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Summary: A Fantastic Book about Philosophy, Life and, uh, Cartoons
Review: Please do yourself a favor and read this wonderful book. Chuck Jones is an American treasure and a fantastic artist. The Warner Brothers Cartoons were directed to audiences of all ages, they do not talk down to children, nor do they pretentiously preach to adults. Unfortunately, we only seem to recognize as "great" those artists who do these things. If you believe an artist has to be "serious" to be a genius, I hope this book will change your mind!
Check out his new book, "Chuck Reducks" too
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Summary: A Joy to Read
Review: Rather than an autobiography, this book is more a collection of musing from one of America's greatest storytellers (he just happened to tell his stories with pictures shown in rapid succession!) From his love of Mark Twain to his contempt at studio management, we see not how his life unfolded, but rather how Mr. Jones created his vision. Though there is no drawing instruction, I have to agree with the plethora of lists that this should be on the shelves of every animator, professional or aspiring, as it illuminates what goes into a great cartoon before penicl ever touches paper.
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Summary: Fantastic...A MUST for ALL Looney Tunes and Chuck Fans!
Review: Simply put, this is the best book ever written about Looney Tunes, and what it took to make them. Chuck shares entertaining behind the scenes info about the Termite Terrace and the people who worked there. Chuck say's that it was quite normal to see the animators look like they were going to wack each other with a mallet. Chuck also tells stories about those notorious poducers, Leon Schlesinger (whos lisp was used in Daffy voice) and Eddie Selzer. When Eddie said "I don't want any gags about bullfights, bullfights aren't funny!", Jones and Mike Maltise had something. Result: Bully For Bugs. When he said the same thing about camels to director Fritz Freleng, the result: Sahara Hare. Though Eddie is quoted as saying about Pepe Le Pew, "Nobody'd laugh at that s**t!", he happily accepted the Oscar for "For Scent-imental Reasons", a Pepe Le Pew cartoon. That (and many more) hilarous titbits are spread throughout this superb book, including high-quality backgrounds and scenes for "Duck Dodgers in the 24th and 1/2 Century" and many others. Also included are many drawings and many photos of the directors, animators and producers. The most illistruated and well thought out book about cartoons ever made.
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Summary: As Wile E. Coyote would say "Genius, pure genius"
Review: The world lost an animation genius recently with the death of Chuck Jones. Luckily, there is a book like this that celebrates the animation genius he was. Arguably, Jones was the father of some of the best Warner Brothers cartoons ever made, including "Duck Amuck," "Duck Dogers in the 24th and 1/2 Century," and my personal favorite "What's Opera Doc?" He also is responsible for giving us such great pieces of pop culture as the original "How the Grinch Stole Christmas." Part autobiography, part instruction, part tribute, this book shows us the man behind the screen, or should I say behind the pencil? We often wonder where a genius comes from - Chuck seems to say from anywhere. His mark on the development of the cartoon is undeniable, and monumental. But just as you cannot appreciate art fully until you know about the painter, so it is with Chuck's cartoons. I have a greater appreciation for the work that goes into developing these 8 minute masterpieces. Yes, it's true that Jones gave us some of the clunkers in the 60's as the Warner Brothers studio (and the MGM studio) animation division gasped what seemed to be its last breath. But it's all the more amazing that Chuck could produce such works given what little he had to work with. The world would be poorer were it not for the gives Chuck has given us, including Wile E. Coyote (super genius!),and the Road Runner, Pepe Le Pew, Marvin the Martian and many others. His style was distinctive, his contributions monumental and behind it all, he was a fascinating and talented man. This book stands as a tribute to this genius now that he's no longer with us.
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Summary: Flat out the most enjoyable book I have ever read...
Review: This is one of those books that just makes you happy to be holding it. Every page is filled with such positive, colorful energy that one cant help but smile as you read and be just a little bit sad when you're done.
As you all should know by now, this is of course the autobiography of the late, great Chuck Jones who recounts his life and the people who helped him become who he became. Naturally there's a pleathora of information on animation and his time at Warner Brothers, thats to be expected. So is the fact that he is constantly tipping his hat to the likes of Tex Avery, Friz Freleng and his fellow writers/animators. But for me its the little things, the unexpected that really make this book shine. A chapter dedicated to a janitor who Jones would talk to when he was working late. A chapter about an eccentric cat that Jones had as a kid. The hot dog stand a fellow animator ran out of his desk at Schlesinger Studios. These are the things that make this book more than just an autobiography and bring it into a whole new territory that I really cant explain. The whole thing is written with so much darn positive energy that you cant help but feel like a happier person when you put it down. Jones even manages to put a positive spin on his overbearing, ignorant bosses. Its amazing.
In anycase, I would highly reccomend this book for fans of animation as well as manic depressive's alike - (it'll cheer you up!)
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Summary: Oh, to have lived back then!
Review: To read "Chuck Amuck: The Life and Times of an Animated Cartoonist" is to be transported back to the days when Termite Terrace turned out the most popular cartoons the world will ever know. Not only does Chuck (how can we call someone we know so well "Mr. Jones" or just "Jones"?) explain the childhood, adolescence and career life that brought him to where he is, he also takes the reader into that wonderful nether-world in a neglected corner of the Warner Bros. Studios lot where Leon Schlessinger ruled a bunch of underpaid, barely appreciated cartoonists. And they actually LOVED what they were doing! The people who gave the world Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies come to life so vividly, one can almost smell the ink and paint. Profusely illustrated with doodles, sketches, caricatures and photographs, "Chuck Amuck" is a literary and visual delight. And, as an added bonus, there's even an actual Wile E. Coyote cartoon that you can enjoy without a VCR or a movie projector! The book's only low point is that the foreword was written by Steven Spielberg, whose "Tiny Toons" and "Animaniacs" are little more than flagrant rip-offs of Chuck's (and Tex Avery's and Bob Clampett's) best material.
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