Michael Sporn Animation – Splog

- The great thing about the holidays is that there are a number of parties where you can catch up to and meet with some people you haven’t seen in a while. I had a great time at George Griffin and Karen Cooper‘s New Year’s day gathering. Some of my oldest and dearest animation friends were there.

It was fun catching up with John Canemaker, Emily Hubley, Bill Plympton, Signe Bauman, Debra Solomon, Lisa Crafts, Nina Paley and George, himself. It was a total surprise meeting up with Veronika Soul again. It may have been 15 years or so since we last saw each other. She’s a fantastic artist whose work always gave me a charge. Now that she’s back in NY and I have her contact information, hopefully we’ll see more of each other.

It was also great visiting with John Schnall. He’s one of my favorite people in animation, and we rarely see each other except for the occasional party.

I don’t generally like posting YouTube pieces; I’d rather direct you to their pages. After seeing John Schnall, he followed up with his YouTube link, and I checked it out.
His pieces had me laughing aloud, and I have to share them with you.

John’s been making animation for quite a while. We worked together back in 1987 when he supervised the production of Lyle Lyle Crocodile for me. If I remember correctly he did his first commercial bit of animation on that film when the family decorates their home for the return of Lyle. Anyway, that’s one of the things I was thinking about while watching that movie at the MOMA screening. (I suppose this is what most people do while watching their own films; remember what was going on when the film was being made.)

The piece below, is an hilarious mix of George Bush and another YouTube hit. For me the joke was completely unexpected and well done. There are a dozen pieces on John’s YouTube site; they’re all well done and funny. Take a look. They give Jib Jab a jab by actually saying something.

(Click image to go to John’s YouTube page.)

- Today’s the day the Iowa voters perform their curious voting rituals. I’ll be all eyes and ears tonight. I’m not sure any one President will be able to undo the horrific work this last guy and his team have done. Certainly, the crop electioneering don’t fill me with confidence. Ms. Clinton, for one, is unable to adequately answer any ONE question she’s asked. Consequently, I see her as just an extension of what we’ve already got. A mouth full of non-sequitors and gobbledygook for answers. The only aim they have seems to have little to do with me. Edwards has continuously spoken up for the poor and disenfranchised. Since they’re not the ones who would put him in office, I’m not expecting him to win. Obama looks attractive to me though a bit languid on the campaign trail. Where’s Al Gore when you need him? As for the Republicans, when Romney is leading the way and Huckabee is his big challenge, they have problems.

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