Fred Quimby

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Fred Quimby
Born Frederick C. Quimby
July 31, 1883(1883-07-31)
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Died September 16, 1965 (aged 82)
Santa Monica, California

Frederick C. "Fred" Quimby (July 31, 1883[1] – September 16 1965) was an American cartoon producer, best known as a producer of Tom and Jerry cartoons, for which he won seven Academy Awards. He was the producer in charge of the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer cartoon studio, which included Tex Avery and the team of William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, creators of Tom and Jerry.

Contents

[edit] Life and career

Quimby was born in Minneapolis, and started his career as a journalist. In 1907, he managed a film theater in Missoula, Montana. Later, he worked at Pathe, rising to become a member of the board of directors before leaving in 1921 to become an independent producer. He was hired by Fox in 1924, and then MGM in 1927 to head its short features department. In 1937 he was assigned to put together its animation department.[2][3]:65

In 1938, William Hanna and Joseph Barbera presented him with their project for a series of cartoons featuring a cat and a mouse. Quimby approved[2], and the result was Puss Gets The Boot, which was nominated for an Academy Award. As producer, Quimby became a repeated recipient of the Academy Award for Animated Short Film for the Tom and Jerry films, and his name became well known due to its prominence in the cartoon credits. However, Quimby had a difficult relationship with animators:

“ ...unfortunately for a cartoon producer, [he had] no sense of humor to call upon... He knew nothing of animation and cartoons were a strange thing to him. Cast in the role of high school principal opposite the animators' boyish enthusiasms, he acted as liaisons between them and the front office, usually it seemed, turning down requests for bigger budgets, raises and special dispensations of funds.[4] ”

Quimby retired from MGM in 1955, with Hanna and Barbera assuming his role as co-heads of the studio. MGM's cartoon division did not last long after; it was closed in 1957. Quimby died in Santa Monica, California in 1965.

He is affectionately referenced in The Simpsons in the surname of Mayor Quimby and particularly as his nephew Freddy Quimby. The Itchy and Scratchy Show is also a parody of the exaggerated violence in Tom and Jerry cartoons.

[edit] Oscar credits

[edit] References

  1. ^ A minority of sources give an alternative birth date of 1886.
  2. ^ a b The Creators
  3. ^ Barbera, Joseph (1994). My Life in "Toons": From Flatbush to Bedrock in Under a Century. Atlanta, GA: Turner Publishing. ISBN 1-57036-042-1. 
  4. ^ http://www.tomandjerryonline.com/synopsis.cfm Similar opinions are expressed elsewhere, eg at http://www.animationshow.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=1766.

[edit] External links

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