Robert "Bob" McKimson, Sr. (September 27, 1910–September 27, 1977) was an animator, illustrator, and director best known for his work on the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons from Warner Bros. September 27 is the 270th day of the year (271st in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 95 days remaining. ... 1910 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... September 27 is the 270th day of the year (271st in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 95 days remaining. ... 1977 was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1977 calendar). ... An animator is one who is involved in the process of animation. ... An illustrator is a graphic artist that specializes in enhancing written text by providing a graphic representation that corresponds to the content of the associated text. ... The film director, on the right, gives last minute direction to the cast and crew, whilst filming a costume drama on location in London. ... Looney Tunes is a Warner Brothers cartoon series that preceded the Merrie Melodies series, and is both WBs first animated theatrical series and the second longest continuous animated series in any medium. ... Merrie Melodies end title Merrie Melodies is the name of a series of animated cartoons distributed by Warner Bros. ... A cartoon is any of several forms of art, with varied meanings that evolved from one to another. ... Warner Bros. ...

After ten years of art education, McKimson went to work for Walt Disney. He stayed with Disney's studio for two years before moving to that of Hugh Harman and Rudolf Ising. In 1946, McKimson was promoted to director, replacing Frank Tashlin. He shared this position with Friz Freleng and Chuck Jones until the closing of the Warner Bros. cartoon studio in 1963. During this period, McKimson created the character Foghorn Leghorn and directed every cartoon starring the character, every Hippety Hopper/Sylvester pairing, and every Tasmanian Devil short. Walt Disney Walter Elias Walt Disney (December 5, 1901 – December 15, 1966), was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, and animator. ... The Walt Disney Studios refers to several different entities and locations associated with the Walt Disney Company: The Walt Disney Studios is one of the media empires four main operating units. ... Hugh Harman (1908–1982) and Rudolf Rudy Ising (1903–1992) were animators best known for founding the Warner Bros. ... Hugh Harman (1908–1982) and Rudolf Rudy Ising (1903–1992) were animators best known for founding the Warner Bros. ... 1946 was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... The film director, on the right, gives last minute direction to the cast and crew, whilst filming a costume drama on location in London. ... Frank Tashlin (February 19, 1913 - May 5, 1972) was an animator, screenwriter, and director. ... Isadore Friz Freleng (August 21, 1905–May 26, 1995) was an animator, cartoonist, director, and producer best known for his work on the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons from Warner Bros. ... Charles Martin Chuck Jones (September 21, 1912–February 22, 2002) was an American animator, cartoon artist, screenwriter, producer, and director of animated films, most memorably of Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies shorts for the Warner Brothers cartoon studio. ... 1963 was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Foghorn Leghorn is an animated chicken appearing in numerous Warner Brothers cartoons. ... Hippety Hopper is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. ... Sylvester J. Pussycat Senior is a fictional cat who appears in several Looney Tunes cartoons, often chasing Tweety Bird, Speedy Gonzalez, or Hippety Hopper. ... This is an article about a cartoon character. ...

Critics, perhaps unfairly, routinely dismiss McKimson's work-- that is, when the critics deem to discuss McKimson's work at all. Much of this critical neglect likely stems from two factors: McKimson's early death, and his extreme shyness. He died well before animation became a respected artform, and when he was alive, he gave few interviews. His shorts are described as having a "squarer" style than his fellow directors, Freleng and Jones. Critics describe his style as somewhat prosaic, not as innovative or impeccably crafted as the films of Jones or Freleng. In many ways, his cartoons, extremely violent and irreverent, are a continuation of the style of Bob Clampett, who had left the studio a few years before McKimson's promotion to director. Robert Bob Clampett (May 8, 1913–May 4, 1984) was an animator, producer, director, and puppeteer best known for his work on the Looney Tunes series of cartoons from Warner Bros. ...

