america's youngest collector of old cartoons explains the beauty of new york's first animated films...

4/24/15, 10:39 PMAmerica's Youngest Collector of Old Cartoons Explains the Beauty of New York's First Animated Films - ANIMAL

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Tommy Stathes only graduated from college two years ago, but he is already one the countrysforemost experts on old school animation. The New York Daily News credits the 26-year-oldQueens native as being by far the youngest serious collector of old cartoons in the country, anexpertise that was cultivated long before he graduated Queens College with a degree in film.

Stathes possesses over 1,000 reels of old filmstrips from the early 1900s and screens them inretrospectives and events across the city. Immigrants were settling in by the droves, jazz was takinghold of the city and women were pioneering the suffragist movement making New York abrewing, feverish melting pot, he says. Early cartoons, overshadowed and easily forgotten byflashier technology, are often wonderful time capsules containing glimpses of all these issues,says Stathes. He will be giving a talk about the history of the citys early animation in May at anevent for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, and answered a few questions aboutwhat we can learn from some of the countrys first animated cartoons.

AMERICAS YOUNGEST COLLECTOR OF OLDCARTOONS EXPLAINS THE BEAUTY OF NEW

YORKS FIRST ANIMATED FILMSBy Prachi Gupta | April 24, 2015 - 02:00PM

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Why did you choose to focus on New York animation from this time period?

Early animation is the main genre of film I research, archive, and exhibit in my work. One of thecharming things about the genre and its early period is that so many of animations roots are tied tothis citys early 20th century historyanimation as both an art form, and as a soon-establishedindustry. As a proud New York native and someone with a lifelong interest in local history and filmhistory, it happened to be very convenient for me that early animation history largely played out inmy backyard. Both J. Stuart Blacktons and Winsor McCays pioneering efforts were produced inBrooklyn; J.R. Brays first film was produced out of a loft in Morningside Heights and developed ina film lab in the Bronx, and Max Fleischers studio in the 1920s existed for a time in Long IslandCity. The dominant Hollywood film histories are all very interesting to me, but seem less organicand groundbreaking than this industrys budding period across the boroughs.

What was the mood of the city, and how was that reflected in the animation?

The mood of the city at this time was that of a brewing, feverish melting pot. Massive waves ofimmigration were occurring and new groups of people were learning how to live and work togetherunder trying conditions. The Gilded Age had ended; it was a time of trust-busting, unionization andworkers rights in response to the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire of 1913, womens rightsmovements and eventually flappers, prohibition, and the clashing of persistent neighborhoodpoverty versus Roaring 20s excesses and newfound social freedoms. Early cartoons are oftenwonderful time capsules containing glimpses of all these issues. Given that cartooning is often aparody-based medium, animators were often making light of old nostalgic sentiments, currentsocial issues, as well as new, progressive movements happening at the time. As illustrators andprint cartoonists put a mirror in front topical subject matter with their pens, so did those working inanimation.



Did New Yorks animations have a certain trademark?

One of the fun things about dissecting an animated film, and keeping in mind where it wasproduced, is looking for influences. On the whole, many New York-produced cartoons definitelyhave an urban feel to them. Sometimes that refers to certain types of humor and expression, butsometimes its purely visual information. For example, many New York cartoons will depictcrowded city streets, tenements, fire escapes, and other clues as to where the writing and productionoccurred. Many of the animators were not New York natives, however, so often time otherinfluences are apparent, such as plentiful barnyard and animal cartoons. Even in those subjects,distinctive New York-based (while not native) animators styles can often be observed in specificfilms, though it takes a keen and well-read eye to know what to look for. In animation, geography,landscape, and local cultures typically played a major role in the finished products, while they mayor may not have in other art hubs of the time.

Who were some of the biggest pioneers of New Yorks animation scene at the time and whatdid they contribute to the artform?

