"Frosty the Snowman" is one of those animated classics that millions of Americans have grown up with since the 1960s and seen annually on television everywhere.
Don Duga is the storyboard artist behind many of the unforgettable images captured in that animated feature. His artwork from that classic and many others will be displayed at an exhibit hosted by Erie Street Antiques and presented by The Deep Archives at 533 Washington St. on Saturday Dec. 6.
Duga has been at the forefront of American animation for more than 40 years and worked with some of the most prestigious studios in the world. He is a versatile animator, director and producer.
From United Productions of America (a cutting edge 1940s animation studio) to commercials to Sesame Street and feature films, he is an industry veteran and has storyboarded such classics as Mr. Magoo, Underdog, The Last Unicorn, Frosty the Snow Man, Mad Monster Party, and Wind in the Willows, among others. He is also the co-founder of Polestar Films in New York, and has been an instructor of animation at The School of Visual Arts in New York City since 1962.
Duga began his training as a traditional artist at the art school at Chouinard in California.
"I started learning drawing and painting and really believed that I was going to [be a fine artist]," said Duga in an interview Tuesday. But he added that without his training in the fine arts, he would never be able to make a career in animation and storyboard design. "The core of animation is drawing and timing," said Duga.
Schooled by ‘Snow White’ artist
The journey into the ranks of the animation elite began in the 1950s when he trained under his mentor Don Graham. Among other things, Graham was noted for training the animation team responsible for Disney’s Snow White, still one of the most artistic of all animation features.
Probably more than any other individual besides Walt Disney himself, Graham was responsible for turning Disney’s dream of animation as an art form into reality. "If you watch Snow White, the renaissance techniques taught [by Graham] are clearly evident," he said. Duga added that to this day, he still uses many of the traditional techniques he learned from Graham.
Shortly after this period, Duga joined UPA, a cartoon studio formed in the mid-1940s by a bunch of maverick young animators determined to create true art in the form of animation. The most famous of the UPA properties was Mr. Magoo.
While Mr. Magoo is undoubtedly an important work of pop culture, Duga made his mark with Rankin/Bass Studios. There, he took part in projects like Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman, The Year without a Santa Claus, The Little Drummer Boy and Mad Monster Party. As a storyboard artist at Rankin/Bass he specialized in laying out the essential framework for the various film projects.
"The storyboard artist is responsible for creating the environment in which these characters exist," said Duga, "the background, layout, blocking and key poses."
One interesting side note about Mad Monster Party is that the beloved 1967 stop-motion monster rally inspired director Tim Burton to create his smash hit The Nightmare Before Christmas.
Twinkie the Kid
Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Duga worked at animating commercials for various national companies. A relationship with Hostess Foods proved to be a large success for Duga. He designed such memorable characters as Twinkie the Kid, Captain Cupcake, King Ding Dong and Fruit Pie the Magician.
Duga also founded his own animation company call Polestar. The company created Island of the Skog, a 15-minute animated children’s film that received the Gold Award from the International Film and Video Festival in Houston. Goodnight Gorilla, narrated by Anthony Edwards, received the Silver Telly Award; Chicken Little, narrated by Helen Hunt, received numerous awards; and Owen, narrated by Sarah Jessica Parker, received the Carnegie Medal for Best Children’s Film of 1996. Polestar has created award-winning educational spots for Sesame Street, Puzzle Place, Square One TV and Nickelodeon.
Author there, too
Also scheduled to appear at the Dec. 6 event is Author Rick Goldschmidt, who has assembled the definitive history of Rankin/Bass Productions, documenting every one of their shows with rare photographs, production stills, concept drawings and memorabilia. The book, titled The Enchanted World of Rankin/Bass, is full of background information, production details, and interviews with Arthur Rankin Jr., Jules Bass, Maury Laws, and dozens of the actors, artists, and animators who worked on the shows.
The meet and greet event is will be held from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. In addition to works by Duga, there will be hand painted scene cells signed by original voice artists Billie Mae Richards (Rudolph), Phyllis Diller, Alfie Scopp, George S. Irving, Allen Swift, Rhoda Mann, Bradley Bolke, and Nellie Bellflower.
For more information call (551) 998-4552 or visit www.thedeeparchives.com.