Grim Natwick
Encyclopedia
Myron "Grim" Natwick was an American
artist
, animator
and film director
. Natwick is best known for drawing the Fleischer Studio's most popular character, Betty Boop
.
, Natwick studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago
and had five brothers and two sisters. Natwick's parents, James and Henrietta (Lyon) owned a furniture store. His grandfather, Ole, was one of the earliest Norwegian immigrants to the United States arriving in Wisconsin in 1847 (Ole was born on 4/8/1826 to Ole Torkjellson Natvig and Anna at Sagi Natvig, Ardal, Sogn, Norway). He had eleven children in Grand Rapids, Wisconsin (now part of Wisconsin Rapids), including James W., Grim's father, and Joseph, who was the father of Mildred Natwick
, Grim's first cousin.[cite: Natwick family history/"the Natwick Saga"]
Natwick had his nickname since before high school as a takeoff on his "anything but Grim" personality. He was well known even in high school for his artwork and his poetry. Although never published, many pages of his poetry are available (much will be on display at the South Wood County historical Museum in the summer of 2011 where there is a permanent exhibit of Natwick's works[www.swch-museum.com]). His brother Frank was reputedly one of the first Wisconsin athletes to be invited to the Olympics
in 1908. He was a high hurdler for the University of Wisconsin–Madison
where he was president of his class.
, initially for a friend who worked at a music publishing company. Natwick found that he was good at this type of work and contacted other publishers in Chicago, eventually illustrating the covers for many song sheets, usually in no more than two colours. Natwick is best known for drawing the Fleischer Studio's most popular character, Betty Boop
, under the direction of Max Fleischer
. Although legal ownership of the Betty Boop character remained with the studio (as Natwick was an employee), Grim created the original design of Betty Boop at the request of studio head Max Fleischer, who requested a girlfriend for his successful creation "Bimbo". Natwick worked for a number of American animation
studios, including the Ub Iwerks
studio, Walt Disney Productions, the Walter Lantz
studio, UPA
, and the Richard Williams studio. At Disney, Natwick was a lead animator on Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
, and was instrumental in bringing the titular heroine to life.
While working for the Fleischer studios in 1939, Natwick was in charge of drawing the Prince and the Princess for Gulliver's Travels
. He also helped to animate Mickey Mouse
in Fantasia
, Mr. Magoo
, Popeye
, Felix the Cat
and many other 40s and 50s cartoon greats. Three of Grim's former assistants included Walter Lantz
(Hearst), Chuck Jones
(Iwerks) and Marc Davis (Disney).
Natwick died in Los Angeles
, California of both pneumonia
and a heart attack
, just after having a 100th birthday party with friends such as Shamus Culhane
.
In 2010, the Wisconsin Historical Society erected a memorial plague to Grim Natwick in Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin. South Wood County Historical Museum in Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin is home to an extensive Grim Natwick exhibit.
Since 2010, the Grim Natwick Film Festival
has been held annually over three days in Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin
featuring animators from across the state and beyond in panels and screenings of work.
People of the United States
The people of the United States, also known as simply Americans or American people, are the inhabitants or citizens of the United States. The United States is a multi-ethnic nation, home to people of different ethnic and national backgrounds...
artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
, animator
Animator
An animator is an artist who creates multiple images that give an illusion of movement called animation when displayed in rapid sequence; the images are called frames and key frames. Animators can work in a variety of fields including film, television, video games, and the internet. Usually, an...
and film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
. Natwick is best known for drawing the Fleischer Studio's most popular character, Betty Boop
Betty Boop
Betty Boop is an animated cartoon character created by Max Fleischer, with help from animators including Grim Natwick. She originally appeared in the Talkartoon and Betty Boop film series, which were produced by Fleischer Studios and released by Paramount Pictures. She has also been featured in...
.
Background
Born in Wisconsin Rapids, WisconsinWisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin
Wisconsin Rapids is a city in and the county seat of Wood County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 18,435 at the 2000 census.According to the 2010 census, the Wisconsin Rapids micropolitan area was home to 54,362 people...
