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The Defenders of Originality, Pt. 2© Enoch Allen
By Enoch Allen
In Part One of this article, we examined the achievements of John Lasseter and Hayao Miyazaki. Now that Part Two has finally arrived, we might further pore over the accomplishments of those who bucked against a system that thrived on unacceptable principles. In Part Two, the careers of John Kricfalusi, Ward Kimball, and Don Bluth will be spotlighted. John Kricfalusi-- Creator of “Ren & Stimpy” and “The Ripping Friends”. This is his explanation of how he got “Ren & Stimpy” on Nickelodeon (excerpted from an interview with Coury Turczyn of concentric.net): “I tricked [the executives]. I told 'em it was going to be unfunny, that it would be wiggly lines, nobody would be able to follow the stories, and nobody could identify with the characters. And they said, "Oh! That's exactly what we want!" Of course, the above might be more/less the truth (I’m betting on “less”). But, it is indisputable as to how much of an effect his creations have on our fragile little minds. His fantastically demented cartoons are unabashedly adult, while “implying” that they’re tailor-made for the grade-school set. That’s one way we, as artists and as writers, can showcase the true potential of animation: by disguise and superimposition. Like John K. did. Mr. Kricfalusi came to Hollywood in 1980, and found himself working on remakes of classic Hanna-Barbara cartoons. He found that either he had to do as the Romans were doing . . . or find himself unemployed. Many of the things that these “Romans” were doing involved bastardizing classic cartoons, and demeaning the art form. Another great animator, Ralph Bakashi, hired John K. to direct “The New Adventures of Mighty Mouse”, for CBS. After a year on that show, John K. went to ABC and worked on a remake of “Beany and Cecil”, which was canceled in just under a year. Mr. Kricfalusi soon tired of doing what the networks wanted him to do, and so as a result he formed Spumco--an independent animation house. It was also at this time, that he conceived “Ren & Stimpy”, one of the greatest achievements made by a single animator in the history of animation. It was the first time that an animated duo addressed controversial, taboo issues--and acted in a controversial, gross-out way. It was a super-hit, but John K. was soon forced to cede control over his creation to the executives at Nickelodeon. Four long years later, he was able to regain ownership of his creation. “Ren and Stimpy” has found a new home: TNN, where new episodes of the beloved animated series will be airing in 2003.
The copyright of the article The Defenders of Originality, Pt. 2 in Animation is owned by Enoch Allen. Permission to republish The Defenders of Originality, Pt. 2 in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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