Parkablogs has done a review of Two Guys Named Joe. I find these are the best “reviews” as they’re more of a thorough preview. If you haven’t got this book yet, check out the review…And then buy it

Here’s a few pages from Albert Hurter’s Sketchbook. Published in 1948 by Simon and Schuster, this book has become quite rare, and usually commands a hefty price. It’s currently on eBay, though it only has a day left, and it’s cheaper than I’ve ever seen it before. I’ll leave the searching up to you.

I’ve been transcribing interviews for Didier Ghez and his Walt’s People series for about a year now. I do it because I have a passion for animation history, and I want to be part of his incredible book series. As Didier would say, it’s up to us to “re-write Disney history.” I don’t care about money or credit. I can see there’s a ton of history to unearth and I really want to know what’s there.

I’m not on the front lines making the discoveries like Didier, but I’m helping deliver it to the masses. And that makes me happy. If this is something you’d like to do as well, get in contact with him and start transcribing an interview. He has ones of all shapes and sizes. Start with something small. If you hate it, don’t do it anymore. If you love hearing the voices instead of reading the transcriptions, like me, you’ll be hooked. Then you can request your favorite artists, and the real meaty interviews. There’s SO MUCH that hasn’t been printed yet. SO MUCH that isn’t part of the collective consciousness regarding animation history. Be a part of bringing it to light.

I transcribe in my spare time. So I might do an interview a month if I’m lucky. That’s all I have time for. I intend on being a damn good artist someday, and I have my own work to do. An interview probably takes me 2-4 hours to transcribe, which I do 20-minutes at a time over the course of a few days. It’s not hard work. It is extremely helpful. I urge you to volunteer a few hours of your time.

I have every Canemaker book and I love them all. His latest one hits stores in a few days. Here’s a promo:

Source: Didier Ghez

Absolutely stunning! That’s all I can say about Pierre Lambert’s latest art book. I recently got a copy for my birthday and I couldn’t be happier. This is easily the most beautiful animation book I own. I’ve posted some of the images within, but it really doesn’t reveal the quality of the book, which is in itself a work of art. The paper, the cels, and fold-outs are all of a quality I have never before seen in an art book, and I have A LOT of art books.

This film is very special to me despite it’s short-comings. When I was a kid, I would always get so excited about going to see my grandfather because I knew I was going to see The Jungle Book again. I have no idea how many times I’ve watched this film, but it started the ball rolling for my interest in animation. Sadly I wouldn’t see much of my grandfather in later years due to relocation and family squabbles, but it’s one of the few memories I have of being with him. Oswald Iten has provided a more in-depth and similarly glowing review of this must have book.

Click the images below to access larger versions:

One of the many nuggets of inspiration from Starting Point by Hayao Miyazaki:

Sometimes budding animators write to me or visit me at home. They usually bring along some drawings. Uncertain of their own talent but full of hope for their future, they come with a lot of anguish. Whenever I see this, I am reminded that there is a certain shamelessness in such uncertainty and impatience, but that is what youth is all about. Youth isn’t just about running pell-mell at the son yelling, “Damn it all to hell!” Youth is about asking yourself who you are, what you can accomplish. It is about fervently drawing pictures every day, on the one hand thinking, “They’re all right, I’ve got something here,” and on the other hand wondering if your work will be accepted by others, and worrying that it may all be and illusion and that you really don’t have any talent at all. This anguish in the midst of uncertainty and impatience is what youth is all about. I would like all of you to fully experience your youth and have a lot of ambition.

I just received my copy of, Pixar : 25 Years of Animation, an Oakland Museum exhibit catalog much like the now extremely rare MoMa one released five years ago for, Pixar : 20 Years of Animation. Both books are almost identical, with the exception that the new one features a bunch of art from the four latest Pixar films (Toy Story 3, Ratatouille, Up, and Wall E).  These are the kinds of “Art Of” books I really dig, they just feature art. Lots and lots of art.

If you missed out on the first catalog, here’s your opportunity to grab one that’s essentially the same without breaking the bank. The first one is now out of print, hard to find, and ridiculously over priced wherever you look. I would only recommend getting both if you’re a collector. You can get your own copy of the new catalog here. Hurry up or it might end up costing $400 in the near future. Here’s a glimpse of the MoMa exhibit from five years ago:

While I’m on the subject of animation exhibit catalogs, there are two other exhibit books you’ll want to add to your collection. The first is, The Art of Disney, from the Tokyo Museum of Contemporary Art in 2006, and the other is The Colors of Mary Blair also from Japan. The covers for both are shown below and they can both be found on Amazon, eBay, and Stuart Ng Books. Michael Sporn is giving everyone a pretty good glimpse of the latter book on his blog. The Art of Disney is one of the best Disney art books I have, and features a ton of work from Sleeping Beauty. Most of the stuff in all four catalogs I’ve mentioned does not appear anywhere else.

