Van Beuren Studio
Which employer did Bill Littlejohn work for in 1931?
Bill Littlejohn William Charles Littlejohn ( January 27 , 1914 – September 17 , 2010 ) was an American animator and union organizer . Littlejohn worked on animated shorts and features in the 1930s through to the 1990s . His notable works include the Tom and Jerry shorts , Peanuts television specials , the Oscar-winning short , The Hole ( 1962 ) , and the Oscar-nominated A Doonesbury Special ( 1977 ) . He was inducted into the Cartoon Hall of Fame and received the Winsor McCay Award and garnered lifetime achievement awards from the Annie Awards and the UCLA Film and Television Archive . Director Michael Sporn has called Littlejohn an animation God . Littlejohn co-founded and served as the first president of the Screen Cartoonists Guild Local #852 in 1938 . He led the effort to gain recognition for the union at the major Hollywood animation studios . When Walt Disney refused to negotiate with the union and fired 16 pro-union artists , Littlejohn led the union in the 1941 Disney animators strike . The strike lasted nine weeks and resulted in Disneys recognition of the union , substantial salary increases , a 40-hour work week and screen credits . The Disney strike has been recognized as a watershed moment in the movement to unionize the animation industry . Littlejohn was an active advocate for the art of animation , becoming a co-founder of ASIFA-Hollywood in 1957 and of the International Tournée of Animation in the mid-1960s . He also served on the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Board of Governors representing short films and animation from 1988 to 2001 . Early years . Littlejohn was born in Newark , New Jersey in 1914 . His father was an engineer for Pitney Bowes who worked an early combination of the adding machine and typewriter . In either 1931 or 1934 ( sources differ on the date ) , he began working in animation at the Van Beuren Studio in New York . His aunt was a cameraperson there , and he was hired as a cel washer on the original Tom and Jerry series ( not the Hanna/Barbera series ) . He recalled : One of my first jobs was to hand out cels to the inkers . They were so slippery in their tissue separators that when I first was handed a stack , I immediately let them drop all over the floor ! Littlejohn worked his way up within the Van Beuren Studio to inking , assisting and then animating . In a 1985 interview , he recalled : Fear of starving led me to animation — those were Depression days . I had no art training , but learned animation from a do-it-yourself kit . While at Van Beuren , he worked on Toonerville Trolley ( 1936 ) , Parrotville ( 1934 ) and two animated Amos and Andy shorts , The Rasslin Match ( 1934 ) and The Lion Tamer ( 1934 ) . Hollywood in the 1930s and 1940s . When Van Beuren closed its doors in 1935 or 1936 , Littlejohn moved to Los Angeles , completed a degree in aeronautical engineering , and worked for a time at Lockheed . He recalled , I began work at Lockheed , but the people there were so boring ! They would talk all night about the qualities of a rivet . In 1937 , Littlejohn returned to animation , working for Harman and Ising and the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer cartoon studio . While at MGM , he worked on the Happy Harmonies shorts and the new Tom and Jerry series . Littlejohn was one of the few people who worked on the Tom and Jerry series both at Van Beuren and at MGM . In 1938 , Littlejohn worked on Milt GrossJitterbug Follies and was responsible for animating the two dancing penguins . He also worked in 1938 on The Captain and the Kids , an MGM animated series based on The Katzenjammer Kids comic strip . He left animation work during World War II to work as a test pilot and flight instructor . He also continued to do freelance animation for MGM and Walter Lantz . Union organizer and the Disney animators strike . While working at Van Beuren in 1935 , Littlejohn