Mexican American Cartoonist Gus Arriola

Gus Arriola is not a household name in the way that Charles M. Schulz or Al Capp are, nor is his comic strip Gordo as famous as Peanuts or Li'l Abner, but Gus Arriola was a pioneer and his comic strip Gordo would have a lasting influence. Indeed, Gus Arriola was one of the first Mexican American cartoonists.

Gustavo Arriola was born on July 17 1917 in Florence, Arizona. His father had been born in Sonora, Mexico. Gus Arriola's mother died when he was a baby, and as a result he was raised by an old sister whose household only spoke Spanish. Gus Arriola was fascinated by Sunday newspaper comic strips, and he learned English by reading them. As a youngster he enjoyed such comic strips as Katzenjammer Kids, Krazy Kat, Boob McNutt, Polly and Her Pals, and so on. When he was older he discovered E.C. Segar's Thimble Theatre with Popeye and Olive Oyl, Roy Crane's Wash Tubbs, and Milton Caniff's Terry and the Pirates.

When he was eight years old, Gus Arriola's family moved to Los Angeles. There he attended Manual Arts High School in Los Angeles. After he graduated from high school he went to work for Charles Mintz, who was producing animated cartoons for Screen Gems. It was in 1939 that he went to work for MGM, where he was a character designer. He was also worked on the story for some cartoons, including "Puss Gets the Boot," the first "Tom and Jerry" cartoon. Among the animated shorts on which he was a character designer was 'The Bookworm" (which marked the first appearance of the character by that name).

It ws while Gus Arriola was still working at MGM that he conceived Gordo. Gordo centred on Mexican bean farmer Perfecto Salazar Lopez, who was nicknamed "Gordo (which can be roughly translated as "Fatso" or "Fatty")." Alongside Gordo, a number of other characters appeared in the comic strip. His nephew was Pepito. Gordo leased his land from Don Ramon, and his housekeeper was Tehuana Mama. Gordo was constantly pursed by the widow Artemisa Rosalinda Gonzalez.His pets included his dog Señor Dog and his cat Poosy Gato, as well as other animals such as the black cat PM and her kitten Bête Noire, and a jazz-loving spider named Bug Rogers. The various animals were noted for often doling out bits of wisdom.

In the early days of the comic strip, Gordo was a common Mexican buffoon stereotype. He was somewhat lazy, spoke in heavily accented English, and wore a sombrero. He resembled Pancho in The Cisco Kid movies and TV show to a great deal.  As might be expected, in its early days, Gordo received a good deal of criticism from Mexican American readers for its stereotypes.  As time went by Gordo began to lose its stereotypical elements. By the 1940s and 1950s Gordo had evolved more towards a humorous adventure comic strip. As Gordo became more popular, Gus Arriola became more aware that as the only comic strip in the United States centered on Mexican characters it should present a more positive image of Mexico and its people.

It was then at 1954 that Don Ramon retired from farming and as a result Gordo lost the lease to his land. A trimmer Gordo then went to work as a tour guide, showing tourists the wonders of Mexico on his bus El Cometa Halley. In addition to giving Americans glimpses of Mexico that Americans might never have seen, the comic strip Gordo also introduced Americans to such Spanish words and phrases as "burrito," "hasta la vista," "piñata," and others. Originally a rather negative stereotype, the character of Gordo became something of an ambassador for Mexican history and culture. In the end Gordo would be honoured by both the Mexican government and the California State Legislature.

While Gordo never achieved the level of popularity of Blondie or Peanuts, it proved to have some longevity. It was two months after the attack on Pearl Harbour that Gus Arriola enlisted in the United States Army Air Corps. In the Army he was assigned to its motion picture unit. He continued to do the Gordo  Sunday comic strips, but he would not resume the daily strips until June 14 1946. Ultimately, Gordo would last until March 2 1985, when Gus Arrioloa retired from the comic strip due to the effects of Parkinson's disease.

Gus Arriola died on February 2 2008 at the age of 90. He left behind a legacy that is still being felt to this day. Gordo received the National Cartoonist Society's Humour Comic Strip Award in 1957 and again in 1965. Gus Arriola received the Charles M. Schulz Award from the San Francisco Museum of Comic art for lifetime achievement in 1999. Gordo would have an impact on the comic strips Baldo by Hector Cantú and La Cucaracha by Lalo Alcaraz. When Gus Arriola died, both Baldo and La Cucaracha featured tributes to the legendary cartoonist. While Gordo had begun as a stereotypical look at Mexicans, it eventually became a tool for both understanding and promotion of Mexico.

