Milton Knight
Encyclopedia
Milton Knight is a cartoonist/animator, comic book artist and writer, painter, and storyboard/layout artist known for his Golden Age
(1930s) cartooning style.
Nassau County Cultural Arts Center (Syosset, N.Y.) and Hofstra University
; Hempstead. From 1979 on, he illustrated for national magazines and newspapers: The Village Voice
, Family Weekly, Nickelodeon Magazine, The Electric Company Magazine, National Lampoon, High Times, Heavy Metal
, and others. He created theatre posters, music CD covers, greeting cards, candy, t-shirts, paintings, and other products. He moved to California in 1991, where he became an animator for TV cartoons. He developed the art, character, prop, background, storyboard, and color designs of animated cartoons for Disney TV, MGM TV, Saban
, Rhythm & Hues, Warner Bros. Animation
, HBO, and others.
He teaches art at The Colonnade Art Gallery and Studio in Pasadena
, CA. He is an Animation Archive Volunteer for ASIFA.
"Audiences actually wanted a wilder, raunchier Cool World
. The premiere audience I saw it with certainly did." -- Milton Knight
"The Grim Reaper is right out of a Max Fleischer cartoon or old Terrytoons, which is why I hired and love Milton Knight the artist. He understands totally the Uncle Remus fable like qualities behind Fleischer and Terrytoons. Milton Knight is probably the purest artist of that style in the business. He has a hard time because studios think he is old fashioned...but that's the point." -- Ralph Bakshi
Golden Age
The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology and legend and refers to the first in a sequence of four or five Ages of Man, in which the Golden Age is first, followed in sequence, by the Silver, Bronze, and Iron Ages, and then the present, a period of decline...
(1930s) cartooning style.
Biography
At age two, Knight began to draw, paint and create comic books attempts and animation. In 1978 to 1979, he attended BOCESBoces
Boces is the second album by Mercury Rev, released in 1993. The band has explained the title as being inspired by the name of the Boards of Cooperative Educational Services in New York State, a vocational school system in the band's home state....
Nassau County Cultural Arts Center (Syosset, N.Y.) and Hofstra University
Hofstra University
Hofstra University is a private, nonsectarian institution of higher learning located in the Village of Hempstead, New York, United States, about east of New York City: less than an hour away by train or car...
; Hempstead. From 1979 on, he illustrated for national magazines and newspapers: The Village Voice
The Village Voice
The Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
, Family Weekly, Nickelodeon Magazine, The Electric Company Magazine, National Lampoon, High Times, Heavy Metal
Heavy Metal (magazine)
Heavy Metal is an American science fiction and fantasy comics magazine, known primarily for its blend of dark fantasy/science fiction and erotica. In the mid-1970s, while publisher Leonard Mogel was in Paris to jump-start the French edition of National Lampoon, he discovered the French...
, and others. He created theatre posters, music CD covers, greeting cards, candy, t-shirts, paintings, and other products. He moved to California in 1991, where he became an animator for TV cartoons. He developed the art, character, prop, background, storyboard, and color designs of animated cartoons for Disney TV, MGM TV, Saban
Saban
Saban Entertainment , was a worldwide-served independent American television production company formed in 1984 by music and television producers Haim Saban and Shuki Levy as "Saban Productions", a U.S...
, Rhythm & Hues, Warner Bros. Animation
Warner Bros. Animation
Warner Bros. Animation is the animation division of Warner Bros., a subsidiary of Time Warner. The studio is closely associated with the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies characters, among others. The studio is the successor to Warner Bros...
, HBO, and others.
He teaches art at The Colonnade Art Gallery and Studio in Pasadena
Pasadena, California
Pasadena is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Although famous for hosting the annual Rose Bowl football game and Tournament of Roses Parade, Pasadena is the home to many scientific and cultural institutions, including the California Institute of Technology , the Jet...
, CA. He is an Animation Archive Volunteer for ASIFA.
Animated cartoons
- Cool WorldCool WorldCool World is a 1992 American live-action/animated film directed by Ralph Bakshi, and starring Kim Basinger, Gabriel Byrne, and Brad Pitt. It tells the story of a cartoonist who finds himself in the animated world he created, and is seduced by one of his characters, a comic strip vamp who wants to...
