Samuel Singer (August 27, 1912 – January 25, 2001) 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 ...
and
animation
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 ...
producer. He is best known as executive producer of ''
The Adventures of Pow Wow
''Adventures of Pow Wow'' is an American animated cartoon that was broadcast on the ''Captain Kangaroo'' show during the 1950s. The series is in the public domain due to failure to renew copyright.
Plot
The cartoon features the pre-adolescent Nat ...
'', a cartoon which also later appeared as a segment of early episodes ''
Captain Kangaroo
''Captain Kangaroo'' is an American children's television series that aired weekday mornings on the American television network CBS for 29 years, from 1955 to 1984, making it the longest-running nationally broadcast children's television program ...
''. He also directed ''
The Adventures of Paddy the Pelican
''The Adventures of Paddy the Pelican'' is an American animated television series that debuted on local stations in Chicago during the 1950s. It is exceedingly rare, but has gained some fame for appearing on Jerry Beck's ''Worst Cartoons Ever''. O ...
'' and produced ''
''.
Animation historian
While the history of animation early history of animation, began much earlier, this article is concerned with the development of the medium after the emergence of celluloid film in 1888, as produced for theatrical screenings, television and (non ...
Jerry Beck has referred to Singer as "the
Ed Wood
Edward Davis Wood Jr. (October 10, 1924 – December 10, 1978) was an American filmmaker,
actor, and pulp novel author.
In the 1950s, Wood directed several low-budget science fiction, crime and horror films that later became cult cla ...
of animation" for his low-budget and generally ill-reviewed cartoons.
Career
Singer was born on August 27 of 1912 as Samuel Singer to Abraham and Ida Singer. In his early career, he worked at
Walt Disney Productions
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
before leaving to pursue his
animation
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 ...
career. Before that, Singer also worked for various other animation studios located in
Hollywood
Hollywood usually refers to:
* Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California
* Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States
Hollywood may also refer to:
Places United States
* Hollywood District (disambiguation)
* Hollywood, ...
. In 1949, Singer created ''
Adventures of Pow Wow
''Adventures of Pow Wow'' is an American animated cartoon that was broadcast on the ''Captain Kangaroo'' show during the 1950s. The series is in the public domain due to failure to renew copyright.
Plot
The cartoon features the pre-adolescent Nat ...
,'' which received generally negative reviews from critics, naming it as
one of the worst television series of all time. He also created and
executive produced
Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the making of a commercial entertainment product. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights o ...
''
The Adventures of Paddy the Pelican
''The Adventures of Paddy the Pelican'' is an American animated television series that debuted on local stations in Chicago during the 1950s. It is exceedingly rare, but has gained some fame for appearing on Jerry Beck's ''Worst Cartoons Ever''. O ...
,
,'' and ''
Courageous Cat and Minute Mouse
''Courageous Cat and Minute Mouse'', is a 1960 children's cartoon television show, that was produced by Trans-Artists Productions, and syndicated by Tele Features Inc. The characters were originated and created by authors Bob Kane and Gerald J. ...
.'' His final cartoon that he ever worked on was ''
Sinbad Jr. and His Magic Belt
''Sinbad Jr. and his Magic Belt'' is a series of five-minute cartoons that originally aired in first-run syndication between 1965-1966. Produced by Hanna-Barbera for the American International Television division of American International Pictures, ...
.'' Instead of the show being created by Singer, he served as executive producer while
William Hanna
William Denby Hanna (July 14, 1910 – March 22, 2001) was an American animator and cartoonist who was the creator of ''Tom and Jerry'' as well as the voice actor for the two title characters. Alongside Joseph Barbera, he also founded the ani ...
and
Joseph Barbera
Joseph Roland Barbera ( ; ; March 24, 1911 – December 18, 2006) was an American animator, director, producer, storyboard artist, and cartoon artist who co-founded the animation studio and production company Hanna-Barbera.
Born to Italian im ...
(founders of
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 ...
along with
George Sidney
George Sidney (October 4, 1916May 5, 2002) was an American film director and producer who worked primarily at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. His work includes cult classics ''Bye Bye Birdie'' (1963) and ''Viva Las Vegas'' (1964). With an extensive backgro ...
) created the show. The negative reception of his shows led to his retirement after ''Sinbad Jr. and His Magic Belt'' ended in 1966.
Death
Singer died on January 25, 2001, at the age of 88.
Filmography
Television
*''
Adventures of Pow Wow
''Adventures of Pow Wow'' is an American animated cartoon that was broadcast on the ''Captain Kangaroo'' show during the 1950s. The series is in the public domain due to failure to renew copyright.
Plot
The cartoon features the pre-adolescent Nat ...
'' (1949–1955) - Director
*''
The Adventures of Paddy the Pelican
''The Adventures of Paddy the Pelican'' is an American animated television series that debuted on local stations in Chicago during the 1950s. It is exceedingly rare, but has gained some fame for appearing on Jerry Beck's ''Worst Cartoons Ever''. O ...
'' (1950–1954) - Creator, writer, director, and voice of Paddy the Pelican and various
*''
'' (1959–1960) - Executive producer
*''
Courageous Cat and Minute Mouse
''Courageous Cat and Minute Mouse'', is a 1960 children's cartoon television show, that was produced by Trans-Artists Productions, and syndicated by Tele Features Inc. The characters were originated and created by authors Bob Kane and Gerald J. ...
'' (1960–1962) - Executive producer
*''
Sinbad Jr. and His Magic Belt
''Sinbad Jr. and his Magic Belt'' is a series of five-minute cartoons that originally aired in first-run syndication between 1965-1966. Produced by Hanna-Barbera for the American International Television division of American International Pictures, ...
'' (1965–1966) - Executive producer
* Tubby the Tuba 1975 - Animation supervisor
References
Further reading
*
External links
*
*
1912 births
2001 deaths
American animators
American animated film directors
American animated film producers
American television directors
American television producers
{{US-animator-stub