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Abe Levitow

Abe Levitow
imdb

Birthday: (52) 1922-07-02 - Deathday: 1975-05-08

Birthplace: Los Angeles, California, USA

Also known as: Abraham Levitow,

Bio:

Abraham Levitow (July 2, 1922 – May 8, 1975) was an American animator who worked at Warner Bros. Cartoons, UPA and MGM Animation/Visual Arts. He is best known for his work under Chuck Jones' direction. Levitow began working as an in-betweener and assistant animator at Warner Bros. Cartoons in 1940 at the age of 17. He briefly left Warner Bros. when he was drafted during World War II working on training films. Levitow returned to the studio, working as an assistant animator for Ken Harris under the Chuck Jones unit, and he was later promoted to animator in 1950 and would receive his first animations credit in 1953 for the cartoon Wild Over You. He worked steadily for Jones over the remainder of the 1950s, and directed several cartoons for release in 1959, including the Pepé Le Pew cartoon "Really Scent". While working under Jones, he made characters' joints more angular than most other animators. Those characters with fur (Wile E. Coyote, for example) looked especially shaggy in Levitow's scenes. Levitow joined UPA in 1958 to work on the Mr. Magoo feature 1001 Arabian Nights, staying behind even after the studio was sold to Henry G. Saperstein. In 1962, he directed the first feature-length animated television special, Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol. 1962 also saw the release of his theatrical feature Gay Purr-ee. By 1962, he was working with Jones at MGM as an animator and a director in the Tom and Jerry series. He co-directed the feature film The Phantom Tollbooth with Chuck Jones at MGM. In addition, he worked with UPA on more Mr. Magoo cartoons, including The Famous Adventures of Mr. Magoo, and also collaborated with Chuck again on the program Curiosity Shop through Format Films. He animated on the Chuck Jones-produced A Christmas Carol, directed by Richard Williams at Williams' London studio in 1971. In 1972, he and producer Dave Hanson founded Levitow/Hanson Films. The studio produced several animated pieces for Sesame Street, the most notable being Willie Wimple. His last completed project was B.C.: The First Thanksgiving, which aired in November of 1973. At the time of his death, Levitow was in line to direct the animated feature film Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure. The project was taken over by Richard Williams when Levitow died from a bone tumor during pre-production at the age of 52. [biography (excerpted) from Wikipedia]

Other:

Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume One
One Froggy Evening
Scaredy Cat
What's Opera, Doc?
Claws for Alarm
A Christmas Carol
Whoa, Be-Gone!
Sheep Ahoy
Ready.. Set.. Zoom!
Guided Muscle
Scrambled Aches
Double or Mutton
Wild About Hurry
Steal Wool
Hare-Way to the Stars
Deduce, You Say
Really Scent
Robin Hood Daffy
The Phantom Tollbooth
Broom-Stick Bunny
Stop! Look! and Hasten!
The Phantom Tollbooth
Beanstalk Bunny
Feline Frame-Up
Baton Bunny
Zoom and Bored
Rocket-bye Baby
Gee Whiz-z-z-z-z-z-z
Baby Buggy Bunny
Gay Purr-ee
There They Go-Go-Go!
O-Solar-Meow
Bugs Bunny's Lunar Tunes
Two Scent's Worth
Forward March Hare
Mister Magoo's Christmas Carol
Guided Mouse-Ille
Lickety-Splat
The Mouse from H.U.N.G.E.R.
Nelly's Folly
Cat Feud
Daffy Duck's Thanks-for-Giving Special
A Witch's Tangled Hare
Unnatural History
It's Everybody's Business
Jerry-Go-Round
Boyhood Daze
Catty-Cornered
Martian Through Georgia
Rock 'n' Rodent
B.C.: The First Thanksgiving
B.C.: The First Thanksgiving
1001 Arabian Nights
Puss 'n' Boats
Filet Meow
Surf-Bored Cat
The A-Tom-inable Snowman
90 Day Wondering
A Hitch in Time
Barbecue for Two
Inside Magoo
Magoo Meets Frankenstein
Magoo Meets Boing Boing (The Noise-Making Boy)
Bugs Bunny at the Symphony
The Wizard of Id
Mr. Magoo, Man of Mystery
Uncle Sam Magoo

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