(1992)(Ralph Bakshi/Paramount) character designer, layout, animation - BattletoadsBattletoadsBattletoads is a platformer video game created by Tim and Chris Stamper and developed by Rare. Starring three anthropomorphic toads named after skin conditions , the game was created to rival the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles games....
(1992)(TV movie) storyboard/layout artist - Adventures of Sonic the HedgehogAdventures of Sonic the HedgehogThe Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog is an American animated series that was first broadcast in September 1993, and only for one season...
(1993 TV series)(DIC Entertainment) Story, storyboard artist character, background & prop design, layout, animation. - The Twisted Tales of Felix the CatThe Twisted Tales of Felix the CatThe Twisted Tales of Felix the Cat is an animated series starring the classic 1919 feline character, Felix the Cat produced for television by Film Roman. It aired from September 9, 1995 to November 25, 1997 on CBS.-History:...
(1995 TV series)(Film Roman) Directed four shorts, Co-writer - safety spot for California Dept. of Water Resources. (Baer Animation) theater & TV - directed, animated
- Johnny TestJohnny TestJohnny Test is an American/Canadian animated television series. It premiered on Kids' WB, on The WB Television Network, on September 17, 2005. Five months later, it was introduced to Cartoon Network UK on January 12, 2006, first, as a sneak preview on Jungle Saturdays Block, and then on June 5,...
(2005 TV series) - Class of 3000Class of 3000Class of 3000 is an American animated television series on Cartoon Network that was created by, was executively produced by, and starred André 3000 of the Hip Hop group OutKast as superstar and music teacher Sunny Bridges, set at Atlanta, Georgia's Westley School of Performing Arts. Mr...
(2006) storyboard artist - Attila and the Great Blue Bean (2007) illustrations
- Caprice! - independent cartoon planned, not made
Comic strips & comic books
- Mighty MouseMighty MouseMighty Mouse is an animated superhero mouse character created by the Terrytoons studio for 20th Century Fox.-History:The character was created by story man Izzy Klein as a super-powered housefly named Superfly. Studio head Paul Terry changed the character into a cartoon mouse instead...
: 8-page strip written & drawn for publisher Spotlight in 1987 - Teenage Mutant Ninja TurtlesTeenage Mutant Ninja TurtlesThe Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are a fictional team of four teenage anthropomorphic turtles, who were trained by their anthropomorphic rat sensei in the art of ninjutsu and named after four Renaissance artists...
(1990) - Mighty MouseMighty MouseMighty Mouse is an animated superhero mouse character created by the Terrytoons studio for 20th Century Fox.-History:The character was created by story man Izzy Klein as a super-powered housefly named Superfly. Studio head Paul Terry changed the character into a cartoon mouse instead...
: (1990 to 1991) 10 issue Marvel ComicsMarvel ComicsMarvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
comic book series - Betty BoopBetty BoopBetty Boop is an animated cartoon character created by Max Fleischer, with help from animators including Grim Natwick. She originally appeared in the Talkartoon and Betty Boop film series, which were produced by Fleischer Studios and released by Paramount Pictures. She has also been featured in...
's Big Break - Graphic Classics: (involvement since 1991)(Eureka Productions) paperback series - H.G. Wells, Edgar Allan PoeEdgar Allan PoeEdgar Allan Poe was an American author, poet, editor and literary critic, considered part of the American Romantic Movement. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story and is considered the inventor of the detective...
, and Arthur Conan DoyleArthur Conan DoyleSir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle DL was a Scottish physician and writer, most noted for his stories about the detective Sherlock Holmes, generally considered a milestone in the field of crime fiction, and for the adventures of Professor Challenger...
adaptations - Harveyville Fun Times!
- Poker!: Zora Neale Hurston adaptation in The Graphic Canon (Seven Stories PressSeven Stories PressSeven Stories Press is an independent publishing company. Located in New York City, the company was founded by editor Dan Simon in 1995 after he parted company with Four Walls Eight Windows. The company was named for its seven founding authors: Annie Ernaux, Gary Null, the estate of Nelson Algren,...