, Natwick studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago
Art Institute of Chicago
The School of the Art Institute of Chicago is one of America's largest accredited independent schools of art and design, located in the Loop in Chicago, Illinois. It is associated with the museum of the same name, and "The Art Institute of Chicago" or "Chicago Art Institute" often refers to either...
and had five brothers and two sisters. Natwick's parents, James and Henrietta (Lyon) owned a furniture store. His grandfather, Ole, was one of the earliest Norwegian immigrants to the United States arriving in Wisconsin in 1847 (Ole was born on 4/8/1826 to Ole Torkjellson Natvig and Anna at Sagi Natvig, Ardal, Sogn, Norway). He had eleven children in Grand Rapids, Wisconsin (now part of Wisconsin Rapids), including James W., Grim's father, and Joseph, who was the father of Mildred Natwick
Mildred Natwick
Mildred Natwick was an American stage and film actress.- Early life :A native of Baltimore, Maryland, she was born to Joseph and Mildred Marion Dawes Natwick. She graduated from the Bryn Mawr School in Baltimore...
, Grim's first cousin.[cite: Natwick family history/"the Natwick Saga"]
Natwick had his nickname since before high school as a takeoff on his "anything but Grim" personality. He was well known even in high school for his artwork and his poetry. Although never published, many pages of his poetry are available (much will be on display at the South Wood County historical Museum in the summer of 2011 where there is a permanent exhibit of Natwick's works[www.swch-museum.com]). His brother Frank was reputedly one of the first Wisconsin athletes to be invited to the Olympics
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
in 1908. He was a high hurdler for the University of Wisconsin–Madison
University of Wisconsin–Madison
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
where he was president of his class.
Career
Natwick's artistic career started with cover designs for sheet musicSheet music
Sheet music is a hand-written or printed form of music notation that uses modern musical symbols; like its analogs—books, pamphlets, etc.—the medium of sheet music typically is paper , although the access to musical notation in recent years includes also presentation on computer screens...
, initially for a friend who worked at a music publishing company. Natwick found that he was good at this type of work and contacted other publishers in Chicago, eventually illustrating the covers for many song sheets, usually in no more than two colours. Natwick is best known for drawing the Fleischer Studio's most popular character, Betty Boop
Betty Boop
Betty Boop is an animated cartoon character created by Max Fleischer, with help from animators including Grim Natwick. She originally appeared in the Talkartoon and Betty Boop film series, which were produced by Fleischer Studios and released by Paramount Pictures. She has also been featured in...
, under the direction of Max Fleischer
Max Fleischer
Max Fleischer was an American animator. He was a pioneer in the development of the animated cartoon and served as the head of Fleischer Studios...
. Although legal ownership of the Betty Boop character remained with the studio (as Natwick was an employee), Grim created the original design of Betty Boop at the request of studio head Max Fleischer, who requested a girlfriend for his successful creation "Bimbo". Natwick worked for a number of American animation
Animation
Animation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
studios, including the Ub Iwerks
Ub Iwerks
Ub Iwerks, A.S.C. was a two-time Academy Award winning American animator, cartoonist, character designer, inventor, creator of Mickey Mouse, and special effects technician, who was famous for his work for Walt Disney....
studio, Walt Disney Productions, the Walter Lantz
Walter Lantz
Walter Benjamin Lantz was an American cartoonist, animator, film producer, and director, best known for founding Walter Lantz Productions and creating Woody Woodpecker.-Early years and start in animation:...
studio, UPA
United Productions of America
United Productions of America, better known as UPA, was an American animation studio of the 1940s through present day, beginning with industrial films and World War II training films. In the late 1940s, UPA produced theatrical shorts for Columbia Pictures, most notably the Mr. Magoo series. In...
, and the Richard Williams studio. At Disney, Natwick was a lead animator on Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film)
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is a 1937 American animated film based on Snow White, a German fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm. It was the first full-length cel-animated feature in motion picture history, as well as the first animated feature film produced in America, the first produced in full...
, and was instrumental in bringing the titular heroine to life.
