Friz Freleng

producer, director, writer

Friz Freleng was born on Aug 21, 1904 in USA. Friz Freleng's big-screen debut came with Bosko the Talk-Ink Kid directed by Hugh Harman in 1929. Friz Freleng is known for Irreverent Imagination: The Golden Age of the Looney Tunes directed by Constantine Nasr, Stan Freberg stars as Narrator and Jerry Beck as Self. Friz Freleng has got 7 awards and 9 nominations so far. The most recent award Friz Freleng achieved is Walk of Fame. The upcoming new movie Friz Freleng plays is Irreverent Imagination: The Golden Age of the Looney Tunes which will be released on Oct 28, 2003.

Friz Freleng was born Isadore Freleng on August 21, 1906 in Kansas City, Missouri. With no formal training in drawing, his first job as an animator was with United Film Advancement Services in 1924 at the age of 17. The first work Friz is credited with was for Disney Studios where he worked as an animator on the "Alice" series in 1927. Friz then did some animation for Robert Winkler Productions in 1928 starting with Fiery Fireman and for Screen Gems (Port Whines) in 1929, but it was his work in Bosko the Talk-Ink Kid (1929) in 1929 under the direction of Hugh Harmon and Rudolf Ising when he first worked for Warner Brothers, though known at that time as Leon Schlesinger Studios.Under Leon Schlesinger's supervision in the budding animation department of Warner Brothers, Freleng's career as an animator and director rocketed, producing some of the most beloved cartoons in America's golden age of animation.Freleng worked as the head animator and oftentimes producer on the two main animation subdivisions established by Warner Brothers, Looney Toons and Merrie Melodies.In the late forties, after Tex Avery and Robert Clampett had left Warner Brothers, Freleng's career as a director soared. Though nominated throughout his career for numerous Academy Awards, it wasn't until 1947 that he eventually took the Oscar for Tarte aux tweets (1947). Freleng then won Oscars for Speedy Gonzales (1955) in 1955, Les Mangeurs d'oiseaux anonymes (1957) in 1957, Les Peureux Chevaliers de la Table ronde (1958) in 1958, and La Vie en rose (1964) in 1964.In 1963, Freleng along with David De Patie created the DePatie-Freleng Studio that specialized in short films and television commercials. It was here that Freleng enjoyed great success with his Pink Panther television series.Freleng returned to Warner Brothers to direct a number of specials, such as S.O.S. Daffy Duck (1988) and Porky Pig in Hollywood.In 1986, Freleng appeared as himself in the Looney Tunes 50th Anniversary (1986), and three years later he made another appearance in the television special, Roger Rabbit and the Secrets of Toon Town (1988).Freleng, in addition to his production work, wrote the script for Le Monde fou, fou, fou de Bugs Bunny (1981), while contributing to the Les 1001 Contes de Bugs Bunny (1982) and L'Île fantastique de Daffy Duck (1983).He also penned the book "Animation: The Art of Friz Freleng" (1994).The New York Museum of Modern Art honored both Friz Freleng and Chuck Jones in a 1985 retrospective that set attendance records for the institution that remain unbroken to this day.Friz Freleng passed away due to a heart ailment at his home in Los Angeles on May 26, 1995 at the age of 88.Today Freleng's artwork is highly prized and sought by many collectors. Expect to pay a pretty penny for his work.