Maurice Noble
Encyclopedia
Maurice Noble was an American animation
background artist and layout designer whose contributions to the industry spanned more than 60 years. He was a long-time associate of animation director Chuck Jones
, most notably at Warner Bros.
in the 1950s. His work contributed to such cartoon
classics as Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century
, What's Opera, Doc?
, and the Road Runner series.
. In his last years, he learned that he had been adopted. He spent much of his childhood in New Mexico
and Southern California
. In the early 1930s he attended the Chouinard Art Institute
in Los Angeles
, and while there the Institute displayed his works in its first one-man show of watercolors. Having to leave Chouinard for financial reasons, he ended up doing design work for a department store.
A Disney
scout recruited him about 1934, and he decided to accept the job since it paid $10 per month more than the department store did. Noble was put to work on backgrounds for the Silly Symphonies
cartoon series. At that time the Disney backgrounds were required to be done in transparent watercolor wash, which was technically difficult because correcting a mistake was usually impossible, requiring a full new attempt.
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
was the first feature length film Noble worked on. This was followed by background work on other Disney features, notably the Rite of Spring
sequence in Fantasia
. Noble also did story development for the Dance of the Hours in that film. For Dumbo
, he did color coordination and character design, including work on the pink elephant sequence.
Noble joined the Disney animators' strike
in 1941; it lasted five weeks and became bitter. When he returned after the strike was settled, his office was moved to an ex-broomcloset and he was left without assignments. Soon he was laid off and his career at Disney was at an end.
The outbreak of World War II
lead Noble to enlist in the Army Signal Corps. He was eventually assigned to a small unit headed by Ted Geisel (better known as Dr. Seuss
). The unit was based at the Fox studios and under Col. Frank Capra
. It worked on posters and booklets, and on a cartoon series called Private Snafu
. The unit did the writing, storyboard
s, and background designs; the cartoon production was contracted out. Warner Bros. won the contract for Private Snafu, and the WB animation director Chuck Jones worked on the series. Following the war Noble did freelance work in the industry and then took a position doing art for a filmstrip production company in St. Louis
.
At Warner Bros., Noble worked with Jones for a decade, over which time the team did over 60 cartoons. Turning away from the fussy realism of Disney backgrounds, Noble grew into styles using shape and color to define the space. The graphic look of his backgrounds could vary widely from film to film; he tried to make the backdrop fit the mood of the film. Noble says:
The Jones unit worked with much of the large stable of Warners characters: Bugs Bunny
, Daffy Duck
, Road Runner & Coyote. Noble's wide-open desert landscapes gave the Road Runner cartoons their characteristic spaciousness. The memorable cartoons Noble designed at Warners include What's Opera, Doc?
(1957), a Bugs Bunny sendup of Wagner
's Ring Cycle that has been inducted into the National Film Registry
. Noble's futuristic settings enhance Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century
(1953). Other cartoons included the Academy Award
nominees From A to Z-Z-Z-Z
(1954), High Note (1960), Beep Prepared
(1961), Nelly's Folly
(1961), and Now Hear This
(1962).
A break of about a year came during this period, when Noble spent time working on industrial films for John Sutherland's studio in the wake of Warner Bros. shutting down their cartoon unit, and did not return immediately upon the studio re-opening. In this period, Jones had his layouts done first by former Disney artist Ernie Nordli, who used an even more abstract (albeit less consistent) style than Noble, and then later by Noble's predecessor, Robert Gribbroek
, who largely discarded the styles used by Noble and Nordli, and reverted to the look of Jones' earlier cartoons. Eventually, Jones coaxed Noble into returning to Warner Bros., and the two men would work together for the next few decades.
In the early 1960s, Noble started receiving co-director credit on a number of the Jones-unit productions. This reflected his increased involvement in many phases of the creation process beyond just the layouts, pulling things together and ironing out rough spots.
, and eventually became the animation unit of MGM
.