While working for the Fleischer studios in 1939, Natwick was in charge of drawing the Prince and the Princess for Gulliver's Travels
Gulliver's Travels
Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World, in Four Parts. By Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon, and then a Captain of Several Ships, better known simply as Gulliver's Travels , is a novel by Anglo-Irish writer and clergyman Jonathan Swift that is both a satire on human nature and a parody of...
. He also helped to animate Mickey Mouse
Mickey Mouse
Mickey Mouse is a cartoon character created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks at The Walt Disney Studio. Mickey is an anthropomorphic black mouse and typically wears red shorts, large yellow shoes, and white gloves...
in Fantasia
Fantasia (film)
Fantasia is a 1940 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and released by Walt Disney Productions. The third feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, the film consists of eight animated segments set to pieces of classical music conducted by Leopold Stokowski, seven of which are...
, Mr. Magoo
Mr. Magoo
Quincy Magoo is a cartoon character created at the UPA animation studio in 1949. Voiced by Jim Backus, Quincy Magoo is a wealthy, short-statured retiree who gets into a series of sticky situations as a result of his nearsightedness, compounded by his stubborn refusal to admit the problem...
, Popeye
Popeye
Popeye the Sailor is a cartoon fictional character created by Elzie Crisler Segar, who has appeared in comic strips and animated cartoons in the cinema as well as on television. He first appeared in the daily King Features comic strip Thimble Theatre on January 17, 1929...
, Felix the Cat
Felix the Cat
Felix the Cat is a cartoon character created in the silent film era. His black body, white eyes, and giant grin, coupled with the surrealism of the situations in which his cartoons place him, combine to make Felix one of the most recognized cartoon characters in film history...
and many other 40s and 50s cartoon greats. Three of Grim's former assistants included Walter Lantz
Walter Lantz
Walter Benjamin Lantz was an American cartoonist, animator, film producer, and director, best known for founding Walter Lantz Productions and creating Woody Woodpecker.-Early years and start in animation:...
(Hearst), Chuck Jones
Chuck Jones
Charles Martin "Chuck" Jones 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 Bros. Cartoons studio...
(Iwerks) and Marc Davis (Disney).
Natwick died in Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, California of both pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
and a heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
, just after having a 100th birthday party with friends such as Shamus Culhane
Shamus Culhane
James "Shamus" Culhane was an American animator, film director, and film producer.Culhane worked for a number of American animation studios, including Fleischer Studios, the Ub Iwerks studio, Walt Disney Productions, and the Walter Lantz studio. He began his animation career in 1925 working for J.R...
.
In 2010, the Wisconsin Historical Society erected a memorial plague to Grim Natwick in Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin. South Wood County Historical Museum in Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin is home to an extensive Grim Natwick exhibit.
Since 2010, the Grim Natwick Film Festival
Grim Natwick Film Festival
The Grim Natwick Film Festival is an annual film festival, inaugurated in 2010. The three day festival is held every in July in Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin....
has been held annually over three days in Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
featuring animators from across the state and beyond in panels and screenings of work.
Partial Filmography (as animator)
As animators were often uncredited, many of the films featured below do not credit Natwick as animator. Similarly there may be other movies on which he worked which have not yet been attributed to him.- 1993 The Princess and the Cobbler
- 1977 Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical AdventureRaggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical AdventureRaggedy Ann and Andy: A Musical Adventure is a 1977 American animated film directed by Richard Williams. It was produced by the Bobbs-Merrill Company, and released by 20th Century Fox...
- 1963 The Mighty HerculesThe Mighty HerculesThe Mighty Hercules was an animated series based loosely on the Greek mythological character of Heracles, under his Roman Mythology name, Hercules. It was created in 1962 and then debuted on TV in 1963 and ran until 1966 coinciding with the sword and sandal genre of films popular at the...
(TV series) (directing animator - 3 episodes; Double Trouble, Guarding of the Olympic Torch, & Medusa's Sceptre) - 1960 Felix the CatFelix the Cat (TV series)Felix the Cat was the first television series featuring the famous cartoon character Felix the Cat.In 1954 Otto Messmer retired from the Felix daily newspaper strips, and his assistant Joe Oriolo took over. Oriolo struck a deal with Felix's new owner to begin a new series of Felix cartoons on...
