1941 in animation
Events in 1941 in animation.
Events
January
January 4: Chuck Jones' Elmer's Pet Rabbit premieres, produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions and starring Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd. Bugs Bunny's name was revealed in this cartoon.January 10: Jack King's Donald Duck cartoon Timber premieres, produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios. Also starring Pete.February
February 27: 13th Academy Awards:- * The Milky Way, directed by Rudolf Ising, produced by the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer cartoon studio, wins the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film. It is the first animated cartoon not produced by Disney to win an Oscar.
- * Pinocchio, produced by the Walt Disney Animation Studios, wins the Academy Award for Best Original Score, while When You Wish Upon a Star wins the Academy Award for Best Original Song.
March
March 7: Wilfred Jackson's first Donald Duck cartoon Golden Eggs premieres, produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios.March 15: Tex Avery's Tortoise Beats Hare premieres, produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions. It marks the first time that Bugs Bunny loses, Cecil Turtle makes his debut.March 28: Scrub Me Mama with a Boogie Beat, directed and produced by Walter Lantz Productions, is first released. This short reel gained much controversy during its reissue in 1948 for heavy African American stereotyping as Lantz promised to never include the offensive racist content for his subsequent films after apologizing from this.April
April 11: The Fleischer Studios release an adaptation of Johnny Gruelle's children's stories, Raggedy Ann and Raggedy Andy.April 19: Tex Avery's Porky's Preview premieres, produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions, starring Porky Pig.May
May 9: Dick Lundy's Donald Duck cartoon A Good Time for a Dime premieres, produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios. Daisy Duck makes a cameo in this short.May 24: Tex Avery's Hollywood Steps Out, produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions, is first released. It features caricatures of Hollywood stars.May 29: Disney animators' strike: At the Walt Disney Animation Studios a five-week strike breaks out to ask for higher payment and privileges. While the demands are eventually met, several animators are either fired by Disney or quit.June
June 7: Friz Freleng's first Bugs Bunny cartoon Hiawatha's Rabbit Hunt premieres, produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions. This short was nominated for an Academy Award.June 20:- * The Reluctant Dragon, a live-action film with animated scenes by Jack Cutting, Ub Iwerks, Hamilton Luske and Jack Kinney, produced by Walt Disney Animation, premieres. It features three shorts within the feature film, Baby Weems, How To Ride a Horse starring Goofy, and The Reluctant Dragon.
- * Riley Thomson's The Nifty Nineties premieres, produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios, starring Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse.
July
July 2: Tex Avery is suspended from Leon Schlesinger Productions for four weeks with no pay by Leon Schlesinger due to a quarrel over the Bugs Bunny cartoon The Heckling Hare. He then leaves for Paramount Pictures and begins a series of short films known as Speaking of Animals.July 5: Tex Avery's The Heckling Hare, produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions, starring Bugs Bunny & Willoughby, is first released.July 7: With Woody Woodpecker, Woody Woodpecker's second film appearance, produced by Walter Lantz, the bird becomes star of his own long-running animated series.July 11: Jack King's Donald Duck cartoon Early to Bed premieres, produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios.- July 19: William Hanna and Joseph Barbera direct The Midnight Snack, produced by MGM. This is the second cartoon to star Tom and Jerry and the first in which they are officially named.
August
August 1: Jack King's Donald Duck cartoon Truant Officer Donald premieres, produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios. Also starring Huey, Dewey, and Louie.August 11: The Screwdriver, produced by Walter Lantz, is released, being the last Woody Woodpecker cartoon featuring Mel Blanc as Woody's voice. Afterwards Leon Schlesinger Productions takes an exclusivity contract on Blanc's voice.August 30: Bob Clampett's The Henpecked Duck is first released, starring Daffy Duck, produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions.September
September 2: Tex Avery joins the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer cartoon studio.September 12: Jack King's Donald Duck cartoon Old MacDonald Duck premieres, produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios.September 13: Tex Avery's All This and Rabbit Stew, starring Bugs Bunny, produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions, premieres. It is the final cartoon for Warner Bros. directed by Avery and his final cartoon starring Bugs. This cartoon later became a part of the "Censored Eleven" due to the Hunter featured in this short being a stereotypical & offensive description of Blackface.September 26: Paramount Pictures launches an animated film series based on Superman, produced by Fleischer Studios, which kicks off with the first film Superman.October
October 3: Lend a Paw, starring Pluto, directed by Clyde Geronimi, produced by the Walt Disney Studios, is first released.October 23: Ben Sharpsteen, Norman Ferguson, Wilfred Jackson, Bill Roberts, Jack Kinney and Samuel Armstrong's Dumbo, produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios, is first released. It becomes a surprise box office hit, helping Disney win back some of their financial losses caused by World War II cutting off their European market.October 24: Dick Lundy's Donald Duck cartoon Donald's Camera premieres, produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios.November
November 14: Jack Kinney's Goofy cartoon The Art of Skiing, produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios, premieres. This also marks the debut of the Goofy holler sound effect, provided by Hannes Schroll.November 19:- * In China Wan Guchan and Wan Laiming release Princess Iron Fan, the first Chinese animated feature film.
