Friday, February 14, 2020
Thursday, February 13, 2020
The team of Blake Edwards and Henry Mancini was pretty powerful stuff! The TV Guide came in the mail today and oddly enough, is dated February 13, 1960. Sixty years ago to the day! Just finishing up Mr. Lucky and going to watch again! I love Peter Gunn and this is every bit as good and the bumpers are included in most episodes. Perfectly cast and so many great guest stars including Jack Nicholson (one of his first roles), Yvonne Craig, Joi Lansing, Richard Chamberlain, Barbara Bain, Anne Helm, etc. There was a third series in the works starring Robert Vaughn called A. Dunster Lowell, but it only got as far as a pilot and aired as part of the Dick Powell Theatre. Edward's movie career (along with Mancini scores) really took off in 1961, with Breakfast at Tiffany's and the rest is history. When television was beyond great and creative! #mrlucky #johnvivyan #rossmartin #blakeedwards #henrymancini
Wednesday, February 12, 2020
Tuesday, February 11, 2020
Masaki Iizuka remembered
I just learned that one of my dear friends from the Rankin/Bass Productions group, Masaki Iizuka, passed away. Arthur met Masaki during the making of Rankin/Bass' Mad, Mad, Mad Monsters and he became an integral part of the company. Later he would be associate or assistant Producer and a part of the Rankin family. He started his own animation company called PACIFIC ANIMATION CORPORATION (PAC) and would later produce things like The King and I and The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest. When we got together for Arthur's Memorial in July of 2014, Masaki told me his favorite Animagic scene of all the Rankin/Bass Animagic animation was "Peace Berries" in the Rankin/Bass feature film Marco. I agreed that it was tops. Over the holidays I noticed Masaki's name in the credits more, in things like Nestor, the long-eared Donkey, Thundercats and Jack Frost. Masaki was a great help with all of my books and did a great deal of work on the museum in Bermuda, Masterworks, on the Arthur Rankin exhibit "Arthur's Galaxy." The history of the studio was important to him and Masaki will definitely be missed! #masakiiizuka #rankinbassproductions #thundercats #associateproducer
Monday, February 10, 2020
Sunday, February 09, 2020
Many fans have been posting about this in our Facebook groups and on social media......
