Howard Beckerman 1930 - 2024

 

Howard Beckerman, beloved animator, teacher, author, historian and fellow Berndt Toast Gang member, passed away on Saturday. He was 93. His daughter, Sheri Beckerman Weisz, wrote "It is with great sadness to report that my father, Howard Beckerman passed away early this morning.”

 

Animation Magazine: 

Beckerman began his career in animation in 1949,  right after graduating from high school when Paul Terry hired him to join his famous studio Terrytoons. As he wrote in his biography, “It was a golden age of comics and animation, and I decided to do both. One day by taxi, subway and trolley, I left Flatbush for Terrytoons to work on Mighty Mouse and Heckle and Jeckle cartoons, and soon I was drawing Popeye and Casper the Friendly Ghost at Paramount’s Famous studios.”

After serving in the Korean War, Beckerman return to create create TV spots for UPA and numerous New York animation studios. In 1970, he launched the Beckerman studio with my wife Iris, where they created commercials and sponsored films. “They brought smiles to audiences, and our independent films brought awards,” he wrote.  “I traveled the globe as VP of International Association of film animators. Soon, I began teaching as a favor and I’m still at it after many years at Parsons School of Design and School of Visual Arts — all grist for writing my book Animation: The Whole Story for all those who are excited about animation.”

In the 1960s, Beckerman worked on animated shorts such as The Trip, The Plumber, Forget-Me-Nots. In the 1980s, his credits include Boop Beep (1984) and Doug TV series (1981). He also produced animated segments for Sesame Street.

 

Jerry Beck:

 

Animator/educator/historian Howard Beckerman passed away (perhaps symbolically, this past Saturday Morning). I met Howard back in my SVA and Asifa-East days in the early 1970s. He was always open and free to speak – recounting his personal experiences at the studios (50s Famous, UPA, 60s Paramount, etc.). His stories gave me insight and perspective on animation history I wouldn’t have gotten anywhere else.

Howard has only passed on – his memory will live forever; his films will continue to entertain; his influence on a younger generation will inspire for decades to come. Howard was beloved by the community.

There was such an outpouring of love by everyone who knew him, or took his classes, or read his articles, on Facebook and other social media, I wasn’t sure what to post today in tribute. Don Yowp posted this nice tribute on his Tralfaz blog.

How to remember Howard? It’s too soon for me to wrap my head around that. I asked our Devon Baxter if I could repost his audio commentary with Howard, over Howard’s brilliant little Paramount cartoon, The Trip (1966). Devon also sent a selection of Howard’s hilarious print cartoons from Top Cel. I can’t think of anything that sums it up better. I included a few other Paramount cartoons to this post which Howard contributed story and design. We will all miss him.

A Beckerman cartoon from the New York Union newsletter, TOP CEL.

 

Howard was one of the members of a panel I moderated back in 2006.  From left, standing: Howard Beckerman, Sandy Kossin, Mike Lynch, Stan Goldberg; sitting: Mort Drucker and Rina Piccolo.

Howard was always just the nicest fellow and terribly unassuming. I remember the panel and some of the comments these pros made. It was a good “state of the cartooning art” talk at the Great Neck Arts Center. I asked, “What’s the impact of the internet?” This was the time when a 56k modem was considered pretty darn fast. Howard correctly predicted, “Pretty soon, you're going to be able to watch cartoons on anything, anywhere, any time" He thought for a second, then his eyes twinkled, and added, "On your shoe."

 

Adrian Sinnott:

The Berndt Toast Gang and I are so sorry to hear of the passing of the wonderful, talented, kind and generous, Howard Beckerman.

Howard has been an inspiration to me, all the BTG and, of course, thousands of animators, cartoonists and students.

Howard’s book, “Animation, The Whole Story,” will continue to inspire generations of animators.

I shall miss seeing that wonderful, beaming smile, listening to his wonderful stories and learning from his vast experience.

“May his memory last an eternity”

 

Jerry Beck's post above has links to many images and cartoons. Here's The Trip. Jerry Beck again:

The mid 1960s at Paramount was a little paradise for several animator/designers working under Shamus Culhane. Culhane, Gil Miret and Howard Beckerman had free rein to create shorts (albeit on a low budget). Here is one of his best – with an audio commentary by myself and Howard. 