Smokey Bear Turns 80

Today marks the 80th birthday of Smokey Bear. It was on August 9 1944 that the United States Forest Service authorized the use of an anthropomorphic bear in a new public service campaign. Since that time Smokey Bear has proven enormously popular, appearing in media beyond the the Forest Service's public service announcements. Indeed, the Smokey Bear campaign is the longest running PSA campaign in the history of the United States. Smokey's purpose is simple: to educate people on the danger of forest fires and fire safety.

The U.S. Forest Service was formed on February 1 1905 as an agency within the Department of Agriculture. From the beginning the Forest Service has fought wildfires. It was during World War I when many firefighters were serving in the military overseas that the Forest Service began using posters to educate the American public on the dangers of wildfires and how to prevent them. It was in 1942 that the U.S. Forest licensed characters from the Walt Disney movie Bambi (1942) to be used in a series of public service announcements. Eventually the licence for the characters from Bambi would end, so that the Forest Service had to develop a new PSA campaign.

Eventually a bear was chosen as the mascot to be used in the new campaign. It was artist Harry Rossoll who provided Smokey Bear's appearance, having made a rough sketch of the character. Smokey Bear was named after "Smokey" Joe Martin, a former New York City Fire Department deputy chief who had suffered from blindness and burns after fighting a fire at the Manufacturer's Transit  Company warehouse on July 18 1922. The first poster to feature Smokey depicted the bear putting out a fire with water while dress in his trademark campaign hat and blue jeans. Its caption read, "Care will prevent 9 out of 10 forest fires!"

It was in 1947 that the slogan most associated with Smokey Bear was adopted: "Remember...only you can prevent forest fires." The slogan remained the same for decades until it was slightly modified in 2001 to "Remember...only you can prevent wildfires." This was in response to a series of wildfires in California that affected places beyond forests.

It was in the spring of 1950 at the a wildfire in the Capitan Mountains of New Mexico that a bear cub who climbed a tree to escape the fire was rescued. The young bear was initially called Hotfoot Teddy, but was renamed Smokey in honour of Smokey Bear. He was cared for by anger Ray Bell of the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish  and his wife. Eventually the cub was given to the U.S. Forest Service and sent to live at the National Zoo in Washington DC. Smokey would become a celebrity, so much so that when he died in 1975 obituaries were printed in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and other major newspapers.

Due to his popularity, there has been Smokey Bear merchandise from the beginning. It was in 1944, the very year the public service campaign began, that Knickerbocker Bears received a licence to produce Smokey Bear dolls. Ideal Toys began producing Smokey Bear dolls in 1952. Smokey Bear dolls are still being produced to this day. Since 1944 there have also been Smokey Bear lunch boxes, games, puzzles, t-shirts, hats, and even salt and pepper shakers.

As mentioned earlier, Smokey Bear would also appear in other media. On November 24 1966 The Ballad of Smokey Bear aired on the General Electric Full Colour Fantasy Hour on NBC. The special was produced by Rankin/Bass using their stop-motion technique known as Animagic. This would be followed in 1969 by a regularly scheduled, Saturday morning cartoon, The Smokey Bear Show, which was also produced by Rankin/Bass. Unlike the special, it used traditional cel animation. It debuted on ABC on September 6 1969 and ran on Saturday mornings until September 1970. ABC showed reruns of The Smokey Bear Show on Sunday morning during the 1970-1971 season.

Smokey Bear would also appear in comic books. He appeared in public service announcements in the Fifties. In 1955 Dell Comics The True Story of Smokey Bear. Smokey Bear would appear in issues of Dell's anthology Four Colour from 1955 to 1961. In 1970 Gold Key began publishing a regular title Smokey Bear, perhaps because of the contemporaneous Saturday morning cartoon. It ran for 13 issues. Smokey also appeared in a Little Golden Book published in 1955 titled Smokey the Bear, despite the fact that his official name is "Smokey Bear." He would also appear in other Little Golden Books and yet other books.

Smokey Bear has even appeared in song. In 1952 Eddy Arnold had a hit with song titled "Smokey the Bear." Its songwriters, Steve Nelson and Jack Rollins, added "the" to preserve the song's rhythm. The song would later be covered by Canned Heat. Smokey Bear's slogan is quoted in The Beach Boys' 1964 song "Drive-In."

Smokey Beat has even had two balloons in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. The first Smokey Bear balloon made its debut in 1966 to promote the special The Legend of Smokey Bear, which debuted that evening. General Electric contributed $26,000 to the balloon's construction. The first Smokey Bear balloon proved to have some longevity. It flew in most Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade balloons from 1966 to 1981. It made one last appearance in the parade in 1993 in honour of his upcoming 50th anniversary. The second Smokey Bear balloon first appeared in the 2019 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. It has appeared in several parades ever since.