(TV series) - 1959 "Terror Faces Magoo" (short)
- 1954 "Spare the Child" (short)
- 1951 "Georgie and the Dragon" (short)
- 1951 "Rooty Toot TootRooty Toot TootRooty Toot Toot is a 1951 United Productions of America animated short film, directed by John Hubley. In 1994 it was voted #41 of the 50 Greatest Cartoons of all time by members of the animation field...
" (short) - 1950 "Bungled Bungalow" (short)
- 1950 "The Popcorn Story" (short)
- 1950 "Trouble Indemnity" (short)
- 1947 "The Bandmaster" (short)
- 1947 "Solid IvorySolid IvorySolid Ivory is the 24th animated cartoon short subject in the Woody Woodpecker series. Released theatrically on August 25, 1947, the film was produced by Walter Lantz Productions and distributed by Universal Pictures.- Notes :...
" (short) - 1947 "Well OiledWell Oiled (cartoon)Well Oiled is the 23rd animated cartoon short subject in the Woody Woodpecker series. Released theatrically on June 30, 1947, the film was produced by Walter Lantz Productions and distributed by Universal Pictures.-Notes:...
" (short) - 1947 "The Coo Coo BirdThe Coo Coo BirdThe Coo Coo Bird is the 22nd animated cartoon short subject in the Woody Woodpecker series. Released theatrically on June 9, 1947, the film was produced by Walter Lantz Productions and distributed by Universal Pictures.-Plot:...
" (short) - 1947 "Smoked Hams" (short)
- 1946 "The Wacky Weed" (short)
- 1946 "Fair Weather FiendsFair Weather FiendsFair Weather Fiends is the 20th animated cartoon short subject in the Woody Woodpecker series. Released theatrically on November 18, 1946, the film was produced by Walter Lantz Productions and distributed by Universal Pictures.-Notes:...
" (short) - 1946 "The Reckless DriverThe Reckless DriverThe Reckless Driver is the 19th animated cartoon short subject in the Woody Woodpecker series. Released theatrically on August 26, 1946, the film was produced by Walter Lantz Productions and distributed by Universal Pictures.-Plot:...
" (short) - 1946 "Bathing BuddiesBathing BuddiesBathing Buddies is the 18th animated cartoon short subject in the Woody Woodpecker series. Released theatrically on July 1, 1946, the film was produced by Walter Lantz Productions and distributed by Universal Pictures.-Plot:...
" (short) - 1946 "Who's Cookin' Who?Who's Cookin' Who?Who's Cookin' Who? is the 17th animated cartoon short subject in the Woody Woodpecker series. Released theatrically on June 24, 1946, the film was produced by Walter Lantz Productions and distributed by Universal Pictures.-Notes:...
" (short) - 1945 "The Dippy DiplomatThe Dippy DiplomatThe Dippy Diplomat is the 15th animated cartoon short subject in the Woody Woodpecker series. Released theatrically on August 27, 1945, the film was produced by Walter Lantz Productions and distributed by Universal Pictures.-Plot:...
" (short) - 1945 "Chew-Chew BabyChew-Chew BabyChew-Chew Baby is the 13th animated cartoon short subject in the Woody Woodpecker series. Released theatrically on February 5, 1945, the film was produced by Walter Lantz Productions and distributed by Universal Pictures....
" (short) - 1945 "Pied Piper of Basin Street" (short)
- 1945 "Enemy Bacteria" (short)
- 1944 "Ski for Two" (short)
- 1944 "Abou Ben Boogie" (short)
- 1943 "Take Heed Mr. Tojo" (short)
- 1940 "Popeye Presents Eugene, the Jeep" (short)
- 1940 "The Fulla Bluff Man" (short)
- 1939 Gulliver's TravelsGulliver's Travels (1939 film)Gulliver's Travels is a 1939 American cel-animated Technicolor feature film, directed by Dave Fleischer and produced by Max Fleischer for Fleischer Studios. The film was released on Friday, December 22, 1939 by Paramount Pictures, who had the feature produced as an answer to the success of Walt...
