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Friday, December 17th, 2010

Biography: Art Lozzi

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Birth/Death

Birth: Oct 22, 1929
Death: Nov 4, 2019

Occupation/Title

Retired BG Artist for Hanna-Barbera, Interior Design artist for Hilton hotels as well as painter and designer of Hilton boats

Bio Summary

Art Lozzi was born and raised in Everett Masachusetts when he was young. In high school, his grades were excellent that he would have been able to enter MIT and focus on architecture. However, due to the high cost, he instead went to the Massachusetts College of Art and Design where upon graduation, he entered the Navy and did storyboards for their training films. When he was honorably discharged from the Navy, he went to Calfiornia and attended UCLA in studio arts. However, shortly afterwards, he applied at MGM’s animation department where he worked as an inbetweener, mostly for Tom and Jerry. It was also at MGM that he transferred to Disney, and after Disney was Hanna-Barbera where he began to work on the backgrounds for their various cartoons. In 1964, as part of an architectural group that he participated in as a hobby, he was hired by Conrad Hilton to do the interior design and color schemes for his hotels. He did a lot of his design work while working for Hanna-Barbera at the same time, and continually moved between Greece and the US, also doing designs for large cruise ships for the Greek Epirotiki Cruise Lines

Early Life/Family

Saturday Mornign classes at the De Benedictis Studio, Classic Art Training in Boston, Acceptance into MIT/Architecture without entrance exams, entered Massachusetts College of Art, went to UCLA to study Theater Arts

Education/Training

Worked as an inbetweener at MGM and Disney, submitted humorous cartoons to magazines such as the New Yorker, designed holiday cards, worked on Tom Jerry mostly; was in the Navy in the Naval Training Films to work on storyboards, soon worked for Hannah Barbera in the 50s-60s; worked on architectural interior design for the Hilton Hotel Chain, moved to Europe to work on it as well as designing cruise ships and other designs for Hilton

Career Outline

Comments On Style

His method of doing BGs was to keep making backgrounds over and over and over, they had an established style for each show and developed it for each individual show, and once that was set up, new artists had to keep to the style so that each show would be unique. His BGs are very graphic in the sense that it was with simple shapes and excellent use of color to describe the setting of the story, especially since it was all done with natural media.

Influences

Likes detective stories and mind development books, refers to renaissance and some spiritual books for his favorite reading, was inspired by many classic artists.

“My sense of color attracted Conrad Hilton’s architect and I was offered positons with them, doing color planning for various Hiltons within Europe and North Africa: Cyprus, Athens, Malta, Rabat (Morocco), Cairo,Istanbul, Corfu and maybe a dozen more. This is what made me decide to transfer my life to Greece where I’ve been living for over 45years… mamma mia! ”

Personality

Anecdotes

Miscellaneous

Thanks to John Kricfalusi and his All Kinds of Stuff, Art Lozzi was rediscovered.

Filmography

Pixie and Dixie and Mr. Jinks (1958) TV series (layout artist)
The Huckleberry Hound Show (1958) TV series (background artist)
Count Down Clown (1961) (background artist)
The Yogi Bear Show (1961) TV series (background artist)
– The Flintstone Flyer (1960) TV episode (background artist)
The Flintstones (background artist) (4 episodes, 1960-1961)
– Fred Flintstone: Before and After (1961) TV episode (background artist)
– Love Letters on the Rocks (1961) TV episode (background artist)
– Hot Lips Hannigan (1960) TV episode (background artist)
The Jetsons (background artist) (2 episodes, 1962-1963)
– The Little Man (1963) TV episode (background artist)
– The Coming of Astro (1962) TV episode (background artist)
This Is My Ducky Day (1961) (background artist)
Raggedy Rug (1964) (background artist)
Hey There, It’s Yogi Bear (1964) (background designer)
Bear Knuckles (1964) (background artist)
Pork Chop Phooey (1965) (background artist)
Crow’s Fete (1965) (background artist)
The Man Called Flintstone (1966) (background designer)
Space Ghost (1966) TV series (background artist)
The Archie Show (1968) TV series (background artist)
The Batman/Superman Hour” (background artist) (3 episodes, 1968)
– Two Penguins Too Many (1968) TV episode (background artist)
– Superman: Can a Luthor Change His Spots? (1968) TV episode (background artist)
– The Cool, Cruel Mr. Freeze (1968) TV episode (background artist)
Fantastic Voyage” (1968) TV series (background artist)

