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Fleischer Studios () was an American
animation studio An animation studio is a company producing animation, animated media. The broadest such companies conceive of products to produce, own the physical equipment for production, employ operators for that equipment, and hold a major stake in the sales ...
founded in 1929 by brothers Max and
Dave Fleischer Dave Fleischer (; July 14, 1894 – June 25, 1979) was an American film director and producer who co-owned Fleischer Studios with his older brother Max Fleischer. He was a native of New York City. Biography Early life and career Fleisch ...
, who ran the pioneering company from its inception until its acquisition by
Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount ...
in 1942, the parent company and the distributor of its films. In its prime, Fleischer Studios was a premier producer of animated cartoons for theaters, with Walt Disney Productions being its chief competitor in the 1930s. Fleischer Studios included '' Out of the Inkwell'' and '' Talkartoons'' characters like, Koko the Clown, Betty Boop, Bimbo, Popeye the Sailor, and
Superman Superman is a superhero created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, which first appeared in the comic book ''Action Comics'' Action Comics 1, #1, published in the United States on April 18, 1938.The copyright date of ''Action Comics ...
. Unlike other studios, whose characters were anthropomorphic animals, the Fleischers' most successful characters were humans (with the exception of Bimbo, a black-and-white cartoon dog, and Betty Boop, who started off as an anthropomorphized dog, but evolved into a human). The cartoons of the Fleischer Studio were very different from those of Disney, both in concept and in execution. As a result, they were rough rather than refined and consciously artistic rather than commercial, but in their unique way, their artistry was expressed through a culmination of the arts and sciences. This approach focused on surrealism, dark humor, adult psychological elements, and sexuality. Furthermore, the environments were grittier and urban, often set in squalid surroundings, reflecting the
Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
as well as German Expressionism.