- * The National Film Board of Canada releases The Thrifty Pig, a cartoon by the Walt Disney Studios about the importance of war bonds.November 24: Pantry Panic starring Woody Woodpecker, directed and produced by Walter Lantz, premieres.
December
December 5:- *Jack King's Donald Duck cartoon Chef Donald premieres, produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios.
- *The Fleischer Studios release their second animated feature film Mr. Bug Goes to Town which becomes such a colossal flop that the studio goes bankrupt.
- *The Color Rhapsody The Fox and the Grapes, produced by Screen Gems and directed by Frank Tashlin, is first released and marks the debut of the Fox and the Crow.December 6:
- * Friz Freleng's Rhapsody in Rivets premieres, produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions.
- * William Hanna and Joseph Barbera's Tom and Jerry cartoon The Night Before Christmas premieres, produced by MGM's Cartoon Studio. This was the first short in the series to end with the titular Cat and Mouse being on good terms with each other.December 12: The National Film Board of Canada releases Richard Lyford's 7 Wise Dwarfs, produced by the Walt Disney Animation studios, to educate audiences on war bonds.December 20: Tex Avery's Wabbit Twouble, starring Bugs Bunny & Elmer Fudd, produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions, premieres. Avery directed the short, but after he left the studio Bob Clampett finished the picture. The scene where Bugs inflates himself and imitates Elmer became a popular internet meme over 75 years later titled "Big Chungus".December 26: Jack Kinney's Goofy cartoon The Art of Self Defense, produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios, premieres.
Specific date unknown
- Roberto Sgrilli creates the animated short Il Barone di Münchhausen.
Films released
- January 1 - Princess Iron Fan
- July 21 - The Reluctant Dragon
- October 23 - Dumbo
- December 5 - ''Mr. Bug Goes to Town''
Births
January
January 1: Asrani, Indian actor,.January 5: Hayao Miyazaki, Japanese animator, director, producer, screenwriter, author and manga artist.January 8:- * Graham Chapman, English actor and comedian,.
- * Star Wirth, American xerographer,.January 11: Motosuke Takahashi, Japanese film director, animator, character designer and storyboard artist,.January 12: Long John Baldry, English-Canadian singer and voice actor,.January 21: Victoria Carroll, American actress.January 22: Rintaro, Japanese director.January 24: Gary K. Wolf, American author.January 31:
- * Gerald McDermott, American film director, children's book writer and illustrator,.
- * Ron Thompson, American actor,.
- * Jessica Walter, American actress,.
February
February 11: Sergio Mendes, Brazilian musician,.March
March 5: Errol Le Cain, English children's book illustrator and animator,.March 16: Chuck Woolery, American game show host and musician,.March 23: Zsolt Richly, Hungarian animator,.March 24: David Fox, Canadian actor,.March 28:- * Charles Swenson, American animator.
- * Alf Clausen, American composer .March 29: John W. Hyde, American producer.March 30: Graeme Edge, English musician, songwriter and poet,.
April
April 2: Dr. Demento, American radio broadcaster and record collector.April 7: Danny Wells, Canadian actor,.April 13: Arvo Nuut, Estonian film operator and film producer,.April 18: Phillip Young, American animator,.April 28:- * Ann-Margret, Swedish-American actress, singer, and dancer.
- * Mike Renzi, American composer, music director, pianist and jazz musician,.
May
May 4:- * Jannik Hastrup, Danish writer, director, producer, illustrator and animator.
