoonist, director, and producer best known for his work on the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons from Warner Bros....

's departure, Dalton was promoted to director; for unknown reasons though he was never allowed to be sole director, and shared his duties initially with Cal Howard
Cal Howard
Cal Howard was an American cartoon story artist, "mostly remembered for his work at Walter Lantz and Warner Bros.".-External links:...

, and then Ben Hardaway
Ben Hardaway
Joseph Benson "Ben/Bugs" Hardaway was a storyboard artist, animator, voice actor, gagman, writer, and director for several American animation studios during the The Golden Age of Hollywood animation. He was sometimes credited as J.B. Hardaway, Ben Hardaway, Buggsy Hardaway, and B. Hardaway.While...

. Dalton later admitted feeling aggrieved about the fact that while he was meant to be nominally in charge of Freleng's former unit, he tended to be overshadowed by the presence of the more experienced Hardaway.

Cal Dalton's major contribution to the legacy of Warner Bros. animation was having co-directed Hare-um Scare-um
Hare-um Scare-um
Hare-um Scare-um is a 1939 Merrie Melodies cartoon directed by Ben Hardaway and Cal Dalton, and first released on August 12, 1939 by Warner Bros. It marks the third appearance of the Bugs Bunny prototype and the first time he, thanks to a redesign by Charlie Thorson, appears as a grey rabbit...

in 1939 with Hardaway. The short featured a gray and white rabbit
Rabbit
Rabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha, found in several parts of the world...

 that served as the prototype for Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny is a animated character created in 1938 at Leon Schlesinger Productions, later Warner Bros. Cartoons. Bugs is an anthropomorphic gray rabbit and is famous for his flippant, insouciant personality and his portrayal as a trickster. He has primarily appeared in animated cartoons, most...

. Dalton directed or co-directed a total of 17 Warner Bros. cartoons from 1938 through 1940. He spent the rest of his years at Warner Bros. doing strictly animation work before leaving the studio in 1947. Dalton's last project was The Goofy Gophers
The Goofy Gophers
The Goofy Gophers is a 1946 Warner Bros. Looney Tunes cartoon released on January 25, 1947. It stars the Goofy Gophers with a cameo by Bugs Bunny at the end...

(1947), which was the first cartoon to feature those characters. He also did some uncredited animation in the Daffy Duck cartoon called Mexican Joyride.

External links

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