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Oscar in his temporary home at Tempe Center for the Arts exhibition, "Chuck Amuck: A Legacy of Laughter."
Linda Jones, Chuck Jones' daughter, draws Marvin Martian on Jones' animation desk this afternoon at Tempe Center for the Arts before heading back to southern California after last night's gala opening reception.
More on the opening to follow in the days to come!
Original layout drawing by Chuck Jones for his 1975 television special "Rikki Tikki Tavi" based on one of The Jungle Book stories by Rudyard Kipling. This drawing is part of the exhibition Chuck Amuck: A Legacy of Laughter opening tonight at the Tempe Center for the Arts in Tempe, Arizona.
This just in from Craig Kausen, Chuck Jones' grandson who is in Tempe, Az for the opening tonight of "Chuck Amuck: A Legacy of Laughter" at Tempe Center for the Arts. "It's a beautiful morning in Tempe!" as Oscar greets the day.
Oscar takes the sun at the edge of the infinity pool in front of the Tempe Center for the Arts.
A little later this morning and Oscar (along with Craig) is being interviewed by Fox 10's own Alexis DelChiaro at Tempe Center for the Arts exhibition "Chuck Amuck: A Legacy of Laughter."
Stay tuned for more Oscar buzz!
Craig Kausen, Chuck's grandson, is traveling today to Tempe, Arizona site of the Chuck Jones retrospective exhibition, Chuck Amuck, a Legacy of Laughter, that opens tomorrow night at the Tempe Center for the Arts. Traveling with him today is one of Chuck's Oscars that will be on display at the exhibit.
They started off at John Wayne airport in Orange County:
And they landed at Sky Harbor Airport in Phoenix where a beautiful, concurrent exhibit of Chuck Jones original art is in the airport's museum (terminal 4, level 3 gallery):
Follow Oscar as he makes his way to Tempe Center for the Arts!
In 1989 Chuck Jones created a series of original oil paintings whose themes sprung from artists that he admired. He said at that time that it was one of the most challenging of works as he had to bend his artistic will to that of another artist in order to capture their brushwork and their intent. Pictured is the original oil painting titled "Persistence of Carrots." It will be featured at the exhibit Chuck Amuck, a Legacy of Laughter opening tomorrow night at the Tempe Center for the Arts in Tempe, Arizona.
The oil paintings Chuck Jones completed in this series were published as fine art lithographs that same year by the American Atelier. Each was hand-pulled on 19th century French stone lithographic presses one color at at time. You can learn more about that series by clicking on the image.
This coffee-table art book is 'Chuck-ful' of delightful paintings and pithy quotes from America's master of animation. With insightful forewords by his wife Marian and daughter Linda (accompanied by his portraits of each) "Stroke of Genius" delivers a refreshing take on the Mark Twain of cartoons. With over 50 oil paintings depicting the characters Jones created or developed with the other animators at Warner Bros., the book gives you the opportunity to witness his off-camera style and sensibility. Although the quotes were chosen for their content and then paired with a painting, many deliver a one-two punch of appropriateness -- for instance, an oil painting depicting Daffy cavorting in a sea of gold and jewels is accompanied by a quote "Be yourself is about the worst advice you can give some people." Repeated viewings of "Stroke of Genius" do not dim the delight one receives from Jones' astute commentary and masterful painting style. This book is a must have for the art connoisseur, the avid cinephile and those who remember the Warner Bros. cartoons as some of the happiest moments of their lives. A bonus feature is the flip book design element that travels up and down the outside edge of the pages—a truly innovative touch that firmly grounds the book in the fine art of animation.
"What's Opera, Doc?" Chuck Jones' masterpiece of animated film-making is arguably the most famous and oft-cited cartoon in history. As Jones tells it, his crew 'stole' time from other concurrent productions in order to produce this film. With its magnificent scene design by the incomparable Maurice Noble and layout drawings, such as this one, by Chuck Jones, "What's Opera, Doc?" rode into theaters (and the hearts and souls of millions) on July 6, 1957.
This layout drawing is part of Chuck Amuck, A Legacy of Laughter, opening Friday, February 26th at the Tempe Center for the Arts.
Today is eight years since my Grandfather, Chuck Jones, passed away.
It was eight years and three days ago that I went down to say goodbye to him.
He wasn't conscious, at least as far as I could tell as I sat by his bed at his home in Corona del Mar. But I believed that at some level he was aware of me by his side. It was just the two of us in the room and I sat quietly for a long time.
For some reason, I brought "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" by Mark Twain. After sitting there for a while, I opened the book and just started to read. The only part that I remember distinctly from the few pages that I read was:
"We got an old tin lantern, and a butcher-knife without any handle, and a bran-new Barlow knife worth two bits in any store, and a lot of tallow candles, and a tin candlestick, and a gourd, and a tin cup, and a ratty old bedquilt off the bed, and a reticule with needles and pins and beeswax and buttons and thread and all such truck in it, and a hatchet and some nails, and a fishline as thick as my little finger with some monstrous hooks on it, and a roll of buckskin, and a leather dog-collar, and a horseshoe, and some vials of medicine that didn't have no label on them; and just as we was leaving I found a tolerable good curry-comb, and Jim he found a ratty old fiddle-bow, and a wooden leg. The straps was broke off of it, but barring that, it was a good enough leg, though it was too long for me and not long enough for Jim, and we couldn't find the other one, though we hunted all around."
I laughed out loud when I got to the end of this paragraph (as I always do) at the discontinuity and yet logic of looking for a matching wooden leg.
Chuck breathed a little more sporadically and a little deeper for a few moments then, I suppose due to my outburst of laughter.
Each and every February 22nd I make a specific intention to laugh more, to live more deeply, and to be more grateful for the things I have and have had in my life, including Chuck.
Today is no different as we've told some stories, had many laughs about the absurdities of life, and thoroughly enjoyed the day; just as I know Chuck is doing as he discusses the poetic nature of the written word with Mark Twain.
I hope that each person that loved him and his work will laugh an extra laugh in Chuck's honor today. --Craig Kausen
Original layout drawing on two-hole punch 12 field animation paper by Chuck Jones for his 1943 short animated film, "Super Rabbit." This is one of the original works of animation art that will be on display at the Tempe Center for the Arts' exhibit "Chuck Amuck, A Legacy of Laughter" opening Friday, February 26, 2010. Read more about the exhibit here.
