Sunday, February 12, 2006
Interview With Cartoon Wars Released Prisoner: Oswald
The great news for me this week is that Oswald the Not-So-Lucky Rabbit has been released after 78 years of imprisonment. Mister Lucky-Rabbit, a first cousin of the world famous Mickey Mouse, was reached by this reporter today at his temporary burrow under the Disney Magic Hat Building.
LL: Mister Lucky-Rabbit, do you mind if I call you Oswald?
OL-R: No, not at all. That is my name.
LL: It must be very strange to be free after all these years? What was captivity like?
OL-R: It was not good Larry. For the last 50 years they had me locked in a dark, airless, vault. I was being guarded by out of work Universal Monsters. The Invisible Man was the worst. He has a real inferiority complex. Thinks he`s always being overlooked. Talk about your Geneva Convention violations.
LL: You lost your freedom in December 1927 in a hostel takeover engineered by Charles Mintz. What was that like?
OL-R: It wasn`t too bad at first. I was still working with the same support staff minus Ub. I missed Ub a lot. Still Rudy (Ising) and Hugh (Harman) and Friz (Freleng) were always good to work with but I couldn`t get along with George Winkler at all. The guy was a suit, a professional relative. He didn`t know the first thing about running a studio. I kept trying to tell him that the secret is Story. But he wouldn`t listen. Rudy tried to tell him too, but no, George won`t listen to the professionals. We had to do it his way. Feed his ego. He fired Rudy as a Christmas present in 1928 and most of the studio walked out. Next thing I knew I was working for Laemmle`s poker buddy.
LL: That was Walter Lantz. How was he to work for?
OL-R: Walter was a great guy. Now there was a guy who was really lucky. Started out as an auto mechanic until a customer liked his drawings and got him a job at the newspaper. We use to go bar hopping after work. But he pretty much had to do what Laemmle said in those days and the next thing I knew I was wearing body makeup and trying to pass as white and playing second fiddle to my own dog.
LL: That just about killed your career and they locked you away. What did you miss the most?
OL-R: I thought I could have done some good work during World War Two. Bond drives and the like or going up against the enemy in the Pacific like my kid sister`s first husband, Bugs.
LL: So you were related to Bugs Bunny?
OL-R: Only by marriage and that didn`t last long. Bugs kept wearing her dresses and makeup. But he was a good guy even if he was a little strange. Never forgot my birthday or Christmas.
LL: So what is in the future for the Lucky Rabbit?
OL-R: Well, I`m reading scripts. I would love to work with my cousin, Mickey. And I hope to get lucky.
LL: Thanks Oswald, I`m sure you will! ¶ 9:19 AM
The great news for me this week is that Oswald the Not-So-Lucky Rabbit has been released after 78 years of imprisonment. Mister Lucky-Rabbit, a first cousin of the world famous Mickey Mouse, was reached by this reporter today at his temporary burrow under the Disney Magic Hat Building.
LL: Mister Lucky-Rabbit, do you mind if I call you Oswald?
OL-R: No, not at all. That is my name.
LL: It must be very strange to be free after all these years? What was captivity like?
OL-R: It was not good Larry. For the last 50 years they had me locked in a dark, airless, vault. I was being guarded by out of work Universal Monsters. The Invisible Man was the worst. He has a real inferiority complex. Thinks he`s always being overlooked. Talk about your Geneva Convention violations.
LL: You lost your freedom in December 1927 in a hostel takeover engineered by Charles Mintz. What was that like?
OL-R: It wasn`t too bad at first. I was still working with the same support staff minus Ub. I missed Ub a lot. Still Rudy (Ising) and Hugh (Harman) and Friz (Freleng) were always good to work with but I couldn`t get along with George Winkler at all. The guy was a suit, a professional relative. He didn`t know the first thing about running a studio. I kept trying to tell him that the secret is Story. But he wouldn`t listen. Rudy tried to tell him too, but no, George won`t listen to the professionals. We had to do it his way. Feed his ego. He fired Rudy as a Christmas present in 1928 and most of the studio walked out. Next thing I knew I was working for Laemmle`s poker buddy.
LL: That was Walter Lantz. How was he to work for?
OL-R: Walter was a great guy. Now there was a guy who was really lucky. Started out as an auto mechanic until a customer liked his drawings and got him a job at the newspaper. We use to go bar hopping after work. But he pretty much had to do what Laemmle said in those days and the next thing I knew I was wearing body makeup and trying to pass as white and playing second fiddle to my own dog.
LL: That just about killed your career and they locked you away. What did you miss the most?
OL-R: I thought I could have done some good work during World War Two. Bond drives and the like or going up against the enemy in the Pacific like my kid sister`s first husband, Bugs.
LL: So you were related to Bugs Bunny?
OL-R: Only by marriage and that didn`t last long. Bugs kept wearing her dresses and makeup. But he was a good guy even if he was a little strange. Never forgot my birthday or Christmas.
LL: So what is in the future for the Lucky Rabbit?
OL-R: Well, I`m reading scripts. I would love to work with my cousin, Mickey. And I hope to get lucky.
LL: Thanks Oswald, I`m sure you will! ¶ 9:19 AM
