The Hep Cat [part five]: Excellent backgrounds again, and the closing!

It looks like we'll wrap this up here right quick! The end of the cartoon comes in this post.

Some of this vibrating drybrush is pretty great. I open these posts a lot with these, don't I? I'll deliberately not start these this way in the future.

I didn't realize how many throw-away backgrounds there are in this cartoon, especially this late into it. Some of them last for a fraction of a fraction of a second, but they're golden! I got a few in here if you want to admire them in your sleep like I do.

More Clampett shadows. He uses these more than the other directors from what I've seen. They're really good at conveying action!

Heaven for your eyes, especially that top painting. Who the hell could paint like this now? I know I'd like to!

This is a different effect, but I really like it! Soft blending of colors for a motion blur looks surprisingly good here!

Oh God.

Is this where body pillows came from? Is this entire farce Clampett's fault?

"I can dream, can't I?" Words of a true fanatic.

If so, then this is a really good anime.

And that's the end of the picture! Not a whole lot to talk about in terms of story structure here since it is mostly slapstick, but it's decent enough! I might revisit some of this stuff later when I get the chance.

I think I'll post some one-off articles on other studios later (I have a good one about Fleischer if you like innovative motion picture technology!). What cartoon should I pick apart next, though?

Cheers!

The Hep Cat [part four]: Something new has been added!

Jesus Christ, I've been gone awhile, haven't I? Many apologies for the absence. Things have been nuts but have, thankfully, settled down a lot. Let's just see how long it lasts.

For now, it's time for some more Hep Cat, with a tall-ass glass of root beer and plain popcorn, just the way I like it! What's Clampett got for us today?

You're on to something there!

Great drawings. I especially love these circular pupils; they really drive home his surprise! The backgrounds, as usual, art astonishing. Something I just noticed: on this last painting, the sky gets darker as your eye moves to the right, but you would never see it if you were just watching this film casually.

Of course, he isn't inclined to give a damn when the action's this good. I can't say I blame him.

Don't you hate it when this happens?

Pay close attention to these next few screencaps. This is a basic setup for a take, for anybody interested in animating someday, like I am.

STEP ONE: realization

A take is a reaction to something, usually something bizarre. (Unless it's a shrink-take, which can be used more liberally.)

STEP TWO: the actual take

Now the cat realized he was making out with the dog. He reacts in panic.

This last part here is really just an add-on. A reaction to a reaction, if you will.

It's a fun idea regardless!

"Are you following me?" seems to be a very common Clampett gag. It's funny, but I figured I'd point it out. Besides, that dust drybrushing is very good, so now I have an excuse to point it out.

This is the same background! It's a vertical pan, and beautifully done. I wonder how many background painters in the business could pull something off like that today? It'd be a marvel to see.

This barrel scene is really pretty too. A lot of really lovely lighting effects. I dig it!

At this point, the cartoon is all about the gags. I'll share a few caps here and finish this thing off in the next post!

See you then! In the meantime, look at these backgrounds. I don't know if I told you whether I liked them or not. Besides, I'm out of root beer.

Handsome Washam Drawings in Hair-Raising Hare

I borrowed a copy of the Looney Tunes Platinum Collection, volume three, from a library yesterday, because I'm too cheap to go out and buy it myself. I was watching Hair-Raising Hare, which is a really funny Chuck Jones cartoon from 1946 (I think), and I found some wonderful Ben Washam drawings in it that I thought I'd share with you!

These all come from the sequence where Bugs finds the monster in the wall.

Extremely confident poses. They're also more angular than many of Jones' animators, especially during the time. There's also some Ken Harris animation in here (thanks to CAP on the World Animation Discord for clearing that up for me!) that isn't as lively as these poses are, which is a little shocking to me.

Also, that background kicks some major ass.

Supposedly, a way to find Washam drawing Bugs Bunny is to look for this chisel tooth. I say to also look for these really clear and striking silhouettes.

A rare Washam smear! How many times has Washam even smeared anyway?

me irl

And finally we're left satisfied after what I think is the best-animated sequence in the entire film. This last pose especially knocks me out.

There ought to be more of these Washam dissections. Want me to find some after I finish The Hep Cat?

The Hep Cat [part two]: Clampett's horny expressions

That should say plenty on its own.

Back to the cartoon though! We're about a quarter done with it. Maybe I'll jam more screencaps into this one.

Here's something that became a staple of Clampett cartoons; shadows! I don't recall excessive usage of them in his black and whites, but I could be wrong. Maybe somebody could throw me an example or two, I'd love to see 'em!

The shadows are especially prevalent in cartoons like The Wise Quacking Duck and The Great Piggy Bank Robbery. Anyways, back to the cartoon!

Any he-men out there who talk to their partners like this? Does it actually work?

And who animated this bit? It looks really solid, like McKimson did it, but I also see some wrinkles, characteristic of Scribner. I'm going to put my money where my mouth is and guess McKimson.

Relatable bit here, if I do say so myself.

I know some folks who appreciate a good smear any day of the week. (Does drybrushing like this count as smearing?)

I always loved this part! The way the brick smashes into the cat's skull is animated so thoughtfully. In fact, this whole next part is arguably the best in the entire film.

Everyone's favorite hobby:

This whole part is a lot of fun! It has some really lively movements going on the entire time, and the cat frantically shadow-boxing is really fun to watch. You can also feel his frustrations too! Honest-to-god humanity. We need more stuff like this!

You have to watch this part to understand the joke. While I'm not huge on a lot of verbal humor, this really hits the nail pretty good! Maybe I'm just in a good mood after refreshing on some Abbott and Costello. Or maybe it's the vanilla swiss-roll cake that's fueling me at the moment.

I'll be god-damned if this isn't Scribner.

Jeez, I never noticed this scene until now! There's so much hidden stuff in every Clampett cartoon. It's like an Easter egg hunt; you keep finding goodies! I'll bet he knew there would be people like myself taking these cartoons apart. Damn mindreaders!

This take reminds me of some Ub Iwerks takes from his ComiColor cartoons, only much wilder. You never got a whole lot of really crazy takes with lines emanating from the characters' bodies in this degree.

This take is much more restrained than the one before it. You almost don't even see it!

And with that, we cut to the next scene in a later post. Maybe tomorrow, or Wednesday, if I'm not really feeling it.