The bread-and-butter work for the first couple of years was producing cartoons starring MGM's Tom and Jerry
characters, but there were an assortment of other projects. One was The Incredible Mr. Limpet (1964), a combined live action & animation feature. Noble co-directed The Dot and the Line
(1965) which won the Oscar for short subject (cartoon). He also designed the 1969 feature The Phantom Tollbooth
.
Noble started working again with Ted Geisel for the first time since the war, doing the design for the TV feature How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
(1966). He later did design and layout work on a number of other Dr. Seuss features, first at MGM (Horton Hears a Who!
(1970)), and then at the DePatie-Freleng studios
(e.g. The Cat in the Hat
(1971), The Lorax
(1972), Dr. Seuss on the Loose
(1973)).
(from the International Animation Society) for his contributions over the previous 50 years.
About 1989 Noble did development work on Steven Spielberg
's Tiny Toon Adventures
, and did writing and design for the "Duck Dodgers Jr." episode.
In the mid-1990s Noble rejoined Jones at Chuck Jones Film Productions, serving as art director on Chariots of Fur
(1994) and color consultant on several other productions, including Pullet Surprise.
While at the Jones studio, Noble began supervising, training, and mentoring young artists just out of (or still in) school. These artists came to be known as the 'Noble boys and girls'. Many of them became involved in "Noble Tales," a planned series of animated shorts based on folk tales. One such film was Al Tudi Tuhak
(1999).
Noble continued to be active in a variety of animation projects, including consultation with Disney artists for their first watercolor backgrounds in half a century (for Lilo and Stitch). Noble died in 2001 at his home in La Crescenta, California.
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...
background artist and layout designer whose contributions to the industry spanned more than 60 years. He was a long-time associate of animation director 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...
, most notably at Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
in the 1950s. His work contributed to such cartoon
Cartoon
A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...
classics as Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century
Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century
Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century is a Merrie Melodies cartoon created in 1952 and released on July 25, 1953, starring Daffy Duck as space hero Duck Dodgers, Porky Pig as his assistant, and Marvin the Martian as his opponent...
, What's Opera, Doc?
What's Opera, Doc?
What's Opera, Doc? is a 1957 American animated cartoon short in the Merrie Melodies series, directed by Chuck Jones for Warner Bros. Cartoons. The Michael Maltese story features Elmer Fudd chasing Bugs Bunny through a parody of 19th century classical composer Richard Wagner's operas, particularly...
, and the Road Runner series.
Early life and work
Maurice James Noble was born in Spooner Township, MinnesotaSpooner Township, Minnesota
Spooner Township is a township in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 281 at the 2000 census. Spooner Township adjoined the Village of Spooner, which merged with Baudette in 1954. Spooner was largely destroyed in the Baudette Fire of 1910...
. In his last years, he learned that he had been adopted. He spent much of his childhood in New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
and Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
. In the early 1930s he attended the Chouinard Art Institute
Chouinard Art Institute
The Chouinard Art Institute was a professional art school founded in 1921 in Los Angeles, California, by Nelbert Murphy Chouinard .-Founder:...
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...
, and while there the Institute displayed his works in its first one-man show of watercolors. Having to leave Chouinard for financial reasons, he ended up doing design work for a department store.
A Disney
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
scout recruited him about 1934, and he decided to accept the job since it paid $10 per month more than the department store did. Noble was put to work on backgrounds for the Silly Symphonies
Silly Symphonies
Silly Symphonies is a series of animated short subjects, 75 in total, produced by Walt Disney Productions from 1929 to 1939, while the studio was still located at Hyperion Avenue in the Silver Lake district of Los Angeles...
cartoon series. At that time the Disney backgrounds were required to be done in transparent watercolor wash, which was technically difficult because correcting a mistake was usually impossible, requiring a full new attempt.
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...
was the first feature length film Noble worked on. This was followed by background work on other Disney features, notably the Rite of Spring
The Rite of Spring
The Rite of Spring, original French title Le sacre du printemps , is a ballet with music by Igor Stravinsky; choreography by Vaslav Nijinsky; and concept, set design and costumes by Nicholas Roerich...
sequence 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...
