Herbert Klynn (November 11, 1917 – February 3, 1999) was an American animator at
UPA from 1944 to 1959 eventually rising to the role of Vice President and Production Chief. He worked on various
Mr. Magoo
Mr. Magoo (known by his full name: J. Quincy Magoo) is a fictional cartoon character created at the UPA animation studio in 1949. Voiced by Jim Backus, Mr. Magoo is an elderly, wealthy, short-statured retiree who gets into a series of comical ...
cartoons and
Gerald McBoing-Boing cartoons as well as cartoon shorts such as ''
Madeline'' (1952) and
Christopher Crumpet' (1953).
In 1959 he founded the
television animation studio Format Films
Format Films was a television animation studio which was founded by Herbert Klynn in 1959 with Jules Engel as vice president, Bob McIntosh and Joseph Mugnaini, all of whom were animators. It was most active during the 1960s, producing episode ...
, best known for producing ''
The Alvin Show'' and ''
The Lone Ranger'', as well as eleven
Road Runner cartoons and three
Daffy Duck and
Speedy Gonzales cartoons for
Warner Bros.'s ''
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. '' and ''
Merrie Melodies
''Merrie Melodies'' is an American animation, animated series of comedy short films produced by Warner Bros. starting in 1931, during the golden age of American animation, and ending in 1969. Then some new cartoons were produced from the late 197 ...
'' series.
Format Productions also created title sequences for several TV series, including ''
I Spy'', ''
Honey West'', the animated characters on the television variety show ''
Hee Haw'', animated various TV commercials, and created film title designs for ''
The Glory Guys'' and ''
Clambake''.
Klynn worked on various projects with author Ted Geisel (
Dr. Seuss), and also worked with Academy Award-winning designer
Saul Bass. He worked alongside sci-fi writer
Ray Bradbury in creating the Oscar-nominated “Icarus Montgolfier Wright,” an animated story of the first human travel to the moon.
Herb Klynn co-created the short lived sitcom ''
The Duck Factory
''The Duck Factory'' is an American sitcom produced by MTM Enterprises that aired on NBC from April 12 until July 11, 1984. It was Jim Carrey's first lead role in a Hollywood production. It was also the only time when Don Messick appeared in liv ...
'', which was the first leading role for
Jim Carrey
James Eugene Carrey (; born January 17, 1962) is a Canadian-American actor, comedian and artist. Known for his energetic slapstick performances, Carrey first gained recognition in 1990, after landing a role in the American sketch comedy te ...
in 1984.
A longtime member of the
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Klynn donated his considerable film and TV archive to the USC School of Cinema-Television and to the Paley Center for Media, Museum of Television and Radio Broadcasting in Beverly Hills and New York. He also proposed the original idea of the Student Academy Awards which has been held since 1973.
Klynn received the Winsor McCay Award in 1991;
one of the highest honors given to an individual in the animation industry in recognition for career contributions to the art of animation.
References
External links
*
1917 births
1999 deaths
Animators from Ohio
Television producers from Ohio
American film producers
First Motion Picture Unit personnel
20th-century American businesspeople
Format Films
People from Cleveland
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