History


The silent era

The Fleischer Studio was built on
Max Fleischer Max Fleischer (born Majer Fleischer ; July 19, 1883 – September 11, 1972) was an American animator and studio owner. Born in Kraków, in Austrian Poland, Fleischer immigrated to the United States where he became a pioneer in the development ...
's novelty film series '' Out of the Inkwell'' (1918–1927). The novelty was based largely on the results of the " rotoscope", invented by Fleischer to produce realistic animation. The first ''Out of the Inkwell'' films were produced through Bray Productions. They featured Fleischer's first character, "The Clown", who later became known as Ko-Ko the Clown in 1924. In 1921, Bray Productions ran afoul of legal issues, having contracted for more films than it could deliver to its distributor,
Goldwyn Pictures Goldwyn Pictures Corporation was an American motion picture production company that operated from 1916 to 1924 when it was merged with two other production companies to form the major studio, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was founded on November 19, ...
. The Fleischer Brothers left and began their own studio, Out of the Inkwell Films, with
Dave Fleischer Dave Fleischer (; July 14, 1894 – June 25, 1979) was an American film director and producer who co-owned Fleischer Studios with his older brother Max Fleischer. He was a native of New York City. Biography Early life and career Fleisch ...
as director and production supervisor, and Max as producer, at 129 East 45th Street, and later at 1600 Broadway, both in
Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
. In 1924, animator Dick Huemer joined the studio and redesigned "The Clown" for more efficient animation. Huemer's new design and experience as an animator moved them away from their dependency on the rotoscope for fluid animation. In addition to defining the clown, Huemer established the Fleischer style with its distinctive thick and thin ink lines. In addition, Huemer created Ko-Ko's companion, Fitz the Dog, who would evolve into Bimbo in 1930. Throughout the 1920s, Fleischer was one of the leading producers of animation with clever moments and numerous innovations. These innovations include the "Rotograph", an early "Aerial Image" photographic process for compositing animation with live action backgrounds. Other innovations included '' Ko-Ko Song Car-Tunes'' and sing-along shorts (featuring the famous " bouncing ball"), a precursor to karaoke. In 1924, distributor Edwin Miles Fadiman and Hugo Riesenfeld formed the Red Seal Pictures Corporation. Riesenfeld was the theatrical manager of the Strand, Rivoli, and Rialto theaters on Broadway. Because the Out of the Inkwell films were a major part of the program in Riesenfeld's theaters, the Fleischers were invited to become partners. The Red Seal Company committed to an ambitious release schedule of 26 films with The Inkwell Studio as the primary supplier. The following year, Red Seal released 141 films that included documentaries, short comedy subjects, and live-action serials. Carrie of the Chorus, also known as Backstage Comedies, was one of the Red Seal series that featured Max's daughter, Ruth, in a supporting role. Ray Bolger made his screen debut in this series and dated Ruth for a short time. Red Seal released cartoon novelty series such as ''The Animated Hair'' cartoons by cartoonist "Marcus", and ''Inklings''. ''The Animated Hair'' series resembled the on-screen hand drawing gimmick established in ''Out of the Inkwell''. In this case, "Marcus" produced high-quality ink line portraits of celebrities and political figures. Then through stop motion animation techniques, the lines and forms would break away to entertainingly re-form the portrait into another. ''Inklings'' was similar in concept to the ''Animated Hair'' films, but was more of a visual puzzle novelty using a variety of progressive scratch-off/reveal techniques and rearranged animated cutouts to change the images. It was during this time that
Lee de Forest #REDIRECT Lee de Forest {{redirect category shell, {{R from move{{R from other capitalisation ...
started filming his Phonofilms experiments featuring several of the major Broadway headliners. The Red Seal company began acquiring more theaters outside of New York and equipped them with sound equipment produced by
Lee de Forest #REDIRECT Lee de Forest {{redirect category shell, {{R from move{{R from other capitalisation ...
, displaying "talkies" three years before the sound revolution began. Because of Max's interest in technology, Riesenfeld introduced him to de Forest. It was through this partnership that Max produced a number of the Ko-Ko Song Car-tunes as sound releases. Of the 36 song films produced between 1924 and 1927, 12 were produced as sound films beginning in 1926 with standard silent versions as well. The first sound release was ''Mother Pin a Rose on Me''. Other sound releases included ''Darling Nellie Gray'', ''Has Anybody Here Seen Kelly?'', ''When the Midnight Choo-Choo Leaves for Alabam, ''Coming Through the Rye'', ''My Wife's Gone to the Country'', ''Margie, Oh, How I Hate to Get Up in the Morning'', ''Sweet Adeline,'' ''Old Black Joe'', ''Come Take A Trip in My Airship'', and ''By the Light of the Silvery Moon''. Red Seal owned 56 theaters, extending as far west as Cleveland, Ohio. But after only two years of operation, Red Seal was broke. Max Fleischer sought an appointment of receiver in bankruptcy in October 1926. Just as the situation looked hopeless, Alfred Weiss offered a Paramount contact. The Paramount deal provided financing and distribution, but due to legal complications of the bankruptcy, the title to ''Out of the Inkwell'' was changed to ''The Inkwell Imps'' (1927–1929) and the studio was renamed Inkwell Studios. One year into the relationship, the Fleischer Brothers discovered mismanagement under Weiss and left before the end of the ''Imps'' contract. Out of the Inkwell Films, Inc. filed bankruptcy in January 1929. In March, Max formed Fleischer Studios with Dave as his partner. Operations were first set up at the Carpenter-Goldman Laboratories in Queens. With a skeleton staff, Fleischer Studios started out doing industrial films, most notably, '' Finding His Voice'', a technical demonstration film explaining Western Electric's Variable Density recording and reproduction system. Max Fleischer secured a new contract with Paramount to produce a revival of the "Bouncing Ball" song films, re-branded as ''
Screen Songs ''Screen Songs'' (formerly known as ''KoKo Song Car-Tunes'') are a series of animated cartoons produced at the Fleischer Studios and distributed by Paramount Pictures between 1929 and 1938. Paramount brought back the sing-along cartoons in 19 ...
'', with '' The Sidewalks of New York'' as the first release on February 5, 1929.