. Noble also did story development for the Dance of the Hours in that film. For Dumbo
Dumbo
Dumbo is a 1941 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and released on October 23, 1941, by RKO Radio Pictures.The fourth film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, Dumbo is based upon the storyline written by Helen Aberson and illustrated by Harold Pearl for the prototype of a...
, he did color coordination and character design, including work on the pink elephant sequence.
Noble joined the Disney animators' strike
Disney animators' strike
The Disney animators' strike was a labor strike by the animators of Walt Disney Studios in 1941.-History:The 1930s led to a rise of labor unions in motion pictures as in other industries such as The Screen Actors Guild which was formed in 1933. Animators of Fleischer Studios went on strike in 1937...
in 1941; it lasted five weeks and became bitter. When he returned after the strike was settled, his office was moved to an ex-broomcloset and he was left without assignments. Soon he was laid off and his career at Disney was at an end.
The outbreak of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
lead Noble to enlist in the Army Signal Corps. He was eventually assigned to a small unit headed by Ted Geisel (better known as Dr. Seuss
Dr. Seuss
Theodor Seuss Geisel was an American writer, poet, and cartoonist most widely known for his children's books written under the pen names Dr. Seuss, Theo LeSieg and, in one case, Rosetta Stone....
). The unit was based at the Fox studios and under Col. Frank Capra
Frank Capra
Frank Russell Capra was a Sicilian-born American film director. He emigrated to the U.S. when he was six, and eventually became a creative force behind major award-winning films during the 1930s and 1940s...
. It worked on posters and booklets, and on a cartoon series called Private Snafu
Private Snafu
Private Snafu is the title character of a series of black-and-white American instructional cartoon shorts produced between 1943 and 1945 during World War II. The character was created by director Frank Capra, chairman of the U.S. Army Air Force First Motion Picture Unit, and most were written by...
. The unit did the writing, storyboard
Storyboard
Storyboards are graphic organizers in the form of illustrations or images displayed in sequence for the purpose of pre-visualizing a motion picture, animation, motion graphic or interactive media sequence....
s, and background designs; the cartoon production was contracted out. Warner Bros. won the contract for Private Snafu, and the WB animation director Chuck Jones worked on the series. Following the war Noble did freelance work in the industry and then took a position doing art for a filmstrip production company in St. Louis
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
.
The Warner Bros. years
Noble remained in St. Louis until 1952, when he was invited to come to Warner Bros. to do cartoon layout for Chuck Jones' group. This was the first time he had done layout, which consists of designing the background environment and, for each shot, the particular viewpoint. The layout drawings and colorations are then used by the background artist (often Philip DeGuard) to paint the final backgrounds (see Chuck Amuck, p. 148 for an example).At Warner Bros., Noble worked with Jones for a decade, over which time the team did over 60 cartoons. Turning away from the fussy realism of Disney backgrounds, Noble grew into styles using shape and color to define the space. The graphic look of his backgrounds could vary widely from film to film; he tried to make the backdrop fit the mood of the film. Noble says:
- "I call it stepping into the picture. You look around and say, 'Gee, what's this all about, and does it feel right for this given picture?' And then you go ahead and design from that standpoint."
The Jones unit worked with much of the large stable of Warners characters: Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny is a animated character created in 1938 at Leon Schlesinger Productions, later Warner Bros. Cartoons. Bugs is an anthropomorphic gray rabbit and is famous for his flippant, insouciant personality and his portrayal as a trickster. He has primarily appeared in animated cartoons, most...
, Daffy Duck
Daffy Duck
Daffy Duck is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons, often running the gamut between being the best friend and sometimes arch-rival of Bugs Bunny...
, Road Runner & Coyote. Noble's wide-open desert landscapes gave the Road Runner cartoons their characteristic spaciousness. The memorable cartoons Noble designed at Warners include What's Opera, Doc?
What's Opera, Doc?
