As an animator , he made the '' Puppetoons '' series in the 1940s , which led to him being awarded an honorary Oscar in 1944 for '' the development of novel methods and techniques in the production of short subjects known as Puppetoons '' .
As an animator , he made the '' Puppetoons '' series in the 1940s , then switched to live action film making with '' The Great Rupert '' in 1950 ( aged 42 ) . 
 He was awarded an honorary Oscar in 1944 ( aged 36 ) for '' the development of novel methods and techniques in the production of short subjects known as Puppetoons '' .