saw the origins of the efforts to unionize the animation industry . At that time , he recalled , I kept my nose clean because many guys were getting in trouble and getting blacklisted . In 1938 Littlejohn met union organizer Herb Sorrell , and together they formed the Screen Cartoonists Guild Local #852 with Littlejohn as the president . Littlejohn later explained his decision to become involved in the union movement : I just saw too many people getting away with a lot , and too few with nothing , and I had to get involved . So we formed a union . Sorrell and Littlejohn began organizing animation workers , and MGM , Walter Lantz and George Pal quickly recognized the union . Leon Schlesingers Looney Tunes Studio followed after a six-day lockout , but Disney refused to sign a union contract . After collecting enough members representation cards , Sorrell , Littlejohn and Disney animator Art Babbitt met Walt Disney and his attorneys . Disney angrily refused to negotiate and insisted his animators were represented by the Federation of Screen Cartoonists , a sham union set up by Disney that was declared illegal by the National Labor Relations Board . After the meeting , Disney fired Babbitt and 16 other pro-union artists . The 1941 Disney animators strike began the next day . As animators marched in front of the Disney studio in Burbank , Littlejohn , who was a pilot , flew overhead and , in his words , wiggled my wings at the picketers , who wiggled their signs back at me . The strike lasted for nine weeks and ended following pressure on Disney from federal mediators , nationwide boycotts , the Bank of America and Roy Disney . On September 21 , 1941 , the strike ended and the union was recognized by Disney . Walt Disney later testified before the U.S . House Committee on Un-American Activities that he believed that Sorrell was a Communist , but his testimony was based on hearsay , I believed at that time that Mr . Sorrell was a Communist because of all the things that I had heard .. . Littlejohn recalled Sorrell as follows : Herb was an ex-fighter and a great champion for the little guy . For that he was called a Communist , which he never was . In fact , the Communist Party/USA disliked him too , because he was his own man and couldnt be controlled . Despite his involvement in the union movement , Littlejohn was not a target of McCarthyism or the Hollywood blacklist . He later recalled , I regularly went over in my mind what I would say when the FBI came a-calling , but they never did , strangely enough . The Disney strike has been recognized as a watershed moment in the efforts to unionize the animation industry . According to one account of the strike , the strike resulted in substantial salary increases , a 40-hour work week and screen credits for animators . Tom Sito , president emeritus of the Hollywood Animation Guild Local No.839 , said , Bill Littlejohn was the last of the dynamic Hollywood union organizers of the 1930s and 40s . His activism did much to build the standard of living studio animators have today . Peanuts specials and the 1950s and 1960s . In the 1950s , Littlejohn worked at several commercial studios , including Playhouse Pictures , Jay Ward Productions , Animation Inc. , Fine Arts Films , The Ink Tank , and Bill Melendez Productions . His animated commercial for Uniroyals Tiger Paws tires remains a popular and often-played piece . While associated with Melendez , he worked as one of the principal animators on the Peanuts televisions specials . His most popular scenes from the Peanuts specials included A Charlie Brown Christmas ( 1965 ) where Snoopy dances on the piano while Schroeder plays a jazz riff , the Snoopy-Lucy prizefight in Snoopy Come Home ( 1972 ) and the Snoopy-Red Baron section in Its the Great Pumpkin , Charlie Brown ( 1966 ) . Littlejohn recalled that the scene of Snoopy dancing on Schroeders piano met resistance from Charles Schulz : At first Charles Schulz didnt care for all the