Comments on: Strong to the Finich

By: tom_w

tom_w — Mon, 29 May 2006 00:00:00 +0000

All good points, Dave. My intense adult interest in animation came when I read Maltin’s ‘Of Mice and Magic’ in 1981. That was before VCRs and the net, making viewing of classic cartoons nearly impossible, and my peers refused to pay attention to the artistic side of cartoons. Up to now, I haven’t been able to have a conversation about Popeye with anybody who knew the difference among the Fleischer, Famous, and Brodax Popeyes, or cared.

So I truly want to express my appreciation to Frederator for setting up this podcast and forum. I enjoy watching the cartoons, reading knowledgeable commentary, and holding conversations about these cartoons and the artists (and/or hacks) who made them.

By: 2oonhed

2oonhed — Sat, 27 May 2006 00:00:00 +0000

a fine film. I enjoyed it very much.
thanks ReFrederator!

By: Dave Kirwan

Dave Kirwan — Sat, 27 May 2006 00:00:00 +0000

Yeah, that ‘last theatrically released cartoon’ thing was a coincidence we didn’t notice until after the play list was put together. Don’t get me wrong about the Fleischer Popeyes — I think they are fabulous, totally in a class by themselves, way more interesting than anything that came after. But Paramount took over the cartoon studio in the early 40’s — about 15 years before “Spooky Swabs.” At that time the Fleischers had been working on features, the extravagent Superman series, even some one shot two reelers in addition to the regular black and white Popeyes. A season or so after the changing of the guard, Popeye was once again the studio’s premier product, and the budgets were increased to allow for the series to be produced in color. Even though we both probably agree many creative elements declined, it can be argued certain technical aspects, such as the consistancy in animation quality, were actually tightened up in the mid forties.

But, yeah, I think the stuff from the thirties has a chunk of soul that disappeared Max and Dave left.

By: tom_w

tom_w — Fri, 26 May 2006 00:00:00 +0000

It’s interesting that in Dead People Week you’d have the last Felix and the last (pre-TV) Popeye. I don’t get the remark about Paramount/Famous improving production values. I will grant that the Fleischers didn’t have the strict standards of Disney, and their cartoons can get sloppy, but all Paramount did was simplify character design and backgrounds. The Fleischer Popeyes, like the one last week, take place in an urban landscape and are distinctive for their use of densely packed buildings and the vertical. This is all gone in the Famous cartoons.