Max Fleischer | |
|---|---|
 Fleischer in 1919 | |
| Born | Majer Fleischer (1883-07-19)July 19, 1883 Kraków, Galicia, Austria-Hungary (now Poland) |
| Died | September 11, 1972(1972-09-11) (aged 89) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1914–1962 |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2, includingRichard Fleischer |
| Relatives | Dave Fleischer (brother) Lou Fleischer (brother) Seymour Kneitel (son-in-law) |
Max Fleischer (bornMajer Fleischer/ˈflaɪʃər/; July 19, 1883 – September 11, 1972) was an American animator and studio owner. Born inKraków, inAustrian Poland, Fleischer immigrated to the United States where he became a pioneer in the development of theanimated cartoon and served as the head ofFleischer Studios, which he co-founded with his younger brotherDave. He brought such comic characters asKoko the Clown,Betty Boop,Popeye, andSuperman to the movie screen, and was responsible for several technological innovations, including theRotoscope, the "Follow the Bouncing Ball" technique pioneered in theKo-Ko Song Car-Tunes films, and the "Stereoptical Process". Film directorRichard Fleischer was his son.
Majer Fleischer was born July 19, 1883,[1][2][3][4][5][a] to aJewish family inKraków[7] (then in theAustrian Partition of theAustro-Hungarian Empire). He was the second of six children of atailor fromDąbrowa Tarnowska,[6] Aaron Fleischer, who later changed his name toWilliam in the United States, and Malka "Amelia" Pałasz.[6][8][9] His family emigrated to the United States in March 1887, settling in New York City, where he attended public school. During his early formative years, he enjoyed a middle-class lifestyle, the result of his father's success as an exclusive tailor to high society clients. This changed drastically after his father lost his business ten years later. His teens were spent inBrownsville, a poor Jewish neighborhood inBrooklyn. He continued his education at evening high school. He received commercial art training atCooper Union and formal art instruction at theArt Students League of New York, studying underGeorge Bridgman. He also attended the Mechanics and Tradesman's School in midtownManhattan.
Fleischer began his career atThe Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Beginning as an errand boy, he advanced to photographer, photoengraver, and eventually, staff cartoonist. At first, he drew single-panel editorial cartoons, but then graduated to the full strips "Little Algie" and "S.K. Sposher, the Camera Fiend". These satirical strips reflected his life in Brownsville and his fascination with technology and photography, respectively—both displaying his sense of irony and fatalism. It was during this period he met newspaper cartoonist and early animator,John Randolph Bray, who would later give him his start in the animation field.
On December 25, 1905, Fleischer married his childhood sweetheart, Ethel (Essie) Goldstein. On the recommendation of Bray, Fleischer was hired as a technical illustrator for the Electro-Light Engraving Company in Boston. In 1909 he moved toSyracuse, New York, working as a catalog illustrator for the Crouse-Hinds Company, and a year later returned to New York as art editor forPopular Science magazine under editorWaldemar Kaempffert.
By 1914, the first commercially produced animated cartoons began to appear in movie theaters. They tended to be stiff and jerky. Fleischer devised an improvement in animation through a combined projector and easel for tracing images from a live-action film. This device, known as theRotoscope,[10] enabled Fleischer to produce the first realistic animation since the initial works ofWinsor McCay. Although his patent was granted in 1917, Max and his brothers Joe andDave Fleischer made their first series of tests between 1914 and 1916.
ThePathé Film exchange offered Max his first opportunity as a producer due in part to the fact that Dave had been working there as a film cutter since 1914. Max chose a political satire of a hunting trip byTheodore Roosevelt. After several months of labor, the film was rejected, and Max was making the rounds again when he was reunited with John R. Bray atParamount Pictures. Bray had a distribution contract with Paramount at the time and hired Max as production supervisor for his studio. With the outbreak ofWorld War I, Max was sent toFort Sill, Oklahoma to produce the first Army training films on subjects that includedContour Map Reading,Operating the Stokes Mortar,Firing the Lewis Machine Gun, andSubmarine Mine Laying. Following theArmistice, Fleischer returned to Bray and the production of theatrical and educational films.