- * John Kimball, American animator, storyboard artist, sheet timer and director.May 6: William Moritz, American animation film historian,.May 13: Dwi Koendoro, Indonesian comics artist, animator and film producer,. May 18: Miriam Margolyes, English-Australian actress.May 23: Nicole Jaffe, Canadian actress.May 24: Larry Leichliter, American animator, storyboard artist, character designer, sheet timer, animatic editor, overseas supervisor, producer and director.May 31: Nicole Van Goethem, Belgian cartoonist, animator and film director,.
June
June 2:- * Jeff Winkless, American voice actor.
- * Stacy Keach, American actor.June 4: Jackie Banks, American animation checker and scene planner,.June 15: Neal Adams, American comic book artist and writer,.June 19:
- * Masao Maruyama, Japanese anime producer and entrepreneur.
- * Linda Dangcil, American actress,.June 21: Joe Flaherty, American actor, comedian, and television writer,.June 22: Michael Lerner, American actor,.
July
July 5: Terry Cashman, American record producer and singer-songwriter.July 9: Hisayuki Toriumi, Japanese animator, film director and producer, screenwriter and novelist,.July 10:- * Ian Whitcomb, English entertainer, singer-songwriter, composer, record producer, writer, broadcaster and actor,.
- * Robert Pine, American actor.July 13: Robert Forster, American actor,.July 17: Paula Shaw, American actress,.July 21:
- * George Clinton, American singer, songwriter, record producer and bandleader July 24: Marc Strange, Canadian actor,.July 28:
- * Dianne Jackson, English film director,.
- * Peter Cullen, Canadian voice actor.July 29: David Warner, English actor,.July 30: Paul Anka, Canadian-American singer, songwriter, and actor.
August
August 4:- * Martin Jarvis, English actor and producer.
- * Richard Trueblood, American animator, storyboard artist, sheet timer, producer and director,.August 8: Earl Boen, American actor,.August 14: David Crosby, American singer, guitarist, and songwriter,..August 16: Paul Hecht, English-born Canadian actor.August 29: Robin Leach, English entertainment reporter and writer,.
September
September 10: Stephen Jay Gould, American paleontologist, evolutionary biologist and science historian,.September 14: Yuri Norstein, Soviet and Russian animator.September 16: David Hemblen, English-born Canadian actor,.September 24: Linda McCartney, American photographer and activist,.October
October 9: Warren Luening, American musician and trumpeter,.October 21: Marcell Jankovics, Hungarian graphic artist, film director and author,.October 23: Mel Winkler, American actor,.October 25:- * Helen Reddy, Australian-American pop singer and actress,.
- * Gordon Tootoosis, Saskatchewan actor,.October 31: Sally Kirkland, American actress,.
November
November 1: Robert Foxworth, American actor.November 5: Yoshiyuki Tomino, Japanese anime creator, animator, director, screenwriter, songwriter and novelist.November 8: Julian Antonisz, Polish film director,.November 11: Russell Horton, American actor.November 12: Dave Brain, American animator, storyboard artist, director and sheet timer.November 20: Dr. John, American singer and songwriter,.November 22: Cilia van Dijk, Dutch film producer,.November 23:- * Eduard Nazarov, Russian animator, children's book illustrator and voice actor,.
- * Franco Nero, Italian actor, producer, and director.November 24: Simon Singer, American actor.November 28: Shannon Farnon, Canadian actress.
December
December 9: Beau Bridges, American actor.December 10:- * Chad Stuart, English singer and actor,.
- * Fionnula Flanagan, Irish actress.December 25: John Capodice, American actor,.December 29: Ray Thomas, English multi-instrumentalist, flautist, singer and member of The Moody Blues,.
Specific date unknown
- Joan C. Gratz, American artist, animator, and filmmaker.
- Barry Otto, Australian actor.
Deaths
April
April 25: Alexander Shiryaev, Russian animation director, ballet dancer, ballet master and choreographer, (grom 1906 to 1909, Shiryaev produced a number of pioneering stop motion and traditionally animated films. He recreated various ballets by staging them through using hand-made dolls which he created from either clay or papier-mâché; they were tall, and their body parts were connected by thin wire which provided plasticity. He then filmed them on camera, frame by frame. In the process he also made thousands of sketches, catching every movement, also turning them into a filming reel so that one could watch the entire dance in the form of a cartoon. dies at age 73.July
July 15: Walter Ruttmann, German film director and cinematographer, dies at age 53.August
August 13: J. Stuart Blackton, British-American silent film producer and director, dies at age 66.October
October 8: Win Smith, Canadian-American animator and comics artist, dies at age 53.Specific date unknown
- Charles Barker Howdill, English architect, photographer, and traveler,, dies at an unknown age.