As might be expected, Smokey Bear would be parodied. One such parody so incensed the U.S. Forest Service that it wouldn't be seen again for decades. Dudley Do-Right was a segment of Rocky and His Friends and later The Bullwinkle Show that centered on a particularly dim-witted Canadian Mountie. The Dudley Do-Right episode "Stokey the Bear" featured a bear of that name who helped fight forest fires and educate people on fire safety. Unfortunately, archvillain and Dudley's archenemy Snidely Whiplash got hold of Stokey and hypnotised him to set fires instead of fighting them. This angered the Forest Service, who actually sent a representative to the offices of Jay Ward Productions to express their displeasure. The episode "Stokey the Bear" did not sit well with the show's sponsor, General Mills, either. As a result "Stokey Bear" was never rerun on network television and was not included in syndication packages for decades. It was finally released on home video in 2005.

Smokey Bear continues to be popular to this day. Aside from his balloon in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, he continues to appear in PSAs on television and he even has a social media presence with Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram accounts. And, as mentioned above there is Smokey Bear merchandise being produced to this day. There certainly aren't many PSA mascots with the longevity of Smokey Bear. It seems likely he will be around for another 80 years.

Robert Logan Passes On

Robert Logan, who played J.R. Hale on 77 Sunset Strip and Jericho Jones on Daniel Boone, as well as starring in the two "Wilderness Family" movies, died on May 6 2024 at the age of 82.

Robert Logan was born on May 29 1941 in Brooklyn, New York. His family moved to Los Angeles when he was growing up, and he attended Junipero Serra High School. He received a basketball scholarship to the University of Arizona, but left the college following a change of coaches. He then attended Los Angeles City College. He was at a restaurant one night when he was spotted by a Warner Bros. talent agent.

He signed a contract with Warner Bros. and guest starred on the TV shows Maverick and Surfside 6 before taking the role of J.R. Hale on 77 Sunset Strip. J.R. Hale replaced Kookie (Edd Byrnes) as the parking attendant at Dino's Lounge when Kookie became an investigator at Stu Bailey's (Efrem Zimbalist, Jr.) detective agency. Later in the Sixties he played Jericho Jones on one season of Daniel Boone. He guest starred on the shows Dr. Kildare, and Mr. Novak. He appeared in the movies Claudelle Inglish (1961), Beach Ball (1965),  and The Bridge at Remagen (1969).

In the Seventies Robert Logan starred in the three "Wilderness Family" movies, The Adventures of the Wilderness Family (1975), The Further Adventures of the Wilderness Family (1978) and Mountain Family Robinson (1979). He appeared in the movies Catlow (1971), Across the Great Divide (1976), and The Sea Gypsies (1978). On television he appeared in the TV movie Snowbeast. He appeared in the TV movie Death Ray 2000, which was the pilot for the TV show A Man Called Sloane. Several changes would be made from the pilot to when it became a TV series, including Robert Conrad being cast as Sloane.

In the Eighties Robert Logan wrote and starred in the movie Kelly (1981). He appeared in the movies  A Night in Heaven (1983), Scorpion (1986), and Born to Race (1988). He guest starred on the shows Riptide and 1st & Ten. In the Nineties he appeared in the movies Patriots (1996) ad Redboy 13 (1997).

Robert Logan's career can be divided into phases: a series of TV shows and movies in which he played various youths and a series of movies in which he played various fathers. Regardless, during both phases of his career, he played a variety of roles. He was hipster J.R. on 77 Sunset Strip, rock 'n' roller Bango in the movie Beach Ball, and young settler Jericho Jones on Daniel Boone. Among the various fathers he played was construction worker Skip Robinson who moves his family from Los Angeles to the Rocky Mountains in the "Wilderness Family" movies, a father of two daughters who find themselves shipwrecked in The Sea Gypsies, and a bush pilot in Kelly.Robert Logan could play other roles than youths and fathers. He was a priest in an episode of Riptide and a none-too-nice rocket scientist in A Night in Heaven. In the end, Robert Logan was a very fine actor.

Agent and Producer Jay Kanter Passes On

Jay Kanter, who was the agent for such legends as Marlon Brando, Mel Brooks, Grace Kelly, and Marilyn Monroe, and who produced such films as X, Y & Zee (1972), died yesterday, Tuesday, August 6, at the age of 97.

