February 26th - Tex Avery

A Year in Comics - February 26th

Daffy Duck, Droopy, the Wolf and Red Hot Riding Hood - Tex Avery

Fredrick Bean 'Tex' Avery was born on February 26th 1908 in Taylor, Texas.  Already at an early age he was interested in animation - but he desired to become a cartoonist, with his first efforts appearing in the annual, and the monthly paper of the North Dallas High School.  After following a summer course at the Chicago Art Institute, 'Tex' Avery moved to California where he started working for Walter Lantz as a painter on the Oswald the Lucky Rabbit cartoon, soon learning the trade of storyboard artist as well.

In 1935, Avery made the move to the Leon Schlesinger Productions (soon to become the 'Warner Bros Cartoons' studio), where he would work on the Looney Tunes and Merry Melodies series, fleshing out and establishing the character of Buggs Bunny as well as creating such enduring characters such as Daffy Duck and Porky Pig.  Avery's cartoons stood out, packed with fast-paced and often absurd action, agressive violence, innuendo and fourth-wall breaking references, inspiring both his colleagues at Warner Bros, as well as his rivals at the cartoon studios of Universal and MGM.

In 1941, after falling out with Warners, Avery went to MGM where he would create a number of characters, the most famous of which being Droopy.  At MGM, Avery would reach his most creative peak, creating mould-breaking and sometimes risqué cartoons, such Red Hot Riding Hood, while abandoning the realistic style of his earlier cartoons for a more stylised, less-realistic style.

In 1950, Avery took a year's sabbatical suffering from overwork, returning in 1951.  However, by 1953 the high pace at MGM had left him burnt out, and he decided to leave the MGM studios and return to Walter Lantz, by then known for his Woody Woodpecker cartoons.  Avery's second stint at Lantz lasted only a year, during which he created the character of Chilly Willy the penguin; a pay dispute between Lantz and Avery saw Avery leave the studio, effectively ending his career in theatrical animation.

Following his retirement from theatrical animation, Avery made a number of animated television commercials; however he became increasingly reserved and depressed during this time.  The late-1970s saw him write a number of gags for Saturday morning cartoons by Hanna-Barbera.

Tex Avery passed away on August 26th 1980 as a result of lung cancer.

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69th entry of ?

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