Sunday, May 18, 2008

FMPU Documentary

During World War II, the First Motion Picture Unit (FMPU) of the Army Air Forces was stationed at the Hal Roach studio, jokingly referred to as Fort Roach. Within the unit, there was an animation department headed by Rudy Ising that included artists Frank Thomas, Jules Engel, Theodor Geisel (aka Dr. Seuss), John Hubley, Phil Monroe, Bill Scott, Bernie Wolf and other veterans of the Hollywood animation studios.

Next Sunday, May 25, at 6:00 a.m. Eastern time, Turner Classic Movies will run a 21 minute long documentary called The First Motion Picture Unit, made in 1943. I haven't seen this film and don't know how much, if any, coverage the animation department gets. However, I'm looking forward to seeing it and hoping for the best.

3 comments:

Andrew Leal said...

Wow. This is one of those times when I wish I had cable (since WWII cartoons, and WWII filmmaking in general, is a strong interest of mine). I may see if I can find someone to tape it for me. Thanks for the heads up, Mark!

Floyd Norman said...

Some years ago, I attended a panel discussion by a group of artists who worked at Camp Roach during the war.

Would you believe that their company commander was some guy named, Ronald Reagan?

Boy, did they have stories to tell.

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