Dick Lundy (animator)

Richard James Lundy (August 14, 1907 – April 7, 1990) was an American animator and film director who worked at several animation studios including Walt Disney Animation Studios, MGM, and Hanna-Barbera. Lundy was a pioneer of personality animation and is best remembered as one of the creators of Donald Duck.[1] Throughout his career he worked as a primary animator on at least 60 films, both short and feature-length, and directed 51 shorts.

Dick Lundy
Born
Richard James Lundy

(1907-08-14)August 14, 1907
Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, U.S.
DiedApril 7, 1990(1990-04-07) (aged 82)
San Diego, California, U.S.
OccupationAnimator, film director
EmployerWalt Disney Animation Studios (1929-1943)
Walter Lantz Productions (1943-1949)
MGM (1950-1951)
Hanna-Barbera (1959-1973)
Known forDeveloping Donald Duck

Early life

Lundy was born in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, to James and Minnie Lundy, their only child. Shortly after his birth the family moved to Detroit, where Lundy's father worked as an inspector for the Burroughs Adding machine Company.

When Lundy was ten years old, his parents separated and he and his mother went to live in Port Huron north of Detroit. They later moved back to the city where Lundy's mother worked as a waitress. Lundy moved to Los Angeles in the late 1920s.

Career

In the summer of 1929, Lundy began to employed by Walt Disney Animation Studios, first assigned being assigned to the ink and paint department. In September, he transferred to the animation department as an inbetweener. In March the next year, Lundy was promoted to animator. He became the studio's dance specialist, animating many of the musical numbers in early Disney shorts.[2] He later worked on Three Little Pigs (1933) and Orphan's Benefit (1934). After working on Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937), Lundy became a director at Disney.

In 1943, Lundy departed the Disney studios and worked for Walter Lantz Productions. He started as an animator and again became a director. He directed shorts featuring Andy Panda, Woody Woodpecker, and the Swing Symphonies. Lundy was responsible for toning down Woody’s crazy attitude once he began directing Woody Woodpecker shorts, portraying him as more defensive, as he rejected his previous portrayal (by James Culhane) as a menace who goes crazy for no legitimate reason. Lundy worked for Wolff Productions after the Lantz studio closed in 1949. Here he worked on television commercials. In 1950, Lundy worked for MGM on Barney Bear shorts and the Droopy film Caballero Droopy.

In 1959 Lundy worked for Hanna-Barbera on The Flintstones, Yogi Bear, and Scooby-Doo. He retired in 1973, but continued to do freelance work for several years thereafter.[3]

Donald Duck

Lundy was not the first to draw or even animate Donald Duck. This was done by Art Babbitt and Dick Huemer in the short film The Wise Little Hen (1934), a film in which Lundy also worked. This was Donald's first appearance, although the story offered little opportunity for character development. This would come in Donald's second appearance, Orphan's Benefit (also 1934), in which Lundy was the sole animator of Donald. According to common animation practice, the audio and voices of the film were recorded first and were then played for the animators to reference. In listening to voice actor Clarence Nash portray the Duck in Orphan's Benefit, Lundy said "[I] decided that [Donald] was an ego-show-off. If anything crossed him, he got mad and blew his top."[4]

Personal life

Lundy was married twice. In 1932 he married Juanita Sheridan who also worked at the Disney studio. This marriage ended in divorce in 1934.