Fleischer produced hisOut of the Inkwell films featuring "The Clown" character, which his brother Dave originated; he had worked as a sideshow clown at Coney Island. It was one of the later tests made from footage of Dave as a clown that interested Bray.
Fleischer's initial series was first produced at theBray Studios and released as a monthly installment in theBray-Goldwyn Pictograph Screen Magazine from 1919 to 1921. In addition to producingOut of the Inkwell, Max's position at Bray was primarily production manager, and supervisor of several educational and technical films such asThe Electric Bell,All Aboard for the Moon, andHello, Mars. And it was as production manager that Fleischer hired his first animator,Roland Crandall, who remained with him throughout the active years of Fleischer's studio.
Out of the Inkwell featured the novelty of combining live action and animation and served as semi-documentaries with the appearance of Max Fleischer as the artist who dipped his pen into the ink bottle to produce the clown figure on his drawing board. While the technique of combining animation with live action was already established by others at the Bray Studio, it was Fleischer's clever use of it combined with Fleischer's realistic animation that made his series unique.
In 1921, Max and Dave established Out of the Inkwell Films, Incorporated, and continued production ofOut of the Inkwell through various states-rights distributors. "The Clown" had no name until 1924, when Dick Huemer came aboard after animating on the earlyMutt and Jeff cartoons. He set the style for the series, redesigning "The Clown", and named him "Ko-Ko". Huemer created Ko-Ko's canine companion, known as Fitz, and moved the Fleischers away from their dependency on the Rotoscope for fluid animation, leaving it for special uses and reference points where compositing was involved. Because Max valued Huemer's work, he instructed Huemer to make just the key poses and have an assistant fill in the remaining drawings. Max assigned Art Davis as Huemer's assistant and this was the beginning of the animation position of "Inbetweener", which was essentially another Fleischer "invention" that resulted in efficient production and was adopted by the entire industry by the 1930s.
It was during this time that Max developedRotoscoping, a means of photographing live action film footage with animation cels for a composited image. This was an improvement over the method used by Bray where a series of 8" x 10" stills were made from motion picture film and used as backgrounds behind animation cels. The Rotograph technique went into more general use as "aerial image photography" and was a staple in animation and optical effects companies for making titles and various forms of matte composites.
In addition to the theatrical comedy films, Fleischer produced technical and educational films includingThat Little Big Fellow[11] andNow You're Talking for A.T.&T.[12] In 1923, he made two 20-minute features explainingAlbert Einstein's Theory of Relativity[13] andCharles Darwin'sEvolution[14] using animated special effects and live action.
In 1924, Fleischer partnered with Edwin Miles Fadiman,Hugo Riesenfeld andLee de Forest to form Red Seal Pictures Corporation, which owned 36 theaters on the East Coast, extending as far west asCleveland, Ohio. During this period, Fleischer invented the "Follow the Bouncing Ball" technique in hisKo-Ko Song Car-Tunes series of animated sing-along shorts. In these films, the lyrics of a song appear on screen and theater patrons are encouraged to sing along with the characters. An animated ball bounces across the top of the lyrics to indicate when words should be sung.
Of the 36Song Car-Tunes 12 used the De ForestPhonofilmsound-on-film process, the first of which wasMy Old Kentucky Home in 1926. This precededWalt Disney'sSteamboat Willie (1928), which has been erroneously cited for decades as the first cartoon to synchronize sound with animation.[15] TheSong Car-Tunes series lasted until early 1927 and was interrupted by the bankruptcy of the Red Seal company—just five months before the start of the sound era.
