ReviewsPraise for Wild Minds : "If the twentieth century had its court painters, they were the cartoonists and animators employed by Walt Disney and other creative wizards of pop culture. In his engrossing, entertaining, and deeply researched Wild Minds , Reid Mitenbuler recreates the world of these classic animators--the largely unsung Holbeins and Van Dycks of the Magic Kingdom and at Warner Bros., Paramount, and smaller studios. There's a direct evolutionary path, we come to realize, from the genius of Winsor McCay, a century ago, to the subversive tropes of South Park . The legacy of the animators is one we can't escape--and don't want to." --Cullen Murphy, author of Cartoon County: My Father and His Friends in the Golden Age of Make-Believe "In this absorbing history of animation, Reid Mitenbuler illuminates lives both deservedly familiar (Walt Disney, Max Fleischer, Chuck Jones) and tragically forgotten (Winsor McCay, Émile Cohl). The prose is terrific, the insights frequent, and the information fascinating. Mitenbuler deepens one's understanding not only of his subject, but the world itself. It's everything you want a nonfiction book to be." --Tom Bissell, author of Creative Types and coauthor of The Disaster Artist, Praise for Wild Minds : "Entertaining history of early cartoon animation. Demonstrating impassioned research and technical know-how, Mitenbuler presents a series of historical anecdotes that, sequenced together, bring to life one of the world's most beloved art forms . . . The narrative crackles with captivating charm, adding color and nuance to a cast of familiar cartoon faces . . . Like a one-man animation department, [Mitenbuler] effortlessly renders both celluloid and background. A finely drawn history of a critical period in the history of animation." -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review) "Journalist Mitenbuler casts the creators of animated cartoons as characters themselves in this rollicking history of the first 50 years of animation . . . In snappy prose, Mitenbuler writes a history rich with personalities. This Technicolor tour de force is impossible to put down." -- Publishers Weekly (starred review) " Wild Minds is a thoroughly captivating behind-the-scenes history of classic American animation, full of breezy stories of the great artists who went crazy making the brilliant cartoons we all know and love. A must-read for all fans of the medium." --Matt Groening, creator of The Simpsons and Futurama "If the twentieth century had its court painters, they were the cartoonists and animators employed by Walt Disney and other creative wizards of pop culture. In his engrossing, entertaining, and deeply researched Wild Minds , Reid Mitenbuler recreates the world of these classic animators--the largely unsung Holbeins and Van Dycks of the Magic Kingdom and at Warner Bros., Paramount, and smaller studios. There's a direct evolutionary path, we come to realize, from the genius of Winsor McCay, a century ago, to the subversive tropes of South Park . The legacy of the animators is one we can't escape--and don't want to." --Cullen Murphy, author of Cartoon County: My Father and His Friends in the Golden Age of Make-Believe "In this absorbing history of animation, Reid Mitenbuler illuminates lives both deservedly familiar (Walt Disney, Max Fleischer, Chuck Jones) and tragically forgotten (Winsor McCay, Émile Cohl). The prose is terrific, the insights frequent, and the information fascinating. Mitenbuler deepens one's understanding not only of his subject, but the world itself. It's everything you want a nonfiction book to be." --Tom Bissell, author of Creative Types and coauthor of The Disaster Artist "An absolutely vital compendium covering all high points, low points, and pen points of the personalities who hijacked our pop culture--pioneering a now-dominant American industry, ultimately creating characters and films that have stood the test of time. A delightful read--like the cartoons themselves: buoyant, bouncy, and wonderfully entertaining." --Jerry Beck, animation historian and author, Praise for Wild Minds : "Superficially, Wild Minds is about the origins of Mickey Mouse, Popeye the Sailor and Bugs Bunny cartoons. But Mitenbuler's real target is a quintessentially American story of daring ambition, personal reinvention and the eternal tug-of-war of between art and business . . . While animation would rise again to find its place in our own era of the long-running Simpsons and the glorious works of Hayao Miyazaki, Mitenbuler's book is a gem for anyone wanting to understand animation's origin story." --Adam Frank, NPR "Entertaining history of early cartoon animation. Demonstrating impassioned research and technical know-how, Mitenbuler presents a series of historical anecdotes that, sequenced together, bring to life one of the world's most beloved art forms . . . The narrative crackles with captivating charm, adding color and nuance to a cast of familiar cartoon faces . . . Like a one-man animation