By 1939, Lundy was remarried to Mabel Lundy. Together they had one daughter Llewellyn.[5][6]

Filmography

Disney (and other films) period

In this period, most of the films in which Lundy worked belong to Disney

Woody Woodpecker (and other films) period

In this period, most of the films in which Lundy worked belong to Woody Woodpecker's film series

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer period

In this period, most of the films in which Lundy worked belong to Metro-Golwyn-Mayer

  • Busybody Bear (director) (1952)
  • The Little Wise Quacker (director) (1952)
  • Caballero Droopy (director) (1952)
  • Tom Schuler: Cobbler Statesman (director-uncredited) (1953)
  • Half-Pint Palomino (director) (1953)
  • Wee-Willie Wildcat (director) (1953)
  • Heir Bear (director) (1953)
  • Cobs and Robbers (director) (1953)
  • Barney's Hungry Cousin (director) (1953)
  • Bird-Brain Bird Dog (director) (1955)
  • Sleepy-Time Squirrel (director) (1954)
  • Billy Boy (director-uncredited) (1954)

Last years as animator

TV
  • The Woody Woodpecker Show (director) (1957)
  • The Huckleberry Hound Show (animator - 7 episodes) (1959-1960)
    • Bear for Punishment/Batty Bat/Huck the Giant Killer (1959)
    • Stranger Ranger/Mighty Mite/A Bully Dog (1959)
    • Papa Yogi/King Size Poodle/Somebody's Lion (1959)
    • Huck Hound's Tale/Party Peeper Jinks/Robot Plot (1960)
    • Spud Dud/High Jinks/Tricks and Treats (1960) (segment "High Jinks")
    • Space Bear/Puss in Boats/Huck's Hack (1960)
    • Hoodwinked Bear/Goldfish Fever/Picadilly Dilly (1960)
  • The Quick Draw McGraw Show (animator - 14 episodes) (1959-1961)
  • The Flintstones (animator - 60 episodes) (1960-1966)
  • Child Sock-Cology (Short) (animator) (1961)
  • Count Down Clown (Short) (animator) (1961)
  • Snagglepuss (TV Series) (animator - 1 episode) (1961)
    • Royal Rodent (1961)
  • Top Cat (animator - 2 episodes) (1961-1962)
    • All That Jazz (1961)
    • Dibble's Double (1962)
  • Beef for and After (Short) (animator) (1962)
  • The Yogi Bear Show (animator - 6 episodes, 1961 - 1962)
    • Bear Foot Soldiers/Royal Rodent/Judo Ex-Expert (segment "Royal Rodent") (1961)
    • Ice Box Raider/One Two Many/Baddie Buddies (segment "Baddie Buddies") (1961)
    • Disguise and Gals/Remember the Daze/Foxy Proxy (segment "Foxy Proxy") (1961)
    • Genial Genie/The Gangsters All Here/Duck the Music (segment "Genial Genie") (1961)
    • Yogi's Birthday Party (animator/animation supervisor) (1962)
  • The Jetsons (animator - 4 episodes) (1962-1963)
    • The Venus (1962)
    • Uniblab (1962)
    • The Coming of Astro (1962)
    • The Little Man (1963)
  • Rancid Ransom (Short) (animator) (1962)
  • The Hanna-Barbera New Cartoon Series (animator - 2 episodes) (1962)
    • Gator-Napper/Water-Melon Felon/Zero Hero
    • Droopy Dragon/See-Saw/Whale of a Tale
  • Common Scents (Short) (animator) (1962)
  • Raggedy Rug (Short) (animator) (1964)
  • The Magilla Gorilla Show (animator - 9 episodes) (1964-1965)
    • Fairy Godmother (1964)
    • Masquerade Party (1964)
    • Airlift (1964)
    • Mad Avenue Madness (1965)
    • Magilla Mix-Up (1965)
    • Montana Magilla (1965)
    • That Was the Geek That Was (1965)
    • Love at First Fight (1965)
    • Bird Brained (1965)
  • The Secret Squirrel Show (animator - 1 episode) (1965)
    • Sub Swiper/Way Out Squiddly/Prince of a Pup
  • The Atom Ant Show (animator - 2 episodes) (1966)
    • Killer Diller Gorilla (uncredited)
    • Bully for Atom Ant
  • Frankenstein Jr. and The Impossibles (animator) (1966)
