Monday, June 12, 2006

SHODDY, POST-SURGERY ARTICLE #5


My Four Weeks as a Gag Man

Gagman is the most coveted job in the industry but jobs of that description are rarer than hen's teeth and tend not to last very long. A gagman isn't a story man, that's somebody else's responsibility. A gagman's job is to come up with visual jokes that can plug into a pre-existing story. In other words, you get paid to be funny all day. While the poor story people labor over how to stage nine emotionally complicated characters in a scene the gagman draws two people who hate each other but have to wear the same pair of pants. Nice job if you can get it!



Once I almost got a gag job working with a famous gagman of the past, who'll remain nameless here for a reason that'll become obvious. My producer/benefactor knocked on the famous man's door and introduced me as...well, it was very flattering,...and ended with, "You two probably have a lot to talk about! I'm going to leave you two lovable nuts together so you can get to know each other!" And then, mischievously on the way out: "Now don't laugh too loud now!"

Up till now the famous man was beaming with the friendliest smile I'd ever seen but the moment the door closed he raced up to me with clenched fists (OK, I added the fists) and leaned into me with a grimace that was unmistakable. It said wordlessly: "Look buddy, There's only room for one lovable nut here and I'm it! Now beat it!" I was shocked into stammering! Eventually the benefactor came back and hugged us both and said he wished he could have been a fly on the wall so he could have heard the jokes the two of us must have come up with. The famous man beamed a sunny smile and an hour later I ended up on the street, unemployed.

I tell you this so you'll have some idea how difficult it is to get lovable nut jobs. Even lovable nuts don't want to see other lovable nuts.

The time I actually got paid for it only lasted for four weeks but it was a dream. There I was at the same studio that pioneered the concept of gagmen for animation and... Sigh! It looks like I used up my available space with the digression about the famous man. I'll pick up this story later!

Oh, yes! The drawings above are rejected fragments I did from the paid gagman gig.

36 comments:

antikewl said...

HEY EDDIE!

Was the article you posted and lost called: WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF YOU WON THE LOTTERY?

If so, my Google Reader has managed to grab it. Let me know if you want me to send you a copy!

Trevor.

Eddie Fitzgerald said...

Wow! Thanks, Trevor! I definitely would like a copy of that! Can you send it to chezsandwich@aol.com? Thanks much!

Eddie

Gabriel said...

Bloglines had grabbet it too, but I marked it as read and then it was lost forever! When Ed said he had deleted it I tried to get it back, with no success.
Good move, Trevor!

Ryan G. said...

I like that disney drawing above. It has a sort of Plymptonesque quality to it.. or maybe Plympton has a Fitzgerldesque quality to his..

kp said...

The way you described "the famous guy"'s demonstration of territorialism makes me think of something out of a nature documentary for some reason. "He lunges forth at the newcomer, teeth bared in aggression.This...could...be...it, folks!"
Probably anything in the business world could be documentary-worthy with it's "every-man-for-himself" mentality. It's a whole other jungle out there!
I love the leg-stilts Donald is wearing. And those signals from the cardplayers--hialrious! Reminds me of the crazy baseball signals players give each other. Was that particular idea any inspiration to the gag?

Thad said...

That drawing of Donald and Pete is beautiful! Grabbed my attention the second I looked at it!

- Thad

Shawn Dickinson said...

Watta bastard!! And I'm sure you're a better gag man than the famous guy! No doubt you can draw better too. Those are great!

Wanna come be a gag man for me and my comics? But I can only pay you with buffalo wings and beer.

antikewl said...

What a great job! ... I'd love to know the story behind the Donald gag.

Randi Gordon said...

Aww, come on, who is the famous guy? Tell us tell us tell us tell us tell us tell us PLEEEEEEZE. A hint, maybe. A teensy little hint that only WE (we the E-Fitz gang, that is) will figure out because we are so smart.

Is he dead? Cause if he's dead, then what are you waiting for??

Anonymous said...

Donald looks hot! Kind of!

I would have kicked the guy in his lovable nuts! OH man, that was so good!

The weirdest story I ever heard about a gagman was Clyde Bruckman. Do you know of the man, and the mystery??

Eddie Fitzgerald said...

Kali: Clyde Bruckman!? Who's that?

Eddie

Anonymous said...

