A Real Treat from Dick Bickenbach

 Tomorrow marks 117 years since animator Richard Bickenbach was born. He had an extraordinary career in the industry that spanned fifty years and saw him work with everyone from Ub Iwerks to, of course, Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera. He was one of many who joined the company in the aftermath of MGM closing down their animation unit, and he stayed with them until 1980. He played a big role in shaping the look of their early shows, and for many of us, when we imagine the likes of Yogi Bear and the Flintstones family, it's his art we see. 

Below is a short but nonetheless insightful piece about Bickenbach shortly after his retirement. This ran in The Desert Sun on January 31st, 1981, highlighting his appearance at the Palm Springs Women's Club. It also sheds some light on his pre-animation days, information that I had never heard of before finding this article. 

Palm Springs Women's Club

    The Palm Springs Women's Club will meet Monday at 314 S. Cahuilla Road at 2 p.m. The program titled "A Real Treat" will feature Dick Bickenbach, Dorothy Bickenbach, and Jim Bisso.  

    Dick Bickenbach studied music in Long Beach and won a scholarship to the Chicago College of Music. He studied with Frans-Proshowski and sang on a half-hour program at KNX radio. Dick is a graduate from UCLA and is the artist for the "Flintstones" and "Yogi Bear"/

    Dorothy Bickenbach, a graduate from USC played at KNX radio for the musicians where she met her husband. She has taught music and now, retired, gives her time to help students at C.O.D.

    Jim Bisso has been playing the mandolin since he was a child. Though he was in the electrical business for 35 years, his love for music never diminished. He enjoys playing today as much as he did when he was a child.

Artists of Hanna-Barbera at Work

 The early years of Hanna-Barbera were truly stacked in terms of artistic talent. Off the top of my head, Carlo Vinci, Ed Benedict, Dick Bickenbach, Iwao Takamoto, Jerry Eisenberg, and Bob Singer are just some of the talented men who made the golden era of Hanna-Barbera what it was. So why don't we celebrate them by showing some of these men at work? From Cartoon Network's old "Hanna-Barbera Studio Tour" feature, here's a small set of photos featuring several of their artists doing what they do best.

First up is Dick Lundy. Best known for creating Donald Duck, Lundy worked for HB between the years of 1959 and 1973. His resume for them was quite large, beginning with Quick Draw McGraw, and ending with Captain Caveman, the latter of which was a freelance gig. 

Second up is Dan Gordon, who appears to be working on a scene featuring Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble. Gordon worked at several other animation studios before coming to Hanna-Barbera, including Fleischer and Famous Studios. He was among the first to be recruited by Bill and Joe to join their company, and worked there until he passed away in 1970. 

Third on the list is someone I've talked about a few times before, and that is Jerry Eisenberg. Son of comic book artist Harvey Eisenberg, Jerry started working at Hanna-Barbera in 1961 until he left the studio in 1977 to join Ruby-Spears. In the nineties, he would come back to the studio, and work on shows like Johnny Bravo and Tom and Jerry Kids. A talented man who I have only heard great things about, Eisenberg is among the last of the artists from Hanna-Barbera's early years still with us today.

Dick Bickenbach is the next artist I'd like to spotlight. A man whose resume includes cartoons for WB, MGM, and Hanna-Barbera, he was another one of their first recruits, and stayed with the company until 1980. Richard was one of the artists who really developed the classic art style that we all know Hanna-Barbera for, and remains one of their most famous employees. Below, we see him posing for a photo in the midst of doing layouts for a Scooby-Doo cartoon.

Speaking of everyone's favorite Great Dane, here's the man who designed him and the rest of Mystery Inc., Iwao Takamoto! Starting off as an artist for Disney, Takamoto joined Hanna-Barbera in 1961, and became one of their most important employees, handling directing and producing duties on many later projects. He stayed with the company until it closed its doors in 1996, but continued to consult productions featuring the Hanna-Barbera characters until he passed away in 2007. Below we see him, both with and without facial hair, doing what he does best.