Jay Kanter was born on December 12 1926 in Chicago. Following his father's death, when he was nine years old, his mother moved to Los Angles with him. During World War II, when he was 17, he joined the United States Navy. It was after his service ended that he got a job in the mailroom at the  Music Corporation of America, better known as MCA. It was not long before he became a messenger to Lew Wasserman, the president of MCA. Lew Wasserman eventually made him an agent.

It was while Jay Kanter was an agent that he lent the key to his Beverly Hills apartment to senior MCA executive Jennings Lang so the executive could meet with actress Joan Bennett, whom he represented. Miss Bennett's husband, Walter Wanger, then shot Mr. Lang in a fit of jealousy. Jennings Lang survived and Walter Wanger served four months at the County Honor Farm at Castaic, California, having pled insanity. As to Jay Kanter, he was moved to MCA's New York City office so he wouldn't have to be interviewed by the Los Angeles County district attorney.The incident was one of the inspirations for the classic movie The Apartment (1960).

In 1962 MCA closed its talent agency due to an anti-trust suit filed by the United States Department of Justice. Jay Kanter then became a film production executive at MCA subsidiary Universal. In the late Sixties and the Seventies Jay Kanter became a producer on his own. He produced the films Doppelgänger (1969), When Eight Bells Toll (1971), Villani (1971), The Nightcomers (1971), X, Y & Zee (1972), Death Line (1972), Fear is the Key (1972), and Big Truck and Sister Clare (1974).

In 1975 he went to work at Fox. He later went to work at The Ladd Co., which made such films as Chariots of Fire (1981), Body Heat (1981), and Blade Runner (1982). In 1994 he set up his own independent production company.

Jay Kanter played a pivotal role in the history of Hollywood movies, representing several legendary actors and directors. As an executive at Universal and MCA, he played a role in making various classic movies and was a producer on his own. He also reported to be a very nice person. On Twitter, Mel Brooks tweeted, "Very sad news today. I've known a lot of nice people in my life, but nobody nicer than Jay Kanter. If you knew him, you loved him. He was more than a legendary agent. He was a loyal friend, always there when you needed him. I know it's a cliché, but in Jay case it is just so true: he will be sorely missed."

Writer/Producer George Schenck Passes On

George Schenck, who wrote for such shows as The Wild Wild West and Bonanza, created the show Crazy Like a Fox, and served as an executive producer on NCIS, died on August 3 2024 at the age of 82. He collaborated with  Frank Cardea for forty years.

George Schenck was born on February 12 1942 in New York City. His father, Aubrey Schenck was a producer at Fox and Eagle-Lion Films and produced such films as Shock (1946), T-Men (1947) and Up Periscope (1959).  He graduated with a degree in screenwriting from USC and then received a graduated degree from the film school. He served in the United States Navy.

His first writing credit was for the second episode of The Wild Wild West, "The Night of the Deadly Bed." In the Sixties he wrote episodes of Branded, Hondo, and Bonanza. He wrote the movies Don't Worry, We'll Think of a Title (1966), Kill a Dragon (1967), Banquero (1970), and More Dead Than Alive (1969).

In the Seventies he wrote the screenplay for the movies Superbeast (1972) and Futurewold (1976). He wrote the TV movies The Phantom of Hollywood and Deathmoon. He wrote episodes of the shows The Wide World of Mystery and Barnaby Jones.

In the Eighties George Schenck and Frank Cardea created the short-lived series Bring 'Em Back Alive (based on the 1932 film and the radio show of the same name, both based on the real-life career of Frank Buck), as well as the hit Crazy Like a Fox. He wrote episodes of Fantasy Island and Small & Frye. In the Nineties George Schenck and Frank Cardea were among the creators of the TV drama Pros and Cons.

In the Nineties George Schenck and Frank Carda created thr show High Sierra Search and Rescue. George Schenck wrote episodes of Pros and Cons, The Great Defender, and Soldier of Fortune, Inc. In the Naughts George Schenck and Frank Careda wrote several episodes of NCIS and later became executive producers on the show. They wrote an episode of Painkiller Jane.

George Schenck served as an executive or consulting producer on the TV shows Bring 'Em Back Alive; Crazy Like a Fox; Pros and Cons; Soldier of Fortune . Inc.; Hack; and NCIS.

George Schenck ws a fine writer, although my favorite works of his came early in his career. The Wild Wild West episode  is one of my favourite episodes of that show, and includes one of the best death traps James West ever faced. "The Luck of Pepper Shannon" was one of the better episodes from late in Bonanza, centring on a reformed outlaw played by Neville Brand. The Barnaby Jones episode "Catch Me If You Can" involved a fellow private eye and friend of Barnaby Jones who is killed by the murderer he had been tracking. Ultimately, George Schenck was responsible for several hours of entertaining television.