 

 

More:

Daily Cartoonist

The Geezer Show

 Cartoon Research: Celebrating Howard Beckerman 

Via Cartoons on Film:

 

This video features legendary animation veteran and educator Howard Beckerman (1930-2024). Recorded by longtime friend and teaching successor Tommy José Stathes in May of 2019, the presentation was initially meant as parting words for Howard's animation history students, when a series of health problems forced him to retire mid-semester from the School of Visual Arts in NYC. Howard's message contains lasting wisdom for artists and creatives, and his insights on the importance of kindness, personal relationships, and community are now a fitting tribute to a true gentleman on the occasion of his recent passing. Rest well, Howard Beckerman. All who've ever known you already miss you terribly.

 

Remembering Those Who Passed

The National Cartoonist Society Reuben Awards convention is next month. The big event is the annual Reuben Awards night. There's some speeches and awards, and then there's always an "In Remembrance" PowerPoint presentation of those in the cartooning community that we lost in the past twelve months. Every year, it's a brutal list. So many I knew well are on the list this year, and so much talent. Here's a list of names and images of the great talent that left us since last summer.  Let me know if I missed someone. This is in rough chronological order starting last summer to the present day.

Paul Coker, Jr. 

 

Sid Jacobson

Raymond Briggs

Jean-Jacques Sempé

Sho Murase

Tom Palmer

Lily Renée

Diane Noomin 

 

George Booth

John Lotshaw 

 

Aline Kominsky-Crumb 

 

 

Don Orehek

Lee Lorenz

Dan Rosandich 

Chris Browne 

 

Istvan Banyai 

 

Wally (Trog) Fawkes 

 

Ian Falconer

 

Bill Tidy

Joe Giella 

 

Al Jaffee

Ed Koren

 

Maurice Horn

Ted Richards 

 

Sandy Kossin 

 

Paul Giambarba 

 

Sam Gross 

 

John Romita, Sr.

Sandy Kossin 1926 - 2023

 

Sanford "Sandy" Kossin has passed away. 

 

Via AskArt:

Born in Los Angeles, California, Sanford Kossin was an illustrator who worked in New York City. His assignments included science fiction and children's magazines, book covers, and the Bay of Pigs invasion for Life magazine. He was a life member of the Society of Illustrators, with whom he also exhibited.

A favorite subject for him was humor, which he expressed in work for Boys' Life, Reader's Digest and more than a dozen children's books.

He studied in Los Angeles at the Jepson Art Institute with Rico Lebrun and Herbert Jepson and was a part-time drawing teacher for ten years at the Parsons School of Design and also taught for two years at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn.

 

Sandy was a friend and fellow Berndt Toast Gang member. Many times, we lunched at the same table with the Gang, talking about drawing. He introduced me to Pigma Micron pens, showing me how permanent the ink was by drawing a line with one on a piece of paper and then wetting his finger and dragging it over. "See? No smudge."

He also told me the key to getting color down: limit your palette. A couple colors, vary your hues, and that's it. That's the key to getting color work done fast. And, under the pen and brush of Sandy Kossin, ALWAYS looking good. 

 

His 93rd birthday cake, with tiny covers of books and magazines he's produced. Hat tip to Roberta Fabiano for this and other photos. 

Berndt Toast Gang chair Adrian Sinnott:

Another incredible talent and good friend gone. Sandy Kossin, proud Berndt Toast Gang, National Cartoonists Society and Society of Illustrators Hall of fame member has passed. Here's his bio from the BTG 50th anniversary show in 2016:

 

"Sandy Kossin has illustrated countless paperback covers and posters, notably The Shadow, The Last Temptation of Christ and Beckett and the Train. Building images with line became the hallmark of any Sandy Kossin painting. Starting with his roots in West Los Angeles near MGM Studios, Kossin eventually moved to New York City following his service in World War II. As his drawing skills improved, he managed to get his work in front of the right people– those who encouraged his desire to incorporate better concepts through better drawing. Each endeavor gave him more information for the next piece, while consistently maintaining the strength of his drawing. He was inducted into the Society of Illustrators’ prestigious Hall of Fame in 2012"

 

LIFE magazine was known for the photographs that graced its pages but when they needed art to go along with their article on the "Bay of Pigs," they called Sandy. 