What's Opera, Doc? is a 1957 American animated cartoon short in the Merrie Melodies series, directed by Chuck Jones for Warner Bros. Cartoons. The Michael Maltese story features Elmer Fudd chasing Bugs Bunny through a parody of 19th century classical composer Richard Wagner's operas, particularly...
(1957), a Bugs Bunny sendup of Wagner
Richard Wagner
Wilhelm Richard Wagner was a German composer, conductor, theatre director, philosopher, music theorist, poet, essayist and writer primarily known for his operas...
's Ring Cycle that has been inducted into the National Film Registry
National Film Registry
The National Film Registry is the United States National Film Preservation Board's selection of films for preservation in the Library of Congress. The Board, established by the National Film Preservation Act of 1988, was reauthorized by acts of Congress in 1992, 1996, 2005, and again in October 2008...
. Noble's futuristic settings enhance Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century
Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century
Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century is a Merrie Melodies cartoon created in 1952 and released on July 25, 1953, starring Daffy Duck as space hero Duck Dodgers, Porky Pig as his assistant, and Marvin the Martian as his opponent...
(1953). Other cartoons included the Academy Award
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
nominees From A to Z-Z-Z-Z
From A to Z-Z-Z-Z
From A to Z-Z-Z-Z is a 1953 animated cartoon short by Chuck Jones in the Looney Tunes series. It was released by Warner Bros. in 1954.-Plot:The cartoon begins with an exterior shot of a school classroom. Through the windows, children are visible at their desks. They are learning arithmetic by rote...
(1954), High Note (1960), Beep Prepared
Beep Prepared
Beep Prepared is a Warner Brothers Merrie Melodies theatrical cartoon short released in 1961. It features Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner. Chuck Jones directed from a story by John Dunn.- Plot :...
(1961), Nelly's Folly
Nelly's Folly
Nelly's Folly is a Merrie Melodies cartoon short, released in 1961, which was written and directed by Chuck Jones. A singing giraffe leaves the jungle to pursue a singing career, but finds herself lonely and out of work following an affair.-Story:...
(1961), and Now Hear This
Now Hear This (film)
Now Hear This is a 1963 animated short film in the Looney Tunes series produced by Warner Bros. Cartoons, Inc. It was directed by Chuck Jones and Maurice Noble, and written by Jones and John Dunn. The title comes from a phrase used aboard American naval ships as an instruction to cease activity and...
(1962).
A break of about a year came during this period, when Noble spent time working on industrial films for John Sutherland's studio in the wake of Warner Bros. shutting down their cartoon unit, and did not return immediately upon the studio re-opening. In this period, Jones had his layouts done first by former Disney artist Ernie Nordli, who used an even more abstract (albeit less consistent) style than Noble, and then later by Noble's predecessor, Robert Gribbroek
Robert Gribbroek
Robert Gribbroek was a layout artist and background painter at the Warner Brothers Cartoon studio from 1945 until 1964. He was first credited in Chuck Jones' Lost and Foundling , and he worked mainly for Jones until 1952 when he joined Robert McKimson's unit...
, who largely discarded the styles used by Noble and Nordli, and reverted to the look of Jones' earlier cartoons. Eventually, Jones coaxed Noble into returning to Warner Bros., and the two men would work together for the next few decades.
In the early 1960s, Noble started receiving co-director credit on a number of the Jones-unit productions. This reflected his increased involvement in many phases of the creation process beyond just the layouts, pulling things together and ironing out rough spots.
MGM and Dr. Seuss
In 1963, after Chuck Jones was fired from Warner Bros., Noble left Warner Bros. and joined Jones at Tower 12 Productions (also called Sib-Tower 12). This new company had a contract with MGMMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...
, and eventually became the animation unit of MGM
MGM Animation/Visual Arts
MGM Animation/Visual Arts was an animation studio established in 1962 by animation director/producer Chuck Jones and producer Les Goldman as Sib Tower 12 Productions...
.