(animation director) - 1938 "Mother Goose Goes HollywoodMother Goose Goes HollywoodMother Goose Goes Hollywood is an 1938 Walt Disney animated short featuring parodies of Mother Goose nursery rhymes and caricatures of Hollywood celebrities from the 1930s. It is the 73rd of the series....
" (short) - 1937 Snow White and the Seven DwarfsSnow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film)Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is a 1937 American animated film based on Snow White, a German fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm. It was the first full-length cel-animated feature in motion picture history, as well as the first animated feature film produced in America, the first produced in full...
- 1936 "Little Boy Blue" (short)
- 1936 "Alpine Climbers" (short)
- 1936 "Dick Whittington's Cat" (short)
- 1936 "Ali Baba" (short)
- 1936 "Mickey's Polo TeamMickey's Polo TeamMickey's Polo Team is a short animated film, directed by David Hand and first released on January 4, 1936. The short featured a game of polo between four of Disney's animated characters and four animated caricatures of noted film actors...
" (short) - 1935 "Broken Toys" (short)
- 1935 "Simple Simon" (short)
- 1935 "The Three Bears" (short)
- 1935 "Mickey's Fire Brigade" (short)
- 1935 "Sinbad the SailorSinbad the Sailor (1935 film)Sinbad the Sailor was a 1935 animated short film produced by the well-known Ub Iwerks of Disney Studios....
" (short) - 1935 "Summertime" (short)
- 1935 "The Cookie CarnivalThe Cookie CarnivalCookie Carnival is an animated short made in 1935 by Walt Disney Productions. It is a Cinderella story involving a cookie girl who wishes to be queen at the cookie carnival....
" (short) - 1935 "Old Mother Hubbard" (short)
- 1934 "The King's Tailor" (short)
- 1934 "Viva Willie" (short)
- 1934 "Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp" (short)
- 1934 "Jungle Jitters" (short)
- 1934 "Cave Man" (short)
- 1934 "Reducing Creme" (short)
- 1934 "Insultin' the Sultan" (short)
- 1934 "Robin Hood, Jr." (short)
- 1933 "Jack and the BeanstalkJack and the Beanstalk (1931 cartoon)Jack and the beanstalk is a 1931 Fleischer Studios Talkartoon animated short film starring Bimbo & Betty Boop.-Synopsis:Associated with the fairy tale Jack and the Beanstalk, Bimbo plants some magic beans which grow into a gigantic beanstalk. He then climbs to the top of the beanstalk where he...
" (short) - 1933 "Soda Squirt" (short)
- 1932 "The Music Lesson"(short)
- 1932 "Phoney Express" (short)
- 1932 "The Goal Rush" (short)
- 1932 "Stormy Seas" (short)
- 1932 "Room Runners" (short)
- 1932 "The Office Boy" (short)
- 1932 "The Milkman" (short)
- 1931 "Africa Squeaks" (short)
- 1931 "Jail Birds" (short)
- 1931 "The New Car" (short)
- 1931 "Bimbo's InitiationBimbo's InitiationBimbo's Initiation is a 1931 Fleischer Studios Talkartoon animated short film starring Bimbo and featuring Betty Boop. It was the final Betty Boop cartoon to be animated by the character's co-creator, Grim Natwick.-Plot:...
" (short) - 1931 "Tree Saps" (short)
- 1931 "Teacher's Pest" (short)
- 1931 "Please Go 'Way and Let Me Sleep" (short)
- 1930 "Mysterious MoseMysterious MoseMysterious Mose is a 1930 Fleischer Studios Talkartoon animated short released through Paramount Pictures. It was released in late December the same year. This film contains an early version of Betty Boop and the studio's star, Bimbo....
" (short) - 1930 "Accordion Joe" (short)
- 1930 "Mariutch" (short)
- 1930 "Swing You Sinners!" (short)
- 1930 "Dizzy DishesDizzy DishesDizzy Dishes is a animated short film created by the Fleischer Studios in 1930 as part of the Talkartoon series. It is famous as a debut cartoon of Betty Boop.-Plot:...
" (short) - 1930 "Wise Flies" (short)
- 1930 "Fire Bugs" (short)