Alfred Weiss, owner of Artcraft Pictures, approached Fleischer with a contract to produce cartoons for Paramount. Due to legal complications of the bankruptcy, theOut of the Inkwell series was renamedThe Inkwell Imps and ran from 1927 to 1929. This was the start of Fleischer's relationship with the huge Paramount organization, which lasted for the next 15 years. After a year, the Fleischer brothers started experiencing mismanagement under Weiss and left the company in late 1928. Inkwell Films, Inc. filed for bankruptcy in January 1929, and Fleischer formed Fleischer Studios, Inc. in March 1929.
Fleischer first set up operations at Carpenter-Goldman Laboratories in Queens with a small staff (seeFleischer Studios). After eight months, his new company was solvent enough to move back to its former location at 1600 Broadway, where it remained until 1938. At Carpenter-Goldman, Fleischer began producing industrial films includingFinding His Voice (1929), a demonstration film illustrating the Western Electric Variable Density sound recording and reproduction method. Despite the conflicts with Weiss, Fleischer managed to negotiate a new contract with Paramount to produce a revised version of the "Song Car-tunes", produced with sound and renamedScreen Songs, beginning withThe Sidewalks of New York.
At this early stage in the sound era, Fleischer produced many technically advanced films that were the result of his continued research and development that perfected the post-production method of sound recording. Several of these devices provided visual cues for the musical conductor to follow. As dialogue and songs became major elements, more precise analysis of soundtracks was possible through other inventions from Fleischer such as "The Cue Meter".
Max Fleischer'sBetty Boop character was born out of a cameo caricature in the earlyTalkartoon,Dizzy Dishes (1930). Fashioned after popular singerHelen Kane, she originated as a hybrid poodle/canine figure and was such a sensation in the New York preview that Paramount encouraged Fleischer to develop her into a continuing character. While she originated under animatorMyron "Grim" Natwick, she was transformed into a human female underSeymour Kneitel andBerny Wolf and became Fleischer's most famous character.
The "Betty Boop" series began in 1932 and became a big success for Fleischer. That same year, Helen Kane filed a lawsuit against Fleischer, Fleischer Studios, and Paramount claiming that the cartoons were a deliberate caricature of her, created unfair competition, and had ruined her career. The suit went to trial in 1934. Judge Edward J. McGoldrick ruled, "The plaintiff has failed to sustain either cause of action by proof of sufficient probative force." In his opinion, the "baby" technique of singing did not originate with Kane.[16][17][18]
Fleischer's greatest business decision came with his licensing of thecomic strip characterPopeye the Sailor, who was introduced to audiences in the Betty Boop cartoon short,Popeye the Sailor (1933). Popeye became one of the most successful screen adaptations of a comic strip in cinema history. Much of this success was due to the perfect match of the Fleischer Studio style combined with its unique use of music. By the late 1930s, a survey indicated that Popeye had eclipsedMickey Mouse in popularity, challenging Disney's preeminence in the market.
During its zenith by the mid-1930s, Fleischer Studios was producing four series,Betty Boop,Popeye,Screen Songs, andColor Classics, resulting in 52 releases each year. From the very beginning, Fleischer's business relationship with Paramount was a joint financial and distribution arrangement, making his studio a service company supplying products for the company's theaters. During theGreat Depression, Paramount went through four bankruptcy reorganizations, which affected their operational expenses.
As a founding member of theSociety of Motion Picture Engineers, Fleischer was aware of the technical advancements of the industry, particularly in the development of color cinematography. Due to Paramount's financial restructuring, he was unable to acquire the three-color Technicolor process from the start. This created the opportunity forWalt Disney, who was then a small fledgling producer, to acquire a four-year exclusivity. With this, he created a new market for color cartoons beginning withFlowers and Trees (1932). In 1934 Paramount approved color production for Fleischer, but he was left with the limited two-color processes ofCinecolor (red and cyan) and Two-Color Technicolor (red and cyan) for the first year of hisColor Classics. The first entry,Poor Cinderella (1934) was made in the two-emulsion/two-color Cinecolor Process and starred Betty Boop in her only color appearance. By 1936, Disney's exclusivity had expired, and Fleischer had the benefit of the three-color Technicolor Process beginning withSomewhere in Dreamland.
