THE CAT CONCERTO (MGM, 1947)

I'm in Florida, and finally connected by wireless to the internet!

Here's one of largest single posts ever, backgrounds from Tom and Jerry's THE CAT CONCERTO (MGM, 1947), including some recreated pan B/Gs.The playground is a beautiful polished ebony grand pian. The beautifully realized background art is rich in detail.

As Irving Berlin once wrote... I love a piano!

More PECOS BILL (Melody Time)

Here's another set of background art from PECOS BILL.

I am hitting the road - back on the concert circuit, headed for Florida.

I'm not absolutely sure of internet accessibility (or time available) so we'll have at least a brief hiatus. I will take my laptop, and there's always artwork with me, so I'll try to get a few posts in while I'm traveling.

I'll be back in Los Angeles April 16, so we'll definitely be up and running then.

'Til then, Happy Trails!

PECOS BILL (Melody Time)

PECOS BILL combined great elements: country music, the Old West and Disney's cartoon style.

The first image (above) is a digitally created pan.

The desert landscapes are amazing. Here, early morning skies ablaze with pink, and the blue skies that follow:


Of course there's an old west town, seen from afar, and on Main Street too:


Disney even shows us the creation of the painted desert!


You can almost feel the heat of the desert sun in these B/Gs:


And finally, in a completely different style, this nifty spotlight B/G (a recurring motif in Disney's 40s films):

TREES part two from MELODY TIME

From "TREES," a long shot, closer with lighting and color shifts, and a recreated pan of... a tree.

Ciro's: HOLLYWOOD STEPS OUT

Hollywood Steps Out: Gigantic Pan!

This is the single biggest pan background I've ever digitally re-created. Completed, it was 130 inches long!!!

I have included the entire reconstructed B/G, as well as segments so you can see details.

As the pan begins we hear the Looney Tunes melody, then see Leon Schlesinger (on the right) and his assistant Henry Binder (on the left).

Leon Schlesinger founded Leon Schlesinger Productions, which later became the Warner Bros. Cartoons studio, during the golden age of Hollywood animation.

Next we see a booth with two small chairs reserved for Bette Davis, and in contrast a HUGE booth for Kate Smith! (OK, youngsters, Google Kate Smith to get the joke.)

Finally, we see a table set set for the cast of the DAGWOOD comic strip (and motion picture) cast, complete with a fire hydrant for dog Daisy!

As usual, don't forget to click on images for the enlarged views.

NAME THE FILM - Art Corner Background

I've never done this before, but I have a hunch my readers can help out! This is an Art Corner print BG from an unknown Disney film.

Does anyone recognize this BG? Can you tell me the title of the film from which it originated?

The style looks Mary Blair-esque to me, but the color palette doesn't. Usually the Art Corner used readily recognizable BGs from Sleeping Beauty and 101 Dalmatians, but this one has me stumped.

(Those cel paint remnants of Dale are from the Disney Ink and Paint Department. The cel has been restored.)