department, [Mitenbuler] effortlessly renders both celluloid and background. A finely drawn history of a critical period in the history of animation." -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review) "Journalist Mitenbuler casts the creators of animated cartoons as characters themselves in this rollicking history of the first 50 years of animation . . . In snappy prose, Mitenbuler writes a history rich with personalities. This Technicolor tour de force is impossible to put down." -- Publishers Weekly (starred review) "While animation is often considered a children's medium, its early days were filled with social commentary, sexuality, satire, and countless creative and financial battles . . . An entertaining and revealing look into the dawn of a revolutionary art form." -- Library Journal " Wild Minds is a thoroughly captivating behind-the-scenes history of classic American animation, full of breezy stories of the great artists who went crazy making the brilliant cartoons we all know and love. A must-read for all fans of the medium." --Matt Groening, creator of The Simpsons and Futurama "If the twentieth century had its court painters, they were the cartoonists and animators employed by Walt Disney and other creative wizards of pop culture. In his engrossing, entertaining, and deeply researched Wild Minds , Reid Mitenbuler recreates the world of these classic animators--the largely unsung Holbeins and Van Dycks of the Magic Kingdom and at Warner Bros., Paramount, and smaller studios. There's a direct evolutionary path, we come to realize, from the genius of Winsor McCay, a century ago, to the subversive tropes of South Park . The legacy of the animators is one we can't escape--and don't want to." --Cullen Murphy, author of Cartoon County: My Father and His Friends in the Golden Age of Make-Believe "In this absorbing history of animation, Reid Mitenbuler illuminates lives both deservedly familiar (Walt Disney, Max Fleischer, Chuck Jones) and tragically forgotten (Winsor McCay, Émile Cohl). The prose is terrific, the insights frequent, and the information fascinating. Mitenbuler deepens one's understanding not only of his subject, but the world itself. It's everything you want a nonfiction book to be." --Tom Bissell, author of Creative Types and coauthor of The Disaster Artist "An absolutely vital compendium covering all high points, low points, and pen points of the personalities who hijacked our pop culture--pioneering a now-dominant American industry, ultimately creating characters and films that have stood the test of time. A delightful read--like the cartoons themselves: buoyant, bouncy, and wonderfully entertaining." --Jerry Beck, animation historian and author, Praise for Wild Minds : " Wild Minds is a thoroughly captivating behind-the-scenes history of classic American animation, full of breezy stories of the great artists who went crazy making the brilliant cartoons we all know and love. A must-read for all fans of the medium." --Matt Groening, creator of The Simpsons and Futurama "If the twentieth century had its court painters, they were the cartoonists and animators employed by Walt Disney and other creative wizards of pop culture. In his engrossing, entertaining, and deeply researched Wild Minds , Reid Mitenbuler recreates the world of these classic animators--the largely unsung Holbeins and Van Dycks of the Magic Kingdom and at Warner Bros., Paramount, and smaller studios. There's a direct evolutionary path, we come to realize, from the genius of Winsor McCay, a century ago, to the subversive tropes of South Park . The legacy of the animators is one we can't escape--and don't want to." --Cullen Murphy, author of Cartoon County: My Father and His Friends in the Golden Age of Make-Believe "In this absorbing history of animation, Reid Mitenbuler illuminates lives both deservedly familiar (Walt Disney, Max Fleischer, Chuck Jones) and tragically forgotten (Winsor McCay, Émile Cohl). The prose is terrific, the insights frequent, and the information fascinating. Mitenbuler deepens one's understanding not only of his subject, but the world itself. It's everything you want a nonfiction book to be." --Tom Bissell, author of Creative Types and coauthor of The Disaster Artist "An absolutely vital compendium covering all high points, low points, and pen points of the personalities who hijacked our pop culture--pioneering a now-dominant American industry, ultimately creating characters and films that have stood the test of time. A delightful read--like the cartoons themselves: buoyant, bouncy, and wonderfully entertaining." --Jerry Beck, animation historian and author, Praise for Wild Minds : "Entertaining history of early cartoon animation. Demonstrating impassioned research and technical know-how, Mitenbuler presents a series of historical anecdotes that, sequenced together, bring to life one of the world's most beloved art forms . . . The narrative crackles with captivating charm, adding color and nuance to a cast of familiar cartoon faces . . . Like a one-man animation department, [Mitenbuler] effortlessly renders both celluloid and background. A finely drawn history of a critical period in the history of animation." -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review) " Wild Minds is a thoroughly captivating behind-the-scenes history of classic American animation, full of breezy stories of the great artists who went crazy making the brilliant cartoons we all know and love. A must-read for all fans of the medium." --Matt Groening, creator of The Simpsons and Futurama "If the twentieth century had its court painters, they were the cartoonists and animators employed by Walt Disney and other creative wizards of pop culture. In his engrossing, entertaining, and deeply researched Wild Minds , Reid Mitenbuler recreates the world of these classic animators--the largely unsung Holbeins and Van Dycks of the Magic Kingdom and at Warner Bros., Paramount, and smaller studios. There's a direct evolutionary path, we come to realize, from the genius of Winsor McCay, a century ago, to the subversive tropes of South Park . The legacy of the animators is one we can't escape--and don't want to." --Cullen Murphy, author of Cartoon County: My Father and His Friends in the Golden Age of Make-Believe "In this absorbing history of animation, Reid Mitenbuler illuminates lives both deservedly familiar (Walt Disney, Max Fleischer, Chuck Jones) and tragically forgotten (Winsor McCay, Émile Cohl). The prose is terrific, the insights frequent, and the information fascinating. Mitenbuler deepens one's understanding not only of his subject, but the world itself. It's everything you want a nonfiction book to be." --Tom Bissell, author of Creative Types and coauthor of The Disaster Artist "An absolutely vital compendium covering all high points, low points, and pen points of the personalities who hijacked our pop culture--pioneering a now-dominant American industry, ultimately creating characters and films that have stood the test of time. A delightful read--like the cartoons themselves: buoyant, bouncy, and wonderfully entertaining." --Jerry Beck, animation historian and author, Praise for Wild Minds : "If the twentieth century had its court painters, they were the cartoonists and animators employed by Walt Disney and other creative wizards of pop culture. In his engrossing, entertaining, and deeply researched Wild Minds , Reid Mitenbuler recreates the world of these classic animators--the largely unsung Holbeins and Van Dycks of the Magic Kingdom and at Warner Bros., Paramount, and smaller studios. There's a direct evolutionary path, we come to realize, from the genius of Winsor McKay, a century ago, to the subversive tropes of South Park . The legacy of the animators is one we can't escape--and don't want to." --Cullen Murphy, author of Cartoon County: My Father and His Friends in the Golden Age of Make-Believe "In this absorbing history of animation, Reid Mitenbuler illuminates lives both deservedly familiar (Walt Disney, Max Fleischer, Chuck Jones) and tragically forgotten (Winsor McCay, Émile Cohl). The prose is terrific, the insights frequent, and the information fascinating. Mitenbuler deepens one's understanding not only of his subject, but the world itself. It's everything you want a nonfiction book to be." --Tom Bissell, author of Creative Types and coauthor of The Disaster Artist, Praise for Wild Minds : "If the twentieth century had its court painters, they were the cartoonists and animators employed by Walt Disney and other creative wizards of pop culture. In his engrossing, entertaining, and deeply researched Wild Minds , Reid Mitenbuler recreates the world of these classic animators--the largely unsung Holbeins and Van Dycks of the Magic Kingdom and at Warner Bros., Paramount, and smaller studios. There's a direct evolutionary path, we come to realize, from the genius of Winsor McCay, a century ago, to the subversive tropes of South Park . The legacy of the animators is one we can't escape--and don't want to." --Cullen Murphy, author of Cartoon County: My Father and His Friends in the Golden Age of Make-Believe "In this absorbing history of animation, Reid Mitenbuler illuminates lives both deservedly familiar (Walt Disney, Max Fleischer, Chuck Jones) and tragically forgotten (Winsor McCay, Émile Cohl). The prose is terrific, the insights frequent, and the information fascinating. Mitenbuler deepens one's understanding not only of his subject, but the world itself. It's everything you want a nonfiction book to be." --Tom Bissell, author of Creative Types and coauthor of The Disaster Artist "An absolutely vital compendium covering all high points, low points, and pen points of the personalities who hijacked our pop culture--pioneering a now-dominant American industry, ultimately creating characters and films that have stood the test of time. A delightful read--like the cartoons themselves: buoyant, bouncy, and wonderfully entertaining." --Jerry Beck, animation historian and author
Dewey Edition23