The thing is, I vividly recall every detail of this moment. I remember being rushed into position by the photographer. You're probably thinking I look like I was bursting with glee because of the rabbit. I wasn't. I'm sneaking a greasy glance at that girl's ugly hat and thinking, "Kid, it's warm out. Why are you wearing that stupid hat? Take a hike! This is MY time!"
Pig In a Pickle from Walter Lantz Studios, 1954
Here's another one which remains branded into my brain verbatim, note for note, despite the 20-plus years of adventures since the last time I saw it. The video is a shitty screen capture, but it's the best version I've seen.
Hillbillies fascinate and terrify me. I suspect this cartoon served as the foundation for that disposition.
Adventures of Popeye from Fleischer Studios, 1935
Been searching for this for years! I hadn't seen it since I was maybe 11-years-old, but it's interesting how precisely I remember the rhythm and tone of all the sounds. The live-action stuff at the beginning and end are particularly strange. Seeing that freckled-faced, sour-puss punk getting busted hard in the chin by a sissy jacked-up on spinach remains one of the most satisfying endings I've ever seen. It's frustrating to see the hyper-kinetic animation of today in comparison to this hand-rendered Fleischer Studios stuff because there's so much soul on display. It's a lost art, a far better art, in my opinion.