 

Sandy really loved the humorous work he did. Children's books, movie posters and even work for MAD magazine. Lots of his work is visible on the apparently, and sadly, dormant blog of Leif Peng:

http://todaysinspiration.blogspot.com/.../Sandy%20Kossin

 

And a bit from me: When I was working as a graphic designer in Manhattan some paperbacks were delivered to us for use in a catalog. I took one look and saved those covers. I thought to myself, “I wish I could draw like that!” Of course, the art was Sandy’s. It was from the Alvin Fernald series of kids books. He was a tremendous influence and it was a wonderful twist of fate to get to know him and become friends.

 

 

Via Muddy Colors:

Sanford “Sandy” Kossin is one of the best. You may not remember him as he stopped working professionally some years back, preferring instead to draw from the live model to keep his formidable drawing skills sharp. Selfishly, I never agreed with that. I wanted more and more from him. I wanted to keep running into his work on paperback covers or Boy’s Life, like I had as a kid.

Sandy hit his stride through the 60’s and 70’s, working for major corporations, major magazines, major movies, and about every major project that appeared over those years. He was hot and in high demand.

 

 

 

 

I was fortunate to have lunch with Drew Friedman, Victor Juhasz and Sandy at the Society of Illustrators some years ago. It was Drew's idea, and a terrific time was had. After lunch, we wandered the galleries and Sandy was talking about the techniques that the illustrators used and what did I think of them? He always loved illustration and was one of the best himself.

Sandy's work was prolific and I knew it well before I met him. Here are just a few more samples. 

I will miss him asking, "How are you, m'lad?" -- which was his form of address with me. Years later, when I told him about that limited palette tip that he gave me had saved me many hours when putting together a color finish, he laughed and said he had no recollection. It was a pleasure to know this talented gentleman, and to call him friend.

Don Orehek 1928-2022

I got the email late last night that Don had passed. He had been in hospice these past months, just a few miles away from his home and Suzy, his wife, who visited every day. The email was from Adrian Sinnott, chair of the Berndt Toast Gang.

"Very sad news indeed. I just heard from Suzy that Don passed away this morning. 

"Don was an incorrigible cartoonist. He was incredibly prolific with thousands of gag cartoons working their way from his pen to the pages of all the major magazines. He was also a lightning quick and amazingly talented caricaturist.

"Wherever Don was there were sure to be smiling faces and occasionally blushing ones. 

"His work spanned a special time in this industry that we will not see the likes of again. We were very lucky to have Don share that with the Berndt Toast Gang!"

Don was a vital part of the Gang for many years, until they moved to Washington state to be closer to their daughter. Adrian described Don as “incorrigible,” and I smiled.

 

When I first met him in person, back at a Berndt Toast luncheon, he said, "I'm Don Orehek." And a visual of his signature popped in my head.

 

 

(From a book collection of Cracked Magazine's "Shut Ups" feature from Suzy Orehek's blog about Don.) 

He was born August 9, 1928 in Brooklyn, to a Slovenian family. His dad was a musician with a local Slovenian band, as well as a bootlegger. When Don was as young as three years old, he was taking a bucket of hooch across the street to Orehek clients. He was sent to a Catholic elementary school, and hated it. He was not a good student, always doodling, not paying attention. He got a lot of whacks on the knuckles and couldn't wait to get out of there. He then attended the High School of Industrial Arts.

After graduation, he served in the U.S. Naval Reserves from 1945-49. He created an old crotchety navy veteran cartoon character named "Cyphers" for the base newspaper. Returning to New York, he took classes at the School of Visual Arts. By 1952, upon graduation, he was freelancing full-time. 

 

 

(Detail drawing of "Old Cyphers," his 1940s US Navy cartoon character, drawn in 2008. More here.)

 

From The Daily Cartoonist:

 

"He would contribute gag cartoons to a long list of magazines: The Saturday Evening Post, 100 Jokes Magazine, Look, Good Housekeeping, Playboy, McCall’s, Humorama, Christian Science Monitor, Modern Maturity, Family Circle, Cavalier, True Adventure, Broadway Laughs, Saturday Review, Reader’s Digest, and more."