Sound films

The early experiments with sound synchronization gave Fleischer Studios experience in perfecting the post-production method of recording, aided by several inventions by founder, Max Fleischer. With the conversion to sound, Paramount needed more sound films, and cartoons could be produced faster than feature films. As the ''
Screen Songs ''Screen Songs'' (formerly known as ''KoKo Song Car-Tunes'') are a series of animated cartoons produced at the Fleischer Studios and distributed by Paramount Pictures between 1929 and 1938. Paramount brought back the sing-along cartoons in 19 ...
'' returned Fleischer to the established song film format, a new sound series, '' Talkartoons'' replaced the silent ''Inkwell Imps'', the first being ''Noah's Lark'' released on October 25, 1929. Earlier entries in the series were one-shot cartoons, until the appearance of ''Bimbo'' as of the fourth entry. Bimbo evolved through several redesigns in each cartoon for the first year. While the intent was to develop him as the star of the series, it was the cameo appearance of a Helen Kane caricature in the seventh entry, '' Dizzy Dishes'' that took center stage. Audience reactions to the New York preview were so great that Paramount encouraged the continued development of the most famous character to come from the Fleischer Studio by that time, Betty Boop. While originated as a hybrid human/canine character, Betty Boop was transformed into the human character she is known as by 1932. Having become the main attraction of the ''Talkartoons'', she was given her own series, which ran until 1939. The "Jazz Baby" Flapper character, Betty Boop lifted the spirits of Depression Era audiences with her paradoxical mixture of childlike innocence and sexual allure. Being a musical novelty character, she was a natural for theatrical entertainment. Several of her early cartoons were developed as promotional vehicles for some of the top Black Jazz performers of the day including
Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and several era ...
(''I'll Be Glad When You're Dead You Rascal, You''), Don Redman (''I Heard''), and most notably, the three cartoons made with
Cab Calloway Cabell "Cab" Calloway III (December 25, 1907 – November 18, 1994) was an American jazz singer and bandleader. He was a regular performer at the Cotton Club in Harlem, where he became a popular vocalist of the Swing music, swing era. His niche ...
, ''Minnie the Moocher'', ''Snow White'', and ''The Old Man of the Mountain''. This was considered a bold action in light of the Jim Crow policies active in the South where such films would not be shown. In 1934, the Hays Code resulted in severe censorship for films. This affected the content of all of Paramount's films as well, which tended to reflect a more "mature" tone in the features of the
Marx Brothers The Marx Brothers were an American family comedy act known for their anarchic humor, rapid-fire wordplay, and visual gags. They achieved success in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in 14 motion pictures. The core group consisted of brothers Chi ...
, W.C. Fields, and most of all,
Mae West Mary Jane "Mae" West (August 17, 1893 – November 22, 1980) was an American actress, singer, comedian, screenwriter, and playwright whose career spanned more than seven decades. Recognized as a prominent sex symbol of her time, she was known ...
. As a result, each of these stars was released as Paramount changed the content of its films to reflect a more "general audience" in order to comply with the new Code and stay in business. Paramount had also gone through three reorganizations from bankruptcy between 1931 and 1936. The new management under Barney Balaban set out to make more general audience films of the type made at MGM, but for lower budgets. This change in content policy affected the content of cartoons that Fleischer was to produce for Paramount, which urged emulation of the Walt Disney product. While Paramount was a large organization with a network of theaters, its fiscal consciousness was largely responsible for preventing Fleischer Studios from acquiring the three-strip
Technicolor Technicolor is a family of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes. The first version, Process 1, was introduced in 1916, and improved versions followed over several decades. Definitive Technicolor movies using three black-and ...
process, leaving it available for a four-year exclusivity with
Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney ( ; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer, voice actor, and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the Golden age of American animation, American animation industry, he introduced several develop ...
, who created a new market for color cartoons, established by Academy Award winner, '' Flowers and Trees'' (1932). Paramount acquiesced to the release of the Color Classics series starting in 1934, but with the exclusivity of the three-color process still held by Disney, Fleischer Studios used the available two-color processes, Cinecolor, a two-emulsion red and blue process, and Two-color Technicolor, using red and green. By 1936, the Disney exclusivity had expired, and Fleischer Studios used the three-color process in its color cartoons beginning with '' Somewhere in Dreamland'' and continued using it for the remainder of its active years. The Fleischer Studio's greatest success came with the licensing of E.C. Segar's
comic strip A comic strip is a Comics, sequence of cartoons, arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often Serial (literature), serialized, with text in Speech balloon, balloons and Glossary of comics terminology#Captio ...
character Popeye the Sailor beginning in 1933. ''Popeye'' eventually became the most popular series the studio ever produced, and its success surpassed
Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney ( ; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer, voice actor, and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the Golden age of American animation, American animation industry, he introduced several develop ...
's
Mickey Mouse Mickey Mouse is an American cartoon character co-created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. The longtime icon and mascot of the Walt Disney Company, Mickey is an anthropomorphic mouse who typically wears red shorts, large shoes, and white ...
cartoons, documented by popularity polls. With the availability of full spectrum color, the Fleischer Studios produced three two-reel ''Popeye'' featurettes, '' Popeye the Sailor Meets Sindbad the Sailor'' (1936), '' Popeye the Sailor Meets Ali Baba's Forty Thieves'' (1937), and '' Popeye the Sailor Meets Aladdin's Wonderful Lamp'' (1939). This series of longer-format cartoons were an indication of the emergence of the animated feature film as a commercially viable project beginning with Walt Disney's '' Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'' (1937). The Fleischer Studios had reached its zenith by 1936, with four series and 52 annual releases. Due to the phenomenal success of the Popeye cartoons, Paramount demanded more, and the Fleischer Studio experienced rapid expansion in order to balance out the increased workload. The crowded conditions, production speedups, drawing quotas, and internal management problems resulted in a labor strike beginning in May 1937 which lasted for five months. This strike was a test case, the first launched in the motion picture industry, and produced a nationwide boycott of Fleischer cartoons for the duration. Max Fleischer had been petitioning Paramount for three years about producing an animated feature. Paramount vetoed his proposals until the proven success of Disney's ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'' (1937). Paramount now wanted an animated feature for a 1939 Christmas release. This request came at the time of preparations for relocating to
Miami, Florida Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...
. While the relocation had been a consideration for some time, its final motivation was made a reality due to lower corporate
tax A tax is a mandatory financial charge or levy imposed on an individual or legal entity by a governmental organization to support government spending and public expenditures collectively or to regulate and reduce negative externalities. Tax co ...
structures and an alleged escape from the remaining hostility from the strike. The new Fleischer Studio opened in October 1938, and production on its first feature, ''
Gulliver's Travels ''Gulliver's Travels'', originally titled ''Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World. In Four Parts. By Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon, and then a Captain of Several Ships'', is a 1726 prose satire by the Anglo-Irish writer and clerg ...
'' (1939), went from the development stage begun in New York to active production in Miami. The score was by Paramount staff composer, Victor Young and recorded at the Paramount west coast facilities. While limited to only 60 theaters in a one-month release, ''Gulliver's Travels'' earned more than $3 million in the United States alone, exceeding its original $500,000 estimated cost. Accordingly, a second feature was ordered for the Christmas period, '' Mr. Bug Goes to Town'' (1941).


