Mar 13, 2013

Rediscovering Walt Kelly's Lost Short Story "Pogo"

If you want to do the right thing, you have to do it yourself.

Walt Kelly had a disappointing experience when he and Chuck Jones made "Pogo Special Birthday Special" (1969).

"How did you okay Chuck's 'Pogo' story ......?" Ward Kimball asked Walt Kelly shortly after the special aired on television. ' asked Walt Kelly. ' Kelly exclaimed. 'That son of a bitch rewrote it after our last meeting. He put in something sweet and sweet that Chuck Jones always thought was Disney. Kimball, who was dining with Kelly at Musso & Frank Grill in Hollywood, pressed further. 'Who gave you permission to humanize the skunk girl? Kelly was too angry to answer. His face turned red and he turned to the waiter, "Bring me another bottle of bourbon!" He yelled. In Kimball's words, Kelly wanted to "kill Chuck, if not sue him."

Shortly after this debacle, Walt Kelly took matters into his own hands and decided to personally animate the popular Pogo character. Working with his wife, Selby Daley, he planned to produce a full 30-minute animation for television, in which the characters expressed their strong stance on environmental protection. However, due to ill health, he was only able to complete 13 minutes of the following "We Have Met the Enemy" and "He Is Us."

The completed portion is truly charming and beautifully done. Like his character P.T. Bridgeport, Kelly is a true showman here. Even though he hasn't animated in 30 years since Dumbo, his animation skills are top-notch. While the animation is a bit choppy at times (mostly on key, with some breakdowns that have no in-between), his drawings are solid and engaging, with flowing animation throughout.

The colors, though muddy in the existing prints, are also as vibrant as his Sunday pages, and the backgrounds are as detailed, if not more so, than his splash panels. And Kelly's own humorous voice fits the tone and mood of the characters.

Other than Winsor McCay, I can think of no other mainstream comic artist who has so painstakingly animated comics. Many comic strips have been adapted to film and television before and since, but none have matched or surpassed the charm and quality of the original artist's work. Here, the animator and creator are one and the picture is pure, unfiltered and straight from the artist's hand.