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Fred Laderman (February 19, 1927 – August 3, 2021),''Toledo Blade'' article/interview, 22 May 2004

/ref> known professionally as Fred Ladd, was an American television and film writer and producer. He is notable as the first to introduce Japanese
animated cartoon Animation is a method by which image, still figures are manipulated to appear as Motion picture, moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent cel, celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited ...
s to the Americas.


Biography

Ladd, a Toledo, Ohio, native, graduated from Scott High School in 1945 and from Ohio State University in 1949 with degrees in radio and speech. As a child, he did impersonations of movie stars including Betty Boop. When Ladd was in high school, he liked a radio program for children called ''Let's Pretend'', which dramatized children's stories, which would serve as an inspiration for him producing anime and for the American audiences. Upon moving to the New York City area, Ladd got a year-long job at an FM radio station and then was employed at Cayton, Inc., an
advertising agency An advertising agency, often referred to as a creative agency or an ad agency, is a business dedicated to creating, planning, and handling advertising and sometimes other forms of promotion and marketing for its clients. An ad agency is generall ...
that dabbled in
film production Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, casti ...
. The agency acquired several
nature Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. Although humans are p ...
documentaries A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". Bill Nichols has characterized the documentary in term ...
, and Ladd was given the job of repackaging them into a feature film. Rather than an outright sale, the film was offered in trade to European
distributor A distributor is an enclosed rotating switch used in spark-ignition internal combustion engines that have mechanically timed ignition. The distributor's main function is to route high voltage current from the ignition coil to the spark plu ...
s (cash exports being limited in
post-war In Western usage, the phrase post-war era (or postwar era) usually refers to the time since the end of World War II. More broadly, a post-war period (or postwar period) is the interval immediately following the end of a war. A post-war period ...
Europe), in exchange for marketable local film productions. The deal resulted in the acquisition of animated cartoons, and Ladd was given the job of repackaging and dubbing the films for the American market. Ladd became the house specialist in the "
Westernizing Westernization (or Westernisation), also Europeanisation or occidentalization (from the ''Occident''), is a process whereby societies come under or adopt Western culture in areas such as industry, technology, science, education, politics, econo ...
" of overseas animated programming. A 1937
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...
short film on the future of space travel ''Weltraumschiff 1 startet'' was acquired, and the special effects sequences were excised by Ladd. His re-edited footage was augmented by new animated sequences and became part of a series entitled ''
The Space Explorers ''The Space Explorers'' is an animated film created by Fred Ladd that was later turned into a cartoon serial and spawned a sequel series, ''New Adventures of the Space Explorers''. The film aired in 1958; the sequel series aired the following y ...
'' which was syndicated to local
TV station A television station is a set of equipment managed by a business, organisation or other entity, such as an amateur television (ATV) operator, that transmits video content and audio content via radio waves directly from a transmitter on the eart ...
s from the late 1950s through the early 1960s. Ladd co-operated with William Cayton in producing a film and television serial version of the Czech film '' Journey to the Beginning of Time''. Producer
Norm Prescott Norman Prescott (January 31, 1927 – July 2, 2005) was co-founder and executive producer at Filmation Associates, an animation studio he created with veteran animator Lou Scheimer. Life and career Born in the Dorchester neighborhood of Bosto ...
employed Ladd to help reformat a
1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is sworn in for a full term as ...
Belgian animated feature ''Pinocchio dans l'espace'', which was released theatrically by
Universal Universal is the adjective for universe. Universal may also refer to: Companies * NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company ** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of NBCUniversal ** Universal TV, a t ...
in late 1965 as '' Pinocchio in Outer Space''. Prescott later brought Ladd in as co-writer and co-producer on his home-grown
1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, me ...
Filmation Filmation Associates was an American production company that produced animated series, animation and live-action programming for television from 1963 until 1989. Located in Reseda, Los Angeles, Reseda, California, the animation studio was founde ...
feature '' Journey Back to Oz''. But it was an earlier involvement with
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are ...
-TV that helped open a new and enduring market to North America. In 1963, the
network Network, networking and networked may refer to: Science and technology * Network theory, the study of graphs as a representation of relations between discrete objects * Network science, an academic field that studies complex networks Mathematic ...
's distribution division, NBC Enterprises, had acquired the North American distribution rights to a Japanese animated
series Series may refer to: People with the name * Caroline Series (born 1951), English mathematician, daughter of George Series * George Series (1920–1995), English physicist Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Series, the ordered sets used in ...
entitled ''Tetsuwan Atomu'', and consulted with Ladd on how to market it. Ladd took the footage and created a
pilot episode A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie), in United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television network or other distr ...
, eventually leading to the long-running series ''
Astro Boy ''Astro Boy'', known in Japan by its original name , is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Osamu Tezuka. It was serialized in Kobunsha's ''Shōnen'' from 1952 to 1968. The 112 chapters were collected into 23 ''tankōbon'' v ...
''—the inaugural appearance of
anime is hand-drawn and computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japanese, (a term derived from a shortening o ...
on
Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...
shores. Ladd removed references to Asian religion in favor of Christianity and removed scenes to violence and nudity due to it being to risky for NBC's standard and practices and to the Western audience. One incident happened where a samurai in the series was considered as violent. When Ladd flew to
Mushi Production or Mushi Pro for short, is a Japanese animation studio headquartered in Fujimidai, Nerima, Tokyo, Japan. It previously had a headquarters elsewhere in Nerima. The studio was headed by manga artist Osamu Tezuka. Tezuka started it as a rivalry wit ...
s in 1964 and explained the violent nature, they didn't understand, and they compared it to police brutality in the US. They wanted him to explain it, and Ladd just simply said it's because of cultural differences. Animation like a robber holding a rifle to a poor man's head begging for money and a bachelor seeing pictures of nude women were cut by Ladd by being over the top violence, and he explained to Tezuka about the nude women "Sorry, Mr. Tezuka, we couldn't save that, if I ended up with all those shots, we wound up with a 2 minute program." Tezuka would later dub Ladd "the godfather of Astro Boy", due to the lucrative business of America's involvement in anime after it aired. Ladd continued his involvement in early anime imports with ''
Gigantor is a 1963 anime adaptation of ''Tetsujin 28-go'', a manga by Mitsuteru Yokoyama released in 1956. It debuted on US television in January 1966. As with ''Speed Racer'', the characters' original names were altered and the original series' viol ...
'' for Delphi Associates and ''
Kimba the White Lion ''Kimba the White Lion'', known in Japan as , is a Japanese '' shōnen'' manga series written and illustrated by Osamu Tezuka which was serialized in the '' Manga Shōnen'' magazine from November 1950 to April 1954. An anime based on t ...
'' for NBC Enterprises. Later, Ladd was creative consultant for the 1995 English dub of '' Sailor Moon'' for DiC Entertainment. Ladd was also responsible for having various black-and-white cartoons for his company called Color Systems Inc. such as '' Looney Tunes'', ''
Betty Boop Betty Boop is an animated cartoon character created by Max Fleischer, with help from animators including Grim Natwick.Pointer (2017) She originally appeared in the '' Talkartoon'' and ''Betty Boop'' film series, which were produced by Fleisch ...
'', and others to be redrawn colorized in South Korea from 1968 to 1974. He died on August 3, 2021, at the age of 94 from natural causes.