Snoopy pantomime . He felt it was deviating too much from his style . He wanted the whole film to be talking heads , doing his dialogue . One of Littlejohns personal favorites was a scene in the 1972 special , Snoopy , Come Home , in which a little girl ties up Snoopy , changes his name to Rex and gives him a bath . In the sequence of A Boy Named Charlie Brown , Snoopy is skating for the Ice Figure Skater and the Ice Hockey Player at Rockefeller Center . Association with the Hubleys and later years . In 1962 , Littlejohn was the principal animator on the Hubleys Oscar-winning short , The Hole where two New York construction workers , one voiced by jazz legend Dizzy Gillespie , use improvised dialogue to debate the possibility of nuclear war . In one scene , Littlejohn animated Gillespies character performing dance steps . At the after-party , Gillespie told Littlejohn , Man , Im glad you did that section yourself , because I cant dance ! Littlejohn also worked with the Hubleys in 1977 on A Doonesbury Special , which won a Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for an Oscar . Littlejohn did initial test animation of Zonker Harris putting flowers in the muzzles of National Guardsmens rifles . Garry Trudeau was amazed at Littlejohns work , having never seen his characters moving before . Littlejohn animated about 12 minutes of the special . John Hubley died during open-heart surgery while the Doonesbury Special was in production . Littlejohn also worked with the Hubleys on The Hat ( 1963 ) , Of Stars and Men ( 1964 ) , Zuckerkandl ( 1969 ) , Voyage to Next ( 1974 ) , People , People , People ( 1975 ) , Everybody Rides the Carousel ( 1976 ) , Sky Dance , Enter Life ( 1982 ) and Amazonia ( 1990 ) . Director Michael Sporn has called Littlejohn an animation God and cited his work as among the best in American animation . Of his work on the 1964 film Of Stars and Men , Sporn said , Bills work on Of Stars and Men has completely entered my vocabulary of great animation . The walk cycles for the many animals are just so majestic and regal that I watch them over and over . Littlejohn worked with John and Faith Hubley for more than 30 years . In his later years , Littlejohn also worked on several animated features , including The Phantom Tollbooth ( 1970 ) , Watership Down ( 1978 ) , Heavy Metal ( 1981 ) , R.O . Blechmans The Soldiers Tale ( 1984 ) , and Mrs . Doubtfire ( 1993 ) . Advocacy for the art of animation . In 1957 , he joined with Ward Kimball and Les Goldman in founding ASIFA-Hollywood , a non-profit organization formed to promote and preserve the art of film animation . Since 1972 , the organization has presented the annual Annie Awards for outstanding work in animation . In 1965 , Littlejohn and other ASIFA-Hollywood members organized the International Tournée of Animation , a program to show quality animation at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art . Prior to this , it had been almost impossible to see quality animation in the United States . The Tournee became affiliated with the American Film Institute in 1969 and conducted a multi-city tour for many years . In 1984 , Littlejohn and his wife , Fini , helped organize the Olympiad of Animation for the 1984 Olympic Arts Festival . From 1988 to 2001 , Littlejohn was also a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Board of Governors representing short films and animation . He was on the advisory board of the Los Angeles Student Film Institute . Family . Littlejohn was married for 61 years to Fini Rudiger Littlejohn , an actress and artist from Vienna , Austria that did art design for American Airlines and Disney . The two married in 1943 and lived together in Malibu , California . Fini died in 2004 followed by Littlejohn in September 2010 at age 96 . He was survived by two children , Steve and Toni , and three grandchildren . Awards and tributes . In October 1981 , ASIFA presented Littlejohn with a special Annie Award , honoring