Brenda Lee Banks (July 19, 1948 – December 30, 2020) was an American

animator An animator is an artist who creates multiple images, known as frames, which give an illusion of movement called animation when displayed in rapid sequence. Animators can work in a variety of fields including film, television, and video gam ...

, who was one of the first

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

women to work as a professional animator.

History

Early life and education

Banks was born in Los Angeles on July 19, 1948. She graduated from Fremont High School in 1967 and then went on to attend the

California Institute of the Arts The California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) is a private art university in Santa Clarita, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the US created specifically for students of both ...

. She continued her education up through 1977 even while being involved in concurrent animation work projects.

Career

The earliest known works that Banks was involved in include those starring Clerow Wilson in the early 1970s and the 1973 animated television special '' B.C.: The First Thanksgiving''. According to

Ralph Bakshi Ralph Bakshi (born October 29, 1938) is an American animator and filmmaker. In the 1970s, he established an alternative to mainstream animation through independent and adult-oriented productions. Between 1972 and 1992, he directed nine theatric ...

, Banks arrived at his studio in 1973 asking for a job, despite telling him that she had no background in animation. She was given some small work in the 1974 feature '' Coonskin''. After proving herself, Bakshi then assigned her to work on several of the background "goon" characters in the film '' Wizards'' whose animation quality was not high priority for the film as compared to the main characters. Her work was a complete success and Bakshi described her as the "star of the goons at the studio". From there, she went on to work on a number of Bakshi's subsequent features, including ''

The Lord of the Rings ''The Lord of the Rings'' is an epic high-fantasy novel by English author and scholar J. R. R. Tolkien. Set in Middle-earth, intended to be Earth at some time in the distant past, the story began as a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 children's boo ...

'' in 1978 and '' Fire and Ice'' in 1983. After the latter film, Banks left the studio to instead begin work at

Warner Brothers Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American Film studio, film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios, Burbank, Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, Califo ...

on their ''

Looney Tunes ''Looney Tunes'' is an American Animated cartoon, animated comedy short film series produced by Warner Bros. starting from 1930 to 1969, concurrently with its partner series ''Merrie Melodies'', during the golden age of American animation.

'' television specials. She went on to work at other studios, including

Hanna-Barbera Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. ( ) was an American animation studio and production company which was active from 1957 to 2001. It was founded on July 7, 1957, by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera following the decision of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to c ...

for ''

The Pirates of Dark Water ''The Pirates of Dark Water'' is an American fantasy animated television series created by David Kirschner and produced by Hanna-Barbera. The series premiered as a five-part miniseries on Fox Kids early 1991. The first season, consisting of 13 ...

'' and several episodes and games for Fox's ''

Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, a ...

'' property. From 1997 to 2005, she was a dedicated layout animator for the ''

King of the Hill ''King of the Hill'' is an American animated sitcom created by Mike Judge and Greg Daniels for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It aired its original non-syndicated run from January 12, 1997, to September 13, 2009, and centers on the Hills, an Am ...

'' television show, before disappearing from the animating field altogether.

Accolades and awards

Banks was given a WIA Diversity Award in 2018 by the

Women in Animation Women in Animation (WIA) is a non-profit organization with the purpose of furthering, promoting, and supporting female animators in the art, science and business of animation. WIA helps young female artists to find a place in the business world. ...

non-profit due to her decades of work in the field of animation.

Personal life

Frequently described by her colleagues as a private and shy person who did not offer much information about herself or her background, animator Lee Crowe remembered that she had no interest or desire to be remembered as one of the first black women in animation. The only personal detail recalled about her, as stated by

Nancy Beiman Nancy Beiman is a director, character designer, teacher, and animator. She attended the Character Animation program at CalArts. Career Animation In 1986, Beiman cofounded Caged Beagle Productions with business partner Dean Yeagle. She then move ...

, is that Banks had a physical disability in the form of requiring leg braces before surgery.

Filmography

* 1972 ''Clerow Wilson and the Miracle of P.S. 14'' (TV Movie) (animator) * 1973 ''B.C.: The First Thanksgiving'' (TV Special short) (assistant animator) * 1974 ''Clerow Wilson's Great Escape'' (TV Movie) (animator - as Brenda Lee Banks) * 1974 ''ABC Afterschool Specials'' (TV Series) (animator - 1 episode) * 1974 '' Coonskin'' (animator - uncredited) * 1975 ''The Hoober-Bloob Highway'' (TV Movie) (animator) * 1977 '' Wizards'' (animator) * 1978 ''

'' (key animator) * 1980 '' Pontoffel Pock and His Magic Piano'' (TV Movie) (animator) * 1980 '' Heathcliff'' (TV Series) (animator - 1980) * 1981 ''

American Pop ''American Pop'' is a 1981 American adult animated jukebox musical drama film starring Ron Thompson and produced and directed by Ralph Bakshi. It was the fourth animated feature film to be presented in Dolby sound. The film tells the story of f ...