Screenwriting


Anime television series dubs

* ''
Astro Boy ''Astro Boy'', known in Japan by its original name , is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Osamu Tezuka. It was serialized in Kobunsha's ''Shōnen'' from 1952 to 1968. The 112 chapters were collected into 23 ''tankōbon'' v ...
'' (1963–1965) * ''
Gigantor is a 1963 anime adaptation of ''Tetsujin 28-go'', a manga by Mitsuteru Yokoyama released in 1956. It debuted on US television in January 1966. As with ''Speed Racer'', the characters' original names were altered and the original series' viol ...
'' (1966) * ''
Kimba the White Lion ''Kimba the White Lion'', known in Japan as , is a Japanese '' shōnen'' manga series written and illustrated by Osamu Tezuka which was serialized in the '' Manga Shōnen'' magazine from November 1950 to April 1954. An anime based on t ...
'' (1966–1967)


Original television scripts

* '' The Underseas Explorers'' (1961) * ''
Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle ''Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle'' is an American animated series created by the Filmation studio for Saturday mornings on CBS, starting in 1976. This was the first animated series about the jungle hero. There are 36 episodes produced over four seas ...
'' (1979) * ''
Hero High ''Hero High'' was a 1981–1982 cartoon and live action series created by Filmation that aired as part of NBC's '' The Kid Super Power Hour with Shazam!'' It was about a high school where young superheroes were taught how to use their powers and ...
'' (1981) * ''
The Kid Super Power Hour with Shazam! ''The Kid Super Power Hour with Shazam!'' is an NBC Saturday-morning cartoon produced by Filmation Studios in 1981. The half-hour show included two cartoon stories, with a variety of live-action wraparound segments. ''Hero High'' featured a gro ...
'' (1981) * '' The Incredible Hulk'' (1982) * ''
M.A.S.K. M.A.S.K. (Mobile Armored Strike Kommand) is a media franchise created by Kenner. The main premise revolved around the fight between the titular protagonist underground task force and the criminal organization V.E.N.O.M. (Vicious Evil Network of ...
'' (1985) * '' Ghostbusters'' (1986)


Foreign film dubs

* '' Pippi in the South Seas'' (1974) * '' Pippi on the Run'' (1977)


Original film scripts

* ''
The Space Explorers ''The Space Explorers'' is an animated film created by Fred Ladd that was later turned into a cartoon serial and spawned a sequel series, ''New Adventures of the Space Explorers''. The film aired in 1958; the sequel series aired the following y ...
'' (1958) * '' Pinocchio in Outer Space'' (1965) * '' Journey Back to Oz'' (1972)


Bibliography

* Fred Ladd with Harvey Deneroff, ''Astro Boy and Anime Come to the Americas: An Insider's View of the Birth of a Pop Culture Phenomenon'' (McFarland, Jefferson NC, 2008)


Notes


External links

*
May 2004 interview with Fred Ladd
at ToledoBlade.com
1996 interview with Fred Ladd
at
Animation World Network Animation World Network (often just "AWN") is an online publishing group that specializes in resources for animators, with an extensive website offering news, articles and links for professional animators and animation fans. Specifically, AWN cov ...
*
GIGANTOR Website by Fred Ladd

The Space Explorers, animated short film, Fred Ladd (1957)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ladd, Fred 1927 births 2021 deaths Film producers from California American television directors Television producers from California American television writers American male screenwriters American male television writers American voice directors Ohio State University College of Arts and Sciences alumni Writers from Toledo, Ohio Writers from New York City Writers from Los Angeles Screenwriters from New York (state) Screenwriters from California Screenwriters from Ohio Television producers from New York City Film producers from New York (state) Film producers from Ohio