Fall of Fleischer

The personal relationship between Max and Dave Fleischer deteriorated during the Miami period due to complications associated with the pressures of finishing the studio's first feature film and Dave's very public adulterous affair with his secretary, Mae Schwartz. Max and Dave stopped speaking to each other altogether by the end of 1939, communicating solely by memo. Dave gained total control of production in 1940, relegating Max to business affairs and research. The studio was in need of new products going into the new decade, but the new shorts series that debuted in 1939 and 1940, '' Gabby'', '' Stone Age Cartoons'', and '' Animated Antics'', were unsuccessful. Theater operators complained, with the ''Popeye'' cartoons having the only value. Paramount acquired the rights to
comic book A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...
superhero A superhero or superheroine is a fictional character who typically possesses ''superpowers'' or abilities beyond those of ordinary people, is frequently costumed concealing their identity, and fits the role of the hero, typically using their ...
''
Superman Superman is a superhero created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, which first appeared in the comic book ''Action Comics'' Action Comics 1, #1, published in the United States on April 18, 1938.The copyright date of ''Action Comics ...
'' in 1941, and the Fleischers were assigned to work on a series of animated ''Superman'' shorts. The first entry, ''Superman'', had a budget of $50,000,Barrier, Michael (1999). ''Hollywood Cartoons''. New York: Oxford University Press. Pg. 304. the highest ever for a Fleischer theatrical short, and was nominated for an
Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...
. The animated ''Superman'' series, with its action-adventure and science fiction fantasy content, was a huge success, but that did not help the studio out of its financial trouble. It was penalized $350,000 for going over budget on ''Gulliver's Travels'', and the revenues earned from the rentals of the ''Popeye'' cartoons had to be used to offset the loss of $250,000 incurred by the rejection of cartoons in 1940.