Honors

Related Links

http://readersvoice.com/interviews/2007/August/

Bibliographic References

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1145761/
http://readersvoice.com/interviews/2007/August/
http://johnkstuff.blogspot.com/2006/12/color-theory-art-lozzi-explains-some.html

BIO-AAA-476

Contributors To This Listing

Art Lozzi, Steven Kunz

To make additions or corrections to this listing, please click on COMMENTS below…

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Friday, December 17th, 2010

Biography: Dick Bickenbach

Birth/Death

Birth: August 9, 1907
Death: June 28, 1994, San Bernardino, CA

Occupation/Title

Animator, Layout Artist, Comic Book Pencilist, Character Designer, Actor, Director

Bio Summary

Richard Bickenbach was born in Indiana August 9 1907. He moved to Los Angeles California during the 1930’s where he became a longtime animator for Hanna-Barbara. Spending the first years of his animation career (the 1930s, 1940s) working as a layout artist and animator for Iwerks and Warner Bros, he joined Hanna-Barbara in 1957, and worked at the animation department until 1975. He was credited for creating the first official Yogi Bear model sheets. In 1984, Bick won the Golden Award, Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists Awards.

Early Life/Family

Education/Training

Dick was an animator before he became a layout artist so he knew how to make his poses functional for the animators.

Career Outline

Richard Bickenbach was longtime animator for Hanna-Barbara. Spending the first years of his animation career (the 1930s, 1940s) working as a layout artist and animator for Iwerks and Warner Bros, he joined Hanna-Barbara in 1957, and worked at the animation department until 1975. He is credited for the design of the first official ‘Yogi Bear’ model sheets, and worked as layout artist on shows like ‘Yogi Bear’ and ‘The Flintstones’. Between 1977 and 1979 he was the main artist for Marvel’s ‘Flintstones’ and ‘Yogi Bear’ comic book lines (inks by Lee Hooper)

Comments On Style

Dick, has all the main beliefs of first-rate cartoon drawings, they do the job they are supposed to. They don’t only work as individual drawings. They also work as workable layouts. Dick drew smooth proportions and was an outstanding designer, great compositions and fine-looking layouts. His drawings are not only purposeful but, he has a pleasing delicate style.

Influences

Hanna-Barbara, Iwerks

Personality

Bickenbach was a conservative cartoonist and animator and worked on traditional cartoons. Bickenback from the MGM days was soft spoken and always had a winning smile.

Anecdotes

“Ed Benedict made fun of Dick’s work sometimes, just on the grounds that it wasn’t very imaginative and that shocked me. To someone of my generation who worked in an environment where almost nobody had real drawing skill, or functionality, let alone style, Dick stood out as a giant cartoonist.”- John K.