This book should be a mandatory addition to your library. If you don’t have it, you are seriously missing out. After years of being out of print and super hard to find, it has been re-printed and will be re-released in two weeks (According to Amazon.ca). Pre-order your copy here (or here if you’re in the states).

If you live in the Los Angeles area, you might want to take advantage of this listing on Craigslist. Three animation year books are up for grabs for $300. I stumbled across it while looking for other animation related stuff. It’s too rich for me, but these books are extremely rare, and definitely worth that price. If you’ve never heard of them, they’re basically production books created in a year book style for the feature animation crew. So not only are they rare, they feature a more intimate behind the scenes look at the making of each film than any public art of book. Why anyone would want to sell their copies is beyond me, but one man’s trash is surely another’s treasure here. These books can sometimes be found at Stuart Ng Books, but for a much steeper price. Snap ‘em up if you can.

I have an extra copy on eBay for those that are looking for this amazing book.

I’ve decided to unload some more of my books. Last time I did a book sale through my blog I got rid of a lot of stuff without having to pay a third party like eBay (which should actually be called feeBay). I also got to meet a lot of equally passionate artists and animators. So here’s the latest batch of books I’m selling.

Same deal as last time. I’ll ship internationally, and I’ll accept payments through Paypal. Everything will be well packaged; just leave a comment if you want something, and I’ll get in touch with you to figure out a shipping quote. I’ll drop the prices until everything is sold, so stay tuned to this post. First come, first serve. There’s some stuff here from the last sale, and a lot of new stuff. I also have a really rare book I’ll be adding to it if it doesn’t sell on eBay. Finally, if you buy multiple books you’ll save on shipping.

• The Art of The Lord of the Rings – Like New – $15
• The Art of the Lion King – Like New – $60
• The Art of Pocahontas – Like New – $60
• The Art of Toy Story – First Edition (Out of Print) – Very Fine: Minor creases top/bottom right corners (barely noticeable) -$30
• Fantasia 2000: Visions of Hope – Book is Like New, Slipcase Fine (Slight peeling at top) -$100
• The Art of Comic Book Inking by Gary Martin – $50
• Walt Disney: An American Original by Bob Thomas – Fine (small crease upper right corner) -$10
• Will Eisner’s The Name of the Game (Hardcover) – Like New – $10
• Will Eisner’s Invisible People – Like New – $10
• Will Eisner’s A Life Force – Like New – $10
• Will Eisner’s New York: Life in the Big City (Hardcover) – Like New – $15
• The Art of Bolt – Very Fine (Extremely minor surface scratches to DJ, barely noticeable) – $20
• The Art of Wall E – Like New -$20
• The Art of Bee Movie – Like New – $20
• The Figure by Walt Reed – Fine (slight curling upper right corner – $10
• Anatomy Lessons of the Great Masters – Very Fine (minor shelf wear) – $10
• Human Anatomy Made Amazingly Easy – Like New – $10
• Modeling the Head in Clay – Like New – $10
• Adobe Master Class : Photoshop Compositing with John Lund – Like New – $25
• The Art of Star Wars Episode 2: Attack of the Clones (Hardcover) – Very Fine – $25
• A Star is Born – The Making of the 1953 Movie and its 1983 Restoration by Ronald Haver – Very Fine – $20
• My Life in Art by Stanislavski – Like New – $20
• Stanislavski in Rehearsal – Fine (some writing inside) – $10
• Creating 3-D Animation: The Aardman Book of Filmmaking – Very Fine – $10
• The Screenwriter’s Workbook by Syd Field – Like New – $5
• Story by Robert Mckee – Fine (minor curling front cover) – $20
• Four Screenplays by Syd Field – Acceptable (ex-library) – $5
• The Hero With a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell – Like New – $10
• Aladdin: The Making of an Animated Film – Like New – $40

Tom Rusch from Silman-James Press has informed me that Composing Pictures is in the works, they’re just having a few technical difficulties. He’s asked me to remove the book which I will do tonight when I get home from work. Even if you have the download, I’d make an effort to pick up this book when it comes out. I can’t think of a better book on the subject, and there’s really nothing like having a book in your hands.

Tom has also offered to personally answer anyone’s questions regarding the new print. You can contact him at tom@silmanjamespress.com

Thanks Tom!