Isadore Sparber (March 7, 1906 - August 29, 1958) was an American storyboard artist, writer, director and producer of animated films. He is best known for his work with

Fleischer Studios Fleischer Studios () is an American animation studio founded in 1929 by brothers Max and Dave Fleischer, who ran the pioneering company from its inception until its acquisition by Paramount Pictures, the parent company and the distributor of i ...

and its successor,

Famous Studios Famous Studios (renamed Paramount Cartoon Studios in 1956) was the first animation division of the film studio Paramount Pictures from 1942 to 1967. Famous was founded as a successor company to Fleischer Studios, after Paramount seized contro ...

. When credited, his work appeared under varying versions of his name, including "Izzy Sparber," "I. Sparber," "Irving Sparber," and "Isidore Sparber" or "Isadore Sparber."

Career

Sparber worked for

in the 1930s and early 1940s where much of his early work was uncredited. However, he was credited as a writer for several ''

Superman Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publi ...

'' cartoons (all with

Seymour Kneitel Seymour Kneitel (March 16, 1908 – July 30, 1964) was an American animator, best known for his work with Fleischer Studios and its successor, Famous Studios. Early years Kneitel was born in New York City where he graduated from P.S. 10 in Manh ...

), as well as the feature-length films ''

Gulliver's Travels ''Gulliver's Travels'', or ''Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World. In Four Parts. By Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon, and then a Captain of Several Ships'' is a 1726 prose satire by the Anglo-Irish writer and clergyman Jonathan ...

'' and ''

Mr. Bug Goes to Town ''Mr. Bug Goes to Town'' (also known as ''Hoppity Goes to Town'' and ''Bugville'') is a 1941 American animation, animated Technicolor feature film produced by Fleischer Studios, previewed by Paramount Pictures on December 5, 1941, and released in ...

''. He also wrote some Betty Boop cartoons, Color Classic cartoons and Popeye cartoons with no credit. Sparber was first mentioned in a Popeye cartoon as the namesake for a demolition company, Sparber Destruction Co., in the cartoon ''Quiet! Pleeze''(1941). When Paramount Pictures took over Fleischer Studios in 1942, Sparber, Dan Gordon and Seymour Kneitel were named as the new heads of the renamed

. Despite working without onscreen credit for most of his tenure with the Fleischers, Sparber is credited with producing or co-producing nearly 400 cartoons afterward, and directed at least 160 of them. Aside from Sparber directing a good amount of shorts about Popeye, he was also directly responsible for numerous entries in Famous Studios' ''

'', '' Little Lulu''/''

Little Audrey Little Audrey (full name: Audrey Smith) is a fictional character, appearing in early 20th century folklore prior to starring in a series of Paramount Pictures' Famous Studios cartoons from 1947 to 1958. She is considered a variation of the better- ...

'' and '' Casper the Friendly Ghost'' series.

Death

Sparber died on August 29, 1958, in New York City at the age of 52. It has been said that this may have been a factor in Paramount's 1959 decision to discontinue production of several cartoon series and sell the rights to Harvey Comics, but apparently this is not the case. During the reorganization of Famous Studios into Paramount Cartoon Studios in late 1956, Sparber was fired along with a number of other veteran Famous Studios staffers as a measure to cut costs. That Sparber continued to collect credits long after he was fired was a result of the long gestation time in animation; indeed, Sparber's last cartoon, "Travelaffs", opened on August 22, 1958, one week before his death.

References

External links

*
Golden Age Cartoons Forums Archives: Izzy Sparber's Death
* American animators American film directors American film producers American male screenwriters American animated film directors 1906 births 1958 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople American storyboard artists Fleischer Studios people 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American screenwriters Famous Studios people {{US-animator-stub