mashymilkiesinc

[mashymilkiesinc]

Nickelodeon valentines, 1998

#nickelodeon #animation #cartoons #rugrats #ahh real monsters #catdog #hey arnold #valentines #ren & stimpy

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WIRED magazine, February 1999. Matt Groening profile for launch of Futurama.

#animation #cartoons #Matt Groening #Futurama #Rough Draft Studios #Wired

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Nickelodeon Magazine April 1999: Heralding the new arrival of Matt's new show, FUTURAMA!

#animation #cartoons #nickelodeon #FUTURAMA #matt groening #ROUGH DRAFT STUDIOS

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From Animation Magazine, October 1998. In an issue dedicated to Klasy/Csupo and the first Rugrats Movie (1998), an article about a recently green-lit project at Nickelodeon that I would ultimately intersect with years and years later: Hey Arnold!

#animation #cartoons #nickelodeon #klasky/csupo #craig bartlett #rugrats #The Rugrats Movie #Animation Magazine

[mashymilkiesinc]

Praise to the RUGRATS TV SERIES MODEL PACK!

Paging through my trusty, old model pack notebook decades later, I find myself with new appreciation as to how meticulous, exhaustive and fully formed the designs were for this show right from the start! It benefited immensely from the idiosyncratic style of Peter Chung who directed the pilot and gifted the ensuing series with his scratchy, jangly, consciously anti-cute, daring aesthetics.

Here's a link to Peter Chung's pilot short:

https://dai.ly/x33ob2t

Note that the series watered down the jangle and the graphic edginess somewhat. Note also that Peter directed the series title sequence used for the entire series run; his undiluted aesthetics remain intact in all its undiluted glory.

As a tool for the series, the resulting design pack has to be one of the best model packs for an animated TV series I've ever seen (and I've seen more than my share). Expressed in it's pages is a bold design vocabulary; one that still looks radical for a children's show now, let alone back in '91.

Working on Rugrats between The Simpsons seasons, I must admit that I --and most Simpsons crew--expressed mild contempt working on "the baby show" during hiatus. It was only years later that I realized that I honed my cinematic staging skills drawing storyboards that were dynamic and empathetic to the low angle point-of-view from Tommy and Co. It would be an understatement to say Rugrats trained me to be a better artist and director than if I only deigned to draw on The Simpsons.

Here's a link to a PDF to the contents of the design pack and see for yourself.

PS: Rugrats should never have been rebooted as a CG show. It disrespects and distorts its core graphic design vocabulary. For example, the characters' bulbous heads atop thin nets exist as a benign graphic choice in traditional animation, but when rendered more volumetric in CG, the head/neck combo becomes ponderous and grotesque.

But no TV executive has ever been accused of being a discerning, artistic purist. To them, all IP is just grist for the mill.

#animation #cartoons #raymie #nickelodeon #klasky/csupo #the simpsons #rugrats

[mashymilkiesinc]

During the first three seasons of The Simpsons (1989-1991) produced at Klasky/Csupo, these five guys were in charge of design.

Of course they had to make "Simpsonized" versions of themselves.

I may be projecting, but I find it revealing that there is a gap between the group on the right and the three on the left. I think it symbolizes who was cool and who were the poseurs. I'll leave it to your imagination which group is which.

#animation #cartoons #klasky/csupo #the simpsons #simpsonian

[mashymilkiesinc]

Los Angeles Times/TV Times for the week of January 16-22, 1994. Article announcing the two Edith-Ann half hour specials premiering on ABC. The first one was titled "A Few Pieces of The Puzzle" and the other, "Homeless Go Home."

#animation #cartoons #ABC #Edith Ann #Lily Tomlin #klasky/csupo

[mashymilkiesinc]

A rough tableau for a unused scene in Rugrats Go Wild (2003), inside the Thornberry's comvee, with all the adults drunk on fermented coconuts. By me.

#rugrats go wild #animation #cartoons #klasky/csupo #raymie #nickelodeon

[mashymilkiesinc]

Caricature of me by artist and gentleman Mike Roth. This commemorates my work on the rat-positive sinking ship sequence in the movie Rugrats Go Wild (2003).

#rugrats go wild #nickelodeon films #raymie #animation #cartoons #klasky/csupo

[mashymilkiesinc]

Great moments in Klasky/Csupo animation history: I don't know what the f**k this one is about. I think I drew this for the in-house employee newsletter.