Miscellaneous

Filmography

Night Life of the Bugs (1936) (animator)
Turkey Dinner (1936) (animator)
Hobo Gadget Band (1939) (animator)
Busy Bakers (1940) (animator)
Confederate Honey (1940) (animator) (uncredited)
Little Blabbermouse (1940) (animator)
Porky’s Hired Hand (1940) (animator)
The Trial of Mr. Wolf (1941) (animator)
Rookie Revue (1941) (animator)
The Wabbit Who Came to Supper (1942) (animator)
Foney Fables (1942) (animator)
Pigs in a Polka (1943) (animator) (uncredited)
Yankee Doodle Daffy (1943) (animator)
Duck Soup to Nuts (1944) (animator)
Stage Door Cartoon (1944) (animator) (uncredited)
Herr Meets Hare (1945) (animator) (uncredited)
A Tale of Two Mice (1945) (animator) (uncredited)
Nasty Quacks (1945) (animator)
Hare Remover (1946) (animator)
Daffy Doodles (1946) (animator)
Hollywood Canine Canteen (1946) (animator)
Acrobatty Bunny (1946) (animator)
Walky Talky Hawky (1946) (animator)
The Mouse-Merized Cat (1946) (animator)
Easter Yeggs (1947) (animator)
A Mouse in the House (1947) (animator)
The Invisible Mouse (1947) (animator)
Southbound Duckling (1955) (layout artist)
Tom and Chérie (1955) (layout artist)
Smarty Cat (1955) (layout artist)
That’s My Mommy (1955) (layout artist)
Good Will to Men (1955) (layout artist)
The Flying Sorceress (1956) (layout artist)
The Egg and Jerry (1956) (layout artist)
Busy Buddies (1956) (layout artist)
Muscle Beach Tom (1956) (layout artist)
Down Beat Bear (1956) (Layout artist)
Blue Cat Blues (1956) (layout artist)
Barbecue Brawl (1956) (Layout artist)
Tops with Pops (1957) (layout artist)
Give and Tyke (1957) (layout artist)
Timid Tabby (1957) (layout artist)
Feedin’ the Kiddie (1957) (layout artist)
Scat Cats (1957) (layout artist)
Mucho Mouse (1957) (layout artist)
Tom’s Photo Finish (1957) (layout artist)
Happy Go Ducky (1958) (layout artist)
Royal Cat Nap (1958) (layout artist)
Mutts About Racing (1958) (animator)
The Vanishing Duck (1958) (layout artist)
Robin Hoodwinked (1958) (layout artist)
Droopy Leprechaun (1958) (animator) (layout artist)
Tot Watchers (1958) (layout artist)
“Pixie and Dixie and Mr. Jinks” (1958) TV series (layout artist)
“The Huckleberry Hound Show” (1958) TV series (layout artist)
“Quick Draw McGraw” (1959) TV series (layout artist)
Little Bo Bopped (1959) (layout artist)
The Do-Good Wolf (1960) (layout artist)
“The Yogi Bear Show” (1961) TV series (layout artist)
Happy Go Loopy (1961) (layout artist)
Two Faced Wolf (1961) (layout artist)
The Space Car (1962) TV episode (layout artist)
The Coming of Astro (1962) TV episode (layout artist)
The Little Man (1963) TV episode (layout artist
“The Jetsons” (layout artist) (3 episodes, 1962-1963)
“The Magilla Gorilla Show” (1964) TV series (layout artist)
The Curse of Anubis (1964) TV episode (layout artist)
Treasure of the Temple (1964) TV episode (layout artist)
A Small Matter of Pygmies (1964) TV episode (layout artist)
The Fraudulent Volcano (1964) TV episode (layout artist)
Terror Island (1965) TV episode (layout artist)
“Jonny Quest” (layout artist) (6 episodes, 1964-1965)
aka The Adventures of Jonny Quest
Crow’s Fete (1965) (layout artist)
Fred Flintstone: Before and After (1961) TV episode (layout artist)
Christmas Flintstone (1964) TV episode (layout artist)
Fred Meets Hercurock (1965) TV episode (layout artist)
No Biz Like Show Biz (1965) TV episode (layout artist)
Shinrock-A-Go-Go (1965) TV episode (layout artist)
“The Flintstones” (layout artist) (8 episodes, 1960-1965)
The Man Called Flintstone (1966) (layout artist)
Jack and the Beanstalk (1967) (layout artist)
“The Atom Ant Show” (1967) TV series (layout artist)
“The Herculoids” (1967) TV series (layout artist) (unknown episodes)
The Magic Shillelah (1968) TV episode (layout artist)
The Curse of Thut (1968) TV episode (layout artist)
“The New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” (layout artist)
“The Adventures of Gulliver” (1968) TV series (layout artist)
“Scooby Doo, Where Are You!” (1969) TV series (layout artist)
“Cattanooga Cats” (1969) TV series (layout artist)
“Harlem Globe Trotters” (1970) TV series (layout artist)
aka The Go-Go Globetrotters (USA: rerun title)
“The Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm Show” (1971) TV series (layout artist)
Yogi’s Ark Lark (1972) TV episode (layout artist
“The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie” (layout artist) (1 episode, 1972)
aka The New Saturday Superstar Movie
“The Flintstones Comedy Hour” (1972) TV series (layout artist) (1972) (as Dick Bickenbach)
aka The Flintstone Comedy Show (USA: repeat compilations title)
aka The Flintstones Show (USA: new title)
Mr. Bigot (1973) TV episode (layout artist) (as Dick Bickenbach)
Mr. Hothead (1973) TV episode (layout artist) (as Dick Bickenbach)
“Yogi’s Gang” (layout artist) (2 episodes, 1973)
“Partridge Family 2200 AD” (1974) TV series (character designer)
aka The Partridge Family in Outer Space (USA)
“Scooby’s All Star Laff-A-Lympics” (1977) TV series (layout artist) (1977) (as Dick Bickenbach)
aka Laff-A Lympics (USA: segment title)
aka Scooby’s All Stars (USA: new title)
aka Scooby’s Laff-A Lympics (USA: new title)
RV Fever/Birthday Boy/Clownfoot/Fred Goes Ape/Flying Mouse/Ghost-sitters (1980) TV episode (character designer)
“The Flintstone Comedy Show” (character designer) (1 episode, 1980) (layout artist) (1 episode, 1980)
aka Bedrock Cops (USA: segment title)
aka Captain Caveman (USA: segment title)
aka Dino and Cavemouse (USA: segment title)
aka Flinstones Funnies (USA: rerun title)
aka Pebbles, Dino and Bamm Bamm (USA: segment title)
aka The Flintstone Family Adventures (USA: segment title)
aka The Frankenstones (USA: segment title)
Bunnicula, the Vampire Rabbit (1982) TV episode (layout artist)
“ABC Weekend Specials” (layout artist) (1 episode, 1982)