Acquisition by Paramount

While profits dwindled, Paramount continued to advance money to Fleischer Studios to continue the production of cartoons with its focus mainly on ''Popeye'', ''Superman'', and '' Mr. Bug Goes to Town'', a new feature film for the 1941 Christmas season. On May 24, 1941, Paramount demanded reimbursement on the penalties still owed after 18 months and assumed full ownership of Fleischer Studios, Inc.Barrier, Michael (1999). ''Hollywood Cartoons''. New York: Oxford University Press. Pgs. 303–305. . The Fleischers remained in control of production until that November. ''Mr. Bug Goes to Town'', intended for release in December 1941, was not released until February 1942, and never recouped its costs. In spite of living up to his contractual obligations and delivering the film, Max Fleischer was asked to resign. Dave Fleischer had resigned the month before, and Paramount finished out the last five months of the Fleischer contract without the Fleischer brothers. The last cartoon produced at the credited Fleischer Studios was the ''Superman'' cartoon '' Terror on the Midway''. Paramount formed a new company,
Famous Studios Famous Studios (renamed Paramount Cartoon Studios in 1956) was the first animation division of the film studio Paramount Pictures from 1942 to 1967. Famous was established as a successor company to Fleischer Studios, after Paramount seized contr ...
, as a successor to Fleischer Studios effective on July 3, 1942.


Television

With the exception of the ''Superman'' and ''Popeye'' cartoons, Paramount's cartoon library of releases prior to October 1950 was originally sold to U.M. & M. TV Corporation in 1955. A condition of the purchase required the removal of the Paramount logos and copyright lines from the main titles. As soon as the Fleischer library was sold to television, Max Fleischer noticed that some of the cartoons were being shown without his name in the credits, which was a violation of his original contracts. On June 17, 1956, Max Fleischer filed suit against Paramount and its TV distribution partners, seeking $2,750,000 in damages. The infringement on his name was corrected on all subsequent prints exhibited on television. Before U.M.& M. had finished the title alterations, the company was bought by
National Telefilm Associates National Telefilm Associates (NTA) was a distribution company primarily concerned with the syndication of American film libraries to television, including the Republic Pictures film library. It was successful enough on cable television between 19 ...
. NTA placed their logo at the heads and tails of the films and blacked out references to Paramount,
Technicolor Technicolor is a family of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes. The first version, Process 1, was introduced in 1916, and improved versions followed over several decades. Definitive Technicolor movies using three black-and ...
, Cinecolor and Polacolor. The majority of the Fleischer cartoons were off the air by the mid 60s when the original copyrights were due for renewal. NTA failed to renew the copyrights, which placed the majority of the Fleischer film library (including the ''Color Classics'' series, the ''Screen Songs'' series, and ''
Gulliver's Travels ''Gulliver's Travels'', originally titled ''Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World. In Four Parts. By Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon, and then a Captain of Several Ships'', is a 1726 prose satire by the Anglo-Irish writer and clerg ...
'') into the
public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work to which no Exclusive exclusive intellectual property rights apply. Those rights may have expired, been forfeited, expressly Waiver, waived, or may be inapplicable. Because no one holds ...
. '' Mr. Bug Goes to Town'', various '' Betty Boop'' cartoons, and the 1938 ''Color Classic'', ''The Tears of an Onion'', are among the few films that remain under copyright to Melange Pictures, LLC. In the mid-1970s, NTA converted 85 black and white ''Betty Boop'' cartoons to color through Fred Ladd's Color Systems company. The process was done by having the cartoons traced and re-colored by Korean animators. These were packaged in 1976 under the title ''Betty Boop for President''. This was refashioned as a compilation feature, ''Hooray for Betty Boop'', and ran on HBO in 1980. Paramount has reacquired ownership of the original Fleischer film library (through their acquisition of Republic Pictures) since 1996 and continues to own the theatrical rights.


