Oregon Historic Animators 
A Brief Outline

When we showed animation historian John Canemaker a list of animators and cartoonists from Oregon, he reacted with amazement. “Must be something in the water!” he said. We asked if any other state came close to us. He said absolutely not. Then he added another name, that of Pinto Colvig, to the list.

Oregon began producing national level talent in the area of animation and cartooning right away. Homer Davenport,the country's first superstar newspaper editorial cartoonist, was born inSilverton, Oregon in 1867, less than ten years after Oregon achieved statehood. Two foundational Disney artists came from small towns in Oregon: Pinto Colvig (Jacksonville, 1892), best known as the voice of Goofy, and Carl Barks (Merrill, 1901), creator of Uncle Scrooge McDuck. Although Mel Blanc was born in San Francisco in 1908, he grew up in Portland and made his radio debut at KGW. Later, he went to LA to create the voices behind Bugs Bunny, Porky Pig, Woody Woodpecker, and many other of our best known and most beloved cartoon characters. Self taught artist Basil Wolverton (Central Point, 1909) helped define the distinctive look of Mad Magazine, while self taught filmmaker Harry Smith (Portland, 1923), by some accounts single-handedly invented abstract animation.

The range, innovation and excellence of this historic group mirrors in every way the achievements of their modern contemporaries, a group which includes Matt "The Simpsons" Groening (Portland), Brad "The Incredibles" Bird (Corvallis), Bill Plympton (Oregon City), Will Vinton (McMinnville), Joanna Priestly (Portland) and John Callahan (The Dalles). Animators who have chosen Portland as their hometown include Jim Blashfield, Joan Gratz, and Chel White.

Is it the water, as John Canemaker suspects? A map of Oregon cartoonists and animators would show pins in small towns all over the state: Silverton, Jacksonville, Merrill, Central Point, McMinnville, Corvallis, Oregon City, The Dalles. Every aspect of animation and cartooning is represented in the careers of these artists: newspaper cartoons, feature length studio animation, humor magazines, art animation, feature length independent animation, television show animation, music videos. And the prizes! These artists are leaders, pioneers in their respective fields. They are stand outs. Yet Oregon's unusual track record when it comes to animation and cartooning has never been examined in a documentary.

Brad Bird followed in the footsteps of Oregon animators Pinto Colvig and Carl Barks by beginning his career at Disney. Bill Plympton first tried to sell work to Disney as a fourteen year old, then charted his own course in independent animation as an adult. Will Vinton did the same. The supreme independence of Oregon animators and cartoonists was exemplified by the career of Basil Wolverton, who refused to move east and instead mailed in his work to New York. How did it happen that Mel Blanc and Matt Groening, two unimaginably influential figures in American animation, both attended Lincoln High School? We know how Homer Davenport became a newspaper cartoonist. He did so at the behest of his mother. She had preselected her son's career while he was still in the womb. 

These are Oregon stories, and we would like to use the documentary format to tell them. Through these artists, Oregon has been helping shape American popular culture for more than a century. Oregonians do not often see their state in this light. When it comes to animation and cartooning, Oregon has been steadily exporting top level talent, and not taking credit for the results. We would like to change that with this documentary which explores this neglected history. 

In June 2007, Portland will host the Platform International Animation Festival ( www.platformfestival.com ), the first international animation festival held on American soil.  We would like to be in production by that time.