Why Eddie, SHAME ON YOU! He was one of the best gagmen for Buster, Harold, 3 Stooges, and even Stan and Laurel! Such an amazing man you would say, but to think how it all ended..........

do you want to know???????

Eddie Fitzgerald said...

Kali: Grrrrr! I have to type my stupid passwords in everytime I reply! Tell me what you've got woman!

Eddie

Anonymous said...

Oh I am sorry! I wouldn't have tortured you if I had known, maybe.

Well in 1955, times had been hard on him and his career. Clyde left his family telling his wife he was going on a trip. He instead went to Buster's and asked to borrow a gun for his trip, Buster obliged without thinking anything of it. Clyde then went to (supposedly a diner- or a phone booth) and shot himself in the head. He left a note that said to his wife, he didn't want to make a mess at home. Isn't that SAD?!!

Trevour said...

Eddie, what was this for? I can only think it was maybe for those shorts they played during 'House of Mouse.' Then again I'm not a human Disneypedia so I wouldn't know for sure.

Eddie Fitzgerald said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Anonymous said...

Wow! I cna't believe he blew his brains out! How ironic that someone who's job it is to bring ohters joy and lughter would meet an end like that.

Eddie, who was the famous guy?

Anonymous said...

It was for the Mickey Mouse "Three Musketeers" direct to video movie.

Eddie Fitzgerald said...

Kali: I had to delete my own comment on Bruckman's death because it was so dark and didn't convey what I really thought. I'm still glad that you brought it up because it gave me an idea for an interesting post, maybe sometime over the weekend. Thanks!

Trevour, Jorge: Nope! My lips are sealed!

Trevour said...

It was for the Mickey Mouse "Three Musketeers" direct to video movie.

Never saw this! Probably won't get around to it for a while. Unless Eddie gags made it and are everywhere in the picture? =)

Eddie Fitzgerald said...

Trevour: sad to say, none of my drawings or gags made the final cut but i still had a lot of fun!

Eddie

Trevour said...

Oh, well in that case...

WHAT'S THE POINT OF WATCHING IT THEN?!?

Anyway, glad you made $$$ from a super fun job. Those are always the best!

Anonymous said...

I think I know who the "famous man" is. The way he says words just somehow makes this one image of him pop out at me.

Mabey I'm wrong. But by god Eddie, will you ever tell us you big tease!

till next time,
Drew

JohnK said...

Corny Cole?

Eddie Fitzgerald said...

John: Not telling! My lips are sealed!

Anonymous said...

Eddie, it's heartbreaking to hear the Corny Cole blew his brains out after working with you

Stephen Worth said...

I'm going to pretend it was Roy Williams. It makes a for a great mental image.

See ya
Steve

Anonymous said...

hey check out this blog evryone, its got cartoons!

www.thecartooncinema.blogspot.com

Eddie Fitzgerald said...

Wow! Nice site, Anonymous! I can't wait to look at some of those cartoons!

Eddie

Gavin Freitas said...

Love the drawings Eddie!! Katie Rice is awesome and a sweet person. The drawings match her. Also I loved your commentaries with John on the Looney Tunes stuff. Keep it up, Ill keep checking this blogg out....

Anonymous said...

I'm glad I inspired you!

Have you seen any of the stuff he's worked on? That's why a lot of Buster's talkies were not so good- Clyde wasn't on board!

Anonymous said...

Frank Churchill, the composer who wrote "Whistle While You Work" for Disney's "Snow White" also blew his brains out. So did the guy at the Indianapolis 500 who for years announced "Gentlemen, start your engines!" Coincidence? I think not.

Anonymous said...

Okay, I think we can now retire the Dead End Kids' "blew his brains out" phraseology, wouldn't you say? It's an ugly and sophomoric way to describe someone ending their lives. Still, that sort of slanginess is funny to guys who have no experience with violent death...or maybe even those who do. whatever.
btw only KALI, who brought it up, expressed herself gracefully. Thanks. : )

Now returning you to your regular silliness...

Randi Gordon said...

It's Soupy Sales, isn't it? You can tell me.

Matthew Cruickshank said...

Absolutely superb drawing of Donald Eddie!!!!

I'm going to chop off your drawing hand, smoothly scrape out the insides, put it in my hallway and keep my umbrellas in it.

warren said...

What the hell happened over here? Holy Pagliacci Syndrome.