These color cartoons were often augmented with Fleischer's patented three-dimensional effects promoted as the "Stereoptical Process", a precursor to Disney's Multiplane animation. This technique used 3-D model sets replacing flat pan backgrounds, with the animation cels photographed in front. This technique was used to the greatest degree in the two-reelPopeye FeaturesPopeye the Sailor Meets Sinbad the Sailor (1936) andPopeye the Sailor Meets Ali Baba's Forty Thieves (1937). These double-length cartoons demonstrated Fleischer's interest in animated feature films. While Fleischer petitioned for this for three years, it was not until the New York opening at Radio City of Disney'sSnow White and the Seven Dwarfs (February 1938) that Paramount executives realized the value of animated features and ordered one for a 1939 Christmas release.
The popularity of the Popeye cartoons created a demand for more. To meet Paramount's demands, the studio was challenged with rapid expansion, production speed-ups, and crowded working conditions. Finally, in May 1937, Fleischer Studios was affected bya five-month strike, resulting in a boycott that kept the studio's releases off theater screens until November. Having a paternal attitude towards his employees, Max took it personally, as if he had been betrayed, and thus developed an ulcer. Following the strike, Max and Dave Fleischer decided to move the studio for more space and to escape further labor agitation.[citation needed]
In March 1938, Paramount approved Max's proposal to produce a feature just when he was preparing to move the studio from New York City toMiami, Florida. Once in Miami relations between Max and Dave began deteriorating, beginning with the pressures to deliver their first feature, complicated further by Dave's adulterous affair with his secretary, Mae Schwartz.[citation needed]
Jonathan Swift's classic novelGulliver's Travels was a favorite of Max's and was pressed into production. Fleischer and Paramount originally budgeted the filmGulliver's Travels at $500,000—the same miscalculation made by Disney withSnow White. The final cost forGulliver's Travels was $1.5 million. It played limited engagements with only 24 prints in 36 theaters during the 1939 Christmas season, but grossed more than $3 million during the Christmas week, giving Paramount a profit of $1.5 million before going into foreign release. But Fleischer Studios was penalized $350,000 for going over budget, and the contract did not allow Max and Fleischer Studios participation in the foreign earnings. This was the beginning of the financial difficulties of Fleischer Studios with reduced royalties due to this debt to Paramount.
In 1940, Max was relegated to business affairs and continued technical development. His efforts resulted in a reflex camera viewfinder and research into line transfer methods to replace the time-consuming and tedious process of cel inking. While ahead of his time, that same year Fleischer and Paramount experienced lost revenues owing to the failure of the new seriesGabby,Animated Antics, andStone Age, all launched under the leadership of Dave. AfterRepublic Studios allegedly failed to developSuperman as a live-action serial, Max acquired the license that fall and initiated development.
The cost for theSuperman series has been grossly overstated for decades on the basis of Dave Fleischer's UCLA 1968 Oral History interview by Joe Adamson. The actual figure stated in Fleischer's 1941 contract was in the $30,000 range, twice the cost of a Popeye cartoon.Superman was a "serious" type of cartoon that was not being made by rival studios which features anthropomorphic comic animal characters. The science fiction/fantasy elements of Superman appealed to Max's interests, finally leading the studio into maturity and relevance for the 1940s.
The early returns onGulliver prompted Paramount president Barney Balaban to order a second feature for a 1941 Christmas release. This second feature,Mr. Bug Goes to Town, was unique, having a contemporary setting. Most importantly, it was technically and artistically superior toGulliver's Travels. Paramount had high hopes for this Christmas 1941 release, which was well received by critics during its December 5th preview. However the exhibitors rejected it, fearing that it would not do business because it was not a Disney animated Fairy Tale. And withthe bombing of Pearl Harbor two days after the preview, the original Christmas release due in three weeks was cancelled.
