History of animation in the United States

Animation in the United States during the silent era

Golden Age of American animation

Animation in the United States in the television era

Modern animation in the United States

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Animated films in the United States date back to at least 1906 when Vitagraph released Humorous Phases of Funny Faces.^[1] Although early animations were rudimentary they rapidly became more sophisticated with such classics as Gertie the Dinosaur in 1914 and Koko the Clown.

Originally a novelty, some early animated silents depicted magic acts or were strongly influenced by the comic strip. Later, they were distributed along with newsreels. Early animation films, like their live-action silent cousins, would come with a musical score to be played by an organist or even an orchestra in larger theatres.^[2]

Contents 1 List of animated silents 2 See also 3 Further reading 4 References 5 External links

[edit] List of animated silents

• J. Stuart Blackton, Humorous Phases of Funny Faces, 1906 claimed to be the first animated film in the US^[1]
• Winsor McCay, Gertie the Dinosaur, 1914, The Sinking of the Lusitania, 1918, Dreams of the Rarebit Fiend, 1921
• John Randolph Bray who later claimed to have invented some of McCay's techniques
• Willis O'Brien, The Dinosaur and the Missing Link, 1915, The Lost World, 1925 (stop-motion animation)
• Otto Messmer and the first cartoon superstar Felix the Cat, 1919
• Max Fleischer and Koko the Clown, 1919 and the invention of the rotoscope
• Paul Terry and Aesop's Film Fables, 1921-1929
• Van Beuren Studios which released Paul Terry's films before Terry set up his own studio in 1929
• Walt Disney's first cartoons: Laugh-o-Grams, Alice Comedies , Oswald the Lucky Rabbit and Mickey Mouse
• Other significant series: Heeza Liar, Mutt and Jeff, Krazy Kat, Bobby Bumps
• Other significant studios: Barré Studio, Bray Productions, Barré-Bowers Studio, International Film Service
• Significant distributors of animated films: Margaret J. Winkler, Charles Mintz, Educational Pictures, Red Seal Pictures, Bijou Films
• Also, Charles Bowers was a comedian and animator who made many bizarre films in the 1920s combining stop-motion animation and comedy. Many of them have been lost, but some have been recently released on DVD.

[edit] See also

• History of animation
• List of animated feature films

[edit] Further reading

• Denis Gifford (1990). American Animated Films: The Silent Era, 1897-1929. Mcfarland & Co. ISBN 0899504604. 
• Richard Fleischer (2005). Out of the Inkwell: Max Fleischer and the Animation Revolution. University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 0-8131-2355-0. 
• Donald Crafton (1993). Before Mickey: The Animated Film 1898-1928. University of Chicago Press. 

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• The Library of Congress: Origins of American Animation

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