)
Adult comic strips & comic books
- HugoHugoHugo may refer to:* Hugo , a surname and a male given name -Places:* Hugo, Alabama* Hugo, Colorado* Hugo, Minnesota* Hugo, Oklahoma* Hugo, Oregon* 2106 Hugo, an asteroid named after Victor Hugo-Characters:...
(1982)(Fantagraphics BooksFantagraphics BooksFantagraphics Books is an American publisher of alternative comics, classic comic strip anthologies, magazines, graphic novels, and the adult-oriented Eros Comix imprint...
) First independent comic book he published. - Screw strips
- Heavy MetalHeavy Metal (magazine)Heavy Metal is an American science fiction and fantasy comics magazine, known primarily for its blend of dark fantasy/science fiction and erotica. In the mid-1970s, while publisher Leonard Mogel was in Paris to jump-start the French edition of National Lampoon, he discovered the French...
strips (1980s) - Mack
- Midnite the Rebel Skunk
- Moonie (Moonchild)(Mu PressMU PressMU Press was an independent comic book publisher based in Seattle, Washington, which operated from 1990–c. 2006. MU Press was one of the industry's most prolific "furry" comic publishers, while its mid-90s imprint Aeon Publications specialized in alternative fare. MU Press was founded by...
) - Nanny Dickering
- Slug 'n' Ginger (pen name: Lou Hepton)
- Wild Kingdom (Mu Press)
- Wolfo (in Screw magazine)
- Zoe (in High Times)
- Hinkley (MU Press)
- Series of 30 ink drawings about depression
- World War 3 IllustratedWorld War 3 IllustratedWorld War 3 Illustrated is an American comics anthology magazine with a left-wing political focus, founded in 1980 by New York comic book artists Peter Kuper and Seth Tobocman, and painter Christof Kohlhofer, and subsequently produced by a collective with a rotating editorship...
Music Album Covers
- Fats WallerFats WallerFats Waller , born Thomas Wright Waller, was a jazz pianist, organist, composer, singer, and comedic entertainer...
Hallelujah - Halloween Stomp
- Laughter from the Hip
- Que Rico! Mozambique - Ricardo Estrada
- Raymond ScottRaymond ScottRaymond Scott was an American composer, band leader, pianist, engineer, recording studio maverick, and electronic instrument inventor....
Project Powerhouse - Sheiks and Vamps 1920's Dance Bands Vol. 1
- Sissy Man Blues
- Viper Mad Blues
Quotes
"I've never formed a barrier between fine art and cartooning. Growing up, I treasured Chinese watercolors, Breughel, Charlie Brown and Terrytoons equally." -- Milton Knight"Audiences actually wanted a wilder, raunchier Cool World
Cool World
Cool World is a 1992 American live-action/animated film directed by Ralph Bakshi, and starring Kim Basinger, Gabriel Byrne, and Brad Pitt. It tells the story of a cartoonist who finds himself in the animated world he created, and is seduced by one of his characters, a comic strip vamp who wants to...
. The premiere audience I saw it with certainly did." -- Milton Knight
"The Grim Reaper is right out of a Max Fleischer cartoon or old Terrytoons, which is why I hired and love Milton Knight the artist. He understands totally the Uncle Remus fable like qualities behind Fleischer and Terrytoons. Milton Knight is probably the purest artist of that style in the business. He has a hard time because studios think he is old fashioned...but that's the point." -- Ralph Bakshi
Ralph Bakshi
Ralph Bakshi is an Israeli-American director of animated and live-action films. In the 1970s, he established an alternative to mainstream animation through independent and adult-oriented productions. Between 1972 and 1992, he directed nine theatrically released feature films, five of which he wrote...
External links
- Milton Knight - The World of Knight - Pasadena, California http://www.coroflot.com/miltonknight/profile
- Milton Knight - IMDb http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1692262/
- GRAPHIC CLASSICS http://www.graphicclassics.com/pgs/knight.htm
- Milton Knight (comic artists & creators) http://www.comicvine.com/milton-knight/26-28407/