With the cancellation ofMr. Bug Goes to Town, Max was called to a meeting with Balaban in New York, where he was asked for his resignation. Dave had resigned following the completion of Post-production on Mr. Bug in late November 1941, but failed to include a copy to Fleischer Studios. Had Max Fleischer received this notice, he would not have sent his telegram stating that as of November 27, 1941 he "could no longer work with Dave Fleischer." This statement, the result of his continued frustrations over their relationship during the production of their last feature was viewed as a resignation, but not intended as such. As a result, the transfer of ownership to Paramount was occurred on January 2, 1942. Paramount finished out the remaining five months of the 1941 Fleischer contract with the absence of both Max and Dave Fleischer, and the name change to Famous Studios became official on May 27, 1942. Paramount installed new management, among them Max's son-in-law,Seymour Kneitel.
Unable to form a studio due to the demand for military training films, Fleischer was brought in as head of the animation department for the industrial film company,The Jam Handy Organization in Detroit, Michigan. While there he supervised the technical and cartoon animation departments, producing training films for the Army and Navy. Fleischer was also involved with top-secret research and development for the war effort including an aircraft bomber sighting system.[citation needed] In 1944, he publishedNoah's Shoes, a metaphoric account of the building and loss of his studio, casting himself as Noah.
Following the war, he supervised the production of the animated adaptation ofRudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1948), sponsored byMontgomery Ward. Fleischer left Handy in 1953 and returned as production manager for theBray Studios in New York, where he developed an educational television pilot about unusual birds and animals titled,Imagine That!
In 1954, Max's son,Richard Fleischer, was directing20,000 Leagues Under the Sea forWalt Disney. This brought about the honorary luncheon that united Max with his former competitor and reunited him with several former Fleischer animators who were then employed by Disney. This meeting of the former rivals seemed cordial, and Max remarked that he was very happy making educational films at this point in his career. However, in his collection of memoirs entitledJust Tell Me When to Cry, Richard relates how, at the mere mention of Disney's name, Max would mutter, "that son-of-a-bitch".
Fleischer won a lawsuit against Paramount in 1955 over the removal of his name from the credits of his films. While Fleischer had issues over the breach of contract, he had avoided suing for a decade to protect his son-in-law, Seymour Kneitel, who was a lead director at Paramount's Famous Studios. In 1958, Fleischer revivedOut of the Inkwell Films, Inc. and partnered with his former animatorHal Seeger, to produce 100 colorOut of the Inkwell (1960–1961) cartoons for television. ActorLarry Storch performed the voices forKoko the Clown and supporting characters Kokonut and Mean Moe. While Max appeared in the un-aired pilot, he became too ill to appear in the series, and, in poor health, he spent the rest of his life attempting to regain ownership ofBetty Boop.[citation needed]
Fleischer and wife Essie moved to theMotion Picture Country House in 1967. Fleischer died from arterial sclerosis of the brain on September 11, 1972,[19][20] two months after his 89th birthday. In the announcement of his death, Time Magazine labeled him the "dean of animated cartoons".[21][22] His death preceded the reclaiming of his star character, Betty Boop, and a national retrospective.
The anthology filmThe Betty Boop Scandals of 1974 started the Fleischer Renaissance with new 35mm prints of a selection of the best Fleischer cartoons made between 1928 and 1934. This was followed byThe Popeye Follies. These special theatrical programs generated interest in Max Fleischer as the alternative to Walt Disney, spawning a new wave of film research devoted to an expanded interest in animation beyond trivial entertainment.
A trailer forSuperman (1941) produced by Max Fleischer was preserved and restored by theUCLA Film & Television Archive from the 35mm nitrate successive exposure negative and a 35mm optical track negative. Restoration funding was provided byASIFA-Hollywood. The restoration had its world premiere at the 2024 UCLA Festival of Preservation.[23]
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