The bread-and-butter work for the first couple of years was producing cartoons starring MGM's Tom and Jerry
Tom and Jerry
Tom and Jerry are the cat and mouse cartoon characters that were evolved starting in 1939.Tom and Jerry also may refer to:Cartoon works featuring the cat and mouse so named:* The Tom and Jerry Show...
characters, but there were an assortment of other projects. One was The Incredible Mr. Limpet (1964), a combined live action & animation feature. Noble co-directed The Dot and the Line
The Dot and the Line
The Dot and the Line: A Romance in Lower Mathematics is a book written and illustrated by Norton Juster, first published by Random House in 1963. The story was inspired by Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions...
(1965) which won the Oscar for short subject (cartoon). He also designed the 1969 feature The Phantom Tollbooth
The Phantom Tollbooth (film)
The Phantom Tollbooth is a 1970 American live-action/animated film based on Norton Juster's 1961 children's book The Phantom Tollbooth. This film was produced by Chuck Jones at MGM Animation/Visual Arts. Jones also directed the film, save for the live action bookends directed by fellow Warner Bros....
.
Noble started working again with Ted Geisel for the first time since the war, doing the design for the TV feature How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
How the Grinch Stole Christmas! is a children's story by Dr. Seuss written in rhymed verse with illustrations by the author. It was published as a book by Random House in 1957, and at approximately the same time in an issue of Redbook...
(1966). He later did design and layout work on a number of other Dr. Seuss features, first at MGM (Horton Hears a Who!
Horton Hears a Who! (TV special)
Horton Hears a Who! is a 1970 television half-hour long special based on the Dr. Seuss book of the same name, Horton Hears a Who!. It was produced and directed by Chuck Jones - who previously produced the Seuss special How the Grinch Stole Christmas! - for MGM Television...
(1970)), and then at the DePatie-Freleng studios
DePatie-Freleng Enterprises
DePatie-Freleng Enterprises was a Hollywood-based animation production company, active from 1963 to 1981. They produced theatrical cartoons, animated series, commercials, title sequences and television specials. Notable among these is The Pink Panther film titles and cartoon shorts and the Dr....
(e.g. The Cat in the Hat
The Cat in the Hat
The Cat in the Hat is a children's book by Dr. Seuss and perhaps the most famous, featuring a tall, anthropomorphic, mischievous cat, wearing a tall, red and white-striped hat and a red bow tie. He also carries a pale blue umbrella...
(1971), The Lorax
The Lorax
The Lorax is a children's book written by Dr. Seuss and first published in 1971. It chronicles the plight of the environment and the Lorax, who speaks for the trees against the greedy Once-ler. As in most Dr...
(1972), Dr. Seuss on the Loose
Dr. Seuss on the Loose
Dr. Seuss on the Loose is an animated musical television special, cartoon first airing on CBS on October 15, 1973, and hosted by The Cat in the Hat. who appears in bridging sequences where he introduced animated adaptations of Dr...
(1973)).
Later years
In the late 1970s and most of the 1980s, Noble largely withdrew from work in the animation industry to pursue other interests. These included producing fine art, particularly hand-pulled silkscreen prints. In 1987 he received a lifetime achievement Annie AwardAnnie Award
The Annie Awards have been presented by the Los Angeles, California branch of the International Animated Film Association, ASIFA-Hollywood since 1972...
(from the International Animation Society) for his contributions over the previous 50 years.
About 1989 Noble did development work on Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...
's Tiny Toon Adventures
Tiny Toon Adventures
Steven Spielberg Presents Tiny Toon Adventures, usually referred to as Tiny Toon Adventures or simply Tiny Toons, is an American animated television series created by Tom Ruegger and produced by Amblin Entertainment and Warner Bros. Animation. It began production as a result of Warner Bros....
, and did writing and design for the "Duck Dodgers Jr." episode.
In the mid-1990s Noble rejoined Jones at Chuck Jones Film Productions, serving as art director on Chariots of Fur
Chariots of Fur
Chariots of Fur is a seven-minute Looney Tunes short released in 1994 by Warner Bros. It features Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner and was directed by Chuck Jones, who created the pair in 1948. As in other shorts of the Road Runner series, Wile E. tries to catch his potential prey through use of...
