Today on the blog, we are exploring the life and career of William Hanna. At the bottom of the post, there is a further reading section where you can explore Hanna’s artwork and legacy.
William Hanna was born on July 14, 1910 to William and Avice in the New Mexico Territory. His father worked as a construction superintendent which required the family to move often. The Hanna family moved around the western states such as California, Oregon and Utah. Eventually the Hanna family settled in Watts, California in 1919. William developed a love of the outdoors as a young boy and joined the Boys Scouts when he was starting high school. William went to Compton High School, where he played in a dance band. Being in the band created a life long passion of music, which he would translate into his career. Before graduating from high school, he became an Eagle Scout, which was his proudest achievement. William was set on studying engineering but he had to drop out of Compton City College due to the start of the Great Depression. One of his first jobs after leaving college was being a construction engineer in Los Angeles. However, this job did not last too long and he found work at a car wash. His sister’s boyfriend encouraged William to look for a job in Hollywood, which led him to the Pacific Title and Art company. This company produced the title cards for the movies. After some time working at the Pacific Title and Art, he realized that he enjoyed drawing and joined the Harman and Ising animation studio. Harmon and Ising are the creators of Looney Tunes.
William soon became the head of the Harmon and Ising’s Ink and Paint department. The technique of ink and paint was used heavily in early Hollywood, mostly by women. To get this effect, an animator’s pencil sketches are transferred to the animation cells that are then outlined in ink. The last step is to fill in the cells with the color. Ink and Paint cells would then go on top of the background images. The Harmon and Ising Studio began a partnership with MGM studios in 1933. At MGM, William got the chance to create and direct his own cartoon. His first cartoon was To Spring. In 1936, MGM broke away from Harmon and Ising. The studio hired William to join their new cartoon studio. William sat next to Joseph Barbera at the MGM offices and the pair knew right away that they should team up. This partnership would last for over 60 years.
Their first animated short was called Puss Gets the Boot, which was nominated for an Academy Award. Even though it was a successful short, Fred Quimby, their supervisor, wanted a diverse slate. Ignoring their supervisor, Hanna-Barbera created a similar cartoon. Quimby changed his mind and let the pair create another cat and mouse short which became Tom and Jerry. Over 17 years, they created and directed 114 shorts. Tom and Jerry shorts would go on to be nominated for 13 Academy Awards for Best Short, winning seven. The series was criticized for being over violent. In 1957, MGM laid off everyone in the cartoon department. MGM thought they could make more money by re-releasing old cartoons instead of making new ones.
After getting fired, the duo officially created Hanna-Barbera Productions. They brought on board George Sidney to be a business partner and Sidney was able to get them a deal with Columbia Pictures. The two major successes were Yogi Bear and The Huckleberry Hound Show. In 1960, they created a new show for their adult audiences, The Flintstones. A parody of The Honeymooners, this show followed a modern family living in the stone age. The Flintstones was the first animated prime time show to be a household hit. Due to the success of the Flintstones, the pair created a space version, The Jetsons. The Flintstones would be more popular. Towards the end of the 1960s, Hanna-Barbera was the most successful television animation studio. The 1960s saw the creation of Josie and Pussycats, Top Cat, and Quick Draw McGraw. It was also during the end of the 1960s where they began to produce the shows of their employees. One of their most famous produced shows is Scooby-Doo. The show was created by Joe Ruby and Ken Spears and follows a group of high schoolers and their dog solving mysteries. The creation of Scooby Doo was the result of parent groups who viewed Saturday Morning Cartoons as too violent. Fred Silverman at CBS wanted a similar show like The Archie Show. The pair passed the assigned the project to two of their story writers, Ruby and Spears. After many rounds of re writes, the first episode premiered on September 13, 1969. Another popular show they produced is The Smurfs. Hanna and Barbera stayed as heads of their production company until 1991, when Time Warner bought Warner Brothers Studio. After the merger, the men began a partnership with Cartoon Network.
William Hanna passed away on March 22, 2001 at the age of 90 from cancer.
Media
Best of Warner Brothers
Cartoon Crack Ups: 7 favorite Hanna-Barbera cartoons
Wack Races seaon 1
Scooby Doo Where Are You
Scooby Doo: Best of the Scooby Doo Movies
The Jetsons
The Flintstones
Recent Comments