Myron Waldman, a notable figure from the Fleischer Animation Studio, passed away Saturday at the age of 97 of congestive heart failure.

Waldman worked on such classic Fleischer cartoons as Betty Boop, Popeye, and Superman. For Betty Boop he created her dog Pudgy and two donkeys, Hunky and Spunky. He also helped to develop Betty Boop from a dog-like creature into the surreal and sexy flapper we know today. He began work at the studio in the 1930s when it was still a force to be reckoned with and had yet to be overshadowed by Disney. Fleishcer Studios was later reorganized into Famous Studios in New York, where Waldman continued to work on cartoons like Casper the Friendly Ghost and Little Lulu.

Cartoon Brew has a nice little tribute to the late animator, which you can read here.

 

Hey, it's Saturday, are you bored? Yeah, me too. If you're a fan of "old timey" cartoons like I am, the Internet Archive has a collection of over twenty Betty Boop short films to help you kill the daytime (or nighttime) boredom. They're all public domain, and free to view online. I've been an admirer of the Fleischer brother's distorted, kinetic animation style for some time, and these shorts are both engaging and fascinatingly surreal. Also included in the archive are some of the Fleischer's Popeye shorts.