Thomas Jacob McKimson (March 5, 1907 – February 14, 1998) was an American animator, best known for his work at the
Warner Bros. Cartoons studio. He was the older brother of animators
Robert
The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...
and
Charles McKimson.
Tom McKimson was born in Denver, Colorado, but relocated to
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
with his family in the 1920s. He attended Otis Art Institute (now called
Otis College of Art and Design
Otis College of Art and Design is a private art and design school in Los Angeles, California. Established in 1918, it was the city's first independent professional school of art. The main campus is located in the former IBM Aerospace headquarte ...
) in the 1920s. He began his career in animation in 1929, when he joined the
Walt Disney Studio, becoming an assistant to animator
Norm Ferguson. He left Disney a year later to work briefly for
Romer Grey, then joined
Harman-Ising
Hugh Harman and Rudolf Ising were an American animation team known for founding the Warner Bros. and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer animation studios.
Early history
Harman and Ising first worked in animation in the early 1920s at Laugh-O-Gram Studio, Wal ...
Studios around 1932. After Harman and Ising left Warner Bros. for
MGM
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...
, McKimson became a member of
Bob Clampett
Robert Emerson Clampett Sr. (May 8, 1913 – May 2, 1984) was an American animator, director, producer and puppeteer. He was best known for his work on the '' Looney Tunes'' animated series from Warner Bros. as well as the television shows '' ...
's animation unit, where he is credited as a layout artist and the original design for
Tweety Bird
Tweety is a yellow canary in the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of animated cartoons. The name "Tweety" is a play on words, as it originally meant "sweetie", along with "tweet" being an English onomatopoeia for th ...
. McKimson also provided layout designs for
Arthur Davis's unit after he took over Clampett's unit by 1945.
During his time at Warner Bros., McKimson also worked for
Dell Comics
Dell Comics was the comic book publishing arm of Dell Publishing, which got its start in pulp magazines. It published comics from 1929 to 1974. At its peak, it was the most prominent and successful American company in the medium.Evanier, Mark"Wh ...
, providing illustrations for the
Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny is an animated cartoon character created in the late 1930s by Leon Schlesinger Productions (later Warner Bros. Cartoons) and voiced originally by Mel Blanc. Bugs is best known for his starring roles in the '' Looney Tunes'' and '' ...
and
Road Runner comic books. McKimson also illustrated the
Roy Rogers
Roy Rogers (born Leonard Franklin Slye; November 5, 1911 – July 6, 1998) was an American singer, actor, and television host. Following early work under his given name, first as co-founder of the Sons of the Pioneers and then acting, the rebra ...
daily comic strip from 1949 to 1953 in collaboration with his brother Charles and artist
Pete Alvarado
Peter J. Alvarado Jr. (February 22, 1920 – December 27, 2003) was an American animation and comic book artist. Alvarado's animation career spanned almost 60 years. He was also a prolific contributor to Western Publishing's line of comic books.
B ...
, using the collective pseudonym "Al McKimson." He left Warners in 1947 when Don Smith replaced him as layout artist for Davis' unit. He would become an art director for Dell's parent company
Western Publishing
Western Publishing, also known as Western Printing and Lithographing Company, was a Racine, Wisconsin, firm responsible for publishing the Little Golden Books. Its Golden Books Family Entertainment division also produced children's books and ...
, where he remained until his retirement in 1972.
McKimson was active in the
Masonic
Freemasonry or Masonry refers to Fraternity, fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of Stonemasonry, stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their inte ...
fraternity. He was the Master of Melrose Lodge No. 355 in Hollywood in 1954 and a founding member of Riviera Lodge No. 780 in Pacific Palisades, California in 1956, and later an Inspector and the Grand Tyler of the Grand Lodge of California. He was also a polo enthusiast, playing on the same team as
Walter Lantz
Walter Lantz (April 27, 1899 – March 22, 1994) was an American cartoonist, animator, producer and director best known for founding Walter Lantz Productions and creating Woody Woodpecker.
Biography
Early years and start in animation
Lantz ...
animator
Ray Abrams.
[''Los Angeles Times'', Sept. 10, 1934]
McKimson died on
Valentine's Day
Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is celebrated annually on February 14. It originated as a Christian feast day honoring one or two early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine and, throu ...
, 1998 in
West Los Angeles
West Los Angeles is an area within the city of Los Angeles, California. The residential and commercial neighborhood is divided by the Interstate 405 freeway, and each side is sometimes treated as a distinct neighborhood, mapped differently by di ...
at the age of 90. Less than a month before his 91st birthday.
Notes
External links
*
Thomas McKimson at the Comiclopedia
{{DEFAULTSORT:McKimson, Thomas
1907 births
1998 deaths
American animators
American comics artists
Warner Bros. Cartoons people
Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale)