On A Desert Island With...

This month, we asked a few animation art experts what ten films they would want to have with them on a desert island. Linda Jones Clough [1] is the daughter of animation legend Chuck Jones, and president of Linda Jones Enterprises, a company which distributes limited edition art. Pierre Lambert [2] is an avid animation art collector, consultant to Christie's, and author of several books on Disney animation art. Graham Parker is an animation art collector and dealer, and owner of The Animation Art Gallery at Oxford Circus in Central London.

[3]

Linda Jones Clough. [3]

Linda Jones Clough's selections
"You can't imagine how difficult this is for me...it's like asking a doctor to list which 10 medications he would most like to have with him on a desert island...it's almost impossible to do without qualifying that there are `reasons' and there are sooooo many left out. But, here it is, from my immediate response and from my heart...in alphabetical order (not preference or priority)."

1. Ali Baba Bunny by Warner Bros.
2. Beatrix Potter's Peter Rabbit by TVC.
3. Dover Boys by Warner Bros.
4. Dumbo by Disney.
5. Fantasia by Disney.
6. Gertie the Dinosaur by Winsor McCay.
7. Gulliver's Travels, the 1939 animated feature by Fleischer Studios.
8. Hot Stuff by CFB.
9. Munro by UPA.
10. Robin Hood Daffy by Warner Bros.

Pierre Lambert's top ten:
1. Pinocchio by Disney.
2. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs by Disney.
3. The Man Who Planted Trees by Frederic Back. [4]
4. Crac by Frederic Back.
5. One Froggy Evening by Chuck Jones/Warner Bros.
6. Feed the Kitty by Chuck Jones/Warner Bros.
7. The Sorcerer's Apprentice from Fantasia, by Disney.
8. All Tex Avery Cartoons (MGM period).
9. The Jungle Book by Wolfgang Reitherman.
10. Desert by José Xavier.

Graham Parker's Picks:
"I was never so much a fan of a complete film, more with individual parts that showed how these artists translated what we take for granted into their world. To see a concept painting, a sketch or a background is like looking through a partly open door into another world. The list of 10 films that I would want on my island take into account very personal moments or memories, please read it realizing that I left the other 900 films behind and am still sad for that fact!"

1. Pinnochio by Disney. Could a film like this ever be made again?
2. Thunderbirds. What? I hear you ask. Well, this 1960s series was animated, but by marionettes not stop-motion. I hope I can get away with this! If you don't know it, you really have a great surprise waiting for you.
3. The Wrong Trousers by Nick Park. There are some films that get better and better like a fine wine. This is one of them. Each time you will see a small detail you missed the first time.
4. Tom & Jerry "Downhearted Duckling" by Hanna-Barbera. This 1954 short is one of my favorites. If I get a time machine, I want to go back and sit in on a storyboard meeting. Pure genius!
5. Fast & Furry-ous by Warner Bros. If I have one hope in my animation life, I hope that Chuck Jones has made a final episode of these legendary adversaries to be shown in some future year, in which Coyote will finally catch the Road Runner, and enjoy a barbecue in the desert.
6. Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas. Why did Disney bury this film? They have never been good at sharing the spotlight with anyone, but here was a film that has a tremendous cult following and they just whimpered it out and then filed it away.
7. Pink Floyd The Wall. Okay, I may not want to watch the live-action film too much on my island, but I will watch the 15 minutes of animation that was in it.
8. The Simpsons. I really believe that this series will be viewed as the series of the Nineties; like how in England at leastThe Flintstones are remembered for the Sixties.
9. The Snowman by John Coates.
10. Superman by Fleischer Studios and Filmation. It was a tough choice between him and Batman, but the pure style of this series won me over.