  • Moby Dick and the Mighty Mightor (animator) (1967)
  • The New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (animator - 5 episodes) (1968-1969)
    • The Magic Shillelah (1968)
    • Huck of La Mancha (1968)
    • The Last Labor of Hercules (1968)
    • The Eye of Doorgah (1968)
    • Mission of Captain Mordecai (1969)
  • The Adventures of Gulliver (animator - 1 episode) (1968)
  • The Forbidden Pool (1968)
  • The Perils of Penelope Pitstop (animator - 6 episodes) (1969)
    • The Treacherous Movie Lot Plot
    • Carnival Calamity
    • Wild West Peril
    • The Boardwalk Booby Trap
    • The Terrible Trolley Trap
    • Jungle Jeopardy
  • Josie and the Pussycats (animator - 1 episode) (1970)
    • Plateau of the Apes Plot
  • Scooby Doo, Where Are You! (animator - 8 episodes) (1970)
    • Don't Fool with a Phantom
    • Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Werewolf?
    • A Tiki Scare Is No Fair
    • Haunted House Hang-Up
    • Jeepers, It's the Creeper
    • Scooby's Night with a Frozen Fright
    • Mystery Mask Mix-Up
    • Nowhere to Hyde
  • Where's Huddles? (animator - 10 episodes) (1970)
    • One Man's Family
    • A Sticky Affair
    • The Odd Trio
    • Get That Letter Back
    • To Catch a Thief
    • Hot Dog Hannah
    • The Offensives
    • The Ramblin' Wreck
    • A Weighty Problem
    • The Old Swimming Hole
  • The New Scooby-Doo Movies (animator - 16 episodes) (1972)
  • The Roman Holidays (animator - 3 episodes) (1972)
    • Cyrano deHappius
    • Hectic Holiday
    • Double Date
  • The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie (animator - 1 episode) (1972)
    • Yogi's Ark Lark
  • The Flintstone Comedy Hour (animator - 1972)
  • Love, American Style (animator - 1 episode) (1972)
    • Love and the Bachelor Party/Love and the Latin Lover/Love and the Old-Fashioned Father/Love and the Test of Manhood (segment "Love and the Old-Fashioned Father")
  • Yogi's Gang (animator - 2 episodes) (1973)
    • Mr. Hothead
    • Dr. Bigot
  • ABC Afterschool Specials (animator - 1 episode) (1974)
    • Cyrano (1974)
  • Captain Caveman and the Teen Angels (animator - 8 episodes) (1977)
    • Playing Footsie with Bigfoot
    • The Strange Case of the Creature from Space
    • The Fur Freight Fright
    • Cavey and the Weirdo Wolfman
    • The Creepy Claw Caper
    • Double Dribble Riddle
    • The Creepy Case of the Creaky Charter Boat
    • The Mixed Up Mystery of Deadman's Reef
  • Woody Woodpecker and His Friends (Video documentary) (original material) (1982)
  • Walter, Woody and the World of Animation (Documentary short) (original material) (1982)
  • The King of Ads (Documentary) (segment "Coca-Cola commercial") (1991)

Notes
  1. 44. Dick Lundy at 50 Most Influential Disney Animators. 2011-05-11; retrieved 2011-08-08.
  2. Kaufman, J.B.; Gerstein, David (2018). Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse: The Ultimate History. Cologne: Taschen. p. 66. ISBN 978-3-8365-5284-4.
  3. A Letter from Dick Lundy at Mayerson on Animation. 2006-05-11; retrieved 2011-08-08.
  4. O'Brien, Flora; Justin Knowles; Leslie Posner (1984). Parry-Crooke, Charlotte (ed.). Walt Disney's Donald Duck: 50 Years of Happy Frustration. Tucson, AZ: HPBooks. p. 14. ISBN 0-89586-333-2.
  5. Donald Duck, Animation Bloggers & Ancestry.Com, or Robin’s Rules of Research #2 & #3
  6. Century Birthday – Dick Lundy at Animation – Who & Where. 2007-08-14; retrieved 2011-08-08.
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