'' (animator) * 1982 '' Hey Good Lookin''' (animator) * 1983 '' Fire and Ice'' (animator) * 1983 '' Daffy Duck's Movie: Fantastic Island'' (animator: bridging sequences) * 1984–1985 ''

The Smurfs ''The Smurfs'' (french: Les Schtroumpfs; nl, De Smurfen) is a Belgian comic franchise centered on a fictional colony of small, blue, humanoid creatures who live in mushroom-shaped houses in the forest. ''The Smurfs'' was first created and in ...

'' (TV Series) (animator - 50 episodes) * 1985 ''

The 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo ''The 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo'' is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, and the seventh incarnation of the studio's ''Scooby-Doo'' franchise. It premiered on , and ran for one season on ABC as a half-hour p ...

'' (TV Mini-Series) (animator - 13 episodes) * 1985–1986 ''

Paw Paws ''Paw Paws'' (also known as ''Paw Paw Bears'') is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions that first aired in 1985 and 1986. It debuted as part of the weekday/weekend morning programming block ''The Funtastic ...

'' (TV Series) (animator - 18 episodes) * 1988 ''

The Night of the Living Duck ''The Night of the Living Duck'' is a six-minute 1988 '' Merrie Melodies'' cartoon starring Daffy Duck, directed by Greg Ford and Terry Lennon. It was released to theatres as a part of ''Daffy Duck's Quackbusters'' on September 24, 1988 and preced ...

'' (Short) (animator - as Brenda L. Banks) * 1988 ''

Daffy Duck's Quackbusters ''Daffy Duck's Quackbusters'' is a 1988 animated compilation film featuring classic Warner Bros. Cartoons shorts and animated bridging sequences, starring Daffy Duck. The film was released to theaters by Warner Bros. on September 24, 1988. It was ...

'' (animator) * 1988 '' Bugs vs. Daffy: Battle of the Music Video Stars'' (TV Special short) (animator) * 1989 ''

This Is America, Charlie Brown ''This Is America, Charlie Brown'' is an eight-part animated television miniseries that depicts a series of events in American history featuring characters from the Charles M. Schulz comic strip ''Peanuts''. It aired from 1988 to 1989 on CBS. T ...

'' (TV Mini-Series) (animator - 1 episode) * 1989 ''Bugs Bunny's Wild World of Sports'' (TV Movie) (animator) * 1990 '' Jetsons: The Movie'' (animator) * 1990 ''

Tiny Toon Adventures ''Tiny Toon Adventures'' is an American animated comedy television series that was broadcast from September 14, 1990, to December 6, 1992. It was the first collaborative effort of Steven Spielberg's Amblin Television and Warner Bros. Animation ...

'' (TV Series short) (animator - 1 episode) * 1990 '' Midnight Patrol: Adventures in the Dream Zone'' (TV Series) (animator - 13 episodes) * 1990 ''

Gravedale High ''Gravedale High'' (also known as '' Rick Moranis in Gravedale High'') is an animated series produced by Hanna-Barbera for NBC Productions (the latter company owns all rights to the series). The series premiered in the fall of 1990 on NBC and laste ...

'' (TV Series) (animator - 13 episodes) * 1990 '' Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventures'' (TV Series) (animator - 13 episodes) * 1991 ''

'' (TV Series) (animator - 2 episodes) * 1990–1991 ''

The Adventures of Don Coyote and Sancho Panda ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'' (TV Series short) (animator - 26 episodes) * 1993 ''

Once Upon A Forest ''Once Upon a Forest'' is a 1993 animated musical adventure film produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and distributed by 20th Century Fox. Based on the ''Furlings'' characters created by Rae Lambert, the film was directed by Charles Grosvenor a ...

'' (animator) * 1990–1993 '' Tom & Jerry Kids Show'' (TV Series) (animator - 2 episodes) * 1994 ''

The Pagemaster ''The Pagemaster'' is a 1994 American live-action/animated fantasy adventure film starring Macaulay Culkin, Christopher Lloyd, Whoopi Goldberg, Patrick Stewart, Leonard Nimoy, Frank Welker, Ed Begley Jr., and Mel Harris. The film was produced b ...

'' (additional character animator) * 1997 '' The Simpsons: Virtual Springfield'' (Video Game) (animator) / (traditional animator) * 1998 ''The Simpsons'' (TV Series) (character layout artist - 2 episodes) * 1997–2006 ''King of the Hill'' (TV Series) (character layout artist - 28 episodes, 1997 - 2003) (animation layout artist - 12 episodes, 2002 - 2006) (layout artist - 2 episodes, 2003 - 2005)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Banks, Brenda Animators from California 1948 births 2020 deaths 20th-century American women artists African-American women artists American women animators Artists from Los Angeles California Institute of the Arts alumni 20th-century African-American women 20th-century African-American people 20th-century African-American artists 21st-century African-American people 21st-century African-American women