Screwy Squirrel

Here's a couple of model sheets and animation drawings from Tex Avery's "Screwy Truant", "Happy Go Nutty" and "Lonesome Lenny". Screwy was slightly redesigned for these shorts giving him a goofier, less cute look. Particularly the smaller cranium. Personally, I think he looks a bit ratty. But it's very fitting. I'm not sure who designed him this way but I'm assuming it was Claude Smith as he was drawing a lot of the models at this time including the original character design, which I posted here a couple of months ago. I've said it before I think he's the perfect character for a Tex Avery cartoon. He's just as unpredictable as Avery's gags. My personal favorite along with early Bugs and Daffy. I've been spending a lot of time practicing drawing him from model sheets and you can see my feeble attempts here. Feel free to let me how I've screwed him up.

Happy Thankgiving

Here's a couple of model sheets that are fitting for Thanksgiving. The first is from Tex Avery's "Jerky Turkey" and the other is from Tex's Screwy Squirrel cartoon "Big Heel-Watha". You'll probably notice that some of the drawings on the "Heel-Watha" model sheet were used in Preston Blair's book. Enjoy the holiday!

Tom and Jerry - "Tee For Two" Backgrounds

"Tee For Two" is one of my all-time favorite Tom and Jerry shorts. Mostly because I love Irv Spence's animation in this cartoon. I find it to be some of his funniest. One of the other things I love are the backgrounds, I believe these were painted by Robert Gentle. Sorry that the characters are in a couple of the pics. I usually try to use frames that don't have any animation over it. But in this case I liked the backgrounds too much to discard them just because Tom and Jerry are in it.

Tex Avery - "What's Buzzin' Buzzard?"

Here's one of my favorite model sheets from one of my favorite cartoons, "What's Buzzin' Buzzard?" This one was one of Fred Quimby's least favorite of Tex's cartoons. Even after it was selected for preservation in the Library Of Congress. At least Tex had an easy way to gauge if he made a good cartoon or not. If Quimby hated it or didn't think it was funny, it was good. Enjoy this wonderfully violent cartoon.

What's Buzzin' Buzzard

Uploaded by klangley

Milt Gross- Jitterbug Follies

This is one of my all-time favorites, Milt Gross' "Jitterbug Follies". This is one of two cartoons he directed for MGM, the other being "Wanted: No Master". Both were released in 1939, along with Milt himself as producer Fred Quimby felt that the cartoons weren't of high enough quality for a studio like MGM. Quimby is not a man who was known for his sense of humor so he must've really hated this one, it's funny from start to finish. It's really well timed to music too.

Jitterbug Follies (1939) Milt Gross

Uploaded by klangley