Bill Melendez, "Peanuts" Animator, Dies at 91
SEPTEMBER 4, 2008 TAGS:
Bill Melendez, the animator who transformed Charles Schulz’s iconic Peanuts characters into moving images for the instant-classic TV specials, “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” and “The Great Pumpkin,” died on Tuesday, September 2. He was 91.
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Along with his production partner, Lee Mendelson, Melendez made over 70 animated "Peanuts" TV programs, 4 feature length films, and over 370 commercials featuring Charlie Brown, Linus, and of course Snoopy (remember those Met Life commercials). They shared a 43-year artistic partnership that seamlessly extended the “Peanuts” brand to contemporary media.
Melendez never did anything flashy. By keeping the core two-dimensionality of the comic strip as the basis for his animations, Melendez maintained the homey, pensive, and wisely droll nature of the comics. He also bestowed a unique physicality to Schulz’s characters and touches of endearing grace (like when the children sing in unison).
After working for the Walt Disney Company and Warner Bros., Melendez set up his own studio in 1964. “A Charlie Brown Christmas” came out in 1965. According to the Washington Post’s Obit:
"Since 1964, Mr. Melendez had run his own animation studio in Los Angeles, employing as many as 40 artists. He had a bushy Yosemite Sam-style mustache that accentuated his jovial nature. In addition to his work on "Peanuts," for which he received five Emmy Awards, Mr. Melendez created the first animated cartoons of Jim Davis's Garfield the cat and Cathy Guisewite's character Cathy, winning Emmys for both. He also received two Emmys in 1979 for animating the C.S. Lewis story "The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe."
Here's a couple of clips from "A Charlie Brown Christmas"
Along with his production partner, Lee Mendelson, Melendez made over 70 animated "Peanuts" TV programs, 4 feature length films, and over 370 commercials featuring Charlie Brown, Linus, and of course Snoopy (remember those Met Life commercials). They shared a 43-year artistic partnership that seamlessly extended the “Peanuts” brand to contemporary media. Melendez never did anything flashy. By keeping the core two-dimensionality of the comic strip as the basis for his animations, Melendez maintained the homey, pensive, and wisely droll nature of the comics. He also bestowed a unique physicality to Schulz’s characters and touches of endearing grace (like when the children sing in unison).
After working for the Walt Disney Company and Warner Bros., Melendez set up his own studio in 1964. “A Charlie Brown Christmas” came out in 1965. According to the Washington Post’s Obit:
"Since 1964, Mr. Melendez had run his own animation studio in Los Angeles, employing as many as 40 artists. He had a bushy Yosemite Sam-style mustache that accentuated his jovial nature. In addition to his work on "Peanuts," for which he received five Emmy Awards, Mr. Melendez created the first animated cartoons of Jim Davis's Garfield the cat and Cathy Guisewite's character Cathy, winning Emmys for both. He also received two Emmys in 1979 for animating the C.S. Lewis story "The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe."
Here's a couple of clips from "A Charlie Brown Christmas"
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