 

From the National Cartoonists Society:

 

"In 1966 Don married Suzanne Whitney originally from Iowa and raised in Washington, DC. They have two children: Errol and Holly and three grandchildren: Emma, Owen and Haley.

"Don has received the National Cartoonists Society’s annual “Best Magazine Cartoonist” award four times. Twice he received awards at the Pavilion of Humor, Man and His World Exhibition, Montreal. His interest in caricatures was solidified in 1966 with a trip to Vietnam under the auspices of the National Cartoonists Society and the U.S. Department of Defense. Shortly after returning, Don and fellow cartoonists were invited to the White House to be personally thanked by President Lyndon Johnson for entertaining American and Vietnamese troops.

"Don’s career, the likes of which no longer exists, encompassed an amazing number of “markets.” His wife created a blog to determine how many different places where his work has appeared over the years. Hundreds! Check out his blog to see"

 

He lived in NYC in the 1950s and 60s. I remember he told me had a car in the city. A good looking car, but not reliable. Sure enough, one time the engine overheated and Don opened the hood. Steam is pouring out. This was in a not-so-nice part of The Village. Some dubious looking fellow walks over, asks what the problem is. The car needs water, Don says. Dubious guy smiles and says, "I'll be right back." He runs over to an apartment building and then a minute later comes running out, carrying a steaming bucket of dirty water. "What is this?" asks Don. The guy says, "I took outta this bum's bath. He don't mind." With that, water was poured in. Don turned the key and the engine came back on -- the dirty bum water worked. I have no idea what the poor bum's reaction was to the guy dipping into his hot bath water to help Don out -- but it's a favorite story. "Ahh, only in New York, kids. Only in New York," to quote Cindy Adams. And ... when I have car problems, I think that if only I had a bucket of hot Bum Water to pour into the radiator, the car would revive.

He began really plying his trade of gag cartooning at all of the major magazines in the late 1950s. He wrote some of the gags himself and also used gag writers. Gag writers are great and can help a gag cartoonist's productivity level for sure.

I know that one of Don Orehek's gag writers was a prison inmate and one time Don used the guy's inmate number on a prisoner gag cartoon -- and the inmate gag writer guy got very angry when he saw it in print. "No one can use my number! It's MY number!" he told Don.

 

And he never sent any more gags to Don.

 

 

We had more than a few dinners at their home in Long Island. After a couple of schnappes, he would get out his hat collection and we would all wear different hats and someone would take photos. I spent time with him in his studio. Don was a cartoonist for Playboy and Cracked magazines, as well as a variety of Scholastic joke books, gag cartoon magazines and other markets. We would sift thorugh his originals and stacks of books like Lawrence Larier's Best Cartoons of the Year books. His color art was vital and he showed me “the dots;” those watercolor sets you get in the dime store for a couple of bucks. He got such amazing effects out of those. 

 

He told me that, back in the day, if you did the Wednesday rounds -- where all of the cartoonists would go from magazine office to magazine office, showing the cartoon editor their batches, you could -- if you got to the offices early enough -- grab a free donut. After the rounds were done, most of the cartoonists would meet at the Pen and Pencil restaurant for lunch and drinks.

In the early years, Don also sold original paintings on the street in Greenwich Village. Years later, when he and Suzy moved from the Village to Long Island, and Don was going to the Long Island Berndt Toast Gang lunches, one of the BTG members came up to him and introduced himself. It was John Reiner who was, then, assisting Mort Drucker and then, later, would be drawing (and still is drawing) King Features' syndicated cartoon panel The Lockhorns. Don told me that John says to him that they met years before. And he told Don about the one time in the 60s when he bought one of his paintings off the street from him in Greenwich Village. Small world!

 

(This cartoon of Don's appeared in the November 20, 1971 issue of Saturday Review.)

I was a kid in the 60s and 70s and knew Don's work from the Mad Magazine rival Cracked Magazine, where he did a lot of work. His vital cartoons, full of life and mischievousness, were always great to pore over. Lots of things to see in an Orehek cartoon. If you were lucky, you might see a self-caricature of Don or a drawing of a cat. 