''Popeye'' and ''Superman''

The ''Popeye'' series, a property licensed from King Features Syndicate, was acquired by Associated Artists Productions (a.a.p.), which later became part of United Artists (for info on the ''Popeye'' retitling, see the a.a.p. article) and
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...
. Turner Entertainment Co., after briefly owning MGM outright, settled for ownership of the library, including the ''Popeye'' cartoons, in 1986. A small number of ''Popeye'' cartoons have also entered the public domain. ''Superman'', the other series based on licensing, reverted to National Comics after Paramount's rights to the character expired. TV syndication rights were initially licensed to Flamingo Films, distributors of the 1950s '' Adventures of Superman'' TV series. All 17 entries in this series entered the public domain in the late 1960s, when National failed to renew their copyrights. Nevertheless, the ''Superman'' and ''Popeye'' cartoons are now under the ownership of Warner Bros., a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery; Warner bought the original film elements to the ''Superman'' series in 1969, after becoming a sibling (and later the parent) to DC Comics.


Home video

Most of the Fleischer color titles have been widely available on video since the 1980s, often on inexpensive videotapes sold in supermarkets and discount stores. Animation fans, the UCLA Film and Television Archive, and more recently the Max Fleischer estate and Paramount Pictures (via the Republic/Melange library) have worked to release high-quality restored editions of the Fleischer cartoons. These have also been made available on pay-cable, home video, DVD, and online on
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
. Many of these restored versions now include the original front-and-end Paramount titles. Most of the silent Fleischer titles from the ''Out of the Inkwell''/''Inkwell Imps'' series have entered the public domain. An official ''Betty Boop'' VHS set, ''Betty Boop Confidential'', was released by Republic Pictures in 1995, included several black-and-white ''Betty Boop'' cartoons as well as Betty's only color appearance, ''Poor Cinderella''. There have been several video releases for the ''Superman'' series. These include a 1991 VHS set produced by Bosko Video, titled ''The Complete Superman Collection: Golden Anniversary Edition – The Paramount Cartoon Classics of Max & Dave Fleischer'' released as two volumes which featured transfers from 35mm prints. It was reissued on DVD as ''The Complete Superman Cartoons — Diamond Anniversary Edition'' in 2000 by Image Entertainment, and ''Superman Adventures'' in 2004 by Platinum Disc Corporation. A third (and more "official") compilation using restored and remastered materials was released in November 2006 by Warner Home Video as part of their DVD box set of Superman films. In 2009, Warner gave these Superman shorts their own stand-alone 2-disc DVD release, ''Max Fleischer's Superman: 1941–1942''. Olive Films, under exclusive license from Melange/Viacom, acquired the rights to the 66 non-public domain Betty Boop cartoons, and released four volumes of ''Betty Boop'' DVDs and Blu-rays. Warner Home Video has released all of the Fleischer Popeye cartoons in three volumes as part of the '' Popeye the Sailor'' DVD collection. VCI Entertainment/Kit Parker Films' DVD compilation of all the ''Color Classics'' (except ''The Tears of an Onion''), entitled ''Somewhere In Dreamland'', was released in 2003. It includes only a fraction of shorts remastered from 35mm film, but otherwise taken from the best available sources Kit Parker could provide VCI, and digitally recreating the original front-and-end Paramount titles. Animation archivist Jerry Beck served as consultant for this box set, as well as providing audio commentary for select shorts. VCI Entertainment also released a DVD compilation of all the public domain ''Popeye'' cartoons (both Fleischer and Famous) entitled ''Popeye the Sailor Man Classic Cartoons: 75th Anniversary Collector's Edition'' in 2004. In
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
, ''Mr. Bug Goes to Town'' was released on DVD in April 2010 by Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment as part of the Studio Ghibli's Ghibli Museum Library collection.


Fleischer Studios today

In 1985, DC Comics named Fleischer Studios as one of the honorees in the company's 50th anniversary publication '' Fifty Who Made DC Great'' for its work on the Superman cartoons. Today, a new iteration of Fleischer Studios effectively holds the rights to Betty Boop and associated characters such as Koko the Clown, Bimbo and Grampy, though courts have never supported their ownership claims. It is headed by Max's grandson Mark Fleischer, who oversees merchandising activities. Fleischer Studios utilizes King Features Syndicate to license Fleischer characters for various merchandise. In 2021, after decades of being shown in altered and worn prints, the Fabulous Fleischer Cartoons Restored company was started by Max Fleischer's granddaughter, Jane Fleischer Reid, to focus on the restoration and screening of the Fleischer Studios library. The restoration efforts are a collaboration between film archives around the world including
Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount ...
which owns the original camera negatives. Beginning with ''Somewhere in Dreamland''; the restored cartoon had its premiere on the MeTV network in December of the same year. In March 2023, a week long screening event took place at the
Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...
which showcased around 60 brand new Fleischer restorations.


Legacy and influence

The loose, improvisatory animation, frequently surreal action generally termed "The New York Style" (particularly in films such as '' Snow White'' and '' Bimbo's Initiation''), grungy atmosphere, and racy
pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was an era in the Cinema of the United States, American film industry that occurred between the widespread adoption of sound in film in the late 1920s and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorship gui ...
content of the early Fleischer Studios cartoons have been a major influence on many underground and alternative cartoonists. Kim Deitch, Robert Crumb, Jim Woodring, and Al Columbia are among the creators who have specifically acknowledged their inspiration. Much of Richard Elfman's 1980
cult film A cult film, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a cult following. Cult films are known for their dedicated, passionate fanbase, which forms an elaborate subculture, members of which engage in repeated ...
'' Forbidden Zone'' is a live action pastiche of the early Fleischer Studios style. The Fleischer style was also used in the 1995 animated series '' The Twisted Tales of Felix the Cat''. The studio's art style and surreal atmosphere was a central influence on the indie game '' Cuphead'', with the studio being described as "magnetic north" for the game's art style.
Genndy Tartakovsky Gennady Borisovich "Genndy" Tartakovsky (; born January 17, 1970) is a Soviet-born American animation, animator, screenwriter, film producer, and film director, director. He is best known as the creator of various animated television series on ...
has also cited the works of the studio as a major inspiration for the look of his 2023 animated series '' Unicorn: Warriors Eternal''.


Fleischer Studios staff (1929–1942)


Producers

*
Max Fleischer Max Fleischer (born Majer Fleischer ; July 19, 1883 – September 11, 1972) was an American animator and studio owner. Born in Kraków, in Austrian Poland, Fleischer immigrated to the United States where he became a pioneer in the development ...


Directors

* James Culhane ('' Mr. Bug Goes to Town''; uncredited) *
Dave Fleischer Dave Fleischer (; July 14, 1894 – June 25, 1979) was an American film director and producer who co-owned Fleischer Studios with his older brother Max Fleischer. He was a native of New York City. Biography Early life and career Fleisch ...


Writers

* Eric St. Clair * Pinto Colvig * Max Fleischer * Dave Fleischer *
Warren Foster Warren Foster (October 24, 1904 – December 13, 1971) was an American writer, cartoonist and composer. He was best known for his work at Warner Bros. Cartoons, contributing prominently (mostly stories) towards the Looney Tunes, ''Looney ...
* Dan Gordon * Cal Howard * Seymour Kneitel * George Manuell * Jack Mercer * Carl Meyer * Tedd Pierce * Graham Place * Hal Seeger * Edmond Seward *
Isadore Sparber Isadore Sparber (March 7, 1906 - August 29, 1958) was an American storyboard artist, writer, director and producer of animated films. He is best known for his work with Fleischer Studios and its successor, Famous Studios. When credited, his work ...
* David Tendlar * William Turner * Jack Ward * Bob Wickersham