(1994) and color consultant on several other productions, including Pullet Surprise.
While at the Jones studio, Noble began supervising, training, and mentoring young artists just out of (or still in) school. These artists came to be known as the 'Noble boys and girls'. Many of them became involved in "Noble Tales," a planned series of animated shorts based on folk tales. One such film was Al Tudi Tuhak
Al Tudi Tuhak
Al Tudi Tuhak, meaning "a long time ago" in the Lushootseed language, was a short animated film made in 1999 based on the folk culture of the people of the Northwestern coast of the U.S. It won the student academy award in 2000, and was nominated for best short film at the 2000 "Annie" awards. ...
(1999).
Noble continued to be active in a variety of animation projects, including consultation with Disney artists for their first watercolor backgrounds in half a century (for Lilo and Stitch). Noble died in 2001 at his home in La Crescenta, California.
Selected filmography
- The Old MillThe Old MillThe Old Mill is a 1937 Silly Symphonies cartoon produced by Walt Disney, directed by Wilfred Jackson, scored by Leigh Harline, and released to theatres by RKO Radio Pictures on November 5, 1937...
(1937) (background artist) - Oscar nominee - 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...
(1937) (background artist) - PinocchioPinocchio (1940 film)Pinocchio is a 1940 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and based on the story The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi. It is the second film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics, and it was made after the success of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and was released to theaters by...
(1940) (development) - FantasiaFantasia (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...
(1940) (development) - DumboDumboDumbo is a 1941 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and released on October 23, 1941, by RKO Radio Pictures.The fourth film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, Dumbo is based upon the storyline written by Helen Aberson and illustrated by Harold Pearl for the prototype of a...
(1941) (character designs) - BambiBambiBambi is a 1942 American animated film directed by David Hand , produced by Walt Disney and based on the book Bambi, A Life in the Woods by Austrian author Felix Salten...
(1942) (development) - Rabbit SeasoningRabbit SeasoningRabbit Seasoning is a 1952 Merrie Melodies cartoon, directed by Chuck Jones, and starring Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck. It is the sequel to Rabbit Fire, and the second entry in the "Hunting trilogy" directed by Jones and written by Michael Maltese...
(1952) (layout artist) - Duck AmuckDuck AmuckDuck Amuck is a surreal animated cartoon directed by Chuck Jones and produced by Warner Bros. Cartoons. The short was released in early 1953 by The Vitaphone Corporation, the short subject division of Warner Bros. Pictures, as part of the Merrie Melodies series...
(1952) (layout artist) - U.S. National Film Registry selection - Duck Dodgers in the 24½th CenturyDuck DodgersDuck Edgar Dumas Aloysius Eoghain Dodgers is the metafictional star of a series of cartoons produced by Warner Bros. He is actually the famous cartoon star Daffy Duck, cast in the role of an intergalactic future hero....
(1953) (layout artist) - From A to Z-Z-Z-ZFrom A to Z-Z-Z-ZFrom A to Z-Z-Z-Z is a 1953 animated cartoon short by Chuck Jones in the Looney Tunes series. It was released by Warner Bros. in 1954.-Plot:The cartoon begins with an exterior shot of a school classroom. Through the windows, children are visible at their desks. They are learning arithmetic by rote...
(1953) (layout artist) - Sheep AhoySheep AhoySheep Ahoy is a 1954 American Merrie Melodies cartoon directed by Chuck Jones and released by Warner Bros. Pictures featuring Ralph Wolf and Sam Sheepdog...
(1954) (layout artist) - Two Scent's Worth (1955) (layout artist)
- What's Opera, Doc?What's Opera, Doc?What's Opera, Doc? is a 1957 American animated cartoon short in the Merrie Melodies series, directed by Chuck Jones for Warner Bros. Cartoons. The Michael Maltese story features Elmer Fudd chasing Bugs Bunny through a parody of 19th century classical composer Richard Wagner's operas, particularly...