Honors

1984, Golden Award, Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists Awards

Related Links

http://johnkstuff.blogspot.com/2008/04/tom-and-jerry-layouts-functional-and.html

Bibliographic References

www.Imdb.com
http://lambiek.net
http://www.askart.com
http://johnkstuff.blogspot.com

Contributors To This Listing
Cody Cearley

To make additions or corrections to this listing, please click on COMMENTS below…

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Friday, December 17th, 2010

Biography: Ed Benedict

Birth/Death

Birth: 23 August 1912 Ohio
Death: 28 August 2006 Auburn, California

Occupation/Title

Artist, designer, animator, and layout artist

Bio Summary

Ed Benedict was born in Ohio in 1912. Known as one of the “greats” of animation’s Golden Age, he began at Disney in 1930 and continued his career working at Universal on Oswald the Lucky Rabbit and MGM under Tex Avery. He is best known as the primary designer of such Hanna-Barbera stars as Yogi Bear and the Flintstones. Benedict moved to Carmel, California in the 1960’s and continued freelancing until retirement. He died in his sleep at 94 in his Auburn, California home. He was predeceased by his wife Alice, and survived by his children and grandchildren. He requested that his ashes be scattered over California‘s Carmel Bay, where his wife’s ashes were also scattered.

Early Life/Family

Brother Bill
Sister Miriam
Wife- Alice

Children:
– Son, Donald
– Son, Allan

Grandchildren
– Derek and Peter (Donald’s children)

Education/Training

A highly respected and greatly admired animator, Benedict’s skills were honed throughout his impressive professional career.

Career Outline

Benedict began his career in animation at Disney in 1930, working on such early films as THE CHINA PLATE and BLUE RHYTHYM (both 1931), starring Mickey and Minnie Mouse. He moved to Universal in 1933 to work on Walter Lantz’s OSWALD THE LUCKY RABBIT shorts. He spent much of the 1930’s at Universal, aside from a brief stint with Mintz and an attempt to open his own studio (Benedict-Brewer, with Jerry Brewer). The studio collapsed because studio-owned theatres would not show their independently produced work. In the early 1940s Benedict returned to Disney and worked on several industrial/educational films (DAWN OF BETTER LIVING, etc.), and also received his first and only Disney credit as a layout artist (the Willie the Whale segment) on MAKE MINE MUSIC. Mid-1940s, he became involved with TV commercial animation at Paul Fennell’s Cartoon films, where he honed his modernized approach to drawing.

In 1952, Benedict was recruited by his former Universal colleague Tex Avery to become Avery’s lead layout artist and designer at MGM. Ed designed a number of Avery’s classic shorts including DIXIELAND DROOPY, FIELD AND SCREAM, THE FIRST BAD MAN, DEPUTY DROOPY and CELLBOUND. After Avery’s departure from MGM, Benedict continued working at the studio on the Mike Lah-directed Droopy shorts, while also freelancing for Avery on TV commercials at Cascade. While at MGM, Ed’s work caught the eyes of Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera. Hanna asked Benedict to design a dog and a cat for a TV project, which turned out to be the first Hanna-Barbera TV success: THE RUFF AND REDDY SHOW. During the late-1950s and early-1960s, Benedict became the primary designer for Hanna-Barbera and he designed most of the studio’s early stars including Yogi Bear, Huckleberry Hound, Quick Draw McGraw, The Flintstones, Snagglepuss and countless others. He not only created memorable characters, but also placed them in memorable settings, breaking TV taboos. In the Flintstones, Fred and Wilma were the first animated couple to be shown sleeping in the same bed. It would not be an exaggeration to say that a large part of H-B’s success in TV animation is owed to Benedict’s incredibly appealing and fun character designs. Ed moved to Carmel, California in the 1960s and continued freelancing for various studios during the 1960s and ’70s before retiring. (Cartoon Brew)