 

Don and his wife loved cats. For many years, he had a black cat and one time a very superstitious guest was at their house. "Oh, black cats are bad luck," the appalled guest said. "He's not all black," observed Don. "His asshole is pink." The guest was now even more appalled, but I laughed when Don told the story. 

 (Above: a St, Patrick's original that he sent in the mail as a surprise, signed "Donnie O'Rehek.) 

 

Don really was a drawing machine. I remember one time, we were talking on the phone. He mentioned a cat calendar. We were both under deadline for the same calendar that Sam Gross was then editing for Barnes & Noble. After maybe 15 minutes of telling stories, I said I had to go and draw some more cat cartoons -- and Don informed me (with a loud laugh) that he was drawing HIS cartoons the whole time while we were talking!

That's how ya get ahead in this business!

And that's how you win four (1972, 1982, 1984, 1985) NCS Gag Cartoon awards!
 

OK. Another story. There's another time we were talking on the phone and (as usual) we talked and talked about gag cartooning and what the markets were like, etc. Finally, I had to go and get back to the board and draw — so I told Don I had to go. Don said, “Oh. I’m drawing now.” I asked, what are you drawing? “Rears. Women’s rears.” What? “Women’s rears.”

 

 

(What I like about Don's work is how alive his cartoons are. There's a real joy of drawing there. I mean, look at the expressions on his people: the evil sneer of the guy, and the helpless look of the French cutie!)

Men's magazines were Don's bread and butter. By the 1960s, Don was a contract cartoonist with Playboy. When you’re a contract gag cartoonist, that means that the publication has first rights: they get to see your cartoons first and get the right of first refusal. Don was a longtime Playboy regular, with gag cartoons in most issues. I remember at one point, I had sent 200 cartoons in to Playboy, with no sales. Don advised me not to give up. He was always very supportive and generous. We were both part of a show of original art at The Illustration House, and he asked me to pick up his original when I was getting mine, which I did. When I called him to tell him I had it and I would bring it to the next Berndt Toast, he insisted I keep it.

(Above: Just look at those colors! And take in the details: the water, still choppy from her slicing through it, the husband's smoldering cigar, the other couple peeking into the hole, the woman's look of wide-eyed hope that this umpteenth stroke got the ball in. This was the original that was in a show at the Illustration House that he gifted to me.)

 

Don was fine at driving cars, but I remember one time we were driving from his place to Huntington. We had picked up illustrator Sandy Kossin and everyone was chatting as we drove east on Route 25 toward the Berndt Toast lunch. Don pulled out a stack of 20-30 gag cartoon originals. “Take a look,” he said, one hand on the steering wheel and the other handing me the stack. There was a theme: women’s wrestling. All of them were women’s wrestling gag cartoons, ink and wash on Bristol. Beautiful Orehek originals! And all of the women were topless. There was, he explained, some kind of fetish magazine that bought these back in the day and he just came across the originals. As he talked, the car slowed down a little. I was getting nervous. Every time he talked, the car slowed. And Long Islanders use Route 25 as a highway, basically. I was envisioning the cops pulling us over, and then seeing these crazy risque cartoons we were passing around. Thankfully, nothing happened.

In 2005, when I helped put together a big group of cartoonists to draw on the wall of The Overlook Lounge bar and restaurant, Don came prepared and drew a large, color cartoon of the wolf and the three pigs. Except the wolf is old, and toothless, and he's hanging with the Three Little Pigs, sitting at a table, playing cards.  The pigs are also old. And the wolf is saying, "Remember the time I blew your house down for the insurance?" A terrific gag cartoon, that originally appeared in Playboy. "You know who thought of that?" he asked me when he was drawing it. "It was Suzy. One morning, she came outta the shower and told me the cartoon. It just appeared to her in her head. It's a great gag." I waited until he was done and then drew my cartoon next to his. (Look for the tiny penguin with glasses in love with the bowling pin, whic is dinky and to the right of Don's grand tableau.) It is, so far as I know, still there on the wall for all posterity. 

Don is survived by his wife Suzanne, his two children and three grandchildren.