(1957) (layout artist) - U.S. National Film Registry selection - Ali Baba BunnyAli Baba BunnyAli Baba Bunny is a Warner Brothers Merrie Melodies short featuring Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, directed by Chuck Jones and released in 1957. In 1994, it was voted #35 of the 50 Greatest Cartoons of all time by members of the animation field...
(1957) (layout artist) - Hare-Way to the StarsHare-Way to the StarsHare-Way to the Stars is a 1957 Warner Bros. Looney Tunes theatrical cartoon short, starring Bugs Bunny, and released on March 29, 1958.-Plot:...
(1958) (layout artist) - Robin Hood DaffyRobin Hood DaffyRobin Hood Daffy is a 1958 Warner Brothers theatrical cartoon short, part of the Merrie Melodies series, directed by Chuck Jones and written by Michael Maltese...
(1958) (layout artist) - Hopalong CasualtyHopalong CasualtyHopalong Casualty is a 1960 Warner Brothers Looney Tunes theatrical animated short, featuring the Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote. Chuck Jones directed.-Summary:...
(1960) (layout artist) - High Note (1960) (layout artist) - Oscar nominee
- Beep PreparedBeep PreparedBeep Prepared is a Warner Brothers Merrie Melodies theatrical cartoon short released in 1961. It features Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner. Chuck Jones directed from a story by John Dunn.- Plot :...
(1961) (co-director) - Oscar nominee - Now Hear ThisNow Hear This (film)Now Hear This is a 1963 animated short film in the Looney Tunes series produced by Warner Bros. Cartoons, Inc. It was directed by Chuck Jones and Maurice Noble, and written by Jones and John Dunn. The title comes from a phrase used aboard American naval ships as an instruction to cease activity and...
(1962) (co-director) - Oscar nominee - Martian Through GeorgiaMartian Through GeorgiaMartian Through Georgia is a 1962 Looney Tunes cartoon, directed by Chuck Jones, Maurice Noble , and Abe Levitow, and produced by Warner Bros., although it features none of the established Warner Bros. characters. It is a "one-off" tale of a sad and bored Martian who travels to Earth in search of...
(1962) (co-director) - A Sheep in the DeepA Sheep in the DeepA Sheep in the Deep is a 1962 Merrie Melodies cartoon directed by Chuck Jones and Maurice Noble and released by Warner Bros. Pictures featuring Ralph Wolf and Sam Sheepdog...
(1962) (co-director) - Transylvania 6-5000Transylvania 6-5000 (1963 film)Transylvania 6-5000 is a short Merrie Melodies animated film directed by Chuck Jones and starring Bugs Bunny. Bugs demonstrates how to handle a pesky vampire with six simple magic incantations...
(1963) (co-director) - The Iceman DuckethThe Iceman DuckethThe Iceman Ducketh is a 1964 Warner Bros. Looney Tunes theatrical cartoon starring Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck. This cartoon short is directed by Phil Monroe and co-directed by Maurice Noble, with a story by John Dunn. This was the last Warner Bros...
(1964) (co-director) - The Incredible Mr. LimpetThe Incredible Mr. LimpetThe Incredible Mr. Limpet is a 1964 American live-action/animated film from Warner Bros. It is about a man named Henry Limpet who turns into a talking fish resembling a tilefish and helps the U.S. Navy locate and destroy Nazi submarines. Don Knotts plays the title character. The live action was...
(1964) (production designer) - The Dot and the LineThe Dot and the LineThe Dot and the Line: A Romance in Lower Mathematics is a book written and illustrated by Norton Juster, first published by Random House in 1963. The story was inspired by Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions...
(1965) (co-director) - Oscar winner - How the Grinch Stole Christmas!How the Grinch Stole Christmas!How the Grinch Stole Christmas! is a children's story by Dr. Seuss written in rhymed verse with illustrations by the author. It was published as a book by Random House in 1957, and at approximately the same time in an issue of Redbook...
