Preston Blair
Encyclopedia
Preston Blair was an American character animator, most noted for his work at Walt Disney Productions and the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
animation department
A native of Redlands, California
, Blair began his animation career in the early 1930s at the Universal
studio under Walter Lantz
and Bill Nolan
. He later moved over to Charles Mintz's Screen Gems
studio, and in the late 1930s moved over to the Disney studio. At Disney, Blair animated cartoon short subjects, Mickey Mouse
scenes in The Sorcerer's Apprentice
section of Fantasia
, and the hippo-alligator dance in Fantasia's "Dance of the Hours
" sequence. He also did some work on Disney's Pinocchio
and Bambi
.
Blair left Disney after the 1941 Disney animator's strike
, and was hired to work for Tex Avery
's unit at MGM. There, he became particularly noted for animating the titular female character in Red Hot Riding Hood
. "Red" later re-appeared in more Avery cartoons, including Swing Shift Cinderella
, Little Rural Riding Hood
, Uncle Tom's Cabana and the Droopy cartoons The Shooting of Dan McGoo
and Wild and Woolfy
, with animation by Blair. In the late 1940s, Blair teamed with Avery animator Michael Lah
to direct several Barney Bear
cartoons.
Blair continued his career in animation into the 1960s, working on The Flintstones
at Hanna-Barbera
. He is most noted, however, as an author of animation instructional books for Walter Foster Publishing. His first book, Animation, was published in 1948 and originally included images of the famous MGM & Disney cartoon characters he had animated, who were redrawn to obscure their origins in the second edition of the book. Blair would write many more animation how-to texts over the next forty years, culminating with 1994's Cartoon Animation, a 224-page book which compiles most of the content from all of his books.
Preston Blair was the brother of artist Lee Everett Blair
http://www.sullivangoss.com/lee_Blair/ and the brother-in-law of artist and designer Mary Blair
. He died in April 1995.
Metro-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...
animation department
A native of Redlands, California
Redlands, California
Redlands is a city in San Bernardino County, California, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 68,747, up from 63,591 at the 2000 census. The city is located east of downtown San Bernardino.- History :...
, Blair began his animation career in the early 1930s at the Universal
Universal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
studio under 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:...
and Bill Nolan
Bill Nolan (animator)
William "Bill" Nolan was an Irish-American animated cartoon writer, animator, director, and artist. He is best-known for creating and perfecting the rubber hose style of animation and for streamlining Felix the Cat. From 1925 to 1927, he worked on a loose animated adaptation of George Herriman's...
. He later moved over to Charles Mintz's Screen Gems
Screen Gems
Screen Gems is an American movie production company and subsidiary company of Sony Pictures Entertainment's Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group that has served several different purposes for its parent companies over the decades since its incorporation....
studio, and in the late 1930s moved over to the Disney studio. At Disney, Blair animated cartoon short subjects, 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...
scenes in The Sorcerer's Apprentice
The Sorcerer's Apprentice
The Sorcerer's Apprentice is the English name of a poem by Goethe, Der Zauberlehrling, written in 1797. The poem is a ballad in fourteen stanzas.-Story:...
section of 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...
, and the hippo-alligator dance in Fantasia's "Dance of the Hours
Dance of the Hours
Dance of the Hours is a short ballet from Act 3, Scene 2 of the opera La Gioconda composed by Amilcare Ponchielli. It depicts the hours of the day through solo and ensemble dances. The opera was first performed in 1876 and was revised in 1880...
" sequence. He also did some work on Disney's Pinocchio
Pinocchio (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...
and Bambi
Bambi
Bambi 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...
.
Blair left Disney after the 1941 Disney animator's 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...
, and was hired to work for Tex Avery
Tex Avery
Frederick Bean "Fred/Tex" Avery was an American animator, cartoonist, voice actor and director, famous for producing animated cartoons during The Golden Age of Hollywood animation. He did his most significant work for the Warner Bros...
's unit at MGM. There, he became particularly noted for animating the titular female character in Red Hot Riding Hood
Red Hot Riding Hood
Red Hot Riding Hood is an animated cartoon short subject, directed by Tex Avery and released on May 8, 1943 by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. In 1994 it was voted #7 of The 50 Greatest Cartoons of all time by members of the animation field...
. "Red" later re-appeared in more Avery cartoons, including Swing Shift Cinderella
Swing Shift Cinderella
Swing Shift Cinderella is an animated cartoon short subject. It is in the same vein as Red Hot Riding Hood. Frank Graham voiced the wolf, and Colleen Collins voiced Cinderella.-Plot:...
, Little Rural Riding Hood
Little Rural Riding Hood
Little Rural Riding Hood is a 1949 animated cartoon short subject directed by Tex Avery, conceived as a follow-up to his 1943 cartoon Red Hot Riding Hood...
, Uncle Tom's Cabana and the Droopy cartoons The Shooting of Dan McGoo
The Shooting Of Dan McGoo
The Shooting of Dan McGoo is a cartoon directed by Tex Avery. It starred Frank Graham as the Wolf. Both Avery and Bill Thompson voiced the lead character Droopy. Bea Benaderet did the speaking voice of Lou, while her singing was provided by Imogene Lynn...
and Wild and Woolfy
Wild And Woolfy
Wild and Woolfy is a 1945 animated cartoon short, one of six cartoons in which Droopy was paired with a wolf. It is one of a very few cartoons in the series where Bill Thompson did not voice Droopy in any part of the cartoon.-Plot:...
, with animation by Blair. In the late 1940s, Blair teamed with Avery animator Michael Lah
Michael Lah
Michael Richard Lah was an American animator. He is best known for his work at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios, primarily as a member of Tex Avery's animation unit....
to direct several Barney Bear
Barney Bear
Barney Bear was a series of animated cartoon short subjects produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer cartoon studio. The titular character was an anthropomorphic cartoon character, a sluggish, sleepy bear who often is in pursuit of nothing but peace and quiet....
cartoons.
Blair continued his career in animation into the 1960s, working on The Flintstones
The Flintstones
The Flintstones is an animated, prime-time American television sitcom that screened from September 30, 1960 to April 1, 1966, on ABC. Produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, The Flintstones was about a working class Stone Age man's life with his family and his next-door neighbor and best friend. It...
at Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. was an American animation studio that dominated North American television animation during the second half of the 20th century...
. He is most noted, however, as an author of animation instructional books for Walter Foster Publishing. His first book, Animation, was published in 1948 and originally included images of the famous MGM & Disney cartoon characters he had animated, who were redrawn to obscure their origins in the second edition of the book. Blair would write many more animation how-to texts over the next forty years, culminating with 1994's Cartoon Animation, a 224-page book which compiles most of the content from all of his books.
Preston Blair was the brother of artist Lee Everett Blair
Lee Blair (artist)
Lee Everett Blair was an American artist.He was born in Los Angeles, California and died in Soquel, California. He was the younger brother of Preston Blair and the husband of Mary Blair....
http://www.sullivangoss.com/lee_Blair/ and the brother-in-law of artist and designer Mary Blair
Mary Blair
Mary Blair , born Mary Robinson, was an American artist who was prominent in producing art and animation for The Walt Disney Company, drawing concept art for such films as Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Song of the South and Cinderella...
. He died in April 1995.