#animation #cartoons #raymie #duckman #nickelodeon #klasky/csupo #rugrats #simpsons #king of the hill #dexters laboratory

[mashymilkiesinc]

Great Moments in Klasky/Csupo animation history: to coincide with the first Rugrats Movie, a Tommy and Chuckie riding Spike balloon is unveiled at the 1997 Macy's Thanksgiving Parade. Illustration by me.

#Rugrats #the rugrats movie #animation #cartoons #raymie #klasky/csupo #macy's thanksgiving parade

[mashymilkiesinc]

Great moments in Klasky/Csupo animation history: Duckman is cancelled September, 1997. Characters seek another home. A mashup by me; apologies to Mr. Schultz.

#duckman #klasky csupo #animation #cartoons #raymie #peanuts

[mashymilkiesinc]

Great moments in Klasky/Csupo animation history, Rugrats wins 1994-1995 Emmy for "Excellence at not being Duckman" (illustrated by yours truly).

#duckman #rugrats #klasky csupo #Raymie

[mashymilkiesinc]

The New Yorker: "Animation Nation" June 6th, 1997

#The New Yorker #animation #cartoons #nickelodeon #Disney #The Simpsons #Cartoon Network #Rugrats #Ren&Stimpy #Duckman #beavis and butthead #Dr. Katz #Daria #Roger Rabbit #King of the Hill

[mashymilkiesinc]

During the early Duckman production era many artists (NOT just ME, despite being unfairly singled out in the illustration on the memo above!!) honed our rude humor chops on the toilet stall walls of the men's room. This was before smartphones, so our hands and minds were idle tools for creative mischief during seated relief.

Although this phenomenon existed during our Simpsons years at Klasky/Csupo (shout out to Kevin O'Brien; assumedly now decorating walls at Pixar), it appears things reached the untenable (apropos, since Duckman enshrined low-brow humor to a level unseen up to then).

Alas, with ultimatums being threatened, "The Man" got his way, the men's room walls returned to blah and our enshrined freedom of expression callously denied.

But that's all history now.

#animation #cartoons #duckman #raymie #klasky/csupo

[mashymilkiesinc]

Roger was quoted as saying “How can someone competently direct a movie if they can’t competently do craft service?”

In Roger Corman's opinion, directing his pictures was the summit one achieved only after mastering the less glamorous positions that undergirded feature film production. In practice, I only witnessed writers and an assistant director reach the peak. Nevertheless, it was that ethos that drove the hectic 14-day production schedules of the low budget movies he produced in the late 80’s. I worked several of them doing craft service when I was fresh out of film school. It was grueling work, buying, preparing and manning the snack table with hot and iced drinks, candy and crudites, bagels and lox; be it in studio or on location. I was the first on and last off set each 12-plus-hour day.

It was such a daunting position to fill (at $50 a day) that they sweetened the deal by making the craft service position a “hyphenate” by dangling the more creative role of still photographer to the gig. “Craft Service/Still Photographer” is an absurd mashup of titles to appear in the credits, but it is consistent with Roger’s “B movie" philosophy ( I see on IMDb, that my duties were separated to convention in the cast and crew section).

I did take pictures in this capacity but I sure don’t remember doing so. It is only the exhaustive craft service memories that remain. One day, during the shoot for “The Drifter” (1988) who should appear at my hallway snack table but Roger Corman himself! Dressed in the monochrome velvet sweatsuit that was his signature uniform at the time, Roger paused and surveyed my offerings and expressed his approval.

That’s what I will always remember: a blessing from the undisputed "King of the Bs.".

In memory of Roger Corman, who passed at the age of 98...

As requested by @algusunderdunk, this gif collection of Corman and Vincent Price's work over the years.

Rest in peace, sir. You're a legend. Tell Vincent we say hi.

#The Drifter #Roger Corman #craft services #B movie #Concorde/New Horizons #film

[mashymilkiesinc]

A sample of the talent of my storyboard partner and long time friend and collaborator, Jerry Richardson. He drew these comics during the time we shared a cube during some of Rugrats first three seasons. The running gag was that we worked beside an abusive, alcoholic director and I (Raymie) wore a headset with music cranked loud so I wouldn't have to engage with said director's rants.

Mind you, Jerry should have been working on storyboarding the actual episode we'd been assigned, but his muse could not be denied; he had to execute these side pieces. He even made a painted cell set up celebrating us as "Tommy" bros.:

Tragically, Jerry is no longer with us. Many, many people besides me miss his talent and humor every day.

#jerry richardson #klasky/csupo #rugrats #cartoons #animation #nickelodeon