(1966) (production designer) - The Bear That Wasn'tThe Bear that Wasn'tThe Bear That Wasn't is a 1946 children's book by film director and Looney Tunes alumnus Frank Tashlin. In 1967, Tashlin's former Termite Terrace colleague Chuck Jones directed an animated short film based upon the book for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer...
(1967) (co-director) - The Phantom TollboothThe Phantom Tollbooth (film)The Phantom Tollbooth is a 1970 American live-action/animated film based on Norton Juster's 1961 children's book The Phantom Tollbooth. This film was produced by Chuck Jones at MGM Animation/Visual Arts. Jones also directed the film, save for the live action bookends directed by fellow Warner Bros....
(1970) (production designer) - Horton Hears a Who!Horton Hears a Who! (TV special)Horton Hears a Who! is a 1970 television half-hour long special based on the Dr. Seuss book of the same name, Horton Hears a Who!. It was produced and directed by Chuck Jones - who previously produced the Seuss special How the Grinch Stole Christmas! - for MGM Television...
(1970) (art director) - The Cat in the HatThe Cat in the HatThe Cat in the Hat is a children's book by Dr. Seuss and perhaps the most famous, featuring a tall, anthropomorphic, mischievous cat, wearing a tall, red and white-striped hat and a red bow tie. He also carries a pale blue umbrella...
(1971) (art director) - The LoraxThe LoraxThe Lorax is a children's book written by Dr. Seuss and first published in 1971. It chronicles the plight of the environment and the Lorax, who speaks for the trees against the greedy Once-ler. As in most Dr...
(1972) (art director) - Dr. Seuss on the LooseDr. Seuss on the LooseDr. Seuss on the Loose is an animated musical television special, cartoon first airing on CBS on October 15, 1973, and hosted by The Cat in the Hat. who appears in bridging sequences where he introduced animated adaptations of Dr...
(1973) (art director) - You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown (TV special)You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown (TV special)You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown is the 29th prime-time animated TV special based upon the popular comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz...
(designer) - Tiny Toon AdventuresTiny Toon AdventuresSteven Spielberg Presents Tiny Toon Adventures, usually referred to as Tiny Toon Adventures or simply Tiny Toons, is an American animated television series created by Tom Ruegger and produced by Amblin Entertainment and Warner Bros. Animation. It began production as a result of Warner Bros....
(1990) (development, writer) - Chariots of FurChariots of FurChariots of Fur is a seven-minute Looney Tunes short released in 1994 by Warner Bros. It features Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner and was directed by Chuck Jones, who created the pair in 1948. As in other shorts of the Road Runner series, Wile E. tries to catch his potential prey through use of...
(1994) (art director) - Pullet Surprise (1997) (color consultant)
- Al Tudi TuhakAl Tudi TuhakAl Tudi Tuhak, meaning "a long time ago" in the Lushootseed language, was a short animated film made in 1999 based on the folk culture of the people of the Northwestern coast of the U.S. It won the student academy award in 2000, and was nominated for best short film at the 2000 "Annie" awards. ...
(1999) (narrator) - Timber WolfTimber WolfTimber Wolf, Timberwolf, Timber Wolves or Timberwolves might refer to:-Animals:* Any subspecies of Canis lupus, the Gray wolf, which inhabits forested areas...
(2001) (co-art director) - The Pumpkin of Nyefar (2004) (co-writer)
Legacy
- Several days after his death, Cartoon Network produced a memorial bumper that showed a brief clip of his recent television interview, his contribution to animation, and showing the memorable final scene of What's Opera, Doc?What's Opera, Doc?What's Opera, Doc? is a 1957 American animated cartoon short in the Merrie Melodies series, directed by Chuck Jones for Warner Bros. Cartoons. The Michael Maltese story features Elmer Fudd chasing Bugs Bunny through a parody of 19th century classical composer Richard Wagner's operas, particularly...
External links
- Interview with Maurice Noble by Harry McCracken for Animato, 1991
- Interview with Maurice Noble by Karl Cohen for Animation World Magazine, 1998