Comments On Style

His style was to draw heavily outlined figures, with unusual asymmetry and flat geometric shapes. The simplicity of his characters enabled Hanna Barbera to make cartoons for television at less than half the budget previously allocated for such films in the cinema. – Matthew Bannister (“last word”, BBC)

Ed Benedict’s distinctive style, most noticeable in his Hanna-Barbera creations, was striking with its charm and warmth. His creations were very stylized, with their heavy lines and stubby limbs. Though they were drawn in a flat manner, they were not bland, and exuded strong personalities that led to great popularity with the public.

Influences

Russell Patterson and Roy Nelson

Personality

Known for being passionate when it came to discussing art, design, and animation. Has an exterior that has been described as “indifferent” (Cartoon Brew), curmudgeonly, and crusty (John Kricfalusi), but a depth of character that reveals itself in his soft heart, warm creations, and lively opinions.

Anecdotes

In interviews, Benedict would berate fans for loving shows he helped create. He told Animation Blast: “I never really looked at a lot of them. I suppose when they first came out I looked at a few, and pretty soon they didn’t interest me. I wasn’t seeing any of my work. It was somebody else’s poor drawing of what I tried to do with the original model and they were just embarrassing. Somebody would say ‘Oh, I just love that stuff,’ for Christ’s sake! There’s an assumption that that’s my stuff they’re complimenting – but it isn’t my work.”

He made it very clear that he disliked the Hanna Barbera TV cartoons, the work that he was most known for, and that he didn’t care particularly that people liked his work so much.

I first met him in the mid 80’s when Lynne Naylor, Bob Jaques and I went on a trek to northern California to meet him. He was a super curmudgeon who couldn’t believe anyone even knew who he was, let alone loved his cartoons. We brought up tapes of his work for Tex Avery, his Hanna Barbera cartoons and he was completely disgusted by them! But then he demanded copies of them all so he could write me letters telling me everything that was wrong with them.

I showed him a bunch of Clampett cartoons and he was amazed at how wild and inventive they were. “Damn ugly though!”

Over the last couple decades I kept visiting him and rifling all his files of fantastic cartoon drawings he did for cartoons, commercials and comic strips. He also would show me lots of photos he took of the MGM studios in the 1950s. He would point to an animator and tell me all about him. “See that guy with the suave mustache? That’s Ken Muse, a nice guy, a real slick operator. Couldn’t draw worth a crap! Hanna loved him cause he could really ‘pump out the footage’! But a good guy to go bowling with, one of the guys.” – John Kricfalusi

Miscellaneous

Curmudgeonly he may have been, but he was liked by the fans and his influence was recognized by many, notably John Kricfalusi, the creator of Ren & Stimpy, who has described Benedict as “an unsung hero of animation. He was one of our greatest designers.”

Filmography

The Dizzy Dwarf (1934) (animator)
Amateur Broadcast (1935) (animator)
Quail Hunt (1935) (animator)
Battle Royal (1936) (animator)
Unpopular Mechanic (1936) (animator)
The Golfers (1937) (animator)
Steel Workers (1937) (animator)
Fireman’s Picnic (1937) (animator)
The Mechanical Handy Man (1937) (animator)
The Dumb Cluck (1937) (animator)
Birth of a Toothpick (1939) (animator)
Make Mine Music (1946) (layout artist- Willie the Whale)
The First Bad Man (1955) (layout artist) (uncredited)
Deputy Droopy (1955) (layout artist)
Cellbound (1955) (layout artist)?Grin and Share It (1957) (layout artist)
Mucho Mouse (1957) (layout artist)
Blackboard Jumble (1957) (layout artist)
One Droopy Knight (1957) (layout artist)
Sheep Wrecked (1958) (layout artist)
Mutts About Racing (1958) (layout artist)
Droopy Leprechaun (1958) (layout artist)
“The Huckleberry Hound Show” (1958) TV Series (layout artist)
“Quick Draw McGraw” (1959) TV Series (layout artist)
“The Flintstones” (1960) TV Series (character designer)
“Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines” (1969) TV Series (layout artist)?”Hong Kong Phooey” (1974) TV Series (layout artist)
Boo Boo Runs Wild (1999) (TV) (dedicatee) (layout artist)