Bobe Cannon is becoming one of my favorite animators. Here's a scene I think is him in an early Chuck Jones cartoon.
It's very soft and subdued, but with careful solid drawings, a little different than the fast loopy stuff he usually does.
I always liked his stuff in Jones' cartoons, but now I'm recognizing more and more of his scenes in 30s Clampett cartoons, and late 40s Avery cartoons and I think I like that stuff even better because those directors seemed to encourage him to be funnier.
In the Jones cartoons, the direction seems to be more restrained as far as funny action goes, but Cannon was completely capable of combining his lyrical loopy style with the very funny actions and accents demanded by Clampett and Avery.
I've always wondered why Cannon left Warners to join Avery at MGM. Simply money? Or did he have a falling out with Jones?
I haven't heard Jones talk much about Cannon, yet I think he is Jones' strongest animator.
Anybody know some history here? Greg Duffle? Jerry? Anyone?
His animation in Avery's Senor Droopy is so full, and exciting and funny. I find it baffling and ironic that a couple years after his best most fully animated funniest period, he completely went the other way and directed stiff pose to pose cartoons for UPA. You can see his transformation on the way to being stiff in Avery's Rural Riding Hood. He animated the buck toothed country girl in a halfway pose to pose style. It's very good, but less fully animated, with lots of holds and a more graphic angular design.
Slow-motion (close-up):
Slow-motion (medium shot):