Animators

* Tom Baron * Bob Bemiller * Thomas Bonfiglio * Eli Brucker * Robert Bentley * Willard Bowsky * Orestes Calpini * Joel Clive * Herman Cohen * Roland Crandall * James Culhane * Joe D'Igalo * Ugo D'Orsi * James Davis * Nelson Demorest * Anthony Di Paola * H.C Ellison * Frank Endres * Al Eugster * Otto Feuer * Don Figlozzi * Dave Fleischer * Max Fleischer * Lillian Friedman Astor * George Germanetti * Arnold Gillespie * Tom Golden * Reuben Grossman * Charles Hastings * William Henning * Winfield Hoskins * Tom Johnson * Abner Kneitel (also credited as Abner Matthews) * Seymour Kneitel * Bob Leffingwell * Michael Maltese * Carl Meyer * Thomas Moore * George Moreno Jr. * Steve Muffati * Grim Natwick * Bill Nolan * Joe Oriolo * Sid Pillet * Graham Place * Lod Rossner * Ted Sears * Hal Seeger * Gordon Sheehan * Ben Solomon * Irving Spector * Sam Stimson * William Sturm * Dave Tendlar * Jim Tyer * Edith Vernick * Myron Waldman * Harold Walker * John Walworth * Bob Wickersham * Bernard Wolf * Lou Zukor


Animation directors

Note: An animator who is credited first in a Fleischer cartoon is a director of animation. Dave Fleischer's role during production is more in line with a creative supervisor. * Willard Bowsky * Orestes Calpini * Roland Crandall * James Culhane * H. C. Ellison * Al Eugster * Arnold Gillespie * Tom Johnson * Seymour Kneitel * Bob Leffingwell * Bill Nolan * Tom Palmer * Graham Place * Stan Quackenbush * Dave Tendlar * Myron Waldman


Layout and scenic artists

* Eddi Bowlds * Hemia Calpini * Robert Connavale * Robert Little * Anton Loeb * Shane Miller * Erich Schenk * Gustaf Tenggren


Photographers

* Leonard McCormick


Voice actors

* Joan Alexander *
Dave Barry David McAlister Barry (born July 3, 1947) is an American author and columnist who wrote a nationally Print syndication, syndicated humor column for the ''Miami Herald'' from 1983 to 2005. He has written numerous books of humor and parody, as we ...
* Jackson Beck * Bud Collyer * Pinto Colvig * William Costello * Margie Hines * Cal Howard * Little Ann Little * Jack Mercer * Billy Murray * Julian Noa * William Pennell * Tedd Pierce * Bonnie Poe * Mae Questel * Ann Rothschild * Gus Wickie * Kate Wright


Musical supervisor and arrangements

* Lou Fleischer (supervisor, 1930–1942) * George Steiner (1930–1935) * Sammy Timberg (1932–1942) * Winston Sharples (1940–1942)


Selected filmography


See also

* Animation in the United States during the silent era * The Golden Age of American animation *
Famous Studios Famous Studios (renamed Paramount Cartoon Studios in 1956) was the first animation division of the film studio Paramount Pictures from 1942 to 1967. Famous was established as a successor company to Fleischer Studios, after Paramount seized contr ...
*
List of animation studios This is a list of animation studios, including notable companies and organizations principally dedicated to the production and distribution of animated films. Such studios may be actual production facilities or corporate entities. Active studio ...
* Camera Effects


References


Citations


Bibliography

*


External links

* {{navboxes, list= {{Famous Studios {{Paramount Animation {{Paramount theatrical animated features {{Children's programming on CBS {{Animation industry in the United States {{ViacomCBS Adult animation studios American animation studios American companies established in 1929 American companies disestablished in 1942 History of animation Mass media companies established in 1929 Mass media companies disestablished in 1942 Paramount Pictures Mass media companies based in New York City 1929 establishments in New York City 1942 disestablishments in Florida 1942 mergers and acquisitions Paramount Global subsidiaries Paramount Pictures animated films Paramount Pictures franchises Paramount Pictures short films