The earliest New York animation roots can be traced back to J. Stuart Blackton. Blackton is wellknown in film history for running the Vitagraph Studios in Midwood, Brooklyn; a major early live-action film company. Some of his earliest productions were filmed vaudeville chalk talks whereBlackton himself appears on screen, drawing on a sheet of paper and using in-camera and stop-motion editing techniques to manipulate the drawings, creating animation. Then there was WinsorMcCay, one of the greatest illustrators of all time, who put pen to paper in the early 1910s toproduce painstakingly detailed and whimsical animation for the period. Gertie the Dinosaur is hisbest-known film, and the one most people usually know of when they think about pre-MickeyMouse animation. McCay was operating out of his home in Sheepshead Bay at the time. RaoulBarr was also a notable figure in the early 1910s, founding the first dedicated animation studio inNew York City which failed within monthsalthough Barr continued animating for other localstudios into the 1920s. J.R. Bray established the first successful animation studio, first in hisMorningside Heights apartment in 1913 and eventually moving to offices overlooking MadisonSquare Park. Bray Studios was the first employer of many future animation studio moguls, such asMax Fleischer, Paul Terry, and Walter Lantz. Bray produced over five hundred animated films andceased animation production in 1927. Other historians who have fine arts backgrounds (my own islimited) might be better equipped to satisfactorily describe what all of these figures contributed tothe art form, though I can say that they all paved the way for animation as a commercial industryand thats the vehicle by which most people have come to know animated films.

What do you think is the most under appreciated cartoon from this era?

This is a difficult question to answer, only because many hundreds of cartoons were produced inthis era, most are temporarily or permanently lost; and the bulk of the surviving examples are



rarely screened. Its always a challenge to single out individual films to make a point, andpractically impossible to do when so many in a particular genre are so elusive and unavailable forstudyingeven for the most dedicated historians. However, I would say that the Bray Studiosproduct on the whole is under appreciated, considering that the animation industry was effectivelyfounded by Bray in 1913. In contrast, Disneys high regard in animation history only reflectsbuilding upon and perfecting groundwork that was laid much earlier by Bray.

How have cartoons (and societys relationship with them) changed since this era?

The exchange between cartoons and society has always been far more complex and weighty thanmost are willing to believe. Most importantly, the notion that cartoons are for kids was never true,from day one. In looking at some of the earliest examples of mainstream animated cartoons, onewill find rather adult situations, political issues and telling socio-economic commentary. Violencealso goes way back to the beginning. In terms of how cartoons have evolved, there have been majorchanges, mostly techniques of production (i.e. hand-drawn supplanted by CGI) and a heavyreliance on dialogue, especially when cartoons reverted to inexpensive limited animation productfor early television; a commercial trend which persists to this day. As for how societys relationshiphas stayed the same all these decades, it remains true that the kinds of animation out there areactually very varied and appeal to all sorts of audiences, both children and adults. Hopefullygeneral awareness of animation will gradually begin to match the vastness of the mediums art formand echoes of cartoons are for kids will fade into the past.

Are there cartoons in this collection that, upon seeing them now, wed consider themoffensive, ignorant, or even racist? As a collector who hopes to share art with the public, whatdo you think we should do with art like that?

The issue of race and ethnic stereotyping was always a tricky subject in animation. I think manypeople are generally aware that some old cartoons were racist. Thats true, and there are manyexamples where the entire narrative is based on extreme ethnic stereotyping, or for no apparentreason other than to insert an extra gag, there will be a racial joke or image that may or may notadvance the plot of the film. In this screening, such an example concerning a small black boy existsin Cartoons On Tour (Raoul Barr, 1915). There are also examples where, even if subject to visualor verbal stereotyping, black characters are treated fairly in comparison to other characters in astory, and are sometimes major protagonists who save the day. As an archivist who exhibitshistorical works, I do not believe in hiding or editing insensitive films; rather, I think keeping themin public view provides us with a sort of living history lesson. These films in particular also serveas a dual-natured reminder that weve both come a long way in the media arena while much moreprogress still needs to be made in our civil rights landscape.

Stathes and J.J. Sedelmaier will co-present The History of New York Silent and Early SoundAnimation on Tuesday May 19 at 7 PM at the Academy Theater on 59th Street.
http://www.oscars.org/events/history-silent-and-early-sound-new-york-animation



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Tags: animation, bray studios, Cartoons, Film, new york animation, tommy stathes

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america's youngest collector of old cartoons explains the beauty of new york's first animated films...

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