Bill Melendez
| Bill Melendez | |
|---|---|
 Melendez in 2000 |
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| Born | José Cuauhtémoc Meléndez November 15, 1916 Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico |
| Died | September 2, 2008 (aged 91) Santa Monica, California, United States |
| Cause of death | Natural causes |
| Resting place | Cremated, Ashes given to family or friend |
| Occupation | Animator |
| Years active | 1938–2006 |
| Spouse(s) | Helen Melendez (1940–2008; his death) |
José Cuauhtémoc "Bill" Meléndez (November 15, 1916 – September 2, 2008)[1] was a Mexican-American character animator, film director, voice artist and producer, known for his cartoons for Warner Brothers, UPA and the Peanuts series. Melendez provided the voices of Snoopy and Woodstock in the latter as well.
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Early life [edit]
A native of the Mexican city of Hermosillo, Sonora, Melendez was educated in U.S. public schools in Douglas, Arizona. He was a very good student, and later attended the Chouinard Art Institute in Los Angeles (which would later become California Institute of the Arts).
UPA and commercial animation work [edit]
Following the 1941 Disney strike, Bill was hired by Leon Schlesinger to animate in Bob Clampett's unit. After Clampett's departure, Bill moved to the Arthur Davis unit. When the number of animation units at Warner Bros. was reduced from four to three in 1948, Melendez, after being moved to Robert McKimson's unit for a time, moved over to United Productions of America (UPA) where he animated on cartoons such as Gerald McBoing-Boing. Melendez also produced and directed thousands of television commercials, first at UPA, then Playhouse Pictures and John Sutherland Productions.[2] In 1963, Melendez founded his own studio in the basement of his Hollywood home. Bill Melendez Productions is still active and is currently run by his son Steven Melendez.[3] In addition to animation, Melendez was once a faculty member at the University of Southern California's Cinema Arts Department.
Melendez was the only person Peanuts creator Charles M. Schulz trusted to turn his popular comic creations into television specials. He and his studio worked on every single television special and direct-to-video film for the Peanuts gang and Melendez directed the majority of them. He even provided the vocal effects for Snoopy and Woodstock in every single production, voice acting the characters in the studio by uttering gibberish, and the voices were mechanically speeded up at different volumes to represent the two different characters. According to a New York Times article shortly after his death, Melendez did not intend to do voice acting for the two characters. “Schulz would not countenance the idea of a beagle uttering English dialogue, Mr. Melendez recited gibberish into a tape recorder, speeded it up and put the result on the soundtrack.“ He also directed, did the animation for, and provided voice acting in the first four Peanuts theatrical films, A Boy Named Charlie Brown (1969), Snoopy, Come Home (1972), Race for Your Life, Charlie Brown (1977), and Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (and Don't Come Back!!) (1980). The last Peanuts-related production he worked on was the 2006 He's a Bully, Charlie Brown.
He is parodied in the online cartoon Homestar Runner.[4]
Death [edit]
On September 2, 2008, Melendez died at his home in Santa Monica at the age of 91. He had been in ailing health after a fall a year earlier.[5] He was survived by his wife of 68 years, the former Helen Huhn, his two sons Steven Cuitlahuac (Melendez) and Rodrigo Cuauhtémoc (Melendez) -a retired US Navy Rear Admiral, six grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren.
Other work [edit]
In addition to producing Peanuts specials, Bill Melendez, as well as Lee Mendelson, has also produced specials for the comic strip Garfield.
- Here Comes Garfield (producer)
- Garfield on the Town (producer)
Subsequent Garfield specials were produced by Film Roman, who also produced Garfield and Friends.
Related companies [edit]
- Melendez Films – Animation division : United Kingdom, video and interactive entertainment
References [edit]
- ^ "Peanuts' animator Melendez dies". BBC. September 4, 2008. Archived from the original on September 05 2008. Retrieved 2008-09-04.
- ^ Solomon, Charles (September 4, 2008). "Animator of 'Peanuts' TV specials and voice of Snoopy". The Los Angeles Times.
- ^ http://www.billmelendez.tv/index3.html
- ^ "A. Chimendez". Homestar Wiki. March 22, 2009. Archived from the original on April 12, 2009. Retrieved April 8, 2009.
- ^ http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/05/arts/television/05melendez.html?_r=1/
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External links [edit]
- "Bill Melendez". Find a Grave. Retrieved August 11, 2010.
- Bill Melendez at the Internet Movie Database
- Bill Melendez Productions Inc.
- Bio of Bill Melendez on Chuck Jones site
- Interview of Melendez (August '06)
- Charlie Brown, Snoopy and the gang flowed with good grief from his pen
- Washington Post: Bill Melendez, 91; Award-Winning 'Peanuts' Animator
- Los Angeles Canyon News: Peanuts" Animator Bill Melendez Dies At Age 91
- Variety Magazine: Animator Bill Melendez dies at 91
- The Independent: Bill Melendez: Animator who worked on Disney classics and adaptations of the 'Peanuts' cartoons
- American people of Mexican descent
- 1916 births
- 2008 deaths
- American animators
- American film directors of Mexican descent
- American film producers
- Animated film directors
- American television personalities of Mexican descent
- American writers of Mexican descent
- Mexican cartoonists
- Mexican emigrants to the United States
- Mexican voice actors
- Peanuts media
- People from Hermosillo
- People from Sonora
- University of Southern California faculty
