Channel Frederator Blog

Today is the last day to catch Brad Benedict’s Side Show exhibit at Wal Art (1639 South La Cienega Blvd in Los Angeles). Includes animation peeps like Chris Reccardi, Dave Wasson, Ric Heitzman, and Everett Peck. La La Landers have about an hour to run over. Otherwise, see the artwork online. (Artwork above by Wasson.)

“Game Over” (Art of the Gamer Generation) is a group show that runs through October 29th at Giant Robot in San Francisco (622 Shrader Street). (Artwork above by Justin “Scrappers” Morrison.)

And…the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art in New York City just announced two upcoming Kim Deitch events:

Cartoon Movie Night (October 30, 7 pm)
Kim Deitch will host a Cartoon Movie Night featuring rarely seen animated cartoons from the 1920s and 1930s hand-picked for the occasion from Deitch’s own personal collection. MoCCA will also display for one night only selected specimens from Deitch and spouse Pam Butler’s extensive collection of antique toy cats.

Deitch Q & A (November 13, 7 pm)
Q & A session with Deitch and exhibit curator Bill Kartalopoulos. Deitch will present examples of recent work and will also preview images from his current works in progress.

Also at MOCCA, a one-day only preview of Heritage Auction Galleries’ November 2008 Vintage Comics & Comic Art Signature Auction, to be more specific…

MAD Contemporary Art Treasures: The Most Classic Original Art from MAD Magazine (October 29, 10-5)

More info after the jump… [Read more…]

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Reading Ann Bernstein’s post about Gene Deitch and his progeny inspired me to go back in my old agency’s archives for one of my favorite pieces, called “Easy Groove.”

Jerry Lieberman was one of the most prolific animation producers in commercial animation in the 1970s, and somehow or other (I think I saw his reel) hooked with with my partner Alan Goodman and me while we were the creative directors at MTV and Nickelodeon in the 1980s. Jerry was great to work with, and ended up making dozens of our 10 second network IDs for almost every cable network we branded, from The Movie Channel to HA! and of course MTV and Nick. Once we got comfortable with each other and he realized we weren’t kidding about creative freedom, he started reaching into the community he was most comfortable with, illustrators with an edge. He introduced [Read more…]

The Comics Journal (#292) is a Deitch Family Extravaganza. The intro claims that the issue contains 120,000 words about this brilliant and complex family…and I wouldn’t be surprised! The Gene Deitch section is of interest to animation fans as he discusses his time at UPA, Jam Handy, Terrytoons, and his later years producing animation in Prague. There is also an exhaustive interview with undie/indie comcs genius Kim where he covers the far-flung experiences that feed his extensive body of work (a stint as a merchant seaman, underground comics days in San Francisco, interviewing silent film stars and death row inmates for background—not to mention a good story involving Robert Crumb and a pie!) Also featured are chats with lesser-known-but-brilliant-in-their-own-way brothers Simon and Seth. I devoured this issue!

(TCJ has posted some additional material that was cut from the Kim Deitch interview here. About 20,000 more words or so, along with lots of sketches and preliminary artwork. If you just can’t get enough!)

Also, don’t miss the Kim Deitch retrospective that opens this month at MOCCA in NYC.

After the jump, a Gaston LeCrayon cartoon from Gene Deitch days at Terrytoons. (Color shift alert!)

[Read more…]