his 50 years as an animator . He also received the Winsor McCay Award in 1987 and has been inducted into the Cartoon Hall of Fame . In May 1999 , the UCLA Film and Television Archive and UCLA Animation Workshop hosted An Evening With Animator Bill Littlejohn and presented him with a lifetime achievement award . Partial filmography . - Parrotville ( 1934-1935 ) - The Rasslin Match ( 1934 ) - The Lion Tamer ( 1934 ) - Toonerville Trolley ( 1936 ) - The Captain and the Kids ( 1938 ) - Jitterbug Follies ( 1939 ) ( uncredited ) - A Rainy Day with the Bear Family ( 1940 ) ( uncredited ) - Tom and Jerry ( 1941-1942 , 1944 ) ( uncredited : The Midnight Snack to The Bowling Alley Cat ; additional animation : Fine Feathered Friend and Puttin on the Dog ) - MGM Cartoons – uncredited : We Wish You a Merry Christmas ( 1941 ) - Barney Bear uncredited : The Flying Bear ( 1941 ) - The Hole ( 1962 ) - Of Stars and Men ( 1964 ) - The Hat ( 1964 ) - A Charlie Brown Christmas ( 1965 ) - Its the Great Pumpkin , Charlie Brown ( 1966 ) - Zuckerklandl ( 1968 ) - Hes Your Dog , Charlie Brown ( 1968 ) - A Boy Named Charlie Brown ( 1969 ) - It Was a Short Summer , Charlie Brown ( 1969 ) - The Phantom Tollbooth ( 1970 ) - Play It Again , Charlie Brown ( 1971 ) - Snoopy Come Home ( 1972 ) - Youre Not Elected , Charlie Brown ( 1972 ) - Theres No Time for Love , Charlie Brown ( 1973 ) - A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving ( 1973 ) - Its a Mystery , Charlie Brown ( 1974 ) - Voyage to Next ( 1974 ) - Its the Easter Beagle , Charlie Brown ( 1974 ) - Everybody Rides the Carousel ( 1975 ) - Be My Valentine , Charlie Brown ( 1975 ) - WOW Women of the World ( 1975 ) - Youre a Good Sport , Charlie Brown ( 1975 ) - Its Arbor Day , Charlie Brown ( 1976 ) - People , People , People ( 1976 ) - Simple Gifts ( 1977 ) - Whither Weather ( 1977 ) - Race for Your Life , Charlie Brown ( 1977 ) - Its Your First Kiss , Charlie Brown ( 1977 ) - A Doonesbury Special ( 1977 ) - Step by Step ( 1978 ) - Watership Down ( 1978 ) ( opening sequence ) - Youre the Greatest , Charlie Brown ( 1979 ) - Shes a Good Skate , Charlie Brown ( 1980 ) - Bon Voyage , Charlie Brown ( and Dont Come Back!! ) ( 1980 ) - Sky Dance ( 1980 ) - Life Is a Circus , Charlie Brown ( 1980 ) - The Big Bang and Other Creation Myths ( 1981 ) - Enter Life ( 1981 ) - Its Magic , Charlie Brown ( 1981 ) - Heavy Metal ( 1981 ) ( segment B-17 ) - Someday Youll Find Her , Charlie Brown ( 1981 ) - No Mans Valley ( 1981 ) - Here Comes Garfield ( 1982 ) - A Charlie Brown Celebration ( 1982 ) - Is This Goodbye , Charlie Brown ? ( 1983 ) - The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show ( 1983 ) - What Have We Learned , Charlie Brown ? ( 1983 ) - Garfield on the Town ( 1983 ) - The Soldiers Tale ( 1984 ) - Hello ( 1984 ) - Its Flashbeagle , Charlie Brown ( 1984 ) - Garfield in the Rough ( 1984 ) - Snoopys Getting Married , Charlie Brown ( 1985 ) - Garfields Halloween Adventure ( 1985 ) - Youre a Good Man , Charlie Brown ( 1985 ) - Garfield in Paradise ( 1986 ) - The Cosmic Eye ( 1986 ) ( archive footage ) - Time of the Angels ( 1987 ) - Garfield Goes Hollywood ( 1987 ) - A Garfield Christmas Special ( 1987 ) ( additional animation by - uncredited ) - Madeline : the original special ( 1988 ) - Snoopy : The Musical ( 1988 ) - ( 1988 ) ( segment Stunt Cat ; also co-director ) - This Is America , Charlie Brown ( 1988 ) - Its the Girl in the Red Truck , Charlie Brown ( 1988 ) - The NASA Space Station ( 1988 ) - Yes We Can ( 1989 ) - Madelines Christmas ( 1990 ) - Why , Charlie Brown , Why ? ( 1990 ) - Amazonia ( 1990 ) - Upside Down ( 1991 ) - Snoopys Reunion ( 1991 ) - Tall Time Tales ( 1992 ) - ( 1992 ) - Its Spring Training , Charlie Brown ! ( 1992 ) - Frosty Returns ( 1992 ) - Mrs . Doubtfire ( 1993 ) - Seers & Clowns ( 1994 ) - Garfield and Friends ( 1994 ) ( 3 episodes ) - My Universe Inside Out ( 1996 ) - Cloudland ( 1998 ) - Rainbows of Hawaii ( 1998 ) - Our Spirited Earth ( 2000 )