But if McKimson's cartoons did not reach the intellectual heights of Jones or enjoy the musical freedom of Freleng, he is seen by animation scholars as being the most artistically talented of the Termite Terrace cartoon directors. In 1942, McKimson drew a single portrait of Bugs Bunny, leaning against a tree and smiling as he was eating a carrot, that became known as the definitive portrait of the character; this picture has been imitated many times by later artists, including McKimson's peers. McKimson was, for many years, the studio's most prominent animator and character designer; he created the definitve Bugs Bunny model sheet in 1943. His peers acknowledged McKimson's ability to draw images and figures without any construction lines. Even when Warner Bros. acknowledged the influence of UPA and abandoned extreme "realism" in cartoons during the early 1950s, the characters in McKimson's cartoons continued to reflect his craftsmanship. Termite Terrace is the nickname for the old building in Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA where Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies were first created. ... 1942 was a common year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... Bugs Bunny on a United States stamp Bugs Bunny is a fictional street-smart gray rabbit appearing in the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons, and is one of the most recognizable characters, real or imaginary, in the world. ... 1943 is a common year starting on Friday. ... The legacy of the United Productions of America animation studio, better known as UPA, has largely been forgotten in the wake of the animation renaissance of the 1990s; it has been overshadowed by the commercialization of Warner Bros. ... Millennia: 1st millennium - 2nd millennium - 3rd millennium Events and trends The 1950s in Western society was marked with a sharp rise in the economy for the first time in almost 30 years and return to the 1920s-type consumer society built on credit and boom-times, as well as the...

In 1953, however, the Warner Bros. cartoon studio laid off most of its staff for six months. McKimson had to rebuild his unit, which never regained the vivid animation of earlier years. Most of McKimson's "earthbound" cartoons were released from 1955 on, although he still made some good shorts from the much lower budgets of the post-1964 era. 1953 is a common year starting on Thursday. ... 1955 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1964 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Warner Bros. shut down its animation studio in 1963, and McKimson joined DePatie-Freleng Enterprises, co-owned by his old associates Friz Freleng and David H. DePatie, who had been a producer at the Warners studio. At DePatie-Freleng, McKimson directed several The Inspector shorts and worked on some of the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies contracted out to DePatie-Freleng by Warner Bros.. In 1967, Warners opened its studio again and McKimson went back to Warners, until it finally shut down in 1969. His last Warner Bros. cartoon was "Injun Trouble" with Cool Cat. "Injun Trouble" was also the last of the original Looney Tunes or Merrie Melodies cartoon to be produced before ther Warner Bros. cartoon studio was closed. 1963 was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... DePatie-Freleng Enterprises (sometimes abbreviated to DFE) was a Hollywood-based animation production company, active from 1963 to 1981. ... The Inspector is a series of theatrical cartoons from 1960s, which were produced by DePatie-Freleng Enterprises and released through United Artists. ... 1967 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1969 was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1969 calendar). ... Cool Cat was a fictional cartoon character created by director Alex Lovy for Warner Bros. ...

In 1972, he went back to DePatie-Freleng to direct Pink Panther shorts, among their other series. 1972 was a leap year that started on a Saturday. ... The Pink Panther refers to: A series of films, most of which feature Peter Sellers as the bumbling French policeman Jacques Clouseau The diamond depicted in the first film (although fans over the years have perceived Inspector Clouseau to be the Pink Panther, as evidenced by the titles of the...

McKimson died suddenly in 1977, on his 67th birthday. He suffered a massive coronary while eating dinner with Friz Freleng and David H. DePatie. 1977 was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1977 calendar). ... A myocardial infarction occurs when an atherosclerotic plaque slowly builds up in the inner lining of a coronary artery and then suddenly ruptures, totally occluding the artery and preventing blood flow downstream. ...

External links

• Robert McKimson (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0571781/) at the Internet Movie Database
• Remembering Robert McKimson (http://looney.toonzone.net/articles/mckimson.html)